I have a confused C96 it thinks it is a 9 but it is not.

[jamnjammer53150]

Hello all,
My wife's friend lost her brother and I have been charged with Selling off some nice pieces of hardware.
In the lot I have a c96 , the serial indicates it was made in 1915, however some things just do not look correct to me.
The finish is near perfect, however the grips look like one would expect on a 100 yr old gun.
Looking over the exterior all of the numbers match (I haven't taken it apart yet).


Here is where things get weird, It clearly has a black or brown "9" on the grips, it is not a 9 ( some vintage mauser ammo, brass, reloading dies were found with it.) checking the bore in a non scientific manor (holding a 9mm round at the muzzle) it is no way a 9 , and the mauser ammo fits correct.


Now for the really weird part, the grips are stamped on the inside with the 3 numbers matching # on the rest of it. The font of the stamp is not of a current type and it looks like it has been there for a while.


So is it a forgery ? a mistake? something else? was this common?
Or is it just a confused old gun.


Thanks

[Like_Old_Guns]

Photos are everything in getting folks to offer opinions and comments.

[1914mauser]

Things to look for in a correct Red 9, C-96. Rear sight graduated up to 500, serial number between 1-13500, intertwined NS on back of hammer. It would be best if you could post some pictures so we can see what you have but those are some things to look for.

Regards,

[jamnjammer53150]

I will try to get some photos. The thing that bothers me is the grips think it is a 9 , but the barrel disagrees with that.

[jamnjammer53150]

I have some pictures

[jamnjammer53150]

and some more

[jamnjammer53150]

and some more.
So if you look at everything , it thinks it is a 9 (Assuming the stamps on the grips are legit)
but it is clearly not one.
I am concerned about the condition as it is too good, the bluing is as good as a colt python.
So any help on what it is , what it is worth and so on.

Here is my problem , I" hope" there is something wrong with it , as I do not own it ( I really want to ) so I am hoping it has little value so I can afford to buy it from the owner.
Unfortunatly I am an honest person and wouldn't lie about its value to the owner.

[1914mauser]

Ok, It is not a Red-9. I am having a difficult time with your pictures. Here are my observations. The serial number is too high, see previous post. The sight goes up to 1000, see previous post. It is apparently in .30 caliber.

So the grips have been altered or are off a different gun. It appears to be matching but it also appears that some parts if not all have been re-finished. It is difficult for me to asses value but personally I would not want it if the price were more than 1K and would prefer a lot less.
 
Regards,
 

[jamnjammer53150]

Sorry I am not good at taking pictures.
The only thing that makes sense is the grips came from a different gun and someone stamped them to match the rest of it.


Unless there is some other explanation I think that it actually de- values the gun. Personally I think 500 is a fair value ( assuming someone did something less than honorable in marking the grips)


Or it is an extremity rare manufacturing mistake (like the upside down airplane stamp) and it is worth a bazillion bucks.


its still a way cool gun