Handgun - Forgotten Weapons

Collier Flintlock Revolvers (Video)

November 9, 2016 Ian McCollum 23

Elisha Collier is probably the best-known name in flintlock revolvers – to the extent that any flintlock revolvers are well known. Because of the great cost and required skill to manufacture a functional repeating flintlock […]

Astra Model F (Video)

November 4, 2016 Ian McCollum 25

The Astra Model F was the final evolution of the Astra 900, a C96 Mauser lookalike. The Model F used detachable magazines and was select-fire, with a very effective rate reducing mechanism in the grip. […]

Development of the Luger Automatic Pistol (Video)

October 31, 2016 Ian McCollum 60

Lugers! there are approximately a gazillion different recognized varieties, because the pistol became so popular and iconic. And yet…they all kinda look the same, don’t they? (If you are a Luger collector, don’t answer that!) […]

Müller 1902 Prototype Pistol (Video)

October 26, 2016 Ian McCollum 25

Bernhard Müller designed this locked-breech pistol in 1902, seemingly a hybrid of the Luger and P38 (of course, the P38 did not exist at that time). It appears to use a modified Luger magazine and […]

Book Review: The Makarov Pistol – Soviet Union & East Germany

October 25, 2016 Ian McCollum 16

Until recently, the only good reference book on the Makarov pistol has been Volume 16 of Fred Datig’s Soviet Arms series – which is hampered by the lack of public information available to the author […]

Bjorgum 1905 Norwegian Prototype Pistol (Video)

October 21, 2016 Ian McCollum 35

Niels Bjorgum was a Norwegian artist-turned-gun-designer who decided to try his hand at handguns for the Norwegian military. His design work ran from 1894 until 1921 or so, starting with long guns but later turning […]

Early Pistol Cartridges – What, When & Why?

October 12, 2016 Ian McCollum 38

In a recent discussion with a friend the topic of early automatic pistol cartridges came up. Specifically, looking at the context of which cartridges were actually available at which times, and how this might provide […]

Early Ruby .45 ACP Pistol

October 7, 2016 Ian McCollum 39

The Spanish company Gabilondo y Urresti, later to become known as Llama, introduced this locked-breech .45 ACP copy of the Colt 1911 in 1924. It was not a slavish copy, however, and introduced a captive […]

Slow Motion: Roth-Steyr 1907

October 6, 2016 Ian McCollum 14

Some high-speed footage of a Roth-Steyr M1907 pistol here for you – these are rotating-barrel, locked breech pistols with trigger lockwork much akin to a Glock. Namely, the action cycling puts the striker at half […]

Pusan Jin Iron Works 1911

October 2, 2016 Ian McCollum 23

Note: I mistakenly referred to North Korea in the video, when this was actually made in South Korea. Sorry! During (and probably for a short time after) the Korean War, a Korean facility called the […]