Semiauto pistol
German Naval P04 Luger at RIA
Most everyone is familiar with the Luger pistol – it is one of the most iconic handgun designs ever made. Folks who have a passing interest in the guns will probably know about both the […]
Handgun
Semiauto pistol
C93 Borchardt: the First Successful Self-Loading Pistol at RIA
Hugo Borchardt was a brilliant and well-traveled firearms designer. He was born in Germany but emigrated to the United States at a fairly young age, where he became engaged in the gun trade. He spent […]
Semiauto pistol
Union/Reifgraber .32 S&W Autopistol at RIA
The Reifgraber, aka Union Automatic Pistol, is an interesting mechanical design from an inventor with an interesting personal background. Joseph Joachim Reifgraber was born in Austria in 1856, and emigrated to the United States at […]
Revolver
Allen & Thurber Pepperbox at RIA
If the Colt Paterson was the high-end classy choice for a sidearm in the mid-1800s, the Allen & Thurber pepperbox would have been the simple working man’s alternative. While Colt was working for military contracts, […]
Semiauto pistol
Erika 4.25mm Pistol at RIA
Today we’re looking an another early European micro-pistol. This is the Erika, developed by Franz Pfannl and chambered for the 4.25mm Liliput cartridge (which develops approximately 1/4 the energy of the .25 ACP). These pistols […]
Revolver
Walch Double-Shot Revolver at RIA
Consider the problem of the pocket revolver of the 1860s. In order to be small enough to be reasonably concealable and comfortable to carry, it would typically be made in .31 caliber. That’s not a […]
Semiauto pistol
Detonics MkI at RIA: The Original Sub-Compact 1911
Today we are accustomed to seeing sub-compact 3.5″ 1911 pistols for sale from a whole bunch of manufacturers – but this was not always the case. Making a really small 1911 actually run reliably is […]
Handgun
Braverman “Stinger” Pen Gun at RIA
The US National Firearms Act includes a category called “Any Other Weapon”, which encompasses a variety of regulated weapons, including firearms which are disguised to look live other everyday objects, such as canes, and pens. […]
Semiauto pistol
Plus Ultra: The Supersized Ruby Pistol at RIA
The “Plus Ultra” was a variation on the Ruby automatic pistol made by Gabilondo y Urresti (the original holders of the Ruby trademark) just shortly before they changed their name to Llama. The Plus Ultra […]
Percussion
1847 Walker Revolver at RIA
The Colt 1847 Walker revolver was a massive 4 1/2 pound handgun made for Samuel Walker of the US Mounted Rifles (he also served with the Texas Rangers) as a way to equip mounted troops […]