If you’re anything like me, you have all kinds of tools, patches, swabs, solvents, and favorite rags for cleaning your guns. I’m old enough to remember when there was but one way to clean a gun – Hoppe’s No. 9, a firm brush, and lots of patches. While those items are still within easy reach on my bench, I have also been happy to embrace new ideas – especially if they save me time or money! The folks at Swab-it have a product line that they say does just that. Gun Tips and Bore Tips are foam swabs that come in many shapes and sizes and are engineered to provide superior cleaning and easy re-use. I put an assortment of these swabs to the test.

The Walther PPQ 5” is one of the coolest looking handguns I have ever held, at least in the scope of today’s fashion. It is basically the tricked-out black rifle of the handgun platform. From the squared-off pyramid-shaped slide that sports deep angled cocking serrations front and rear, down past the ambidextrous slide stop levers that are extra-long and can be operated by most shooters without having to alter their grip – to the oddly unique but comfortable backstrap of the grip – decorated in a paisley texture. The angles of the polymer frame that lead toward the front accessory rail look like they might belong on the newest Stealth aircraft. All that would be enough to qualify as “cool looking” in any showcase, but Walther had to go over the top. To maintain the weight of the slide so that the 9mm round would continue to operate the pistol reliably, it was necessary to take some weight from the front of the slide. This is nothing new, and we’ve seen Glock and Springfield Armory do the same with their long-slide match guns. Walther’s engineers cut ‘port holes’ into the top of the slide, three on each side. These oval slots in the slide reminded me of a classic old Buick Roadmaster the first time I saw one. They are there for an engineering purpose, but they turn the “cool factor” of the gun up to 11 on the dial. Finishing touches included tapering the nose of the slide in significantly where it overhangs the frame and cutting a large hole where the guide rod travels during cycling.

Springfield Armory is announcing a new variant of the XD-S for 2014. It is the logical next step in the evolution of the sensationally popular XD-S sub-compact format. No, it’s not a new caliber offering – it is a new barrel length! Springfield has stretched the 3.3” barrel just ever so much to an even 4 inches. Why is this significant? For starters – recoil. I obtained my copy of the XD-S in 2012 in the initial offering of .45 ACP. If you have ever fired that gun, you know that it has some “personality” to it. Simple physics I’m afraid. Less size and weight of the handgun means more felt recoil for the shooter. The 2013 introduction of the 9mm version was welcomed by many because of the reduced pressures of that round, but it still has some snap. A 4” offering of this same gun adds weight where it is needed most – out at the muzzle. This helps reduce felt recoil. The XDS-9 4.0 also has a longer sight radius; adding ¾” to the length of the slide allows Springfield to push the front sight further forward by that same distance. This translates to a more accurate sight picture and better shots. Small errors in aiming are more noticeable, and therefore easier to correct with a longer sight radius.

It’s Range time – anytime, with the LaserLyte Training Tyme system. Learn shooting fundamentals and firearm safety and handling, and have great fun doing it – all without firing a single shot. What’s more, you not only don’t need ammunition, but you don’t need access to a range. Your game room, basement or garage is a perfectly good place to use LaserLyte products. Having said that, let me also get my “good sense practices” or “nanny” lecture out of the way: Always treat shooting training seriously: choose a proper “safe direction” of fire and follow the golden rules of firearms. Just because we are not using live ammo does not mean we are not creating habits!

When you think of laser sights, you think of Crimson Trace. A pioneer in civilian and law enforcement aiming tools, Crimson Trace has earned its place at the top by providing high-quality products at reasonable prices for a wide variety of firearms. Now, when I say ‘reasonable prices’, I don’t mean cheap. A decent laser sight for your pistol has been a decision that would set you back a few hundred bucks easily, making it a hard purchase to justify for a lot of folks. For 2013 however, Crimson Trace has created a new model line to address the market for a lower-cost but fully functioning laser sight. At a list price between $129 and $149, or roughly the price of a good set of night sights, you can now equip your self-defense handgun with an easy-to-use laser. it is currently available for all Glock and Springfield Armory XD/XD-M handguns, as well as the Ruger LCP and most Smith & Wesson and Taurus J-Frame and small revolvers.

Ladies, have you ever been advised to “just use a revolver” because you have trouble racking the slide on a semi-automatic handgun? Men, ever feel frustrated that you can’t grip the slide as firmly as you once did? Ladies in particular have often been advised away from the semi-auto handgun because they have trouble gripping and racking the slide. But before you men snicker too much – I personally know some gentlemen that have lost hand strength in their golden years and have difficulty with semi-autos. Many men also lose grip strength due to illness or injury. I know young athletic men that have experienced an injury that temporarily leaves them unable to rack a semi-auto. Luckily for us all, there is a pretty slick little product available that addresses this problem for everyone – the Handi-Racker.