Original Dutch Beaumont-Vitali M1871/88 Bolt Action Magazine Conversion Rifle – Dated 1878 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This Dutch Infantry Rifle was made by Stevens in Maastricht in the Netherlands, and is actually dated 1885. The model M-71 was a single shot 11mm rifle that was converted to a bolt-action magazine rifle with a capacity of four rounds in 1891.

This example has serial number Y/ 42 above the chamber on the receiver, as well as on the magazine floor plate. The bolt has all components marked E / 260. This is normal for the converted rifles, as the action had to be rebuilt, and often parts were mixed. The barrel is dated 1878, and the receiver is faintly marked P. STEVENS, which would normally have MAASTRICHT under it. It is in nice tight condition overall with a very faint roundel stamp in the stock showing a faint Crown over W surrounded by MAASTRICHT and an unclear date. 

The rifle is in very good overall condition, complete with cleaning rod. The metal finish is worn to a lovely patina gray patina, though there are areas of light pitting. All components are solid and the bolt moves, though it sticks a bit. The bolt is made up of many components, which unfortunately have gotten loose due to wear. The bore is excellent, with clear lands and grooves with a bright shiny finish. The wood stock is in good condition, though it has been worn down from cleaning and use. This has made the markings somewhat faint, and there are some small dents. No major damage that we can see, the stock is still solid.

Still in use by the time WW1 came in 1914 but was much outclassed by the Mauser and Enfield rifle systems introduced in the late 1890s.

An unusual system, the bolts spring is in fact housed inside the bolt handle, from an era of great firearms development worldwide, the dawn of the breach-loading period this is unusual and not easy to find. Ready to display!

History of the Beaumont: Created in 1871 by a Dutch engineer named Messerecht, the Dutch Beaumont rifle was one of the first metallic cartridge bolt-action rifle to be adopted by any military. Firing an 11.3x50mm cartridge it was single shot only, meaning the user had to insert a new cartridge after every shot. Unlike other rifles, the mainspring of the Beaumont was located within the bolt handle, an exact copy of the Mauser Norris rifle, which would also be copied by the Japanese with the Murate rifle. This same feature, however, made it impossible to turn down the bolt on cavalry and carbine models.

While the Beaumont was state of the art for its day, by the late 1880’s it was obsolete as repeating rifles became all the rage in Europe. To make up for the Beaumont’s deficiency, the Dutch added a magazine to the rifle, the same type of magazine used by the Italians when they converted their single shot Vetterli rifles into repeaters. Since the Beaumont was outfitted with the Italian Vitali magazine in 1888, it was redubbed the Beaumont-Vitali Model 1871/88. The Vitali magazine held four rounds and was reloaded with an en bloc clip made of cardboard. When the clip was empty, an attached string was pulled to remove it from the magazine, no kidding.

Despite the upgrade the Beaumont-Vitali, much like the Italian Vetterli Vitali, was obsolete by the time it was introduced. By 1890 nations began to adopt smokeless powder designs which used smaller caliber high velocity cartridges firing conical shaped spitzer bullets. Eventually the Dutch phased out the Beaumont-Vitali and replaced it with the M95 Steyr-Hembrug.

Specifications-

Year of Manufacture: 1878
Caliber: 11.3×52Rmm
Cartridge Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel  Length: 32 Inches
Overall Length: 52 Inches
Action type: Bolt-Action
Feed System: 4 Round Magazine

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