MISCELLANEOUS HANDGUNS

If you’re like me, you’ve resisted any temptation to relegate the tried-and-true iron sights on your defensive handgun to “back-up” status by...

For many reasons some handgunners like having a rifle/carbine of the same caliber as their pistol. I’m one of those people.

The stubble-faced, black-hat-wearing outlaw sneered as he carved another notch in his Colt. When completed, he rubbed his thumb over it and sniggered.

Good guns can be made better and I offer you two recent examples, each from a legendary American handgun brand.

Our early pioneers of handgun hunting had very few choices when it came to firearms. Back in the infant stage of handgun hunting, revolvers were about the...

The United States Military adopted the Colt .45 Single Action Army in 1873. Apparently Smith & Wesson wanted in on the military contract so decided to...

It’s an argument as old as time, or at least since 1976 when The Shootist hit the silver screen. It is one of my favorite John Wayne movies but one I hate...

Are you as good with a handgun as you used to be? It makes sense to keep track.

Smith & Wesson’s recent introduction of their Military & Police pistol in 10mm Auto is but the latest proof this caliber is undergoing a reasonably strong...

Depending on who you talk to, PPC stands for “Practical Police Course,” “Police Pistol Course” or “Police Pistol, Combat.” LAPD veteran,...

The Remington over-under, single-action Derringer has been seen in numerous Western movies and television shows. The little guns were popular in real life...

What’s the most intimidating aspect of suppressor ownership? The $200 transfer tax is indeed onerous. However, profligate government spending and...

When I first saw the Taylor’s & Company’s snub-nosed, cap & ball 1858 Remington with a conversion cylinder to shoot .45 Colt, it instantly struck me as...

Looking for the best load for percussion sixguns is not all that different from cartridge-firing sixguns in the endless possibility of choices

Harry S Truman was president of the United States when I was born — and, yes, I am old. Reading history left me with a lot of respect for the man.

Introduced in 1955 and advertised as the Cadillac of revolvers, the Colt Python became something of a cult gun to my generation of handgunners.

I defy you to pick up the CZ Scorpion 3+ Micro and not slip into a daydream of protecting a powerful dignitary with your briefcase machine pistol, or...

The recent gun and accessory shortages have created the perfect environment for those seeking to part us from our hard-earned money. We are desperate to...

Colt had produced five Dragoon Models from 1847 to the early 1850s, consisting of the original Walker, the Whitneyville Walker Dragoon/Transition Model, and...

In 2020 Heritage Firearms introduced their Barkeep .22-caliber revolver. Heritage produces all those bargain-basement utilitarian Western-style rimfire...

New visitors to my Shooting Shack often point at a permanent fixture and ask, “What’s that for?” It’s my Ransom Pistol Machine Rest and I explain to...

I came across two handguns. Each had an emotional connection — and each had been significantly modified — and which, I knew now, both would have a...

Samuel Colt began things by offering the first successful revolver, the Paterson in 1836.

The biggest factor to overcome when going the custom gun route is asking yourself, “Am I worthy of owning one?”

Today we have a long, long list of repeating rifles available chambered in cartridges designed for long-range varmints and small game hunting. A century ago...

The importance of redundancy: As Clint Smith put it so eloquently, “Two is one and one is none.”

I was intrigued with the 10mm Auto when it came out in the early mid-’80s and bought one as soon as I saw it at Riley’s Gun Shop in Hooksett, NH.

Firearms are considered emergency life-saving rescue equipment, making regular handgun maintenance necessary not optional.

Honest wear doesn’t bother me so long as guns’ bores are bright and mechanical function is correct. Damage from neglect is a different matter. I always...

Around the turn of the 20th century, Smith and Wesson’s flagship K-Frame became big news and big business for the Springfield firm. Innumerable Spanish...

Assembled from an Essex receiver with a Colt slide and parts, it’s a very cool pistol but well worn. The slide to frame fit rattles, and unlike the hard...

In my lifelong study of World War II history, much of the focus has been on handguns used in the immense fracas.

In 1856 Smith & Wesson entered into an agreement with Rollin White who held the patent on revolvers with bored-through cylinders.

There comes a time in life when you wake up one morning and the brutal reality of your existence hits home.

I’ve often said I’m one of the last extant gun writers who still loves the pump shotgun for defensive use.

I have often said the best part of my job of being a gun writer for nearly 55 years is not all the guns I get to test but the many interesting people I meet.

As I get older, I’ve discovered the increasing importance of size, shape and diameter when it comes to shooting big bore sixguns.

Thanks to stalwarts JD Jones of SSK Industries and Larry Kelly of Mag-na-port International, the 1970s were the heyday for handgun hunters, the decade being...

Hands down, the .45 Colt is my favorite handgun cartridge. You know this! Sure, I love other cartridges too, fickle as I am, but .45 caliber cartridges just...

The easiest and most noticeable way to change the personality of your shooter is by giving it some custom stocks.

Following the release of their ultralight chassis-based Modern Precision Rifle (MPR) a few years ago, Christensen Arms is out to prove size doesn’t matter...

The breeze had stalled and the heat began to pound at the sweating men in the howdah. Their pith helmets were damp, hot and uncomfortable in the sun.