Bolt Action Rifles - Forgotten Weapons

RIA: Danish 1889 Krag-Jorgensen Rifle

February 19, 2016 Ian McCollum 14

The Danes were the first military to adopt the Krag-Jorgensen rifle, with this infantry variant in 1889. It is chambered for the Danish 8x58R cartridge, which was also used in Remington Rolling Block rifles (although […]

RIA: G33/40 Gebirgstruppen Carbine

February 16, 2016 Ian McCollum 25

The G33/40 carbine was made by the excellent Czech factory at Brno under German occupation (between 1940 and 1942). It was essentially a copy of the Czech vz.33 carbine, and was specifically issued to the […]

RIA: Predecessor to the Mosin – the Russian Berdan II

February 10, 2016 Ian McCollum 43

Before adopting the M1891 Mosin-Nagant, the Russian Empire (like most major militaries) used a large-bore single-shot rifle as its standard infantry rifle. In this case, a .42-caliber rifle designed by American General Hiram Berdan (yes, […]

RIA: Gewehr 29/40 Mauser

February 8, 2016 Ian McCollum 20

Over the next couple weeks we will be looking at several Polish firearms, and the first one is today: the G29/40. When German forces overran the arms factory in Radom, Poland, they captured in nearly […]

Prototype Italian MBT 1925 Straight-Pull Rifle (Video)

January 28, 2016 Ian McCollum 34

Note: This video was filmed over a year ago, but I have been holding it in anticipation of the rifle going to auction. That doesn’t seem to be happening, so I’m posting the video now. […]

US troops in the Pacific Theater with 1903 Springfields and a 1919A4 machine gun

Vintage Saturday: Combined Arms

January 23, 2016 Ian McCollum 37

I have seen this image described as being from both Burma and Okinawa – not sure myself which (if either) is correct. The array of armament present is interesting, though – a 1903A3, a 1903A4 […]

Union carpenter Joe Olson assists the coal miners during the UMW labor strike against CF&I, in Ludlow, Colorado.

Vintage Saturday: Average Joe

January 16, 2016 Ian McCollum 39

Interestingly, Joe here appears to be armed with a sporting version of the Gewehr 88 – which means those cartridges in his belt will do little good without some en bloc clips. Good thing he’s also […]

Video Q&A #3: What-Ifs and How-Comes

January 13, 2016 Ian McCollum 46

I initially figured these Q&A video would be a fun little side note, and I have been a bit taken aback by how popular they became…and so they keep getting longer. This one clocks in […]

Perspectives on French Rifle Sight Design

January 5, 2016 Ian McCollum 28

Holy moley, is that the most dense and snooty post title ever? I think it might be. However, I think it’s a much more interesting subject than most folks might anticipate, and it’s something that […]

Vintage Saturday: Harried

January 2, 2016 Ian McCollum 27

This guy has clearly been through a lot. Note the G41(W) or G43 in the background.