Semiauto pistol - Forgotten Weapons

Lahti L-35: Finland’s First Domestic Service Automatic Pistol

April 23, 2018 Ian McCollum 21

When Finland decided to replace the Luger as its service handgun, they turned to Finland’s most famous arms designer, Aimo Lahti. After a few iterations, Lahti devised a short recoil semiautomatic pistol with a vertically […]

LugerMan Reproduction of the 1907 .45 Test Trials Luger

April 14, 2018 Ian McCollum 19

Eugene Golubtsov, aka LugerMan, is manufacturing reproduction .45ACP caliber Luger pistols, based on the original blueprints of the 1907 pattern US Army trials guns. When he offered to send me one to try out, how […]

Colt Tries To Make a Service Pistol: The Model 1971

April 10, 2018 Ian McCollum 22

In the early 1970s, Colt wanted to develop a new military pistol so that it could offer a modern replacement for the venerable 1911. Colt Engineer Robert Roy designed the new gun in 1971, and […]

Colt’s Prototype Post-War Pocket Hammerless Model M

April 3, 2018 Ian McCollum 12

Production of the Colt Pocket Hammerless (aka the Model M) pretty much died at the end of World War Two. Military contracts ended, and the civilian market was quite weak – Colt shipped just 132 […]

Korth PRS Automatic Pistol: German Quality (And Price!)

March 31, 2018 Ian McCollum 39

Korth is a boutique firearms manufacturer in Germany generally known for their very fine and very expensive revolvers. In 2015, the decided to introduce an automatic pistol as well, which they called the PRS. It […]

Detroit’s Short-Lived Kimball .30 Carbine Pistol

March 29, 2018 Ian McCollum 57

Target Model Combat Model The J. Kimball Arms Company of Detroit introduced a semiauto pistol in 1955, chambered for the .30 Carbine cartridge – what better companion for the tactical uber weapon of the day, […]

Norton DP-75: Titanium Plus German Police Pistol

March 1, 2018 Ian McCollum 43

This pistol is something of a mystery – its design comes from the experimental Mauser HsP of the mid 1970s. It uses a short recoil system with a pivoting locking block vaguely like a P38, […]

Military SIG P-49 Variations

February 23, 2018 Ian McCollum 11

When looking at P-49 (aka SIG 210) pistols used by the Swiss military, there are five distinct groups, with different characteristics. Today we will be showing you these differences, as well as a few features […]

Walther Olympia: Germany’s Interwar Target Pistol

February 18, 2018 Ian McCollum 25

The Colt Woodsman, introduced in 1915, was the premier – and really the only serious – option for the competitive target shooter into the 1920s when the Walther company decided to introduce a competitor. […]

China’s CF-98 Modular Service Pistol

February 16, 2018 Ian McCollum 61

China adopted this pistol in 1998 in a domestic 5.8x21mm cartridge, and also manufactured examples like this one in 9x19mm Parabellum for export. It is a design built around a sheet metal skeleton holding the […]