Advertisment of the Day: The 1988 Johnathan Arthur Ciener Catalog's Belt Fed AR15/M16 Conversion Ad

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During the 1980's and early 1990's Johnathan Arthur Ciener published his catalog featuring his suppressors and Class II conversion services. In a time before the internet, the Class III community awaited the publication to see what new and innovative products Ciener produced. I his 1988 catalog, he advertised his belt fed AR conversions for either the semi auto AR-15 or full auto M-16. The conversion required significant alterations to weapons and the numbers of actual conversions was quite low (reports range between 12 and 20 units) as some owners of transferable M-16's were not willing to alter their firearms and expense of the service. With the addition The Ares Defense Sytems' Shrike and Valkyrie Armament Belt-Fed Upper recievers, the Ciener units enjoy collectors status now, but certainly represent innovative gunsmithing from a by gone era.

Magazine Cover of the Day: The Complete Book of Assault Rifles 1989

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Published by Harris Publishing in 1989, The Complete Book of Assault Rifles is an excellent compendium of reviews of a wide range of rifles available on the market by 1989. It features an article on the very rare (reportedly less than 100 were imported) semi auto version of the FAMAS imported by Century Arms in 1988. It also featured a very indepth article on the Davis ARM gun the production of the Bushmaster Pistol. This magazine was printed at the zenith of collecting during the 1980's. Many exotic imports were banned later that year by George H.W. Bush. This is a great adition to any collection. 

Video of the Day: The Hellstorm 2000 Video Advertisement

                              

 This advertisement for the Hellstorm 2000 was produced by Lenny Magaill, the creator of the Rock and Roll series of videos. The Hellstorm 2000 was considered an improved version of the Hellfire trigger . These devices were essentially was device comprised of a spring and paddle that assisted in the what is called "bump firing. "  These were some of the first devices of their kind to come to market in the late 80's for people not wanting to deal with the paperwork for Class III weapons. California classified these types of devices as "multiburst trigger activator" and banned them under CA [PC 16930]. The Hellstorm 2000 device I used worked very well on a Cobray M11 and was very fun....until it couldn't be fixed as the spring lost it's strength. The manual I received had the manufacturer name and address redacted in black marker.  These were frequently sold at gun shows for about $30.  These are still found on a number of websites selling novelties like this, but have been primarily replaced by easier to use bumpfire stocks.