Rifles - Forgotten Weapons

The 1878 Remington-Keene: Tube Fed .45-70 Bolt Action Rifle

August 23, 2017 Ian McCollum 25

John W. Keene was an independent gun designer who developed this rifle (and took out 9 patents on its various features) in the 1870s. He did not have a factory at his disposal to produce […]

Jennings Muzzleloader Conversion: The Perils of Early Adoption

August 16, 2017 Ian McCollum 24

Early adoption of new technology is a sword which cuts both ways – you might be getting the first of a fantastic new system, or you might be paying for a flop – and in […]

Experimental Reising 7.62mm Full-Auto Battle Rifle

August 15, 2017 Ian McCollum 68

In the late 1950s or early 1960s, Eugene Reising experimented with adapting the mechanism of his submachine guns to a locked-breech 7.62mm NATO military pattern rifle. The resulting rifle used an M14 gas piston and […]

Indonesian Air Force Collapsing-Stock G3

August 12, 2017 Ian McCollum 18

In 1959 the German military first adopted the Spanish CETME as its standard infantry rifle, because it was able to acquire a license to manufacture the guns domestically (something FN had been unwilling to grant […]

Costa Rican Breda PG: The First Burst-Fire Rifle

August 11, 2017 Ian McCollum 37

The Breda PG (“Presa Gas” – Gas Operated) was developed by Sestilio Fiorini in 1931 and put into production at Breda’s factory in Rome. It was offered as a weapon for commercial sale and export, […]

Major Fosbery’s Breechloading Prototype Rifle

August 5, 2017 Ian McCollum 6

George Fosbery was the British officer (Major, at the time of this particular design) responsible for the quite famous Webley-Fosbery self-cocking revolver, as well as the Paradox system for shotgun slugs and many other lesser […]

M34: The Berthier Converted to the 7.5mm Rimless Cartridge

August 3, 2017 Ian McCollum 15

With the end of World War One, it was finally possible for the French military to replace the 8mm Lebel cartridge with a modern rimless cartridge, and they wasted no time in doing so. By […]

Finnish militiamen being issued 7.35mm Carcano rifles

M38 TS Carcano Carbine: Brilliant or Rubbish?

August 1, 2017 Ian McCollum 76

I would like to propose that the M38 TS Carcano carbine was, despite the poor reputation of the Carcano series of rifles, one of the best thought out bolt action weapons of World War 2. […]

The Berthier After World War One

July 31, 2017 Ian McCollum 36

In the aftermath of World War One, France would face the need to replace virtually all of its small arms, because nearly everything it had been using was either a wartime stopgap (like the Ruby, […]

The Berthier Gets an Upgrade: The Model 1916

July 26, 2017 Ian McCollum 26

The “Modifié 1916” update to the Berthier system of rifles and carbines marked a major improvement in the guns combat effectiveness – really the first substantial overhaul to the design since it was developed in […]