Handguns

The Bersa Thunder Plus offers no surprises. This pistol is the Bersa Thunder with a high-capacity magazine.

Toward the end of each year, I survey the work R.K. Campbell, Roger Eckstine, Robert Sadowski, Tracey Taylor, and Joe Woolley have done in Gun Tests, with an eye toward selecting guns, accessories, and ammunition the magazine’s testers have endorsed. From these evaluations I pick the best from a full year’s worth of tests and distill recommendations for readers, who often use them as shopping guides.

The Ruger LCR hit the market around 2010, and we were some of the early adopters. In the LCR, Ruger introduced a number of innovations we’d never seen on a wheelgun.

Smith & Wesson didn’t start using model numbers until 1957. Now, anything beginning with a 4 (and sometimes 5) is blued steel. Our 1978-vintage 38 Special is a Model 60, denoting that it is made of stainless steel.

The SIG P365, both the standard 3.1-inch and its 3.7-inch XL Model big brother, have graced the pages of Gun Tests several times in the past (see the January, February, and March 2020 editions). They performed well for us receiving, at worst, a B grade.

Introduced in 1989 and redesigned more than a decade later, the SP101 was brought to market as a replacement for the Security Six. While this is still considered a small-frame five-shot revolver, it is considerably larger and heavier than the LCR.

Smith & Wesson’s new bullpup-style pump-action shotgun is called the M&P12 and is designed for home protection.

We have tested SA’s Ronin 1911 pistol chambered in 45 Auto a few issues back and graded it an A- due to a single, odd malfunction that was most likely due to a magazine. We had no such issues with the 10mm variant, and that is why we give this pistol a solid rating.

We’ve tested other RIA 10mm 1911 pistols in the past and gave them good grades. We had high expectations with the Pro Match Ultra 6", and it delivered on those expectations. This is a pistol designed for action-pistol shooting competition or hunting. We’d love to take the RIA boar hunting.

At the high end of the price scale is the Rapide Black Ice. This is a stylish 1911 that borders on a custom-gun look and feel. Yes, this is a sleek and sexy looking 1911, but is it all looks and no game? Kimber took the time to think out the details on this 1911 model. The Rapide Black Ice has the looks, performance, and accuracy to thrill most any shooter.

Trijicon, renowned for the effectiveness and durability of its products, directed its efforts towards the development of an optical pistol sight a number of years ago, resulting in the RMR (Ruggedized Miniature Reflex) sight. Further development has also brought us the SRO (Specialized Reflex Optic), which we included in this test.

The secret to shooting a handgun correctly has been boiled down to three words — Front Sight, Press. Anyone can line up the sights...