Germany - Forgotten Weapons

Kommer Models 3 and 4: German Browning Copies

November 17, 2019 Ian McCollum 12

Theodore Emil Kommer was born in 1866, son of a German gunsmith. He took the same profession, and at the age of 23 in 1889 opened his own business making guns. He initially focused on […]

Persian Model 1314 Luger and Artillery Luger

November 11, 2019 Ian McCollum 17

In 1934 (just year before officially requesting that the Western world call his country “Iran” rather than “Persia”), the Shah of Iran ordered 4,000 Luger pistols form the Mauser company. These were to be divided […]

Pistols Taken From the Walther Factory in April 1945

November 4, 2019 Ian McCollum 19

Courtesy of Legacy Collectibles, we have a variety of pistols to look at today which were taken as souvenirs by American GIs when the Walther factory was captured in April of 1945. Walther was making […]

An American .30-06 MG-42, and GPMGs after WWII

October 31, 2019 Ian McCollum 60

The perk for $100 Patrons is choosing a gun they would like me to find and film, and one such Patron (Mark) expressed a curiosity about US testing and lack of adoption of an MG-42 […]

Three Variations of Party Leader PPK Pistols

October 25, 2019 Ian McCollum 25

Today, courtesy of Tom from Legacy Collectibles, we are taking a look at “party leader” PPK pistols. There are three different versions of these, and we will look at all of them in sequence. They […]

Papers Behind the Pistol: Mauser’s Archives on the Model 1910

October 21, 2019 Ian McCollum 11

Courtesy of the Paul Mauser Archive, we have a very cool opportunity to look at the documentation and paperwork behind a production pistol design, from beginning to commercial sales. This sort of documentation is rare […]

The WW2 Double-Magazine MP40/I

October 9, 2019 Ian McCollum 20

This is Lot 2051 in the upcoming October 2019 Morphys Extraordinary auction. The MP40/I was an experimental modification of the MP-40 submachine gun developed by the Erma company (we think) in late 1942. It was […]

Menz Liliput Pocket Pistols: 4.25mm and 6.35mm

September 1, 2019 Ian McCollum 19

Lot 517 (5.25mm) and lot 444 (6.35mm) in the September 2019 RIA auction. The Liliput was made by the August Menz Company in Germany during the 1920s, in several variations. It was introduced in both […]

HK 41: “Paramilitary Rifle” for the Bundeswehr

August 31, 2019 Ian McCollum 30

Lot 440 in the September 2019 RIA auction. The HK41 (designation: “paramilitary rifle”, caliber 7.62x51mm) was the first semiautomatic version of the G3 military rifle. It was made for the Bundeswehr reservist market; a rifle […]

HK4: Heckler & Koch’s Multi-Caliber Pocket Pistol

August 28, 2019 Ian McCollum 14

Lot 3959 in the September 2019 RIA auction. The H&K Model 4 was named for the fact that it was offered in four different calibers – .22LR, .25 ACP, .32 ACP, and .380 ACP. The […]