The vz.24 became the primary rifle of the Czechoslovak Army before World War II. It resembled the German Karabiner 98k, which it predated by more than a decade. Unlike the K98k, the vz. 24 has a longer top handguard, and it retains a straight bolt handle.[5] Between 1924 and 1938, Czechoslovakia manufactured more than 775,600 rifles, with the first rifles entering service in 1926. The final order was placed in July 1938, as tensions escalated with Nazi Germany over the Sudeten Germans. Following the German occupation of Czechoslovakia, production continued for the Slovak Republic (a Nazi client state). The exact number of rifles manufactured between 1938 and 1939 is unknown, but may be less than 10,000, based on serial numbers of surviving rifles.[6]
Vz24 Mauser Serial Numbers
In common with elsewhere in Europe, Brno also refurbished large numbers of German Kar 98k rifles in the immediate post-war period. These are distinguishable by a larger serial number stamped on the underside of the stock behind the pistol grip adjacent to the original German number. Czechoslovak-refurbished Kar 98ks were sold to other Communist states in Europe, and were used by military and paramilitary forces into the 1960s, and were retained for some years afterward as reserve weapons. 2ff7e9595c
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