More 6.5 Carcano fun coming!

[smellie]

I have been using 4198 in my Shorties, with good results, also 4895 in my Model 1941, which is shooting exactly 1 inch at 100 with Remington bulk-pack 264-140 flatbase slugs.

I am interested in what you are saying about your "clunker". This could be a Cooey Carcano, also called an "Eaton's Carcano": built in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by the H.W. Cooey company on contract for the T. Eaton mail-order company. This is quite an (in)famous rifle in Canada and is responsible for giving the entire 6.5mm bore size a black eye for many, many years. There are all sorts of awful tales of mayhem, mangling and murder with these rifles, but I have been able to run down only ONE actual case of injury. Special ammunition was made for these for a short time (pink box of 20, headstamp just "R" at noon and "6.5mm" at 6 'clock). These were built in the 1920s from surplus WW1 rifles and the extended-barrel-stub construction is actually stronger than it looks. I picked up a wreck about 20 years ago, just to have an example of this famous firearms failure, picked up a really nice one at an auction just a couple of weeks ago: 50 bucks! Part of the problem with these seems to have been that 6.5MS ammo was available and people were cramming it into the Carcano chambers and getting really high pressures. I have 2 rounds of the 'special' ammunition for these and cannot tell it from Carcano. The rifles were called back on a moneyback basis any years ago. There never were a lot, very few survive and even fewer are in shooting condition. Both of mine have double set-triggers.

Good to see more than just my old relics still out on the range.
.

Information

Warning: This is a relatively older thread This discussion is older than 360 days. Some information contained in it may no longer be current.

[dan1123]

Hey I just baught on of these guns and now that I start reading all this stuff on them makes me leary. I took it all apart tonight and checked it over looks good and solid I didn;t take the barrel apart, but I will tomorrow. What should I run in this thing for ammo. I have read different things saying that some were Re-chambered to the 6.5x54 and I have also read its a 6.5x53.5 which does not sound right to me. I tryed a empty 6.5x54 casing in it and it was tight upon closing but did fit.kinda makes me think 6.5x52. there is little information on these guns so any little would help. is this 6.5x52 readily avaliable in ontario?
Thanks
Daniel

[jmoore]

Hey I just baught on of these guns and now that I start reading all this stuff on them makes me leary. I took it all apart tonight and checked it over looks good and solid I didn;t take the barrel apart, but I will tomorrow. What should I run in this thing for ammo. I have read different things saying that some were Re-chambered to the 6.5x54 and I have also read its a 6.5x53.5 which does not sound right to me. I tryed a empty 6.5x54 casing in it and it was tight upon closing but did fit.kinda makes me think 6.5x52. there is little information on these guns so any little would help. is this 6.5x52 readily avaliable in ontario?
Thanks
Daniel

Sorry, Dan1123! Don't know how I missed your post, but Nov./27/2010 is the first time I have revisited this thread in a while. If you tune in again, let us know if you've learned any more about your rifle.

[jmoore]

I have been using 4198 in my Shorties, with good results, also 4895 in my Model 1941, which is shooting exactly 1 inch at 100 with Remington bulk-pack 264-140 flatbase slugs.

I am interested in what you are saying about your "clunker". This could be a Cooey Carcano, also called an "Eaton's Carcano": built in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by the H.W. Cooey company on contract for the T. Eaton mail-order company. This is quite an (in)famous rifle in Canada and is responsible for giving the entire 6.5mm bore size a black eye for many, many years. There are all sorts of awful tales of mayhem, mangling and murder with these rifles, but I have been able to run down only ONE actual case of injury. Special ammunition was made for these for a short time (pink box of 20, headstamp just "R" at noon and "6.5mm" at 6 'clock). These were built in the 1920s from surplus WW1 rifles and the extended-barrel-stub construction is actually stronger than it looks. I picked up a wreck about 20 years ago, just to have an example of this famous firearms failure, picked up a really nice one at an auction just a couple of weeks ago: 50 bucks! Part of the problem with these seems to have been that 6.5MS ammo was available and people were cramming it into the Carcano chambers and getting really high pressures. I have 2 rounds of the 'special' ammunition for these and cannot tell it from Carcano. The rifles were called back on a moneyback basis any years ago. There never were a lot, very few survive and even fewer are in shooting condition. Both of mine have double set-triggers.

Good to see more than just my old relics still out on the range.
.

Apologies to you too, smellie! I'm floored that you found 0.264" bullets that would group so well! I may have to try them in my Model 1941, as well.

There is a whole 'nuther thread on my stupidness concerning the Cooey lash up. It does OK with the Prvi Partisan ammo w/ the 0.264" bullets. I never got around to getting any 6,5 MS- Maybe that's a good thing! Let me see if I can find the thread and make a link. One moment, Puleeze!

ETA: Here it is, in all of it's embarrassing glory:

https://www.milsurps.com/showthread.php?t=15614

[dan1123]

I'm sorry Guys I lost my password for here and have been having computer problems. I do have a eatons carcano. I was talking to a guy from horniday and they actually make a REAL carcano bullet I think he said it was .268 ot .266 but it was designed for the carcano's I was wondering with mine being a cooey one do you use a carcano round? loaded for carcano or is it a different shell size? and is the new barrel gain twist rifled? I don;t think I want this thing any more just sounds like a real headache or are they decent guns ?

[jmoore]

I'm sorry Guys I lost my password for here and have been having computer problems. I do have a eatons carcano. I was talking to a guy from horniday and they actually make a REAL carcano bullet I think he said it was .268 ot .266 but it was designed for the carcano's I was wondering with mine being a cooey one do you use a carcano round? loaded for carcano or is it a different shell size? and is the new barrel gain twist rifled? I don;t think I want this thing any more just sounds like a real headache or are they decent guns ?

My Cooey was rebarreled (but it retained the barrel stub near the breech) with a 0.264" bore. Supposedly in 6.5 M-S, but Prvi Partisan 6.5 Carcano ammo worked OK as it has 0.264" bullets.

[dan1123]

so I would use a 6.5x54 brass then and load it to .264 bullets with a mild load? Is it a nice shooting gun or is all the bad rap really true?
does yours have the double set triggers