MAS 49/56 Project

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Weird.

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Looking through the gunboards dot com MAS rifle survey, it would appear that this specific serial number falls right in line with the Syrian Contract guns built in 1953.

There are two possibilities here. 

1) This gun was arsenal refurbished into a MAS 1949-56 configuration, but I doubt that seeing as it is likely a Syrian Contract receiver and I don't think it made the trip back to France (if someone knows better please speak up)

2) This gun came into Canada like many other Syrian Contract guns, in original MAS 1949 layout.  For whatever reason once it was here, is was rebuilt, or deactivated and made to look like a MAS 49-56.  Given how the barrel was cut, this wouldn't have been difficult.  Two guns into one.  Sad, but likely and the theory my money is behind.

Either way I have two options.  Build it back as a MAS 1949, or build it into the MAS1949-56 it looks like now.  I think I'd prefer the 1949 route.

Either way, finding parts will be difficult.  I bought a Sarco "49/56 Put Away Survival Kit" which has a firing pin and gas tube which I need to replace, plus a bunch of other parts.  That leaves me just needing an ejector (the won't send a complete bolt across the border, but might strip one for the ejector) and a barrel.

If I go the MAS 1949 route, I'd need that barrel, plus front stock sections, and the front sight piece.

Anyone know if a MAS 36 barrel can be made to work in a MAS 49?  The look pretty similar in length.

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You mean to tell me guns were actually captured from syria!?!?!   

No clue about the 36 barrel.

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Seems like most MAS 49s in this part of the world came out of the Syrian Contract pile.  AIM and CAI were involved.

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Seems like most MAS 49s in this part of the world came out of the Syrian Contract pile.  AIM and CAI were involved.

Where did they get them hmmmm? 

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Seems like most MAS 49s in this part of the world came out of the Syrian Contract pile.  AIM and CAI were involved.

Where did they get them hmmmm? 

Israel perhaps haha.

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Welp... Its not like Century imported from Syria.   

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If anyone finds a good front stock set for a MAS 49, and the front sight / grenade sight, I need one haha.

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[Greasemonkey]

I can't say who put it in that configuration.. Now, I can guess it wasn't the French, on 99% of the French arsenal refurbs, they are marked as such. Just to throw this out there, they would have a [Pxx] stamp, the xx indicates the year it was rebuilt. So in my thinking "if" it had passed through a French arsenal after it was returned from the middle east, rebarreled/rebuilt with a 49/56 barrel, it should have received a refurb stamp.

In the picture below see the [P68] stamp, that usually means it got a complete rebuild in 1968. 



Here is my other, this one is [P78], complete arsenal rebuild in 1978


I've seen this [pxx] stamp show years from the early '60s all the way into the early-mid '80's. It very well could be a Syrian modification or it could be, there is always the chance, an importer rebuild or build it from a pile of parts, the 'ol take two crappy rifles and make a good one scenario. The lower forestock strangely looks alot more like the later production light colored wood like the paper wrapped Mas 36 and 36/51s that are seen from time to time as well as the later 49/56s.

The barrel of a Mas 36 is a different thread, it's 25mm 1.5mm pitch vs. Mas 49/56 22mm 1.5mm pitch

Personally. I'd leave the Mas 49 alone, it's a funky oddity unlike I've seen and parts for a Mas49 are exceedingly difficult to find, It's already together and should be functional. I think it would be easier to find a "true 49/56" barrel and parts and just fix the other.

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Far from functional.  It has a threaded rod through the chamber to hold the 49/56 barrel on.  Hence my search to restore it to either or.  Would prefer a mas 49 build, but would settle for a 49-56.

Either way I'm in no rush.  Thanks for the info on barrel thread differences on the 36 vs the 49.  Saves some time there.  A MAS 49 barrel would be the ideal fix, but would require finding more parts.  A 49-56 would be easiest as I have everything else ready to go.