United States - Forgotten Weapons

When M14 Meets M16: The Fort Ellis XR-86 Frankenrifle

November 22, 2018 Ian McCollum 33

This rifle failed to sell at Rock Island on November 30, 2018. This rifle is the home shop creation of one Wilfred Ellis, a talented gunsmith form Pennsylvania. It is basically a combination of an […]

MC58: A USMC Semiauto Trainer 22 for the M14

November 13, 2018 Ian McCollum 10

This rifle sold (for some reason) for $10,925 at Rock Island on December 2, 2018. When the USMC adopted the M1 Garand in 1942, they decided they would like to have a new semiautomatic training […]

The Mini-14: A Cost-Effective Scaled-Down M14

November 10, 2018 Ian McCollum 56

Folding Stock rifle sold for $2,300 (the fixed-stock Texas Ranger one is selling in a future auction – sorry for the mistake! There is a folding stocked Ranger’s rifle in this auction, however). The Ruger […]

California Arms Co 20ga “Defiance” Pistol-Shotgun

November 9, 2018 Ian McCollum 16

This registered NFA AOW sold for $3,738 at Rock Island on December 1, 2018. Made to compete with guns like the Ithaca Auto & Burglar, the “Defiance” form the California Arms Company is a side […]

Vickers-Berthier 1919 US Trials Rifle (Second Type)

November 6, 2018 Ian McCollum 14

This rifle sold for $31,625 at Rock Island on December 1, 2018. After designing the bolt action rifle that bears his name, Andre Berthier went on to experiment with self-loading designs. He developed a light […]

Durs Egg Ferguson – A Trials Breechloader From 1776

October 27, 2018 Ian McCollum 8

This Ferguson rifle sold for $96,000. Captain Patrick Ferguson was a British officer who designed and patented a breechloading rifle in 1776, which would actually see service in the American Revolution at the Battle of […]

Ingram Model 6: Like A Thompson Without the Price Tag (Sort Of)

October 26, 2018 Ian McCollum 22

This transferrable Model 6 SMG is being sold at Morphys on October 30, 2018. Before he made a big success with the M10 (MAC-10) submachine gun, Gordon Ingram designed a couple other guns. His initial […]

Colt Model 639: MACVSOG’s Vietnam Carbine

October 24, 2018 Ian McCollum 21

This two-stamp transferrable Colt 639 is being sold at Morphys on October 30, 2018. The Colt Model 639 was the export version of the Colt Model 629, which was type classified by the US military […]

M1909 Benet Mercie – American’s First LMG

October 23, 2018 Ian McCollum 35

This Benet-Mercie is being sold by Morphys on October 30, 2018. The first light machine gun adopted by the United States was the M1909 Benet-Mercie, made by the Hotchkiss company in France. The gun was […]

Shooting the S&W Model 76 – the Original!

October 20, 2018 Ian McCollum 3

This S&W 76 is being sold by Morphys on October 30, 2018. I have long been told that the Smith & Wesson Model 76 is a very nice submachine gun to shoot, despite its rather […]