United States - Forgotten Weapons

China Lake 40mm Pump Action Grenade Launcher

December 11, 2020 Ian McCollum 26

Possibly the coolest small arm used by the United States in the Vietnam War was the China Lake 40mm pump action grenade launcher. Only 24 of these were made, each fitted by hand. Of those, […]

Bringing a Retro Rifle to Life: The Brownells BRN-10 with Paul Levy

December 10, 2020 Ian McCollum 3

NOTE: Since this video was recorded, Brownells has changed their plans, and will not be restocking BRN-10 barrels or parts once the current inventory is depleted. Today I’m sitting down with Paul Levy from Brownells […]

Book Review: Vickers Guide SIG SAUER, Volume 1

December 8, 2020 Ian McCollum 5

The most recent addition to the Vickers Guide series of books is SIG Sauer Volume 1. This is 460 pages covering SIG’s handguns and submachine guns from it’s very first contract (the Mannlicher 1894 blow-forward […]

M79: The Iconic “Bloop Tube” 40mm Grenade Launcher

December 4, 2020 Ian McCollum 66

Combat experience with the bazooka rocket launcher in World War Two and its larger versions in the Korean War convinced the US military that a better weapon was needed to give front-line troops a direct-fire […]

Colt Tries DA/SA: The Colt Double Eagle (in 10mm)

December 3, 2020 Ian McCollum 14

The Double Eagle was Colt’s foray into the DA/SA pistol market in the 1990s. It was effectively just a standard 1911 with a Seecamp-type double action trigger mechanism and a modernized (for the time) trigger […]

S&W’s Pistol-Carbine for the South Australian Police

December 1, 2020 Ian McCollum 29

In 1880, the South Australian Police service was introduced to the Smith & Wesson No3 New Model revolver at the Melbourne Exhibition. They took a liking to the design, and promptly ordered 250 of them, […]

Loading Tool for a .31 Caliber Volcanic Repeater

November 30, 2020 Ian McCollum 11

One thing I have not really though about before is how best to carry extra cartridges for a Volcanic repeater. They are self-contained, but still rather fragile compared to today’s ammunition (and they were originally […]

Glock Meets 1911: The Alchemy Arms Spectre

November 28, 2020 Ian McCollum 25

Alchemy Arms was a company formed in 1991 making parts and accessories for both the Glock and 1911 platforms. Its founder, William McMoore, got the idea to combine elements of both pistols to make the […]

Lebeda 4.5mm Pocket Watch Gun

November 26, 2020 Ian McCollum 18

Made by one Francis Lebeda, this is an Elgin classic pocket watch with the internal mechanism removed and replaced with a single-shot pistol mechanism. It fires a 4.5mm BB using just a No.11 percussion cap, […]

Colt’s First Double Actions: The 1877 Lightning & Thunderer

November 25, 2020 Ian McCollum 20

Samuel Colt disliked the idea of a double action revolver, considering the idea to be wasteful of ammunition and likely to be fragile. However, he passed away in 1862, and by 1873 double action Webley […]