When Estonia took its independence in 1991, it had to form a new military essentially from scratch. Keeping the structure that existed before Soviet occupation in 1940, two separate forces were rei...
2024-09-16 12:00:06 +0000 UTC View Post
I spent several days filming some fantastic Czech small arms with the VHU - the Czech Military History Institute. The Army Museum Žižkov is a part of the Institute, and they have a 3-story museum...
2024-09-15 12:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/headstamp/licensed-troubleshooter?ref=2al1...
2024-09-14 12:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
The Japanese national police decided to replace their old Model 60 S&W revolvers in 1995. While traditionalist elements liked the use of a non-threatening compact revolver, others advocated for...
2024-09-13 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/headstamp/licensed-troubleshooter?ref=8r61...
2024-09-12 12:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
Sergeant Randy Shughart and Gary Gordon were both awarded posthumous Congressional Medals of Honor for their actions in Mogadishu in October 1993. As portrayed in the film "Black Hawk Down", the tw...
2024-09-11 12:00:05 +0000 UTC View Post
From the Mauser bolt action to the AK and AR, all new military rifles take time to perfect. With the Bren 3, CZ is now on the third iteration of the Bren platform, having gone from the original 805...
2024-09-09 12:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
This year at Finnish Brutality 2024, I was able to use a semiauto clone of a Finnish military RK 62 M3 rifle. This is the latest upgrade to the Finnish issued RK 62 rifle. Starting in 2015, the Fin...
2024-09-08 12:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Finnish Brutality 2024 took the standard for practical shooting matches and raised it again - this was the best match that I have ever had the chance to shoot. Run by Varusteleka, a Finnish militar...
2024-09-07 12:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Finnish Brutality 2024 took the standard for practical shooting matches and raised it again - this was the best match that I have ever had the chance to shoot. Run by Varusteleka, a Finnish militar...
2024-09-06 12:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
When Heckler & Koch produced the iconic G3 rifle, it was intended to be a parts of a complete small arms package. The G3 was the infantry rifle, and it was paired with the MP% submachine gun an...
2024-09-04 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
The SR-3 Vikhr is mechanically based on the AS-VAL and LSS Vintorex rifles, but built to be a very compact personal defensive weapon instead of a silenced rifle. Still chambered for 9x39, the Vikhr...
2024-09-02 12:00:13 +0000 UTC View Post
Today for the monthly BackUp Gun Match I am using a Spanish JoLoAr pistol in .380 ACP. It's an interesting piece designed with a lever on the side that allows it to be cocked one-handed. It has no ...
2024-08-31 12:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Today we are out at the range with a semiauto clone of the Estonian R20L "Rahe" designated marksman's rifle. These rifles are based on the LMT MARS-H platform, with a few tweaks requested by the Es...
2024-08-30 12:00:07 +0000 UTC View Post
Starting in 1960, China ran a program to develop an infantry rifle that would combine the accuracy of the SKS with the firepower of the AK. The result was the Type 63, which used the general layout...
2024-08-28 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
In the 1930s, Poland decided to develop an anti-tank rifle, and the young designer Józef Maroszek came up with the winning system be scaling up a bolt action service rifle he had already drawn up....
2024-08-26 12:00:03 +0000 UTC View Post
Alongside their new 5.56mm R20 infantry rifles, Estonia has recently adopted the LMT 7.62x51mm MARS-H as its new designated marksman's rifle; the R20L. These rifles were part of a single rifle cont...
2024-08-24 12:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
While I was in Iceland, I had an opportunity to visit the National Museum of Iceland and take a look at a couple of historic axes found on the island. Since these are really outside my area of expe...
2024-08-23 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Heckler & Koch introduced the UMP submachine gun as a successor to the MP5, with a particular focus on American law enforcement agencies (hence its initial development in .45 ACP). The UMP neve...
2024-08-21 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
After World War Two the Swiss needed a new self-loading military rifle to replace their K-31 bolt actions. Two major design tracks followed; one being a roller-delayed system based on the G3 at SIG...
2024-08-19 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
I had the chance to take a .32ACP Welrod MkII out to the range for a bit of shooting. These use a combination of baffles and rubber wipes, and the suppressor's effectiveness quickly drops from "fan...
2024-08-17 12:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
CZ has just released their new P09 Nocturne pistols, an update to the previous P07/P09 pairing. These guns fundamentally go back to the classic CZ-75. While that was (and still is) a very popular d...
2024-08-16 12:00:04 +0000 UTC View Post
In 2017, the Estonian military began the process of replacing its infantry rifles. At that time, the primary rifle in use was the Galil, which had been purchased from Israel shortly after Russian o...
2024-08-14 12:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
The Welrod was a program to develop a silent assassination pistol for British SOE (Special Operations Executive) late in 1942. It needed to be chambered in the .32 ACP cartridge, be effective to a ...
2024-08-12 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Nicolae Ceaușescu ruled România through much of its communist period, from 1967 until 1989. Ceaușescu was a passionate hunter, and owned more than 100 firearms, mostly for hunting. These include...
2024-08-09 12:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
The first repeating rifle used in combat by a military force was a flintlock system developed by the Kalthoff brothers. It was adopted in the 1640s by the Danish Royal Guard, who purchased a bit mo...
2024-08-07 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
After World War Two the Swiss needed a new self-loading military rifle to replace their K-31 bolt actions. Two major design tracks followed; one being a roller-delayed system based on the G3 at SIG...
2024-08-05 12:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post
Today Ian is back with NFA specialist John Keene of the Morphy Auction Company to talk about US military machine guns. Specifically, how intact and original examples end up in the civilian market. ...
2024-08-03 12:00:01 +0000 UTC View Post
Part of the 1968 Gun Control Act in the US put restrictions on importation of small handguns. These rules intended to protect US manufacturers and prevent people from having access to particularly ...
2024-08-02 12:00:02 +0000 UTC View Post