Mauser C96 "Broomhandle" marking
 

Could someone please explain what the marking under the Mauser address stands for??? "DRPuAP"...

Thank You! :D

Ah!

I leeched this off another forum...

...from the German Patent and Trademark bureau...

D.R.P.u.A.P. (Deutsches Reichs-Patent und Auslandische Patente) (German Patent and Foreign Patents) Indicating patent registration in Germany and in foreign countries. Usually used on commercial items.

D.R.G.M. (Deutsches Reich Gebrauchsmuster) Not a patent, but a secondary protection for an item which by itself would not qualify for patent protection. As examples, Mauser held a D.R.G.M. on part of the HSc magazine catrch assembly; Walther had a D.R.G.M. their PP/PPK cleaning kits. Often found on German holsters.

D.R.P.D.R.G.M. As seen on a .22 German rifle, indicates that the basic part of the rifle was covered by a patent (D.R.P.) and that some other secondary feature was covered by a D.R.G.M.

Ges. Gesch. (Gesetzlich Geschutzt) A general, lesser legal notice that the item is protected by one or more of any number of legalities such as a D.R.G.M., trademark, design registration or copyright. Often seen on medals, decorations, pins, etc.

Now I'm really curious...

If it's the Deutsches Reichs Patent office...Does that mean sometime in the timeframe of the 3rd Reich??? I've seen this C96 (with the stepped 7.63mm barrel) referred to as the "C96 Broomhandle Mauser Model 1930"...

Were they still being made up to WWII???

The official name of Weimar Repulic (1919-1933) was "Deutsches Reich". The name was used across Weimar and Nazi until 1943. Some Model 1930 with D.R.P.u.A.P. stamp were made pre-1933, so it must initially referred to the patent office in Weimar government.

Why did Mauser add this line of text on C96? Some very early 1930 do not have this line. Reminding Spanish gun makers "I'm supposed to be the sole vendor of C96", or playing the same role as "Intel Inside" sticker on my laptop? Not sure.

According to E&P, Mauser was ordered to stop producing C96 in 1936, no new parts were made after that. But some guns were assembled from existing parts until 1939. It's commonly believe this type of gun was pure pre-WWII.

Fascinating! I did not know that! :thumbup:

Searching for a Broomhandle Forum, I found this site -

Mauser Self-Loading Pistol

Which has a lot of interesting material, including a reloading table culled from many sources... :)

Postino,

Also remember that the nazi regime was known as the THIRD Reich. There were two goverments referred to as Reichs prior to the nazis