Ian McCollum - Forgotten Weapons

Lady’s (Ladies?) Home Companion at RIA (Video)

February 10, 2015 Ian McCollum 43

The Ladies Home Companion was a pistol (technically) made by the Cobray company on the same frame as their 12ga “Street Sweeper” shotgun. It had no stock or front grip, and was chambered for the […]

Standard Arms Model G Rifles at RIA (Video)

February 9, 2015 Ian McCollum 16

Right at the beginning of the 20th century, there were 3 options on the market for semiauto commercial sporting rifles in the US: the Remington Model 8, the Winchester 1905/1907 Self-Loader, and the Standard Arms […]

Roper Repeating Shotgun at RIA (Video)

February 7, 2015 Ian McCollum 12

Sylvester Roper was a great example of the classic American inventor – he had a wide range of interests, and impacted technological development in more than one industry. This shotgun is a design he patented […]

Khyber Pass Martini Pistol at RIA (Video)

February 6, 2015 Ian McCollum 13

The Khyber Pass is a well known center of arms production, with gunmaking there going back at least 100 years. The quality of craftsmanship varies greatly, from excellent and safe weapons to thoroughly unsafe guns […]

Starr DA & SA Revolvers at RIA (Video)

February 5, 2015 Ian McCollum 4

Starr revolvers are one of the less recognized designs used in the US Civil War, although tens of thousands of them were made and issued. Indeed, in many ways they were superior to the much […]

Cobray Terminator Shotgun at RIA (Video)

February 4, 2015 Ian McCollum 56

The Cobray Terminator is an unusual – and unusually impractical – single-shot 12 gauge shotgun. It uses a sort of open bolt system in which the barrel is under spring pressure, and slams backwards into […]

Apache Knuckleduster Revolver at RIA (Video)

February 3, 2015 Ian McCollum 16

The “Apache” was a combination knife, brass knuckles, and revolver made by several companies in Belgium and France, which became associated with a group of street thugs in Paris around the turn of the century. […]

Lots of New Things!

February 2, 2015 Ian McCollum 11

I have a number of things from the last week or so to share with folks who are interested… First up, while I was at SHOT in Vegas, Karl and I had the chance to […]

Vintage Saturday: Not the Best Choice

January 31, 2015 Ian McCollum 16

A postcard photo from May 1918 (sent to me by Shane M. – thanks, Shane!). Featuring Arthur L. Potts, 103rd MG Co. 26th Division. The Standard Arms Model G rifle he’s holding was a direct […]

Colombo Ricci Automatic Revolver

January 30, 2015 Ian McCollum 21

The Colombo-Ricci is (was) an automatic revolver reportedly designed in Italy around 1910, and chambered for the standard 10.4mm Italian revolver cartridge. Very little information is available on the gun, but it seems reasonable to […]