GunsAmerica Product Reviews – Pistols

Those discerning single action aficionados amongst us already know the Nighthawk name. Their 1911s aren’t dressed up in elaborate finishes. They don’t have exotic grips. These are hard working guns meant to be carried, and shot. I recently had the chance to put the 9mm T4 through its paces, and the compact carry gun has changed the way I think about single actions. I’m a skeptic, but I’d carry this gun–no question about it.

I grew up with the MAC 10, but the gun was rarely portrayed in a favorable light. It was the emblem of the war-on-drugs. Now, though, the old open bolt automatic seems like an antique. Or it did until Masterpiece Arms updated their defender line. This take on the old classic is completely updated, and my new favorite large-framed 9mm.

Smaller isn’t always better. You wouldn’t know it from the emphasis on single-stack pistols that is dominating the news lately. But what do you sacrifice? What if I were to tell you that you could have the capacity of a double-stack magazine and it would only be .25″ wider than your single stack? The XD Mod 2 .45 ACP, the latest concealed carry gun from Springfield-Armory, offers just that.

Are you a revolver fan, or a do you pack a pistol? Even if the answer to that question is easy, it may not be as simple to pick a winner in this head-to-head. The Colt Python vs. The Coonan Compact. Which one is a better delivery platform for the hard hitting .357 Magnum?

In the realm of budget 1911s the American Classic stands out for the “extras” they come with. I am not talking about the other stuff in the box, I mean the stuff on the pistol its self. This is a solid commander sized 1911. Metro Arms offers a lot of bang for your buck on this pistol. There are a few fit and finish issues and the mold lines left on some parts does bother me some. But that is being a bit nit-picky. The American Classic Commander works and shoots like a champ, and that is what really matters, right?

Here’s the big dilemma: thousands GLOCK fans bought the GLOCK 42 because they couldn’t buy a 43. Thousands of others bought single stack 9mms from Kel-Tec, Skky, Ruger, Smith, Beretta, Bersa, Taurus, Springfield…. Some even ponied up for some ill-fated Remingtons. And now we all have to decide. Do you stick with what you have? Do you swap your old-standby for a 43?

The GLOCK 43 is a reality. A single stack 9mm that proves the rumors to be true. And GunsAmerica has an inside look at the gun. So how does it stack up to the other GLOCKs? Read on to find out more.

There are some guns that you just have to shoot to understand. The Coonan is one of them. This is a semiautomatic. How does the hopped up revolver round function in a classic single-action pistol platform? Fantastic. And if you want a hard hitting concealed carry gun, this compact would be a kickass option.

The final design of the 1911 really came about from a series of trials that the US Government put it and other pistols through. These tests let Colt and John Browning see how the pistol held up. There were also requirements that the design had to meet. A lot of the credit for how the 1911 came out can be attributed to the trials and specifications required for the new pistol.