Article first appeared at American Rifleman. My recent trip to Smith & Wesson’s academy required only one night’s stay, but whenever I visit the storied gunmaker’s Springfield, Mass.-area facilities, I’m reminded at every turn that its reputation was not built overnight. This time, the purpose was to shoot the company’s …

Article first appeared at American Rifleman. Having become familiar with John Browning’s Masterpiece at an early age, I have always had a 1911 close at hand. I have owned 1911s from companies such as AMT, Springfield Armory, Randall, Colt, Auto Ordnance and Kimber, as well as some lesser-known manufacturers. While …

Article first appeared at American Rifleman. Although 2016 was a bumpy ride politically speaking, it was a time of positive growth and change for Savage Arms. Starting the year off with a new stylized “S” logo, customers were kept properly supplied with high-quality, affordably priced bolt-actions,  rimfire semi-autos, and even …

Article first appeared at American Rifleman. They say beauty is only skin deep. That said, some people have difficulty looking past the surface. I think that is indeed the case with the recently leaked imagery of the new Taurus Spectrum pistol. Despite the jibes, perhaps rightly, Taurus has taken on …

Article first appeared at Shooting Illustrated. It’s no secret that when it comes to criminal behavior, the common perpetrator is far from the sharpest tool in the shed, so to speak. Last week, a couple of less-than-brilliant, would-be gun store burglars in a Detroit suburb not only botched their planned …

Article first appeared at Shooting Illustrated. I have traveled throughout the world working with foreign militaries on firearms maintenance issues. I can say categorically that no military spends the money and takes weapons maintenance as seriously as the US military. Early in the war on terrorism, the US military made …

Article first appeared at Shooting Illustrated. It turns out both good—and rare—things are worth waiting for. Case in point: Back in 2009, I began the process of transforming a SIG Sauer P556 pistol into an NFA-based short-barreled semi-auto rifle project with the goal of giving said firearm a face-lift so …

Article first appeared at Shooting Illustrated. Steel targets are some of the best training tools you can buy. Steel saves you time, because you don’t have to walk downrange to assess your shooting. This is especially true of the steel that is static or does not fall over when hit. …

Article first appeared at Cheaper than Dirt. Before we get too far into 2017, let’s take a quick look back at the 10 most popular Texas & U.S. Law Shield posts from 2016.Gun-law attorneys get into the stickiest issues—restrictions about owning body armor, when you can shoot attacking dogs, how to …

Article first appeared at Cheaper than Dirt. Contrary to what you may see in a lot of the popular firearms media these days, the revolver as a self-defense tool is not dead. In fact, there are quite a few options available for those seeking a revolver for home defense, concealed …