RIFLE SLINGS
Cinghia per armi M.70/87, Fucili M.91 e
Moschetti M.91 per T.S.
Sling for Mod.70/87 guns, Mod.91 Rifles and Mod.91 T.S. carbines
Sling adopted in the late 1870s for the Vetterli rifles, then passed onto Carcano rifles, actively used and produced until mid WW2.
A thick leather sling, 3cm wide, 116-118cm long, it can be regulated only slightly (about 4 inches shorter) for different needs.
Buttons were made of Brass up until WW1, then made of Iron.
It was the Standard sling for Mod.91 rifles throughout their service and for Mod.91 TS Carbines until 1921, when they adopted the side sling swivels.
Cinghia per Moschetto Mod.91
Sling for Mod.91 Carbine
Sling expressely designed for Mod.91 Cavalry Carbines, used and produced until mid WW2.
A thick leather sling, 18-22mm wide, 113-121cm long, it can be completely regulated thanks to the 49 (on average) holes and the buckle.
Buckle and buttons were made of brass during peacetime, of iron during wartime (1935-39 is considered wartime because of Ethiopia and Spain). Towards WW2 it was also produced with Greygreen leather.
Before and after WW2 the Police and Carabinieri forces adopted, for city and parade duties, a white sling. Some profiteers try to sell these as "Alpini sling", but Alpini didn't have white slings until the 1960s, for the BM59. During WW2 Alpini units, even special forces like the Monte Cervino ski unit, used regular slings.
It was the Standard sling for Mod.91 and mod.38 Cavalry Carbines throughout their service, for Mod.91 and mod.38 TS Carbines (from 1921, when they adopted the side sling swivels), for Mod.38 short rifles.
It was also adopted for Mod.91 rifles modified for bycicle troops and it can be seen sometimes on Granatieri used Mod.91 rifles (during WW2 probably to facilitate the cross-back carrying, typical of this corp) and on MAB 38 SMGs.
Mod. 38 rifle with the Carbine sling
Peacetime sling, with Brass parts
Wartime Sling, with Iron parts
White sling, for Police and Carabinieri
Cinghie di Tessuto per Fucili e Moschetti (WWI)
Canvas Sling for Rifle and TS Carbines
Towards the last months of WW1, the Italian Army denoted a shortcoming of leather, hence it developed, adopted and issued all kinds of gear made with mostly fabric parts.
​Pouches, Belts and slings were simplified to have the least amount of leather possible, while using canvas in most of their components.
There were at least two kind of slings:
- The first was just a Rifle sling made out of canvas, with leather reinforcements on the conventional button regulation holes.
​
- The second was a canvas sling with a metal buckle to regulate it and a leather straps to hold the sling in position on one end.
Second type of Canvas Sling, Courtesy of R. Pettinelli
First type Canvas Sling, Courtesy of A. Rossetto
Cinghia di tela per Fucili M91 e Moschetti M91 per T.S.
​(Regia Marina)
Canvas Sling for Mod.91 Rifles and Mod.91 TS Carbines (Italian Royal Navy)
The Italian Royal Navy (Regia Marina) always had an independent arms procurement program, leading to repeating Vetterlis (Bertoldo, Ferracciù), C96 pistols, and getting guns from private industries instead of state runned arsenals.
Another example of independent procurements from the Navy was also the gear: Since the early 1900s the Navy went for Canvas gear, British style. The 1925 onward iterations were really similar to the british Mills webgear, and the sling chosen for Rifles and TS carbines in use with the Marines units (Reggimento San Marco) went the same way.
The Navy Canvas slings are made out of sturdy canvas, with a squared buckle to regulate the length and a SMLE-sling-style buckle to keep it in position on a sling swivel. Canvas color may vary from a light to a darker shade of sand, and the buckle can be bulkier, with rounded angles or with a thinner style.
This sling wasa used from the 1920s well into the 1950s and 60s, when the Navy phased out their Carcanos in favor of SMLE rifles and MAB38 SMGs.
ACS
Cinghia a cursore per Fucile e Moschetto Mod. 91-38Roller Buckle Sling for Rifle and Carbine
Sling directly derived from the german Kar 98k/MP40 ones, adopted around late 1942/early 1943 and produced throughout the war and in the immediate postwar years.
A thick leather sling, 20mm wide, 120cm long, it can be completely regulated thanks to its adjustable roller buckle.
Wartime slings present a sewn buckle and sewn leather band, postwar slings are riveted instead of sewn.
It was adopted as a universal sling, to be used on rifles (Mod.91/38 and mod. 91/41) and carbines (Cavalry and TS, of all models).
Its first appeareances with troops coincide with the appearance of mod. 91/41 rifles, around July 1943.
Mod. 41 Rifle, with Roller Buckle Sling
Wartime Sling, with sewn parts
Postwar Sling, with riveted parts
Cinghia in Tela per Fucile e Moschetto mod.91-38 (WW2)
Canvas sling for Rifle and Carbine
By early 1943, the supply of leather for the Italian army became dire, so on February 20th 1943 the War Ministry decided to adopt a canvas sling to ease the leather supply chain.
These were virtually identical to the standard leather roller buckle slings, except that the main body was completely made out of canvas, except for the buckle loop and for the button end, made out of greygreen leather.
Another sling often used on Carcano carbines was the standard MAB 38 sling, made out of canvas since its inception, in order to be easily distributed to Marines and Paratrroper units.
This sling had a canvas body, a squared buckle to regulate it and greygreen leather reinforcements to support the metal button.
​Several iterations of this kind of sling emerged throughout the years, indicating often improvised or "out of specs" productions
Roller Buckle canvas sling
Pic courtesy of R. Pettinelli
MAB38 Canvas Sling
​Pic courtesy of R. Pettinelli