A Soviet Experiment - The Kalashnikov Assault Carbine

Shortly after the adoption of the Kalashnikov design in 1949, Soviet small-arms development found itself at a doctrinal crossroads. The AK emerged as the final survivor of a rigorous postwar rifle competition, and, in an odd twist, it was accepted despite not fully meeting the full-auto accuracy ...

By Lynndon Schooler •

Ayoob: Was the 10mm Destined to Fail?

No other handgun cartridge has experienced quite as many ups, down and reinventions of purpose in so short a time as the 10mm Auto. Generally thought to have been a product of the 1980s, the 10mm’s whole story actually goes back further. A Brief History of the 10mm The mid-twentieth century saw...

By Massad Ayoob •

The .338 Winchester Magnum Is a Cartridge That No Longer Makes Sense

When introduced, this belted magnum filled the role of an all-around cartridge for big-game hunters worldwide. Today, there’s little reason to choose it The post The .338 Winchester Magnum Is a Cartridge That No Longer Makes Sense appeared first on Outdoor Life.

By Tyler Freel •

The Lost Art? How to Read a Map

It was Thanksgiving weekend. James Kim and wife, Kati, with their young daughters Sabine and Penelope, were motoring on their trip home to San Francisco on I-5, then turned toward Gold Beach on Oregon’s southern coast. The road James took began to climb. There was no traffic, and soon no cell s...

By Wayne van Zwoll •

The Unique Story of an Iraqi Designated DMR

Explore the unique story of Iraq's Tabuk Designated Marksman Rifle (DMR) - a long-barreled AK variant produced by Al-Qadissiya Establishments that served as the Iraqi military's precision rifle tied to Saddam Hussein's forces.

American Self-Propelled Artillery in World War II

American self-propelled artillery in World War II transformed how the United States Army delivered firepower on the battlefield. These tracked vehicles combined mobility with devastating howitzers and guns, keeping pace with advancing armor divisions in ways towed artillery never could. From the ...

By Richard Johnson •

The RPK: The Soviet Choice of Commonality Over Capability

In the mid-1950s, the Soviet high command accepted a compromise that would shape frontline infantry small arms for decades: prioritizing platform commonality over dedicated squad-level suppressive fire capability. That decision, formalized with the 1959 adoption of an AK-derived automatic rifle, ...

By Lynndon Schooler •

The RPD - Soviet Union’s First Squad Automatic Weapon

In the years after World War II, the Soviet military asked a simple question: how could an infantry squad bring a higher volume of automatic fire without surrendering mobility? A lesson they learned from the Eastern Front, where volume of fire was king. The answer, in part, was the RPD; this ligh...

By Lynndon Schooler •
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