Gunsmithing
RIA Feb 2020 Special: Sporterized M1 Carbine
Our final quick video from RIA this weekend is a look at a sporterized M1 Carbine – but one that was actually done quite nicely! I would never suggest that someone cut up an intact […]
Rifles
Bolt Action Rifles
RIA Feb 2020 Special: Field-Modified Mannlicher 1888 Carbine
Today’s quick RIA look is a Mannlicher 1888 that was cut down to carbine length and adapted to fit a Type 30 Japanese Arisaka bayonet. Most likely done in China in the teens or twenties, […]
Semiauto Rifles
RIA February 2020 Special: Venezuelan and Argentine FN49s
Today at RIA, a quick look at a pair of FN-49s – one Venezuelan pattern in 7x57mm, and one Argentine Navy model in 7.62mm NATO using detachable mags (the only variant of FN-49 to do […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Arming the Lion of Judah: Ethiopian FN Mauser Rifles & Carbines
In 1930, Haile Selassie I became Emperor of Ethiopia (aka Abysinia), and would rule for almost 45 years, with a brief exception when the country was occupied by fascist Italy. During that time, he paid […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Rifles of Emperor Menelik II: Ethiopian Gewehr 88 and Karabiner 88
In 1889, Emperor Menelik II ascended to power in Ethiopia, and would rule for 20 years, moving Ethiopia (aka Abyssinia) forward into the modern age. He brought railways, sewer systems, telegraph lines, and other modern […]
Competition
MAS 49-56 in a 2-Gun Match
A while back, I ran a 2-Gun match on my own with my MAS 49-56 (and a plain Glock 19), including the original APX L806 optic. It was not a particularly complex match, but it […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Royal NW Mounted Police Ross MkI Carbine & MkII Rifle
One of the very early clients of the Ross Rifle Company was the Royal North West Mounted Police (later merged with the Dominion Police to form the RCMP). The Mounties purchased 500 Ross MkI carbines, […]
Select-fire Rifles
Beretta 57: Italy Makes a .30 Carbine SMG for Morocco
The Model 57 is a select-fire carbine made by Beretta around the .30 Carbine cartridge. It uses a newly designed magazine much more durable that the American M1/M2 Carbine magazines, and has a tilting bolt […]
Competition
French Resistance 2-Gun: FG-42 & Mle 1935A (Prep for Desert Brutality)
Next week is Desert Brutality 2020, the big annual 2-Gun “nationals”. I’ll be shooting it in the Classic division (guns from 1946 and earlier) this year, with an SMG semiauto FG-42 rifle and a French […]
Anti-Tank Rifles
Why Antitank Rifles Were Not Sniper Rifles
When talking about antitank rifles, I often hear people ask why such things were not fitted with telescopic sights and used as snipers’ rifles. So today, I figured I’d take a few minutes to explain […]