Handguns

A Gun Tests magazine August 2010 review on the Ruger SR9C notes that it fires from a 3.5-inch barrel. That makes it the smallest, most concealable, pistol in the test. But if you remove the 10-round magazine and insert the 17-rounder, the grip will become longer by about 1 inch.

At the 142nd NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits in Houston, Fabbrica D’Armi Pietro Beretta announced its newest pistol innovation featuring integral laser and light technologies furnished by LaserMax.

Small semiautos that match the physical dimensions of pistols we tested recently - such as Para-Ordnances $740 P12-45 - are usually referred to as compacts or sub-compact. But when pistols of this size class are miniaturized 1911s, the tag of "Officer's models" is hung on to them, even though they may not exactly fit the mold of the original Colt's Officer's model.

Manufacturers are taking a fresh look at the Officer's model for a number of reasons. For one, the 1911 pistol has legions of fans inside both competitive shooting and law-enforcement circles. Also, many military and ex-military personnel recognize the .45 ACP's superiority over the 9mm Parabellum, a cartridge choice often perceived as NATO's intrusion into American affairs. Traditionally the Officers model offered a six-round magazine, like the 945s. However, the Para Ordnance P12 integrates a double-stack or staggered-round magazine that holds ten rounds.

The P12 has been around a while and is essentially bug free. It fits the hand surprisingly well and points easily. Function was 100 percent despite warnings from some gunsmiths who seem weary of semiautos fitted with short slides. The P12 action also includes a Series 80-style firing pin block. This mechanism is not a favorite with 1911 purists, and some gunsmiths have a difficult time refining the action with this feature in place. But the P12 did not suffer any malfunctions because of it.

The National Rifle Association’s 142nd Annual Meetings & Exhibits opens tomorrow at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston.

We set out recently to test a set of plinker/target .22 LR handguns, with an eye toward finding a comfortable, shootable, affordable product to pass some range time with. Unexpectedly, they wound up finding a .22 LR pistol that not only achieved the relatively low standard of being decent recreational-shooting diversions, but which also offered the serious shooter good training use that can save money. But are these echoes of bigger guns enough to interest the serious shooter who may be looking for a rimfire to keep his bullseye edge, or the Practical shooter who wants to test footwork inexpensively, or the self-defense shooter who want to hone his 20-yard accuracy? Yes, as the pros and cons detailed below illustrate.

The San Antonio Police Department has selected the M&P40 as its new service firearm and has begun to convert officers to the new handgun platform. Gun Tests has its own rating of the pistol.

How much does it cost to get a decent .22 'plinker,' or whatever you'd like to call a .22 pistol for shooting fun in camp or on the trail? Can you get one for under $150? Or will you have to spend many hundreds of dollars? The answers may depend on your proposed use for the gun, but Gun Tests limited the use to simply having low-cost fun with a semiauto handgun, the ground was laid for the current test.

Gun Tests’ Idaho-based test team takes a detailed look at two carryable 40 S&W pistols in the May 2013 issue of the magazine. Sr. Technical Editor Ray Ordorica examined the Glock 23 Gen 4, $650, and the Taurus 24/7 G2C, $555.

Silencers, like machine-guns, are regulated under the National Firearms Act (NFA) of 1934, and are regulated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. The procedure for owning a silencer may seem daunting at first, but actually requires less paperwork than buying an automobile.

We recently read The Book of Two Guns, The Martial Art of The 1911 and AR Carbine, by Tiger McKee. McKee is the proprietor and headmaster of the Shootrite Firearms Academy (shootrite.org) located in Langston, Alabama. Printed in long hand with illustrations, McKee instructs and inspires the reader to consider what skills are necessary to effectively use the handgun and rifle weapon interdependently, as well as in transition from one to the other. With the two-gun concept in mind, they decided to go ahead with a story they'd been considering for some time—evaluating two pairs of handguns that could also be used to work effectively in tandem, in this case, two revolvers against two pistols.

So ya wanna buy a 9mm handgun, eh, sport? Suffice to say, you've got a lot of choices. You might begin your search for, say, full-size autoloaders. Then narrow it down to action type, single or double. Factor in whatever aftermarket items you need or want, and finally look at how much you are willing to pay for the package. All that narrows the choices still more. If you insist on a single-action auto, or more specifically, if you insist on a gun you can carry cocked and locked with the same trigger pull for each and every shot, your choices in 9mm get pretty small. Two prominent choices are the Browning Hi-Power or one of its clones, and the CZ 75.

Take a moment before hauling that trash to the dumpster—you may find something useful, such as .22 barrels.