Lebel M1886

Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 July 2009 16:40 Written by Administrator Thursday, 02 July 2009 16:09

The Lebel M1886 is French rifle designed in 1892. This rifle has the distinction of being the first rifle to use smokeless powder. The rifle was adopted by the French Military and continued to be used until World War II. More than 2,880,000 units of the Lebel M1886 were manufactured from 1892 to 1920.

The design of the Lebel M1886 was based on earlier designs and incorporated several new features. Yet, it was prone to malfunctioning if the bolt became blocked due to dirt. Other than this, the M1886 was a very reliable weapon in the field. It could provide continuous and sustained firepower when needed because of its 8-round magazine. In addition, it also provided high stopping power because of its 8 mm round.

The main advantage of the Lebel M1886 was its use of smokeless powder which meant that the position of the firer wouldn’t be easily revealed even after sustained fire.

After France adopted the Lebel M1886, other countries also switched to smaller-bore rifles and smokeless powder. For instance, Germany and Austria adopted 8 mm rifles in 1888 and the US adopted the 8mm Krag rifle in 1892. However, France never officially exported the Lebel rifle to other countries until the World War II when the weapon was declassified from service.

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