Competition
Star Model 1914 at a Backup Gun Match
This didn’t come out as well as I was hoping (one of the stage videos got corrupted and the others don’t show the shooting stages as well as I’d anticipated), but I will do better […]
France
Forgotten History
Martyr of Verdun: Émile Driant’s Command Post
Émile Driant was a French army officer who served originally as an aide to General Boulanger (and married his daughter). This connection would tarnish his career when politics forced Boulanger to resign (and shortly afterward […]
Bolt Action Rifles
Shooting the Mle 1866 Chassepot
A while back, I visited @CanadianGunLover, and we did a bit of shooting with an 1866 Chassepot. I lost track of the footage and only just now found where I had put it – so […]
Bayonet
The French Finger Trap: Because Soldiers Will Be Soldiers…
Soldiers will be soldiers…give them something that *can* be screwed up, and they *will* screw it up. Haven’t ordered a copy of Chassepot to FAMAS yet? You can place your order right now!
Bolt Action Rifles
Berthier Carbine with Chauchat Magazine
Early in World War One, a small number (less than 200) Berthier rifle and cavalry carbines were adapted to use Chauchat magazines for aerial use. They were employed as defensive arms in observation balloons and […]
Forgotten History
Forgotten History: Musée de Plans-Reliefs (Paris)
Hidden away up on the 4th floor of the Paris Army Museum (in Les Invalides) is the rather unexcitingly-named Musée de Plans-Reliefs. Up here in the dark is a collection of strategic dioramas dating back […]
Semiauto Rifles
A Rifle for International Competition: the MAS 49-56 MSE
Preorders now open for my book, Chassepot to FAMAS: French Military Rifles 1866-2016! Get your copy here! The MSE (Modified St Etienne) version of the MAS 49-56 was developed specifically for international competition shooting by […]
Conversion
French NATO Standardization: the MAS 49-56 in 7.62mm
Preorders now open for my book, Chassepot to FAMAS: French Military Rifles 1866-2016! Get your copy here! In the late 1950s, France was still part of the NATO integrated military structure. When the 7.62x51mm cartridge […]
Semiauto Rifles
France’s Final Battle Rifle Iteration: The MAS 49-56
Preorders now open for my book, Chassepot to FAMAS: French Military Rifles 1866-2016! Get your copy here! While the development of the MAS 49 had given France a very utilitarian rifle that could serve as […]
Semiauto Rifles
MAS 49: A Universal Service Rifle
Preorders now open for my book, Chassepot to FAMAS: French Military Rifles 1866-2016! Get your copy here! As the MAS 44 saw combat service with French Marines in Indochina, some of its shortcomings began to […]