WW1 weapons for sale
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Guides for these pieces
- Identifying a French bayonetChassepot, Gras, Lebel, Berthier, MAS 36: the blade section gives the model, the numbers tell you whether the piece is still matched.
- Old munitions: what to doA century underground does not make a munition inert. How to recognise what is dangerous, who to call, and what you may lawfully keep.
- Selling militaria in France: what is allowed, what is notMedals, helmets, bayonets, deactivated weapons, inert ammunition: what may be sold freely, what is prohibited, and what to check before listing.
Collecting Great War weapons
The Lebel model 1886 modified 1893 rifle and the Berthiers, the 1907-15 rifle, the model 1916 and the carbines, make up most of the French offer in long arms. Then come the regulation revolvers, the Spanish-made pistols bought in bulk during the conflict, and edged weapons: bayonets, daggers, trench knives. Legal status depends on the model and calibre, and should be checked before buying.
Reading the markings
Regulation weapons are talkative, provided you read in the right place. The receiver carries the name of the state factory, Saint-Étienne, Châtellerault or Tulle, and the model, but not the date: the year of manufacture is read on the barrel, preceded by the factory's initial. The serial number is repeated on several parts, and its match between barrel, receiver, bolt and furniture is the first point to check. The cartouche stamped into the stock completes the reading when the wood has not been sanded.
Reworked and doubtful pieces
These weapons served well beyond 1918 and went through workshops extensively: reworked, shortened, reblued, sometimes renumbered. A weapon with mismatched numbers is an assembly, common on the market. On bayonets, removal of the quillon was carried out during the war but also long afterwards, and grips and scabbards can be replaced without leaving a trace. Our guide to recognising a French bayonet covers the models and their numbers.
The trench knife remains the trickiest case. The only French regulation model, the model 1916 dagger, carries on the ricasso the words Le Vengeur de 1870 on one side and the maker's name on the other. Several private cutlers produced it, and the markings vary from one example to another without being suspect. It stayed in service until the next war, and late examples are sold as 1914-1918 pieces. The rest is workshop or improvised production, which is copied without difficulty.