The experimental Colt Model 1910 pistol was developed by Colt as a possible replacement for the Colt Model 1903 Pocket Hammer Pistol and the project dates from around 1908 and continued to around 1913. The metric designation in all probability is an indication that it...

    The 9.65 x 23 Browning is dimensionally the same as the 9,8mm Colt cartridge and was chambered in the M1910 “Grand Browning” and, as can be seen from the photo below, it is similar to the Colt M1911. The first Grand Brownings were indeed chambered in 45...

The 9.4mm Dutch was adopted in 1873 for the M1873 Chamelot-Delvigne system revolver and with its adoption, the cartridge was named the Scherpe Patroon nr.11 (Ball Cartridge No. 11) and was packaged in boxes containing twelve rounds. It is interesting to note that the...

    By the late 1850’s Portugal had ceased to be a global power and by the early to mid-1860’s its influence consisted of mostly areas in Africa. It was during this period that most European Nations were modernising their armies, while Portugal had most of...

The 9x25 Dillon was designed in the 1980’s by Randy Shelly, an employee from Dillon Precision. It is a 10mm auto case necked down to 9mm so that he could get a 9mm cartridge to make major power factor for IPSC, which at that stage was set at 175. The large cases...

The 9 x 23 was launched at the 1996 NRA Annual Convention. It was just one of a number of 9mm variants that were launched during this period for IPSC shooters to make major power factor for competitions. The outward dimensions are the same as the 9mm Bergmann-Bayard...

This was another effort by shooters during the early 90’s in the quest for a 9mm handgun that could be used to compete in major caliber power factor for IPSC matches. It was made by Law Enforcement Specialties of Warminster, PA., with cases in all probability by...

Owning military caliber handguns is prohibited in many countries, like Italy. In the early 80’s, the 9mm Ultra gained a limited following there for competitive shooters, but the cartridge was far from ideal for IPSC matches, being underpowered even for minor power...

The Gyurza (venomous snake) was a Russian development by designer Petr Serdyukov during the early-90’s, with the idea to find a replacement for the 9mm Makarov. The Gyurza however lost out to the PY or Pistolet Yarygina which was designed by Vladimir Yarygin at the...

This was a Winchester design dating from the late 1970’s to try and duplicate 357 Magnum ballistics in a semi-auto handgun. It was originally made for the Wildeypistol and later the AMT (Arcadia Machine and Tool) Automag 3. The guns were much too bulky for self...

The earliest reference to the walking stick design capable of firing a projectile dates from 1580 and is currently in the Wallace Collection in London and incorporates a wheel lock pistol and a sword blade. The design is actually very simple and was manufactured by a...

The 9mm Ultra was developed by the German firms of Lothar Walther and Gustaf Genshow (GECO) in 1936 in order to interest the Luftwaffe in a pistol that was more powerful than the 9mm Kurtz but more compact than the P38 but the idea never went any further. Shown below...

Cattle killing cartridge developed in the Czech Republic                 

    The 9mm Super Comp dates from around June 1997, the same time as the 38 Super Comp and is basically nothing more than a 9x23 with strengthened base. Cases are by Starline. The intent of the cartridge was to give IPSC shooters a 9mm cartridge that could...

This cartridge is also known as the 9x25 SAG, or Super Auto G and is based on the 10mm Auto case necked to 9mm and was developed by Horst Grillmayer from Austria. The cartridge is very similar to the 9mm Major, also a Horst Grillmayer development. Some of the original...

The latter part of the 19th Century saw the revolver as the standard military side-arm in Europe and elsewhere. With giant strides made in weapons technology during those years, various military powers put a lot of resources into equipping their armies with the latest...

This was part of the Swiss revolver trials from 1871 – 1881 with cartridges loaded by the Swiss factory at Thun, as well as the firm of J. Stahel of Zurich and can be found in a number of different case lengths. It did not survive as the 7,5mm Swiss M1882 was selcted....

This was one of the calibers used in revolvers made by Belgian gunsmith Albert Spirlet who had his shop at Quai de Boverie, 5 in Liège in Belgium around 1894. The revolver used an ingenious design where the barrel tipped upwards instead of downwards, although the 1870...

The squeeze bore, multiple projectile cartridge system concept was developed by Russel Robinson in 1961 although the patent was only granted in 1969. This was called the Salvo Squeeze Bore system and was different from Project Salvo, which was run by the US Army. The...

The 9mm R&D originated from the pistol trials conducted by the Ammunition/Small Arms group in the AF Armament Lab at Eglin AFB during the early 1980’s. The biggest problem encountered was accuracy and the team used computer programs they had developed to optimize...

This was one of the early center-fire handgun cartridges designed by designer Louis Perrin in 1859. It was internally primed and although the Lefaucheux design predate it, the Perrin design, was the first to be widely adopted. The Perrin cartridge is not...

At the moment the focus is on the South African development of the 9mmP. In time I will add some info on the history and development of the 9mm, although it is not the main focus of my collection at the moment. The 9mm Parabellum is a collection in itself with...

With Germany looking to replace their antiquated service revolver, the firm of Mauser developed the Model 1896 pistol, which for a time was the leading candidate to be the official sidearm of the German military. That was not to be however, as they lost out to Georg...

The 9mm (9,4mm) Nagant was developed and manufactured by the Belgian firm of Bachmann during the mid 1870’s for use in the Nagant designed Pistolet de Gendarmerie, Model 1877 and was to become the first metallic cartridge handgun to be accepted by the Belgian...

This was the fourth and last in a series of experimental cartridges by DWM and Mauser around 1913. The case length is the same as for the Mauser Export. (Erlmeier, Brandt Ref. 135).    

This is the third in a series of experimental cartridges developed by DWM and Mauser between 1912 and 1914. It was also the only one that went beyond the experimental stage and was produced for Russia an Brazil, but was discontinued around the start of the First World...

The 9 x 25mm cartridge was introduced by Mauser as a longer 9mm cartridge and because it was developed to be used mostly in South America, the Orient and Africa, it was known as the “Export Mauser”. Smith 1958:182 puts the date of development as 1908, but according to...

The 9mm Mauser was developed by Paul Mauser in 1878. It was a single-action, 6 shot revolver and was designed to compete in the German trials for their official side-arm. The Construktion 1878, or C-78 was also the only Mauser designed revolver. A problem with early...

                 The Mars pistol was invented by Hugh Gabbett-Fairfax, who was an engineer and small arms designer. The design was an unusual one with a long-recoil system whereby the barrel and bolt moved together...

At the end of WW2 and into the Cold War period, the USSR was looking to replace the TT-33 7.62 Tokarev with a more powerful handgun for its own military as well as their satellite states in Eastern Europe. The cartridge was designed by Boris V. Semin in 1946 and was...

The 9mm MJR (9mm Major) dates from around 1991 and was designed by Horst Grillmayer, who also developed the 9x25 SAG (Super Auto Grillmayer). It is based on the 40 S&W case necked down. As can be seen from the specimens below, some of the original testing was done...

The 9mm Largo is the Spanish version of the 9mm Bergmann-Bayard cartridge that was adopted by them as a military side-arm in 1905 for use in the M1903 Bergmann-Mars Pistol. It is not a separate cartridge and is listed here only for interest’s sake, as the main...

With Japan opening to Western influence from the 1860’s onward, the Imperial Army used a wide variety of different firearms sourced and imported from various countries. As handgun they used the .44 Smith & Wesson Russian and the Model 3 revolvers, but in 1877 it...

The 9mm High-Standard was an experimental cartridge developed by the High Standard Manufacturing Corporation of Hamden Conn. The case is a standard 9mm Parabellum case, but it used a sintered iron bullet as can be seen in the middle specimen. Trials were done for the...

The Glisenti Model 1910 was adopted by the Italian Government in 1911 as the “Cartuccia a Pallotolla Cal. 9 M.910.”. The locking system of the Glisenti was weaker than that of the standard 9mm Parabellum cartridge adopted by Germany earlier, and therefore the 9mm...

On the page featuring the 11.3x36R Gasser, there is a discussion on the history of the revolvers of Leopold and Johann Gasser. To supply the Austro-Hungarian Infantry officers with a lighter weapon than the mammoth 11mm Gasser, they turned to the services of Capt....

Introduced a few years after the 9mm Perrin, the 9mm Galand was developed by French gunsmith Charles-François Galand of Liège, Belgium together with Alfred Summerville of the British firm of BRAENDLIN, SOMMERVILLE & Co, BIRMINGHAM and first patented on the 18th of...

Rudolf Frommer was born on the 4th of August 1868 in Budapest and did not enter the arms trade at first, but rather he studied economics and became an investment banker at the Hitel Bank in Budapest. On of the accounts he was responsible for was the firm of Fegyver és...

This was one of a series of cartridges developed in France for the civilian market around 1890. (Erlmeier, Brandt Ref. 120)                          

This was a Belgian experimental dating from 1920-1930. Cartridge had an internal extraction groove. Still trying to find additional info. (Erlmeier, Brandt Ref. 119C).    

The rationale behind the 9mm Federal never made sense. Federal decided in the 1980’s that sport shooters needed a revolver cartridge that duplicated the ballistics of the standard 9mm Parabellum, much the same as the 45 Auto Rim was for the 45 ACP. After the new...

The 9mm FAR (Fast, Accurate, Reliable) was developed by Italian designer Antonio Cudazzo and introduced in December 2000 by Tanfoglio and the FAR system was endorsed by then World Champion IPSC shooter Eric Grauffel. The idea was for a new system in handgun design...

Louis-François Devisme was known for his exceptional quality firearms during the 19th century, which are highly sought after, even today. He received numerous awards over a thirty-year period, from his first award for firearms design and manufacture at the 1834 Paris...

During the mid 1970’s, the idea of a full powered, compact pistol for concealed carry did not exist, one had to carry a small, and invariably inferior caliber handgun. Paris Theodore from the ASP Corporation was the first do modifiy S&W Model 39’s to a compact...

There is very little information available on the history of the 9mm M91 Danish Army Revolver. It was in service in the Danish Navy as well as some police units from 1891 – 1941, and still used intermittently during WW2. (Erlmeier, Brandt Ref. 118).    The...

Much controversy has surrounded the 9mm Campo Giro over the years. The Campo-Giro was a semi-automatic pistol, named after its designer, Colonel Don Venancio López de Ceballos y Aguirre, Count of Campo-Giro. Studies have shown however that, although the pistol design...

The 9mm Browning Long was designed by the famous John M. Browning for FN in Belgium in 1902 and was first adopted in 1903 for the Browning M.1903. it is basically a scaled-up version of the 7.65mm Browning and also retains the semi-rim. It should have been a very...

This cartridge has had many designations over time. Discussed on the website is the 9mm Campo Giro, as well as the 9mm Largo, both are different designations for exactly the same cartridge, the latter two being used by Spain, until replaced by the 9mm Parabellum....

It is accepted that this was the earliest of the 23mm case length 9mm cartridges and the D.W.M. case register refers to the cartridge simply as “Pistole Kal. 9mm No. 6 Bergmann,” It is possible that development started earlier, and the Bergmann MARS M1903 was in all...

The 9mm AE is based on the 41 AE necked down to 9mm and was also developed by Evan Whildin from Action Arms. It was launched as an experimental round in 1988, a year or so after the introduction of the 41 AE, and precedes the 357 SIG by almost six years. It did not...