Carcano rifle
| Carcano rifle | |
|---|---|
| general information | |
| Country of operation: | Italy |
| Developer / Manufacturer: | Salvatore Carcano, Arsenale in Turin and Terni , Beretta , Fiat |
| Manufacturer country: | Italy |
| Production time: | 1892 to 1945 |
| Weapon Category: | gun |
| Furnishing | |
| Overall length: | 1,285 (rifle), 1,016 ( carbine ) mm |
| Weight: (unloaded) | 3.90 (rifle), 3.68 (carbine) kg |
| Barrel length : | 780 (rifle), 540 (carbine) mm |
| Technical specifications | |
| Caliber : |
6.5 × 52 mm Mannlicher-Carcano , 7.35 × 51 mm Carcano, 7.92 × 57 mm |
| Possible magazine fillings : | 6 cartridges |
| Ammunition supply : | Fixed box magazine, to be filled with a loading frame |
| Cadence : | 12 rounds / min |
| Fire types: | Single fire |
| Number of trains : | 4th |
| Twist : | right ( progressive in Fucile 1891 , increasing towards the mouth) |
| Visor : | open sights |
| Closure : | Cylinder lock with bolt handle |
| Charging principle: | Multiple loaders |
| Lists on the subject | |
The Carcano rifle is a series of rifles that were used by the Italian armed forces .
history
The Carcano rifle was developed in the second half of the 19th century and introduced as Fucile Carcano Mod. 91 to the Italian army as the successor to the Vetterligewehr in 1870 and 1870/87. Although obsolete before the First World War , it was modified and further developed. One point of criticism was the 6.5 × 52 mm Carcano ammunition. It turned out to be too weak, and there was no conversion of the traditional round-headed bullets to ballistically more favorable pointed bullets. Both of these factors meant that the weapon’s effectiveness and precision did not meet the requirements. In 1938 the long overdue changeover to the more powerful Model 38 in caliber 7.35 × 51 mm began; however, the production capacities were insufficient to complete the changeover. From 1940/41, production was therefore returned to the old standard 6.5 × 52 mm caliber. As few of the existing 7.35mm guns were converted to the old caliber (most of them were put into storage), this led to a shortage of rifles in the Italian army. In the USA , the Carcano rifle was considered to be comparatively inferior.
In 1944/1945 the German Wehrmacht experimentally converted a small number of Carcanos to the German rifle cartridge 7.92 × 57 mm . However, the majority of weapons in this caliber are post-war Italian products for the Middle East.
variants
There were essentially three variants, of which there were still different sub-types over the course of time:
- Infantry rifle: Fucile Mod. 91 and Mod. 91/41
- Short rifle: Fucile Mod. 1938 and Mod. 91/38
- Carabiner : Moschetto Mod. 91 per Cavalleria (Cav.) And Moschetto Mod. 91 per Truppe Speciali (TS)
See also
Individual evidence
- ^ Walter HB Smith, The Basic Manual of Military Small Arms. , The Telegraph Press, Harrisburg Pennsylvania, 1943, p. 117
