1888 f.a.t. rifle

Question
inherited a rifle that was given to my father...i know nothing about guns in general, other than not to stand in front of one. this rifle is italian from terni and appears to be in good condition,thats all i know..any info about calibre, ammunition, value, etc. would be appreciated.

Answer
Hello Mike. Sorry it has taken me so long to research your 1888 F.A.T. rifle. Actually, I may have uncovered the figurative 'Keg of Nails'.This much I am sure of. The F.A.T. refers to the place of manufacture,i.e.' Fabbrica Armi Terni. I found no reference to an 1888 model, so I assume this rifle underwent several minor modifications between 1887 and 1891, with each successive year of modifications dated on the rifle. I am able to give you some figures from the book 'The Book Of Rifles' by W.H.B. Smith and Joseph E. Smith. Copyright 1948 by The National Rifle Association. Here we go;
Your rifle originally had a 'blued' barrel with 'case-hardened receiver,safety lever and trigger guard. The caliber would have been 10.35x47Rmm, also known as a 10.4mm, 10.35 Vetterli, 10.2mm and 10.45mm. The actual diameter of the bullet was .411". It used a blackpowder charge of approx. 61.7 gr. The muzzle velocity was 1430 f.p.s., but the  weight of the lead 313 gr. bullet necessitated the use of the Vecci pattern quadrant rear sight, with a raised height of over 3". It's graduation of range was from 275 Meters to 1800 Meters. The overall length of the rifle was 54". The weight 9.9 lbs. It has a turnbolt action with a vertical column box magazine. The magazine was open bottom, and used a charger type clip that held 4 rounds. The clip was removed from the bottom of the rifle, when empty, by pulling a knotted rope. I am not joking. It was literally a 'knotted rope'! It was made to use a detachable bayonet. In 1891, the Italians ,as other countries had already done, reduced the caliber to 6.5mm with a bullet weight of 162 gr. charged with 350 gr. of the new Nitrocellulose smokeless powder. With the small bullet and new powder, the muzzle velocity gained almost 1000 f.p.s. to 2395 f.p.s.
As for value, I do not appraise anything I cannot hold in my hands. I can refer you to a few gun sales companies that I use. Guns International, Guns America, Gun Broker and Auction Arms. You may also find some speciality sales web sights on your own.
I hope this will answer your questions, and thank you for asking for me. Charles Gage