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The wildly popular AR15 platform is spurring modifications on over-the-counter guns that heretofore were the province of do-it-yourselfers who had a Brownells catalog and a credit card handy. Two modifications of the original design found on more and more ARs are the "tactical" forend, consisting of a four-sided Picatinny rail and flip-up sights that can be raised into position when needed. The tactical forend is especially useful when applied to a flat-topped receiver topped with a matching Picatinny rail. The forend rail can receive any type of laser or illuminating device that carries a clamp. These features were developed to answer the needs of military and law enforcement and action-riflecompetitors.The AR15 platform lends itself to fulfilling the needs of the user like no other design, which made our task of assembling four different carbines both a challenge and a pleasure. They are the $1554 Smith & Wesson M&P 15T No. 811001, the $1054 DPMS RFA2-AP4A Patrol Carbine, the $1150 left-side-ejection Stag Arms 15L Model 2TL Pre-ban, and a Bushmaster Patrolmans Carbine No. BCWA3F 16M4, which comes with options that bring the total suggested retail price to $1534. Each of these compact ARs offer the tactical forend and flip-up sights mentioned above and a flash hider, adjustable-length stock, and single-stage trigger. Also, the DPMS Patrol Carbine, the Stag Arms 15L, and the Bushmaster came with A2-style front sights that were adjustable for elevation. The S&W gun lacked that feature.All four were chambered for .223 Remington or 5.56mm rounds. For test ammunitions, we chose two premium rounds and the highest quality, most economical remanufactured ammunition we could find. The premium rounds were 62-grain Hornady TAP and 62-grain Federal American Eagle FMJ ammunition. To perform the bulk of the work, such as zeroing our scopes and performing rapid-fire drills that ate up hundreds of rounds, we chose 55-grain full-metal-jacket rounds from Georgia Arms http://www.georgia-arms.com/.Our test procedure was arduous. To collect accuracy data we fired five-shot groups from the 50-yard benches at American Shooting Centers in Houston http://www.amshootcenters.com/. Each gun was tested with the supplied open sights and with a Millet DMS-1 variable power scope set at 4X magnification. Mounting the scope with Zeiss rings upon a one-piece riser from Yankee Hill Machine (part number YHM-227A, $33 from yankeehillmachine.com) made the transfer from gun to gun simple.We chose Milletts new 30mm 1-4X scope because it offered flexibility of magnification and also a reticle that we felt was suitable for tactical as well as longer distance applications. The reticle featured a horizontal crosshair that stopped short of the circle that designated its center. The vertical line reached only from the six oclock border of the lens to just below the circle. We liked this reticle because the open field in the top half of the lens offered a less cluttered view for the operator. In addition points such as the bottom of the circle helped us visualize quick hold over positions for additional elevation. Inside the circle was a small black 1-MOA dot and the circle itself was backed by orange-colored illumination. The intensity of the illumination was controlled by an eleven-point dial found on the left side of the scope directly opposite the windage control.When shooting groups we were actually able to center the dot on the 0.75-inch wide diamond found at the center of our Birchwood-Casey three-inch target spots. For speed shooting we simply used [IMGCAP(2)]the black ring. We would have preferred that the orange illuminated ring was visible in daylight. That would have made target acquisition much faster. Hidden behind the black ring, the orange was only visible in lower light conditions. This was helpful for tactical entry, but the Gun Tests action rifle team was a little disappointed.For speed shooting and fast-action handling tests, we moved to Phil Oxleys Impact Zone in Monaville, Texas (theimpactzone.us). First, we recorded elapsed time from the draw. Start position was low ready with the muzzle about 45 degrees with the ground and the safety on, with buttstock pivoting on the shooters pectoral muscle. The stock was adjusted to the first position short of full-length. Target distance was 12 feet. This drill was performed ten times.For our rapid-fire test we added two more targets spaced 4 yards apart. In this drill the supplied open sights were used, and the trigger was shown no mercy. We hammered the IDPA-style cardboard silhouettes (measuring 30 inches high by 18 inches across) with one shot on each target, then two shots on each target; two shots to the body one to the head, four shots on each target, etc. Each gun was left smoking. Here is what we learned.

Every December I survey the work Ray Ordorica, Roger Eckstine, Ralph Winingham, Jennifer Pearsall, Ben Brooks, Joe Syczylo, and Kevin Winkle have done in Gun Tests, with an eye toward selecting guns the magazine’s staffers have endorsed whole heartedly.

There are plenty of guns in the $1,000 to $3,000 range. When most shooters who have become serious about the sport look to upgrade to something fancier, they usually end up searching in the $10,000-and-up range. Why? Because there just arent a lot of offerings in the midrange price class.However, we found two 12-gauge sporting-clays guns in that midrange price zone-the Blaser F3 Competition Sporting, $5,195; and Berettas 687 EL Gold Pigeon II Sporting No. J687526, $5,495. Though both were worth the bucks, we favor the Blaser, for reasons we detail below.We shot several hundred rounds through the guns on several different sporting clays courses offering a variety of difficulty levels. The subtle differences we found in handling and balance are factors that experienced competitive shooters will appreciate (its hard to imagine a beginner competitor would start with one of these, so this line-up isnt aimed at them), especially those looking to get out of the Browning 525-class of guns without dumping $10K or more into a Kreighoff or Perazzi.For accuracy, we shot the guns standing at 40 yards as measured by a Bushnell rangefinder (as if for patterning) and from the Shooters Ridge Steady Rest on Midway USAs MTM portable shooting bench for point-of-impact tests, using the National Target Companys shotgun patterning target (both proved accurately regulated). Trigger pulls were measured by an RCBS trigger-pull gauge provided by Midway USA. Heres what we found:

For those people who want the largest pistol on the block — and perhaps in town — the .500 S&W Magnum is your caliber.According to the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATFE) regulations, rifle and handgun bores are limited to one-half inch, unless the firearm is registered as a destructive device and a Federal $200 tax is paid and all other requirements are met. Translation: Don't plan on seeing .550 or .600 magnum revolvers in the near future. Some other manufacturer could make a longer cartridge, but the overall length on the .500 S&W magnum is already over 2 inches long, and it accommodates bullet weights from light 275-grain hollow points to heavy 400-grain platinum-coated bullets. Such bullets require big launching pads, and we recently acquired two guns that fit the bill, in shorter barrel lengths suitable to uses other than hunting. We acquired Taurus and Smith & Wesson 4-inch-barrel double action revolvers, namely the Taurus Raging Bull .500 Magnum No. 500MSS4, $934; and the Smith & Wesson .500 S&W Magnum No. 163504, $1256. These revolvers generated a lot of interest among shooters. The two most common questions we heard at the range were "Can I have a shot?" and "What do you use that revolver for?" We were more than happy to let a variety of shooters, ranging from teenagers to senior citizens, try out these guns, and we noted their impressions. However, we couldn't talk any women into shooting these monsters. Also, very few shooters wanted to take a second shot.

Our favorite answer to the second question was to say we'd use the guns for "concealed-carry self-defense," then we would all laugh. Of course we don't recommend these guns for concealed carry because of their large size and deep penetrating power. As witness to their punch, we handloaded the lightest bullet (Barnes X 275-grain XPB) with the lightest powder charge recommended (11.0 grains of Hodgdon Titegroup) and fired it into 1-gallon containers of water. Our load produced a velocity of 1,000 fps (400 fps less than Cor-Bon) and a muzzle energy of 600 foot-pounds (half the power of Cor-Bon's 1200 foot-pounds). This was the most comfortable and easily controlled load of all the ones we tested. The most recoil-sensitive shooters had no problem shooting this load.

All that in consideration, we recovered the bullet from inside the sixth jug, which equates to 33 inches of penetration, far exceeding our recommendation of 12 inches. The recovered bullet did not expand or lose any weight. Some people feel that this gun would be suited for bear defense, and based on what we experienced, that seems about right.

If you think the .500 S&W Magnum is simply a larger version of the .44 Magnum round you would be mistaken. The cartridge overall length (COL) of the .44 Magnum is 1.6 inches, whereas the COL of the .500 S&W Magnum is 2.085 inches. The muzzle energy is substantially different. Winchester's most potent load for the .44 Magnum is a 250-grain platinum-tip hollowpoint (#816160, $20.49 for 20 rounds) which has a listed velocity of 1250 fps and muzzle energy of 867 foot-pounds. Winchester's .500 S&W Magnum 400-grain platinum-tip hollow point (#361538, $40.49 for 20 rounds) has a listed velocity of 1800 fps and muzzle energy of 2877 foot-pounds — more than three times the energy of the .44 Magnum! The listed velocities were based on revolvers with 8-inch barrels. Our recorded velocities were approximately 300 to 400 fps less with 4-inch barrels.

Here's what we learned:

Which firearms offer the best combination of performance, price, and value? We look back at the previous 11 months of Gun Tests and tell you what we would buy for ourselves.

Which firearms offer the best combination of performance, price, and value? We look back at the previous 11 months of Gun Tests and tell you what we would buy for ourselves.

Which firearms offer the best combination of performance, price, and value? We look back at the previous 11 months of gun tests and tell you what we would buy.

The 7mm-08 Remington first saw the light of day in 1980. Touted to be the first "modern" 7mm cartridge designed for short actions, it was not. The more powerful .284 Winchester, chambered in the same "short" actions, beat it by 17 years. The 7mm-08 was a popular wildcat long before Remington made it official. The 7mm-08 wildcat would have been born the first afternoon of the first day that .308 cases were available to experimenters.

The 7mm-08 is 0.2-inch shorter than the ancient 7x57, which has always been one of the world's most useful cartridges. Despite its shorter length, the 7mm-08 essentially matches the ballistics of the 7x57 with 140-grain bullets, but only in factory loads. Handloaded, the 7x57, also known as the .275 Rigby, vastly beats it for pure horsepower. But that does not mean the 7mm-08 is useless. Far from it, as it has become quite popular in its 23 years of official life. Today we can find rifles made for it by at least nine manufacturers.

Which pistols, rifles, revolvers, and shotguns offer the best combination of price, value, and performance? We look back at the past 11 months of test guns and tell you what we’d buy.

Which pistols, revolvers, rifles, and shotguns are worth your money? We sift through the year's best, and worst, products and pull together a Christmas shopping list we would like to see.

Here's our annual recap of top-ranked pistols, revolvers, rifles, and shotguns we've tested in the past year - many of which we've bought for ourselves.

The tuned Officer's ACP, CQB Compact, and Pro CDP portable powerhouses are all great carry-gun picks, but each has its strengths and weaknesses to consider.