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.
In the mid-2000s, India began looking for a carbine to replace their 9mm L2A3 Sterling submachine guns which they inherited from the United Kingdom. Two weapons were developed, one by the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), and another by the Armament Research and Development [Read More…]
In the mid-2000s, India began looking for a carbine to replace their 9mm L2A3 Sterling submachine guns which they inherited from the United Kingdom. Two weapons were developed, one by the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB), and another by the Armament Research and Development [Read More…]
At the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting (AUSA 2017), US Army Research, Development, and Engineering Command (RDECOM) presented a concept for the US Army’s future soldier of the 2030 timeframe, which promised everything from powered [Read More…]
Being a defense show rather than a firearms industry show, there are a bunch of interesting products to see at AUSA that one might not get a peek at elsewhere. An example of this kind of product is the Modular Interlocking Ballistic Barriers from KF Armory. These [Read More…]
In the coming decades, it is likely that one of the biggest challenges facing small arms ammunition designers will be solving the problem of how to deal with advanced body armors. The problem is already percolating to the surface, as Level IV body armor – which is [Read More…]
How low can the AR market go? Pretty darn low, apparently. A recent sale at Ground Zero Precision brought the price of their TAC-15M rifle down below $400 – Well below. You’re seeing that right – knock a hundred dollars off as part of an early [Read More…]
If you want a Mini-14 buy one. If you want a carbine for a specific purpose, however, and provided have access to virtually any other modern carbine design, pick just about anything else. I say this not to disparage Ruger or the people who own Minis, but because [Read More…]
Manufacturer SIG Sauer brought along their brand new MCX Rattler ultra compact 5.56mm and .300 Blackout assault rifle/carbine to the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting. The Rattler is an ambitious design intended to bring a reliable extremely [Read More…]
The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) is procuring two long range rifles from US manufacturer Barrett Firearms Manufacturing. The island armed forces will be purchasing the .50 BMG caliber M107A1 anti materiel rifle as well as the .338 Lapua Magnum caliber Multi Role [Read More…]
The roller-locked* Heckler & Koch G3 rifles and MP5 submachine guns have become iconic weapons of the Cold War era, being used in conflicts everywhere from civil wars in Africa, to hostage rescues and counter terror operations in Europe, to anti-cartel operations in [Read More…]
At the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting, Oberndorf gunmaker Heckler & Koch had on display the latest configuration of their CSASS winning rifle, the G28E-based M110A1. The rifle is similar to the M110A1 displayed at the 2017 SHOT Show in Las [Read More…]
It is easy to forget, what with all the hubbub about SIG’s selection for M17, Glock’s protest, and SIG’s subsequent recall, that the M17 program was intended to procure a “total system package”, not just a handgun. This meant, besides the [Read More…]
Hartford gunmaker Colt’s Manufacturing has introduced a new carbine model at the 2017 Bahrain International Defence Exhibition & Conference (BIDEC). The weapon, called the M5 Enhanced Carbine, is an AR-15-style rifle fitted with Geissele Super Modular Rail [Read More…]
We have already seen the 6.5mm CT Carbine prototype brought out by Textron for the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting, but TFB also got an up close and personal look at Textron’s cased telescoped machine guns. Textron has two different cased [Read More…]
The HK433 family is going full power, Heckler & Koch told TFB at the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting. When speaking to representatives of the company about their new rifle which was being shown off in the USA for the first time, I asked the [Read More…]
In examining the future of infantry capability, we must not only be aware of potential technological solutions, but of the need to re-think and re-work what it means to train and prepare troops for future battlefields. At the core of this is the simple matter of man and [Read More…]
Australian rifle company Lithgow Arms has introduced a new rifle for the precision rifle shooting (PRS) market. Called the LA-105 Woomera (after an Australian aboriginal type of general purpose atlatl or spear thrower), it is based on the Lithgow Arms LA102 centerfire [Read More…]
The US Army’s new centralized procurement organization has been named: In his address at the Eisenhower Luncheon at the 2017 Association of the United States Army, US Army Chief of Staff General Mark Milley announced the creation of a Futures and Modernization [Read More…]
US Army, what on earth are you doing? The US Army Chief of Staff General Mark Milley promised that the new Next Generation Individual/Squad Weapon (NGSW/NGIW) program will give a “10 times improvement” in individual small arms capability “over any [Read More…]
Representatives of the German gun manufacturing company Heckler & Koch confirmed today that the company has submitted both the HK416 assault rifle and the new HK433 modular assault rifle to the Bundeswehr’s System Sturmgewehr Bundeswehr (SSB) rifle [Read More…]
At the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting, Heckler & Koch brought out a weapon much talked-about but not seen on a US show floor until now: The HK433 rifle. Designed on the heels of the G36 controversy and intended to add a modern, inexpensive [Read More…]
The 2017 Association of the US Army annual meeting was the public debut of Israel’s new full caliber bullpup rifle, the Tavor 7. Announced in late June via IWI’s Facebook page, the Tavor 7 is a 7.62mm / .308 Winchester caliber semiautomatic bullpup rifle [Read More…]
SIG Sauer certainly didn’t waste its opportunity to show off its win of the Modular Handgun System contract at the 2017 Association of the United States Army annual meeting, bringing not XM17 MHS prototypes, but full-fledged M17 and M18 MHS production (or [Read More…]
On the heels of the re-naming of their Stoner LMG as the Lightweight Assault Machine Gun (LAMG), Knight’s Armament company has introduced a scaled-up version of the same weapon in the 7.62x51mm caliber, with provision for other calibers should they be requested. [Read More…]
General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems (GDOTS) brought their .338 Norma Magnum caliber Lightweight Medium Machine Gun (LWMMG) to the 2017 Association of the United States Army (AUSA) annual meeting, giving TFB the chance at a closer look at this [Read More…]
At the 2017 Association of the US Army (AUSA) Annual Meeting, Textron System displayed for the very first time their firing 6.5mm CT Carbine prototype. Previously, only non-firing mockups had been shown to the public, but after successful tests this summer the real [Read More…]
During a routine traffic stop, a man from Tennessee was caught transporting two illegal homemade fully automatic assault rifles. While that sounds like the leader for a poorly written article about perfectly boring semiautomatic assault rifles, in this case it is [Read More…]
In a recent letter released to Army general officers, Chief of Staff of the Army Mark Milley outlined a plan for reform of the Army’s development and procurement arms. In it, he also made mention of the Army’s plans for future individual weapons and [Read More…]
US Army Chief of Staff General Mark Milley has released a letter outlining a major reform and restructuring effort for US Army weapons development, testing, and procurement. In the letter, CSA General Milley spoke of the need for a new procurement command structure: [Read More…]
Let’s start off with a question: What is the best round for the AR-15? At the Big 3 East conference this week, a new caliber was unveiled for the AR-15. Called the “.224 Valkyrie”, it is based on the .30 Remington/6.8 SPC case, necked down to .22 [Read More…]
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