Guns 2011-04.pdf - Jeffersonian

A TRUE PAIRThe most advanced training aid for Trap, Skeet And Sporting Clay Shooters alike “see where you are missing.”The Fiocchi Chemical Tracer powered by Cyalume, provides a daytime visible trace that travels with the cloud ofshot as it hits or misses the clay bird.The Chemical Tracer is non-incendiary, non-toxic and meets EPA and ConsumerSafety compliance. It leaves no residue in the barrel and is non-corrosive. The 12 Gauge 3/4 oz #8 shot + CyalumeTracer Load is light sensitive and is therefore packaged as part of the New and Innovative Fiocchi ‘Canned Heat’ Line.The Fiocchi Chemical Tracer “see where you are missing”Since 1876For the Fiocchi dealer near you, Call 417.449.1043 / visit www.fiocchiusa.com

APRIL 2011Vol. 57, Number 4, 665th IssueCOLUMNS6 CROSSFIRELetters to the Editor81 2 HANDGUNSMassad AyoobRANGING SHOTSClint Smith1 6 GUNSMITHINGhAMILTON S. BOWEN18 HANDLOADINGJohn BARSNESS2 22 4 OPTICSJacob GottfredsonMONTANA MUSINGSMike “Duke” Venturino28 RIFLEMANdAVE Anderson3 0 SHOTGUNNERhOLt Bodinson6 0 KNIVESPAT COVERT6 2VIEWS, NEWS & REVIEWSRIGHTS WATCH: David Codrea86 ODD ANGRY SHOTJohn Connor9 0CAMPFIRE TALESJohn TaffinGUNS Magazine (ISSN 1044-6257) is publishedmonthly by Publishers’ Development Corporation,12345 World Trade Drive, San Diego, CA 92128.Periodicals Postage Paid at San Diego, CA and at additional mailingoffices. SUBSCRIPTIONS: One year (12) issues $24.95. Singlemonthly copies, $4.95. CHANGE OF ADDRESS: Eight weeks noticerequired on all changes. Send old address as well as new. SUB-SCRIPTION PROBLEMS: For immediate action write GUNS Magazine,Attention: Circulation Dept., 12345 World Trade Drive, SanDiego, CA 92128 or call (858) 605-0250. CONTRIBUTORS submittingmanuscripts, photographs or drawings do so at their ownrisk. Material cannot be returned unless accompanied by sufficientpostage. PAYMENT will be made at rates current at time of publicationand will cover reproduction in any or all GUNS Magazineeditions. ADVERTISING RATES furnished on request. Reproductionor use of any portion of this magazine in any manner, withoutwritten permission is prohibited. All rights reserved. Title to thispublication passes to subscriber only on delivery to his address.The opinions and recommendations expressed by individual authorswithin this magazine are not necessarily those of Publishers’Development Corporation. POSTMASTER: Send address changesto GUNS Magazine®, ATTN: Circulation Dept., 12345 World TradeDrive, San Diego, CA 92128. Copyright © 2011 by Publishers’ DevelopmentCorporation.81228ENTER TO WIN!84American Tactical ImportsGSG 1911 .22 Long RifleDEPARTMENTS34364074OUT OF THE BOXSAVAGE MODEL 93 .22 WMRSURPLUS LOCKERHolt BodinsonQUESTIONS & ANSWERSJeff JohnCATALOG SHOWCASE77 QUARTERMASTERFeaturing GUNS Allstars!THIS MONTH:• JOHN CONNOR80 GUNS CLASSIFIEDS80 CUSTOM CORNER82 NEW PRODUCTS84 GUN OF THE MONTH88 ADVERTISER INDEX4WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

44On The COVERTHE RANGEIS HOT42FEATURES42THE CIRCUITJUDGE ARRIVESAnd quickly renders a decision on doves.HOLT BODINSON4450THE RANGE IS HOTSpringfield Armory’s newRange Officer 1911 .45 ACP.MASSAD AYOOBSTOP THE MADNESSRethinking how to break in a rifle barrel.JOHN BARSNESS54 SELF-LOADINGINFANTRY RIFLESOF WWIIThere were more than our Garands.MIKE “DUKE” VENTURINO54NEW ONLINE EXTRAS ONLY ATWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COMTheodore Roosevelt’sFavorite Dakota RifleCimarron-StyleJOHN TAFFINSee what you’re missingin the 2011 GUNS ANNUAL!Go to:www.gunsmagazine.com/productindex for complete productinfo and manufacturer’s links for products featured inFMG magazines!WARNING: Firearms are dangerous and if used improperly may cause serious injury or death. Due to the inherent variables in the reloading ofammunition, be sure to verify any published loads with manufacturer’s data. Products mentioned or advertised may not be legal in all states orjurisdictions. Obey all firearms laws. Always consult a professional gunsmith when modifying any firearm. Be a safe shooter!WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 5

CROGUNS Magazine® welcomes letters to the editor. We reserve the right to edit all published letters for clarity and length. Dueto the volume of mail, we are unable to individually answer your letters or e-mail. In sending a letter to GUNS Magazine,you agree to provide Publisher’s Development Corp. such copyright as is required for publishing and redistributing thecontents of your letter in any format. Send your letters to Crossfire, GUNS Magazine, 12345 World Trade Dr., San Diego,CA 92128; www.gunsmagazine.com; e-mail: ed@gunsmagazine.comPressure?John Barness’s Handloading articlein the February 2011 issue, whileinteresting, has me very confused.I’ve always thought making powderspace smaller increases pressure. Thewords “... any increase in seating depthreduces pressure” in the last paragraphof the article says just the opposite.Have I been wrong all these years?Since I travel a lot, the availability ofyour digital issue has been great, andthe mechanism for reviewing it works awhole lot better than a number of othermagazines’.Tim GalesFlagstaff, ArizonaIn rifles, seating bullets deeperdecreases peak pressure because there’sa longer “jump” for the bullet until ithits the chamber throat. The bullet hasa chance to get going faster before beingforced into the rifling, and the increasedmomentum reduces the pressure risecaused by the bullet being engraved bythe rifling.In revolvers, however, seating thebullet deeper does cause higher peakpressures, because the bullet has totravel further before reaching thecylinder gap, thus allowing pressure torise longer before the gap relieves someof the pressure.—John BarsnessTwo JohnsI don’t often write mags or anyone else for that matter, but havethought about it several times withyour magazines (GUNS and AmericanHandgunner). I look forward everymonth to their arrival and read themfront to back. Scratch that, back tofront. You put out fine magazinesbut I always find myself rereadingthe articles time and again by JohnTaffin and John Conner while I waitfor my next issue. Both writers makeFIRELETTERS TO GUNSme think. Both have put a smile on myface and at times a tear on my cheek.I wish them both the best, and as longas they write for you I will continue towait each month eagerly.Brett RoyUtahGet WellA get well to one of my favoritewriters. John always makes me think,feel, and read. I love his views on thefuture based on his past. God saveda good one. I can’t imagine a lifewithout the big three to look forwardto, Taffin, Connor, and Venturino.You all share a commodity I findrare, absolute honesty. Thanks for theopportunity to know you folks.Wayne Wilkansvia e-mailGot Books?What an excellent article theJanuary 2011 Campfire Tales “GotBooks?” was. I submit it fulfilled itspurpose. The reference made to Ex-President Theodore Roosevelt’s SouthAmerican expedition into the wilds ofBrazil was for some reason, somethingI had never heard of and thereforeI went to the effort to look it up. Itwas a fascinating story. After all theadventures and enterprises TheodoreRoosevelt enjoyed and endured duringhis life, to be very nearly broughtdown by an infected wound, malariaand dysentery speaks volumes aboutthe intensity of the Brazilian jungle.Thank you Mr. Taffin for exposing meto the knowledge. Books are invaluableand I pity those that don’t enjoy them.Hal Hansenvia e-mailThe Alessi holster pictured in theFebruary 2011 issue on page 35 shouldhave been named a CQC/S Custom.The 1RH only means “right hand.” Weapologize for the confusion.—EditorCheck out www.gunsmagazine.com for our digital edition, news, our exclusiveProduct Index, Web Blasts, online features, to enter the Giveaway Package andmore! And if you have any news about hot new products you’ve found, or anythingyou think we need to know about, drop me a line at editor@gunsmagazine.com!THE FINEST IN THE FIREARMS FIELD SINCE 1955BOARD OF DIRECTORS Thomas von Rosen, CEO;Thomas Hollander, Randy Moldé, Marjorie YoungPUBLISHER Roy HuntingtonEditor Jeff JohnManaging Editorial Assistant Stephanie JarrellEditorial Assistant Mckenzie WhitmerArt Director/Staff PhotographerJoseph R. NovelozoArt Assistant Jennifer LewisAdvertising Sales Director Anita CarsonAdvertising Sales Assistant Dana HatfieldProduction Manager Linda PetersonWebsite Manager Lorinda MasseyPromotions Coordinator Elizabeth O’NeillCONTRIBUTING EDITORSJohn Taffin, Holt Bodinson, Dave Anderson,Clint Smith, Massad Ayoob,Mike “Duke” VenturinoFIELD EDITORSSam Fadala, David Codrea, John Morrison,Glen Zediker, John Sheehan, JacobGottfredson, Mike Cumpston, John Barsness,Dave DouglasFMG PUBLICATIONSshootingindustry.comPublisher & Editor: Russ ThurmanAdvertising: Delano Amaguin, 888.732.6461email: delano@shootingindustry.comamericancopmagazine.comEditor: Suzi HuntingtonAdvertising: Denny Fallon, 800.426.4470email: denny@americancopmagazine.comamericanhandgunner.comPublisher & Editor: Roy HuntingtonAdvertising: Steve Evatt, 800.533.7988email: steve@americanhandgunner.comgunsmagazine.comEditor: Jeff JohnAdvertising: Andrew Oram, 866.903.1199email: andrew@gunsmagazine.comfmgpublications.comEditor: Sammy ReeseAdvertising: Scott McGregor, 800.553.7780email: scott@gunsmagazine.comONLINE ADVERTISING MANAGER: Tracy Moore,TEL: 888.651.7566, FAX 858.605.0205tracy@fmgpublications.comNATIONAL ADVERTISING: 12345 World Trade Dr.,San Diego, CA 92128, TEL: 866.972.4545, FAX 858.605.0211,anita@shootingindustry.comCLASSIFIED ADVERTISING: Lori Robbins,TEL: 800.633.8001, FAX 858.605.0247,classads@fmgpublications.comFMG EAST COAST SALES: Sig Buchmayr, Buchmayr &Associates, 28 Great Hill Rd., Darien CT 06820,TEL: 203.662.9740, sigbuch@optonline.netCUSTOMER SERVICEwww.gunsmagazine.comSUBSCRIPTION SERVICES ............858.605.0252Express Service ....www.gunsmagazine.com and click “contacts”EDITORIAL .........................858.605.0243Email: .............................ed@gunsmagazine.comPRODUCTION.......................858.605.0216Email: ...................... production@gunsmagazine.comBOOKS/MERCHANDISE...............888.732.2299Email: ........................rachelle@fmgpublications.comGeneral Counsel/Legal Affairs: Steele N. GillaspeyEmail: ...................................sng@g-glaw.comPRODUCED IN THE U.S.A.6WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

FREE with EVERYNighthawk TacticalShotgun PurchaseANDMagpul Dynamic’sNewest Tactical Shotgun TrainingVideo Featuring Chris Costa andTravis Haley. Learn From the Best!A $59.95 Value.Patented & Proven to Dramatically ShrinkBuck Shot Groups and Reduce Felt Recoil.A $250 Value.Toll Free 877-268-4867www.nighthawkcustom.com

• C L I N T S M I T H • P H O T O S : H E I D I S M I T H •No 1911 4 UThere are other choices.t is one thing to pick a pistol out at the gun store, anotherIto actually carry it daily, but even more important is toshoot the pistol well. The polymer guns are all the rage,and I can’t and won’t say much about them one way or theother. Nor do I care, as even my wife Heidi lets a coupleof high-end custom 1911s hang in her gun safe while shesorts through her half-dozen-plus Glocks. She carriesthem daily at her work here on the ranch and at her parttimejob helping the local Sheriff’s office as an EMT. Peoplelike what they like, even though some carry guns theydon’t shoot well, just so they can be in vogue or be sort of“hangin’ with the big dawg operators”… so to speak.After using a 1911 for about 40years, I can tell you why you shouldn’tbuy one.It is big. Yes, the 5"-barrelled 1911full-size pistol is big, measuring anominal 9" long, 6" high and 1" thick.And don’t forget the full-size gun isthe best and most reliable of its breed.I wouldn’t give you spit for the wholebunch of “chopped” 1911s. I own one1911 Lightweight Commander. To putit bluntly: I was lucky. Made in 1949,I bought it in 1970 for $100 bucks. Ihave rebuilt it a lot of times over theyears—and it is snippy to shoot wellwith full loads (as should be carried fordefense), as it should at that weight.So there is no misunderstanding andno misquote, the full-size 1911 hasthe best potential to work well andconsistently. There was a reason Johnbuilt it the way it is.Don’t buy a 1911 because it is big.Is It Heavy?Yes, it is 2 pounds and the steelgun is best, as far as long life anddurability go. The “buffer thing”for recoil supposedly helps protectthe frame while firing, but, trust me,gunsmiths have ruined more 1911sby working on them to “make ’emcustom ya know,” than are ruinedby firing. I have seen issues with thebuffer-plastic crap coming apart andlocking up the gun. Also, when thegun is shot to slide lock, often theYou should not shoot the 1911 with your thumbunder the safety. One good reason to buy aGlock.A correct position for both hands and thumbs forthe 1911—and the Glock also!Cooper-ish style of handholds and placement.It is good if you can do it, yet requires and doesaccommodate large hands.buffer preempts “pulling” the slide tothe rear to reload it, rather than usingthe other slide-release/lock technique.Don’t buy a 1911 because it is heavyand sensitive to issues like rubber ringsthat aren’t necessary.Mag CapacityIt holds seven rounds and one inthe chamber. If I see a 1911 pistolhaving feeding problems, my firstquestion to the student is: “How manyrounds did you load in the magazine?”The 1911 with seven rounds in themagazine is always more reliable! Youcan find 8-round (and even 10-round)magazines that work. If you havesome, keep them. They are an overallbig-picture oddity. If you want to havemore ammo in the pistol, buy a Glock.Don’t buy a 1911 because itdoesn’t hold a bucket of ammo in themagazine well.Reliability?The 1911 works, but sometimesrequires a bit of tuning. The reasonthe custom gunsmiths have succeededis because Colt got lazy and sloppy.In the late ’70s if you bought a 1911for $500, you would then need tospend another $500, or more, tomake it work. True works of art likethe Pachmayr were the finest, alongwith others of that sort—ArmandSwenson’s for example—were bigmoneyguns in those days. Today1911s are ideal if built by proficientcompanies; I own flawless guns byBaer, Burton, Morris, SpringfieldCustom Shop, Wilson and Volkmann.Heidi also has a Glock that costs$400 and it is also flawless… hmmm?Don’t buy a 1911 because it mightnot be reliable.Meat & ’Taters OfTechniqueFirst and foremost of importanceare safety and the placement ofthe right thumb (for a right-handshooter). Those who do not keep theirthumb on top of the safety while firingneed to get another gun. They will“knock” the safety on while firing thepistol under duress situations if theirthumb is under the safety. My belief(actually, I know this) is it’s the joint8WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

IntroducingLEDWL1TMWeaponMountedTactical IlluminatorsThe world’s first AA battery poweredweapon mounted tactical illuminator!The WL1 is the first tactical weapon light to offerpowerful performance on readily available AA batteries.Its new Quick Release Rail-Grabber mount provides fast150 +and solid attachment while keeping a low profile.Compact, rugged, and dependable, theWL1 is your first choice for AA poweredweapon mounted LED Illumination.www.insighttechnology.com90Also available with visible red aiming laserStrobePowerfulPerformanceWith Two AABatteriesFeaturesQuick ReleaseRail-Grabber MADE IN USABuilt for battle.FROM THE FOREMOST SUPPLIER OF TACTICAL LASERS AND ILLUMINATORS FOR THE U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS FORCESAND SWAT TEAMS AROUND THE WORLD…OUR PROUD MILITARY HERITAGE AND TECHNOLOGY HAS BEEN INFUSED INTOEVERY PRODUCT WE OFFER. BATTLE PROVEN IN IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN. 100% REVOLUTIONARY.

RANGING SHOTSSierra BlitzKing and Varminter bullets are the mosteffective bullets for varmint and small gamehunting. BlitzKing bullets have aMatchKing jacket for optimum accuracyand an acetyl resin tip for explosiveexpansion. Varminter bullets aredesigned with a thin jacket to enhanceexpansions over a wide range ofvelocities. Now available in .20 caliberto .30 caliber. When you get ready foryour next hunt, go-pher accuracy.Contact your favorite dealer for thecomplete line of Sierra bullets or visitwww.sierrabullets.com1 400 West Henry Street | Sedalia, MO 65301 | Tech support: 1-800-223-8799 | Other calls: 1-888-223-3006078.27306 Gopher_GunsMag_4.625x7.5.indd 1 12/16/10 3:50 PMHeidi’s armor and her Glock. It’s her choice for aself-defense handgun.of the thumb knuckle, which knocksthe safety on. The gun quits running,and the shooter doesn’t understandwhy. This can get you killed.If your response is, “But I don’tactivate the grip safety with my thumbon top of the safety while firing,” thendelete it. Yeah, I know all the expertssay you are gonna get sued and whatnot, but as a younger man I was toldby Colonel Cooper over lunch, “If youmiss the grip safety once out of 100draws, you should block it.” I believehim. There are some versions of alow-lever safety. If you use one, makesure it’s a good one; I have seen lowlever“knobs” break off while firing.If the grip-safety block or safety is anissue (personally or legally) for you,get a Glock… it doesn’t have a thumbsafety. Or a grip safety.WristLock your wrists. While training,hold the pistol at “ready,” look downto index and lock a correct sightpicture. Raise your head and eyesto the target area. When needed, liftthe pistol from the shoulders, onlyuntil the sights transpose over yourtarget. Also, remember as the muzzlecomes up, the safety comes off. Youare looking to hard-wire synapses forproper placement of the pistol in yourhands and wrists, so the gun will indexcorrectly when brought on target.Back in my days at Gunsite, there wasan exercise called “eyes off drill”; Inow know what it was for. 1911s arebig and heavy, and they recoil.Another reason not to buy a 1911.High HoldsPersonally, I use a high hold withmy thumbs stacked right over left.10WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

RANGING SHOTSThe left thumb could, I guess, dragon the slide, but I don’t put pressureon the slide with this thumb. The leftthumb (for right-handed shooters) isthe most worthless of the fingers, sobe careful with its placement whilefiring.Cooper-StyleFirst, the size of Mr. Cooper’shands were very large, which is oftennot apparent in photos showing hisleft thumb pointing up, pressing in onthe right thumb. The fact is, the heel/inside palm of his left hand pressed infirm contact with the left stock panel.Frequently folks with smaller handsmiss this point—or are not able toaccess this load-bearing point for theleft support hand—so the 5" 1911 flipsmore in recoil.Don’t buy a 1911 because it flips.So, the 1911 is big, it’s heavy, itdoesn’t hold lots of ammo, it is finickyand it must be held properly in orderto access the grip and thumb safeties.If all the above bothers you, I wouldreadily suggest you buy a Glock,Springfield Armory XDM, S&WM&P or something else comparable.Well, there you have it; some of mythoughts on why not to buy a 1911.Now, it’s off to the range I go… toshoot my 1911. Go figure.A pile of Glocks below the lone 1911, which costs just about as much as the whole pile of Glocks.“But I was instantly armed and ready, thanks to my GunVault. The armedintruder was met with a hail of gunfire from my .45 as he kicked in mydoor— preventing him from even getting the chance to fire his ownweapon. I truly believe that no other product would have given me thespeed and confidence to access my handgun and control the situation.Thank you for helping me save the lives of my family.”–J. of San Bernardino, CAGunVault.com

TMM&P Pistols: .45 ACP,.40 S&W, .357 Auto, 9mm3 patented, interchangeable palmswellgrip sizes included (S–M–L) for a perfect fitsmith-wesson.comNASDAQ: SWHCMADE IN THE USA

HANDGUNSapproved for Chicago PD, Los AngelesPD, Los Angeles County Sheriffs,FBI, DEA and many more. LAPDSWAT has used .45 ACP exclusivelyin its sidearms since its inception,and FBI SWAT and Hostage Rescuehave long since standardized on the.45. El Monte, Calif., PD made newswhen they adopted the Colt .45 autoin 1966. Their issue gun today is theSpringfield Armory XD .45. El Montemay have changed guns, but they darnsure kept the .45 ACP for one simplereason: It works.VersatilityIn just commercial JHP loadings,the .45 ACP runs the gamut from165-grain to 230-grain bullet weights.You’ll find soft-loaded 185-grainbullets a favorite in the mandatory.45 stages at the national bull’s-eyechampionships at Camp Perry. Atnearly 1,150 fps, a 185-grain +P JHPwill shoot remarkably flat to 50 andeven 100 yards. 200-grain bullets,the weight John Browning originallyplanned on for the cartridge, remainpopular. In the Speer hollowpointit’s a proven “man-stopper,” and theH&G No. 68 lead semi-wadcutterremains a handloader’s favorite forrecreational shooting.The 230-grain bullet has becomethe traditional weight, and we havehigh-tech hollowpoints in thatconfiguration today, which havebeen known to expand fully to 1" indiameter in flesh (the Federal HSTand the Winchester Ranger-T). Overthe course of a century, even itsroundnose FMJ GI ball 230-grain slughas earned the title “legendary manstopper,”despite the fact it doesn’treach the .45 ACP’s full potential fortissue damage and is prone to overpenetrationand ricochet. There’s evenfactory .45 ACP snakeshot, though itcan’t be trusted to reliably cycle everyslide.The versatility extends to the guns.From the relatively tiny, manuallyThe .45 ACP is remarkably versatile in revolvers,and probably more popular in that format today thanever. This is a S&W Performance Center Model 625.operated Semmerling to longslides,from Remington-pattern derringersto revolvers, and in subcompact andcompact service autos, there’s a .45ACP for every user. The slim 1911will holster comfortably inside thewaistband, and polymer-frame .45sride lightly on the hip. Introducedin 1917, the double-action .45 ACPrevolver is probably more populartoday than ever in the commercialsector, and is always a fun garbagedisposal for loads that turned out tobe too short, light, or blunt to runreliably in an autoloader.So, why is the .45 ACP so popular?Well, it may sound cliché, but what’snot to like?Magnum Research ® & Desert Eagle ® are now part ofthe Kahr Arms ® family!!Thompson® PistolLightweight DeluxeTA5Auto-Ordnance M1 Carbine“Paratrooper Folding Stock Model”AOM150Magnum Research ®Kahr Arms takes pride in itsability to offer customers aselection of unique nichetypefirearms, such as theworld famous “TommyGun” and Auto-Ordnanceline of M1 .30 caliberDesert Eagle ® Mark XIXDE50GOBack byPopularDemand!!Magnum Research ®“Baby” Desert Eagle® IIBE9900carbines. The addition of Magnum Research products to the KahrArms family will provide Kahr Arms and Auto-Ordnance customersanother unique line of firearms to choose from.® ®NEW!!Kahr Arms ®P380 with LCI (Loaded Chamber Indicator)KP38233www.kahr.com | www.tommygun.com | www.auto-ordnance.com | www.magnumresearch.com®CAAPPROVED14WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

www.speer-ammo.comThe evidence is clear. Gold Dot ® passes the most extreme tests. With superb expansion and accuracy, it’sperfect for concealed carry and home protection. This ultra-reliable round is available for both standard andshort-barrel handguns. Speer ® Gold Dot Personal Protection is the top choice when the stakes are high.

• H A M I L T O N S . B O W E N •AccurizingThe Factory Ruger10/22 RifleA little trick does the the trick.ntroduced in 1964, Ruger’s 10/22 autoloading rifle isIone of the most popular members of the rimfire genreever. No greater compliment is paid these well-engineeredguns than the cottage industries that spring up yearlymaking accessories and performance parts. Despite allthe available upgrades-in-a-box, some of us like doing ourown work. The 10/22 is amenable to many simple do-ityourselfmodifications.My sporter model was reasonablyaccurate but not spectacular. Ratherthan purchase a new barrel, I electedto see if improved accuracy wouldbe obtained simply from betterchamber throat specifications andbetter headspacing. Many othershave written well, and in great detail,before about such modifications butthey bear repeating here.Most .22 target arms arechambered with dedicated match-specreamers, with shorter chamber bodyand throat sections than the standard“sporting” chambers. While morefinicky about ammo and function,the match chambers center cartridgesand minimizes bullet jump to therifling, thereby improving relativeaccuracy. My reamer is of the popular“Bentz” pattern and came fromManson Precision Reamers. The bodysection is about .100" shorter than thestandard chambers.The first order of business wasto tear down the gun and removethe barrel. I’ll leave it the readersto study up on this procedure andTypical “before” target on the left and “after” target on the right. A reduction from 1-1/2" to 1"groups is a considerable improvement of accuracy for just a little easy work.Simply improving chamber specs in a .22 LR canyield improved accuracy.will recommend the J.B. Woodsdisassembly guides. On the 10/22, theunthreaded barrel is retained in thereceiver by a simple dovetail-clamparrangement and comes right off.The machine work for this projectis very simple and, if you do nothave a lathe, any friendly machineshop could do the work in just a fewminutes. Everything else is easilydone by hand. All you have to do isface back the barrel shoulder at thereceiver shank and shorten the breechface the corresponding amount. .070"to .080" is about as much as youcan remove without adding a shimto the dovetail-clamping surfaces.In hopes of maximizing benefits ofthe improved match-grade throat, Iremoved around .150" and made asimple shim to take up the slack.Finishing the chamber can be doneby hand if you are careful, since littlematerial is coming out. Cut slowlywithout lateral pressure and be sure toclear the chips every few thousandths.Whatever you do, do not run thereamer backwards or else you willsurely damage it. Just black the breechface of the barrel with magic markerto indicate the stopping point. Lightlychamfer the mouth with a scraper or60-degree piloted chamfering tool justenough to dull the sharp edge thatwill grab and shave cartridges. Evena Dremel tool carefully handled willsuffice. You will have to re-cut theextractor groove but this is easy to dowith a small square needle or pillarfile. Just grind two opposite edgessmooth to make the edges “safe” sothey won’t widen the slot. Be sure toleave a small margin between the slot16WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

GUNSMITHINGand chamber mouth. It’s a good ideato give the slot and chamber mouth agood hard look before diving in.HeadspaceThe bolt controls headspace in the10/22. The main bolt face should bearevenly on the breech end of the barrel.Headspace is then measured fromthe bolt face, down to the cartridgerecess. SAAMI minimum is .043". Mybolt headspace was about .050" so Ielected to remove .007" from the boltface. In the interests of expedition, Iused a belt grinder and machinist’ssquare. The bolt must be stripped forthis procedure. Incidentally, the barrelbreechface on my gun appears to beinduction hardened to prevent boltpeening, but I imagine it will takea lot of shooting for the softer newface to ever batter, especially with thesmoother bolt face.The factory extractor worked fineafter the chamber work but, in theinterests of reliable extraction withthe tighter chamber mouth, a betterextractor—such as those from PowerCustom—is a good idea.BeddingIn my experience with sporterweightrifles and barrels, a fore-end-tipbedding point with moderate pressureTwo simple cuts on the lathe (above) are allthat is need to set back the barrel on a Ruger10/22. To apply a small fore-end bedding point,just mask off the area with masking tape(below) and remember to use release agent onthe barrel.seems to help accuracy in most guns.I simply routed a small trough at thebottom and sides of the fore-endand applied some Brownells AcraGel. Shimming the barrel forward ofthe bedding point with four layersof business cards while the beddingC M Y CM MY CY CMY Kcompound set up gave moderatepressure with the action screw fullytightened.Was it worth it? I have usedWinchester Hi-Speed .22 LR ammoforever since it seems to shoot prettywell in a wide variety of .22s. Someshooters will try every brand of ammoknown to human kind to shave that last1/16" off group size, but that requiresenormous time and patience I don’thave. Before and after groups showedappreciable improvements, going froman average of 1-1/2" down to less than1". You could spend some real timeand treasure to beat that.Brownells200 S. Front St.Montezuma, IA 50171(800) 741-0015www.gunsmagazine.com/brownellsManson Precision Reamers8200 Embury Rd.Grand Blanc, MI 48439(810) 953-0732www.gunsmagazine.com/mansonreamersSturm, Ruger & Co.411 Sunapee St.Newport, NH 03773(603) 865-2442www.gunsmagazine.com/rugerLearn onSmartReloader-USA.com how theSmartReloader UltrasonicCleaners work and the bestCleaning Solutions you can use!SR4235The Ultrasonic Cleaner SR4235 is excellent for cleaning brass cases orsmall gun parts. It cleans better and faster than any tumbler in the market!You will have the outside and inside of the brass, including the primer pocketperfectly cleaned really fast. It fits about 200 .223R cases or 100 .308W.Capacity: 1.5Qt. - MSRP $153.95SR4270The Ultrasonic Cleaner SR4270 has a bigger capacity and works great forlarger quantities of cases or for large gun parts such as 1911 slides andframes. The ultrasonic cleaning action removes carbon residues from casesor gun parts. It fits about 360 .223R. cases or 180 .308W. cases.Capacity. 2.6Qt. - MSRP $224.95www.SmartReloader-USA.comContact UsLearn Where to BuyRequest a Free Catalogue

• J O H N B A R S N E S S •Rifle Cartridges InHandgunsWhy they perform so wellmay surprise you.friend has a favorite question he occasionally springsA on unsuspecting shooters: “What cartridge do modernhunters considered short-ranged and inadequate in a rifle,but flat-shooting and powerful in a handgun?” The answer,of course, is the .30-30 Winchester.In the early days of the metalliccartridge many cartridges were usedin both rifles and handguns, becausemost early cartridges were rimfires.Rimfires must use thin brass in orderfor the priming compound to go off; thereason they’re relatively low-poweredand short. Soon, however, centerfirepriming allowed the use of stoutercases, allowing higher pressures, andrifle and handgun cartridges soonevolved along very different paths.Due to the endlessly fickle andwondering nature of humanity,however, many shooters still like toshoot rifle cartridges in handguns.Some strange contraptions have beendeveloped for the purpose, includinghuge revolvers chambered for the.45-70; but these days most handgunschambered for rifle rounds are longbarreledsingle-shots, either boltactionor break-action.That same friend calls suchfirearms “hand carbines,” but they’re alot of fun to shoot. They’re typicallyvery accurate, partly because they’renormally equipped with scopes andpartly because shorter barrels arestiffer barrels. I once spent a dayshooting prairie dogs with my friendRod Herrett, the handgun stockmakerfrom Idaho. We used a pair of Rod’sbolt-action handguns in .223 and .22-250 Remington, and when shootingover a rest (as most prairie dog shootersdo) we hit prairie dogs consistently outto 300 or 400 yards. Rod killed one ataround 600 yards. Most rifle shootersdon’t do any better.The Thompson/Center Contenderhas probably done more for thesport of shooting rifle rounds inhandguns than any other firearm. TheHandguns chambered forrifle cartridges are funto shoot, though theyoften require differentshooting techniques thanconventional handguns..30-30 TrajectoryCOMPARISON,Rifle vs. Handgun170-grain roundnose,2,100 fps (rifle)100 yards 0200 yards -9.4"300 yards -33.6"125-grain spitzer,2,300 fps (handgun)100 yards 0200 yards -6.5"300 yards -23.2"Contender’s interchangeable barrelsmake experimentation easy, and allowthe same action to be used as both a“real” carbine and a handgun. Thisversatility tempts many shooters whowouldn’t otherwise be interested intotrying a rifle-cartridge handgun andhandloading for their new toy.Peak PressureThe biggest misconception of newhand-carbine handloaders is thatshorter barrels require faster powders.This is due to the common myth thatsmokeless powder continues to burn allthe way out the muzzle of even longbarreledrifles. Instead, smokeless onlycontinues to burn a short distance pastpeak pressure, and the peak occurs ashort distance in front of the chamber.The muzzle flash we see in dim lightisn’t caused by still-burning powder(another common myth), but by hotpowder gases reigniting when theyhit the oxygen-rich atmosphere. Thisdoesn’t mean that unburned powderdoesn’t get blown out the muzzle,but it’s no longer burning. Due to theextreme drop in pressure after the peak,the powder gas is no longer hot enoughto ignite any unburned powder kernels.(Remember freshman chemistry? Inthermodynamics, pressure and heatdirectly affect each other.) In fact, ifthe cartridge develops the pressure thepowder was designed for, 99 percent ofthe powder is consumed not far afterthe pressure peak.The powder gases in any centerfirerifle round keep expanding throughoutthe barrel, even after all the powderthat’s going to burn has burned.This is why longer barrels produce18WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

PPQTMder protectionCaliber: 9mm or .40 S&WTHENEWPPQPERFORMANCE. PROTECTION. QUALITY.Cutting-edge German engineering ensures PPQ performance lives up toits looks. Featuring one of the best trigger systems on the market, PPQintroduces the new Walther Quick Defense Trigger . Its short travel, lightpull and quick audible reset puts a fast, more confident response firmlyin the palm of your hand.WALTHERAMERICA.COMA Walther and Smith & Wesson Strategic Alliance

A scoped .30-30 handgunoften shoots just as well asa scoped .30-30 rifle.HANDLOADINGmore muzzle velocity. However, thesame powders that produce the mostvelocity in rifle-length barrels alsoproduce the most velocity in typicalhand-carbine barrels of 10" to 14"in length, because pressure remainshigher throughout the bullet’s tripdown the bore than with fasterburningpowders.Time To RethinkMany shooters will doubt this,because we’ve been told the oppositefor many decades, mostly by gunwriters who didn’t know what theywere talking about, or maybe ourUncle Ernest. Ample proof, however,exists in loading manuals. Let’s takea look at the .30-30 data from NoslerReloading Guide 6. The rifle data wasshot in a 20" test barrel, the commonlength of lever-action carbines. Thetop velocity listed for the 170-grainPartition is 2,192 fps, attained with33 grains of IMR4320, a very slowburningpowder in the .30-30.When we check out the .30-30handgun data, taken in a 14" barrel,the highest velocity is 1,988 fps, alsoattained with 33 grains of IMR4320.The list of powders is the same, andwhile some change position slightly inthe velocity ranking, the overall resultsare pretty much identical—except fora velocity loss of 100 or 200 fps. Whilethe faster-burning powders don’t loseas much velocity, the highest handgunvelocity is still attained with the samepowder as in the rifle barrel.The Nosler manual lists eightcartridges in both the rifle andhandgun section: .22 Hornet, .221Fireball, .223 Remington, .22 BRRemington, 6mm BR Remington,7mm-08 Remington, .308 Winchesterand .44 Magnum. Most of the time,the same powder that produces thehighest velocity in the rifle barrel isalso the fastest in the handgun barrel.(A small sample of the Nosler data isincluded in a table here.)The few exceptions are when thefastest rifle load comes in a very slightsecond or third in the handgun barrel.With 40-grain bullets, for instance,AA2230 is the fastest powder in the.22 BR in the rifle barrel, but loses outby 19 fps to Reloder 7 in the handgunbarrel. In the two “high-pressure”rifle rounds, the 7mm-08 and .308, thefastest rifle powders sometimes weren’ttested in the handgun barrels. In the7mm-08 rifle barrel, Ramshot Hunterproduced the highest velocities with150-grain bullets, but isn’t listed in thehandgun data—where the 150-grainwinner is Reloder 19, a powder witha burning rate almost identical toHunter’s.Nosler also lists the most accuratepowder tested with each bullet weight.This is often the same in both rifleand handgun barrels, but not always.This only proves that all barrels areindividuals.Caliber ChoiceSome far-gone handgun shootersuse very large rifle rounds, but mostof us can’t take that much recoil. Thisis why the .30-30 and similar roundsare the most popular for hunting deerand similar game with hand carbines.In fact, one cartridge that started offas an improvement of the .30-30, the7x30 Waters, now survives primarilyas a handgun round. (Its “oppositeequivalent” might be the .221 Fireball,originally a handgun round, but nowfar more often chambered in rifles.)20WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

HANDLOADINGHandloaded Ammo Performance .30-30 Winchester,Thompson/Center Contender 14" barrelBullet Powder Charge Velocity Group Size(brand, bullet weight, type) (brand) (grains weight) (fps) (inches)Nosler 125 Ballistic Tip H4895 36.0 2,351 1.29Hornady 130 Spire Point Reloder 7 31.0 2,312 1.83Federal 150 roundnose (factory ammo) N/A N/A 2,080 2.56Rifle/handgun data, Nosler Reloading Guide 6Cartridge & Bullet fAStest Rifle Load fAStest Handgun Load(type, grains weight) (powder/charge) (velocity FPS) (powder/charge) (velocity FPS).22 Hornet 40 13.0 Li’l Gun 2,979 13.0 Li’l Gun 2,779.221 Fireball 40 18.0 IMR4198 3,259 18.0 IMR4198 2,992.223 Rem 55 25.0 Benchmark 3,302 25.0 Benchmark 2,9966mm BR Rem 70 34.0 Varget 3,450 34.0 Varget 3,1397mm-08 Rem 150 49.5 Hunter 2,869 48.8 Reloder 19 2,482(Hunter not tested in handgun)The velocity loss in handgunbarrels is normally compensated forby using lighter bullets. In the .30-30,for instance, 125- or 130-grain bulletsare most popular among deer hunters,rather than the 150- or 170-grainbullets favored by rifle hunters. In asingle-shot handgun there’s also noproblem with using spitzers ratherthan roundnosed bullets. A 125-grainspitzer started at 2,300 fps in a 14"handgun barrel shoots a lot flatterthan a 170-grain roundnose at 2,100fps from a rifle barrel.Controlled-expansion bulletsaren’t commonly used for deerhunting in rifle-round handguns,mostly because they aren’t needed atthe modest muzzle velocities possible.Instead easy-opening bullets, suchas Nosler Ballistic Tips, are favoredin order to insure expansion at thelowest velocity possible. Noslersuggests that Ballistic Tips willopen reliably down to 1,600 fps, so a125-grain bullet started at 2,300 fpsfrom a 14" .30-30 barrel will still betraveling fast enough to expand at300 yards. Along with a much flattertrajectory, this is why many peopleregard the .30-30 as a better deercartridge from a handgun!Herrett Stocks, Inc.P.O. Box 741169 Madrona St., Twin Falls, ID 83303-0741(208) 733-1498www.gunsmagazine.com/herrettsstocksNosler, Inc.P.O. Box 671, Bend, OR 97709(800) 285-3701www.gunsmagazine.com/noslerThompson/CenterP.O. Box 5002, Rochester, NH 03866(603) 332-2394www.gunsmagazine.com/thompsoncenterREAR SIGHT LASER WITH ELECTRONIC NIGHT SIGHTThe RSL delivers a high-precision laser withall the benefits of a Tritium night sight.So you’re guaranteed to be on target 24/7.Now available for more than 12 models.LaserLyte.comWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 21

• MIKE “DUKE” VENTURINO • PHOTOS: YVONNE VENTURINO •“That’s AnAwesome Wife!”And she is.bout midway through 2010, I was working away atAthis word processor when Yvonne came into myoffice. Without preamble she said, “If I cash in some ofmy stocks would you invest the money in more machineguns?” Yvonne remembers my response as an excited“You bet!” I remember it being more sedate like, “Well, ifthat’s what you really want to do I could probably help youfind some good collectible ones.”Yvonne and I are not rich, but backin the 1990s she inherited a modestamount of stocks from the estate ofa great aunt. A couple of years agowhen the stock market did its big flipflop,her portfolio (I’m not even sureexactly what that is) lost about half itsvalue. When it climbed back to whereit had been, she surprised me with theabove question. Her idea was to investin something a bit more tangible thanstocks.With an offer like that on the tableI did not waste time! Internet websiteswith ads for full-autos were browsedintently. To me “collectible” meanshistorical: not Uzis, ARs, AKs, HKs,etc. Those things might be interestingto some folks, but my current focus ison building a collection of World WarII firearms. Once I hit the website ofOhio Ordnance Works the search wasover. In their “Curio and Relics” sectionwas listed one of the very famous7.92mm Kurz caliber German MP44salso know as the “Sturmgewehr.”That’s not all: OOW also had in stocka Lewis Machine Gun. But this wasn’tjust any Lewis Gun. It was a Japaneseone in 7.7x56mm Rimmed caliber.How an American designed machinegun, licensed for manufacture to theBritish, came to be built in Japanesenaval arsenals is interesting. I’ll bewriting about both of these guns in thefuture.While making arrangements with afellow there at OOW I mentioned thatit was actually my wife buying thesemachine guns for me. He paused for asecond and then exclaimed, “Oh, that’san awesome wife!” Indeed she is.My luck at games of chance is nilbut that’s OK because I gladly willtrade an entire lifetime of gamblingluck in exchange for finding my wife.About the time this is printed we’llhave been married 33 years. We met in1977 while both of us were working inYellowstone National Park. Yvonnewas raised on a farm in Missouri andI hailed from a small town in the coalYvonne boughther own Bobcat.Here, she and herstepfather FrankEggers are buildinga fence with its postpounder mounted.Duke says that while Yvonne may not bean “avid” shooter, she does have her ownassortment of firearms. This Glock 23 .40 S&Wis one of them.mining area of southern West Virginia.Despite our disparate backgrounds,from day one it seemed like ourrelationship was perfectly natural.A StartAt the time of our meeting, I hadhad published a half dozen articlesin various gun magazines but hadn’ttouched a typewriter in four years. Witha wife to support I had to get seriousabout a career. The very first month wewere married in 1978 I got out the oldportable typewriter and started again.Yvonne was 100-percent supportiveof my dream of writing about guns.Her folks never commented on that,but they probably considered the ideaabout as goofy as my own folks did.Consider it this way: their wonderfulyoung daughter was going to live inMontana and marry this fellow whoseworldly possessions consisted of apick-up truck, his clothing, a few gunsand a dog.Times were lean for us in the earlyyears. To keep us fed, clothed andthe bills paid I worked seasonallyon a National Park Service roadmaintenance crew there in Yellowstone.Evenings and weekends I worked onproducing articles. Yvonne picked upwhatever work was available in ourlittle Montana town of about 800people. She never once complained thatI wasn’t bringing in enough money.Eventually my career grew to afull time occupation and we wereable to move to our present homewith enough acreage to have my ownprivate shooting ranges. Yvonne’s loveof animals evolved into a part timejob at the Stafford Animal Shelter inLivingston where she works on specialprojects and does all their photography.22WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

MONTANA MUSINGSYvonne isn’t in the least intimidated byfirearms. When a friend showed up at Duke’splace to shoot his WWII MG 42 machine gun,Yvonne jumped right in for her turn.At the time of this writing we arefoster-home to three litters of kittens,an adult female cat recovering froma leg amputation and of all things aburro. That’s all in addition to our ownvast array of cats, dogs and horses.Back in the 1990s, Yvonne had meteach her basic camera operation anddark room procedures so she coulddo black & white animal photos forthe local animal shelter’s newspaperads. She developed such a talent forphotography that soon I was beggingher to do my mine also. Many readershave sent messages saying howmuch they appreciate her firearmsphotos. (Some with postscripts sayingsomething like, “Tell Duke, his articlewas OK, too.”While I wouldn’t call Yvonne an avidshooter, she has her own small array ofguns and has attended several ThunderRanch classes. Last spring when afriend brought his German MG42machine gun over, Yvonne jumpedright in to give it a try. Although shehas never wanted to pull the triggeron an animal, she often hunted withme. On our trip to Africa in 1985, shefollowed in my footsteps every day ofthe hunt.My lady is multi-talented. Thoseinclude things such as horse handlingto sewing ball gowns. She made the suitClint Smith wore when he and Heidiwere married and she has made severalof the outfits Hank William Jr. used onstage.Recently a friend pulled up thedriveway and commented, “I see youbought a Bobcat.” He meant not thecritter, but one of those skid-sliderpieces of machinery. I said, “No.Yvonne bought that for herself. I don’teven know how to start it.”When I told Clint Smith about theOOW fellow saying I had an awesomewife he said. “That’s nothing new. Wealready knew that!”Ohio Ordnance WorksP.O. Box 687, 310 Park Dr.Chardon, OH 44024(440) 285-3481www.gunsmagazine.com/ohioordnanceworksGUNS MAGAZINE ONLINE!www.gunsmagazine.comWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 23

• J A C O B G O T T F R E D S O N •The Camera SightAn innovative use ofthe simple camcorder.have never had an original thought in my life. And if I did,I I wouldn’t know what to do with it. That is not a problemfor Chris Self of Selma, Ala. He is not only an innovator, hehas the ability to make his ideas reality.Some months ago I reported on aVariable Gantry Mount (VGM) builtby Chris Self. Instead of using clickson the riflescope or hashmarks forholdover, the base mount has a smallhandle that moves from one positionto another. The positions are alignedby screws along the mount to whichthe small handle is moved. For a biggamerifle with a long-range, flatshootingcartridge, you might have10 positions, each sighted in at 100-yard increments out to 1,000 yards.Sliding the handle to the 10th positiontakes only a fraction of a second,and it doesn’t wear out the scope’sinternals. It works! While that is onlyan example of the mount’s many uses,Chris has had great success with iton shooter’s competitive guns, highpoweredpistols, thunderboomingrifles, you name it.Failing EyesAs it turns out, Mickey Coleman,a benchrest shooter, machinist andrifle builder, whose eyesight is failing,is a friend of Chris’. Another ofChris’ friends has developed maculardegeneration, restricting his visionto just a few inches. Chris Self is anidea man and an innovative inventor.Give him a problem and he will notonly solve it, but build it. His friendsChris Self of Selma Alabama is the inventor of the Variable Gantry Mount (the black base mount onthe Picatinny rail). In the rear of the mount is a small, knurled screw. That screw is loosened andthen moved to the positions shown as white dots, representing 100 yards, 200 yards or any otheryardage you set it up for. To this, Chris machined a mount (shown still in the white) to which theSony Handicam is mounted. The screw on top of the mount is loosened and the screw on the sideused to adjust windage. Chris is working on a better system, but this one proved his concept.Although this model is no longer available, thenew little cameras are even more sophisticatedand retail starts at around $329. A smallmemory disk is mounted on the right side nearthe bottom. The camera will take single photosor movies of the animal, the shot or whateveryou might want to record.having problems seeing got Chris’brain churning on their plight.Chris and Mickey found a small,inexpensive video camera and set towork. They located the image centerof the camera’s lens and then markedthe spot on the screen with a smalltriangular piece of electrical tape.They worked out the details ofthe camera and mount for a test run.They discovered some interestingthings along the way. The camera canbe used to shoot around corners, aswell as some fun shooting over theirshoulder, the target being behindthem. The possibilities seem endlessand an inexpensive way for somepeople to resume hunting or simply tohave loads of fun.The prototype that Chris sent meuses Chris’ VGM mount. He builta camera mount to fit on top ofthe VGM to hold the camera andthat allows windage for sighting in.That gave him an expedient way toaccomplish his test run. He is currentlyworking on another mounting system.On A .308Chris and Mickey had been usingthe camera and mount on a .22 rifleand were astonished at the variety ofthings it would do. I wanted to see theeffects of mounting it on somethinglarger and chose one of my .308tactical rifles. Mounting the VGM onthe Picatinny rail of the Nesika actiontook only seconds. I gathered up someBlack Hills 175-grain match roundsand drove to the range. I stapleda 6" diameter bull on the backer,24WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

OPTICSwondering as I did so if it would bedifficult to sight the camera in. Thesmall Sony Handicam is turned on byopening the screen. At lower powers,I could easily see where the camerawas pointing, and I found the targetimmediately. The little camera has a60X optical zoom. At that power, thetarget was very defined.I removed the bolt and, lookingthough the barrel, found that when thetriangular tape Chris had placed onthe screen was on the target, the barrelwas pointing about a foot to the left.Chris had provided windage screwson the mount, using them movedthe camera to center over the rifle’sbore. Chris’ gantry mount provideselevation and both the camera andthe bore were now on the target. Thefirst 3-shot group was about 3/4"and low on the bull in the 5 o’clockposition. That thoroughly amazedme. The rifle shoots BH 175-grainmatch rounds a little better than that,but even so that is with a high-powerscope, a very fine crosshair and usinga normal shooting technique. In thiscase I was using the top of Chris’ littlepiece of tape and my head above therifle, looking at the screen!I readjusted the camera and shotanother 3/4" group, this time a bit abovethe bull’s center. One more adjustmentShown above is the top of the triangular tapecentered on a red dot Jacob painted on a LaRuesteel target placed at 200 yards. The silhouette is12" wide and 24" tall. The camera is still on 60X.A hunter could have the power lower, scanningfor deer, then zoom to 60X for the shot—just oneexample of many uses. This is a 6" diameter bull(below) with a 1/2" red dot in the center at 100yards. The camera is on 60X. Chris had placed asmall, triangular piece of electrical tape at thelens’ center. Jacob put the triangle’s apex in thecenter of the small red dot and began firing.and the next round centered the bull.I sat there looking at the camera, thebullet hole in the bull’s center andthought about the possibilities ofthis system. The first, of course, washow this simple, inexpensive sightingsystem would allow many who havegiven up hunting because of failingeyesight, to once again put meat onthe table with assurance.Only your imagination wouldrestrict its use. The camera’s screencan be maneuvered 360 degrees. Thinkabout the soldier wanting to keep hisbody behind a bunker out of direct firebut continue to place accurate roundsdownrange. He could lay the weaponon the wall, tip the screen, and placethe crosshair on the target and fire.He could, as well, fire around cornerswithout exposing himself. He couldhave fun shooting steel plates over hisshoulder, facing away from them—hecould just have a lot of plain old fun.I moved the rifle and camera systemto longer ranges and found I had noproblem clearly seeing targets. Withthe Variable Gantry Mount, it wouldonly be a matter of moving the littlehandle forward to each pre-sighted-inposition and voilà!Chris thinks of his prototypeas conceptual. He is working onproviding a better aiming point,ALL NFA RULES APPLYMENTION THIS CODEAMF2011 AND GET 5%OFF YOUR NEXT ORDERweapon AccessoriesALL CAA ARE NOW AVAILABLEAlways know how manyrounds remain!Mention GFMG2011and receive 5% offyour next order.Fits: Glock 17,18,19, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 31, 32,34 & 35. Models coming in Fits: 30 days: Glock 17,18,19, Beretta 22, 23, 25,26, 27, 31, 32, 34 & 35. ModelsPX4 Storm, Springfield XD, coming Beretta in 30 M9, days: Sig Beretta PX4Storm, Springfield XD, BerettaSauer 226 & 2022, Bersa 9mm. M9, Sig Models Sauer 226 coming & 2022,soon include: Jericho, Glock Bersa 21, 9mm. Beretta Models 92, comingsoon include: Jericho, GlockH&K USP, S&W M&P, FN 5-7 21, Beretta and more! 92, H&K USP, S&WM&P, FN 5-7 and more.ALL NFA RULES APPLYInstalls in 6 Seconds!acpAdaptable cheekpiece.30-21Rounds20-11Rounds10-0RoundsHigh impact polymer 30 round.223 magazine.upg47Flashlight Grip Adaptor.CBSCollapsible Buttstock with Adjustable CheekpiecelasRed DotLaserfgaFlashlight Grip AdaptorUFH5 Position Light & LaserMAGAZINE WELL GRIPSSee our complete product line & product videos atWww.ematactical.com • 215.949.9944 Www.COMMANDARMS.com • 267.803.1518MGRIPRail mounted curved gripItem#: MGRIPMGRIP1Rail mounted finger grooves,battery storage, pressureswitch mount, Item#: MGRIP1MGRIP2No rail required, pressuremount switch, Item#:MGRIP2Www.COMMANDARMS.com • 1.866.611.9576 Www.ematactical.com • 215.949.9944WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 25

OPTICSJacob mounted Chris’ camera sight on a .308tactical rifle. Group No. 1 formed at about 5o’clock on the black ring. He adjusted thewindage and elevation and shot group No. 2,which formed 1-1/2" above the red dot. Aftera third adjustment, shot No. 3 was in the reddot. This may allow a hunter who is going blindto continue hunting at a very affordable price.The possibilities are almost endless.––––––ALL BULLETSOur family is convinced that once you try our ammo, you won’t go back ARE NOTCREATEDto your old brand. Give ours a try, we’ve got your back! COR®BON is EQUALan American family owned and operated company, since 1982.––––––corbon.com 800.626.7266crosshair or something similar. He isthinking about hooking the system toa PC to which an integrated ballisticsprogram could be used, and he istinkering with a more useful mountingsystem. Knowing Chris, I am sure hewill come up with all three.Chris and Mickey are trying tolocate camera makers that mightbe able to incorporate a crosshair.The concept works very well, andthe assumption is, the system will berelatively inexpensive and suited forsporting rifles.Chris has already made a few ofthese units available to sight-impairedindividuals and a group that sponsorshunting for the handicapped.The unit will allow people torecord their hunts, shots, whatever ortake single pictures of them. Manycameras incorporate NVDs. Imagestabilization might prove helpful.What are the effects of the camera onmirage? The concept brings up myriadquestions and possible answers.While such systems have beenintroduced to the military and others,they are often priced above theaverage person’s income. What Chrisand Mickey envision will be bothaffordable and useful. Chris says hewill respond to the public to producethe mounts if there is a need. Givehim a call or e-mail him through thewebsite. I am willing to bet you will beas captivated by the usefulness of thesystem as I am.Chris SelfMiracle Machine Works285 County Rd. 418Selma, AL 36701(334) 872-0121www.gunsmagazine.com/miraclemachineworks26 WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

• D A V E A N D E R S O N •Classic Rifles &CartridgesSome cartridges justbelong in certain rifles.’m more a rifle guy than a cartridge guy. Debates overI hair-splitting differences between cartridges I findtedious. I’m more interested in rifle/cartridge combinations(which I’ll admit is another form of hair-splitting).The Winchester 94 rifle and .30-30 cartridge go together. So do the1903 Mannlicher-Schoenauer and the6.5x54 cartridge. On the other hand,pre-’64 Winchester Model 70s in .35Remington are valuablecollector’s items today.They’re valuable becausethey are scarce, and they arescarce because together, theymade a stupid combinationno one wanted.The .35 Rem is a splendidshort-range huntingcartridge in a light, fasthandlingMarlin lever orRemington pump-actionrifle. In a long, heavy boltactionrifle it makes nosense whatsoever. I suspectthe recent Winchester 95reproductions in .270 Winwill be valuable collector’sitems someday. Here are afew combinations, whichjust seem right to me:Savage 99/.300 SavageFor at least 40 yearsthe 99/.300 combo wastremendously popular,providing adequate power,moderate recoil and smoothoperation.Winchester 88/.284 WinThe .284 was specificallydesigned to give the mostcase capacity available in theModel 88 (and semi-autoModel 100) Winchesterrifles.Of the post-’64 rifles withbasketweave checkering,32,405 were made in .284;35,733 were made in .308The Winchester 88 inany of its four calibersis a classy rifle butDave has always feltthe .284 cartridge isa perfect match for it.The scope is a Bushnell3-9X. The trigger movedwith the lever makingit impossible to pinchyour trigger finger—orto get a really goodtrigger pull.and the same number in .243. Thecartridge didn’t really fail, lever-actionrifles for modern cartridges failed ashunters decisively switched to boltactions.Winchester 70Featherweight/.270 WinFrom the pre-’64 modelsthrough the push feeds,Classics and the currentmodels made by FN; theModel 70 Featherweightshave been outstanding rifles,with excellent handlingand handsome appearance.The .270 seems right withthis rifle. Actually, I lovemy Featherweight .30-06sabout as much.Remington 700 MountainRifle/.280 RemMy Mountain Rifle isan early model with hingedfloorplate and, to me, is thebest of the many variationson this illustrious rifle.Certainly it would be just asgood in .270 or .30-06 butthe Remington cartridgein the Remington rifle justseems right.Ed Brown Damara/7mm-08I was surprised whenEd Brown suspended(temporarily, I hope) rifleproduction to focus on the1911 line. The Damara islight, compact, perfectlybalanced, accurate andreliable and is an ideal matchfor the 7mm-08 cartridge.Ruger Carbine/.44 MagnumThe .44 Carbine was andis ideal for whitetail deerThe 7mm-08 is a most excellent cartridge.Dave never found a better rifle for it than thisEd Brown Damara with Leupold 2.5-8X scope.Ideally balanced, light and accurate, it ismighty close to perfect.in heavy cover, where shots comesuddenly at relatively close range,either while still-hunting or on drives.It is light, short, easy to carry andadequately powerful at moderateranges.Today it seems everyone huntswhitetails by sitting in tree stands.Still-hunting is becoming a lost art.For its intended purpose nothing beatsthe .44 Ruger, but not enough hunterstoday want or need its capabilities.Sako Vixen/.222 RemThe .222 Rem is a truly classiccartridge and was wildly successfulfor at least 25 years after its 1950introduction. The Sako L461 actionis just right for the .222 cartridge,and Vixens, with the light sporterbarrel are ideal for a walking-aroundvarmint rifle.Browning BLR/.358 WinIt can be argued that with modernbullets (Barnes TSX, for example)in .308 Win we don’t really need the.358. Maybe so, but a heavier bulletat moderate velocity worked 50 yearsago and still does today.Currently, the Browning BLR isthe only lever-action still available in.358, and a very fine rifle it is. I coulddo with a more subdued stock finishbut these are well-made, reliable andgood-looking rifles.Weatherby Vanguard/.300 WeatherbyThe Vanguard today is an amazingvalue. How a rifle of this quality canbe sold at prices currently advertised28WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

RIFLEMANKWIK-SITEhas taken Weaver®style rings to new heightsand new lengthsOur Caps Will NOTScratch Your Scope Or RustA few of Dave’s favorite combinations include (from left) Savage 99/.300 Savage, Winchester88/.284 (Redfield 6X), Ruger .44 (Kollmorgen 2.5X), pre-’64 Winchester 70/.270 (B&L Balvar 2.5-8X),Ed Brown Damara (Leupold 2.5-8X), Sako Vixen (Leupold 4.5-14X), Browning BLR .358 (Weaver 3-9X),CZ-550 FS 9.3x62 (Pentax 2-7X), Ruger 77 Hawkeye Compact Magnum .300 RCM (Leupold 3-9X).Dave’s Remington 700 Mountain Rifle in .280 Rem (Swarovski A-line 3-9X scope) is as nice a muledeer rifle as you can find. He shot this buck at a measured 269 yards, one shot with a 140-grainBarnes XLC. Including antlerless deer, Dave has shot maybe 25 deer with this rifle including four orfive bucks around this size. Darned if it doesn’t kill whitetails, too.is beyond me. I’ve always felt itsweight is just right for the .30 magnumcartridges.While smaller-case .30 magnumshuff and puff to shoot 180-grainbullets at 3,100 fps, the Weatherby.300 is just coasting, with another 150fps or so available if you want it.Ruger Hawkeye CompactMagnum/.300 RCMThis one is a gem. The rifles are,in my view, the best-handling factoryrifles currently available, ideallybalanced, light but not too light, shortbut not too short and attractive toboot.The .300 RCM is ideal in this rifle.I see it criticized as being “only a bitmore powerful than the .30-06.” Soit is, which is exactly what I want.With Hornady ammunition it givesaround 2,900 fps with 180-grainbullets and 3,050 fps with 165-grainbullets. Using Alliant RL-17 powder Ican approximate these velocities withhandloads. And this in a 20" barrel,with moderate recoil.Friends, I don’t often nag but thiscombo is truly exceptional and onewhich really needs to be recognized.At least pick one up from the shelf atyour gunshop and see how nicely ithandles.Kimber Montana/.308 WinThe .308 Win has been chamberedin such a wide range of rifles it ispresumptuous to say it’s “best” in anyone model. But as a hunting rifle, theKimber Montana just may be the one.Weighing just over 5 pounds out of thebox, with scope, mounts, cartridgesand sling, the weight will still be in the6- to 6-1/2-pound range.In any of its cartridges, theMontana is a great rifle. For allaroundbig-game hunting, the .308Montana gives the most power in thehandiest package.CZ 550FS/9.3x62The CZ rifle with full-length stockis a handsome rifle and really needsa European cartridge to go with itsEuropean styling. The ancient, timeproven9.3x62 (similar in ballistics tothe American .35 Whelen) fills the billadmirably.Leading U.S. Manufacturerof Scope Mounts Since 1967WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 29

• H O L T B O D I N S O N •Buck & BallThe historical load goes mainstream.ombining buckshot and a bore-sized ball in a singleCcharge is a historical and very effective answer toimproving the lethality of the smoothbore in combat. It wasa common load during the Revolutionary War and was thestandard musket load during the War of 1812. Accordingto Dean Thomas’ 4-part opus, Round Ball to Rimfire—AHistory of Civil War Small Arms Ammunition, 69-, 71-, 72-,73- and 75-caliber buck & ball loads were widely loadedand supplied to both sides of the struggle.One unit, the 12th New JerseyInfantry, was so effective with theirsmoothbore .69 Springfield muskets soloaded, that they became known as the“Buck & Ball Regiment.” The typical69-caliber, paper-wrapped musketcartridge of the day contained threebuckshot over a single roundball andwas not a load you wanted to be facingif within 200 yards of the shooter.Well, thanks to WinchesterAmmunition, which must behome to some historically mindedballisticians, the famous buck &ball load, is just beginning to makea modern comeback. I suspect thisreintroduction won’t be the end of thebuck & ball saga in our time. It’s justtoo good of a load not to attract someHolt used hissmoothbore CIA Ultra87 for his tests of thenew Winchester PDX-1Buck & Ball 12-gaugeload because it hadproven accurate withconventional slugloads as shown here.competitors’ attention.Under the Winchester SupremeElite PDX1 label, Winchester hasunveiled two very different approachesto the buck & ball load with two distinctend users in mind. The 12-gauge loadis a universal load for all of us who liketo have a 12 gauge handy at home orin the car just in case. The other loadis a 2-1/2" .410, designed specificallyto maximize the effectiveness of theTaurus Judge series of handguns andthe new Circuit Judge (see the featurein this issue) revolving carbines,although the load is equally useful andeffective in any .410.Winchester’s Supreme Elite PDX1loading for the 2-3/4" 12 gauge iscomposed of three, copper-plated 00Winchester’s box art is not only graphic, but isaccurate too.buckshot layered in Grex bufferingmedia over a 1-ounce Foster-type,Power Point slug—a real hammerload, clocking 1,150 fps.Hmm, three .33" buckshotsarranged in a triangle over a .73" slug,sounds just like a Revolutionary Warloading for the Brown Bess or any ofthe large-caliber buck & ball cartridgessupplied during the American CivilWar. Who was it that said “There isnothing new under the sun”? We aretruly reliving ballistic history.Something should be said about thewad column in the 12-gauge PDX1loading because when shooting theload on paper at close range, the wadsbecome secondary missiles and targetlooks like it was hit with two or threeslugs. There is a 1/4" hard-plastic overpowderwad, followed by a 5/16" fibercushionwad, followed by a hard 3/16"card wad—three wads, three secondarymissiles, which the perp unfortunatelywon’t have the time to feel.Odd ShapeWinchester’s PDX1 personaldefenseloading for the .410, andparticularly for the “Judge” series ofrevolvers, is a bit different when wethink in terms of buck & ball. Thebuck consists of 12 plated BBs stackedin four levels of three BBs each underthe balls (velocity to be announced).The balls, slugs, or discs (or whateveryou want to call them) are threeplated, 70-grain projectiles that looklike miniature flying saucers. Whoevercame up with the design is a geniusbecause the bore-size, saucer-shapedprojectiles fly true and deliver lethalpatterns.For testing the new Winchester30WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

I AMREADY.When you need me most, I’ll answer the call.The SIG516.For uncompromised reliability, the SIG516 short stroke pushrod gassystem means the ultimate in reduced fouling and improved function,even in adverse conditions. When failure is not an option…the SIG516,the most dependable AR platform.Find out more at SIGSAUER.com/SIG516.

SHOTGUNNER12-Gauge PDX1At 15', (left) the slug and threebuckshot formed a centered group of3-1/2" with the wads flying out into the9 ring. Note the triangular shape of thebuckshot pattern.At 30', (middle) the slug is stillcentered, the three buckshot have formedan evenly distributed triangular group of6" around the slug, and the wads are stillpunching through the 9 ring.At 50', the slug is just shy of the10 ring at 3 o’clock and the buckshotcontinues to deliver a perfect triangulargroup of 13" centered on the slug.Seeing these groups, and particularlythe consistent triangular dispersal of thebuckshot, I can appreciate how fearedthe buck & ball loads were in the daysof yore, plus they would double as veryeffective hunting loads in a smoothbore.load, I selected a CenturyInternational Arms Model Ultra87. The Ultra 87 is a cylinder-boreknock-off of the Remington 870 withsome needed improvements whichinclude a tang safety, a chrome-platedbore and chamber, a set of highlyvisible, fiber-optic open sights and afactory installed Weaver-style base foradditional optics. It has proven to bethe most accurate, smoothbore, sluggun in my battery.The only “Judge” I had on hand wasthe Circuit Judge, Rossi’s remarkable18-1/2" barreled revolver. It’s set upexactly like its shorter barreled cousinswith a 45-caliber rifled barrel and astraight-rifled choke tube that stopsthe shot column’s rotation in thedirection of the rifling. The CircuitJudge also features a set of excellent,fiber-optic open sights.For testing the 12-gauge and .410PDX1 loads, I selected standard32WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

SHOTGUNNER.410 PDX1At 15', (left) the slugs and BBs form a perfectly centered,tight group in the X and 10 rings, measuring 3-3/4" with thewad popping through in the 8 ring.At 30', (middle) the slugs are centered in the X and 10rings while all BBs are in or touching the 9 ring. The overallgroup size is 9-1/4".At 50', two slugs cut the 10 and 8 rings while the third isa scratch hit outside the 7 ring at 9 o’clock. Eleven of the BBsimpact within or touch the scoring rings and seven of those hitwithin the 8 ring or 9 ring. Eliminating three scratch hits, overallgroup size is 12".With a cylinder full of these loads, the Judges couldreally drop their gavels on some miscreants. The PDX1 is animpressive self-defense loading for the .410.B-27 profile targets and set them uparbitrarily at the distances of 15', 30'and 50'. The resulting targets prettywell speak for themselves.Model Ultra 87Century International Arms430 S. Congress Ave., Ste. 1Delray Beach, FL 33445(800) 527-1252www.gunsmagazine.com/centuryarmsWinchester’s Supreme Elite PDX1,personal-defense shotgun loadsshould be on your dealer’s shelvesnow. Also be looking for WinchesterCircuit JudgeRossi USA imported by Braztech, Int’l16175 N.W. 49th Ave.Miami, FL 33014(305) 474-0401www.gunsmagazine.com/rossiAmmunition’s excellent, bonded core,PDX1 handgun ammunition. Theirammunition just keeps getting betterand better.Winchester Ammunition600 Powder Mill Rd.East Alton, IL 62024(618) 258-2000www.gunsmagazine.com/winchesterWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 33

Wind is something I always have tofactor into the equation in my huntingareas; still days with no wind areabsolutely rare. A look at both the .22Long Rifle and the .22 Magnum fromCCI reveals the latter is almost 600 fpsfaster at 1,900 fps. If you hunt in anarea where wind is not a factor and thedistances are close, the .22 Long Rifle isa real bargain as more than three boxescan be purchased for the cost of onebox of .22 Magnums. The .22 LongRifle is definitely the plinker’s cartridge,however, the Magnum version wins outwith the serious hunter.For long-distance shooting the .22Magnum doesn’t even come close tothe .223 or .22-250. However, at 100yards or less, the .22 Magnum will doeverything the other two will do (weJOHN TAFFINVarmints BewareThe Savage Model 93 .22 WMR is here.ith all the options we have today in .22 Long RifleWammunition, as well as varmint loads for the .223Remington and the .22-250, is the .22 Winchester MagnumRimfire still a viable choice? The .22 Magnum is certainly abetter hunting cartridge for larger varmints and small gamethan the .22 Long Rifle. It is not only more powerful, but italso bucks the wind better than its little brother.are speaking here of hunting varmintsand small game). However, theMagnum has two distinct advantages.For one thing, it is much quieter andthis can be a real plus in settled areas.The other advantage is cost, especiallyif you don’t reload. Looking at thecurrent price list from Midway, I find100 rounds of .22 Magnum runs $20to $24. For the same number of .223and .22-250 hollowpoint varmintloads the cost is north of $90 and morethan $100. That is a huge difference, ifdistances are such, the .22 Magnumwill suffice.OK, the .22 Magnum is much morepowerful than the .22 Long Rifle anddefinitely a lot cheaper to shoot thancenterfire .22s. So what rifle is a goodchoice? For the past summer I haveModel 93BTVSMaker: SAVAGE Arms100 Springdale Rd.Westfield, MA 01085(413) 568-7001www.savagearms.comAction Type:Bolt actionCaliber:.22 WMRCapacity:5Barrel Length:21"Overall Length:40"Weight:7.5 poundsFinish:Stainless steelSights:None, scope bases providedStock:Brown laminated thumbhole stockPrice:$476been using a Savage 93BTVS .22Magnum. I went with the Savage as Ihad experienced such excellent resultswith the Model 14 Savage chamberedin .250-3000 (see October 2008).Savage catalogs listed several .22Magnum bolt-action rifles, however,I was interested in a heavy-barreledvarmint rifle. I naturally went to theModel 93. This version has a heavystainless steel button-rifled barrel andthe action is bolted into a man-sizedbrown laminated stock. Both stainlesssteel and lamination are good choicesfor heavy-duty and/or wet weathershooting.The stock has a generous pistolgrip, thumbhole and high cheekpiecefor easy scope use. The stock has awide forearm with three relatively largeventilation slots under the barrel. Thestock also has a rubber buttplate andsling swivel studs. Two studs are foundat the forearm allowing for both theuse of a sling, and with a weight of7-1/2 pounds a sling is desirable forany situation requiring much walking,John found the Savage Model93 was pleasant, the .22 WMRchambering reasonably inexpensivefor the power and very accurate.34WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

The Savage Model 93 bolt-action .22 WMRfeatures a laminated stock, heavy stainlesssteel barrel and the Savage AccuTrigger.and also a detachable bipod. ThisSavage comes with no sights, howeverscope bases are provided. So far I havebeen using an older K4 Weaver scopepulled off of another rifle, but bynext season I expect to have a higherpoweredvariable scope in place.The detachable magazine holdsfive rounds and the Model 93 hasthe excellent Savage AccuTrigger,which is not only great in its ownright, but it also has resulted inother manufacturers putting decenttriggers in their bolt-action rifles.The pushbutton safety is locatedbehind the bolt on the right side ofthe receiver. I find it much easier tooperate with the trigger finger ratherthan unwrapping my thumb fromaround the thumbhole in the stockand then having to put it back in place.As per my usual practice, test firingwas done with the Savage Model 93,which allowed me one throwawaySavage Model 93 BTVS .22 WMR/Weaver K4 Scope.22 WMR Factory Ammo Performanceload Velocity Group Size Group Size(brand, bullet weight, type) (fps) (inches, 50 yards) (inches, 100 yards)CCI Maxi-Mag 1,767 3/8 2-1/4CCI Maxi-Mag HP 1,891 1/4 1-3/8CCI Maxi-Mag TNT 2,283 7/8 1-7/8CCI Maxi-Mag +V HP 2,151 3/8 1-3/8Winchester HP 1,825 7/8 2-1/4Notes: Chronograph set at 10' from muzzle.Accuracy measurement is the best 4 of 5 shots.round. That is, five shots were fired, butonly the best four shots were measuredfor groups. This relieves stress on me.I find it a lot easier to concentrate if Iknow I can mess up one shot withoutbeing penalized, even by myself. Fivedifferent .22 Magnum Rimfire typesof ammunition were tried, four fromCCI and one from Winchester.It is easy to see the effect the windhas in moving from 50 to 100 yards.The highest velocity was attainedwith CCI’s Maxi-Mag TNT at justless than 2,300 fps. The best shootingload at both 50 and 100 yards is CCI’sMaxi-Mag HP at 1/4" and 1-3/8",respectively with a muzzle velocityof the just less than 1,900 fps. It isfollowed very closely by CCI’s Maxi-Mag +V HP at 2,150 fps and 3/8" and1-3/8", respectively. With a retail priceof $476, I consider the Savage Model93 a real bolt-action .22 MagnumRimfire bargain.WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 35

HOLTBODINSONThe General’sTommy GunThe Auto-Ordnance M1.nown as the “Chicago Piano,” “Chopper,” “Thompson,”K“Tommy Gun” and the “Gun that Made the ’20s Roar,”General John Taliaferro Thompson’s submachine gunshot its way into history in the hands of soldiers, sailors,policemen, G-men and the likes of Pretty Boy Floyd, JohnDillinger, Machine gun Kelly, the Baker gang and—let’s notforget—the silver screen of Hollywood.Holt found the notch on top of the fixed rearsight (above) provided a better sight picturethan the peep. The Thompson’s oddly shapedbuttplate (below) is not easy to shoulder. It’sbetter under the armpit!While it still endures on thewide screen as the classic American“gangster” gun, the Tommy Gun tookgood care of its legitimate handlersfrom WWII through Korea and intoVietnam. Now, thanks to the work ofKahr’s Auto-Ordnance Corporation,we, too, can enjoy owning andshooting this American military icon.“Our boys in the infantry, now inthe trenches, need a small machinegun, a gun that will fire 50 to 100rounds, so light that he can drag itwith him as he crawls on his bellyfrom trench to trench, and wipe out awhole company single-handed,” wroteGeneral John T. Thompson in theclosing days of WWI.Thompson was a West Pointer, adistinguished small-arms ordnanceofficer at the Springfield and RockIsland Arsenals, earning the unofficialtitle, “Father of the SpringfieldRifle.” After conducting the famousThompson-LaGarde handgunammunition tests in 1904, Thompsonchampioned the development of the.45 ACP cartridge and the adoptionof the Colt Model 1911.He was an outspoken advocate ofputting greater automatic firepowerinto the hands of front-line troops—aposition that did not endear himto his more conservative ordnanceassociates, who remembered thatThompson was responsible forenabling 2nd Lt. John Parker to sneaka battery of Gatling guns over to Cubafor use in the battle of San Juan Hill.So in November 1914, Thompsonsuddenly announced his retirementand went to work for the RemingtonArms Company to design andsupervise the construction of thefamous Eddystone arms plant for theproduction of the Enfield Pattern 14 inThe Auto-Ordnance M1 handlesjust like the real deal except forthe longer 16-1/2" barrel.36WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

CZ P-07DUTYJust like thewartime model,the new Auto-Ordnance M1accepts stickmagazines only,no drums..303 British and later to build anothernew plant at Bridgeport, Conn., forthe production of the Russian Mosin-Nagant. But his burning ambition wasto build a small automatic weapon.Auto-Ordnance FormedHis break came in 1916.With financing from a wealthybusinessman, Thomas FortuneRyan, and the engineering talent ofJohn Blish, who had developed the“Blish lock” for retarded blowbackactions; Thompson establishedthe Auto-Ordnance Corporationwith his son, Mercellus Thompson.Soon thereafter, Thompson hired achief ordnance engineer, TheodoreEickhoff, a self-taught mechanicalgenius, Oscar Payne, and a generalmechanic, George Goll.After developing and refining along series of prototypes, by 1921Auto-Ordnance had developed whatit branded as a “submachine gun”with the features and distinctiveappearance of what would thereafterbe known as the Tommy Gun.Not having any productioncapability, Auto-Ordnance contractedwith the Colt’s Patent ManufacturingCo. to manufacture 15,000 Model1921s. The selective-fire Model1921AC incorporated a finned, 10-1/2" barrel, a Cutts compensator, aLyman ladder sight adjustable to 600yards, a top-mounted cocking handleor actuator milled open throughthe middle so the sights were visible,and a cyclic rate of 800 rpm. It wasneither a commercial nor a militarysuccess with only 10,300 guns soldby 1928, most being purchased bylocal police departments and civilianusers, including the rogues’ gallery ofAuto-Ordnance’s Thompsons are properlystamped in the right places.Prohibition-era gangsters.The first US Government purchaseof the Tommy Gun was, strangelyenough, by the US Postal Service inthe late 1920s, which issued them tothe US Marines who were assignedto guard the country’s mail trains.The Marines liked the Thompsonsand went on to use them with greateffect in jungles of Nicaragua andstreets of China, but requested thatthe cyclic rate be reduced to 600 rpm.The resulting model was branded theModel 1928 and was also adopted inlimited numbers by the Army for itsmotorcycle scouts and armored carpersonnel.By 1940, 24 years after the Auto-Ordnance Company was formed,total production of the Thompsonwas limited to Colt’s original 15,000-gun contract. WWII changed thatovernight. Colt ceased making theThompson, and Savage was selectedToday’s MostVersatile Handgun!FEATURES•Convertable(safety or decocker)•Compact size•New Omega trigger system•Polymer frame with light rail•16+1 9mm, 12+1 .40 S&W•Two magazinesPROTECT • HUNT • COMPETEP.O. Box 171073, Kansas City, KS 66117-0073Toll-free: (800) 955-4486Phone: (913) 321-1811E-mail: info@cz-usa.comwww.cz-usa.comWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 37

to undertake production in 1939, laterto be supplemented by a new Auto-Ordnance plant in Bridgeport, Conn.While the classy looking Model1928A1 was adopted by Britainand the United States in the earlyyears of the war, it proved toocomplex and expensive to make inthe numbers needed on the frontlines. Consequently, a wartimeproduction model was designedby 1942 that eliminated the finnedbarrel, Blish lock, Lyman adjustablesight, Cutts compensator, fine walnutstocks, vertical handgrip and drummagazines.Shot from the hip at 25 yards (above) theThompson proved it’s more than just a sprayand-prayrig. The Thompson M1 is superblyaccurate at 50 yards (below) with the rightsight picture.In their place were a smoothlyprofiled barrel, a simple blowbackaction with the cocking handle movedto the right-hand side of the receiver,a fixed “L” shaped rear peep sight, ahorizontal forearm, sling swivels and20- and 30-round stick magazines. Itwas branded the Model M1. A fewmonths later, its floating firing pinand hammer system was eliminatedand replaced by a fixed firing pinmachined into the face of the openfiringbolt. It was christened theModel M1A1. Military productionceased in 1944 with approximately1,500,000 Thompsons having beenmanufactured.Following the war, NumrichArms Co. acquired all the Auto-Ordnance patents, trademarks andtooling for the Thompson lines. Inthe 1990s, Kahr Arms, owned byKook Jin Moon, acquired all rightsto the Auto-Ordnance line fromNumrich, and today Kahr’s Auto-Ordnance company manufacturesstandard, lightweight, short-barreledrifle, short-barreled pistol anddisplay models of the 1927 A-1 semiautomaticThompson, plus standardand short-barreled versions of asemi-automatic M1.WWII ClassicThe new Auto-Ordnance M1pictured here is an incredibly finerendition of the WWII Thompsonclassic. It looks, feels, functions andshoots like the real deal. The receiveris CNC machined from a solid billetof steel. The barrel is hammer forged.All the wood is an upgraded quality ofwalnut. The markings are in the rightplaces, and there’s even the famous“Thompson bullet” trademark on topof the receiver. It just shouts “quality.”Weighing 11 pounds, 4 ounces withan empty 30-round stick magazine,the M1 is just about 7 ounces heavierthan the WWII M1A1; the extraounces being in the M1’s barrel whichis 6" longer than the WWII version.The weight of the Thompsons ingeneral is a primary reason theTommy Gun was so easy to shootin full-auto mode, particularly fromthe hip with the butt snuggled upunder your armpit. Auto-Ordnancealso makes an aluminum receiver forsome of its models, which reduces thecorresponding weights considerably.The “L” shaped, fixed rear sightof the M1 is wartime correct. Ithas an aperture for 100 yards and asmall notch at the top for a 200-yardzero. Given the sizable drop of theThompson buttstock that eliminatesthe possibility of obtaining a firm spotweld, and the overly generous size ofthe aperture; I found that using the38WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

THOMPSON MODEL M1MAKER: Auto-Ordnance130 Goddard Memorial Dr.Worcester, MA 01603(508) 795-3919www.tommygunshop.com orwww.gunsmagazine.com/auto-ordnanceACTION TYPE:Straight blowbackCALIBER:.45 ACPCAPACITY:30BARREL LENGTH:16-1/2"OVERALL LENGTH:38-3/4"WEIGHT:11 pounds, 4 ouncesFINISH:Black oxideSIGHTS:Fixed “L” type rear, blade frontSTOCK:WalnutPRICE:$1,334rear notch, rather than the aperture,produced tighter groups at 50 yards—much tighter, in fact, from 2-1/2" to 1"and about 6" above the point of aim.For the rattle guns, I buy thebiggest, cheapest boxes of .45 ACP230-grain FMJ available, and locallythat means Remington’s 250-round“Mega Packs” under the UMC brand.It’s excellent ammo, feeds perfectlyand averaged 915 fps over my PACTProfessional chronograph.After doing some group shootingat 50 yards, I thought I’d try some hipshooting. In the truck was an M16A1feedback target sporting a rather nicebody profile. Set up at 25 yards, itabsorbed the best part of 20 roundsfired with the butt tucked into myarmpit. Given the odd reverse slopeof the Thompson butt plates, I havea hunch more Thompsons were firedfrom the hip than the shoulder.Tommy Guns are simply thecoolest looking milsurps around.Auto-Ordnance’s current models arehistorically correct, superbly built anda hoot to own and shoot. And if youhaven’t been to the movies lately, besure to check out Public Enemies atyour local video store. It’s Hollywood’slatest Tommy Gun extravaganza!BUILD YOURS NOW AT www.rockriverarms.comLE HomeHunt TargetFURTHER READINGThe Gun That Made the Twenties Roar byWilliam J. Helmer, Hardcover, 286 pages,©1969. Out-of-Print. Try ABE Books forused copies (www.gunsmagazine.com/abebooks).The Thompson Submachine Gun by MartinPegler. Softcover, 80 pages, ©2010, $17.95.Osprey Publishing. www.gunsmagazine.com/ospreypublishWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 39

BattleHardenedTHERE ARE MORE LONG-RANGELEUPOLD TACTICAL OPTICSCURRENTLY IN SERVICE WITH THEU.S. MILITARY THAN ANY OTHER.OVER 600 OREGON-BASED LEUPOLDEMPLOYEES STAND READY TO DESIGN,ENGINEER, AND MANUFACTURERUGGED, PRECISE OPTICS TOYOUR DEMANDING SPECIFICATIONS.CALL 1-800-LEUPOLD OR VISITUS AT WWW.LEUPOLD.COM–portland, oregon, u.s.a.–ONLINE!www.gunsmagazine.com• JEFF JOHN •Too HotI shoot and reload for both theQ: .44 Remington Magnum and the.44 S&W Special. Both are S&W, one aModel 29 and the other a short-barreledM624. Recently while shooting the.44 Special I inadvertently loaded oneround of .44 Mag (180-grain JHP).The round fit fine. I tried a 245-grainLRNFP which did not go all the wayin the chamber. The overall length onthe 180-grain round was 1.595", whilethe 245 was 1.616". If I accidentallyshoot one of the .44 Mag rounds will Iblow up the .44 Special?Evan Hamiltonvia e-mailThe .44 Magnum (left, foreground) has amaximum case length of 1.285" compared tothe .44 Special’s length of 1.160". It is possiblefor a .44 Magnum to be crimped heavily enoughto chamber in a .44 Special especially if theMagnum’s case length is on the shorter sideof the tolerance. Such a mistake could lead todangerously high pressures. Note the position ofthe .44 Magnum case in the S&W’s .44 Specialcylinder. Properly crimped, the .44 Mag will notchamber in a .44 Special.S&W has been heat treatingA: the cylinders on all its N-framerevolvers since well before WWII.Elmer Keith liked the S&W .44 Specialfor his heavy loads, which led to thecreation of the .44 Magnum. Theproblem you will run into is the caselength of the .44 Magnum is greaterthan the .44 Special’s (as you know)and a .44 Magnum round should notchamber in the Special’s cylinder. Isuspect the 180-grain load has tooheavy of a crimp, which has allowed theround to chamber. If you inadvertentlyshoot this round, the brass will not beable to open up enough to release thebullet. This could lead to dangerouspressures that could be high enough todamage the revolver. Do your best tokeep your ammo segregated.Savage 99 Hi-PowerI have a Savage Model 99 inQ: the .22 Hi-Power caliber andno longer can find ammunition for it.I thought you might be able to pointme in the right direction.Jeff Woodvia e-mailThe .22 Savage Hi-PowerA: is still loaded by Normaof Sweden as the 5.62x52R. It hasthe proper 71-grain, .227" softpointbullet and the stock number is 15604.Although the importer, Black HillsShooters Supply, does not sell directlyto the consumer, they can provide a listof stocking dealers if your local storewon’t order it for you. As an aside, I’dsave the brass if I were you and planon reloading the cartridge. Hornadystill offers the proper 70-grain .227"bullet (stock number 2280). Sometimesammo like this is only loaded seasonallydue to limited demand, although it isstill popular in Europe.Black Hills Shooters SupplyP.O. Box 42202875 S. Creek Dr.Rapid City, SD 57709(605) 348-4477www.gunsmagazine.com/bhshootersHornadyP.O. Box 1848Grand Island, NE 68802(308) 382-1390www.gunsmagazine.com/hornadyDue to the volume ofmail received, GUNScannot offer a personalreply. Please e-mailyour question to ed@gunsmagazine.com orsnail mail to: GUNSQ&A, 12345 WorldTrade Dr., San Diego,CA 9212840WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

Meprolight Night Sightsand Optical SightsDon’t be afraid of the dark.Kimber ® Eclipse Target II .45 ACP (left)with Meprolight adjustable night sightsand Kimber Ultra CDP II .45 ACP wearingMeprolight fixed night sights.Meprolight M-21 reflexsights provide a fastaiming point withoutdepending on batterypower. They are battletestedtough.Enhance any AR-15 withthe new day/night sightsystem with 4 rear dotsthat quickly center thebrighter front bead.Tactical shotguns arefaster and much moreeffective with theaddition of a Meprolightnight sight bead.Meprolight ® night sights are 20% brighter than other brands. That means faster and moreaccurate shooting - regardless of light conditions. Fixed and adjustable sets are availablefor most popular pistol and revolver brands and models, as well as tactical long guns.Different color combinations are offered for some pistols as well. Installation modifi cations,if required, are minor. With Meprolight, if a target is visible so are the sights.Available fromKimber, One Lawton Street, Yonkers, NY 10705 (800) 880-2418Kimber and Kimber of America are registered trademarks of Kimber Mfg., Inc.All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective companies. ©2011 Kimber Mfg., Inc.THE CHOICE OF AMERICA’S BESTkimberamerica.com

As a dual-caliber, revolvingcarbine, the versatileCircuit Judge can fulfillmany roles (above) in thehunting and self-defensearena. Out of the box onthe day of its arrival, Holtshot a limit of doves withthe Circuit Judge.Holt Bodinsonf anyone had told me I could unpack an awkward looking,I.410/.45 Colt revolving carbine, grab two boxes of 7-1/2s,head for the field and shoot a limit of 10 doves that sameafternoon, I wouldn’t have believed them for a moment.Yet, that’s exactly the way it happened. I came away fromthat unique introduction to Rossi’s Circuit Judge with aprofound respect for this new model, and the more I wringit out, the more I admire the design and its overall concept.To comply withgame laws, afactory pluglimits theloaded cylinderto three shells.The concept of a revolving cylinderrifle, carbine or shotgun is not new.In fact, it dates back to the flintlockera. By the time the percussion periodrolled around, numerous makers, bothhere and abroad, were manufacturinga variety of revolving long guns.Probably, the best known were theRemingtons and Colts. The CircuitJudge strongly resembles a Remington,which was introduced as a percussionand later converted to cartridge.The Circuit Judge is a 5-shooter.It functions just like a conventionaldouble- or single-action revolver andis enhanced with the Taurus SecuritySystem, permitting the owner to lockthe gun with the turn of a key. Thesighting system is a bit more elaboratewith both a factory installed scope ringbase, as well as adjustable, 3-dot opensights.The stocking, particularly thepistol-grip butt, is unconventional andlooks like that of a T/C Contender orEncore, but overall it’s comfortable andmakes up in performance what it lacksin esthetics. The stretched cylinderaccepts .45 Colt cartridges and 2-1/2"and 3" .410 shotshells. Its 18.5" barrelis rifled and is fitted with two essentialchoke tubes, which have to be changedout depending on whether you’reshooting .45s or .410s.The shotshell tube sports deep,straight rifling lands and grooves. Whena shotshell is fired, the plastic wad isseized by the rifling in the barrel androtates down the barrel in right handor clockwise direction. The purposeof the straight-rifled tube is to stopthe wad’s rotation, to straighten it outand assure the shot charge is deliveredstraight ahead. If the tube was notthere, the rotating wad and shot chargewould fly off to the right and down,as many early Judge revolver ownersfound to their dismay.42WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

Light, handy, versatileand safe, the CircuitJudge is a serious fungun for the whole family.The shotshell tube delivered greatpatterns on doves and on paper. The3" loads I was using on doves includedFederal, Remington and Winchesterbrands stoked with 11/16 ounces ofNo. 7-1/2 shot. Out of the 10 dovestaken that afternoon, two fell at 41and 43 yards respectively. That’s astretch for a .410, but the Circuit Judgehammered his gavel.The Federal shells were a tight fit inthe chambers and difficult to extract.I would recommend shooting theRemington and Winchester brands.Another interesting point about theFederal is that they have a roll crimprather than a star crimp. On patterningpaper, the roll crimped Federalsdelivered a thinner, more open patternthan the star crimped Remington andWinchester.The most intriguing .410 load Itested was Winchester’s new personaldefenseloading consisting of 3-plated,70-grain, disk-like projectiles and12-plated BBs. The Supreme Elite“PDX1” ammunition delivered tightpatterns with the straight-rifled tubeand chopped the heart out of B-27silhouette targets at 15', 30' and 50'.The PDX1 loading really makes theCIRCUIT JUDGEMAKER: Taurus, BrazilIMPORTER: Braztech, Int’l16175 N.W. 49th Ave.Miami, FL 33014(305) 474-0401www.gunsmagazine.com/rossiACTION TYPE:Double-action revolverCALIBER:.410 2-1/2" or 3" shotshell, .45 ColtCAPACITY:5BARREL LENGTH:18.5"OVERALL LENGTH:36"AVERAGE WEIGHT:4.45 poundsFINISH:BlueSIGHTS:3-dot adjustableSTOCK:HardwoodACCESSORIES:Choke tubes, tube wrench, safety keys,hammer extension, bore brushPRICE:$618.410 a reasonable and easy-to-shoot,personal-defense firearm. (See Holt’s“Shotgunner” column, this issue.)The only exception I can think ofto using the straight-rifled choke tubefor .410 loads would be when shootingrifled slugs. In that case, the .45 Colttube is the one to use.One modification I would finduseful would be the addition of asecure compartment in the buttstockto store the alternative choke tube andchoke-tube wrench. Otherwise, you’reup a creek when in the field and youwant to change from .410 to .45 Coltor vice versa and don’t have those littleparts jingling around in your pockets.The company wisely supplies agame-law compliant “plug,” whichblocks off two chambers in thecylinder, to make the Circuit Judge a3-shooter.Reverse ThreadsBe warned. The choke tubes arecut with a left-hand thread withoutany reference to that fact in the earlyowners’ manuals whatsoever. Toloosen the tubes, you must turn themclockwise with the supplied choketubewrench.The .45 Colt tube is simply a fulldiameterextension of the bore. It’sthere only to protect the choke-tubethreads. I had two .45 Colt loads onhand—the Winchester 225-grainSilvertip HP and my standardhandload consisting of 8 grains ofUnique and a 255-grain Keith-type,cast bullet. Before firing .45 Coltammunition, after a run of shotshells,it’s essential to thoroughly clean thebarrel to remove plastic-wad residuescraped off by the rifling. ShootersChoice and the nylon bore brushsupplied with the Circuit Judge madequick work of the job.At 25 yards from a rest, theWinchester Silvertip would spread outto 4" to 5", while my handload wouldcluster five shots nicely into 1-1/2" to2". Other factory loads may improvegroups a bit, but the old, standard 8grains of Unique handload is hard tobeat in any .45 Colt.So what’s the Circuit Judge goodfor? On one level, it’s a great fun gun.Because it’s light, safe and handy,and churns up a minimum of recoil,The old, standard .45 Colt handload assembledaround 8 grains of Unique and a 255-grain SWCis hard to beat.The Circuit Judge threw excellent patterns withthe 3" shell and 11/16-ounce of No. 7-1/2 shot.it would be a neat gun for familyoutings. On another level, it’s perfectlyadequate for hunting birds and smalltomedium-size mammals. On anotherlevel, loaded with either .45 Colt orPDX1, it’s a serious personal-defensearm and rather imposing to look atfrom the muzzle end.A second model of the CircuitJudge has just been introduced. It’sa .410 smoothbore only, fitted with aBriley choke tube. Frankly, I favor theversatility of the .410/.45 Colt model.Overall, the Circuit Judge would bea useful survival tool, but my emphasiswould be on the fun end of thespectrum! I’ll never forget that last dayof the dove season when the CircuitJudge arrived in town—never.WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 43

Massad AyoobPHOTOS: Robbie Barrkmant’s geared for maximum performance at minimum price,Iparticularly for competitive action-pistol shooting.Match-tested and bench-tested, it lived up to its promise.Lots of 1911 makers are offeringcommemorative guns this year, somein the original format of 100 yearsago. Springfield Armory has justintroduced one that’s a retrospective,not all the way back to the years beforeWWI, but to the golden years of thispistol’s renaissance in the latter 20thCentury.In the ’70s, “the hot setup” in a1911 had evolved into the following:The chamber would be throated tofeed a bull’s-eye shooter’s stubby semiwadcutters,or the Hensley & Gibbs44No. 68 200-grain lead bullet favored bythe “martial artists” of the 1911.There would be the big, easy-to-seesights that Jeff Cooper mandated, fixedon a combat gun; and for competition,probably the fine adjustable BoMarsthat were already established on“hardball guns” in the bull’s-eye game.A decent trigger pull, a manual safetyeasy for the thumb to find and maybethe beavertail grip safeties that weregaining popularity, and you weregood to go. If you’d paid to have itcustomized to those specs (and howelse were you going to get it?), you feltcheated if it wouldn’t group five shotsin 2" at 25 yards. If “combat shooting”was on the menu, the magazine wellwould probably be beveled, too. Thatpretty much describes the newestSpringfield Armory 1911-A1.“I believe you’re the first one outsidethe company to get one,” SpringfieldArmory’s Chad Dyer told me inOctober 2010. Chad added, “We havenailed down everything for the 1911you have. We are calling it the RangeOfficer (RO). It was designed to be anaffordable 1911 that would be perfectfor people interested in getting intocompetition. It is designed to the samespecifications and tolerances as ourTrophy Match and TRP models. Weremoved all of the ‘extras’ to keep thecosts down and the quality up. It willHotWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

The new RangeOfficer uses aconventionalrecoil-springsystem (right)rather than aguide rod anda 16-poundspring isprovided.The signature feature of thenew Springfield Armory RangeOfficer is a BoMar-style, fullyadjustablerear sight. A singlesidespeed safety, beavertailgrip safety, lightened hammerand aluminum trigger round outthe package.be available by the time your article ispublished and the retail will be $939.”It was available sooner than that,advertised as ready to ship by mid-November 2010. Chad sent me thespecs: “PI9128, .45 ACP Model,Parkerized. Full-size carbon steelframe w/beveled mag well. Premium5" stainless steel barrel with bushing.Beavertail-grip safety, extendedthumb safety, dovetail-target frontsight, low-profile adjustable rearsight. Aluminum speed trigger, flatcheckeredmainspring housing, Deltahammer, Cocobolo checkered gripswith cross cannon logo. Two, 7-roundmagazines and gear package.”The gun arrived fitting thatdescription. Full-length guide rod andforward slide serrations, popular thesedays, were both absent. I for one wasfine with that. Trigger pull was crispand averaged just over 4 pounds on aLyman digital gauge from Brownells.There was a lot of trigger “backlash,”but an Allen wrench applied to theRO’s adjustable trigger fixed thatquickly.AccuracyI took the RO to the concretebench on the 25-yard line with my newCaldwell Matrix rest from BattenfeldTechnologies, and with three brandsof ammo that encompassed the threemost popular bullet weights in .45ACP.For 185 grain, I used the Remington185-grain JHP from their green-andyellowbox Express line. This load hasbeen around since the 1970s, tweakedto expand better and proven to bepretty effective “on the street.” It hasabout the same ogive as hardball,and earned a reputation early on asfeeding in any .45 ACP that wouldfeed hardball.None of that has changed. Offthe handy Matrix rest, with the sightsjust as they came from the factory, itplunked three of the Remingtons tightatop the .70" diameter aiming dot onthe target, and two in a double justbelow it. Total 5-shot group measured1.70", with the best three of those hitsin a near-cloverleaf that went a mere.65" center to center.To represent the 200-grain weightrange, I used the new Wilson Combatbrand XTP-HP, loaded to a nominal975 fps velocity from a 5" barrel likethe one in the new RO. The 5-shotgroup measured 1.55", with four ofthose shots in a hair under an inch,and a mere .65" separating the bestthree of those hits, measured centerWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 45

46WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 47

THE RANGE IS HOTto center to the nearest .05". Recoilwas mild.Finally, I loaded the RO with oneof today’s police-world standards in.45 ACP duty ammo, Speer’s bonded230-grain Gold Dot LE round. Thisone shot a group 2.70" wide by just atad over 1" high, centering just underthe aiming dot. Four of those roundswere in a bit under 1.5", and thebest three of them (including a tightdouble), in .85".The reason I include those“measurements within measurements”is that over the years, I’ve becomeconvinced if an experienced shooterfires five shots from a bench restwithout feeling a bad one go, andmeasures both all five and thebest three, the latter measurementgenerally comes very close to whatthe same gun/ammo combination islikely to do with all five shots from amachine rest. By that standard, the“best three” group measurementswere .65" for 185-grain RemingtonJHP, an identical .65" for the WilsonCombat 200-grain XTP-HP, and .85"for the Speer Gold Dot 230-grain, anaverage of under .75". The hand-heldgroups when measured for all fiveshots were 1.70" for Remington, 1.55"for Wilson ammo and 2.70" for Speer,averaging just less than 2". This, ofcourse, included unnoticed humanerror on the part of the shooter, theelement the “best three” measurementhopefully factors out.As an afterthought, I tried itwith a much-favored bull’seyeload, Federal’s 185-grain GoldMedal Match mid-range round,running at such low velocity CampPerry shooters colloquially call it“softball.” As a rule of thumb, youneed a lighter recoil spring thanstandard for this low-impulse load towork the slide, and sure enough, theone malfunction of the test occurredwith this cartridge; a failure to ejectthat was quickly cleared with a rackof the slide. The five shots went into2.45" center to center, with the bestthree in 1.40".Any way you look at it, theSpringfield Armory RO showed usdecent accuracy for a sub-$1,0001911 .45.The logical way to test a gundesigned for practical shootingcompetition is to run a match with it.Unfortunately, I couldn’t fit any intothe schedule until two days before thismagazine’s deadline. For starters, Ishot a couple of timed courses with it.One was the IDPA Classifier,an excellent test of a pistol’s“shootability.” The barely beveledmagazine well slowed down reloads,and rushing the shots to make up forthat—never a winning strategy—Iwound up dropping 18 points overthe course of 90 shots, which added 9seconds to my time. That put me outof Master classification, but solidlyinto high Expert. The Classifier coursecan be found in the IDPA Rule Bookon their website.NRA CourseThe next thing I ran was NRA’sPolice Service Auto course. Onehandedin close, six shots in 8 seconds(accomplished with the Range Officerin under 5) resulted in all center-Xhits. At 7 yards, 6-reload-and-6,2-handed in 20 seconds put 11 shotsin the X-ring and one in the 10. Thesame drill at the same speed from 15yards found me rushing my last shot tomake the time, and pulling it into the9 ring, my first point down. The 25-yard stage went great for the six shotsfrom kneeling and the six from righthandbarricade, all 10s and Xs. Alas,with my non-dominant hand runningthe Range Officer .45 on the left sidebarricade, I got sloppy and didn’t getenough of my left index finger into thetriggerguard. That caused me to pushfour more shots into the 9 ring.The result was a 475 out of apossible 480, or roughly 99 percent.I’ve seen that win Police Service Pistolmatches at the local level, thoughthat score won’t get you the NationalChampionship. This past year, thathonor was won with a 480 out of 480possible—with 46 of those hits inthe tie-breaking center-X ring—firedby Kevin Worrell of the US BorderPatrol. I didn’t come close to that with475. The point is, those five 9-pointhits were my fault, not the gun’s. TheRange Officer was definitely capableof a national championship score,even though the tester wasn’t.Complaints? In shooting, I foundthe manual safety a little sharp aroundthe edges, and the square edges of theBoMar-clone adjustable sights will digyour side and tear up your coat liningsin concealed carry, just as much asthe originals did when many of uscarried them a quarter century ago. Abit of time with a Dremel and some48 WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

The Federal 185-grain Match “softball” shot alittle low at 25 yards, fed fine, but didn’t alwayscycle the slide due to low velocity. A switch ofrecoil springs is all that is needed.Mas found the sights “on” right from thebox at 25 yards with the RO and 185-grainRemington JHP.Street-proven, 230-grain Speer Gold Dot groupedwell from RO at 25 yards. Note double in lowcenter hole.cold blue can fix that. I would alsoadd a magazine-well funnel if I wasusing this pistol seriously for IDPA orsimilar competition.The sight dimensions duplicatewhat I remember from the real BoMarsof my younger days. Over the years,we learned to make the rear notchdeeper and wider, and the front postnarrower. I’d like to see Springfield dothe same with the sights on the RO.In the testing at my range, theSpringfield RO perked reliably witheverything except the light load itwasn’t “sprung for,” and even thenonly malfed once out of five shots.According to Dave Williams, headof the Springfield Armory CustomShop, the Range Officer comes witha 16-pound recoil spring. Most 1911sfind this just too much to compress withlight-load recoil. Dave recommends a14- or 15-pound spring for the FederalGold Medal mid-range load. Withthat in mind, I can’t blame the pistolfor a single failure to eject when I fedit a load I knew would probably be toolight to operate the recoil spring.Match-TestedAs deadline approached, I hit LanceBiddle’s monthly IDPA event at TheGun Shop in Leesburg, Florida. Lanceis well known in IDPA for creatingdevilishly difficult scenarios, andtwo days before deadline I was theremaking headshots 10 to 15 yards awayin total darkness with a SpringfieldRange Officer mated with my everpresentSureFire Aviator flashlight.They worked together well enough forme to win that stage overall.There was firing in light dimenough to require photo-flash, from25 yards, and other challenging stages.The RO got the hits for me, (there weremore moments I wished for a trulyfunneled magazine well) and I hadmy one and only malfunction with aservice load. After the last shot of onestage, the slide failed to lock back ona Wilson magazine when the gun randry, and the hammer followed the slideforward. Had a reload been required, Icould have simply shoved a fresh magin, racked the slide and gone back towork.When I got home, I was unable toduplicate the malf. Ammo was fullpowerRemington UMC 230-grain.45 hardball, running at around194,000 power factor, based on thelast time ammo from the same lotwas chronographed at an IDPA statechampionship. (Minimum powerfactor in IDPA Custom Defense Pistoldivision, where 1911 .45s compete, is165,000.) Since it happened on thelast shot of the run, it didn’t cause anyproblems. By that time, the gun was atsomewhere around 500 rounds, andhad not been cleaned (though it hadbeen lubed) since the start of shooting.I finished the match as winnerin the Custom Defense Pistol (.45auto) division, and second overallin both speed and accuracy with theRO. The only guy I couldn’t beat oneither count was Five-Gun MasterJon Strayer, firing another SpringfieldArmory product, the 9mm XD, to winEnhanced Service Pistol division andthe overall match. Jon’s a better shotthan me anyway, so from my point ofview, the Springfield RO had delivered.Let’s put this in perspective.Twenty-five-years ago, a gun with thesefeatures, that shot like this would costRange OfficerMaker: Springfield Armory420 W. Main St.Geneseo, IL 61254(800) 680-6866www.gunsmagazine.com/springfieldARMORYAction type:Locked breech, semi-autoCaliber:.45 ACPCapacity:7+1Barrel length:5"Overall length:8.5"Weight:40 ouncesFinish:ParkerizedSights:Low-profile adjustable rear,dovetailed frontGrips:CocoboloPrice:$939you a good $1,000 to $1,200 or morecounting the custom work, the BoMarsights, etc. With its cloned “BoMars,”the Springfield Armory Range Officerpistol is giving you all that for under agrand, in today’s dollars.In 1986, a new house cost $89,463on the average and average annualincome was $22,339. Gasoline was 89¢a gallon and a first class postage stampwas 24¢. By contrast, this particularpistol, with its built-in features, costsabout the same in “2011 dollars” as itwould have cost to have it built for youby a pistolsmith 25 years ago. Soundslike a heckuva good value to me.Caldwell Shooting Supplies5885 W. Van Horn Tavern Rd.Columbia, MO 65203(573) 445-9200www.gunsmagazine.com/battenfeldtechnologiesincIDPA2232 CR 719, Berryville, AR 72616(870) 545-3886www.gunsmagazine.com/idpaSpeer Ammo229 Snake River Ave., Lewiston, ID 83501(800) 627-3640www.gunsmagazine.com/speerammoRemington ArmsP.O. Box 700, Madison, NC 27025(800) 243-9700www.gunsmagazine.com/remingtonWilson Combat2234 CR 719, Berryville, AR 72616(800) 955-4856www.gunsmagazine.com/wilsoncombatWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 49

For many shooters,bench time is rare andprecious. It should beused for shooting, notfor barrel cleaning.John Barsnesst happens fairly frequently at my local rifle range. A guyIgets all set up at one of the 100-yard benches, fires oneshot, then grabs a cleaning rod and furiously brushesthe bore of his new elk rifle for a minute or so. Afterwardhe pushes a patch or two through the barrel, then firesanother shot before grabbing his cleaning rod andbrushing the bore all over again.What these guys think they’redoing is “breaking in” their new riflebarrel. What they’re actually doing iswasting time, powder and bullets. Theonly benefit might be a minor aerobicworkout, since some of them do scrubpretty hard.The modern notion that a riflebarrel simply must be broken-inbefore shooting any groups startedwith benchrest shooters. The boyswho attempt to put them all in onehole noticed that most barrels shota little better after some shootingand cleaning. This wasn’t exactly aclassified secret, but benchresterssearch for any tiny edge possible,because benchrest matches are oftendecided by microscopic differences ingroup size. They want their barrels tobe performing as perfectly as possiblebefore their first match, so came upwith a routine to quickly break-in anew bore.The most common variation is toshoot one shot, then clean the bore,then repeat this shoot-and-cleanroutine for at least 10 shots. AfterThese days some shooters even “break in” the barrels of well-usedrifles. Does anybody think this pre-WWII Model 70 Winchesterneeds to be broken in, or that it will shoot any better if it is?that the routine varies, dependingon current advice and the shooter’stolerance for boredom. Occasionallysomebody will shoot-and-clean for 30rounds before feeling confident thathis barrel is all it can be, while otherfolks only shoot two or three timesbetween scrubbings after the initial10-shot string.The theory behind all this shootingand scrubbing is that each bullet’spassage will “burnish” the bore.The word burnish is almost alwaysused, rather than polish, though whyis a mystery, since major Englishdictionaries firmly state that burnishmeans polish. (In manufacturing,however, burnish means “the plasticdeformation of a surface due tosliding contact with another object,”while polishing means knockingoff the high spots with abrasivesor chemicals. But bullets don’t“plastically deform barrels. Insteadbarrels deform bullets.)Jacketed bullets aren’t particularlyabrasive, but shoot enough of themthrough a barrel and they do have aslight polishing effect. To polish steel,however, each bullet must actuallycontact the steel. This means thatthe bore must be very clean, with notrace of jacket material. Otherwisethe bullet isn’t burnishing/polishinganything except the copper-foulingfrom previous bullets.The ViewThis is where 99 percent of theshooters who “break in” their barrelwaste time. The guys observed at the50WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

The shoot-and-cleanmethod of barrelbreak-in was startedby benchrest shooters,who wanted their riflesto be shooting their bestbefore their first match.But most of us aren’tbenchrest shooters.local range, scrubbing furiously witha bore brush, aren’t coming anywherenear cleaning their new bore to baresteel, regardless of the solvent used. Iknow this because I’ve looked througha Hawkeye bore scope while cleaningmany barrels.Fifty passes with a bore brushdoesn’t get rid of anywhere near allthe copper in a barrel. Especiallywhere jacket fouling tends to build upthe most, right in front of the chamber,where the bullet is deformed by therifling. Pressures of 60,000 pounds persquare inch suddenly shove a perfectbullet into steel lands that cut deeplyinto the bullet’s jacket. Some of thejacket is shoved aside into the groovesof the rifling, but some is stripped offonto the steel of the bore.After that initial deformation andabrasion, the bullet tends to traveldown the bore relatively unharmed.If the dimensions of the bore areconsistent, and the surface prettysmooth, relatively little jacket materialis stripped away during the rest of thebullet’s passage.Another reason most jacket-foulingoccurs just in front of the chamber isthat’s where the chambering reamerleaves tool-marks on the rear angle ofthe lands. In a bore scope these canlook like tiny saw-teeth. They’re alsoat a right angle to the bullet’s path, sothey tend to rip away jacket material.Now, in a hand-lapped custombarrel, installed by a top-notchgunsmith with an expensive newreamer; both the chamber and borewill be really smooth, and any tinyRethinkinghow to break ina rifle barrel.imperfections will indeed tend to ironout with the passage of a few bullets.But 99 percent of rifle barrels aremass-produced in factories and hencearen’t nearly as perfect. The bore of theaverage factory barrel has tool marksthat vary in size, up to ginormous.These rifles need to be shot and enjoyed, notleft sitting behind the firing line soaking insolvents.Smaller scratches willbe slightly burnished during breakin,but you could shoot and scrubfrom now until the next presidentialelection and not make any headwayon the ginormous gouges. So unless anew barrel is pretty smooth anyway (inwhich case a little break-in does help),shooting and scrubbing is a waste oftime.Also, barrel break-in happensanyway during the normal process ofworking up handloads. Most of usdon’t need to have our rifle shooting itsabsolute best to work up a handload.Instead, the first few shots can be usedto sight-in the scope and detect anymajor problems the rifle might have.If we then go home and actuallyclean the barrel down to bare steel(easy to do with an overnight soakingwith several modern solvents), thentake it to the range again and shootanother 10 or 15 rounds, the bore willbe broken in a little. Clean it downto bare steel at home between eachrange session, and the first shot or twoafterward will indeed start polishingWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 51

the bore, unlike bullets traveling overwell-scrubbed copper fouling. By thetime 75 to 100 rounds go down thebore, your new rifle will be broken in—or at least as broken in as it’s going toget with a typical factory barrel. You’llalso have a handload or two workedup, well ahead of the next deer season.Also, other techniques are far moreeffective for polishing a factory bore.One is to scrub the barrel 100 timeswith a tight bore brush wrapped in acotton patch that’s been daubed withJ-B Compound, or any similar lightabrasive bore cleaner. This polishes thebore much quicker than 30 repetitionsof shoot and clean, and is a lot cheaperas well, since you’re not wasting30 rounds of ammo. I’ve used thistechnique on several factory barrelswith good results, though it still doesn’teliminate ginormous tool marks.Another trick is to shoot a halfdozenlapping bullets through a newbarrel. Contrary to popular belief,however, this won’t smooth the entirebore.A few years ago “fire lapping” wasall the rage, since it supposedly turnedeven the roughest factory barrel intothe equivalent of a custom handlappedbarrel. However, a custombarrel is already very smooth beforesomebody starts pushing and pullinga lead lap through it, and also slightlyundersized, just enough that lappingwill bring the inside diameter up tospecs.Most factory barrels are already fulldiameter, or even slightly over sized,so lapping them larger often harmsaccuracy. Second, fire lapping is donewith a bullet embedded with a grittyabrasive. Most of the grit comes off inthe first few inches down the barrel, sohas little effect on the rest of the bore.Fire LappingThis doesn’t mean, however, thatfire-lapping isn’t useful. A halfdozenfire-lapping rounds smooth thereamer marks in the throat—and alot faster than any amount of shootand-scrub.The most accurate factoryrifle I’ve ever owned is a heavy-barrelRemington 700 in .223 Remington,purchased new at Capital Sports &Western Wear in Helena, Mont. Itshot OK without any modifications,5-shot groups averaging .8" or so at100 yards, but I’ve owned sporterweight.223s that would beat that.So you can set about “tuning” therifle by epoxy-bedding the action,and free-floating the barrel, etc. Thenext range session was also started byfiring half-dozen rounds loaded withbullets rolled in abrasive paste from akit sold by NECO. These polished outthe reamer marks in the throat, as alook through my bore scope proved.Now, this may simply be anexceptional factory barrel, but the firelapping drastically cut down on copperfouling in the throat area. Not onlydid the rifle prove superbly accurate,capable of averaging 1/4" for 5-shotgroups of its favorite handload at100 yards, but it essentially refused tocopper-foul.It’s now my wife Eileen’s primaryvarmint rifle, and we almost neverclean it. Oh, once in a while, afterseveral of days of prairie dog shooting,I’ll push a few solvent-soaked patchesthrough the barrel—but there’s neverany copper inside. The rifle just keepsshooting sub-1/2" groups, even afterseveral thousand rounds, though itwon’t quite shoot 1/4" groups anymore.Aside from the half-dozen lappingbullets, this barrel was never “properly”broken-in. I never slaved away for halfa day, shooting-and-scrubbing, inorder to burnish the bore. Instead thebore was simply cleaned every 50 or 75shots—until I realized that there wasn’tany need to clean the darn thing.The word “properly” is put inquotes because that’s what manyshooters say these days when talkingabout barrel break-in. Trouble is,apparently nobody agrees on break-in.Many barrel companies and customgunsmiths have suggestions how tobreak in a barrel, but the techniquesvary considerably, putting into doubtthe concept of “proper” break-in.Some barrelmakers and gunsmiths,however, don’t believe in break-in—and some of those who do providea procedure have privately confidedthat the only reason they do is theircustomers insist. Today’s shootersheard from all their buddies aboutbarrel break-in, so now it must bedone! Some even believe breaking-ina barrel will turn a factory .30-06 intoa benchrest rifle, though they’ve neveractually encountered such a beast.Coating the bullet or the bore toA bore scope is neededto really understand whatgoes on inside a barrel.Rifle bores vary in smoothness. Rough barrelsdon’t really benefit all that much from break in,because their faults are too large to be smoothedby the passage of a relatively soft bullet.In a typical rifle barrel, jacket fouling tendsto build up most just in front of the chamber,because that’s where the bullet goes throughthe most trauma.reduce bullet fouling and enhanceaccuracy has been around even longerthan the concept of barrel break-in, andthese days is sometimes combined withbreak-in. The big rage for a few yearswas molybdenum disulphide, usuallyapplied to bullets but sometimes tothe bore itself. As with breaking-in abarrel, all sorts of magic was ascribedto moly, including increasing theballistic coefficient of the bullet itself.Lately relatively few shooters seem tobe using moly, perhaps because it’skind of a pain to coat every bullet youshoot, or pay for moly-coated bullets.Moly also tends to leave its own foulingin the bore, and sometimes this foulingcauses its own problems, even though itprevents copper fouling.52WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

A deer hunter doesn’t need to spend anafternoon at the range breaking in the barrel. Bythe time a good handload is worked up, the borewill be broken in anyway.I’ve been fooling with UBC forseveral years now, and mentioned itpreviously in a GUNS article on theSavage Predator varmint rifle. One $45kit lasts for a lot of barrels; my kit hastreated a half-dozen bores, and there’senough left for several more. UltraBore Coat is cheaper, quicker andmore effective than shoot-and-scrub,as more shooters learn every year. Yet,lately I’ve been hearing from shooterswho first do the entire laborious,expensive shoot-and-scrub routine andthen apply UBC to their bores. This islike taking a shower right after takinga bath. (In fact, some shooters are soobsessive that they shoot and scrubthe barrels of used rifles. I somehowdoubt the bore of, say, a pre-’64 Model70 Winchester is going to be improvedmuch by the process.)Despite very few peopleunderstanding barrel break-in ordoing it correctly, the concept is nowa permanent part of our shootingculture. All true rifle loonies know itsimply must be done, and that properbreak in will somehow turn a 2" rifleinto a 1/2" rifle. Most shooting fadscome and go, but apparently barrelbreak-in is here to stay, sort of like inlawswho come for Thanksgiving andnever leave. They’re a lot of work andyou can’t quite remember why they’restill here, but every morning they showup at the breakfast table.J-B Compound; KroilBrownells200 S. Front St.Montezuma, IA 50171(800) 741-0015www.gunsmagazine.com/brownellsShooting 50 rounds of ammo while scrubbingthe bore with a brush in between doesn’t doas much good as going home between 10- or15-round range sessions and cleaning the boredown to bare steel.It always made more sense tosome shooters to coat the bore ratherthan thousands of bullets. This is theprinciple behind Ultra Bore Coat, aceramic coating that fills rather thansmoothes the imperfections in a riflebore. It’s a liquid glue containingmicroscopic ceramic particles. Theglue is slopped into the bore justlike any cleaning solvent, then leftto dry for a little while. When a fewrounds are shot through the barrel,the bullets force the ceramic particlesinto any tool-marks, and the heat ofhot powder-gas melts the ceramic,turning the coating into a permanentpart of the bore. (Contrary to whatwas originally believed, a wire brushwill not harm bullet-cured Ultra BoreCoat.)Ultra Bore CoatDyna-Coatings Group5000 E. 59th St., Kansas City, MO 64130(816) 444-1255www.gunsmagazine.com/dynacoatingsHawkeye BorescopeGradient Lens Corporation207 Tremont St.Rochester, NY 14608(800) 536-0790www.gunsmagazine.com/gradientlensFire Lapping Kits; Moly CoatingNECO108 Ardmore Way, Benicia, CA 94510(800) 451-3550www.gunsmagazine.com/necoFinal Finish Bore SystemSuperior Shooting Systems Inc.800 N. Second St.Canadian, TX 79014(806) 323-9488www.gunsmagazine.com/superiorshootingsystemsincWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 53

Mike “DUKE” VenturinoPhotos by Yvonne Venturinot is a simple fact of World War II history that the vast bulkIof infantrymen involved in combat between 1939 and1945 carried bolt-action rifles whose basic designs datedfrom around the turn of the century. None offered a trulysignificant advantage over one another. Although some ofthose rifle designs were revamped after hostilities began,mostly the changes involved sights and manufacturingtechniques not the rifles’ basic modes of operation.That said, it is also a fact thatthree semi-auto infantry rifles werefielded in significant numbers. Ofcourse the best known one was theUS M1 Garand, named after itschief designer John C. Garand. TheUS Army officially adopted it asearly as 1936 but took until mid-1943 before enough were available toarm virtually all frontline Americantroops. Only in that latter year didGermany even adopt a successfuldesign of semi-auto infantry rifle. Atfirst it was given the designation G43,meaning Gewehr (rifle) 1943. Laterthat was changed to K43, meaningKarabiner (short rifle or carbine)1943. The Soviet Union actually hadtheir semi-auto developed prior toGermany’s attack in June 1941. Itwas named the SVT40, meaning inRussian “samozaryadnaya vintonkaTokareva obrazets 1940.” Thattranslated to English is “Tokarev selfloadingrifle Model 1940.” Russianfirearms designer F. V. Tokarev wasto the SVT40 as Garand was to theUS M1.Although all three of the abovesemi-automatics served in theirrespective nations’ infantry forcesThe three semi-auto rifles the USSR, Germany and the United States issued theseduring World War II included (from top) the Soviet SVT40, German K43, and US M1.54WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

and were gas operated and woodenstocked, their resemblance to oneanother ends about there. Theywere the alike in that gas from firedrounds was bled from a small holedrilled in the barrel to power a pistonarrangement. It carried the boltrearward extracting and ejecting theempty cartridge case and chamberinga new one from a magazine as springsreturned it forward.They were different in that theM1’s gas system was located underthe barrel and the SVT40’s and G/K43’s were above. From a fieldsoldier’s standpoint the top-mountedgas system was an advantage: itwas exposed for cleaning when thehandguard was removed. With theM1, cleaning required the barreledaction be removed from the stock.Neither did these three riflesresemble each other outwardly. TheSVT40 was long at 48" with a 25"barrel. It actually had a “futuristic”look with perforated handguard andmuzzlebrake. The M1 Garand was43.5" long with a 24" barrel. The G/K43 was 45" long but only had a 22"barrel. Despite being so much longerthan Garands, Tokarevs were about1-1/2 pounds lighter: approximately10 and 8-1/2 respectively. The G/K43weighed likewise to the Tokarev.Fits And StartsNone of these three semi-auto riflessprang full-blown from engineers’minds to workmen’s machines. Theyevolved through other failed ideas. Inthe early 1930s John C. Garand’s ideaof a new rifle was almost perfected aschambered for a new .276 cartridgewhen US Army chief of staffDouglas MacArthur decreed it hadto be chambered for the .30-06. Withthat everyone literally had to returnto the drawing boards.Even so the first few tens ofthousand M1 rifles were built as theso-called “gas trap” version. Withthem the necessary gas for pistonoperation was “trapped” by a fixtureat the muzzle. In 1939 that waschanged to the barrel port and earlyM1s were recalled and converted. Bywar’s end Springfield Armory andWinchester Repeating Arms togethermade over 4 million M1s, with theformer facility out producing thelatter by a factor of about 7-to-1.Interestingly, the developmentof a German semi-auto was greatlydelayed because their army’s highcommand forbid armament engineersto use a gas port in the barrel. Firstwas tried a gas trap version but thenexperience on the Eastern Frontrevealed that the Soviet’s gas-portedSVT40s were successful. So GermanThe upper handguard of SVT40s were perforated for barrel cooling, there was a metal barrelshroud likewise perforated and a vented muzzlebrake. All that gives SVT40s a futuristic look evenby today’s standards.Both the Soviet SVT40 and the German G/K43 could have their 10-round box magazines loaded fromthe top (above) by means of 5-round stripper clips. Duke feels the German K43 and Soviet SVT40offered an advantage in cleaning their gas systems because the entire barreled action (below) didnot have to be removed from the stock.military minds finally accepted agas port in the barrel. That decisionresulted in the G/K43. Because somany German records were lostor destroyed at war’s end exactproduction figures are unavailable.Best guesses put them from about400,000 to a 500,000 producedby three firms: Carl WaltherWaffenfabrik, Gustloff Werke, and athird to be mentioned later.Too Complicated?A very interesting fact is the RedArmy wasn’t all that thrilled withtheir own SVT40. They considered ittoo fragile in the field, too intricate inmanufacture and too complicated forthe minds of their peasantry soldiers.Therefore, when WWII’s emergencieswere upon them they limitedproduction of SVT40s to only twostate-owned factories located at Tulaand Izhevsk. Their primary resourceswent into making more Mosin-Nagant91/30 bolt actions to the tune of about10 million during the wartime years.Only somewhere between 1-1/2 to 2million SVT40s were made. They weremostly issued to special operationsWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 55

The German G/K43 had a rail machinedintegrally on the receiver so a ZF4 4Xscope could be mounted.When the Soviet SVT40 was fitted withscopes for sniper use their officialdesignation became SNT40.troops and NCOs plus a significantnumber were equipped with PU 3.5Xscopes for sniper use. These werenamed SNT40, although a singlemilled cut for scope mounting was theonly difference from a regular SVT40.On the other hand German troopson the eastern front in 1941/1942were greatly smitten with SVT40s,having captured many thousands plusmillions of rounds of 7.62x54mmammunition. In the beginning theypicked up SVT40s off the battlefieldand used them unofficially. So manygot into German circulation that onDecember 1st 1942 they were given theown Wehrmacht designation 259(R).The sniper version was accepted as260(R).Although the M1 Garand is byfar the most famous infantry rifle ofany sort used in WWII, it can’t besaid it was perfect in all respects. Forinstance, the M1’s internal magazinewas fed by means of an 8-round “enblocloader” most commonly called aclip. There was no way to “top off”the magazine after firing. If Americansoldiers lost track of how many roundsthey had fired, they had to eject thepartial “clip” and start over again.Modern metal detecting done on someEuropean battle sites has turned upDuke firing hisWinchester M1 Garand.If you look closely theejected cartridge case isat about one o’clock nearthe edge of the window,and the ejected en-blocloader is at 12 o’clockdirectly above the rifle.56WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

many partially loaded M1 en-blocloaders in old foxholes.German and Soviet semi-autos had10-round detachable box magazines.They could be charged by meansof 5-round stripper clips or withindividual rounds while still in therifle. If soldiers could scrounge moremagazines they could be kept loadedfor instant replacement.Also the M1 Garand was not easilyturned into a sniper rifle. Becauseit loaded from the top, mounting ascope directly over the barrel wasnot possible. A side mount had to bedeveloped with an offset scope and acheekpiece to hold the shooter’s headto the side. From the very beginningthe Germans intended for G/K43s tobe useful as sniper rifles. Standard onall was a machined rail on the receivers’right sides so a ZF4 (4X) scope couldbe fitted in quick detachable mounts.Regardless, experienced Germansnipers preferred bolt-action K98ksniper rifles, with the general consensusbeing that the semi-auto G/K43 wasnot accurate enough for sniper work.In regards to iron sights the M1Garand had it all over the othertwo rifles. Its rear sight was a fullyadjustable peep mounted on the rearof the receiver. Front sight was a widepost protected by two curved wings oneach side. Both Soviet and Germansemi-autos had barrel mounted openGerman snipers in WWII generally felt the G/K43 was not accurate enough for serious sniper work.Duke feels that is valid because his sample isn’t a tackdriver. M1 Garands have a reputation forputting the first shot from a new “clip” outside the group (below).Whereas selected Soviet SVT40s were fittedwith scopes and the US eventually developeda scoped version of Garand called theM1C, all German G/K43s (above) had a railmachined integral to the receiver. Thereforeall were capable of scope mounting. Dukefeels the US M1 Garand’s rear peep sightbelow) was the best used on all military riflesof its era.sights only adjustable for elevation.Their post front sights could be driftedin their dovetails in order to obtain awindage zero.Since the turn of the century I’vebeen amassing a collection of WWIIfirearms, with the number on handhitting 60 as this is being written.In this assortment are SpringfieldArmory and Winchester M1 Garands,a 1940-dated SVT40 made at Izhevskand a K43 made in 1945 by the thirdmanufacturer: Berlin-LubeckerMaschinenfabriken of Lubeck.Naturally all are being fired withfactory loads and handloads in theirrespective .30-06, 7.62x54mmR, and8x57mm calibers. All rifles have theirstandard issue iron sights in place but Iwas lucky enough to find a ZF4 scopeand proper mount for the K43.One of the charges leveled at all threeof these WWII semi-auto infantryrifles was their accuracy did not equalthat delivered from their nations’respective bolt actions firing the samecartridges. German and Soviet snipersas a group preferred their K98k andMosin-Nagant M91/30 sniper riflesand many American Marines balkedabout giving up their ’03 Springfields.From my experience with both genresof rifles essentially remaining “asissued”I feel that is a fair statement.Groups fired with the semi-autosusually are about 50 percent to 100percent larger than the bolt-actions.In fact, unaccurized M1 Garandshave a well known and very annoyingtendency to toss the very 1st shotfrom an en-bloc loader to a slightlydifferent spot as the rest of its rounds.This would be an especially poor traitfrom a sniper rifle. In a practical senseas regards iron sighted weapons forregular riflemen the bolt-actions’ edgein precision was more than offset bysemi-autos’ firepower. Hence, manyGerman infantrymen dropped theirissue K98k bolt-actions and pickedup Soviet SVT40s. And there are noshortages of stories of AmericanWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 57

US M1 GARAND (Winchester) 24" Barrel.30-06 Handloaded Ammo PerformanceBullet Powder Charge Velocity(brand, bullet weight, type) (brand) (grains weight) (fps)Hornady 150 Spirepoint Varget 48.0 2,686Sierra 168 HPBT IMR4895 46.5 2,555.30-06 Factory Ammo PerformanceLoad(brand, bullet weight, type)Velocity(fps)US Military Surplus LC69 150 FMJ 2,524Federal M1 Garand 150 FMJ 2,759Hornady M1 Garand 168 A-Max BT 2,563The US M1 Garand chambered the .30-06 (left),the Soviet SVT40 chambered the 7.62x54mm(middle) and the German K43 chambered the8x57mm.These are some of the components Duke usesin his reloading for these three WWII semiautos.Notice the white box of CCI mil-spec No.34 primers that will help prevent slam-fires.Because slow burning propellants can damagethe operating rod of M1 Garands, both Federaland Hornady have now introduced factoryloads specifically intended for them.The damage to the 7.62x54mm case rim at leftwas caused when Duke’s SVT40 slam-fired.The case at right is undamaged sample.USSR SVT40 25" Barrel7.62x54mmR Handloaded Ammo PerformanceBullet Powder Charge Velocity(brand, bullet weight, type) (brand) (grains weight) (fps)150 Sierra 150 Spitzer (.311") Varget 47.0 2,699Hornady 174 FMJ (.312") IMR4895 45.0 2,5057.62x54mmR Factory Ammo PerformanceLoad(brand, bullet weight, type)vElocity(fps)Winchester 180 FMJ 2,646German K43 22" Barrel8x57mm Handloaded Ammo PerformanceBullet Powder Charge Velocity(brand, bullet weight, type) (brand) (grains weight) (fps)Hornady 195 Spirepoint Varget 47.0 2,538Speer 200 Spitzer IMR4895 45.0 2,3008x57mm Factory Ammo PerformanceLoadvElocity(brand, bullet weight, type)(fps)Hornady 195 Spirepoint 2,348troops dropping their ’03s and pickingup Garands whenever possible.There are a couple of factors inreloading for these semi-autos ofwhich shooters should be aware.Most manuals warn about using slowburning propellants in reloading .30-06s for M1 Garands. Doing so resultsin higher pressures at the gas port andthat can cause the Garand’s operatingrods to bend. Only medium burningones should be used.Because the SVT40 and K43 are sorare reloading manuals don’t concernthemselves with this problem whendiscussing 7.62x54mm or 8x57mm.However, since both rifle types’operating systems use gas ports andpistons I prefer to err on the side ofcaution. So my rifles also get mediumburning propellants. Namely those areHogdgon’s Varget and IMR4895, thelatter having been developed for M1Garands in the first place.Also for the same reason givenabove for powders, bullet weightsshould be held near to what the variousnations’ military organizations issuedfor the rifles in question. For the M1such would be from 150 to 173 grains,for the SVT40 that would be 147 to185 grains and for the K43 it would beabout 195 to 200 grains. I’ve used mostspitzer bullets available in those weightranges with fine results.One factor of note could be varyingbarrel diameters with 7.62x54mmrifles. Some shoot fine with .308" bulletsbut others require .311" ones, whichis what I’ve settled upon. Sometimesin the M1 it seems as if a crimp in aHornady bullet’s cannelure helps withthe errant first shot problem.A third caution is about slamfires. That’s when a cartridge firesunintentionally as the bolt slams shut.It is a very disconcerting experience.I know because my K43 and SVT40have done so one time each. Never hasa Garand yet done that in my hands.A help if not complete cure for thisis to use the special military spec No.34 Large Rifle primers available fromCCI.It is doubtful if the Germanor Soviet semi-auto infantry riflesmade much impact on the outcomeof battles fought by their armies.There just were not enough of themin use. The story is different withthe Americans’ M1 Garand. Therewere enough in troops’ hands andtheir firepower gave infantry troops adecided advantage.58WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

The Smallest Targets Better Run For Cover.Whatever you’re aiming at, it’s no match for new IMR 8208 XBR.Unbeatable consistency. Extreme accuracy. The legend is back.6231 Robinson Shawnee Mission, KS 66202 Phone 913-362-9455 www.imrpowder.com

WICKEDGRIPS.COMThe ONE.... The ONLY....The ORIGINAL....Creating custom, one of a kindgrip sets for the 1911, S&Wrevolvers, and the SIG 238Wickedgr@WICKEDGRIPS.COM• P A T C O V E R T •This Pig Will HuntFrom the highest grade woods, to oursignature custom inlays, We are aTRUE Custom Grip Maker!60Be sure to check out our newhandgun accessory company at:GRIPWERX.COM810-412-4037FOREIGNENEMIESand traitorsThe Greater Depression and Civil War 2The third novel of the Enemies trilogyMATTHEW BRACKENAuthor of Enemies Foreign And Domestic,and Domestic Enemies: The ReconquistaSigned books for $22each, S&H incl.Specify titlesordered.Steelcutter PublishingP.O. Box 65673Orange ParkFL 32065To read 100 pages of each book and formore ordering options, go towww.EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.comKA-BAR’s Johnson Adventure BladesPotbelly is a camp friendly attack hog.A-BAR is known primarily for military knives, but whenKthey hooked up with Boar Hunter Magazine field editorSteve Johnson they instantly became the hunter’s friend.The Potbelly—listed under the signature line of Johnson’sAdventure Blades—is a handful of field knife that can dojust about everything you ask around the camp.The Potbelly’s portly 7.2"hollowground 1095 cro-van bladeflares nicely at the mid-section,making easy work of butcheringand chopping chores. The knife’sample 5.5" full-tang handle canaccommodate the largest of mittsand the grain-textured Zytel handleoffers excellent grip.The blade, of 1095 cro-van (afavorite among high-carbon steelfans) is not stainless but has atough black coating, and a little oilalong the edge will give you all theJohnsonAdventureBladesPotbellyMaker: KA-BAR Knives200 Homer St.Olean, NY 14760(800) 282-0130www.gunsmagazine.com/kabarBlade material:1095 cro-vanBlade length:7.2"Overall length:12.6"Weight:13.3 ouncesScales:Grain textured molded ZytelSheath:Tan nylon, MOLLE adjustablePrice:$128.05The KA-BAR Johnson Adventure Blades Potbellyis 12.6" of heavy-duty camp knife that can chopand butcher with the best of them.rust protection you need. Unlikemany of the new-age stainless steelswhich require a diamond stone,the Potbelly’s 1095 blade can besharpened on a traditional Arkansasstone or, in a pinch, a rock.But what about tricky work likeskinning and caping? No problem.Included in the Potbelly’s tannylon sheath is a sleeve housing theJohnson’s Adventure Piggyback, asmall, skeletonized stainless steelskinner (6" overall with a 2.6" skinningblade) for the more delicate fielddressing work. The sheath also hasmultiple MOLLE attachment pointsand a pouch with 8' of paracord.Better yet, the price for this boar ofa cutter and all its amenities weighsin at a very reasonable $128.05 retail,you provide the pig. A heck of a dealon a lot of knife!WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

ThaT’s savage accuracy.When James Italiano of Mission Viejo, CA cuts the deck, he likes to show off a little bit. He uses his SavageModel 12 F-Class target rifle to split them edge-to-edge at 100 yards. Of course every one of ourhunting guns has that Savage target-gun heritage built in; like the new Model 10 Predator HunterMax 1 with AccuStock. This revolutionary system gives you the same stability and bedding of atarget gun in a lightweight field gun. Best of all, it makes coyotes fold like a bad hand.Card courtesy of James Italiano, Mission Viejo, CAModel 10 Predator Hunter, Max-1 savagearms.com savageaccuracy.com

VNRRIGHTS WATCHWhen EnforcersHave An AgendaObamaannounces morekey administration“Presidentposts,” the mid-Nov. 2010 White House pressrelease declared.Included among the president’snominations was “AndrewTraver, Director, Bureau ofAlcohol, Tobacco, Firearms andExplosives....”ATF has been operatingunder acting directors since 2006.Whoever is selected to fill the topslot will have his hands full, whatwith the bureau’s troubled pastand current problems; includinga National Firearms Registrationand Transfer Record riddled witherrors, lack of clear standards,conflicting rules and accusationsof incompetence and corruptionby agency insiders anonymouslyposting grievances at theCleanUpATF.org website.So who is Traver and what doeshe bring to the table?His most recent position hasbeen Special Agent in Charge ofthe Chicago Field Division, havingrisen from the ranks since he firstjoined ATF in 1987 as a CriminalInvestigator. The thing is, rankand file agents at CleanUpATFhave described him as “a marginalperformer” and—worse—butone who knows how to play thepolitical game.He’s also been closely affiliatedwith “gun control” advocacy,serving as an advisor to theInternational Association ofChiefs of Police/Joyce FoundationGreat Lakes Summit on GunViolence alongside noted antigunnersfrom the Violence PolicyCenter and Legal CommunityAgainst Violence.So naturally, the Brady Centerthinks he’s just what we need.“We are pleased that PresidentObama is moving forward witha nominee to lead the ATF. Thislong-needed appointment iswelcome news,” Brady PresidentPaul Helmke wrote. “[W]e arehopeful that he will be a strongvoice for the strengthening andeffective enforcement of our gunlaws.”The key word they’re pinninghopes on is “strengthening.” Ina hit piece by NBC News, Traverhelped perpetuate the conflationbetween semi-automatic firearmsand machine guns, an old tacticof those hoping to reinstateand expand the federal “assaultweapons” ban.“Traver says the power andrandomness of the heavy caliber,military-style weapons make themso dangerous not only to people,but to police,” the report claimed.“They’re so powerful, body armorcan’t withstand a hit, and they’reso difficult to control, their bulletsoften get sprayed beyond theintended targets, striking innocentvictims even when they’re in theirown homes.”At least he’s learned the rightbuzz words and talking points togin up hysteria.The “gun lobby” was quick torecognize the dangers an anti-gunactivist in the top ATF slot wouldpresent.“NRA strongly opposes thenomination of Andrew Traverto head BATFE. Calls onPresident Obama to withdraw thenomination,” a statement fromILA Executive Director Chris Coxbegan.“Obama nominates rabid antigunnerto head the ATF,” the lesssubtle Gun Owners of Americaannounced.I’ve noted before that leadtimes make magazines poorplaces to discuss developing news.By the time this reaches you, itmay be a done deal. Obama mayeven bypass Senate confirmationand make a recess appointment.But while the outcome of thisparticular development may behazy, one thing could not be moreclear: We don’t want a fox in chargeof minding the henhouse.Visit David Codrea’s online journal“The War on Guns” atwaronguns.blogspot.comor visit DavidCodrea.com to readhis Examiner column.NEWSAfghan Soldiers HelpSave MarinesAs the sun started to slowly riseover Sangin district, ForwardOperating Base Jackson, Afghanistan,and the nearby Helmand River lastOct. 23, Marines with India Companyreceived intelligence a local compoundwas filled with improvised explosivedevices. The squad searching thecompound found three IEDs whenLance Corporals Shane Preston andJason Hallett, both infantrymen,3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment,Regimental Combat Team 2, triggeredone of the booby traps.Hallett was severely wounded andPreston suffered a concussion andwas bleeding from both ears. PettyOfficer 3rd Class Mitch Ingoglia, acorpsman with the Marines, instantlybegan treating Hallett, while Preston’scomrades treated him.Lance Cpl. James Hallett was woundedOct. 23, 2010 and is currently recovering atBethesda Medical Center. Despite havingthree limbs amputated, Hallett’s life wassaved under intense fire from the enemy.The fast actions of the Afghan National Armyand fellow Marines saved the lives of Halletand comrade Lance Cpl. Shane Preston.Photo: USMC. Afghan National Army soldierswith the 2nd Brigade, 215th Corps (below),stand ready as the brigade’s Quick ReactionForce. The QRF are trained and prepared toemploy at a moment’s notice, and are oncall to respond to emergencies. Photo: 1stLt. Barry Morris, RCT 2“When I got there they had justfinished digging Hallett out of therubble and I immediately startedworking on him,” said Ingoglia, a26-year-old native of Dyer, Ind. Thenext step required them to move thetwo Marines out of the area and to62WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 63

the pre-appointed casualty evacuationsite. Hallett’s life hung in the balanceand the Marines had two issues. Thefirst was their vehicles were two heavyto cross a newly constructed bridgein the road and the second was animminent attack on the evacuatingMarines.The Marines had planned with theirlocal Afghan partners on crossing thebridge. Master Sgt. Ismael Sagredo,staff non-commissioned officerin-charge,a 42-year-old native ofLansing, Mich. said, “This was notour original plan, more like ‘Plan C,’but it’s what we had to do. We woulduse the ANA’s pickups to transportthe casualties across the bridge andthen move them to our vehicles.”The Afghan soldiers rapidlyresponded, but as the group carryingthe wounded Marines began to move,a massive ambush began. The Marinesand ANA came under fire from AK-47s and heavy machine guns.“The ANA saw the insurgentsfirst and started firing,” Sagredo said.Marines quickly assessed the situationand countered the attack with a volleyof rockets and heavy machine gun fire.The Marines evacuating the casualtieswere under heavy fire in an open fieldwithout cover.“I was helping Preston, who hadsome shrapnel and a concussion, whenSgt. Gilio and I got pinned down,”said Sagredo, who had been awardedthe Silver Star for his actions in Iraq.“We had to cover about 200 metersthrough a field to get to the trucks.”At the trucks, the Marines loadedthe casualties. Because of the heavyfire, the decision was made to use theANA vehicles to return to the base.Hallet’s life was still on the line asMarines on the forward operatingbase called for a helicopter to rush theyoung Marine to a hospital.Sagredo, Ingoglia and Petty OfficerThird Class Del Reyes rode in theback of the two Ford Rangers withthe wounded Marines, under fire theentire trip. Del Reyes and Ingogliacontinued to provide care. Withinminutes, the vehicles were on baseand the Marines safely on emergencyhelicopters. The medical evacuation64WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

was complete.The Afghan soldiers are heroes too,according to Sagredo. “Even with thelanguage barrier, nothing was missedand the Afghan soldiers performedphenomenally,” Sagredo said. “Wecouldn’t have done it without them.”The Marines suffered no othercasualties that day, even though thefirefight continued for several hoursbefore nine rocket artillery roundssilenced the insurgents.Hallett is recovering at BethesdaNaval Hospital in Maryland. Prestonis recovering at Balboa Naval MedicalCenter in San Diego. —Cpl. NedJohnson, RCT 2Kimber’s EdelmanReceives Marine CorpsLaw EnforcementFoundation AwardLeslie Edelman, owner andpresident of Kimber Mfg., waspresented with the 2010 Eagle Globe& Anchor Award by the PhiladelphiaChapter of the Marine Corps LawEnforcement Foundation. Edelmanwas selected due to his leadershipof Kimber, and for his company’scommitment to excellence in providinglaw enforcement and Marine heroeswith the firearms needed to prevailagainst those who threaten both safetyand freedom.The recipient of the Globe &Anchor Award traditionally headsa business which exemplifies, by wayof its corporate culture, a dedicationto the law enforcement communitythrough either products or overallgeneral support.Leslie Edelman (left), owner and presidentof Kimber Mfg., was presented with the2010 Eagle Globe and Anchor Award byJoseph O’Hara, Philadelphia Police Captain(ret.) representing the Philadelphia Chapterof the Marine Corps Law EnforcementFoundation.AMERICAN HANDGUNNERMAGAZINE ONLINE!www.americanhandgunner.comCommenting on the selection,Detective Jack Cummings of thePhiladelphia Police Homicide Unitand Chairman of the PhiladelphiaChapter of the Marine Corps LawEnforcement Foundation stated,“Leslie Edelman and Kimber have66WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

continually stepped up to the plate,providing the best in firearms,accessories and support for ourfellow law enforcement professionalsnationally, as well as for Marines inDET One. It is with great pleasure thatwe honor Les as our 2010 recipient ofthe Eagle Globe & Anchor Award.”Reflecting on the award, Edelmanstated “I accept this award with greatpride, not only for myself but onbehalf of all 425 Kimber employees.It serves to remind us all that whatwe do every day really matters, thatit helps the good guys come out ontop.”— Dwight Van Brunt, KimberKimber1 Lawton St.Yonkers, NY 10705(800) 880-2418www.gunsmagazine.com/kimberUS Military Contracts:W91CRB-09-D-0074M20133-07-M-3125N00244-06-P-1971Royal Marines DestroyPirate VesselRoyal Marines based onboardthe Royal Navy warship HMSMontrose destroyed a boat last Nov.24 used by pirates off the coast ofSomalia to attack merchant ships.The Marines, from Plymouthbasedfrigate HMS Montrose, firedtheir machine guns at the piratevessel as they hovered above it in thewarship’s Lynx helicopter.The incident took place during aroutine patrol off the Somali coastTuesday, Nov. 23, 2010, when thehelicopter identified the suspect boatas the whaler from MV Aly Zoulfecar,which had been acting as a pirate“mother ship” since it was hijacked onNov. 3, 2010.CompetitionsMike Voigt:2009 & 2010 SuperstitionMountain Mystery 3 Gun2009 USPSA Multi-gun Nationals2010 MGM Iron Man 3 Guns2010 Surefire InternationalTactical Rifle ChampionshipMaggie Reese:2009 & 2010 USPSA Multi-gunNational ChampionJohn Pride:4-time Bianchi Cup ChampionSince 2004, the patented Rapid Reticle Ballistic Reticle System by PFI has helped riflemen shoot multiple distances without manualadjustments and zeroing only once. Combat tested and approved by military units, law enforcement teams, and competition shootersacross the globe, the Rapid Reticle family of optics makes shooting long distances easier than ever. Although many imitatorstry, nothing comes close to the original Rapid Reticle. Please see our full line of optics at www.RAPIDRETICLE.comSOPS-33MM SOPS-COMPACTRR-CQLR-1 RR-800-1RR-900-4877-817-6019 www.rapidreticle.com sales@rapidreticle.comGUNS MAGAZINE ONLINE!www.gunsmagazine.comThe pirate vessel destroyed by RoyalMarines from HMS Montrose was itselfhijacked earlier in November. Photo: CrownCopyright/MOD 2010The whaler was anchored offa known pirate camp and, oncepermission had been given to take itout, the Royal Marines marksmenfired their M3M .50 BMG machineguns and destroyed it.HMS Montrose’s CommandingOfficer, Commander Jonathan Lett,said:“HMS Montrose has beenpatrolling off the Somali coast forsome time and we know how thepirates operate.68WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

“Our destruction of the whalerclose to a known pirate camp has senta message to the Somali pirates thatNATO and other coalition forces arewilling to take the fight to them inorder to prevent them from attackingmerchant ships.”HMS Montrose is operating offthe Somali coast as part of NATO’scounter-piracy operation, OCEANSHIELD.—Courtesy MoDNICS Black FridayOutageAn outage of the National InstantCriminal Background CheckSystem (NICS) adversely affectedmany retailers and consumers onBlack Friday. NSSF has been incontact with FBI-NICS staff, whoexplained the outage was attributableto a computer glitch that overloadedthe system.A short-term fix has been appliedto the system and once the holidayseason is over, a long-term fix willbe completed. Black Friday was thesecond highest day for NICS activityfor non-point-of-contact states andpartial-point-of-contact states. Itwas the third busiest day overall forNICS with more than 87,000 checksbeing conducted. Though NICSwas down for approximately 3-1/2hours, eCheck and point-of-contactstates were only down for one hour—perhaps another reason for dealers toconsider using eCheck. NICS officialswere exceedingly apologetic for theunscheduled outage.—Courtesy NSSFKnife Rights LobbyMaking StridesKnife advocates are hoping a recentmove by Arizona legislators toend knife restrictions will lead morestates to take up the cause. “Arizonais now the model when it comes toknives,” said Arizona lobbyist ToddRathner. “We’re now going to bemoving to other states, probably in theRocky Mountains and the Southeast.There’s probably half a dozen ormore places that are ripe for this.”Last year, the federal Customs andBorder Protection agency issued aproposal that would have reclassifiedmany pocket knives and pocket toolsas switchblades and thus made themillegal for import or sale across statelines. Congress, following a stronggrassroots campaign by the AmericanKnife and Tool Institute—an effortsupported by NSSF—intervenedand blocked the change.—CourtesyNSSFWeatherby continues to support the National High School Rodeo Association with rifles theorganization can put up for raffle. Although the one pictured was raffled off last year, a similarMark V as well as a Vanguard were again raffled this year.Weatherby HelpsNational High SchoolRodeo AssociationA custom-made,Mark V rifle and limited-editiona Vanguardrifle donated by Weatherby helpedraise more than $100,000 tosupport scholarship and leadershipdevelopment programs of the NationalHigh School Rodeo Association(NHSRA).The NHSRA conducted a nationaldrawing for the Weatherby rifles. TheMark V was valued at $14,000, andthe Vanguard was part of a Texas deerhunt package. The drawing, held thissummer at the National High SchoolFinals Rodeo in Gillette, Wyo., gaveparticipants the chance to win therifles with each $10 donation.“The NHSRA is thrilled with thesuccess of the benefit,” said AustinWhite, NHSRA marketing director.“The money raised supported ourstate and provincial scholarshipprograms, the national collegescholarship program and othervaluable leadership developmentprograms. Having Weatherby playsuch a major role as a sponsor of thebenefit for the past nine years means somuch to our association, membershipand benefactors.”“Weatherby is proud to helpsupport the NHSRA and the highschool athletes who represent theirsport so well,” said Brad Ruddell,Weatherby’s vice president of sales andmarketing. “We very much appreciatethe opportunity to partner with theNHSRA in helping these youngstersfurther their education and developtheir leadership skills.”“NHSRA Scholarship Rifle 2010”is engraved on the Mark V’s barrel,while the NHSRA logo is engravedon the floorplate. The NHSRA logois also embossed on the strap of therifle’s walnut-tone leather case.The Mark V is a .300 WeatherbyMagnum with a low-lustre blue metalfinish and engraved 24-karat gold andsilver selective plating, mounted witha Bushnell Elite 4200 2.5-10x40mmscope donated by Bushnell.—Courtesy Jeff Patterson, SwansonRussel & Assoc.Weatherby, Inc.1605 Commerce Way, Paso Robles, CA 93446(805) 227-2600www.gunsmagazine.com/weatherbySarbi MeetsLocal MediaAfter a much anticipated arrival,Sarbi and her handler Sgt. “D”met with local media at the ExplosiveDetection Dog (EDD) Section, SteeleBarracks Moorebank NSW, Australia.Sarbi went missing in Afghanistanfor a year after an attack and wasrecovered last year (see April 2010issue). And she’s still got it —takingan enthusiastic run around the EDDObstacle course.Sarbi mugs for the cameras after beingreleased from a 30-day quarantine atEastern Creek in Sydney. Photo: ADoD“We’re very pleased to have Sarbiback home,” her handler Sgt. D said,“from here, we will assess her speed,agility and explosive detection skillsover the next few weeks, and make adecision about her future.”In the meantime, Sarbi will enjoya well deserved break in the EDDkennels, getting reacquainted withher handler and Army life.—CourtesyADoD70WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

Mortarman AwardedBronze StarHe’s a calm individual. His voice isbarely above a whisper. Maybe becausewaiting for the enemy to attack ina hastily built fighting position inthe Hindu Kush Mountains makeseverybody whisper. Maybe becausehe doesn’t get that excited anymore.Whatever the reason, he rarely raiseshis voice when asked about his threecombat tours during his seven years inthe Army. Rarely. Except when he talksabout blowing things up.“I don’t like troops in contact, butI enjoy dropping rounds and knowingthat most of the time I hit the enemy,”said Spc. Joshua R. Wood. “It’sawesome to fire. It’s just a thrill to dropexplosives. The enemy stops firing afteryou drop your rounds and that’s justa great feeling.” Wood, a mortarmanfrom Pontotoc, Miss., assigned toCompany B, 2nd Battalion, 327thInfantry Regiment, Task Force NoSlack, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101stAirborne Division, comes alive whenasked about his job firing mortarsall over eastern Afghanistan’s KunarProvince.“Out here we play a pretty bigrole,” Wood continued. “Usually whenthe troops get in contact the mortarsare there. They call us in to provideindirect fire on enemy locations toeither destroy or disrupt them so wecan move or gain fire superiority.”Just then, he got a call and beganpreparing fuses on the mortar roundsand punched numbers into hishandheld computer. Next, he fired afew rounds at the enemy, listened forimpact and plunked back down intohis fighting position to wait for moreinstructions from his forward observer.“I’ve had bullets crack around myface, around my cover. I mean, we allhave. We’ve all been in some crazyfirefights,” Wood explained. But noteverybody has done what Wood didone day while in one of those “crazyfirefights” a few months ago.“We were walking through theGhaki Valley,” Wood said. “Our grouptook contact and, as we bounded backto hard structures, my platoon leaderfell. I was about a 100 meters ahead ofhim. I turned around and saw that hefell. I ran back under heavy fire, pickedhim up and took him to safety.”He didn’t raise his voice talkingabout the incident. It was almost likehe was explaining what he had forlunch: jalapeno cheese with crackers,poppy-seed pound cake and beef stew.Just like that. Then he continued.“Later, another Afghan NationalArmy soldier was walking around inSpc. Corey C. Canterbury, a mortarman (above),kneels down after firing a mortar round on amountainside overlooking the Ganjgal Valley ineastern Afghanistan, last Dec. 11. Photo: StaffSgt. Mark Burrell. Spc. Corey C. Canterbury(below, right) from Ocean Springs, Miss., andUS Army Spc. Joshua R. Wood (below, left) fromPontotoc, Miss., both mortarmen assignedto Company B, 2nd Battalion, 327th InfantryRegiment, Task Force No Slack, 1st BrigadeCombat Team, 101st Airborne Division, checktheir mortar tube and coordinates before firingmortar rounds on a mountainside overlooking theGanjgal Valley, Afghanistan, last Dec. 10. Photo:Staff Sgt. Mark Burrellthe middle of the firefight with a bulletwound to his head,” explained Wood.“I ran out with another Soldier andwe picked him up and put him behindsome vehicles to let the medic patchhim up.”He didn’t seem especially impressedthat he was awarded a Bronze Star withValor for these actions. For Wood, itwas just another day deployed.“The (platoon leader) I saved saidthat, as I was running, he could seebullets bouncing around my feet andaround my head on the mountainside,”Wood recalled. “I really wasn’t payingattention to it, but it was prettyeffective fire. It was pretty close. It wasricocheting off the vehicles and acrossthe ground. You could hear it whizzingby your head. I don’t know, I justremember running and picking him up.I wasn’t thinking about the bullets. Itwas pretty heavy fire, though.”The forward observer called toWood and his crew. It was time foranother fire mission to quell the enemy.Wood perked up and started holleringcoordinates back and forth. Well, nothollering, but definitely there was alittle excitement in his voice.—USArmy Staff Sgt. Mark Burrell, TaskForce Bastogne PA72WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

A.G. RUSSELL KNIVESSInce 1964, A.G. Russell Knives has supplied the knife needs ofcustomers worldwide. The A.G. Russell name means quality, dependabilityand knowledge. Catalogs and web site includes most qualityproduction brands and many handmade knives, some available onlyfrom A.G. Russell. FREE479-878-1644 • www.agrussell.comDept GA0411CA. G. Russell Knives2900 S. 26th St., Rogers, AR 72758CATALOG INQUIRY #10AMERICAN COP SUBSCRIPTIONA Magazine By Cops, For Cops. Cops need information they cantrust. That’s why FMG Publications is bringing the “tell-it-like-it-is”reputation of American Handgunner into the police publication world.American COP will offer solutions to real-world problems YOU dealwith everyday.2 Year Subscription $19.95 US (outside the U.S. $64.95)www.americancopmagazine.comCATALOG INQUIRY #11AMERICAN HANDGUNNER SUBSCRIPTIONImagine a magazine with such detailed information that each issuemakes you feel like you’ve fired the guns featured. Every issueprovides the latest news on handguns and accessories in a tell-it-likeit-isstyle you won’t find anywhere else. Nothing prepares you forhandgunning like American Handgunner. 1 year subscription $19.75(outside the U.S. $49.75)www.americanhandgunner.comCATALOG INQUIRY #12ANNUAL/SPECIAL EDITIONSSpecial Savings! Order our 2009, 2010 or 2011 Special Editionsindividually for $9.95 US/$17.95 Foreign or all six, seven or eight for$45.00 US/$75.00 Foreign. Order online for faster turnaround!www.americanhandgunner.comwww.gunsmagazine.comCATALOG INQUIRY #13-33BLACK HILLS AMMUNITIONBlack Hills Ammunition specializes in .223 and .308 ammunition. It’sthe choice of the US Army, USMC, USAF and the US Navy Rifle Teams.We also have 14 different calibers in our Cowboy Ammunition Line,11 calibers - 29 different loadings in our Black Hills Gold HuntingLine and superb, but economical remanufactured ammunition inmany calibers. $2.00.www.black-hills.comCATALOG INQUIRY #34Our catalog display allows GUNS Magazine readers toselect literature on a wide variety of shooting products.HOW TO ORDERPlease check the box(es) of the literature you’d liketo receive on the attached order card. Enclose (in theenvelope provided) a check or money order payable toGUNS Magazine for the total literature fees plus $2.50handling charge. If paying by credit card, please includeall information needed. OR: Send a list of the catalogsyou want to request, listing the name and cataloginquiry number of each, with your check or VISA/MC#for the total catalog fees plus $2.50 handling charge.Mail to: GUNS Magazine, P.O. Box 509094, San Diego,CA 92150-9094.Catalogs will be mailed directly to you by the companiesmaking the offer. Please allow 6-8 weeks for delivery.GUNS Magazine and Publishers Development Corporationare not responsible for unprocessed orders.Companies participating in this section have accepted fullresponsibility for filling reader requests.74WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

Copy0RANGER.45 LC & .410www.bondarms.com817-573-4445 • Made in TexasBOND ARMSNot availablein CA or MA.Bond Arms is a 16 year old company that makes the Award WinningSnake Slayer, Ranger, Texas Defender, and Cowboy Defender thathave 15 interchangeable barrels with 22 different caliber combinationsincluding the popular .45LC/.410 to help make it the UltimateSelf Protection Handgun. FREEwww.BondArms.comCATALOG INQUIRY #35BROWNELLSCatalog #63 is 656 pages and filled with more than 30,000 topbrand-name accessories to make your rifles, shotguns and handgunslook and work better. Plus, 157 of those pages are filled with 13,500genuine factory parts from 24 factories so you can repair guns tooriginal equipment specs. Call 1-800-741-0015 or order on-lineat: brownells.com. Mention Dept.#CSE. Price of catalog refundedwith order. $5.00Selection. Service. Satisfaction - 100% guaranteed.CATALOG INQUIRY #36DESANTIS HOLSTERDeSantis offers a complete line of police, military, concealment,hunting and cowboy holsters and accessories. DeSantis is the originatorof the Gunny Sack. We also offer cell phone holsters, belts and bags.For more information please visit us on-line. $5.00www.desantisholster.comor call us at:(800) GUNHIDECATALOG INQUIRY #37DIXIE GUN WORKSThe greatest blackpowder/muzzleloading catalog! Over 600 pages ofreplica guns, antique gun parts, accoutrements and supplies for theshooter, hunter and historical enthusiast. The Dixie Gun Works catalogalso features a section of “General Information” of facts and figuresdesigned to improve one’s knowledge in the fascinating field. In theU.S. $5.00; outside the U.S., $20.00.www.dixiegunworks.comCATALOG INQUIRY #38EL PASO SADDLERYSince 1889 El Paso Saddlery has been making the finest holsters,belts and accessories in the world. Our products include antique andmodern styles. So why buy a reproduction when you can have theREAL THING. $5.00www.epsaddlery.comCATALOG INQUIRY #39FORT KNOX SECURITYShopping for a safe has just been simplified. The most innovative andinteractive way to shop for your perfect safe is now available throughFort Knox Security Products®. The “Fort Knox Safe Builder” allowsyou to go online and select the options you would like to have. Youhave the ability to choose the specific interior, color, size and the fullline of Fort Knox options. Make your selections, see the safe, andreceive a price quote. Top of the line Fort Knox safes designed foryou by you, what a great way to shop! Why settle for what they haveat the box store? Get the safe you want the way you dream it shouldbe. FREE. Only at:www.ftknox.comCATALOG INQUIRY #40HEADLINEHEADLINE2011 CATALOGGALCO GUNLEATHERGALLERYOFGUNS.COMGUNS MAGAZINEGalco’s new logo represents more than a simple change in appearance;it represents our ongoing commitment to designing and making thefinest gun leather available anywhere, both today and in the yearsto come. Our entire line of fine products is artfully showcased in thisyear’s 60 page full color catalog. $5.00Galco as always“For those who demand the best...and know the difference.”www.galcogunleather.comCATALOG INQUIRY #41GalleryofGuns.com is the ultimate online catalog that features a stateof-the-artconsumer firearm purchasing tool called Gun Genie. GunGenie allows you to conveniently purchase new firearms from one ofthe world’s largest inventories, with the convenience of shopping athome. GalleryofGuns.com puts the power in your hands! FREEGUNS Magazine makes the shooting sports more enjoyable. Readabout the latest shooting trends and newest guns. Tips and testreports will help you buy better and shoot straighter. Discover whysportsmen all over the world have been shooting with GUNS Magazinefor over 50 years.1 year subscription $24.95 (outside US $54.95)www.GalleryofGuns.comwww.gunsmagazine.comCATALOG INQUIRY #42 CATALOG INQUIRY #43WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 75

p AGE 266p AGE 120p AGE 96I N T E R N A T I O N A LHOGUE GRIPSHogue - for the finest OverMolded rifle and shotgun stocks in black,OD green & camo. Handgun grips in soft rubber, exotic hardwoods,G-10 and aluminum. AR & AK grips and forends. Also HandAll ® gripsleeves, custom grip screws, slings and swivels, recoil pads, Tamerpistol grip shotgun stock, PowerSpeed holster, firearm accessories& more. FREEHOGUE® Inc.1-800-GETGRIPwww.hoguegrips.comCATALOG INQUIRY #44KAHR ARMSKahr’s latest catalog has detailed information and specifications onKahr’s line of .380 ACP, 9mm, .40 S&W and .45 ACP double actiononly compact pistols. Kahr’s products are made entirely in the USA atKahr’s state of the art factory in Worcester, MA. FREEwww.kahr.comCATALOG INQUIRY #45KWIK-SITE CORP.Scope Mounts, Bases, Rings, See-thru and Non See-thru Mounts, BlackPowder Mounts, .22 Mounts and Winchester 94 Mounts, Three BlackPowder Mounts to fit 99% of all Black Powder Guns. New one piecelong base to fit Browning, Remington, Savage and Winchester BoltAction Rifles. Adapters for Air Rifles, Red Dot Scopes and .22 Rifles.Now you can use big scopes on .22 rifles. FREEwww.kwiksitecorp.comCATALOG INQUIRY #462010-B Catalog800-717-8211 www.sinclairintl.comNIGHTHAWK CUSTOMNighthawk Custom manufactures extremely high quality weaponsbacked by the best warranty in the business. Known for its 1911’s thatcan be customized to the customer’s specifications, the company nowoffers custom rifles and tactical shotguns as well. Contact Toll Free:877-268-4867 or visit us on-line. $4.00www.nighthawkcustom.comCATALOG INQUIRY #47SINCLAIR INTERNATIONALSinclair International’s 2011 full color catalog is packed full of highquality reloading equipment, shooting supplies, ammunition, optics,and more! Includes everything needed to assemble precision handloads, as well as clean & maintain your gear so that the highest levelof accuracy is achieved. Whether you enjoy target shooting, hunting,or spending an afternoon at the range, the Sinclair catalog providesyou all the tools to maximize your shooting performance. MentionSource Code CSQ. FREEwww.sinclairintl.comCATALOG INQUIRY #48THE SPORTSMAN’S GUIDEThe LOWEST Prices, the BEST Quality, GUARANTEED! Name-brandammo, shooting and hunting gear and clothing at low discount pricesfor over 33 years. Big savings on names you trust...Winchester®, Remington®,Browning®, Steiner®, Federal® and more. Fast shipping and100% satisfaction guaranteed! Toll-free 1-888-622-4365. FREEwww.sportsmansguide.comCATALOG INQUIRY #49STReicHeR’SPoliceHQ.coMprotectdefendenforceBoDY ARmoRBADGESBUYER’S GUIDELE GEARSTREICHER’STACTICAL RIFLESWOLF PERFORMANCE AMMUNITIONStreicher’s offers the finest selection of firearm components andaccessories available to Law Enforcement and the public. Our centraldistribution center stocks holsters, magazines, ammunition, and morefor our stores, website, and catalog - so you know we carry the gearyou need. And because we’ve been helping you since 1953, you canbe assured our prices and service are second-to-none. Get the gearthe pros use. Shop online at POLICEHQ.com or call 800-367-3763 torequest a catalog. $3.95800-367-3763 • www.PoliceHQ.comCATALOG INQUIRY #50Offering true One Hole Precision, Tactical Rifles’ Master gunsmithshand build every rifle to each individual customer’s own specifications.Offering a multitude of calibers and specifications, Tactical Rifleguarantees less than 1/2MOA with factory match ammo. Visit our website or call us toll free for more information. FREE877-811-GUNS (4867)www.tacticalrifles.netWOLF has a great selection for sports shooters. High volume shooters rely on WOLFPolymer coated cartridges like: 762x39, .223 Rem and pistol rounds 40S&W and.45 Auto. WOLF’s Gold Brass lines includes rifle rounds: .223 Rem (75 GR MatchHP), 303 British, 7.5x55 Swiss, 6.5 Grendel SP as well as 40S&W and .380.WOLF’s Power Slug is a tactical round used by hunters and in law enforcementtraining. WOLF’s High quality primers for L&S rifle, L&S pistol, L&S rifle and pistolMAG and 209 Shotshell are high performance bargains for every reloader. FREE100% Performance guaranteed on all WOLF Ammunition!www.wolfammo.com • 888-757-WOLF (9653)CATALOG INQUIRY #51 CATALOG INQUIRY #52108 OCTOBER 2002GUNS MAGAZINE76WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

Winchester recently expanded its PowerMax Bonded lineup, and CorBon (below) hasintroduced Expedition Hunter rounds for classicdangerous game rifles.JOHN CONNORA Feast OfFirearmFodderAmmo for allseasons & allneeds.Not so many decades ago, if youwent into almost any gun shopanywhere in the country and askedfor a box of cartridges for your Model94, the clerk would likely slap downone of two brands, both virtuallyidentical. Not so many years ago, ifyou asked for .380 ACP ammo, youmight have had your choice of either90-grain hollowpoints or 95-grainFMJs. Just a year ago, you might havecome up completely empty-handedtrying to get any kind of ammo, andif you got it, you compared the priceto a tank of gas.While the big-name, major ammoproducers are still scrambling to meetmarket demands, new manufacturersare poppin’ up like daisies, “bargainbrands” are blooming, shelves aresteadily filling and the best part is,the quality, consistency and overallperformance of ammo is improvingdaily. Here, for your perusal, are somepicks from the litter.Spanky-New &Growing StrongThe paint’s barely dry on the doorsof K&A Ammunition in Medina,Tenn., but they’re already crankin’out inexpensive, solid, quality ammo.Initial offerings include three 9mmloads and four each in .40 S&W and.45 ACP. Their dealer network isgrowing, and by the time you readthis, they should be selling online andshipping straight to your door, too.Allegiance Ammunition is anTennessee-made K&A and Allegiance arepromising new ammo brands (top, middle), whileDouble Tap keeps growing like gangbusters.offshoot of Extreme Shock, makers ofspecialized counter-terrorist ammo.Customers wanted lower priced,copper-plated lead-core rounds fortraining and general self-defense, andAllegiance delivers that. It’s also idealfor long-term storage, featuring sealedprimers and case mouths for a 20-yearshelf life.DoubleTap Ammunition is arelatively new maker, but they’rerapidly becoming a “1-stop ammoshop” for happy customers; listingover 300 loads in dozens of calibersfor handguns and long guns, sold bythe box or in bulk lots. Componentsare the highest quality, like bulletsfrom Nosler and Barnes, and theyoffer variations you would otherwisehave to handload. Visit them onlineand look for them at your dealer.Better Game GettersAmmunition offersWinchester something for everyone, andspecialized loads for just about everyhunter’s needs. The latest in theirPower Max Bonded line includesrounds designed specifically forwhitetail deer, delivering tailoredterminal performance and of course,superb accuracy.Hunters of dangerous game who’vebeen hand-feeding classic caliberslike the .416 Rigby, .505 Gibbs and.577 Nitro Express should check outCorBon’s new Professional SeriesHunter Expedition ammo, featuringsolid DPX lead-free X-panding slugsor the legendary Woodleigh slug.All ammo in this line is packaged inresealable plastic, 5-round packs witha field-ready ballistics chart.Deep PenetrationNobody knows more about .44Magnum and .45-70 rounds thanRandy Garrett of Garrett Cartridges.He’s spent a lifetime refining thescience of optimum penetrationwith those calibers, and they’re theonly ones he loads. The NOAAand the National Marine FisheriesServices exclusively carry Garrett’sHammerhead rounds, for protectionfrom coastal grizzly attack. The +PIf you shoot .45-70, Garrett Cartridges has gotyou covered, and Federal Premium’s Vital-Shokammo has a new surprise for you.WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 77

“Gun Fit”It’s NOTsomethingshe doesafter missinga target.Choosing the right gunand making sure it fitsa lady is important.Shari can help.Shooting champion ShariLeGate provides all theinformation needed forany lady to get started inshotgun sports throughher new DVD, Women’sGuide To Shotgunning.Order Today!(800) 628-9818(M-F 8am-3pm PST)www.gunsmagazine.com/fmgvideo.htmlSpecial Price:Only$24.95!QUARTERMASTERExiters shown above, with 500-grainHornady Copper Clad Steel Jacketedflatnose bullets, are just one of hisfive .45-70 offerings.Federal Premium now loads thehighly regarded Swift A-Framebullet in their Cape-Shok Safari riflerounds and six Vital-Shok handgunhunting loads from .357 Magnumto .500 S&W Magnum, assuringdeep penetration and impressiveexpansion, every time.Serious Self-defenseJust take a look at the ballisticgelatin in the tube shown below.It shows the typical explosivepenetration of MagSafe’s hypervelocity,pre-fragmented, epoxystabilizedammo. Using No. 2 or No.3 large lead shot suspended in anSome of the most effective defensive handgunrounds come from MagSafe, Winchester andGrizzly Cartridge Company.epoxy matrix inside a copper alloyjacket, the resulting lightweight slugscan be driven at very high velocitiesand deliver tremendous energy whilealmost entirely eliminating ricochet.MagSafe rounds are available in 18popular handgun calibers from .25ACP to .50 Action Express and .500S&W Magnum, with several loadsmade specifically for compact gunsand in-home defense use.Winchester has won two recentcontracts to supply the FBI with 9mmand .40 S&W ammo, which ought toserve as a terrific recommendation.Their Premium PDX1 PersonalDefense rounds have proven to be ascreamin’ success. Expansion of thatline now includes a 225-grain bondedhollowpoint .45 Colt load, and a95-grain JHP .380 Auto load. Slicknickel cases, low-flash propellantsand smokin’ slugs add up to smoothloading and hot shooting.Grizzly Cartridge has built asolid reputation on the excellenceof their hunting rounds, like the170-grain Hawk Flatpoint that’llbreathe new life into your old .30-30,and thoughtfully-engineered loadsfor trusty game-getters like the .444Marlin, and rarities like the .500Wyoming Express. But when a friendwho carries a .44 Special BulldogPug challenged Grizzly’s owner MikeRintoul to come up with a deadly,reliably-expanding slug for his Pug’srelatively low velocity, Mike virtuallylocked himself into secluded researchfor over a year.The result is Grizzly XtremePremium Self-Defense Ammunition.The deeply scored solid-alloy slugsare stable and accurate thoughessentially hollow, ripping open andexpanding after penetration to asmuch as four times their diameter!That’s not a radiator fan bladeshown on the box, folks; that’s amushroomed Xtreme slug!Bargain Blastersmakers are feeling theAmmo same financial squeeze you arein this tight economy and manyhave taken steps to loosen the pinch.We’ve already mentioned K&AAmmunition and Extreme Shock’snew lower-priced Allegiance brand.If you want Federal Premiumperformance for significantly lessmoney, check out their Fusionammo. Friends who’ve shot a lot ofit have said the only differences theysee are less highly polished cases andcheaper packaging; all the power andprecision is still there.Hornady has responded byimporting Russian-made, coatedsteelcases and filling them with78WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

Allegiance Ammunition182 Camp Jacob Rd.Clintwood, VA 24228(877) 337-6772www.gunsmagazine.com/allegianceammoAmerican Tactical Imports100 Airpark Dr.Rochester, NY 14624(800) 290-0065www.gunsmagazine.com/americantacticalimportsDakota Ammo, Inc.& Glaser, LLC - Corbon1311 Industry Rd.Sturgis, SD 57785(800) 626-7266www.gunsmagazine.com/corbonDoubleTap Ammo586 S. Main St. #333, Cedar City, UT 84720(866) 357-1066www.gunsmagazine.com/doubletapFederal Premium900 Ehlen Dr.Anoka, MN 55303(800) 322-2342www.federalpremium.comHere are just three ways to stretch your ammobuyingdollars: Hornady’s Steel Match line (top),American Tactical’s Turkish imports (middle)and Federal’s Fusion line.the same high-quality componentsused in their domestic products,resulting in excellent performanceat hefty savings. The only thing theshooter then lacks is reloadablebrass boxer-primed cases. Their SteelMatch ammo is already proving verypopular.Another avenue to explore isbargain-priced imported ammunitionlike American Tactical’s Turkishmadeammo. I’ve shot a bunch oftheir 62-grain 5.56mm loads, and theycompare very favorably with SerbianPrvi Partisan ammo—another goodchoice—and even American militaryissueM855 rounds. In addition totheir 5.56mm ammo, they also offer7.62x51mm, and about a dozen targetand tactical 12- or 20-gauge and .410shotgun rounds.Shop around, folks, and don’tforget—you can order most ammoshipped directly to your door (unlessyou live in one of those unfriendlystates, in which case you’d better talkto your local dealer)! Connor OUTGarrett CartridgesP.O. Box 178Chehalis, WA 98532(206) 736-0702www.gunsmagazine.com/GARRETT-CARTRIDGESGrizzly Cartridge Company30201 Carmel Rd.Rainier, OR 97048(503) 556-3006www.gunsmagazine.com/grizzlycartridgeHornadyP.O. Box 1848Grand Island, NE 68802(308) 382-1390www.gunsmagazine.com/hornadyK&A Ammunition, LLCMedina, TN 38355(731) 697-3414www.gunsmagazine.com/kaammoMagSafe Ammo, Inc.4700 S. US Hwy 17-92Casselberry, FL 32707(407) 834-9966www.gunsmagazine.com/magsafeammoWinchester Ammunition600 Powder Mill Rd.East Alton, IL 62024(618) 258-2000www.gunsmagazine.com/winchesterWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 79

APRIL 2011Classified ads $2.00 per-word insertion. ($1.50 per-word insertion for 3 ormore) including name, address and phone number (20 word minimum).Minimum charge $40.00. BOLD WORDS add $1.00 per word. Copy and rerunorders must be accompanied by PAYMENT IN ADVANCE. NO AGENCY ORCASH DISCOUNTS ON LISTING OR DISPLAY CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING.All ads must be received with advance payment BY NO LATER THAN THE 1stOF each month. EXAMPLE: Closing for DEC. 2008 issue (on sale NOV. 5th) isSEPT 1st, 2008. Ads received after closing will appear in the following issue.Please type or print clearly. NO PROOFS WILL BE FURNISHED. Include name,address, post office, city, state and zip code as counted words. Abbreviationscount as one word each. Mail to GUNS MAGAZINE CLASSIFIEDS, 12345 WorldTrade Drive, San Diego, California 92128. NOTE: WE NOW HAVE DISPLAYCLASSIFIEDS IN BOTH GUNS MAGAZINE AND AMERICAN HANDGUNNER.ASK FOR OUR NEW RATE CARD. (858) 605-0235.ACCESSORIESGUNSMITHINGFREE CATALOG! Make your own kydexgun holster or knife sheath. Over1200 items. Visit www.knifekits.comor call 1-877-255-6433 today.AMMUNITIONQuinetics Corporation! Reloadingsupplies for the reloader. Made inUSA. www.quineticscorp.comAPPARELTHE BELTMAN makes sturdy, topquality, DUAL LAYER, Bull Hide beltsfor dress wear, concealed carry, orcompetition. Options include: Horse,Shark, Elephant, Velcro, tapering,stiffeners, etc. Handmade in threewidths, and five colors from $69.95,any length! Catalogue - $3.00 (refundable)PO Box 1302, Apex, NC 27502.919-387-1997. www.thebeltman.net.GUNSMITHING INSTRUCTION ATPCC. Two-year hands-on program;excellent facilities; financial aid available;VA approved. Piedmont CommunityCollege, P.O. Box 1197, Roxboro,NC 27573 (336)599-1181; www.piedmontcc.eduKNIVES & SWORDSFREE POCKET KNIVES. Collectibles,Bowies, Swords, Tacticals,And Much More. For More InformationVisit Our Web Site And ClickOn The Featured Product For TheWeek. www.dovadistributors.comCUSTOMCORNERS&K SCOUT-MOUNTNo Drilling or Tapping!The absolute best scope mount made for theArgentine 1891. Easy installation withoutmodifications to your gun. Machined fromsolid bar stock & made in the USA. Seewww.scopemounts.comfor a list of our other mounts & scopes.Argentine 1891 Scope MountS&KScope Mounts70 Swede Hollow RdSugar Grove, PA 16350800-578-9862www.scopemounts.comNEW! NOW YOU CAN ADDPIZZAZZ TO YOUR RUGERBLACKHAWK, SUPER BLACKHAWK, OLD VAQUERO andSINGLE SIX REVOLVERS!NEW IMAGES FOR YOUR 1911 AND TAURUS.QUALITY MADE IN THE U.S.A.www.riograndecustomgrips.com303-330-2812WWW.DLSPORTS.COMCustom AR15’s, 1911’s,Precision Rifles,Accessories, Training,ITRC CompetitionExtreme DutyAR15 MagazinesNow Available!307.686.4008D&L Sports, Inc.PO Box 651Gillette, WY 8271780WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

For more information on seeing your product featured in NewProducts, Contact: Andrew Oram (866) 903-1199. For moreNew Products visit us online at www.gunsmagazine.comNEW PRODUCTS1911 ICE MAGWELLDAWSONPRECISIOND awsonPrecision’snew design “keylocks” the 1911Ice Magwell tothe checkeredmainspringhousing, both ofwhich are CNCmachined toprecise tolerances.The shooter’s grip is solid and improved becauseof the ergonomic design of the magwell itself,resulting in a better hand-to-magwell contact.The 1911 Ice Magwell fits IPSC and IDPA boxes.With its low-profile design, the magwell is perfectfor law enforcement, concealed carry and tacticalapplications. Dawson Precision, (866) 300-1911www.gunsmagazine.com/dawsonprecisionZEISS DIASCOPE 15-56X/20-75X EYEPIECECARL ZEISS SPORTS OPTICShe 15-56X/20-75X eyepiece for the ZEISSTVictory DiaScope T* FL Spotting Scopesfunctions as a 15-56X on the 65mm DiaScopeand 20-75X on the 85mm DiaScope. Both modelscome in straight or angled bodies and feature DualSpeed Focus System, rubber-armored exterior,magnesium/aluminum housing and FL lenssystem. All DiaScopes are waterproof and nitrogenfilled and feature LotuTec water repellant coatingand bayonet locking system. Carl Zeiss Optical,(800) 441-3005, www.gunsmagazine.com/zeissDEFENDER SERIES BODY ARMORUS PALMith the Defender Series Body ArmorWyou will no longer scramble to find allthe essentials needed to defend yourself andyour family. Within seconds you will haveyour firearm, spare magazines, flashlight,cell phone, etc. and front ballistic protectionfrom handgun threats! This product provideslevel-3 soft-armor protection in the frontpanel with pouches and pockets designed foryour specific firearm. Five different modelsare available. A second soft-armorpanel for the rear is available as anaccessory for additional protection. USPalm, (480) 398-3395, www.gunsmagzine.com/uspalmROUGH RIDER 9-S.22 LR AND .22 MAGNUMHERITAGE MFG.hambered for the .22 LR and .22 Magnum, theCRough Rider is manufactured using state-ofthe-art-precisionmachinery. The barrel is microthreaded,and inserted into the frame for theoptimal barrel/cylinder gap to give you maximum ammunitionperformance. A hammer block in the recoil shield provides extraprotection and has a red-dot indicator that lets you know when the gunis ready for action. An authentic-looking, flat-sided hammer paired withexotic cocobolo grips, makes this both functional and handsome. www.gunsmagazine.com/heritagemfgCHATELLIER’S RARE GAME SAUCEWILDGAMESAUCE.COMhe unique, slightly sweet, slightly tangy,Tpleasantly spicy taste of Chatellier’s Rare GameSauce has pleased connoisseurs for over 30 years.This sauce makes any game great. Use it as asuperb, unique baste for barbeque or baking. Or,if your game larder is empty, serve it with equalsuccess as an accompaniment to domestic ham,lamb, beef and poultry. (978) 394-8100 or www.gunsmagazine.com/wildgamesauceTACTICAL RANGE BOXMTM CASE-GARDhe Tactical Range Box is designed to service both bolt-actionTand AR-style rifles. It includes two adjustable gun forks forrifles and shotguns, and has an all-new action-block insert armthat is designed to fit into the magazine well of AR-15/M16-stylerifles. It offers support for cleaning and accessory mountingfor customization with red dots, lights and lasers. It features aremovable top storage box for storing all of your small cleaningitems like oils, solvents, brushes, batches, as well as anyadditional accessories. MTM Case-Gard, (937) 890-7461, www.gunsmagazine.com/mtmcase-gard82WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

KICKLITEPHOENIX TECHNOLOGYhoenix Technology KickLite stocks arePfitted with a recoil-reduction system.The KickLite series was engineeredand designed with shooters of all sizes,strengths and body types in mind. Thefully-integrated system reduces theperceived felt impact of shotgun loadswithout compromising the look, feelor function of your shotgun. Extremelypopular with female shooters, youthand smaller framed individuals, as wellas the big guys who can do without theshoulder pain often associated with along day in the field. Phoenix Technology,(910) 259-6804, www.gunsmagazine.com/phoenixtechTURKEY THUG SHOTGUN SERIESMOSSBERGossberg delivers four new high-Turkey THUG shotgunMperformancemodels, each engraved with “TurkeyTHUG Series” on the receiver. Allfeatureing Mossberg’s Lightning PumpAction (LPA) user-adjustable, creepfreetrigger system, which providesunmatched accuracy. The Turkey THUGSeries boasts adjustable fiber-opticsights on all models and two of themodels feature a mounted and boresighted30mm TruGlo red-dot sight. Twostock options will be available; classic(in black or Break-up Infinity) and afull-length pistol grip (Break-Up Infinityonly). Mossberg, (203) 230-5300, www.gunsmagazine.com/mossbergRIFLEMANACH SERIESALTUSBRANDSltus Brands’Anew, slim,lightweightRifleman ACHelectronichearingprotectionseries offersa high NRR of21 and a crisp,natural soundquality. Eachunit weighs a light 8.3 ounces, featuresan adjustable headband that is easilyworn with combat helmets. The compactunit folds into itself for easy carry andstorage. Each cup is also fitted withreceiver/input capabilities for: AM/FMradio, CD or MP3 player, FRS radios andelectronic communication/entertainmentdevices using a 3.5mm “mini jack.”Altus Brands, (231) 421-3810, www.gunsmagazine.com/altus-brands-llcSUBCOMPACT V3 LASERLASERLYTEhe Subcompact V3 laser is theTmost state-of-the-art, versatile railmountedlaser to date. It needs lessthan 3/4" of Picatinny rail space toeasily mount onto even the smallestfirearms. Constructed of T6 aluminumfor extra strength and durability, thisunit offers an auto-off feature. TheV3 easily mounts with a hex-drivecrossbar screw and features windageadjustment, elevation adjustment andprogrammable constant-on and pulsemodes. LaserLyte, (928) 649-3201,www.gunsmagazine.com/laserlyteCASE TRIMMERRDZ PRODUCTShe RDZ Case Trimmer is quick and easy to use andTproduces reliable and repeatable case dimensions. Itgives you more time for loading and less time preparing.It is to be used on any 3/8" or larger drill press andis designed to be used with standard-universal shellholders. The set includes the RDZ Case Trimmer, a setof nine pilots for the most standard bullet calibers, thecutter head and arbor. RDZ Products, (860) 601-1222,www.gunsmagazine.com/rdzproductsSR750 EXTREME POWDER PACKAGESMARTRELOADERhe popular SR750 scale fromTSmartReloader is now delivered ina great package for measuring powder.Included in the SR750 package is theSR55 universal anti-static powderfunnel, the Baby Powder Trickler madeof steel (1 pound) and two powdermeasures (2.5cc and .7cc). Weighingmodes are grams/ounces/grains/carats;accuracy is 50g/.01g (771 grains/.1g);and is powered by two AAA batteries.SmartReloader, fax: (828) 471-3310,www.gunsmagazine.com/smartreloaderGUN LUXE JEWELRY COLLECTIONCOBRA FIREARMSobra Firearms “Gun Luxe Jewelry” by designer Brianna Chamberlain,Ca new line of jewelry designed to capture the attention of the femaleshooting enthusiast. The jewelry is crafted with ideas and influences thatreflect the shooting sports and will provide women with the ability toexpress their hobby or passion in their style. All pieces are element richwith semi-precious stones, freshwater pearls, crystals, genuine bulletcasings, turquoise, quartz, silver, copper and gold. The collection includes:earrings, bracelets, rings, necklaces and several select designer sets.Cobra Firearms, (801) 908-8300, www.gunsmagazine.com/cobrafirearmsWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 83

ENTER TTHUNDER RANCHDEFENSIVE FIREARMS TECHNIQUESDVD Featuring Clint SmithValue: $49.95GSG-1911MAKER: German Sport Guns GMBHOesterweg 2159469 Ense-Hoingen, GermanyIMPORTER: American Tactical Imports100 Airpark DR.Rochester, NY 14624(800) 290-0065www.gunsmagazine.com/americantacticalACTION TYPE: Semiautomatic, blowback, CALIBER: .22 Long Rifle,CAPACITY: 10, BARREL LENGTH: 5”, OVERALL LENGTH: 8.58”,WEIGHT: 35 ounces, FINISH: Matte black, SIGHTS: 3-dot, adjustable,GRIPS: Walnut, checkered, VALUE: $329.95, Value of Package: $778.90This contest is open to individuals who are residentsof the United States and its territories only. Agentsand employees of Publishers DevelopmentCorporation and their families are excludedfrom entering. Contest void where prohibited orrestricted by law. Winners must meet all locallaws and regulations. Taxes and compliance withfirearms regulations will be the responsibility ofthe winners. Winners will be notified by CERTIFIEDMAIL on official letterhead. ATTENTION DEPLOYEDMILITARY: USE STATESIDE ADDRESS! Nopurchase necessary to enter.TO ENTER CONTEST:Use YOUR OWN postcard (no envelopes, please)Follow sample card to right. Mail postcard to:GUNS Magazine, GOM APRILP.O. BOX 502795, San Diego, CA 92150-2795.Entries must be received before MAY 1, 2011.Limit one entry per household.QUESTION OF THE MONTH: Do you plan on buying arimfire gun this year?(A) Yes, there’s always room for a rimfire handgun.(B) Yes, there’s always room for a rimfire rifle.(C) Yes, I plan on buying a handgun and a rifle.(D) No, I don’t want a rimfire.NameAddressCity, State, ZipEmail AddressCIRCLE ANSWER(S) TO QUESTION OF THE MONTH APRIL 2011:(A) (B) (C) (D)IF I WIN, SHIP MY PRIZE THROUGH:FFL DealerAddressCity, State, ZipPhone # ( )Store Hours: ___________ ___a.m. thru ______________p.m.Attention Deployed Military: USE STATESIDE ADDRESS!SAMPLE ONLY84WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

O WIN!Alamo BowieMaker: KATz KnivesP.O. Box 2217 Banks Center RPOKelowne BC V1X 4K6cAnada(480) 786-9334www.gunsmagazine.com/katzknivesBlade material: 440C+ (58-59 Rockwell C), Blade length: 10",Overall length: 14-7/8”, Weight: 16.5 ounces, Scales: Cherrywood,Sheath: Leather, Value: $399GUNS MAGAZINEAPRIL 2011GUN GIVEAWAY!For web links, go to www.gunsmagazine.com/product-indexYOU CAN WIN THIS FREE AMERICANTACTICAL IMPORTS GSG 1911 .22 LONG RIFLE!GUNS MAGAZINE GUN GIVEAWAY!You might remember reading in last month’sissue the enthusiastic words of our own HoltBodinson and Mike Cumpston about thisfabulous rimfire understudy to the venerable 1911Government Model made by German Sport Guns andimported by American Tactical Imports. We thoughtit was so cool we chose to give one away this monthto just one of you lucky readers. Just to make thewhole pot a little sweeter, we’re also including a KatzAlamo Bowie with Cherrywood scales and 10" fulltangblade made from 440C+ hardened to 58-59 onthe Rockwell C scale. You can’t win if you don’t enter,so send those postcards in pronto or take the surveyand enter online at www.gunsmagazine.com.WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 85

• J O H N C O N N O R •Serious SummerSlackin’-Off StuffLike reading.or most of the country April is a muddy,Fmuddled mess of a month. Winter andSpring don’t know if they’re comin’ or going,and lots of outdoor shooting-sports folks don’tknow either. You can only clean your guns somuch before it constitutes “firearm abuse,” andreload so many rounds before the ammo cabinetcreaks and threatens to collapse. But here are two thingsyou can do during April’s doldrums:First, get into the garage rafters andpull down your hammock or loungin’chair. Check all the lines, webbingand hardware for need of repair orreplacement. You don’t want to waituntil the first warm, sunny Sundayafternoon to discover the hard waythat time, strain and solar effect haveconspired to unceremoniously dumpyou right onto the deck like a box a’rocks.Next, you’ll need props; essentially,excuses to be reclining in regal splendorsoakin’ up sun instead of rooting outdandelions or painting the porch. Ihighly recommend books. If you dozeoff, you don’t have to hit “replay” orpress a “mute” button to shut ’emup; and if suspicious familial forcesinterrogate you, you can always pleadthe need to better inform yourself,expand your interests and broadenyour mind. That sounds noble enough,doesn’t it? Here are some suggestionsfor you:Great Thoughts,Deep ThoughtsThe Great Thoughts, compiled byGeorge Seldes. As the subtitle reads,“From Abelard to Zola, from ancientGreece to contemporary America,”it’s filled with bite-sized morsels—theideas that have shaped the history ofthe world. Break off a chunk of Cato,team a slice of Socrates with a slabof steamin’ Spinoza and you’ve gota philosophy sandwich supreme. Thebest part is, it’s arranged so you canbrowse and nibble, from half a minuteto hours at a time, changing century,civilization and course from momentto moment.I’ve purchased and given awaymore copies of The Great Thoughtsthan any other book, often followingup on those gifts. In every case I’vefound them well-used, dog-earedand margin-noted. I keep two copieson board; one for myself, and onefor “loans”—which tend to becomepermanent.Hey, here’s a sorta-modernselection: “Written laws are likespiders’ webs and will, like them,only entangle and hold the poor andweak, while the rich and powerfuleasily break them.” Anarcharsis theScythian said that around 600 B.C.Wow, times have sure changed, haven’tthey? Hmmm….Deep Survival—Who Lives, WhoDies, and Why by Laurence Gonzales.The author came by his life-longinterest in human survival naturally.Before Laurence was born, his father,Federico Gonzales, was a B-17 pilotassigned to the 8th Air Force, flyingbombing missions over Germany. His25th B-17 mission took him 27,000'over the rail yards at Düsseldorf,where a German flak battalion 88mmround blew his right wing off. Theaircraft rolled over in an inverted flatspin and then broke in half amidships.Lt. Gonzales passed out from hypoxia.A witness described “… boys fallingout of the sky.” Gonzales fell morethan 20,000' to the ground without aparachute. He survived.Here’s a royal flush of reading for ya….In Deep Survival, Gonzales’ researchof avalanches, floods, sinking ships,aircraft crashes and peoples’ reactions,survivable and not, is distilled in highlyreadable form. Going far beyond thetools and techniques survivors used tosave themselves and others, he probesthe assets in their brains which madethe critical difference—and comesup with some compelling theories,including one called “memories of thefuture.” No novel can compare withthe true stories recounted—and nonecould prepare you better to surviveyour own emergency.The World, Then And NowGenghis Khan and the Making of theModern World, by Jack Weatherford.At its zenith, the Mongol Empirestretched from Siberia to India, fromChina and Vietnam to Hungary andfrom Korea to the Balkans, coveringover 12 million contiguous squaremiles. In 25 years, Genghis Khanconquered more people and territorythan the Roman Empire did in 400years. He did this with the resources ofa poor, arid country with a populationof perhaps one million people, andhis army—which defeated literallymillions of Asian, Persian, Arab,Slavic, Turkic and European knightsand soldiers—never numbered over100,000 Mongols.Genghis established and enforcedfreedom of religion, smashed thefeudal inheritance of aristocraticprivilege, replacing it with merit-basedsystems; abolished torture, establishedthe first international postal serviceand much, much more.If you’ve ever wondered howTemujin, a hungry kid from a dirt-86WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

ODD ANGRY SHOTpoor Mongol clan became history’sgreatest conqueror—and perhapshistory’s most beneficent ruler—or,why Genghis Khan and the Mongolshave gotten such a bad rap and beenpainted as monsters in Westernhistory, Professor Weatherford cananswer your questions and tell thestory in smashing style.Imperial Grunts by Robert D.Kaplan. The public eye has becomefixed on our military presence in Iraqand Afghanistan and the televisedpronouncements of high-rankingdignitaries in soft suits. But, as Kaplanexplains in a narrative filled with “spitand grit,” the interests of freedomare served worldwide by mostly verysmall units of quiet professionals,serving without the thanks or eventhe knowledge of the society theyrepresent.“ Once you start reading 1776,you will need and demandundisturbed time, and you’llchafe at distractions.”From Yemen to Colombia andSierra Leone to the Philippines,corporals make “handshake treaties”with khans, lieutenants teachtribesmen to fight terrorists and majorsmake diplomacy with sheiks, all thewhile hoping their own governmentwon’t sell their successes down theriver. Kaplan, who is a consummatelyfactual reporter and a sorta modernMarco Polo, won’t disappoint you.The Last,Perhaps The Best1776 by David McCullough. MaybeI saved the best for last; you can be thejudge of that. But this one comes witha warning: Once you start reading1776, you will need and demandundisturbed time, and you’ll chafe atdistractions. McCullough’s researchinto the darkest, most perilous periodin our fledgling nation’s history, andhis delving into the personal and manytimes previously unpublished lettersand papers of our patriot forefathersis incredible and richly rewarding.For me, the best thing about 1776is that it does not define GeorgeWashington, Nathanael Greene,Henry Knox and others by theirown words so much as it does bythe personal observations of ourcommon kin who left their farms andforges to follow them into battle; folkslike 10-year-old Israel Trask, whodescribes how General Washingtonbroke up a brawl on Harvard Yard.Buy two copies—you’ll need ’em!Connor OUTVisit one of our three traveling showrooms at a dealer near you and get yourhands on the hottest new products from today’s top manufacturers.See our 2011 show dates online at www.elitesportsexpress.comTo book the ESE or get your productson board, call Don at 702-528-6771GUNS MAGAZINE ONLINE!www.gunsmagazine.comWWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 87

APRIL 2011ADVERTISER’S INDEXThe companies listed have featuredadvertisements in this issue. Look tothem first when you are ready to make apurchase.ADVERTISERPAGEAirForce Airguns .............68Al Mar Knives ...............10AmericanHandgunner T-Shirts .......88Archangel Mfg./ProMag Ind.. ...35Arntzen Corporation ..........35Blue Book Publications Inc. ....32Bond Arms .................23Cheaper Than Dirt ............63CorBon/Glaser. ..............26Crimson Trace Corp. ..........64CrossBreed Holsters LLC ......26CZ USA ....................37ADVERTISER PAGE ADVERTISER PAGED & L Sports. ...............80Daniel Defense ............. C3DeSantis Holster .............66Elite Sports Express ..........87EMA Tactical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25FIIST ......................80Fiocchi Ammunition ......... C2GUNS Magazine Subscription ...81GunVault ...................11Helvetica Trading USA. ........17Hodgdon Powder Company ....59Insight Technology Inc .........9Jantz Supply ................67Kahr Arms. .................14Kimber Manufacturing Inc. .... C4Kirkpatrick Leather Company ...79Kwik-Site Co. .........29, 38, 72LaserLyte ..................21Leatherman Tool Group Inc. ....65Leupold & Stevens Tactical .....40Lyman Products .............23Mag-na-port International Inc. ..79Meprolight .................41MTM Case-Gard .............33Nighthawk Custom ............7Numrich Gun Parts ...........66Old West Reproductions Inc. ...39Otis Technology Inc. . . . . . . . . . . .3Pride-Fowler ................68Rio Grande Custom Grips ......80Rock River Arms. ............39S & K ScopeMounts ..........80Savage Arms. ...............61Sierra Bullet ................10SIG SAUER .................31Sinclair International. ......35, 79Smith & Wesson. ............13SOG Specialty Knives .........20Speer Ammunition ...........15Springfield Inc. ...........27, 69Steelcutter Publishing. ........60Ten Ring Precision ...........80Thunder RanchTraining DVDs. ......71, 72, 89Walther USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19Wicked Grips. ...............60New Gear!GETSOME!Only $21.99 each!with Free shipping(within the continental U.S.)American Handgunner USAStyle #HGUSTactical DivisionStyle #HGTDKeeping The PeaceStyle #HGPCNew American Handgunner T-shirts. Only $21.99 with FREE shipping.www.AMERICANHANDGUNNER.com or call (800) 628-9818Shoot To LiveStyle #HGSH88WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

CAMPFIRE TALEScontinued from page 90Until recently.It is obvious to me manufacturershave changed something drastically. Afew weeks ago I spent time shootingtwo of the new .44 Special Ruger Flat-Top Blackhawks being distributedby Lipsey’s; another pair of .44Special Custom Rugers built on the.357 Magnum 50th AnniversaryBlackhawk; and a 5th sixgun, a.44 Magnum 50th AnniversaryBlackhawk. All my loads were semiheavy.44 Specials and .44 Magnums.At one time in the late 1980s, I firedover 800 rounds of .454s in one session;this time it was 400 much lighter loadsand something occurred I have neverexperienced before. The bottom of mytrigger finger was bruised to the pointit required more than a week to healup. What in the world are firearmsmanufacturers thinking to change therecoil of their sixguns to the point ofdoing something like this?No See’um SightsI have also noticed a great changein sixgun sights lately. The classicsixguns of the 1950s all came withwell-defined, sharp, crisp, easy-toseesights. Manufacturers have madea great change here also. Currentlyproduced sixguns do not have thosesame wonderful easy-to-see sights.Why would they do this? It simplymakes shooting tight little groupson paper much more difficult, not tomention how fuzzy sights also playhavoc with long-range shooting.Even into the 1980s sights werevery clear, making long-rangesilhouetting a great shooting game.Why don’t they still make these sights?But that’s not the worst of it. Thereseems to be some type of black magicinvolved, perhaps some supernaturalvirus. I have noticed recently thatnewer sixguns have infected my oldersixguns while they are all stored in thesame safe. Somehow the sights on theold classic sixguns have degeneratedto the same point as those on the newsixguns. This is not right! Why aremanufacturers doing this to us?The WiggliesI’ve noticed something elsemanufactures have built into theirsixguns and I was just complaining toBob Baker at Freedom Arms aboutthis. I got my first .454 Casull fromFreedom Arms in the mid-1980s. Isoon found without a doubt it wasthe finest revolver every produced bya factory. Whether I shot it offhandor from a rest, it was dead solid.The sights were not only easy to seethey stayed right on target. Nowthere seems to be a built-in wigglefactor. This wiggle factor seems tobe even more prevalent among scopemanufacturers.Over the years I have used LERpistol scopes from Burris, Bushnell,Leupold and Simmons. The crosshairson all of these scopes used to standstill. Now they dance all over the placeeven off sandbags. My scope-sighted.454 Casull was rock solid eventhough I knew I would experienceheavy recoil when the trigger waspulled. Now when I try to shoot mybrand new 10" Freedom Arms scoped.327 Federal with no anticipation ofany heavy recoil the crosshairs wiggleall over the target. Why is this?It’s bad enough to have to put up withthese changes from manufacturers,but I find myself experiencing waytoo many changes in Natural Law.An enormous amount of time andmoney is spent over the fallacy ofman-caused global warming. Insteadof wasting resources over globalwarming they should be investigatingthe real temperature change—that is,the change in how temperature nowaffects us. For example, a quartercentury ago I could shoot the .500Linebaugh in 15-degree F weather.Even before that, in the 1950s, Iworked outside in the dead of thewinter in my shirtsleeves. Now I find ifthe temperature doesn’t at least equalmy age I’d just as soon stay indoors.What has happened to temperature?Grave Gravity MattersEven stranger than the change intemperature is that found in gravity.At least temperature only changedin one direction but gravity worksboth ways. For more than 50 years Ihave been shooting sixguns and haveaccumulated a pretty good collectionof cartridge belts. They are all hangingvertically by the buckle in a peg on thewall of one of my rooms. Some ofthese belts date back to the 1950s.Now one would expect, if the lawof gravity remained natural, if therewas any change at all the belts wouldgrow longer; instead I find just theopposite. Every time I buckle oneon, instead of it being longer, I findit has become shorter and tighter andin some cases won’t even buckle. Thisis unnatural. Now this is bad enough,however I have also found a case ofgravity working the other way. In the1950s, I could pick up 500 pounds.Now I find it difficult to get out of myLazy Boy recliner. This is definitelychange I don’t need!In recent times we have heardmuch of hope and change. I stillbelieve in hope, but you can keep thechange.WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 89

Keep The ChangeIt must be a conspiracy.hange. It is always with us from the time of conceptionCuntil we leave this life. As this is written I have spent25,575 days on this earth and have experienced changeevery single day; it has been both my best friend andworst enemy. The first parts of our lives are controlledmostly by positive changes, until we reach a certain pointand then things begin to change negatively. Not only doour bodies change, but also we are constantly surroundedby change. You can’t ever go back to how things used tobe, and this is found to be true for someone who movesaway from their hometown then returns many years lateronly to be startled by changes that have occurred.The first house I remember livingin doesn’t exist anymore; that wholeneighborhood is now a parking lot. Myfirst grade school was within a quietlittle well-kept neighborhood withseveral candy stores. The stores arelong gone; the neighborhood is nowrundown, with the long abandonedschool building surrounded by a fencetopped with barbed wire, to preventvandalism. It hasn’t worked.During the six years I attended thatgrade school we lived in a housingproject which had been built mostlyfor returning veterans of WWII. Itwas a wonderful place to grow upwith lots of kids and playgrounds.It covered several blocks with threestreets, and although the rental homeswere small, they were well built of allbrick construction and well cared forby the proud inhabitants. When I wentback in the 1970s, I found a ghettowith paper and trash in the streets.Keep the change!Change had worked its damage.The house we moved into inJanuary of 1950 was a grand placebacked up to a wooded area. Here iswhere I lived as I finished my schoolyears, got my first job, met DiamondDot, and then moved when we marriedin 1959. It no longer exists. It burntto the ground in the 1970s and wasnever rebuilt. My childhood is totallygone. I literally cannot go back. Mypast surroundings have been wipedout and only memories of wonderfultimes remain.Every reader can probably lookback and experience the same thingsI have. Change happened very slowlyprior to the Industrial Revolution,however, since then great changehas happened faster and faster untiltoday’s generation hardly notices it.I can usually handle these changes,however, I have a tough time withchanges that have secretly and subtlybeen foisted upon us by the firearmsindustry. They make no excuses forwhat they have done, in fact, they willnot even admit the changes they haveforced upon us.Inhumane ChangesAs one example let us look atrecoil. My first experience with a .44Magnum was as a teenager in 1956. Itwas a Smith & Wesson and the recoilwas horrendous! So much so, I insteadpurchased a .44 Magnum RugerBlackhawk. It was even worse. At thefirst shot the muzzle flipped skywardand the hammer took a hunk of skinout of the back of my hand. BothRuger and Smith & Wesson must’verealized how bad the recoil was andchanged something, as by the 1960sI was shooting both sixguns with noproblem. Then came the .454 Casullin the 1980s and I fired hundreds ofrounds per session. The .500 and .475Linebaughs were a challenge, howeverI even survived them. All was well.continued on page 8990WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • APRIL 2011

The Kimber Super Carry.Well-rounded Performance.The new Super Carry Ultra+ (left) and SuperCarry Custom HD establish a new standardof personal defense. Seven Super Carrymodels are offered, all chambered in .45 ACP.Super Carry pistols have specializedfeatures like night sights withcocking shoulder, round heel frameand unidirectional serrations.The Super Carry Pro .45 ACP isone of four models with a light weightaluminum frame for easy carry.The Super Carry Pro HD .45 ACPis one of three new models with astainless steel frame for hard use.Super Carry .45 ACP pistols raise the bar for 1911 features and performance. Made in theKimber ® Custom Shop, they have a round heel frame for unequaled concealability andcomfortable carry, plus unidirectional serrations for fast and positive operation. A Carry Melt treatment rounds and blends edges. An ambidextrous thumb safety and match grade barrelare standard. A Kimber fi rst, the new Super Carry Ultra+ combines a 3-inch barrel with afull-length grip. Super Carry pistols deliver performance to the extreme.©2011 Kimber Mfg., Inc. All rights reserved. Kimber names, logos and other trademarks may not beused without permission. Names of other companies, products and services may be the property oftheir respective owners. Kimber firearms are shipped with an instruction manual and California-approvedcable lock. Copy of instruction manual available by request.Kimber, One Lawton Street, Yonkers, NY 10705 (800) 880-2418THE CHOICE OF AMERICA’S BESTkimberamerica.com