United States - Forgotten Weapons

Rollin White’s Single Shot .38 Rimfire Pistol

October 19, 2020 Ian McCollum 14

Rollin White was the inventor who patented the bored-through cylinder in the US, and sold an exclusive right to this patent to Smith & Wesson. They would use it as the basis for their own […]

Shooting an Original Hotchkiss Revolving Cannon

October 18, 2020 Ian McCollum 6

Several years ago, my friend Joe Lozen had an opportunity to fire an original Hotchkiss Revolving Cannon. He kindly sent me this clip – it is the only footage of one of these actually firing […]

The Most Popular Percussion Colts: 1848 Baby Dragoon and 1849 Pocket

October 17, 2020 Ian McCollum 16

The most-produced Colt percussion revolver was not one of the big sexy Army models, but rather the humble 1849 Pocket. It was first introduced as the Model 1848 Baby Dragoon, in .31 caliber. By 1850, […]

The 1843 Side-Lever Hall Carbine by Simeon North

October 15, 2020 Ian McCollum 8

The final production version of the Hall was Simeon North’s Model 1843 Carbine, of which 10,500 were made between 1844 and 1853. It used North’s percussion update to the design, and a cleverly simple calming […]

Valkyrie Silenced DeLisle Carbine at the Range

October 10, 2020 Ian McCollum 18

The DeLisle carbine was a conversion of the Lee Enfield to .45 ACP made by the British during World War Two for SOE use. They used modified 1911 magazines to feed, and included a very […]

11mm Vickers “Balloon Buster” Machine Gun

October 5, 2020 Ian McCollum 42

The United States adopted the Vickers gun as the Model 1915, but one of its uses was as an aircraft machine gun. Since it fired from a closed bolt, the design was easily fitted with […]

Vintage Match Gear: P.J. O’Hare Sight Covers & Tool

September 29, 2020 Ian McCollum 4

Specialized hobbies have always been a market for specialized gear, and competitive target shooting is a perfect example. Today, we have a set of P.J. O’Hare sight covers form the 1920s or 30s, along with […]

Taurus Curve: My Worst Backup Gun Match Yet!

September 26, 2020 Ian McCollum 45

A little while back during the summer I went to our monthly Backup Gun Match with, of all things, a Taurus Curve. Why do I even own one of those? Well, I found one new […]

Big-Bore Simplicity: the Serbu BFG-50A

September 25, 2020 Ian McCollum 35

The Serbu BFG-50A is one of only a couple self-loading .50 caliber rifles manufactured in the US. Work on its design began in 2008, and the first finished examples were produced in 2011. A total […]

Book Review: U.S. Small Arms of World War II by Bruce Canfield

September 24, 2020 Ian McCollum 13

Bruce Canfield’s newly released book, “U.S. Small Arms of World War II”, is a book that attempts to cover a huge amount of material from bayonets to mortars and recoilless rifles. Where most books of […]