My new toys

[mgritsch]

I just arranged with a friend for another MAS36.

congrats to this one! do you just buy them for collecting or do you also plan to use it for "target" purpose?
is surplus ammo easily available for you or would you have to go into reloading?
Am always interested in exchange on that topic as this particular cartridge has proven to be a bit more difficult to "accurize"...

[MichaelZWilliamson]

75X54 French is $18/box of 20, loaded by Prvi in Serbia. It's hard to find because only two rifles ever used it.

It's a little too large in the base to rechamber the sporter into .308, and too big at the neck to rechamber in 7.5 Swiss. The bastards.

I shoot all my guns. Some more than others. The sporter version is a very neat little gun. It would almost be worth rebarreling.

Yup, 4th of Jan and I already have my first gun for the year. Seven on my list, whatever else walks by as a target of opportunity.

[mgritsch]

75X54 French is $18/box of 20, loaded by Prvi in Serbia. It's hard to find because only two rifles ever used it.

not fully correct. In 7,5x54MAS there were:
* Machine guns MAC-24/29, MAC-31, MAC-34, Darne, AA-52
* Repeating rilfles MAS-36, MAS-36/51
* Semiauto rifle MAS-49
* Sniper rifle FR F1

Especially the FR F1 would be really nice to have! Unfortunately I have never seen any of those offered anywhere. And they have been converted to 7,62Nato later on.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FR_F1

It's a little too large in the base to rechamber the sporter into .308, and too big at the neck to rechamber in 7.5 Swiss. The bastards.

Nah, rechambering/rebarreling is for bubbas. The fascinating thing about old military rifles is to shoot (and reload) them in their original caliber. you know, variety is the spice of life

[MichaelZWilliamson]

I'd leave the complete one original, but the chopped import would be an awesome little brush gun if the caliber wasn't so hard to find.

So, there's effectively TWO rifles that shoot it. 36 and 49. AFAIK there are no legal, functional French MGs in this country, and as you say, the Sniper variant was never available.

[mgritsch]

I'd leave the complete one original, but the chopped import would be an awesome little brush gun if the caliber wasn't so hard to find.

over here sometimes you can find some original surplus for quite reasonable prices (a german guy keeps offering it on egun for less than 400 EUR per 1000)

plus: it is very easy to resize 8x57IS brass! there is plenty of it available and you just have to run it through the die and shorten the neck, that's it. some also suggest to start from 6.5x55SE brass but I think stretching the neck can cause more trouble with split brass.

So, there's effectively TWO rifles that shoot it. 36 and 49. AFAIK there are no legal, functional French MGs in this country, and as you say, the Sniper variant was never available.

That point goes to you effectively you are right although I counted 9 existing variants.

martin

[MichaelZWilliamson]

If I'm reading the case dimensions right, 8mm will not work. It has the same base as 7.62/.30-06/7mm/etc. 7.5 French is a few thousandths larger at the base. Enough I'd worry about extracting and splitting.

[mgritsch]

If I'm reading the case dimensions right, 8mm will not work. It has the same base as 7.62/.30-06/7mm/etc. 7.5 French is a few thousandths larger at the base. Enough I'd worry about extracting and splitting.

less reading, more doing
been there, done it, guaranteed it works. no splitting, feeds&extracts fine. Besides of the original brass I keep reloading a box of 20 resized from 8x57 just for comparison how they would behave on the long run.
the cartridge body is just slightly slimmer but this will quickly change on the first firing (without any signs of excess stretch)
the slightly smaller base diameter is OK for the extractor, it still firmly grips it.

.30-06 could also be worth a try to resize.
At least it will be pretty much too long, might cause problems to run it through the die.

[MichaelZWilliamson]

What about .308? Same base, and same length.

Though brass is cheap enough I'd just buy some. It's not like I'm going to shoot 1000 rounds a weekend, like I do with 8mm, 5.56 or 7.62X54.

[mgritsch]

What about .308? Same base, and same length.

.308 = 7,62x51 in metric units - the body is 3mm/0.12" too short for 7,5x54! no way to stretch that shoulder that far out...
I just compared the cases, the heads are all pretty much the same, just a tad smaller than the original.

[MichaelZWilliamson]

Yeah, brainfart. I was thinking 54mm. wrong 7.62

[pointi2009]

Neuzuwachs bekommen, schreit zwar noch etwas in der Nacht, braucht halt noch viel Liebe, Zuwendung und Körperwärme, wird sich aber sicher bald einleben und sich gut mit der CZ SP-01 Shadow verstehen. Mal die Windeln gewechselt, Ganzkörperwäsche gemacht und liebevoll eingeölt und untersucht, ob eh keine groben Krankheiten vorhanden sind



danach gesorgt, dass sie es wieder kuschelig und warm hat



finish ist aber besser als auf dem Foto erkennbar. Im Grossen und Ganzen gut erhalten, die Pflege des Vorbesitzers war nicht besonders, da doch rel verkokelt gewesen. Mal schaun was das Ding hergibt auf dem Schiessstand demnächst und ja ist eine Norinco 1911A1 .45ACP

[Salem]

Passt eh, hab auch son Eisen, das kann schon was.
Liebevoll: "Ex-Eisenbahnschiene"

[mgritsch]

Mal schaun was das Ding hergibt auf dem Schiessstand demnächst und ja ist eine Norinco 1911A1 .45ACP

naja was ist zu erwarten wenn nix gröberes hin ist 10-20cm streukreis auf 25m...
aber ich nehme an du hast sie als basis für weiteres tuning gedacht?
oder wegen des sammlerischen werts?

lg
Martin

[Salem]

Der Mgritsch ist ein Scherzkeks,
ausser er steht auf originooole Konnoonen......

[mgritsch]

Der Mgritsch ist ein Scherzkeks,
ausser er steht auf originooole Konnoonen......

klar. liebe isch voll die krasse ming-kanone aus dem 2. jahrtausend. darf man sisch nischt verändern so wertvolle stück sonst trifft dich der fluch des kaisers.