what is this?

[Jim Keenan]

I was, of course, being facetious about a comparison that never happened. I was trying to point out that the much despised "Eyeties" were in some respects ahead of the U.S. in arms technology in that era.

I would agree that the Carcano cartridge is not the most powerful, but I don't feel like volunteering to be shot with one at 200 yards, nor, I suspect, does Heinz. Carcanos I have fired have been quite accurate, certainly within and exceeding U.S. specifications for infantry rifles. WWII production guns are rough, but the early actions are smooth and compare well with other rifles of the era.

The Carcano and the trapdoor were certainly contemporary, though at the end of the lifespan of one and the beginning of the service of the other. Carcanos were issued beginning in 1891. The trapdoor was still in service in 1898 and later, and the first Krags were not even produced until 1894 (the official adoption date was 1892, but it took over a year to retool Springfield Armory). So there was an overlap.

Jim