Original French MLE 1874 M80 Brass Mounted Gras Camel Short Rifle – Foreign Legion Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. This lovely little brass mounted CAMEL SHORT RIFLE / CARBINE was issued for “Colonial Service”, as indicated by the brass mounts, and was originally produced as a MLE1874 “Gras” rifle, and later shortened for colonial service.

The left side of the receiver marked  MANUFACTURE D’ARMES St-Étienne Mle 1874 / M80 indicating manufacture at the government arsenal at St. Etienne. The rifle has arsenal proofs on most parts, and also is marked S 1876, indicating original manufacture in 1876.

The short rifle retains its serial numbers of F 42200 on the barrel only. The bolt which has its correct mounted troop’s “turn down” bolt handle is numbered M 20546. The weapon, being intended for mounted use, is not fitted with a bayonet stand and does have its correct “short” adjustable rear sight still in place. 

Overall condition of this short rifle is good, with nice peppered patina on the steel components, typical of desert issue weapons. Bore is mostly bright with clear lands and grooves, though there is some wear and evidence of past corrosion. Stock has the expected dents, scratches, and chips as expected of a weapon that was in service for decades.

Remember GARY COOPER in “BEAU GESTE” about the French Foreign Legion? In really good condition, fully cleaned and ready to display, all you need is a Camel!

History of the Gras rifle:

A caliber of 11mm and used black powder centerfire cartridges that weighed 25 grams. It was a robust and hard-hitting weapon, but it had no magazine and so could only fire one shot after loading. It also had a triangular-shaped sword bayonet, known as the Model 1874 “Gras” Sword Bayonet. It was replaced by the Lebel rifle in 1886, the first rifle to use smokeless gunpowder. In the meantime, about 400,000 Gras rifles had been manufactured.

The metallic-cartridge Gras was manufactured in response to the development of the metallic cartridge designed by Colonel Boxer in 1866 (Boxer cartridge), and the British 1870 Martini-Henry rifle. Those were soon emulated by the Germans with the 1871 Mauser.

The Hellenic Army adopted the Gras in 1877, and it was used in all conflicts up until the Second World War. It became the favourite weapon of Greek guerrilla fighters, from the various revolts against the Ottoman Empire to the resistance against the Axis, acquiring legendary status. The name entered the Greek language, and Grades (γκράδες) was a term colloquially applied to all rifles during the first half of the 20th century. It was manufactured by Manufacture d’armes de Saint-Étienne, one of several government-owned arms factories in France. However most of the Gras rifles (60,000) used by the Hellenic military were manufactured under licence by Steyr in Austria.

The Gras rifle was partly the inspiration for the development of the Japanese Murata rifle, Japan’s first locally-made service rifle.

Specifications-

Year of Manufacture: 1876
Caliber:  11×59mmR Gras
Cartridge Type: Centerfire Cartridge
Barrel Length: 27 1/2 Inches
Overall Length: 46 Inches
Action type: Bolt-Action
Feed System: Single Shot

NOTE: International orders of antique firearms MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services (courier). USPS Priority Mail international will not accept these.