As you may be aware, one of the very first prototype FAL designs was build for the German 8x33mm cartridge. The FAL was originally intended to be an intermediate-cartridge assault rifle along the same lines as the StG44, and it was only US stubbornness on keeping .30-06 ballistics that led to the FAL being scaled [...]
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We had this video pointed out to us by reader Cris – a 1990 film put out by the US Army detailing the four rifles being put into testing to become the Advanced Combat Rifle. It was to replace the M16 as soon as 1996 – so we can pretty much tell that it all [...] or How the Poles Got to Have their Small-Caliber Kalashnikov Made “My Way” We don’t often talk about modern weapons here, but the Polish wz.88 “Tantal” is moving quickly towards obscurity.Rendered obsolete by logistics nearly the moment is was ready for service, the story behind the Tantal is one of technical success [...] A couple things that came in through the week… First up, Mark Serbu (owner of Serbu Firearms) has a neat video comparing the ATI .22 cal StG44 copy to an original StG44: Also, Leszek pointed out a neat piece up for sale on eBay – a Japanese Type 89 Rokuoh-Sha 35mm (Lewis Gun) camera. [...] In the world of small arms engineering, one of the most exciting developments of World War II was the German work on roller locking and roller-delayed blowback actions. British, French, and Soviet armies were jumping all over each other to take custody of German engineers and prototypes, and these roller guns were particularly interesting to [...] The light rifle program was instituted in late 1945 to develop a new infantry rifle using the T65 cartridge (which would go on to be adopted as the 7.62x51mm NATO-standard). Initially the project involved just the T25 rifle developed by Earle Harvey, but in 1946 John Garand and Cyril Moore joined to program, each with [...] During the late years of WWII, the US military worked diligently on a replacement for the M1 Garand rifle, which was designated the T20. This was basically an M1, with the addition of a trigger group allowing full automatic fire and with a 20-round box magazine in place of the M1′s 8-round clips. As long [...] Last week we posted a video on the Singapore SAR-21, and today we have some very nice detailed photos of the gun’s internals for you to check out while we’re gone at SHOT. So, courtesy of Eric: Bullpup comparison: FN2000 (top), SAR-21 (center), Steyr AUG (bottom) Bolt carrier, bolt, cam pin, and firing [...] The FAMAS was one of the first mass-produced bullpup rifles, and as a forerunner in the area, it shows a number of interesting features, both good and bad. FAMAS F1 rifle The FAMAS spent 9 years in development, beginning in the late 1960s and finally being adopted as the standard French Army service rifle [...] |
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How Governments Choose Weapons: Israel
I recently got an email from Clément, asking about the choices Israel has made in small arms for the IDF. Why did they switch from the FAL to the Galil? And then why take M16s to replace the Galil? Isn’t the Galil a more reliable rifle, and what was wrong with the FAL in the [...]