United States - Forgotten Weapons

RIA: Norwegian M1914 Kongsberg Colt (Video)

February 1, 2016 Ian McCollum 36

After a series of pistol trials, Norway adopted a copy of the Colt 1911 in .45 ACP as its standard service pistol in 1914. A license was purchased from FN (while under German occupation, interestingly) […]

Stopping Tanks with Rifles?

January 26, 2016 Ian McCollum 44

Picture the year 1939 – lots of light tanks are out there in various armies, but there isn’t much practical experience on how to stop them in combat. The heavy anti-tank rifles pioneered at the […]

US troops in the Pacific Theater with 1903 Springfields and a 1919A4 machine gun

Vintage Saturday: Combined Arms

January 23, 2016 Ian McCollum 37

I have seen this image described as being from both Burma and Okinawa – not sure myself which (if either) is correct. The array of armament present is interesting, though – a 1903A3, a 1903A4 […]

French Remington Rolling Block in 8mm Lebel (Video)

January 18, 2016 Ian McCollum 27

The Remington Rolling Block, introduced in 1866, was one of the most prolific single shot military rifles in the world. The combination of aggressive marketing, low cost, and an excellent design led to Remington selling […]

A Note from Rick Smith of SMG Guns

January 17, 2016 Ian McCollum 8

Just wanted to pass along a cool photo and note I got from Rick Smith (the guy making reproduction FG-42 rifles) this morning: Hi All, Can’t say how this came about past it was almost […]

Union carpenter Joe Olson assists the coal miners during the UMW labor strike against CF&I, in Ludlow, Colorado.

Vintage Saturday: Average Joe

January 16, 2016 Ian McCollum 39

Interestingly, Joe here appears to be armed with a sporting version of the Gewehr 88 – which means those cartridges in his belt will do little good without some en bloc clips. Good thing he’s also […]

Grant Hammond .45ACP Trials Pistol

January 14, 2016 Ian McCollum 33

The Grant Hammond .45 pistol is a gun which was too late to take part in the major 1907 US military pistol trials, and which was instead presented proactively to the military in hopes of […]

How to Get More Rifles Fast: France, WWI

January 12, 2016 Ian McCollum 24

One of the universal misconceptions about World War One on the parts of its combatants was how long it was expected to last. When war broke out, the prevailing assumption on all sides was that […]

SEAL Team 8 member with his M14 during Desert Storm

Vintage Saturday: Shipboard Operations

January 9, 2016 Ian McCollum 42

Note the optic (can’t tell what type), the 1907 pattern shooting sling, and the hand-made vertical front grip.

Perspectives on French Rifle Sight Design

January 5, 2016 Ian McCollum 28

Holy moley, is that the most dense and snooty post title ever? I think it might be. However, I think it’s a much more interesting subject than most folks might anticipate, and it’s something that […]