United States - Forgotten Weapons

The US Adopts A Maxim: The Colt Model 1904

November 9, 2022 Ian McCollum 23

The US Army spent nearly 16 years languidly testing the Maxim gun, but was never willing to actually make a decision until a final trial in 1903 finally settled the matter. The Maxim was deemed […]

M240 Bravo: America Replaces the M60

November 7, 2022 Ian McCollum 43

In 1977, the US military adopted the FN MAG as the M240 in vehicular configuration to replace the less-than-successful M73/M219 machine guns. The USMC would get an early start adapting the 240 to ground configuration […]

An Early .45 ACP Reising Model 50 at the Range

November 5, 2022 Ian McCollum 22

The Reising was adopted by the US Marine Corps and used in campaigns through 1942 and early 1943, and it garnered a pretty poor reputation for reliability on the islands of the Pacific. However, it’s […]

First to the Fight: The Marines’ Reising M50 SMG

November 4, 2022 Ian McCollum 23

Eugene Reising developed a .45 ACP submachine gun in the late 1930s that was basically the opposite of the Thompson – it was light and handy, fired from a closed bolt with a delayed blowback […]

Thompson SMG Cases: Police, FBI, and Secret Service

November 3, 2022 Ian McCollum 9

The Auto Ordnance company made a couple different types of cases for the Thompson SMG, and today we are going to look at two of the most common and one exceptionally cool type. The two […]

Water-Cooled .50s: The US Navy Mk22 Pedestal Mount

October 27, 2022 Ian McCollum 16

In 1942, the US Navy adopted the Mk22 Pedestal mount, which fitted a pair of water-cooled Browning M2 machine guns (one left-hand feed and one right-hand). It was used for antiaircraft use primarily, and was […]

Rogers & Spencer .44 Army: Possibly the Best Civil War Revolver

October 26, 2022 Ian McCollum 15

Amos Rogers and Julius Spencer ran a company making mostly farm equipment in the 1840s and 1850s. In 1859, they took on a firearms manufacturing contract (as mechanical fabrication companies often do) to make Pettengill […]

USMC Johnson LMG at the Range

October 25, 2022 Ian McCollum 11

The Johnson LMG was adopted by the US Marine Corps for specialist units like Paramarines and Raiders, and saw use in some of the fiercest island campaign of the Pacific (in addition to use in […]

Forgotten Web Gear: Johnson LMG Magazine Backpack

October 24, 2022 Ian McCollum 8

While the Johnson LMG was issued in limited quantities throughout World War Two, notably to Marine Raiders, Paramarines, and the 1st Special Service Force, the US never issued web gear made for its uniquely-sized magazines. […]

Colt Model 621: An Attempt at an AR-Style Export SAW

October 20, 2022 Ian McCollum 50

During the 1970s and 1980s, Colt wanted to sell not just standard M16 rifle and CAR-15 carbines to foreign military customers, but also wanted to supply support weapons. They put together the Model 621, aka […]