Select-fire Rifles - Forgotten Weapons

Throwback Thursday: Cei Rigotti Rifle Disassembly

August 19, 2021 Ian McCollum 15

The Cei Rigotti is a fascinating early Italian self-loading rifle design that was tested in several countries, but never adopted or put into production. I had a chance to disassemble one at the British REME […]

How to Swap FAMAS Ejection Left to Right

July 29, 2021 Ian McCollum 12

One of the very nice features of the FAMAS is that it can be swapped between left-hand and right-hand ejection in just a few moments without needing any tools or spare parts. I had this […]

Mini-Beryl: The Carbine Version of the Polish wz.96

July 27, 2021 Ian McCollum 11

Yesterday we looked at the standard Polish service rifle, the wz.96 Beryl. Today we have the carbine version, the Mini-Beryl. Specifically, we have an early example, predating several of the mid-life improvements that were made […]

wz.96 Beryl: Poland’s 5.56mm Military AK

July 26, 2021 Ian McCollum 23

With Poland’s entry into NATO in the 1990s, a new service rifles was needed, chambered for the 5.56mm NATO cartridge. Initial development work had been done in 1990/91 to adapt the wz.88 Tantal to 5.56mm, […]

Authentic Polish wz.88 Tantal at the Range

July 17, 2021 Ian McCollum 18

Yesterday we took a look at the history and the design of the Polish wz.88 Tantal, and today we are taking it out to the range. Let’s see how that unique Polish 3-round-burst works!

wz.88 Tantal: Poland’s Alternative to the AK-74

July 16, 2021 Ian McCollum 19

As part of the Warsaw Pact, Poland anticipated adopting the AK-74 after it was developed by the Soviet Union. However, the eventual Soviet terms for license fees and export restrictions were too severe for Polish […]

Qatari Royal Guard m/71-76 Valmet

July 12, 2021 Ian McCollum 7

The Valmet company in Finland made excellent AK-type rifles for the Finnish Defense Forces, but also offered a variety of designs on the international commercial market. The Valmet was a very expensive rifle for a […]

VHS-2 Bullpup at the Range

July 10, 2021 Ian McCollum 12

Yesterday we took a look at the inner workings of the VHS-2, and today we are going to put some rounds through it. I am trying out both a short-barreled VHS-K2 that was limited to […]

French Trials VHS-F2 Croatian Bullpup

July 9, 2021 Ian McCollum 37

HS Produkt of Croatia makes an interesting modern bullpup rifle, the VHS. The rifle has gone through several major design iterations in the past two decades or so, and the most recent version (the VHS-2) […]

Ian Finally Takes a Full Auto FAMAS F1 to the Range

June 26, 2021 Ian McCollum 46

Huzzah! I finally have a chance to take a proper full-auto FAMAS F1 out to the range. My conclusions? It’s very nice, just like the semiauto civilian model. It has a limited 3-round-burst option for […]