In an effort to turn the individual soldier's rifle into a weapon capable of countering the enormous drone threat they are facing some Russians are making home-made buckshot which can be fired from their rifle.

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Black powder military rifles of the 1860s-1880s are a really enjoyable group of guns. A lot of them are relatively reasonably priced, and they are actually pretty easy to reload for. The unavailability of factory ammunition (for most, although not so much for the Trapdoor) makes them seem like a ...

Today we are taking a look at three different pieces of kit developed to carry Degtyarev DP pan magazines. These mags are really inconveniently shaped, and traditional magazine pouches just don't work for them. Instead, the Soviets initially fielded a stamped steel can that held three pans. This ...

The GP-46 was unveiled by Kalasknikov Concern at the Army-2024 exposition in August. Unlike other Russian underbarrel grenade launchers the GP-46 is chambered for Western 40x46mm the low velocity grenades. Kalashnikov say the GP-46 is intended for international export.

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In previous videos we've looked at Ukrainian efforts to manufacture polymer belts for PK-pattern general purpose machine guns. These were developed by Ukrainian company RAROG who has been selling them since the summer of 2022. Now PUFGUN, a Russian company has also developed a polymer PK belt.

B...

The 2A28 Grom is the main armament of the BMP-1, it is essentially a 73mm recoilless gun, in the last six months there have been a series of sightings of Russian troops testing 2A28s which have been dismounted from vehicles and mounted on craft-made or repurposed carriages for use as infantry sup...

The Degtyarev DP (aka DP-27) was the subject of a bunch of experimentation during the 1930s, but none of the trialed modifications were actually adopted. It was only in 1944, after several years of combat experience, that the design was updated to correct a number of shortcomings. Specifically:

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The development of the Dragunov designated marksman’s rifle was spurred by the NATO adoption of the 7.62x51mm cartridge. The Red Army had standardized on a new suite of infantry weapons using the intermediate-sized 7.62x39mm round, and feared being out-ranged in open terrain by NATO units. The So...

After World War Two, the Red Army moved from a full power infantry rifle cartridge to an intermediate one, and the 7.62x39mm RPD became the new squad machine gun. At the same time, the heavy Maxims were replaced by the new SG-43 Goryunov. This left a gap in capability, with nothing available with...

What is old is new. This week imagery of a Russian drone equipped with a recoilless gun emerged. While tiny in comparison the concept behind the recoilless gun drone dates back over a century to the Davis Gun mounted on World War One aircraft.

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A look at Kalashnikov Concern's latest iteration of their 5.45x39mm light machine gun - the RPL-20.

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The SR-3 Vikhr is mechanically based on the AS-VAL and VSS Vintorez rifles, but built to be a very compact personal defensive weapon instead of a silenced rifle. Still chambered for 9x39, the Vikhr is intended for roles like executive protection, where the priority is being compact and concealabl...

In recent weeks there have been a spate videos showing Russian troops using TM-62 anti-tank mines as improvised satchel charges. We've already seen TM-62s used as drone dropped munitions and as demolition charges. The videos shared most recently show the dramatic effect that the TM-62s can have o...

The 9x39mm cartridge was introduced in the final days of the Soviet Union as a subsonic round intended specifically for suppressed weapons. The first weapons developed for it were the AS Val and VSS Vintorez. These were followed in the early 1990s by the OTs-14 "Groza", developed by Valery Tells ...

In mid-June Ukrainian troops captured a prime example of Russia's Turtle Tanks. In this video we take a look at how it came to be captured and look at how the counter-FPV shell was built and that tank's features.

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We continue our series of videos tracking appearances of Russia's tanks equipped with counter-FPV shells - the Turtle Tanks. In the past week there have been a growing number of videos showing the tanks being successfully engaged. Which raises the question: has the tide turned on the Turtle Tanks...

Drones have come to define the war in Ukraine with both sides making prolific use of the them for observation and ordnance delivery. Both sides have struggled to find adequate countermeasures for the drone threat but most recently several Russian companies have developed some innovative solutions...

The Strike One pistol originated around 2011 as a collaboration between Nicola Bandini and Dimitry Streshinskiy as a pistol to replace the Makarov in Russian police use. By 2014 is was progressing very successfully through testing and trials, and had gained some international interest, and that's...

In 1967, the Tula arsenal introduced a specialized silenced version of the Makarov for covert use. This was a very effective pistol, and its design was also very heavily changed from that of the regular pistol. With a two-part silencer surrounding the barrel, the recoil spring had to be moved to ...

Two weeks ago, we looked at a curious in-field adaptation carried out by a Russian unit operating near Krasnohorivka. A T-72 had been near totally enclosed by sheet metal to protect it from FPV drones. Various imagery showed the tank encased in a trapezoidal steel structure, giving the vehicle t...

The Kord was developed to replace the Soviet NSV heavy machine gun. The NSV was developed in 1969 to replace the DShK, and it was a pretty good gun - but it was manufactured in only one factory and that factory was located in Kazakhstan. When the Soviet Union crumbled, that left the new Russian F...

Today we are out at the range with a 1943 Izhevsk M91/30 PU sniper rifle to see how it shoots...

The Mosin M91/30 PU is the most recognized Soviet sniper rifle of World War Two, but it was not their first. It was preceded by the Model 1931 PE, the Model 1936 PEM, and also the scoped version of the SVT-40 semiautomatic rifle. The SVT was intended to become a universal infantry rifle as well a...

Today we are going to take a look at the three main battle rifles of World War Two - the M1 Garand, the SVT-40, and the Gewehr 43. We will also consider the SVT-38, Gewehr 41(W), and Gewehr 41(M). The United States, Soviet Union, and Germany were the three countries that fielded large numbers of ...