French MAS 49/56

[SMOKEYE]

If you have had the pleasure of firing one of these fine firearms I am sure you drew huge respect from the great job the french did on this rifle. The one I own is in the original 7.5x54 cal. The rechambered ones in .308 can be a problem. The rifle is very accurate and extremely reliable. Ammo , well it helps if you reload as 7.5x54 can be a little hard to get. It uses a .308 dia bullet , so there are lots of bullets to select from. Having owned a Springfield M-1A , I will state that the MAS 49/56 is a better rifle , only limited by its 10 rd mag.

[eastbank]

you have got to be kidding, the french rifle is a good semi-auto rifle,but it not better than a mia in any way. if you have shot a mia the high points come out, a better trigger,better sights,better take down for cleaning or maintence,parts are alot easier to come by for the mia if needed along with a 20 round magazine and lastly you can by ammo at any sporting goods store(7.62-.308) . i own and shoot both and at the ranges i shoot 100-600 yds the m1a realy stands out way ahead of the 49/56. eastbank.

[Mikey]

We had stockpiles of the MAS 49s at our SF camps in Vietnam and you are coorect that they are a good solid rifle.  I would look around for the ammo - I believe Graf and Sons imports the stuff and I think Starline makes brass for it.  The 7.5x54 is a good solid round, like the 7.5x55 Swiss.  I don't feel the 308 has any more to offer.  imo.

[eastbank]

i saw alot of different rifles including french older 36,s 49,s  in vietnam and i can tell you nobody picked one up to use(military french ammo was advailable) even the vietcong prefered the sks-ak-47,s,unless there was a supply problem for them and the regular nva never carried them. i,m not saying it was not a good rifle for its time, just like the m1 garand,but the m1a was a better rifle than both. opions are like noses and thats mine. eastbank.

[Mikey]

The only time the VC had any supply problems is when we interdicted their supply lines, which we did with 'energenic' frequency.  If they used elephants to transport materials we would have elephant steak that night.  The NVA and VC (by that time) used the Soviet bloc weapons and ammo due to their ready availability and the ongoing supply that was always both ready and available.  The NVA carried the AK-47s. 
I can tell you that when we were either under siege or expecting a main force incursion, every man jack who was on the line had every damn type of rifle he could haul on up there and as much ammo as he could fire.  I specifically recall guys hauling up AKs and SKSs (multiples) and lots of ammo and grenades.  We had M16s on the line, as well as the MAS, M1s and M1 Carbines - had very few M14s.  If we did not have the time to reload we just grabbed another rifle. 
The NVA and VC started massive stockpiling of weapons and ammo in the early 70s and we took every opportunity to relieve them of that stuff, and either booby trap it or use it against them; but I can tell ya now that the fastest reload I have ever seen is another loaded rifle.

[eastbank]

i agree a new loaded rifle beats a fast reload,and i would use any available in a high stress fire fight. what i meant was i never saw  any one pick up a enemy rifle to replace the GI issue. i saw on a hunting show in africa just last week a warden hunting for pouchers with a mas 49-56,it looked like he only had one magazine. i shoot my 49-56 but load with cci hard primers(34,s). we have both fired shots in anger and if given the choice of a mas 49-56 or a M!A with the same supply of ammo,i know which rifle i would carry and i think i know which one you would pick up too. welcome home. eastbank.

[Bingo]

  French Military Rifle.....Let me guess... You got a good deal..Never fired, only dropped once!

[Mikey]

Bingo:  No, that is the Mannlichter Carcano you are thinking of...........
Eastbank:  thanks.

[JonnyReb]

 Owned one of these for about 10 years and have to say its the surplus semi i'll grab up over any, for a good time at the range. Love the wood, fit/finish, the compensator, short length and great balance. Doesn't kick either. Course as a battle rifle its worthless to me as i'm down to about 100 rounds of ammo and no source to get more inexpensively. Guess its time to reload or figure out who can correctly convert this rifle to .308. If anyone has a reliable smith' who knows these rifles i'd love to hear about him.  J

[1911crazy]

That cute little French MAS Commando 49/56  rifle in 7.5mm french is as mean as a junk yard dog.  Before the new ammo was available from FNM these were unissued with accessories for $189 from SOG.  Once the new ammo was offered we were golden.  I have one in 308 thats flawless also.  I believe these were the last of the solid machined receiver semi-auto rifles. (larger rounds).   Made in 1949 and reworked in 1956 being one of the last ones.  Its ratchety bolt carrier sounds awesome too.   Its the size of an sks yet has the receiver of an fn49. Priv-Partizan still offers the new 7,5mm french ammo.  We get to shoot it once then reload it.

[Rex in OTZ]

I have one of Centurys 7.62 conversions, so far she shoots fine, not a bad all machined .308 cal rifle...........A semi auto for under $300 (2004)

[JonnyReb]

  I take back my earlier statement about 7.5 ammo being hard to find. Started looking and I'll be darned,  while .308 and .223 is sold out online in many places, everyone has 7.5 in stock  . Just picked up 200 rounds of modern manufacture for just under 200 shipped. Serbian stuff but it is better than the 1929? Egyptian ammo I had before that.  All the sudden this rifle makes more sense than ever.  J

[eastbank]

i have dies and casting equipment for just about all my mil surp rifles and a good supply of brass. eastbank.

[JonnyReb]

 Sounds like a good idea EB, especially if the admin manages to impliment sudden restrictions on foreign ammo being imported into the US. Would hate for the MAS to become a piece of art on a wall.  Sounds like 6.5 case conversions to 7.5 is fairly easy?

  Another plus for the MAS is that it can be scoped fairly easy(sounds like it anyways) and an inexpensive, accurate, scoped, autoloading 10 shot faux .308 sounds like a serious piece of hardware.  J

[1911crazy]

Time to buy more 7,5 french ammo & brass.  I been debating on getting at least 500rds of new boxer brass for each surplus rifle caliber.  When the FNM 7.5 ammo was offered it was $9 a box back them and its boxer primed too and yugo brass.  I bought what i could.  At the time the new ammo was cheaper than buying the new brass and loading it plus we got to shoot it once then reload it. I think the priv-partizan in 7,5 french is around $12 a box of 20 now and its boxer primed.

[JonnyReb]

Time to buy more 7,5 french ammo & brass.  I been debating on getting at least 500rds of new boxer brass for each surplus rifle caliber.  When the FNM 7.5 ammo was offered it was $9 a box back them and its boxer primed too and yugo brass.  I bought what i could.  At the time the new ammo was cheaper than buying the new brass and loading it plus we got to shoot it once then reload it. I think the priv-partizan in 7,5 french is around $12 a box of 20 now and its boxer primed.

  The PRVI is all I can find anymore, 14.00 per 20 online and 24.00 per 20 in my local gunshop. I've also seen the originally imported stuff with the french made steel projectile at local gunshows occasionally. Corrosive though. I sure see the draw of a .308 conversion.  J

[Rex in OTZ]

The bolt locks against the flat edge of the circular bolt lock pin that is across the back end of the receiver, the bolt locks against this pin to fire, check the milled edge for peening as this affects headspace if batterd all to hell.

[Rex in OTZ]

For the DIY gas regulator guy this makes sense.
MrNick
Registered
Joined Nov 2, 2007 
47 Posts
#16 • Dec 14, 2015

I posted this earlier on a different thread but I will post it here. I removed the grenade launcher and taped the hole. I installed 2 allen head set screws. One I set with lock tight and the other was left free to turn. By turning the set screw in and out you change the size of the opening and therefore the amount of gas that passes. Adjustable gas block. I found out how to do this several years ago on this forum. I also polished my chamber with a fired case and compound. Gun works great.

The fellow to contact that makes a replacement part for the grenade launcher gas shutoff, it turns into allen screw adjustable gas valve.

J.F. Ambrose
198 Willis Cove Rd
Erwin, TN .37650

Joseph F Ambrose, age 72
Landline number
(423) 735-7453

[Rex in OTZ]

IDENTIFY A POTENTIAL SLAM FIRE PROBLEM
If you have your firing pin out, you will notice its very heavy gor a floating firing pin ment to bash the hard military primers used by the French Military.
The softer commercial primers of .308 Win will most likely slam fire on chambering.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=8H-t4kc2Y8U

 One way to avoid your rifle going into a slam fire event is to just replace the steel firing pin with a lighter weight titanium one, that might make the other shooters on the firing line less concerned for their safety.
Just keep that in mind when chambering a round in your MAS.

Load your mag with one round of commercial ammo. Point the weapon in a safe direction. Release the bolt. Don't fire it. Jack the round out and look for any small indentation on your primer. If you spot a mark of any kind, you may be a candidate for the TFP remedy.

https://phillittleguns.com/2-pages/2-identify-a-potential-slam-fire-problem

https://www.gunandgame.com/threads/my-shot-at-a-mas-49-56-field-strip-disassembly-pictoral-guide.62078/