Rifles - Forgotten Weapons

FG-42: Perhaps the Most Impressive WW2 Shoulder Rifle

March 8, 2023 Ian McCollum 96

The first production version of the FG42 used a fantastically complex milled receiver and a distinctive sharply swept-back pistol grip. A contract to make 5,000 of them was awarded to Krieghoff in late spring of […]

SSG-69: Steyr’s Cold War Sniper Rifle

March 2, 2023 Ian McCollum 15

In the 1960s, Steyr Daimler Pusch developed a modern sniper rifle for the Austrian military (and also for commercial civilian sale). It was adopted as the SSG-69 (Scharfschützen-Gewehr; sharpshooter’s rifle), replacing the SSG-98k in military […]

SSG-98k: Austria Repurposes German Sniper Rifles

February 27, 2023 Ian McCollum 14

In the aftermath of World War Two, the Austrian Army was basically disarmed and disbanded. When it was allowed to reform in the 1950s, it needed new armaments, and in 1958 it adopted the SSG-98k […]

Austrian Troop Training: Erma EL-24 .22 Kit for the Steyr M95 Carbine

February 11, 2023 Ian McCollum 21

The German company Erma (Erfurter Maschinenfabrik) developed a .22 rimfire kit for the Mauser 98 for the German Army in the 1920s. It was used for training, both to allow for more effective fundamental practice […]

Chrysanthemums in the Snow: Finnish Arisaka Rifles

February 6, 2023 Ian McCollum 16

When Finland took its independence, the most common type of firearms in the country was the Mosin Nagant – and the second most common was the Arisaka. An assortment of Type 30, Type 35, and […]

AR57: Fun Times with a Tiny Carbine (aka FSS Hurricane)

February 4, 2023 Ian McCollum 5

Thanks to MagPul for sponsoring this video! I was happy to use one of their new Daka Grid rifle cases today – it’s a very cool system that will be of great use for me […]

Ian Ruins the Elbonian Sniper Corps

January 14, 2023 Ian McCollum 20

Today’s Q&A is from Tim on Patreon: “The great nation of Elbonia is looking to spin up a sniper program. But they know better than to adopt ZF41 scopes. What rifles do you attempt to […]

Tsingtao Ironworks C96 Carbine – A Fancy Carbine for a Wealthy Client

December 28, 2022 Ian McCollum 12

Today we are looking at a high-end C96 Mauser pattern sporting carbine made by the Tsingtao Ironworks. Only a few dozen of these were made, and this one survives in excellent condition. It is a […]

Bonus: MSBS Grot at the Range (Standard, Bullpup, & 7.62mm)

December 18, 2022 Ian McCollum 5

After touring the Fabryka Broni factory in Radom and filming the history of the MSBS “Grot” development, I had the chance to try out the rifle in several different configurations. We didn’t have time to […]

The History of Drop-In Auto Sears

December 17, 2022 Ian McCollum 19

When Colt decided to sell a semiauto-only civilian version of its AR-15 rifle, it had to make a number of changes to the design of the lower receiver to prevent full-auto fire control parts from […]