Nathaniel is a history enthusiast and firearms hobbyist whose primary interest lies in military small arms technological developments beginning with the smokeless powder era. He can be reached via email at nathaniel.f@staff.thefirearmblog.com.
Rumors of a new Magpul magazine for the AK-74 platform are confirmed: The company has just released the PMAG 30 AK74 MOE magazine, designed to hold 30 rounds of 5.45x39mm ammunition and compatible with all 5.45mm caliber AK rifles that take traditional AK-74 pattern [Read More…]
Quick: What’s the most advanced infantry rifle that was ever designed, but never got the chance it deserved? I’m thinking about a futuristic weapon from Central Europe that fired advanced, lightweight ammunition and featured a high rate of fire [Read More…]
An image of a mysterious new Russian machine gun was leaked to the public recently, during a visit to the Kalashnikov factory by Deputy Defense Minister Yuri Borisov. The weapon is an intriguing dual-feed magazine/belt loading gun that features distinctly un-AK-like [Read More…]
In the second installment of Ballistics 101, we took a look at the concept of a “ballistic coefficient”, or a drag model based on an empirically tested projectile, against which other projectiles can be measured and compared. Mentioned in that post – [Read More…]
Let’s take a brief tangent. While my job is to write about firearms for you guys, I have many other interests; one of them is Medieval history. It’s a pretty cool thing to be interested in these days, as YouTube is practically bursting with awesome channels [Read More…]
South African defense firm Denel Praetoria Metal Pressings (PMP) have announced a new project for a derivative of their radical 20mm PAW handheld semiautomatic cannon. The new weapon will reportedly be tripod-mounted, fully automatic, and compatible with the same [Read More…]
A retarded blowback rifle extracts cases from the chamber while they are still under considerable pressure – over 35,000 PSI. Because of this pressure, the walls of the cartridge cases adhere strongly to the barrel’s chamber walls, while the head is forced [Read More…]
On the heels of Heckler & Koch announcing their suit against the German government regarding statements about the company’s G36 assault rifle, comes news that the German court in Koblenz has issued a statement that the German gun manufacturer cannot be blamed [Read More…]
Earlier this week, my fellow TFB writer Pete M wrote a post arguing that a manual safety has no place on the modern defensive handgun. I think he’s right for the most part, but I’d like to explore something he didn’t consider. Pete’s point is [Read More…]
So you just bought a shiny new (to you) milsurp firearm, but the problem is that it’s caked in cosmoline, that nasty, waxy, smelly (and supremely effective) rust preventative that just about every military on the planet uses for long-term gun storage. What do you [Read More…]
The firestorm over the Bundeswehr’s G36 assault rifle has reached a new fever pitch: Heckler & Koch, maker of the embattled rifles has sued the German government in an effort to clear its name of any wrongdoing. The company’s G36 rifles have come under [Read More…]
The US Army’s Modular Handgun System is slated to move forward, downselecting in August of this year from a reported 12 submitted proposals to only three, in preparation for the final competition. The program solicitation was released in September with a deadline [Read More…]
Remington’s lawsuit against Colt Defense, LLC, Fabrique Nationale Herstal USA, and the federal government has been dismissed by Senior Judge Nancy B. Firestone of the US Court of Federal Claims. The sealed lawsuit, which contested the award of a mega-million [Read More…]
Italian gunmaker Breda was at the show with a modest booth, showing off their new 930i sporting clays shotgun. Breda’s representative explained that the goal of the shotgun was to create a semi automatic sporting clays shotgun that could compete and win out of [Read More…]
Do you like history? Do you like Poland? Do you sing the lyrics to “40:1” in the shower when no one’s around? Then boy have I got a treat for you! At the 2016 National Rifle Association Annual Meeting, there were more than just companies showing off [Read More…]
On Day 3 of the 2016 National Rifle Association Annual Meeting, we got to see new products from Magpul, old friends from Mauser, and relics from the National Firearms Museum. Compact Glock owners will be happy to hear that Magpul is introducing a new 12-shot capacity [Read More…]
For 1911 fans, one of the major attractions of the 2016 National Rifle Association’s Annual Meeting was Cabot Guns’ unveiling of a matched left/right set of fine custom 1911 pistols made from a hunk of meteorite that fell to Earth from outer space. [Read More…]
Colt’s Manufacturing Co., LLC, announced at the 2016 National Rifle Association Annual meeting that they would be introducing new semi automatic reproductions of their previous military AR-15 and CAR-15 offerings to the civilian market. According to [Read More…]
At the 2016 National Rifle Association Annual Meeting, Blackhawk! was present showing off their new products, including the new suppressor line we reported on earlier this week. Blackhawk! was also showing off their new improved GI triggers, which we’ll cover [Read More…]
The venerable SVD “Dragunov” (after its designer, Yevgeny Dragunov) was one of the first successful squad designated marksman’s rifles ever developed, and it spawned numerous copycats and competitors. In the more than half-century after it was [Read More…]
As part of the recent Russian re-armament program including the T-14 Armata man battle tank, the T-50 air superiority fighter, and the AK-12 and A545 rifles, the Federation has initiated a program for a new 5.45mm caliber squad support weapon, called [Read More…]
Day two of the National Rifle Association Annual Meeting was on Saturday, and accordingly the exhibition hall was packed with people enjoying the weekend browsing booths, taking photos with celebrities, and interacting with manufacturers. For me, the second day was time [Read More…]
At the 2016 NRA Annual Meeting, Texas gunmaker Bond Arms announced that they would be bringing a new incarnation of the Boberg XR series of pistols to the market. Bond Arms bought Boberg last year, and seems very determined to bring that unique pistol to the market at a [Read More…]
Big news at the National Rifle Association Annual Meeting 2016, importer Lithgow Arms USA will be bringing the EF88/F90 improved bullpup assault rifle to the USA. The F90 is a variant of the Steyr AUG developed for the Australian Defence Force to replace the F88 (their [Read More…]
Arizona based K&M Arms was present at the 2016 National Rifle Association Annual Meeting, and they brought with them their M17S series of bullpup, triangular-bolt rifles. New for the show was the finished .308/7.62x51mm variant of the M17S, prototypes of which had [Read More…]
At SHOT 2016, Hill & Mac Gunworks unveiled their prototype multi caliber re-imagining of the World War II-era German Sturmgewehr assault rifle. The new semi-automatic rifle, while not an exact replica, captures many of the design elements and the basic aesthetics of [Read More…]
Big news for fans of fine wheel guns: Nighthawk Custom has partnered with Korth to bring their legendary revolvers to the US market. Finally, Korths will be imported with the full manufacturing support of a stateside officially sanctioned importer. As part of this [Read More…]
At the 2016 National Rifle Association Annual Meeting, gunmaker Smith & Wesson announced a new single stack carry handgun for the civilian market: A .45 ACP variant of their popular Military & Police Shield, previously available in .40 S&W and 9mm only. The [Read More…]
At the 2016 SHOT Show, Troy introduced their first retro AR-15 replica, the Air Force’s GAU-5A/A Colt carbine as used by the Sơn Tây raiders in Operation Ivory Coast. Now, at the 2016 NRA Annual Meeting, Troy has introduced its US Army counterpart: The XM177E2 [Read More…]
At the 2016 NRA Annual Meeting, Tikka and parent company Beretta were showing off the new T3x rifle, an improved version of their T3 hunting and sporting bolt action rifles. The T3x is a system developed as a direct result of feedback from Tikka’s customers, and [Read More…]
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