Odd Warfare: A Bomb to Make People Gay and Other Curiosities from the U.S. Air Force Research Lab
By Michael Heidler War usually means wounding and death of many people. How wonderful it would be if battles could be fought without much bloodshed. Again and a... Read more.
That Time the U.S. Military Almost Used Bats to Firebomb Japan During WWII
By Michael Heidler People often have crazy ideas. Combined with megalomania and arrogance, they then create things like bomb-carrying bats. This “lowest f... Read more.
Double Works Better, German WWII Cartridges with Two Bullets
In the sixth year of the War, the resources of the German Reich had become scarce. How practical would it be to fire two bullets with one cartridge? This idea w... Read more.
The U.S. M3/M3A1 “Grease Gun”: Equipping Armed Forces in Post-War Austria
After World War II, thousands of M3 and M3A1 Grease Guns were scattered all over the world. Thanks to the simple design, the weapons could be kept operational b... Read more.
Limited Success: The Austrian Submachine Guns Steyr MPi 69 and MPi 81
Austria’s armaments industry had suffered great damage in the last years of WWII and lay largely in ruins. So for the time being it was not possible to think ... Read more.
Tripping the Wire: German Alarm Devices in World War II
With thinly staffed Front lines, the gaps between the individual sentries must somehow be closed. Especially in dark, rainy or windy nights, the moving shadows ... Read more.
Ephemeral Rivalry: Luigi Franchi’s Submachine Gun LF-57
With minor modifications, the Beretta M38/44 became the M38/49, and the following models remained basically the same wartime model without any outstanding techn... Read more.
The Breda Modello PG: The World’s First Burst-Firing Automatic Rifle
During World War I, little had happened in Italy in terms of semiautomatic rifles. The country was too busy with the burden of the War. It was only after the Wa... Read more.
Bulky Monsters, Japanese Flare Pistols—Nambu Type 90
During World War II, the Japanese military forces only used a few different flare pistol models. The Imperial Army used almost exclusively the single-barreled T... Read more.
When Italy’s Villar Perosa Became Single-Barreled
The Villar Perosa with its spade handle and the two independent coupled weapons, each with its own barrel firing mechanism and separate magazine, looks pretty b... Read more.
