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  4. Return of the Arm Pistol! The New Hydra Weaponry BMP-23

 

Arguably the first large format AR-style pistol to hit the market is now set to make a return, no brace needed. 

Firearms maverick Mack Gwinn Jr., a Vietnam-era Special Forces veteran, in the early 1970s acquired the rights to Colt-made IMP-221, a stockless, gas-operated bullpup pistol intended to provide aircrew with a compact survival gun chambered in .221 Fireball. While the Air Force had already scrapped the project, Gwinn made lemons into lemonade, adapting the design to use 5.56 NATO and accept standard AR mags, launching the Bushmaster Arm Pistol. 

The original Gwinn/Bushmaster Arm Pistol borrowed from both AR-15 and AK-47 designs, with its AR-style rotating bolt and AK-type long-stroke gas piston. 

 

5.56mm Bushmaster Arm Pistol
Based on the Colt IMP-221/ Air Force GUU-4/P air crew weapon originally designed at Eglin Air Force Base, the original Gwinn Firearms in Bangor, Maine produced the 5.56mm Bushmaster Arm Pistol “in limited quantities” for the USAF in the early 1970s before sending it to the consumer market. Just 20.63 inches long, the Arm Pistol had a lot of M16-style features in a very abbreviated bullpup format. (Photo: Zach Buth/Guns.com)

 

With the Arm Pistol long out of production and Bushmaster now in at least its third reincarnation since Gwinn sold the company in 1976, his son, Mack Gwinn III, has founded Maine-based Hydra Weaponry and returned a much-improved version of the design to production. 

Guns.com caught up with the fine folks from Hydra at the recent 2024 NRA Annual Meetings in Dallas to "lay arm" on the new BMP-23.

Hydra feels the BMP-23 is the 5.56mm pistol that Gwinn Jr. would have built if he had access to today’s CNC machinery and technologically advanced materials. 

 

Hydra BMP-23 arm pistol
While aesthetically similar and retaining the AK-47-type gas piston design pistol and AR A2 grip, the BMP-23 is constructed of lightweight aluminum and steel, coming in at 5.2 pounds. The chrome-moly barrel is 11.5 inches. (Photo: Don Summers/Guns.com)
Hydra BMP-23 arm pistol
The BMP-23 features integral iron sights and a unique 40-degree swivel design that allows users to easily switch it from right to left-hand operation. (Photo: Don Summers/Guns.com)

 

The MSRP is expected to be $2,350, which may be a bit of a squeeze, but it's nice to see it back regardless. 

Article by Chris Eger and Alexander Reville, Photos and Video by Don Summers.

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