From Jon on Patreon:
"Elbonia has been occupied by an enemy force. Do you sabotage their resistance by airdropping them Liberator pistols or Cobray Terminators?"

To my mind, the Liberator is a substantially more useful resistance weapons, so I would supply Elbonia with lots of crates of Cobra...

Asked by Prmetime on Utreon: In WW2, Finland was given approximately 100,000 Carcano M38 rifles in 7.35 Carcano. I have heard it stated that the Finns didn’t like the rifles. Can you comment on the veracity of that statement, and if true, do you know why they weren’t liked?

The Finnish governm...

From Nathaniel on Patreon:
"Why didn't Germany or Axis powers have a machine gun similar to the American M2?"

Basically, because everyone faced the choice of a .50 caliber machine gun or 20mm (or larger) cannons for anti-aircraft use, and most people chose the cannons - including Germany. The...

From Dennis on Patreon:
"What rifles were between the M1 Garand and the M14? I went through Basic with an M14 and I know the M15 was supposed to be a BAR relacement. Google doesn't really find anything on the M2 - M13 rifles."

The Army had rifle for much more than just standard infantry use. ...

From Nick on Patreon:
"What small arm of the 20th century do you think got the most updates and changes from first production model to last? Was the effort worth it? Or should this country/company have adopted an entirely new design at some point before that last production?"

After initially ...

A question I have been asked by several different people in several Q&A threads is:

"Does the Savage rotating-barrel system actually do anything?"

In his 1905 patent, Elbert Searle specifically claims that his design creates a positively locked breech. He did this, in theory, by having a sy...

From Jamie on Utreon:
"I know naval gatling guns like the 20mm CIWS uses gain twist rifling, but are or were there any commercial or military small arms that used gain twist rifling?"

Yes, there have been some significant uses of progressive (gain) twist rifling on military and civilian small...

From Nintendoeats on Utreon:
"Modern centerfire and rimfire cartridges seem (to the casual observer) like they would always have been the simplest cartridge types to make. Why was pinfire ever used, and how was it economically manufactured?"

Essentially, pinfire represents a cartridge develop...

From Brian on Patreon:
"Would you give your thoughts and comments on non-gun companies making guns? For example Baldwin Locomotive/Eddystone 1917s, IH Garands, GM M-16s, most M-1 carbines, maybe even TRW M-14s. How did the experiment work out?"

I would say that the experiment worked very wel...

From Brian on Patreon:
"What’s the dumbest or most unsafe thing you’ve ever witnessed while out shooting in the desert or at a range / match?"

That would definitely be when a pair of totally movie shooters out at my desert shooting range spot decided to violate Rule 4 (Know your target and wh...

From Richard on Patreon:
"Why didn't the M3 and M3A1 (grease gun) have a double stack/double feed mag and use the Thompson mag? It would have certainly simplified logistics."

The answer to the first part is that the M3 used a single-feed magazine because it was largely copied from the Sten. A...

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...

Asked by Tyler on Patreon: "Why are there so few double stack/double feed handguns? I can only think of a couple off the top of my head. It makes the worst part of handgun shooting (loading the magazines) a complete non-issue."

There are a series of interacting considerations when choosing bet...

From LongBeef on Patreon:
"What exactly is headspace? And how important is headspace in old milsurp guns vs. more modern guns?"

Headspace is basically the amount of play a cartridge has in a chamber. There has to be some to account for manufacturing variations in guns and ammunition, but too ...

Bloke and Chap answer questions from Patrons. Topics discussed:

0:59 - Vetterli modifications for smokeless & GP90
2:49 - What is an interesting skill you've picked up?
4:48 - The Chap’s French skills, nationalities & Swiss-German
8:35 – Will a straight-pull L1A1 be allowed in the next B...

Filmed on 3 August 2019, the questions answered relate to:

1:37 Thomas: any issues with loading GP90 (7.5x53.5)
6:00 John: are there any records of how Vetterli rifles were disposed at the end of their service life?
8:25 Hartley: How much effect did the relatively relaxed firearm laws have o...

Topics discussed:

00:00 Intro
01:30 Schmidt-Rubin - when will it be ready?
04:25 Rifle grenades - dodo?
07:25 Swiss firearms spares - where to buy?
09:17 Schmidt-Rubin special tool required?
12:35 How good/bad is Swiss military footwear?
14:30 K11/K31 - should I have bought one?
14:55 U...

Like Ronseal quick-drying wood varnish: it does exactly what it says on the tin... In which we open up a bit about us :)

00:00 Title card
00:07 A cheesy duo, intro
01:08 Mrs BOTR appears (partially)
01:36 Cheers, and thank you, then State of the channel
09:08 “When will we see you with a Sauer 200 STR?”
10:12 “If you could keep one hand gun and one long gun from your collection, what would they be?”
14:00 “.....

"Here's the Patreon post where the questions were asked: https://www.patreon.com/posts/74013948

Time stamps with thanks to (Sopwith Cameltoe)
1:36 Swiss Straight-Pull Series
2:09 Bottles clanking
2:26 Besonders selten
4:05 Rear locking lug weakness
9:25 Brandon's Mum / Cap 'n Ball
10:30 K31 Aper...

0:00:00 - Intro
0:02:05 - Why no Madsen LMGs in WW1?
0:06:26 - MG34 use post-WW2, and Norwegian rechambering of the MG34
0:10:40 - Post-WW2 use of the MG42, and comparison to the MG5
0:13:34 - Difference between prototyping and troop trials
0:17:45 - Modern handgun to use 7.65mm French Long...

00:56 - What is the status of the Chinese Warlord Pistols book?
03:01 - Are open-bolt guns mechanically less accurate?
04:39 - Was Johnson influenced by the RSC?
06:02 - Arms development in totalitarian countries
09:03 - What is #36720?
10:27 - Design features to improve reliability in harsh...

00:35 - Automatic rifles in .250 Savage in WW1?
04:21 - Why did stripper clips stay around so long?
07:24 - Modern military responses to body armor
09:17 - M1 Carbine in 5.7x28?
11:08 - Under-appreciated firearms designers
14:28 - Why no rotary cannons until the Cold War?
19:34 - Potential ...

01:09 - Will Headstamp publish English translations of foreign-language books?
05:34 - What are some things to look for in WWI/WWII gun collecting?
14:18 - Essential burger toppings
14:57 - Good vs poor quality gun books
19:07 - Support weapons in .280 British
23:09 - What would I like the n...