Photographs of Egyptian Security Forces armed with 7.62x39mm CZ 807s have recently surfaced, thanks to the efforts of Egypt Defense Review and Mahmoud Gamal, both in-depth analysts of Egyptian defense programs. The 7.62x39mm rifles were recently seen in what appears to [Read More…]
The ability to execute complex operations in conditions of low light or complete darkness has been an asset unique to NATO militaries since the 1990s when fighting against local insurgencies. Often within planning sessions for OIF, OEF, or the current Resolute Support [Read More…]
In March of 1963, a man named Lee Harvey Oswald purchased an M38 Carcano rifle and some quantity of ammunition from Klein’s Sporting Goods in Chicago. Oswald would later use this rifle and ammunition (or so the official narrative goes) to assassinate the [Read More…]
In an earlier TFB TV episode, we covered some of the experiences that combat veterans have gone through while under fire. We continue that discussion in this final episode, going into much more detail about some of the nuances and specific aspects of being in combat and actually returning fire back [Read More…]
The United States Marine Corps has finally officially announced its adoption of the 5.56mm M855A1 EPR round, developed in the late 2000s by the US Army, marking an important step towards ammunition commonality between the two services. Until now, the USMC has officially [Read More…]
Looking like the bizarre lovechild of a bolt-action rifle, a boat oar, and those weird prop rifles from the original Planet of the Apes movie, the Thorneycroft Carbine is one of the unsung “firsts” of the 20th Century. Specifically, this British [Read More…]
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…]
Those eagerly awaiting the market for the new .224 Valkyrie round have something to celebrate. Gunmaker JP Enterprises recently announced that they are now offering three different barrels for the new cartridge, in 20″ light, 20″ medium, and 22″ medium [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…]
Is the US Army pushing for a new high-powered 6.Xmm caliber with their new NGSAR program? Recently, the listing for the NGSAR industry day in December was updated with a document describing in part the agenda of the second conference. Scheduled for 9:45 in the morning [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…]
Recent evidence has suggested that there is an uptick of mounting evidence to suggest that rebels in the Jammu and Kashmir province of Northeastern India are slowly trading their traditionally used 7.62x39mm Kalashnikov patterned derivatives for 5.56x45mm M4 [Read More…]
A recent propaganda film put out by the al-Rahman Corps (a rebel group currently fighting in the Ghouta suburb of Damascus) showcases an entire industry of craft produced and almost semi-industrial small arms and light weapons production facility. Most of what is [Read More…]
Frogmen Armory has come out with a Viking themed handguard that fits AR15 upper receivers with the company supplied barrel nut. The handguard itself is a full length (15 inches) handguard that is tubular in construction with a 12 o’clock Picatinny rail for [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…]
At a recent Independence Day parade held in the capital of Turkmenistan, a Chinese Norinco NSG-127 12.7x108mm anti-material rifle was spotted being carried in the procession of Turkmen troops. In multiple clips we see the rifle being held by Turkmen soldiers while [Read More…]
Select-fire 5.56x45mm NATO Beretta ARX-160 rifles have been adopted en masse by the Turkmen armed forces, most recently seen in the media through the 26th anniversary of the country’s Independence Day parade held in the capital of Ashgabat. Replacing previous AKM [Read More…]
The bloody battle for the Syrian city of Raqqa has been since been won by the Kurdish Peshmerga with U.S. support. But while it was raging, we wrote about the Polish volunteer fighting with the Peshmerga with a public name and Facebook book title of Archer. After [Read More…]
Rest in Peace Interim Combat Service Rifle, we hardly knew thee. The Army’s ICSR program has joined the much more ambitious Advanced Combat Rifle program of the 1980s and the more recent ill-fated Individual Carbine program in the annals of US Army rifle [Read More…]
In the comments section of my recent Brief Thoughts article regarding caseless ammunition, there was a discussion about whether the cookoff issues of caseless would also be problem for LSAT-style polymer cased telescoped ammunition. Based on conversations I have had [Read More…]
The US Army’s embattled CSASS program has moved forward slightly with a sources sought notice posted to the Fed Biz Opps website, seeking manufacturers who can make many of the accessories that equip the M110A1 rifle. The notice isn’t itself for a contract, [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…]
Earlier this month, the Serbian Army debuted a new 6.5 Grendel weapon system, developed by Zastava. The rifle, called M17, is a heavily modified variant of the M70 AK family that has been developed by the company for decades. It incorporates a number of significant new [Read More…]
Today is November Twenty-Second, and just so happens to be the birthday of Eugene Morrison Stoner, born in the year 1922. The designer has since passed away in 1997, but had he been alive today he would be 95 years old. Inventor of the AR10, co-inventor with Jim [Read More…]
Colt’s M5 Enhanced Carbine recently drew much interest and speculation at the formidable company’s latest entry into the AR15 market. However, we’ve recently learned more about the origins of the M5 and how it came to the U.S. market, oddly enough from [Read More…]
We earlier released a post detailing the new K2C-2 development by Korean S&T Motiv, and recently showcased at ADEX 2017 in Seul. However what we didn’t mention is the apparent development of the K2C-1 which appeared in images of the show but not in any [Read More…]
Col. Greg Dillon sat down and talked with us about the small arms that himself and the men he was commanding were faced with during the course of his two tours in Vietnam during the conflict in the 1960s. Everything from AKs, B52s, and RPGs are lightly discussed in this informative episode. Although [Read More…]
Caseless: The ammunition designer’s holy grail, and the engineer’s worst nightmare. It would obsolete the cartridge case overnight, resulting in cheaper, lighter, and more compact ammunition. Weapons would be able to carry 50, 60, or more rounds in slim, [Read More…]
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