doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com 256 Mannlicher/6.5x53R?

I picked up this 6.5x53R Dutch Mannlicher recently. I haven't found any makers name on it and was curious if any here might venture a guess at the builder. That it's British I've no doubt but beyond that I'm at a loss to determine who might have made it.

The barrel is 26", and its a Steyr 1893. All the numbers match. Thanks for any help.

Lovely! I have a few of those rifles...none Steyr's though. Two sporters and a few military. Very nice cartridge to boot!

Sorry, no help on the maker.

any of the numbers have a B prefix?

No B prefixes.

Another guess who?
If it isn't marked�.
Proofed is better than any American gun.

Good pics!

I've heard W.R Pape and Army-Navy as possibilities though if I understand Army-Navy correctly they contracted with builders and were more of a supplier of firearms.

Speaking from my faulty memory, I believe Westley Richards and Gibbs traded in both the 93 and 95 actioned sporting rifles. The writers and hunters of the day were not very careful in their description of their rifles or the ammo they used. They would often just say "the Mannlicher" or "256". This often makes it confusing if they mean this rifle or the 1903 MS in 6.5x54MS, which was also very popular.
Mike

Here's a copy of a Jeffery's ad as well as a nice recreation.

http://www.rathcoombe.net/sci-tech/classics/mannlicher-1895/classic_mannlicher.html

I believe that "no-name" rifles of this type are not uncommon; I've seen several. There were other distributors of sporting guns like "The Army and Navy Stores" that didn't mark all of the guns they sold to shops.

Army and Navy marked most of theirs and sold them direct from their stores, but they may have wholesaled some to other shops, too. Who assembled and finished them? Dunno.

Aside from the need to keep clips handy, these are about as useful as any smallbore hunting rifle needs to be--a neat package. For me, they are much easier to shoot well offhand than an M-S carbine. Not as nice to carry, tho.