MAS-36 rifle

MAS-36
MAS-36 rifle. From the Swedish Army Museum.
Type	Bolt-action rifle
Place of origin	France
Service history
In service	1936—1978
Used by	See Users
Wars	World War II Algerian War First Indochina War Suez Crisis Vietnam War Cambodian Civil War Nigerian Civil War Syrian Civil War
Production history
Manufacturer	Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne
Produced	1937—1952
Specifications
Weight	3.72 kg (8.2 lb) unloaded
Length	1,020 mm (40.16 in)
Barrel length	575 mm (22.64 in)
Cartridge	7.5×54mm French
Action	Bolt action
Muzzle velocity	850 m/s (2,789 ft/s)
Effective firing range	400 m (440 yd) with iron sights
Feed system	5-round stripper clip, internal magazine
Sights	Iron sights

The MAS Modèle 36 is a military bolt-action rifle. First adopted in 1936 by France and intended to replace the Berthier and Lebel series of service rifles, it saw service long past the World War II period. It was manufactured by Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Étienne (MAS), one of several government-owned arms factories in France. Because production was initiated late in 1937, not enough MAS-36 rifles were available to arm French infantry when the war broke out in September 1939. Mass production finally caught up after World War II and MAS-36 rifles became widely used in service during the First Indochina War, the Algerian War and the Suez Crisis. Altogether, about 1.1 million MAS-36 rifles had been manufactured when production ceased in 1952.

The MAS-36 is a short, carbine-style rifle with a two-piece stock and slab-sided receiver. It is chambered for the modern, rimless 7.5×54mm French cartridge, a shortened version of the 7.5×57mm MAS mod. 1924 cartridge that had been introduced in 1924 (then modified in 1929), for France's FM 24/29 light machine gun. The rifle was developed based on French experience in World War I and combines various features of other rifles used, like the British SMLE rifle (rear locking lugs resistant to dirt), British P14/U.S. M1917 Enfield rifle (turned down bolt handle, peep sight), and the German Gewehr 98 (five-round box-magazine), to produce an "ugly, roughly made, but immensely strong and reliable" service rifle.

The MAS-36 bolt handle was bent forward in an "awkward fashion" to bring it into a convenient position for the soldier's hand, some of which found today have since been bent backwards into a facing-downwards position like that of many other bolt-action rifles. The MAS-36 had a relatively short barrel and was fitted with large aperture (rear) and post (front) sights designed for typical combat ranges. Typical for French rifles of the period, the MAS-36 had no manual safety.