Carcano 1891 The Carcano 1891 was the weapon of smokeless powder of the Italian Army , using a Mauser bolt and a feeding system based on the design of männlich . Originally followed the principle of small arm ( 6 . 5 mm ) , also adopted by Sweden and Japan Weapon simple , lightweight and cheap , was already obsolete at the end of the first Great War , but continued in use . Shortly before the Second World War , was a variant ( model 1938 ) , with 7 . 35mm caliber , but it never replaced the old weapons . Rifles and carbines were made of cavalry , with the latter usually had a folding bayonet attached to the barrel . Description . The M1891 Paraviccini - Carcano rifle , often misleadingly referred to as the Mannlicher - Carcano , has been adopted by the Italian army in 1891 , along with the rimless 6 . 5x52mm ammunition . The rifle was developed by the team , led by M . Carcano , under supervision of the government commission , led by the general Paraviccini , at Terni state arsenal . Name of the Ferdinand Ritter Von Mannlicher , noted Austrian arms designer , is often used in conjunction with this rifle because M91 uses modified Mannlicher - type magazine with en bloc clip . All other features of Italian rifle are quite different from Mannlicher designs . M91 rifle was available in several modifications , including long infantry rifle ( Fucile di Fanteria Mo . 1891 ) , short cavalry carbine ( Moschetto Mo . 91 da Cavalleria , adopted in 1893 ) , and carbine for special troops ( Moschetto per Truppe Speciali Mo . 91 , or M91TS in short , adopted in 1897 ) . These rifles served as a standard with Italian army until 1938 , when it was decided to replace 6 . 5x52 ammunition with more powerful 7 . 35x52 ammunition , based on the recent experience in North Africa . New pattern of the short Carcano rifle , adopted in 1938 as M38 , was technically similar to M91 rifle , but had shorter barrel length , chambered for 7 . 35mm ammunition , and had fixed rear sights , set to 300 meters range . Since 1938 , many of the 6 . 5mm M91 long rifles were shortened to the M38 length , which was much more convenient to carry and maneuver . With the outbreak of the Second World war Italy was unable to supply enough 7 . 35mm weapons and ammunition , so , in 1940 , it was decided to return to the 6 . 5x52 ammunition as a standard . Consequently , many of 7 . 35mm M38 rifles were rebarelled to the 6 . 5mm . Some of the M38 rifles , issued to the African corps , also were chambered for the German 7 . 92x57 Mauser ammunition . After the WW2 the Italian Army replaced its Carcano rifles with American M1 Garand semiautomatic rifles , initially supplied from US and then produced in Italy under license . Many of surviving Carcano rifles were subsequently exported from Italy and sold as military surplus . One historical note regarding Carcano rifles is that one such rifle , sold as surplus in USA , and fitted with 4X telescope sight , was apparently used by someone Lee Harvey Oswald to assassinate President of USA J . F . Kennedy on November 22 , 1963 , in Dallas , TX . The Carcano M91 rifle is a manually operated , rotating bolt action rifle . The solid bolt has two opposite lugs at the front , with the base of the bolt handle serving as a third safety lug . Modified Mannlicher - type magazine held six rounds in en bloc clip . Empty clip is automatically ejected through the opening at the bottom of the magazine as the last round is chambered . Carcano clip is different from original Mannlicher clip by not having particular " top " and " bottom " sides , so it can be loaded into magazine either side down . Non - empty clip can be ejected from the magazine through the opening at the top of the receiver , with the bolt in open position , by depressing the clip catch inside the triggerguard . Manual safety is located at the rear of the bolt ; it is turned counterclockwise ( up ) to put the rifle on safe , and clockwise ( down and to the right ) to fire . Original M91 - type rifles and carbines had gain twist barrels , a feature of doubtful usefulness ; this feature has been dropped since 1938 as a money - saving measure . Another money - saving feature was the fixed 300 - meters rear sights on the 1938 pattern rifles , while early pattern rifles has adjustable tangent rear sights , marked from 100 to 1000 meters . Most of the rifles were fitted with bayonet lugs and issued with detachable knife bayonets . Cavalry carbines ( Moschetto da Cavalleria M91 ) were issued with integral folding spike - shaped bayonets .