Specialty Longguns

WASHINGTON, D.C.–The Brady Campaign has released its annual state scorecards, which the group claims 'rate each state on the strength of its gun laws.'

Black rifles, mouse guns, great machines, useless junk — these are a few of the names given to our country’s current military rifle and its semi-automatic civilian clones, which are commonly called AR-15 types. Let’s first clear the air by stating they are certainly not useless junk. The design, which some consider fragile, is instead war-proven and more than adequate for its purpose. They don’t have the punch of a .308, but ammo for them is lighter and cheaper. They work, last a long time, are easily maintained, and are in many ways delightful.

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Smith & Wesson Corp. has introduced a new tactical rifle chambered in .22 LR: The M&P15-22.

The Rock River was a well-made, shorty version of the AR-15. Some slight feature differences would make the ultimate choice up to you. In both cases, we think the shorty AR-style rifles are better choices than the similar Ruger Mini-14.

This was an attractive $685 rifle, with a blonde-colored laminated stock sporting an extremely nice and well-done matte finish. After our initial negative experiences with the electronic Remington, the entirely conventional Ruger, with no gizz-whizzes or batteries or insulators needed to make it go bang, was most welcome. Besides .243, the same rifle is available in .223, .22-250, .220 Swift, 25-06 and .308.

The 26-inch-long stainless-steel barrel was free-floated evenly all the way back to the action. (So was the Remington's.) The Ruger's bolt felt a trifle stiff at first, but after cycling it a few times, it became very slick.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Firearms maker Heckler & Koch announced that it will manufacture two new rifle designs in a newly opened U.S. factory in 2009. The new rifles, the HK MR556 and HK MR762, are inspired and influenced by the HK416 and HK417, two models designed and produced by Heckler & Koch's Oberndorf, Germany plant.

ORLANDO, Fla. – American Tactical Imports Inc is unveiling a limited supply 2009 SHOT special edition version of its popular GSG-5 rifle.

PHOENIX – AWC Systems Technology's redesigned Agenda Six suppressor is a lighter, smaller-diameter unit than the previous Agenda Six suppressor.

To the basic rifle price ($2,500) must be added the prices for the gorgeous McMillan M3A stock ($600), the ARMS steel scope mount ($150), extended rail ($100), bipod ($70), swivel package ($100), and a leather sling ($50). There was also a Krieger barrel ($200). The total package, less scope but with mount and rings, came to $3,770. With the Leupold scope, the tag would be about $4,620 as tested. We got our prices out of the maker’s catalog and may have missed a few things, so it’s best to contact Fulton for an exact quote on your needs. We had the loan of some scopes with state-of-art add-ons set up specifically for the M14 that bear close scrutiny.Fulton’s Peerless rifle was easily the most impressive-looking of this test trio. When we pulled it out of its box, we were struck by its purposeful beauty. Everything about the rifle was flat black except for the exposed Krieger stainless barrel, which was in the white, with a decent but not glaring polish. The McMillan M3A stock felt just great. Its pistol grip was acutely angled to give near-perfect trigger control.

North Haven, CT, Dec. 22, 2008—Mossberg is the manufacturer of the only 12 gauge pump action shotgun ever to pass the stringent U.S. Military Mil-Spec 3443 standard. For 2009 Mossberg will make available select 590A1 models to the general public. All models will come standard with heavy-walled barrels, metal trigger guards and safety buttons in a Parkerized finish. A full range of sighting options will be available in front bead, ghost ring rear or 3-dot configurations.…

ELIZABETHTOWN, NC — Del-Ton, an online dealer of AR-15 parts and accessories, began selling its own line of AR-15 rifles earlier this year.

This roller-locked HK variant was Vector’s V-53, chambered for the .223 cartridge. This well-made rifle had a composite trigger-assembly housing, incorporating the pistol grip as well as holding all the parts normally contained in a sheet-metal housing.Takedown was much the same as for the .308 version, except the V-53 had only one pin holding the all-composite buttstock to the receiver. The recoil spring was not captive within the butt cover, as it was on the JLD rifle.