We may earn revenue from the products available on this page and participate in affiliate programs. Learn More ›
The Apache revolver became a Swiss Army knife of sorts for thieves of the French underworld in the 1900s. It's parts include a knife, pistol and set of brass knuckles that all easily fold together. Because the pistol has no barrel it's effective range is only a few feet.
This prototype from Magpul looks like a box with a flashlight attached to it, but look a little closer and you'll see it's actually a submachine gun. It was developed as a personal protection weapon for the U.S. Secret Service or possibly law enforcement agencies. The gun is small enough to be disguised as a small package or laptop battery and can fit in a pants pocket.
No, it's not technically a gun, but it does shoot. This knife was designed as a self defense weapon for divers and shoots out a blast of C02 with the press of the button. Theoretically, the C02 would rush into a shark's blood stream and either freeze or over-inflate its internal organs. The knife packs a compressed-gas punch of 800 psi nearly instantly.
Pictures of this gun have been floating around on the internet for awhile now. Is it real? Is it a fake? Nobody really knows. There are examples of 3-barreled pistols but most of them have the barrels stacked on top of each other, not all lined up side by side.
This little derringer was made by Bellmore Johnson Tool Company in Hamden, Connecticut and is chambered in .38 special.
No, it's not pretty, but yes, it is a shotgun. The NeoStead, a dual barrel combat shotgun, is made by Truvelo, a South African company. With a barrel length of 22.5-inch barrel and a total length of only 27 inches, this gun doesn't waste a lot of space. It's unique for it's forward pump action and it has a 12-round capacity.
Here's Another take on a bull-pup (the action is located behind the trigger) shotgun from Kel-Tec. The gun's capacity is 14+1 and it's overall length is only 26 inches. As you can see, it comes fully equipped with a picatinny rail with flip sights and a pistol grip.
Why use a speargun when you can take your assault rifle under water? That logic gave birth to the Soviet Union's APS in the 1970s. This gun was a derivative of an AK-47 and specifically designed to shoot underwater. It fired steel 5.66 mm rounds and had a barrel that wasn't rifled, which made the gun inaccurate when fired out of the water. But underwater it was more powerful than a speargun and could hold up to 26 cartridges.
The AUG was designed by the Austrians in the 1970s, and believe it or not, is still used by the Austrian army today. The bull-pup design helps decrease the length of the rifle making it more maneuverable.
The inexpensive and awkwardly named Grendel was chambered in .22 Winchester Magnum rimfire. It used a 30-round magazine and came with either a 5-inch or 8-inch barrel. The Grendel had a short life and was only manufactured from 1990 to 1994.
Don't bring a knife to a gun fight, unless of course your knife is also a gun. This knife/gun holds 5 .22 caliber bullets in a revolver type loader and fires when you pull the trigger on the handle. With the right ammunition it can shoot 3-inch groups and 100 yards. Just kidding.
The British Sten is actually a pretty typical submachine gun for the time, but it's simplicity makes it stand out. As German engineers whipped up a variety of new creative weapons for WWII, the Brits came up with this incredibly simple and functional gun. It's greatest feature was it's extremely low production cost. The English hurriedly stocked up on these guns during the Battle of Britain in anticipation of a massive German land invasion, which of course never happened. But the gun lived on and its predecessors were used in other wars around the world. Photo: Grzegorz Pietrzak
This novelty pen/gun shoots a .22 caliber round, but doesn't actually write. As you can see, it must be folded at an angle to shoot. Disguised guns of this nature are illegal in many states.
It is the new Ranch Hand Lever Action Pistol and it is, well, different. It's a pistol. It's a lever action. It's not meant to be fired from the shoulder, yet it has buckhorn rifle sights. So it's a handgun, sort of, not. And it weighs 4.9 pounds. In case any of this is confusing the press release says it "is manufactured in compliance with federal handgun laws." So don't over think it. You can get it in .38/.357, .45 Colt or .44 Mag.
The owners of this gun watch claim that it is real, but the jury is still out. It apparently shoots a .3mm round and has a push-button trigger. On its face it has fake hands, since all the normal watch workings were removed for space. Photo: TechTreak
The Sturmgewhehr is nothing more than a WWII-era German assault rifle, not weird at all, but then the Germans decided to attach a bent barrel to the rifle. The idea was that a periscope barrel would allow a soldier to shoot from behind trenches or around bunkers without having to stick his head out into enemy fire. There were different versions of the barrel with bends from 30 degrees to 90 degrees. The barrels would only last a few hundred rounds and were not very accurate. The best results were with the 30 degree barrels which could shoot 14-inch groups and 100 yards. Photo: der rikkk
It looks more like an asthma inhaler than a pistol, but this thing apparently holds a single .38 Spl. round, is held in your fist like a hand exerciser for increasing grip strength and fires with a push of the thumb. Is it a serious gun? By definition, anything that can shoot a .38, even a single shot, is a serious gun, but by the same token I seriously don't think I would depend on this to save my life in a time of crisis. The makers of this pistol, Constitution Arms, claim that it is ergonomic, accurate and able to be fired by people who lack the grip strength to pull the trigger on a regular handgun.
This experimental belt buckle was used by some Nazi officers in WWII. It had two 7.65 caliber barrels that measured two inches long. The idea was that if an officer were captured he could use this disguised weapon to get away, even if handcuffed. Fortunately, WWII was not decided by which army had the deadlier belt.
Looks like someone took the James Bond movies a little too seriously. This gun disguised as a cell phone allegedly fires .22 caliber rounds by pressing digits on the key pad. It's the size of a normal cell phone, but does not take calls, send text messages or receive emails. So, the cell phone gun isn't all bad.
Mossberg rolled out its new 500 Chainsaw at the SHOT Show earlier this year. You hold it like a chainsaw with your left hand on the handle that is mounted to the pump. The gun got plenty of attention at SHOT and left most people wondering … what do we use it for? My suggestion? Zombies.
The evolution of firearms has taken some weird turns along the way. Check out or list of the strangest guns.