France - Forgotten Weapons

CEAM 1950B: A Roller-Delayed Missing Link in .30 Carbine

June 27, 2022 Ian McCollum 27

At the end of World War Two, the Mauser factory complex was in the French occupation zone, and more than a few Mauser engineers went to work for the French. Among them were Ludwig Vorgimmler […]

A .22LR Berthier for the French National Police (CRS)

June 15, 2022 Ian McCollum 17

In 1954, the Unique company (MAPF) in Hendaye France rebuilt a batch of 800 Berthier carbines into .22LR caliber for use by the Sûreté Nationale (later renamed the Police Nationale). These were to be used […]

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 […]

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 […]

Scrome J8: A Proper Scope for the FR-F2 Sniper

May 21, 2022 Ian McCollum 6

The French Army used a single pattern of rifle scope from 1949 all the way until 1995 – the APX L806, which was essentially a German ZF-4. It was finally replaced officially in 1995, with […]

Serbian/Yugoslav Ruby Pistol

March 2, 2022 Ian McCollum 11

The Serbian Army was essentially destroyed in 1915, and lost a massive amount of equipment. It was rebuilt with French assistance and reequipped with French arms in 1917, including about 5,000 Ruby pistols. These were […]

MAS Type 62: France Does the FAL, With a Twist

February 21, 2022 Ian McCollum 35

In the late 1950s and early 1960s, France was seriously considering joining the NATO small arms standardization. They were equipped with the MAS 49/56 semiauto rifle at this point, and were looking at three possibilities: […]

Le Redoutable: A Double-Barrel 20-Shot Revolver

February 3, 2022 Ian McCollum 40

“Manufrance” was the common abbreviated name for Manufacture d’Armes et Cycles de Saint Etienne, a massive mail-order catalog company in France for many decades. Like Sears Roebuck in the United States, one could get pretty […]

Delhaxhe “Apache”: The Other French Knife-Knuckle-Gun

January 17, 2022 Ian McCollum 21

Long associated with Parisian street gangs called “Apaches” (after the American Indian tribe), there were two main patterns of combination knife/knuckle/firearm made in the mid/late 1800s in France. This one was designed by J. Delhaxhe, […]

Christian Prouteau on the FR-F1 Rifle

January 5, 2022 Ian McCollum 20

My interview with Christian Prouteau focused on the MR-73 revolver and how his men in GIGN trained with it. However, I did also ask him about the FR-F1 rifles, and figured I would separate that […]