Ian McCollum - Forgotten Weapons

M1 Thompson: Savage Simplifies the SMG

April 28, 2024 Ian McCollum 12

The Thompson submachine gun struggled to find a market when it was originally produced, with the first batch of 15,000 Colt-made guns not finally all selling until the late 1930s. By that time, the clouds […]

Daly Arms “Tom Thumb” – A Tiny Ring-Trigger Revolver

April 27, 2024 Ian McCollum 16

The “Tom Thumb” is a tiny .22 rimfire revolver made in Belgium by an unknown shop and imported into the US to be sold by the Daly Arms Company of New York. These are antique […]

Colt Automatic Machine Rifle Model 1919: the First Commercial BAR

April 26, 2024 Ian McCollum 16

Several patents were taken out on the BAR during World War One, but they were all kept unpublished and secret during the war. Just days after the Armistice, Colt patent attorney CJ Ehbets wrote to […]

Maxims in the Skies: the German LMG 08/15

April 24, 2024 Ian McCollum 9

As soon as the MG08/15 “light” machine gun was adopted by Germany, it was recognized as an ideal basis for an aircraft gun. Weight was of the essence for WW1 aircraft, and a lightened Maxim […]

The Rarest 1911: North American Arms Co

April 22, 2024 Ian McCollum 0

In the summer of 1918, the US government wanted to increase production of M1911 pistols, but all current manufacturers were working at capacity. So they looked to issue new contracts, and someone realized that the […]

What is the Best Maxim Gun? (with John Keene)

April 21, 2024 Ian McCollum 12

Today, Ian is talking to John Keene, NFA specialist for Morphy Auctions. The question is, what is the best model of Maxim gun? Whether it’s for a recreation shooter or a historical enthusiast, there are […]

‘Murican 2-Gun: M1918A3 BAR and M1911A1

April 20, 2024 Ian McCollum 3

Today I’m taking a brand new Ohio Ordnance M1918A3 semiauto BAR to the 2-gun match, along with a Tisas M1911A1 clone. The BAR is the WW2 configuration, but I followed the footsteps of many a […]

MG11: The Magnificent Swiss Maxim Gun

April 19, 2024 Ian McCollum 7

The Swiss were one of the first countries to test Hiram Maxim’s new automatic machine gun in 1887, and they found it far superior to their just-recently-purchased Gardner guns. The first Swiss maxims were delivered […]

Type 100 / 44 (Late Pattern) Japanese SMG

April 17, 2024 Ian McCollum 41

The Japanese never really embraced submachine guns during and before World War Two. A series of development programs in the 1920s and 30s led nowhere, and there never really seems to have been much motivation […]

M14: America’s Worst Service Rifle – What Went Wrong?

April 15, 2024 Ian McCollum 141

While the US never adopted a significant variation of the M1 Garand (excluding sniper models), testing continued on new iterations and features throughout the war. By the time the war ended, the US military had […]