Eaglelord17
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Sault Ste. Marie
Hi all,
Well there hasn't been too much exciting stuff posted on the milsurps side of the forum for a bit so here is my M90 Mannlicher for some entertainment.
I am calling it a M90 not a 88/90 for the simple reason it isn't a converted M1888 rifle. This isn't to be confused with the M90 Mannlicher Carbines which spawned the M95 rifles. A brief history on these rifles is they were adopted in 1888 being a development of the 1886 action except now in the early 8x50r caliber. In 1890 advances in the cartridge resulted in a calibration change for the rifles which they screwed on new sight setting on the side of the sight. Rifles made after 1890 like mine were just made with the updated sight settings to begin with.
These rifles were to be replaced with M95 rifles, not because the Austro-Hungarians didn't like the action (personally I find it smoother than even my Swiss Rifles, including my K93 which has the M90 carbine action), rather the action was too weak to continue developing the cartridge and hence the Austro-Hungarians (and later the Bulgarians) adopting the M95s. It wasn't until mid-WWI the Austro-Hungarians had produced enough M95s to make them the primary arm of their army and even then these rifles saw a ton of service until the end of the war.
This particular example is all matching, though re-numbered from the original serial number (all the original serial numbers are the same though). My theory is this rifle was likely intended to be sold to Chile before their civil war, and after their civil war ended up being sold to Bulgaria (you can just faintly see their rampant lion on the stock). It was likely renumbered when taken into Bulgarian service.
For the Bulgarians these rifles were their bread and butter and they saw a lot of usage in their hands. Bulgaria is often a overlooked nation in WWI, but they had a huge impact on the war and have a fascinating history. One German general was even quoted as saying they lost the war due to how poorly the Bulgarians performed. These rifles would also have seen a lot of usage in the Balkan Wars, the First one being pretty good for Bulgaria, the Second not so much. Some really fascinating history in the region in that time period, and if you have any interest in the arms of that region in that era I would highly recommend the book 'Serbian Army: Weapons of Victory 1914-1918'.
I have shot this particular rifle, and I found it to be fairly accurate as well as a pleasure to shoot.
Bolt extended
You can see the multiple serial numbers and the rampant lion above them in this photo
Volley sight extended, these are often missing, either broken off or removed in later service
Front volley sight, some users have ground those off in later service
Bulgarian M88/90 bayonet, unfortunately I cannot mount it to the rifle as the bayonet screw is too tight and I don't have the proper spanner wrench to loosen it. These mounted sideways on the rifle instead of the typical up and down.
https://www.milsurps.com/vbpicgallery.php?do=big&p=4195
Close up on the rampant lion on the bayonet.
Well there hasn't been too much exciting stuff posted on the milsurps side of the forum for a bit so here is my M90 Mannlicher for some entertainment.
I am calling it a M90 not a 88/90 for the simple reason it isn't a converted M1888 rifle. This isn't to be confused with the M90 Mannlicher Carbines which spawned the M95 rifles. A brief history on these rifles is they were adopted in 1888 being a development of the 1886 action except now in the early 8x50r caliber. In 1890 advances in the cartridge resulted in a calibration change for the rifles which they screwed on new sight setting on the side of the sight. Rifles made after 1890 like mine were just made with the updated sight settings to begin with.
These rifles were to be replaced with M95 rifles, not because the Austro-Hungarians didn't like the action (personally I find it smoother than even my Swiss Rifles, including my K93 which has the M90 carbine action), rather the action was too weak to continue developing the cartridge and hence the Austro-Hungarians (and later the Bulgarians) adopting the M95s. It wasn't until mid-WWI the Austro-Hungarians had produced enough M95s to make them the primary arm of their army and even then these rifles saw a ton of service until the end of the war.
This particular example is all matching, though re-numbered from the original serial number (all the original serial numbers are the same though). My theory is this rifle was likely intended to be sold to Chile before their civil war, and after their civil war ended up being sold to Bulgaria (you can just faintly see their rampant lion on the stock). It was likely renumbered when taken into Bulgarian service.
For the Bulgarians these rifles were their bread and butter and they saw a lot of usage in their hands. Bulgaria is often a overlooked nation in WWI, but they had a huge impact on the war and have a fascinating history. One German general was even quoted as saying they lost the war due to how poorly the Bulgarians performed. These rifles would also have seen a lot of usage in the Balkan Wars, the First one being pretty good for Bulgaria, the Second not so much. Some really fascinating history in the region in that time period, and if you have any interest in the arms of that region in that era I would highly recommend the book 'Serbian Army: Weapons of Victory 1914-1918'.
I have shot this particular rifle, and I found it to be fairly accurate as well as a pleasure to shoot.
Bolt extended
You can see the multiple serial numbers and the rampant lion above them in this photo
Volley sight extended, these are often missing, either broken off or removed in later service
Front volley sight, some users have ground those off in later service
Bulgarian M88/90 bayonet, unfortunately I cannot mount it to the rifle as the bayonet screw is too tight and I don't have the proper spanner wrench to loosen it. These mounted sideways on the rifle instead of the typical up and down.
https://www.milsurps.com/vbpicgallery.php?do=big&p=4195
Close up on the rampant lion on the bayonet.
