Viewpoints

I honestly thought that once Donald Trump became president, we'd see fewer onerous gun regulations being rolled out - and, perchance, a rollback of some existing regulations, or even an expansion of gun rights. Silly me. President Trump did make it a campaign pledge to delete two regulations for every new one installed, but that effort hasn't been extended to gun regulations, at least that I've heard of. Moreover, while wide-ranging federal efforts to restrict gun ownership and simply make it harder to own, buy, and transact firearms have stalled at the national level, that doesn't mean that the inalienable right to self-defense with guns isn't being challenged across the country. In fact, the new challenges to 2A rights are especially pernicious.

Jackpot! You reviewed and gave an "A" grade to two guns that I am very interested in. First is the S&W M&P 380 Shield EZ. I am an NRA instructor and we are constantly faced with the problem of recommending a semi-auto gun for women and older students who have trouble loading the magazine, racking the slide, and handling recoil. I have felt that the S&W Shield EZ would be perfect for them, but haven't had a chance to fire one. Your review solves that — I now feel that I can recommend it with confidence.

We recently published a news item that updates our readers on legal troubles the SIG Sauer P320 is encountering. Most recently, the Loudoun Times-Mirror website is reporting that a Loudoun County (Virginia) deputy has filed a lawsuit against SIG Sauer alleging that her fully-holstered P320 duty weapon discharged and sent a bullet into her leg. According to the newspaper's account, the incident occurred this year on Feb. 7, "… when 37-year-old Loudoun County Deputy Marcie Vadnais went to the Northern Virginia Criminal Justice Academy to attend a general instructor course." The Times-Mirror further reported, "In accordance with academy policy, Deputy Vadnais began removing her firearm from her belt when she arrived." According to the lawsuit, as she fed the belt through the holster's first tooth, her SIG Sauer P320 somehow "fired one nine millimeter bullet, which hit her in the upper right thigh."

I want to thank you for publishing the article on automatic powder dispensers. Although I think you may catch some flack for those who think Gun Tests should just test guns, and maybe ammo, I find that articles such as these are very helpful and informative for those of us who pursue reloading, gunsmithing or other peripheral "hobbies."

Please consider the following. The issue of gun control, regardless of degree, is a cultural issue — not a national safety issue. When the Constitution was written, less than 15% of our population lived in urban areas. Today, approximately 80% of our population is urban. However, cities account for only about 5% of the geographical landmass of this country. We now have two opposing gun cultures in this country — with urbans believing guns are only for killing people and rurals viewing them as tools, much as a rod and reel are for fishing.

The NRA-ILA website had an interesting news item looking into why it might be that gun owners hesitate to share their status as gun owners in surveys. I have to agree with the sentiment expressed in the NRA item: "It makes perfect sense, particularly in times of heightened concerns that anti-gun politicians are plotting to restrict our 2nd Amendment rights and the routine vilification of law-abiding gun owners by politicians, celebrities, and the media." Okay, that's the why. Here's the what.

From the standpoint of gunowners' rights, will Judge Kavanaugh be "fer us or agin' us" if he's elevated to the Supreme Court? Or, said another way, will he be a "good guy on guns" or just a so-so one? "Right now, nobody knows for sure how a 'Justice Kavanaugh' might rule on gunowner rights at the SCOTUS level," said Gun Tests Editor Todd Woodard. "But the tea leaves, the entrails, the penumbras suggest he strongly leans our way."

Another handgun magazine recently ran an article praising the 25-yard accuracy of a 9mm 1911 Ed Brown CCO pistol ($3,585). It shot 2-inch groups using high performance ammo. Curious about how my used S&W 9mm Shield V1 ($269) with a drop-in stainless-steel barrel ($170) would do, I staged my own comparison test. Using SIG Sauer Elite Performance JHP 124-grain ammo, my Shield shot a 2.75-inch group from the rest. The question I have for you and your readers is this: Is the extra 0.75 inch in accuracy at 25 yards worth the additional $3146?

Remington Outdoor Company announced that it has emerged from Chapter 11 after successfully implementing its plan of reorganization previously confirmed by the Delaware bankruptcy court on May 4, 2018. The plan provides a comprehensive balance sheet restructuring of the company and converts more than $775 million of the company's debt into equity. The plan received support from more than 97% of the voting lenders and noteholders.

Mr. Woodard: Thank you for the surprising but timely article on self-defense insurance. As a former insurance professional, I was aware of the "hidden" differences in insurance policies of all kinds, but I was unaware of many of the differences in types of self-defense insurance for gun-toters like myself — particularly regarding bail bonds. What a great and timely article for your readers who believe in concealed carry/home defense!

Smith & Wesson has launched a "consumer advisory" notice for owners of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety pistol, a common concealed-carry sidearm. It seems the function of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety pistol can be influenced by the type and quality of ammunition used with the pistol. In the case of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety, the company has found "that in very rare circumstances," ammunition that produces a high level of felt recoil can cause the manual safety to move from the Fire position to the Safe position during firing. That means your Shield unexpectedly might not go bang after it's fired. That could be very bad for a concealed-carry gun owner who's depending on the EZ in a self-defense situation.

I was greatly surprised by the positive review that you gave the Ruger rifle. My example would not dependably feed from the magazine, was awkward to single load, frequently failed to fire Remington factory ammunition, and arrived with a stock so warped the barrel was not free floating. When I called Ruger, they read a prepared script, which among other things advised against the use of Remington or Barnes Ammunition. I then sent the rifle back to Ruger. They returned it to me unchanged, although they did include two additional magazines. Unfortunately, the new magazines were no better than the original, and none of the problems addressed. Disappointed, I traded the Ruger for a CZ 527 in 300 BLK. I note that Ruger is now producing a version of this rifle employing AR magazines.