We have been closely following the developments of the US Army’s new Sub Compact Weapon Program since the release of an extremely broad Request For Information back in May. With the recent award of no less than 13 sole source evaluation contracts for submachine [Read More…]
PepperBall has announced that they have won a substantial contract to equip the US Army with their non-lethal Variable Kinetic System launcher. The contract is worth $650,000 and the PepperBall VKS is destined to equip troops in Afghanistan. The PepperBall VKS uses [Read More…]
At a recent Close Combat Lethality Tech Day at the Pentagon, Program Executive Office Soldier showed off some of the new Multifunction Aiming Light, or MFALs, they have been testing. The new MFALs are designed to help soldiers acquire and hit targets quickly and [Read More…]
The US Army has expanded its upcoming Sub Compact Weapon evaluations adding three more weapons to the trials. Back in May PEO Soldier – Project Manager Soldier Weapons issued a Request for Information to industry for a Compact, concealable 9x19mm submachine gun. [Read More…]
The concept of stacking projectiles on top of each other inside a self-contained cartridge dates back to the 19th century. It has subsequently been revisited dozens of times by arms designers from all over the world. In the 1950s the US Military experimented with duplex [Read More…]
A confidential source has revealed to TFB the current contestants that have passed the most recent phase of the Next Generation Squad Automatic Rifle Competition (NGSAR). This phase is less of an actual competition between small arms prototypes but more of a theoretical [Read More…]
21st Century Asian Arms Race spotted an image shared on the website of the Office of the Azeri President that is showing a rifle of Belarusian origins in a unit armory locker of the Azeri Armed Forces. The rifle in question was previously reported on by TFB in [Read More…]
The US Army has confirmed that the M110A1 Compact Semi-Auto Sniper System (CSASS) is due to undergo production qualification testing and should be approved for limited user testing in early 2019. Production qualification testing is carried out prior to full-rate [Read More…]
Representatives from the Army’s Program Executive Office (PEO) Soldier have recently discussed their work to replace conventional brass ammunition casings in an effort to reduce the load on soldiers in the field. Todd Townsend, Project Manager Maneuver Ammunition [Read More…]
The US Army’s new Squad Designated Marksman Rifle, or SDM-R, is set to be fielded at the brigade level starting in September 2018, according to the Program Executive Office Soldier. The new rifle is based on the Heckler and Koch G28E / M110A1 Compact [Read More…]
y it at Ventura Munitions: https://www.venturamunitions.com/hornady-357-magnum-140gr-ftx-ammo-25-rounds/ We shoot Hornady .357mag 140gr FTX Leverevolution ammunition from a Rossi M92 lever action carbine with a 16″ barrel into Clearballistics ballistic gel to measure velocity, penetration, [Read More…]
The French military has signed a contract for more than 90,000 of Hornady’s Rapid Racks for use with their new HK416Fs. The Rapid Rack, which TFB reviewed back in 2016, is an empty chamber indicator / load-assist device, it allows operators to charge the weapon [Read More…]
The US Army is set to evaluate 10 off the shelf submachine guns to fill its recently identified Sub Compact Weapon role. Last month (May 2018) the US Army’s PEO Soldier – Project Manager Soldier Weapons issued a Request for Information (RFI) to obtain industry [Read More…]
At this year’s KADEX 2018 held in Astana, Kazakhstan, the Kazakh state-owned GIS Center had a virtual reality headset that is designed to work with a Kalashnikov-patterned service rifle. The headset portion integrates (and likely licenses) software from a Russian [Read More…]
Belarusian YouTube channel called “ВоенТВ Беларуси” has recently published a video telling about the Belarusian military news. In that video, they showed an unmanned aerial vehicle carrying an anti-tank grenade launcher. The demonstration of [Read More…]
A coordinated attack against the Afghan Ministry of Interior headquarters in Northern Kabul on May has shown a fair degree of sophistication when it comes to the small arms and tactics of the insurgents involved. Reportedly the planning was carried out by the Haqanni [Read More…]
A recent post on the DOD’s media release branch has shown elements of the 180th Cavalry Regiment (National Guard, based out of Oklahoma) on a security mission around the Afghan capital of Kabul. Unique to the quick-eyed observer would be the extensive use of [Read More…]
Back in March we reported on Chinese SWAT teams operating with modded Type 79 submachine guns. The venerable Type 79 was developed in the 1970s and despite efforts to improve its modularity the guns are showing their age. They may now be supplanted by a new 9x19mm [Read More…]
There certainly exist a large number of myths and misconceptions about small arms in Afghanistan. Everything from the names of certain firearms available to how they are perceived in the country has been over exaggerated or hyped up to the point of no return. Surprisingly there are almost as many [Read More…]
Buy it at Ventura Munitions: https://www.venturamunitions.com/hornady-357-magnum-140gr-ftx-ammo-25-rounds/ We shoot Hornady .357 mag 140gr FTX Leverevolution ammunition from a S&W Model 13L with a 4″” barrel into Clearballistics ballistic gel to measure velocity, penetration, [Read More…]
The US Army’s ‘Third Arm’ first emerged in 2015, designed to redistribute some of the weight soldiers carry in their arms and shoulders to their abdomen. This, in theory, could make carrying heavy equipment and weapons over long distances much easier, lowering [Read More…]
It has emerged that India’s government has been forced to cut its potential order for a new standard issue service rifle from 800,000 down to just 250,000 even before a new rifle has been selected. India first announced its major rifle procurement programme back [Read More…]
On June 1, the DEA issued a Brand Name Only solicitation for one hundred (100) Glock 26s. The DEA must have confidence in the new Gen 5 models, because that’s specifically what they are asking for. (Want more info on the Gen 5 Glock 26? See this Video and [Read More…]
A potentially fatal flaw with some of the US Army’s M4A1’s has recently emerged. Unofficial footage, filmed by troops, surfaced showing a serious malfunction where an M4A1 carbine unintentionally discharged as its selector was shifted from semi to full auto. [Read More…]
We shoot 5.56mm IMI 77gr OTM ammunition from an AR15.com AR15 with a 10.5″ 1:7″ twist barrel into Clearballistics ballistic gel to measure velocity, penetration, expansion/fragmentation, and retained weight. If you aren’t already subscribed to us, you’re missing great [Read More…]
Last week we looked at the Stoner 86/ARES LMG-1 in depth while at the Institute of Military Technology in Florida. This week we are comparing the older design to the much more modern Knight’s Armament 5.56x45mm NATO Light Assualt Machine Gun (LAMG) that the company brought to SHOT Show last [Read More…]
Soldier Systems Daily recently shared a video purporting to outline the US Army’s new rifle qualification. The video posted by Circle Dog Production shows the 40-round course of fire that soldiers may soon have to shoot to qualify. Circle Dog Production, however, [Read More…]
Brazil has moved to procure 4,000 new 5.56x45mm IMBEL IA2 Carbines. The state owned Indústria de Material Bélico do Brasil or IMBEL, has been awarded a contract worth over $7 million. Jane’s report that the Brazilian Army’s Logistics Command has confirmed the [Read More…]
If you aren’t already subscribed to us, you’re missing great content! Click here to subscribe. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnKbs5xffaEzzdKdPZvfhdQ?sub_confirmation=1 Buy it at Ventura Munitions: https://www.venturamunitions.com/federal-hydra-shok-deep-9mm-135gr-hp-ammo-20-rounds/ We [Read More…]
Arsen Avakov, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, has announced on his Facebook page that the first shipment of 500 American-made RPG-7 clone rocket-propelled grenade launchers has been received by the National Guard of Ukraine. These launchers are called PSRL [Read More…]