Beautiful Charola-Anitua pistol, factory engraved. This specimen is one of the rarer 7mm variants.
I don’t often post non-firearm related items, but this one caught my attention. I’m a sucker for cyber-punk fashion and clothing that is useful in unusual or creative ways. This essentially being a fancied-up tinfoil hat notwithstanding, I think it looks pretty neat. Thermal/IR signature reducing “hoodie/burqa” by fashion designer Adam Harvey http://ahprojects.com/projects/stealth-wear.
![Here’s a neat one. Many firearms enthusiasts are aware of Pedersen’s Remington Model 51, widely considered to be one of the finer (if mechanically complicated) pocket pistols, being very accurate, pleasant to shoot and extremely ergonomic. It’s method of operation was not simple blow-back, but rather “hesitation” lock or action:
“During firing, the cartridge case is set back about .08” by chamber pressure. This starts the rearward movement of the breechbolt and slide. The breechbolt engages a shoulder on the frame after having traveled about 3/32”. The slide continues rearward, lifts the breechbolt out of its temporary engagement, and continues to compress the action spring.”
While it was later recognized that a locking action was unnecessary for the .25 or .380 small pistol rounds, relatively few people know that a .45acp prototype was built for testing by the Navy as a potential replacement for the 1911. Reports indicate that with its fixed-barrel and low bore axis, the .45 Remington-Pedersen Model 53 outperformed the 1911 in just about all areas and was tentatively chosen, however a sudden entrance into WWI made it so that the already tooled-up 1911 continued being produced and the Model 53 fell by the wayside.
Considering the continued acceptance of the 1911, perhaps this model, if reintroduced, would prove to be as much of a success in the civilian market as it apparently was with the Navy.
[recently it was pointed out to me by an industry insider that the current day .45acp loads are probably hot enough to cause problems for the hesitation lock system. What would be an acceptable self-defense round to split the difference between .380 and .45? And don’t say 9mm, that generates higher chamber pressure than .45]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/fcadcd98bee9cdbb2a9e37f4d31896b0/tumblr_mgovctVMvI1rk9wf0o1_500.jpg)
Here’s a neat one. Many firearms enthusiasts are aware of Pedersen’s Remington Model 51, widely considered to be one of the finer (if mechanically complicated) pocket pistols, being very accurate, pleasant to shoot and extremely ergonomic. It’s method of operation was not simple blow-back, but rather “hesitation” lock or action:
“During firing, the cartridge case is set back about .08” by chamber pressure. This starts the rearward movement of the breechbolt and slide. The breechbolt engages a shoulder on the frame after having traveled about 3/32”. The slide continues rearward, lifts the breechbolt out of its temporary engagement, and continues to compress the action spring.”
While it was later recognized that a locking action was unnecessary for the .25 or .380 small pistol rounds, relatively few people know that a .45acp prototype was built for testing by the Navy as a potential replacement for the 1911. Reports indicate that with its fixed-barrel and low bore axis, the .45 Remington-Pedersen Model 53 outperformed the 1911 in just about all areas and was tentatively chosen, however a sudden entrance into WWI made it so that the already tooled-up 1911 continued being produced and the Model 53 fell by the wayside.
Considering the continued acceptance of the 1911, perhaps this model, if reintroduced, would prove to be as much of a success in the civilian market as it apparently was with the Navy.
[recently it was pointed out to me by an industry insider that the current day .45acp loads are probably hot enough to cause problems for the hesitation lock system. What would be an acceptable self-defense round to split the difference between .380 and .45? And don’t say 9mm, that generates higher chamber pressure than .45]
Ok gunblr, if you actually support the right to armed self defense, sign this
PARDON MARISSA ALEXANDER: JAILED FOR 20 YEARS IN FLORIDA FOR TRYING TO PROTECT HERSELF AGAINST AN ABUSIVE EX-
Marissa Alexander was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Her husband beat her while she was pregnant. After yet another beating, Alexander fired a warning shot which traveled through a wall and into the ceiling. That shot saved her life. She didn’t kill anyone. Prosecutor Angela Corey did not take into account that Marissa Alexander had a court injunction against her crazed husband. She had given birth 9 Days earlier and was trained to use a weapon and earned a concealed weapons permit. While the Stand Your Ground Law has been successfully used by other people in the State of Florida, that law didn’t apply to Marissa Alexander although she was a victim of Domestic Abuse.
Even Victor Crist, a Republican state legislator who crafted the very “10-20-life” bill used to convict her said that Alexander’s sentence – if she truly did fire a warning shot and wasn’t trying to kill her husband – is not what lawmakers wanted.
Who knows, it might be your ass on the line next
The Zulaica Automatic Revolver,
Invented in 1905 by the Spanish firm M. Zulaica y Cia, this interesting .22 revolver is one of those rare and mysterious automatic revolvers. It is not double or single action, instead the force from each discharge works a mechanism which turns the cylinder and cocks the hammer. These pistols were not very common but did make a popular pocket revolver for French officers during World War I. Production ended in 1920.
9mm smoothbore automatic pistol, thought to be made somewhere in Asia. Where was it made specifically- unknown, when- unknown, buy whom-unknown.
Arghh
Why doesn’t anyone manufacture the right vintage firearm reproductions??? I mean sure you’ve got Cimarron and folks like that doing their cowboy thing, but c’mon…. I’m sorry but the Schofield is honestly one of the least attractive top-break revolvers, at least when compared with the elegant Gasser Montenegrins or EVEN early Webleys… NAA really got it right with their Ranger but I guess sales were sluggish so they never went in to regular production and never offered any 4” or 6” barrels. Figures that their BEST product wouldn’t sell well enough. And now their aesthetically-challenged Sidewinder is probably going to do fabulously well :P
Top-breaks aside, where are the standard Gasser reproductions? Or Beaumont Adams? Tranter? ANY of the classic European designs with the graceful swooping handles and shapely frames? Yeah you can still pick up Nagants but those .32acp cylinders are both rare and iffy, and 7.62x28r is expensive. Essentially your only hope for anything like a Tranter is winning something at auction and then forget about finding ammo to actually shoot through it.
If I were to produce firearms I would make those. I would also make a pistol that looked outwardly like an old flintlock with brass and all that, like old pirates might have carried, that was in actuality a single-shot cartridge pistol, firing anything standard like .45LC or .357M/.38SPL, or hell even .410/.45. I would offer top-break .22WMR/.22LR revolving rifles in the elegant old European design, with full wood or partial wire stocks. Lots of Steampunks have money, I’d offer items geared specifically towards them. I would sell a .22LR replica of Chiana’s small pistol from the 3rd season of Farscape. There’s plenty I would produce.
… Anyone feel like starting up an artisan firearms design and production collective?
As a last post for a little while here’s the Clair, with a rare photo generously found and supplied by ForgottenWeapons.com. Check them out if you haven’t already, they’re very knowledgeable folks and Ian in particular is quite the helpful sort if anyone has questions about some of the rarer firearms out there.
“The French Clair pistol of 1893 is one of the lesser known and least documented early automatic pistols, and unusual in its method of operation as well. The majority of the successful early automatics (the Borchardt/Luger and Mauser in particular) used short recoil mechanisms to unlock, but the Clair was a gas operated design.”
Dear followers
Sadly I have to take a little break from posting, for various reasons. I might find the time to throw a few things onto the page. Probably be back in full force soon.
