Tag Archives: russian pistol

The 1895 Russian Nagant Revolver

Posted on by Leave a comment

In 1895, the new Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II, approved an innovative revolver for his enormous army. At the time Imperial Russia was the only country in the world who mustered a military of more than a million men in peacetime. Once war was declared, the Tsar could count on another 14 million reservists to answer his call. They needed arms, and the Nagant M1895 revolver was their standard sidearm.

An enterprising pair of Belgian firearms inventors, Emil and Leon Nagant, has patented and sold, from their factory in Liege, a number of revolvers to the armies of Sweden, Norway, and Greece in the 1880s and 90s. When word came that the Tsar was eager to update the 1870s era Smith and Wesson .44 revolvers they carried with something more modern, the pair proposed an interesting design. Whereas most revolvers of the time offered either five or six shots, the Nagant brothers proposed a 7-shooter (take that Smith and Wesson!).

Read the rest in my column at Firearms Talk

nagant-revolver

The Russian OSA

Posted on by Leave a comment

Here on this side of the pond, less than lethal weapons normally mean Tasers, pepper spray, and alarm devices. Well in Russia, things get a little more real.

Even under the repressive rule of the Tsars, private ownership of handguns, rifles, and shotguns was legal and even encouraged through the sale of surplus military weapons. In Soviet Russia, this changed as communists made it illegal to own handguns. Today these laws are still on the books in Vladimir Putin’s Russia. You can own some simple shotguns and rifles for hunting purposes (with a permit) but private ownership of handguns and even powerful air guns has largely been illegal for nearly a century. Impact weapons such as batons, slaps, blackjacks, etc. are illegal as well. Even possession of a normal item, like a pipe or wrench, can be enough to charge a citizen with carrying a weapon if they have no clear reason (such as a plumber on the way to a job) to have it with them. So what do Russians use for personal defense beside bad breath and the occasional
vodka bottle? …..The OSA.

Read the rest in my column at Firearms Talk