“Caliber”. It can mean a lot of different things, but when we use it, what does it really mean, and what’s its significance? Title image: From left to right are the 7.65 Parabellum, 7.63 Mauser, .300 Blackout, 7.62×45 Czech, .30 Remington, 7.62 [Read More…]
I don’t consider myself more than a hobbyist when it comes to ammunition – I reload a little, play around in SolidWorks a bit, and read dry, dusty tomes full of other people’s hard work collating every minute detail about ammunition. I’m, [Read More…]
The US trials that led to the adoption of the first standard issue military selfloading rifle are together one of my favorite parts of small arms history. Recently, Forgotten Weapons’ van Dyked and ponytailed founder and host Ian McCollum got a chance to handle [Read More…]
Well, sort-of-not-really, although it makes for a pretty great title. The Bendix-Hyde Carbine was in fact one of the nine prototypes initially submitted to the Light Rifle program (not to be confused with the Lightweight Rifle program that is the subject of my [Read More…]
The concept of a stockless – or “bullpup” – rifle has been around since the very dawn of the 20th Century. It was invented in the United Kingdom, the country with which it still is most closely associated. After World War II, the concept began [Read More…]
After criticizing the Army’s Modular Handgun System program last week, Army Chief of Staff Mark Milley spoke again about the program, further refining his desire to select not just any new pistol, but specifically to piggyback Army purchases of new handguns [Read More…]
The Taurus Judge is not the first .410 caliber revolving shotgun-handgun hybrid, but it has been by far the most successful pistol of its kind. Despite being a heavy, bulky weapon that holds a mere 5 rounds, the Judge can be found in most well-stocked gun stores, and [Read More…]
Why do some cartridges burn barrels more than others? What makes a smaller-caliber, higher velocity round toastier to your bore, and how can you compare one caliber to another in this respect? While it’s not the whole answer to this question, today we’re [Read More…]
For me, one of the great joys of being a firearms hobbyist is introducing someone new to the community. I have never been a professional instructor, but I consider it a public service to give my time to a new shooter to help them safely and accurately use the weapons [Read More…]
This post was written as a companion to an upcoming Gun Guy Radio podcast, hosted by Ryan Michad. The discussion below will be expanded upon in the show when it’s released later this month, but for now, read on to learn more about the past, present, and future of [Read More…]
In the comments section of my 6.8mm SPC article last year, I was asked what I thought about future infantry small arms. This is a subject that has dominated my thinking over the past several years, and much of the historical research I have undertaken has been in [Read More…]
If you read the previous two installments on how to order from the CMP, then you have a good idea about how to get eligible, fill out your paperwork, and send in your packet for a Field- or Service-Grade M1 Garand rifle. Now what? Once the waiting is done, and your [Read More…]
After the Wednesday round of the 2016 SHOT Show, I sat down for an evening of quiet work, to finish up a few articles I had from the day’s show-trekking. Less than an hour later, I was standing in a crowd at Battlefield Vegas, watching a Chieftain tank crush a [Read More…]
Since the announcement that Fabryka Broni is seeking to import the MSBS modular rifle into the United States civilian market, there has been a great deal of discussion about the relationship of the MSBS to the Remington ACR or Magpul Masada. The two rifles are very [Read More…]
The M1 Carbine is a weapon that, although popular with shooters and soldiers alike, has been unfairly dismissed in the broader context of the development of the modern assault rifle. Although initially fielded without select-fire capability, the lightweight and handy M1 [Read More…]
What was the first intermediate cartridge? Who designed it, and why? How did the concept evolve? These are all good questions deserving of thorough, thoughtful answers. Sadly, to give a comprehensive history of the intermediate cartridge concept would require a project [Read More…]
While it’s well known that the Germans were the first to field select-fire assault rifles in large numbers during World War II, the Soviets, thoroughly impressed by the idea of an intermediate-power infantry cartridge and intrigued by the idea of the assault [Read More…]
1969 was a year of great optimism and achievement for the United States. NASA’s space program took humans to the Moon in July of that year, while the Mariner 6 and 7 probes gave humanity its first close look at the planet Mars. The Boeing 747 “Jumbo [Read More…]
What was the standard issue U.S. Army infantry rifle with the shortest service life? The most common answer is probably the Springfield Krag–Jørgensen rifle, which was quickly replaced after its lackluster performance in the Spanish-American War versus [Read More…]
Recently, I ran an article on this site pointing out some of the less impressive aspects of the MP.44 assault rifle’s history. Many people were unhappy with my assessment that the legendary Sturmgewehr was overrated and over-hyped, and therefore I think it’s [Read More…]
Heckler & Koch has had an unusual relationship with the striker-fired handgun. The world’s first polymer-framed striker-fired production pistol, the VP70, was an H&K, and what many consider to be the company’s finest handgun ever, the P7, was also [Read More…]
In the early summer of this year, a car-full of gun nerds set out to capture the rare Pedersen rifle on camera for the first time. The passenger with the van Dyke mustache and ponytail had just mentioned how if he could own any machine gun, it would be an StG.44, the [Read More…]
Welcome to another Friday Field Strip. Watch the Field Strip video below, then read the article below… The Thompson submachine gun is perhaps one of the most recognizable and important American firearms of all time. Most people in the United States could recognize the “Tommy Gun” [Read More…]
The Stechkin APS received a mention in the Handgun Radio segment I collaborated on with Daniel Watters, and for good reason. It could be argued that the APS, though and obscure weapon in the West, is one of the very few truly successful machine pistol designs ever [Read More…]
The Editor Writes: This week’s Friday Field Strip Video/Article combo is on the fascinating 1907 Roth-Steyr. Watch Alex’s video above then read Nathaniel’s article below … Austrian cavalrymen in World War I each went into battle with three handguns, all identical Steyr-made [Read More…]
The Mauser 1914 is not a well-known firearm today, but during the First World War, it became one of the most important small semiautomatic handguns of the early 20th Century. The Mauser pocket pistol family’s story begins with Josef Nickl of Austria. He envisioned [Read More…]
For today’s Friday Field Strip, we’re looking at the Japanese Type 99, a rifle with more than meets the eye. The Type 99, commonly but somewhat erroneously called the “Arisaka”, is a rifle that was once widely known as a crude, last ditch weapon of the Japanese Empire, but [Read More…]
Russia’s next-generation infantry modernization program is in full swing, and while here at TFB we’ve covered two of the rifles, the AEK-571/A545 and AK-12, competing for orders as part of the program, but the program as a whole is more extensive than [Read More…]
I am partnering with C&Rsenal’s Othais to bring you companion articles to his Primer series of videos looking at some of the most important firearms in history. First, Othais tackles the iconic Mauser C96 pistol, used by diverse characters from Chinese [Read More…]
Whatever one thinks of the proliferation of firearms, it’s a fact that the technology needed to make reliable, effective weapons is well in hand. Even at the lowest levels of industrial capability firearms are practical, manufacturable items, and this includes [Read More…]
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