Video - Forgotten Weapons

Nazi-Occupation “Stomperud” Krag Rifle at RIA

June 20, 2015 Ian McCollum 33

When the Germans occupied Norway, they took advantage of the arms production facilities at the Kongsberg Arsenal to make a number of Krag rifles to their own specifications. They were made with a mixture of […]

Khyber Pass Colt Copy at RIA

June 19, 2015 Ian McCollum 25

The Khyber Pass is a region near the Afghan/Pakistan border known for firearms production – particularly for very crude guns made with crude tools. This particular pistol is an excellent example of the type – […]

Hammond Bulldog Pistol at RIA

June 18, 2015 Ian McCollum 11

Made in Naubuc Connecticut, the Hammond Bulldog was an interesting single-shot rimfire .44 caliber pistol. It used an unusual rotating breechblock, and had the potential to be a fairly strong action. Reportedly prototypes were made […]

(A Few of) The Many Faces of the Dutch M95 Carbine

June 17, 2015 Ian McCollum 23

When the Dutch military adopted the M95 Mannlicher rifle, they made a rifle for standard infantry, and a variety of carbines for specialist troops. these included artillery, cavalry, bicycle, engineers, and colonial service carbines. During […]

Joslyn M1862 and M1864 Carbines at RIA

June 16, 2015 Ian McCollum 39

While US infantry forces during the Civil War had only limited access to the newest rifle technology, cavalry units adopted a wide variety of new carbines in significant numbers. Among these were a design by […]

One More Chinese Mystery Pistol at RIA!

June 15, 2015 Ian McCollum 14

This particular Chinese pistol is a great example of all the elements of a proper Chinese Mystery Pistol: sights that don’t function, gibberish markings, mechanical derivation from the Browning 1900, aesthetic elements form the C96 […]

Japanese Type 18 Murata at RIA

June 14, 2015 Ian McCollum 19

The Murata was Japan’s first domestic manufactured military rifle. In its first iteration, it was an 11mm, single shot, black powder weapon and was adopted in 1880 (the Type 13). Before long, some problems in […]

Slocum Rimfire Revolver at RIA

June 13, 2015 Ian McCollum 36

The Slocum revolver, designed by Frank Slocum and manufactured by the Brooklyn Arms Company, was one of the more successful workarounds for Rollin White’s patent on the bored-through cylinder. The most significant advantage of Slocum’s […]

Hungarian WWII Rifles at RIA (35M, 43M, G98/40)

June 12, 2015 Ian McCollum 37

After the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Hungarian army was armed primarily with Steyr M95 straight-pull rifles and carbines, chambered in the 8x56mm rimmed cartridge. In 1935 they adopted a new Mannlicher turnbolt rifle, […]

Model 1883 Reichsrevolvers at RIA

June 11, 2015 Ian McCollum 19

It did not take long for some of the handling problems of the model 1879 Reichsrevolver to become apparent, and the result was a redesign to the model of 1883. These new guns retained the […]