MAS-39 and/or MAS-49 . . . what can you tell me.

[Prof Young]

The short story is I have cause to be interested in a rifle that will chamber the 7,5x54 French cartridge. That has lead me to research on the MAS-39 and MAS-49. Given the scarcity and price I probably won't be buy one, but thought I'd post here to see if anyone has experience with these firearms.

Life is good.
Prof Young

[Duster340]

My brother had a MAS49 for some years. Took a few deer with it. Very cool, nice shooting rifle, but he ended up trading it in for something else a couple years ago. On a different note, I have nearly 100 rds that I bought because they were marked as 7.92mm Mauser.... LOL guess I gotta find a MAS.

[Model12Win]

Good little stoppers, though no match for the M1 Garand.

[shaunpain]

I have a 49/56 of the Century rechamber variety so I can't speak to the 7,5 in and of itself, but that rifle is a handy little son of a gun and a pleasure to shoot. I'll never get rid of it.

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[10-96]

Back in the late 90's the Gunsmith I used to work for guided me around the MAS 49's a bit. He said to be a bit careful with one's that were converted to fire the .308 ctg. It seems there was a bit of a rumor going around that such a conversion did not always leave a full and proper support of the case. I would assume most all of these conversions would have .308/7.62 stamped on them, but an errant home smith might not have been so attentive. So it would pay to have the chamber checked out on any MAS 49 just for a little peace of mind.

[COSteve]

The MAS 36/51 is a bolt action version that also is chambered in the 7.5x54 French cartridge. We have a MAS 36 and it's 'interesting'. While accurate, the French decided that it didn't need a safety as they'd made them with a trigger pull somewhere it the 20lbs range!! Ammo ain't cheap for it but PPU makes good quality stuff. It usually sells for $15-$17 per box of 20rds of 139grn fmj.

The one we have looks new even though it was made before the war. (Remember, the French were only 'in it' for a couple of months before the Nazis took them over.) It's part of my son's Axis and Allies, WWII collection and it shoots decently although a bit roughly made. But hey, it's French so what would you expect?

[James K]

I used to think the Mle 36 was a pointless exercise in producing something, anything, that was not a Mauser just because the French had to have something different. Then a more knowledgeable person pointed out that the features that seemed odd had a reason and that the rifle was actually well designed from the French viewpoint. I remain a bit skeptical, but I can (sort of) see the logic in lack of a manual safety. The theory is that in combat a weapon is always loaded. If not in combat, it is always empty. So why is a safety needed? A valid point, but I can see problems (such as how a POW guard carries his weapon). I remain skeptical.

Maybe the French were victims of overthinking the problem.

(The trigger pull should not be near 20 pounds, though it is fairly heavy.)

Jim

[Slamfire]

I have a MAS 36 and a MAS 36-51. The MAS 36 display's equal parts brilliance and stupidity. Of course the buttstock is way too short, the French military must have been populated with midgets and dwarfs. There is an issue slip on butt pad, which I have on all my MAS36's, which brings it to a normal length.

The action is simply amazing, but I really disagree with the whole approach. The part count is low, which is good, it is very easy to disassemble and you can't get the action parts assembled in the wrong order. People just assume that is the way it is supposed to be, but that takes very careful engineering and design oversight to have this happen. The M60 machine gun has firing pin components that can be assembled in the wrong order, not such a smart idea. And don't forget the1910 Ross straight pull, you can assemble the bolt, fire the thing, and the threaded lugs are not in engagement. That has killed a number of shooters.

When I look at a MAS 36 receiver I just think of the massive amount of steel that had to be removed and tossed out. Who ever came up with it, you just have to wonder what they were thinking. The rear locking bolt is heavy, but the weight is really without function. You don't need a bolt that heavy for the cartridge thrust, and that heavy rear lugged bolt adds useless weight to the whole thing. The fore end hanger is hooked into the receiver, and the fore end is attached to the hanger. The full weight of the fore end is then hanging on the front of the barrel, the hanger is never perfectly tight, so there is movement of the fore end back and forth on the barrel. This is horrible for accuracy, as twisting or moving the fore end will of course, affect barrel vibrations. There are literally legions who claim sub MOA MAS 36's, but I would like to see one of those characters shoot a Master score, or a HM score, on a 100 yard NRA XTC match. And, I would like to see the 20 round prone group. If I was granted a life, to live until I saw a Master score shot by a MAS in XTC competition, I would be immortal. Mine shot about 3 to 4 inches at 100 yards off a bench.

I think the cartridge is a good one. Not too powerful, not too light. It would have made a good service cartridge, nice thick rim, plenty of taper, and low pressures. I am not a fan of high pressure service cartridges as high pressures cause malfunctions. If you can do the job at lower pressures, you will have a lot less problems in the field.

The epee bayonet, what a useless heavy hunk of metal on the end of the rifle. If you try to use it for cooking hot dogs, you will burn your fingers, as there is no wooden handle to hold.