New (old) rifle - MAS 49/56?

[Morgan]

I'm looking into purchasing my first (real, as in not .22LR) rifle, and I'm intrigued by the subject rifle. I've got questions, and could use any useful advice.

First I should say what I want it for - plinking, hunting (any kind of deer, elk), and ranch/home defense. I don't want to spend more than $300. I know I won't be getting any sub MOA groups for this kind of cash, and that's okay.

This MAS sounds good - 10 rd detachable mags, .308 caliber, semi-auto, and with a history (all of which I like). Were these produced originally in .308, or just 7.5mm French? If they're converted to .308 is that a cause for concern? What about reliability and durability? Accuracy? What does MAS stand for? What does 49/56 mean? Should I be looking for something else?

Told you I had questions. Thanks for any help you can give me.

 

[fal308]

The MAS evolved from the 7.5 mm MAS Model 1944 and was designed at the French gov't arsenal Manufacture d'Armes de Saint-Etienne (MAS). It uses the same gas system as the Swedish Ljungman AG42. The M49/56 is identical to the M49 except for a shorter forearm and hadnguard. Grenade-launching rings and sights have also been added, as have provisions for a bayonet.
New SGN ads list these at around $225 - $250. Ammo was hard to find in 7.5 originally, I believe that is why so many were converted. Now ammo is not too hard to come by. From what I understand {at least around where I lve} magazines can be hard to find.
Sorry that's all I know and/or can find at the moment. Hopefully someone else has more. If not, let me know and I'll dig through some more of my books.

 

[gunguy]

I picked up one of these last month. First time i took it out , put 100 rounds of CAVIM through it and it functioned flawlessly. I've had no problems with it. The best groups I've been able to get were about 3 to 3.5 inches.
You may be interested to know that the frenchies converted 1500 of their own rifles from 7.5 to .308 for security police use, so this has been done before. I've heard of some really bad specimens out there, so be careful.

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"Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist."
-Thoreau

 

[Morgan]

Thanks, guys.

Gunguy - who did you get yours from? I called Burns Bros and they said they'd had no problems with them. J&G said there were some extraction problems with some of the "earlier" conversions, and they extended their normal 3-day inspection policy to give me a time to test it thoroghly, should I buy one.

I would think a good gunsmith could clean one up if the conversion job weren't butchered. Am I correct?

 

[gunguy]

Turners had about 50 of these things sitting on a rack in the store, I picked the best one. Paid $279.95 out the door. I wouldn't recommend obtaining one of these through mail order. Find a store that stocks them and hand-select one yourself. Many of them are just plain JUNK. I've seen some pretty bad ones, and count myself extremely lucky mine is in such good shape. A gunsmith could probably clean one up, yes, but by the time hes done you'll probably have spent a lot more than you'd want to on a $250.00 rifle.


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"Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist."
-Thoreau

 

[gunguy]

Also, always check the mag before you buy the rifle. One of the mags I got with mine looked like it had seen years of use, one of the feed lips was busted off and it had a deep dent about halfway down. Turners wouldnt let me switch it or give me a refund, so I ended up spending a rather aggravating day at a gun show trying to find a reasonably priced replacement.

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"Whoso would be a man must be a nonconformist."
-Thoreau

 

[Morgan]

Thanks, Gunguy.

I've decided against the MAS for the time being - if I already had a few rifles and could mess with one and deal with the frustration of it, I'd go for it. As it is, I think I'll take a safer route and go for a Mini-14 or Mini-30 (which I'm starting a new thread on). I'll get a bolt .380 or some such for deer and elk.