Semi-Autos

The G-42 and G-43 are Glock’s concealed carry optimized single stack pistols in .380 and 9mm. Both models have been highly successful, Glock recently produced the one-millionth Glock 43. That is a lot of happy Americans and bears closer examination. Glock claims that the G-43 was the most highly desired and anticipated release in GLOCK’s history.

Always pressed for weapons, the Germans employed no less than twenty-two major handgun types during World War 2.The Nazis got their guns wherever they could find them. Quality ranged from impeccable to abysmal with everything in between. The Germans issued more than 300,000 Browning Hi Powers made under occupation in Belgium. Designated the Pistole 640(b) in Wehrmacht parlance, the Hi Power was arguably the finest combat handgun of the war.

Sometimes, as the tagline goes for Springfield’s new 911, the police are minutes away, the threat is seconds away, and you’re your own first responder—whether you want to be or not. Springfield’s new 911 may look like other sub-compact 1911-style 380s, but it handles better than any I’ve shot. The engineers at Springfield tweaked the mini-1911 design to minimize felt recoil, improve ergonomics, and provide a clearer sight picture even in the most stressful situations. Plus, it’s a great looking gun. The 911 stands out among the crowds of striker-fired handguns, and it won’t fail to deliver in a crisis.

Glock has been updating the line up to Generation 5, as seen here on the 17/19 and here on the 19X. We aren’t going to rehash all the changes for the Gen 5 here, but a highlight reel is helpful if you haven’t been paying attention. The accuracy is improved by a factor of half, the new triggers are better, gone are the finger grooves, and there is a right side slide release for the

Improving on initial success, Springfield Armory is introducing a new variation of both models. Now, you have the factory option of the Heavy Operator with an RMR pre-installed, cut deep into the slide. I predict another big win, this is the perfect set up for a 10mm 1911.

The Battle Rifle is commonly accepted to be an autoloading combat rifle that feeds from a detachable magazine and fires a full-sized .30-caliber round. While Battle Rifles found their stride in the years following the Second World War, they have been largely replaced by small caliber Assault Rifles nowadays. However, combat in such places as Afghanistan has shown us in recent years that the need still exists for a man-portable .30-caliber rifle that can offer precision fires out past the range of the 5.56mm cartridge.

Mirroring the fit and finish of the full sized Pointman 9, the Carry features a Commander length slide on an Officers sized frame. The Dan Wesson Pointman Carry is chambered in 9mm and is an absolute pleasure to shoot. 

This week we got a chance to look at the XDM OSP. The OSP is a 4.5 inch duty size gun that comes out of the box with a Vortex Venom on top.

The X-Carry shares a trigger (or chassis) with the X5, which means, in this case, the best out of the box striker fired trigger on the market. The grip module is the same as the X5, sans the flared mag well. This grip module is unique to the X family, and offers a higher grip than the regular P320, along with an extended beavertail. Having shot both of these guns for a minute now, I finally figured out how to equate that.