the mannlicher carcano

[Bob Prudhomme]

Thanks for the extra explanation, I understand it now. Could you just lay the round into the "about to" position shown in the picture with the bolt fully retracted, and then slide the bolt forward from there to properly use the claw?

Well, you could but, in the case of the Carcano, it would have to be in the clip to do so. Without the clip, the Carcano magazine is just a big gaping hole, and there would be nothing to support the cartridge.

The rifle in the photo is a German K98 Mauser and it has a magazine that is all part of the rifle, with no clip required.

Toward the end of the Second World War, a number of Carcanos were converted to single shot rifles in Germany that would fire the 7.92 mm Mauser cartridge. To overcome the lack of a clip, a wooden block was fashioned that would fit into the magazine of the Carcano. On top of this block, in a specially carved groove, one cartridge was laid and it was possible to chamber the cartridge this way.