Kropatschek Mle 1884
Manufacture Nationale d'Armes de Châtellerault (MAC) · Rifle · Out Of Production · 1884
Also known as: Fusil d'Infanterie Mle 1884, Kropatschek Modèle 1884, French Kropatschek 1884
Overview
The Kropatschek Mle 1884 was a bolt-action, tube-magazine repeating infantry rifle designed by Alfred von Kropatschek and adopted in limited numbers by the French Army as the Fusil d'Infanterie Modèle 1884. A land-service development of the earlier naval Mle 1878 Marine, it was built at the Manufacture Nationale d'Armes de Châtellerault and chambered for the 11mm Gras (11x59mmR) black-powder cartridge, feeding from an eight-round tubular magazine under the barrel with a magazine cut-off. Produced only briefly before the improved Mle 1885 and the smokeless Lebel Mle 1886 superseded it, its magazine and action layout directly informed the design of the revolutionary Lebel rifle.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 4400 g (155.2 oz) |
| Overall Length | 1305 mm (51.38") |
| Barrel Length | 805 mm (31.69") |
| Action Type | Bolt Action |
| Firing Mechanism | Striker Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Stage |
| Magazine Capacity | 8 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Tube |
| Muzzle Velocity | 450 m/s (1476 fps) |
| Effective Range | 500 m (547 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 1800 m (1968 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Number of Grooves | 4 |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- 11x59mmR Gras · primary — also known as 11mm Gras, 11x59R, Cartouche Mle 1874
Features
- Firing modes: Repeating
- Feed systems: Tubular Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Magazine Cut Off, Half Cock
- Features: Tubular Magazine, Magazine Cut Off Lever, Ramp And Leaf Sight, Bayonet Lug, Full Length Handguard
Service history
Operators
- French Army · adopted 1884 · as Fusil d'Infanterie Mle 1884
Production
Production years: 1884-1886
Produced in small numbers at Châtellerault before being superseded by the Mle 1885 and the Lebel Mle 1886; exact totals not well documented.
Origin
Country of origin: France
Designer: Alfred von Kropatschek
Discontinued: 1886
Notes
Interim French Army repeater bridging the single-shot Gras Mle 1874 and the smokeless Lebel Mle 1886. Quickly replaced by the improved Mle 1885 and then made obsolete by the Mle 1886 Lebel, so it was produced only in small numbers.
Background
France adopted the Mle 1884 as a stopgap repeater just as smokeless powder was about to rewrite the rules of warfare; within two years its tube-magazine action was wrapped around the new Poudre B propellant to create the Lebel Mle 1886, the first smokeless-powder military rifle in the world.