The Firearm Blog

AccurateShooter has written about a couple of very interesting benchrest rifles made by Gene Beggs. A picture says a thousand words …

The two discs can be rotated to tune the rifle.

Two of these rifles have been made and are chambered for the custom 220 Beggs and 6mm Beggs, both of which are based on the 220 Russian.
More about it here.

I came across this post at RFC by “_Shorty” showing photos of his Limbsaver Barrel De-resonator. It is a rubber thing that slips onto a rifle barrel that, in theory, dampens the muzzle vibration improving accuracy.

When I looked at the photo I though it must be a joke. I mean look at it … remind you of anything?

Deresonator on CZ 453 Varmint

It’s not a joke, they sell it. Maybe it is just me, but I could never put something like that on the end of my rifle.

Wide variety of firearms!

Apparently these are Ogadeni minority tribespeople who are being killed by the majority tribes in Somalia. They arm themselves to keep from being slaughtered.

Found at GunsNet

Next month Kahr Arms will be shipping the P380, a new .380 pistol that is even smaller than the Kel-Tec P3AT.

Along with the fairly new Ruger LCP, competition in the .380 compact carry niche is really heating up.

The P380 features a DAO trigger, 6+1 capacity and is obviously chambered in .380 ACP. Much the same specs as the Ruger LCP and Kel-Tec P3AT.

Click to expand all images.

Kel-Tec P3AT vs. Kahr P380

Some photos of the pistol:

Specs:

Caliber .380
Capacity 6+1
Barrel 2.5″, polygonal rifling
Length O/A 4.9″
Height 3.9″
Slide Width .75″
Weight Pistol 9.97 ounces (w/o magazine)
Grips Textured polymer
Sights Drift adjustable, white bar-dot combat sights
Finish Black polymer frame, matte stainless steel slide
Magazines 2 - 6 rd, Stainless

More at Kahr Arms.

More pics from glocktalk:

Hat Tip: Suburban’s Domain

Click to enlarge

This Enfield would fire when enough water dripped (along the wire, I think) from the top can into the bottom can. It was used by the ANZAC forces at Gallipoli (WWI) to make the Turkish forces think they were still in the trenches while they were retreating.

Very clever. I want to make one! (With blanks, of course).

H/T: MP.net

I was emailed this. It apparently was made in New Zealand but I do not have any other information. It uses a conventional zip gun design: a bolt in a tube with a threaded barrel.

What makes it interesting is that it looks like both barrels can be fired at once by pressing on or pulling down the rod (on the left side of the photo).

Click to expand the photo

James reported on this last week, but I thought I should mention it:

From Strategypage.com:

The world’s first light machine-gun, the Danish Madsen has finally been retired from service after over a century of use. The State Police of the Brazilian state of Rio De Janerio were the last users of the twenty pound weapon…

The Madsen required some precise machining, but it was not exceptionally costly to make. It was reliable, although it used an awkward top loaded magazine, carrying 25, 30 or 40 rounds. Over its long career, it was equipped to fire ammunition from 6.5mm to 8mm. The Brazilian Madsens fired NATO 7.62mm (.30 caliber) ammo. It’s rate of fire was 450 rounds per minute.

Firearms last a long time!

These photos of of a replica of the 8mm model which can be bought here. They are the best photos I could find and are probably close to the original.

Click to expand the images.

Reader Joe kindly sent through photos of his .45 cal Philadelphia derringer made from a kit I blogged about some time ago.

It looks great!

Here are four pics of the derringer I built in 1978 at age 19. I colored the wood by staining with a Minwax walnut and then handrubbing linseed oil over it. I did not cold blue the barrel. For some reason I inlaid the side brass pieces where the pin comes through the barrel and stock.

Thanks Joe.

If anyone else has unique, custom, interesting or a firearm with a good story. Please send pictures through!

The blackpowder cannon enthusiasts over at the Graybeard forums came up with some amazing pieces of artillery.

CU_Cannon built the “Nano-mortar”. It fires .177″ BBs. The bed it sits on is 1″ long.

Click to expand the images.

The Nano-mortar

Here is a video of it in action

Blueprints

Cal.45 built a 3mm mortar called the “Pico “Mortar”

The “Pico Mortar”

The pico mortar was build solely with a drill-press, some files and emery paper. It fires 3mm shot pellets (0.118 inch diameter) and has a maximum load of 0.2 grains of blackpowder. It has a barrel length of 8mm (0.315″) and can fire 6 meters (20 feet)

Anyways. I started with a load of about 0.2gr Swiss #2 but this did just a sizzling sound, so from the next shots on I used Swiss #1 (which is even finer in granulation: about 0.011 to 0.015 inch) which produced a nice snapping. Cheesy.

The touch hole is 0.5 millimeters = close to 0.02 inch (that makes it about 16% of the bore diameter (if one may still call it so).

Priming was done by filling the touch hole granule by granule; sweaty hands help maneuvering these tiny particlesin place.

First I wanted to enlarge the touch hole to fuse diameter and keep the rest at the smaller diameter (to keep some pressure) but the wall thickness is that small, that this wasnot possible.

Ignition with a lighter proofed to be better than trying to do it with a match: the flame produces soot but therefore does not function (kept them as size reference on the photo though).

Whatever. At first I thought that the shot would barely leve the muzzle: wrong!

Firing from the kitchen table I shot dimples into the door! This was 2.5 meters (8.2 feet) away! By the trajectory (angle of the mortar and height of impact) this means an estimated firing distance of 6 meters (about 20 feet): I would never have guessed this to be possible with a piece that has a barrel length of just 8 millimeters (0.315 inch).

The “Pico Mortar” being fired

“Pico Mortar” blueprints

Rickk built the “Nano Cannon”

The “Nano Cannon”

Now I know what only the others who have made one know… what the tremendous roar they make sounds like Grin

Bore is 3/16 (.186), so it will take a BB. Fuse is 5/64, so it will takes 1/16 fuse.

Trunions, as well as cascable, are 3/16 inch steel rod pressed into shallow 3/16 holes and then brazed in place.

All the work was done on my drill press, with some help from an angle grinder and a file for shaping.

It needs a pit more polishing, but I just couldn’t wait to fire it ! Total time into is so far is about 2 hours.

The “Nano Cannon” with carriage

I found the smoldering paper towel pieces about 15 feet away, and the gun recoils back about 6 inches!

BTW, for BB caliber, Q-tips make excellent cleaning rods.

Terry C. built the the very first micro-gonne. A hand gonne is a hand held cannon. It fires #4 buckshot.

the micro-gonne

The micro hand gonne being fired. Note the wooden rod attached.

Victor build a bigger scale hand gonne:

I just really like the design. Simple and functional. It looks like it should fire something more powerful than the 7.62×25mm Tokarev.

SinoDefense:

The Type 79 submachine gun is more or less patterned after the Type 56 (AK-47) assault rifle. It uses gas-operated, rotary bolt action with short stroke gas piston located above barrel. The bolt group and fire mode/safety switch are similar to those of the Type 56 rifle. The barrel, receiver, pistol grip, magazine and shoulder stock are all made from stamped steel. The weapon fires 7.62 X 25mm pistol cartridge in either single or fully automatic mode. Ammunitions are fed from a straight box magazine that holds 20 rounds. Shoulder stock folds up and forward when not in use.

Hat Tip: MP.net

Mini 14 rifles are infamous for their poor accuracy. Even the target model only offers 1 MOA with a barrel tuner. Accuracy Systems sell custom mini 14 rifles that shoot sub MOA.

This of course comes at a price. The “Ultra Match Premium Air Gauged Barrel (Stainless steel) Complete Package” costs $799.95. And you need to supply the rifle! On the positive side it appears you can choose a caliber:

1. 416 Stainless steel air gauged barrel
2. Barrel diameters- 1″ Bull, .875″ Varmint, .750″ medium and .625″
3. Length from 16″ to 24″
4. Twist rate to be determined by us depending on the weight & caliber of bullet. Finish on barrel satin matte or brushed.
5. 3 point steel bedding pillars
6. New operating rod where needed or upgrade yours
7. True bolt & action if needed
8. 3.5# match trigger with set and over travel if needed.
9. New over sized hand guard to fit thicker barrel
10. New gas block, sling swivel, gas pipe and operating rod cup bushing
11. Sub MOA accuracy guarantee ( 1.040″ is a MOA) Selected Ammo
12. Calibers available @ this price. .223 Rem., .222 Rem, .204 Ruger, 6mm X .223, .17 Rem. Others call for pricing.

Here are some of their other products

Guaranteed 1 MOA or better @ 100 yards. Price: $2199.95

1/2″ MOA or better @ 100 yards. Price: $1939.95

ASI Bull Pup Carbine Standard Model. Price: $1617.00

ASI Accurized Mini 14 Urban Brawler.

Here is a video showing the recoil reduction system (muzzle break):

Hat Tip: Tech, Guns, and Food

H2O MAN, a reader of this blog, has lots of photos of his M14 collection at his website.

From GeorgiaPacking.org

The inventor of the Akins Accelerator, the replacement stock for a Ruger 10/22 that allows controlled bump firing, is suing the United States over the BATFE’s ruling that the Accelerator wasn’t a machine gun, but now is. Here’s the complaint.

If you have not been following the saga: the ATF initially approved the sale for the stock, then sometime later declared that it converted a rifle into a machine gun.

Hat Tip: SaysUncle.com

I came across these stunning photos of the Czech 601st Special Forces Group in Afghanistan at MP.net (Click through for these photos in high resolution).

I did not realize the Czech special forces use an AR/M16 variant.