Feature Articles

How important are survival communications? From a prepping budget perspective, I’ve asked that question a lot. And unfortunately, as with many subjects I’ve covered, there is a ton of misinformation out there about the subject. When you buy a “survival radio,” like the ones with the little solar panel and hand crank, you are buying a multi-band receiver, and you’ll pay more depending on how many bands you want. A basic radio, some even under $20, will be AM/FM, and most of them also have the NOAA weather channel, which is 162.4 mhz. Pay a little more and you may get some of the Ham radio bands, but you will seldom hear any traffic on those bands, because the included whip antenna is not made for those frequencies. Police, fire, airplane, and a hots of other frequencies that would be nice to monitor in a survival situation are not in those radios. Getting all of those frequencies, until now, has been very expensive. This article is about a newer type of radio called “Software Defined Radio,” or SDR-RTL, and it changes everything.

While most of the gun industry is still worried about what they’ll debut at SHOT show in January, Walther is making news. They’ve got a new addition to the PPQ line. The PPQ M2 in .45 ACP. How will Walther’s first attempts with the most American of calibers stand up? Read our review.

When we first saw the DP-12 at SHOT Show, we were leery. Bullpup shotguns always seem to get our hopes up, then dash them to pieces with faltering reliability. They’re rarely anything more than range toys. But we’ve been beating up the DP-12 now for a few weeks, and we’re converts. Read our review.

Looking for a historical shooting iron that evokes America’s fighting past? Check out Auto Ordnance’s version of the A1. The gun is a fair representation of the WWII era 1911s, and is a great at the range.

When I first came across this little gun I immediately thought of a Colt Vest Pocket without the grip safety. That is how the back half of the pistol looks. After closer inspection I noticed it had a fixed barrel. That is not something the old Colts have. But a Walther PPK does. I have come to the conclusion that this little Galesi could be the product from a marriage between a PPK and a Vest Pocket. Those are some pretty good genes from both sides of the family.

When I first started this column, I discussed the importance of putting away your own bulk food, and not just buying a cat litter bucket with a “30 day supply” in it. Without food, water and shelter you will have to leave the house after things collapse, and that’s bad. You don’t have to spend big bucks on mail order food. Survival food is just food that won’t spoil without refrigeration. Beyond that, survival food is what you make of it. And you can make it a lot cheaper than you might think.

Proof that the AR-15 can be almost anything you want is easy to see in the wide selection of available stocks. Fixed? Adjustable? Minimalist? The choice is up to you. We’re here with some tips that will help you narrow down the list, and we’ll lay out everything you need to know when you build an AR-15.

Tired of all of the kerfuffle about the diminutive GLOCK 43? Had your fill of all of the hype about single-stack stopping power? Want a polymer pistol capable of stopping a Grizzly? Check out the GLOCK 40. This beast is big, capacity is not an issue, and it shoots the 10mm, which–when loaded right–is impressive. So how does the G40 handle?

HK has built a reputation for kick-ass guns. Most begin as service weapons for law enforcement or military units. The MP5 is a perfect example. We’re taking a loot a full-auto MP5 today and will dive deep into the history of the compact design and its variants.