GunsAmerica Product Reviews – Rifles

Mechanical systems like small arms evolve in response to myriad forces both industrial and martial. Somebody has an idea that seems to work, and that idea is tweaked, adjusted, and improved over time until it becomes something better, more reliable, and more efficient. The astute student of modern small arms, however, can generally tease out the origins of a mechanism with a little study.

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.

After two years in development, High Tower Armory is excited to say that their MBS 95 bullpup conversion kit for Hi-Point carbines is now shipping.

The Walther MPL is the ultimate example of a general utility submachine gun. In the roles filled by the wartime German MP40, American Grease Gun, Russian PPSh, and British Sten the MPL is quite literally ideal. The rate of fire is slow, and the gun is rugged and simple. By contrast, the MP5 fires much faster and is really a specialist’s weapon. In the hands of a trained operator, the MP5 puts a swarm of zippy little 9mm bullets into teacup-sized groups at bad breath ranges. When employed in a swamp or powdery desert environment, however, the complexity of the MP5 becomes a liability.

Over the last 9 months of testing, the SIG MCX VIRTUS has proven to be a very reliable and useful weapon. In its 5.56 configurations, we saw it run in all weather conditions over the winter, a 2000 rounds suppressed test and many other shenanigans. The most impressive part to me was that we had a multi-configurable rifle, that consistently shot ½ MOA groups. This week, we finally got the long awaited 300 AAC barrel.

Police officers, competitive shooters, and military units train with air guns. What do they know that you don’t?  It is safer and cheaper than live fire while measurably improving performance. There is no better way to teach trigger control and reduce anticipation of recoil. The cost of range training is more than just the ammunition. We must also include vehicle mileage, targets and range fees but perhaps the most precious resource consumed is time.

When the 1873 came out it was a paradigm shift. A repeating rifle that was as reliable and capable as it was practical. However, it was still a pistol caliber carbine. For real rifle work, you had to go to something like an 1869 Sharps, a Ballard Perfection rifle, or a Remington Rolling Block. That’s what buffalo hunters used. What these long range, big game guns had in common was that they were all single shot firearms. The Winchester Model 1876 changed that forever.

This week, I’ve played with a gun that is way outside the norm. From Chiappa, we are looking at what may be the smallest of the Italian shotguns. Ever. When this gun first came up for review, I had no idea what 9mm Flobert was, so don’t feel bad if you have never heard of it either. It is a very common European cartridge but is almost unheard of here in the U.S.A.

When the NEMO Executive Order ( XO) came in for review, I was wholly unprepared for what was about to happen. The test model was in 6.5 Creedmoor, which is a plus. Not unique, but not all that common in AR platforms yet either. Still, I wasn’t exactly looking forward to testing