Video - Forgotten Weapons

W+F Bern P43: A Swiss Take on the Browning High Power

July 22, 2017 Ian McCollum 41

In 1940, Switzerland began a series of trials to replace their Luger service pistols with something equally high quality, but more economical. They had squeezed as much simplification out of the Luger as they could […]

Colonial Berthiers: 1902 Indochina and 1907 Senegalese

July 21, 2017 Ian McCollum 13

The sharpshooters of the French colonial forces in Indochina (the Tirailleurs Indochinois) had never been issued Lebel rifles, and were still using single shot Gras rifles at the turn of the century. The Indochinese soldiers […]

Light Machine Gun Comparison: Finnish LS26 vs Russian DP28

July 20, 2017 Ian McCollum 27

Before the Winter War, the standard light machine gun adopted by the Finnish military was the Lahti-Saloranta LS-26. This was a complex and finely built weapon, using a short recoil action and tilting bolt, chambered […]

Modele 1892 Berthier Artillery Musketoon

July 19, 2017 Ian McCollum 22

The original 1890 Berthier carbine was designed for cavalry, but a slightly modified version was produced (in small numbers) with a bayonet lug, for use by the Gendarmerie. In 1892, the French military would adopt […]

B&T VP9 Silenced Pistol: A Modern Welrod

July 18, 2017 Ian McCollum 28

Armament Research Services (ARES) is a specialist technical intelligence consultancy, offering expertise and analysis to a range of government and non-government entities in the arms and munitions field. For detailed photos of the guns in […]

Modele 1890 Berthier Cuirassier Carbine

July 17, 2017 Ian McCollum 14

When the Modele 1890 Berthier carbine was adopted for the French cavalry, the decision was made to produce a special version for the Cuirassier troops. These were the elite heavy cavalry, equipped with steel breastplates […]

Book Review: Ott-Helmuth von Lossnitzer, Technical Director of the Mauser Company 1933-1945

July 16, 2017 Ian McCollum 14

Ott-Helmuth (Otto, after he emigrated to the US) von Lossnitzer was a remarkable firearms engineer. He served through World War One as a machine gunner, gaining extensive experience with a variety of different machine guns […]

Modele 1890 Berthier Cavalry Carbine

July 14, 2017 Ian McCollum 16

The Berthier was adopted in 1890 as a new repeating rifle for the French cavalry, who were at that time still using single shot Gras carbines. The Lebel rifle had been adopted in 1886 for […]

Shooting the EM-2 in .280 British

July 13, 2017 Ian McCollum 15

I had 10 rounds of .280 British ammunition to work with today, so I opted for several rounds in semiauto (including some slow motion shots) and then one burst at the end. The .280 cartridge […]

KvKK 62: The Ugly Duckling of Light Machine Guns

July 11, 2017 Ian McCollum 38

The KvKK 62 was a squad automatic counterpart to the Rk 62, Finland’s domestic Kalashnikov rifle. It is an open bolt light machine gun chambered for 7.62x39mm, feeding from push-through RPD-style belts and firing at […]