Several years ago, I gave a talk at the New York Military Affairs Symposium. It was a good talk, but it was necessary to re-record it. There's no Q&A, but the presentation has been updated a bit with more recent work and references. The original, with the Q&A session at the end, is still availabl...

It may surprise people to know that the M4A3(76) was not the last gun tank variant of the M4 to be produced. This example is in Bastogne Barracks. Belgian Linkies: https://warheritage.be/en https://belgiumbattlefield.be/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheChieftainArmor Twitter...erm.. X: http...

The War Heritage Institute facility at Bastogne Barracks is a military facility which has been in constant use since the 1930s. Belgian Linkies: https://warheritage.be/en https://belgiumbattlefield.be/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheChieftainArmor Twitter...erm.. X: https://twitter.com/Chi...

In this first of a long-ish series of videos from Belgium, we we meet Mr William Testaert who will be our guide over the length of the country, and we start at the Royal Military Museum in Brussels, and go over initial Belgian military history. This is the first batch where I have invested in bri...

The Vickers Utility Tractor started out life as a Carden-Lloyd design, eventually bought up by Vickers and continuing to be sold as the Vickers Light Carrier, Vickers Artillery Tractor, and other subvariants. This one is found in the Royal Military Museum in Brussels, and seems quite compatible w...

One of the CVR(T) Variants Belgium used was the Sultan, the command track. Small and compact, but the one they had handy was fully equipped inside. We'll come back to the vehicle for a more in-depth look at some future point, but this I thought was interesting enough. Belgian Linkies: https://war...

Before putting rounds downrange, it is far more cost-efficient to do training with various aids which develop skills in tracking and laying. These days, of course, we have computers and other simulators to help us do the job, but before then, or if you just want to save a bit of money, old-school...

At a now-closed War Heritage Institute facility near Antwerp (They will be re-opening at another location), we get a tour firstly of the various leopard variants the Belgians used, and then look at one which has been partially disassembled to learn the components. Finally, we go for a spin. Belgi...

The Belgian T-13 was a self propelled anti-tank gun combining a Vickers Carden-Lloyd chassis with the excellent Belgian 47mm, making it the most dangerous vehicle to armor in the Belgian inventory in the late 1930s. This, the only one which exists, is found at the Royal Military Museum in Brussel...

The Ateliers de Constructions Electriques de Charleroi Cobra was a series of AFVs based around a common diesel-electric power train. In the War Heritage Institute collection they have an APC and a de-armed light tank variant. Belgian Linkies: https://warheritage.be/en https://belgiumbattlefield.b...

The final interview with William Testaert of the War Heritage Institute, at the now-closed facility near Antwerp. (Don't worry, they will be re-opening the collection in Ypres), this episode focusing on the Belgian Army's experience in NATO. This is the first batch where I have invested in bringi...

Continuing the tour of this British-built armoured car, now focusing on the interior. This example is located in Bastogne Barracks, and is part of the Belgian military's War Heritage Institute collection. This is the first batch where I have invested in bringing along a cameraman/editor, goes by ...

[Error: In this case, red bolts = "Mechanic use only". I guess you had to remember which bolts were reverse-thread!] The Associated Equipment Company decided to make a wheeled tank. The initial version with a Valentine turret and 2pr gun was replaced in production by the Mk II, with a 6pr. This e...

The last of our major videos from the series filmed in Belgium, we finish with an upgrade of a WW2 -design carrier with a 90mm low pressure MECAR gun. This vehicle found in the Royal Military Museum in Brussels. This is the first batch of filming where I have invested in bringing along a camerama...

We previously looked at the mechanics of FN's semiauto version of the US SAW, the M249S. Today we are taking it out to the range for some shooting...

In 2015, FN USA introduced a Military Collector product line - semiautomatic versions of their military contract small arms. These were the M4, M16, and - most interestingly - the M249 SAW. The SAW is a version of FN's Minimi light machine gun, developed in 1974 and adopted by the US in 1982. Th...

The "Tom Thumb" is a tiny .22 rimfire revolver made in Belgium by an unknown shop and imported into the US to be sold by the Daly Arms Company of New York. These are antique guns, probably made in the 1870s or 1880s, chambered for the original black powder .22 rimfire cartridge. There are other s...

Back in the day when Bloke was doing TFBTV, a gentleman contacted him by e-mail to describe in great detail the "clever" way he carried his FN 1910 loaded +1, i.e. with a full magazine and a loaded chamber. In doing so, he had inadvertently discovered a fundamental flaw and had put his pistol int...

The Vigneron was Belgium's standard submachine gun during the early years of the Cold War. It was originally adopted as the M1 in 1953, and about 21,300 were made. In 1954, several modifications were made, resulting in the M2 pattern. Many of the original M1s were converted to M2 specification, a...

FN played a role in the production of Polish wz.28 BARs, and in the process obtained a copy of the technical package for the weapon, and converted it to metric measurements. Under the supervision of Dieudonne Saive, this was used as the basis for FN's own BAR production, called the Modelé 30. Pro...

The SAFN, aka FN-49, is one of the classic post-war European battle rifles, and was sold to nine different countries in the early 1950s before the FAL became FN's primary combat rifle offering. What is often forgotten is that despite being limited to a fixed 10-round magazine, nearly half of all ...

Watch latest videos, sometimes even early releases! Sign up for the newsletter: http://eepurl.com/hkbJYn ***We've changed the name of this to FN15 instead of the M4A1 because that's more apt. We have re-filmed this with a true Colt 6921 recently using an actual USMC RCO (ACOG TA31) and will publi...

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 ***UPDATE**** This is NOT a standard FN FAL, but rather an DSA Clone. We labeled it an FN FAL and it's been something that has bothered us for a while. There are a mix of features that you see...