by Pierangelo Tendas

One of Italy’s oldest firearms manufacturer and potentially the oldest dedicated barrel maker in the world, with over 300 years of experience, Sabatti S.p.A. introduced its first line of dedicated bolt-action rifles in 1993: dubbed “Rover”, the product line would remain in production for approximately twenty years and establish itself as one of the first European examples of what American companies had done with the likes of the Remington 700, that is, a basic action iterated in a number of variants, each conceived for a specific use or set of uses.

The Sabatti Rover rifles were built around a Mauser type action, with two sturdy locking lugs, and an all-steel receiver, cold hammer forged barrel, and bolt. While some variants of the Rover series were conceived for sport shooting, the main focus of the line was hunting: calibers available included all the most popular north American and European hunting cartridges, and some versions were available in African big game calibers. Production quality was so good that most original Sabatti Rover rifles are still out there, on the line, in the hands of countless hunters and shooters who bought them originally when they were in production.

In the past fifteen years, however, Sabatti’s business focus shifted from hunting rifles and shotguns to long-range rifles for competition shooting and tactical applications. Fifteen years is a long time to build and consolidate a full new background and know-how: new technologies, new materials, new engineering, the pursuit of new technical solutions in search for greater accuracy and performance. When the time came to distill such a treasure of experiences in a new series of rifles that would get all users’ needs covered – from hunting, to sport shooting, to patrol and tactical, the closest anybody in Europe ever got to a Remington 700 type of experience! – it just made sense to homage the Sabatti tradition by giving it a classic name, an official appointment as the heir of the Sabatti tradition of gunmaking.

The New Rover

Sabatti introduced the new and improved Rover series on the European market in the second half of 2021, and on the U.S. market at the 2022 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. Featuring an entirely new action, precision engineering and manufacture, and a slew of other Sabatti signature features, the new Rover family includes, as of today, 13 different variants – definitely something to please everybody.

Of these 13 variants – or to be more specific, of the ten out of 13 entries in the family that are solely or partially intended for hunting purposes – three are dedicated to a specific breed of hunters, those who don’t want to give up elegance and style even in the toughest hunting scenarios: the Sabatti Rover Hunter, Rover Hunter Classic, and Rover Hunter Classic Pro.

Like all the entries in the new Sabatti Rover series, the Hunter, Hunter Classic, and Hunter Classic Pro are based on the same barreled action. First and foremost, the common feature of all the new Sabatti Rover rifles is the barreled action: gone is the old Mauser-style action, in favor of a bolt very similar to – but not exactly the same as – those found on Sabatti’s modern long-range shooting rifles based on the Blizzard action. These are machined out of special steel, with three sturdy locking lugs, and heat-treated, hardened and tempered, quenched, the chrome-lined to the exact level of thickness to match the tolerances of the receiver, itself machined out of a solid billet of 7075-T6 aluminum alloy and hard-anodized in black.

A departure from the all-steel construction of the Mauser action of the early Rover rifle, this makes the new rifles lighter, extremely fast, smooth and silent to operate, and offers a superior level of resistance to corrosion and wear.

Features

Like Sabatti’s long-range rifles based on the Blizzard action, the new Rover actions offer a 60-degree bolt throw to keep the shooter’s hand well away of the eyepiece of any scope when chambering a round, and a threaded charging handle allowing the bolt knob to be removed and replaced with compatible aftermarket alternatives at the shooter’s will.

Other features include a bolt stop located to the left of the receiver and a safety right behind the charging handle, at thumb reach, providing three positions – one of which blocks the trigger and sear while still allowing the bolt to be cycled, so that the chamber can be cleared in full safety.

Unlike the Sabatti Blizzard action, the Rover action cocks the striker on opening and features a cam located on the front of the bolt, interacting with a screw for primary extraction. That screw is arguably the most wear-prone part of the bolt, but easily replaceable. A separate extractor, manufactured out of a special steel alloy – which special steel alloy, exactly, is a Sabatti industrial secret – is located on the bolt face.

Barrel

The Sabatti Rover Hunter, Rover Hunter Classic and Rover Hunter Classic Pro come with the shooter’s choice of 20-, 22- or 24-inch cold-hammer forged, blued barrels, manufactured entirely by Sabatti, all with a 5/8-inch diameter, threaded muzzle for accessories such as flash hiders, muzzle brakes, or sound suppressors. Indeed, the Rover Hunter Classic Pro model comes from the factory with a pre-installed, easily removable muzzle brake instead of a simple thread protector, more specifically the company’s own Jet-Brake, of Sabatti’s own design and manufacture. As of today, none of the Rover rifles feature Sabatti’s world-famous, proprietary MRR multi-radial rifled barrels, opting for standard rifling profiles instead.

In all models, the barrel and the action are held together by a set of three screws, which makes rebarreling of the Rover action very easy – even more so since headspacing is provided by the interaction between the locking lugs and the barrel extension, so that a rebarreled new-generation Sabatti Rover rifle will not need a headspace check or adjustment.

Changing the barrel of your new Sabatti Rover rifle (to change caliber or shift to a different barrel length, given how unlikely it is that you’ll ever shoot the rifling out on these barrels) can be done by any shooter with the right equipment, including a good quality torque wrench. Sabatti, however, recommends that shooters wishing to rebarrel their Rover rifles seek the assistance of a competent gunsmith, as the screws holding the barrel and receiver together are manufactured out of steel and tightened to a very specific level of torque, and over tightening them could cause damage to the alloy receiver.

Stock

Aside from the barrel length and the presence of a factory muzzle brake on the Rover Hunter Classic Pro model, the Sabatti Rover Hunter rifles can be told apart by the factory stock. The baseline Rover Hunter comes with a dark grey fiberglass-reinforced polymer stock; the Hunter Classic model features an oil-finished walnut stock; the Hunter Classic Pro model is built around a walnut stock with a patented Optowood coating, a unique feature of the Italian gun industry.

All stocks are of the same style, with a straight pistol grip and checkered, slip-proof surfaces on the grip and handguard; a slight lightening on both sides around the magazine well area for easier reloading, and a black synthetic pad and cheek riser that allows the stock height and length of pull to be adjusted through a set of shims and inserts.

Other features of the stocks include two standard sling swivel studs, and two M-LOK slots carved in a steel plate embedded underneath the handguard, for bipod mounts.

The stocks are secured to the barreled action with a set of two screws located respectively behind and ahead of the action. The stock features an embedded bedding – the new Rover family does without the quintessential “suspended action” of Sabatti’s long-range tactical rifles – but with no pillars. This technically means that stock interchangeability is total across the line, not just between the three Rover Hunter models, but among all, or almost all,the new Sabatti Rover family of rifles.

The screws are tightened to a specific level of torque depending on the version – 53.1inch-pounds for the rear screw and 62 inch-pounds for the front screw for the wooden stocks; 70.8 inch-pounds for the rear screw and 79.7 inch-pounds for the front screw for the polymer stocks – and as long as those levels of torque are respected, changing your Rover rifle stock will not result in loss of accuracy or even loss of zero… even more so because the three Rover Hunter rifles do not come with iron sights, opting instead for a pair of Picatinny rail segments machined directly on top of the alloy receiver, providing a sturdy mounting platform for wide array of optics.

Shooters should, however, know those two Picatinny rail segments are not precisely spaced, as they would be if the rail was a continuous segment. This means that, should a shooter remove a scope from their Rover rifle and install it to another firearm that has a full-length, continuous rail, one of the two rings may have to be moved slightly ahead or rearwards to make it fit.

Calibers

At the time of this article, the Sabatti Rover Hunter, Rover Hunter Classic, and Rover Hunter Classic Pro rifles are available in eight popular European and north American hunting calibers: 243 Winchester; 270 Winchester; 6.5×55 Swedish; 6.5 Creedmoor; 7mm Remington Magnum; 308 Winchester; 30-06 Springfield; and 300 Winchester Magnum.

Two additional calibers – 222 Remington and 223 Remington – will be made available in early Summer 2023; quite the news, considering how those two light varmint calibers have been noticeably absent from Sabatti’s production for a number of years now. All the Sabatti Rover Hunter rifles feed through a proprietary detachable magazine, offering a capacity of three, four or five rounds depending on calibers, with the capability to hold an additional round in chamber.

Trigger

The Sabatti Rover Hunter, Hunter Classic and Hunter Classic Pro come from factory with a two-lever trigger of Sabatti’s own design and manufacture, assembled using precision laser-cut components. A set trigger (or stecher, for those who like to use European terminology) is available as an option.

The factory trigger is set at a maximum break weight of 2.6 pounds. By removing the barreled action from the stock, the shooter can access the trigger assembly and lighten it to approximately 1.3 pounds. Sabatti, once again, strongly recommends that shooters wishing to adjust the trigger on their Rover rifles seek the assistance of a qualified gunsmith.

Wrap Up

As of today the marketing of Sabatti rifles in the United States has temporarily been halted, pending the selection of a new importer and distributor, which should take a few months. There’s no doubt, however, that when the moment comes, the Sabatti Rover Hunter rifles will prove a success on the U.S. market as they’re proving themselves to be in Europe, where they are sold at a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of 990,00€ for the baseline Rover Hunter, 1.300,00€ for the Rover Hunter Classic, and 1.470,00€ for the Rover Hunter Classic Pro.

Specifications:

The idea of multi-caliber small arms has just gained another foothold: this new Finnish rifle breaks another barrier by offering one rifle with four-part conversion kits, enabling it to fire two calibers from different power levels: .223 and .308.

So far, the multi-caliber feature in automatic weapons tended to keep to the same power norm: like the ARs and Polish Grot MSBS chambered in 5.56×45, 7.62×39 or .300 BLK. In precious few weapons so far, the caliber selection went down… usually meaning a rifle in 7.62 NATO with a conversion kit to 5.56mm, but still built like a tank and weighing in at what a full-size battle-rifle tends to weight these days, aka the FN SCAR 16(H). Going up, from an intermediate cartridge to full power usually called for designing a sister weapon, usually one size larger, aka the HK417, SCAR 17 or Grot 762N. Now the Finnish designer, Toni Käräjämies might have succeeded to build a rifle weighing in at the same 3.7 kilos (8.15 pounds) with a 16-inch barrel in both calibers. For conversion, one just needs to replace four parts; the barrel group with gas block (for which the only tool needed is an Allen wrench), the bolt, the magazine well insert, and the magazine itself, all replaced at the field-strip level.

KAR-21

The Käräjämies Automatic Rifle KAR-21 is being manufactured by the company called Ensio Firearms Oy, with Toni Käräjämies as the CEO. The rifle itself is a classic ‘lock, stock and barrel’ gas-operated weapon, locked by a rotating bolt head. The bolt carrier has a cam path inside, into which a single lug of the bolt stem is inserted for turning – anyone that’s seen under the hood of an AK would find nothing unusual here. The Finns do love Kalashnikov – their Armed Forces are still for the most part armed with the Rk-62 milled receiver AK-clone, only partly replaced by the Sako Rk-95, both in 7.62×39. The bolt itself might be actuated in a Kalashnikovian style, but it is locked with multiple lugs inserted into the barrel extension – or “the Stoner way”. The barrel extension is screwed into the breech-end thread, and its bottom part has a transverse groove for the barrel lug. Between the barrel extension and the barrel, a tombstone-shaped plate is squeezed, the top part of which provides an operating rod guide.

The cold-hammered barrel is easily-exchangeable –as opposed to a QCB. The barrel exchange possibility is a part of the reconfiguration feature, not a tactical one, allowing the exchange of overheated barrels in combat. It’s 16-inch long in both calibers, with extended, 20-inch barrel offered only in 7.62 NATO. The muzzle is threaded 1/2×28 UNEF in 5.56 mm or 5/8×24 UNEF in 7.62 mm, for muzzle devices. Ensio does offer a birdcage compensator allowing QD suppressor hosting with the Ase Utra/Silent Steel attachment.

10 inches from the chamber there is a gas block mounted on each of the barrels, holding a gas chamber with a two-setting gas regulator for normal or silenced function. The gas piston is separate from the bolt carrier. Piston and op-rod are one piece, nested in a tube reminiscent of the SKS or Czech SA-58 gas tube, but this is actually moving, acting as a cocking device, connecting the charging handle to the bolt carrier. This cocking tube’s front end is inserted into the gas chamber spigot and held there with a flat spring retainer. Underneath, it has a longitudinal slot, the rear end of which is impaled by the op-rod guide. The transverse channel of the front end of the cocking tube holds a charging handle, which can be inserted from the left or right side. During the reassembly, after the cocking tube is attached, the cocking handle is inserted from either side, and then an operating rod follows through a narrow perpendicular groove in the underside of the handle, thus capturing it in the rifle. So far, the charging handle is straight, but alternative designs, such as an HK G3-style folder, might easily replace it.

The complete charging unit consists of a charging handle and cocking tube, and only contacts the bolt carrier when retracted – after which it is carried back to battery by the bolt carrier or returned by hand, while the bolt is being held by the bolt-hold-open latch. Unfortunately, this design does not allow the use of the charging handle as a bolt forward-assist, which is possible in Polish Grot or Czech CZ 806 Bren 2 rifles. This feature might come handy in an otherwise suppressor-ready rifle – without forward-assist one has to to reload the rifle by free-slamming the bolt, hardly a silent option. The combination of AK-style bolt actuation assuring increased friction with the AR-locking seems to all but guarantee bolt stalling, should one try to reload it slowly. Perhaps a Scandinavian G3 forward assist style – a ribbed thumb recess in the side of the bolt carrier reachable thru the ejection opening – would be the ticket?

Barrel Exchange

The KAR-21 barrel exchange is very reminiscent of the Austrian Mannlicher Monobloc repeating hunting rifle. The barrel extension has a transverse groove, into which a barrel latch bar is inserted and stabilized with two bolts. The barrel latch and bolts are inserted from the outside, through openings in the bottom of the handguard. At the same time, the rear end of the barrel latch doubles as a trigger frame attachment point, with a mounting pin inserted through the channel formed in its rear edge. To exchange the barrel, one has to unscrew the bolts with an Allen wrench and detach the barrel latch, then pull the barrel out the front end of the handguard. In its present form, that involves detaching small parts (latch and bolts) which might be lost in the process, which is far from ideal. Perhaps the screws should be inserted thru wire or plastic loops to secure them. Perhaps after series production starts, a more elegant solution could be found?

That would leave the question of the barrel latch, as that has to be detached from the fire control group prior to detaching the barrel. The detachment of the trigger frame for caliber conversion is needed anyway, to exchange the magazine adapter, and as a part of the field stripping needed to exchange the bolt.

Fire Control Group

The trigger frame of the KAR-21 can contain two types of fire-control groups, both offered by the company. These are KAR semiautomatic-only FCG with a 45-degree throw two-position safety (SAFE-SEMI), or selective fire KAR-A (for automatic) with a 45-degree throw three-position safety-selector (SAFE-SEMI-AUTO). The trigger frame is compatible with standard AR-style grips and stocks. Its front part, around the magazine well, houses a magazine adapter, which is weaved thru the grip frame from the bottom and secured with a mounting pin going through the rear part of the adapter and front of the trigger guard. The outer part of the magazine well is fixed and houses the ambidextrous AR-style magazine release and BHO. The magazine well is large enough to fit around the magazine insert, taking the AR-10/SR-25 magazine of the 7.62 NATO configuration. Each of the adapters has different inner measurements to fit AR-15 and AR-10 magazines, while assuring the case head of the topmost cartridge is in the same place, to assure the proper function of the AR-style BHO lever.

Handguard? What Handguard?

The receiver is monobloc, with the rear part open from both ends and the bottom, seamlessly morphing into integral handguard (Finnish design 008476634-0001.) The handguard part of the receiver has got a row of four M-LOK slots at the bottom and both sides, providing both ventilation and real estate for mounting accessories. At each side, behind the slots, a sling QD point is attached with additional oblique QD points extending from the front ends of the top Picatinny rail. This is in addition to carbine hook openings at the rear end of the top rail. Other than that, KAR-21 stock has additional QD points and sling slots.

The whole upper part of the rifle, receiver, and handguard alike is topped with a full-length STANAG 4694 (Picatinny) mounting rail, assuring enough real estate to attach any combination of sighting devices the shooter is able to lift – be it mechanical, optical or optronic devices.

Field Stripping

To clean after firing or to change caliber, the KAR-21 requires a field stripping. After clearing and checking the rifle, first, the hammer should be cocked (if it was released during checking). Then the FCG mounting pin should be withdrawn, and FCG detached by rotating it down around the rear end – just like in CZ 806 and FN SCAR. Detaching the FCG means removing the projection, retaining the buttstock mount in the rear trunnion, which can now be slid downwards from the trunnion guides. Now that the stock is detached, the return spring group can be withdrawn from the receiver. With the spring out, the moving parts slide out of the receiver. Turning it upside down allows the bolt to rotate until its lug exits the bolt carrier’s cam path, letting the bolt slide forward and out out of it – just like in AK.

To detach the gas mechanism, first the gas regulator is rotated to the dismounting position and taken out. Then, tilting the rifle muzzle down lets the gas piston and op-rod to fall out. After that, the charging handle is withdrawn from the side. The cocking tube stays put for a while – this can be detached only after the barrel is detached.

The barrel is removed next by removing the bolts and withdrawing the barrel latch, then pulling the barrel out of the handguard from the front. Now the cocking tube can be lifted and pulled back from the gas chamber spigot. If the barrel was taken out for caliber/length exchange, the cocking tube should be first replaced to the new barrel.

Similarities And Differences

Stylistically, the KAR-21 seems to have much in common with the Polish Grot – or perhaps their mutual inspiration, the Remington ACR. Aluminum receiver with a long monobloc Picatinny top rail, it has steel bolt rails inside attached from the outside with very visible screws – actually more screws than the Grot, which is an achievement in itself. The monobloc receiver reminds one of another rifle recently introduced by a Baltic neighbor of Finland – Estonia, which has lately replaced its hodge-podge of rifles with an LMT Mars variant, the R20 Rahe. The single front mounting pin attached, back-swinging trigger frame reminds one of the FN SCAR and Czech CZ 806, both of which feature this – as well as the FCG with a long, side-mounted horizontal hammer spring with a strut.

The stock is rail mounted, and can therefore take any shape needed, as long as it conforms the receiver. In the first models an M4-style Magpul CTR telescoping stocks were used, but as there are no return springs filling the stock tube, it should prove replaceable with a different model (preferably a side-folding and telescoping) without much ado. By the way, the return spring on the KAR-21 return group is a dead ringer for the AKM wire-loop rod, only it has a tombstone-shaped rear support with an enormous polymer bolt bumper.

Also, the moving parts are AK-esque, as already pointed out, even though the multiple locking lugs are AR-style… while the piston-less bolt carrier looks rather Dragunov SVD-ish (sans bolt handle). The ejector is fixed to the left bolt rail, again indicating that someone here has seen an AK. That fixed ejector paired with a wide AR-style extractor should be an improvement upon both.

There’s only one ejection opening (on the right-hand side.) And that’s enough for most users, at least in a lock, stock, and barrel configuration – fortunately bullpups are not announced, so far. Borrowing a term from the 45th President would be the only way to briefly describe the brass deflector just outside the ejection window – it really is HUUUGE. The size of it gives one a hint of what is going there, when the 7.62 NATO brass is flying.

An interesting feature of the KAR-21 is compensating the length of the cartridge by a different length of the bolt for each caliber, keeping the bolt carrier stroke uniform.

Let’s Wait and See

What good, if any, this rifle will bring, only the future can tell. It is an interesting mix of AK and Western influences, but so far all we have to munch on is a Finnish patent FI20215347 plus company photos and several trade fair snapshots. The real test will be in the practical use of mass-produced rifles by the public. The identical weight and stroke of the moving parts in both calibers seems particularly foreboding, with excessive speed with 7.62 NATO very probable, limiting the service life of the rifle. That ginormous bolt bumper on the return spring support does not seem to be there solely for decorative purposes. That bodes darkly for the military use of the rifle, together with lack of strongpoints for UGL attachment – but perhaps some law enforcement use is still a strong possibility.

Anyway, hardly a week after the IWA 2023 tradeshow, Finnish and Swedish armies announced their new common rifle system to be the AR-style Sako Kiv-23 in 5.56 and a BR/DMR T-Kiv-23 in 7.62 NATO, which seems to cull the KAR-21 from hopes for service use rather harshly. But it would probably make a big wave on a civilian market, especially in those countries where a number of long arms possible to get by one individual is severely limited. Here, with just one rifle and two conversion kits, featuring lots of attachment possibilities for any sight in existence, one can have a universal weapon for the two most popular tacticool cartridges, perfectly useful for all the cardboard assassins, and killing scores of metallic gongs. What’s not to like?

SPECIFICATIONS

In celebration of its 125^th anniversary, Mauser is pleased to introduce a limited-edition series of the original Mauser 98 bolt-action rifle. 

Built by Mauser’s master gunsmiths in the style of classic safari rifles from times past, the Mauser 98 125^th Anniversary Rifles are a milestone of modern firearms technology.  Only 25 of these masterpieces are available worldwide and each in the series is numbered. 

“The Mauser 98 action is regarded as the forefather of all modern bolt-action rifles. Built in the millions, copied by the thousands, but never matched,” said Jason Evans, CEO, Blaser Group. “We will have the first 125^th anniversary rifle, marked #1 in the series, for sale at the upcoming SCI Convention in Nashville, and it is truly a work of art.”

The action, bolt handle ball, trigger guard, pistol grip cap and magazine base of these limited-edition rifles are color case hardened and, together with gold damascening, English ornaments and an exquisite wood grade 8 stock with a red recoil pad, give these masterpieces a unique and elegant look.

Features:

• Bolt handle ball with color case hardening, fish scale checkering and gold inlay
• Color case hardening with English scroll
• Engraved Original Mauser logo, inlaid in gold
• Color case hardened trigger guard with serial number of the anniversary model
• Wood grade 8 (walnut)
• Red recoil pad
• Versions and caliber options:

Mauser 98 Magnum – .375 H&H / .416 Rigby
Mauser 98 Standard – .30-06 Springfield / 8×57 IS

MSRP: $35,000.00

by Pierangelo Tendas –

The Sabatti S.p.A. company of Italy has been well known for decades both in its home country and abroad for its bespoke like of hunting shotguns and rifles. In the mid-2000s, the company shifted its core business towards long-range competition shooting and tactical precision rifles, whose rise of popularity on the international markets has been partially hindered so far essentially only by issues with export and distribution.

And yet, what most hunters and shooters worldwide do not know about Sabatti, is that they may well be the world’s oldest barrel manufacturers in existence today.

The earliest records of Sabatti’s activity in the Val Trompia region of northern Italy – the “Italian Gun Valley” – date back to the early 1700s, when Lodovico Sabatti was active as a manufacturer of matchlock pistols and most importantly as a “cannoniere” (barrel maker). By the 19^th Century, the Sabatti family was known and held in high regard for their barrels and flint locks, which were used by other manufacturers to complete their own guns for commercial sales and for the militaries that fought the battles leading to the unification of Italy.

As of today, the manufacture of barrels for third parties still makes up for a substantial portion of Sabatti’s industrial activity. There are so many companies that bought barrels from Sabatti in the past decades that chances are, you may own a bolt-action rifle built with a Sabatti barrel and not even know it. Stocks of Sabatti barrels are well documented to have been used in some lots of Remington 700 and Browning bolt-action rifles, and today they are the sole suppliers of the barrels used on the bolt-action rifles manufactured by Benelli and Franchi (among many others). And that’s not counting shotgun barrels. Unbeknownst to most, Sabatti is what is rightfully called a major barrel supplier in the industry.

A company with such a long history and experience could not hold back for long from taking a huge step in terms of innovation once their core business shifted towards the precision shooting, long-range hunting, and tactical applications market. If the past few centuries had been spent by the Sabatti family mastering the art of making good, long-lasting, accurate barrels, now it was time to make them better, under all points of view: more solid, more accurate, easier to clean and maintain, and with a longer service life.

No Cheap-Out

Right from the very get-go, Sabatti established that the new, improved barrels they set out to conceive had to be easy to manufacture by cold hammer forging. A wise choice, indeed: not only is cold hammer forging a well-regarded, tried, and true barrel manufacturing technique, but is also one that the company had been using for decades and was well equipped for. After all, with such a widely appreciated technology already at hand, already in use to manufacture such widely appreciated products, there was literally no reason for Sabatti to stray from the path from an industrial point of view and set out to design a new barrel that would later require the development of entirely new manufacturing technologies.

This is not a cheap-out by any means. Indeed, more like a rationalization of industrial effort: the new barrels were to be easy to manufacture with the technology the company already had, so they could be put on the market easily and repay the investment just as rapidly, while at the same time not requiring long waiting times to satisfy customer demand.

The research and development phase lasted for years and included both extensive testing and a lengthy study on previous, well-established solutions including conventional rifling, polygon rifling, and 5R, not limited to technical examination of samples but rather reinforced by a thorough investigation of designs and patents dating as far back as the early 1970s, at the very least.

In the mind of Sabatti engineers, it soon became very clear that quality steel and perfectly executed cold hammer forging wouldn’t be enough to achieve the quantum leap they had in mind. They had to go at the heart of the barrel: the rifling.

As mentioned, the research and development phase went thoroughly through the pros and cons of conventional, polygon, and 5R rifling patterns. Sabatti engineers wanted to come out with a new type of barrel that would offer optimal performance with alltypes of ammunition, from factory to reloads, from low-pressure to the hottest loads, from standard to leadless and monolithic. No corners were cut, and no expense spared in the lengthy evaluation and development process.

The Secret Sauce

There is a reason why the final product was called “Multi-Radial Rifling”, or MRR for short: the MRR rifling pattern is characterized by two different, alternating rifling radii that go way back to the barrel extension and feature softer edges between the lands and the grooves.

When looking inside an MRR barrel with a borescope, an expert eye may get that old-style impression of the very shallow “microgroove” rifling used by old Marlin rifles and other similar firearms. That feeling would be largely incorrect: microgrooving is an extremely fast, but extremely shallow rifling pattern that doesn’t last long with high pressure loads, aggressive propellants, and, likewise, aggressive cleaning. MRR barrels are everything but.

The impression of a shallower grooving is given by the mentioned softer edges between the lands and grooves. As we’ll see, it’s all there for a reason. The alternating radii going back to the barrel extension end up modifying the forcing cone geometry in an optimal way for each given caliber, allowing the bullet to better align with the rifling right from the start. The chamber neck and what little amount of free-bore exists guide the bullet intothe rifling more precisely and with more stability than found with traditional rifling patterns.

It’s worth pointing out that twist rates of MRR barrels have been optimized for each given caliber, but do not depart much from industry standards: we’re talking typically 1:11in instead of 1:12in for 7.62mm/.308/.30-cal. in general, 1.8in for 6.5mm, and 1:8.25in for .260 Remington – for example, that is. It’s not the twist rate that marks the difference between standard, 5R, polygon, and MRR rifling.

With softer edges between lands and grooves, the bullet traveling through the barrel is deformed and pressure-formed around a circumference, but not cut at the surface like standard or polygon rifling would. The MRR rifling with its softer edges allows the bullet to better fill the lands and grooves, allowing very little, if any, of the gas generated by the detonation of the propellant to escape around the lands. Essentially, in MRR barrels, the bullets seal the barrel as they’re traveling through it, maximizing the propulsion efficiency of the expanding gases.

All the Pros, None of the Cons

The unique features of the MRR barrels make for a long list of pros, which the expert reader may already have guessed. A better bullet-bore alignment provided by a modified forcing cone, optimized twist rate and softer edges allow the bullet to better engage the rifling and thus benefit from better stabilization, which leads to higher accuracy.

At the same time, the “bore seal effect” of a bullet filling the lands and grooves almost completely as it travels down the barrel optimizes propulsion and allows for higher muzzle velocity levels – up to 12% over standard values according to Sabatti in most cases for factory loads, even higher in certain instances with handloads.

Softer land-to-groove edges – which, as we said above, do not cut through the bullet – also eliminate most friction, which is detrimental to both accuracy and barrel service life. Less friction between bullet and rifling also means less fouling, particularly a much lower level of copper or other aggressive metal residues depositing in the lands. Normally, those deposits need to be removed with likewise aggressive chemical cleaners and sometimes scraped away with metal swabs. Nothing of that is good for the barrel’s service life, and indeed nothing like that is actually required on an MRR barrel at any point.

Sabatti’s MRR barrels are overall cleaner, and easier to return to pristine condition: a soft swab with a small amount of CLP is usually enough to remove fouling after even a long shooting session. Abrasive paste or polish pads aren’t necessary to clean the bore, but can be used for lapping, if needed, as they won’t ruin the land-to-groove edges as they would with a traditional rifling.

Accuracy is guaranteed and documented from the factory by Sabatti to be sub-MOA at 100 meters (109.361 yards specifically) with factory ammunition, and to be constant with all MRR barrels, on all Sabatti rifles.

As of today, MRR barrels are a Sabatti exclusive. First introduced in 2017 with the Tactical Syn bolt-action long-range shooting rifle, by 2018 MRR barrels were used on all of Sabatti’s .308/7.62mm and 6.5mm/.284 caliber hunting, long-range shooting, and tactical rifles. As of today, essentially all of Sabatti’s centerfire bolt-action rifles – hunting, sport shooting, tactical – either come standard from factory with an MRR barrel or are available with one as an option. In 2021, Sabatti introduced the SAR Sport semi-automatic rifle – a DMR-style AR-15 variant in 5.56×45mm – which, as of today, is the only non-bolt-action rifle to feature an MRR barrel.

This said, Sabatti can manufacture MRR barrels of all profiles, and for all calibers. Rumors of MRR barrels being manufactured by Sabatti for M4-type select-fire carbines for foreign military contracts have been circulating for a couple of years, but the company, which is otherwise usually pretty talkative, has so far kept tight-lipped about those rumors.

Dedicated Ammo…?

While the MRR rifling pattern has been conceived to perform well with any sort of factory load, handload, and with any type of bullet, the potential exists to improve the performance of MRR barrels even further. In 2021, Sabatti announced the launch of MRR Bullets: a line of dedicated reloading bullets designed to perfectly match the key features of MRR barrels in terms of weight and geometry and help hand-loaders to get the best out of their Sabatti rifles and its multi-radial rifling,

Sabatti’s MRR bullets are all leadless monolithic, and their patented design offers better engagement of the MRR rifling pattern’s typical forcing cone geometry.

Sabatti’s MRR bullets are available in three lines – Green Hunting, Green Sport, and Green Long Range – all manufactured from copper alloy, and all optimized for an intended use: the Green Hunting line bullets feature a polymer tip for better energy transfer and expansion upon impact, while the Green Long Range line bullets are heavier than the “average” Green Sport for better performance at longer distances.

Sabatti MRR reloading bullets are sold in 50-count packages, with calibers and bullet weight availability varying from line to line: the Green Hunting MRR bullets are available in .264 123-grain, .270 120-grain, .284 13-grain, and .30 caliber 152- and 167-grain variants; the Green Sport and Green Long Range MRR bullets are all available in .30-caliber only, respectively in 152-, 158-, 160- and 176-grain options.

The price per box is pretty steep in their homeland of Italy, but one can’t really put a price on quality – particularly if quality comes in the form of patented geometry bullets manufactured out of solid copper alloy billet. As of today, MRR bullets aren’t available on the U.S. market, but a lot of Sabatti rifles with MRR barrels are, and they can definitely give your traditional, polygon, or 5R barrels a run for their money.

“The first generation of the MCX platform was designed to be an AR-15 style platform with added modularity.  The second generation of the MCX, the MCX Virtus, was purpose-built for rugged durability and brought unprecedented modularity.  Now comes the MCX-SPEAR-LT, which incorporates the best of both generations and is the culmination of the latest research, development, and innovation in the MCX platform,” said Tom Taylor, Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President, Commercial Sales, SIG Sauer, Inc. “The lightened handguard has the expected rigidity and durability of the MCX, the lower is a familiar SDI, M400-style lower and ambi-bolt catch and release that is designed to fit the legacy VIRTUS uppers for more versatility. The MCX-SPEAR-LT will accept AR-15 style triggers, in addition to the legacy triggers for even more flexibility in the MCX platform. With the MCX-SPEAR_LT also comes the long-awaited addition of the 7.62×39 caliber to the MCX family bringing even more modularity to a platform that simply can’t be matched. The evolution continues and the MCX-SPEAR-LT has raised the bar for modular weapons technology.”

The MCX-SPEAR-LT rifle is an aluminum frame rifle with a gas piston operating system featuring a lightweight ergonomic handguard, push-button folding stock with cheek-rest, and a cold hammer forged carbon steel barrel available in 9-inch (300BLK), 11.5-inch (7.62×39 & 5.56), and 16-inch (7.62×39 & 5.56) lengths. The rifle offers fully ambidextrous controls including bolt catch and release, a SIG QD suppressor-ready flash hider optimized for SIG Sauer QD suppressors, a SIG flatblade match trigger, comes optics ready and can be easily paired with a SIG Sauer Electro-Optics ROMEO8 or TANGO6T, and is finished in a Coyote anodized finish. The MCX-SPEAR-LT is available is 300BLK, 556 NATO, 762×39 calibers.

MCX-SPEAR-LT Specs:

• Caliber: 300BLK Barrel Length: 9 inch
• Caliber: 556 NATO Barrel Length: 11.5 inch
• Caliber: 762×39 Barrel Length: 11.5 inch
• Caliber: 556 NATO Barrel Length: 16 inch
• Caliber: 762×39 Barrel Length: 16 inch

More information and specs on the MCX-SPEAR-LT are available at sigsauer.com.

In 1918, it was clear that the Italian Royal Army needed an automatic rifle. Though the various proposed projects seemed peter out, except for the Revelli OVP carbine issued by the Italian Army Air Corp. But things would change by the end of that year.

Under the direction of engineer Tullio Marengoni at the Pietro Beretta firearms factory, a prototype submachine gun was built. It was stamped “RE”, Regio Esercito (Italian Royal Army), serial number S1787, and was based on the Villar Perosa model 1915 submachine gun. It featured a fire rate delayer and a little button, which, when held with the thumb during operation, allowed the weapon to fire in fully automatic mode at about 300 rounds per minute.

Later, a new, more successful product was made starting in September 1918 at the Pietro Beretta firearms factory. The project was under the direction of engineer Marengoni, under the direct observation of Pietro Beretta, president of the firearms factory and with the cooperation of Lieutenant Colonel Abiel Revelli himself. This self-loading carbine, as it would be called today, was mass-produced for the Italian Army and built using different parts from other distinct firearms, probably to save material during the ongoing war.

This new automatic rifle, produced by Beretta and called the model 1918 semiautomatic carbine was made using designs and parts of some Italian weapons that were in service with the Italian army at the time, such as the trigger guard of the Vetterli rifle, like the first prototype made with the fire mode delayer, and the Villar Perosa Mod. 1915 twin submachine gun, separated and mounted on the wooden stock of the Italian Carcano M91 carbine, including its cavalry bayonet. The original M91 cavalry bayonet was triangular shaped, foldable, and exchangeable. But, on this new self-loading carbine, its blade was reduced to 25cm to adapt to the dimensions of the new barrel.

This self-loading carbine was 85cm long. Like the Villar Perosa, it fired 9mm Glisenti rounds, fed from 25-round mags, but in semi-automatic only, or short bursts, because of the addition of a trigger mechanism disconnector and that won’t allow fully automatic fire of the machine gun. Its sights were on the right side; the rear sight screwed into the bolt operating lever.

Documento N. 99 of the Comando Supremo dell’Esercito, Ufficio Ordinamento e Mobilitazione, dated 12 September 1918, with subject: “New Type of Infantry Regiment”, drafted by general Pietro Badoglio, stated that the submachine gun section is abolished in the new type of experimental battalion of the 9th Italian Army. Replacing it, says the document, would be three musketeer squads, each with two automatic muskets. Every platoon of the battalion would be made up of 37 men divided into a rifle squad, a light machine gun squad, and a squad of musketeers. The automatic firearm that came out the transformation of the Villar Perosa into an “automatic musket” never saw fighting, though, because the unit that got them was a reserve unit and operated far from the WWI front.

Some classes were instituted to train troops to use the automatic musket. Production ended on 28 November 1918. According to documents attributed to Pietro Beretta, the company made a few thousand of these automatic muskets.

Right after the conflict, this weapon, known as “moschetto automatico” (automatic musket), was given the name “moschetto automatico Revelli-Beretta” (MAR-B), according to Italian military manuals of the time. For example, in the manual: “Nozioni sulle armi portatili, sulle artiglierie e sul tiro” published by the Stabilimento Poligrafico per l’Amministrazione della Guerra di Roma, dated 1921, written by Lieutenant Colonel Romeo Mella, are the descriptions and technical specifications of every firearm adopted by the Italian Army. The MAR-B is included among the automatic firearms, along with the Glisenti Mod. 1910 and Beretta Mod. 1915 automatic pistols.

Inside the “Nozioni” (Notions) is described the history of the automatic musket in the Italian Army. This manual gives credit to the action of machine guns in battle and criticized the repeating rifles of the time, reporting them as “too much heavy”, and with “a range superior to what is needed”, and providing “the firing velocity” that is not comparable to the rate of fire of machine guns. Romeo Mella also criticized the transformation of repeating rifles into automatic firearms, affirming that it would lead to a considerable growth of their weight. He proposed as a solution the adoption of the MAR-B as the new “individual firearm of the soldier.”

The MAR-B was appreciated by Romeo Mella for its mechanical qualities but criticized for its lower performing ballistic qualities. It was reported as capable of only “intermittent firing,” which means semi-automatic; so, contrary to what some secondary sources state, it doesn’t fire in full-automatic and it is not a submachine gun. It’s probable that the MAR-B was limited to semi-automatic operation to limit the possible waste of rounds – a problem that was brought to light by the automatic Villar Perosa – because of its short, 25-rounds magazines and the way it was used in combat with short bursts provided by small pulls on the two triggers.

Unlike the Villar Perosa, the MAR-B has no safety switch. The magazine catch is an original piece different than the one present on the Villar Perosa and the sights are non-adjustable. The top of the receiver is stamped, like other Beretta’s products from World War 1, “Pietro Beretta–Brescia”. Today, the MAR-B is known as Beretta M1918, but this name seems to belong to another automatic musket chambered in 9mm Glisenti and dated 23 September 1918, that, later on, would become the Beretta M1918/30.

The forgotten weapon of the Italian Army, the MAR-B, has a quite short operational life of about nine years. This is much longer than the fielding life of the Villar Perosa, which was just about three years during WWI. The last official record of the MAR-B as an operational firearm in the Italian Army is dated 1928, almost ten years after its official adoption. On page number XXV of the “Tavole di Armi” by Romeo Mella, there’s a telegram dated 4 January 1928. It was drafted by Benito Mussolini, Chief of the Government and Minister of Foreign Affairs, to Luigi Federzoni, Minister of the Colonies e Giuliano Cora, Minister at Addis Ababa. In this telegram, Mussolini anticipates a peace treaty between Italy and Ethiopia, and brings up the possibility of selling Ras Tafari, the future emperor of Ethiopia, some thousand firearms. Among those sold were 48 MAR-Bs at the price of 100 Lire (90 USD) each, with ammunition at 0.12 Lire (0.11 USD) each. These firearms, including the MAR-B, were used during the War of Ethiopia against the Italians. A few photos of the Kebur Zabagna, the Ethiopian Imperial Guard, show the MAR-B in use by the Ethiopians.

Two photos by Istituto Luce named “Ascaro sull’attent,” (“Ascaro at attention”), dated 1936 and probably after the entry of the Italian troops into Addis Ababa, show an Ascaro troop holding a MAR-B. The photos are seen here and here. In February 1938, during the Italian military mission to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, the operation chief, Captain Alfredo D’Aria of the Ufficio addestramento dello Stato Maggiore, writes to the Servizio informazioni militare to supply firearms to the Saudi Arabians. This included a 75mm Obice da 75/13 field gun with 5,000 shells and MAR-Bs (in the text mentioned as “moschetti mitragliatori M.915 Beretta Revelli”.)

The MAR-B was fielded for a short time during WWII. One example, modified by the VNS, “National Salvation Government”, the German occupation state in Serbia, was captured by Ivan Škrlj, a Slovenian, on 14 December 1944. This modified example is today conserved at the Upper Sava Museum in Jesenice, Slovenia.

The history of the MAR-B has been hidden in the shadows of small arms history and sometimes mystified as the first submachine gun design that anticipated the German MP 18/I. The MAR-B, if analyzed in depth, turns out to be very relevant in the history of small arms. In fact, it’s one of the first individual firearms to be used in an assault role, mass-produced, and adopted by an army.

This self-loading carbine was a weapon of the Italian Army, a fact which history has almost forgotten, favoring more spectacular stories, but those were all fantasies, in the end. The primary sources of the Italian Army and official manuals tell a much different reality, one that is truer and more reliable.

The Alpha’s sleek black, fiber-reinforced stock is optimized for more modern technical shooting styles with a parallel comb, symmetrical geometry, and a vertical grip. Serrated soft-touch inserts are located in multiple grip zones throughout the stock and are much appreciated when conditions are less than ideal.

A cold hammer-forged semi-heavy contour barrel delivers guaranteed sub-MOA with various loads. The barrels are threaded and suppressor-ready. Barrels range from 18 to 24 inches, depending on the cartridge, and feature a tough-as-nails nitride finish for unsurpassed corrosion resistance in the field.

The Alpha’s patented single-stage trigger is adjustable in four increments from 1.3 to 3 pounds without removing the chassis from the stock. This user-friendly feature allows field tuning to match the conditions and personal preferences.

Shooters will love the smooth and fast-handling 60° bolt throw, a design that increases clearance between the bolt and optic, plus it cycles considerably faster than traditional designs. Reliability was a vital consideration in the 600 Alpha’s design. So, CZ selected the short extractor, controlled round feed design for its round-cycling consistency in all situations.

On top, integral Picatinny scope bases allow the shooter to choose from various optic mounting solutions. A silent, 2-position safety compliments this action. It enabled a locked or cycling bolt with the safety engaged. In the field, this type of safety prevents unintentional bolt opening.

A detachable magazine allows quick mag changes, and its built-in locking feature ensures secure magazine retention. Magazine top-off through the ejection port adds speed and convenience when extra shots are required.

The 600 Alpha incorporates the high CZ standards of accuracy, reliability, durability, and versatility and marries them with the new rifle platform. It includes innovative technology, top-of-the-line materials, and an advanced design. Check out the new CZ 600 Alpha – a rifle for the shooter wanting true versatility.

CZ 600 Alpha Features:

• Aluminum receiver
• Three action size options – 9 cartridge chamberings
• Barrel: semi-heavy; cold hammer-forged; threaded muzzle
• Sub 1-MOA, at 100 m guarantee
• Short Extractor Controlled Feed
• Two-position safety. On -bolt opens w/safety on
• Adjustable trigger – no disassembly needed (4-positions)
• 60 Degree bolt throw
• Picatinny rail scope base
• Magazine fed with magazine lock (optional use)
• Ability to top off magazine through the ejection port
• Cocking Indicator
• Silent Safety

CZ 600 Alpha Specifications:

• Chambering: 223 Rem, 224 Valkyrie, 7.62×39, 308 Win, 6 CM, 6.5 CM, 6.5 PRC, 30-06, 300 Win Mag
• Rate of Twist: 1:7, 1:9.5, 1:6.5, 1:7, 1:7, 1:8, 1:10, 1:10
• Magazine Type: Detachable
• Magazine Capacity: 5, 3 (300 Win Mag, 6.5 PRC)
• Stock: Black Polymer, American-Style
• Length of Pull: 14in
• Sights: No Sights, Integrated Picatinny-style Rail
• Barrel: Cold Hammer-Forged, Suppressor-Ready
• Barrel Length: 18, 20, 22, 24in
• Trigger Mech: 4-Point Adjustable
• Overall Length: 37.12, 40.15, 42.16,43.05in
• Safety: Vertical 2-Position
• MSRP: $749.00
• URL: czub.cz