Bolt-Action

The Momentum is a nice rifle, but not for the reasons Franchi thinks it is.

The Italian company has been manufacturing high-quality bird guns for 150 years, and in April of 2018 they announced their first foray into the bolt-action rifle market. Franchi hopes to translate its heritage of craftsmanship and innovation to a new kind of firearm, and for the most part, they succeeded.

Imported to the United States exclusively by the Italian Firearms Group, the Urban Sniper sports a relatively short (for a long-range precision platform) 20-inch bull barrel. Even with that shorter barrel, the Urban Sniper isn’t a lightweight at 8.75 pounds, though few of today’s long-range rifles are exactly nimble. It is also very accurate, has a great trigger and fits on the shoulder well.

It is difficult to say the Savage 110 Evolution is a vast improvement over the 110 Stealth, if only because the Stealth was so good to start with. I reviewed the Stealth chambered in 338 Lapua Magnum last summer, and dollar for dollar, it is one of the best guns I have ever picked up.

Performance Center (think Smith & Wesson) using Thompson Center components has created a new chassis rifle that has just upped the stakes for a budget-get in-the-long-range-game-rifle. The price point is truly incredible when you consider that the MSRP of the rifle at $1211 is less than what I paid for my first aluminum chassis stock over 15 years ago.

Big Green has finally stepped into the chassis rifle arena with the Remington Model 700 PCR in 6.5 Creedmoor and this week we got our hands on it for a full review.  By the way, PCR stands for Precision Chassis Rifle.  It is late to the party, no doubt about that. But the big question on everyone’s mind, did Remington continue the winning streak started by the 870 DM and recent 1911 models?

I’ve always dreamt of going on a black bear hunt. Go ahead, admit it … bet you have too?

When I finally got invited I couldn’t figure out what gun I wanted to take. I’ve always been into lever guns — but was it the right choice? I needed something light, for climbing trees, for getting into shooting positions fast, that sort of thing. I needed something with enough accuracy and power to handle a black bear, but still quick enough for follow up shots. It’s the sort of quandary most shooters love to get into. “Oh darn, I gotta’ decide on what new gun I need to buy!”

Barrett Firearms Manufacturing of Murfreesboro, TN is known around the world for building heavyweight, hard-hitting 50 BMG rifles for the military and law enforcement. Barrett’s a family owned business and has been supplying firearms for the US and its allies for over 30 years.  With the Fieldcraft they jumped completely to the other end of the firearms spectrum- from one of the biggest and heaviest shoulder fired rifles to one of the lightest, most versatile hunting rifles on the market.

The action is a miniaturized Mauser action, something CZ does exceedingly well. There are a lot of Mauser’s in a huge variety of calibers floating the Earth, and last I heard they tend to work. The “micro action” is based on a 223 length, though it is available in several calibers. My test sample of the CZ 527 Carbine Rustic is chambered in 7.62×39, and also available in 223.

Sometimes we get a rifle in that doesn’t look overly sexy in the packaging, but then proceeds to blow your socks off. The Ruger American Predator in 6.5 Creedmoor is one such weapon. When it comes to accuracy, this thing is a monster.