Handguns Off the Main Line: Sidearms from the Smith and Wesson Model 3 to the GSh-18

The United States Army adopted this single-action, top-break revolver in 1870 as its first standard-issue cartridge-firing revolver. It was made until 1915, and license production by Ludwig Loewe and the Tula Arsenal helped it arm Russia, Japan, the Ottoman Empire and other forces.

This was the first double-action revolver issued to the French Army. About 337,000 were made at Saint-Etienne between 1873 and 1887, and it was still being issued to reserve units in 1940.

George Fosbery patented this self-cocking revolver in 1895, and about 4,750 were made by Webley and Scott from 1901 to 1924. Its cylinder and barrel recoil together to cock the hammer, which target shooters liked, but its weight and a tendency to jam in the field kept it out of military service.

Jan and Jaroslav Kratochvil designed this pistol for the Czechoslovak military in the early 1950s. Around 200,000 were made between 1952 and 1954 in 7.62x25mm, and it served for roughly thirty years before the Makarov-caliber vz. 82 replaced it.

Gordon Ingram designed this compact machine pistol in 1964, and it entered service around 1970 in .45 ACP or 9mm. Its Sionics suppressor was a key feature, so United States export restrictions on suppressors in the 1970s led several foreign customers to cancel orders.

This small pistol in .32 ACP or .380 ACP was made from 1977 to 1996, when the P232 replaced it. SIGARMS began importing it into the United States in 1985, and it became popular as a compact backup or concealed-carry gun.

Introduced in 1981 and built on the heavier L-frame at the urging of company historian Roy Jinks, this .357 Magnum revolver was meant to stand up to sustained full-power loads that lighter frames handled poorly. It was discontinued in 1999 and reintroduced in 2012.

Designed by George Kellgren and introduced in 1984 by Intratec, this pistol was built from inexpensive molded polymer and stamped or milled steel. More than 250,000 were sold before production ended in 2001, and it became notorious in the 1990s for its link to gang crime.

FN Herstal developed this pistol between 1993 and 1998 around a new 5.7 by 28 millimeter cartridge made alongside it. It has been adopted by more than forty military and police forces in over twenty countries.

The KBP design bureau in Tula developed this 9mm pistol in the 1990s, and its name joins its designers' initials, Gryazev and Shipunov, with its 18-round magazine. It entered service with Russia's Ministry of Justice in 2000 and saw wider adoption from 2003.