28th May : The Sterling L2A3 Sub-machinegun

Name      :     Sterling SMG L2A3


A.K.A.     :     C1 Sub-machinegun, the Sterling, the Patchett

Caliber      :     9x19mm Parabellum


Capacity    :     34 Rounds


Weight      :     5.9lbs or 2.7kg (unloaded)


Length      :     27.16in or 690mm


Action       :     Blowback, semi and fully automatic Sub-machinegun


Origin        :     United Kingdom 


Motorcycle racer and enthusiast George Patchett spent much of his early life engineering motorcycles and later during the outbreak of World War Two worked under Gorge Lanchester, designer of the Lanchester sub-machinegun, at the Sterling Armaments Company in Essex, England.  Patchett was assigned his own design team to build an sub-machinegun for a Royal Army Trial, he patented his first design and built his first prototype in 1942.  In September of 1942 Patchett demonstrated his design to members of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps as "A Lanchester with no butt or sights", the trigger mechanism was however completely of Patchett's own design.  Though results were generally favorable, the military officials advised Patchett to take it away and put a butt and sights on it and resubmit the weapon.


Patchett did as the military officals requested and again submitted the weapon in February of 1943 were the design was put up against other hopeful entrants.  Unfortunately the Patchett weapon didn't meet expectations with accuracy being abysmal and more seriously it failed the mud test, becoming jammed almost immediately after being submerged in mud then quickly wiped off.  Upsetting as this set back may have been for Patchett, he was not deterred and still saw merit in his design, and the fix he would institute in the  weapon would become one of its greatest features.  Patchett added grooves to the outer surface of the bolt which pushed and foreign objects like dirt or mud out of the weapon through a special slot in the receiver with the cycling of the weapon.  With this new modification the sub-machinegun was put forward for troop trials in 1944, were it was carried by airborne troops during the Arnhem offensive of Operation Market Garden where the weapon praised universally by troops.


After the war, the British military showed little interest in replacing the STEN gun in service, though some trials were eventually held in 1947 with the Patchett design and others from BSA and Australia were trialed, after a few inconclusive results and and re-submissions the Patchett Machine Carbine was chosen in 1951 as the official replacement of the STEN gun in British service.  Eventually after further fine tuning in 1953 it was issued to troops as the Submachine gun L2A1.  Various modifications were made to the L2 during it service life with the L2A3 becoming the final successor.  A silenced version of the L2 was produced as the L34, though it generally only ever saw service with the Special Air Service (SAS).  


Though it was originally known by troops as the 'Patchett' the L2 became known to troops as the 'Sterling' due to the company that manufactured the weapon.  Many Commonwealth nations would follow England's lead and eventually opt to acquire the Sterling, such as Canada who made there own version of the weapon under licence as the C1 9mm Submachinegun.  The Sterling was sold to more than 60 countries throughout the world and as of 2012 it can still be encountered.  


INTERESTING FACT :  The Sterling with some cosmetic alteration was used as the "E-11 Blaster Rifle" used by the Imperial Stormtroopers in Star Wars Episodes IV, V and VI.

Star Wars E-11 Blaster Prop

PRO's   :   Reasonably Accurate, Extremely Reliable, Easy to Stow, Very Well Made


CON's   :   Side Mounted Magazine was a concern for some. 

23rd May : Owen Gun

Name      :      The Owen Machine Carbine


A.K.A.     :      The Owen Gun, The Diggers Darling
                              
Caliber      :     9x19mm Parabellum


Capacity    :     32 Rounds


Weight      :     9.4lbs or 4.2kg


Length      :     32in or 813mm


Action       :     Open Bolt, blowback,  Semi and full automatic sub-machinegun


Origin       :     Australia


Evelyn Owen from an early age was fascinated by firearms, he enjoyed shooting, modifying and even attempting to produce his own designs.  Evelyn had first started designing his sub-machinegun when he was 16 in 1931 and had his final prototype finished in 1938.  Evelyn tirelessly worked on making the weapon reliable, and it showed, but unfortunately at the time the Australian Ordnance department viewed the weapon as having very little merit.  With the outbreak of World War Two Evelyn signed up for the Second Australian Imperial Force, but shortly before shipping out to Egypt, he had left his prototype sub-machinegun in a bag against some stairs at the back of his parents house.  A neighbor from across the road happened to discover what was lying in the bag, as fortune would have it Vincent Wardell the neighbor was the brother of Gerard Wardell an executive at Lysaghts.  Evelyn explained the background and testing he had done with his sub-machinegun and the unsuccessful attempts he had made to get it tested by the Australian Ordnance department.  Gerard contacted Sir Percy Spender then Minister of the Army, who took heed of Gerard's request and had Evelyn transferred to the Army Inventions Board to continue working on the sub-machinegun.


Considerable effort was made to test the now named "Owen Machine Carbine" against its most notable rivals, the American Thompson, the British STEN and the German Bergmann Sub-machinegun.  Overall testing concluded that the Owen was by far more reliable in all extreme condition tests and also compared very favorably on both control during automatic fire and accuracy.  The latter is often attributed to the construction of the barrel, unusually for a sub-machinegun the barrel has seven groves in the barrel, thus stabilizing the bullet very well.  The Owen entered active service in November of 1941 and continued to be widely used and thoroughly praised by troops until it was replaced by the F1 Sub-machinegun in the mid 1960's.


The first noticeable characteristic of the Owen is it's vertically mounted magazine, one of the characteristics that made the weapon very reliable.  With gravity aiding the spring to push rounds down into the mechanism.  with spent casing being ejected straight down through the bottom of the receiver.  Though apart from some initial concern by soldiers over having off-set sights as a result of this design choice, it was quickly accepted, much the same as the BREN light machinegun. Unusually for a weapon of its type the Owen also had a quick barrel removal facility, the user simply needs to lift a catch in-front of the magazine well and pull the barrel forward, though some have speculated that this was a barrel 'change' facility rather than just for cleaning, but it would be unlikely. 


Internally the Owen is very well thought through,  it was widely considered un-jamable with good ammunition.  Use of a small bulkhead inside the receiver isolated the bolt from other working components like the cocking handle.  The slots cut for the movement of the cocking handle are a common way for dirt and other foreign materials to build up and seize an action.  Unique to the Owen is the ejector being built into the magazine, this aids removing the bolt for cleaning.


INTERESTING FACT :  The Owen was the first indigenous Australian Sub-machinegun.


PRO's   :  Accurate, Extreme reliability, easy to clean, very controllable


CON's   :  Heavy, 

22nd May : Heckler & Koch P7

Name     :     Heckler & Koch P7 M8, M13 & M10


AKA       :     The Squeeze Cocker, PSP, P7 M8,M13,M10,

Calibers      :     9x19mm Parabellum, .40 S&W,


Capacity     :     8 and 13 Rounds (9mm), 10 Rounds (.40 S&W)


Weight       :     27.25oz or 785g (P7M8)


Length       :     6.75in or 171mm (P7M8)


Action        :     Striker Fired, Semi automatic, gas operated locking


Origin         :     Germany


The terror that ensued during the 1972 Munich Olympics resulted in a major shake up within the West German Law Enforcement community and especially the West German government, with a directive being issued to research and revise arms used by Law Enforcement and internal security forces.  Technical specifications were drawn up and sent to arms manufacturers specifying that the new pistol weight under 1000g, fire a more powerful round than the 7.65mm (.32ACP) that was being used by Police at the time and various other requirements.  Heckler and Koch of Oberndorf, started development on a new pistol in 1974 and prototypes were completed in 1976.  The new prototype was put through its paces with a variety of West German departments for evaluation.  Meanwhile other pistols were also being tested, the Walther design, a SIG Sauer P220 derivative and a Mauser pistol. West German officials decided to accept the Walther entrant as the P5, the SIG Sauer P225 as the P6 and in 1979 the Heckler and Koch entrant called the PSP (Polizei Selbstlade Pistole) as the P7, all pistols were chambered in 9x19mm Parabellum.


Ground breaking at the time the new PSP P7 had a number of unusual features, such as the safety device found on the forward section of the grip.  Known as a squeeze cocker this device, with a initial heavy squeeze and a lighter pressure to hold the device depressed, the striker is cocked position, which can be visually checked by the striker itself protruding from the back of slide, when pressure is released the striker is de-cocked.  Another interesting feature of the P7 is the locking and operating mechanism.  When the pistol is fired gas from the round is tapped off through a small hole in the bottom of the barrel into a cylinder where it acts against a piston in effect retarding the slides rearward movement until the projectile has left the barrel and pressures within the barrel have dropped to safe levels, bleeding back into the barrel once again to aid cycling of the action.  One advantage of this system was that the barrel of the pistol was fixed to the frame, unlike most pistols that require a locking system, the gas retardant system does not require the barrel to move during firing, thus it is always in the same position shot after shot, aiding accuracy. The barrel itself borrowed from the earlier P9 pistol by Heckler and Koch is also interesting in that is of polygonal design.  This design does away with traditional lands and groves in favor of polygon shape that contains a twist.   


Heckler and Koch saw the need to improve the PSP, and in 1985 production of the pistol was switched to its successors the P7 M8 and the P7 M13 remaining in 9mm parabellum, the most notable changes were the re-positioning of the magazine release from the heel of the grip to what is now standard on H&K pistols, an ambidextrous push down lever directly under the trigger guard.  And in the case of the P7 M13 a double stack magazine containing 13 rounds.  The P7 M13 entered the U.S. Military trials to replace the venerable Colt M1911A1 but was unsuccessful in its bid, though it passed with 100% reliability during dust tests and was rated highly for overall conditional reliability.  


Heckler and Koch turned instead to marketing the pistol for personal defense and sports shooters, thus following the public interest - the P7 M10 was born.  This new pistol was a caliber revision, it was chambered in .40 S&W.  It differed from the M8 & M13 in both that it no longer had the polygonal barrel, but more traditional lands and groves.  It also due to the considerable pressure increase over the 9x19mm parabellum was slightly larger and heavier.  


INTERESTING FACT :  German military special forces team GSG-9 had a special version of the P7 M13 made especially for them known as the P7M13SD which had a threaded barrel and supplied suppressor for covert operations.


PRO's   :   Accurate, reliable, curiosity, collectible, well made, 


CON's   :   Cleaning is a little lengthy, no external slide catch, PSP's had heal mag releases


      

17th May : Becker & Hollander Beholla Pistol

Name     :     Becker & Hollander Beholla Pistol


AKA       :     The Beholla 

Caliber     :     7.65x17mm Browning (.32 ACP)


Capacity   :     7 Rounds


Weight     :     22.57oz or 640g


Length     :     5.59in or 142mm


Action      :     Blowback Action, semi automatic


Origin      :     Germany 




Produced by Becker and Hollander of Suhl in Germany in 1915 the Beholla was a mediocrity at best even by the standards of the day.  With this in mind it was given a substitute pistol status in the German Army during the First World War. It was commonly issued to lower ranked personnel when the famous P08 Luger or even Mauser C96's were short in supply.  After the initial shipment from Becker and Hollander the German Army ordered the pistol to be contracted out to other arms firms to insure a healthy supply and thus a contract was given to Leonhardt, Stenda and Menta.  Production of this pistol for the German Army would appear to have been around 40-45'000 and remained in service until 1918 the end of the war.  After the war, the pistol was produced by several manufacturers for the commercial market, and some were even offered for sale by the Army to the public.  Total production for this pistol/design including commercial models is estimated around 100,000.


Typically of pistols made in Europe at this time, the magazine release is located on the heal of the grip and is pushed to the rear to eject the magazine for reloading.  The barrel is fixed to the frame by means of a cross-pin, and this is where the pistol takes a turn for the worse. 


To dismantle the Beholla the magazine has to be removed and the striker released by pulling the trigger with an empty shell case inserted in the chamber to prevent damage to the firing pin.  The cross-pin holding the barrel to the frame has to be removed through a hole in the slide.  This is done by punching out the cross-pin with a tool through the right side of the slide until it is far enough through it can be pulled by hand from the left hand side of the slide. The slide must then be locked to the rear and the barrel is pushed backward approximately 5mm and pulled upward and it can be removed. The slide is then released forward to its normal position the trigger again needs to be pulled then the slide can move forward off the frame. 


The Beholla like all German pistols was a war trophy for allied soldiers but never gained the fame or popularity of other pistols such as the Luger.  In service the pistol was considered to be robust enough for combat, which probably was the pistols only saving grace, considering what it took to clean it.  Some collectors and shooters have stated that they have been very impressed with the accuracy potential of this pistol, especially considering that it was produced during war time, when the quality of firearms is generally a lot lower.  This is probably an inherent advantage of the fixed barrel design. 


INTERESTING FACT : Magazines from the Colt 1903 pistol in .32ACP will function well in the Beholla, for those of you out there looking for replacement or spare magazine.


PRO's :   Robust, Accurate, easy to conceal, snag free design


CON's :   Low on the manstopping scale, awful dismantling procedure for a soldier 

15th May : The Ross Rifle

Name     :   Ross Rifle


AKA       :   The Canadian Straight Pull

Caliber     :     .303 British


Capacity   :     5 Rounds


Weight     :     9.87lbs or 4.48kg


Length     :     50.6in or 1285mm


Action      :     Straight Pull, Manually Operated Repeater


Origin      :     Canada


Sir Charles Ross was a wealthy Scottish landowner, not content with simply maintaining the wealth he had inherited from his family, he set out to make his own fortunes he studied engineering and agriculture and had a keen interest in having his own businesses.  Ross had a passion for firearms and had taken out patents on an automatic pistol and even an automatic rifle in 1896.  While at Cambridge he took out a patent for a straight pull bolt action rifle but it was an overly complex rifle and thus it was the stepping stone to the rifle for which he would become famous or perhaps infamous.  through 1896 and 1897 Ross produced in London and improved on his new straight pull bolt action design also Ross traveled to Canada that same year to develop and improve the design again which would then become the model 1900 sporter.  


Ross was then called up for military duty to fight in the Second Boer War.  Upon his return he pushed the British Army to consider adopting his rifle as a replacement for the Lee Metford / Lee Enfield Rifles, though it was rejected. It was found to be unreliable, though accuracy was exceptional, it was deemed unsuitable for the hard knocks and conditions that other contemporary service rifles could handle.  During an unfortunate political clash between Britain and Canada, the designs and licencing for the Lee-Enfield rifle to arm Canada were denied.  Ross who was a small arms adviser to the Canadian Government put forward his rifle.  Cautiously the Canadians decided to evaluate the rifle in the hands of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police, who found in excess of one hundred faults with the rifle.  Instruction was then given to Ross to improve the rifle and in 1907 the Ross Rifle MKII, after it was adopted for official military issue in 1905.  Improvements continued and the Ross model 1910 become widely accepted as reasonable weapon and was the primary weapon of the Canadian forces in France during the First World War.


Then the storm hit, in France Canadian troops found that the rifles straight pull action became clogged easily and jammed to the point it was common for troops to discard their Ross Rifle and try to acquire a Lee Enfield from the battlefield.  Another major issue was the bolt, incidents were reported that it was possible to reassemble the bolt after cleaning with parts inserted the wrong way and still fire the rifle, causing the bolt to come flying backward at the user.  Douglas Haig submitted orders in 1916 to have the rifle offically removed from service, though some were retained for sniping, as accuracy was  one of the few great features of the rifle.  It would go on to be a popular target rifle after the war, this perhaps is the realm where the Ross truly belonged.


INTERESTING FACT :  At one point the British refused to allow Canada to make the Lee Enfield to arm their troops, but in the early stages of World War Two it was the British who were desperate to acquire anything to equip the home guard and many Ross Rifles were sent by the Canadian Government.


PRO's :   Collectable, Accurate, Many variants, Good hunting rifle


CON's :   Awful military rifle, hard to maintain in combat, no real advantage to straight pull.

14th May : Fabrique Nationale Model 1910

Name     :     FN Model 1910

AKA       :     Pistole Modell 626 (B) = WW2 German Military Designation

Caliber     :     7.65x17mm Browning (.32 ACP), 9x18mm Short (.380 ACP)

Capacity   :     7 Rounds (7.65mm)

Weight     :     21.25oz or 600g

Length     :     6in or 152mm

Action      :     Blowback operated, Single Action, Semi automatic

Origin      :     Belgium

Designed by world famous firearms designer John Moses Browning the FN model 1910 was a popular and well liked defensive arm found in many arsenals during the first part of the 20th Century.  John Browning made regular trips between the two major manufacturers of his designs, namely Colt for the U.S. market and Fabrique Nationale of Belgium for the European market.  Browning approached Colt to make his new pistol design that was to become the Model 1910, but Colt was not interested, perhaps due to the success of the Colt Model 1903.  Fabrique Nationale no doubt saw considerable potential for the design and the pistol went into production eventually arming much of Europe.

Though first produced in 1910 this pistol did not come into widespread availability until 1912.  John Browning's first financially rewarding venture into the defensive pistol field was also made by FN in the Model 1900, an unusual pistol in that the recoil spring was located above the barrel, it was a sturdy and reliable defensive pistol.  Combined the models 1900, 1903, 1906 and the 1910 had been sold in excess of one million by 1914, making vast fortunes for the large firearm distributors in Europe.  

The 1910 has a smooth overall appearance and semi-compact feel about it, this is due to a small trend that was started with this pistol, the recoil spring is positioned around the barrel instead of a traditional plunger or guide rod, making the pistol smaller than some of its contemporaries. The pistol's safety is nothing special in the respect it is simply pushed up into a notch in the slide to put the weapon on safe, and the pistol also sports a grip safety.  The sights on the pistol pictured are of non-snagging type and are a groove that runs in the top of the slide, and though not target shooter material they are adequate for defensive purposes. Some Model 1910's did have windage adjustable rear sights that are retained via a wedge base that are slid into traditional slide cut outs.  

A variant of this pistol appeared in 1922 this model was known as the Model 1910/22 after a Serbian Army requested that the 1910 have a longer barrel and slightly improved ammunition capacity thus FN lengthened the barrel and simply attached a large retaining ring in front of the slide and increased the magazine capacity for an extra 2 rounds.  The Serbian Army happy with these improvements made a large order.  During World War Two the German Army having occupied Belgium had FN make Model 1910s and 1910/22s for the Luftwaffe and Wehrmacht.  The 1910 went out of production in 1983 and was widely copied by many arms manufacturers around the world.  Popular with civilian shooters it was also big in European Law Enforcement with some police forces choosing to keep it in front line service until 1985.  In the James Bond movie "Dr. No" the 1910 is used as a stand-in for a Walther PPK due to the movie makers having issues adapting the PPK to fire blanks, though the change over went un-noticed by much of the movie going audience.

INTERESTING FACT :  It is said that the great war may have been started by the pistol but it was the rifle that fought it.  Well the 1910 has an interesting part in that fact -  it was that pistol in the hands of Gavrilo Princip, who shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, the precursor to World War One.

PRO's   :   Compact and Easy to Use, Kinda accurate, Collectable, 

CON's   :   Magazine disconnect safety, some have rough trigger pulls.

COOL FACTOR : 7/10

10th May : Colt Anaconda

Name     :     Colt Anaconda


AKA       :     The Big Snake

Calibers     :     .44 Magnum and .45 Long Colt


Capacity    :     6 Rounds


Weight      :     53oz or 1503g (6 inch barrel model)


Length      :      11.5in or 295mm


Action       :      Double Action, revolving cylinder, repeater


Origin       :      U.S.A.


It wasn't until 1990 that colt produced its first .44 Magnum, The Anaconda.  Upon its release there was a large surge of interest from the firearm community as to how well it would stack up against its considerable competition from both Ruger and Smith and Wesson, not to mention Colt's own famous Python.  Early Anacondas had accuracy issues relating to a tight throat that wore down projectiles, once past the throat rounds were not properly engaging in the riffling.  These issues once raised with Colt were rectified with new barrels.  There was a 4, 6 and 8 inch barrel length versions available and all anacondas had the stainless steel finish, unlike other brands Colt did not offer a blued model.  1993 saw an addition to the line up with the introduction of the .45 Long Colt version, a caliber that was no stranger to many avid Colt fans.  


The Anaconda has a large ventilated rib above the barrel, reminiscent of the Python .357 magnum revolver offered by Colt.  The revolver came tapped ready for and in some cases with a scope for those who wanted to utilize this revolver for handgun hunting.  The Anacondas construction is tough, made from all stainless steel it is a hand-full to hold but this allowed recoil to be managed easily.  The Cylinder stop cuts were made between the chambers to allow the cylinder more strength, thus making the use of powerful rounds not an issue.  Shipped as standard with a large rubber grip with finger groves the large Colt is comfortable to hold even considering its weight.  The Anaconda comes furnished with adjustable B notch sights as standard, these sights produce a clean and crisp sight picture with white outlines on the rear and a red insert on the front sight.  Some Anacondas were also available with ported barrels to reduce muzzle climb when firing powerful loads.


Colt claimed that the Anaconda was the most accurate .44 magnum, though this will always be up for debate, to Colt's credit the Anaconda is an accurate revolver, but that title may have been a little ambitious.  Sadly during the large restructure at Colt in 2000, the Anaconda was dropped from Colts production line, though some were still available to order through the Custom shop until 2003.  Still popular with sports shooters and revolver enthusiasts through second hand channels, many wonder if Colt will re-release this big revolver at some point in the future, and speculation and rumor still rise every now and again, but as of 2012, seeing a brand new Anaconda filling gun shop shelves again seems bleak.


INTERESTING FACT : In the secondhand market .45 Long Colt versions of the Anaconda tend to fetch more than the .44 magnum variety.


PRO's   :   Accurate, beautifully designed, strong construction, nice grips, 


CON's   :   Early models had accuracy issues, no longer available 


COOL FACTOR : 9/10