Did Captain Fritz show Mr Oswald a Mauser?

[Dan O'meara]

Thanks for that Richard.
My line of thought was that the Carcano couldn't be mistaken for a "sporterized" deer hunting rifle.
I'm assuming the stock of the Carcano was 'original' and that it hadn't been modifed.

[Walt Cakebread]

And! Lest there be any doubt that "the rifle" referred to in the document refers to a rifle found in the Depository, let us look at the paragraph before-------------



"THE GUN" = "THE RIFLE"

Mr Oswald is telling Captain Fritz he saw Mr Truly handling a Mauser rifle two days before the assassination, and is evidently relating this rifle to a rifle that has been found at the scene of the crime.

But how does Mr Oswald know to relate a Mauser rifle to a rifle found at the scene of the crime if he is not being shown a Mauser rifle and told it was found at the scene of the crime?

Now if only we had some evidence that a Mauser was found at the scene of the crime...................

Mr Oswald is telling Captain Fritz he saw Mr Truly handling a Mauser rifle two days before the assassination, and is evidently relating this rifle to a rifle that has been found at the scene of the crime.

No that's not correct!....

Mr Oswald is telling Captain Fritz he saw Mr Truly handling a CARCANO rifle two days before the assassination, and is evidently relating this rifle to a rifle that has been found at the scene of the crime.[

When Fritz showed Lee the carcano from the sixth floor and asked him if he'd ever seen it before... Lee Replied that he'd seen it and two other rifles outside Mr Truly's office on the first floor of the TSBD.   

I recently learned that Roy Truly was not familiar with guns and didn't know how to handle a rifle.    Whereas Lee had been trained in the Marine Corps .....    Whoever left the prints on the Carcano magazine did NOT know how to handle a rifle.  You'll notice in the BY photos Lee is holding the carcano at the WOODEN foregrip. I  seriously doubt that Lee would have grabbed the rifle at the magazine.  Whoever left the prints there ....was an ignoramus who would have been doing extra push ups  ....

Any ex GI can tell you that you DO NOT handle a rifle by the metal parts....  ( because sweat can cause rust and corrosion)  r

[Walt Cakebread]

So...does "sporterized" mean it has a scope or not?

"According to the FBI memo...Lee said that he saw TWO rifles....NOT THREE.   And there were NOT more than two men present."

Who mentioned three rifles?

Sporterized does not mean the converted military rifle would have a scope mounted....Sporterized means primarily that the old military wood of the rifle has been modified or replaced....But usually the wooden stock is replaced with a nicely grained hard wood like Walnut or Hickory, or Maple, and finished with a high gloss finish.  And usually the old military sights are replaced with civilian sights, and often a scope is mounted. 

[Walt Cakebread]

Thanks for that Richard.
My line of thought was that the Carcano couldn't be mistaken for a "sporterized" deer hunting rifle.
I'm assuming the stock of the Carcano was 'original' and that it hadn't been modifed.

The Carcan does not lend itself to easy conversion to a "sporterized hunting rifle'   The Carcano does not have a well designed high quality action that is strong, and smooth with a tight trigger.   IMO the major problem is the fact that the bolt cocks on the opening rather than the closure of the bolt.   This design makes it impossible to fire the carcano rapidly and accurately.

The opening of the bolt of the carcano, with a spent shell is sticky and it causes the shooter to pull the muzzle waaaay off target ....

[Mitch Todd]

Thanks for that Richard.
My line of thought was that the Carcano couldn't be mistaken for a "sporterized" deer hunting rifle.
I'm assuming the stock of the Carcano was 'original' and that it hadn't been modifed.

Richard who?

[Dan O'meara]

Richard who?

 
Really sorry Mitch
You've got the same avatar as Richard Smith.
My bad

[Bill Chapman]

Typically, it means that someone took an old military bolt action rifle and shortened the barrel and/or forestock. Sometimes the military-style stock was replaced with a commercial rifle stock. A scope was often part of the equation, but not always.

For reference, two m1903 Springfield rifles, first an original then a sporter (these might be a bit big):

swap these if you want