MilsurpDan
Ultimate Member
I really didn't want to buy anything, but I sold a couple items while I was working at the Chantilly show yesterday so I figured I could grab something I needed while I was there. I've been on the hunt for one of these for a long time now.
During World War One, the Russian Empire was in huge demand for rifles while the Germans, Austro-Hungarians and Turks were giving them a beat down. The other members of the Allied Powers, namely France, Italy, Japan (etc.) sent them large quantities of obsolete weapons in order to keep them in the fight. France sent the Russians thousands of M1874 Gras rifles which were issued and used among a ton of other models including Arisakas, Kropatschek, Vetterlis and anything else they could get their hands on. The Gras is a single-shot, bolt-action rifle chambered in an 11x59r cartridge that the French issued before the adoption of the M1886 Lebel rifle.
A couple decades later, after the Communists took over in Russia, the Spanish Civil War was raging on. The Commies in Spain were in desperate need for weapons as well, and the Russians were happy to oblige. Thousands of obsolete and modern weapons were sent to the Spanish Communists which were issued and used during the SCW. In the 1950's/60's after Franco beat the Spanish Commies into submission, Sam Cummings of Interarms bought Spain's inventory of surplus weaponry. Which is how this particular rifle ended up in the U.S.
The quick way to find one of these rifles, along with the Vetterli-Vitali or other rifles, is to look for the "Made In France" marking on the barrel behind the rear sight. There is also usually a Cyrillic "II" Russian Inspection marking on the flat of the receiver and the wrist of the stock, all of which this rifle has evident.
This particular rifle was made in 1873, so I'm not sure if it was purpose built as a M1874 Gras rifle, or was converted from a M1866 Chasspot Needle-Gun.
It's not very pretty, and it isn't matching, but heck, what would you expect from a rifle that probably saw continuous service over 66 years and numerous conflicts?
During World War One, the Russian Empire was in huge demand for rifles while the Germans, Austro-Hungarians and Turks were giving them a beat down. The other members of the Allied Powers, namely France, Italy, Japan (etc.) sent them large quantities of obsolete weapons in order to keep them in the fight. France sent the Russians thousands of M1874 Gras rifles which were issued and used among a ton of other models including Arisakas, Kropatschek, Vetterlis and anything else they could get their hands on. The Gras is a single-shot, bolt-action rifle chambered in an 11x59r cartridge that the French issued before the adoption of the M1886 Lebel rifle.
A couple decades later, after the Communists took over in Russia, the Spanish Civil War was raging on. The Commies in Spain were in desperate need for weapons as well, and the Russians were happy to oblige. Thousands of obsolete and modern weapons were sent to the Spanish Communists which were issued and used during the SCW. In the 1950's/60's after Franco beat the Spanish Commies into submission, Sam Cummings of Interarms bought Spain's inventory of surplus weaponry. Which is how this particular rifle ended up in the U.S.
The quick way to find one of these rifles, along with the Vetterli-Vitali or other rifles, is to look for the "Made In France" marking on the barrel behind the rear sight. There is also usually a Cyrillic "II" Russian Inspection marking on the flat of the receiver and the wrist of the stock, all of which this rifle has evident.
This particular rifle was made in 1873, so I'm not sure if it was purpose built as a M1874 Gras rifle, or was converted from a M1866 Chasspot Needle-Gun.
It's not very pretty, and it isn't matching, but heck, what would you expect from a rifle that probably saw continuous service over 66 years and numerous conflicts?
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