Handguns

GUN TESTS GRADE: A $838 The new King Cobra is different from the original King Cobra models made from 1986 through 1992. Unlike the original King Cobras, which were closer in size and proportion to a Smith & Wesson L-­frame, the new model is lighter and more concealable. It also has fixed sights; original King […]

Ruger SR1911The U.S. Army adopted the Colt Model 1892 New Revolver chambered in 38 Long Colt in – drum roll please – 1892. This chambering, which is roughly equivalent to a mild 148-grain wadcutter loading in 38 Special worked well until it had to be used in combat. The Spanish-American War brought American troops to […]

GUN TESTS GRADE: B- $470 The Taurus 1911 Commander is finished in a simple, matte black with contrasting controls. The hammer, grip safety, thumb safety, slide release and magazine catch are all a polished black. Grips are of a checkered diamond pattern, made of polymer and attached with hex head screws. The barrel seems to […]

GUN TESTS GRADE: B+ (BEST BUY) $730 Besides Colt, the 1911 competition market has been well supported and well served by Springfield Armory. The company offers an array of 1911s running the gamut from absolute basic mil-spec to full-blown race guns, so we just had to have one of Springfield’s 9mms for our test. We […]

GUN TESTS GRADE: A (OUR PICK) $775 Ruger introduced the SR 1911 in 2011 and has since added many calibers and variants to that product line. We wanted the Light Weight stainless-steel Com­mander version for our tests. It boasts a 4.25-inch fully ramped barrel in a stainless-steel slide mounted to a gray anodized-aluminum frame. Grip […]

Rimfire revolvers offer a lot of plinking fun. They can also be great training guns to perfect revolver technique without the added cost and recoil of a centerfire revolver. We took a look at three revolvers, all of which have centerfire counterparts. Our test revolvers included an S&W Model 617-6 built on an L-Frame, a […]

We have heard from many Gun Tests readers who have been shooting most of their life but find their chosen handguns, such as the Commander 45 ACP or midsized-frame 357 Magnum, are more difficult to control with the onset of aging and muscle loss. In the current firearms market, choosing a handgun can be a […]

It may be too simplistic to suggest that competition drives most of the technical advances in the USA today, but sports are nothing if not competition. Just like NASCAR or Formula One racing, technology filters down to the family SUV, the technological advances developed for competitive shooting wind up, eventually, in your everyday carry pistol […]

GUN TESTS GRADE: A $735 The Smith & Wesson Shield has been one of the biggest success stories in American firearms history. Introduced in 2012, S&W now reports sales of more than 3 million units. It is small, easy to carry, and shoots well. It is also relatively inexpensive. What’s not to like? Except, perhaps, […]

GUN TESTS GRADE: A (OUR PICK) $550 The Springfield Armory Hellcat OSP (Optical Sight Pistol) is the newest entrant in this playing field, having just been introduced in October 2019. While the other pistols tested in this group were slightly larger than other versions of the same firearm, it would appear that Springfield decided to […]

GUN TESTS GRADE: A (BEST BUY) $649 The PPS M2 is one of the newer creations from Carl Walther in Germany and is imported by Walther Arms, Inc. in Ft. Smith, Arkansas. As the designer and manufacturer of the famous PPK, Walther knows a thing or two about concealment pistols. This latest iteration is also […]

GUN TESTS GRADE: A $579 SIG Sauer’s slightly larger version of the very popular P365 is called the P365XL, which adds another 0.6 inch to the barrel and lengthens the grip frame just enough to add two rounds to the capacity of a flush-fit magazine, bringing the total available to 12 in the mag. SIG […]