Columns

Want a Staccato but not the Staccato bill? Join a very large club. The best Staccato alternatives of 2026 give you the things people love about a Staccato, a crisp single-action trigger, a double-stack magazine, a heavy bull barrel, and flat recoil, for less money or with a different set of features. Staccato is still [...]

There’s an old saying floating around the 2A world that doesn’t get enough airtime: the Second Amendment isn’t just about guns, it’s about everything else.

If you are a competitive shooter and have not checked out the SASS, or Cowboy Action, matches you owe it to yourself to do so. Think of it as 3 gun with revolvers, lever actions and double barreled shotguns. I have shot a number of “friendly” cowboy matches and will attest to how much fun can be had while testing your skills. All of the shooters in this sport I have met have been friendly and more than willing to share knowledge and tips to improve your shooting. But you will need a revolver. Here are 5 that will do the trick.

The best Girsan pistols bring 2011 and 1911 features down to working-man prices. The Turkish maker, imported by EAA, builds the Witness2311 double-stack line, polished MC1911 single stacks, and a .380 inspired by the Beretta Cheetah. Not long ago, a budget double-stack 1911 sounded like a joke. Girsan made it normal. Our writers have shot [...]

Few pistols get cussed and loved in equal measure like the Beretta 92. The best Beretta 92 pistols of 2026 span almost four decades of one design. The 92 family went to war as the M9 after the U.S. military adopted it in 1985, and today Beretta builds it as a classic service pistol, a [...]

The best 300 Blackout rifles of 2026 prove that a cartridge built for one very specific military job turned into one of the most useful rounds you can own. The 300 AAC Blackout was designed to put a .30 caliber bullet through a standard AR-15, using the same bolt and the same magazines, with supersonic [...]

The best Beretta shotguns come from the oldest gunmaker in the world, and the company still builds some of the softest shooting, most reliable semi-autos you can buy. The hard part is picking one. Beretta sells tactical guns, waterfowl guns and competition guns, and model names like 1301, A300, A350 and A400 do not tell [...]

A .38 Special for self-defense? It’s not the fastest or most powerful round, but it is the best round if it meets two key criteria: It’s the one you’ll actually carry and you can shoot it accurately. So, yes, a .38 Special for self-defense.

The best pump shotguns are the most versatile long guns most people will ever own. One 12 gauge pump with a couple of barrels can hunt turkeys in the spring, birds in the fall, and deer with slugs, then stand guard by the bed at night. Pumps are also forgiving: they cycle anything from light [...]