Today for Gus’ Gear I have an iconic handgun that would influence the design of many other pistols in the following years. John Browning designed the M1899 pistol and licensed Fabrique Nationale de Herstal in Belgium to produce them. In 1900, the design was slightly improved and the production version was designated the Model 1900. This became a very popular handgun, chambered for the Browning 7,65mm pistol cartridge, and was used in a number of assassinations and attempts in the early part of the 1900s. The German Langenhan Selbstlader Pistole was a very close copy, and most of the small handguns produced in the early part of the 1900s copied the simple blow back action. The Frommer STOP and the Schwarzlose M1908 were exceptions, the Frommer used another Browning system, where the barrel and bolt would fully recoil and then the barrel would be returned to battery followed by the bolt, ready to fire again. The Schwarzlose M08 was a blow forward design that had the barrel move forward with the fired bullet and then return to battery, the result was a .32 caliber pistol with the kick of a 9mm. The Model 1900 was produced for about 11 years before it was superseded by the Model 1910, it was widely available commercially in most every country as a private purchase side arm for officers.