Belgium - Forgotten Weapons

P90: FN’s Bullpup PDW

July 2, 2021 Ian McCollum 62

FN began developing the P90 in the late 1980s, actually preceding the NATO requirement that it would eventually compete for. The idea of the P90 was to develop a weapon for secondary troops to replace […]

Portugal’s Model 1886 Trooper’s Model Abadie Revolver

June 2, 2021 Ian McCollum 9

Isaac Abadie’s gate-loading system was a significant improvement in revolver technology in the 19th century, and Portugal was one of the first to adopt it. The initial Portuguese model was adopted in 1878 specifically for […]

Ian Fangirls Over Some Weird Bergmann (Prototype M1910)

March 26, 2021 Ian McCollum 14

This unique Bergmann Model 1910 was made by Anciens Etablissements Pieper with a grip angled slightly back compared to the standard model. It was also fitted with a square front sight and square rear notch […]

How to Classify the H&K MP-7 and FN P90

October 25, 2020 Ian McCollum 50

My recent video proposing a particular set of definitions for three generations of submachine gun design generated a lot of comments about the H&K MP-7 and FN P90. I focused largely on the first and […]

FN Model D: The Last and Best BAR

August 21, 2020 Ian McCollum 18

Lot 1485 in the September 2020 RIA Premier auction. The FN Model D (“demontage”, or detachable) was the last and best evolution of the Browning Automatic Rifle. FN acquired a license to make the BAR […]

New Model Melior: A Remarkably Nice Belgian FN Lookalike

July 22, 2020 Ian McCollum 13

The New Model Melior was patented just before World War One, but did not go into production until 1920. It was a visual lookalike of the FN Model 1910, where the (retroactively named) Old Model […]

Russian FN 1905 Vest Pocket Officer’s Pistol

July 6, 2020 Ian McCollum 7

In the years before World War One, the Imperial Nicholas Military Academy in Russia purchased several thousand handguns from FN for resale to its officer candidates and graduates. These were mostly FN 1900 and FN […]

Luxembourg Model 1884 Gendarmerie Nagant

June 15, 2020 Ian McCollum 27

The military of Luxembourg chose to purchase Nagant revolvers in the 1880s, and they got three different models. The most interesting of these was the Model 1884 for the Gendarmerie, which was chambered for the […]

FN 1900 for the Russian Imperial Army Fencing & Gymnastics School

June 8, 2020 Ian McCollum 11

We have an FN 1900 to look at today that was purchased by the Russian Imperial Army’s primary Gymnastics and Fencing School (Главная гимнастическо-фехтовальная школа). That was an institution established in 1909 to train officers […]

The Prototype .280 FAL from 1950s NATO Trials

February 24, 2020 Ian McCollum 112

After World War Two, the new NATO defense alliance held a series of trials to adopt a standard cartridge and infantry rifle. This would eventually devolve and the goal of a standardized rifle would be […]