Video - Forgotten Weapons

FN CAL: Short-Lived Predecessor to the FNC

January 4, 2019 Ian McCollum 23

The CAL (Carabine Automatique Leger; Light Automatic Carbine) was FN’s first attempt to produce a 5.56mm rifle as a counterpart to the 7.62mm FAL. While light and handy, the CAL was a relatively complex and […]

Vektor H5: Pump Action Adaptation of the South African Galil

January 2, 2019 Ian McCollum 10

The H5 is a pump-action conversion of the South African R4/R5 Galil rifles, developed by Vektor in the early 1990s. It was fairly difficult at that time to get a permit for a semiautomatic rifle […]

Book Review: Italian Partisan Weapons in WWII

December 30, 2018 Ian McCollum 8

“Italian Partisan Weapons in WWII” was originally written and published in Italian by Gianluigi Usai, and recently (2016) translated into English by Ralph Riccio and published by Schiffer in the US. It was intended to […]

Stopper 37mm: A Simple South African Riot Control Gun

December 29, 2018 Ian McCollum 7

The Stopper is a simple 37mm single shot riot control gun designed by Andries Piek in 1980. The South African police services were at that time using 37mm guns made by Federal Labs in the […]

H&K G36: Germany Adopts the 5.56mm Cartridge

December 28, 2018 Ian McCollum 36

When the G11 program was cancelled and German reunified, the West German military was still using the 7.62mm G3 rifle, while the East German forces had AK-74 variants. Neither of these were suitable for a […]

Zeroing the FR-F1

December 27, 2018 Ian McCollum 20

After about 2 years or working and waiting, my FR-F1 has arrived from France – so it’s time to get it zeroed! I am using the only commercial ammo available in the us; PPU 139gr […]

Steyr 1893 Gas-Seal Trials Revolver

December 26, 2018 Ian McCollum 14

Today we are looking at a pair of Steyr 1893 trials revolvers. Only about 100 of these were made, primarily for Austro-Hungarian military trials. These two are early pattern examples, with Pieper-type gas seal systems […]

Kraut Space Magic: the H&K G11

December 25, 2018 Ian McCollum 114

I have been waiting for a long time to have a chance to make this video – the Heckler & Koch G11! Specifically, a G11K2, the final version approved for use by the West German […]

WF Bern C42 & E22: Swiss Stgw90 Trials Rifles

December 24, 2018 Ian McCollum 41

Today at the Kessler auction house in Kreuzlingen Switzerland we are taking a look at the W+F Bern C42 and E22 rifles. These are the guns supplied by Bern to compete for the Swiss military […]

Shooting the H&K MP5K Operational Briefcase

December 22, 2018 Ian McCollum 32

Heckler & Koch’s “Operational Briefcase” is a clever system for covert carry of a submachine gun without the need to conceal such a large type of weapon under bulky clothing. By putting the gun into […]