April 2009

20-Gauge Auto Shoot-out: Beretta, Browning, Remington
Twenty-gauge high-performance lead loads can often outperform their commonly used 12-gauge counterparts—this has been shown vividly again and again. The most relevant example at hand is a load for wild pheasants. Often, the 12-gauge load selected happens to be the cheapest load available at the time, too often a promotional load with various sketches of birdies on the box. It will fall into the category of a 1.25-ounce 1330-fps load at an attractive price. Though the consumer might be told it is 'ideal' for pheasants, things don’t always work as described or as promised—one of the reasons for this publication. Used with quality loads, such as 1-5/16 ounce Winchester Supreme STH2035 shotshells or the Federal PFC258 3-inch shells, we recently proved once again that 20-gauge autoloaders like the guns tested below can produce patterns not just the equal of common 12-gauge loads, but verifiably superior. In this shoot-off, we looked at three familiar names associated with gas-operated shotguns: Beretta, Browning, and Remington—to see what their blued-steel-and-walnut editions have to offer today’s shotgunning enthusiasts. Our specific test products were the Beretta AL 391 Urika 2 Gold No. J39TB26 3-inch 20 Gauge, $1550; Browning Silver Hunter Twenty No. 011350605, $1079; and the Remington 1100 Premier Sporting Twenty No. 82846, $1385. Our test ammunition included both 7/8 oz. Estate loads and Winchester Super-X Heavy Game Loads No. XU20H7 with 1 ounce of No. 7 1/2 shot—what we use as an everyday dove load along with Fiocchi 20HV75 shells. We also patterned with Federal Mag-Shok high-velocity lead 3-inch 1-5/16 ounce No. 5 shot (No. PFC258) and Winchester Supreme 1-5/16 ounce 3-inch shells with No. 5 shot (No. STH2035). We shot our patterns at 40 yards, the patterning all shot from bag and cradle. We also fired the guns extensively at the range and in the field to record what we liked and didn’t like about the guns.

Double-Column 45 ACPs: CZ, H&K, and FN Shoot It Out
Not all 45 ACP pistols are built to feed from a single-column magazine or be ignited by a full-time single-action trigger. In this test we will evaluate a trio of pistols that feed from double-column magazines and trigger systems that can alternate between offering a double-action first shot and single-action-only operation. Our three pistols are the $779 CZ USA 97B, Heckler & Koch’s $1099 45C, and FNH USA’s new $780 FNP USG pistol. The CZ 97B is an older design finding its beginning with the CZ75 pistol. But its full-length dustcover and 10+1 capacity of big 45 caliber ammunition gives it modern appeal. The HK 45C is a refinement of the USP design. Like the FNP45 USG, the HK 45C includes features that reflect input from military and law enforcement studies. In every test accuracy and reliability are a must. But in the case of guns that feature both double- and single-action operation the task of charting accuracy is more complex. Our accuracy data reflects firing from support single-action only, but we also wanted to know how quickly and accurately these guns can be fired from the hammer-down position. Or were they limited to cocked-and-locked carry? In addition we asked how safe and secure was the decocking process, and how safe and secure was the manual safety? Would hammer-down first-shot double action prove to be a realistic carry option? Or would such condition be relegated to 'off duty' administrative handling, such as when placing the gun in a night stand or desk drawer? With rain in the forecast we chose to test indoors at the famous Top Gun Handgun Training Center in Houston (topgunrange.com). With a corporate event scheduled for late afternoon we were able to set up our shooting bench for the balance of the day. Our test ammunition consisted of 230-grain Hornady TAP hollowpoints, Black Hills remanufactured 185-grain jacketed hollowpoints and handloaded rounds featuring Sierra’s 230-grain FMJ bullet number 8815. We drove the Sierra bullet with a moderate load of Winchester 231 powder and Winchester primers. Accuracy data was collected firing single action only from a distance of 15 yards. Support was supplied by a Caldwell Rock Jr. pistol rest, and we aimed at Caldwell’s 3-inch Orange Peel circles (battenfeldtechnologies.com). Our next test was to determine how quickly and easily each gun could be fired beginning with the first shot double action. Standing 7 yards from a Hoffners ABC16 Action Target (hoffners.com), we began with hammer down. Upon an audible start signal we engaged the center mass A-zone with a first shot double action followed by a second shot to this same point of aim fired single action. Our third shot of continuous fire was fired single action at the cranial pocket, or B-zone. This test was repeated for a total of 10 separate strings of fire. We recorded elapsed time, accuracy and took careful note of each gun’s handling and response. We experienced no malfunctions with any of the pistols during our tests, so when it came to grading these pistols on the Report Card, our job was that much more

Terrific Trio of Custom 45s: Volkmann, Wilson, Les Baer
If you have over two grand to put into a good 45 auto, which one will you get? For that kind of money you can pretty much tell a custom builder what you want and expect to get it, can’t you? Not quite, as it turns out. Or can you be satisfied with a fairly standard, if costly, over-the-counter 1911? We decided to take a look at some of the higher-priced 45s to see what gives. The test guns were full-size 1911s in 45 ACP caliber. We obtained a pistol called the Combat Custom ($2895 as tested) from a relatively new maker, Luke Volkmann of Volkmann Custom Inc., who will give you pretty much what you want for options, which we pitted against Wilson’s CQB ($2550) and Les Baer’s Premier II Super-Tac ($2280). Attempting to pick the best one out of all these very fine handguns was anything but easy. They are all excellent, with fine triggers, great accuracy, and many touches that set them apart from the ordinary. In light of the ongoing national surge to buy all kinds of firearms, especially those designed for self defense, you may have a hard time finding one of these better-grade 1911s. We shot the guns for accuracy and function, and evaluated them for self-defense training and general use. These were all outstanding pistols, yet we found some anomalies that might help you pick and choose. We tested with four types of ammunition, Black Hills’ hardball, Federal 185-grain Hi-Shok JHP, Cor-Bon 230-grain JHP, and with cast-lead, 230-grain round-nose Ultramax. We tested during a severe winter in Idaho, and thus had trouble achieving these guns’ full accuracy potential. Better conditions would have given better results, but the conditions were the same for all guns and thus valid for reference. They are hardly what you’d call lousy. Also, we shot two other known handguns every now and then during these tests to make sure we were not too far off base. Here is what we found.

AR-10 Shootoff: We Shoot Three Big Brothers of the AR-15
The AR-10 has led an interesting and strange life since its birth in the 1950s. It has never achieved the popularity of the AR-15, even though it was Eugene Stoner’s first rifle built on his gas-impingement system. Initially spurned by the U.S. Army for the legendary M-14, the AR-10 was banished to relative exile, occasionally appearing in the hands for small foreign militaries, or in a few cases, the revolutionary. Raul and Fidel Castro were said to have ended up with a few of them, courtesy of a captured Batista government arms shipment. Today we find the AR-10 finally emerging from its diminutive brother’s shadow. The shooting community’s renewed love affair with all things AR has led to a demand for heavier calibers like the AR-10’s 308 Win./7.62 NATO. In fact, one of our test guns, the Mossy Oak-covered Remington R-25 ($1,532), was introduced specifically with the hunter in mind. The other guns in our test are the ArmaLite AR-10T ($2,124), a match-barreled Target model with a 1-MOA guarantee, and the Fulton Armory Titan FAR-308 ($2,058), a gun with a distinct tactical look. The gun consumer’s embrace of new shooting technology has forever blurred the distinction between tactical and practical shooting. Whether on a rooftop watching a perpetrator, eyeing a bull’s-eye on the shooting line, or a big buck from a deer stand, all have the same basic requirement: the bullet should hit where it’s aimed, and stop the target.