Germany - Forgotten Weapons

Roller Delay in France: The H&K 33F (Trials & Export Models)

July 14, 2025 Ian McCollum 14

Check out Headstamp Publishing’s extensive catalog of excellent books: https://www.headstamppublishing.com/home-forgotten When France was looking to replace the MAS 49/56 rifle for military service in the 1970s, it tested all of the major rifle options available. […]

H&K MG4: Germany’s New 5.56mm Squad Machine Gun

June 7, 2025 Ian McCollum 27

Full video including range footage is available on the History of Weapons & War streaming app: https://forgottenweapons.vhx.tv/videos/mg4-4k Heckler & Koch released the MG4, a new 5.56mm squad machine gun in 2001. It was adopted by […]

Gerat Potsdam: Mauser Copies the Sten Gun

June 2, 2025 Ian McCollum 19

In the fall of 1944, the Mauser company was given a contract to develop drawings of a direct copy of the British Sten gun (code named Gerät Potsdam), and to manufacture 10,000 of them. In […]

Haenel’s Prototype Simplified Sturmgewehr StG45(H)

May 26, 2025 Ian McCollum 77

In December 1944, the Haenel company received permission to produce a simplified version of the StG-44 Sturmgewehr. The idea was to keep the mechanical system and controls as similar as possible to the design in […]

P38K: The Real One, not the Nazi Fantasy Piece

May 5, 2025 Ian McCollum 21

The P38K is both a fantasy WWII concept and also a real pistol made in small numbers by Walther in the 1970s. The idea is simple; just cut down the barrel on a P38 to […]

German Occupation FN High Power Pistols

April 28, 2025 Ian McCollum 26

When Germany occupied Belgium in the summer of 1940, the took over the FN factory complex and ordered production of the High Power pistol to continue. It was put into German service as the Pistole […]

Erma EMP36: External Form Factor of the MP40

March 26, 2025 Ian McCollum 24

The German military began looking for a new submachine gun design in secret in the mid 1930s. There is basically no surviving documentation, but the main contenders appear to have featured: Hugo Schmeisser’s MK-36,II and […]

Schmeisser MK-36,II – The Mechanics of the MP40

March 24, 2025 Ian McCollum 9

The German military began looking for a new submachine gun design in secret in the mid 1930s. There is basically no surviving documentation, but the main contenders appear to have featured: Hugo Schmeisser’s MK-36,II and […]

Enjoying Black Powder Episode 8: Mauser 71/84

February 22, 2025 Ian McCollum 4

For the full episode with the hand loading instructional section, click here: https://forgottenweapons.vhx.tv/videos/ep-8-71-84-app Black powder military rifles of the 1860s-1880s are a really enjoyable group of guns. A lot of them are relatively reasonably priced, […]

Book Review: ERMA Erfurter Maschinenfabrik 1924–2003 (Three Volumes)

January 19, 2025 Ian McCollum 0

Available from Schiffer Publishing as three separate volumes: https://www.schiffermilitary.com/collections/military-new-releases/products/erma-erfurter-maschinenfabrik-1924-2003-vol-1 https://www.schiffermilitary.com/collections/military-new-releases/products/erma-erfurter-maschinenfabrik-1924-2003-vol-2 https://www.schiffermilitary.com/collections/military-new-releases/products/erma-erfurter-maschinenfabrik-1924-2003-vol-3 Hot off the presses from Schiffer Publishing, we are looking at Holger Schlemeier’s expanded English version of “ERMA: Erfurter Maschinenfabrik, 1924–2003”. This is a […]