Gun Reviews

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.

Looks mean is one thing, but it has to run to matter. And the 590M did run. It ate everything I threw at it, including multiple magazines out of my 12 gauge trash bucket. The trash bucket is a 5 gallon bucket I toss all the leftover ammo in from shotgun reviews or any other sketchy ammo I run across. The cheapest of the cheap, mil surplus, slugs left over from my 3 gun days, and anything I get from a fire sale. Despite the fact that the gun says 2 ¾ inch shells only, I fed it some Augilla mini shells.

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.

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.

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

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

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.

Aklys Defense is happily teasing their upcoming new gun, the Velociraptor. The Velociraptor is a short-barreled integrally suppressed AK-pattern rifle.

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.

New from the 2018 NRAAM, Rock River Arms has announced the LAR-22, a .22 LR AR-15. This is excellent news for everyone who owns an AR as .22 LR ammo is now readily available and is a great low-cost training aid. RRA is planning on offering the LAR-22 both as a complete firearm or as a complete upper.

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.

Recent events have created a new round of panic buying of AR-15 rifles and parts kits. As companies race to meet demand, a lot of substandard parts end up in the hands of consumers. End users are often left frustrated when their new parts kit does not snap together like Legos or that factory gun they got a screaming deal on fails to feed or extract. But not to worry…! This article will cover the four most common issues I have personally seen with “panic AR-15’s” and how to correct them.

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.

Overall the Colt 1917 is a very interesting revolver. It was a stop-gap sidearm that ended up with American troops in two world wars. 1917 revolvers, both Colt and Smith & Wesson, can usually be found for reasonable amounts of money (especially in comparison to other US military revolvers, or WWI 1911s). They are not difficult to find suitable ammunition for, and they’re strong enough to enjoy some range time with. So if you’re looking for a WWI handgun to add to your collection, consider one of these old Colts.

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?

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 operating system is so unique and different on the Virtus, we were really curious about how well it would actually run over time. We tossed down the gauntlet of attempting to run it 2000 rounds suppressed, without a drop of lube

Wind calls, trajectory compensation, trigger control, and even the basic shooting form can be practiced and polished by using nothing more than a simple .22 rimfire.

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!”

Coonan, Inc. is adding a new model pistol to their growing 1911-inspired MOT series with a full-size handgun chambered for .45 ACP.

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.

I have retained our original 870 DM, and I am back today with a follow-up report. The original review is here, and I am happy to say I can stand behind this one. The 870 DM remains the best change to shotguns since the original model 870 was introduced back in 1951.

For a 4000 yard shot, my round had a maximum ordinate, or apex, of around 185 yards (555 feet). When I first fired off a round, my bullet would deal with 1/2 value wind from 2 o’clock. The bullet continued its climb until reaching a height of 185 yards above my position. At this point, the bullet peaked above the canyon walls, where it was exposed to a blast of full value

The 1873 Winchester sported a steel receiver along with proper metallurgy in its barrel that allowed the gun to handle the relatively high performance of the .44 WCF round. Various barrel lengths and contours, engraved variations, and rifle, carbine, and musket versions kept things spicy.

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.