Carcano rifle 1891 Terni Arsenal 1915 Reconditioned Gardone Arsenal 1939

Prior to the adoption of the Fucile Modello 1891 (Carcano), the Vetterli Vitali rifle was the Italian army's standard rifle.

The Model 1891 rifle was adopted by the Italian army in March 1892 to replace the 10.4 mm Vetterli 1870 and Vetterli-Vitali 1870/87 rifles.

It is known as the Modello 91 or simply “il 91” in Italy, Carcano or Mannlicher-Carcano being non-Italian names, as is the less frequently encountered Parravicino-Mauser.

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Mechanically, the Model 1891 rifle is a very simple weapon.

The breech is of the Mauser type with two locking pins at the front, the feed is of the Mannlicher type with inserted clips of 6 cartridges, and the very simple safety is designed by Carcano.

After firing, the empty clip is evacuated through an opening on the underside of the magazine case, and if any cartridges remain, it can be removed from the top by releasing a push-button on the rear of the feed case.

One of the few complications encountered on this rifle is the progressive rifling pitch, which is 483 mm in front of the chamber and 203 mm at the muzzle.

The breech lever is straight.