What you are eyeballing is an exact replica of the heavy steel OEM firing pin to within .0005" with one minor exception--the head of the pin is flatter than most pins.
This one is made from Ti-6AL-4V, Grade 5 titanium. Titanium firing pins have proven to be the most direct cure for embarrassing and potentially dangerous slam, burst and/or auto fire in MAS 49/56 rifles using commercial ammo with soft primers. My TFP weighs a mere .415 ounces (.026 lbs. or 11.793 grams). That is a 42% weight savings over the OEM MAS 49/56 firing pin which is a weighty little devil and tops the scale at .045 pounds (.719 oz. or 20.411 grams).
What my petite firing pin does is reduce the mass of forward inertia of the firing pin and thereby inadvertent repetitive fire. Owners of the previously made TFP by McCann reported excellent results. And better yet, you can use this pin on commercial or military surplus.
A modern problem haunts a great old combat rifle
The 49/56 firing pin is "free-floating" within the bolt. The heavy MAS pin was designed to impact French Milspec 7.5x 54mm ammo with tough combat primers, i.e. with considerable force. Modern commercial ammunition and reloads have "softer" primers because they are sufficient for civilian use. The heavy steel MAS 49/56 firing pin exhibits sufficient forward inertia when the bolt is released to impact and detonate sensitive commercial primers. (This all happens without pulling the trigger.)
Various unwanted occurrences can result: Slam fire (a round is hurled down the barrel when the bolt is released), burst fire (a couple of rounds fire off to the great surprise of the shooter), or full auto (the weapon just rocks and rolls on until the mag is empty).
Now these negative happenings can be embarrassing. Perhaps your gunsmith will call you and tell you to "Come pick up this piece of s--t" as happened to me. When I arrived and asked what the problem was, he said "Move that poster aside." Curiously I did and there was a large hole in his brick basement wall. The poster covered his embarrassment of a slam fire. Happily the round didn't pass through his wall and blast some little kid!
Perhaps you are at the range and your MAS goes temporarily out of control. Eyebrows will rise along the line and the range master will compound your red face with cautioning words spoken loudly. Or maybe the barrel is pointed down and you shoot your buddy's foot off. I doubt that you'll kill anyone because you will have practiced the second rule of gun handling. All of these events and other sad tales should be avoided and they can be.
Other remedies for this un-expected detonation problem can be found on a web tour. One cure is to machine the MAS bolt to accept a small firing pin return spring. That apparently is a good solution but the machining would probably cost you more than my TFP.
