SAR is pleased to present this journal by longtime Emma-Gee, Rick Cartledge about his experiences at Knob Creek.

It was with great pride that I took this article assignment from Small Arms Review. This writer has been under the weather for about two years. The twelve cylinder Packard is back. It could use a paint job, but the tires are new and the motor’s tuned. Many of the faithful readers have been terribly kind. In the following I shall return that kindness. I invite you once again to climb up on my running board and ride with me for a while. We will travel through four very special days in October. Nearly everyone agrees that the Fall ’97 Knob Creek Show and Shoot surpassed any that we’ve had for years. The weather and the people could not have been nicer.

I crossed the Salt River on I-65 about sunrise on Thursday morning, hit the exit and pulled to the red light at the top of the ramp. I swung across the bridge and stopped at the light by the entrance ramp to I-65. At this point we begin our journey. I looked toward Shepardsville, Kentucky. Beyond it stretched the mountains that lead to the Knob Creek Range. Shepardsville gave the South one of its most honored sons, Col. Philip Lightfoot Lee of the Orphan Brigade’s 2nd Kentucky. I found it fitting that Shepardsville’s cloud laden sky glowed grey and crimson, the colors of The Gallant Pelham. Later at Knob Creek Range I would view a new Rich Pugsley gun, a gun that all Southerners wish that John Pelham had fired.

While freshening up at the motel, I snapped on the news channel. The presenter waxed fondly about the Harvest Home Festival in New Albany. She introduced a local string band from the Louisville environs. The musicians cranked up with Bill Monroe’s ‘Uncle Pen’. As I motored up to the range house, Range Master Homer Saylor flagged me down. We shook hands. I told Homer about ‘Uncle Pen’ and stated it appeared we would have a great weekend. Homer agreed. We plan to go together one day to Rosine and pay our respects to Mr. Monroe. Homer and I both wore short sleeves. Short sleeved shirts became the dress du jour for all four days and nights. The presence of automatic weapons goes without saying.

Ola Amigos

I headed past the main line and around to the front of the range house. Twice a year this spot becomes the crossroads of the Title 2 world. Don Turnbull sounded the horn on his golf cart. I shook hands with the raconteur and master of the Boyes Rifle. We exchanged greetings. I brought him salutations from his good friend William Helmer, author of ‘Dillinger: the Untold Story’. Bill sent his regrets that he could not attend. He and Rick Mattix had just completed ‘The Public Enemies Almanac’ for Facts on File. Mr. Helmer experienced unexpected delays in Chicago and Rick was trailing some new Bonnie and Clyde story in Iowa.

While I searched for Paul Mahoney of Krinks, the prettiest mule driver in the Alabama Cavalry motored around the corner of the range house. She threw up her hand and I waved her over. She stopped her titanium taxi and accepted my contribution to the campfire. She safely bore it to the campsite in Kenny Sumner’s eighty acre camping field. I would later join them under St. Andrew’s Cross. We talked of distance guns and the election of the Scottish Parliament. We shall follow with great interest the developments north of Hadrian’s Wall. We send a heartfelt ‘Well done!’ to the children of William Wallace and Robert Roy MacGregor, as we are one in the same. Come springtime we will hoist a flagon and toast the tattoo on Sean Connery’s arm. It translates ‘Scotland Forever’.

On returning to the range house I found Paul Mahoney. Pauly said he had finished his post sample BREN in time for the shoot. He was on his way to get it. While I awaited Paul and the BREN, Beth and Glen Whittenberger strolled up and said hello. I first met Beth when she and Glen were dating. The week before Knob Creek, AMC ran a series of Film Noir greats. I taped most of them.
While watching the Robert Mitchum, Jane Russell classic ‘His Kind Of Woman’ I thought of Beth and Glen. About an hour before the movie debuted, the mail came. ‘The Thompson Collector News’ arrived and told the story of the ‘All Thompson Show and Shoot’ in August. The winners of the men’s and women’s shooting competition both answered to the name Whittenberger. Enough said.

Paul Mahoney sauntered out of the pole barn with the BREN gun thrown over his shoulder. He drew a crowd. BRENs have a tendency to do that. Mr. Mahoney gave us a good show. He asked us to find the receiver welds. There in the bright sunlight I could only find one. He showed us three more. Pauly stripped the receiver so that we could view the inside. Paul marveled at the skill that the Commonwealth machinists used to make the BREN. I marveled at Paul’s skill in putting one back together.

I had sent Paul a copy of the BREN gun book that Jim Allee prints at IDSA Books. Jim prints the Small Arms Identification Guides written by distinguished Australian gun writer, Mr. Ian Skinnerton. Pauly found the exploded diagrams and serial number sequences especially helpful. He considered Mr. Skinnerton’s book the best nine bucks he’d spent lately. Paul then took his BREN to his shooting slot and went to see Bob Landies for some magazines. We each departed to our separate ways.

I didn’t get far. Brian held out a friendly hand and we talked about the 1914 Hotchkiss article that we are working on. As we talked, we watched Mike Krotz and Bill Mitter unload a dewat Soviet 107mm recoilless from the Vietnam era. Just then, Jim Ballou dropped some web gear over my shoulder. ‘What’s that?’, he inquired. It appeared to be a World War I BAR gunner’s belt fitted for a wide looped .45 holster. Wrong! Jim stated that I held in my hand an original Colt Monitor commercial belt. A shrewd collector had found it up East. The collector brought it to the Knob Creek Shoot for a friend of his. Though he had already sold the rare belt, he lent it to Jim for inclusion in the BAR book. I told Jim that I had brought the Baby Face Nelson picture for the ‘In Unfriendly Hands’ section and would bring it to him later. Jim said thanks and went to photograph the Monitor belt. It is not without good reason that many of us eagerly await Jim Ballou’s book.

Show Time

A group of friends motored up I-65 past the Gene Snyder on Thursday night. We zeroed in on the Outback Steak House off Wendy Lane. Our table talked automatic weapons, the next table discussed the battle rifle match, and the table behind us talked suppressors. Outback treated us as cordially as the Derby crowd. Good to their word, the restaurant enforced ‘No Rules’. We stayed too late enjoying the stimulating conversation.

We all looked a little bleary eyed when we met Friday morning. All of us arrived early, anticipating the opening of the gun show and putting some brass on the ground. While we waited, a man with a confident stride walked toward us. He carried two trophies. I had seen the impressive trophies displayed in the range house on Thursday morning. The sponsors bought large third place trophies. The sizes went up from there. This man carried a very large one and the biggest of all — ‘Aggregate Top Shooter’.

He introduced himself as Malcome Davis of Huntsville, Alabama. We talked shooting for a while. He then noticed the ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ shirt I wore, presented by the fine citizens of Dexter, Iowa. I told Malcome that I wrote historical articles on Title 2 for the Small Arms Review. I asked him if he knew that he carried the same name, though spelled differently, as the Tarrant County, Texas Deputy killed by Clyde Barrow and W. D. Jones. Malcome replied that he did. He laughed. Malcome then told the story of the first date he had with the woman who would become his wife. He took her to see ‘Bonnie and Clyde’. With shooting and knowledge like that, the “Alabama Cavalry” may be engraving Malcome an invitation at this very hour. We shook hands at about the time we heard Kenny Sumner on the loud speaker.

Kenny announced the opening of the show. The crowd poured into the pole barn. For those who have never had the privilege (and it is a privilege) to stroll through the gun show at Knob Creek Range, the following will attempt to give you a sense of it. To say that weapons, accouterments, books, videos, and RKIs fill up the place states the case too simply. Specifics tell the tale. We will have to dodge all of the Lafette tripods that march out of the pole barn like the mop brigade in ‘Fantasia’ — 34s, 42s, Yugos, and what Bill Mitter humorously calls ‘Braunsweigers’, the optically equipped Bundeswiers sold by Robert Landies. The following describes some of the many interesting exhibits seen at this gun show.

Kent Lomont displayed one of the rare 1898 brass Argentine Maxims. This gun was very similar to the one Bob Landies displayed last spring. I confess an unmendable weakness for the venerable Maxim gun. The ’98 tops my list. An American genius designed this gun. Master machinists breathed life into this magnificent weapon during the twilight of the Guilded Age. Mr. Lomont kindly field stripped the top of the gun and handed over the pieces. The lock reminds one as much of a Swiss watch as it does a gun part. The brass D handles pass for a work of art in their own right. The safety looks like a brass ellipse bonded to a thick popsicle stick. When flipped up for firing, one views a series of concentric brass ellipses cradling raised brass letters that exclaim ‘Fuego’. The whole gun reminded me of Tom Berringer’s famous line from the ‘Rough Riders’ by John Milius — ‘Indian Bob, kill the German!’ Kent once remarked that if they told him he could have only one gun and that was a Maxim gun, he wouldn’t be too unhappy. Though I would plead for a Thompson, this writer agrees.

I moved on to the book and video tables to search for several items. Friends in Georgia sent me with a list. Alabama Arms sold a very fine video on the Browning guns. A friend had recently purchased a nice DLO A-4. He wanted some visual instruction. On viewing the Alabama Arms video, my friend stated that he found it very interesting. He stated it wasn’t fancy, just very helpful. Alabama Arms now debuts a video on the Swedish K. Several dealers featured video material on a wide range of interesting subjects. To those new to the Title 2 world, some of the most informative videos come from Knob Creek Range. For those who wish to know more of KCR’s biannual event, I recommend Fall 1996 and Spring 1997.

On another table I found a book seller of very discerning taste. Among his fine wares, he offered ‘The Devil’s Paintbrush’ by Dolf Goldsmith and Jim Allee’s quality reprint of ‘A Rifleman Went To War’ by Herbert McBride. I still consider Mr. Goldsmith’s book on the Maxim gun to be the finest gun book on a single gun by a single author. Tracie Hill called me during the formative days of ‘Thompson: the American Legend’. He asked me to write for him. The first question I asked was, ‘Do you have a copy of The Devil’s Paintbrush?’. Tracie replied that he did. I stated to him that Dolf had set the bar two notches higher and we should strive to reach it. Tracie agreed. The rest is history. ‘A Rifleman Went To War’ speaks for itself. Along with T. E. Lawrence’s ‘Seven Pillars of Wisdom’ and ‘The Art of War’ by Sun Tzu (the Hoosier warrior Bobby Knight’s favorite book), my family considers McBride required reading. Capt. Herbert McBride brings us to ‘White Feather’.

Mike Waterhouse came carrying a white 20 round box of ammo. Mike knew I wasn’t a distance shooter but thought I might want a box of the ammo he now carries at his table. As usual, the knowledgeable Mr. Waterhouse proved correct. Dennis Duphily had returned from overseas and I had run into him outside the pole barn. I remembered something wonderful when I read the name on Mike’s white ammo box — Carlos Hathcock II.

Several years ago, Carlos Hathcock came to the Knob Creek Range as the guest of Dennis Duphily, and Dan Shea. By the time I got to Carlos, he had run out of his sniper books. Neither his health nor mine is what it once was. I shook the hand of the man who embodies the phrase ‘Every inch a Marine’ and promised to return. I found a copy of ‘A Rifleman Went To War’ and brought it to him. I asked, ‘Do you know this book soldier?’. Carlos cracked a knowing smile and replied, ‘That’s the bible.’ I explained to Carlos that my young nephew had a tough time getting into this world. I asked Carlos to write something for Liam in Herbert McBride’s book. Carlos did.

I don’t shoot well enough to know how good the ammunition is. What I do know is this. If Carlos Hathcock put his name on it, it’s good enough for me. At the end of that day several years ago, Dennis and I watched as Carlos Hathcock departed. As he motored away Dennis said, ‘I hope that Carlos knew how loved and respected he was by every one who met him.’ I told Dennis that I was confident that he knew. With the white box from Mike Waterhouse, I am equally confident of something else. Carlos Hathcock would find welcome at the Knob Creek Range at any time. I hope that in some fall or some springtime that one of America’s most beloved soldiers might find the time to come and, once again, be among us. Should he wish to come on short notice, he should bring his books and T-shirts. I am confident that there will always be a place for him at the S.A.R. table. Dan Shea and Jeff Zimba back me up on this.

I then went to Jonathan Arthur Ciener’s table where I always expect to see something new. Jon rarely fails to have some innovative new product or variation on display. This time, Jonathan smiled broadly as he showed me the ‘Platinum Cup’, his new 22 conversion for the 1911 pattern government automatics. Jonathan stated that he responded to his customers’ requests for a full featured upper. To his 22 slide, he added a number of custom features. He first fabricated a raised serrated flat top slide. Jon then inlayed a micro adjustable Millet sight. He augmented the Millet rear sight with an accentuated serrated front sight. Jon then added angled cocking slots and tightened the whole thing up. He then finished it with the kind of quality that people have come to expect from Jon Ciener. Some years ago I shot with Dave Rosenfield and Mary Ann Sanborn, they of the famed ‘His’ and ‘Hers’ Vickers guns. Dave assisted Jonathan in evaluating some of the first Ciener prototypes. Dave gave me a test drive and it functioned flawlessly. Next spring I hope to try one of the new ones.

Knob Creek takes shooting seriously, but it isn’t all serious. The tellers told these tales better. The following tells two jokes and of a funny conversation. Married lady to girlfriend, ‘I got a machine gun for my husband.’ Girlfriend replied, ‘Good trade!’ The second one goes like this. Married guy to his buddy, ‘My wife said she’d leave me if I bought another machine gun. I’m sure gonna miss her.’ A dealer told me he knew he’d arrived when his first three Christmas cards came from lawyers. I told the dealer of the brilliant novel ‘Primal Fear’ written by fellow Georgian William Diehl. In the opening of the movie made from this book, the fine actor Richard Gere skillfully delivers a couple of lines about law school and the justice system through his character Martin Vail. We won’t print them here. You will have to rent the video (Ladies beware). Before the title page in his fine book, Bill Diehl quotes Charles-Louis de Secondat from 1742 writings relevant to 1986. Among those to whom the Founding Fathers looked to for inspiration, they listed the Baron de Montesquieu. The writer from Georgia and the Baron from Bordeaux provide some very interesting reading.

Though many tables presented interesting wares, I will close this section by telling the reader of one table in particular. This table instructs the reader on what to look for at KCR. It also helps the newcomer to avoid the same mistake that I made on the first trip to the Creek. You will see a dealer with a single table and might pass him up for a dealer with ten. As I maneuvered toward the back of the pole barn, an astute collector waved his hand. He need not have thrown up a flag. I had already spotted the ginny FBI Thompson case crouched on the front corner of his table. He had acquired some rare items from an old time Class 3 dealer who was now retiring. He kindly allowed me to examine them while giving me some valuable lessons.

Among the original Colt Thompson mags, the collector displayed several mint double dates and a shot mag. Next to the mags sat four boxes of rare ammunition. One contained 50 rounds of Thompson shot shells. The second box contained .45 Auto CF cartridges marked ‘Adapted for the Thompson Sub-Machine Gun’. The third unopened box contained Western Super X .45 Auto .230 grain Metal Piercing Lubaloy. The fourth box held .45 Auto tracer from the Frankford Arsenal. This same table had earlier yielded the previously mentioned commercial Monitor belt for another astute collector and Jim Ballou. Needless to say, several knowledgeable collectors with deeper pockets than mine went through this table like a plague of locusts. I deeply appreciated viewing these rare items and learning something from my knowledgeable friend. This man and his table make the following point. If you ignore a single eight foot table, you might just pass up the mother lode.

The Writers Meeting

The Usual Suspects assembled at Mark’s Feed Store on Dixie Highway in Louisville. We rolled in about 8:30 Friday night. The aroma of barbeque filled the parking lot. We each selected from the menu and finished the meal with buttermilk pie. The meeting room at Mark’s gave the tell tale sign of good food. As the servings moved down the table, the conversation died. Before we could escape and find sofas to lie down on, Dan Shea opened the meeting.

First and foremost, Dan gave a glowing report on the acceptance of our magazine. In the months to come, readers will know the full impact of this acceptance. Jeff Zimba reported a steady stream of subscribers flowing past the S.A.R. tables and moving to the Gun Owners of America tables next to ours. Mr. Larry Pratt personally manned the G.O.A. tables and greeted one and all. Holly Gifford reported many favorable comments from readers who viewed the first issue at Knob Creek. A motion was made to commend Dan Shea and the Moose Lake staff for the fine job that they had done. The reader should know that the staff started flat footed. In four months they assembled the magazine. We still have some kinks to iron out. That being said, when the first issue hit the streets we knew that we had something to be proud of.

Jeff Zimba passed out some writing assignments. The book authors then gave their reports. Frank Iannamico stated that his STEN gun book neared completion. Though not yet chipped in stone, a mighty pile of rock dust lies below the granite slabs. Moose Lake will launch Frank’s book as the first of many offerings. Jim Ballou then spoke about the BAR book. He echoed Frank’s comments on the fine cooperation that museums and private collectors gave to their projects. Jim then passed around the cover photo. Though Jim keeps this close to the vest, suffice it to say that the readers will find it simply stunning. Jim had even arranged for the breakfast table decorations in the range house cafeteria on Saturday morning — BAR prototypes. With S.A.R. at KCR, if you snooze you lose.

Dan then turned to the suppressor writers and scheduling the upcoming match. The previous trials generated great interest and keen competition. Many dealers delayed table setups and ran down to the lower range to watch.

Simply put, our suppressor writers put their share of brass on the ground. They are just very quiet about it.

After the meeting Dan and I ran into each other in the motel parking lot. He asked how I thought the meeting had gone. Before answering, I thought of all the bright and enthusiastic men and women who gathered at Mark’s Feed Store. I knew we had a winner. I stated that this meeting didn’t resemble ones that any of us had ever attended. Each person in that room brought honed skills to a new magazine. We all stood together on the starting line. In ten years, we might all look back and be amazed at the race we had run.

We are unlike any other publication. If the reader looks for sky diving from a Piper Cub, he should apply elsewhere. If the reader wants to stand on the cutting edge, look out the back door of a flying boxcar, and hurtle out into the blackened night — he has found his magazine. This is not to say that we don’t make mistakes. We do. We won’t make mistakes on some dusty library shelf. We will make our mistakes standing knee deep in a brass pile.

‘Build It and They Will Come’

Kevin Costner filmed his motion picture ‘The War’ in my home town several years ago. Mr. Costner showed himself to be personable, accessible, and gracious. With all due respect to Mr. Costner (and this writer has a great deal of respect for him), there is one thing that ranks as more American than baseball — Freedom. Legitimate ownership and uses of Title 2 weapons serve as an index of freedom. The camaraderie between free Americans brought about the Knob Creek Show and Shoot. Readers who have journeyed to Westpoint, Kentucky will fully appreciate what they are about to read. Those who have never seen the Creek will still find the following interesting.

In an article for another magazine, this writer told of the changes in the Creek from the time when he first started coming more than ten years ago. Last April while dining on some fine steaks in Louisville, a friend who preceded this writer by more than ten years told his story. I ran into him this fall at Bob Landies’ tables while we looked over some of Ohio Ordnance’s semi auto only BARs. I asked Bob about the new .308 models and he stated they worked fine. Bob then announced the 1918 classic semi autos. Ohio Ordnance will build 300 limited editions of the famed blue steel guns with their finely checkered wood. Could there be a ‘scattergun’ replica in someone’s future? Only time will tell.

We then moved around to the back side of the table and took up a position by a beautiful 08 Maxim gun. We looked over the sled mount as Bob told us about the gun. This gun showed fine attention to detail as did many of the excellent belt feds offered by the dealers at this shoot. As Mike Krotz joined us, I asked my friend to again relate his story. He called off a list of the early shooters. We knew the names of them all. Just as he started telling the story of how he first came to the Creek, Mike and Bob had to excuse themselves to wait on customers. My friend and I talked one on one.

As my friend strolled through a midwest gun show in 1976, he ran into two known machine gunners. One of them stated that they planned to go to Kentucky to put some brass on the ground. They asked if he would like to come with them. They got an affirmative response. The two gunners instructed my friend to awaken early on Saturday. They would pick him up on the way. The adventurous three rolled up in front of the range house about one o’clock on Saturday afternoon. About a dozen guys hammered away on the main line. As the three unpacked their guns, Kenny Sumner came out and shook their hands. They asked if they could shoot with the rest of the shooters. Kenny explained that they would need shooting slots. Kenny pointed toward the line and said ‘Take those three slots over there that are next to each other.’ They still have them.

My friend explained that no vendors set up shop until about 1978. They displayed their wares under hospital tents. With apologies to Ted Nugent, the M.A.S.H. unit vendors presented ‘Intensities In Tent Cities’. The Knob Creek Show and Shoot was up and running. As we reminisced, Mr. Biff Sumner walked by. We waved to Mr. Biff and asked him to join us. Biff Sumner then gave us the story of how it all began.

The Sumner family bought the land from the government some years ago. Biff Sumner owned an automatic weapon and knew several friends who owned them. In 1963, Mr. Sumner invited five of his friends to come put brass on the ground. He explained that an old gun testing range stood on some of his property. The shooters began using the old range. Word spread from friend to friend through the Class 3 community. Each year a few more hearty souls showed up for good shooting and conversation. They camped on the spot where the Waffle Man now sets up his booth. As the vendor ranks began to swell, the campers moved to the other side of the range house. That is where this writer first started camping.

In 1975, Mr. Biff Sumner turned the shoot over to his son Kenny. Kenny, with the help of a lot of dedicated people, built the Knob Creek Show and Shoot into what it is today. Someone not familiar with the Title 2 world would not believe that Knob Creek today came from six people. They do not understand that automatic weapons have protected our freedom. They cannot comprehend that legitimate ownership of them serves as an index of that freedom. Many of us who come to the Creek know the following above all else. Those who harbor shallow views on individual freedom lead poorer and emptier lives than we do.

In 1963, five men looked for a place to put brass on the ground and be free. A sixth man provided it. With due respect to Mr. Costner, the following simply states how the Knob Creek Show and Shoot came to be. Biff Sumner built it. Kenny Sumner expanded it. And, oh, how they came!

The Endless Line

I first came to Knob Creek for the guns and still do. I now come more for the people, some of the best this earth has to offer. That being said, when Saturday afternoon rolls around I am ready for two things, a lit cigar and a loaded machine gun. Those who have viewed a certain picture in ‘Thompson: the American Legend’ know that I come by this in an honest fashion. We now go up on Knob Creek’s main shooting line. We shall discuss some of the wonderful guns being shot there. We will tell of it when the line goes hot. The reader then will join in conversation with some of the knowledgeable people who congregate when the barrels cool.

These serious men and women have graciously allowed me to be among them for the past ten years. I know all by face and most by name. As most of them know that I handled hundreds of names per week before retirement, they forgive me when I stumble. In the following you will meet some of them and learn from them, as do I. In this section they will pass along some words of wisdom. They will also tell some stories that the reader will find interesting.

When I first went through the orange gate, I sought out Mr. Irv Kahn. I have known this man for more than ten years and known of him for more than twenty. I never fail to learn something when speaking with him. I brought him salutations from Donna and Bill Taylor, mutual Class 3 friends from Georgia. I then got some good advice on ammunition for a friend’s BREN gun. We then talked about the thundering A-4 that Mr. Kahn has hammered for as long as I have known him. Early on, Mr. Kahn gave me some of the best advice I have ever received. As more and more people enter the Class 3 world, remiss would it be not to restate some of his sage words.

You should learn before you buy. No truer words were ever spoken about Title 2 weapons. Many first time buyers purchase guns that they have heard of or guns that their friends told them about. They buy without ever having fired an automatic weapon or without knowing much about their care and feeding. At Knob Creek, dealers on the main line and the lower range offer guns to rent. For a reasonable fee you can test drive a number of different guns. Brass put on the ground by your own hand proves to be amazingly instructive. A $100 investment can save a $3000 mistake. Remember, you will buy retail and sell wholesale. A $200 tax awaits you at the door. Mr. Kahn simply suggests that the buyer try to make his purchase intelligently not emotionally. Neither of us claims to have always done it that way. Most dealers want you to be happy with your purchase. It means that you will probably do business with them again.

Secondly, Mr. Kahn advises to always buy good ammunition and clean your weapon thoroughly after shooting. He once asked why anyone would spend $5000 for a gun and try to save $2 on a box of ammunition. When he made that statement we were discussing the bulged barrel on someone else’s Colt Thompson wrecked by some gun show reloads. Bad ammunition can seriously harm a fine gun as well as its owner. For those new to the Title 2 world I would expound a bit on Mr. Kahn’s words. You will not shoot as much ammo as you initially think that you will. You will just shoot concentrated bunches. Over a year, you will probably not run much more ammunition through a Thompson than you do through the 1911 you own. If you seriously shoot your handgun, it will balance out. Always buy good ammunition and clean your gun properly.

I then went to see Mike Free. I congratulated Mike on his latest triumph. Mike and Tracie Hill have won three best in shows with their Thompson exhibit. Their latest victory came at NRA Show in Pittsburgh, PA. Fellow writer Don Thomas and his son Paul came over. They joined in the spirited conversation. Don, the historian for the Military Arms Corporation from inception to the sale, now crafts a book on the MACs with renowned writer Tom Swearengen. As we talked, Chief Range Officer Homer Saylor ran the safety drill though the loud speaker. ‘Safety is the first thing, safety is the second thing, safety is the third thing, safety is the only thing!’ I knew the barrels would heat up soon. I headed back down the line to shoot with Ron and Gary Wilson, the Whittenbergers, and Ken Snyder.

Three shooting sessions later I made some notes for the readers. The unmistakable whir of a mini gun caught my ear off to the left. I went down to investigate. There I found the unmistakable craftsmanship of Rich Pugsley and the craftsman himself. Rich had mounted a mini gun on a beautiful underslung Gatling gun carriage. Rich kindly assisted the Small Arms Review with the article on his unique gun. (see S.A.R. January 1998). Closer still stood Frank Iannamico firing yet another STEN. Frank volunteered an aerial photograph of the Knob Creek Range taken during an Iroquois flying over. Frank stated that the only two people who enjoyed the flight more were Kathy Lomont and a comely young lady named Andrea

On the way back to the shooting slot, I finally met Bill Vallerand. I have known Mr. Vallerand by telephone for many years. I finally got to shake the hand of this most knowledgeable and amiable gentleman. We talked of Maxim guns, BRENs, Land Rovers, and the Vincent Black Shadow. Near us Jim Ballou fired an interesting machine pistol. Jim stated that he just had to break from BAR research to test this interesting gun. Next to us, the Great Lakes Barrett gun thundered away.

Bob Allen and John Rust deftly handled the 82A1 in all three rifle positions and then hip shot it. These men weren’t playing Rambo. They skillfully drove the storied veteran of Desert Storm in a professional and soldierly manner. Other than the marksmanship of Gary Wilson, watching these men safely and skillfully handle the big rifle provided some of the most interesting moments of the Night Shoot on Saturday night. Gary Wilson hit a number of the designated targets during the night shoot. As we say in our part of the country, ‘Gary’s shooting made his father proud!’ As those who come to the Creek know all too well, automatic weapons are a generational thing.

The Range Officers added some thrilling special effects to the designated targets. When hit, the targets threw star busts into the night sky. Between the fourth and last round of night shooting, the flame thrower contingent put on a spectacular show. First, they crossed two flames and then three. They then demonstrated different effects with several types of fuels. For their grand finale they marshaled ten flame throwers and lit up the night sky. The large assembled crowd spontaneously broke out in a thunderous applause. The fifth firing round featured tracers. Need we say more.

One of the people that I would drive to see whether guns fired or not is Mr. Ken Snyder. My valued friend Mr. Snyder stands as one of the elder statesmen of the Class 3 world. He does so not because of his age. He instructs us because of his knowledge that extends in depth to World War II. Several years ago, Mr. Snyder and I sat in the shade of the Navy Arms truck courtesy of Mr. Paul Reed. We discussed John Browning and the reliable guns that he left us. I still find it interesting that so many Class 2 professionals continue to bring at least one Browning gun when they come to the Creek. Mr. Snyder then summed up the genius of Mr. Browning. He captured John Moses Browning in two sentences. ‘Those line guns probably hold side plates from twenty different manufacturers. No two side plates are just alike, but all the guns work!’

During the down times, we gathered in small groups and talked of guns and gunman. Mr. Snyder introduced his friend Jack Riggle who journeyed from New Mexico to join us. I asked Mr. Snyder to convey my regards to Bruce McCurdy, maker of fine Pennsylvania style flintlocks in Maryland. He said that he would and promised to invite Bruce back again to the next shoot. Mr. Snyder then spoke eloquently of his departed friend Daniel Musgrave. Mr. Musgrave left this world several years ago. Daniel Musgrave wrote intelligently and well. The Class 3 community is poorer for his passing. Mr. Snyder called him a gentleman’s gentleman who did fine research and writing for George Chinn among others. He left us with his testament ‘German Machineguns’ still in print. I commented that I had obtained a copy of that book from LMO several years ago but, regrettably, had never got to meet its fine writer.

John Tibbetts of John’s Guns came by with the Black Maria. John’s gun topped the field at the suppressor trials in May. His victory attracted a lot of attention, some of it from the Navy SEALs. John stated that he just concluded an in depth interview with author Lawrence Meyers. I told Mr. Snyder that I had examined this suppressed pistol earlier in the day. I suggested that he check the balance of it. I count it as quite a rare day when I can show something new to Mr. Snyder. As I went with John back toward the exit gate I ran into two escapees from Gun Hell. I stopped to interview them.

Volker and Heiko Stibbe flew in from Cologne, Germany to enjoy the freedom at Knob Creek Range. The two brothers quickly hooked up with two savvy collectors. The brothers Stibbe had the time of their lives. They fired a number of weapons and praised them all. With little instruction, they skillfully disassembled several weapons and assisted in cleaning them. I think they even enjoyed carrying the sandbags for the belt feds. These two knowledgeable young men then explained the gun laws of their country.

No one may possess a full auto unless they possessed it before 1972. They can never fire them or take them outside their houses. Every firearm of any kind must be kept in a safe. Only police and politicians may carry guns. No one can possess replicas or even toys that resemble guns. If a person moves from one house to another, they must obtain a permit and a police escort. Absent the police, the owner must hire expensive private security to transport the weapon. On hearing all of this, one of the other gunners cracked wise, ‘Are you sure you guys aren’t from New York?’ The brothers’ reply sounded like a number between eight and ten.

They thanked us all for the kindness shown them. We invited them to come again. Heiko and Volker commented that they would like to return but the trip was very expensive. From the smiles on their faces and the looks in their eyes, they will find a way to meet the expense. This writer suspects that the brothers Stibbe plan another daring escape from Gun Hell at this very hour. Volker later wrote to this writer and asked that the following be expressed on his behalf and that of his brother Heiko. ‘We would like to use this opportunity to thank all the other people we met at this weekend for their kind assistance and help whenever we had a question.’ From half a world away, these two German brothers had learned the true meaning of the Creek in less than one day. Both I and the fine men who befriended them remain confident about the following. We shall see Volker and Heiko again.

A very respected friend joined our gathering. He told the following amusing after dinner story. This sequence of events comes from Knob Creek’s storied past. Neal Smith brought a quad 50 rig to the Creek. Terry Williams served as assistant gunner. They set it up on the main line. My friend went down to assist them with setting it up and checking the guns. Just as all the guns checked out, a news cameraman walked up. The news man asked if he could film the quad rig firing. Neal and Terry told him yes. The cameraman walked up right by the muzzle and shouldered his camera. My friend walked up behind the cameraman to offer some helpful advice. He stated that the cameraman had taken a safe position regarding the bullets. However, my friend advised him that he shouldn’t stand so close to the muzzles.

The news man became argumentative. He insisted on holding his position. My friend threw up his hands and said ‘Okay!’ My friend backed away to a less exposed position. Homer Saylor then declared the line hot. Neal Smith hit the solenoids. The staccato sound of the quad 50s filled the air. The muzzle blast knocked the cameraman flat on his derriere. The camera fell on top of him. Our friend then fought to control his laughter. He stated that it was the only time during that entire afternoon that all four guns worked together. Dazed, dusty, but unhurt, the news man learned a valuable lesson. When one of the older RKIs offers some advice, one might be wise to heed it.

Adios Amigo

We continued to shoot all day Sunday. We had enjoyed four days of 80 degrees and no rain. My Knob Creek jacket never left the front seat where I threw it Wednesday night. Don and Paul Thomas stayed an extra day and got in some extra shooting. We had all but run out of ammunition when Homer finally closed the range at 5 o’clock. We all shook hands, promising to return in springtime.

We have pulled out of the Knob Creek Range. We have now reached Shepardsville. I must cross the Salt River and you must go your own way. It is about time for you, the reader, to get off my running board. I hope that you enjoyed the ride. You have spent some quality time in our very interesting world. You have seen much and learned some things. You have met some of the people who still teach me. Before you go, I will leave you with a parting story and a valediction.

A man from California first came to Knob Creek Range in the pride of his late forties. I have seen him more than once. He stood behind the main firing line and openly wept. For the first time in his life he had seen completely free Americans. He saw America as it used to be, and in this place still is. As you are reading this magazine, you are an individual who succeeds. You have done for others. Before you leave this earth, we beseech you to do something for yourself.

Come plant your feet on the free soil of Kentucky. Come drink your fill of the river of freedom that flows beneath the cordite clouds. If you cannot come and bathe in the water, we will understand. For those of you who cannot be with us, this magazine makes a commitment to you. The stalwart staff of the Small Arms Review will kneel by the waters for you. Each and every month, our dedicated writers will fill and pass you a canteen. Upon that you may rely.

An old hand once remarked that gun knowledge is knowledge gained over time. Always remember that knowledge of automatic weapons take longer than that. Before you go, I will leave with a parting phrase known wherever the Emma Gees gather. When someone says it to you, you will know that you have become part of the good company of gunmen. In Atlanta, Bangor, Seattle, and Malibu we add this same valediction when bidding farewell to a respected friend. As we part company, you must step off my running board. You will stand by the entrance ramp to I-65 where all of this began.. I’m going to drop it in low gear and leave you now. Maybe we’ll see you in springtime. Adios amigo, and God speed you on your journey. Not to worry, I have not forgotten the valediction. We say it like this: ‘See you at the Creek!’

Dear SAR,

The 2nd issue of SAR looks great, however an ad in your November classified section reguarding the sale of “Pre-Ban” H&K Socom 12 round magazines annoys me. Other “dealers” around the country have been offering these mags as well. This may be a good subject to address in your reader information pages.

There never was any such animal as pre-ban high capacity (12-rd) OCOM pistol (MK23) magazines! Regardless of what anyone says, these magazines are simply stolen US Government property! The production contract for the MK23 pistol and all the spare mags was not even awarded until June 1995, after the Crime Bill was enacted.

The MK23 contract called for the USG-ordered magazines to be delivered to the USG without the Crime Bill markings, with an exception granted by BATF of course. This is how the more than 20,000 magazines ordered and received to date after May 1996 by the USG in support of the 1,950 MK23’s purchases were delivered.

The 12-round Mark 23 magazines that we order and stock here for general sales with “commercial” Mark 23’s to Law Enforcement and Military customers are marked with the Crime Bill markings as is required by law. The exception was/is only for those weapons delivered to the USG.

There were never any USP45 12-round magazines made intentionally without the Crime Bill markings. While it is possible to insert magazines of the MK23/Mark 23 in the USP45 (not vice versa due to the different floor plates), these magazine are different and should not be interchanged. The feed lips and floor plates are different between the two magazines. Swapping these magazines can reduce the reliability f the weapons when the incorrect magazine is utilized

You may wish to inform your readers that if they buy (or sell) 12-round unmarked magazines for the MK23/Mark 23/0, they are buying/selling stolen US Government property, plain and simple.

If their claim is that these unmarked magazines were produced prior to the Crime Bill and imported through another source beside HK Inc., that’s a lie as well. If their claim is that the magazine housing is UPS45 pre-ban with a MK23/Mark 23 floor plate fitted to it, that’s also untrue. Ask the “dealer” his source for the magazines in question and see what his response is.

While there could be a few (less than 60) prototype, 12-round unmarked SOCOM OHWS Phase I or Phase II magazines floating around, most of these were delivered to the USG with the prototype pistols (except for a handful that we kept here) and were thus purchased by the USG and are thus USG property also. However, the Phase I prototype magazines do not fit in Phase II or production MK23’s/Mark 23’s or USP45’s.

I have inspected one of these so-called pre-ban magazines actually purchased from one of these “dealers”. It is in fact one of the mags we sold to the USG on the contract.

Be advised, that the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) is aware of this issue and have an ongoing investigation into the loss of this controlled, USG property. Buyer/Seller beware!

Jim Schatz
HK, Inc.

Thank you for the facts on these magazines Jim. Hopefully you have helped keep some of our readers out of unwanted trouble.

Ed

Dear SAR,

I am reading your Small Arms Review Vol 1, No 1 which came in the mail today, and like it very much. You asked for suggestions as to future content of the magazine. I was reminded of the various issues of Life Magazine during the early 1940’s during World War II (A long, long time age) which had in almost every issue one or more articles dedicated to explaining some sort of military small arms of both the Allies and the Axis nations. I was absolutely fascinated by these articles at the time, and wish that I had put them aside to look at in the years since then. I think your current readers would also be fascinated by reprints of these articles (as would I), perhaps one to an issue of Small Arms Review. That is to say, if the current publishers of Life Magazine could be persuaded to allow them to be reprinted.

Thomas J. Horton
Sun City, AZ

Dear SAR,

I am so thankful that you have picked up were Machine Gun News has left off. I like the street address of 223 Sugar Hill Road. I Like 223, but I am writing with regards to page 36 of Vol. 1 No. 2 In the photo number 11, would that be a XM177 or the XM177E1 model and not the E-2 model? Help me out on this one. Thanks

Jeff Hooper

Number 11 is correct for either model. Later models had the collar added, as illustrated in number 12, but still shared the same moderator. The extension at the front was a Flash Hider.

Ed

Uzi!…. For years the mere utterance of the word has sent the heart pounding and the pulse racing in the minds of soldiers, Hollywood producers, and homegrown Walter Mitty types alike. This near mythical creation out of the brilliant mind of Uziel Gal (Galilei) has risen from the depths of despair of a nearly stillborn young nation, to its current status as THE defining image of at least three generations. There is almost no place on earth that the name, or image, of the Uzi Submachine gun cannot be found such that this universal familiarity has led to its being one of the most popular firearms on the collectors market today.

Available Guns

Unfortunately for the NFA weapons collector in these United States, the Uzi SMG is not as readily available as its worldwide status would suggest. Due to our controlling firearms laws and the market demands of past years, the collectible versions of the Uzi have come to be defined by three distinct variations.

Any fully transferable factory produced, foreign made gun (SMG) would have to have been imported prior to 1968 and the enactment of the Gun Control Act. In this category there exist two variations of the type: the Israeli/IMI produced originals, and the license built clones produced in Belgium by FN-Herstal. But before you start looking for one of those be aware that very few of either origin were ever imported prior to 1968 and they command a premium price!

The only other option for a Factory produced SMG is either the large number of dealer sample/law enforcement guns that were imported between 1968-1986 (which are restricted to acquisition by civilians who are Special Occupational Tax Payers only), or the US manufactured SMGs produced in the middle 1980s by Group Industries Inc. of Louisville, Ky. The Group guns are factory produced SMGs, accurate and exact in every detail, as they were manufactured on jigs and tooling obtained from FN, often using original FN produced parts obtained in the deal. They are also all fully transferable. Group guns are available for approximately less than half the cost of a Pre-68, fully-transferable, foreign produced, original gun and they are just as good as the originals. The differences are in finish only, and as a bonus the Group guns were offered from the factory in .45ACP and .22LR calibers, in addition to the standard 9mm caliber. It has been reported that very few of the non-9mm calibers were delivered from the factory as such. Group also sold caliber conversion kits as an accessory item. There have been a few problems with later Group Industries Uzis, mostly related to the bolts. Installing a factory Uzi bolt seems to alleviate the problems.

The last, and most common, version of the NFA collectible Uzi SMG are those guns that originated as Title I semi-auto carbines, and were later converted to select fire and registered with the NFA (National Firearms Act Branch of BATF) as transferable SMGs. These guns come in two distinct flavors. First is the “registered receiver conversion”, whose registration status allows the receiver to be modified to the factory original SMG configuration. The second is the “registered bolt conversion”, which employs as the registered item a special bolt that has been manufactured to fit and function in the receiver of a standard, unmodified, semi-auto carbine but in the select fire, open bolt, mode of operation. This type of conversion cannot legally employ some of the standard SMG features that would require receiver modifications, as discussed below.

These two types of conversion guns are our topic of investigation, as there are many variations. As with all conversions, there exist guns that were converted correctly and safely, and there are those that bear watching out for. A thorough understanding of the accepted practices used in a proper conversion of each type will allow the prospective buyer or current owner to gain maximum enjoyment from this gun, while avoiding a potentially bad experience.

The Semi-Auto Carbine

It must be first understood that Action Arms Inc., over the course of the years they were importing the semi-auto guns, imported two different versions the Uzi semi-auto carbine. These versions were officially known as the Model A and the Model B, and they were essentially identical mechanically, except for certain small differences, some of which were also being incorporated into the factory SMGs at this time too. The most noticeable difference was the arrangement of their sighting systems. On the Model A the sights are identical to the original SMG design, in which all adjustability for windage and elevation is accomplished by movement of the front sight elements. The rear sight is a fixed peep, adjustable only for two range settings of 50m and 100m. Part of the problem was not taking into account the change from a 10 inch barrel on the SMG, to the 16 inch barrel on the semi-auto. The Model B incorporated a new sighting system which allowed elevation adjustments on the front sight post, and windage from the rear sight peep, in addition to the range selections. The operational difference is that the Model B does not require any special tool to make adjustments, whereas the Model A requires a dedicated sight tool. Also, on the Model B, the front sling swivel rotates a full 360 degrees, while on the Model A it cannot rotate through a full arc. On early versions of the Model A the bolt face was also slightly different. Early imports had a full cartridge seating bottom rim, whereas later Model A (and all Model B guns) incorporate a relieved lower cartridge seat face to hinder easy conversion to full-auto fire. This became an important distinction when legally converting these guns, as discussed below. There is a perception that the Model A was a better candidate for conversions, as it was closer to the original SMG and could be converted more easily, in some cases. On a few of the very early examples of the Model A, the blocking rail was not adequately welded, which may be the root of that bit of MG Lore.

As an aside it must be pointed out, that while all Israeli manufactured semi-auto carbines were imported by Action Arms Inc., there was also a clone of the semi-auto carbine made by Group Industries here in the USA Group Industries started making SMGs and when the 1986 making ban occurred, they tooled up for the semi-auto guns, of which there are a small number about, but nowhere near as many as of the Action Arms imports. And though it has never been reported that the Group semis were available in time to be receiver registered, as transferable SMG conversions prior to the 1986 making ban, many have apparently been used as the host guns when installing NFA registered, conversion bolts. The design and quality of Group Industries guns rivals that of the Israeli originals, and there should be no hesitation in their employment as host guns for bolt conversions. For our purposes here we are only concerned with original Israeli-made guns, and possibly these Group Industries clones when used as the basis for a conversion with a Registered Bolt. It should be noted that there were imported at differing times, and by differing importers, unlicensed, cheap copies of the semi-auto carbine made by Norinco in China. These poor quality guns made it in under the name of “Officers’ 9”, long before the semi-auto import ban, and long before the ‘current’ rash of Norinco Uzi Carbine clones, imported as sporter rifles commonly seen with thumbhole, sporter style fixed stocks. Despite when (and under which name) these Chinese copies are encountered, it must be very clearly stated that they are extremely poor copies, with regard to metallurgy, fit, and finish. They are so poor as to preclude discussion here. Due to the timing involved, very few of the Chinese guns would seem to have been in-country and able to be registered prior to the 1986 making ban, but some may have been used for an SMG conversion with one of the many legally registered conversion bolts. Under no circumstances could this be recommended, as these guns are so poorly made as to be potentially impossible to make them function reliably with a conversion bolt installed.

What’s So Different About a Semi-auto Carbine?

Like other semi-auto derivatives of ex-military pattern machine-guns, the Uzi semi-auto carbine had to undergo a significant redesign from the SMG parent in order to pass the BATF’s measuring stick to allow importation and sale to U.S. citizens as a Title I firearm. Obviously, such changes are made with the intention of NOT allowing an easy conversion into a machine gun, and it is important to fully understand these engineering changes. A proper, safe, and legal conversion will have retained the inherent safety features of the parent SMG design, while rendering as close as mechanically possible a virtual copy of the SMG functionally and aesthetically. Israel Military Industries (IMI), unfortunately for the NFA collector community, went far beyond the absolute minimum changes required from the SMG design to allow importation and sale in this country. These extra semi-auto only features are the central focus of most of the complaints leveled at conversions of these guns, with regard to function and user-friendliness.

The differences between a functional conversion (one that merely duplicates functionally, full-auto only, or selective fire), and a complete conversion (one that virtually replicates the original SMG in all aspects including function, parts interchangeability, and appearance), are significant. They can cause extreme variation in the fair price range of differing guns. To gain a complete understanding of the selection and desirability of available guns out there, let’s first take a look at the basic mechanical differences between the SMG and the semi-auto carbine (as originally imported).

The single most important difference between the original SMG and the semi-auto carbine is in the respective methods of operation. The SMG fires from the open-bolt position using a fixed firing pin. The carbine had to be redesigned to fire from the closed-bolt position, utilizing a striker. This was solely to pass importation restrictions based upon a pending ruling prohibiting the manufacture of semi-auto Title I guns that fired from an open bolt. To this end there were several significant design changes made. The first was the installation on the rear upper right side of the sheet metal receiver of a long piece of rectangular shaped metal bar (known as a ‘blocking rail) that prevented the drop-in installation of the SMG type, fixed firing pin, Open Bolt. In order to accommodate the blocking rail inside the receiver the semi-auto bolt has a full -length notch cut in its upper right side to allow passage over the blocking rail. Since the gun could not use a fixed firing pin a striker mechanism was incorporated into the bolt group, which now comprised a slightly shorter Bolt with a full length hole drilled through its center to accommodate a moving firing pin, this pin came forward upon, sear release, to strike the cartridge primer. The bolt itself now merely reciprocated within the length of the receiver housing, with each shot closing upon the freshly chambered round. The the striker assembly stayed caught by the sear in the same rear position of the former SMG open bolt. The striker assembly itself comprised the long firing pin and square section of steel that had a sear holding notch cut into its bottom surface, along with a separate spring to provide the striking energy. The semi-auto now had two separate spring assemblies; the main recoil spring (attached in the familiar place on the bolt itself), and the smaller striker spring. There is an interconnecting slot cut into the left side bottom of the semi-auto bolt to mate with the long arm of the striker assembly. This assures proper alignment during movement. Due to the fact that the striker arm (contained the single sear notch) the right bottom ridge of the semi-auto bolt that would normally contain a sear notch in the SMG bolt is milled open from the rear of the ejection opening, to slightly ahead of it. The SMG bolt is solid on the top and side faces, except for the sear holding notch, and the ejection port opening. To finish out the bolt group changes, the SMG has a different type of extractor than the semi-auto bolt. The lip of the semi-auto extractor is considerably thinner and shallower than that installed on the SMG bolt, for unknown reasons. It is clearly desirable to have the SMG version installed in a full-auto gun, and probably any version of the gun. They are completely interchangeable. Lastly, a note is in order on the two different kinds of semi-auto bolts that were installed on the Model A guns, as this has an important bearing on how these guns may have been converted to the full-auto fire mode. When IMI first designed the Model A semi-auto bolt the bolt face was identical to the SMG open-bolt design (save for the deletion of the fixed-firing pin) in that it incorporated a full-circumference cartridge holding rim. This cartridge holding rim was designed to snap around the base rim of the cartridge and hold it in position as it entered the chamber, just prior to contact with the fixed firing pin. Later Model A, and all Model B, guns have the lower section of this rim machined off, as another disabling design feature, to preclude easy modification to full-auto fire, as will now be discussed below.

Now, with the mode of fire changed, the fire controls had to be similarly altered. All fire-control parts are contained in a separate housing attached centrally below the receiver of the gun, and which also comprises the pistol grip and the magazine well. The SMG fire-control assembly allows for three control positions, safe, semi-auto, and full-auto. The selector levers have a small right angle, finger-like, bent piece of metal which, in a SMG installation, moves forward and bypasses the disconnector function in the fully forward full-auto position. For semi-auto fire to occur it is placed in the middle position, where it can function the disconnector, releasing the sear after the trigger nose drops. To force the condition of semi-auto only operation, whereby the disconnector is activated continuously, it would be required to mechanically preclude the selector from moving forward past this point. The alterations were made to the semi-auto grip housing by adding a small block of metal inside the front center shelf of this housing to preclude the selector lever from moving forward enough to engage the full-auto position on the trigger nose, and by-pass the disconnector. The selector levers themselves are the same except for deletion of the third select position notch. Very early semi-auto selectors were identical to the SMG versions, and had all three control position notches already cut. Later versions deleted the third position. Concurrent with the changes in the semi-auto guns which resulted in their being redesignated as Model B, all versions of Uzi selector levers had a vertical safety tang added to the upper surface of the lever, which prevented the sear from dropping (by blocking the left underside sear finger, in the same mechanical fashion as the right underside finger is blocked by the vertical tang of the grip safety) until the selector switch was moved into one of the Fire positions.

The only other difference in the fire-control parts relates to the sear itself. The SMG sear is quite noticeably larger on the fingers that protrude up into the receiver to catch the bolt. In comparison, the semi sear, because it only had to restrain the much lighter striker mass, has smaller fingers. The smaller semi sear will work but is NOT recommended, as excessive wear can result. A proper conversion will have the sear projection holes in the bottom of the receiver milled out to the correct dimensions to allow the factory SMG sear to be installed and function. This was not always done, and on conversion guns utilizing a Registered Bolt it may be looked upon as an illegal receiver modification by BATF, unless the bolt was permanently married to the receiver by serial number on the transfer form. (A note on all Uzi sears: the sears, by design, are made to a less hardened surface treatment than the bolt so that when wear does occur, and it will, the comparatively cheaper sear can be replaced rather than the entire expensive bolt. A highly worn sear can allow runaway fire, in slips over the rounded, worn, sear fingers so always check the sear condition on regular basis!)

Lastly, on the fire control group, the axis pins that hold the lower receiver control group onto the upper receiver have two different size mounting pins/holes, again to preclude a direct swapping of the SMG group onto the Semi-auto receiver. The SMG uses a 5mm pins and receiver holes, while the semi-auto guns use 7mm pins and receiver holes. This prevents an SMG lower from being pinned on without enlarging the pinholes in the SMG trigger housing. You will still have to use 7mm pins to mount it. With the availability of parts kit guns now so abundant many people have chosen to install a real SMG lower, either for increased reliability, or just to get the Hebrew markings of the Israeli originals.

Jumping back up into the front of the receiver, we discover yet another joyous collection of maddening alterations that hinder our journey back to the world of the original SMG configuration. The two most often heard complaints about owning a conversion SMG relate to the barrel selection availability and mounting problems. IMI thoughtfully left no stone unturned when redesigning the Uzi for semi-auto sale in the U.S. Their most fondly remembered alterations prevent the installation and usage of cheap and plentiful SMG short barrels, instead forcing the owner of an SMG conversion that has not been fully SMG configured to resort to modifying and cutting down semi-auto barrels. Thankfully there are on the aftermarket barrels that will interchange. (It should be noted that possession of one of these short barrels that will drop into a semi-auto Uzi and the semi-auto Uzi itself would comprise possession of a short barreled rifle, requiring registration under Title II of the 1968 Gun Control Act). The semi-auto is different from the SMG as regards barrel mounting in two important aspects. First, the actual barrel trunnion, which forms the heart of the forward part of the upper receiver by being welded into place, has a smaller diameter passage hole for the barrel flanges than on the SMG. This prevents an SMG barrel from being slipped into the trunnion. On the front of the magazine well, inside the bottom of the receiver, is welded on both SMG and semi-auto versions a cartridge feed ramp to guide the nose of the bullet into the chamber of the barrel. On the original SMG version that is all that it is, a cartridge guide. On the semi-auto version it also contains a thick ring which serves to hold the rear end of the barrel in position on the feed ramp, but more importantly it prevents the larger rear diameter of a standard SMG barrel from being inserted and utilized in the semi-auto guns. By virtue of the SMG barrel flanges being of a larger diameter, they cannot be directly inserted and used in a semi-auto conversion that does not have these two features fixed. So one has to either cut and recrown the semi-auto barrels, or turn down the flanges on the SMG versions. A proper and complete conversion will have had the trunnion passage hole bored out to SMG spec, and the barrel ring milled off the feed ramp.

The last important difference between the SMG and the semi-auto carbine is in the design of the top covers. The SMG cover has an extra mechanism in the cocking track designed to prevent inadvertent discharge of the weapon if the cocking knob is accidentally released prior to full rearward travel being reached and sear lock-up of the bolt. This is commonly called a ratcheting top cover, due to the small ratchet mechanism which will catch and hold the bolt. This is only a feature in the open- bolt guns. It is not found, or needed, in a closed bolt firing weapon. The visible tip off to identification is the row of ratchet teeth along the side of the top cover bottom track. Semi-auto tracks are smooth for their entire length. There is also a slight difference in the length of the cut opening between the SMG and semi-auto carbine top cover tracks, which will be explained below. A proper conversion need not have this ratcheting top cover to function correctly, but anything designed, and available to the owner/operator, for safety reasons should be utilized. It is not possible to modify the semi-auto top cover for this ratcheting mechanism (for all practical purposes at least), so most complete conversions will have this entire assembly exchanged for a standard SMG unit. The other bonus benefit to this exchange of top covers is that the semi-auto carbine has a lengthy and annoying warning against illegal conversions stamped into the cocking knob slide, and since we’re discussing a legal NFA registered weapon, it’s only fitting to eliminate such aggravating visible verbage on the exterior of the weapon. (See Photo on page 73.)

There is one more aesthetic difference between the semi-auto carbine and the SMG. Both guns could utilize either a folding metal stock or a fixed wooden one. The folders attach semi-permanently in the same fashion on either gun, but on the SMG the wooden stock is provisioned for quick detachment by a release lever on the stock underside. On the semi-auto carbine, the wooden stock is semi-permanently attached. The SMG quick-detach wooden stock will interchange for those who so desire.

The Three Conversion Methods

Now, with an understanding of the various mechanical differences between the SMG and the semi-auto carbine, it is relevant to discuss the actual mechanical methods of conversion that will be found on a NFA registered Uzi carbine SMG conversion.

It did not take long after Action Arms Inc. began importing the first carbines to the USA in 1980. Before some very industrious minds began to figure out how to convert the gun into a full-auto firing (versions in full-auto only, and selective full-auto fire) submachine gun.

The first type of conversion took clever advantage of the design of the striker-fired, closed-bolt, semi-auto mechanism in spite of all that IMI had done to prevent easy conversion. In fact, some of the IMI changes actually facilitated this type of conversion! Recall from above, that the first Model A guns to come in were slightly different than all those that followed. IMI had forgotten a few very important details it seems! For the open-bolt mode of fire, the full-circumference rim on the bolt face, designed to guide the cartridge into the chamber prior to the fixed firing pin striking the primer cap, is critical. Without this lower rim on the bolt face the cartridge bottom rim will hang up on the firing pin, causing jamming as it enters the chamber. The cartridge rim will climb into the bolt face too soon. On a closed-bolt weapon there is no firing pin in the way, until sear release of the striker after bolt closure and chambering, so the elimination of that lower lip is of no consequence unless somehow, that fixed firing pin, or its equivalent, suddenly reappeares! That is exactly what those industrious minds figured out how to do. If the striker could be attached to the rear of the bolt it would act as an open bolt, with a fixed firing pin protruding at the bolt face. Even simpler, it was noticed that the striker spring was strong enough to carry the striker in place against the rear of the bolt during chambering, enough to cause reliable primer ignition! Now you were half way there. The earliest Model A bolts had the full-circumference cartridge holding rim already, remember? Two thirds of the way there. If you could somehow allow the selector lever (early Model A select levers had three detent notches) to move forward far enough to interrupt the disconnector function, the bolt would continue to reciprocate until trigger release…. full-auto (only)! Method one done.

In finer detail, these were mostly all registered receiver conversions for two basic reasons. Reason one, because at this time there was no economic reason NOT to register the whole gun as an SMG, and reason two, the ATF rulings which brought about the so-called “machine gun conversion parts” distinction was just beginning to get started with the “AR15 drop-in auto sear” mania and the like, with the Uzi conversion scene adding to the fire for the following reason. From the just discussed conversion method above, it becomes apparent that one could convert a semi-auto carbine to full-auto with no receiver modifications. If a new selector lever that bypassed the disconnector function could be made that could drop-in, and replace the semi-auto one directly. That was exactly what was done in some cases, with a “Conversion Selector Lever” being NFA registered as the machine gun itself, and either installed in a gun by a Class II Manufacturer or owner (on Form 1), or sold by itself. ATF promptly ruled this lever was a machine gun with the usual warning against unregistered possession, etc.

So, early Model As (with the full SMG style lower bolt face rim) can be found with this NFA registered lever as the only difference, but they will be able to fire full-auto only, not selectively. For later bolts with the lower rim machined off, it was necessary to reinstall that rim as in an SMG bolt face. This was usually done by welding a machine contoured ‘half rim ring’ back onto the bolt face itself. For the selector lever itself to NOT be considered a registerable part under the NFA, it had to be of the original design with the right-angle finger attached that engaged the disconnector (and blocking piece welded onto the front lower shelf of the trigger grip frame housing). Early Model A select levers with all three detent positions could be used just as a regular SMG part if the blocking piece could be removed, but doing so altered the ‘as manufactured’ status of the gun, and was disallowed by ATF, unless the receiver was NFA registered, and this was the only way to remain legal with a conversion of this type early on. The proper conversion method then had the blocking piece removed to replicate the SMG control housing function. Later semi-auto select levers were devoid of the third detent notch, so that had it to be reconfigured on later guns undergoing conversion. This describes the various NFA registered guns that can be encountered from the earliest conversions done. This phase lasted only about a year or so, and changed very quickly when those industrious minds went to work again, this time on the bolt itself.

Since to modify the relieved bolt face seen on most Model A guns required accurate welding and reheat treating of the bolt, it seemed easier to start with a bolt already manufactured in the full SMG configuration as regards open bolt firing requirements. If you started with a SMG type bolt the only major modification needed would be to allow placement inside the semi receiver with its blocking rail. A simple job of milling a slot in the correct location to mimic the design of the semi-auto bolt, and the gun would function in the open bolt mode. And so the now famous “slotted bolt” was born. The first versions sold openly were designed to accommodate the normal closed bolt recoil spring and buffer arrangement which was slightly longer in depth on the semi gun because the semi closed bolt did not need to reciprocate as far back into the receiver because of the striker assembly riding behind it. To this end, the cut track opening for the cocking slide in the top cover had a slightly shorter track, as the cocking slide did not need to be drawn as far back with the striker engaging the sear instead of the bolt. To retain as much of the original SMG operating characteristics as possible, it was soon seen that by replacing the semi recoil and buffer assemblies with a standard SMG version the slotted bolt could attain all the relevant dimensions of the SMG, save for the milled slot in the side. By increasing the length of the slotted conversion bolt to normal SMG spec it also restored the normal cyclic rate by virtue of the increased mass and recoil travel. The only down side to this bolt, and all future NFA registered conversion bolts of this description, is that it now required the full travel of the cocking slide to engage the bolt notch with the sear while cocking the weapon, such that it became necessary to now mill open the length of the cocking track opening to normal SMG specs too. It was often easier to just replace the whole top cover, with the added benefit of the SMG ratcheting mechanism coming along for free.

This all came to an immediate halt in mid 1982, when ATF ruled that such fixed firing pin, slotted bolts, like the drop-in selector or lever, were machine guns in and of themselves, so future manufacture, sale, and possession was to be in full compliance with the NFA. There were though a small number of legal registered receiver conversions made by using these unrestricted, restricted, conversion bolts prior to that ruling, and they were allowed (grandfathered), as they were previously lawfully, registered in full compliance with the existing laws, though the conversion bolt now needed to be married to that particular serially numbered receiver. If it ever needed replacement you were out of luck. With this restriction some of these registered receiver guns simply ditched (read: destroyed) the UN-registered conversion bolt and went ahead and finished the receiver modifications that allowed utilization of an original, solid SMG open-bolt, as these were the only bolts that remained legal for unrestricted sale and transfer after the ruling.

This is the basis then for the second most common method of conversion, that of using an NFA registered, slotted conversion bolt, in an otherwise unmodified Title 1 semi-auto receiver. These slotted conversion bolts were still made and marketed, but they now had to be individually NFA registered, and a lot of them were! The slotted conversion bolt” is operationally identical to the standard SMG open bolt, except for the milled slot in the right upper side face. All other relevant dimensions and operating characteristics are the same, with one small nod to the inescapable reality that it was to be used in an unmodified semi-auto carbine receiver. All semi-auto carbines incorporate the barrel modifications as described above such that a normal SMG bolt face, if used in an unmodified semi-auto receiver, would not properly close against the rear of the barrel chamber, as the restrictor ring which surrounds the rear of the semi-auto barrel would interfere. So, NFA registered slotted conversion bolts are slightly relieved at the forward upper bolt face to accommodate the normal semi-auto barrel and mounting setup.

With a registered conversion bolt installed, it was deemed acceptable by ATF to allow modification of the lower receiver trigger housing fire control unit any way desired, and most units were simply modified from the semi-auto to selective mode of fire, as described above. It is also perfectly acceptable to swap out the semi-auto unit for a standard factory original SMG lower, as long as the SMG trigger housing is modified (by opening up the mounting pin holes to 7mm), and not the upper receiver center block! Even with a registered slotted conversion bolt installed, upper receiver modifications are generally disapproved of by ATF, although the only specifically illegal modification is removal of the blocking rail on the right upper inside of the receiver. The caveat against modifying the lower receiver push pin mounting hole to bring it back to the 5mm SMG standard is that it may be viewed as evidence of intent to illegally convert the semi-auto upper receiver (by allowing pin-on conversion of an SMG lower housing combined with the first bolt modification method described above) if the NFA-registered bolt is ever separated. It is inadvisable to make this modification in light of that distinction. Guns found with the remaining upper receiver modifications, such as barrel trunnion and feed ramp alterations, are not illegal and add to the perceptible value of the gun if done in a professional manner. An SMG conversion using a NFA-registered slotted conversion, bolt is an excellent method of conversion as it does not overly hinder one in obtaining a near copy of the factory SMG original, and in most cases the absolute differences between a bolt gun and registered receiver conversion are merely aesthetic, with the spare parts scenario being the most common complaint. And, if you already have a semi-auto gun in your collection, the acquisition of an NFA-registered conversion bolt may allow an inexpensive changeover into the full-auto realm of the design, as it was originally intended.

The only remaining point to discuss about these registered conversion bolts is as regards their inherent value and weaknesses. All of these bolts were NOT created equal, either in materials or workmanship! If it is decided that a conversion bolt is the way to proceed a careful examination of the intended bolt is in order if you wish to maximize the usage and enjoyment of the converted gun. slotted conversion bolts were made from two distinct sources, each with its own pluses and minuses. The first and most obvious source was to simply take a factory original SMG open-bolt, and then make the two modifications to adapt it to conversion use in the semi-auto carbine, namely milling the clearance slot, and the bolt face relief cut for the rear barrel support ring. The main concern here is: Did the manufacturer of these bolts properly account for the re-heat treatment of the finished bolt. Since these bolts are normally hardened, it should have been annealed prior to machining, and then heat treated again to proper finish hardness. A finish hardness of at least Rockwell 55-56 on the C (hard, but able to be cut with a file) scale is desired to prevent premature wear of the sear holding notches and bolt face. A tungsten carbide-cutter mill may have been used instead of the heat treatment process (es), but this could lead to localized heat distortion damage (unlikely) during the milling operation(s) if it is not done very carefully. Closely examine any bolts that show evidence of stress risers, hairline cracks, crystallization or burring.

The second method involved new manufacture of slotted bolts, either from machined forgings, bar stock or investment castings. Both forgings and bar stock are common, and perfectly acceptable as base materials for a machine gun bolt, with a slight nod being given to the forged bolts as they duplicate the factory original manufacturing method, while having intrinsically better metallurgical properties. Lastly, some new manufacture bolts were made from cast steel and then finish machined. Investment cast parts are acceptable, providing that the proper manufacturing methods were employed during casting, and were to industry standards. The single most common problem found with cast parts relates to improper cooling practices which allow finished dimensions to stray from spec. All cast Uzi bolts were not created equal, and there are unfortunately cast Uzi bolts that are known to be off-spec due to a materials specification change which substituted a different alloy than originally specified. This material had a slightly different contraction rate, which caused it to cool to a finish dimension that was larger than tolerance. There ended up being a small lot of these poorly cast slotted SMG bolts NFA registered, and they are quite obvious by the fitting marks that were required to get them to function.

All of these bolts of any manufacturing method, should be heat treated for long-term service, so check the pedigree of the bolt in question and verify manufacturing specs if at all possible. As regards reported, known problems with these registered slotted bolts, it boils down to two areas. First, for the reasons above, some bolts exhibit an excessive wear profile in the sear holding notches which can lead to eventual failure to properly hold on the sear fingers. Potential dangers from run-away firing aside, this is not that serious of a problem to repair, though it entails welding up the sear notches in a jig and then re-machining them to spec (followed by proper re-heat treatment!). Secondly, some of the improperly heat treated bolts have had their fixed firing pin wear down from extended use to the point where there is not enough pin protruding to reliably cause primer ignition. The only acceptable method of repair here is to bore out the old pin and install a replacement fixed pin which can be heat-shrunk into place. These repair pins are rare items, and few people working around MG’s have any experience with doing this, but since we are talking about a registered part, repair is the only legal way to go registered slotted bolts should, of and in themselves, be of no particular concern as regards wear and longevity in an SMG conversion, as they have the full potential to meet a normal factory original parts life and utility span, if they were correctly manufactured in the first place. As with all conversion parts though, once the general design was in the public domain many different sources made and registered them and all were not created equal, so a close physical examination is advised. And if a well-worn, or even damaged or improperly manufactured, registered bolt should be found, do not discount it out of hand, as it can be repaired and restored to operational status by a competent professional. The price to be paid should reflect the overall condition, but with registered NFA items getting more valuable with time, any item with a registration paper/tax stamp is worth a close examination prior to purchase, if at possible.

“As a general rule, ANY bolt gun is worth less than a registered receiver conversion of comparable condition.”

The final conversion type is the so-called registered receiver gun. As most people understand the meaning of the term, it is qualified by one underlying distinction, the removal of the blocking rail inside the receiver to allow utilization of a standard, solid, SMG open bolt. Though we noted that there are a select few registered receiver guns, as described above, that were converted by other methods, these are not generally perceived to be of the same general class, as they still have the blocking rail intact and therefore have not been converted to SMG description. However, due to their receiver status they most certainly could be completed to full SMG spec at the owner’s discretion. The owner who wishes to do so should check with ATF Technology Branch first before doing so – and get it in writing. But for most registered receiver guns, their attraction lies in the fact that they can be fully converted to a near clone of the factory SMG, in both function and appearance. Due to the registration status, with no legal barriers to altering the receiver itself, we are free to return the receiver to its normal SMG description.

This complete conversion of the gun back to its near factory SMG description is accomplished as follows, though individual guns may exhibit various stages of completeness of the full conversion. The complete conversion is begun by removal of the bolt blocking rail in preparation for installation of a factory original SMG open bolt. The IMI design for the mounting of the blocking rail incorporated two extension tabs near each end, that located the rail by mating with opposite slots in the receiver sidewall, and then were welded in place and had the welds ground smooth prior to finishing of the weapon’s exterior. When altering the receiver for the conversion to a factory type SMG bolt it became necessary to remove the rail completely, flush with the receiver sidewall, a job best accomplished with a vertical milling cut, as the mill could be controlled to safely remove the rail flush with the receiver sidewall without causing damage. The problem with this is that the last section of the rail was installed too far back in the receiver channel to allow milling it completely free, so some ingenuity was called for. Most conversions were done by carefully milling off the rail as much as possible rearward then using a small torquing force, or shear force, to break free the remaining tab joint. Done carefully, this resulted in no damage to the receiver sidewalls, though many people apparently used alternate methods than a mill, or rushed the job or applied too much torque/shear force as twisted/dented rear sidewalls are one of the most common flaws in conversions. These sidewall flaws can be straightened, but it is a difficult job and best done by an experienced professional.

The other required major alteration to the semi-auto upper receiver, to render it a clone of the factory produced SMG, was the conversion of the barrel mounting points. The barrel trunnion through-hole needs to be opened up to the SMG factory spec diameter, and properly converted guns will have had this done by line boring to the axis though more commonly this was simply placed into a vertical holding fixture and a drill press was used. This can result in misalignment of the mounted barrel and may be a root cause of feeding troubles, and failure to be able to properly tighten the barrel mounting collar. The rear barrel holding ring/feed ramp assembly will also have to have the entire ring structure milled off flush with the upper surface of the feed ramp, duplicating the SMG ramp contours, to avoid bolt face contact. Once these two operations were performed, an SMG barrel could be simply replaced.

The selector lever block in the top inside shelf of the trigger housing frame was also installed by the same locating tab method, as employed on the blocking rail in the upper receiver. The correct method to remove it was a simple milling operation, though other torquing/shearing operations were commonly utilized. If the block was not fully removed flush, or if any remnants of the weld are left, there may be interference with the elongated right-angle finger of the selector lever that prevents smooth operation of the disconnector function and subsequent improper semi-auto functioning. So, to do a proper conversion, one must completely remove the select lever block, as some improper conversions merely attempted to notch, or cut out, instead of fully removing the block, and a sticking or troublesome selector lever can usually be traced to this. An SMG selector lever is the ideal way to complete a fully correct conversion, and this can be simply exchanged, although the majority of conversions probably used modified semi levers (note: there are two different SMG selectors available – later production ones have the safety tang, early military ones do not.). The semi-auto select levers were modified by adding the third detent, and these detents may give trouble if not properly done. Check for correct depth and spacing as compared to the original two semi-auto only control positions if the selector will not engage the full-auto position smoothly and firmly. A correct job will have the third detent milled, as the factory did, and not hand cut or ground out.

As discussed above the remaining operation to the trigger housing was remarking of the housing exterior for the third selector detent position after it had been milled, cut, or stamped into the housing exterior. The exterior of the trigger housing is where it is easy to tell the care and professionalism, or lack thereof, that went into the conversion. The remarking of the housing for the third detent position can vary from either indistinguishable from factory, to sloppy and badly mismatched. A cold chisel and hand stamp, held by hand and eyeballed, was often the preferred method. The best conversions will have utilized a professional stamping fixture with a font-matching stamp to duplicate the lettering already existing in the other two positions, combined with welding up of the old fire position F, and restamping of the now required R for the semi-auto detent position. Some conversions may simply have had the entire semi-auto unit replaced with a surplus factory SMG type trigger housing, which should be unaltered except for the required modification to the mounting pin holes of the SMG trigger housing. If the original semi-auto sear was exchanged for an SMG sear, with the full width fingers, the sear clearance holes in the bottom of the upper receiver will need to be enlarged to SMG spec for proper clearance. The difference is slight, and many were not properly enlarged as required. For reliable operation with the SMG sear it is necessary to enlarge the holes.

“..Group Industries guns were offered from the factory in .45ACP and .22LR calibers in addition to the standard 9mm..”

The top cover modifications, required for the SMG open bolt installation as discussed above, will most likely have been accomplished by a simple replacement and exchange of the semi-auto original cover assembly for a surplus SMG, ratcheting type unit. This would be considered the most desirable method for this assembly, though modified semi-auto units are also common and perfectly acceptable, though less military looking.

The final aspect of the conversion is the installation, a drop in job now, of an original solid face, SMG style open bolt and its attendant recoil spring and buffer assembly. This bolt should already come equipped with a wide-lip SMG style extractor claw, but if not it should be exchanged for one.

With a complete exterior refinish, this is the ideal state of conversion in a complete conversion of the semi-auto carbine into as near as possible a clone of the factory produced, select fire, open bolt, SMG original, save for the mounting pin holes for the lower trigger housing and the semi-auto model A/B markings. These trigger housing pinholes and the receiver markings could have been altered if a registered receiver gun was remanufactured by a Class II manufacturer, but conversions using registered bolts cannot alter the receiver or its factory markings. As can be readily seen, since there exist such a wide range of possible conversions out there, respective values also vary widely. Most desirable would seem to be a fully converted registered receiver gun exhibiting all the alterations to render a near perfect copy of the factory SMG. These guns, circa early 1998 prices, are fairly priced in the mid to high $2000s for excellent condition guns with a known pedigree originally done by reputable sources, to the low $1200 range for a no-pedigree gun with mechanical or major aesthetic problems. Value increases with higher content of SMG style parts, or modifications to accept those standard parts. Registered bolts are fairly priced from $500-$1000 alone, depending on manufacturer and condition, and materials and methods used for manufacture. A complete bolt gun will depend upon the host semi-auto guns inherent value and whether any additional allowable alterations exist. These could command as a package anywhere from the low $1000s to the mid $2000s. As a general rule ANY bolt gun is worth less than a registered receiver conversion of comparable condition. Though, if you happen to run across one of the few very early conversions, those that fall under the heading of anomalies, such as those that contain a NFA registered selector lever, or are a registered receiver gun with a grandfathered un-registered slotted bolt, judgment will have to be used as to value based upon overall condition and the wear and tear on the registered part(s). Negotiations are in order, as there is simply no definitive value basis.

Hopefully now, with an understanding of the myriad definitions extant of the Conversion Uzi, a clear picture can be drawn of the complex nature of this particular class of civilian legal NFA firearm and its convoluted path to the marketplace and firing lines across the country. While there exists a large variance in this class of guns, it is also nice to know that they represent a solid value for the collectors money, while being easy to shoot and service, as spare parts and accessories are abundant and inexpensive.

“The mechanical engineers have given us in various forms the means of enabling two or three men to deliver a fire equivalent to that of fifty or sixty rifles with deadly effect. The use of such an enormous power as this should not be the mere temporary occupation to which a few men and officers are assigned for a while. Rather it should be the life work of a machine gunner…” Maj. F.V. Longstaff -The book of the Machine Gun 1917

Once again, from eighty years ago, the words of the founders of machine gunnery speak clear and true. Men at arms have always known that training hard and the scholarly study of their art has yielded victory on the battlefield. Raffica would once again like to urge the powers that be in the military to allow ample ammunition for training, as well as encouraging marksmanship and excellence in the ranks of the machine gunners. When you need the skills, you really need the skills. If you have allowed them to atrophy, or to slip away forgotten, you may not be able to gain them back in time to meet a threat such as was encountered in World War II.

Civilian owners of the weapons should likewise train; not so much for war duty, but so that the skills are not rusty if they need to be called upon. It happened in 1950 for Korea. Besides, it’s a wonderful past time, and competitions can include who can pile up the most brass along with who actually is best at hitting the target areas…

On a “Support our advertisers” note; numerous people have asked me for sources for original transit chests for Vickers and Brens. Lots of times these boxes have been forgotten in the back corner of a warehouse, or unknowingly used for other purposes. I recently spoke with Don Bell from Omega Weapons Systems, and he has both Bren and Vickers / Lewis transit chests in stock at some pretty reasonable prices. Don has been one of SAR’s supporting advertisers from the start, and owns a good company to deal with. If you are one of the people who have been asking me where these can be purchased, give Don a call at (520) 889-8895 (Omega’s ad is on page 52)

Q1- I recently bought and took possession of an MP5. According to the paperwork this is a “Registered receiver” MP5. A friend of mine told me that registered receivers are supposed to have the swing down lowers. Mine has a clip on lower. It is an HK94 converted to an MP5 by Bill Fleming. I am wondering if I could be in any trouble, the paperwork is marked in section b as a machinegun and the serial number is the one stamped on the receiver. It was approved by the BATF. Secondly, since it is a registered receiver can I buy full auto components, like a trigger pack or another sear if this one should break? I understand that I can’t have it converted to a swing down lower, but can I put other types of lowers on it? Last of all, I am having some minor problems with it. When firing the trigger seems to have two positions. If you fire a short burst and let go of the trigger, the trigger repositions to its normal position full forward, however if your fire a burst and then release some tension in the trigger, the trigger seems to position itself somewhere in between. If you pull the trigger at this point the weapon will discharge most of the time, occasionally it won’t fire and looking at the round, it has a light primer hit as if the hammer follows the bolt. Most of the time the gun works fine but I would like to get it to work perfectly.

Stephen G.

A1- I’ll try and hit these in the order you gave them to us. Several manufacturers registered HK semi automatic weapons as fully automatic receivers before the May 19th 1986 deadline. Some were made into factory “Clones” by removing the front block and drilling a hole so that a factory HK machine gun trigger housing is used on the gun. These guns you can interchange all factory machine gun parts on. Others were made into “Clip-on” lower registered receivers. These are identical to registered HK Sear guns. The receiver has not been modified to accept the factory swing down lower; it has a machine gun style trigger housing that has been altered to fit on the semi automatic guns. The sear that is used in these guns is basically identical to a registered HK sear, but it is not the registered part. This sear, away from the registered receiver, is considered a machine gun by itself. Do not remove the sear from the proximity of the registered receiver. You are not allowed to finish the alteration of the registered receiver clip on lower guns to fit the swing down, so you can not use the factory parts. You can not make a replacement sear either. SAR will cover this more in depth in future issues.

You can use other lowers if the trigger grip housing is converted to use the original pack and sear that is on your gun. This generally precludes using the 3 shot burst type lowers.

On to your “Trigger” problem. This is really a “Hammer” problem, and it has more insidious ramifications than you might be thinking. Many of the hammers in these converted HK guns were converted themselves from semi automatic hammers. The notch on the hammer is an add on for the full automatic HK’s. Some of these were incorrectly placed. This can be a very dangerous situation. Not only will you experience the problem you have, but you may very well have an Accidental Discharge (AD) when chambering the first round.

Let’s keep it simple here. As SAR readers are aware, AD’s are considered “Bad”. People get hurt and killed. With any firearm, you should always chamber a round in a safe direction to begin with. Safety and proper handling are considered “Good”. The solution here is to get this fixed. You do this by getting a new hammer that is properly cut for the sear. Fred Volmer at F. J. Volmer (309-663-9494) has these in stock for about $40. If you have either a registered receiver clip on lower gun, or a registered sear conversion, you need to check this and see if you have a correct hammer. The problem ones will usually be obvious weld ups on the notch / axle end of the hammer. You can talk to the people at Volmer’s and they will help you ID the problem hammers.

Q2- I recently purchased some fifty-caliber ammunition that was kind of odd. It was on stripper clips, had a silverish tipped bullet, and the base has a large rim around it. Is this the spotter ammunition I hear talked about?

George K.

A2- First, the denizens of Raffica should be aware that I immediately bought this ammunition, after explaining what it was to George. I intend to shoot it, so there is not much point in either trying to bribe, wheedle, or mug me for this ammunition. What George had was .55 Boys ammunition. These are armor piercing rounds, designed for the 1937 model anti-tank bolt action rifle made by the British. The Mark I and Mark II models had short lived military lives, not being particularly useful against WWII armor. Boys Rifles are Destructive Devices under the NFA rules, and require registration as such. Many were converted to .50 BMG, which is somewhat less brutal on the shooter- and makes the Boys a regular Title I firearm as well. The first and most significant identifying feature of the cartridge is the heavy “Belt” around the base, noted at the arrow in the photo at the left.

Q3 I am considering the purchase of a Stoner 63 machine gun. Can I use the M249 linked ammunition that is available today?

Chris

A3- Stoner links are different from the M249 links. Even though they look the same, they are somewhat smaller- making the pitch different. Pitch is very important to the feeding process in machine guns.

The first production Stoner links were marked “S-63”, later ones were marked “XM27”. Links for the M249 or Minimi machine gun, are marked “M27” (See Above Photos) A new feed can can be made to utilize M27 links.
Questions to: Dan Shea C/O SAR

SADW is a monthly electronic publication from Nick Steadman Features. Nick, intrepid world traveling reporter for much of the arms industry, files this 40,000 to 50,000 word report once a month to his loyal subscribers. Those lucky ones pay a mere $50 (US) £32.50 (UK) per year for the privilege of getting the hot tips and insights from one of the industry’s insiders. Nick’s unique perspective is globally based, as is his wit. Each issue is full of insight and information for those with an interest in Small Arms, as well as his observations on world travel.

NEW WEAPONS & EQUIPMENT

DENEL BOLT-ACTION RIFLES

Now that the US/South African arms import/export spat is finally resolved, expect to see initial batches of Denel-manufactured Musgrave-style bolt-action sporting rifles appearing in the U.S.A. We’re told the barrels are particularly good.

H-S PRECISION M700 REM DETACHABLE MAGAZINES & NEW PISTOLS:

H-S Precision in South Dakota has finally introduced its long-awaited detachable magazine and trigger guard housing for Remington M700 rifles. The units are all-stainless and come in four-round short-action (.308” etc) and three-round long-action (Magnum case) versions. Retail price is $145. The company has also launched two Pro-Series 2000P single-shot bolt-action pistols, in Varmint (wide forearm) and Silhouette variants, both based on an H-S Precision stainless receiver, 15” fluted stainless H-S barrel, titanium firing pin and a composite H-S stock (also available separately) which retains the company’s integral bedding bar system employed in the US army’s M24 sniper rifle and Remington M700 Police & Varmint Synthetic rifles. Barrels & receivers are both Teflon coated.

Calibres are .17 Rem, 6mm PPC, .223, .35 Rem, .308, 7mm-08 and 7mm BR. Pistol price is $1,250 (stocks only $245). Tel +1(605) 341-3006, Fax +1(605) 342-8964)

FEDERAL AMMO INTRODUCTIONS

New 1998 ammunition lines from Federal Cartridge include:-
— reduced-recoil 12g & 20g Personal Defense shotgun cartridges (2.75”) with No 2 pellet load.
— reduced-recoil 12g (2.75”) Tactical 000 eight-ball copper-plated buckshot (1,140fps)
— reduced-recoil Tactical 12g (2.75”) Hydra-Shok one-ounce Slug (1,300fps) (also offered on civil market as the Premium low-recoil slug load)
— Premium Tungsten Iron No 4 shot 12g turkey loading (3”) (1,300fps). 1 3/8 ounce
— new Premium Barnes Expander Sabot Slug loads in 12g (2.75”) – slug is copper-plated HP, one ounce. Designed for rifled tubes. MV 1,450fps. Groups to 2.5” at 100 yds
— .223/5.56mm BallistiClean loads with non-toxic priming & lead-free zinc-core bullets. 40gr soft-point & stranded core versions offered, both suitable for police (& military!) training

.22RF KIT for SIG-SAUER P226

Deutsches Waffen-Journal (DWJ) profiled a prototype model of a new .22 rimfire training conversion kit for the 9mm SIG-Sauer P226 pistol and its German police P6 variant, developed by Schuetzenbedarf & Waffen in Offenbach, Germany. Projected price is DM 1,165. The kit comprises a new blowback Lothar Walther barrel, slide, recoil spring and 10-shot magazine, though our German sources said (at mid-Jan 98) the magazines were not yet available in production quantities. The front underlug of the slide forms part of the barrel in this kit, clearly a measure to boost felt recoil effects. IWM’s tester reported malfunction-free performance in all circumstances, except with some very weakly-loaded indoor practice cartridges (Zimmerpatronen), and recoil with high-velocity .22LR ammunition was not dissimilar to that of 9x19mm. 25 metre rested groups were under 50mm.

(Schuetzenbedarf & Waffen (Oliver Pfeiffer), Siemensstrasse 9, 63071 Offenbach, Germany)

.222 SSS RIMFIRE SYSTEM (MEXICO)

Industrias Tecnos in Mexico, producers of Aguila ammunition, have developed a new .222 SSS rimfire cartridge. One application (there may well be more) is for sniping out to 200 metres. The cartridge comprises a .22 Short case loaded with a long 60gr unplated solid lead roundnose bullet (not hollow-pointed) which brings the overall length of the round to that of the .22 Long Rifle. For sniping, the new round is intended for use in a suppressed .22 precision rifle with 30mm diameter 8x56mm scope. The .22 SSS will apparently penetrate 10-12” of pine wood at 200 metres.

This is not the first time we have seen suppressed .22 rimfire rifles proposed for short-range sniping, though they would not be most people’s first choice. Selection of a 60gr bullet is presumably a device to gain the maximum downrange energy within the limitations of subsonic operation. We guess a high-energy propellant is used to get the necessary results from the diminutive .22 Short case.

BARRETT LIGHTWEIGHT .50 MACHINE GUN

Having toyed with this idea for some years, Ronnie Barrett of Barrett Firearms has finally confirmed it is his aim to start cutting metal on a new lightweight, belt-fed .50 machine gun design of his own, weighing about 35 pounds, by Christmas 1998.

CZECH-MADE M6 SCOUT RIFLE

In West Virginia we briefly examined one of the Springfield Armory M6 Scout rifles nowadays made for the US supplier by CZ Strakonice in the Czech Republic. These are reportedly rather hard to come by just now. The M6 is a rather agricultural-looking weapon, a break-barrel, over & under design with (in our case) the upper barrel in .22 Hornet calibre and the lower in .410 shot. A .22LR/.410 version also exists. Upper or lower barrels are selected by respectively pulling out or retracting a round-headed catch above the external hammer. Spare ammunition is stored under a soft plastic cover in the buttstock. Sights comprise a rear aperture and a blade foresight. The trigger is a horizontal bar underneath the small of the butt, and trigger pull is pretty bad, but recoil is modest, bearing in mind the minimal weight of the gun. The M6 was not tested for accuracy, mainly since it was pitch black outside at the time!

Overall, despite its appearance, the M6 is clearly a useful tool for its intended purpose, and works well. It would be a valuable item to have in the emergency kit of any vehicle, boat or plane. Our hosts had removed the trigger guard on this Scout to allow the gun to be folded to a more compact package, as earlier versions could be. However, the long trigger bar is then in such an exposed position that should the external hammer be cocked before closing the gun there is a chance it could be fired when gripping the butt to close the action. We therefore caution at all times against cocking this weapon until the breech is firmly closed.

CHINESE LIGHTWEIGHT 12.7mm MACHINE GUN

Details have been received regarding the Chinese QJZ89 12.7mm machine gun, which is the result of a lightening exercise apparently earlier applied also to the Chinese Type 77 & Type 85 guns in the same calibre. This QJZ89, a short recoil design, is equipped as standard with day and low light (night vision) optical sights and customarily fires AP and APIT ammunition. New ammunition natures include AP-Fragmentation and saboted AP. Total weight of the system is 26.5kg, which is claimed to be 47% lighter than the Type 77 gun and 27% lighter than the Type 85. It is primarily a ground-to-ground weapon but is also intended for use against helicopters.

SILVA’s FIGHTING KITE

Soldier magazine reveals that military compass suppliers Silva (UK) Ltd have come up with a new survival gizmo – the 2 square metre Skystreme inflatable kite, made from metallised fabric which is radar-reflective. It can also be illuminated using a Cyalume Light Stick, and comes with a 50m cord. When not required in its primary role, the kite can be worn as a thermal vest or inflated to act as a splint. It compresses into a pocket-sized package when not in use. All in all, it sounds as if Silva has come up with a winner here. But perhaps they should have made it edible too? Silva (UK) Ltd, Tel (01784) 471721. US Distributor is BE Meyers (1-800-327-5648). Manufacturer is Skystreme – http://www/skystreme.uk.net/

INDUSTRY & FOREIGN NEWS

UK LARGE-CALIBRE RIFLE TRIALS MOVE TO AUSTRALIA

Soldier magazine in the UK carried an item about the British army trials of .338 and .50 Browning weapons in pursuance of the UK’s Long-Range Large Calibre Rifle (LRLCR) programme. It showed the .338 and (for the first time) .50 rifles from Accuracy International, the .50 PGM Hecate II from France and the .50 Barrett M82A1 semi-automatic, all in snow and temperatures of -30 degs Celsius during Alaskan trials, courtesy of the US army’s Cold Region Test Center.

The report said the weapons (which strike us as a very limited selection) had already been tested in Kuwait, Brunei and the UK; they would now be going to Australia for final trials. We assume these are all locations to which RAF transports already fly at no extra cost. Likely role for the LRLCR, destined to equip the UK’s Joint Rapid Deployment Force, was described as ‘defensive’ – it was most likely to be used in circumstances where indiscriminate fire was out of the question……which sounds like a roundabout definition of a long-range countersniper weapon.

Clearly, since the army already uses smaller-calibre Accuracy International sniper rifles, there will be a product-loyalty thing going in respect of that producer’s new .50, though if rapid repeat-fire capability is required, the Barrett semi-auto would seem the only answer. But for pure portability the Barrett M95 bullpup would be even better.

BOZ .224 UPDATE

Further to our initial report on Civil Defence Supply’s BOZ .224 cartridge, based on a 10mm case necked down to 5.56mm, we understand that the company’s supply of Carl Gustaf 5.56mm AP bullets is now assured, so CDS will not need to produce its own. The Glock pistol is no longer being pursued as a host for this cartridge, because of difficulties ensuring satisfactory functioning, even with a light alloy slide. The recoil spring also has to be weakened, plus the striker spring, and this produces unreliable ignition. Instead, CDS is going for what it describes as a wide-frame M1911-style pistol frame allied with a linkless camming barrel and SIG-style lockup at the ejection cutout. Jungle wisdom actually suggests the name Tanfoglio. This pistol will be hammer-fired, with DA/SA trigger and decocker. Prototypes are now being made.

Fast rifle powder is still being used in the BOZ round; this provides the precise firing characteristics CDS is after, and faster-burning (pistol) powders would generate excessive backthrust. As at end-Jan 98, Heckler & Koch had yet to provide MP5/10 SMGs for BOZ conversion, but Bar-Sto in the USA will be making the .224 barrels. The testbed weapon for the BOZ conversion of the Colt Commando/SMG has already been seen – it has a gas block relocated nearer the breech plus a new magazine. Both the new pistols and the SMGs are also still to be chambered for .40 S&W. And CDS is still tinkering with a .40-based BOZ cartridge which would have wide applicability, but this is clearly a second priority.

DUAL STANDARDS

UK Prime Minister Blair is convinced of the efficacy of the UK handgun ban in making the nation a safer place. Or is he? An item in the Police Guardian reportedly states that a special team of 28 armed police bodyguards, issued with all the latest weaponry and day/night sighting systems, has been formed to protect Blair plus his home back in his Durham constituency 24 hours a day. By our reckoning that’s a whole platoon in army terms. The guy must be really popular.

BROLIN ACQUIRES MITCHELL ARMS ASSETS

In answer to the frequent question at the 1988 SHOT Show “Where is Mitchell Arms?”, New Gun Week says that Brolin Arms acquired the Mitchell Arms assets and is to offer Mitchell products itself, with Don Mitchell acting as a consultant.

UK MINE DISPOSAL TO BE ACCELERATED

At the end of Jan 98 the UK Defence Secretary announced an accelerated programme to destroy British stocks of one million anti-personnel mines, which will leave the UK forces with just 4,000 samples, to be used in EOD training. The minister, George Robertson said (and note our italics):

“Getting rid of these evil weapons is one of our main priorities. The Convention allows us four years to destroy them, but I am determined to show our commitment by reaching the target in less than half that time; two years from now. Our action today demonstrates how the UK has set its face against the use of these evil weapons which continue to cause suffering and distress to thousands of people around the world.”

Funny how what were formerly regarded as essential components of the army inventory are suddenly, in politico-speak ‘these evil weapons’, once there’s an international ban in place. Could it be a ‘holier than thou’ contest is upon us?

WHITE BOX 9MM MISFIRES

A professional trainer running shooting courses out West in the USA reports an unexpectedly high misfire quotient with current Federal ‘white box’ 9mm military ball ammunition used in Glock pistols, both new and well-used weapons.

UK SUPPORT WEAPON REQUIREMENT ANNOUNCED

The UK MOD has formally announced its requirement for replacement or enhancement of its 7.62mm NATO GPMG inventory in the Sustained Fire (SF) role, and is now seeking expressions of interest’ from industry by no later than 11 Mar 98. As we have reported before, the MOD is presently looking at MMGs, HMGs, lightweight cannon and automatic grenade launchers, but also welcomes additional ideas. It will require mounts, sights, ammunition and tools with any purchase. Something like 1,000 weapons are planned, to be in service by 2004.

(Contact Contracts Branch CB/ELWS2c, Tel (0117) 913-1375)

AUSTRIAN ARMY TO SHRINK BY 50%

Jane’s News Briefs noted that the coalition partners in the Austrian government had agreed that by the year 2000 the size of the Austrian army would be halved. Presumably this will throw up sizeable surpluses of AUGs.

THE FULL ULSTER TOLL

Gleaned from the Royal Ulster Constabulary statistics for deaths & injuries stemming from ‘The Troubles’, 1969-97

Killed – 3,234 (including 654 Army/UDR/RIR* and 2,279 civilians)
Injured – 40,652 (including 5,983 Army/UDR/RIR* and 26,144 civilians) (from 1968)
Shootings – 35,458
Bombs exploded or defuzed – 15,003
Armed robberies – 20,199 (from 1971 only)
Persons charged with terrorist offences – 17,802 (from mid-1972 only)
Firearms recovered – 11,395
Explosives recovered (kg) – 114,544
(Road deaths 1969-97) – 6,658
(Road injuries 1969-97) – 263,153

*(nb: UDR/RIR – Ulster Defence Regiment/Royal Irish Regiment)

The figures may help demonstrate to non-UK readers why Britain tends to look at the terrorist question in a rather different light from the rest of Europe – and particularly the USA – where those few domestic attacks that do occur are taken as a national affront and generate major public panic. However, the Ulster traffic accident data does help put even The Troubles in perspective.

30mm AGS-17 BARRETT ADAPTATION

Ronnie Barrett mentioned recently that he had in the past considered adapting his .50 M82A1 semi-automatic rifle, or something very similar, to fire the Russian 30mm AGS-17 grenade-launcher cartridge, but had not proceeded with the idea.

INDONESIAN INSTABILITY THREATENS AUSTRALIA

Asian Age ran an AFP report which said that Australian defence chiefs were considering changes to their regional strategy to take into account the possibility of Indonesia’s President Suharto being deposed in a popular uprising. Hitherto Indonesia had been seen by Australia, its closest neighbour, as a bastion of regional security, but the growing political unrest, levels of violence and the ongoing effects of the Asian financial crisis on the economy there could not be ignored.

EURO ARMS CURBS ATTACKED

Radio & press reports, including an AFP item run by The Asian Age, cited reactions to initial European Union discussions on the Anglo-French draft uniform code for approving arms exports. A key provision is the clause seeking to ensure that no EU country approves exports to a destination declined by another without first consulting the other state, but this is diluted by other terms which allow countries to do pretty much what they like in their own political or economic interests. Also, though the code seeks to deny arms exports to recipients who might use them for ‘internal repression’, there is another letout allowing sales of kit to protect security forces – a pretty wide definition.

Some human rights organisations would prefer there to be a presumption that goods will not be exported, with sellers having to make a persuasive case to prove why this presumption should be overridden, however this seems unlikely ever to fly. Press reports noted that the USA, unlike the UK, has since 1994 denied supplies of small arms and riot control equipment to Indonesia, and that loose European policies were at odds with US efforts to bolster controls.

M16s KILLED TURKISH GALIL DEAL?

Jane’s Foreign Report said that Israel lost the chance of selling the IMI Galil rifle to re-equip Turkish forces when visiting military staff from Turkey spotted that Israeli troops they met all still had US-made 5.56mm M16s.

THANKS FOR THE GUNS, BOSS

An AP item run by The Asian Age said that 243 prisoners at a jail in Honduras escaped, armed with stolen Kalashnikovs, after rioting and overpowering their guards. Sounds like a very good argument for not storing large quantities of firearms in prisons.

SINGLE 30mm GUN MOUNTING REPAIR CONTRACT

The UK MOD is to invite tenders for the repair of spares & sub-assemblies for the Single 30mm Gun Mounting. Dates still to be advised. Contact phone number (UK) is (0117) 913-9611.

FMS ON THE WANE

Defense News produced statistics to show that the US DoD’s Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme was shrinking steadily as more and more countries were resorting to direct purchasing instead.

CALCUTTA – POLICE WEAPONS UNSERVICEABLE

The Asian Age said that police in Calcutta have such a poor choice of weapons that they are vulnerable to terrorists active in this Indian city. The police were described as equipped largely with WW2 ‘muskets’, most of which are ‘beyond repair’ and a danger to the users. There are also a few rifles in each police station, plus Webley and S&W revolvers. Officers visit the range just once a year.

COLOMBIAN BODY ARMOUR BOOM

In a previous issue we highlighted the £8.6m set aside by Colombian politicos for 1998 to provide themselves with ballistic vests, armoured vehicles & bodyguards. Business Week has since profiled the ballistic protection business in Colombia, where violent deaths are running at 30,000 a year and there are thousands of kidnappings. One firm, Miguel Caballero Ltd, specialises in stylish armoured fashion clothing with concealed ballistic panels. It designs and armours all its own garments, which come complete with holsters, if required.

Caballero’s products are composite-armoured, using Kevlar & Twaron combined with Spectra to achieve weight savings of up to 50%. Prices range up to $1,000 for rifle-level protection. They also do minefield boots and apparently even had a query concerning armour to wear under a monk’s habit (is nothing sacred?). The company’s sales reportedly rose from $90,000 four years ago to $440,000 in 1996, and could hit $1m in 1997. Exports have boomed, with garments going to the USA, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Russia & South Korea.

FIRE FROM COVER WITH CLAWS

Jane’s Defence Weekly spotlighted the Compact Lightweight Armoured Weapon Station (CLAWS) developed by Kollmorgen and ordered by Turkey for trials on amphibious APCs. The system allows top-mounted weapons to be fired remotely via a CCTV monitor, with the operator remaining under cover. The report says CLAWS can be used to mount the .50 M2HB HMG, the 7.62mm NATO M60 GPMG, the 40mm Mk19 automatic grenade launcher and other weapons, including cannon. A photo was shown of a 40mm Mk19 with CLAWS on a Turkish APC. If required, the mount can also be stabilised independently of vehicle movement.

BULGARIANS MAKING DRAGUNOV

Our east bloc advisers tell us that Kazanlac Arsenal in Bulgaria is now making the Dragunov SVD sniper rifle, only in the original 7.62x54mm calibre.

NAGAS HAVE CATHOLIC SELECTION OF ARMS

A photo from India run by The Asian Age showed members of the Khaplang faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) forces toting an RPG, an AK, M16A1s, an M1 Carbine, an unidentified belt-fed GPMG plus an SMG bearing quite a close resemblance to the 9mm Uzi.

NO PISTOL TRAINING FOR MARINES

A letter in the US Navy Times from a USMC captain complained that Marines are not taught anything about the 9mm pistol either in boot camp or during combat training. He guesses this might have some bearing on the high incidence of negligent discharges, wounding and deaths from mishandling of pistols. We guess he’s probably right.

ASIAN SLUMP WILL HIT ARMS SUPPLIERS

The Observer reported that Western arms manufacturers were getting worried at the implications of the widespread Asian slump, which was already reflecting in cuts to defense budgets in Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines & Thailand. Clearly this is a major potential blow to those arms-producing countries who have been relentlessly pursuing Asian customers to make up for the Cold War ‘peace dividend’ and the reduction in Middle East business. Maybe they should have been equally attentive to their clients’ long-term ability to pay?

SOUTH AFRICAN NTW-20 FIRES 40mm GRENADES TOO

A simple single-shot conversion now allows the South African NTW-20 anti-materiel rifle to fire the 40x53mm high-velocity grenades used in the Mk19 automatic grenade launcher. Recoil is said to be similar to that of the 20x82mm cartridge round which the rifle was designed. The full list of calibres the NTW-20 can fire is now 20x82mm, 14.5x114mm, 12.7x99mm, 12.7x108mm and 40x53mm. The conversions reportedly take less than 30 seconds to effect.

NANKOU (CHINA) SHOOTING RANGE COMPLEX

Foreign press reports focussed on the various delights offered by the China North International Shooting Range, an ex-army facility an hour outside Peking. Here, during the last ten years, 80,000+ visitors – both Chinese and foreign – have been able to hire and fire weapons in all calibres from pistols, rifles (they have M16s too, as well as AKs) & SMGs through to GPMGs & heavy machine guns. Prices for using all but the ‘exotics’ are said to be very modest. Additional attractions include anti-aircraft and anti-armour launchers. The reports said there are plans to open a laser combat range and to allow visitors to fire weapons from armoured vehicles and aircraft. Whatever the Putonghua expression is for “Take Cover!”, we guess it’d be an idea to memorise it before going, once those trigger-happy turistas get airborne. You can just see the headlines now – ‘Salt Lake senior Wilbur (78) levels Forbidden City’.

USMC OFFICER ARGUES FOR RIFLE CHANGES

Writing in the Marine Corps Gazette, one Capt. Robert Gibbs argues that the time has come to consider some changes to the design of the combat rifle. Using the M16A2 as his case study, he singles out for criticism its iron aperture sights, mechanical trigger mechanism and overall dimensions.

Gibbs, listed as a competitive shooter and match coach, describes the aperture & post aiming procedure as ‘contrary to human nature’ and suggests optical devices such as the Aimpoint, Ultradot and the screen-based Bushnell Holosight would be preferable, the last having the added benefit of eliminating the tunnel vision aspect of squinting down a scope tube. As to triggers, Gibbs suggests an electronic triggering mechanism might be a way round the problem of poor trigger control, which he says is responsible for missed shots. To overcome potential electrical problems he considers there might still be a backup mechanical trigger.

Talking about weapon size, Gibbs says the M16 is excessively long, and points to the Steyr AUG bullpup as a better all-round solution. This apart, he suggests that novel rifling profiles and faster-burning powders could give better performance from shorter barrels even in conventionally configured rifles. Gibbs highlights the acceptance of a need for change already embodied in the ongoing CQB (compact) Weapon and Modular Weapon projects in the Marine Corps, both involving the addition of extra facilities for ‘bolt-on goodies’. He suggests that the simplest solution is for improved triggers and provision for optics to be absorbed into existing programmes such as these.

In fact, it would appear that most of Capt. Gibbs’ points are already being addressed. Flat-topped, short M4A1 carbines already exist with US SOCOM, designed specifically for use with scopes & reflex sights. As to triggers, we are not persuaded that electronics would make very much difference in combat shooting, where shots will inevitably be snatched anyway, and much firing is in short bursts, with ‘accuracy’ in bullseye-shooting terms a consideration well secondary to just hitting the target – with something.

M240Bs to 82nd AIRBORNE

Army magazine in the USA reported that the 7.62mm NATO M240B (a locally-made variant of the FN MAG 58 GPMG), which is the US army’s official replacement for the Saco M60, had been issued to infantry battalions (on a scale of 18 guns each) of the 82nd Airborne Div at Ft Bragg. The item said that whilst the complete M240B equipment with tripod weighed ten pounds more than the M60 with similar accessories, the M240B tripod has a recoil-absorbing gun mount and a universal sight rail. Barrel changes are also claimed to be easier.

As will be evident from the limited scale per battalion, the M240B is intended to be employed in what the UK calls the Sustained Fire role (US – Medium Machine Gun), i.e. as a true machine gun. US infantry squad automatic fire support requirements are the role of the 5.56mm Minimi (M249 SAW). The same source said that the 30mm M230 cannon already mounted on the Apache is to be fitted to some of the US army’s 160 Special Ops Aviation Regiment MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. A new Black Hawk M230 mount has been developed by Picatinny Arsenal’s ARDEC research centre.

The Second Chance Combat Shoot, held outside the small Michigan town of Central Lake each year, is the premier bowling pin match in the world. It is famous for the number of bowling pins smacked, splintered and shattered with .45 autos, magnum revolvers, and 12 gauge shotguns loaded with double and triple ought buck. Second Chance, which begins the second Friday in June each year and runs for eight days, is also one of the centers of full auto shooting in the Midwest . Central Lake is about 40 miles northeast of Traverse City, in some of the prettiest country in the state.

According to Richard Davis, developer of Second Chance body armor, head of the Second Chance Body Armor Company and Numero Uno of the Second Chance Shoot, all the full auto events at the shoot came out of a joke he stole from Mel Brooks.

In The History Of The World, Part I, Mel Brooks looks around and says, “We Romans have a god for everything except premature ejaculation—and that’s coming quickly.” Richard looked around at the 1984 shoot and amended the joke to fit Second Chance and sub guns. In 1985 the Premature Ejaculation Event (PEE) was held for the first time. In 1997 there were four main submachine gun events, and the Spray and Pray event on the practice range.

The most venerable of the full-auto events is the PEE. It has changed over the years, but it always includes multiple targets, gun movement, and a target that must be shot last. The course isn’t difficult to understand, or shoot. (For the last few years it has also been shot with semi-auto handguns.) What is difficult is shooting it fast enough to do well. Winning times, with either handgun or subgun, hover around three seconds. The PEE subgun record is held by Tim Crosno with a 2.85 time. The handgun PEE record, also set in 1994, is held by Pat Sweeney. He shot the course in 2.94 seconds.

When I first shot the PEE, in 1989, there were falling plates, bowling pins and a pop up target of a felon with a shotgun for a stop. I used a Mac 10, a Thompson and an M3. I was most comfortable with the M3. With the combined slow rates of fire, however, I never got to the pop-up target in time.

One year Richard decreed that everyone would use .45 Reising subguns, and that the amount of ammo left in the gun after all the targets were down would be deducted from the time according to a complicated formula that I’ve forgotten. I tend to shoot in short bursts, so I did my best that year.

The biggest recent change has been the disappearance of the bowling pin from the PEE. For the last few years everyone has fired at eight self-sealing plastic plates. There are seven white targets and a red stop plate. Most shooters start on the left and take four or five targets down. They then swing to the last target on the right, take it and the target next to it, and then swing back to the center for either the middle target and the stop plate, or the stopper alone, if it is all they have left.

I’ve seen the PEE event won with a Thompson. The man who won had his own. He shot the course as many times as he was allowed, and had his wife sit on the grass behind him loading magazines. The gun of choice now is usually an MP5. The cyclic rate is high, the recoil is minimal, and the sights are good. I prefer one with a fixed stock. The folding stocks seem too short, and MP5s with them don’t get on target as fast for me. Other shooters, including some who have placed in the PEE, have also said that they prefer the standard stock.

Next to the PEE is The Ball Buster. This event debuted in 1996. According to Davis, it depends almost totally on luck. The shooters mount a 10 foot tower, (Davis sometimes calls it “The Tower Of Murder” with appropriate movie announcer voice effects) and grasp a fully loaded MP5. Then they hose the 30 rounds in the magazine into a tank of water in one burst. The tank is a four foot cube and does a good job of soaking up the bullets. The object, besides making noise and throwing water all over, is to blow out of the tank, or sink, all 30 ping pong balls floating in a small plastic ring in the middle of the tank.

Jerry Miculek usually finishes high in the Ball Buster standings. The famous professional shooter, formerly of Team Smith & Wesson, now shooting for Clark, told me he had figured out a plan for shooting the event. He didn’t tell me exactly what it was. The only plan I’ve been able to come up with is to make sure I don’t let up on the trigger until the gun is dry. The event seems to take no time at all, and too long at the same time. After the first shot or two hits, there is so much water flying that locating targets is difficult. I’ve always thought I was doing fairly well, because there were very few balls left in the ring. Unfortunately most of the balls are still floating inside the tank when I come down off the tower. I often wonder if I aimed right in the corner of the ring at first, alot of the little suckers would jump out onto the grass.

Second Chance competitors get several letters from Richard Davis during the year. These often contain information about new events scheduled for the next Second Chance Shoot. I don’t remember any notice of the newest full auto event before Second Chance ’97. As soon as the full auto range opened up, I heard something different going on. I found it was an event called Raptor Road. Shooters used Reising submachine guns owned by Davis to shoot down ten steel “popper” type targets. The targets had been painted with stylistic predatory winged creatures. The paintings didn’t last long. Along with much of the black base paint, they were blown away by blast after blast of Cor-Bon .45 hardball.

Raptor Road was supposed to be shot in one burst and to get a score, all the steel targets had to be knocked down. The Reisings could be emptied in about 2.5 seconds, so shooters with quick reactions would have an edge. There were two or three Reisings available but shooters couldn’t hold out for one with a faster than average cyclic rate. Instead, they had to rotate from one gun to the next. This was done to minimize damage to the Reisings from overuse.

The event started with the Reising touching a waist-high rail. It wasn’t long before competitors decided short loading the magazine would help make good times. Crouching behind the rail so the Reising only had to be moved a short distance to the targets was also a technique adopted by many shooters. Competitors I spoke with were loading as few as 22 rounds into the 30 round magazines to try and cut their times. Of course, even from a crouch the targets had to be hit to count. I saw several shooters who had the form down, but neglected to hit all the targets. I stood up and shot off my hind legs. Running the Raptor five times, the best I did was to leave two targets standing.

I talked to Richard Davis late in the match. He said that Raptor Road was going to be a fixture of Second Chance, but that there would be changes. One thing he said he might do was add targets, and subtract rounds. Since it would be almost impossible to get all the targets, the score would be the number of targets a shooter knocked down. The event would continue to be fired in one burst.

An eagerly anticipated part of Second Chance is the Wednesday night Propane Blast. Davis gets a lot of leaking propane cylinders, stands them shoulder to shoulder on the back range, and lights them up with incendiary ammunition. Davis usually starts the party with his suppressed .50 BMG rifle, made from a World War I German anti-tank rifle. Now and then he uses his M2. For the last few years machine guns of various types have been set up on the back range to add a little more blast. A lot of these guns are loaded with tracers, so while the propane tanks are cooking green and red tracers streak into the smoke and flame.

Second Chance Body Armor and shoot head Richard Davis is a machine gun dealer, along with his other activities. The shoot attracts other dealers each year, too. For as long as I’ve been competing machine guns have been available to shoot on a pay-as-you-blast basis. I often make the mistake of waiting until I’ve spent a lot of money on side events, custom gun work, and memorabilia before trying to decide what I can afford to shoot. Assault rifles, machine guns, and other weapons I have managed to scrape up the cash to fire include the M16, the FN D, and a full-auto Ruger 1022.

There are usually non-commercial full-auto and other exotic weapons on the line too. In 1997 one man was having a lot of fun with a Bren. In other years I’ve seen watercooled Browning machine guns, a Colt Potato Digger, several BM59s, and a 9mm Gatling. The ground where the shooter with the Gatling sat was nearly ankle deep in fired brass.

I’ve gotten on talk radio, gone to town meetings to speak to politicians, and done writing workshops for pay, but one of the best bits of talking I ever did was the time a few years ago when I convinced a shooter on the back range at Second Chance to let me fire his Mauser Schnellfeuer. Experience with a semiautomatic Broomhandle had left me rather suspicious of the breed. The Schnellfeuer, with its 20 round detachable magazine, was easier to manage in loading, and, once I got the working of the selector button explained, a lot of fun in full auto. The shoulder stock was too short, of course. I had to crane my neck and move my head back and forth to find the sights. Once that was taken care of the Schnellfeuer was rather impressive. I even noticed a certain amount of recoil while firing three and four round bursts of .30 Mauser. I haven’t seen that guy at Second Chance again, but I keep my eye open for him each year.

The Second Chance Combat Shoot is known as handgun event, even though people attend each year with the basic intent on competing with shotguns or rifles. It is also one of the few places in Michigan where shooters can compete in full auto courses, and see and shoot many different machine guns. I haven’t missed Second Chance for the past nine years. I would go if it was limited to handguns, but the full auto events are also a big reason I attend.

The Second Chance Shoot, Inc., can be contacted at P.O. Box 579, Central Lake, MI 49622. Or call 1-800-253-7090 for information and entry forms.

Another tale of woe has come across my desk. One more United States citizen whose Chief Law Enforcement Officer (CLEO) refuses to sign off on the back side of the Form 4 for him to purchase a Title II firearm. In conversations with this Ohio resident, he intimated that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms agents in his area had gone to all of the potential signers of Form 4’s, and informed them that they were not required to sign, and the government would prefer that they didn’t do it. I do not have names and dates for all of this, these are only rumors and allegations. However, it is a story that is very familiar to many of us in the Class 3 business.

This amounts to de facto gun control. It’s bad enough when the CLEO keeps a record of your firearms, let alone keeping you from having them.

Originally, the Law Enforcement signature was intended to verify that the signature, photograph, and fingerprint cards were those of the applicant trying to get a Form approved for a National Firearms Act taxed and registered firearm. Over time, it has become a place to try to get “Approval” from the local Chief of Police. He is being asked to perform work related to federal tax collection.

Recently the Supreme Court heard arguments in the “Brady Bill” case, and ruled that the federal government could not require the local or state officials to do work around a federal statute. Brady went out the window if the local Chief didn’t want to do the “Required” background check of a handgun purchaser. Most of this was related to the labor burden being unjustly imposed on the local government, not with the Constitutionality of Brady.

In the same way, the federal government can not require a state or local official to sign off on your Form 1, 4, or 5. Since they can not require it, I do not see how they can deny your application for a transfer if the CLEO refuses to sign.

I am just stirring the pot here, friends. There is no reason in the world for a law abiding United States citizen who has not surrendered his rights, to not be able to own a Title II firearm. Dealers and Manufacturers could make a case for the federal government interfering with their ability to do business- but there is nothing new about that.

We at SAR are interested in your perspective as Title II firearms owners, or people who are desiring to own, and would like your input on this situation.

– Dan Shea

Dear SAR

First I would like to thank you and your fellow staff at SAR on producing an excellent publication. Well done and I look forward to years yet of reading.

Next, I would like to assure you that normally I do not write in to criticize the creative products of others (not even when Peter Kokalis bagged one of my favorite toys, the L-2A1, in ‘FULL AUTO’) on the grounds that no one is perfect and all of us are entitled to their opinions. Even me.

However, ‘BIRTH OF A ASSAULT RIFLE’ (SAR Vol. 1 No. 12) by Robert A. Cortese prompts me to break this habit and thus this letter results.

I do not choose to quibble with his outline of the genesis of Western & Soviet assault rifle designs. However the last three pages of the article and it’s wholly unjustified chauvinism in favour of the AK series can not go unchallenged.

To state that the mere possession of AK rifles confers a massive combat advantage to the user over all other infantry small arms (with particular mention of FAL, AR-15 & M-14) is patently ludicrous and the authors attempts to prove so are verging on dishonest. I’ll deal with his examples.

El Jiradi: I’ve read a few accounts of the actions around El Arish & El Jiradi during the Six Day War- they range from Moshe Dayan’s ‘STORY OF MY LIFE’ who describes it as “…a battle lasting more than an hour.” To round-by-round accounts by some of the IDF participants. Given that most Egyptian infantry in the campaign were armed with AK variants, it is a bit of an insult to those at El Jiradi (and other places) who got their act together to subscribe their success to the rifles they carried. Leadership, initiative & courage deserve more credit.

Incidentally, the decision to adopt the Galil is most often quoted as May 1972 and was the result of a trial process that began in the early Sixties for a replacement for the FAL. First bulk issue to the IDF was May 1973. As these events were prior to the Yom Kippur War, I doubt the war played much of a role in the decision to equip the IDF with Galil ARM & AR. Note also that the IDF still uses substantial quantities of M-16A1, M-16A2 & various carbine variants to this day

Somalia: The author provides details of casualties inflicted (presumably by AK- the Somalis used just about everything) on one only of the US units involved in the mess that occurred in October 1993 but provides no other information- would anyone care to give an estimate of how many AK toting Somali bit the pavement having stopped (or briefly entertained) an M-855 or M-856 pill?

Vietnam: I think that the Editor (Dan) handled Ia Drang (and by extension, Vietnam as a whole) quite nicely. I would rather suspect that the loss rate among SF, SOG or Ranger teams had less to do with the small arms they carried (including, as the author points out, AK) than the adverse combat environment they worked in. I’d also like to point out “…no known NVA losses.” does not mean no NVA losses.

Using isolated instances or reporting the casualties on one side only to provide an “…example of the AK’s dominance on the modern battlefield…” can be played both ways. How would the author explain the following examples?

The Battle of Long Tan (18AUG1966, Phuoc Tuy Province, RVN) pitted D Company, 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (108 men) against estimated force of 2000+ NVA & VC troops. Initially ambushed as isolated platoons by the opposition, D Company formed a perimeter and beat off the enemy assaults. D Company was predominantly equipped with L-1A1, the NVA/VC units were primarily armed with AK as personal weapons- the first D Company had encountered. Australian casualties were 18 KIA & 24 WIA. The enemy left over 245 dead on the battlefield, having withdrawn in good order in the darkness.

Southern Africa: While the Rhodesian & South African SF (at least till the introduction of R-4/5/6) often used AK & RPD, the bulk of the work done by the infantry of those two nations was performed with FAL (mostly metric) against an enemy armed in the main with AK variants. Who dominated the battlefield?

Gulf War: Is the author seriously suggesting that the Syrian and other minor partners in the Coalition forces who carried AK’s ‘dominated the battlefield’ to a greater degree than those US units that carried the M-16A2? I might hazard a statement that while the Iraqi ground forces predominantly carried AK variants as personal weapons, the outcome of the war would not have changed if each and every single member of the Coalition had been carrying (say) an FAL or even an M-1 Garand.

Lest anyone at this point accuse me of being a dinosaur, I’ll state openly here that despite the above examples, I’m of the opinion that the ‘major calibre’ (eg 7.62x51mm) and intermediate calibres (eg 7.62x39mm) have seen their day as far as individual weapons go.

In conclusion, I would like to state that while the AK series are outstanding rifles within their limitations, they are not a super-weapon and their carriage does not confer an overwhelming advantage on the modern battlefield. If they did, the World would be a very different place to the one we know today.

The Army in which I serve has a saying: “It’s the nut behind the butt that counts.” and I’m sure that those Croatians who stood up to the AK armed Federal Army of Yugoslavia with little more than a sporterized K-98 would agree, as would those Muj who ‘harvested’ AKM & AK-74 for their mates with assorted Lee-Enfield. While we all have our favorite small arms (due to familiarity, nostalgia, media exposure, sheer bloody perverseness or otherwise), we should always keep this in mind.

To end this letter, I would like to leave you and SAR’s readers with an always relevant quote from one of my favorite authors:

“What are the facts? Again and again and again- what are the facts? Shun wishful thinking, ignore divine revelation, forget what “the stars foretold,” avoid opinion, care not what the neighbors think, never mind the unguessable “verdict of history”- what are the facts and to how many decimal places?” Robert Anson Heinlein

Faithfully yours,
Peter Lindsay

Dear Peter,

Always a pleasure to hear from our Australian contingent, Peter. SAR has a policy of letting the writers have some “Elbow room”. Mr. Cortese wrote what was in my opinion a fine article on the Kalashnikov’s, and we stand by it. However, not wishing to catch TOO much shrapnel, your letter has been forwarded to Mr. Cortese for his response… which we anticipate will be in an upcoming issue. The readers are invited to weigh in on this subject as well. Well thought out positions are being solicited….. are the Kalashnikov’s the ultimate assault rifle?

For the moment, I am staying out of the fray. Since I am still an M60 man, I have been told that my opinion is not relevant to mature discussions. Perhaps Peter K will weigh in on this, and SAR looks forward to Mr. Cortese’s response.

-Dan

New Nation-Wide Gun Buying Regulations Going Into Effect

Special Report: Buying Firearms Under The National Instant Criminal Background Check System

The year of 1998 will not go in gundom history as being one of the more favorable to gunowners. What with the federal imposition of a new ban on imported firearms, the domestic firearms manufacturing industry in a recession, and the ludicrous new government edict requiring gun dealers to post signs in their shops warning customers of the dangers of firearms, it almost seemed things couldn’t be worse. But there were some bright spots, particularly on the local level.

Most significantly, 1998 is the year marking the start of the implementation of the permanent provisions of the Brady Law, which on November 30, do away with the five day waiting period on handgun sales and in its stead impose a national electronic system for instantaneously checking the qualifications of all gun buyers, including rifle and shotgun purchasers, at the point-of-sale from now on.

Certainly the most critical issue facing industry and consumers alike, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) will run the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) out of a facility in Clarksburg, West Virginia. Gun dealers will access the system via telephone or by computer modem and after providing information on the prospective gun buyer, will either be given an indication to proceed or decline the sale, based on whether or not disqualifying records were found on the prospective buyer.

The new regulations affect not only those buying new guns but also people redeeming pawned firearms from pawnbrokers will have to submit to the background check as well. Those with criminal records will be denied the return of their pawned firearm. Shooters retrieving repaired firearms from gunsmiths will also have to undergo a background check, with the possibility that if criminal records are found, such persons will not be able to receive their own repaired firearms.

At press time, the FBI was proposing to charge gun buyers a fee of $13 to $16 each time a background check is performed. The FBI says the fee is needed to pay for the system’s operation.

Firearm manufacturers and retailers have expressed great concerns about the effect of the background check fee, which would come on top of the sales tax. Many feel the additional check fee will result in a disincentive for consumers to purchase firearms. Makers of lower-priced handguns were adversely affected by the background check fees imposed in some states and localities by local officials when the Brady Law was first implemented as such fees often added up to one third of the basic cost of the gun.

The new regulations go into effect at the height of the hunting season and the effect on sportsmen buying hunting arms, many of whom have never before had to pay a license fee of any kind to own or purchase a hunting rifle or shotgun, remains to be seen.

The FBI says its goal is to perform the checks within 30 seconds, but the agency is saying some checks may take up to three days in cases where there is difficulty in accessing a potential gun buyer’s background information. This delay would have the effect of creating a waiting period, although the system is supposed to function “instantly.” An appeals process is available to those denied purchases. And then there is the problem of the FBI’s proposal to retain NICS records for up to two years, supposedly for “auditing” purposes, although federal law prohibits any federal government agency from maintaining a list of gun buyers names and thereby creating a national firearms registration list.

Each individual background check would be valid for the purchase of an unlimited number of firearms in one transaction. But a separate purchase conducted even the same day would require a separate background check and the payment of the $13 to $16 fee a second time. On the bright side, the in-store sale of rifles and shotguns to out-of-state buyers will continue. Licensed dealers and those persons holding valid state issued firearms possession or concealed weapons permits which involved a background check and were issued prior to November 30, 1998 while being valid for not longer than five years, will be the only persons not subject to the new provisions. State and local firearms permits issued after that date must have subjected permit-holders to a NICS background check to qualify the permit-holder for exemption from the federal background check procedures in place at the time of a firearms purchase.

New Import Gun Ban

In early April, President Clinton imposed a new ban on 58 imported firearms dubbed “assault weapons” based on the guns’ failure to meet “sporting purposes” import criteria. An Administration official bragged about the move as allowing his administration to take “the law and bending it as far as we can to capture a whole new class of guns.”

The banned firearms included versions of the AK-47, Uzi, Galil, FN-FAL, H&K 91 and 93, SKS, and other semi-auto rifles modified with the addition of thumbhole stocks, and elimination of features such as flash hiders and bayonet lugs to comply with the import criteria established by the Clinton Administration in its 1994 imported rifle ban.

Although Clinton claimed a “loophole” in federal law allowed the importation of the affected long guns over the last several years, the manufacturers and importers involved were actually only complying with the law in making changes to the affected gun models. Thus, after the manufacturers removed objectionable features from their firearms, Clinton changed the definitions by claiming they represented a “loophole.”

While police officials surrounded the President when he announced the ban, not all police groups support the initiative. Jim Fotis, executive director of the Law Enforcement Alliance of America pointed out, “So-called assault weapons are used in less than 1% of violent crimes. The President is using smoke and mirrors to make bad policy that will do nothing to save lives, but steal the rights of America’s law-abiding gun owners.”

The rationales for the ban is that the modified rifles can still accept so-called high capacity magazines manufactured before the 1994 Clinton ban on further manufacture of over 10-round capacity magazines for the civilian market.

Gun Production Down

The net effect of the federal anti-gun initiatives over the last several years, particularly the Brady Law that imposed a national five-day waiting period on handgun sales, has been a curtailment in production of firearms due to reduced demand.

The latest available figures on domestic firearm production compiled by the U.S. Treasury Department reveal that in 1996, U.S. manufacture of handguns, as well as shotguns fell, while rifle production increased slightly over 1995 totals.

Total pistol production declined to 985,533 units in 1996, down from 1,195,266 manufactured in 1995 and 2,014,336 in 1994. Similarly, revolver production dropped to just 498,944 wheelguns in 1996, from the 527,664 built in 1995 and 586,450 in 1994.

The total number of shotguns manufactured in the U.S. during 1996 came to 925,732, down from 1,173,645 made in 1995 and 1,254,926 in 1994. Rifle production, however, climbed to 1,424,319 guns for 1996, up from 1,331,780 produced in 1995 and 1,349,116 made in 1994.

The figures show the Brady Law has taken a heavy toll on the sale of small pocket pistols mostly commonly purchased for self-defense. For example, manufacture of .25 caliber pocket pistols declined to 41,156 in 1996, from 51,025 in 1995 and 110,732 in 1994.

Production of .22 caliber pistols is also showing large declines over the last several years. Just 204,819 such .22 caliber rimfire pistols were made in the U.S. in 1996, compared to 260,059 in 1995 and 456,490 in 1994.

By caliber, the greatest amount of pistol production in 1996 was for those products chambered in 9mm, while in revolvers, .357 Magnum chambered guns lead the way.

Looking at long guns, Sturm, Ruger & Co. finished 1996 as America’s top rifle maker with 417,310 units, compared to second-place Marlin Firearms Co. with 350,897 rifles.

Among shotgun makers, Remington Arms Co. continued its three-year streak as the number one shotgun maker with 307,803 scatterguns produced. O.F. Mossberg & Sons held the second-place position with 286,033 units.

While long gun makers were not negatively affected by the Brady Law’s gun buyer waiting period and background check provisions until now, as mentioned, the new permanent Brady Law provisions going into effect in November 1998 will affect long gun sales in addition to handguns. It remains to be seen what effect the new regulations will have on rifle and shotgun sales.

Warning Signs

Firearms buyers will now be noticing some ominous signage displayed within their favorite gun shops thanks to a publicity stunt President Clinton pulled off in July in an attempt to scare off folks considering purchasing firearms.

Clinton’s edict requires dealers to post signs stating: The misuse of handguns is a leading contributor to juvenile violence and fatalities; Safely storing and securing firearms away from children will help prevent the unlawful possession of handguns by juveniles, stop accidents, and save lives.

Other signs detail federal law prohibitions against possession of handguns (in most circumstances) by persons under 18, as well as the possibility of the imposition of a 10-year prison sentence to those knowingly transferring a handgun (even temporarily) to a minor.

It should be noted that under federal law, a youngster who wishes to engage in some handgun target shooting on a range must have in his or her possession a note written by a parent or guardian authorizing the youngster to be in possession of the handgun while engaged in such target practice.

Pro-Gun Victories

On the positive side, a major anti-gun initiative with potential for nation-wide repercussions was defeated during the year in the state of Washington. In one of its most onerous provisions, Washington’s Initiative 676 would have required not only all handgun owners to pass a competency test but would have mandated all adult members in a handgun-owning household to pass the same firearms competency test. Those not passing muster would have had to surrender their firearms.

Six weeks before the votes were cast, polls indicated residents supported the measure by a 60% majority, but thanks to the feverish efforts of pro-gun lobbyists to fully-inform the public, the proposal was defeated by the voters in a resounding 71% against versus 39% for (the law).

And in a late-breaking development occurring as this magazine goes to the printer, the U.S. Senate approved an amendment prohibiting the FBI from charging fees for gun buyer background checks when the National Instant Criminal Background Check System goes on line. The amendment also allowed those wrongfully denied the purchase of firearms to sue the FBI. In addition, it calls for the immediate destruction of all records related to background checks conducted on law-abiding citizens purchasing firearms which the FBI had proposed to keep for “auditing purposes” for up to 24 months.

Another Senate amendment mandating trigger locks be provided with all handguns sold in the U.S., was defeated. And in a 69 to 31 vote, the Senate defeated yet another amendment that would have held adult gun owners criminally liable if a juvenile stole a firearm from them and used the gun in a crime.

SADW is a monthly electronic publication from Nick Steadman Features. Nick, intrepid world traveling reporter for much of the arms industry, files this 40,000 to 50,000 word report once a month to his loyal subscribers. Those lucky ones pay a mere $50 (US) £32.50 (UK) per year for the privilege of getting the hot tips and insights from one of the industry’s insiders. Nick’s unique perspective is globally based, as is his wit. Each issue is full of insight and information for those with an interest in Small Arms, as well as his observations on world travel.

1. NEW WEAPONS & EQUIPMENT

STEYR SCOUT – FACTORY MODIFICATIONS

Following our various reports on poor ignition reliability of the Steyr Scout rifle with certain types of 7.62mm NATO ball ammunition, Steyr-Mannlicher has notified us that it is modifying the striker assembly, which will now provide four different locations for the circlip which locks the spring tensioning adjustment nut in place.

This will have the effect of increasing the striker impact force, theoretically obviating the need for additional home-made spacers and hopefully solving the problem. Col Jeff Cooper has been rather dismissive of this particular glitch, blaming ‘inferior’ ammunition from suspect countries, though in fairness we must point out that most of the ignition trouble was with US military Lake City M118 Match. However, Steyr says it has been unable to replicate the extraction failures we referred to in earlier issues. The owner of the rifle involved now says he thinks he might possibly have been the author of his own downfall in over-enthusiastically stripping the extractor; however he is nonetheless now carrying a spare extractor and spring.

Separately, it has since emerged that the short .375 cartridge being developed for the Scout by Hirtenberg in Austria (see earlier issues) is the ‘376 JCS’, apparently intended to lob a 260gr bullet at 2,500fps. Some increase in rifle weight will result. We’re not sure the wildcat approach will generate huge sales, since the ammunition will most likely remain single-source.

The American Rifleman also said that GSI was forecasting two types of Realtree camouflage for Scout rifle stocks next year. If so, just don’t put one of these down in the forest while digging your toilet pit at dusk, or you may not find it again in a hurry. You’ll remember Colt tried this tack before with one of its revolvers. Steyr’s official comments on Scout calibres other than .308 state that 7mm-08 is in production but any additional calibres are still ‘only under investigation’. The company says a few black stocks are being made for rifles with suppressor-compatible barrels and other camouflage patterns ‘for market research services’. While Jeff Cooper hints at interchangeable bolt handles to come, Steyr says it has not done anything on this so far, and its aim at present is to continue to promote the Cooper Package in its original form.

WINCHESTER DEVELOPMENTS

Olin’s Winchester ammunition division has been pretty busy on the military & police front.

Its reduced-range 5.56mm jacketed frangible ammunition, incorporating a 45gr jacketed version of the Delta Defense frangible bullet (made from a copper/nylon & tungsten mix) is loaded with the Winchester non-toxic primer, using dinol as the basic priming mix, with tetrazine as a sensitiser, boron as a fuel and potassium nitate as an oxidiser.

The bullet’s brass jacket, which extends most of the way to its tip, is a measure to ensure reliable functioning and match its ballistics more closely to the M855/SS109 round. Accuracy at 100 yds is actually better than with the standard NATO loading. Winchester’s equivalent pistol- calibre training ammunition, all non-toxic primed and offered in 9mm, .38 Spl, .40 &W and .45 Auto, has unjacketed Delta frangible bullets.

In Winchester’s parallel SuperClean NT range of ammunition, the bullets are all jacketed, but with a malleable tin core. They are not frangible and act much like lead-cored bullets on impact, though without producing the associated contamination. Non-toxic priming is standard. Available calibres are 5.56mm (55gr), 9mm, .38 Spl, .375 Mag, .40 S&W and .45 ACP. Maximum training range with 5.56mm is about 200 yards.

One of the lesser-known Winchester products is fully-encapsulated, lead-cored pistol ammunition with non-toxic priming, along German lines – in fact, the 9mm version is already understood to be selling to police in Germany in competition with local products. There are 115gr, 124gr and 147gr 9mm loadings, .38 Spl standard (130gr) & +P (158gr), .40 loads in 165gr and 180gr plus a 230gr .45 ACP.

Winchester has also developed a ‘lead-free penetrator’ version of the 5.56mm M855/SS109 bullet, simply by substituting a solid copper core for the lead in the standard NATO bullet design. This reduces bullet weight to 55grs and increases the velocity by 100 fps, but evidently doesn’t diminish the bullet’s ability to defeat hard targets such as the standard NATO plate, which it penetrates out to 650m. It also matches the trajectory of the M855 out to around 750m. As before, non-toxic priming is standard.

Lastly, Winchester has designed a hollow-tipped, solid brass Match-grade bullet which is ballistically matched to the Raufoss .50 Multipurpose (MP) round (or its US Mk211 equivalent) and can therefore be used for more economical .50 sniper training. This is a necessary move, since the MP ammunition is about $8 a pop, and the operational APHEI bullets cannot be fired on some restricted military ranges. Again, non-toxic primers can be incorporated if required. The .50 bullet is a driving-band design with long bearing surface, increasing bore stability, and the long internal tip cavity is reckoned to improve accuracy by a third over solid nose bullets. Rifling engraving tests demonstrate that the brass material is rather softer than the jacket of the M33 ball round, so barrel wear may also be lower.

Actually, this new .50 Match round represents something of a breakthrough – we remember talking to Olin staff many times over the years and repeatedly asking when they were going to make something like this, but we were always given to understand the market was too small. Now that the military are interested, things have evidently changed.

NEW AUSTRALIAN F1 HAND GRENADE

The Australian Army says that its new F1 offensive hand grenade is planned to be issued to first line units and training establishments early next year, replacing the old US-pattern M26 HE/Frag grenade. The F1, produced by Australian Defence Industries (ADI) and in development over the past decade, is much the same weight as the M26 and contains an offensive payload of 4,000 steel ball bearings, which are more efficient than irregular fragments. It is designed to penetrate flak jackets to a radius of six metres and will injure out to 15 metres, yet is safe at 30 metres for troops wearing normal combat clothing. Anecdotal evidence from the US & UK suggests the M26 was never a particularly efficient design, and could fragment into too few pieces. Because of its bean-can shape the F1 is less likely than the M26 to roll after hitting the ground and can be expected to come to a halt within about three metres of impact.

We recall that when ADI first announced its grenade programme, it was talking about a dual purpose hand/rifle grenade. Australian sources confirm the F-1 is indeed a modular design which permits the addition of a finned tail tube converting it for use as a rifle grenade. Reportedly it was also designed to accept a range of booby trap fuzes, though this is apparently no longer PC, officially-speaking.

AUSTRALIAN SNIPER BUYS

Army magazine in Australia has published details of the British Accuracy International Model AW sniper rifle as purchased for the Australian army. Apparently it’s a modified AW-F; we understand it differs from the standard Model AW in the following respects:

– Picatinny scope rail
– Butt spike
– Multi-adjustable buttplate assembly
– Cheekpiece
– Quick detach scope mount
– Folding stock

The scope will be a variable-power Schmidt & Bender 3-12x50mm, and at least some of the rifles will apparently be supplied with muzzle suppressors, presumably for special forces. Barrels will be made in Australia, where the rifle will be designated SR98. Night sights will shortly be provided as part of the army’s Project Ninox, and the army is buying Lapua match ammunition for the SR98 in preference to local military supplies, which were found to be substantially less accurate. A spotting scope & laser rangefinder are also on the way.

We understand from our Australian sources that issues will be completed by the end of 1998. Army Magazine said the army’s old Parker-Hale sniper weapons were being superseded because of a ‘lack of user confidence’. The selection criteria required competing weapons to be capable of accurately engaging targets out to 800 metres. Troops found the AW to be very robust and accurate even after arduous stalking.

Currently, new ghillie (Oz – yowie) suits for snipers are also being trialled, including one comprising an Australian camo suit festooned with 1” strips of similarly patterned material, which has evidently been cut with pinking shears to give a zigzag edge. A neat solution, we’re told.

The army has also reported that trials of .50 long-range rifles will resume there early in 1999; meanwhile (as predicted earlier) the planned .50 users have been requested to refine their requirements, which we interpret as a reality check. The aim is to introduce a .50 rifle in the middle of next year. These weapons will reportedly be employed as battalion-level assets.

BARRETT NEW DEVELOPMENTS

Barrett Firearms has confirmed press reports elsewhere that it is conducting feasibility studies and trade-off analyses on the question of adapting the .50 Barrett M82A1 semi-automatic rifle to fire the smart 20mm and 25m HE ammunition which has respectively been developed for the US army’s Objective Individual Combat Weapon (OICW) and Objective Crew-Served Weapon (OCSW).

It is not possible to quote a timescale for either of these projects at this point, since work is closely tied to continuing development of the ammunition itself.

National Defense said that the 25mm project would necessitate a larger Barrett receiver and, to fully utilise the smart fuzing capabilities of the ammunition, both the 20mm and 25mm approaches would need to incorporate some sophisticated fire control equipment – presumably the same type of modules presently used on the OICW & OCSW prototypes.

(Readers will recall that the NTW 20/14.5mm anti-materiel rifle designed by Tony Neophytou in South Africa can already be supplied with a conversion kit to fire the 40mm High-Velocity grenade cartridge used with the Mk19 automatic grenade launcher.)

In addition, Barrett confirms it has worked up a variant of the M82A1 suitable for use as an in-bore sub-calibre training rifle in tank guns, infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) cannon and 2.75” rocket launchers. This has also attracted interest as a primary weapon for arming light aircraft. Barrett envisages a 20-round box magazine or a 300-round linear linkless feed system.

PARKER-HALE/BREMMER ARMS NEW PROJECTS

The deal with DTL in the USA for Bremmer Arms of Birmingham to manufacture the 9mm IDW (formerly Bushman) SMG in the UK was finally wrapped up in mid-Sep 98, and Bremmer should receive the prototypes by early Oct 98.

Bremmer of course already owns Parker-Hale Ltd in Birmingham and has moved swiftly to redesign and value-engineer the popular but previously very expensive Parker-Hale bipod which has become the choice of many sniper rifle suppliers. The new steel bipod has self-leveling feet on ball joints, and legs which can be detached for cleaning. As before it will be mounted using a spigot attachment secured in the accessory rail or at the forward end of the handguard. Best of all, it should be available at £90-£99, a huge cost saving on its predecessor.

Before Christmas 98 we should also see a rebirth of the 5.56mm bolt-action rifle which Parker Hale originally developed as a contender for the UK MOD Cadet Rifle contest eventually won by the curious manually-operated version of SA80. As first built, the Parker-Hale rifle was fed from a ten-round, single-column magazine, but Bremmer has now re-engineered it to accept M16 magazines. Suppliers for the synthetic stocks are currently being explored, and Bremmer’s own hammer-forged barrels from the Parker-Hale facility will be used. Optimum rifling twist is still being discussed. The plan is to produce this weapon in a variety of configurations, including target, sniper and ‘practical rifle’ versions. We tested the Cadet Rifle in Birmingham some years ago and found it a very sturdy design.

Also on the way back is the Parker-Hale series of sporting rifles first heralded a year or so ago. In addition, Bremmer currently has a sizeable stock of unturned rifled barrel blanks of various types already in stock, and plans to develop the barrel production side as a separate sales line. And the Parker-Hale range of cleaning kit will also continue.

Finally, Bremmer has now completely redesigned the pump-forward service shotgun it inherited when it acquired Birmingham Gunmakers Ltd, also in Birmingham, and pre-production models should be ready by Christmas.

We understand the Parker-Hale brand name will be used for most of the new products except for the 9mm IDW, the new shotgun, the .22LR AR15s and .30-06 Springfields, which will all remain under the Bremmer Arms banner.

KNIGHT’S TUBB SR-25 MATCH RIFLE

One Reed Knight item we evidently missed at this year’s SHOT Show is the David Tubb Competition Match Rifle, a $5,995 (retail) variant of the Stoner SR-25 named after Tubb, a national match shooter, and offered in .308 and .260 Remington calibres. It differs from the standard ‘flat top’ rifles in being canted 10 degrees and has a 26” match barrel, an extended vertical match trigger, enlarged trigger guard, lightweight high-speed hammer, ambidextrous bolt stop, a hand stop, a skeletonised buttstock with rotating cheekpiece & buttpad and an extended ventilated handguard with mirage stopper. The cocking handle is on the side of the bolt carrier instead of at the rear of the receiver. Scope mounts, scopes and competition aperture iron sights are extra.

TWO BARRELS WITH CZ-700 RIFLE

National Defense reported that the 7.62mm NATO/.308 CZ-700 bolt-action sniper rifle, a 13.6 pound weapon from Ceska Zbrojovka in the Czech Republic, comes with two interchangeable barrels, one of them suppressed, allowing users to employ 200gr subsonic ammunition. This is clearly a neat move, which gets around the need for additional discrete suppressed weapons with tighter rifling twists, which are usually quite pricey.

SWEDEN’S NEW SNIPER ROUND

Some readers will recall that for years now the Swedish MOD’s FMV (Army Materiel Command) has been seeking a new sniper cartridge to use in the British 7.62mm NATO Accuracy International Model AW rifle adopted as the Swedish army’s new PSG90 sniper weapon. The ammunition programme began with a study in 1989 focused on establishing the chief criteria to ensure first-round hits, despite errors in range, crosswind and lead calculation. Its conclusion was that a short time of flight was the key factor, which could be obtained with high initial velocity and low downrange drag.

Full-scale development started in 1993, and not surprisingly studies centred on a sabot-discarding sub-calibre bullet. Competitors included Lano & Bofors from Sweden, Lapua from Finland and Olin/Winchester from the USA. In Feb 98, Winchester – with a modified 7.62mm SLAP cartridge – won the first Swedish contract for 1m rounds, for delivery starting next year.

Selected round is designated locally as ‘7.62mm sk ptr 10 prick’ (the last a rather unfortunate abbreviation of Prickskytte or sniper). Velocity is 1,340m/s (7.62mm ball is 850m/s), and weight of the 4.8mm calibre tungsten carbide projectile is 3.4g. Breech pressure is 385 MPa (360 MPa for ball) and the price US$2 a round, as opposed to 50c for ball. Seated below the tungsten projectile, inside the plastic sabot, is an aluminium ‘area multiplier’, a metal disc customarily used in SLAP ammunition to assist with sabot separation. We note also that the Swedish literature describes the propellant as ‘compacted ball powder’, so we assume Olin’s velocity-enhancing compaction technology has been used.

With the new round, time of flight at 1,000 metres is reduced by 34% and trajectory height (it’s only about 2.5m) by 58%. Wind drift is down 32% and muzzle velocity up by 58%. 100m penetration (rated as 50% penetration) of a NATO armour test plate (hardness 400 Brinell) at 90 degrees (zero degrees NATO) is 30mm, as opposed to about 17mm for Bofors 7.62mm AP.

According to FMV figures, the new sniper round increases hit probability by a factor of two to four at ranges from 400 to 1,000 metres. As might be expected, the tungsten projectile does not break up in soft target simulants, and is claimed to be fully stable, with no tendency to yaw. What’s not said in FMV material is that the idea of a hard, solid bullet also allows the Swedes to avoid any criticism of the projectile’s terminal ballistics from a humanitarian viewpoint, a significant political aspect in that country. Of course, it would also do serious damage to hard targets at close range, though the holes would be pretty small.

Though we’re not sure who’s actually planning to invade Sweden just now, the official message of FMV is ‘Don’t mess with the Swedes, ‘cause we’ve got the world’s best sniper system and will quickly turn you into a casualty.’ You’ve been warned.

5.7MM P-90 BALLISTICS IMPROVED

It appears that we, along with other pundits, have been caught napping by ballistic improvements to the 5.7x28mm ammunition for the FN P-90, consequent upon the redesign of this round a few years ago to meet revised NATO penetration criteria, which include defeat of Russian-style titanium plates interspersed with soft body armour fabric.

Volume 3, No 3, of Wound Ballistics Review, the journal of the International Wound Ballistics Association (IWBA), carries a report by Col Marty Fackler (US Army, retd) of tests carried out on the improved P-90 ammunition at an RCMP Wound Ballistics Seminar in Canada during Sep 97. That publication has been highly critical of the P-90 concept in the past.

The original P-90 bullet with plastic core was noted for its propensity to divert wildly at right angles from the line of fire shortly after entering tissue simulant, but Fackler found that in test firings of the new bullet at ten feet into 10% gelatine the projectile consistently started to yaw about 6cm into the target, rotated 180 degrees and subsequently penetrated to a total of 25-28cm – and in a relatively straight line.

The improved bullet is 3mm shorter than the original, at 2.1 cm, it weighs 31grs and has an aluminium core with an internal steel penetrator tip like the 5.56mm M855. Fackler notes however that in truncating the new projectile the maximum diameter of the permanent wound track is also fractionally reduced. He also observes that the new bullet does not deform in tissue simulant and that for all but the central 10cm of the wound track, the hole made in the target is only about 5.6mm.

And he further notes that, at the bottom line, the P-90 projectile has just 60% the momentum of the commercial .22 Hornet, with around 52% of its energy. A closer analogue, Fackler says, would be the 1922fps .22 rimfire Remington Viper round, with momentum within 5% of that achieved by the P-90.

He also suggests that one reason why the P-90 has not apparently caught on with police, as FN clearly hoped it would when its military take-off was slow, was the serious risk of body armour defeat (for which the bullet was of course specifically designed) in ‘own gun’ shootings on the street.

2. INDUSTRY & FOREIGN NEWS

GERMANY HELPED ARM THE KLA?

A story in The European suggested that the German intelligence services had a hand in training & arming the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) in a move the paper says had ‘the aim of cementing German influence in the Balkan area and tackling the refugee problem’. According to The European’s sources, KLA training and ex-Stasi communications equipment was provided by the German Militarabschirmdienst (MAD) counterintelligence agency and the Bundeswehr’s KSK special forces, together with ex-GDR weapons.

The matter has (not surprisingly) created serious friction between the Bundesnachrichtendienst (BND) (the German security service) and the CIA, who feared a backlash from the Serbs.

We believe it also raises substantial questions relating to Germany’s much-vaunted 1961 War Weapons Control Act (Kriegswaffenkontrollgesetz), which forbids the export of military weapons to any parties engaged in conflict. This Act is the reason why production to meet various overseas contracts for Heckler & Koch weapons has been delegated by H&K over the years to Royal Ordnance in the UK.

No doubt there will be some nifty footwork exercised over the precise definition of ‘conflict’ in the Albanian context but – on the face of it – if the KLA story is true the BND and MAD would appear to have breached German domestic law, never mind any EU or UN prohibitions. Observers outside Germany may now also be legitimately asking themselves whether it was really such a good thing for the Bundeswehr to be finally authorised to conduct operations outside German borders in support of UN resolutions, if the intelligence services are able to use them abroad for covert sectarian purposes.

Nor were we very happy to note The European’s comment that the KLA equipping was said to be funded via an Albanian foundation called ‘The Fatherland’s Call’, with offices (inter alia) in Germany, Sweden & Switzerland. It all sounds a bit WW2 for our liking.

BIG THAI AMMO BUYER

The Bangkok Post said that a special forces colonel in the Thai army was found to have 700,000 rounds of ammunition at his home. He reportedly said it was purchased for a secret mission, but the army denied this. The Post said he actually appeared to be running his own ammo business, which is perfectly legal.

MEMORIAL SHOOT

A Times story said that, in accordance with his last wishes, former British gamekeeper Tony Goldsworthy’s ashes were fired from the guns of 40 of his fellow members of the Bath Muzzle & Historic Breechloaders’ Association at a special event on their shooting range. His other dying wish was that one of his friends should shoot a crow – not his favourite bird – with his ashes.

PHILIPPINES POLICE WITH P-90

One of our sources who was recently in the Philippines reports that members of the Special Action Group of the Philippines National Police patrolling Manila airport are armed with 5.7mm FN P-90 SMGs. He understands they have 20 of these weapons.

AUTO-ORDNANCE FOR SALE

In mid-Sep 98 Firearms Business (FB) in the USA said that the Gun Parts Corp was offering its Auto-Ordnance Corp New York subsidiary for sale, saying it wanted to concentrate on its core business & new ventures. Auto-Ordnance makes Thompson carbines (aka Tommy Guns) and M1911A1 type pistols. No asking price was mentioned.

GUN BUYBACK IN EL SALVADOR

In August the Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy announced another of his government’s projects aimed (in his words) at curbing small arms proliferation, a $130,000 contribution from the Peacebuilding Fund for a ‘Goods for Guns’ buy-back program in El Salvador.

This project, originally organised by several Salvadorian business people with the assistance of the Rotary Club, is intended to persuade former combatants to exchange weapons for coupons redeemable against consumer goods. Canada also made a contribution to this programme in 1996/97.

KAZANLAK HOPES FOR AK SALES

An International Herald Tribune report in Aug 98 came to readers from Kazanlak in Bulgaria, home to the Arsenal arms plant (formerly Kazanlak Arsenal), which the Tribune said makes everything from CNC machines to tank guns, in 200 production halls. It has 10,400 employees.

Apparently Arsenal is setting great store on selling Kalashnikov (AK74) rifles in 5.56x45mm calibre and breaking into Western markets, but would not be drawn on whether Bulgarian forces were going to adopt these weapons themselves – or who any other customers for them might actually be. Of course, all the former Warsaw Pact countries can also offer Kalashnikovs, including various AK74 derivatives chambered for 5.56mm NATO; in fact the last thing the market needs just now is another prospective Kalashnikov exporter. There really isn’t any money in it. (nb: though previously we’ve also seen the spelling ‘Kazanlac’, we’re informed ‘Kazanlak’ is in fact the correct way)

SECRET SERVICE UZI SMGs

In the USA we recently examined one of the famous Secret Service attache-case 9mm Uzi SMG systems which we assume the service’s current requirement for new subguns will now supersede. The gun itself is secured in the attaché case by two powerful magnets, and there are three spare magazines in the foam-lined case. Where you might normally stick your initials by the handle on the edge of the case there is a handy arrow to indicate which way the muzzle of the gun is pointing.

Apparently the suggested modus operandi is to pop the catch, let the lid of the case drop down and simply pull the SMG away from the magnetic catches. The only problem we see with this is the spare magazines, which will at that point still be firmly embedded in the foam, so you’d better bank on one magazine doing the trick!