While numerous firearms are designed with rugged efficiency in mind and have a rather simplistic design, others look like something straight out of a sci-fi action movie.
Alas, looks do not always equal efficiency. Here’s a short list of some of the most unusual handguns developed by weapon designers from all over the world.
A Handheld Rocket Launcher
Developed in the 1960s by US-based company MBAssociates, the Gyrojet pistol fires small rockets called Microjets. Still, poor accuracy and a relatively low initial velocity speed of its ‘bullets’ made this gun an awesome-looking but rather impractical weapon.
MBA Gyrojet 12mm rocket pistolSoviet Blaster
As part of the Almaz military space station program, in 1984 Soviet scientists developed compact handheld ‘laser pistols’ capable of disabling enemy spy satellites’ optics and blinding a person while at the same time not being powerful enough to puncture a spacecraft’s hull.
Russian ‘laser pistol’Space Survival Gun
The TP-82, a lot less futuristic-looking weapon, is a triple-barrel gun with a machete stock attachment developed for the Soviet space program to help cosmonauts fend off predatory animals if stranded in the wilderness after landing. The gun’s two upper smoothbore barrels use 12.5x70mm buckshot and signal rounds while the lower barrel uses 5.45x39mm expanding bullets.
Palm Gun for the Disabled
Palm Pistol was invented by Matthew Carmel and manufactured by his company Constitution Arms. This compact single-shot firearm was specifically designed for the elderly, disabled persons and other people who lack the manual strength or dexterity needed to operate a conventional gun.
Double the Barrels, Double the Fun
Arsenal Firearms AF2011-A1 is essentially a double-barreled derivative of the M1911 pistol. The gun’s design allows the shooter to fire both barrels simultaneously or one at a time, discharging the weapon’s 16-bullet clip in just a few seconds.
