Guns International #: 102148047
Seller's Inventory #: 2212-0024

Category - Military Rifles - Non-US - Military Arms

Category
Military Rifles - Non-US
Military Arms

Carcano Model 1891 Moschetto Cavalry Carbine Made 1942

Description:
The Carcano rifle is a fairly well known rifle that saw service in both world wars among other conflicts. It is perhaps mostly known in the U.S. for its role in the assassination of J.F.K. However, there are many aspects about the Carcano that are often overshadowed by the myths which spawned from that event. Worse still, a reluctance on the part of most ammo manufacturers to produce bullets of the correct size hurts the rifle’s reputation further. The Carcano was original introduced in 1891 and adopted by Italy as the standard service rifle in 1892. It is named after its designer, Salvatore Carcano. The frequently seen “Mannlicher-Carcano” moniker is incorrect, and Mannlicher had nothing to do with the design of the rifle itself, only the clip that it used to feed the cartridges into the rifle. The original rifle, like many military arms of its era, was very long with a barrel no less than 30.6 inches in length. However, the Italians realized the need for a shorter rifle for use by artillery and cavalry troops and so the M1891 Cavalry Carbine (“Moschetto”) and Model 1891 TS (“Truppe Special”) were produced, both with much shorter 18-inch barrels. The former used a folding bayonet attached to the muzzle itself, while the latter initially used a bayonet unique to the model, but later modified to utilize the same bayonet as the standard rifle. One thing that makes these and later carbine models of the Carcano stand out is their size – they are much smaller than that of other nations. This makes them handy and easy to use. Another factor in the Carcano’s favor is its ammo capacity. It uses a 6-round Mannlicher clip rather than the standard five found in most other countries. Also, the fairly small clip and cartridge made it easier to load the rifle and keep up a sustained fire than rifles with larger cartridges. Only the Lee-Enfield could keep up a greater sustained fire thanks to its 10 round magazine. The small dimensions of the 6.5 Carcano also allowed Italian solders to carry more rounds overall than their potential adversaries. The drawback to the Carcano at the time was the Italian Army never switched from heavy round-nosed bullets to a lighter, pointed bullet like everyone else. Instead they tried switching to a new cartridge, the 7.35mm Carcano which used a lighter, pointed bullet. Lack of money and World War II forced the Italian Army to stick to the older 6.5mm cartridge. The Carcano rifle uses what is called “gain twist” rifling wherein the twist near the chamber is slow and the rate increases as you move closer to the muzzle. The idea behind this is with the twist being less at the breech end, this results in less friction to the bullet. As such, the bullet starts off easier and more quickly, giving the powder less time to burn in front of the chamber, resulting in less fouling in the bore than in a barrel of uniform twist. The Carcano does not use a traditional “6.5” or .264-inch bullet like other 6.5 mm rifles, such as the Swedish Mauser and Japanese Type 38 Arisaka, and instead uses a .268-inch projectile. Today, most manufacturers load 6.5mm Carcano ammo with the typical .264-inch bullet, resulting in acceptable but not superb accuracy. Prvi Partizan produces both bullets and loaded ammunition which use the correct .268-inch diameter in two forms: a 139gr FMJ BT (full metal jacket boat tail) (Mfg. Part # B-603), and a 123 gr SP RN (soft point round nose) (Mfg. Part # B-352).
The rifle shown here is the Model 1891 Cavalry Carbine which is a more modern interpretation of its Italian name, the Moschetto Modello 1891. Moschetto is Italian for Musketoon. The designation did not include an indication by cavalry troops specifically, mainly because it was intended for issue not only to them but to other troop types as well, such as the Carabinieri Reali, Bersaglieri Ciclisti, and later to paratroopers. Despite the introduction of the later M1938 carbine rifles as well as many conversions of the standard rifle into the Model 1891/24 and 1891/28 carbines, the Moschetto M1891 remained in production all the way up to 1944. The easiest way to differentiate them from the later M1938 carbines is the M1891’s adjustable rear sight, regardless of where or when they were made. This example is fairly good shape for its age. It was made by FNA Brescia in 1942 according to the marking on the receiver. Next to it is the Roman numeral 20 (“XX”). This number indicates the number of years since the start of Mussolini’s fascist regime in 1922. Despite having PW Arms import markings on the lower left side of the receiver, the rifle still retains its bayonet (normally pass import restrictions the bayonet is removed). The wood is slightly rough with dings in it in certain places. This is normal for these rifles. One without significant wear would be the exception rather than the rule. The serial number in the wood matches the rifle’s original serial number on the barrel. The rear of the handguard has a crack in it. The finish has turned to a patina in some places though the receiver retains a good amount of the original bluing. The metal around the front sight/bayonet area is a little rough around the edges. The front guard screw is slightly burred on the edges of the notch, but not buggered. The action is a little stiff, but not terrible. It becomes much easier to operate with practice. The bore is in good shape and while it exhibits some pitting, retains deep rifling and should provide good accuracy. Remember, better accuracy can be achieved with these rifles when using bullets of the correct diameter. Although not pictured, here, this rifle does come with a brass 6-round clip. There are also 4 optional boxes of Prvi Partizan ammo. Two boxes are the SP type, and the other two are the FMJ type. The clip would be shipped with the rifle of course, but the ammunition would, by law, require separate shipping. There would be an extra fee for this. 
 

SOLD

Rifle Caliber: 6.5x52mm Mannlicher-Carcano
Manufacturer: FNA Brescia
Model: Moschetto Modello 1891
Serial Number: CAR25659 (PW Arms s/n), XZ5731 (original)
Bore: Rifled, Gain Twist, 4 grooves
Condition: Good
Barrel Type: Standard
Action: Bolt action rifle, Carcano action
Triggers: Single
Stock: Wood
Fore End: Wood
Butt Pad: Metal plate
LOP: 13.5 inches (343 mm)
Finish: Blued/Patina
Weight: 7.0 lbs.
Sights: Elevator v-notch rear, blade front sight, sight radius 14.625 inches (371.475 mm)
Manufacture Date: 1942