Here I am again with Part 5 of the Surplus Rifles on a budget series. Up for review today is the 6.5mm Italian Carcano M38. This rifle is the model very much like the one Lee Harvey Oswald supposedly shot President Kennedy with. I wanted one of these for my world war 2 weapon and memorabilia collection. This rifle was given to me by a friend…he had it in a closet since he was a kid and thought I’d like it for the collection, he was correct. Thanks Jim!! So free was definetly in the budget.

A bit of history…there seems to be about a million variations of markings, manufacturers and calibers…I have been trying to figure them out and I give up…aside from its a 6.5mm M38 Carcano…thats all I have for sure…I cant find anything relating to my serial number. I will also tell you that my Old Gramps said in WW2 that they would always police up the enemy weapons after a battle to keep them from the enemies hands…he went on to say they always left Italian rifles and pistols in the hopes the Germans would try to use them…US troops thought that little of them…He said he picked up an italian pistol one time and before he had fired out the mag rapid fire the barrel had bulged. That the metal was total junk. The weapons have a bad reputation for safety and accuracy all over the net….as well as a story of a WW2 GI killed while firing one…this story is unsubstantiated though. Nobody seems to know the details or his name…so its possibly an urban legend. I dont know if the reputation is deserved or not really. I will say on gut feelings I dont have alot of hope for it.

Ok well this particular rifle is totally unimpressive..made in 1940…the stock is strait with no angle to the grip…it makes you twist your wrist at an uncomfortable angle. The sites are fixed…both front and rear, so if it doesnt shoot point of aim…well its kentucky windage all the way…I’ll say it is light and short…thats its only saving grace. The round it fires, the 6.5, looks…well…stupid…it just does. Sorry I cant descibe it any other way. It just strikes you as something with bad terminal ballistics and poor range/accuracy. Mind you thats what I feel when I look at it. The trigger is just like everybody elses surplus rifle, heavy and single stage. I have learned that does not mean inaccurate tho…Factory loads today seem to be pumping out the following numbers. They have generally 123-140 grain bullets moving out at roughly 2400-2600 fps and generate just under 2000lbs of muzzle energy. While more than enough to ruin your day it is by no means “powerful” and under powered for rifles of the time. The max published effective range is around 300 meters…which I’m sure it will shoot that, just that I dont believe you will be hitting anything due to the fixed sites.

Ok I took the old girl out with a box of Privi Partisan ammo….I dont know if you need a stripper clip to load the damn thing or what?? I think maybe it has to be loaded with a clip….if not…then I think its broken…I dont know…but I couldnt get the rounds to go in the mag from the top where obviously they load…I think it may be a stripper clip…which I dont have any…so I single loaded a round and closed the bolt…I then stood there like a “lily livered little chicken pants that sleeps on plastic sheets” (to quote an NCIS episode I saw) and I decided to NOT pull the trigger…its just not worth the safety hazard, whether real or perceived. The thing is junky seeming and I dont want to be a test dummy for nothing. Unload and back on the wall she goes. So sorry no range results.

Ok wrapping this up I wouldnt even fire this rifle…if you are looking for a cheap hunting or target gun and want to go with a surplus rifle then for the $$ the British 303 has been the best performer. Under 200$ and a great rifle. Check out my 303 review here…Anyway…if you want to round out a collection like me?? get one…if you want a shooter DONT get one…I cannot recommend this for any kind of use outside of collecting. It just all around does not give me a warm fuzzy feeling. Theres great surplus shooters out there…skip this one. If Oswald did manage to do all that with one of these…well then the “force” was definetly with him..After having this one I think there must be something to that “2nd shooter/grassy knoll thing”…As always thanks for reading and happy shooting.

By: Cary Kieffer