Light MGs - Forgotten Weapons

Madsen LMG Disassembly and Functioning (RIA)

November 16, 2015 Ian McCollum 34

The Madsen LMG is of particular interest to me because it is both a very mechanically unusual design and also a very early successful design. Madsen light machine guns were first used in combat in […]

White Prototype Open-Bolt LMG at RIA

November 14, 2015 Ian McCollum 28

Along with his two semiauto rifle prototypes, when White went to England for rifle testing he took along a work-in-progress light machine gun. The weapon was trsted by British officials, but found wanting – largely […]

Mendoza RM-2 LMG Photos

October 16, 2015 Ian McCollum 14

The RM-2 was the last in a series of light machine guns designed by long-time Mexican arm inventor Rafael Mendoza (also responsible for, among other things, the very unusual Fusil Mexico). The first of his […]

The Chauchat: Shooting, History, and Tactics (Video)

September 14, 2015 Ian McCollum 77

I hope everyone had a successful weekend with the Rock Island auction that just ended! For those of you who still have some money left, there is a James D. Julia auction coming up in […]

RIA: Nambu Type 96 & Type 99 LMGs

September 3, 2015 Ian McCollum 37

The Type 96 and Type 99 Nambu light machine guns were arguably the best LMGs used by any nation during WWII – they were light, handy, accurate, durable, and reliable. Designed by Kijiro Nambu to […]

Soviet Experimental DPM-36 LMG Variations

August 11, 2015 Ian McCollum 26

From the Soviet Gun Archives blog, some photos of an experimental DPM-36 light machine gun (an improvement of the DP-28). Unfortunately, SGA does not list any source documents and my copy of Bolotin’s book doesn’t […]

IJA soldier in Chine with a Nambu Type 11 LMG and its tripod

Type 11 LMG w/ Tripod

August 4, 2015 Ian McCollum 28

Reader Blake sent me a couple very interesting photos recently, and they show a pretty unusual item – a Nambu Type 11 tripod. Blake is an American living with his Japanese wife in Japan, and […]

Slow Motion Video from the Pattern Room

July 28, 2015 Ian McCollum 25

As someone who is very interested in the practical handling of old firearms, the idea of gun museums leaves me a bit conflicted. On the one hand, I am absolutely in favor of guns being […]

Slow Motion: Swiss LMG-25

July 2, 2015 Ian McCollum 10

I had a cool Swiss viewer named Bjoern kindly send me this footage of a Swiss LMG25 machine gun firing – thanks, Bjoern! These guns are very rare in the US, and the only one […]

Three Videos: Finland, Spain, and Hungary

May 25, 2015 Ian McCollum 30

From Vesamatti, a Finnish gunsmith student who reads the site, we have this neat video of a few older Finnish Army machine guns. The KP-31, KP-44, Sten, KVKK, and DP-27. Not guns we get all […]