They don’t call this The Shooter’s Log for nothing. If you’re looking for the most in-depth, informative and interesting firearm blog posts, stay tuned to this section. You’ll find valuable reviews, news and other information about handguns, rifles, shotguns, AR-15s and more.
Whether you are a collector or an accumulator, you have an eye for a new gun you simply cannot pass up. There have always been more cheap guns than good ones, but in the ‘Old days’ we knew the difference. While they may not be the latest polymer or new take on an old design, ‘Old School’ guns still have a place the heart of many shooters.
Not long ago, the conversation turned to shotguns at the gun shop. While even the folks that are not the ones we call “gunny” know the merits of a shotgun for home defense, there are many opinions on the proper load and the best shotgun. However, the shotgun is only the launcher, it is the load that does the damage.
Did you ever notice that looking at a gun is like morphologically analyzing a family member? Perhaps that is why most tactical weapons come from recognized families. Master Stoner or Comrade Kalashnikov beget the lion’s share of them. Those left over hearken from John Moses Browning or one of half a dozen lesser minds. The point is, most modern weapons simply evolved from something simpler. That is just not the case with the Kel-Tec RFB.
While Smith and Wesson has manufactured great revolvers for a long time, the 686 Plus is superior in many regards. Modern CNC machinery results in tight tolerances in the throat and chamber dimensions. This means excellent accuracy potential, which is important for some pursuits. No one has ever been sorry for carrying an accurate personal defense handgun. No one will be sorry for carrying the 686 Plus.
The newest and brightest addition to the AR-15 family is a 5.56mm-diameter cartridge with more punch and long-range potential than the .223 Remington. The .224 Valkyrie is designed to remain supersonic to 1,300 yards, but design and performance are not always one in the same. The Shooter’s Log put the Valkyrie through its paces, even if we did put our thumb on the scale by using a $4,000 Wilson Combat Super Sniper.
Hand engraving is expensive. Few shooters in the old west era carried engraved firearms, but some did. During the gangster era Frank Hamer—the man who killed Bonnie and Clyde—carried Old Lucky, an engraved SAA .45. Bill Cody and a very few well-heeled shooters carried such revolvers. Today however, while you are not likely to be a famous gunman, you can own a fine, engraved revolver for traditions such as the Bill Tilghman Single Action Army.
Among the oldest and most respected firearms manufacturers is Fabrique Nationale de Armes de Guerre. FN is a company that has housed some of the most innovative firearms of the age and great inventors including John Browning and Dieudonne Saive. Thousands of FN firearms are in use worldwide with our military. Many of them are manufactured in South Carolina, USA. FN produces police, military, and sporting rifles. With the bonafides out of the way, how it performs at the range still has to be answered?
Purchasing an AR-15 rifle was far simpler when the only choice was Colt. Later, we had Armalite and a few others. Today, I cannot count the makers. Some are genuine manufacturers and others are small operators putting together rifles from outsourced parts. As long as the parts are high quality, that is fine. There is a lot of talent in the business. Diamondback’s DB15 exemplifies such talent.
Finding the best 9mm is about as personal of a decision as finding the best pizza. With dozens of manufacturers, hundreds of models, and thousands of configurations, there just isn’t really a “best,” just a “best for me.” However, that doesn’t mean all 9mm pistols are made equal. There are some that stand head and shoulders above the rest, here are three of them.
The Austrian ISSC M22 self-loading pistol is a fun gun that resembles the world’s most popular police pistol, the Glock. The pistol is affordable at little more than the price of a .22 conversion unit for the Glock pistol and has good features including a Lothar Walther barrel. While it looks like the double action only Glock, the ISSC-Austria M22 is a single-action pistol.