Cei-Rigotti
| Cei-Rigotti | |
|---|---|
| Type | Automatic rifle |
| Place of origin |
 Italy |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Amerigo Cei-Rigotti |
| Designed | c. 1900 |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 4.3 kg (9 lb 55 oz) |
| Length | 1,000 mm (39.4 in) |
|
| |
| Cartridge | 6.5x52mm Mannlicher-Carcano?/7.65x53mm Mauser |
| Action | Gas piston, self-loading |
| Rate of fire | Up to 900rpm |
| Muzzle velocity | 730 m/s (2,400 ft/s) |
| Feed system | fixed box magazine |
| Sights | 1,400 meters (1,531 yards) |
The Cei-Rigotti (also known as the Cei gas rifle[1]) is an early automatic rifle created in the final years of the 19th century by Amerigo Cei-Rigotti, an officer in the Italian Army. The rifle had selective fire capabilities (single shots or burst) and was a gas operated rifle. Available information on this gun is sparse and contradictory.
According to several publications, the prototype rifle was chambered for the 6.5x52mm Mannlicher-Carcano.[2] The gun was supposedly presented by Cei-Rigotti to his superiors in a private demonstration in 1895. An Italian newspaper reported on this event in 1900.[3] According to another source, a demonstration was actually held publicly in Rome on June 13, 1900, when 300 rounds were fired on full automatic before the gun got so hot it seized up.[4] Yet another source mentions a demonstration in the same year the Brescia arsenal.[5]
The British also ordered and tested the gun after this event, but they found it unsuitable.[3] The exemplar found at the UK National Firearms Centre in Leeds (formerly known as the MoD Pattern Room) is chambered in 7.65x53mm Mauser, as is another exemplar found in a US private collection.[6]
The rifle fired ammunition fed from a fixed box magazine, loaded through stripper clips.[6] Reportedly, prototypes with magazines up to 50 rounds capacity existed.[2]
See also
- Fedorov Avtomat
- Farquhar-Hill Rifle
- Furrer M25
- Charlton machine gun
- Huot automatic rifle
- Browning Automatic Rifle
References
- ↑ Daniel D. Musgrave; Thomas B. Nelson (1967). The World's Assault Rifles and Automatic Carbines. T. B. N. Enterprises. p. 225.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 David Westwood (2005). Rifles: An Illustrated History Of Their Impact. ABC-CLIO. p. 364. ISBN 978-1-85109-401-1.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 David Miller (2003). The illustrated directory of twentieth century guns. Zenith Imprint. pp. 224–225. ISBN 978-0-7603-1560-6.
- ↑ W. H. B, Smith and Joseph E. Smith, The Book of Rifles, 1948, National Rifle Association, p. 68
- ↑ Ian V. Hogg (1978). The complete illustrated encyclopedia of the world's firearms. A & W Publishers. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-89479-031-7.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 http://www.forgottenweapons.com/early-semiauto-rifles/cei-rigotti/, Retrieved 2013-7-12