Commentary

Smaller guns have always had a certain appeal. In some cases it was just the aspect of miniaturization that captures our imagination. In other cases it was the reassurance of a highly concealable weapon. One niche of such guns were semi-auto .380s, which have long been popular sidearms because of their flat, short footprint and sufficient, if not outstanding, power. Even in the small world of 9mm Shorts there is a pecking order in terms of size, with the Beretta 84LS being one of the largest.

Savage has sold thousands of Model 110 rifles to hunters seeking an inexpensive rifle. Watch for several things when they need fixing.

The modern-day shotgunner is now waking up to the benefits of back-boring in certain sporting applications. This may be just the common cycle of the trend, or perhaps this feature has finally found a permanent place in our list of optional features for the shotgun bore. Both Remington and Browning now offer this feature in their target guns. This may fool some gun owners into thinking their trap guns are obsolete; indeed, many will trade in perfectly good and serviceable guns and barrels to obtain this "new" feature.

In the April 2012 issue, Gun Tests magazine tested three semi-automatic rimfire rifles that showed promise of being more than just plinkers. They were the $325 Savage Arms model 64 TR SR V Savage, CZ-USA's $465 model 512, and the $595 Remington 597 TVP. Following is an excerpt from that test, used with permission: