---

Pidault Lebel Training Rifle

---

---

---

---

Many miniature rifles of French manufacture were approved for use by the cadets and clubs of the "Societé Nationale de Tir" (National Shooting Society) of France. In the late 19th. Century there was felt to be a need for a training rifle to represent the service rifles of the day - the Models 1886 and 1893. We have already dealt with the Carabine Buffalo Lebel and several other Lebel-style training rifles, as well as that produced by DeMay, each of which was manufactured initially in the 6mm calibre as illustrated on a contemporary catalogue extract further down this page, but became more prominently offered in .22 rimfire calibres as that round became more prevalent. Early in the 20th. Century these rifles found a small market amongst enthusiasts in Great Britain, resulting in their occasional appearance at auction or with dealers here more than a hundred years later.

The Pidault rifle covered by this page is of particularly fine manufacture, and represents the very best of such rifles available in France at that time.

Hover over or Click image to bring up hi-res file and magnifier

 

The cartouche on the Left-hand-side of the butt reads -

INV^on PIDAULT, 25, RUE ROYALE, PARIS.

and on the right-hand-side

Modèle de L'Union Nationale

UES SOCIÈTÉS DE TIR

DE FRANCE

LA FRANCAISE

DÉPOSÉ

______________________________

Illustrated below is a contemporary advertisement for the "scholar's" rifle with turned-down bolt handle that was often seen on such training models. This was not representative of the perpendicularly-set handles on the service Lebel and Berthier rifles, but is understood to have been an adjustment to the design to permit easier 'snag-free' sliding of the rifles into the sleeves used for carriage by the individual or owner.

This page shows an early 6mm calibre model with its cartridge.

 

Another catalogue page shows the model more closely representative of the service rifle,

and by then available in .22 rimfire Long Rifle calibre.

 

Pidault even maade a "démontable" take-down model in the early 6mm calibre,

which rifle used a flattened knobless bolt handle that folded down alongside the action body when the bolt was closed, presumably to permit fitment into a small rifle case.

---

The rifle covered by this page was found to have a particularly significant historical

and personal aspect that relates to its original ownership.

The hand carved inscription on the LHS of the butt reads:

A.V. LÈCHE

Axbridge

Som x

This was applied by the late

Arthur Victor Carlton Lèche

A Second Lieutenant of the 3rd. Btn. and. 1st Bn., Somerset Light Infantry,

who died on 1st. July 1916 in the infamous attack at Beaumont Hamel, on the first day of the Battle of the Somme, which also involved the Somerset Light Infantry. He was aged just 20.

2nd. Lt. Lèche rests in the SERRE ROAD CEMETERY No.2, Somme, France.

His father, Dr. A.V. Lèche, of Elmcroft, Axbridge, had built a house "Summerleaze" for him - but to which he never returned. The house was possibly named for the beach in Bude, Cornwall. His father had commissioned the building of Summerleaze in 1901-2.

"Summerleaze" was in the village of Churchill on the edge of the Mendip Hills, by the Dinghurst Road, North Somerset. The land now hosts a new housing estate.

A researched history of the house by the incumbents in 1989 found 2nd. Lt. Lèche's name on the war memorial in the neighbouring village of Axbridge. A fine brass memorial plaque was also put up for him, and to this day remains in St. Andrew's Church, of Compton Bishop, Sedgemoor, Somerset.This plaque is shown in the following PDF with much other detail.

Below is an excerpt from the 1st Somerset Light Infantry War Diary for 1st July 1916

taken from their Regimental History extracted from the Great War Forum, included with paperwork associated with Arthur's time with the "Somersets".

---

These text-searchable documents can be viewed with vertical scrolling
or as flip-pages by clicking the appropriate icon.
Depending upon the number of pages they may take a few moments to load.
Double tap tablet or click for full page display.

---

We return to the subject of Arthur's rifle itself,

which is here shown disassembled for work necessary to ensure its continuing longevity.

Hover over or Click image to bring up hi-res file and magnifier

Data Table

 

The action with the bolt open showing the breech chamber

And the bolt-head face showing the extractor

The bolt from the upper side.

The firing pin (striker) aperture is to the right in the image, at six o'clock when in the locked firing position.

The ejector is the rod protruding into the recess for the cartridge-case head, at the top in the image, but at nine o'clock as the bolt is opened, kicking the fired case to the right out of the bolt-way.

Here the bolt-head is as if in the locked, upright position,
with the firing pin at the bottom of the recess, and the ejector rod to the right of the image.

The bolt shown below from the rear in the position for fittting and removal.

There is a small machine screw passing through the upper left hand side of the action body.
This has to be removed to permit removal of the bolt with the trigger being held back to lower the sear.

The tangent leaf rear sight, calibrated for 50,100,150 and 200 metres.

Fortunately, the bore is in very reasonable condition for the rifle's age, perhaps because it was little used and carefully stored over the years. The rifle remains quite accurate and reliable to this day.

The rifling is of a very slow twist by current standards, being of 1 turn in approximately 23 inches; more modern .22 calibre rimfire rifle barrels have used mainly 1 turn in 16 inches for many decades.

Click image for Pidault-Lebel-crown video clip

The number of grooves is also significantly higher at a dozen, with the .22RF Lee-Enfield training rifles having 8 grooves, fewer barrels since the Second World War exceeding six, more recently a small number of modern target rifles use four, although some .22RF SMLE rifles from the Royal Factory Ishapore in India were only two-groove.

 

---

See this website's Raison d'être