Real Guns People

Throughout the centuries, military firearms technology and terology have been constantly evolving. Given this, there are many terms used to identify military shoulder arms that have long since fallen from use in the present day, which can lead to confusion. On top of this, some of these terms have changed over time or are used inconsistently from country to country or person to person. To better understand these terms and how they are used here at Rock Island Auction Company, take a look through this list of common military firearm terms. With our upcog October 6-8 Sporting & Collector Firearms Auction packed to the gills with military firearms, including hundreds of items from the collection of famous U.S. military firearms collector and author George Moller, now seems an excellent time to review some common terms which come up frequently throughout the online catalog. Musket A musket is a long smoothbore […]

The Nagant M1895 Revolver: Way Cooler than You Think Home Template/Blog October 24, 2021 William Lawson Russian surplus weapons are awesome. They just are. They’re different, they’re rugged, they’re often cool, and, aside from sticky Mosin-Nagant bolts, they just plain work. One thing Russian surplus weapons are not known for, however, is elegance. There are no Lugers or Mauser 98 rifle actions emanating from the Rodina. The Nagant M1895 Revolver, though, is one firearm with an understated elegance that is overlooked. The Nagant Revolver is not recognized as one of history’s great battlefield weapons. Nor should it be. The design was almost twenty years old by the time the Great War kicked off in 1914 and it was pressed into service in the Great Patriotic War (that’s World War II to you and me) out of sheer necessity. The unprecedented size and brutality of the war in the East meant […]

With more folks being interested in hunting in recent years, they are exploring different types of hunting. Most big game hunters new and old will be grabbing their rifles as they head into the woods, mountains or the back 40. Archery also has a robust number of hunters picking up their compound or traditional bows as they head into the field. There are even a small number of hunters who choose to head out to harvest game with a handgun. (Image via Smith & Wesson) Depending on what game someone is after or where and how they choose to hunt, it may indicate the need for different cartridges. Just as it is with rifles, rifle cartridges, bows, arrows and broadheads, there is a literal pile of different options to choose from. Whether you are looking at large caliber handguns for hunting or just to have for protection while outdoors with […]

The Alien Gear Holsters’ Guide To Concealed Carry For The Total Beginner Often enough, concealed carry is the next step for the total beginner after getting a handgun. You have the gun in the home, but you want to start taking it with you when you leave the house. Let’s go over everything you need to know to get started. There’s a lot to learn, and we encourage you to learn as much as you can every single facet of concealed carry. And there are a lot of rabbit holes to go down. What we’re going to go over in this guide is the basics, the foundations of what you’re going to need to know and understand, what […]

The Alien Gear Holsters’ Guide To Concealed Carry For The Total Beginner Often enough, concealed carry is the next step for the total beginner after getting a handgun. You have the gun in the home, but you want to start taking it with you when you leave the house. Let’s go over everything you need to know to get started. There’s a lot to learn, and we encourage you to learn as much as you can every single facet of concealed carry. And there are a lot of rabbit holes to go down. What we’re going to go over in this guide is the basics, the foundations of what you’re going to need to know and understand, what […]

Completely New To Concealed Carry? Check Our Beginner’s Guide! Concealed Carry And Clothing Guns and gear are great…but remember that part of concealed carry is concealment, so some attention has to be paid to concealed carry clothing. The good news? You probably have everything you need aly. Special clothing is not really needed, so you don’t need to replace your wardrobe. Instead, what you need to know about concealed carry clothing is how to conceal your gun, concealed carry holster and other EDC items, clearing cover if you have to draw and how your clothing works into the system as a whole. So, what does one need to know about concealed carry clothing? If It Covers The Gun, […]

Completely New To Concealed Carry? Check Our Beginner’s Guide! Concealed Carry And Clothing Guns and gear are great…but remember that part of concealed carry is concealment, so some attention has to be paid to concealed carry clothing. The good news? You probably have everything you need aly. Special clothing is not really needed, so you don’t need to replace your wardrobe. Instead, what you need to know about concealed carry clothing is how to conceal your gun, concealed carry holster and other EDC items, clearing cover if you have to draw and how your clothing works into the system as a whole. So, what does one need to know about concealed carry clothing? If It Covers The Gun, […]

10/27/2021 Rarely does a picture with a backdrop make it to the pages of Real Guns. Photographically, the tendency is to focus on the subject, the firearm, and to remove distractions. However, it seemed right to place a little artful photography to aid in telling the story…. the many stories. (opening kettledrum 2001: A Space Odyssey). What does the picture say? Real Guns uses an eclectic mix of quality and cheapo precision tools? Tools on a computer table create technical ambiance? Or maybe… maybe, a photo of gadgets and all of the ammunition used to illustrate the story. I think, perhaps, someone was too lazy to hoof it over to the shop… in the middle of the night, and setup studio lights and a proper white backdrop. Total mystery. Live fire The Smith & Wesson Governor was shot with 410 shot, 45 Colt and 45 Auto ammunition. Then it […]

); We just got word that a bill to impose Red Flag Gun Grabs will come before the full House Judiciary Committee this Wednesday. I need your urgent help bombarding the House of Representatives with letters to STOP this assault on our God-given rights. Please add your name to our pre-written letter to YOUR Representative, urging them to VOTE “NO” on this latest attempt to impose Red Flag Gun Grabs nationwide. Last time anti-gunners tried to impose Red Flag Gun Grabs upon our country, 135 Republicans voted with Nancy Pelosi to stab gun owners in the back. That’s why it’s critical that you let your Representative know that […]

I want to thank our entire list of GOA activists for taking action this week against the voter fraud bill. As you know, anti-gun Democrats will stop at nothing to threaten gun owners’ voting rights. And that’s why I’m so grateful to those of you who demanded that your Senators stand up against Schumer’s latest power grab. In short, we won … for now. Anti-gun Democrats failed to get enough votes on the Voter Fraud bill to break the Republican filibuster. The deceptively named “Freedom to Vote Act” would invite so much fraud into our elections that gun owners would NEVER be able to win at the ballot box again. As I mentioned earlier this week, this Voter Fraud bill would turn the levers of our elections over to federal bureaucrats who have a burning desire to abolish the Second Amendment. And critical safeguards against voter fraud would be eliated, […]

A percussion firearm is a firearm that is fired via the striking (or percussing) of an external primer which sends a flash into the breech that ignites the main powder charge. On most percussion firearms, the primer is a percussion cap. There were a variety of percussion firearms, including revolvers and other repeaters, but for this article we will focus primarily on the standard sidelock percussion firearms or “caplocks.” How Does a Caplock Work? A standard percussion sidelock uses the same interior components as a flintlock, but the overall use of the lock is simpler. After loading the main powder charge and projectile(s), the hammer is pulled back to the half-cock position and a percussion cap is fitted on the nipple. The gun is now fully loaded. Diagram of a flintlock musket converted to percussion showing the main external components Pulling back on the hammer further brings it to full-cock, […]

Rock Island Auction Company’s September 10-12 Premier Firearms Auction is absolutely packed with hundreds of muzzleloaders from several collections in the U.S. and abroad. Rock Island Auction Company’s September Premier Firearms Auction features a treasure trove of classic muzzleloaders. These firearms span an incredible period of time reaching back into the colonial era and up to nearly the present day, encompassing both military and civilian arms and everything from matchlocks and wheellocks to the classic flintlocks of the 18th century and the percussion arms of the 19th century. They also cover a variety of price points with estimates ranging from as low as $1,400 to elite pieces with estimates as high as $350,000, making this an excellent auction for anyone interested in muzzle loading and black powder firearms. Ethan from I Love Muzzleloading discusses a Revolutionary War era Jacob Dickert flintlock American Long Rifle. With such a wide selection, it’s […]

The MP40 submachine gun, or the ‘Maschinenpistole 40‘, was the signature SMG of the German Wehrmacht during WW 2. The groundbreaking weapon was designed for both tactical superiority and ease of mass-production, a manufacturing philosophy other militaries quickly adopted. A German Erma MP40 submachine gun. One of the most recognizable close combat weapons of the Second World War, the MP40 saw service with all branches of the German military on every battlefront. Many of the prized submachine guns also found their way into the hands of opposition forces such as the French Resistance and Poland’s Home Army. With a reputation for durability, comfort, and relative accuracy, the full-auto MP40 was a versatile weapon in a variety of combat scenarios. The MP40 was the first broad-use infantry weapon designed to be quickly manufactured. The MP40 was originally issued to German infantry leaders, paratroopers, and armored vehicle crews who would find carrying […]

It’s no surprise to us but Gun Owners of California’s late founder is still making the Left’s blood pressure rise. And boy, does this make us smile. Long after he retired from the California State Senate, H.L. “Bill” Richardson continued to be a media favorite as the guy who would pull-no-punches and colorfully tell it like it is, whether it was about the 2nd Amendment, freedom or his love of America. And were he still with us today, we know damn well he’d stand proudly with the “domestic terrorists” also known as concerned parents who have had the courage to recently stand up to the jack-booted thuggery of our government and educational bureaucracy. To see his name elevated by an East Coast Leftist as one of the chief architects of this current political movement thrills us at GOC to our core: “One blueprint that conservative activists have adopted […]

The famous 1911 pistol is one of the most popular handguns of all time. When it comes to factors like balance, comfort, and reliability, John Browning’s 1911 design has no shortage of admirers. The legendary pistol was eventually adopted by the U.S. Army and went on to become the longest-serving sidearm in American military history, but the 1911’s road to success as a military handgun included numerous early models and experimentation as Browning raced to develop a pistol that would standout against a slew of competitors. Rare and historic Colt Model 1910 John Browning prototype semi-automatic pistol, Serial Number 3, from the Dr. Robert Azar Collection. The U.S. Military’s search for a reliable semi-automatic sidearm was a primary driver in the development of John Moses Browning’s .45-caliber pistol. Many of the evolutionary predecessors to the Colt 1911 are rare guns today, with especially scarce examples like the Colt Model 1910 […]

); Senator Ernst: “I think we’ve found a potential solution on [firearms provisions].” Gun Owners of America has been fighting against a new form of “red flag” gun confiscation orders in the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act or VAWA since 2019, when anti-gunners politicized the funding to include gun control. While we defeated the passage of VAWA’s gun control in the 116th Congress—President Biden has thrown his full support behind VAWA’s gun control in the 117th Congress. On the same day he announced the noation of defeated ATF Director Noee David Chipman, President Biden also demanded that Congress: [R]eauthorize the Violence Against Women Act, which—the so-called—close—the “boyfriend” and […]