Beretta Garands.....Late contract revelation?

6167

6167

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I recently picked up one of those Italian Garand receiver made for the Danes by Beretta......It is a late contract receiver..

It was greasy and I was cleaning it and Noted the PB serial number and the Armi Beretta on the left side....no worries it's a Beretta as it should be....

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Ok....Now take a look at the Forging code and part number on the receiver leg....Breda! BMR

Beretta1_zps2e18e25d.jpg


I thought the contract was for 10,000 and they may have bought receivers from Breda to finish rather than continuing the forging/milling line in operation?
Or thay may have just have paid Breda to finish the contract?

This may not really be news but it was the first time I had seen this and became aware of it.

Cheers Paul
 
Hi Paul,

I noticed the same thing on my last Beretta Garand, which is quite a bit earlier than yours. I remember being curious about this and trying to find some information --- I'll have to research, but I recall finding a link that described this exact scenario. Here's the same pictures:



 
My 8000-range Beretta also has a BMR forging code. I just always assumed Beretta got partially-complete receivers from Breda to supplement production.
 
Thanks guys...obviously they cooperating with each other to complete their contracts. I wonder if this cooperation went farther than just the receivers...I always liked the PB sights on the late Garands and Bm59's
 
One of my Beretta receivers also has the BMR stamp with the drawing number. The true story is lost in the sands of time, but there does seem to have been a fair amount of interplay between Beretta and Breda. I have a safety which is stamped with both PB and BMB. The Italian Garands were made to a high quality, but some devalue them in relation to the US made rifles. Every maker has it's fans, but people say that HRA made Garands with the best fit and finish among the US makers followed by Springfield, IHC and Winchester. The fact is that they all made the quality line for govt acceptance.
 
robin2y said:
Think that BMR marked receivers happened approximately half way through the PB series...
R
Click to expand...
Could be. PB 5660 shows the BMR stamp. My other PB receivers with lower numbers, incl PB 68, do not. Assuming that PB made an estimated 10,000 receivers for the Danish contract this might explain why PB 5660 shows the BMR stamp at approximately the mid point of production. It would be interesting to learn if there are any PB receivers in the current bargain basement cornucopia which have s/ns higher than 9999. It would also be interesting to hear about PB receivers higher than 5660 which DO NOT show the BMR stamp in connection with the drawing number. Beretta made many other Garands for the Italian Army and for export orders like Indonesia. It would be interesting to learn if any of these ones show a BMR stamp.
 
purple said:
Could be. PB 5660 shows the BMR stamp. My other PB receivers with lower numbers, incl PB 68, do not. Assuming that PB made an estimated 10,000 receivers for the Danish contract this might explain why PB 5660 shows the BMR stamp at approximately the mid point of production. It would be interesting to learn if there are any PB receivers in the current bargain basement cornucopia which have s/ns higher than 9999. It would also be interesting to hear about PB receivers higher than 5660 which DO NOT show the BMR stamp in connection with the drawing number. Beretta made many other Garands for the Italian Army and for export orders like Indonesia. It would be interesting to learn if any of these ones show a BMR stamp.
Click to expand...

I've been looking at the pictures of the Beretta receivers that people have been buying, and I seem to recall seeing one in 10 thousand range (EDIT: I just looked back and the receiver in question was a BMR, no PB). I'll have to go back and look to confirm, but I seem to recall also seeing the Danish crown on the heal, so perhaps I was mistaken.

With all the talk about the Beretta Garands, I'm really starting to miss mine. I agree with you, purple, that they show excellent quality of machining and attention to detail. I have to admit, though, that my heart breaks a bit everytime I see the stripped receivers --- what a shame that the rifles couldn't be kept whole, but it would have obviously saturated the Canadian market.
 
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"...thought the contract was for..." Serial numbers rarely have anything to do with the numbers made.
"...some devalue them..." Mostly just Stateside. NIH raises its head until the talk gets around to barrels. VAR barrels are highly valued.
"...HRA made Garands with..." Post-war production. Workmanship gets better without the rush.
 
Have a # that are pb with BMR forging stamp, but don't have the ser # with me (traveling) to place the range, also have one that missed the Beretta left side roll stamp for the Beretta - Armi. I have a Breda that I have had on the shelf for a while that is over 10 000 (think it ia in the 10100 range but would have to check.

G


purple said:
Could be. PB 5660 shows the BMR stamp. My other PB receivers with lower numbers, incl PB 68, do not. Assuming that PB made an estimated 10,000 receivers for the Danish contract this might explain why PB 5660 shows the BMR stamp at approximately the mid point of production. It would be interesting to learn if there are any PB receivers in the current bargain basement cornucopia which have s/ns higher than 9999. It would also be interesting to hear about PB receivers higher than 5660 which DO NOT show the BMR stamp in connection with the drawing number. Beretta made many other Garands for the Italian Army and for export orders like Indonesia. It would be interesting to learn if any of these ones show a BMR stamp.
Click to expand...
 
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