email ad for Manurhin MR 73.. seconds to act

C

Clark

New member
I got an email from AIM at 2:31 p.m. West Coast time.
By the time I figured out what they were, what my login password was, and which FFL I wanted, all 5 types of the revolver were sold out.
I was just trying to buy (2) of them.
They were sold out of adjustable rear sight models by the time I was logged on. By the time I had selected an FFL, after calling around, they were all gone.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manurhin_MR_73
 
It seems AIM Surplus is good about selling out of these types of things in just minutes after the email hits. I've missed a few things because I wasn't quick enough.
 
Finest combat revolver of all time, hands down.

Just picked up my flawless Mulhouse-built 6" MR73 Sport this week. :D I'm definitely going to shoot it, but I sure wouldn't mind having one of these to shoot the hell out of too (and maybe refinish/spiff up). How many minutes would you say elapsed between the time you got the email and the time they were all sold? Are we talking five or ten minutes?
 
First, I admit that I do not own a Manurhin revolver, though I have seen and handled a couple.

From that very limited experience, I don't quite understand why they are considered so good, or the "Finest combat revolver of all time, hands down."

They seem to be well made and finished, but not (IMHO) any better than a decent S&W or Colt. The design areas unique to the MR-73 show no special innovation and in some areas are retrogressive, an example being use of flat springs instead of coils. Many were reportedly bought by the French police for obvious reasons, but AFAIK, they have not been widely used elsewhere.

Jim
 
There are essentially no English-language sources on the MR73, but this is a good, short study of it. You're certainly free to disagree with the author's conclusions, of course. As far as the quality and durability of the materials used, however, the MR73 is in an entirely different league from anything Colt or S&W has ever built. (And I say that as someone who cherishes his Pythons, other Colts, and S&Ws.)

http://larvatus.livejournal.com/519794.html
http://larvatus.livejournal.com/520133.html
 
OK I *may* have been one of the few who was able to order a 4" non-hand select with a regular blued (but worn) finish in the 45 minutes or so before they were sold out.

Here's a question that will evoke either praise or scorn:

If the one I get is cosmetically rough looking, would I be insane to consider duracoating it? I realize these are some of the finest (if not the finest) combat revolvers ever produced - so I don't want to eff something up mechanically with a duracoat job.

But, I am also interested in its indestructible characteristics and insanely good accuracy.

Which would be more ideal: Duracoating it or leaving it looking like a beater (yet shooting like a dream)?
 
OK I *may* have been one of the few who was able to order a 4" non-hand select with a regular blued (but worn) finish in the 45 minutes or so before they were sold out.

Here's a question that will evoke either praise or scorn:

If the one I get is cosmetically rough looking, would I be insane to consider duracoating it? I realize these are some of the finest (if not the finest) combat revolvers ever produced - so I don't want to eff something up mechanically with a duracoat job.

But, I am also interested in its indestructible characteristics and insanely good accuracy.

Which would be more ideal: Duracoating it or leaving it looking like a beater (yet shooting like a dream)?
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Congrats!

I can't give you an unbiased answer, because I hate Duracoat. :p I don't like Cerakote or any of the other flat-looking coatings either.

I might consider something like a black DLC (Ionbond) coating. Robar does nice work, but I wouldn't want the gun nickeled in whatever fashion.

If it would be possible to have the gun competently reblued, then that would be my personal preference. The steel is far harder than that of Colt and S&W revolvers, though, so attaining a nice polish is difficult and time-consuming. I don't know what the implications of that are for opening up tolerances and so forth.

Basically, I'm not a gunsmith, and I have never had anything refinished, but I would be quite obsessive-compulsive about this sort of thing and would need assurance from at least one highly-regarded gunsmith that a refinishing job could be well-executed both aesthetically and technically. If you're adding coatings or subtracting a minute amount of metal by polishing, you're changing the tolerances. Whether it's to a degree that matters, I have no idea. I would need to hear from a respected expert that this particular model of gun can receive that kind of work without any adverse effects. Otherwise I would leave it be.

Not everyone is as neurotic as I am, though. :)
 
I sure agree that the MR-73 is a better gun than the Colt 1877. Beyond that, the article is pretty much hype. That at least some members of the French security forces can shoot is not in question. The question is whether the MR-73 is better by objective standards than other revolvers. The only point addressing that issue is that the S&W Model 19 was not intended for heavy use of full power .357 loads. That is true, and S&W has never claimed otherwise. Most of the other statements about competing revolvers are nonsense.

And much of the rest is ridiculous. "The MR-73 allowed for nonlethal outcomes on many occasions" is touchy-feely nonsense; maybe the French (like the English) believe that their police are kind, gentle, and loving, but in the recent Paris attacks, the police did not shoot to "incapacitate" the terrorists, they shot to kill them and did so. Maybe the police didn't have MR revolvers and could not shoot the terrorists' fingernails off.

JIm
 
Congrats!

I can't give you an unbiased answer, because I hate Duracoat. I don't like Cerakote or any of the other flat-looking coatings either.

I might consider something like a black DLC (Ionbond) coating. Robar does nice work, but I wouldn't want the gun nickeled in whatever fashion.

If it would be possible to have the gun competently reblued, then that would be my personal preference. The steel is far harder than that of Colt and S&W revolvers, though, so attaining a nice polish is difficult and time-consuming. I don't know what the implications of that are for opening up tolerances and so forth.

Basically, I'm not a gunsmith, and I have never had anything refinished, but I would be quite obsessive-compulsive about this sort of thing and would need assurance from at least one highly-regarded gunsmith that a refinishing job could be well-executed both aesthetically and technically. If you're adding coatings or subtracting a minute amount of metal by polishing, you're changing the tolerances. Whether it's to a degree that matters, I have no idea. I would need to hear from a respected expert that this particular model of gun can receive that kind of work without any adverse effects. Otherwise I would leave it be.

Not everyone is as neurotic as I am, though.
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Thank you!

Yes, I was going to try to get the hand-picked but within 5 minutes of seeing it, it was gone - so I jumped on the last thing they had. The sample photo looks a bit rough …

That said I totally hear you and do agree when it comes to the whole tolerances part. From what I understand, these revolvers are finely tuned masterpieces and are built to last. Some of the durability reports I've been reading are amazing. Also, it's reassuring to know that any revolver that did not shoot at least 1/8" group w/ 5 rounds at 25 yards was rejected.

I may just keep it "as is", scratches and worn finish and all.

It might have a little more wow factor to pull out a revolver that looks beat to hell and then drive tacks with it. Definitely makes it more unique.
 
That's fine, James, you don't have to agree with it. It certainly makes no difference to me.

There's useful information in the piece that one can find without giving excessive attention to the historical information about French security forces, their philosophies that one might find silly or disagreeable, and so forth. I agree that that is not the question, and I don't think anyone, including the author himself, ever said that it was. Whether the French are stupid and whether this approach is adequate to meet contemporary terrorist threats and whatever else is a red herring. Anyway, I have to wonder if you just stopped reading halfway through. Here's something, for example, that refers to the capabilities of revolvers other than the S&W Model 19:

In GIGN service, none of their [S&W] revolvers could handle the daily practice regimen of 150 rounds of Norma 158 grain .357 S&W Magnum ammo. The MR73 was tested with this ammunition. Its torture test was abandoned without appreciable wear after firing 170,000 full power Norma .357 rounds. Numerous published tests witness this capacity. By contrast, even the N-frame S&W .357 revolvers are generally good for less than a third of this life span.
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The fact that much of the piece doesn't bear on the question doesn't discredit the parts that do. These testing figures have been published in a number of other places. I don't think anyone credible will ever argue that a S&W or Colt of any kind could hold up to that quantity of full-power Norma .357 rounds without appreciable wear (or, likely, without being deadlined).

Anyway, and I don't mean this in a snide way, but whether someone wants to agree or disagree with this matters very little to me. Perhaps the author himself will come over and engage anyone interested in a conversation about it.
 
Thank you!

Yes, I was going to try to get the hand-picked but within 5 minutes of seeing it, it was gone - so I jumped on the last thing they had. The sample photo looks a bit rough …

That said I totally hear you and do agree when it comes to the whole tolerances part. From what I understand, these revolvers are finely tuned masterpieces and are built to last. Some of the durability reports I've been reading are amazing. Also, it's reassuring to know that any revolver that did not shoot at least 1/8" group w/ 5 rounds at 25 yards was rejected.

I may just keep it "as is", scratches and worn finish and all.

It might have a little more wow factor to pull out a revolver that looks beat to hell and then drive tacks with it. Definitely makes it more unique.
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Congrats again! I would love to get my hands on one of these.

There's a lot of charm in honest finish wear on a long-time service pistol or revolver, in my opinion. But I can see the desire to get it spiffed-up too. Please return with photos and a range report! :)
 
If it makes no difference to you, why do you keep hyping the MR-73?
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Because I enjoy talking about guns a decent amount?

I think it was fairly clear from reading my last post, however, that I have no investment in further debating the merits of the gun. More than anything else, I was debating the merits of the article and what I viewed as your inaccurate characterization of it.

If you want to critique the MR73 -- or the article further, for that matter -- have at it. Whether you or anyone else likes or dislikes what I like or agrees or disagrees with my opinions is really of little to no consequence to me.
 
"They seem to be well made and finished, but not (IMHO) any better than a decent S&W or Colt."
Do you even double-action, bro? Even a beat up, spray-oiled, barely loose timed example I have has a beautifully short and smooth double action compared to my "PC" S&W. Neither are supurb trigger exhibitions, but the MR73 is so nice in DA it is easier to shoot than SA (long hammer reach on that one). The SA trigger is extremely short too, shortest travel of any pistol or rifle I own. Second only to the auto cocking Mateba, it is the fastest shooting revolver I've shot.

Sadly, the hand design is sensitive to certain recoil impulses, and can skip/jam on the ratchet teeth (likely a weak hand spring on my gun, but a real flaw in the design). Did not like 140gr Hornady Levergun ammo.

TCB
 
*Sigh* I saw the add from AIM tonight. I thought "Hmmm looks interesting, I should check it out." I feel like I've heard of these before. Sure enough, looks like an awesome revolver for a fair price.

Sold out!

I really liked the looks of the one with fixed sights, 4" barrel and wood grips.

I would REALLY like to find some accuracy reviews on these guns!

I'm also having a hard time not forking over $300 for one of there k31 rifles! :D
 
I would REALLY like to find some accuracy reviews on these guns!
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I don't know whether you mean these specific surplus guns, or the MR73 in general, but the MR73 has to deliver five shots within a 20-millimeter (0.787 in.) circle at 25 meters (27.34 yards) in order to leave the factory.

From what I've heard about guns like these, which also show up on Gunbroker from time to time, they're still in excellent shooting shape -- it's just the exterior that looks beaten up. These aren't GIGN surplus pistols; they're just regular French police surplus, and they aren't fired anywhere near as much as under the GIGN practice regimen (150 full-power rounds per day). If they haven't been abused in some other fashion, they should be great shooters. I'd love to get my hands on one.
 
Michael Zeleny has reviewed the MR73 and ranked it highly. He definitely has enough high quality guns to compare the MR73 to and has the educational background to do a thorough review. The MR73 is pretty much his favorite, beating the Korths and S&W registered Magnums, if I understand it right.

http://larvatus.livejournal.com/519794.html
 
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