Submachine Guns
Stemple STG-M1A (Thompson) at the Range
The STG-M1A certainly looks and feels like a Thompson, but does it shoot like a Thompson? Let’s find out!
Articles by Ian McCollum
Submachine Guns
Stemple 76/45 + Russian Lend-Lease Thompson Kit = STG-M1A
The modularity and clever design of the Stemple Takedown Gun is perhaps best illustrated by the STG-M1A and STG-1928 (these are the same gun with either a horizontal or vertical front grip). In the early […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Ethiopian Oddities: Vetterli-Mauser Hybrid (Sort Of)
Today’s Ethiopian Oddity is a rifle that appears to be a Vetterli action with a distinctly Mauser flair. The bolt is styled after the Vetterli system (including rear locking lugs) but has a non-functional Mauser […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Finnish m/27rv Cavalry Carbine
When the Finnish Army adopted the m/27 improved pattern of the Mosin Nagant rifle, there was one group of soldiers who were not really satisfied with it. Finland had a cavalry brigade – one of […]
Gunsmithing
A Tour of Chapuis Armes: Home of the MR-73 Revolver
With the MR-73 revolvers finally becoming regularly available in the US, I figured it would be really interesting to see how they are made! So, I headed over to Chapuis Armes, where the Directeur Général, […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Quebec Papal Zouave’s Ceremonial Gewehr 71/84
Here’s a rifle with an interesting twisting history… This began life as a German military Gewehr 71/84, made in 1888. It was issued to a unit, but eventually replaced by the Gewehr 1888. It was […]
Competition
Full Auto Suomi in the 2021 AZ PCC Championship
The Arizona PCC (Pistol-Caliber Carbine) Championship is a 10-stage competition held every year at the Rio Salado Sportsman’s Club in Mesa, AZ. It is normally only open to semiauto carbines, but I was able to […]
Accessories
M43 Salakari: A Dynamic Assault Mount for the Finnish Maxim
The Finnish military depended heavily on Maxim machine guns until the 1960s, first using ones captured from the Russians and later starting production at Tikkakoski in the 1930s. One of the difficulties of the Maxim, […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Ethiopian Oddities: The Mo43 Mauser – Handmade or Factory?
Today’s Ethiopian Oddity appears to be a factory-built Mauser short rifle, but embellished with a couple replacement parts (nosecap retainer, stock, bayonet lug) and some truly mysterious markings. The top of the receiver has been […]
bullpup
Algimech AGM-1: A Short-Lived Italian 9mm Bullpup
In the mid 1980s, an Italian designer named Alphonso Giambelli developed a bullpup pistol-caliber carbine with hopes of selling it to Italian law enforcement. That never happened, but the gun was offered on the commercial […]