.264" Carcano barrel?

[smellie]

Tight bore? Right hand? Eight grooves? On a Carcano..... with double triggers?

Original Carcano long rifle model 1891, modded by H.W. Cooey on contract for the T. Eaton Co. of Canada in the late 1920s, early 1930s.

These things have a truly AWFUL reputation which is completely undeserved. In this part of the world,there are legends of truly devastating accidents with these rifles.... although I have never met any of the people involved, nor have I seen the resulting wreckage of man and Carcano. But then, I've only been here for 67 years! I suspect rather strongly that any accidents were the result of using the wrong ammunition or else just, "Well, Bob got one of these and he told me that his Uncle Jim was afeart of it so I got rid of the SOB right quick and them things is dangerous, kid, so get rid of it now an' git a thutty-thutty like ever-one else!"

BTW, most seem to be chambered for the 6.5x54 Mannlicher-Schoenauer round, which was the only 6.5 round available in Canada at that time. Thing is the MS and MC are just SO close that some rifles..... and many regular Carcanos..... will chamber both. If the Extractor has the round, you are safe to go. If it feeds up through the mag, the Extractor should be able to grab it. Problems can arise with single rounds tossed into the chamber...... as with any rimless cartridge.

Great little brush-buster!

Only possible mechanical problem: don't let the Cat get hold of that tiny screw which locks the barrel in place! It's in the bottom of the barrel Chamber section. Loc-Tite is your friend.

Horrible things ARE possible if you remove the Barrel Locking Screw and the Cat bats it under the fridge. If the Barrel turns outward (or is removed and not turned far enough back-in on replacement) it is possible to have a huge amount of clearance between the Bolt in forward position and the CHAMBER, leaving part of the CARTRIDGE COMPLETELY UNSUPPORTED. Being that Prairie farmers are inveterate tinkerers, I suspect that 1 or 2 incidents such as this well could have blackened the reputation of an otherwise fine little rifle.

I'm not really all that afraid of them. After all, I DO have three of them.

Good luck and have fun!
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[jmoore]

Tight bore? Right hand? Eight grooves? On a Carcano..... with double triggers? Original Carcano long rifle model 1891, modded by H.W. Cooey on contract for the T. Eaton Co. of Canada in the late 1920s, early 1930s.

Double triggers/ double set trigger would have been a big bonus. But this little bit of ugliness just has the military trigger. Had it out just yesterday, hoping there would be some redeeming feature that had been missed earlier. Nope. Horrid hack job of a rear sight. Hideous "Bubba" stock. Weirdly pitted bolt. Side of the receiver crudely drilled and tapped. Probably couldn't give it away as a complete rifle. Have yet to need any parts off of it...

[smellie]

I have just re-read this whole thread, jmoore, and I am surer (if that is a word) than ever that you have a COOEY CARCANO.

Proper Carcano rifling was 4 grooves only; the 8-groove barrel was Howard Cooey's claim to fame, so to speak. They used 8-groove barrels ven on their .22s, which were the overwhelming bulk of their production, and the things were accurate. Cooey .22s in the mid-1920s were priced at $6.25 and actually achieved some significant sales in the USA..... where you still could get a comparable Winchester for half that money. The 8-groove rifling was part of the reason and these little rifles are still accurate today, although modern ammunition is MUCH too fast for them. The rifling was not very deep in the .22s and modern super-speed bullets just blast through, tripping as they do so. As a result, the old Cooey .22s now are very much despised and disrespected. Feed them STANDARD-velocity or SUBSONIC ammunition, though, and you could be amazed. A friend has one and rates it up with his Winchester 52..... and nobody EVER said that a 52 could not shoot! BTW, their .25RF CANUCK model also has the 8-groove barrel; I have one here, just really short on ammo. It was a BALL to shoot.

But that is who made your barrel. Likely you will find that the original cleaning-rod hole in your stock has been patched with a piece of the original fore-end; this also was standard for these.

Is the trigger on yours very narrow? The set-trigger groups installed by Cooey were very narrow. Military trigger, by my lights, would be preferable.

BTW, I have been loading ammo for my Carcano Shorties with 4198 powder. Keeps the muzzle-blast down and a great improvement in accuracy; the powder burns IN the barrel and not out in the air, less bullet destabilisation on exit. Worth a try. I use 28 grains with a 140 flatbase for a starter load.

Hope this helps.
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[jmoore]

Maybe it's worth doing some photos, if the camera turns up!

Thinking on it, I seem to remember that a friend may have some sort of proper sporter stock, but it may be for an M1 Carbine- it's been so long I can't remember which of the two he already sold!

Is there any sort of decent peep sight made for these?

[smellie]

No decent peep sight made for these that I know of, although I do think you could get one of those old Lymans to fit onto the right side of the receiver.

They were actually rebuilt for shot-range bush guns and, for that, they work fine, although a single-notch open rear sight is not my idea as the best thing for a longer-range rifle.

They are actually a sporty little rifle which deserved a lot better than it got.

I have 3 of them here, now, in various states of decrepitude. Must do something about that one of these days. With a bit of luck and a lot of work, should be able to have all 3 working properly again.

I do not know of anyone who made a really decent stock for them, although perhaps one of the US makers from the 60s might still have one around. FAJEN used to make stocks for all the surplus rifles; they might be good for a try. The WOOD in the original stocks was decent quality but rather bland in appearance.

Run one with a 120 to keep the recoil down and it should be a great introductory centrefire rifle for a woman or a boy. Just remember to seat the slug 'WAY out!

Hope this helps.
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