laststandonzombieisland

Often dubbed “the light V.24” by collectors, the Czechoslovakian made Vz.33 was short-lived, with only about 25,000 of these little carbines produced at Brno between May 1934 and January 1939.

The Vz.33 was only used by Czech provincial gendarmes and the national border guard, pre-WWII.

The rifle also went on to be the base design for the Brno-produced Gew 33/40, the standard carbine for the German mountain troops during the war, with sufficient quantities left over afterward to equip the Norwegian police in the 1950s.

Gebirgstruppe kit including M31 rucksack G33/40 rifle,burgmutze with edelweiss insignia, and eispickel pickax.

More in my column at Guns.com.