Post by tinkerpearce on Jun 13, 2019 9:45:40 GMT -5
The M38 7.35mm Carcano has been called 'the least desirable WW2 surplus rifle.' It's not a bad rifle, so I think this rep has mostly to do with the orphan caliber and the fact that it wasn't much used in the war. The Italians were just beginning to switch to the M38 when the war broke out, and decided to stick with their 6.5mm for the duration. Some Guard and Police units got M38s, but the bulk of them were sold to Finland, where they were not well loved. Logistics was part of that, and the cartridge (comparable to .30-30) was considered under-powered. After the war these were surplused, and in the 1960s they could be bought from a magazine ad for around $6- which is undoubtedly where Uncle Jim purchased this one, and sprung a few dollars more for a supply of ammunition.
When I inherited this one it was one of the ugly 'sporterized' guns, much like the one in the picture... only worse. It had been left standing in the corner of Uncle Jim's bedroom for forty years, and it was covered in a crust of rust, dust and petrified gun oil. To my surprise the bore and mechanism were fine. No one in the family needed a deer gun, I had a good supply of ammo and the gun was frankly not worth the bother of selling for the $60-$80 it might fetch.
One thing led to another and I decided to make a Mannlicher-style stock for it. I cut and crowned the barrel at 16-1/4", fabricated a new front sight and with the new stock it was a handy little rifle. Last fall I had dispatched a goat and was skinning and field dressing it. The rifle was unloaded in it's rug, and a companion accidentally knocked it off the ledge it was sitting on and broke the stock through the handle. I was heartbroken. I considered a new stock, but friends urged me to repair it instead. This week I finally did, using a high-strength epoxy and oak dowels.
While it was apart I figured I ought to refinish it. Previously I'd sanded it to 240-grit, thrown a wax finish on it and called it good, but it was a strictly utilitarian finish. This time I hand-sanded the stock to 3000-grit and gave it a few coats of lacquer. Looks great. Now I need to get it back out to the range for some fun...
When I inherited this one it was one of the ugly 'sporterized' guns, much like the one in the picture... only worse. It had been left standing in the corner of Uncle Jim's bedroom for forty years, and it was covered in a crust of rust, dust and petrified gun oil. To my surprise the bore and mechanism were fine. No one in the family needed a deer gun, I had a good supply of ammo and the gun was frankly not worth the bother of selling for the $60-$80 it might fetch.
One thing led to another and I decided to make a Mannlicher-style stock for it. I cut and crowned the barrel at 16-1/4", fabricated a new front sight and with the new stock it was a handy little rifle. Last fall I had dispatched a goat and was skinning and field dressing it. The rifle was unloaded in it's rug, and a companion accidentally knocked it off the ledge it was sitting on and broke the stock through the handle. I was heartbroken. I considered a new stock, but friends urged me to repair it instead. This week I finally did, using a high-strength epoxy and oak dowels.
While it was apart I figured I ought to refinish it. Previously I'd sanded it to 240-grit, thrown a wax finish on it and called it good, but it was a strictly utilitarian finish. This time I hand-sanded the stock to 3000-grit and gave it a few coats of lacquer. Looks great. Now I need to get it back out to the range for some fun...
