East Germany, in the period before the collapse of the Berlin Wall, was short of foreign currency. In an attempt to generate cash for imports Wieger developed an AK-clone chambered in 5.56mm NATO. It was apparently very reliable. The collapse of the wall saw the demise [Read More…]
BoingBoing posted this image of a ring made from a mushroomed bullet. I was horrified to see that they had used a lead bullet. Lead is toxic and should not be worn in contact with the skin. I have been tested for lead poisoning and if you shoot a lot, so should you. The [Read More…]
I have been remiss in not discussing Hornady’s new Superformance Ammunition before now. The Superformance loads attain a 100-200 fps increase in muzzle velocity at standard SAAMI pressures (ie. they are not hot loads). Hornady’s chief ballistics scientist told [Read More…]
New Zealand blogger WhaleOil emailed me a link to these photos of New Zealand SAS taken after a firefight in Kabul, Afghanistan. What is odd about the photos is that the elite SAS troops appear to have tied their magazines to the trigger guard with cord … ?!?! The [Read More…]
The Bushmaster ACR may have gotten all the attention from the press, but Bushmaster have also launched a few other products. The Bushmaster MOE is a new entry-level M4-style carbine which features Magpul MOE accessories. They feature an MOE collapsible stock, MOE pistol [Read More…]
Bushmaster are now selling a AR-15 chambered in 7.62x39mm. The carbine takes 7.62x39mm specific magazines that hold 26 rounds. From its 16″ M4-profile barrel Bushmaster say it will achieve 2300 FPS velocity with 122 gr. bullets. It is available with either a [Read More…]
I think Bushmaster is on to a real winner with their new AR-10 style carbine. Priced at just $1395 it is a fantastic entry-level rifle. It features a A3-style receiver and premium 16″ heavy profile chrome lined barrel, mid length gas system, A2-style flashhider, [Read More…]
Later this year American Tactical Imports will be importing a semi-automatic 12 gauge shotgun patterened after the AR-15. Note I said patterned I am not sure if it contains any AR-15 compatible parts. UPDATE: Julio pointed out that it looks to Turkish ADAL Arms MKA 1919 [Read More…]
Last month a man was seriously injured after a cartridge was fired out-of-battery in his BOHICA Arms AR-15 .510 DTC rifle upper. The .510 DTC is one of those .50 BMG equivalents designed for countries where the BMG is banned. Despite the name, it is .50 cal. One of the [Read More…]
Ten rounds. Why did I stuff ten rounds into a empty case? Some people measure case capacity in Milliliters, I prefer to measure it in Longrifles. For comparison a .338 Laupa has a capacity of 3 LRs. I admit it is not the most accurate method of gauging case capacity [Read More…]
The last gun Garand worked on before retirement was the T-31 Bullpup. From the Springfield Armory website … U.S. RIFLE GARAND T31 “BULLPUP” .30 (T65E1) SN# 2 Manufactured by Springfield Armory, Springfield, Ma. – Limited prototype experimental [Read More…]
An FBI agent posed as a representative of an Africa nation. An S&W executive (and others) attempted to bribe the government official! WASHINGTON, Jan 19 (Reuters) – An executive of Smith & Wesson (SWHC.O) and 21 others have been charged with violating U.S. [Read More…]
Last year I blogged about NASA’s incredibly powerful hybrid/air gun used for simulating impacts from meteor and space debris. Quicklaunch is taking the concept even further. PopSci reports on their proposed cannon which could be used to launch fuel, supplies and [Read More…]
The NRA National Firearms Museum (website not working at present) is situated in the same building complex as the NRA Headquarters Fairfax, Virginia. The Assistant Curator, Matt Sharpe, was kind enough to give me a personal tour (exclusive tours can be arranged in [Read More…]
The American Journal of Roentgenology published a fascinating article back in 2001 about an incident at a MRI imaging center in western New York State. An off-duty police entered the MRI scanner room and attempted to place his Colt M1991 A1 pistol on the top of a [Read More…]
Magnum Research is manufacturing a 1911 which will go on sale next year! Two sized model will be on offer. Magnum Research has entered the 1911 segment of the handgun market with its first two offerings, a full-size (5.055” barrel) and semi-compact (4.33” barrel) [Read More…]
Springfield has introduced a compact version of the XD(m) pistol called the 3.8. Its name refers to the barrel length which is 3.8″ long, 0.7″ shorter than the standard XD(m). The name is sure to confuse many who will think it refers to the .380 cartridge. [Read More…]
After a year of speculation and commentary from pundits, myself included, the Marine Times reports that the H&K has won the competition and that their entry will enter production next year … The Marine Corps has selected the infantry automatic rifle made by [Read More…]
Daniel E. Watters, a well known expert and my go-to man on many of the topics I write about, sent me info and photos of the beautiful 1911 pistols he has built. I built this .38 Super pistol in late 2000 for use in IDPA’s Enhanced Service Pistol division. The [Read More…]
EmptorMaven asks why is range of 60 gr. ammunition so limited and where are the guns and barrels with the 1:12 rate of twist required to accuracy shoot these long 60 gr. bullets. From EmptorMaven’s blog … .22LR is by far the most popular consumer cartridge. [Read More…]
After writing the The quest for high-capactity firearms post, readers told me about other interesting attempts at high capacity guns. Porter Revolving Turret Rifle 9-shot; .48 caliber. In excellent overall condition. Bore is excellent plus; 28″ barrel. Metal is [Read More…]
Guy Sagi, Editor of the NRA’s Shooting Illustrated, reported on his blog that the FBI have arrested five men who attempted to purchase 10,000 M4 Carbines as well as Stringer missiles. Terrorists, like children who play computer games, must also think it is [Read More…]
Robinson Armament has produced a video demonstrating the “over the beach” capabilities of their XCR rifle. It performs admirably. Head on over to the XCR Forums and download the HD version of the video. It is over 100mb but the quality is worth it. Many [Read More…]
EmptorMaven has reviewed the NATO conversion kit for the Steyr AUG SA. The kit allows the use of STANAG (AR-15) magazines. Steyr has always offered the NATO version as an option to military customers, but no country, as far as I know, has chosen to adopt it over the [Read More…]
A common misconception is that the desire for high capacity firearms is a relatively new phenomenon. This is far from the truth. Since the at least the mid 1800s designers had been experimenting with many novel ideas in an attempt to increase magazine capacity, mostly [Read More…]
Of all the guns which I have written about this year, few have been as interesting as the Steinkamp SW1. The sleek polymer bullpup stock of the SW1 looks like something out of a Sci-Fi movie, and yet it is a double rifle, a type of firearm that is most associated with [Read More…]
[ I am pleased to present this guest post was written by Adam. ] Few people would claim to find the sound of automatic weapon fire comforting. To me, it signals the beginning of the bi-annual Knob Creek Machinegun Shoot in West Point, KY. This festival of gun [Read More…]
[ I am pleased to present this guest post written by Jonathan Sun. ] A couple weekends ago, I participated in the Bullets and Vehicles course at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. I wanted to share my experiences during this course for those who might be interested in [Read More…]
[ I am pleased to present this guest post written by Matt Green ] This Ruger .45 my Dad left me is one of the first weapons I ever fired. My grandparents had a farm in central Minnesota, near St. Cloud, and we would drive the two hours to visit every month or six weeks [Read More…]
Truvelo, a South African company is best known internationally for manufacturing traffic lights, also makes firearms – notably the infamous NEOSTEAD Bullpup shotgun and the Raptor rifle. I was very pleased to see that the Raptor has been given a makeover. The [Read More…]
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