When you picture a “military gun,” you probably think of something straightforward:
a rifle, a sidearm, maybe a machine gun that looks like it means business. But throughout
history, armies and inventors have also produced weapons that make you stop and ask,
“Wait… they actually tried that?” From square bullets to guns that shoot around corners and
pistols that fire tiny rockets, the history of weird military guns is as strange as it is
fascinating.
In this tour through the strangest firearms ever designed for (or at least pitched to)
military use, we’ll look at five of the weirdest military guns from across the centuries.
We’ll break down what they were supposed to do, why they were so unusual, and what
actually happened when real people tried to use them. Think of it as a highlight reel of
military innovation at its most experimentaland occasionally ridiculous.
1. The Puckle Gun: The Square-Bullet “Machine Gun” That Never Was
Our journey starts in 1718, with an early attempt to reinvent battlefield firepower:
the Puckle gun. Invented by British lawyer James Puckle, this tripod-mounted flintlock
firearm used a revolving cylinder to deliver multiple shots in rapid successionearning
it a reputation as one of the first so-called “machine guns,” even though it was still
hand-cranked and flint-ignited rather than truly automatic.
How the Puckle Gun Was Supposed to Work
The Puckle gun’s basic idea was simple: instead of loading and firing a musket three
times a minute, you could rotate a pre-loaded cylinder holding several charges and fire
repeatedly from a single barrel. Mounted on a tripod, it was intended for shipboard
defense, spitting lead at anyone foolish enough to try boarding. In a 1722 demonstration,
one Puckle gun reportedly fired 63 shots in seven minutes, delivering roughly nine rounds
per minuteimpressive compared with typical musket rates of fire at the time.
Square Bullets for “Different Enemies”
The weirdest part wasn’t the mechanismit was the ammunition. Puckle promoted two versions:
one firing traditional round musket balls for use against “Christian enemies,” and another
firing square bullets meant to be used against Ottoman foes, supposedly because square
projectiles would cause more terrible wounds and “convince” them of the superiority of
Christian civilization. Even by 18th-century propaganda standards, that’s… a lot.
Why the Puckle Gun Failed
In practice, the Puckle gun was too complex and finicky for real combat. Its flintlock
ignition remained unreliable, and the precision machining required for the cylinder and
barrel was expensive and difficult with the manufacturing tools of the day. The British
Board of Ordnance wasn’t impressed, investors weren’t thrilled, and production never
went beyond a handful of guns. Today, the Puckle gun lives on mostly as a great trivia
answer and a reminder that “first” and “successful” are not the same thing in weapons
history.
2. The Nock Volley Gun: Seven Barrels, One Brutal Recoil
Jump ahead to the late 18th century and you get another strange solution to
“more firepower, please”: the Nock volley gun. Designed around 1779 by James Wilson and
manufactured by British gunsmith Henry Nock, this shoulder-fired monster had seven barrels
welded togethersix around a central onefiring all at once with a single flintlock
mechanism. It was adopted in limited numbers by the Royal Navy for use by marines in the
fighting tops of warships.
A Devastating Concept in Theory
On paper, the Nock volley gun sounded brilliant: one pull of the trigger, seven
musket-balls hurtling into densely packed enemy sailors on deck below. This “shotgun
on steroids” approach promised devastating close-range firepower, ideal for ship-to-ship
combat in the age of sail. Each barrel was muzzle-loaded with black powder and a ball,
and a single priming charge ignited all seven charges in a chain.
The Recoil Reality Check
In reality, firing seven barrels at once produced enormous recoil and intense muzzle blast.
The gun was heavy, punishing to shoot, and risky in crowded rigging. There were also
concerns about the barrels’ structural integrity if one charge failed to ignite. Sailors
and marines reportedly disliked the gun, and the Royal Navy eventually withdrew it from
service. The Nock volley gun did find a second life in pop culture and filmmost famously
in the “Sharpe” TV seriesbut as a practical military weapon, it was just too wild for
everyday use.
3. The FP-45 Liberator: A $2.10 Pistol of Psychological Warfare
Fast-forward to World War II, and “weird” takes on a very different form with the
FP-45 Liberator pistol. This crude, single-shot .45-caliber handgun was created by the
United States as a psychological warfare tool. Made mostly of stamped sheet metal with a
smooth steel tube for a barrel, it reportedly cost about $2.10 per unit to produce in the
1940sroughly the price of a fast-food meal today.
Designed to Be Cheap, Not Fancy
The Liberator was intentionally ugly. It had no rifling, only rudimentary sights, and a
compartment in the grip to store extra .45 ACP cartridges. The idea wasn’t to arm someone
for long-term combat; it was to give resistance fighters in occupied Europe a way to sneak
up on an enemy soldier, use one close-range shot, and then take that soldier’s far better
weapon. The project name “FP-45” even used “FP” to stand for “flare projector” as a cover
story to disguise its purpose.
Millions Made, Few Actually Used
Around a million Liberators were produced in a matter of weeks. But historical evidence
suggests relatively few were actually distributed and used in the way planners intended.
The pistols were difficult to reload quickly, had poor accuracy, and weren’t exactly
beloved by the people who saw them as more symbolic than practical. Still, as an example
of low-cost, psychological warfare hardwareand as one of the strangest official U.S.
military pistolsit definitely earns its spot on this list.
4. The Krummlauf: The Rifle That Shot Around Corners
During World War II, German engineers came up with a clever but deeply odd solution to a
brutal problem: how do you fire at enemies from behind coverlike from inside a tank
or around a building cornerwithout exposing yourself? Their answer was the
Krummlauf, a curved barrel attachment for the Sturmgewehr 44 (StG 44) assault
rifle. This accessory bent the barrel by 30, 45, 60, or even 90 degrees and included
a periscope-style sight so the shooter could aim while staying protected.
Ingenious Idea, Harsh Physics
Conceptually, the Krummlauf is brilliant: attach a curved tube to the muzzle, redirect the
bullet, and shoot around corners. In practice, forcing a bulletdesigned to travel in a
straight linethrough a curved pipe is asking for trouble. The stresses of the bend caused
bullets to deform or even fragment, often turning the weapon into an accidental shotgun.
The curved sections also wore out quickly: some variants reportedly had a lifespan of only
a few hundred rounds before the barrel became unsafe.
Limited Use, Lasting Legend
The main version produced in significant numbers was the 30-degree infantry model, with
limited distribution for tank crews and special units. It was never a game-changing
battlefield tool. However, its visual weirdness and “sci-fi before sci-fi” design made it
a favorite in museums, history articles, and video games. The Krummlauf shows how far
militaries will go to squeeze tactical advantage out of existing weaponseven if physics
refuses to cooperate.
5. The Gyrojet: The Rocket-Powered Gun That Got Stranger the Farther It Shot
If you’ve ever wished firearms were more like something out of a 1960s sci-fi comic book,
the Gyrojet is for you. Developed in the United States by MB Associates in the 1960s, the
Gyrojet family of weaponsincluding pistols and carbinesdidn’t fire traditional bullets.
Instead, they launched small, solid-fuel rockets called “Microjets” that accelerated after
leaving the barrel.
A Gun That Shoots Tiny Rockets
Unlike a conventional bullet, which reaches maximum velocity in the barrel and then slows
down, a Gyrojet projectile left the barrel relatively slowly and sped up as its rocket
motor burned, reaching around supersonic speed a short distance downrange. Because the
pressure was inside the rocket rather than in the chamber, the gun itself could be made
very lightweight and simple. Small angled exhaust ports in the rocket base spun the
projectile for gyroscopic stabilityhence the name “Gyrojet.”
Too Weird (and Unreliable) to Win
On paper, a light gun with almost no recoil and rocket-powered ammo sounds great for
special operations or futuristic infantry. In reality, the Gyrojet had serious accuracy
and reliability issues. Rounds could misfire, burn inconsistently, or fail to stabilize.
Humidity and manufacturing tolerances also caused problems. At very close range, the slow
initial velocity meant the projectiles might not be lethal; at longer ranges, they could
be powerful but unpredictable.
A few Gyrojet weapons were reportedly tested in Vietnam by U.S. special operations units,
and the design even showed up in spy movies and novels. But the guns were expensive, the
ammo was even more expensive, and conventional firearms kept improving. The Gyrojet faded
into obscurity and now exists mainly as a collector’s item and a beloved piece of
“rocket-gun” trivia.
What These Weird Guns Tell Us About Military Innovation
From the Puckle gun’s square bullets to the Gyrojet’s tiny rockets, these five weird
military guns all sprang from the same basic impulse: the desire to change the rules of
the battlefield. Each tried to solve a real problemslow reloads, limited firepower,
dangerous exposure, or the need to arm resistance fighters cheaplywith creative design,
often pushing technology past what was realistically achievable at the time.
Most of these guns failed not because their inventors were foolish, but because real-world
conditions are unforgiving. Black powder fouls mechanisms. Recoil hurts. Curved barrels
break things. Rocket ammo misbehaves in humidity. If anything, these strange weapons
highlight how much of modern small-arms design is about balancing power, reliability,
cost, and human factorsnot just raw ingenuity.
Still, they left legacies. The Puckle gun hinted at the future of rapid-fire weapons.
The Nock volley gun prefigured later attempts at multi-barrel designs. The Liberator
showed how cheap, disposable weapons could be used in psychological warfare. The Krummlauf
anticipated modern “shoot around corners” gadgets and camera-assisted systems. And the
Gyrojet remains an icon of the “rocket age” mindset, where almost anything seemed possible
if you added a little propellant and optimism.
Experiences and Stories Around History’s Weirdest Military Guns
You don’t really appreciate how strange these weapons are until you see them up closeor
watch someone try to fire one. Museum collections, reenactments, and collector ranges have
turned these oddball guns into star attractions, each with its own set of stories.
Encountering the Puckle Gun in Museums
Surviving Puckle guns are rare, so seeing one in person is a bit like meeting a mythical
creature. Visitors who encounter them in historic houses or arms collections are usually
struck by how small and “clockwork-like” they look compared with modern machine guns.
The tripod mount and revolving cylinder feel oddly modern, but the flintlock and
hand-crank give away its 18th-century origins. Guides love to explain the square-bullet
storyit’s the kind of detail that sticks in people’s minds long after they leave the
gallery.
The Nock Volley Gun and Reenactors’ Shoulders
Historical reenactors sometimes bring reproduction Nock volley guns to living-history
events or controlled range demonstrations. Even when they reduce the powder charge for
safety, the recoil and muzzle flash are enough to make the crowd gasp. The gun’s seven
barrels produce a dramatic sheet of smoke and flame, followed by a very real reminder of
why sailors didn’t love firing it repeatedly from a swaying ship’s rigging. People who
get to shoot it once often describe it as “fun,” but rarely ask to try a second shot.
Handling a Liberator: More Tin Toy Than Service Pistol
Original FP-45 Liberators in museum collections or private hands feel more like stamped
metal toys than serious sidearms. The lack of rifling, the basic welds, and the crude
grip all underline how disposable the pistol was meant to be. Interpreters at museums
often use the Liberator to spark conversations about resistance movements, propaganda,
and the psychological side of warfare. Visitors are usually surprised that the U.S.
invested in making a million pistols designed to be used once and then discarded.
The Krummlauf’s “Video Game Gun” Aura
A Krummlauf-equipped StG 44 looks like something pulled straight from a game developer’s
imagination. The curved barrel and periscope sight make it visually unforgettable. In
exhibits focusing on World War II innovation, this setup tends to draw big crowds, with
people instinctively miming how they’d hold it around a corner. Curators often use it to
talk about the pressures of urban warfare and armored combat, but also about the limits of
engineering: just because you can bend a barrel doesn’t mean you should.
Firing a Gyrojet: Expensive, Surreal, and Underwhelming
For collectors lucky (and wealthy) enough to shoot a Gyrojet today, the experience is as
surreal as you’d expect. Ammunition is extremely rare and can cost hundreds of dollars per
round, so nobody is doing mag dumps for fun. When a shot does go off, the sound is more of
a hiss than a bang, followed by the odd feeling that the projectile is getting more
dangerous as it travels away from you rather than at the muzzle. The lack of recoil can be
delightful, but the accuracylet’s just say this is not the pistol you’d pick for a
high-stakes competition.
Why We Keep Coming Back to These Guns
Collectors, historians, gamers, and casual museum-goers are all drawn to these weapons for
the same reason: they’re vivid reminders that military technology is not a smooth, logical
progression. It’s full of dead ends, wild experiments, and “what were they thinking?”
moments. The weirdest military guns from throughout history may not have changed the
outcome of wars, but they do change how we think about invention, risk, and the
sometimes-thin line between brilliant and bonkers.
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