What's a Carcano ?

[Handyman]

I was checking out the " show them off with pics " thread and .45 posted a picture of a Carcano . Is it rare ? Is it milsurp - from what country ? What ammo does it shoot ? Is it an expensive rifle ? Where can I get one ?

 

[Old Time Hunter]

I believe it is what Mr. Oswald supposedly used to assassinate President Kennedy. He used the 6.5mm version that you could purchase for about $11.00 through ads in Popular Mechanics magazine's (as they were called back then).

 

[pipboy]

not rare at all tons made from italy...some are garbage some are ok...ammo isnt readily availbe for the most part...like most mil surp they have thier fans and their critics i certainly wouldnt purchase one you'd be better off with pretty much anythign else like a mosin or mauser or k-31!

 

[.45Guy]

Some variants yes, Italian, 6.5x52, or 7.35x51, 8x57, and the rare Finn in 7.62x39. If you're looking to snag onto a nice example cheap, I can put you in touch with someone ASAP.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

Graf is putting ammo out now, makes them much cheaper to shoot than when it was mostly Norma ammo.

 

[.45Guy]

Also Prvi Partizan is loading 6.5, and 7.35 can be had from Cabella's obsolete ammo line.

 

[.45Guy]

I almost forgot the Tipo 1 in 6.5x50...
BTW, I may have stumbled upon a Moschettieri del Duce. We shall see what pans out.

 

[rangerruck]

it actually a nice, and very mild mannered little round, the most common being the 6.5 x 52. I would love it if some american company made this chambered rifle, or the japanese arisaka in 6.5 x 50.

 

[Plink]

Towards the end of the war, they also made or converted a number of them to 8mm Mauser so they could use the German ammunition. The were a bit on the weak side though, so the only safe loads for them are weaker commercial loads or handloads. A lot of the military surplus ammo is too hot. Also the stripper clip for the 8mm versions is unbelievably rare, often costing more than the rifle itself. Last summer I rebuilt one for a friend and got to put a lot of shots through it. I liked it a lot! Made me interested in the other Carcanos too.

 

[Handyman]

Thanks for the replys
I thought it was a cool looking rifle .

 

[Baba Louie]

As a kid, after the whole JFK assassination ordeal, my Dad and his shooting buddies had to get a couple to assess, analyze, whatever... maybe morbid curiosity, I don't know. At an rate, they mail ordered a couple of them and after a few very cold range trips early in '64, declared them POS's. Perhaps their declaration was based on comparisons to what these guys already owned and shot, Mausers, Springfields, Enfields, M1's; their expectations were based on too high a standard or they got lousy examples of Carcano's. I was too young to participate in the shooting portion of the experiment, being 9 at the time. I did get to help clean them when they first arrived and after each range trip and being only 9, thought they were cool.

All of Dad's friends had been in the military and were shooters and machinists or cops and knew firearms, so I knew they could shoot a little and knew a thing or two about weapons. Even my two Uncles who were in the Marine Corps at the time shot them and found them...(?lacking?challenging?). Not one of them believed that Oswald was good enough to have done what they said he'd done with one... but... (that's another whole discussion that's been beaten to the ground over and over, so we won't go there).

So they all got rid of them. Dangit anyway. Oh well, it was only a $15.00 rifle back in those days, thru the mail/post. To become an infamous $15.00 rifle.

Be nice to have one in the collection.