United Kingdom - Forgotten Weapons

Bayonet Development for the Lee Enfield No4 Rifle

July 22, 2021 Ian McCollum 32

Having wrapped up our series on the major development of the Lee Enfield rifle in British service, I figured it would be a nice addendum to talk about the bayonets developed for the No4 rifle. […]

No4 MkII: The Lee Enfield’s Final Standard Upgrade

July 21, 2021 Ian McCollum 10

The final standard pattern of the venerable Lee Enfield as a standard-issue service rifle was the No4 MkII, introduced after the end of World War Two. The new pattern was adopted to resolve problems that […]

Britain’s Last Ditch: Wartime Changes to No4 Lee Enfield

July 14, 2021 Ian McCollum 37

When we think of “last-ditch” rifles, we normally think of 1945 and the very end of World War Two. For the British, however, the lowest ebb of the war was in 1941 and 42, and […]

A New Enfield for a New War: The No4 MkI

July 7, 2021 Ian McCollum 66

The stalwart No1 MkIII “Smelly” served the United Kingdom well during the First World War, but by the 1920s it was growing obsolescent. The war had revealed a number of shortcomings of the design, and […]

L96A1 Behind the Scenes: Manufacturing Catastrophes and Exploding Rifles

July 1, 2021 Ian McCollum 58

Accuracy International’s L96A1 was a stunning success in British military trials, and became the basis for one of the most respected line of precision rifles in the world. However, it very nearly was abandoned almost […]

Vickers for Interwar Tanks: The Class C/T Machine Gun

June 25, 2021 Ian McCollum 19

The Vickers company developed several versions of the Vickers machine gun for aircraft use during the 1920s and 1930s, but they also worked on armored vehicle versions of the gun in the 1930s. Between 1930 […]

How William Fairbairn Created the Modern SWAT Team in Warlord Era Shanghai

June 1, 2021 Ian McCollum 12

The Kickstarter for my new book, “Pistols of the Warlords” is live here! William E. Fairbairn is best know for his work with Eric Sykes and their “”Commando” knife design during World War Two. However, […]

British L85A1 at the Range: Will It Work?

May 22, 2021 Ian McCollum 66

I am excited to have a chance today to take a trip to the range with a proper, factory L85A1 rifle (it’s in the United States as a post-1986 dealer sample). I had a chance […]

1893 Lee-Metford Trials Carbine (One of Only 100 Made)

May 17, 2021 Ian McCollum 8

Once Lee-Metford rifle production was in place, the British began working on a carbine version of the same action for their cavalry. In 1893 a trial run of 100 carbines were made, and today we […]

Headstamp’s Second Book! Thorneycroft to SA80: British Bullpup Firearms

May 14, 2021 Ian McCollum 10

I am very excited to be able to announce that Headstamp Publishing’s second book, “Thorneycroft to SA80” is now in stock and shipping! As the name suggests, this is a study of British bullpup firearms, […]