The Cold War is famous as the squaring off of two superpowers: The United States, and the Soviet Union, and their duel-by-proxy in Asia, the Middle East, and the Americas. The standard rifles of each side, as well, became proxies: On the Soviet side, the famous AK-47 [Read More…]
Recently on The Firearm Blog we talked about one of the great might-have-beens, the German caseless G11 rifle developed by Heckler & Koch during the 1970s and 1980s. Today we have a video from 1990 filmed at Aberdeen Proving Grounds of a demonstration of the G11K2 [Read More…]
Back in September TFB reported that Poland had officially renamed its new MSBS 5.56x45mm infantry rifle the ‘Grot’. The move to rename the MSBS came as Poland increased its orders for the new rifle. The significance of the new name has a great deal of [Read More…]
The Musée de l’Armée (Army Museum) in Paris houses an excellent display of European medieval small arms, showing a wide array of early firearms design. Apart from this collection, the museum is itself a fascinating portrayal of the French Armed Forces, from the [Read More…]
If you’re not following both C&Rsenal and Forgotten Weapons you are missing out on some of the best gun history videos around. With C&Rsenal’s current World War One focus, systematically working their way through the weapons of the Great War, and [Read More…]
Mortal combat has been the cause of study for military historians since the Greek teacher Herodotus. But what it is like being on a two-way shooting range? What sorts of thoughts and emotions are experienced by those who participate as Infantrymen or Law Enforcement? Myself and a friend of mine sat [Read More…]
Whatever the next infantry small arms configuration is, I hope it does away with the failure that is the belt-fed Squad Automatic Weapon (SAW). Why? Let’s talk about it. On the surface, the idea of augmenting the firepower of a rifle squad with a belt-fed machine [Read More…]
In the world of “might-have-been” small arms, a world of .276 Garands and NATO-standard EM-2s, none flew so high nor fell so far as the Heckler & Koch G11 caseless hyperburst assault rifle. Designed to out-match any contemporary small arm in a Cold War [Read More…]
Our last episode with Col. Dillon, the infantry officer discusses U.S. small arms and some of their finer points of employment within the Vietnam War while on his two tours there as a battalion field grade officer. The Colt 1911? Great for shooting off locks. The M16A1? Dillon actually credits that [Read More…]
With Level IV armor rising in availability, calls for “overmatch”, and the increased presence of urban warfare, will designers be able to meet the requirements for future small arms? Forumgoer Poliorcetes raised this question in a discussion at the Military [Read More…]
If we can make a round that is significantly better than the existing 5.56mm or 7.62mm ammunition, shouldn’t the military just bite the bullet and switch, to the benefit of the servicemen and women in harm’s way? What’s stopping the powers that be from [Read More…]
From the entire TFB Team, we wish to thank service men and women of all nations who have stepped up and answered the call to national defense, especially in times of war. We owe all of you an extreme level of gratitude and appreciation. Although we have Veterans Day in [Read More…]
Mike takes a look at the Swiss 7.5mm M82 cartridge, which served from the 1880’s until the 1970’s, production ending in the 1960’s. But you’ll be amazed by the most shoking bit of info about this rather weedy little number! Guns in this video: Swiss M82 revolver Swiss M82/29 [Read More…]
Over recent weeks Kalashnikov Media, of Kalashnikov Concern’s media department, have been treating us to videos looking at some very interesting and historically significant firearms including Mikhail Kalashnikov’s automatic pistol prototype and the PP-71 [Read More…]
Carpet sellers in Afghanistan call it a “Tup-e-Tung” in Dari, or what we know of in the United States as the “Afghan War Rug” in popular conception. This style of carpet initially became prevalent among tribal Baluchi women who weaved low profile [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…]
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…]
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…]
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…]
An interesting 19th century revolver turned up during a Police raid in Liverpool, UK. The revolver has a tip up break action and appears to be styled similarly to the Webley-Pryse cartridge revolvers of the 1870s-80s with an octagonal barrel. Sadly, no [Read More…]
Marcolmar makes semi-automatic, legal copies of the Czech Uk.59, and similar copies of the Soviet PKM General Purpose Machine Gun. So why not clone the two together and bring the resulting creation into the 21st Century, with polymer furniture, an updated design, and Picatinny rails? Meet the UKM, [Read More…]
This guest post has been submitted to TFB on behalf of Marawan M, an Egyptian firearms designer currently working in Turkey for a civilian Turkish firearms company. Recently he visited the Istanbul Military Museum and wrote up a summary of his visit along with [Read More…]
Britishmuzzleloaders is one of my favourite historical shooting youtube channels so I am always pleased to see a new video from Rob. In his latest he explains some of the differences between the MkI Lee-Enfield and the earlier MkI Lee-Metford. The Lee family of rifles [Read More…]
At a recent firearms amnesty in Australia, a Lewis Hythe Mk III Gun Camera was recently turned in, and appeared to be mistaken for an actual firearm. Although the Hythe MkIII does share the receiver, grip and drum magazine attachment point, it is very far from ever [Read More…]
The following is an article that was originally written in Russian by TFB contributor Maxim Popenker, and Andrey Ulanov, and translated to English by Peter Samsonov. With their permission, I have replicated the text here, and edited it, for the enrichment of you, our [Read More…]
Mike Beliveau has uploaded an interesting guest video on his Duelist1954 channel. Alexander Spiridonov, a Russian engineer and black powder scholar, explains how Europe’s earliest firearms worked in battle. Gunpowder reached Europe via Genghis Khan’s [Read More…]
Fortunately night vision has come a very long way in terms of thermal and Infrared optics choices that today’s grunts have. However, once upon a time, 6 pound passive starlight PVS 2s were considered state of the art when it came to the capabilities of U.S. troops fighting at night. The scope [Read More…]
A father and son from Somerset, UK made a surprising discovery while dredging a local river for scrap with a magnet. They pulled up parts from dozens of rifles, pistols, machine guns and shotguns. Neil Hopkins and his son Billy’s rusted haul included parts from [Read More…]
Created during the Iran-Iraq War, the Tabuk Sniper is one of those oddballs of historical firearms. Although referred to as a “Sniper” rifle, it really never was one to begin with. Chambered in 7.62x39mm, the rifle was intended as a squad or platoon support weapon to compliment the RPK [Read More…]
Long before the MHS, the M1911, and even before the Colt Single Action Army the U.S. adopted its first sidearm. After the Revolutionary War Connecticut gunmaker Simeon North won a contract to manufacture the fledgling nation’s first officially adopted pistol. The [Read More…]