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Early Automatic Pistol Cartridges - What, When & Why?
In discussion with a friend recently, the topic of early automatic pistol cartridges came up. Specifically, looking at the context of which cartridges were actually available at which times, and how this might provide helpful context for understanding why particular cartridges were adopted (or co...
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Remington EtronX: Electrically Primed Ammunition
One of the more mainstream attempts at incorporating electronic into firearms technology on the civilian market was the Remington EtronX, introduced in 2000. It consisted of a standard Remington 700 bolt action rifle, with the trigger and firing mechanisms replaced by electric versions. The firin...
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Ammo Evaluation: Romanian 8mm Mauser
Towards the end of the Cold War, Romania was a major exporter of arms and ammunition on the world market. Today we are looking at Romanian pattern 1971 8mm Mauser ammunition, made between 1972 and 1978 (this particular sample is form 1972). It was produced at the U.M. Sadu plant in Bumbesti Jiu, ...
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Ammunition Evaluation: 1941 Turkish 8mm Mauser
Turkey adopted the 8mm Mauser cartridge as part of its modernization after World War One, and with the assistance of German technicians developed a copy of the German 8mm S cartridge. Most of the surplus Turkish 8mm ammunition available in th eUNited States at this time is 1940s production, with ...
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Ammo Evaluation: Malaysian L2A2 7.62x51mm
The Malaysian factory SMOE (Syarikat Malaysia Explosives Ltd) is the only ammunition producer in Malaysia, and produces a variety of calibers for small arms and light weapons. The factory was established in 1969 with the partnership of Oerlikon and Dynamit Nobel, and became wholly owned by the Ma...
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Paper Patching For .577/450 Martini-Henry
The Chap gives a brief demonstration of the whys and wherefores of paper patching, and gives a demonstration with some Martini-Henry bullets. This type of bullet was very prevalent in the black powder cartridge era.
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Recreating Original Chassepot M1866 Needlefire Paper Cartridges
The Chap takes you through how original French Chassepot M1866 paper needlefire cartridges were made, and how he does it. Contains lashings of black powder, and better-than-a-Dryse cartridges!
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.22-06 Duplex M1 Garand
During the 1950s, the US Army ran a series of programs trying to find a better solution for infantry rifles than firing single semiauto bullets. These projects (including SALVO, SALVO II, and SPIW) would include experiments with multiple barreled rifles, burst firing rifles, flechette firing weap...
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Ian Rants About Dumb Ammo Purchasing Decisions
Seriously guys, buying trash surplus ammo is false economy. Do the research, don't get tempted by a 2c/round savings, and get ammunition that will actually run. You will have a way better time shooting, and your guns will thank you for it.
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.30 Super Carry: My 7.65 French Long is Back! (feat. S&W Shield Plus)
When Federal announced their new .30 Super Carry cartridge, I was really excited to see the rebirth of the 7.65mm French Long caliber. That round was originally developed for the Pedersen Device in late WW1, and then adopted by the French military for its 1935 pistols and MAS38 submachine gun. It...
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Ask Ian: .223 vs 5.56 and "Military Grade Ammo"
From Michal on Patreon:
"Can you talk about difference between .223 Remington and 5.56 NATO? Or in more general terms about possibility of using military grade ammo in civilian rifles. I heard everything from 'it will explode' to 'it will work normally'."The short answer is that the differen...
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Ask Ian - What Was the Best WW2 Rifle Cartridge?
From crablegs21 on Utreon:
"In your opinion and in hindsight, which country had the most optimized cartridge for the their primary infantry rifle for WWII? Additionally, which country would have benefited most by switching to that cartridge prior to WWII?"
In my opinion - and I think post-w...
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What Are All These 9mm Cartridges, And Why?
00:00 - Introduction
00:38 - Limitations of this video
01:22 - 9mm Luger
05:22 - 9mm Largo
07:01 - 9mm Browning Long
10:11 - .380 Auto/9x17mm
12:08 - 9mm Mauser Export
13:38 - 9mm Steyr
15:50 - 9x18mm Ultra/Police
18:08 - 9x18mm MakarovWhy do we have so many different 9mm ca...
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Ammunition Evaluation: Ethiopian .30-06
Century International Arms has imported a quantity of Ethiopian ammunition, and asked me to do a video on it. So, I have a three-part evaluation here: appearance and packaging, live fire testing (including velocity and consistency), and teardown and bullet weight consistency. This ammunition was ...
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Full Auto at 1000m: The 7.92x41mm CETME Cartridge
The US insistence on a full-power rifle cartridge for the NATO standard in the 1950s derailed a couple potentially very interesting concepts - including the 7.92x41mm CETME cartridge. This round was developed by Dr. Gunther Voss, formerly of Mauser, while working with other ex-Mauser employees li...
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Ammunition Evaluation: Ethiopian 7.62x51mm NATO
Century International Arms has imported a quantity of Ethiopian ammunition, and asked me to do a video on it. So, I have a three-part evaluation here: appearance and packaging, live fire testing (including velocity and consistency), and teardown and bullet weight consistency. This ammunition was ...
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German Plastic Training Ammo 1: Range Test For Grouping And IT GOES HOW EFFING FAST???
Alternative clickbait title - You'll Never Believe How Fast This .308 Win German Plastic Training Ammo Goes! :D :D :D
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4000+fps .308 Win? Yes really! German Plastic Training Ammo Redux
After an earlier video showing how fast this German 7.62 NATO / .308 Win plastic training ammo actually goes, some doubting Thomases in the comments weren't satisfied.
Also, I promised a closer look at the stuff, including a disassembly of it. So finally, after 2 years, here it is: German Kurz...
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Bulleted Blanks Episode 3: 6.5x55mm Swedish Mauser
The Bloke continues his quest to document the effects on cardboard of various bulleted blanks. This time, Sweden. Not Switzerland. With The Gent's Swedish Mauser!
Same procedure as before, with a long Swedish Mauser in 6.5x55 calibre.
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Smoke From An 1889 Schmidt-Rubin? Smokeless, "Semismokeless" And Black Powder Comparison!
Despite having destroyed and laid waste utterly to the bad gen from the English-language literature about Swiss 7.5x53.5 mm GP90 being semismokeless, The Bloke sets up a comparison, just because. Using original 7.5x53.5mm GP90 bullets in his 1889 Schmidt-Rubin, he loads 4 cartridges:
1x 32gn R...
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Loading With Inadequate Load Data? Impossible? Not If You Have A Chronograph!
In Europe we are used to very, very threadbare load data. In the US, you don't have this problem. Sometimes over here it can be impossible to find load data for reloading calibres which are common in the US, with the powders that we can get hold of here. However, all is not lost! If you have a ch...
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Max Popenker on Russian Pistols and Ammunition: 7N21, 9x21mm, 9x18mm, and more
Today I am again joined by Max Popenker, Russian small arms historian and researcher. Max is explaining the basic history of Russian handguns and ammunition, starting with the adoption of the 7.62x25mm Tokarev cartridge to replace the Nagant revolver. This was satisfactory until the end of World ...
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French Rifle Ammunition: 8mm Lebel and 7.5mm French
Today we are going through the French rifle ammunition used in the Lebel, Berthier, and MAS series rifles - 8mm Lebel and 7.5mm French.
The 8mm Lebel cartridge began as simply a necked-down version of the 11mm Gras cartridge, because that cartridge was already in use in the French Navy Kropats...
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Original Volcanic "Rocket Ball" Cartridges
Ammunition for the Volcanic Repeaters is extremely rare today, and this opportunity to take a look at a complete original box of it was something I did not want to miss. There were two calibers made; the .31 (Cartridge No.1) and the .41 (Cartridge No.2). Both were sold in tin boxes of 200 rounds,...