Prototype - Forgotten Weapons

Schlegemilch 1896: Closest Competition to the Mauser 98

March 18, 2019 Ian McCollum 37

Louis Schlegemilch had been one of the contributors to the Gewehr 1888 and when the German military decided to replace it, Schlegemilch was there with a design he hoped would win. His model 1896 rifle […]

Bolt Action Cartridge Conversion of a French M1822 Rifle

March 10, 2019 Ian McCollum 11

This is a conversion of a French 1822 rifle to a single shot bolt action, using a newly manufactured receiver. It is unfortunately not marked with a patent name or date, and I have been […]

Unique Military Trials Steyr-Hahn M1911 Pistol

February 4, 2019 Ian McCollum 17

Today we are looking at a unique military trials Steyr-Hahn M1911 pistol which has been fitted with an adjustable tangent rear sight. The standard model of the Steyr-Hahn has a fixed rear notch, but it […]

Bernardelli UB: Hammer and Striker Fired 9mm Blowback

January 28, 2019 Ian McCollum 32

In the years following World War Two, the Bernardelli company in Italy made an attempt to enter the full-power pistol market with a simple blowback 9mm Parabellum design. They basically scaled up their existing .32/.380 […]

Walther’s .45ACP MP (P38 Precursor)

January 21, 2019 Ian McCollum 17

During the process of developing the pistol which would become the German army’s P38, the Walther company was also interested in potential export contracts (like the one they actually did get from Sweden). One potential […]

Kraut Space Magic: the H&K G11

December 25, 2018 Ian McCollum 114

I have been waiting for a long time to have a chance to make this video – the Heckler & Koch G11! Specifically, a G11K2, the final version approved for use by the West German […]

When M14 Meets M16: The Fort Ellis XR-86 Frankenrifle

November 22, 2018 Ian McCollum 33

This rifle failed to sell at Rock Island on November 30, 2018. This rifle is the home shop creation of one Wilfred Ellis, a talented gunsmith form Pennsylvania. It is basically a combination of an […]

Ishapore No6 Jungle Carbine SMLE Prototype

November 21, 2018 Ian McCollum 20

This rifle sold for $5,175 at Rock Island on December 2, 2018. In 1943, the British government began a program to develop a shortened and lightened version of the No1 SMLE rifle, for production in […]

British 1942 Prototype Simplified…Enfield?

November 18, 2018 Ian McCollum 47

This rifle sold for $5,750 at Rock Island on December 1, 2018. In 1942, the British government instituted a development program to design a new simplified rifle to replace the No4 MkI Lee Enfield. The […]

Vickers-Berthier 1919 US Trials Rifle (Second Type)

November 6, 2018 Ian McCollum 14

This rifle sold for $31,625 at Rock Island on December 1, 2018. After designing the bolt action rifle that bears his name, Andre Berthier went on to experiment with self-loading designs. He developed a light […]