Got a Manuhrin MR-73 today

Well today after many years of looking and wondering how the hell I was going to pay for an Manuhrin MR-73 revolver I finally got one today. It's in 357 magnum and has a four inch barrel with adjustable sights.

The previous owner was a shooter (he passed a way a few months ago from Cancer) and there is holster wear to the finish, but it's a beautifully made revolver. Very high quality with a truly amazing action.All the research I've done states that the MR-73 is a hellishly strong revolver. Even stronger than the Ruger revolvers. Evidently it takes twelve days of handfitting at the factory before an MR-73 or it's smaller caliber siblings (32 caliber and 22LR) are shipped from the factory.

The blueing is so deep it's black in appearance. The cylinder and crane are designed to be removed with just the simple loosening of a screw. Which is nice for cleaning purposes. All in all it's a very well though out and handsomely made revolver.

Evidently the one I got (in it's current conditon) lists at $1,500 in the Blue Book. Brand new (if you can find one in the U.S.A.) would sell for somewhere in the range of $2,500.

Well this is Southwestern Idaho not Houston or Miami. So it was priced at $900. Which is still pretty damm pricey. It's been in my local gunstore for approximately six months and I get the impression I was the only guy who was consistently eyeballing it. I guess the price tag and the fact that it's French drove people away.

Yesterday the gunshop owner said that since the owner had passed away it was now his and he wanted it to move. Which meant trade. So I traded a couple S&W .357 magnum revolvers (686 +P and a 6" Model 28-2) and a 12 gauge shotgun. Yes that's right I traded a couple of S&W revolvers. I still have my favorites though.

I didn't pay anything and the shop owner is happy. His inventory has been gutted by the recent gun buying frenzy and he would rather have several lower priced handguns that he knows will move instead of one fancy French handgun that will keep taking up space in his display cabinet for many more months.

So there you go. I go to the range Monday. The one in the photo has a three inch barrel, but beside that it's an exact replica of mine to include the rubber grips. Think I'll buy the wooden grips from Numrich. I like to have a selection available. Just thought I would share. Please don't flame me though I do have on my nomex underwear just in case.

I'd love to hear a range report after you spend some time with your new revolver. Comparisons like how it opens and closes, how size wise it compares to a K,L and N frame. Anything you like or don't like will be interesting. Who knows, maybe the cylinder spins backwards!

The cylinder is very smooth and has a very tight lock up. The trigger is also very smooth and consistent throughout the entire action. Size wise it's very similar to the K frame. It fits my K sized holsters and the Model 10/19 speedloaders have no problem with it. The cylinder dosen't have as much play as the S&W design but isn't as tight as the old Colt action (New Service,Python ect.). So I would have to say it's "in-between". The biggest thing is the trigger. Well that's the limit of my observations until I shoot it.

Waiting for a range report, target photos, gun photos, and anything else you can think of! Congratulations.

n4zov said:

Waiting for a range report, target photos, gun photos, and anything else you can think of! Congratulations.

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Monday. 08/17/09. I promise.

Looking forward to the range report. The 73 is a great gun. Wish I had gotten one back in the day.

Checkman

I don't want to steal the thread but I must say something.

Congratulation to this fine gun. The rubbergrips are not the prettiest part for this piece of art, but they are a great helper to hold the gun at the target. The wooden ones are a bit to small and the gun tends to turn upwards in my hands. I bought mine direct in the factory in France. My dad was very fascinated from the MR93 and his birthday comes up. So I wrote a letter, (yes, there was no e-mal back then) to Mr. Weissenbach in Mulhouse, France where the factory used to be, that I like to visit the factory and buy one or two guns. He said OK, and I did some paperwork with the Swiss and French government for the import/export etc. Then my buddy and me drove to France, and had a great day at the Manurhin-factory and at the testfiring-range. We had the chance to choose the guns from a stack of MR93 and MR73. But all had the same high quality-level. I will never forget the tears of happiness in my fathers eyes, when he opened the box and found the gun and all the correspondence with the factory, the governments, customs etc.
Man, it's funny how your thread brings back memories to me.... .



We wait till monday for the range-report.....but not a day longer )

Swissman

Swissman said:

Checkman

Congratulation to this fine gun. The rubbergrips are not the prettiest part for this piece of art, but they are a great helper to hold the gun at the target. The wooden ones are a bit to small and the gun tends to turn upwards in my hands.

We wait till monday for the range-report.....but not a day longer )

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Yes I actually like the rubber grips. They're comfortable and provide a good grip. I'm going to purchase the wooden grips just because I like to have as many grips for a revolver as possible. I would like to purchase the Nill grips, but those are very expensive and I don't know how easy it is to order something from Germany.

Importing wooden grips is not difficult. Just order and pay with credit-card.

If you want the original wooden grips it's much harder to find. And the Nill fits your hand better while shooting.

Swissman

Swissman said:

Importing wooden grips is not difficult. Just order and pay with credit-card.

If you want the original wooden grips it's much harder to find. And the Nill fits your hand better while shooting.

Swissman

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There is a company in New York State called Numrich gun Parts that sells the original factory grips. Actually the company is something else. Seems like they sell almost everything having to do with firearms.

That's a great story about your dad and going to the factory at Mulhouse in 93. You actually bought the MR-93 directly from the factory? I don't think such a thing is possible in the United States.

You're not stealing my thread either. Your memory fits in perfectly. GLad I helped to bring back some pleasent memories.

Nice gun. I had a .32 Match for a while when I was a kid (in France). It really made me think I could shoot...
The Trausch grips are ugly but they are really comfy. Try 'em at the range you may be surprised.

While these lack a U.S. distribution network, I'm curious. Couldn't one simply purchase one from a gunshop in France (or Australia or wherever that they are in fact sold) and import it into the U.S. on a Form 6?

Is Manurhin still in businss? If not in Mulhouse, where?

T-Star

Checkman, where is the range-report?? !!

Maybe you miss the manual.... here it is http://www.chapuis-armes.com/IMG/pdf/manuel_d_utilisation_MR73_anglais.pdf

Or a description of the gun. (loand by Wikipedia)

The Manurhin ("Mahn-oo-rahn") MR73 is a French-manufactured, double-action revolver chambered in .38 Special/.357 Magnum. The revolver can be converted to 9mm Parabellum with a supplied replacement cylinder. The MR73 is available in 3", 4", 5.25", and 6" barrel lengths.

The MR73 is standard issue with France's elite police and military Special Weapons and Tactics teams (R.A.I.D., G.I.G.N. and comparable units). The GIGN selected the MR73 in part for its ability to indefinitely withstand 150 rounds of full-power ammunition during daily range practice. These teams also use MR73's with scopes and 8" and 10" barrels for tactical purposes.

A sporting variant called the MR32 is produced in .32 S&W Long. It was first produced in 1985. A variant called the Gendarmerie features adjustable rear sights and larger front sights.

The frame, cylinder, and barrel of the MR73 are made from ordnance-certified, alloyed steel. Barrels are manufactured by cold-hammering. The rifling is formed during the forging process, eliminating the need to cut the rifling as a separate manufacturing step. This creates an extremely hard and microscopically smooth internal barrel surface.

Cylinder chambers are finished with an impact process that makes them glass-smooth and extremely hard. The factory proof-fires each cylinder chamber with .357 Magnum ammunition generating 30% more pressure than the C.I.P./SAAMI maximum allowable pressure for the Magnum cartridge. The factory guarantees that the cylinder will not burst or show any bulging or deformation with .357 Magnum ammunition developing double the standard maximum allowable pressure (92,800 psi, or 46.4 tons per square inch).

Every MR73 is match grade accurate, shipped with its own factory test target fired at 25 meters. Averaging 15 rounds, no group over 20mm (0.8 inch) diameter with selected ammunition is allowed.

The MR73 has an adjustable trigger weight in both double-action and single-action modes- a feature not found in any other revolver. These adjustments do not alter the strength of the main spring, ensuring reliable primer ignition. This is due to the use of roller bearings in the trigger mechanism along with extensive hand fitting and polishing of components during assembly. The MR73 requires more than 12 hours of hand-fitting at the factory, making it about 50% more expensive than competing U.S.-manufactured brands.


Swissman

Texas Star said:

Is Manurhin still in businss? If not in Mulhouse, where?

T-Star

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In 1999/2000 Chapuis Armes bought the company. I believe that the revolver manufacturing was moved to the company's location at La Gravoux 42380 Saint Bonnet Le Chateau, France. Which is a few miles west of Lyon. Chapuis Armes makes high grade rifles (bolt action and double barrel) and shotguns.

MR73 revolvers are shipped into Australia by Parabellum Imports and supposedly that company will ship to an FFL dealer in the states. I've also been told that the same will be done by dealers in Europe. I've excahnged e-mail with a couple guys who collect MR73's (they have more money than me) and they get alot of their pieces from various European gun auction websites.

Basically getting an MR 73 will take some serious money and/or dumb luck. In my case it was dumb luck.

Yes I've shot mine and it's not just accurate but smooth. Very impressive. At 25 yards I was getting a very tight group. With that roller design double action work is very easy and single action was scary. I noticed that it's very easy to get a relatively tight group while doing fast double action shooting. It seemed to me that the recovery was faster.

I like those goofy looking rubber grips. They look strange but they're very ergonomic and comportable. For magnum loads I ran Winchester 145 grain Silvertip, Remington 125 grain SJHP,Winchester 158 grain JHP and six 125 grain Super Vel rounds that my father gave me from his collection. Thanks dad. It liked the 158 grain load the best.

I also fired a bunch of 38 special loads. I have several boxes of the old Winchester 110 grain SJHP +P+ load. The LAW ENFORCEMENT ONLY load? It liked that load alot. I also ran a fair amount of the classic 158 grain LRN load. No problems.

All in all I like this revolver. I can see why the GIGN issued it. I believe that in a hostage situation it would be a good design to get off a fast precision shot - say into the forehead of a BG holding a hostage. Well there you are. No I didn't have a camera - sorry.

But I intend to take photos with one of the digital cameras at work and I'll download them. Just give me some time.

Checkman said:

All in all I like this revolver. I can see why the GIGN issued it. I believe that in a hostage situation it would be a good design to get off a fast precision shot - say into the forehead of a BG holding a hostage. Well there you are. No I didn't have a camera - sorry.

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The guys of the RAID used MR73's to terminate a hostage situation in a kindergaten in '93.
Didn't end up well for the hostage taker. Apparently the orders were clear, some really kind people were offended but the general opinion was "Tough sh.."

Okay finally got photos. I've learned a little bit more about my MR73 since I got it. I'm fairly certain that it's one of the specimens that was carried by COBRA - Austria's anti-terrorist unit. COBRA carried the MR73 for approximately 12 years (1980-1992) before switching to the GLOCK 17. the one I own has holster wear and while still in good shpae it's been used. This was no safe queen. Also the trigger and hammer are blued not strawed but they weren't refinished. Makes sense that a police unit might not want pretty and shiny gold colored triggers and hammers on their revolvers. Well anyway for those who are interested here are a couple photos.

This example has a trigger shoe?

T-Star

Texas Star said:

This example has a trigger shoe?

T-Star

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Yes. I'm going to leave it on. I actually like the trigger shoe and it's not going to be a holster gun. I'll keep it in the safe, take it to the range in the range bag, shoot it, put back in the range bag etc.

this revolver has something in common with the Sig 210 - a top quality piece issued as a service arm when there had to be alternatives costing a lot less than half the price - makes me wonder about their budgets...