The British Army tested the Sterling SMG all over the world, one of the most hostile environments it was tested in was the Malayan jungle. Troops there fitted several trials guns with a shotgun-style rib sight. It was hoped this would improve fast snap shooting during jungle patrols when contact ...

In this TAB Short Matt discusses how historically accurate COD:WWII's Sterling model is and whether early Sterling SMG prototypes saw action during World War Two. This is something a little different to our normal content, Matt decided to discuss it as he's just written a book about the Sterling ...

We're very excited to take a privileged look at the Type 64, an integrally suppressed submachine gun designed in China in the early 1960s. Taking several design elements from other Combloc small arms, it fired a special subsonic, spitzer 7.62x25mm round. Check out Matt's accompanying article abou...

In 1946 the French military began the search for a new submachine gun. They were looking for a compact 9x19mm weapon and examined submissions from the French state-owned arsenals and private companies. Today, we're looking at Hotchkiss' entry - the 'Type Universel', a unique weapon with a folding...

The Hotchkiss Type Universel has a unique folding stock and telescoping barrel - here's how it works. Be sure to check out our full video & the accompanying article on the Hotchkiss here - http://armourersbench.com/2020/04/27/hotchkiss-type-universal If you enjoy our work please consider supporti...

We begin our in-depth series on the Sten Gun by looking at the men behind the design and examining just how it got its unusual name. Does the 'EN' of Sten really stand for 'Enfield'? Perhaps not. Check out our accompanying article for this video here - http://armourersbench.com/2020/05/17/the-ste...

The Madsen M50 is one of the quintessential early Cold War submachine guns. Cheap, simple and utilitarian. Be sure to check out our accompanying for this video here - https://armourersbench.com/2020/07/12/madsen-m50-live-fire/ If you enjoy our work please consider supporting us via Patreon, TAB i...

We continue our STEN gun series by looking at the various magazine loading tools developed to help load the STEN's difficult to load magazines. Check out Richard's channel - https://www.youtube.com/VickersMGCollectionResearchAssociation And for more about his work with the Vickers Machine Gun Res...

The 1942 British Thompson Submachine Gun manual. Let's take a look inside. It's essential for soldiers to know how to use and maintain their weapons properly. We've been collecting training manuals, pamphlets and handbooks to give us a wider understanding of how troops were trained and how they u...

Earlier this year I had the pleasure of filming some segments on small arms for the new documentary on the Rhineland Campaign – ‘Rhineland 45‘. Not all of the segments I filmed discussing weapons could be included in the finished documentary – I filmed quite a few – so I’m pleased to share a coup...

This copy or clone of a Sterling Mk4 / L2A3 submachine gun is believed to have been assembled during The Troubles by Loyalist paramilitaries. Although which group made it is unknown and its origins are unclear, it's a fascinating example of clandestine engineering which shows considerable skill i...

The iconic submachine gun has been seen with Ukrainian forces on a number of occasions over the last few months. In this video we look at some sightings of the Uzi in Ukraine. Be sure to check out our accompanying article for this video here - http://armourersbench.com/2023/05/14/uzi-in-ukraine/ ...

A wild MCEM-2 appears! Recently, while looking though British Army Cold War training films, I stumbled upon something I never expected to see: a clip of an MCEM-2 firing. The MCEM-2 (Machine Carbine Experimental Model No.2) was a small, compact, innovative submachine gun developed towards the end...

Recently at the Las Vegas Antique Arms Show I had the chance to examine an extremely rare Sten variant - the silenced MkIVA Be sure to check out our accompanying article for this video here - https://armourersbench.com/2023/02/12/suppressed-sten-mk4/ If you enjoy our work please consider supporti...

The FN America P90 + what Henry's about to do. Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/9HoleReviews or https://tinyurl.com/SlateBlack Consider supporting us via Patreon 👉 http://www.patreon.com/9HoleReviews (you an also access the Practi...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter: http://eepurl.com/hkbJYn [or] slateblackindustries (dot) com 👉 Newsletter The Sterling SMG is a direct descendent of the Sten gun, which in turn was a descendent of the German MP28/II (most don’t want to admit this ;)...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter: http://eepurl.com/hkbJYn [or] slateblackindustries (dot) com 👉 Newsletter We dive into the history of the 🇨🇿 Škorpion Vz. 61 and how this little communist PDW has made it's way far past protecting soldiers, into inter...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter 🗞️https://tinyurl.com/9HoleReviews or https://tinyurl.com/SlateBlack European NATO members in the 90's had started a solicitation for a new PDW concept of weapons, that coined the term "Personal Defense Weapons". Despi...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/9HoleReviews or https://tinyurl.com/SlateBlack We think the Vector SBR is quite possible one of the best 9mm PDW's for vehicle use. Take note that we are not judging this as a duty SMG, but rather ...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter 🗞️https://tinyurl.com/9HoleReviews or https://tinyurl.com/SlateBlack On May 5th, 1980, black-clad members of the 22nd Regiment of the Special Air Service descended upon the besieged Iranian Embassy to eliminate six ter...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter: https://tinyurl.com/9HoleReviews or https://tinyurl.com/SlateBlack H&K's MP5 revolutionized the role of the submachine gun for the world. In some cases, the MP5 seems to be even more proliferate than the G3, of which ...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter 🗞️https://tinyurl.com/9HoleReviews or https://tinyurl.com/SlateBlack Since NATO seeked a new PDW class of weapons in the 90's, many have argued over the definition of the PDW... but did not realize how old the concept ...

When France decided to adopt a new 9x19mm submachine gun after World War Two, all three of the main French arsenals (St Etienne/MAS, Chatellerault/MAC, and Tulle/MAT) developed designs to compete for adoption. Tulle would eventually win and their design became the MAT-49, but the other lines of d...

The fine folks at DSA had this rather mysterious MP5 in their reference collection, and we decided to take it out to the range to see if it would run. It's an MP-5, but chambered for .45ACP using altered M3 Grease Gun magazines. The original manufacturer is unclear; it's marked as being imported ...