M38 Carcano: Best Bolt Rifle of World War Two?
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During the 1920s, Italy was concerned about insufficient lethality with their 6.5x52mm cartridge, and began experimenting with larger bore diameters. By the late 1930s they settled on a new 7.35x51mm round, based closely on the existing 6.5mm cartridge case. They also planned to replace the original M91 rifles with a much more compact and more modern short rifle for the infantry. This design was adopted as the M38, and it featured side-mounted sling attachments, a folding bayonet more like a fighting knife than the old sword type, and did away entirely with the long-range adjustable sight, instead opting for a fixed 200m notch.
I submit that this configuration was the ideal one for World War Two, and Italy was the only nation to really adopt a reality-based rifle design. The use of rifles beyond 300m was almost unheard of during the war, and the fixed sight both reduced production overhead and also made the rifles more durable and soldier-proof. It retained the 6-round Mannlicher clip that was fast to load, and both the 7.35mm and 6.5mm cartridges were closer to intermediate cartridges than other contemporaries like the 8x57 and .30-06. The M38 is handy, inexpensive to make, and comfortable to shoot. I think it is a massively under-appreciated rifle.
Thanks to InterOrdnance / Royal Tiger Imports for providing this carbine from their Ethiopian imports for the video!
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Important to note that a sling was essential because Italians need their hands free to talk to each other.
to hold up as they surrender
Lol
@@dinlobiscuit4611 vai a cagare stronzo!!!
How long it took to you, sir, to generate this idiocy?
@@dinlobiscuit4611 No. Italians and Greeks and many other Europeans gesticulate with their hands when talking.
A folding Swiss Army knife comes with a corkscrew and toothpick. A folding Italian Army knife comes with a rifle attached.
which unfortunately is not that handy when it comes to uncork a wine bottle...
The Swiss Army knife is more useful, though, and the blade is harder to snap.
You and your commenters this far must all be speaking by way of hearsay. I have owned and used Carcono's since 1966. Primarily in 6.5 and projectiles of .268 and other than I had with a bad barrel they all shoot as well or better than most deer rifles, even today. Though they don'tfriend themselves to much in upgrading other than sporterizing they don't need much. Minor action work, restock, bolt angle and you have yourself a handy hunting rifle, flat shooting and fun at the range. 600 yrds. is not tough shooting with these. There bad rap grew from the unavailability of the right diameter bullets back in the day. I had and still have WWII ammo though much of that I salvage for the few different bullet types to reload.
wrong. It unfolds a pasta strainer
@@mariosebastiani3214 very handy when it comes to un-wine-bottling a cork though
Friendship ended with _MAUSER_
Now _CARCANO_ is my new best friend
Great meme
Good luck finding the ammo.
@@vitadelicatus 6.5 Carcano isn't difficult to find..I always take my M38 to the range on Nov. 22nd in honor of Lee Harvey Oswald.
Konkoly you misspelled CIA. I fixed it for you. You're welcome.
Jazen Valencia ... Lee was CIA right ?
My great grandpa carried a cavalry carbine in ww1, He volunteered at 17 years old under false identity and he was wounded in the second battle of montegrappa. In a field hospital near the frontline He knew my grand grandma. He participated also to the invasion of ethiopia and to ww2. He fought the british in Africa as an artillery captain and He got a silver medal of honor. Basically half of his men died, the other half was wounded, included him. He liked Carcano rifles and i think he was issued a m38 at some point but unfortunately his unit was issued mainly old captured mannlicker from ww1 and, with very few ammo supplies, they were forced to use british captured small arms most of the time. His artillery unit was issued ww1 cannons and He almost never had airsupport or tanks, while the british had plenty. On his diary He says most times his old artillery pieces were forced to perform direct fire against infantry and tanks. He died at 98 years old with 3 medal of honor, a bullet wound to the left leg, a shrapnel in the right gluteus and a nice family. I still remember when He was Beyond 90 years old and He went for the last time to military barracks on a military festivity. When the soldier saluted him (He got the rank of lieutenat-colonnel) He cried!
I am very happy you started this series. I'll wait the Next video. Thanks!
ONORE
Wow
A man of honor and bravery. I salute him.
Thanks for sharing that. My grandfather was a paratrooper in the Wehrmacht. This generation sure went through a lot.
un uomo straordinario un uomo che abbiamo bisogno di averne
apparently the best rifle for hitting a moving target from a book depository at least.
Oswald used a 6.5 Carcano, not a 7.35.
@@gregb6469 .... What did Charles Harrelson use from the Grassy Knoll?
@@danchristopher7957 Remington xp-100 .221 fireball
@@elsenor1579 .... valid thought. You do know about C.H. being one of the detainees from the grassy knoll.....
@Heyward Shepherd 🤣
So do you want a removable bayonet or a foldable bayonet?
Italian government: "Yes"
Bene
I'll take all your stock
hahahah....good decision but the worst timing!
Si
Ha! This made me chuckle!!
That's one of the coolest bayonets I've ever seen. The rifle is beautiful in simplicity and incredibly practical and cost efficient, but the coolest thing for me was the bayonet system.
Yes: small kinfe, the you open it as a razor and you habe a big kife, then plug in ... an dyou habe a bayonet.
Foldable knifes sucks, no womder they replaced it
And it was also the worst part of the rifle. Hm.
@@InvidiousIgnoramus yeah but he said the type 2 version had a proper button so it wouldn't come off as much, I'm guessing those were significantly better.
It's very elegant but aesthetically its really one of the more ugly rifles of that era imho.
'ooohboy, this was a mistake..' A phrase the Italians would utter multiple times during the war.
Sadly yeah every time the germans fucked them over like in north africa, matapan, russia etc XD at lest they recognized the winning side eventually
What? That wasn't their motto???
@@TheAngelobarker Conveniently not mentioning Greece I see. Also, weren't the Italians completely overrun in North Africa before the Germans sent reinforcements with Rommel?
@@Moonhermit- not absolutly they got kicked out of cirenaica which was the bordering region with egypt cuz the brits had matildas crusaders and in general more effective motorized troops while the italians had more troops in general Many were just conscrips with a very very Basic training of 3 to 6 months for exemple the only motorized italian units there were there got ambushed while incamped at night by the brits practically ending any type of motorized or armourd unit this gave to the brits a big help and also given the fact that the commanding italian general (graziani) was in tripoli in his bunker giving orders based on repots made the situation even worst so he decied to abbandon cirenaica and the encicred troops to their fate cuz ge had no means to help them
"what a mistaka to maka"
Most people rejected His message. They hated Gun Jesus because He told them the truth
What defines the "best" Rifle?
@@wyattguilliams9472 aesthetics.
@@wyattguilliams9472 Whatever makes the average infantryman the most effective.
But those who seek Truth were elated by His words.
And it was good.
@@wyattguilliams9472what ever rifle is the best suited to the war. For instance despite being a really high quality SMG the MP34 was not a particularly good SMG for WW2 because it was so expensive.
I'm a simple italian, i see Ian speaking of carcanoes, i press like.
Can relate. Italian American, who collects Carcano's.
Stesso
A very welcome surprise, there needs to be more people like Ian, talking objectively and in a respectful manner instead of going on personal bias and jokes.
I agree. Their are way too many *ic*heads out there trash - talking this rifle.
Italians: This whole fielding two different cartridges thing for our frontline men is a mess.
Japanese: First time?
Well the Japanese Navy and Army had separate procurement programs, so it was less of an issue.
@@dothwalrus370 perhaps but afaik no one did a 6.5mm to 7mm swap while actively fighting a war
True enough, but it doesn't make the design or the decision bad. I think in 1938 they intended to have a few years to make the complete transition.
Actually Italian Army also had to deal with 8mm Breda for heavy machine gun and the Breda 30, though it could be fed with ordinary 6,5 rounds (and mostly was), had its own more powerful version of the 6,5 cartridge to make sure it would cycle the action...
British: who said BESA?
It seems like the Italians had some rather forward-thinking ideas, but were under shitty management in WW2.
>were
......that hasnt changed, i am afraid
just like the Germans :D
@leonardimas1 The 5inch autoloading Melara cannon on the USS Bunker Hill is super sick, ty Italy 😎🇮🇹🇺🇸
Rommel felt the same way.
His words, not exactly.
Nothing wrong with Italian Soldiers.
The Italian Officer corps has much to be desired.
Luigi Cadorna would be proud.
I fully agree. The Italians and Japanese were way ahead of the curve when it came to their initial cartridge adoption. The mannlicher en bloc clips were also very fast and less finicky than the majority of stripper clips. The simplicity built into both the Carcano and Type 38 is magnificent. My only dream would be a type 38 action with the mannlicher clip system. The best conceptual rifle of WW2 era tech. Of course, production doesnt always match concept which is why hundreds of people still think the K98K was some magic rifle instead of it being just a mediocre rifle with excellent production.
The only thing the Italians got wrong in 1891 was the adoption of a too long and heavy bullet. As many others at the time they were too concerned with the performances of the bollet at very long distances, that proved to be impractical in reality.
Had they adopted a lighter bullet, they would have had a 6.5 Grendel 100 years in advance.
The reason why people look up to the Kar98k was purely because it was created by the Germans, just like the Mosin Nagant and the Soviets
The en-bloc clip was expensive, complicated, and offered no advantage over stripper clips. Original military stripper clips in pristine condition are almost never finnicky.
@@WhenDoesTheVideoActuallyStart tiny pieces of stamped sheet metal are neither expensive nor complicated, weird comment
> Ian: "MoSHetto"
> Italian watching: *dies inside*
(Just kidding sir, keep up the good work)
How would it be properly pronounced? I'm an ignorant American so I have no idea
@@IAMAGUNH4XP Should be...mosketto? The ch is hard
@@IAMAGUNH4XP MosKetto, as in Musket. "CH" always gives a hard sound in Italian, when followed by an E or I
Yep, indeed. It's mosKetto. MoSHetto is written moSCEtto in Italian, and it means literally (something) "a bit dull"
@@IAMAGUNH4XP i am not the kind of guy who who whould scream in caps lock about this stuff but this comment made me laugh. It is pronounced MosKetto btw since Ch stands for hard C(K) in italian while CI (like in ciao) is read as soft C.
Me: Thinks I've seen all the hottest takes possible.
Ian: The carcano was the best bolt gun of WW2
He's messing with us!
Yes, everybody clearly agrees it was the MOSIN!
...I'll get me coat
But it's not French.
@@shilohjim Italians do it better.
@@M.M.83-U hai ragione
"I would rather have one of these than an 8mm Mauser that's heavier and hold less ammo."
*Me, holding my early war Czechoslovakian Karabiner 98k close to my chest* "Shhhh... gun Jesus can't take you away from me. Don't worry, I'll protect you."
I can cycle and reload my Mauser faster than a Carcano, plus it's more reliable, so it has my preference!
I was impressed by the Carcano when I handled one, but no way is it better than the Mauser!
Heavier and holds less ammo, but at least when you pull the trigger it will actually shoot and it will hit things within 200m. 7.35x51mm was notoriously unreliable and the carcano's rear sight was locked at 200m.
@@cynderfan2233 The Carcano may be flawed compared to the Lee or Mauser, but it still fires and reloads faster than most designs. I'd absolutely take a Carcano over a Mosin 3-Line.
Also, in defence of the 200m zero, it will still hit a 300m torso-sized target, due to its minimal drop.
(You'll still have to pry my Mauser off me, before I take a Carcano, but it's not a bad choice.)
@@andrewmoes1022 90 000 Carcanos were provided to the Finnish army when they were fighting the Soviets. They hated them. The ammunition was unreliable and difficult to acquire in the first place and the sight was ill suited to WWII combat ranges. They had to field modify the sights to make it functional. Every chance they got they would ditch the Carcano and pick up anything else they could get their hands on, mostly 3 line Mosins.
Mosin ergonomics are amazing. Mauser etc. Not so much...
I mean if anyone who wasnt in WW2 has the ability to claim a rifle as "the best" of whatever variety I'd say Ian has the credentials to say as such. Doesnt mean its necessarily true but with as many guns as he's seen, I believe him.
It's technically not a big jump, but it's simple to produce in some ways. For example the rounded contour is more easy to produce than the flattened of the older models, there you need an extra operation in a milling machine.
Fixed sights are also more easy to produce than adjustable sights, and in my opinion, they were the first to recognize the positive effects of Battlefield Zero.
Okay, the folding bayonet was probably just useful to cut of some Parma ham or parmesan cheese. I wouldn't trust it in combat use.
@@GMdrivingMOPARguy I don,t think a German Infantryman would prefer his K98 to a Garand.
@@baobo67
You'd be surprised. Shooting fast took training and experience with the k98, but assuming you got through the war you probably had both. And in a war you rather have something you know that's reliable with all the tips and tricks soldiers gather throughout a war to work with and use the gun, than something foreign.
He said "conceptually". Not "in reality".
@@MrSniperdude01
He is literally paid for his knowledge about historical fire-arms (outside of youtube) and wrote books about them. Yes, he's an expert.
a small historical contribution: I live in Liguria which during the war was behind the Gothic line, and in these areas there was a lot of fighting between the fascists and the partisans, I have searched in these places for a long time with a metal detector and I can say that the carcano cal 6.5x52 was undoubtedly the most used weapon by both factions, on average out of 10 shells found, 9 were 6.5 x 52, in second place was the 9m38 , the 9 para, and the 8x57js, I never found the 7.35x52, sometime the 9 x17 and the 303 british.
"we'll keep making some of these in 6.5 for now, just in case war were declared."
*noises in distance*
"What was that?"
"War were declared"
@Reck Fredreck th-cam.com/video/v8Ha6tNvRUg/w-d-xo.html
Futurama!
The elegant simplicity of thinking and applying the lessons of WW1 properly makes this my favourite WW2 bolt action. Not the best at anything but a fully thought through application of resources. Always good if never best in any particular. By my looking at the ballistics the 7,35x52mm is in the region of the Soviet post WW2 7.62x39mm.
Nearly identical in performance to M43 from a carbine.
Appropriate technology. It was more than adequate for the job that needed to be done. The Carcanos are generally underappreciated.
@@charlesinglin but bolts can be so grunchy
yep, if you go to war you want something comfortable, simple, durable, reliable, something that does the work.
@@ogilkes1 True. They could have put in a little more time making the bolts work smoother. At least on mine.
Ian about to start a war in the comment section.
Prepare the meatball artillery and lasagna mines
@@teaser6089 we cannot do it sir, we don't have the parmesan!
Mauser fans loading the Schnitzel cannon...
@@lairdcummings9092 aRE yoU CHAllanGe mE ?1111??????!????111!!!!!!!!!!
@@lairdcummings9092 where have you been?
Ian: "Fuciles cortos"
Me: wow nice Italian pronunciation
Ian then: "Mushetos"
Me... Dying inside ...while bleeding marinara sauce from the ears
Trupee spesialli anyone?
"Pizzaria" . . . _pisse-ria_ . . .
Well, the Yanks are the world champions at mangling any language. 😏😖 Can’t even say “Six POINT five”.
@@frabre1810 ...non sarà un campione di pronuncia ma almeno si applica, l'italiano è una delle lingue meno parlare al mondo, siate indulgenti...chissà che grasse risate si faranno con la nostra pronuncia inglese...
Moshee edo
Ian is correct, the M38 is a very nice rifle and in my opinion the best from WWII. Very simple in design and easy to operate. Without much training it would be easy to operate and maintain. Good Job Ian!
0:13 "This is fucile corto!" Perfect pronounce, Italian approved!
He always seems to pronounce things correctly, no matter the language
Attention to detail.
The mark of a master, whatever the art.
I love Ian but his general pronunciations of German and Italian are pretty bad, honestly.
But I won't blame him for it, I studied languages, he probably didn't, so he's doing a good job with what he's got
As a Finn all I can say is hats off for him for even trying. :D
@@mathy4605 Nobody's perfect!
A 6.5 is a fantastic bullet, my main deer gun is a 6.5x55 Swedish. The bullet has a great ballistic coefficient. If the Italians had stuck with the 6.5 (either as .264 or .268) improved their bullets I think they could have saved themselves a great deal of balls ache. I 120-grain bullet with a less rounded profile works in 6.5, if they had concentrated a little more R&D on propellents, they were already making great propellents they could have solved their issues very easily without having to develop a larger round that eventually went away after WW2, the irony is that militaries are looking for something bigger than 5.56 now so why not 6.5. As 6.5 is such a great round and accurate at very long distances they could have made some sniper rifles from the M38, with either a properly calibrated iron sight or optics and caused a huge amount of chaos in places like North Africa where the British were fighting them.
6.5 is fantastic, I agree, but it isn't Swedish. It was designed by a joint Norwegian/Swedish commission. The SWEDES actually wanted a rimmed cartridge, while the Norwegians wanted a rimless one.
Accent goes on the first A, so it's "Càrcano" (from the engineer Salvatore Carcano) :)
I was born and raised in Terni and hearing Ian pronounce it made me feel so proud!! The gun factory is still there (does mostly repairs now) and it's because of it that the city was bombed massively during the war. Very nice piece of WWII history if you are interested.
I have the SA stamped M38, love it. Ammo is difficult to come by, so I load for it. I managed to acquire a bunch of brass and some original 0.300 steel case bullets... I also cast for it, sizing down .308 gas checked to .301.
Great Video Ian, love it!
I thought about doing some reloading on these, since it is a fun gun. I did find NEW 7.35 from "Graf & Sons", and those rounds are nice.
I've been looking for 7.35 ammo for some time. I hate paying a dollar a round. And have no experience in reloading.
@@nickmichaels6516 crud, I pay close to that for new-production x54r softpoints! And about $2 a round for match.
I had a Lee sizing die made in .329 for my Austro-Hungarian M1885s. I lubed up .338 simple cup and core bullets like the 200 grain Speer flat base and pushed them through. It worked great. I'm sure you could do the same with Sierra Pro-Hunter flat bases.
Carcano: - Hello there!
Ian: - General Carcano! You are a bolt one!
Lmao
I have one; in my 4-5 years of owning one I've only ever shot it twice since ammo is impossible to come by and I don't have the time or tools to handload for it.
I should iterate it was sent to Finland for use presumably in the Winter War/Continuation War as it has Finnish proof marks on top of Italian ones.
Steinel makes the ammo.
Of consideration is the fact that some manufacturers used under diameter bullets for the 6.5 Carcano. This didn't help velocity or accuracy. This is likely where the Carcano got a reputation for inaccuracy. With the correct ammo it's as accurate as any other rifle, except when the longer gain twist rifles were shortened, thereby losing the gain twist part of their rifling.
@@ForgottenWeapons do you know if they send it to Italy? Fiocchi provide only reloading components.
@@828enigma6 The gain twist works better with the lighter weight bullet. My 1897 carbine reliably keyholes with the heavy bullet at 100 yards. Privi Partizan makes two weights, and the lighter bullet works quite well.
Does your rifle have an elevated front sight?
I just wanted to leave a comment and say that I appreciate that you give your knowledge of guns to us no matter if it is a rare, unique, or something that we all know. I myself have learned a great deal from your videos. I did grew up around guns but never got to shoot anything beyond a 12g. I love guns and love history so I appreciate you on educating everyone on any gun you can get your hands on. I myself, and I'm sure many other people, love your videos and are better educated on firearms because of them. Please keep up the good work!!
“We are only shooting 300 meters guys.” “Hmmmm well then we don’t need a fancy rear sight.”
“Let’s still adopt a round that easily goes to 600+ meters”
“Makes sense”
Funny how that worked.
I understand that, I just think it’s kind of funny.
The 7.35x51 was actually a pretty good and forward thinking round for the time. Balistically, it's just a little bit more powerful than 7.62x39.
@@samhouston1288 Imagine if the italians entered the war was with this round and the semiauto rifles issued for the special troops.
They would have lost anyway, but the allied troops that would have captured the rifles would have liked them a lot.
Notice how it still works exactly like that.
You really don't want your maximum engagement distance also be your maximum effective range.
You want a projectile that still shoots at least somewhat flat at that distance.
How far the round is capable of reaching is completely irrelevant, there's literally no point in having a sight capable of reaching 2000m if nearly all your fighting is within 300-400m. Having a cartridge only capable of 300m makes literally no sense.
finally got around to Grapecano...
Her sister Strawberry is cuter though.
@@611_hornet5 preach
6.5 mm Carcano was good enough for Kennedy
6.5 Carcano was not as weak a round as what some thought. It was capable of considerable penetration due to the increased sectional density.
Yup
Apparently that's debatable considering some details such as
A secret service official stating he did fire his M16 despite not knowing where the shooter was
But that's enough government conspiracy for one day
The Machinegun Kid the action on mine would make those shots pretty hard
@Onward Turtle
Three times
I've known about the Carcano rifle for 2 years. Christmas 2018, by younger brother bought me Red Dead Redemption 2, and for one mission, you used an M91/38 Carcano in 6.5 Carcano/6.5x52. I also recently heard that the rifle Lee Harvey Oswald used was also an M38 chambered for the 7.35x51.
Ian, love your very informative videos even though I don’t shoot or own a weapon. Keep it up as you are extremely knowledgeable in your field & great at expressing that knowledge.
That's a really neat bayonet set up
Thank you. Great video and awesome Carcano Mod.38.
Damn. Your content is always so amazing. Always so much historical and technical background. Presented in a way only a great story teller can do. Plus no biases and even humorous sometimes (bayonet comment: „ to prevent you are accidentally poke someone in the eye“... 😂😂😂👍). Fun fact: I’m not even a gun nut. But I find your videos absolutely great.
It's like a bolt-action SKS that reeks of cheese and olive oil
including bayonet
I can see a FAET 60 marking, that means that the gun has been refurbished in 1960 by the Terni Arsenal..
Very good presentation, as always. Thanks Ian !
You do such a great job on setting the historical environment in your videos. I learn somethung new in everyone. Thanks.
"I know it is a bolt statement..." :) the rifle looks really handy indeed :)
Would you say it was a "bolt" statement?
Nah, you can make bolt statements only with proper *Bolter* .
I have a really nice condition one of these in 7.35mm, with 2nd model folding bayonet and I love it, the handling of it is superb, bolts a little rough but that could be partly its age.
As always. Informative, interesting and well presented
What’s funny is I remember having one of the Finnish marked M38s 20 years ago, the example I had was in magnificent condition and had no import marks, and mine was dated 1939.
What is funny?
I own an Italian Carcano 7.35, I got it for my wife's step dad about 35 years ago. I dont have the Bayonet or the front sight. the sight was missing and havent been able to fine a replacement. I'm told there are 2 different front sights available. One tall for short range and a short one for longer ranges. It too me several years to find bullets for it as they seem to be pretty rare. The bullets i found seen to be zinc with copper cases. I bought a case of 500 rounds and have fired the rifle and it shoot very well.
This is my favorite rifle and Carcano model in Enlisted
As usual an informative and worthwhile video. Thank you sir.
I always considered the SMLE one of the best bolt actions, 10 round removable mag with a easy to use stripper clib guide rail, buttery smooth bolt, fairly accurate and with a pretty decent round.
I have one. The sights on the No4 pattern is nice. And it's a pretty rifle with high cap. But she's a heavy girl and I find the clips to be really trashy. Not quite as bad as a Mosin's but still pretty rough and tricky to load right. Plus there is rim lock which the clips kinda make easier to do.
@DatPiece OfBread I've owned and shot both the SMLE and the M91/30 Mosin rifle reasonably frequently. I've never had rimlock on either of them, but I've never used that recommended method of loading stripper clips/magazines which I regard as kinda stupid. I always loaded the rounds with the rims set in such a way as to allow the rounds to slide off the top without hanging up on the round directly under them (that seems pretty logical). It does mean that the rounds in the stripper clip all angle upwards, but I never found that a problem.
As for the M91/30, I found that, if you get a decent rifle that the arsenal did a quality, unrushed job of machining the components for, they are generally very reliable. If you get a shitty rifle, poorly machined and worn out, you're going to get problems (been there, bought the t-shirt).
Just my 2 cents worth.
@@Alex462047 My 1953 Mosin carbine made in Poland has a superb action on par with Mausers. Not sure if its had any work done in the past 69 years though. If not, you could say.... the action is well POLISHed.
@@zacharyrollick6169 Yes, I had a Polish carbine too. It was a spectacular rifle to fire at night, giving you a 3ft sheet of flame out the muzzle on every shot. It kicked pretty hard too, I made a butt pad out of an old sock and a piece of hard foam I found on a building site, that was just the ticket for my poor shoulder.
Agreed, I have a 1928 manufacture Mosin. Nicely made..and the sights are excellent..a deep rear U notch and square post frontsight. Much better for ME than the German style. (Its the Infantry Rifle so comfortable to shoot) Very accurate with decent ammo.... My only criticism is the bolt is very difficult to cycle with the rifle IN the shoulder....that might be just me... @@Alex462047
You should discuss the terminal effectiveness of the 7.35 ball round , with the aluminum tip that was standard issue
Certainly the most well thought out rifle.
Another great video, thanks for the hard work.
"CONCEPTUALLY one of the very best" Well played Ian... There can be a pretty large difference between "conceptually" good and "practically" good. From an engineering/manufacturing concept your opinion is, I would agree, very well founded. Almost like you have a background in engineering and firearms manufacturing. Hmmm...
Just a general tip for english speakers, when you see an accent above a letter, that is the part of the word you stress. For example, at 00:12 Ian is saying Carcáno, when it should be pronounced Carcano. If it is written as Carcano, then the stress of the word is nearer the beginning. Love your work Ian, keep it up!
Or we can continue to say it in English and not learn every grammar rule of every language
As an Italian I can assure you that he is pronouncing that perfectly
I really love the internet people who police how words are pronounced. Where? When? Has language ever changed?
Go with Jesus, Banor. He loves you.
The 6.5 × 55 Swiss/ Carl Gustaf was a nice rifle too. Pretty reliable and accurate. That is a very cool bayonet though.
I have one,years ago,on the wall, now after all,have the interrest,need a new one ; what a piece of simplisitiy and art..!
It's the grape, very cool!
Just saying, PRVI PARTIZAN is selling .268 spitzer 139grs FMJ bullets as well as complete 6.5x52mm cartridges ....
In Italia?
@@M.M.83-U i think its in Serbia
@@M.M.83-U Si'. Erano descritte nel sito di Armi e Tiro in un articolo del 9 Maggio scorso.
Cast bullet molds are also an option, although if you don't dislike Hornady like I do I believe they make jacketed .268 bullets as well.
I had two of these in 6.5 and eventually gave them to family members. I’ve watched several videos on them and no one ever mentions the safety procedure. I always thought it was pretty neat. The knurled thumb knob on the back of the bolt is pushed in and then up allowing the firing pin spring to force it back resulting in a completely de tensioned and recessed pin.
Thanks for making so many videos for all of us! You are as good as people say you are
Great rifle. Almost bought one but ammo is expensive compared to a Mosin.
I would argue the Swedish Mauser - Carl Gustav M/94 is another contender for the best bolt action rifle of WWII (and also WWI).
The 6.5 cartridge is great even though its a first generation smokeless powder cartridge. I still use that round today
I have always been fascinated by this rifle. I even held the cavalry shorter version.. they are soo iconic :D
In the barrack where i served there were a few exposed at the regimental bar/trooper's fun room.
Never knew which syllable to stress
CARcano or carCAno.
Personally prefer the latter..
Thanks Ian. Very fascinating.
Thank you I am Italian and I am immensely proud of our army and our armament.
Italy: It is just a mess with all that different cartridges !!
Japan:
I have a 6.5mm carcano and I love it! Excellent firearm!!!
Thanks Ian. Great job!
Theres a reason why the carcano has the best stats in every game its in.
Gotta love how hit and miss the Italian engineers are.
THE italians create everything with love. And they never look at any plan . This is why everything created by italians i lovely to look.
Snap CHAT thats true and also why you sometimes should just look at something Italian made instead of using it.
Back years and years ago, I remember several engineers who worked at Aberdeen Proving Grounds discussing WWII Italian arms and the engineers and designers. It went into a protracted rant about policymakers, politicians, general officers versus engineers, and reality. I think most engineers would have agreed with those gentlemen, as (sane and those who wish to survive) engineers design what features that they are told to incorporate, not what might work. Now these older, now late, American Engineers were advocates of the Garand rather than virtually anything else, but they did have an appreciation for good design.
Something I still take out of that nearly 50-year-old conversation was the wonderment at the Rube-Goldberg features of the feed systems of Italian machineguns, which they thought may have been almost exclusively to solve the problems with cloth belts. Of course, they also posited that the Japanese did the same.
Now as these people also had something to do with the evaluation of foreign armored vehicles, they were similarly amazed at the choices the Italians and Japanese did with their armored vehicles, too.
I guess engineer types don't know any nationality?
@@rickmulder1853 you are right .
They are the min-maxxers of the gun world
When I see Professor Ian has posted a new video...I attend class. Its always good info! Thank you.
In Finland this is known as Terni-kivääri or Terni rifle because almost all that ended up here were manufactured there. We got almost 100 000 in total. They were ordered during the winter war but there are conflicting reports of when they actually arrived but in any case they were not used in the winter war at all. The rifle was mainly issued to second line troops like AA-gun crews, coastal troops etc. but as they were brand new there were also attempts at first to issue them to certain frontline units to use up the ammo. Rifles like totally worn out long M/91 Mosins could be taken off the front and used up as parts to make new M39 rifles or to refurbish captured M91/30 rifles by replacing them with the M38 for a while. The rifle was pretty much universally hated by the Finnish infantrymen who were issued with it. The fixed rear sight was seen as totally unsuitable for our typical combat conditions, muzzle blast/flash was considered excessive and with the state of Finnish logistical system during the attack phase of the continuation war the ability to use captured soviet ammunition was seen as vital for ones survival. Even the men of the Musta Nuoli/Black Arrow penal battalion complained to their commander after being issued with these. There are pictures of piles of captured soviet arms at the start of the continuation war and many M38's can be seen among them as men threw them away when the first chance to replace them with any other weapon came by. 74 300 survived the war and they were sold off in 1957 with Interarmco being the largest buyer. for the American market.
The Finnish government requested the rifle to be zeroed for 100m instead of 200, so fucking the entire logic of the system (being good to hit a human sized target from 0 to 300m simply aiming at the center of the torso). Zeroed for 100m, the bullet's drop was excessive before reaching 200m, so at normal combat range.
My grandfather had one of these in 6,5mm version. Took it from retreating Italian army in 1943 and then used it as fighting rifle in partisan army. After the war ended, was used as hunting rifle... Not so good in this role because of small calibre. If I'm not wrong, Carcano was also used in JFK assassination.
That was the 91 if I'm not mistaken
It looks like a great example of Italy preparing well while bearing in mind their limitations. Too bad about the timing since war were declared.
It doesn't look like other parts of Italian arms development were quite up to the same practical sense of design, but I'm interested to see more.
War broke out significantly sooner than any nation (including Germany) was expecting. As a result most armerments programs were incomplete.
@@michaeltruett817 Oh, germany knew pretty well when the 2. World War broke out. If they hadn´t attacked russia nobody would have done anything until way later and then the chances that germany would have won would be way higher. Fortunatly they didn´t.
@@Tankliker If they hadn´t attacked Poland, not russia, they invaded the soviet union only in 1941
If you're referring to the start of the war
As always, your case is well stated, and backed up by myriad examples. I am now giving serious thought to the possibility that this is indeed the best bolt action battle rifle of WWII. Thank you for always being thoughtful and for keeping my mind open.
An interesting thing of the actual rifle featured in this video is the marking "FAET 1960" on the rear sight.
It means that the rifle was refurbished in 1960 at the Terni arsenal. So it isn't a WWII capture, bit rather a later shipping of military aid during Haile Selassie reign.
Great video! Just one tip: moschetto is pronounced with the "k" sound: "mosketto". In the Italian language, "ch" has always the "k" sound.
Just like the English word Character has the K sound for Ch in that instance.
@@xochiltepetzalailhuicamina2322
Yes, exactly
O Ohhh !!! Hickok45 also just put out a Carcano video.. This must be the Gun-nut-equivalence of two Broads wearing the same dress, at a formal function.. 😱😱😱😱
I once fired one of these of a rest. Open sights, completely unmodified put 5 rounds into a 100yd target and 5 rounds went into a sub one inch group! I was stunned as were several onlookers. I didn't try for another group...
Still amazed to this day. The rifle was freakishly accurate!
My uncle gifted one of these. 7.35.I bought that folding bayonet for it. It looks SO cool mounted.
My uncle has since passed away so I really treasure it!
Ian’s example must have met some angry sandpaper!
0:27 a verry BOLT statement
I never would have dared to do this one. I praise your bravery!
Thanks Ian, for changing my mind about Carcano rifles.
Model 38 is little known, mainly because it was not adopted by the army, however it had excellent characteristics. Rustic, simple, easy to handle and with a very well designed ammunition. The usual opportunity wasted by Italy.
u're goddamn right....my heart's crying while i admit that
Thanks, that's the sad history of the italian military weapons
This is a very nice shooting rifle!
I for some reason really love short rifles/carbines. And I gotta say, looking at how actual combat went, the changes made to the rifle make a lot of sense.
I shot one Carcano in my life (so far). I shamefully do not remember the model but I'm pretty sure it was an M38. It was pleasant to shoot, plenty accurate (where we were shooting we couldn't quite get 100 yards from the target, maybe 85 or 90, IIRC but it hit where aimed). I have said for years I'm gonna get one ... sadly I remember when they were cheap ... LOL
The best weapon to use against Hydras, Manticores, and -Gundams- Doppelsoldners.
i see man of culture.
@@supercreamypudding9841 would you explain what he does mean? please
I have one. So happy to have it because it is the rifle my grandfather, uncles, and other extended family members were issued. I have it on the wall above their pictures in their uniforms. Unfortunately, I can't find ammunition for it in Canada. Only in the United States.
A few more months and your gov't will be knocking on your door for that "weapon".
@@anthonyoer4778 I unfortunately lost them all in a boating accident.
I have a knife similar to the bayonet in that when it is folded, the blade extends past the butt end of the handle. It's '80s vintage from Japan and decent quality, got it at the Valley Indoor Swap Meet in Reseda, California some time in the mid 1980s. From what research I've done, knives like this have had some degree of popularity in Europe. There were French naval dirks like this credited to an Admiral D'Astaing, and in Germany they are called a "saufanger" and were popular with boar hunters for delivering a coup de grace to a wounded boar.
Good video! The ballistics of the 6.5 mm in modern terms is a fantastic round, I happen to own a brand new M38 in the carbine model. It was originally bored for 8mm m98 Mauser with the Nazi markings on the barrel and a few swastikas stamped on the barrel and bolt. It was found in the armory in northern Italy brand new the Nazi's had just re-chambered it to the 8mm before it was sent back to the states via postal service as a war trophy! But as far as I'm aware it was never fired here with the 8mm rounds after hearing the horror stories that came along with these guns not meant for the pressures of the German round! It's only a small 2 lug bolt action so that's a pretty good way of, let's say loosing your eye via the bolt lugs sheering off as you looked down the sights! So I was lucky enough to find a pretty rare mint never issued barrel and bolt, and rebuilt the gun to be usable and safe. Overall with a ballistic tipped hollow point boat tail bullet and new Norma brass the guns deadly accurate, no complaints here. Light weight nice short barrel for the brush simple and reliable.
I an italian, I own one of these rifles and a Mauser: I love both of them.
"This weapon is mind-blowing"
-John F Kennedy.
Did chuckle, needed that comment like a hole in the head..
No you didnt.....
Too soon...
this made me laugh more than it should
Oswald was on a budget .
I have a beautiful Finn M38. Wood and finish are mint. Aside from ammo scarcity, only problems is the front sight dovetail is loose and the cocking piece assembly has been pinned on to the bolt body.
Hikok45 and Forgotten weapons released a video on the same gun in the span of a couple days? What a time to be alive!
I wonder if the groove in the stock was an idea taken from the Type I rifles Italy made for Japan.
Holy crap ur fast 😄
Damn you rich men with early access!
Or it could have been a common idea that worked
idk that whole SMLE thing was still going on at the time and I kind of doubt the M38 has a handle on 303 British with one of the fastest cycle rates of a bolt action rifle.
I have one of those!!! Thanks for the info ian!
0:13 I love how his voice changes in pitch when speaking Italian