Kropatschek rifle


A Kropatschek is any variant of a rifle designed by Alfred von Kropatschek. Kropatschek's rifles used a tubular magazine of his design, of the same type used in the Japanese Murata Type 22 and the German Mauser Gewehr 1871/84. While designed for black powder, the Kropatschek action proved to be strong enough to handle smokeless powder.
The Kropatschek was the basis for the French Lebel M1886.

Variants

Austria-Hungary:Gendarmerie Repetier-Karabiner M1881: 11 mm Gendarmerie Carbine ;
France:Fusil de Marine Mle 1878: 11 mm Navy Rifle;Fusil d'Infanterie Mle 1884: 11 mm Infantry Rifle;Fusil d'Infanterie Mle 1885: 11 mm Infantry Rifle.
Portugal:Espingarda de Infantaria 8 mm m/1886: 8 mm Infantry Rifle; Carabina de Caçadores 8 mm m/1886: 8 mm Light Infantry Carbine; Carabina de Cavalaria 8 mm m/1886: 8 mm Cavalry Carbine; Carabina da Guarda Fiscal 8 mm m/1886/88: 8 mm Treasury Guard Carbine; Espingarda de Infantaria 8 mm m/1886/89: 8 mm Colonial Infantry Rifle; Carabina de Artilharia 8 mm m/1886/91: 8 mm Artillery Carbine.

Users

  • :1878 Kropatschek rifle adopted by the navy in 1884; in 1891 it was replaced by the 1886 Portuguese model. During the second Revolta da Armada the army used a small number of Kropatscheks captured from navy depots. The Kropatschek was phased out in naval service in 1895 after the adoption of the 1894 Brazilian Mauser
  • : 2000 1878 Kropatschek rifles were delivered for the navy in 1881. The objective of this acquisition was to have a fast-firing weapon to repeal torpedo boats.
  • : Part of French military aid during World War I.
  • :150,000 Kropatscheks bought from France in 1915
:taken into Soviet inventory following the Russian Civil War; most were shipped to Republican forces during the Spanish Civil War
  • : 746 M1878 Kropatschek rifles procured from OEWG.
  • :1,821 surplus 1878 Kropatschek rifles delivered by the Soviet Union
  • : The Wassoulou Empire arms industry created functional copies of the Krophatschek rifle in the 1880s and 90s to use in their struggle against French colonial forces.