The popularity of small-caliber pocket pistols chambered in .25 ACP and .32 ACP has waned considerably in recent years due to an ever-growing selection of sub-compact models chambered for larger cartridges, including 9 mm Luger and .380 ACP—a transition that occurred, in part, due to the 2008 release of Ruger’s …

I have spent the last year switching back and forth between two optics on my primary teaching and training carbines, a Nightforce NX8 1-8X 24 mm first focal plane (FFP) and a Vortex Razor HD Gen II-E 1-6X 24 mm second focal plane (SFP). Both are leading choices in the Low-Power Variable Optic (LPVO) …

Ride the pine. Relegated to the minors. Missed the cut. All of the above. Former sportscaster turned failed progressive political mouthpiece Keith Olbermann took a swing at what the Second Amendment says and means and whiffed so badly he created a wind advisory. Before last week’s Major League Baseball All-Star game, police …

Did you know that the U.S. has averaged more than one and a half mass shootings a day so far this year?  I know that sounds crazy, but it is true.  Monday will be the 200th day of the year, and according to Wikipedia there have been 327 mass shootings up to …

For those of us who know a thing or two when it comes to working our way around a firearm, it is something of an amusing spectator sport to pick up the endless inconsistencies and impossibilities brought to life on the small and silver screens. Still, now and then, a …

The days of blue steel and walnut as the defining style of firearms are long behind us. One company leading that charge was Kel-Tec. Its embrace of polymer and black-oxidized steel with almost industrial looks is the new baseline for firearms. And, the latest in its line of “why didn’t …

When thinking about defending yourself while in your car, from a carjacking or any other deadly attack, one might keep in mind that probably the best defensive tool is what you are sitting in. Yep, your car. When confronted with a threat, the best move is to stick your foot …

Reincarnation is possible, at least for classic firearm designs with an avid fan base. With modern metallurgy and today’s tight CNC tolerances, retro-style designs can be safer, stronger and better performing than the original. Enthusiasts know that process sometimes surrenders the attractive fit, finish and feel that endeared them to …

Georg Luger was an interesting man. Born into a rather privileged family on March 6, 1849, his father was a renowned surgeon, so Georg was schooled in Italy. He later studied business at studied at the Wiener Handelsakademie (Vienna Commercial Academy). In 1867 he enlisted into the Austria-Hungary 78th Infantry Regiment as …

This article appeared originally in the July 2004 issue of American Rifleman. To subscribe to the magazine, visit the NRA membership page here and select American Rifleman as your member magazine. The M1A—the best known of the commercial semi-automatic-only M14 service rifle counterparts—has been produced by Springfield, Inc., for 30 years following the Geneseo, …