Viewpoints

I just received my July issue and read the article, 'Aluminum, Polymer, and Steel 45 ACP Semiautos Square Off.' For the uninformed, the reviewer has unfairly evaluated the Glock 36. He mentions the G36 magazine is thicker than that for the 1911. What is probably more important for personal defense is the pistol width. The max width of the Glock itself is nearly a half-inch less than that of the Colt. He expressed 'caution' for the unsupported chamber in the Glock barrel, as it is a concern, stating that '+P loads should be used sparingly.' This is downright misleading. Documented personal experience and online forum comments from actual Glock owners would summarily refute such a ridiculous assertion.

Do you know the difference between a high-house and a low-house target? Learn more in this video about Men's and Women's Skeet.

Dry practice training is valuable for all marksman. Olympian and Sgt 1st Class Keith Sanderson covers the details of this technique.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-Texas) today criticized the Obama administration’s decision to impose new reporting requirements for gun sales in states along the U.S.-Mexico Border.

John M. Buol Jr. introduces USAR Team Shooting Coach MSG George Harris, who covers the vital topic of safety at the shooting range. Tip: The goal is to leave the range with the same number of holes you came with.

Mike Barham, media liasion for Galco Holsters, explains the benefits and features of the TacSlide belt holster.

(GunReports.com) -- Last week, the most visible gun control advocate in this country, New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg, appeared on MSNBC and CNN, promoting his new TV ad urging that Congress impose so-called 'terrorist watchlist' gun control legislation. The ad features an edited portion of the well-known video of a scraggly-looking al Qaeda misfit claiming -- falsely -- that jihadists can buy machine guns at gun shows in the United States, without a background check.

Watch as Larry Potterfield, Founder and CEO of MidwayUSA, demonstrates the basic safety and operational features of revolvers.

(GunReports.com) -- The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is urging extreme caution should retailers decide to participate in a firearms licensee survey being distributed by anti-gun researcher and activist Garen Wintemute and his colleagues at the University of California at Davis.

Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa is vowing to block President Obama's nominations until he gets detailed answers on a controversial program that resulted in drug cartels acquiring more than 1,300 firearms from the U.S., according a report in The Hill. Grassley is pressing the Department of Justice (DOJ) on who initiated the 'Gun Runner' program that authorized the sale of guns to people acting as straw purchasers for drug cartels in Mexico. Gun Runner might have contributed to the death of at least one federal agent.

About a hundred years ago Townsend Whelen, noted soldier and hunter, coined the phrase, "Only accurate rifles are interesting." But many really interesting rifles come with price tags much larger than most shooters can afford. That is, unless you are willing to downsize. Not in actual size, but in caliber. Some of the most accurate rifles being fired today can be found at your local smallbore silhouette match, where only inexpensive 22 Long Rifle ammunition is allowed. The game is to stand and shoot offhand at steel replica profiles of chickens, pigs, turkeys, and rams. The object of the game is to knock them over. Regulation distances are 40, 60, 77, and 100 yards (or meters), respectively. Any type of scope may be used. Smallbore silhouette rifle competition is so well established that several manufacturers offer models built to meet the standards of the sport. That would be the case with our first test rifle, the $414 CZ 452 Silhouette. Our second rifle was the $1399 Anschtz 64 MP R or Multi Purpose Rifle, sometimes advertised as an effective training rifle for high power shooters. Our third rifle was the $750 Browning T-Bolt Target Varmint, aimed at producing accuracy at the match or in the field.All three of our test rifles were bolt-action models with detachable magazines, a configuration that dominates the sport. Given that the ammunition played no part in cycling the action, we were free to choose a variety of ammunition. Our three test rounds consisted to two well respected target rounds from Lapua and Remingtons Golden Bullet, a popular budget-priced ammunition sold in 525-round boxes. The Remington ammunition powered a 36-grain lead brass-plated hollowpoint. Both the Lapua Midas+ and Center-X ammunition drove slickly coated 40 grain roundnosed slugs. Serious competitors are mindful to note individual lots of ammunition in order to find the best ammunition. So weve listed the lot numbers of the Lapua target rounds on our accuracy chart.For our tests we mounted a Swarovski Z5 3.5-18X44 LBT scope with plex reticle and the Ballistic Turret option. This scope offers up to four preset zeroes. That meant in competition we wouldnt have to count clicks when changing target banks or rely on a variety of holds. With the presets easily in hand, we were free to concentrate on the center of each target instead of aiming low on the 40 yards chicks, dead center on the pigs, high on the turkeys and above the rams. Our next step was to choose the most accurate ammunition for each rifle and shoot groups from the 100-yard line. In each case our rifles were fired supported from a model 500 Rifle Rest ($280 from www.targetshooting.com), and we used the RT-073 target from www.OutdoorProducts.com. We found that each of our test rifles were so accurate that with a little effort the average shooter could be crowned top gun. In addition, we thought these rifles were good enough to be training devices for any shooting discipline, including long range prone. Were not talking about making actual long distance shots, but working in scale with smaller targets to replicate greater distance.Our last test was to fire each rifle standing unsupported. With some mighty small groups achieved from the bench, we could honestly say that accurate rifles were the most fun. With access to the Rimfire Ranch at Houstons American Shooting Centers, (www.AmShootCenters.com), our enjoyment shot off the scale. With each hit the steel prairie dogs were sent back into their mounds only to rise again. The mechanical dogs placed 40 to 70 yards downrange outlasted our supply of ammunition, but we vowed to return. Lets review which rifle was the most interesting, accurate, and fun in the judgment of our testers.

About a hundred years ago Townsend Whelen, noted soldier and hunter, coined the phrase, "Only accurate rifles are interesting." But many really interesting rifles come with price tags much larger than most shooters can afford. That is, unless you are willing to downsize. Not in actual size, but in caliber. Some of the most accurate rifles being fired today can be found at your local smallbore silhouette match, where only inexpensive 22 Long Rifle ammunition is allowed. The game is to stand and shoot offhand at steel replica profiles of chickens, pigs, turkeys, and rams. The object of the game is to knock them over. Regulation distances are 40, 60, 77, and 100 yards (or meters), respectively. Any type of scope may be used. Smallbore silhouette rifle competition is so well established that several manufacturers offer models built to meet the standards of the sport. That would be the case with our first test rifle, the $414 CZ 452 Silhouette. Our second rifle was the $1399 Anschtz 64 MP R or Multi Purpose Rifle, sometimes advertised as an effective training rifle for high power shooters. Our third rifle was the $750 Browning T-Bolt Target Varmint, aimed at producing accuracy at the match or in the field.All three of our test rifles were bolt-action models with detachable magazines, a configuration that dominates the sport. Given that the ammunition played no part in cycling the action, we were free to choose a variety of ammunition. Our three test rounds consisted to two well respected target rounds from Lapua and Remingtons Golden Bullet, a popular budget-priced ammunition sold in 525-round boxes. The Remington ammunition powered a 36-grain lead brass-plated hollowpoint. Both the Lapua Midas+ and Center-X ammunition drove slickly coated 40 grain roundnosed slugs. Serious competitors are mindful to note individual lots of ammunition in order to find the best ammunition. So weve listed the lot numbers of the Lapua target rounds on our accuracy chart.For our tests we mounted a Swarovski Z5 3.5-18X44 LBT scope with plex reticle and the Ballistic Turret option. This scope offers up to four preset zeroes. That meant in competition we wouldnt have to count clicks when changing target banks or rely on a variety of holds. With the presets easily in hand, we were free to concentrate on the center of each target instead of aiming low on the 40 yards chicks, dead center on the pigs, high on the turkeys and above the rams. Our next step was to choose the most accurate ammunition for each rifle and shoot groups from the 100-yard line. In each case our rifles were fired supported from a model 500 Rifle Rest ($280 from www.targetshooting.com), and we used the RT-073 target from www.OutdoorProducts.com. We found that each of our test rifles were so accurate that with a little effort the average shooter could be crowned top gun. In addition, we thought these rifles were good enough to be training devices for any shooting discipline, including long range prone. Were not talking about making actual long distance shots, but working in scale with smaller targets to replicate greater distance.Our last test was to fire each rifle standing unsupported. With some mighty small groups achieved from the bench, we could honestly say that accurate rifles were the most fun. With access to the Rimfire Ranch at Houstons American Shooting Centers, (www.AmShootCenters.com), our enjoyment shot off the scale. With each hit the steel prairie dogs were sent back into their mounds only to rise again. The mechanical dogs placed 40 to 70 yards downrange outlasted our supply of ammunition, but we vowed to return. Lets review which rifle was the most interesting, accurate, and fun in the judgment of our testers.