At this magazine, we do something that a lot of other magazines and websites do — recommend firearms that our readers might like to buy. We also do something else that most other outlets would never consider — telling our readers what guns not to buy. On the first point, we regularly run Value Guides, which are compilations of firearms that, generally, our test teams have lauded. In this issue, I’m launching what I think of as “Anti-Value Guides,” that is, collections of firearms we would not buy, which we’ll call “Not Our Picks,” for the simple reason that guns in these collections did not fare as well as others we’ve tested.
Based on correspondence with readers over the years, I’ve been told repeatedly that when a firearm comes up with a B or lower grade, it really doesn’t matter what the grade is. The winning gun sets the pace for the test, so readers usually say, “Why would I buy what Gun Tests says is a second-ranked gun?” That logic is hard to refute. So, when you’re at the gun counter and are trying to find a rifle, shotgun, or handgun you might like, it’s helpful to know what to buy, of course. But sometimes a well-meaning retailer will offer a second choice if the store doesn’t have your A-ranked model. That’s when a periodic reminder of which firearms were “Not Our Picks” might come in handy.
Also, conversations with readers are often peppered with questions about firearms that aren’t listed in the Value Guides. These I term the “What About?” inquiries. Because we have made a point of compiling firearms that generally do well in tests, the lower-ranked firearms just drop off the radar, because, well, who would want a Grade B self-defense handgun? These lower-ranked products have niggling problems that our testers don’t like, or they have big problems that everyone wouldn’t like — malfunctions or bad designs, to name two flaws. The information on the lower-ranked guns is available to subscribers on the website, of course, and is searchable by name, product number, SKU, or caliber, but the natural inclination is to be reading a Value Guide and wonder “What about the X?” firearm. So a gallery of “Not Our Picks” will point out what make Gun Tests different — our willingness to be fulsome in our praise, or criticism, of various firearms because we aren’t indebted to any maker for ad dollars or other considerations.
Of course, we regularly publish reader criticisms of firearms they own, so I hope to hear about your own dislikes, aka, “Not My Picks.” Nothing makes a shooter crankier than a gun that doesn’t work, and oftentimes there’s no way to find that out except to plunk down your hard-earned dollars and head to the range. Hopefully, our positive reviews of firearms reduce the frequency of misses in your own gun-buying excursions, or at the minimum, you know what you’re getting into if you go ahead with a purchase against our advice. So if you’ve got a story about a gun that didn’t run or had other problems, tell your fellow gun-buyers why it should be on a “Not Our Picks” list.
