The AR-15/M16 platform is one of most prolific black rifles ever developed. In the early years there was, without doubt, a love/hate relationship by those who used it. Most of the problems were related to the powder used in the cartridges, not the rifle itself. The early powder used was not the powder the gun was designed to use and besides being extremely “dirty” causing severe internal fouling, it caused the rifle to cycle differently than it was designed for: resulting in a rifle that had different cleaning issues in the field, and was subject to extraction problems. The damage was done in the minds of many soldiers, who marked the rifle with a bad reputation. In later years, with improved powders and advanced machining techniques, it evolved into one of the most used rifles of all time, second only to the AK series. With the use of a cleaner burning “ball” type powder, chrome lined bores and chambers and a strict cleaning regimen the problems were solved and has become the highly reliable rifle that it is today. But even with the new advanced rifles and ammunition they will still get dirty and, if left long enough, will stop firing because of fouling built up in the bolt and upper receiver area. The design of the rifle is, after all, gas operated. Propellant gases are vented from the barrel, into the gas block, through the gas tube and into the bolt carrier key along with any unburnt powder and carbon deposits.

Today, the piston driven AR seems to be the way design changes are heading. Piston driven AR-15/M16s are not a new idea. In the mid 1980s, Walt Langendorfer introduced what he called the Rhino System. The system was a retro-fit kit that included a front sight unit, gas piston, spring and bolt carrier key. Although the system worked fairly well, there were issues with the spring in the unit. It just could not take the heat and would fail prematurely. Now the piston driven AR is not only accepted, it is sought after.

There are several manufacturers now making complete piston driven rifles or piston driven upper receiver units that will retrofit the existing AR-15/M16 series of rifles. These are high tech marvels and bring with them a high price tag. Not that these rifles are not worth the money, they are. A lot of R&D and expense went into developing the uppers. But what about the average guy that can’t afford to spend between $1,600 and $2,200 dollars for just a complete upper, let alone an entire rifle. Maybe the guy that has spent his entire “gun money” budget on his existing gun setting it up just the way he wants it with all of the best accessories and making it shoot perfectly.

There is now a way to have a piston driven gun at a very competitive price. Adams Arms is now producing a complete kit that will fit your existing rifle. The kit changes a standard gas operated AR-15/M16 rifle or carbine into a piston driven gun. The kit comes with everything you need and anyone can install it. You don’t have to take it to a gunsmith or do any machining. Just remove some of your existing parts and install the new ones. Installation takes only about 10 minutes from start to finish.

Installation

As is always the case when starting work on a gun, remove the magazine, check the chamber and make sure the gun is unloaded. Take the bolt carrier out of the gun and set it aside. Remove the existing flashider and lock or peel washer, remove the handguards, remove the front sight/gas block assembly with gas tube and remove the front handguard cap. If your existing gas block is the standard front sight assembly type you may have to drive out the two taper pins (look at the pins and drive from the small head side). The only other thing left to do is to remove the standard bolt carrier key. Most of these are staked in but can still be removed easily. Just be sure to have an Allen wrench that fit the screws tightly. The correct size is 9/32.

Once all the standard parts are removed it’s time to install the piston drive kit. The kit consists of a 440C stainless steel gas block, sleeve/drive rod, gas plug, sleeve/rod compression spring, bolt carrier key, a modified front handguard cap and a set of modified M-4 handguards. The upper handguard of the set has been notched slightly to accommodate the conversion’s gas plug.

Start installation of the new kit by setting the new carrier key onto the bolt carrier. The new carrier has a locating pin on the bottom that fits into the gas hole in the top of the carrier. Use red Locktite on the screws and torque them to 40 in/lbs. This is an important step. If you do not Locktite and torque them they may come loose. Next, install the bottom half of the new handguard into the delta ring then slide the handguard cap onto the barrel. Slide the new gas block onto the barrel with the gas plug groove facing toward the muzzle. As it becomes tight you may have to turn the gas block from side to side as you push it back. A rubber dead-blow hammer might be needed to nudge it into place. Be sure you line up the handguard to go into the handguard cap. This sounds like it takes three hands to do but it actually goes together very easily. Push the gas block as far as you can towards the receiver making sure that it is up against the handguard cap, straight up and down and aligned with the gas port hole in the barrel. As long as it is straight and the top of it is level, it will be aligned properly. The host rifle this kit was fitted to had an A3 flat-top upper and a level was laid across the upper and the gas block and eyeballed. You then tighten two hex bolts in the gas block to lock it on the barrel. Install the spring on the back end of the sleeve rod and thread it through the gas block, through the barrel nut, delta ring and spring and into gas tube hole in the front of the receiver. Insert the gas plug into the gas block by lining it up with the machined cuts in the front of the gas block. Push the gas plug back until the detent button on it hits the face of the gas block. Make sure it enters the sleeve on the front of the drive rod. Push the detent button in while you push the gas plug further back and rotate it 90 degrees. Install the top half of the M4 handguard and the installation is complete. The gas block on the unit tested had a Picatinny rail machined into the top. This works great if you want to install a front BUIS as it is the same height as the flat-top rail on an A3 upper. Adam Arms will also be offering a “low profile” gas block without the rail.

The upper that the kit was installed in was a mix of several manufacturers’ parts. It consisted of Model 1 A3 upper receiver, a Stag Arms .556, 1 in 9 twist, 16 inch M4 barrel with DPMS bolt, carrier and charging handle. Two different lowers were used, a semi-auto DPMS and a Colt full-auto lower.

Testing

The initial testing of the kit consisted of firing over 500 rounds of various types of .223 ammunition that included Black Hills 77-grain Match Hollow Point, Black Hills 69-grain MatchKing Hollow Point, Remington 50-grain Jacketed Hollow Point, XM855 green tip and some reloads with 55-grain FMJ bullets. This provided a wide variety of ammo types and bullets weights. Black Hills ammunition was mostly used as it has been found to be the most consistent and reliable thus eliminating any function problems related to ammunition. As it turned out, ammunition brand and type was not an issue. The new piston driven upper digested anything we ran through it. At the start of the test the fourth and sixth round fired and ejected but the gun failed to pick up the next round either time. It is suspected that it might have been because the drive rod spring was not seated completely against the delta ring/barrel nut. It happened while using the XM855 ammunition, which might also have been the culprit. Whatever the reason, we never had a single malfunction after that.

The testing was conducted in both semi and full auto with probably about half the testing done on full-auto. Cyclic rate was checked with a PACT timer with Rate-of-Fire option. Rate of fire was checked on the rifle before and after installation of the kit and ran right at 635 rounds per minute with a full stock on the rifle. Installing a collapsible stock on the gun raised the rate of fire to 675, which was to be expected.

Magazines used during the test included a US GI 30-round, Beta C-mag 100-round drum and the excellent new MagPul P-Mag 30-rounders. The P-Mag is a highly reliable polymer magazine that features a light weight magazine body with textured gripping surface, stainless steel corrosion resistant spring and anti-tilt follower. They are also available with a clear window in the sides to verify remaining round count.

Since this kit has no effect on accuracy it was not really a factor in the testing. Although the accuracy was normal for this type of rifle, there was no noticeable difference after the kit was installed.

During the test, one of Advanced Armament Corporation’s M4-2000 .556 suppressors was installed. It is small, light, installs fast and is capable of handling fully automatic fire. This was tried as an added test because suppressors are known for generating higher back pressures and increased cyclic rates. Over 100 rounds with the suppressor attached, in addition to the initial 500+ unsuppressed rounds, were fired. The kit ran perfectly with zero malfunctions while using the suppressor.

Conclusion

At no time during the testing was any lubricant of any kind used on the rifle. It was run completely dry. The rifle was broken open several times and parts were inspected. There was no premature wear on anything. The inside of the upper receiver around the carrier, bolt and locking lugs remained very clean with no unburnt powder or carbon present in either the upper or around the fire control parts in the lower. This is the most noticeable feature of a piston driven gun. They remain very clean and can run without lubrication. Probably the other most valuable and noticeable feature was that very little heat was transferred back into the bolt carrier and upper receiver compared to a regular gas system. During the test, 100 rounds were run through the gun with a Beta C-Mag. The gun was opened and the bolt pulled out. The bolt was cool enough to hold in your bare hand. A gun that runs cooler will have a longer service life with the advantage of fewer heat related parts failures.

The unit tested was a pre-production unit in bare stainless steel. Production units will be finished in a flat black Melonite to match the finish on most AR’s. Melonite is a thermochemical treatment for improving surface properties of metal parts. It offers improved heat and wear resistance. The drive rod return spring will have “caps” on each end to give it a more finished look and keep it from binding on the front of the delta ring. The spring will also be “detented” to the drive rod so that there is less chance to lose it when the unit is disassembled. Other improvements on the production units will be the knurling of the front of the gas plug to aid in removing it and a slot added to the front face for turning it with the rim of a shell if need be. The unit comes with M4 handguards but can also be used with several of the Picatinny rail forearms that are available. As of this writing forearm rails that will work with the system are the Predator, Midwest Industries and Daniel Defense. Others might possibly fit but have not yet been tried. Contact Adams Arms for a full list of compatible rail forearms. The kits will be available in different models for barrel lengths from 7 to 24 inches and for barrel diameters up to 1 inch. Retail price of the kit is between $550 and $600 depending on the model.

The unit is covered with lifetime money back manufacturers warranty. In other words, if it breaks they will replace it: period. Jason Adams has come up with a product that works as advertised, is well built and an economical way to have a piston driven AR-15/M16.

Adams Arms Retro-Fit Kit Update

Since this original article was written on the Adams Arms Retro-Fit kit there have been several very helpful changes that have been incorporated into the final production unit. Most noteworthy is that now the return spring is held captive on the sleeve/drive rod so that is doesn’t fall off or fail to stay in place as you’re disassembling the unit or putting it back together. This is a must, especially when using the kit on a weapon that has a rail system handguard. On the pre-production unit, the spring could easily slide off the drive rod and fall into the depths of the handguard or rail system handguard not to be seen again until you disassembled the handguard. The spring is still able to be removed from the drive rod by pulling it off forcefully but it now stays in place as it should as it is detented on to the drive rod.

There is also the addition of a stainless steel bushing on the end of the spring that rests against the Delta ring. Previously, the spring itself rested against the Delta ring and could catch on the spring when removing the unit from the gun. This resulted in the situation described above and also required removing the forearm to retrieve the spring.

Another addition is a stainless steel bushing that fits into the gas tube hole of the upper receiver. This bushing eliminates any wear that could occur to the upper receiver by the drive rod moving back and forth through the hole. Without the bushing the wear would only occur after several thousand rounds but is now prevented from happening. The bushing is easily pushed in place from the rear of the receiver with a wooden dowel or metal rod.

The last improvement involves the gas block and gas block plug. The plug itself now features knurling on the front outside edge. This allows for a much better grip on the plug making it easier to remove for cleaning or turning for adjusting as the production unit now features three adjusting positions. The first one is the standard full flow gas position. The second one cuts the gas flow down when using the unit on some short barreled guns or guns that have excessively large gas holes in the barrel. Some manufacturers seem to do this to their guns so that they can make their shorter barrels work. The third position completely shuts off the gas. This works great for that single suppressed shot. It is quite impressive by how much noise is eliminated when the bolt does not cycle.

Adams Arms has strived to make one of the best piston-driven AR kits that there is. The Adams Arms Piston Driven Retro-Fit kit has now evolved into one of the most well-made, reliable and easy to install units that is available today.

Sources

Adams Arms
Dept. SAR
32018 US Hwy 19 North
Clearwater, FL 33761
(727) 424-8240
www.adamsarms.net

Black Hills Ammunition
Dept. SAR
P.O. Box 3090
Rapid City, SD 57709
(605) 348-5150
www.black-hills.com

Advanced Armament Corporation
Dept. SAR
1434 Hillcrest Road
Norcross, GA 30093
(770) 925-9988
www.advanced-armament.com

L-3 Communications-Eotech
Dept. SAR
3600 Green Court, Suite 400
Ann Arbor, MI 48105
(734) 741-8868
www.eotechinc.com

MagPul Industries Corporation
Dept. SAR
P. O. Box 17697
Boulder, CO 80308
(303) 652-8301
www.magpul.com

The Beta Company
Dept. SAR
2137 B Flintstone Drive
Tucker, GA 30084
(770) 270-0773
www.betaco.com

By Anthony G. Williams

The Great War of 1914-1918 saw the first substantial use of aircraft in a major conflict. At the beginning the aircraft were almost all frail, underpowered devices that could barely lift themselves and their one or two crew into the air, and carried no armament except for the crew’s personal weapons. By the end of the conflict, heavy bombers carrying multiple defensive machine guns contested the air with fast and agile fighters, typically armed with two fixed machine guns synchronised to fire through the propeller blades. As well as ball rounds these guns fired a variety of specially developed ammunition, loaded with armour-piercing, incendiary and even explosive bullets.

Although machine guns specially designed for the needs of air fighting were being developed at the end of the war, none of these had time to get into service. So with the exception of a few large-calibre cannon, the air war was fought with more or less modified versions of the guns used on the ground by the army.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire, with its capital in Vienna, was one of the major combatants in the Great War, fighting alongside Germany and the Ottoman Empire against France, the United Kingdom, Russia (until 1917), Italy (from 1915, initially only against the Austro-Hungarian Empire), and the USA (from 1917). Defeat in the war led to the break-up of both the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires.

The standard machine gun of the Austro-Hungarian armed forces was the Schwarzlose. This was designed by a German, Andreas Wilhelm Schwarzlose, who took out the first patent in 1902. It was adopted by the Empire in 1905 as the M05 (Model 1905) and manufactured at the Osterreichische Waffenfabrik Gessellschaft in Steyr, Austria. An improved model, the M07, replaced the M05 two years later, to be replaced in production by the further-modified M07/12 five years after that. However, the older versions remained in service.

The Schwarzlose was unusual by comparison with the common locked breech short-recoil (e.g. Maxim) and gas-operated (e.g. Hotchkiss and Lewis) guns in that its mechanism used a form of blowback, in which the gas pressure in the barrel forces the cartridge case backwards, pushing the unlocked bolt to the rear of the gun. In its simplest form, the blowback mechanism is restricted to very low-powered cartridges because it is necessary for the inertia of the bolt to hold the case in the chamber until the projectile has left the barrel, otherwise high-velocity burning gas will burst from the breech to the discomfiture of the firer. With high-pressure military rifle cartridges, the weight of bolt required would be so heavy that the rate of fire would be very low.

Various solutions to this difficulty have been tried, because blowback weapons are attractively simple and cheap to manufacture. One is the retarded blowback, in which an additional mechanism resists the initial rearward movement of the bolt, and this was the approach adopted by Schwarzlose. His design utilises an elbow joint attached to the bolt by one arm with the other arm pivoted to a fixed axis on the receiver. The effect of this mechanism is to force the initial rearward movement to operate under severe mechanical disadvantage, delaying the opening of the breech until the bullet has left the barrel. Even so, the cartridges it used were so powerful that the breech still opened too quickly. The solution was to shorten the barrel to 20 inches (compared with 28 inches for the Maxim) so that the bullet left the muzzle sooner before the breech could open. It was belt-fed, using a fabric belt. The simplicity of the mechanism kept the cost down to about half that of a Maxim, and the gun was subsequently adopted by several other European countries in a variety of different calibres. The ruggedness and reliability of the Schwarzlose made it a popular gun and it had a long life, though the main problem being the sensitivity of the mechanism to ammunition quality. The Dutch were still making it in 1940, and it was being used at least until 1945 as a second-line weapon in Italy and Hungary.

In army and naval use, the gun is recognisable by the short and wide water-filled barrel jacket, the large conical flash-hider attached to the muzzle (the short barrel presumably resulting in a much bigger muzzle flash than usual) and the curved shape of the back of the receiver. As with all blowback guns there is no primary extraction, so the gun was fitted with an oil tank and the chamber was sprayed with oil before each round was chambered in order to facilitate case extraction. This mechanism was the source of some discomfort in aircraft use when Schwarzloses were mounted in front of the pilot, as he received a constant spray of oil in his face whenever the guns were fired. In at least one installation – in the Albatross fighter – a metal shield and drainage tube were fitted to catch and dispose the oil.

The cartridge in use in the Austro-Hungarian Empire was the 8x50R Mannlicher, developed in 1886 by the Georg Roth ammunition factory of Vienna together with the Vienna Armory, and one of the first of the small-calibre military rounds designed to use the new smokeless powder. The US equivalent was the .30-40 Krag of 1892. The initial loading featured a heavy (244-grain) round-nosed bullet fired at 2,030 fps, although some later specialised loadings, such as the M.08 armour-piercing and the M.17 and M.18 incendiary types, used pointed bullets. There was also an explosive bullet with a blunt nose and a waisted body. These explosive and incendiary types were intended for use against hydrogen-filled observation balloons, initially from ground-fired guns and later from aircraft.

The Schwarzlose as an Aircraft Gun

The Schwarzlose was not an obvious choice for an aircraft gun, being bulky, heavy (at around 43 pounds) and initially slow-firing at around 400 rpm (500 rpm for the M07/12). However, except for a few imported Madsens, Bergmanns and LMG 08/15s, it was all the Austro-Hungarians had available so it was adapted for the task. At the start of the conflict the Empire also pressed into aerial service some Schwarzlose M12s intended for export to Greece, chambered for their 6.5×54 Mannlicher-Schönauer cartridge. This fired a 160-grain round-nosed bullet at 2,230 fps. The M12 guns were lighter, being air-cooled, and were used as flexibly-mounted defensive weapons, but the small bullet was less effective so these were eventually replaced by 8mm guns.

The first change to the gun for aircraft use was the removal of the flash hider. The next concerned the water jacket. Cooling water was not necessary for an aircraft gun: the combination of short bursts of fire and a strong wind keeping the barrel cool enough. So the jacket was frequently emptied of water and fitted with large slots to allow air to circulate. Unlike the Vickers/Maxim short-recoil guns in which the front of the barrel jacket was needed to support the moving barrel, the only other function of the jacket in the fixed-barrel Schwarzlose was to hold the foresight. Once separate sights were used, the jacket could be dispensed with entirely, leaving the plain, skinny barrel protruding rather oddly from the bulky receiver. Despite these modifications, some Schwarzloses fitted to aircraft retained their cooling water jackets to the end of the war.

The M07/12 was found to be sensitive to changes in atmospheric pressure, firing more slowly and finally stopping when the aircraft climbed above an altitude of 10,000 feet. A set of modifications designed by Ludwing Kral raised the rate of fire to nearly 600 rpm and the critical altitude to almost 18,000 feet. Mid-way through the war, a version specifically for aircraft use was developed, the M16, in which the weight was reduced to 29 pounds. Continued development eventually saw the free rate of fire of the M16A increased to 880 rpm, and raised its operating altitude to 23,000 feet. But even in March 1918 fewer than 300 M16s were in service, and the M07/12 remained numerically the most important gun in the inventory.

By the middle of the war, it had become established that the most satisfactory layout for a fighter plane was the tractor type, with the engine in front of the pilot. This meant that if the guns were to be kept within reach of the pilot (important at that time, as guns often jammed and needed clearing), their firing needed to be synchronised with the engine revolutions so that the bullets passed between the propeller blades.

Most synchronisation systems needed to be tailored to the gun they were used with, and the Schwarzlose’s unique mechanism required a purpose-designed system. The most common seems to have been the Zaparka gear, which fired the gun on every fourth propeller revolution. The mechanism could be relied on only within a band of engine revolutions between 1,000 and 1,600 rpm with the M07/12, and 600 to 1,600 rpm with the M16. This explains the very prominent place given in the cockpit of fighters to a large engine tachometer. The 1,600 revolutions per minute limit restricted the maximum rate of fire to 400 rpm regardless of the free rate, and it would obviously have been less at lower engine revolutions. The Bernatzik and Daimler gear reduced the rate of fire even more, by 55% in the case of the M16. However, the Daimler gear did have the advantage that the M16 could be safely fired from engine idle to 1,600 revolutions per minute, although the M07/12 was still restricted to the 1,100 to 1,600 rpm band. None of these systems proved to be entirely reliable, leading to a loss of confidence in the pilots who risked shooting off their own propellers. At the end of the war the Austro-Hungarian forces decided to standardize on the Priesel system.

Aircraft installations

Aircraft used by the Austro-Hungarian Empire were a mixture of indigenous and German types. Some of the latter were specifically made for the Empire, and these were usually armed with Schwarzlose guns.

Synchronisation systems for the Schwarzlose were not available until 1916, so earlier fighters needed to find other ways to mount their guns. Among the first of the Empire’s fighters was the German-built Hansa-Brandenburg D.I, armed with an unsynchronised Schwarzlose in a fairing on top of the upper wing so it could fire over the propeller. This fairing was known as the VK canister. The standard version was the Type II VK, which held a gun and 250 rounds of ammunition, plus a gravity fuel tank, but sometimes two guns were installed in the canister. The Hansa-Brandenburg D.I was also built under licence by the Austro-Hungarian Phönix company, but this version did not prove very successful. The Phönix D.I combined its fuselage with new wings, a more powerful engine, and two synchronised Schwarzlose guns. It was a much better fighter, but deliveries started only in the spring of 1918. Very small numbers were delivered of the improved D.II and D.III. After the war, the D.III went on to serve with the Swedish Air Force. The other successful family of Austro-Hungarian fighters was entirely indigenous. The Österreich-Ungarische Aviatik Flugzeugfabrik (not to be confused with the German Automobil und Aviatik A.G., which also built a number of fighters) produced the Aviatik D.I, which in prototype form had a single synchronised Schwarzlose but entered service in the summer of 1917 with two.

In addition to these, the German Albatros D.II and D.III fighters were built in the Empire and armed with two synchronised Schwarzloses. Some Fokker D and E series were also used.

Despite its bulk, the Schwarzlose was also used as a defensive gun in flexible mountings. Single-engined two-seaters (known as the C class in both Germany and the Empire) which carried such armament included the German-built Hansa-Brandenburg C.1 (which also had a fixed gun in a VK top-wing canister for the pilot) and several indigenous designs from Lloyd, Lohner, Oeffag and Phönix. Thirty twin-engined German Gotha bombers were supplied to Austria, who fitted them with Schwarzlose MGs. Hansa-Brandenburg also supplied the W.18 floatplane, and the indigenous Lohner L of 1915 was a three-seat single-engined flying boat. Both carried one Schwarzlose gun.

While the Schwarzlose was not best suited to aircraft use, the Austro-Hungarian Empire engineers were able to make some remarkable improvements, which turned it into an acceptable aircraft gun.

Schwarzlose Technical Data

Length: ….. 42 inches Barrel length: ….. 20.9 inches Weight: ….. 43 lbs (M05, M07, M07/12), 29 lbs (M12, M16) Method of operation: ….. Retarded blowback Calibre: ….. 8x50R Mannlicher (except M12: 6.5×54 Mannlicher-Schönauer) Ammunition feed: ….. Cloth belt Cyclic rate of fire: ….. c.400 rpm (M05, M07, M12), c.500-580 rpm (M07/12), c.600 rpm (M16), c.880 rpm (M16A)

(Anthony G Williams is co-author (with Emmanuel Gustin) of “Flying Guns – World War 1: Development of Aircraft Guns, Ammunition and Installations 1914-32”, published by The Crowood Press in 2003. You can visit him at www.quarry.nildram.co.uk)

By Jeff W. Zimba

After years of fielding questions about the possibility of hosting an SAR Show on the East Coast, it finally became a reality this May.

On May 2nd through May 4th over 7,500 people visited the York, PA Expo Center for the first Annual SAR Show East.

With dealers and visitors from all corners of the United States, this first East Coast show was a great success for an initial show in a completely new area.

Just like those who were the pioneers of the now enormous SAR Show West in Phoenix, AZ, the vendors who displayed at SAR East have earned their continued positions in upcoming shows. The years following an initial show tend to have a massive growth rate and the location at York, PA allows for that very growth in both display area and ample parking. If the growth of this show follows the trends established at SAR Show West, we expect this room will be necessary very soon.

Items as rare as one would expect to see only in museums were in abundance and were displayed beside the latest in Class III technology. An original Liberator pistol was only yards away from an extremely rare Japanese prototype submachine gun bearing serial number 1. Across the room were a pair of FG42s beside a Stoner 63, situated across the aisle from a large, beautifully displayed exhibit of Thompsons, Thompson accessories and memorabilia from the Thompson Collectors Association. Those entering through the main SAR entrance were treated to a large display of different models of Maxim machine guns and U.S. Armament Corporation’s amazing inventory of five brass 1877 Bulldog Gatling Guns.

For those looking for weaponry a little closer to the modern category, there was an equally impressive assortment to view from new manufacturers like FNH USA, Precision Weapons Corp., TSC machine, Autoweapons, BRP Corporation, EDM Arms, Coastal Gun, Inc., Marcolmar, Anzio Ironworks Corp, and many more. For very new pieces on display, one could spend several hours looking at BRP’s latest offerings including their radical STG 34K, TSC Machine’s new HK Style systems, Precision Weapon Corporation’s AK-Style rifle in 7.62x25mm and the new 5.7 upper receiver for the AR-15/M16 system coming very soon from Dan’s Sporting Goods. This is just a small sampling of the many fine items for sale throughout the show.

If you enjoy going to the shows to catch up with fellow long time enthusiasts, this show would not have disappointed you either, with such “usual suspects” in attendance as Tom Nelson, Charlie Erb, Bob Naess, Dan Shea, Bob Landies, John Tibbetts, Dolf Goldsmith, Dennis Todd, Robert Segel, Ed Weitzman, Gordon Miller, etc.

Next year’s East Coast Show has already been locked in, and once again it will be at the York, PA Expo Center. The dates are May 1, 2 & 3, 2009. If it follows a similar pattern of growth displayed by SAR Show West, we should have a 30% increase in both tables and in attendance over this year. If you have not signed up for your display space yet, please contact the staff at Moose Lake Publishing, LLC very soon and keep your eye on www.smallarmsreview.com for information and updates.

Moose Lake Publishing, LLC
SAR Show East
631 N. Stephanie St. #562
Henderson, NV 89014
(207) 565-2926
www.smallarmsreview.com

By David Albert

The Thompson submachine gun (TSMG) is arguably the most intriguing and history-rich automatic weapon in existence. Many variations and hundreds of TSMG accessories generate collector interest similar to Lugers, Colt Revolvers, M1 Rifles, and Carbines. A multitude of paper items associated with the Thompson provide glimpses into its long history, and document its diverse use by police, gangsters, military forces, and civilians during the past 85+ years. The most frequently encountered Thompson paper items are manuals, company catalogs, advertisements, and other ephemera.

Items generally fall within three Thompson eras, beginning with the Colt era from 1921 to 1939, followed by the World War II era, and lastly the Kilgore/Numrich/Kahr era from 1949 to present. Early developmental paper items between 1916 and 1920 are rarely encountered. Like most Thompson items, original paper examples are expensive.

Auto-Ordnance produced high quality handbooks to accompany their Model of 1921 Thompsons, and their catalogs and advertisements featured beautiful illustrations that add to the Thompson mystique today. Six different Model of 1921 Handbooks were produced between 1921 and 1936, as the inventory of 15,000 Colt produced Thompsons sold slowly until the outbreak of hostilities in Europe. A handbook, and sometimes an instruction sheet accompanied each weapon, and additional Manuals of Instruction were produced by the company in 1936 and 1937. Auto-Ordnance catalogs and sales flyers produced between 1921 and 1936 showcased the TSMG variations made from the standard Model of 1921A, intended to generate greater interest while utilizing existing inventory. The 1923 Catalog contains remarkable historical content, and is also the catalog generating the most reproductions. Originals are scarce, and many may believe theirs to be original, but most are reproductions dating back to the early 1960s. The 1923 Catalog featured the Model of 1923 Thompson with a bipod and bayonet, chambered for the more powerful .45 Remington-Thompson cartridge, intended as competition to the BAR. Also featured was a Thompson submachine gun mounted on a motorcycle sidecar, and 30 TSMGs mounted in a Larsen all-metal attack plane, with 28 remotely operated, facing downwards, loaded with C-drums to strafe enemy positions. This setup was referenced as partial inspiration for later aerial gunships. While none of the unique offerings of the 1923 Catalog became commercially successful, it generated much greater interest decades after it was originally published.

Ownership of Auto-Ordnance transferred to Russell Maguire in 1939, who seized the opportunity to revive the struggling company. His timing proved perfect, providing him much wealth, and the contribution of his company’s TSMG to allied victory is well documented. A vast number of Thompson paper items are associated with the war years, including examples from Great Britain, Australia, France, Italy, Germany, Sweden, Norway, India, and the U.S. The weapon was primarily used by the Allies, but some Axis use resulted from capture. Examples of post-war Thompson manuals also exist from Yugoslavia and Israel.

The U.S. Marine Corps issued the first military manual for the TSMG in 1935, followed by an Army Standard Nomenclature List (SNL A-32) in 1936, and the classic War Department Field Manual (FM 23-40) in 1940. Each wartime TSMG shipped with an Auto-Ordnance Edition of 1940 Handbook, of which 5 different versions exist. Two War Department Technical Manuals were produced. (TM 9-1215 for the M1928A1, and TM 9-215 for the M1 Thompson) Upper echelon level repair manuals also exist, but are rarely encountered.

World War II era Thompson manuals, as well as other weapons manuals often tell fascinating stories. They may include unit markings, dates, weapon serial numbers, and even soldier’s names and personal information recorded in them. These features can leave a new owner wondering just what kind of action the soldier saw who previously used the manual. In some cases, a soldier’s information is accessible on the internet; since they may have been involved in a famous military event, gone on to do other things after their wartime experiences, or even given their life for their country.

Thousands of Thompsons were acquired by Britain through their Purchasing Commission and the U.S. Lend-Lease Program. As a result, several publications for Home Guard instruction were produced by companies such as Nicholson and Watson, John Murray, Whitcombe and Tombs, and Hodder and Stoughton. One such manual, in two variations, was published by Gale and Polden, and titled “The Thompson Mechanism Made Easy.” It was extremely well produced, and reproductions are prevalent today, but original examples can still be found. It features pictures of Colt Thompson #3386. The British War Office also produced several versions of Thompson manuals, three of which accompanied the “Small Arms Training” series of field manuals used during World War II. The 1944 version combined both the Thompson and the Sten SMG into one manual.

Three versions of a Model of 1921 Thompson manual were produced for the Vichy French government in 1941, 1942, and 1944 by Charles Lavauzelle & Co. They were prepared under Nazi occupation, due to the large number of Colt Thompsons purchased by the French in 1939, many of which ended up being used as police weapons after the French surrendered. Germany also referenced the French Thompsons in a small arms manual. Norway published two versions of a Thompson manual, the first of which was produced in Britain by exiled Norwegian forces. Some intriguing Italian Thompson manuals exist based upon British military manuals, and these were probably produced during the allied occupation of Italy. Many other examples exist that provide further history of the distribution of TSMGs to various forces.

Auto-Ordnance was sold to the Kilgore Manufacturing Company in 1949, and Kilgore produced at least one style of sales flyer for the M1A1 Thompson, which they intended to produce after their attempts to sell the Thompson to Egypt failed. For a short period of time, Frederick Willis, the former Maguire executive who brokered the deal to Kilgore, purchased back the Thompson, and sold it to Numrich Arms in 1951. Many examples of Numrich sales flyers, brochures, and periodical advertising exist referencing their ownership of the Thompson. In 1974, Numrich received approval to produce a semi-automatic model first considered in the mid-1960s. They revived the Auto-Ordnance name in West Hurley, NY for use with their new production models, which later included the fully automatic Model of 1928 and M1. Several collectible catalogs, sales flyers, and manuals exist from the era that can be found at reasonable prices. Numrich paper items hearkened back to the style of Colt era advertising. In 1999, Kahr Arms purchased Auto-Ordnance from Numrich, and the company has produced four different catalogs featuring Thompsons, as well as manuals and various advertisements.

A manual is a necessary accessory, like a cleaning rod or gun case. Military manuals represent experience gained from spending vast sums of taxpayer money on weapons projects, and we can benefit from the information produced. However, operators using old manuals for instruction should exercise caution, common sense, and consult others when operating their live guns. While most information is reliable, changes were often made, and in some cases, incorrectly printed information may exist. It is best to use the latest edition of a manual if intended to aid in the operation and maintenance of a firearm.

Caution should always be exercised when purchasing expensive “original” paper items to ensure the buyer remains well informed regarding reproductions. Collecting Thompson paper items provides exciting historical content to accompany the guns and other accessories. Through collecting efforts, many items have been recently “rediscovered,” providing more pieces to the larger Thompson historical puzzle, and there are probably many more out there to find.

(David Albert is co-author of the book “Thompson Manuals, Catalogs, and Other Paper Items,” a collector guide privately published in 2005. The book is out of print, and a second edition is in the works.)

In the beautiful countryside of northern England just a few miles from York, is the Yorkshire Air Museum. Based on the former World War II Bomber Command Station of RAF Elvington, the Museum retains the authentic atmosphere of the period, with many fascinating exhibits housed in restored wartime buildings.

The Museum is a memorial to all the Allied aircrews of Bomber Command, including French, Canadian, Australian and other nationalities that served in the Elvington area.

The unique aspect of this Museum is that the entire facility is the Museum with 17 preserved buildings of a World War II base that operated bombing runs across the channel to the heart of Germany. Each of the buildings contain exhibits pertaining to the people and operations that was home at Elvington. Originally the home of 77 Squadron of Number 4 Bomber Group, the first operational aircraft were Handley Page Halifax four-engine bombers and took part in the Battle of the Ruhr and many other battles aimed at the destruction of German industry.

During 1943, 77 Squadron alone suffered heavy losses, particularly against heavily defended Berlin. By the end of the hostilities, the squadron had lost almost eighty Halifaxes, with over five hundred aircrew killed, missing or taken prisoner. (The normal squadron strength was approximately twenty aircraft.) In all, more than one hundred Halifaxes left on missions from Elvington during World War II, never to return. Almost 900 air and ground crew members were killed or missing due to enemy action or accidents.

In 1944, 77 Squadron moved to another station and in May 1944, Elvington became host to the only base to be operated entirely by French personnel with the arrival of No. 346 (Guyennne) and No. 347 (Tunisie) Squadrons operating within No. 4 Group.

In October 1945, the French Squadrons left and in 1952 RAF Elvington was part of an expansion program with the US Strategic Air Command that included a new control tower and lengthening the main runway to accept the latest jet aircraft. The base never became operational and was vacated in 1958 and in March 1992, RAF Elvington was closed. The original air traffic control tower and adjacent buildings were derelict and overgrown. The land and buildings were privately purchased and a band of devoted volunteers set to work to clear 40 years of undergrowth and to restore and upgrade the buildings to the way they were in 1944. The Museum is privately financed and supported with no government, state or local authority funding.

RAF Elvington served as a base well past World War II and the present collection of aircraft at the museum encompasses pre-Second World War (9 aircraft), Second World War (9 aircraft) and post-World War II (24 aircraft). The crown jewel in their collection includes an operational Handley Page Halifax II (III) (named Friday the 13th) as well as a De Havilland Mosquito NF.II.

Air Gunners Memorial

A truly unique aspect of the Yorkshire Air Museum is in building number 3. This building is devoted to air gunners from the early World War I rear open cockpit planes that were armed with a Lewis gun with a 97-round drum magazine mounted on a Scarf Ring mount through the powered turret gunners of World War II.

The Air Gunners’ Collection is believed to be the only one of its type in the world and is dedicated to the memory of the tens of thousands of Air Gunners who lost their lives in World War II.

The Air Gunner’s tasks were complicated and hazardous and his life expectancy was appallingly short. It could be a little as two weeks before a rear gunner on bomber operations could be expected to be shot down or killed.

The display at the Yorkshire Air Museum shows an array of weapons, turrets and air gunnery techniques used by these aircrew who played such an important part in the achievements of the RAF effort.

In the years prior to World War II, the Air Ministry wanted a more purpose designed gun and the Vickers Gas Operated “K” gun using a 100-round drum magazine was adopted and became standard issue for air gunners in the early years of the war.

With the introduction of enclosed turrets that were being developed by Boulton Paul, Frazer Nash and Bristol Aircraft, powered by hydraulic or electrical power supplied by the engines that enabled them to be rotated, the first of these power-operated turrets were fitted with a single .303 Lewis gun and installed in Boulton Paul Overstrand medium bombers and used between 1935 and 1938 by 101 Squadron.

As World War II began in 1939, mid-upper turrets were fitted to aircraft such as the Boulton Paul Defiant, Bristol Blenheim and Avro Anson. Not long after, the twin-engined Whitley, Wellington and Hamdens were not only fitted with mid-upper turrets, but a rear turret and often a nose turret. They were fitted with Browning Mk II machine guns in .303 caliber and installed in either banks of two or four guns. The number of air gunner stations on aircraft increased as the fleet of four-engined bombers increased in 1942, initially again with the .303 caliber Mk II Brownings. However, the .303 Mk II Browning’s weakness was its lack of range and German fighters, usually equipped with cannon, could easily outrange the Browning air gunners who had to wait until the enemy plane was within 400 yards before returning fire – a deadly time indeed as they would have been under fire from the German guns for several seconds before being able to respond. Later in the war they were replaced with the much more effective .50 caliber Brownings.

The job of the air gunner required a highly trained and skilled individual. Not only was he to defend his aircraft from enemy fighter attack but it required excellent night vision (as Bomber Command conducted bombing raids at night) and he had to be proficient with bullet trail, drift, range finding and harmonization in order to maximize fire power as well as be proficient in correcting stoppages (particularly while manning the turret and under fire) and understand fully how the turret functioned.

Air Gunners (AG) and Wireless Operator/Air Gunners (WOP/AG) made up approximately half of the crew of an aircraft. Bomber Command estimates that 125,000 aircrew served in the squadrons and the operational training and conversion units and approximately 73,000 were casualties of which 55,500 were fatalities. The losses of AGs and WOP/AGs within this group would be 20-25,000. It is also important to note that the RAF crew losses noted above apply only to Bomber Command in the European theater and do not include losses of Coastal Command, Transport Command, 2nd TAF, SEAC and the Mediterranean. Thus, the loss figures would be substantially higher. This Air Gunners Memorial in Building 3 pays homage to those intrepid gunners, the risks they took and the losses they incurred.

This World War II airfield with all its restored buildings and displays is a unique experience and well worth a visit should you be traveling in Northern England or visiting the Royal Armouries in nearby Leeds. Also located on the grounds is a beautifully maintained Memorial Garden in memory of all the aircrew of the many nationalities that flew out of Elvington. There is a small restaurant on premises as well as a gift shop. Admission is £5 for adults, £4 for seniors and £3 for children (5-15). Parking is free. They are open every day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (in winter, 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.) and closed on Christmas Day and Boxing Day (the day after Christmas). Directions to find the Yorkshire Air Museum are to take the York by-pass, take the Hull exit (A1079) and then an immediate right to Elvington (B1228). The Museum is sign-posted on the right.

Yorkshire Air Museum
Halifax Way
Elvington, York YO41 4AU
Phone: (01904) 608595
Fax: (01904) 608246
www.yorkshireairmuseum.org

“My favorite is the .50 cal. The brainchild of John Browning is a beast of a weapon but it’s so simple and it’s been around for nearly a hundred years. That’s amazing to me. The M240 has quickly climbed that list. It seems like they took the M60 and said how can we simplify this and make it easier for the average guy to get behind this weapon and do well with it. And I think that’s what the 240’s turned into.” Petty Officer First Class Tim Caldwell, CSWI Course Student

Range 14, MCB Quantico, VA – 15 March 2007

PO1 Caldwell, a straight talking 41 year old Master-at-Arms Navy Reservist, was responding to a question we like to ask gun guys everywhere we go. He answered without hesitation and few would dispute his observation about Browning’s .50 caliber masterpiece, prototyped in 1918 and still going strong today.

Further discussion followed, of course, and the seven year veteran, a police officer in civilian life, was intrigued to learn that the M240 of his growing esteem was a direct descendent of other Browning designs.

Rarely hesitant to conduct a short course in firearms history, we explained that it was born in Belgium in the late 1950s at Fabrique Nationale, European licensee for all of John Browning’s designs. The FN MAG 58’s boxy, riveted, heavy steel receiver is common to Browning’s .50 and .30 caliber machine guns and its operating and locking system are derived from the stalwart Browning Automatic Rifle, initially fielded in 1918, the last year of WWI. Now made in the US at FN Manufacturing, Inc. as the M240, the gun is essentially unchanged in form and function after a half century of service in many armed forces worldwide.

As to Caldwell’s observations on the combat utility of the stamped sheet metal receiver M60 (based on the WWII German MG42 with the operating system of the WWI Lewis Gun), its development began at the end of WWII and was adopted by the Army in 1957, making it a contemporary of the MAG 58. The “Sixty” entered service in the Marine Corps and Navy during the Vietnam War and has served with mixed reviews since. The Navy still has thousands in the fleet and ashore, including the significantly improved MK43 versions that were developed for Naval Special Operations, but intends to remove all 60s from first line use by the end of 2008.

He explained that all the aging and hard-used M60s in his unit are scheduled for replacement as new M240s come into the Navy inventory. We certainly understand his preference for brand new Browning-inspired M240s over the worn and tired Sixties since reliability will undoubtedly be greater and the substantial weight penalty is not so big a factor in typical Navy Expeditionary Warfare operations.

Meanwhile, he and his fellow students were getting plenty of training with both machine guns, an eminently practical solution during this time of transition Navy-wide.

Contract Training Package

It was Day 4 of Center for Security Forces’ intense and demanding two-week Program of Instruction (POI) that qualifies Navy personnel in the rate (rank is “rate” in the Navy) of E5 and above to teach their fellow Sailors the science and craft of effective employment of crew served weapons on land and sea. Caldwell and eleven other Petty Officers from various commands were a few hours into the first of two days on Quantico’s vast range complex.

Although the students were under the direct control and supervision of CSF’s military staff, we found it interesting that all the front-line instructors for this block were civilians, employees of Virginia Beach-based Special Tactical Services (STS), one of several firms contracted by CSF for various programs.

Make no mistake about their qualifications for the tasking, all of these guys are former military and most with more than one Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) deployment. Under the stern eye of STS Vice President Bill Witherspoon, a burly, retired Marine Gunnery Sergeant, six red-shirted STS employees were getting the job done with professionalism and efficiency.

Equally impressive was the fact that STS’ support package even included all the weapons to be used on both days, a tall order for any operation. Today’s emphasis was on live fire with the 7.62mm M60 and M240 machine guns, weapons in widespread use throughout the Navy. The following day would be hands-on with Caldwell’s esteemed .50 caliber M2HB and the 40mm MK 19 Mod 1, heavy hitters for serious situations.

Petty Officers Make It Happen

A short break in training action on the range yielded an opportunity to speak at some length with Chief Petty Officer Alex Hebert (pronounced “A-Bear”), Weapons Department Head at Center for Security Forces’ Chesapeake Learning Site. The serious but cordial 34 year old Master-at-Arms (Air Warfare) has 15 years in the Navy including service in Mobile Security Forces and 13 months in his current position at CSF.

Our Public Affairs escort for the day, Lieutenant Brian Simpson, CSF’s Assistant Expeditionary Warfare Program Manager, had spoken earlier of Hebert with high praise, “If I could clone him I’d be a happy camper.”

SAR: What’s the biggest challenge you and the other instructors have in implementing what we’re looking at today?

Hebert: Logistics. Currently, the Navy doesn’t own any of their own machine gun ranges in the Norfolk area. The closest Marine Corps range is Quantico, a three and a half hour drive from Norfolk. The closest Army range is a two and a half hour drive. Then you have to worry about lodging and food and ammo and getting the weapons up to the range. If we could do something to get a machine gun range in the Norfolk regional area, a closer range where we could shoot heavy machine guns on – Fifty Cals, Mark 19s – logistically it would make the job a lot easier.

SAR: Ammunition is sometimes in short supply due to wartime operational requirements and other factors. Have you got all the ammunition that you need for this course?

Hebert: Yes.

SAR: Is two weeks enough time to implement the CSWI program of instruction?

Hebert: Yes. With the two weeks you’re looking at ten to twelve hour days, so the instructors get a lot of what they need on the weapons. Most of these guys should be coming to us with some machine gun background so they should already have some knowledge of the weapons. Prior to that they have to complete the two week Operation and Maintenance course where they learn how the weapon actually operates, what that weapon does, all the intricacies of the weapon. So it’s actually four weeks of instruction.

SAR: We talked about how getting students out to a suitable live fire range is a long reach, but as far as the rest of the necessary components – classrooms, access to the FATS (Firearms Training System) simulator, these kinds of things – is that working well?

Hebert: Yes sir. On our Learning Site in Chesapeake, Virginia, we have two classrooms we can use plus a FATS room where we can fire up to twenty weapons at a time if we need to. Also, we have a blank fire range in the back of our compound, so after the students do the live fire component and FATS component they come to us.

SAR: This course is “Train the Trainer.” Tell us about the process.

Hebert: We have a ‘crawl, walk, run’ method that we do with the students. When they first get to the school we start them with some PowerPoint’s on teaching fundamentals, how the weapons operate, principles of machine gun employment.

Then we bring them into the FATS simulator for the ‘crawl’ portion of it. They shoot this course of fire that they will shoot later in live fire. In the simulator we can correct any bad habits, we can look at things they’re doing, we can give them recommendations without actually having live bullets flying around. I can train all the 7.62mm weapons, the .50 caliber, the Mark 19, we can also do the Squad Automatic Weapon, 9mm pistol, shotgun, M203.

So we go from crawling on FATS, then we come up to Quantico. Currently we spend two days here but in the next two months we’re going to increase that to three days on the range. That’s where students are beginning to ‘walk,’ shooting live fire with machine guns on a full size range, seeing everything happening.

From there we go to the ‘run’ phase where instructors and students switch roles. It’s done in blank fire and we’ll run through the same exact drill sets they’re running through today. This time it’s their show, they’re running it and we’re the worst students in the world, giving them all kinds of headaches so they can know how to deal with a student who doesn’t know what he’s doing with the weapon.

SAR: Your CSWI students are Petty Officers – E5 and above – so they have an experience level they bring with them right now. Why is it important to have a more experienced Sailor who is then going to be a weapons instructor back in his unit?

Hebert: There are a few issues with that. First, it’s E5 and above in any rating (Military Occupational Specialty). Prior – probably about five years ago – the only personnel who could teach firearms in the Navy were your Aviation Ordnancemen, Gunners Mates, Torpedomen, and Master-at-Arms. Well, because the Navy has gone to more of a hybrid Sailor – on the Riverine Forces, Mobile Security Forces (MSF) – you have a wide array of different types of Sailors. You can have a Culinary Specialist (Cook) running a machine gun, so we decided to open it up. Anybody who can qualify on the weapon can become an instructor because of how we’re developing hybrid Sailors. The E5 portion, a lot of the ranges you sign out by Army or Marine Corps standards an E5 or above is the only one who can run the range – leadership ability, situational awareness, things like that.

SAR: We have seen some ‘tricks of the trade,’ things maybe not exactly by the manual. Comment on bringing real life experience into the program of instruction and making this work in a way that is acceptable to the higher headquarters.

Hebert: Every thing we do on the range is by the instruction manual. We don’t go outside the instruction. What we do is if we have a question on something we’re doing and whether or not we can do it, we’ll clear it through higher authority with the Navy. We’ll demonstrate it to them, talk about it and see what we can do. The last thing we want to do is something that’s not inside of the instruction because we’re training the trainer.

SAR: Is one example the Runaway Gun Drill?

Hebert: This is a surprise that has to be recognized and immediately fixed. Classroom instruction prepares them to deal with a runaway gun. So, the only thing different implemented here is that the instructors say, ‘We’re going to introduce you to the MK43 machine gun on a tripod mount. One volunteer get down behind it and everybody else gather around.’ Then all of a sudden the one student picked for the demonstration gets a surprise and has to deal with a runaway gun. That’s more of a dramatic presentation than what’s usual in a program of instruction.

Simpson: (Lieutenant Simpson joins the conversation) It’s required by the schoolhouse that they’re not allowed to take that technique back to the ship and do it in that kind of a (live fire) training situation. The schoolhouse does it as a demonstration to make the point that you’re never really ready when this happens to you.

SAR: But it’s perfectly OK that this is done because it’s a dramatic lesson the students will remember for a long, long time.

Simpson: That’s correct. Noted once again, specific situations have been routed and approved through our chain of command. But it’s a learning technique we don’t recommend for our CSWI graduates to take back to the ship. It’s not authorized for them to take this technique back to wherever they’re stationed.

SAR: Give us an example of a real world lesson that has been brought back and then incorporated in the program of instruction here.

Hebert: When our course was in its beginning stages a lot of our shooting was done from ground type mounts – tripods or bipods in fixed positions. One of the things we realized was we’re not just training Navy ground forces; we’re also training a lot of the Navy surface forces. And surface forces shoot from a standing position; they shoot from a shipboard mount. One of the things we did was to have a trailer developed and certified. The trailer actually simulates being on board ship with the mount at the same height, the same distance from lifelines. Sailors actually get up and shoot like they’re shooting from a ship. That was taken from the fleet and we brought it into the course. And they can also experience how their brothers on the other side of the Navy are shooting. So, your sea sailors are shooting like ground sailors and your ground sailors are shooting like sea sailors because you never know when a ship may have to do its landing party team and they may have to do a ground mount. Now, they’re being exposed to all aspects of the weapon and how it can be employed.

SAR: In shooting from the mounts on the trailer, is there anything specific that you learn as a result of that – brass splashing off the bulkhead, coming back at you and rolling around on the deck?

Hebert: No, it’s really straightforward; the brass falls down on the deck. You have some slip hazard from brass on the deck so you have to continuously police your brass. Whereas on a ship it would just be kicked overboard or fall overboard. On the trailer we just have to make sure to police the deck to keep the brass from being on the deck as a slip hazard.

SAR: If you could write the POI exactly as you wanted, would you make any changes?

Hebert: We’re doing revisions to it on a continuous basis trying to improve it. Some things we’re adding are to use M203s for target illumination during the night fire. We’ll teach the students how to instruct their shooters on different types of target illumination, how to employ the M203 effectively with the machine gun. Both using flares and using HEDP (High Explosive Dual Purpose) rounds for dead space where the machine guns can’t reach or can’t cover. You can lob that HEDP round into that hole and still have an effective machine gun position.

SAR: How about a Night Vision component?

Hebert: Yes there is. Once we implement the whole night shoot there will be a night vision component – in about two months from now. In the O&M phase, the prerequisite course, they learn about maintenance and use of the night vision goggles, how they work with your eyes, the physiology.

SAR: But as far as practical application with night vision on the guns, that’s not being done now but is planned for the future?

Hebert: Yes, that’s in the revision and probably will be done beginning two months from now. Night vision goggles and thermal imagers, night vision scopes, a multitude of NVO (Night Vision Observation) equipment. Also the flares.

That’s why we’re going to add that third range day. There will be a day of 7.62mm machine guns, then a day of M203 and 7.62, then a day of .50 cal.

Simpson: Just to clarify, we aren’t going to do any night qualification – just familiarization. It will be up to the unit to actually do the qualification at their level.

SAR: You have a dozen students. Are any in danger of not making it through?

Hebert: With an instructor course – because most of these students do have some machine gun experience – we ‘re not going to see the students who might fail until next week when they start doing their ‘teach-backs.’ When they start teaching us the weapon systems and they start teaching us the live fire portion that’s where we’re going to see our ‘problem children’ who won’t be able to make it through the course.

SAR: Based on your experience with the number of students coming through past courses, average number who don’t make it?

Hebert: One or two per class. The main reason is they can’t relay the knowledge they have to other people to learn it properly. Or just not as familiar with the weapons as they are expected to be.

SAR: So it’s not a gentleman’s course. If you can’t make the standards you aren’t going to graduate.

Hebert: We’ve dropped people on graduation day.

SAR: What remedial help do you give them?

Hebert: All of our instructors are available the entire class day, we open the doors at 0700 and we’re usually there until 1800. And during the entire day all the weapons and instructors are available for after hours work. The weapons are always at the back of the classroom. During a break if the students want to work with the weapons and do some practice, they verify everything’s safe and they can pull a weapon out – continuously work with a weapon and take the ‘bogeyman’ out of the weapon for themselves.

The other thing if a student is having problems, the first thing we’ll do is have a counseling session and explain to him where their problems and deficiencies are. That will usually be a one-on-one situation and we’ll work with it. If the student continues to have problems or if the student fails to meet a performance requirement then we’ll remediate that student on the performance requirement – on the test or on the live fire portion – explain to him where they’re failing and what they can do to make improvements. Then re-test on that portion of it. If they fail that, then we hold an Academic Review Board. We’ll take the lead instructors and student and sit down and go through the student’s performance during the entire course to find out if it’s just that segment of the course he’s having problems with and what can we do to fix that segment. Or, if he’s just been getting by with the skin of his teeth the entire course and this is the straw that broke the camel’s back, we need to send him home.

SAR: What is the ideal student?

Hebert: One who presents himself well in front of other people. Is comfortable speaking in front of a crowd and has experience with the weapon. If I can get a shooter in here who has put six to ten thousand rounds through one of these weapon systems, knows the weapons system, understands how it operates, and can present himself in front of an audience, I’m ready to hire him as one of my instructors.

A CSWI Student

Chief Hebert’s perspective set the stage for a conversation with one of the students, Petty Officer 1st Class Tim Caldwell, a 41 year old Master-at-Arms with 7 years in the Navy Reserve. A police officer in civilian life, he joined up at the unusually mature age of 35, enlisting for Master-at-Arms in Advanced Pay Grade because of his extensive formal police training.

SAR: Tell us about your Navy assignment.

Caldwell: US Navy Reserve Mobile Inshore Undersea Warfare Unit 210 out of Baltimore, Maryland. My specific duty assignment is in the Weapons Division in the Maintenance and Repair Department. I came in filling a Gunners Mate position. I can do that as a Master-at-Arms rating so I’ve been involved in weapons ever since I arrived there.

SAR: Is this a little bit of an inexact fit with your duty assignment that you’re sent here to teach Sailors the tactical employment of the weapons, not necessarily the maintenance and repair?

Caldwell: That’s correct. We have a security team within the unit and that security team will be responsible for perimeter security, any safety sweeps outside of the perimeter wire that would need to be done. So they’re going to take the people that are best qualified with the weapons and train them to be the instructors so I can take the knowledge I’m gleaning from here and transfer that back to the Security Team members back at the unit. That doesn’t mean only ST members or M&R department members are the ones that utilize the weapons. We all get trained on them. In the event that we all have to fight we all need to be able to fight.

SAR: What you’re going to be doing when you get back to your unit as a CSWI?

Caldwell: First things first, we’re getting rid of our M60 machine guns. We have received our M240 machine guns so transition has to take place and how you manipulate the weapon is different. Not completely because it’s still a machine gun with similar characteristics.

Familiarization with the M240 will be the first thing, to get my unit members familiar with how the weapon breaks down. After they get familiar with the basic function of the weapon we’ll get them out on the range and I’m going to go through the same drills that we ran here this morning; fire one round, fire two rounds, fire three. Get them used to it just as they (the course instructors) said here – ‘to get the bogeyman out of the gun.’ Get everybody figured and snapped in so they feel comfortable with the weapon.

Then after that comfort level starts to increase and their confidence starts to increase then we’ll be able to start into our qualification process and get everybody qualified up. The idea is not to bring people out to the range and expend thousands of rounds of ammunition and then not walk away with a qualification. And that’s going to be my end result is to get people qualified. If they’re screwing up on the range I’ve got to figure out why, what they’re doing wrong, see that, make the corrections, get them back on target and continue on with the course.

SAR: We talked about why you were sent to the course, how long is it and how far are you into it?

Caldwell: It’s a two week course and we’re in the first Thursday of the first week (4 days). It has been mostly classroom and mechanical up to this point. We have had some FATS (Firearms Training System) simulator training which was a precursor to this (live fire) to help us get snapped in on what we were going to be expected to do here so they didn’t come out here and we didn’t get the ‘deer in the headlights look’ when standing on the range. We had that figured out ahead of time so we had an idea of what was going to happen.

SAR: Before you came here you had experience with the M60, but how about the M240?

Caldwell: I did not. This is the very first day in my entire life I’ve ever fired an M240 machine gun. I like the machine gun.

SAR: How do you rate the course content so far and are the students getting enough time to learn each part?

Caldwell: Being my experience as a Reservist with machine guns, I have to be able to absorb and take in a lot. I feel as though it is simple enough that anybody who pays attention to those details should be able to come in and complete this course. There are other factors that come into that whether it’s learning styles, motivation, or whatever the case may be, that’s going to affect different Sailors at different points in their career. But I think its pretty much geared to the average guy being able to come and grab a hold of these concepts – some mechanical things and also some cognitive things you have to remember – and be able to put that back down on paper and remember it. It’s not full of mathematics and geometry, trying to figure out why these certain things happen with the gun or whatever on the physical side of it. It’s simplistic – it’s mechanics, it’s a machine and it’s designed to work this way and if it doesn’t work this way you figure out why.

SAR: Your course handout shows that you’re going to start here, go through this, and end up there. Does it all look logical to you?

Caldwell: Yes it does. We’re going to be instructors. The purpose of this course is not to teach us how to maintain and operate – although that’s part of it. My understanding is that the second half of this course, all next week, is going to be based on them showing us how to teach it back. Things we need to work on as instructors and how we communicate. Are we explaining it correctly, do we have habits that are going to turn people off when we talk to them? Those are the kind of things we’re going to get feedback on from the instructors to us – to help us go back and be effective in communicating this to our units.

SAR: Give us your overall impression of the instructor staff, their knowledge, professionalism and teaching style.

Caldwell: I think we have a great group of instructors who are stepping forward and doing this. We have the Navy side, obviously in control of us, and we have the contractor instructors who are teaching the course. On the Navy side, Chief Hebert has been fantastic. He’s stepped forward, been very forthright with us, there have been no hidden punches like ‘oh crap, I forgot to tell you about that.’ He’s been up front and supportive of everything we’ve needed to do for this course. The majority of the instruction has been done by the contracted instructors (Special Tactical Services), and all of them have previous military experience and some even in-depth combat experience which is even more important when you’re teaching this course. Because they know from a first hand level what happens to the body, what happens to the mind when it’s in that position where ‘oh crap somebody’s shooting at me too!’ and it’s not just a paper or plastic target.

SAR: How about their teaching styles. We noticed it started out very low key this morning and has quickly ratcheted up. Is that the way it usually happens?

Caldwell: I think so, that’s one of the ways you want to learn because if you’re going to make mistakes you want to make them now and you want to be able to help each individual Sailor. If you see a mistake as that adrenalin starts to go and somebody’s standing there yelling at you – because nobody likes to be yelled at – but as it happens and it does, the adrenalin starts to pump and you need to start thinking OK, maybe you need to take a deep breath and focus in on what’s going on and keep going. And I think they’ve done a very good job at raising our nervousness – call it that – and helping us work through that and keep going on with the drill and fight through it to completion.

SAR: What’s been the hardest part for you so far?

Caldwell: I think the hardest part has been the anticipation I placed on myself. Mental stress. The stress that was build up here was, hey, if you screw up here you’re done, we’re gonna throw you out of the course. Coming into this it was like, oh man, what happens if I get in there and I have a brain lock? It happens, people do that. But once I got through the initial phase – disassembly and reassembly of the M240 and the M2 Heavy Barrel .50 caliber machine gun – once I got through that it was like, OK, you can do this. Just relax, pay attention, do what the instructors tell you to do and you’ll be fine.

SAR: How about some of the other students. Have they had serious brain cramps, problems with the mechanical part or other?

Caldwell: I don’t think so and I think part of it is – my situation is a little bit different here. I took the Operation and Maintenance Course in September last year. A lot of the guys here took the O & M Course the two weeks before this course. So they’ve been here for two weeks doing Operation and Maintenance with the same instructors, and then fall right in to Crew Served Weapon Instructor Course so for some of them I think it’s been a little bit easier. There’s always that idea that you want to do good in front of your fellow Sailors. Nobody wants to be at the bottom, everybody’s achieving, to try to get to the top. But all in all I think everybody’s done the best they can. Each individual has different stressors, different buttons that get pushed. And as soon as the instructors find out which button it is, boom they’re on it and trying to force you to screw up and work through that and get to completion of the task.

SAR: So they’re helping individuals identify for themselves what their strengths and weaknesses are, and to work through those weaknesses as individuals. Not lock-stepping everybody through the program of instruction.

Caldwell: That’s correct. The instructors have been more than willing to step aside on an individual basis. When you say, I’m not getting this, I don’t understand it, these guys will pull us to the side, slow you down and say, OK now think about it. And take you through. You gotta crawl before you walk and walk before you run. And they’ve taken that approach to it. Step by step increments.

SAR: What challenges do you expect to face at your home unit when you bring this program of instruction there? Will you have the time you need, the range facilities, ammunition, that kind of thing?

Caldwell: I think the biggest challenge for me, being a Range Safety Officer, is getting the administrative side squared away first. Making sure I have my Letters of Instruction done, making sure I have my ammunition ordered, making sure that my ranges are set aside. Because where I’m at in Baltimore, obviously, we have no machine gun ranges so we have to make arrangements with Quantico or Fort AP Hill, places like that. So we need to be able to get range time, and plan that and have that plan fit into the overall plan for the unit on the calendar year.

The second one then is going to be OK, now I need to get in here, I need to have my line coaches done and snap my line coaches in on what exactly I’m expecting of them so when we go out and we present this to the Security Team I want them to look up to the Line Coaches and say I want to get to their level and try to get up to that. So they have something to work for too. It’s going to be a motivational thing.

SAR: Of the weapons you’re being taught here, what’s your favorite?

Caldwell: Well, we haven’t gotten to it yet (in live fire) but my favorite is the .50 cal. The effect, the devastation, you can wreak with a Fifty Cal, the things you can take out not only small vehicles but also boats. And in the event that you get good enough or in that situation, maybe even low, slow flying aircraft. It’s one of those weapons that’s been deployed and employed at various times throughout our military history. It has come up to the challenge and is still serving the country today.

SAR: What would you like to say to your fellow Sailors and to those young people considering joining the Navy about what you’re doing?

Caldwell: I don’t think there is anything I wouldn’t want to do to provide for the safety and security of my wife and my three daughters. If that means I’ve got to be 41 years old and being deployed to some foreign country somewhere to help ensure that our country’s borders stay safe then I’ll do that. I would hope that every single person takes stock in where we have been as a nation and how we started out and the sacrifices that people through hundreds of years have gone through to have the things we have. Freedom being the utmost, foremost thing. If we don’t have freedom we don’t have anything. And if we can’t stand up and defend that, put on a uniform and walk out in our communities and say, ‘This is what I stand for and this is who I am,’ then we’re in a sorry state. But I don’t think that’s the case at all. I think there’s many young men and women who are stepping to the forefront. This is a volunteer military now, not the draftees we had back in Vietnam. I’ve been watching these young Marines go through the chow lines here at Northwest. They’re kids, I could be their dad for most of them, that’s the way they look. I’m the old man and to see these young men step up and say, ‘Hey, I’ll go, I’ll do it,’ they have a servant’s attitude, a servant’s heart and you can’t top that.

SAR: OK, we’re going back and talking about your typical ‘mall rat’ teenager, what would you say to him about the Master-at-Arms rating?

Caldwell: The Master-at-Arms rating, there are a lot of particulars. You have to be a well rounded individual because it is the enforcement arm inside the Navy. In a unit we answer directly to the XO (executive officer) who tells us the things he wants to enforce. We’re responsible for security, responsible for doing roving patrols. That may mean if you’re in Iraq that you have to man up and be a gunner, it may mean you’re a driver. You see in the MA rating a lot of different facets of the Navy. You’ll go places, you’ll see things, you’ll serve on a ship, you’ll be a ground pounder as well as being a blue water sailor. A lot of things to experience. I don’t know how else you can get a paycheck and have somebody let you see the world, go across the globe. Hey, I’ve been here, I’ve been there. I was 35 years old before I left the borders of this country. Now I’ve been to England, to Spain, to Germany, to Kuwait. I can’t put a price tag on those experiences. And, I have the privilege of representing the United States.

M240 Technical Specifications (USMC and US Navy M240G Model)

Caliber: ….. 7.62mm NATO
Weight: ….. 24.2 pounds
Length: ….. 47.5 inches
Operation: ….. Gas
Cyclic Rate of Fire: ….. 650 – 950 RPM (3 gas regulator settings)
Sustained Rate: ….. 100 RPM
Max. Effective Range: ….. 1,800 meters from tripod
Manufacturer: ….. FNMI, Columbia, SC
Approximate Cost: ….. $10,700

Crew Served Weapons Instructor Course (CSWI)

“All Navy personnel armed with light and medium machine guns are required to undergo quarterly sustainment training. Sustainment training shall include but is not limited to: classroom instruction, dry fire training, weapons manipulation drills utilizing dummy rounds, simulator training, blank fire training and/or additional live fire training. The CSW Instructor (NEC 0814) shall conduct this training in accordance with items listed….” CSWI Course Trainee Guide

Given the large and growing number of Navy personnel whose duties include machine gunning on land and sea, the requirements for standardized initial training, followed by refresher training four times each year, plus annual qualification, pose formidable challenges. CSW Instructors are at the forefront of this; NCOs specially selected, thoroughly prepared and professionally capable of ensuring that Sailors under their supervision are held to strict standards.

SAR was provided a copy of Center for Security Forces’ comprehensive 190 page CSWI Course Trainee Guide that details tasks, conditions and standards for 40 major performance requirements. The course divides these into three main Units of Instruction with the first two covering not only the mechanical and live fire skills needed for weapons that will work when you need them and hit what you aim at, but also when and how to employ warning shots in appropriate situations. The third block emphasizes preparing and conducting training safely and efficiently in the Navy’s elaborate administrative structure and in conjunction with different regulations governing range utilization in sister services.

Those who successfully navigate through the full four week program will have attained the course’s nine “Terminal Objectives.” These define the wide range of specialized skills the Navy believes are needed for effective instruction in the military science of machine gunning:

• Describe range safety procedures
• Describe marksmanship fundamentals
• Demonstrate the ability to accurately employ warning shots
• Demonstrate CSW employment and gunnery
• Demonstrate coaching techniques for machine guns
• Identify publications, forms, equipment, and procedures for managing a command CSW training program
• Demonstrate the ability to prepare and plan a CSW training evolution
• Demonstrate the procedures, instructions, and equipment required to safely set-up and operate a machine gun range
• Demonstrate the procedures, instructions and equipment required to effectively use range cards

The Guide identifies much more than tactical and technical proficiency. In order to be awarded Navy Enlisted Classification Code 0814, Crew Served Weapon Instructor, each must conclusively demonstrate seven key attributes:

1. Knowledge and Ability
2. Self Control and Patience
3. Communications Skills
4. Ability to Inspire Confidence
5. Positive Attitude and Enthusiasm
6. Perception
7. Open Mind

Producing large numbers of CSW Instructors with this combination of admirable traits isn’t easy. It begins with an individual’s personality profile – not everybody has a teaching temperament – and builds over four weeks of intense training.

The two-week Crew Served Weapons Operation and Maintenance course is a prerequisite for admission into the Instructor course. This provides a strong foundation in all mechanical aspects of the 7.62mm M60 and M240 series medium machine guns, the .50 caliber M2HB heavy machine gun, and the 40mm Mk 19 Mod 3 grenade machine gun.

The CSWI Course’s Program of Instruction (POI) is also two weeks long, beginning with general weapons and range safety, then marksmanship fundamentals, employment of CSWs, and planning for training.

Crawl, Walk, Run

Every task is outlined – broken down into logical steps called “teaching points” – and supported by clearly written documentation. We found superb narrative and graphic aids in the form of Information Sheets with reference materials from technical manuals, Diagram Sheets with simplified drawings showing mechanical principles, Job Sheets with step-by-step instructions, and the make or break Performance Tests.

We were pleased to see that there is little if any “reinventing the wheel.” Marine Corps Weapons Publication 3-15.2.2 MACHINE GUNS AND GUNNERY, is the foundation for all of the CSWI POIs mechanical and practical application instruction. This superlative manual, in its umpteenth revision since the Marine bulldog was just a pup, is packed with no-nonsense information from real combat experience over the decades and can’t be improved upon

Indeed, Devil Dog machine gunners from World War One would find drawings in the new Navy manual illustrating fundamental Classes of Fire – Grazing, Plunging, Traverse, Search, Frontal, Flanking, Enfilade, and Oblique – nearly identical to those first used in instructional materials back in 1918 and carried forward in decades since.

Mastering Machine Guns

The thoroughness of instruction is immediately evident from a grouping of tasks for the veteran .50 caliber Browning M2HB machine gun. Ten detailed Job Sheets take the student through every aspect of this 90 year old favorite of GIs in all services. Affectionately known as “Ma Deuce,” this hard hitting and far-reaching combat weapon needs skilled attention for optimal performance.

So, the POI calls for mastery of stripping and assembly, cycle of operations, head space and timing, function check, load and unload both day and night, condition codes, trigger control and “rhythm,” malfunctions, and employment of the traversing and elevating mechanism.

Realistic training in several of these tasks once required going out to a live fire range, an expensive, time consuming process that is quickly degraded by inclement weather and many other factors. This enormous handicap is avoided in CSF’s CSWI training by extensive use of an elaborate FATS – Firearms Training System – installed at its compound in Chesapeake, Virginia.

This sophisticated electro-optical-pneumatic system uses a powerful computer to digitally project different training scenarios on a big screen for “live fire” target engagement and scoring of hits. It uses specially modified actual weapons that load, fire, report, and recoil. While not a substitute for the course’s two days on an actual range, FATS is the next best thing, helping trainees work through problems in a controlled environment instead of wasting time and ammo.

Role Reversal

After demonstrating all of these to strict standards in classroom, simulator and live fire range qualification, each student must then take over the role of instructor. These three days in the second week are the hardest part for many of the students as they “teach back” all topics for each one of four very different machine gun systems. An extra degree of difficulty is provided by a cadre who likely take wicked pleasure in role-playing as slow learners or worse.

Again with an eye toward efficiency and practicality, blanks are used in teach-back for the actual firing tasks with each of the four machine guns. This has a number of positive aspects, not the least of which are safety and convenience.

During the teach-back ordeal, all seven key attributes of an effective instructor must be clearly shown in informal and formal evaluation. For example, if a hesitant or flustered instructor trainee fails to “inspire confidence,” he gets extra time and plenty of sympathetic remedial attention to get better. If that isn’t sufficient to correct the problem then the student will not graduate. Standards must be upheld.

Planning, Preparation and Documentation

The administration of machine gun training doesn’t have the excitement of putting rounds downrange but it is no less important to the big picture. The trainee CSWI learns range preparation, planning, setup, and management. Then, with so many Sailors needing periodic qualification and refresher training on machine guns, certification and documentation for their personnel records is also essential.

Are Your Good Enough?

The Crew Served Weapon Instructor Course is open to Sailors of all ratings in the rate of E5 and above. Detailed information may be found in CANTRAC, the Catalog of Navy Training Courses, at Navy Knowledge Online.

Find Out More

The Center for Security Forces provides training and human performance solutions to Navy Expeditionary, Security, and Antiterrorism professionals to meet the needs of the Fleet. CSF’s primary customers are personnel serving in the Master-at-Arms (MA) Rating, Sailors assigned in an antiterrorism role, the Navy Security Officer communities, and the Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC). The Center trains Navy personnel worldwide in security and antiterrorism measures and procedures. CSF reports to the Naval Personnel Development Command (NPDC) and is part of the Naval Education and Training Command (NETC).

CSF website: www.npdc.navy.mil/csf
CFS News: www.news.navy.mil/local/csf/
NECC website: www.necc.navy.mil
US Navy: www.navy.mil

The primary submachine guns used by Italy during World War II were made by Beretta and are well known by small arms shooters and collectors. These include the Beretta 1938 A, Beretta 1938/42, Beretta 1938/43 and the Beretta 1938/44. But there are some other models much less known, such as the F.N.A.B.

Produced in 1943 and 1944 by Fabbrica Nazionale d’ Armi de Brescia (F.N.A.B), it was used by both Italian and German troops at the end of the war and was also used by Italian partisans. Later, this gun was found in Tunisia and Algeria. The production of this model was approximately 7,000 guns. Few of them can be seen in European museums and are even scarcer in America.

Description

The F.N.A.B is a very interesting model and probably one of the best of the classic submachine guns. The main characteristics are a folding stock, folding magazine, and delayed opening bolt. This last characteristic largely contributes to reducing the weight of the weapon and to limit its recoil. When an F.N.A.B. is first taken up in the hand, it is surprising by its lightness and balance with an excellent distribution of weight.

The main part of the weapon is made of a frame, the receiver, its cover and the barrel jacket. The cover is locked with a screw plug that also retains the recoil spring. The frame has a hardened bolt rest at the front.

The pistol grip consists of two wooden grips locked by a screw. The trigger mechanism is located in the frame and consists of the trigger, two trigger bars and the sear; associated with two levers located on the left side. The front lever is the safety. The down position (F) permits shooting while the upper position (S) locks the trigger. The rear lever is the selector. The down position (colpo) is for single shot and the upper position (raffica) is for full auto.

The folding stock is made of a tube installed on a rotary part on the right side face of the frame that allows the stock to be folded forward along the right side of the gun. It has a folding butt plate with two holes for weight reduction.

The rear ring for attaching the sling is located at the rear of the frame on the left side. The front sling ring is just under the front sight on the same side.

An uncommon feature is the magazine housing can be folded forward and it is possible to carry a loaded weapon with good security. The F.N.A.B. uses the 20 or 40-shot Beretta magazines.

The flat sided receiver has a curved cover. The ejection port is located on the top. It has also a barrel jacket made of a perforated tube, fixed on the receiver by four screws. The front of the barrel jacket has a combination muzzle-brake-compensator designed like the Russian PPSh41. The barrel is 9mm calibre and has six right grooves.

The bolt is made up of several parts. The bolt body with the cocking lever is assembled with the bolt head by a U shaped part. The bolt head contains the firing pin, spring and firing lever, and there are two amplifying levers, one on each side. The small recoil spring has no guide. The spring moves under the bolt and a plug of the bolt body pushes it. A leather buffer is located at the rear inside of the frame.

The rear sight is a fixed V notch milled at the top of the frame cover. The front sight is at the top of the barrel jacket and can be moved for adjustment to the right or left.

On some F.N.A.B.s used by the Germans, the original marks were milled and replaced by: MASCHINE-PISTOLE P.M. 43 over Cal. 9mm. In the same way, the reference marks of the selector were also deleted by milling.

Operation

The gunner introduces a loaded magazine into the magazine housing. The rear selector switch is in the upper position (full auto) and the forward safety lever is in the down position (fire).

The cocking lever is pulled to the rear and the recoil spring permits the bolt to return to the forward position chambering a cartridge. The bolt is locked by the amplifying levers and when the trigger is pulled, the firing lever permits the firing pin to ignite the primer.

Shooting

The recoil force of the fired cartridge pushes the case to the rear out of the chamber pushing the bolt head. The bolt begins to recoil, but its travel is delayed because the amplifying lever works as a lock. After they move unlocking the bolt, the bolt can move to the rear and compresses the recoil spring. The empty case is extracted and ejected. The recoil is absorbed by the buffer. The compressed recoil spring now pushes the bolt forward and the firing process can be repeated. The left trigger bar pushes the sear for a new shot. When the selector is in the single shot position the left trigger bar moves up and the right trigger bar pushes the sear at each trigger pull of the shooter.

Disassembly and Assembly

Remove the magazine and clear the weapon. Unscrew the nut located at the rear of the frame and extract the recoil spring. Lift up and remove the frame cover. Retract the bolt to the rear and extract it from the frame. Remove the plug under the nut hole. Push the trigger frame down, allowing access to the trigger mechanism. To remove the bolt, push the U shaped part down and separate the bolt head and bolt body. Reassembly is carried out in the reverse order and does not present any particular difficulty.

Italian F.N.A.B.

Caliber: ….. 9mm
Ammunition: ….. 9mm Luger
Overall length: ….. 0.790 m (31.1 inches)
Length with stock folded: ….. 0.526 m (20.7 inches)
Barrel length: ….. 0.200 m (7.8 inches)
Weight of weapon without magazine: ….. 3.250 kg (7.17 pounds)
Capacity of magazine: ….. 20 or 40 rounds
Cyclic rate of fire: ….. 400 rpm
Manufacturer: ….. Fabbrica Nazionale, d’ Armi de Brescia

World War II brought the submachine gun into prominence with many armies. First being used successfully on a large scale by Germany during the war, Russia, England and eventfully the United States developed their own. It was just as quickly seen the ineffectiveness of the pistol cartridge on the battle field, especially compared to the new intermediate cartridges. Soon after the war, the SMG would be decommissioned throughout the world in favor of intermediate caliber assault rifles.

The SMG did not entirely disappear; they filled a role in law enforcement and in military special operations units. As a military weapon, it was effective under controlled conditions such as close quarter battle as well as when suppressed fire was needed. However, the biggest customer for the SMG was to become law enforcement. The SMG fit their area of operations perfectly. First, it dealt with the issues of over-penetration in the nation’s cities and kept compatibility with the ammunition police officers used in their sidearms. Police were not restricted as the military was in what type of ammunition they could use. By using modern high performance jacketed hollow point ammunition the 9mm NATO cartridge was quite effective and did not suffer from the over penetration and lack of stopping power as the military ball round. The SMG offered SWAT teams a significant amount of firepower in a small package. The first truly successful SMG to be used world-wide came out of Israel: the Uzi SMG – an open bolt selective fire SMG. The next, and the most successful SMG of all time, was the Heckler & Koch MP5. The MP5 would be the standard SMG in use by both military and law enforcement throughout the world. The MP5 was basically a scaled down version of the 7.62x51mm G3 assault rifle. Although the MP5 was a great success, the 7.62x51mm and 5.56x45mm H&K rifles never achieved popularity with U.S. law enforcement. The rifle and carbines of choice were the Colt M16/AR-15 series.

Colt decided that they were losing out on an entire market in the early 1980s. They realized they controlled the rifle and carbine markets in the U.S. but they offered nothing to fill the need for police who needed the lower powered pistol cartridges that were best used in urban environments. Consequently, they set out to design their own SMG and the project for the Colt SMG was given to their Senior Engineer, Henry “Hank” Tatro. With the knowledge that the M16/AR-15 is considered by many to be the finest human engineered small arm in the world (i.e. most ergonomic: controls all within reach of the shooter’s hand without the hand ever leaving the pistol grip and speed of reloading), it only made sense to base it off of the M16. Another viable reason for this is that law enforcement personnel are often made up of armed forces veterans who had already trained, and were familiar with, the weapon system. Additionally, since most of the departments used M16/AR-15 rifles and carbines, there would be little, if any, transitional training. The controls and procedures for loading, unloading, firing, disassembly and cleaning would be identical for the rifles, carbines and well as the SMG.

Since the SMG was to be chambered for the 9mm NATO caliber pistol cartridge, it was initially thought there was no need for a locking system and the weapon would utilize a blow back operation. Initial prototype SMGs would be open bolt. During testing by Tatro, it was discovered that the open bolt mechanism was not as desirable as a closed bolt for two main reasons. First was the concern for safety. If the SMG was to be dropped or jarred sharply on its butt, there was a better than average chance the bolt would travel rearward just far enough to pick up a cartridge from the magazine and chamber and fire it, resulting in an accidental discharge. According to designer Henry Tatro, clearing malfunctions could be dangerous as well. Additionally, ammunition/primer sensitivity could cause safety issues. Lastly, accuracy was decreased. Early prototype Colt SMGs utilized an M1911-style grip safety on the back of the pistol grip. Once the open bolt system was dropped, the grip safety went along with it.

The finalized SMG would be released in 1985 and would be based off the Colt “Commando” carbine utilizing a standard M16 upper receiver without the forward assist. The cam pin slot as well as the gas tube hole in the face of the receiver was omitted. Standard field sights were used with a special designed rear sight aperture. One aperture was for 0-50meters and the other was for 50 meters and farther out. Standard carbine handguards were used with a single heat shield in each.

The barrels were 10.5 inches long and utilized the standard birdcage flash suppressor. The barrels were chrome plated and designed specifically for the 9mm NATO cartridge (FMJ RN, high power). Each barrel was proof tested with a high pressure cartridge and then magnetic particle inspected like their 5.56mm counterparts. The barrel would employ the standard front sight assembly of the carbine.

Since the new SMG was not gas operated, the bolt had to be completely redesigned. The bolt/carrier would be manufactured from a single piece of steel with the breech face machined into the face of the carrier. Original prototypes used a standard 5.56mm extractor but when they went into production a specific 9mm extractor was made. Due to these firing from the blow back method of operation, weight had to be added to the bolt to give higher mass to delay the bolt from opening before the bullet left the barrel. This weight was pinned into the rear of the bolt. Another significant change was the firing pin. The firing pin only had one head and utilized a firing pin spring decreasing weight and mass of the firing pin. Due to the much softer primers used in pistol ammunition, the lighter weight and firing spring were used to prevent accidental discharges from the inertia of the firing pin striking the primer when the bolt closed on a loaded chamber.

The lower receiver would actually be a standard M16/AR-15 lower receiver with a telescopic stock. The main changes would be to the buffer and magazine well. The buffer had to be changed to slow down the cyclic rate of fire. If a standard carbine buffer was used, the cyclic rate would be well over 1,250 rounds per minute. This rate of fire is excessive to control as well as being destructive to the weapon. By developing a heavier buffer (2-piece steel), the cyclic rate was decreased to under 1,000 rounds per minute. Ammunition is a significant factor in cyclic rate as well. Additionally, if a lower cyclic rate was desired, Colt offered a hydraulic buffer which would decrease the rate even further to around 650 to 850 rounds per minute. These models were denoted by a HB suffix on the end of the model number. Another modification to the lower receiver was the redesign of the hammer/trigger pins; making them out of stainless steel to increase their strength due to the pounding of the heavy cyclic rate of the SMG. The hammer pin in particular would break with heavy full-auto fire. This change (hammer/trigger pin is nickel plated for identification purposes) significantly enhanced the durability of this pin for use in the 9mm SMG.

The magazine well had to be modified to accept the significantly shorter 9mm magazine. To keep with parts commonality the standard magazine well was used. Early prototype SMGs utilized a one-piece magazine well adapter. This early design had problems with tolerancing and was not consistent in fit. Production weapons utilized a magazine well with two inserts with the rear insert containing the ejector. An extended bolt catch was used so the rear of the magazine follower would trip the catch to hold the bolt open on the last shot. This insert was pinned in place using a roll pin. The forward insert contained the feed ramp that would guide the cartridge from the magazine into the chamber. This was also pinned in place. This was a good way to do this because it allowed the lower receiver to easily be converted back to 5.56mm by simply removing the three roll pins and replacing the bolt catch. In 2001, Colt changed back to a one-piece insert designed and patented by Colt Model Product Development Engineer Art Daigle (U. S. Patent No. 6,072,352). Mr. Daigle designed this adapter for his own rifle prior to his employment at Colt. He had a receiver that he modified with the two-piece magazine well conversion. He would use this receiver to fire both 9mm and 5.56mm, so the two inserts were removed when he wanted to fire 5.56mm. As he kept re-installing the inserts, the holes in the receiver would “woller” and become oversized. He felt there had to be a better way so that his receiver would not be further damaged. He designed the one-piece adapter and Colt adopted his design in 2001. The first generation was held in place by a lock inside the adapter. A hex screw was tightened and two pins would move outward on the front of the adapter locking the adapter into place. This worked very well for occasional use but there was one problem with the design: when the end user would get hold of it, they would tighten the screw down so tight that the inside of the magazine well would bend or crack. The current production model is pinned in place. The present design is identical to the first one designed by Mr. Daigle, but the lock mechanism was removed and the adapter would be held in by roll pins. This adapter could as well be removed and the carbine turned back into the 5.56mm caliber. This design also eliminated Colt from needing an additional bolt catch specific for the 9mm SMG and carbines. The one-piece adapter has a lever installed that is lifted upward by the standard bolt catch.

The magazine is based on the Uzi magazine. In fact, Uzi magazines may be converted for use in the Colt SMG by cutting out the mag catch notch in the left side. Colt designed their own magazine for the production guns. This included a 20 and a 32-round magazine with witness holes in the side. This double column/double feed magazine was always considered the weapon’s weak link as it was for the Uzi. Due to the design, if the mag was to be dropped on its base, some or all of the cartridges could pop out of the magazine. This fault was cured in other SMGs by changing the way the magazine feeds. Instead of the bolt picking one round off each side of the magazine (double feed), it would pick it up from a central single location (single feed) similar to that of semi-auto pistol magazines (Beretta M9 and SIG Sauer P226, for example). Colt is currently looking at updating their magazine to incorporate this double column and single feed design.

The final design would be the R0635. This was the standard LE version that would fire semiautomatic and in full automatic mode. The R0639 was the same weapon but with a 3-round burst instead of automatic. Additionally, Colt manufactured a 7-inch barrel version of the SMG (R0633) known as the “Briefcase” SMG. This model has been discontinued. As the guns went into circulation one more improvement was made. A gas block was added to the ejection port cover. This was not a cartridge case deflector. Rather, this block prevented gas and unburnt powder from striking the shooter in the face. It was made of a polymer deflector that slid on the ejection port dust cover rod. A modified/cut down ejection port cover was placed next to that. This could be installed on any 9mm gun.

The Commercial 9mm Carbines

As with all the previous rifles and carbines, the 9mm was offered for commercial sale. The first was the R6540; the AR-15 9mm carbine. This was a standard AR-15 carbine with a 16-inch barrel. The carbine used the larger diameter semiautomatic only upper and lower receiver with a standard semiautomatic only trigger group with a newly designed semiautomatic only hammer. This new hammer was designed by Henry Tatro and on April 21, 1987, his “Safety Device Preventing Conversion To Full Automatic Firing” was patented (U. S. Patent No. 4,658,702). This hammer was to prevent slam fire if the disconnector was to fail whether by malfunction or intentional attempt to convert the weapon to automatic fire. The forward ramp on the hammer would catch on the underside of the bolt carrier, catching the carrier and preventing it from chambering a cartridge.

The next evolution of the 9mm carbine was the Colt Sporter Lightweight model R6430 incorporating several changes. Colt omitted the telescopic stock in favor of a fixed stock, the bayonet lug was removed, the fire control group was changed to the larger .170 inch diameter hammer/trigger pins to prevent fully-automatic fire control parts from being installed, and the addition of the pinned-in automatic sear block.

With the passage of the 1994 Assault Weapon Ban, Colt, by law, had to make an additional change to stay in production of commercial rifles; they had to omit the flash suppressor. The Colt Match Lightweight Model MT6430 was introduced.

Current production is the AR6450 of Colt’s Law Enforcement Only line of weapons. This version uses standard mil-spec small pin upper and lower receivers. There is no automatic sear block but additional aluminum has been left inside the receiver. That, along with the use of the large diameter (.170 inch) hammer and trigger pins, prevent conversion to full automatic. The carbine has a 16-inch barrel with flash suppressor and bayonet lug. Marked on the right side of the magazine well is “Restricted Law Enforcement/Government Use Only.”

Conclusions

The Colt 9mm SMG has served many law enforcement agencies well including the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, U.S. Department of Energy as well as the U.S. Marine Corps. The SMG never achieved great success nor its potential. Those who use it like it, especially departments that also utilize M16 rifles or M4 carbines. They can switch to the 9mm SMG with no transitional training and not have to learn a new weapon such as agencies utilizing the M4 carbine and MP5 SMG. These have completely different operational differences and the muscle memory from training is compromised with the use of different weapon systems.

In late 2006, we ran an article on the then recent investigation that the Office of the Inspector General performed on the NFRTR. In that article we asked everyone to pay close attention to the forms and the information that is contained on those forms that anyone submits to the ATF. That one article didn’t seem to hit home with a lot of people, so we are going to hit some key points on the forms and make some suggestions that will make a lot of sense to most of you.

One of the age-old issues that we all have faced is to make certain that all of the information that you complete on a new form is identical to the information on the old. While sounding like a good idea, the real problem with this strategy is not only do we pass up an opportunity to correct old problems but we increase the odds of adding new problems. Just because a form has inaccurate information doesn’t give anyone an excuse to exacerbate the problem. If something is wrong, and you know it’s wrong, then correct it. Continuing to pass along mistakes only insures that someone else will come along in a year or two and inadvertently make another mistake making a bad situation even worse. What we want to do is correct anything and everything we possibly can at every opportunity that we have. In section 4, “Description of the Firearm,” all of the information that can make a major difference in helping to correct errors in the NFRTR is contained in sections “4.a” though “4.g.” In this section we want to take every opportunity to review and correct if necessary, any and all issues pertinent to the firearm.

Section 4.a: Name and Address of Manufacturer and/ or Importer of Firearm:

In this section the requirement is relatively simple. Make certain that you review the information on the old form, or the new form, and insure that all of the information is accurate and as detailed as possible. At this stage, please make certain that you correct any errors or omissions as possible.

Section 4.b: Type of Firearm

In many of the commercial off the shelf programs, users will generally find pull down menus allowing you to select whether this firearm is one of the following categories:

• Any other Weapon (AOW)
• Destructive Device (DD)
• Machine Gun
• Short Barreled Rifle (SBR)
• Short Barreled Shotgun (SBS)
• Silencer

Section 4.c: Caliber, Gauge, or Size

Check to make certain that all of the information required for this section is complete.

Section 4.d: Model

Make certain that all alpha and numeric characters that represent the model are accurately recorded in this section. Insure that as much information as possible from the receiver of the NFA weapon is accurately depicted in this section.

Section 4.e: Length of Barrel

In this section, please insure that the barrel length on your Form 4 matches the exact barrel length on the firearm you are either shipping or receiving. We will address the ton of questions that you have concerning this issue in another article.

Section 4.f: Length Overall

In this section you want to make certain that you take exacting measurements on the total length on the firearm you are either shipping or receiving.

Section 4.g: Serial Number

Obviously this section is absolutely critical. Please make certain that you examine the NFA item in question and validate each alpha or numeric character and validate that the serial number matches exactly.

The most important issue here is to make certain that we pay attention to the details on any of the forms that we provide the NFA Branch. Today, nearly 40% of the forms that are being handled by the Branch still contain some sort of error or omission that requires the form to be returned for correction. We can all spend a little more time and attention to the detail and get it right the first time.

In addition to the time and attention issue, every dealer and collector in our community should pay attention to the details of the weapon itself. In this process we recommend that you look closely at exactly what is happening with this transfer. Use a little common sense and ask for help when you need it when something is in question. If it doesn’t seem to be right you are probably correct. Check it out with another dealer or consult with the NFA Branch for help.

In summary, we all want to work together to help clean up the NFRTR. The NFRTR follows the old technology adage of “garbage in, garbage out.” Fortunately, the problems with the NFRTR can be straightened out, but only with the help of the industry and ATF. Let’s all work together to make that happen.

Help us make a better community for the entire industry today and join successes that we are creating together. Log on today at www.nfatca.org and join the only organization that has and continues to protect your NFA rights.

New Assault Systems Discreet Carry Cast for the FN FS2000

Elite Survival Systems is pleased to introduce a new Assault Systems Discreet Carry Case for the FN FS2000. The low profile case has a rectangular shape and clean lines. The case has a large accessory pocket on the front with four fitted magazine pouches. Inside the main compartment are dual tie-down straps for the weapon. The main compartment is large enough to accommodate the weapon with an optic attached. It is constructed of 1000 denier nylon inside and out with removable closed-cell foam padding. The case is made more durable with heavy-duty zippers and hardware, double stitching and bound internal seams. Also included is a 2-inch shoulder strap. As with all Elite products, it is made in the USA. Attention to detail and quality of materials make Assault Systems cases an ideal solution. For more information please contact Elite Survival Systems, Dept. SAR, 310 West 12th Street, P.O. Box 245, Washington, MO 63090. Phone: (636) 390-8360. Fax: (636) 390-2977. Their website is www.elitesurvival.com.

New Thermal Monocular from Insight Tech-Gear

Insight Tech-Gear now offers the MTM-V2, a truly pocket-sized, 320×240 high resolution, hand-held thermal imager for a wide range of missions including reconnaissance, surveillance and search & rescue. The ergonomically designed MTM-V2 provides moving man-sized target detection up to 500 meters with adjustable focus, unity magnification and 2x digital zoom. The lightweight, pocket sized MTM-V2 can be tripod mounted and operates continuously for over 4 hours on two 3-volt lithium 123 batteries. The MTM-V2 starts up quickly and has a standby operating mode that saves battery life. Other features include a co-aligned, integrated marking laser (650 nm red or 820 nm IR) and a menu function for custom operation of brightness, gain, polarization, and calibration. The new unit has an integrated 1/4 x 20 tripod mounting plate. Highly functional and portable, the hi-res MTM-V2 is a mission-critical, life-saving tool. The new unit weights only 12 ounces with batteries and is waterproof to 3 feet. Options include a digital picture/video upgrade, a helmet mounting plate and “J-Arm” adapter and amber night filter/demist shield. For more information please contact Insight Tech-Gear, Dept. SAR, 23 Industrial Drive, Londonderry, NH 03053. Phone: (877) 744-4802. Fax: (603) 668-1084. Their website is www.insighttechgear.com.

Crimson Trace Introduces New LaserGrips for the Ruger LCP

Crimson Trace has just introduced its new LaserGrips for the popular Ruger LCP compact pistol. The Model-431 further cements Crimson Trace’s move into the sub-compact market of polymer-frame concealable handguns. The Model LG-431 adds very little mass to the already compact package of the Ruger LCP allowing the pistol to fit into most holsters. It attaches directly and securely to the trigger guard of the polymer frame using two screws that add to the overall stability of the unit. The LaserGrips clamp to the outside of the trigger guard while hugging the frame as it nears the front of the pistol. With the laser diode housing directly under the barrel, it allows the laser to be closer to the bore of the gun creating a very accurate laser sighting device. It is instinctively activated by a pressure switch built into the front underside of the polymer LaserGrips. Simply grasping the firearm in a normal shooting grip activates the laser. All electrical components fit into the LaserGrips and are ergonomically designed for comfort. The Model LG-431 uses either two #357 silver oxide batteries or a single 1/3N 3 volt lithium battery. These small batteries allow the LaserGrips to be unobtrusive yet powerful enough to provide the brightness that Crimson Trace customers expect. Another feature of the LG-431 is that it uses the smaller 3.3mm diameter laser diode versus the standard 5.6 diameter diode that is found in most all other brands of laser sighting devices. This reduces the overall size of the laser diode housing. As with all other LaserGrips, the LG-431 has both windage and elevation adjustments for shooters to adjust the laser on their own. All LaserGrips come with an accessory pack that contains batteries, hex wrenches for laser adjustment, a cleaning cloth and several cleaning swabs. A three-year warranty is standard. For more information contact Crimson Trace Corporation, Dept. SAR, 9780 Southwest Freeman Drive, Wilsonville, OR 97070. Phone: (503) 783-5333. Fax: (503) 783-5334. Website: www.crimsontrace.com.

Trijicon Unveils New AccuPoint Riflescopes

Hunters and serious shooters the world over have asked for it, and Trijicon, Inc. has delivered the first series of Trijicon AccuPoint riflescopes to combine the company’s advanced, self-luminous aiming technologies and superb clarity with the added precision of the hunting industry’s most popular reticle – a crosshair. The new Trijicon AccuPoint with an illuminated crosshair reticle does not require batteries for operation eliminating the need for extra batteries and potential for failure during a critical moment in the field. The new Trijicon AccuPoint riflescope series is designed to deliver accurate, effective aiming under even the most challenging conditions. Trijicon’s exclusive battery-free tritium technology provides precise amber illumination where the crosshairs intersect for effective aiming and optimum target clarity, regardless of available light. The new series of Trijicon AccuPoint riflescopes with a crosshair reticle also features Trijicon’s newly updated Manual Brightness Adjustment Override, which allows the user to shade the tritium and fiber-optics during daylight for the option of decreasing the brightness of the illuminated reticle during increased light situations. In addition to this new illuminated crosshair reticle, Trijicon will continue to offer the original triangle reticle design, which has the additional benefit of the Bindon Aiming Concept (BAC), allowing the shooter to keep both eyes open while tracking, taking aim, and shooting. These new models are loaded with advanced optical elements like multi-layer coated lenses for superior light transmission with no distortion offering exceptional clarity and precision. Additionally, a quick-focus eyepiece, long eye relief, and precise windage and elevation adjustments make the Trijicon AccuPoint easy to zero and quickly make in-the-field adjustments. Each weather-resistant, nitrogen-filled scope body is carefully crafted from aircraft quality, hard anodized aluminum for superior performance and durability. Trijicon’s black matte finish reduces glare to help conceal the shooter’s presence for wary game. For more information, please contact Trijicon, Dept. SAR, 49385 Shafer Ave., Wixom, MI 48393. Phone: (800) 338-0563. Fax: (248) 960-7725. You can also visit them at www.trijicon.com.

DoubleStar Now Has New Dovetail Angle Mount for AR-15/M16

DoubleStar Corp. has announced the development of a new dovetail angle mount for the AR-15 rifle. The new angle mount is made from 6061 T-6 aluminum and hard-coat anodized to military specifications. It still allows use of the rear sight and works well for attaching scopes, lasers, lights or other accessories at a 45-degree angle. The angle mount clamps onto a flat-top upper and can be mounted on either the left or right side and is securely held in place with three socket-head screws and a clamp. This new angle mount uses two mounting screws for a secure lock as compared to most mounts on the market that use only one screw and are prone to movement. DoubleStar’s U.S. made angle mount retails for $24.95. For more information on this as well as an extensive line of other firearms accessories please contact DoubleStar/J&T Distributing, Dept. SAR, P.O. Box 430, Winchester, KY 40391. Phone: (859) 745-1757. Fax: (859) 745-4638. Website: www.jtdistributing.com.

New Picatinny Rail for Ruger Mark II and Mark III pistols

Volquartsen Custom, a pioneer in the design and manufacture of innovative custom parts for Ruger 10/22 rifles and Ruger MK II and MK III pistols, has done it again. This time, Volquartsen’s flare for both functionality and drama take center stage with the introduction of a unique no-gunsmithing scope mount for the Mark II and Mark III pistols. The tactically-influenced mount features a mil-spec Picatinny-style rail on both the top and bottom to provide an efficient double mounting platform for virtually any combination of conventional scope, red dot optic, laser aiming device or tactical light. The new mount attaches easily to any Mk II, MK III, and 22/45 models with the 5.5 inch bull barrels. The sturdy yet lightweight mount is CNC machined from billet aluminum and it’s available anodized in several different colors. Buyers can select either a pre-installed TL rear adjustable sight or a no-sight option. For more information, please contact Volquartsen Custom, Dept. SAR, P.O. Box 397, 24276 240th Street, Carroll, IA 51401. Phone: (712) 792-4238. Fax: (712) 792-2542. Website is located at: www.volquartsen.com.