Bolt Action Rifles
Shooting the Mle 1866 Chassepot
A while back, I visited @CanadianGunLover, and we did a bit of shooting with an 1866 Chassepot. I lost track of the footage and only just now found where I had put it – so […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Bolt Action Rifles
SSG-82: The Enigmatic East German Sniper Rifle
Lot 3533 in the September 2019 RIA auction. When East Germany received the technical data package for the 5.45x39mm cartridge, they began a program to make their own AK-74 model. Alongside, they also wanted a […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Boer Lee-Speed Rifle from the Jameson Raid
Lot 1687 in the September 2019 RIA auction. The Jameson Raid in December 1895 was one of the key events in the lead to the second Boer War. Leander Jameson took a force of about […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Cummings Dot Rifle: Indoor Marksmanship Training
Lot 1451 in the September 2019 RIA auction. Made by the Cummings Gun Works of Boston late in World War One, this is a pseudo-firearm training device for teaching some aspects of marksmanship without the […]
Bolt Action Rifles
6mm Navy Straight Pull: The 1895 Lee Navy Rifle
Lot 3311 in the September 2019 RIA auction. The US Navy held a trial in 1894 to adopt a new rifle, one to finally replace the .45-70 black powder Trapdoor Springfield. The rifle was to […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Walther KKW: Competition Shooting in Nazi Germany
Lot 3620 in the September 2019 RIA auction. The KKW (“Klein Kaliber Wehrsportgewehr”, or small caliber military sporting rifle) was developed by BDW in 1937 as an amalgamation of various .22 rifle elements form other […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Berthier Carbine with Chauchat Magazine
Early in World War One, a small number (less than 200) Berthier rifle and cavalry carbines were adapted to use Chauchat magazines for aerial use. They were employed as defensive arms in observation balloons and […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Book Review: History of the Mauser Rifle in Chile, by David Nielsen
David Nielsen’s newly released book on Chilean Mauser rifles is a tremendous piece of academic work – which is both good and bad. It is 192 pages dedicated to the testing and procurement of the […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Book Review: The Dreyse Military Needle-Ignition System
Leonard and Guy A-R-West have released the second book in their series on antique military rifles, this time on the Dreyse system. As anyone interested in the Dreyse has probably already learned, there is very […]
Bolt Action Rifles
1884 Kropatschek: Groundwork for the Lebel
Preorders now open for my book, Chassepot to FAMAS: French Military Rifles 1866-2016! Get your copy here! After the adoption of the single-shot Gras rifle in 1874, attitudes towards repeating rifles began to shift in […]