This plastic printed mockup of a NAA Mini-Revolver, complete with live .22WMR rounds, was found in a carry on by Transportation Security Administration screeners in carry-on luggage last week.
I’m not sure it’s functional, as it would require at least some steel/metal springs and a hammer, and you can’t see any of that in the image, plus the fact that WMR is kinda spicy even for rimfire and its chamber pressure would likley make this wheelgun a single-shot since it has a plastic barrel and cylinder, but still is kind of interesting.
And of course there will be a push to ban 3D printing or regulate it even more because of this, but the fact is that the marginally trained screeners found it, even without the mandated block of metal as required by the Undetectable Firearms Act which already covers items such as this one…but hey…
As noted by TSA: One of the 68 firearms discovered in carry-on bags this week was a printed firearm. It was assembled with parts made from a 3D printer. While it was a realistic replica, it was loaded with live ammunition. This was a good catch from the TSA team at Reno (RNO)! While firearms are permitted in checked baggage, we strongly suggest making yourself familiar with local laws prior to flying with a printed firearm.
Today, on the 71st anniversary of the first atomic attack, that of the bombing of the city of Hiroshima, Japan, some argue that Truman was wrong to order that the Army Air Force undertake to have Little Boy tumble out of the bomb bay of the Enola Gay.
Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, Commander in Chief of the Pacific Fleet stated in a public address given at the Washington Monument on October 5, 1945:
The Japanese had, in fact, already sued for peace before the atomic age was announced to the world with the destruction of Hiroshima and before the Russian entry into the war. . . . [Nimitz also stated: “The atomic bomb played no decisive part, from a purely military standpoint, in the defeat of Japan. . . .”]
In a private 1946 letter to Walter Michels of the Association of Philadelphia Scientists, Nimitz observed that “the decision to employ the atomic bomb on Japanese cities was made on a level higher than that of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.”
Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr., Commander U.S. Third Fleet, stated publicly in 1946:
The first atomic bomb was an unnecessary experiment. . . . It was a mistake to ever drop it. . . . [the scientists] had this toy and they wanted to try it out, so they dropped it. . . . It killed a lot of Japs, but the Japs had put out a lot of peace feelers through Russia long before.
Professor of History at Notre Dame, Father Wilson Miscamble weighs in on the subject with the opinion that dropping the bomb shortened the war and saved countless lives — both American and Japanese.
Here we see a Consolidated B-24D Liberator heavy bomber, specifically #42-72843 “Strawberry Bitch” at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio.
DAYTON, Ohio — Consolidated B-24D Liberator at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo)
Strawberry Bitch is one of just eight surviving B-24Ds known to exist– and several of those are in wrecked condition overseas.
Established in the Middle East 31 October 1942, the 512th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), U.S. Army Air Force, was initially equipped with obsolete B-17C/D Flying Fortresses transferred from Tenth Air Force. These were replaced with Liberators in early 1943 and they became part of the Ninth Air Force.
Operating from bases in British Palestine, Egypt, Libya and Tunisia, the Flying Skulls attacked shipping in the Mediterranean and harbor installations in Libya, Tunisia, Sicily, and Italy to cut enemy supply lines to North Africa. Struck airdromes, marshalling yards, and other objectives in Sicily and Italy after the fall of Tunisia in May 1943.
Reassigned to Fifteenth Air Force in late 1943, and moved to southern Italy to bomb factories, oil refineries, oil storage facilities, airdromes, bridges, harbors, and other objectives.
Between Sept 1943 and June 1944, Strawberry Bitch flew 56 combat missions that are detailed here.
As for the “Flying Skulls,” they hung up their bomb sights in 1965 with the retirement of the B-47 Stratojet (after switching to them from B-29s) and were inactivated for three decades then came out of retirement in 1994 as the 512th Special Operations Squadron then the 512th Rescue Squadron (512 RQS). Now part of the 58th Special Operations Wing based at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, they operate HH-60G Pave Hawks on CSAR missions for bug eaters.
The Philippine Navy (PN) formally received its third Del Pilar-class frigate, the former Hamilton-class U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Boutwell (WHEC-719) late last month. It was a warm transfer with the ship’s decommissioning (and simultaneous striking by MARAD) and the subsequent christening and commissioning ceremonies by the PN conducted at USCG Base Alameda, California 21 July.
Boutwell commissioned on 24 June 1968, in New Orleans, Louisiana for a cost of $14.5 million. In all, the Coast Guard got 48 years and 27 days out of her, which is a heck of a return on the investment.
During RIMPAC 2016 the Navy and her allies conducted two SINKEXs, both on retired Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates. Stripping the ships of combustibles, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), transformers and large capacitors, trash, floatable materials, mercury or fluorocarbon-containing materials, readily detachable solid PCB items and useful items such as 20mm Phalanx CIWS mounts (though not the Mk 75 76mm guns which the Navy and Coast Guard are retiring) they were sent to the deep after a lot of munitions were poured on them.
The first, ex-USS Thach (FFG-43)withstood a tremendous amount of damage from Harpoon anti-ship missiles launched from Australian P-3 Orions and the cruiser USS Princeton (CG 59) before taking torpedo hits from a submarine at periscope depth.
Then, in the below video, the decommissioned ex-USS Crommelin (FFG 37) just gets pounded mercilessly by live fire from ships and planes on 19 July, 60 miles north of Kauai, Hawaii.
It takes a lot to put her down.
It should be noted that two of their sisters, USS Samuel B. Roberts and USS Stark, both withstood terrific damage from a floating sea mine and surface to air missiles respectively in the Persian Gulf during the 1980s.
So in an epic gaffe, the Daily Star slammed the British MoD for splashing out £183m on tiny guns for HMs navy ships, specifically the new Type 26 Global Combat ships.
They painted it something like this:
£183m? Srsly?
When in fact they were talking about 5-inch/62 cal Mk45s, something that really is never going to fit in the palm of anyone’s hand…and is even pictured in the image they used to run with the article!
Yes, the @Daily_Star has printed this. They seem to have confused the calibre of a new gun with the length of it… pic.twitter.com/76YXdpeJ52
So in California, which has had an assault weapon ban going all the way back to 1989 and yet still have mass-shootings with California-compliant firearms, lawmakers tried to pass over 20 legislative actions on increased gun control this session.
A baker’s dozen of these made it through the legislature in Dem-heavy votes of which Gov. Jerry Brown signed 7 into law and returned five with vetoes.
Since gun rights groups and Republican lawmakers couldn’t derail these, a group of gun owners on a gun forum (Calguns) got together and decided, “Let’s try for a ballot referendum to repeal these…”
And that’s exactly what they are doing.
With a pressing deadline of Sept.29, they are trying to get 450,000 signatures on 7 different propositions. Of course, California has 13 million gun owners, which by definition should all be capable of registering to vote, so it’s not far-fetched.
I’ve spoken with the man behind the effort, a San Diego tech company executive, and it’s a hail Mary play with a lot of spunk behind it.
Machine Gun Mike breaks out a select-fire, suppressed HK MP5SD built by Urbach Precision and shows you why it’s so muffly.
It’s got all the goodies, being a suppressed SBR with both three-round burst and full-auto selector switch and on-board en-quieter that is capable of putting the hush on even super-sonic hardball. Yup, the MP5SD was developed by Heckler & Koch in 1976 for military commandos and was designed to allow standard NATO ball, already in service for subguns and handguns, to be used in the integrally suppressed little SD, but still be quiet enough to where mechanical action noise is all you hear.
Plus, the way the can is made, it is very effective at eliminating muzzle flash, making it a good choice not only for operators at night working by PNVs, but also in use by clandestine lab teams taking down meth labs with potentially lethal fumes– which is why you stumble on a lot of these that have been loaned by the feds to podunk local SWAT teams.
Perhaps the most unsung use of a MP5SD was in the Gambia.
You don’t have to look in this diplomatic pouch
The Gambia is the smallest independent country in mainland Africa. It gets its name from the River Gambia that cuts it in half. Independent since 1965 it is almost completely surrounded by its much larger neighbor Senegal which it was friendly with. In 1981 its population was slightly under a million and it did not even feel the need to have an army. The country’s president Sir Dawda Jawara was invited to attend the Royal Wedding of Prince Charles due to the Gambia’s status as a member of the British Commonwealth.
On July 31, 1981, 400 Marxist radicals under the name of The Movement for Justice in Africa that had been armed and trained in Libya took advantage of his absence to seize control of the country. In the capital city of Banjul they sized Jawara’s family, the radio station, police armory and airport. President Jawara declared he would return to his country and asked for British help. He was given a British Army force of two men. These two men were not your average soldiers, they were SAS men.
Margaret Thatcher and three SAS personnel after the six-day Iranian Embassy siege in London, May 1980. She was a big fan of the SAS, who in turn were a big fan of the MP5.
The 22nd Special Air Service Regiment, (better known as the SAS) has been Britain’s premier commando force since the end of world war two. The detachment was made up of then-Major Ian Crooke and a picked sergeant. Crooke had years of experience in Borneo, Ulster, the recapture of the Iranian Embassy in London and other hot spots by the time of the Gambian affair and had risen to third in command of the SAS. He and a sergeant that remains unnamed to this day donned civilian clothes and left for Senegal, Gambia’s neighbor.
They brought grenades, a pair of Heckler and Koch MP5SD submachine guns and a matching set of Browning Hi Power pistols, all of which fired the same 9mm cartridge in a diplomatic pouch. They arrived the next day and walked over the border and into the lawless Gambian capital dressed in polo shirts and blue jeans. They were met by Mr. Clive Lee, a former commando who had retired in Gambia who had been in touch to see if he could be of assistance. The three men ventured together through the capital to assess the situation.
They found that the airport had been retaken already by elite French-trained paratroopers from Senegal, who President Jawara had also contacted for assistance. The three commandos made contact with the Senegalese forces and outlined a plan to retake the city and defeat the rebels. The SAS team went first – disguised as doctors -to the local hospital where President Jawara’s family was being held and disarmed the rebels there without incident. The commandos then led the assault on the radio station and the government’s police armory with support of the Senegalese the next day.
A film crew from the BBC captured the out of place and out of uniform British commandos several times running all over town from engagement to engagement. By August 3rd, the attempted coup was over and the quiet and professional SAS men flew back to Britain just as President Jawara returned to the Gambia from there.
In the aftermath of this stunning event Major Crooke was awarded the Distinguished Service Order. He retired as a Colonel and now lives in South Africa. It was estimated that anywhere from 600-1000 Gambian casualties were suffered in the three days of rebellion and anarchy. In December 1981 seven ringleaders were sentenced to death after trail for their role in the coup. President Jawara was re-elected five times in democratic elections and remained the leader of his country until he was removed in 1994…..by a military coup.
In 2015, FK BRNO introduced their proprietary 7,5 FK cartridge/pistol combo, which is a very spicy 7.5x27mm pill on a very Bren Ten looking CZ75ish double-action semi-auto handgun with a few lessons borrowed from the FN Hi-Power. The bottle-necked 7.5×27 FK round, according to BRNO had been through some 150,000 test fires, and delivers about twice the energy as a 9mm NATO round out to (an optimistic) 100 yards with an optional buttstock attachment.
Shown off at the recent IWA Outdoor Classics trade show in Germany, the 7,5 pistol is a big boy, with a six-inch barrel and 46-ounce weight, or about the same as the old AMT Hardballer longslide 10mm, though with very Central European styling. Best yet, it has a 14+1 inch double stack mag on the beast.
It looks good for hunting (feral hogs come to mind, a task I use my own Glock 20 for), or as an offensive operations handgun such as the HK Mark 23 .45ACP (SOCOM)– though for such use you would want it to be suppressed which would be a challenge due to the high velo of the FK round.
Sure, you know the M134 Minigun, but how about the hand-held XM556 Microgun that tips the scales at about one-fifth the weight?
The Minigun, which weighs in at about 85 pounds in its traditional format and fires 7.62x51mm NATO about as fast as a fat kid can go through a stack of twinkees, is well-known and loved among those who ain’t got time to bleed. However, Empty Shell LLC of Spring, Texas went all-in on a tiny little variant of the Mingun that they like to call the XM556 Microgun.
And it only weighs 16 pounds, but still rips out green tip at 2,000 rounds per minute.
