The Firearm Blog

Idiot's gun fails to fire, idiot looks down barrel (because that will fix the problem?), chaos ensues.

[ Many thanks to Phil White for emailing me the link. ]

Strike Industries emailed me photos of a futuristic .45 ACP submachine gun that Sam, their engineer, printed out on their rapid prototyping machine. Its a very nifty design.

The New Zealand Army has adopted the Lewis Machine & Tool LMT .308 AR-10 rifle as their Designated Marksman Rifle. Last year British Army also adopted the LMT 308 as a designated marksman rifle.

The rifle looks to be a similar configuration to the British L129A1. The differences that I can see are the use of a Leopold 4.5-14X scope instead of a fixed power Trijicon scope, a foldable foregrip and backup iron sights mounted at a 45 angle. This is the first time I can recall a military AR-15/AR-10 rifle being issued with angled iron sights.

I have shot the LMT 308 and I was incredibly impressed. Hitting targets with it was just to easy.

[ Many thanks to WhaleOil for emailing me the link. ]

In August I blogged that the Canadian military was going up upgrade the WWII-era weapons used by the Canadian Rangers, Canada's Arctic militia force. These plans have been put on hold because gun companies around the world refused to hand over technical specifications to Colt Canada. The Defense Department selected Colt Canada as the manufacturer for the 10,000 rifles and 10,000 pistols they plan to buy and required any company who submitted a weapon for consideration to hand over all the technical specifications them. The Ottawa Citizen reports ...

The government then hastily retreated, canceling its request to the companies for information about prices and availability.

In an email the Defence Department confirmed that it asked Public Works to cancel the request “as a result of questions, and requests for clarification, from industry.”

The department is now re-evaluating its procurement strategy.

According to the DND email, its small arms project office is now “focusing efforts on clarifying the procurement strategy with the intent to facilitate future communication with industry.”

Canadian Rangers practicing with their Enfields.

[ Many thanks to Mike for emailing me the link. ]

Over at Shooting Illustrated, Uncle has reviewed the new Crimson Trace Lightguard for S&W M&P9 pistol. The Lightgaurd combines a light and laser into a compact package.

Colt Defense has decided to stop using the iconic stock they designed for the M4 Carbine on their new rifles. The future rifles will instead use the new Colt Super-Stoc. We reviewed it here before it was even called the Colt Super-Stoc.

Colt Super-Stoc

From the press release ...

Colt Defense and Bill Rogers have teamed up to engineer the most advanced, third generation of the Super-Stoc, using innovative technologies and proprietary materials. Designed to be as lightweight as possible while maintaining durability, the Colt Super-Stoc weighs 6.56 ounces, ranking it among the lightest stocks available. The stock is designed specifically for the new Colt rifles to give an unequaled fit and survivability during the most extreme conditions.

"The Colt Super-Stoc is one of the lightest, strongest and most secure collapsible stocks for the M4/AR series of weapons," said Bill Rogers, chief shooting instructor, Rogers Shooting School. "Our partnership with Colt was a no-brainer. We want the highest quality rifle in the world to be outfitted with the world's newest and most technologically advanced stocks available."

A unique Cam-Lock system is a new design feature that, when operated, securely locks onto the buffer tube like a solid stock. This Cam-Lock system completely removes any slop or play commonly inherent with aftermarket collapsible stocks as well as eliminating any movement due to wear. The Cam-Lock lever also features a convenient reversible design, enabling the user to customize his or her stock to suit the desired preference. Other features include a removable recoil pad, sling loop, quick detach swivel sling mount and Quick Release lever which unlocks the Cam-Lock and indexing pin with one motion.

The original M4 buttstock will still be made available to commercial and law enforcement customers by Colt Defense. For more information on the new Colt Super-Stoc or Colt's classic M4 stock, please visit Colt.com.

Read Phil's review of the Colt Super-Stoc here.

Foster Knives make the perfect knives for 1911 owners. Their automatic folder knives have handles shaped like the 1911 frame and are fitted with mini 1911 grips made by VZ Grips.

Double Diamond and Aliens pattern grips for pistol and knife.

If the grip shape is good enough for the most popular pistol in the world, it's certainly good enough for a carry knife. Inspired by the famous design of John M. Browning, the 1911 Folder is the perfect compliment to America's favorite sidearm and a superb knife in its own right.

The 154CM blade is heat and cryogenically treated for maximum durability and edge retention. The checkered thumbstuds on both sides of the blade allow for instant opening in an emergency or for convenience. The handle is made from machined aluminum. The handles are hard-coat anodized a matte black (Standard Model) or plated with electroless nickel (Custom Model).

The Foster Knives 1911 Double Action is a scale release automatic version of the original 1911 folder. Unlike most auto openers, the 1911 DA can be opened manually with a thumbstud like any normal linerlock, or can be deployed in the blink of an eye by activating the auto opening mechanism. Designed by auto-opening knife genius Butch Vallotton, the 1911 DA can be opened simply by pivoting the the front of the left scale. The mechanism is completely concealed and only known to the user - making the knife easy to deploy instantly, even while wearing gloves.

[ Many thanks to Cormac for emailing me the link. ]

Jason sent me another photo of the Leupold CQBSS M2 Browning Mount. Some of those who commented on my previous post about it were, as I was before, skeptical of the utility of a sniper scope on a heavy machine gun. The armchair Commandant in me thinks that the Corps' plan is to enable troops to accuracy engage targets at a much longer range than they are presently able to do so.

In 1967 sniper legend Marine Gunnery Sergeant Carlos Hathcock set the record for the longest combat kill,2,500 yards, using a M2 Browning with a custom-build scope mount. This record remained unbroken until 2002.

[ Many thanks to TenPoundMonkey for photos and info. ]

I fall in love with at least one gun girl gun a week ... but I swear Honey Badger is the ONE.

[Hat Tip: AAC Blog]

The TRG M10 is the latest sniper rifle from Finish firearm manufacturer¹ Sako. Despite its name, and visual similarities with the latest Sako TRG-42, it shares nothing in common with the TRG line. The rifle is modular and can be pulled apart and switched over to another caliber in the field. Sako will initially be offering .308 Win, .300 Win Mag and .338 Lapua Mag conversion kits. Sadly, Sako is only selling this gun to military and law enforcement.

Sako TRG M-10

The older Sako TRG-42 at SHOT Show '11

[Hat Tip: Accurate Shooter]

[ Many thanks to Zarko for emailing me the info. ]