The M/88 barrel bore specification was changed by 1894–1895 to 7.90 mm (0.311 in) lands diameter and 8.20 mm (0.323 in) grooves diameter to improve accuracy and reduce barrel wear in M/88 chambered arms. The M/88 bore originally had 7.90 mm (0.311 in) lands diameter and 8.10 mm (0.319 in) grooves diameter. The M/88 cartridge was loaded with 2.75 g (42.4 gr) of single-base (based on nitrocellulose) smokeless powder and a relatively heavy, 14.7 grams (227 gr), round-nosed ball bullet with a diameter of 8.08 mm (0.318 in). It was a first-generation smokeless propellant cartridge designed by the German Gewehr-Prüfungskommission (G.P.K.) (Rifle Testing Commission), as the new smokeless propellant introduced as Poudre B in the 1886 pattern 8mm Lebel had started a military rifle ammunition revolution. The parent cartridge, upon which the 7.92×57mm Mauser is based, was adopted by Germany in 1888 as the Patrone 88 (cartridge 88) or M/88 (along with the Gewehr 1888 service rifle). In the 21st century it is still a popular sport and hunting cartridge that is factory-produced in Europe and the United States.ġ888 pattern M/88 (left) parent cartridge alongside the 1903 pattern 7.92×57mm Mauser S Patrone. In its day, the 7.92×57mm Mauser cartridge was one of the world's most popular military cartridges. The 7.92×57mm Mauser cartridge was adopted by the German Empire in 1903–1905, and was the German service cartridge in both World Wars. ) is a rimless bottlenecked rifle cartridge.
The 7.92×57mm Mauser (designated as the 8mm Mauser or 8×57mm by the SAAMI and 8 × 57 IS by the C.I.P. Germany, United Kingdom, Spain, Czechoslovakia, Poland, China, Dominican Republic, Yugoslavia, Ottoman Empire, Turkey, Iran, Egypt, and many other countries