Video - Forgotten Weapons

An Israeli LMG, Part II: The 8mm Dror

June 8, 2022 Ian McCollum 61

Today we continue the story of the Dror. Shortly after production of the .303 pattern guns began, the directive came down that the gun was to be redesigned for 8mm Mauser ammunition. Israeli supplies of […]

An Israeli LMG, Part I: The .303 Dror

June 6, 2022 Ian McCollum 36

The story of the Dror is a fascinating tale of clandestine arms procurement by the fledgling Israeli state. Plans covertly purchased from Johnson Automatics, redesigned to use .303 British ammunition, with a production line produced […]

2-Gun With New US Army Weapons: SIG Spear and M17

June 4, 2022 Ian McCollum 28

Yesterday we looked at the new SIG Spear/M5 in detail, and today I’m taking it out to a 2-Gun match to try on the clock. The most suitable pistol pairing would naturally be the other […]

SIG M5 Spear Deep Dive: Is This a Good US Army Rifle?

June 3, 2022 Ian McCollum 217

The NGSW (Next Generation Squad Weapon) program began in 2017 to find a replacement for the M4, M249, and 5.56mm cartridge. It came to a conclusion in April 2022 with the formula acceptance of the […]

Q&A 60: Early Automatic Pistols & More w/ “Fireplace Guy” – Len Antaris

June 1, 2022 Ian McCollum 17

Today I am speaking to Len Antaris of Historic Investments, aka “Fireplace Guy”. Len has a tremendous collection with an emphasis on unusual and prototype handguns, and he has been very generous in allowing me […]

How to Shoot the Shockwave w/ Demonstrated Concepts

May 28, 2022 Ian McCollum 19

Rhett Neumayer is a guy with some really interesting and innovative thoughts on small arms training and handling. He runs Demonstrated Concepts, offering training classes on a variety of different firearms. You can check out […]

France in the Cold War: AA52 Replaces the Hotchkiss

May 27, 2022 Ian McCollum 24

For another perspective on the AA52 – and some live fire footage – check out Bloke on the Range’s video on the gun today: With the end of World War Two, it was finally time […]

Arex Delta Gen2: How Gun Designs Iterate and Improve

May 25, 2022 Ian McCollum 18

In firearms, as in really all technology, the market iterates and improves concepts over time. A novel new system – like the polymer-framed, striker-fired semiauto pistol – will never be perfect on its first introduction. […]

Beautiful Perrin Revolving Carbine

May 23, 2022 Ian McCollum 21

The Perrin was an 1859 revolver design originating in France, which was initially an open-frame, double-action-only system. It went through some significant improvements in 1865, including a single action mechanism and a fully enclosed frame […]

Virtual Tour: Austrian Museum of Military History

May 20, 2022 Ian McCollum 19

02:30 – 17th Century hall 06:12 – 18th/19th Century hall 09:29 – World War One hall 17:13 – World War Two hall 20:24 – Naval history area I recently had a chance to visit the […]