lordhedgwich
New member
Are carcanos chambered in 7.35 more valuable. When looking at carcanos on gunbroker i noticed 7.35 carcanos going for 250-400 and 6.5 going for 100-250.
Carcano question
- Thread starter lordhedgwich
- Start date
Depends. They are less common so probably more valuable to a collector. But the ammo is hard to get even though IIRC Hornady makes it and the bullets for reloading, so it is less practical than the 6.5.
I sort of wish I had bought a bunch at $9.95 but the price probably is due more to inflation than any real increase in value. (I should have bought a couple of hundred STEN guns at the same price - I could have been rich.)
Jim
I sort of wish I had bought a bunch at $9.95 but the price probably is due more to inflation than any real increase in value. (I should have bought a couple of hundred STEN guns at the same price - I could have been rich.)
Jim
carguychris
New member
...in equal condition?
IIRC due to inadequate ammo production capacity, the Italian Army had severe logistical problems getting enough 7.35mm ammo to the troops during WWII, and its leaders decided to mitigate the problems by holding many newly-produced 7.35 rifles in reserve or using them solely for training. Consequently, the 7.35 rifles are far more common in unissued or lightly-used condition.
The 6.5mm rifles more commonly show signs of heavy use, and many were clumsily sporterized in the 1960s and 1970s, when they were considered nearly worthless.
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lordhedgwich
New member
I dont know about equal condition i didnt really look at them I have a 7.35 carcano and i was thinking about selling/trading it for a 6.5 carcano due to the 7.35 ammo not being easily available
Mike Irwin
Staff
Generally, yes.
There are far fewer Carcanos in 7.35 around than there are in 6.5.
There are far fewer Carcanos in 7.35 around than there are in 6.5.
On the auction sites, I have seen Carcanos sell between $3-400. None are what I would call rare.
Conversely at gunshows, every model I have seen is less than $200. I can offer no explanation as of why. Thousands of these rifles were brought into the country in the 60s.
I picked up a 7.35 in near mint condition with original bayonet, scabbard, & sling for $175 at a gunshow last year. Like one went for more than double what I paid on GB.
Conversely at gunshows, every model I have seen is less than $200. I can offer no explanation as of why. Thousands of these rifles were brought into the country in the 60s.
I picked up a 7.35 in near mint condition with original bayonet, scabbard, & sling for $175 at a gunshow last year. Like one went for more than double what I paid on GB.
lordhedgwich
New member
hmm I wouldnt have bought this carcano but i have never found a carcano in 6.5 that has not been sporterized every time i see one in a gunshop i get all excited then i see someone put some were stock or goofy scope on it. This is the first carcano i have seen in a gunshop that someone hasnt butchered so i just had to buy it, but since i dont reload i will most likely never shoot it lol I just want a 1891 or 1891/40 carcano in 6.5 for 200 or under is that too hard to ask for? 
"Thousands of these rifles were brought into the country in the 60s."
More like hundreds of thousands, maybe millions. That is one reason they were, and are, inexpensive. Unlike the Germans, at the end of WWII, the Italians were on the allied side, so the Italian Army was never disarmed, and Carcanos were very rarely brought back by GI's. (Most of the Italian troops captured in North Africa surrendered to the British, not the Americans.) They later sold off their WWI-WWII era rifles to finance the upgrade to the BM-59.
Jim
More like hundreds of thousands, maybe millions. That is one reason they were, and are, inexpensive. Unlike the Germans, at the end of WWII, the Italians were on the allied side, so the Italian Army was never disarmed, and Carcanos were very rarely brought back by GI's. (Most of the Italian troops captured in North Africa surrendered to the British, not the Americans.) They later sold off their WWI-WWII era rifles to finance the upgrade to the BM-59.
Jim
I think you are right Jim on the number of Carcanos. There was a gun dealer in Dallas TX that had probably 200 back in the 60s. There were long rifles, calvary carbines, regular carbines. Most were 6.5s but he had 7.35s too. Cost was around $15 and they had many clips full of surp ammo.
I have owned & traded away many and enjoy reloading these rifles. With the right ammo, they will hold their own.
I have owned & traded away many and enjoy reloading these rifles. With the right ammo, they will hold their own.
Other countries that sold off whole arms depots in that era were Britain and Spain; both had the same goal - clean out the old junk and use the money to buy the new generation of semi-auto and selective fire rifles.
When the last shipment came in from Spain, just before GCA '68 (as it was then) cut off milsurp imports, Interarms sent a stake body truck to the docks and it came back loaded - with the computer printout serial number list. There are still thousands of those Spanish rifles in warehouses; one day they will show up on the market.
A little sidelight. I was once talking to the VP of Interarms while we were looking at the contents of one of their warehouses. He asked, in honest puzzlement, "Where do they go, where do they all go?" I couldn't answer.
Jim
When the last shipment came in from Spain, just before GCA '68 (as it was then) cut off milsurp imports, Interarms sent a stake body truck to the docks and it came back loaded - with the computer printout serial number list. There are still thousands of those Spanish rifles in warehouses; one day they will show up on the market.
A little sidelight. I was once talking to the VP of Interarms while we were looking at the contents of one of their warehouses. He asked, in honest puzzlement, "Where do they go, where do they all go?" I couldn't answer.
Jim
Romeo 33 Delta
New member
James ... my house!