I was inspired by the recent post about the Lee Enfield rifles to create this new topic. I thought perhaps this could be a spot were members could post the most interesting guns they own or have seen, ones that you wouldnt find in the average gun cabinet. Ive personally seen and fired an MP40 bringback from the second world war. Anyway thats the topic ,you guys can also feel free to post your normal guns and brag if youd like.
Cheers
John

That sounds like a great idea. I used to have one heck of a collection but most of them were modern. I did have a few oldies though.

I have an FN 5.7 pistol. Really odd cartridge, but a wonderfull target pistol. If I can find ammo.

When I was on the range at Little Creek Amphib base I got to see a marine firing a BAR. Very Effective! Due to it's weight I'll stick with my good ol M-14- thank god the Navy kept them for shipboard defense while I was in!

I remember when my Uncle was getting ready to ship out to Vietnam my family went to his base to see him off. They were having some type of open house day. I was able to get up close and personal with a bunch of good stuff. The 50 BMG was real cool.
Later in life my department had a visit from an arms vendor trying to sell our SWAT team some new equipment. Got to fire MP-5's (all varieties), all different types of M-4/M-16 family, and a few others including a vintage Thompson just for fun. My favorites ended up being the MP-5sd and a very short barreled M-16.
THE GOOD OLD DAYS

Getting to fire the Accuracy International L96A1 on the 1000-yard range (during a visit to sniper school) was definitely a high point. I got out of the Army before this weapon was issued, and only used the Remington, Winchester, and HK MSG-90 in combat, which was a great pity.

Lets see, my favourite that I've fired is probably the Bren, followed in no particular order by:

Sten, Stirling, L1A1 SLR (one of which even blew up on me, but that's another story), P08 Luger, Vickers MMG, AKM (Iraqi, from the first Gulf war), M60, L9A1 Hi-power, Steyr AUG, Steyr carbine, Minimi, P226, No 4 Mk1, SMLE, No 5, No4 Mk1* signal pistol. Possibly others.

Out of all of those, least favourite would probably be the Steyr carbine.

My favourite weapon to fire during my service was the Carl Gustav SMG If you could control it.
It was a dangerous weapon with a heavy blowback bolt system. It was SOP to not have the magazine on the weapon unless and until you were going to fire it. A friend of mine died when a loaded SMG he had leaned against the wall slipped and went off.

I have fond memories of going ot the shooting range with my dad and muzzle loading Springfield. I can remember the first time that thing went off against my shoulder. I had fire various 22 cal. rifles, and a 20 guage shotgut. This thing found new heights in kick for me at the time. The cloud of thick white smoke the errupts out of the barrel is an awsome thing.

hmmm...something you don't always see...well maybe if you consider it a gun...I got a Piat laying on my cofee table in my apartment.
As well as that I have a Bren Mk 2 (semi only, don't have near enough $ for a class III ), a Sten Mk 5 (semi again, same story), two enfield No. 4 Mk. 1s, a 98k, and a beater p38...

Phil :-) cant leave it at that, tell us about the exploding SLR!

Weapons fired? Lee Enfield Mk4 at the age of 14 and almost broke my shoulder. Wasn't impressed! Then onto L1A1 SLR, Sterling SMG, SA80 (bag of pooh) LSW (bag of pooh), GPMG (pretty funky! I liked the noise but didn't like carrying it) and M72 LAW (now that was cool!). My favorite out of all has to be the SLR. Reliable, accurate, easy to clean and it stops people dead in their tracks. I was almost in tears when they took mine away and gave me an SA80, which I broke the first day I had it. The bolt carrier moved off the guides and got stuck when I was reassembling it. I had to knock it free with a trip flare picket but did it out of view of the company armourer :-) . I had to do that as I was one of two of the only Skill at Arms instructors in my platoon and didn't want anyone to know I'd bust it!
Got to play with an MP5 with laser sight when I was in the police force but was told not to go for firearms as I'd fail the psychometric test. I think it was my permanent grin that put them off when I was playing with such a lovely weapon :-) :-)

hey,
ive got a Mauser HSC,in top condition,came with it's orignal leather holster and spare magazine (soldier named inside,w/unit). A M1903 Springfield -dated 1921,thats in stunning condition, and a M-1 carbine,dated 1943,manuf. by Inland steel,showing only the slightest wear.---- I also have 6 japanese rifles,2 british lee Enfield's ,No1/mk2.and a odd French Lebel,and i dont dare fire any of these.

Well service wise I've fired the M81 gun launcher on the M551, the M68 105mm gun on M60A1s,A3s,M48A5s and M1s. Also M60, M60d, M240, M85,and M2 MGs and M3 grease guns M16s and M203s, M1911and M9s. I used to own a MAS49/56 and a 39/51 but sold them due to difficulty finding ammo I also sold off a SKS and an AK clone, they were boring and the sights stank. I have an FN-49, a Garand, an enfield and a G3 clone all shooters. My great uncle brought back a Nazi Browning highpower 9mm which is a good shooter as well. Won't bore you guys with the whole list. The Second Amendment is a wonderful thing.

Tom

I was on my armament technicians course in the RNZAF, and as part of this course we do a range day firing all the old weapons the school has in it's armoury. Officially this is to expose us to different operating systems etc to increase our depth of knowledge etc etc, really it's just a yippee.

Anyway, we had several different SLRs in the armoury, although only one was officialy serviceable. My mate decided to take it upon himself to make another one serviceable, so hunted out all the matching parts for it, stripped and cleaned it, guaged it all, polished up the woodwork etc. He made a real nice job of it.

Off to the range on range day, we decided to take this rebuilt SLR down and test fire it, along with the serviceable SLR. First guy walks up to the firing point and picks up the serviceable SLR, rattles off a mag or two, unloads, clears the weapon etc and hands it to me to shoot my mags.

Now my mate calls out, 'hey Phil, this one hasn't been fired yet, why not put your mags through it instead'

'Sure' I say, one SLR is as good as another....

I get the ok from the RSO to carry on in my own time, load the mag, pull the cocking handle back, watch the first round being chambered, up to the shoulder, sight the target squeeze and...

BOOOM!

not the Bang I was expecting either, Oh no, woodwork splintered, painfull stinging in my forward hand, front half of the gun somewhat dissasembled...

Bugger...

Another one of my course mates runs up and takes the weapon from me and clears it as I inspect my hand...

One, two, three, four fingers...one thumb all present and correct, no holes, black carbon burn from wrist to finger tips though.

It turns out that the SLR had been in the process of being rendered a Drill purpose weapon. The job had been started by some fool who didn't mark the gun in any way, and after drilling the 1/8" hole in the chamber put it back and forgot about it.

Now that whole is actually pretty hard to see when looking in the chamber, I'd missed it too. But the explosive gasses didn't. Oh no, they went for the path of least resistance, which wasn't pushing Mr 7.62x51 full metal jacket down the barrel, it was blowing out the side of the case and through the 1/8" hole.

This sheared the steel ring that retains the rear of the foregrip and this hit the concrete hard anough that it bounced over the firing point shelter onto the road outside. The gasses hit this ring and after shearing it were angled forward, splintering the woodwork and hitting my hand, driving hundred of very tiny balls of molten brass under the skin, along with a few bits of wood.

I was very, very lucky that I had my hand forward on the woodwork, and not wrapped around the front of the mag, which is a pretty common way of holding an SLR. That ring and those gasses would probably have removed at least one finger....

I've still got one of the little bits of brass in my hand, and I've still got the 7.62mm case with a perfect 1/8" hole in the side. You could not have drilled a hole as neat.

And the guy who serviced the SLR? He's now the SGT in charge of the Gun room and the Hoist bay at RNZAF Base Ohakea.

Had a FN C1 blow on me. Middle of the run down. Hit the 200 M berm and start squeezing off rounds. 3rd round, big poof of smoke and no upper half of forstock (sitting on top of my head). Had to hand cock after each round. Got to the end after another 18 rounds (timed fire & movement) unloaded & cleared. Told the RSO my weapon had exploded! He told me to *&%$$#@ -off until he saw it. No damage to me, left hand little numb and blackened. The gas cylinder at the front sight housing had broken off allowing the gas to "vent" explosively
All that and still came out top shot of the unit. :-) :-) :-)
Liked the FN. The boys would let newbies to set the gas on "0" (to make sure it cycled) and "you do not have to hold your cheek tightly to the butt.
Called "FN Cheek". 2 rounds with Mahommed Ali would have hurt less!

When I was a cop in N.S.W. I carried a smith and wesson .38 police special that was a nice gun.we also used the mini ruger223 carbine i loved that thing,we also used the winchester wingmaster riot gun,I had to qualify on that thing I had to walk down range with pop up man size targets popping up I missed with every shot,HOW CAN YOU MISS WITH A RIOT GUN!,when I became a bobby in London a friend of mine was a licenced collector and we used to go to the range and playI fired a Luger, a broom handle Mauser, but the dozzy was the desert eagle .50 calibre that was like firing a field gun.But because of our draconian gun laws he had to surrender them all.they were all destroyed, of course he was compensated but broom handle mausers the artillery version with full stock and extended barrel are bloody antiques and in my humble opinion a work of art.

I am into Mil-surps, mostly Mosins and Finn-captured Mosins, but I also have a few odd ones such as SMLE and a No.4

Wife shoots, but only likes revolvers, she has 3 now(625, ex NYPD M64, and a M10, yep she only likes S&W LOL)

and i have a few other moderns (AR15, 1911A1, Glock, 10/22, Weatherby etc)

In the service I was issued the M16A2 and M9, qual'd on the SAW and the M60, was issued a 1911A1 when I had an MOS change in 89, that..get this..had a frame that was OLDER than I was at the time LOL....

been into firearms since I grew up around my grandfather, I suppose that's why I'm debating getting into modeling again after a long hiatus

I have a Czech Model 37 pistol that my uncle got in Czechoslavakia at the end of the war. iI have fired it a couple of times and it is like a cannon going off. I also bought a Turkish Mauser but I haven't fired it yet. I like it because it is nice and long and even came with a bayonet. There just seem to be fewer and fewer places around here where you can do some shooting and not get in trouble!

Thats the truth here too, The best place anyone had to shoot now has a prison built on top of it. :-)
I was lucky enough to be able to use my departments range on or off duty.

Hi John i own a deact Kar 98k rifle w/bayonet (the reason it's a deact is because of the stringent laws we have concerning firearms over here in the UK )

i have a degtyarev DP-28 LMG and a Kalashnikov AKM at the moment but in the past ive had alot more



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Karl, I know what you mean about the change to SA80, what a piece of crap the SA80 was. I had a mag of 30 rds fall apart on me whilst running across a 'hot' gap between buildings at Sarajevo airport in '92. Scrabbling around on the ground trying to pick up rounds with unfriendly Serb snipers looking for 'fun', isn't very dignified !!
I've been fortunate enough to have fired; 303 enfield, Bren, 9mm SMG, SLR, LMG, GPMG, 30Cal, SA80, LSW, L96 Accuracy Int., Browning 9mm, FN FAL, 98 Kar, Martini Henri, MP5 Series, Carl Gustav AT, 66 sub-cal, SLAW and probably a couple more weapons I can't remember. Oh yeah I also used a fair bit of plastic explosives as well.
I was also taught how to make 'proper' petrol bombs by a friend who was in the Rhodesian Infantry and used them as a regular offensive weapon, each patrol vehicle always carried a couple of crates !
One of the things that pisses me off about being a civvy now is that I'll probably never get to fire the Minimi, GMG, UGL, combat shotgun, 50Cal, Sig Sauer, Sharpshooter rifle, etc........

I've got to fire a lot of wepons, but my favourite was always the SLR. Other than the fact when you hot something, it would kill it, you could always bash people dead with it!

In civvie street before our old pm howard stuffed our gun laws, i had a couple of SLR's. One with a L2 heavy barrel, and then shotened to just over legal. That was my best pig gun!

I'm in the process of getting my licence again, and maybe getting my collectors licence as well.