A Brand New Very Old Toy

I brought this home today. It's a Steyr Mannlicher M1895. After a ten day waiting period the anticipation had nearly killed me. It was a breathless moment as I opened the extremely long box and removed the prize within. It's a lovely rifle, surprisingly good looking for being 91 years old. As an additional bonus it seems to have all matching serial numbers.

Manufactured in Vienna in 1917 and re-chambered in 1934, this rifle's been around. The M1895 was the main battle rifle of Austria-Hungary during the first world war. It was still in service into the thirties and you can find Nazi stamped ammunition and clips for the gun. Some of the unique features of this rifle are the straight pull bolt and the clip feeding. Instead of a rotating bolt as is common on bolt-action rifles this bolt is pulled straight backwards and then pushed straight forward. Its five rounds are loaded into a small bloc clip and then loaded into the magazine. When the last round is chambered the clip falls out a small hole in the bottom of the magazine, just forward of the trigger. When it does this it emits a ping noise almost identical to that of the M1 Garand, which is thoroughly satisfying to someone such as myself, someone who wishes they could own a Garand but doesn't have half the money necessary.

It will be a little while before I get to take it to the range. I need some clips and some ammunition, both of which must be ordered online. Hopefully I'll be able to write about it afterwards, maybe upload a video. I'm looking forward to the recoil. I own an M44 Mosin-Nagant which is chambered for the 7.62X54R mm round and it kicks like a beast. This Steyr fires an 8X56R mm round and is shorter and lighter than my Mosin, so it should try to rip my shoulder off. Which is honestly part of the joy of shooting. I love the kick of old rifles. Every time I fire one I have this sudden, visceral, compassion with all the soldiers who fired it many years ago. Video games and movies depict guns constantly but no war movie ever intimates to its viewers the full sensory impact of a firearm. The smell, the weight, the rattling boom, the jarring kick, it's something you have in common with the infantry of World War one after firing such a weapon. As soon as you imagine doing it all day for years you start to get a new handle on history. It's a sobering thought, and an experience that is, to me, utterly delightful.

If you would like to know more about the M1895 you can follow these links:
History of the M1895
Specifications, maintenance, disassembly and more