Manurhin MR 73

The Manurhin MR 73 is a French double-action/single-action revolver chambered in .357 Magnum and .38 Specialmanufactured by Manurhin and is available in 2.5", 2.75", 3", 4", 4.25”, 5.25", 5.75", 6", 8" and 10" barrel lengths.

Manurhin MR–73
Manurhin MR 73 4" in .357 Magnum caliber.
Type	Revolver
Place of origin	France
Service history
Used by	See Users
Production history
Designer	Gilbert Albert René Maillard
Designed	1972
Manufacturer	Manurhin
Produced	1972–present[a]
Variants	Manurhin MR 88, Manurhin MR 93, Manurhin MR 96, Manurhin F1, Gendarmerie,[2] Sport,[3] Match[4]
Specifications
Mass	880 g (31.0 oz) (2.5") 950 g (33.5 oz) (4") 1,030 g (36.3 oz) (5.25")
Length	195 mm (7.7 in) 205 mm (8.1 in) 233 mm (9.2 in)
Barrel length	2.25 in (57.2 mm) 2.75 in (69.9 mm) 3 in (76.2 mm) 4 in (101.6 mm) 4.25 in (108.0 mm) 5.25 in (133.4 mm) 6 in (152.4 mm) 8 in (203.2 mm) 10 in (254.0 mm)
Cartridge	.22 Long Rifle[5] .32 S&W Long 9×19mm Parabellum .38 Special .357 Magnum
Action	Double-action/single-action
Effective firing range	50–100 metres (55–109 yd)
Feed system	6-round cylinder
Sights	Iron sights, both fixed and adjustable

History

After WW II French police gradually faced a worrying threat. Military grade firearms left over from the occupation and liberation were used by violent criminals to outgun police personnel.

In response French police agencies gradually accepted the idea of arming their personnel, traditionally equipped with blowback pistols chambered in .32 ACP, with locked breech pistols and heavy-duty revolvers chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum and .357 Magnum.

Introduced in 1972, the MR 73 was designed for police tactical unit use and is known for having formerly been the standard issue sidearm of the French National Gendarmerie, as well as for its offensive role and use by French police tactical units such as GIGN and the National Police's RAID.

The MR73 has also seen service with military, police, and armed groups elsewhere in the world, most predominantly in the former French colonial empire.

In 2021, Beretta began to import the MR 73 Gendarmerie and the MR 73 Sport into the United States.^[6]

Specifications

Operation

The MR 73 has an adjustable trigger weight in both double- and single-action modes, a feature found in other high-end revolvers such as those built by Korth and Janz. These adjustments do not alter the strength of the main spring, ensuring reliable primer ignition. This is achieved by use of a separate flat spring controlling the trigger.

This second spring operates on a roller to decrease friction, moves the trigger forward after firing, and moves up the safety block to prevent the hammer's nose from inadvertently setting off a round. The spring, sliders and roller in the trigger mechanism require extensive skilled hand fitting and polishing of components during assembly to obtain the desired mechanical interaction.^[7] The end result is a very smooth and consistent trigger.

Though the patents expired decades ago, no other revolver manufacturer tried to apply the MR 73 trigger mechanism.

Construction

The MR 73 requires more than 12 hours of hand-fitting at the factory, making it about 50% more expensive than competing U.S.-manufactured brands.^[4]

Though the MR 73 was primarily intended as a service weapon and thus for continuous carry, every MR 73 is match grade accurate, shipped with its own factory test target fired at 25 m (27.3 yd). Averaging 15 rounds, no group over 20 mm (0.79 in) diameter with selected ammunition is allowed.

Barrel

Barrels are manufactured by cold-hammering. The 400 mm (1 in 15.75) twist late rifling is formed during the forging process, eliminating the need to cut rifling as a separate manufacturing step. This creates an extremely hard and microscopically smooth internal barrel surface.^[8]

Cylinder

The frame, cylinder and barrel of the MR 73 are made from ordnance-certified steel. This high yield strength steel is hard to machine, but ensures the mechanical strength for reliable intensive use, combined with the considerable bolt thrust exerted by C.I.P.-conformant .357 Magnum ammunition, such as the 158 gr (10.2 g) Norma ammunition used by GIGN operators. RAID operators mainly used hollow point ammunition manufactured by Lapua. The standard issue police .357 Magnum round was loaded with 161 gr (10.4 g) soft point bullets and manufactured by the SFM (Société française de munitions, based in Issy-les-Moulineaux, France).

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 which generates 30% more pressure than the C.I.P. 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 C.I.P. 300.00 MPa (43,511 psi) P_max piezo pressure, ensuring that the cylinder can withstand 600.00 MPa (87,023 psi), or 43.5 tons per square inch).

Ammunition

An innovative rare feature of MR 73 revolvers is a user-exchangeable cylinder which enables firing 9×19mm Parabellum ammunition.

The 9×19mm Parabellum cylinder uses the Pilorget system that employed an ejector bordered by elastic piano wire that engaged its extractor groove.^[9] 9×19mm Parabellum rounds were classified under French law as ammunition of war from the early 1980s, so that 9×19mm Parabellum cylinder became unavailable in France.

HKS manufactures a speedloader (Model 10A) to use with the .38, .357, and 9mm caliber cylinders.

Variants

MR 73 family

The production of police/defense fixed-sight MR 73 variants with 2½", 3", and 4" inch barrels, chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum and .357 Magnum, started in 1973.

Match variants

In 1974 Manurhin rolled out its Match and Sport versions, with 4", 5¼", 6", and 8" barrels, all chambered in .357 Magnum caliber.

In 1977, it added 3", 5¼", and 8" GIGN versions chambered in .357 Magnum.

The Match sporting revolvers have only a single-action trigger, and have an extended rearward rise which allows the aiming length to be increased without increasing total length, which is restricted to a specified maximum in some competitions.

MR variants

In 1980 and 1981 came the introduction of the MR 32 sporting revolver chambered in .32 S&W Long and the MR 38 Match sporting revolver chambered in .38 Special, along with the 9" MR 73 Long Range.

The center-fire MR range was completed in 1983 with the 10¾" MR 73 Silhouette chambered in .357 Magnum, and the limited-production stainless steel MR 73 10-year commemorative model.^[10]

The rimfire MR 22 sporting revolver chambered in .22 Long Rifle and the center-fire small-frame 5-shot Remora chambered in .38 Special followed in 1986.

The MR range culminated in 1987 with the Convertible model, fitted with interchangeable, tension-fitted barrels fed by hand-detachable cylinders chambered in .38 Special, .32 S&W Long, and .22 Long Rifle, with the aid of a frame-mounted firing pin selectable for center-fire or rimfire ignition.

MR 73 Gendarmerie

A variant called the MR 73 Gendarmerie has adjustable rear sights and larger front sights.

Later productions

In 1998, Chapuis Armes purchased Manurhin, and began manufacturing new revolvers at the new Manufacture d. Armes de tir Chapuis facility located in Saint Bonnet Le Chateau, France, using the original Manurhin Equipment 1972–1998, located in Mulhouse, France.^[11]

MR 73 replacement family

The Manurhin MR 73 replacement family of revolvers includes the Special Police F1/X1, MR 88 (based on the Ruger Security-Six), MR 93 and MR 96.

These revolvers generally were attempts to reduce the complex, costly production process of the MR 73 family.

• 
  MR 73 GIGN "sniper" variant with a mounted scope, bipod, and 8" barrel
• 
  MR 38 Match sporting variant chambered in .38 Special with ergonomic grip and 5¾" barrel
• 
  MR 73 Gendarmerie with Trautsch polymer/rubber grip

Users

• Austria
  • Previously used by the EKO Cobra^[12][13]
• Burkina Faso^[14]
• Cameroon^[14]
• Chad^[14]
• Egypt^[15]
• France
  • GIGN
  • RAID^{[3][dead link]}
• Gabon^[14]
• Ivory Coast^[14]
• Malaysia
  • RELA Corps^[14]
• Mali
  • People's Movement for the Liberation of Azawad^[16]
• Mauritius^[14]
• Niger^[17]
• Senegal^[14][18]
• Seychelles^[14]
• Togo^[14]

Footnotes

1. The MR 73 was produced at the original Manurhin factory in Mulhouse until 1998, when Chapuis Armes purchased the company and moved production to its own facilities in Saint-Bonnet-le-Château.^[1]