September, 2017 - Forgotten Weapons

Shooting the Yugoslav M84 PKM: Arguably the Best GPMG

September 30, 2017 Ian McCollum 33

If I could have any one machine gun (but only one), it would be a PKM – in my experience thus far, this is the best universal machine gun that has been designed. Kalashnikov’s […]

Yugoslav M84 PKM: History, Mechanics, and Disassembly

September 29, 2017 Ian McCollum 53

The PK machine gun was developed by Mikhail Kalashnikov’s engineering team right about the time they were putting the finishing touches on the AKM. The PK is in many ways an AK rifle action […]

MAS-36 LG48: A Grenade Launcher for the Bolt Action Infantry

September 28, 2017 Ian McCollum 16

Once it became apparent that the MAS-36 was going to be used in a substantial amount of frontline combat (to the contrary of its intended role as a reserve or secondary rifle), it became important […]

Prototype Gustloff MKb-42(G) aka Model 206

September 27, 2017 Ian McCollum 18

This is a reposting of a video from September 2016 with a new introduction. The recent publication of the new and expanded edition of Hans-Dieter Handrich’s book “Sturmgewehr!” has revealed new information about the history […]

Prarie Gun Works Timberwolf: British Trials Sniper Rifle

September 26, 2017 Ian McCollum 17

Armament Research Services (ARES) is a specialist technical intelligence consultancy, offering expertise and analysis to a range of government and non-government entities in the arms and munitions field. For detailed photos of the guns in […]

MAS-36: The Backup Rifle is Called to Action

September 25, 2017 Ian McCollum 44

There is a common assumption that the MAS-36 was a fool’s errand from the outset – why would a country develop a brand new bolt action rifle in the mid 1930s, when obviously semiautomatic combat […]

Book Review: The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare by Damien Lewis

September 24, 2017 Ian McCollum 21

I ordered a copy of Damien Lewis’ book on the exploits of British SOE in WWII expecting to find an overview of, well, what SOE had done during the war. That’s not quite what this […]

MP-40/I: The Dual-Magazine Experimental MP-40

September 23, 2017 Ian McCollum 17

The MP40/I was an experimental modification of the MP-40 submachine gun developed by the Erma company (we think) in late 1942. It was presumably developed in response to complaints of Soviet fire superiority with […]

Communist Heresy: Norinco’s M305A M14 in 7.62x39mm

September 22, 2017 Ian McCollum 43

Norinco is a huge consortium of manufacturing plants in China that make all manner of goods for export, including military hardware. One of Norinco’s factories has been making copies of the American M14 rifle for […]

Fosbery’s Pump Shotgun: An AR15 Bolt in 1891

September 21, 2017 Ian McCollum 26

Armament Research Services (ARES) is a specialist technical intelligence consultancy, offering expertise and analysis to a range of government and non-government entities in the arms and munitions field. For detailed photos of the guns in […]