Gun World - August 2014

GW-1408-COVER 5/27/14 3:25 AM Page US_C1
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
STATE-OF-THE-ART GUN STORAGE SOLUTIONS
FRANCHIS
12-GAUGE
INTENSITY
BATTLE-INSPIRED
GATOR TACTICAL
SPREADER CHOKE
FOR HIGHVOLUME
SHOOTING
GLOCK 41
FAST HANDLING
IN .45 ACP
BEST
CARTRIDGES
DOMINATE
FOR BULLETRESISTANT ELK
THE COMPETITION
WALTHER PPQ M2
100-YARD
ACCURACY
STRIKER-FIRED SEMI-AUTO
NOSLER
MODEL 48
PATRIOT RIFLE
MIX YOUR AMMO
FOR MAXIMUM PERFORMANCE
AUG 2014 VOLUME 55, NO.8 $4.99 U.S.

DISPLAY UNTIL: 7/29/14 www.gunworld.com
08
DIAMONDBACK DB15B ////////

LIGHTWEIGHT, FOR PERSONAL DEFENSE
74470 03105
Engaged Media By Beckett
GW_1408_C2 5/23/14 2:57 AM Page C2
INTRODUCED IN 1911.
OFTEN IMITATED,
NEVER DUPLICATED.
The Colt 1991 Series is a direct descendant of the original Colt model
of 1911. A long trigger, flat mainspring housing and original style recoil
spring system remain from the original M1911 design. Upgrades from the
original include the white dot sights and a lowered ejection port for extra
reliability. The 1991 Series still remains the standard that everyone tries
to imitate, but no one duplicates. When looking for the one that started it
all, demand quality; demand Colt.
COLT.COM
800.962.COLT
FACEBOOK.COM/COLTFIREARMS
@COLTFIREARMS
GW_1408_3 5/23/14 2:59 AM Page 3
GW-1408-TOC-4-7 Vr2.qxp 5/26/14 12:53 AM Page 4
CONTENTS
14
Competitive
Contender
The Walther PPQ M2 pistol

has earned a stellar reputation since its introduction.
Now theres a new, 5-inch
version aimed squarely at
competitive shooters.
By Mike Dickerson
22
Diamondback in
the Rough
46
Beyond Bullets
Diamondback Firearms may

be a young gun company, but
its AR-pattern 5.56 mm NATO
rie can clearly play with the
big kids.
By Dr. Martin D. Topper
30
Added Intensity
When youre in a vortex of birds, you need a special shotgun to handle

high-volume shooting, and
the Franchi Intensity is such a
gun.
By Brad Fitzpatrick
Mike Dickerson
FEATURES
AUGUST 2014
14
38
A Long
Slide
Toward Greatness
With its 5.31-inch barrel and

reduced felt recoil, the GLOCK
41 may be the iconic Austrian
makers best handling .45.
By Jerry Catania
GUN WORLD | AUGUST 2014
Most shooters naturally associate the name

Nosler with quality hunting
bullets, and deservedly so, but
its new Patriot rie adds some
serious repower to the company legacy.
By Thomas C. Tabor
54
Wanna Buy a
Duck Bill?
Shotgun spreader chokes

have been around for
decades, but it took a GATOR
to build a better duck bill.
By Leroy Thompson
GUN WORLD (ISSN 0017-5641) Volume 55,

Number 8, is published monthly, 12 times
a year by Beckett Media, LLC, 22840 Savi
Ranch Parkway, #200, Yorba Linda, CA 92887.
Periodical postage paid at Anaheim, CA, and
additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send
address changes to Gun World c/o Beckett
Media, 4635 McEwen Road, Dallas, TX 75244.
Return undelivered Canadian addresses to: Gun
World c/o Pitney Bowes, Inc. PO Box 25542,
London, ON N6C 6B GST#855050365RT001
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_5 5/23/14 3:00 AM Page 5
GW-1408-TOC-4-7 Vr2.qxp 5/26/14 12:53 AM Page 6
8 Up Front
Craig Hodgkins
22
10 New Products
Gun World
Contributors
Dr. Martin D. Topper
COLUMNS
CONTENTS
12 Ask the Experts

Gun World
Contributors
64 Todays Hunter
Thomas C. Tabor
70 Reload
James E. House
76 Concealed Carry
Dave Workman
54
82 Gunsmithing
Steve Sieberts
Leroy Thompson
92 Best of NRA at Indy

Gun World
Contributors
96 Back Pages
Craig Hodgkins
Jerry Catania
38
6
ON THE COVER:
Photographs by Walther
& Dr. Martin D. Topper
Cover design by Johann
Frederick Mendoza
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_7 5/23/14 3:04 AM Page 7
GW-1408-UPFRONT-8-9.CX 5/30/14 6:32 AM Page 8
UP FRONT
BIG MEMORIES
By Craig Hodgkins
I receive a lot of emails.

The vast majority of them are
standard stuff. But on rare occasions,
I receive one that compresses time.
Not long ago, I came across a
familiar name online, and sent off
an almost apologetic note asking if
the guy was who I thought he was.
Later that night, I received a fourword question in response.
It read, Are you Big Craig?
Flash back two decades: My
wife and ICalifornia natives
bothhad moved to Nashua, New
Hampshire. She was managing the
Disney Store at the Pheasant Lane
Mall, and I was cobbling together a
living working in the stockroom at
Sears, writing for the local paper
and editing a music magazine.
Shortly after we arrived, we met
two boys, Abi (the oldest) and
Andy, who lived with their parents
two doors down in our wooded
neighborhood.
We were near-newlyweds, so
they became our de facto kids. We
watched as they rode bikes and ran
through the trees, and in the winter,
as they slid across the large frozen
pond that backed up to both of our
yards. You know, little kid stuff.
When I asked Abi what his real
name was, he told me it was Albert,
after his dad. But when I introduced
myself, he looked confused.
Craig means something
small, he said.
It was my turn to be confused.
I soon learned there was another boy in the family, a baby
named Craig, and ve-year-old Abi
had associated his baby brothers
name with his size. Mystery solved.
But from that day on, I was Big
Craig.
We returned to California a year
GUN WORLD
IN SOCIAL MEDIA:
Website: www.GunWorld.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/
GunWorldMagazine
Twitter: @gunworldmag
or so later, andas was so easy in

the world before all-pervasive social mediawe lost track of Abi and
his family.
We were
near-newlyweds,
so they became
our de facto
kids.
Fast-forward the same two

decades.
Following our reconnection, I
drove my family down to Coronado,
California, where the USNS Bridge,
a U.S. Navy Supply-class fast combat support ship, was docked. The
vessels small crew included 3rd
Engineering Officer Albert Juergens
IV, a 2007 graduate of the SUNY
Maritime University.
Abiwho now has a couple of
inches on megave us a wonderful
tour of the ship, and then we
headed to the Hotel Del Coronado
to really catch up over dinner.
Among many other things, I learned
that hes been shooting for years,
especially the long-distance kind.
You know, big kid stuff.
I just received another email
from him the other day. Hed picked
up the most recent issue of Gun
World and wanted to touch base.
Hes currently re-deployed on another ship, and when his hitch is
over, he and his wife plan a move to
Texas with their newest addition, a
little boy named Albert V. I hope
they call him Abi.
And if I ever get to meet him, I
hope hell call me Big Craig. GW
AUG 2014 VOLUME 55 NUMBER 8
EDITORIAL
Editorial Director: Doug Jeffrey
Editor: Craig Hodgkins
Managing Editor: Kari Windes
Creative Director: Eric Knagg
Art Director: Johann Frederick Mendoza
CONTRIBUTORS
Todd Burgreen, Jerry Catania, Mike Dickerson, Brad
Fitzpatrick, Paul Hantke, Terrill Hoffman, James House,
Jameson Parker, Buck Pope, D.K. Pridgen, John Raguso,
Steve Sieberts, Dave Spaulding, Tom Tabor, Chuck Taylor,
Leroy Thompson, Martin Topper, Dave Workman
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GW_1408_9 5/23/14 3:06 AM Page 9
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Cavalry SX Combo
Pardner
Over Under Combo
t#MVF'JOJTI
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t8BMOVU4UPDL
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t#BSSFM4FU
t.VMUJ$IPLF
Capacity: 2
*UFN ATIGKOF410-28SV
$BMJCFS410 Gauge| 28 Gauge BBL: 26
Sights: Brass Bead
*UFN SB1-020
$BMJCFS20 Gauge
Capacity: 1
BBL: 26
Sights: Bead
930 Waterfowl
Duck Commander
Escort Ladies Model
*UFN HAM20YAO26MMG
$BMJCFS20 Gauge
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t.VEEZ(JSM$BNP4ZOUIFUJD4UPDL
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Sights: Bead
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Capacity: 4+1
t%$-PHP&OHSBWFE0O0OF4JEF
BBL: 28
t'BJUI'BNJMZ%VDLT0O0QQPTJUF4JEF
Sights:TRUGLO True-Bead t)BQQZ)BQQZ)BQQZ0O.BH$BQ
Silver Reserve II Field
*UFN 75417
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Capacity: 2
BBL: 26
Sights: Bead
t4JMWFS3FDFJWFSXJUI#MVF#BSSFMT
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Versa Max
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Viper G2 Sporting
3.5 Chamber
Capacity: 3+1 or 2+1

BBL: 26
Sights: Hi-Viz Fiber Optic
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$BMJCFS12 Gauge
Capacity: 5+1
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Sights: Fiber Optic
SA-08 Deluxe
MP310
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Capacity: 2
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Sights: Bead
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Capacity: 4+1
BBL: 28
Sights: Bead
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Get Your Instant Quote at www.galleryofguns.com

All firearms purchased from GalleryofGuns.com are covered by
the Davidsons GuaranteeD Lifetime Replacement Warranty.
2014 DAVIDSONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
GW-1408-PRODUCTS-10-11.qxp 5/26/14 1:04 AM Page 10
NEW
PRODUCTS
SAFE AT HOME
A Trio of Residential Firearms Storage and

Safety Solutions Gun World Contributors
Its often difficult to store rearms in
the home so that they are secure and
safe while remaining rapidly accessible. Here are three products to help
you nd a solution.
NRA JOTTOS HOME

DEFENSE CABINET
NRA Jotto Gear has developed
a functional response to the storage and accessibility problem with
the introduction of its new Home
Defense Cabinet. The cabinet sets
inside the wall, and when the sliding door is closed, it appears to be a
vertical mirror. In the upper righthand corner, however, there is a tab
that allows the mirror to slide to the
left and exposes a hidden gun cabinet that holds one handgun and
one long gun, both of which are secured with NRA Jotto Gears proprietary biometric security system.
Placing your nger on the pad
allows the security system to read

your ngerprint and instantly unlocks
the rearms for immediate access.
After eight seconds, the system resets and the rearms are once again
locked in place. Its a convenient,
safe, and easy system, an ingenious
solution to the problem of safely
storing defensive rearms.
In addition, the Home Defense
Cabinets security system can be interfaced with your home alarm or
smart home systems. With NRA
Jotto Gears new Home Defense
Cabinet, you can keep your guns
close at hand without alerting visitors. Additionally, keeping your guns
hidden behind a mirror reduces the
odds that criminals will be able to
locate your rearms. Even if they do,
Jotto Gears secure locking system
makes it almost impossible for
crooks to swipe your guns.
MSRP: $950 to $1,250
FV-3000 FIRE VAULT

SAFE BY BARSKA
The FV-3000 features

an all-steel construction
designed to protect and
secure your rearms and
other valuables.
The Barska electronic keypad

lock features a low-battery
warning and a lockout mode.
10
If youre more interested in volume than in secrecy, you can store

up to 45 ries and accessories with
the FV-3000 Fireproof Vault Safe
from Barska. The FV-3000 features
an all-steel construction designed
to protect and secure your rearms
and other valuables. This Fire Safe
is tted with a pry-resistant recessed door to prevent tampering,
and pouches on the inside of the
door for storing and organizing additional items. The internal shelves
are fully adjustable to meet your
specic storage requirements.
The electronic keypad lock features a low-battery warning and a
The NRA Jotto Gear Home Defense Cabinet slides

and hides rearms inside the wall for easy access.
lockout mode in the event that the

incorrect code is entered too many
times. The interior is completely
lined with upholstery to prevent
scratches or damage to the valuables inside. Two back-up keys provide secondary access to the
Barska Fire Vault Safe. The FV3000s solid-steel, six-point deadbolt locking mechanism ensures
your rearms and valuables are
safely secured inside.
This Barska Fire Vault Safe
also comes with pre-drilled holes
on the bottom of the safe to securely bolt to the floor. Mounting
hardware is included.
MSRP: $1,999.99
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-PRODUCTS-10-11.qxp 5/26/14 1:04 AM Page 11
A close-up look at the Gun Box, the gun safe

that doesnt look like a safe.
The Gun Box can hide in plain sight anywhere in your home or office.
THE GUN BOX

The Gun Box takes a different
approach than most rearm storage and safety solutions. Because it
doesnt look like a gun safe, it can
hide in plain sight on everything
from your nightstand to your desk,
and it can also be attached on the
underside of a desk or cabinet
within easy reach. Constructed
from 4mm cast aircraft aluminum,
it is plenty tough. And even though

it is lightweight, the unit wont walk
away, because it is equipped with a
Kensington lock, used for laptops
and desktop computers.
Better still, even the most basic
model opens with a quick pass of
an RFID key contained in a specially
designed sticker, ring or bracelet.
We saw it demonstrated at this
years NRA Meetings, and came
away very impressed.

One thing that really places the
Gun Box in the information age is
that it will notify the owner (or others selected by the owner) with a
text message if anyone moves or
attempts to tamper with the GPSenabled model. And, on the off
chance that someone is successful
in removing it from your property, a
GPS device inside will let you track
the box wherever it goes.
The Gun Box is available in
three models, all designed to hold
one pistol. The most basic version,
the Gun Box RF, has a radio frequency scanner lock.
The second model, the Gun
Box Biometric has both an RF scanner, as well as a ngerprint scanner.
It can be programmed with many
different ngerprints allowing access to multiple users even if they
dont have their RFID keys handy.
The nal model, the Gun Box
Premier is where the Gun Box really
stands out. It has both scanner
types, as well as a GPS unit that
can be used to monitor and track
the Gun Box.
MSRP: $279 to $47
Super X Pump Defender
Super X Pump Marine Defender
Winchester is a registered trademark of Olin Corporation
www.gunworld.com
AUGUST 2014 | GUN WORLD
11
GW-1408-EXPERTS-12-13.CX 5/30/14 6:33 AM Page 12
ASK the
EXPERTS
We do the research so you dont have to.

example, game is not always positioned perfectly for a shot, and
sometimes long shots are called for
which require a high level of retained bullet energy. A good-sized
bull elk can approach (and sometimes even exceed) a half a ton in
weight. Combine that mass with
stamina intent on surviving and you
have a very stubborn animal to anchor.
Ive personally always been
fond of larger calibers, and I believe
one of the .30 caliber magnums
should be considered minimum for
Tom took this ne bull with one of his .300 Win. Mag. chambered ries at a range of about 350 yards
with a single shot.
HIGH-CALIBER
ADVICE
Question: I am planning a trip
to Colorado to hunt elk. Most
of my previous big game hunting experience has been for
whitetail deer in Pennsylvania
and New York where I use my
.270. Some of my fellow
hunters have told me that .270
is too small of a caliber for elk.
Do you agree, and if so, what
caliber would you suggest?
Sid M., Hazleton, PA.
Tom Tabor Answers: I have a
friend that routinely uses a .270
Winchester for his elk hunting, and
others that insist that their 7mm
Remington Magnums do a great job
12
on elk. I even have a friend that suffered some relatively severe physical injuries just before hunting
season a couple of years ago that
successfully used his .243 to take a
cow elk. In this latter case, my
friend feared the recoil from his
usual elk rie, a .30-338, would exacerbate those injuries and because
of that, he chose to use the smaller
caliber.
Clearly, small-caliber ries are
effective for taking a great number
of very large species of game, but I
personally would feel severely
under-gunned with any one of
these calibers when it comes to
hunting elk. Everyone has their own
personal preferences with hunting
calibers, and Im no different.
While you can sometimes get
good results when combining large
game with small bullets, you cant
count on doing that consistently
across all types of conditions. For
A couple of Toms favorite .300 Win. Mag. chambered ries consist of a custom bolt action built
on a Mauser action (left) and a Ruger No. 1 single
shot (right).
...If I could
only have one
hunting rifle,
it would be
chambered in .300
Win. Mag.
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-EXPERTS-12-13.qxp 5/26/14 1:17 AM Page 13
Three of the most popular .30 caliber magnums

consist of (L-R): .300 Remington Ultra Mag., .300
Winchester Mag., and the somewhat-dated .300
H&H Mag. Any one of these cartridges is well
suited for elk hunting.
hunting elk. Im not too fond of the

non-magnum .30 calibers largely
because of their waning trajectory
at longer range and the lack of sufficient retained energy. And while the
.338 Win. Mag. seems to retain energy well, its long-range trajectory
isnt too appealing to me. If, however, you could be ensured that you
would never be forced to shoot further than 250 or 300-yards, the
.338 could be a very viable choice,
as well as the much larger .375
magnum calibers.
I havent made it a secret over
the years that if I could only have
one hunting rie it would be chambered in .300 Win. Mag. I have killed
more elk (and for that matter, more
critters in general) with my .300
Win. chambered ries than any
other caliber in my arsenal. I very
seldom shoot any other weight bullet than 180-grain in all of these ries. The reason for this is a simple
one; a properly designed 180-grain

hunting bullet will actually retain a
greater degree of energy at long
range than the heavier weight bullets, and the trajectory will be more
at.
As far as actual recommendations go, my three choices for elk
bullets are the Nosler Partition, the
Norma Oryx or the Barnes Triple
Shock X. Each of these is an excellent performer on bullet-resistant
critters like elk.
The best advice I can give any
potential elk hunter is to never underestimate the elks toughness by
using too small of a caliber. Doing
so, you would be jeopardizing your
chances of success and it wouldnt
be fair to the animal you are hunting. While my rst choice would be
a .300 Winchester Magnum chambered rie, some of the other calibers mentioned might also work
out well for you.
OUR AUGUST EXPERTS:

Thomas C. Tabor is Gun Worlds resident hunting columnist, and routinely goes aeld in pursuit of small birds, large
game and good stories. His review of the Nosler Patriot rie may be found on Page 46.
www.gunworld.com
13
GW-1408-WALTHER-14-21.CX 5/30/14 7:04 AM Page 14
COMPETITIVE
CONTENDER
The Walther PPQ M2 pistol has earned a stellar

reputation since its introduction, thanks partly
to its great trigger. Now theres a new 5-inch
version aimed squarely at competitive shooters.
Story & Photos by Mike Dickerson
The new 5-inch PPQ M2 pistol showcases

Teutonic engineering at its best with superior
ergonomics, trigger, quality and reliability.
14
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-WALTHER-14-21 5/26/14 1:28 AM Page 15
oull probably notice something a

bit different about Walthers new,
5-inch barrel version of the PPQ M2
pistol. If you havent, I wont keep you in
suspense. Its those six ports atop the
forward part of the slide. And while they
dont actually do anything, apart from
reducing and rebalancing weight, I would
suggest that they do boost the pistols
already considerable coolness factor.
www.gunworld.com
15
With its longer sight radius, excellent trigger and exceptional

ergonomics, Walther has aimed the 5-inch PPQ M2 pistol
directly at competitive pistol shooters.
But dont let those portholes distract you. What really makes this
pistol ber cool are next-level attributes, such as ergonomics, trigger quality, accuracy and reliability,
all wrapped up in a seriously rened
package showcasing Teutonic engineering at its best.
Thats easy to understand if you
think of the PPQ M2 as a direct descendant of the P99, a double-action/singe-action (DA/SA),
striker-red design that was notably innovative by virtue of its interchangeable grip backstraps and
superior ergonomics. With the PPQ,
Walther took things a step further
by incorporating a pre-cocked, double-action, striker-red mechanism,
adding a high-grip surface texture
and more palm swell to the grip
and further improving the trigger.
The latest M2 version uses a
push-button magazine release instead of the original PPQs paddlestyle magazine release, which never
really caught on to any meaningful
extent with American shooters.
The M2 is chambered in 9 mm and
40 S&W with 4-inch and 4.1-inch
barrels, respectively. Its also available in a special Navy SD version
with a 4.6-inch threaded barrel. The
new 5-inch pistol is available in 9
mm and 40 S&W.
According to Bret Vorhees,
Walther sales manager, The main
16
focus of this (5-inch) pistol will be

the competitive shooting market
IDPA, IPSC and USPSA. Once minimum production requirements are
met, we will work to have this pistol
approved by as many of these organizations as we can so the competitive
shooter can use his favorite pistol in
these kinds of competitions.
With its longer sight radius and
greater accuracy potential, this pistol is a natural for competitive use.
Heres a closer look at the attributes
that may make this 5-inch PPQ M2
a force with which to be reckoned.
SOME EXPERIENCE
REQUIRED
One of the things thats immediately obvious about the new versionand all PPQ modelsis the
excellent trigger. It is denitely in
the running for the best out-of-thebox trigger Ive yet encountered on
double-action, striker-red pistols.
The PPQs predecessor is the P99,
says Vorhees, which had a great
trigger as well, but it was a completely different system. Instead of
having a DA/SA trigger system with
a de-cocker, we developed the PPQ
to have similar characteristics, such
as short, distinctive reset. However,

it is considered a pre-cocked double
action, which results in a light,
smooth pre-travel and crisp break
at 5.6 pounds.
My test sample actually broke
at an average of 5 pounds, and
Walther isnt kidding about the
light, smooth pre-travel. Depressing
the trigger within a trigger safety,
you actually meet very little resistance throughout initial take up until
the trigger stacks and you feel rm
resistance. The trigger then breaks
cleanly, and the reset is very short.
You can, happily, both hear and feel
the reset.
Since the pistol has no external safety, this places it, at least in
my mind, in a category reserved for
those who already have a lot of familiarity with pre-cocked, doubleaction pistols or who are willing to
undergo some meaningful safety
training. Anyone who thinks they
can just tuck this pistol into a
waistband, carry it with the trigger
exposed or unprotected in a
pocket, or holster it carelessly is
asking for trouble.
Let me reiterate this pistol isnt
aimed at the neophyte. Its designed
for experienced shooters, especially
those who appreciate the intent behind the pistols ne German engineering. Its no accident that PPQ
actually stands for Police Pistol
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-WALTHER-14-21.CX 5/30/14 7:04 AM Page 17
PERFORMANCE RESULTS: WALTHER PPQ 5-INCH 9 MM.

LOAD
AVG. MUZZLE
VELOCITY (FPS)
AVG. 25-YARD
GROUP (INCHES)
BEST 3 OF 5 SHOTS
25 YARDS (INCHES)
Federal HST 124 gr.
1204
2.43
0.94
Barnes TAC-XPD 115 gr. +P
1132
2.99
0.88
Hornady Critical Duty

135-gr. FlexLock
1062
3.97
2.45
Hornady Critical Defense

115-gr. FTX
1204
3.04
1.62
Winchester PDX 1, 124-gr. +P
1273
2.95
1.00
Winchester Train & Defend

147-gr. JHP
993
3.07
1.30
Note: Average groups represent results of three ve-shot strings from the bench at 25 yards with velocities
measured over a Competitive Edge Dynamics M2 chronograph.
...This pistol is a natural for competitive use.
The new PPQ continues the tradition of

its predecessor, the P99, by offering
three interchangeable backstraps to
customize the t of the pistol to the user.
www.gunworld.com
17
The author reported the PPQ M2s trigger

to be among the very best hes tried on
double-action, striker-red pistols. The
trigger on his test gun broke consistently
at 5 pounds of pressure.
SPECIFICATIONS
Walther PPQ
M2 5-inch
Action: Striker-red
semi-auto
Frame: Polymer
Caliber: 9 mm, as
tested (also available in
.40 S&W)
Mag. Capacity: 15
rounds, 9 mm
Barrel Length: 5 inches
Overall length: 8.1
inches
Weight (Empty): 1.5
pounds
Sights: Low prole, 3
dot, adjustable rear
Finish: Matte black,
Tenifer-coated slide
and barrel
Quick Defense, and the trigger has a

lot to do with that, as do the guns excellent ergonomics.
The well-designed grip, with
three interchangeable backstraps,
feels good in the hand. Thats partly
due to inclusion of some barely
there sculpted nger grooves as
well as the non-slip, cross-directional stippling on the grips surface. (To change the backstraps,
you simply drift out one pin with a 4
mm punch). The trigger guard is
generously sized for gloved ngers,

and the front of the trigger guard is
checkered for those who prefer a
two-handed grip with a nger
wrapped around the front of the
trigger guard.
When red, the gun just seems
to come back on target quickly and
naturally. A couple of the +P rounds
tested in this gun are noticeably
snappy in some other light pistols,
but I found the pistol quite comfortable to shoot, even when pushing
MSRP: $749
The slide has both front and rear serrations to make it easier to rack the slide.
18
www.gunworld.com
Six ports atop the slide serve to reduce and

rebalance weight.
Finding sights shouldnt be too difficult. Any sights that t the predecessor Walther P99 will work for
the PPQ, including offerings from
Trijicon, Meprolight, XS Sights,
Dawson Precision, 10-8 Performance and others.
Both the barrel and slide are
Tenifer-coated for corrosion resistance. The slide itself has front and
rear serrations to assist you in racking the slide. Parked amidships, beneath the slide, is the takedown
lever, which makes it easy to break
the gun down for cleaning. You simply grasp the lever on both sides
with a thumb and nger, push it
down and pull off the slide. You
must, however, know what youre
doing because the design requires
you to rst pull the trigger, as do
some other popular striker-red designs. You absolutely must make
certain you have removed the magazine (Note: the pistol can still re
with the magazine removed) and
visually inspect the gun to ensure
theres no ammunition in the chamber, mag well or anywhere else.
Ive never been crazy about designs that require you to pull the
trigger in order to clean the gun, but
thats pretty much a fact of life
these days. Even though this pistol
has two drop safeties and a ring
pin block, they wont help you if you
do something boneheadedlike
tripping the trigger on a live round
while taking the pistol apart to
clean it. The same is true of many
other striker-red designs, so the
solution is clear: Check that chamber each and every time you pull
the trigger, no matter how certain
you are that the gun is unloaded.
With that safety lecture out of
the way, its worth noting that
Southpaws will nd much to like in
this pistol. It comes with an ambidextrous slide stop, and the magazine release button is reversible for
left- or right-handed shooters. The
button is located exactly where it
should be, and it requires only a
small stretch of my gun-hand
thumb to reach. When pressed, the
release button seems to positively
eject magazines rather than just allowing them to drop out of the gun.
That, to my way of thinking, is a
good thing.
Let me
reiterate ... this
pistol isnt aimed
at the neophyte.
The excellent grip of the PPQ has, in

addition to interchangeable backstraps, a high-grip surface texture and
slight nger grooves to improve control.
the hottest loads down the barrel.

Walther rates the pistol for +P
ammo, but not +P+, since, as
Voorhees puts it, There is no true
SAAMI spec for this pressure level.
This pistol carries well because
theres little on the outside to snag
or get hung up on clothing, save
possibly for a bit of the front sight
or any lights or lasers you wish to
hang off the custom accessory rail.
Standard sights on this pistol are
low-prole, polymer three-dot
combat sights. They do a good job,
and allow for a bit more space to
center the front sight within the
notch of the rear sight, which I prefer over tighter sight pictures. Even
so, metal night sights are a factory
option with this gun, and I would
denitely opt for these or other aftermarket metal night sights if I
were shopping for this pistol.
www.gunworld.com
19
The author put the new PPQ M2 5-inch pistol

through its paces by pushing hundreds of
rounds down the barrel until the pistol was
dry and dirty. The pistol proved to be utterly
reliable. It didnt bobble once.
The PPQ Mw 5-inch pistol is capable of excellent

accuracy, as demonstrated by this factory 15meter test target group measuring just 0.93
inches, even with an obvious yer.
Capacity of the magazines for

the 9 mm I tested was 15 rounds,
and you can readily check remaining round count by looking at the
witness holes along the back of the
magazines. Capacity of magazines
for the 5-inch pistol chambered in
40 S&W is 11 rounds.
ACCURACY WHEN
IT COUNTS
In putting the PPQ through its
paces, I found little to criticize. I
conducted extensive testing with
six different LEO/self-defense
rounds, and pushed several hundred rounds of hardball ammo
through the pistol. It never bobbled.
There were zero failures to feed, ex20
tract or eject. In fact, I

deliberately shot the
gun until it reached a
condition best described as dry and
dirty, and it kept on
banging away. I have no
idea how many consecutive rounds between
cleaning it would take to
make this gun hiccup because I never reached that
point. Accordingly, this pistol
scores high for reliability.
Velocities for all ammunition
tested over my Competitive Edge
Dynamics M2 chronograph were
mildly higher than factory-stated
velocities for all rounds except one.
Winchesters PDX1 Defender 124-gr.
+P load averaged an eye-opening
178 fps faster than factor-stated
velocity, making this one of the
most potent loads tested. Federals
124-gr. HST load and Hornadys 115gr. Critical Defense loads werent
far behind. Both averaged 1,204
fps. The slowest round tested was
Winchesters new Train and Defend
JHP round, at 993 fps, but thats
understandable given the bullets
147-gr. weight and the fact that the
round is designed as a reduced-recoil load.
I dont normally get too excited
about the accuracy potential of
double-action, striker-red pistols,

but the PPQ M2 5-inch pistol is capable of much better accuracy than I
expected. That was apparent from
the test target supplied with the
gun. It had a tidy little group measuring just 0.93 inches, even with one
apparent yer in the group. Notations on the target indicated the
group was red at 15 meters, or 16.4
yards.
Wanting to see what the pistol
could do under more challenging
conditions, I tested it from the
bench at a distance of 25 yards, and
was pleasantly surprised. The average size of all ve-shot groups red
from that distance was 3.07 inches,
which may not sound that great to
some, but thats the best I can do
these days with any handgun
equipped with xed sights at that
distance. Progressive eyeglass
lenses may be great for day-to-day
chores, but theyre not so hot for
accuracy testing from the bench
with iron sights.
You can get a much better idea
of the pistols accuracy potential by
discounting the inevitable yers in
those groups and looking at the
tightest three (of ve) rounds on
paper for a given load. When thusly
measured, half of the loads tested
turned in groups measuring an inch
or less.
www.gunworld.com
At the end of the day, I could

care less about putting those
rounds into an inch at 25 yards
shooting from the bench. I care a
great deal more about being able to
quickly place those rounds into center mass on a perpetrator-sized target under a high-stress
self-defense scenario. At a common self-defense range of 7 yards, I
was able to dump a full magazine,
rapid-re, into a group measuring a
little over 3 inches. Getting hits
quickly, under pressure, is what
practical handgun competition is
all about, and theres little doubt
that this pistol, with its excellent ergonomics, trigger, controllability
and reliability, can help you excel in
competitive shooting.
More importantly, should it
ever become necessary, this pistol
can help you prevail in the sort of
contest where winning means you
get to keep breathing. In the meantime, however, you can enjoy the
PPQ M2s easy-functioning performance, and those cool portholes
on the slide. GW
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CONTACTS
Barnes Bullets
www.barnesbullets.com
Competitive Edge Dynamics
www.cedhk.com
Federal Premium Ammunition
www.federalpremium.com
Hornady Ammunition
www.hornady.com
Nagels Gun Shop
www.nagelsguns.net
Walther Arms
www.waltherarms.com
Winchester Ammunition
www.winchester.com
www.gunworld.com
21
GW-1408-DIAMONDBACK-22-29.CX 5/30/14 7:08 AM Page 22
DIAMONDBACK
IN THE ROUGH
Diamondback Firearms May be a Newer Gun

Company, but Its AR-pattern 5.56 mm NATO Rie
Can Clearly Play With the Big Kids
Story & Photos by Dr. Martin D. Topper
22
www.gunworld.com
he Diamondback DB15B is a lightweight

AR-pattern rie that weighs just 6.65
pounds unloaded. It employs a Stoner
gas impingement operating system and a 16inch 4140 chrome-moly steel barrel with an M4
prole. The barrel is free-oated and has a
one-turn-in-nine rate of twist. The one-in-nine
twist has become increasingly popular.
The author used a MTM K-Zone rest, Leupold spotting

scope and Redeld Revolution Tac MOA scope to
check the accuracy potential of the Diamondback
rie. It performed best with 55 grain bullets.
www.gunworld.com
23
GW-1408-DIAMONDBACK-22-29 5/26/14 2:43 AM Page 24
Diamondback's DB15B is a well thought-out and well-made AR-pattern 5.56 mm. NATO
caliber rie. For these tests, the author mounted an EOTech EXPS-2 holographic sight and
Crimson Traces new Rail Master Pro 100 Lumen LED light and 5mW red laser.
The steel bolt and bolt carrier are

blued, and the bolt carrier is shotpeened and magnetic particle inspected. Shot peening is a
cold-metal-working process that
bombards a metal part with tiny
spheres. These multiple impacts
create a compressive residual stress
on the surface of the metal that
makes it highly resistant to the formation of microscopic stress cracks,
greatly increasing the life of the part.
Magnetic particle inspection uses an
electric current and iron lings to
look for irregularities in the magnetic
eld of a steel part that would indicate surface or subsurface aws in
the metal. In addition to these
processes, the bolt carrier key
screws are rmly staked in place. All
of this signicantly reduces the likelihood of bolt carrier failure.
The A3 upper receiver and
lower receiver are forged from hardcoat anodized 7075 T6 aluminum.
The lightweight handguard is also
anodized aluminum, and has a
modied four rail conguration that
provides enough M1913 rail to
mount lights, sights and slings, but
not so much that it makes the gun
seriously muzzle-heavy. The stock
is an adjustable ATI Strikeforce
model with a Scorpion Material
buttpad that absorbs recoil and an
aluminum commercial buffer tube
assembly. The pistol grip and ash
hider are A2-style and the DB15B
also came with polymer MAGPUL
24
MBUS adjustable peep sights

mounted on the full-length Tmarked toprail.
QUALITY CHECK
The DB15 was inspected for
functioning when I picked it up at the
Florida Gun Exchange, and everything worked as intended. A quick
once-over of the rie's exterior indicated no poorly congured parts or
tool marks. The gun was not lubricated, as it came from the factory, so
the operation of the charging handle
seemed a bit sluggish.
Once home, the gun was disassembled, cleaned and thoroughly
inspected. There were a few supercial marks on the surface of the
hammer, but otherwise the gun was
very well executed. Fit was very
snug, so I lubricated the bolt, bolt
carrier and charging handle with a
combination of Militec-1 and TW
25B synthetic grease and worked
the action several times to ensure
that the lubricant was evenly
spread. Trigger pull was tested
using an RCBS trigger scale. Takeup was fairly long and a bit gritty,
but the trigger broke cleanly at a
very repeatable 6.75 pounds. This is
a bit heavy for hunting small
varmints, but it is a reasonable
weight for personal defense.
The inspection revealed one
issue that involved the t between
the charging handle and the stock.
When the stock was fully collapsed,
the charging handle hit the stock's

cheekpiece, and the bolt and bolt
carrier could not be fully retracted.
The stock needed to be extended
halfway before the handle would
operate freely. This could be remedied by a small design change.
SHOTS FIRED
The DB15 was tted with three
different sights and test-red for
accuracy, velocity and reliability.
The sights were an EOTech EXPS-2
holographic sight, a Crimson Trace
Rail Master Pro light/laser and a
Redeld Revolution Tac MOA 39x40 scope. The EOTech was used
for initial reliability tests and the
Crimson Trace Rail Master Pro was
used for tactical drills. Accuracy
testing was done with the Redeld
scope at 100 yards and 300 meters.
A Leupold Kenai spotting
scope was used to check groups,
and an MTM K-Zone shooting rest
was used to steady the rifle. Manufacturers provided 223 Rem. caliber loads for accuracy testing.
These included Winchester's 55gr. Varmint-X, Hornady's 55-gr. VMAX, Federals 62-gr. American
Eagle FMJ, and Black Hills 69 gr.
MatchKing. Ammunition in 5.56
NATO used for function testing
were provided by Winchester and
Federal. Complete accuracy and
velocity tests are recorded in the
accompanying table.
The EO-Tech sight was used to
www.gunworld.com
The gun fed, fired and ejected without fail.
OUR SCCY
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And well back up your SCCY.
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In fact, we actually back up our new 9mm

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25
TEST PERFORMANCE
Load Name
Velocity
Muzzle Energy
100 yd.-Group Ave.
Black Hills 69gr. MatchKing
2,813 fps.
1,212 ft. lbs.
4.68 inches
Federal
American Eagle
62-gr. FMJ
2,792 fps.
1,073 ft. lbs.
2.79 inches
Hornady V-MAX
55 gr.
2,916 fps.
1,038 ft. lbs.
1.15 inches
Winchester 55 gr.
2,813 fps.
966 ft. lbs.
2.18 inches
Varmint-X
Groups were red at 100 yards from an MTM K-Zone Rest. Velocity was the average of ve shots measured 15 feet from the muzzle
with a PACT 1XP chronograph.
do basic sighting and reliability

testing during the annual Big 3 Conference in Daytona Beach, an annual event hosted by retired Army
marksman Dillard Johnson and gun
writer David Fortier. Winchester
5.56mm. NATO 55-gr. White Box
ball and Federal XM193 55-gr. FMJ
NATO Spec ammunition supplied
by the manufacturers were used to
shoot from a distance of 75 yards.
These 55-gr. bullets grouped in the
1- to 2-inch range. The gun fed, red
and ejected without fail.
Accuracy tests at 100 yards
were conducted at the Volusia
County Gun and Hunt Club using
the Redfield Tac-MOA scope also
indicated that the DB15 shot well
with other 55-gr. loads. The Hornady load was the most accurate
with three, five-shot groups averaging 1.15 inches at 100 yards. The
best Hornady V-Max group was
only .7 inches. As the bullet weight
increased, the groups opened up
considerably. When the 69-gr. load
was fired, it was clear that the performance of the rifles one in nine
twist barrel was at the upper limit
of acceptable tactical accuracy at
100 yards.
Because the Hornady 55-gr. VMAX was the most accurate load, it
was used to test the rie's accuracy
at 300 meters. A quartering tailwind over my left shoulder was
blowing at about 10 mph in the
early afternoon when the longrange shooting was conducted.
Even so, two ve-shot groups averaged about 5.75 inches. The best
group was 4.65 inches on a tactical
silhouette target. Wind affected
26
The short quad rail on the Diamondback ries forearm was just the right
size for mounting accessories without
adding a lot of extra weight.
ATIs Strikeforce stock was very comfortable,

but prevented the charging handle from fully
operating when the stock was collapsed. A
modication of either the handle or the stock
would x the problem.
www.gunworld.com
The DB15Bs operating controls

follow the standard military
conguration. Anyone trained on
an M4 can transition easily to the
Diamondback rie.
EOTechs EXPS-2 holographic sight worked well

on Diamondback's AR, and it co-witnessed with
the MAGPUL MBUS sights.
SPECIFICATIONS
Diamondback
Arms DB15B
Barrel: 16-inch 4140
chrome moly, M4
contour, free oated,
one in nine twist, A2
ash hider
Receiver: Forged 7075
T6 aluminum upper
and lower
Stock: ATI Strikeforce
with commercial
aluminum buffer tube
assembly
Finish: Parkerized
barrel, anodized
hardcoat receiver
Length: 32.5 inches to
36.25 inches
Weight: 6.65 pounds
Caliber: 5.56 NATO
and .223 Rem.
Capacity: 30 rounds
Sights: MAGPUL
MBUS polymer ip-up
Pistol Grip: A2
LIFE CAN BE LOUD...BUT SOMETIMES,
SILENCE IS GOLDEN!
Introducing the new incredibly quiet Umarex

Fusion CO2 powered pellet rie, featuring the
SilencAir ve-chamber noise dampening system.
With its .177 caliber precision accuracy and
virtual silence, the Umarex Fusion is a one-of-akind airgun. Zero In on the Fusion at
UmarexUSA.com/Fusion
MSRP: $1,019
www.gunworld.com
27
CONTACTS
Rain didnt affect the DB15Bs functioning or the

EOTechs. The author wiped off the water and
went on shooting. The rie's dust cover also
helped keep water out of the action.
Black Hills Ammunition

Phone: (605) 348-5150
EO Tech Sights
Phone: (888) 368-4656
www.EOTechInc.com
Federal Cartridge Company
www.FederalPremium.com
both groups. But given conditions,

performance was very acceptable.
The Redeld Tac MOA reticle was
very handy when estimating bullet
drop. Just hold 4 MOA high and the
bullets were spot-on the elevation.
This scope has performed very well
on two different ries, and its reasonable price tag of $350 makes it
an excellent choice for shooting to
about 500 yards.
Velocities measured with my
PACT 1XP chronograph were very
good for a 16-inch barrel. The
fastest load was Hornady's V-MAX.
Its 55-gr. bullet had an average
muzzle velocity of 2916 fps. Average muzzle energy was 1038 ft.-lbs.
Extreme velocity spread of the Hornady load was only 16 fps. The highest energy was produced by the
Black Hills 69-gr. MatchKing that
generated an average of 1,212 ft.lbs. at the muzzle.
Later, the Crimson Trace Rail
Master Pro was put to the test in a
shoot house entry exercise at the
Volusia Club. It involved engaging
three close-range targets. The rst
target was a simulated lookout that
was in a window. The second target
depicted two ambushers located in
a narrow walkway leading into the
building. The rst of these targets
was fully exposed. The second
stood behind the rst and offered
only a headshot. Fast hits on all targets were easy with the laser.
Close range shots are often a
problem for those who use a
scoped AR-15 as a personal defense weapon. On the one hand, if a
gun is capable of hitting targets at
300 meters, you want to keep that
capability. On the other, scopes
limit your eld of view at close
quarters. One solution is to add a
laser for close combat. Unlike
28
adding a 3x magnier to a red dot

or choosing a 1-4 power scope,
mounting a higher-powered scope
will preserve your ability to make
precision hits beyond 200 yards.
For close-range targets, just look
over the scope and sight with the
laser. There are always trade-offs
when selecting sights, but combining a tactical scope and laser is one
of the better ones. Remember: if
you mount the laser under the bore,
the close-range sighting offset on
an AR will require aiming 3 inches
high, which is the opposite of the
aiming offset with a top-mounted
sight of any kind on an AR platform.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The DB15B is light, fast handling, highly accurate with 55 gr.
loads and, above all, totally reliable.
The DB15B also had ample rail
space to mount accessories without excess weight and is reasonably
priced at $1,019, ensuring that it
wont be rough on your shoulder or
wallet. The Redeld Tac MOA scope
and Crimson Trace Rail Master Pro
worked just as intended and the
Hornady V-MAX load was very
compatible with this rie. GW
Diamondback Firearms
(877) 997-6774
www.DiamondbackFirearms.com
Florida Gun Exchange
(386) 304-9499
www.FloridaGunExchange.com
Hornady Ammunition
1-800-338-3220
www.Hornady.com
Leupold Optics
Phone: (800) 5387653
www.Leupold.com
MTM Case-Gard Products
(937) 890-7461
www.MTMCase-Gard.com
PACT Chronographs
(800) 722-8462
www.Pact.com
Redeld Scopes
Phone: (877) 798-9686
ww.Redeld.com
Volusia County Gun and Hunt Club
386-717-1394
www.VolusiaCountyGunandHuntClub.com
Four loads from Black Hills, Federal, Hornady and

Winchester were used to test the Diamondback
Ries accuracy at 100 yards. The rie was particularly fond of loads using 55-gr. bullets.
(800) 356-2666
www.Winchester.com
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_29 5/23/14 3:14 AM Page 29
When we decided to build our own line of

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GW-1408-INTENSITY-30-37.qxp 5/26/14 2:50 AM Page 30
ADDED
INTENSITY
Story & Photos by Brad Fitzpatrick
Rising numbers of geese can extend opportunities for

shotgun hunting, but when youre in the vortex of birds,
you need a special shotgun to handle high-volume
shooting. The Franchi Intensity is such a gun.
30
www.gunworld.com
long Route 40 in northern Arkansas, the trees and

elds were frozen in a silver glaze. A major ice storm
had hit a day before, and the cold of early February had
left the landscape still and strangely silent. Rows of trees,
naked in the winter cold, were twisted and bent under the
cloak of heavy ice, and all along the highway there were freshly
cut sets of two-tracks jutting jaggedly over the buried fog line,
the parallel tire paths of automobiles that had lost control before the roads nally thawed. The ice had changed to rain as
the day warmed, and wide puddles had formed in the ditches
and low spots in the rice elds to my left and right.
The Franchi Intensity is an inertia-driven 3 -inch gun that

is capable of ring thousands of magnum shots between
cleanings. This one was tted with a Nordic Components
extension, a valuable tool when hunting geese.
www.gunworld.com
31
Franchis Intensity is rugged, durable, and affordable. It offers plenty of camo

options and it is capable of ring the heaviest 3 -inch magnums. Like other
inertia guns, its light, but recoil is manageable even with heavy loads.
SPECIFICATIONS
Franchi Intensity
Action: Inertia-driven
semiautomatic
shotgun
Gauge: 12
Capacity: 9 (As tested
with Nordic extension)
Weight: 6.7-6.9 lbs
(without extension)
Overall Length: 47.5 to
51.5 inches
Exterior: black, Camo
Dip (Realtree MAX-5,
Realtree Xtra green,
mossy oak bottomland)
Sights: Fiber optic front
bead
Safety: Crossbolt
MSRP: $1,099 to
$1,199
Finally off the main highway and
along the back roads, I could see
that those ooded elds were now
overrun with thousands upon thousands of geese. Preferring these
out-of-the-way stopover points
away from the busy interstate, the
geese were piled up in huge ocks,
a sea of white and blue and brown
feathers and twisting heads that
pecked at the frozen earth or stood
erect, watching as I passed. Coming
32
The Franchi Intensity is, at its heart, an inertia-driven gun, just like its Benelli counterparts. The simplicity
of the intertia system makes this a logical choice for hunting in wet, nasty conditions. The Intensity is
available in a variety of camo patterns, all of which offer an extra level of corrosion protection.
around one particularly windy

stretch of the road, I nearly put my
truck into a slough as I watched
hundreds of geese rise up and take
wing, a wall of birds the likes of
which Id never seen. I pulled the
truck back between the lanes, reminding myself if I didnt pay attention, Id be swimming with the birds
instead of hunting them.
Each year, Arkansas and Missouri become overrun with snow,
blue, and Ross geese. So severe is
the overpopulation that in many
areasArkansas includedyou can
hunt the birds for free with a stateissued depredation permit, one of
which I had in my possession. Id
been invited on the hunt by Chris
Jennings, web editor at Ducks Unlimited, and was thrilled to have an
opportunity to see the massive
ocks of birds that owed through
Arkansas each year.
Hunting them would be an
added bonus.
A HIGH-VOLUME SOLUTION
This was a high-volume hunt to
be sureArkansas allows hunters
to use electronic calls and unlimited capacity shotguns to deal with
this seasonal issuebut unlike similar hunts in Argentina or Mexico,
this one required us to shoot 3 inch loads of steel shot, and the
proposition of sending dozens or
even hundreds of magnum loads
through a shotgun in a single day
was daunting.
It would certainly provide an
excellent endurance test for our
shoulders as well as the shotguns
provided, Franchis new Intensity.
The Intensity is the 3 -inch version
of Franchis Affinity, an inertia-driven semiauto that I have expressed
an (ahem) affinity for in the past.
On previous hunts, Id appreciated
the Affinitys light, yet robust, build
quality and the never-say-die inertia drivens upon which Franchi
now builds its new semiauto guns,
www.gunworld.com
but the Intensity signals a signicant step up in power.

Internally, the Intensity mimics
other inertia-driven guns, with a
simple, three-part design (bolt
body, inertia spring, rotating bolt
head) that doesnt require the
cleaning and regulation of more
complex gas-operated systems.
When a shell is chambered, the rotating bolt head locks into an extension in the barrel. Upon ring, the
gun moves rearward with recoil but
the bolt body stays in place, and
this change in relative location actually tightens the rotating bolt
head in the barrel extensions and
compresses the inertia spring.
Meanwhile, the cartridge drop
lever moves a shell from the magazine into place in preparation for
chambering. Once chamber pressure drops, the inertia spring
pushes the bolt backwards and the
bolt unlocks. The empty shell is
pulled from the chamber, strikes

the ejector, and is thrust out of the
gun just in time for a fresh shell to
be loaded into the chamber for a
follow-up shot. Its a very simple,
very straightforward operating system that has proven to be highly effective and extremely reliable for
thousands of shots.
Besides being ultra-reliable, the
inertia-driven system has other advantages. For one thing, it allows for
(and actually works better with)
lightweight guns. Despite being a 3
-inch gun, the Intensity weighs
between 6.7 and 6.9 pounds, which
is at least a pound less than many
competing gas guns of similar size.
And because there is no complex
gas system, the forearm of the Intensity is thin and well-proportioned, meaning it swings smoothly
and is comfortable to hold.
GAUGING YOUR OPTIONS

The Intensity is available in
three-barrel lengths (26, 28, and 30

inches) and four colors (black, Realtree MAX-5, Realtree Xtra green,
and mossy oak bottomland). Prices
range from $1,099 for the black
guns to $1,199 for the full camo dip,
but to my mind, the camo version is
the best value. I dont base that on
concealment alone, although that
is important when youre trying to
fool the wary eyes of a huge ock of
geese that have been shot at for
three months, but the camo dip offers just one more level of protection against all that Mother Nature
can throw at this gun.
The gun I carried in Arkansas
was covered with Realtree MAX-5
camo and I was impressed by the
dips consistency and durability.
There was no flaking or chipping
around the edges, and after extended shooting, the camo on the
forearm didnt begin to fade or disappear with rough handling, which
Ive seen happen with other camo
guns. I wont pretend to understand the chemistry and physics of
what makes a vibrant, durable
The Intensity is available in black, Realtree Max-5, Realtree Xtra green, and mossy oak bottomlands. All guns have a 3 -inch chamber and optic mounts
machined into the receiver.
www.gunworld.com
33
camo dip, but whatever that formula may be, Franchis design
team has figured it out.
As I mentioned earlier, the Intensity looks very much like the
Affinity, with a ber optic front dot
and sling studs, the rear of which is
molded into the stock. The primary
aesthetic difference is that the Intensitys receiver is machined to accept optics, so you can place a
reex sight on the gun for waterfowling and upland hunting or a
magnied scope for coyote and
turkey hunting. The Intensity will
most likely nd a serious following
among waterfowlers, but it is a truly
versatile scattergun that has the
power, reliability, and design to perform well on a variety of game.
The sole objective of our
Arkansas hunt was to help reduce
the ever-growing population of
geese that have become a nuisance
to local farmers. Single ocks of
geese can number in the thousands, and their ability to blanket
the sky and drown out any other
noise with the roar of a thousand
honks is quite impressive. Snows
tend to circle and drop in cyclone
fashion, appearing like a white tornado from the inside as birds
tighten their radius and drop down
to feed. The process is known as a
vortex, and it is just as impressive as
the name implies. With a few
hunters in the blind, shooting at a
half-dozen major ocks can burn
through a case or more of magnum
shells. If there ever were a way in
which to test a waterfowl gun, wed
found it.
During my stay, the ice storm
and subsequent cold temperatures
had frozen much of the open water,
and nding geese was more difficult than normal. The best areas
were near agricultural elds and the
remaining open water, and the best
times of day were when the geese
were moving between their roosts
and feeding areas. On our rst
morning, Chris parked his truck at a
levee overlooking a drained rice
eld. In the gray light of dawn, we
saw thousands of geese rise up, lling the sky with a streaming sea of
white wings and drowning out our
conversation with their cacophonous honking.
When the Intensitys

rotating bolt head
closes, it locks into
cutouts in the barrel,
providing an extremely
secure lockup that only
tightens when the gun
is red. A large ejection
port allows for long
shells to be tossed
clear of the gun.
The standard Intensity magazine cap, shown here, has a

sling stud mounted for easeof-carry. Since the Arkansas
goose hunt allowed for unlimited capacity, the standard cap
was replaced by tubes from
Nordic Components that raised
the capacity to nine 3 1/2-inch
shells.
The Intensity comes with three choke

tubes and a wrench for easy changes in the
eld. The ber optic bead is highly visible,
even in low light conditions.
RAINING GEESE
The blinda massive metal
box that had been inserted into the
ground and anchored with steel
poles so that it wouldnt be pushed
34
www.gunworld.com
A good goose pit isnt exactly comfortable,

but it protects you from the howling prairie
wind and keeps your gear out of the mud. The
top rolls back so that you can rise and shoot.
...I could see that those flooded

fields were now overrun with
thousands upon
thousands of geese.
Winchester Blind Sides unique design allows for

heavier payloads and better lethality. It worked
wonderfully on Arkansas geese, resulting in very
few cripples.
WINCHESTERS
BLIND SIDE STACKS UP
Making a really good, non-toxic magnum load this effective and affordable was
a tough challenge, but Winchesters
ammo engineers have developed an ingenious method for packing in more shot
and creating better patterns with more
killing power. Blind Side pellets have a
hexahedronal shape (they are diceshaped and have six at faces), which allows the shot to be stacked in a more
uniform fashion in the column, and that
means you can pack more pellets and a
bigger payload into standard-sized shells.
Standard Blind Side loads (3-inch, 12gauge) have 1 3/8 ounces of shot, while
the larger 3 -inch shells carry 1 5/8
ounces. Even the 20-gauge 3-inch load
has 1 1/16 ounces of shot.
In addition to allowing more shot to be packed in the shell, the unique shape offers
better penetration and it is more lethal than traditional rounded pellets, always an important consideration when hunting with steel shot. A specialized Diamond Cut Wad
helps stabilize the shot string after it exits the gun, creating a uniform pattern out to
long ranges.
www.gunworld.com
out of the wet earthwas situated

in the middle of the levee. The interior wasnt exactly posh, but it was
dry and out of the elements, so it
felt wonderful in the face of a 20
mph wind. The levee was covered
with decoys and ags, several hundred in total, and Chris set up an
electronic caller that boomed out a
response call to the hundreds of
geese now surrounding our position.
I was there to shoot geese, not
to count them, but to say that we
saw 50,000 geese in three days
likely wouldnt be an understatement. I can say, however, that the
whole landscape was covered with
birds either ying en masse between elds and water or stretched
out in huge ocks that fed in the
open patches where the ice had
thawed. They didnt want to swoop
into our decoys, as is sometimes
the case, but the occasional single
or group of birds would break and
cup their wings, sailing into our
spread from the slate gray sky until
Chris called for us to shoot. We had
to hold off on many occasions,
though, because mixed in with the
thousands and thousands of
snows, blues, and Ross geese were
speckled geese, which werent on license and were strictly off-limits. If
the specks called out, they were
easy to recognize, but you couldnt
simply re on any goose that tipped
35
One of many snow geese that fell to the Intensity. Even on the best day, the wind was
high and the birds were hanging out on the
perimeter of the gun range, so knocking down
birds required good shooting. The Franchis
natural balance and heavy Winchester Blind
Side loads made it easier, though not easy.
into the decoys. You had to be sure

of your target before ring.
My rst goose was a single juvenile snow that came in high overhead, and with a seemingly absurd
amount of lead, I managed to catch
the bird with a load of Winchester
Blind Side steel shot and drop it
down into our decoy spread with a
hard thump. Sharing the blind with
me were Chris, Dan Rice of Franchi,
and Paul Davis, all experienced waterfowlers and all good enough shots
that you wanted to limit the number
of times you embarrassed yourself.
The few times that I did, it wasnt the
fault of the Franchi. In fact, the Intensity kept hammering away, delivering
fast shots whether I was aiming in
the right place or not. I hit a fair share
of birds, though not as many as my
companions, and we kept Chris lab,
Lexi, busy hauling in dead birds. Dan
made a great shot on a Ross goose,
the Intensity cracking once as the
white bird tucked and tumbled out of
the sky with a splash in the shallow
water.
Clean is a relative term for a
goose pit, and although the ones in
which we hunted were well maintained (I was told that in the sum36
mer months, the cool, dark pits

were a favorite hangout of water
moccasins, and that the walls frequently seemed to be a moving
mosaic because there were so
many wolf spiders crawling about),
theres a certain amount of slop
and spray thats going to get on
your gun. The Intensities ran without issue, and despite the large
number of shells we put through
these guns, the recoil wasnt as bad
as I had feared. Thats thanks in
large part to the overall design of
the Intensity (straight comb delivers recoil back instead of up into
the face) and TSA recoil pad. The
Intensity has available stock shims
so you can change stock positioning and angle for optimum t,
which helps mitigate the impact of
recoil and helps place your pattern
exactly where you want it to go.
On our second morning, the
geese were more cooperative, but
the weather was brutal. Scattered
ice and rain beat down on the inside
of the blind and high winds made
the birds less likely to y and made
shooting difficult. But in a land of a
million geese, the term rough day
is relative. We had a group of snows
DU MAKES AN UNLIMITED
DIFFERENCE
At the turn of the 20th century, market hunters had decimated American
waterfowl numbers, and agricultural
elds were swallowing up much of the
remaining open prairie lands that waterfowl relied upon for nesting. Without
intervention, it seemed that this nations waterfowl numbers would remain
in decline until their populations
crashed, too low to remain viable.
In the 1930s, a group of like-minded
conservationists, many of them sportsmen, began working to raise money and
awareness for the preservation of key
nesting areas for waterfowl. This conservation group, known today as Ducks
Unlimited, has served to protect waterfowl and their habitat for almost 80
years. Today, DU is headquartered in
Memphis, Tennessee, and has over
600,000 members. Of the funds that
DU raises, 83 percent goes directly toward wildlife conservation, and currently, DU has conserved more than 12.6
million acres of land in North America
for waterfowl and other wildlife species.
For more information, or to become
a member, visit the DU website at
www.ducks.org.
come in early, cup their wings and

drop down into the spread, close
enough that we killed three. Most of
the birds were singles, but we made
the most of our opportunities and
claimed almost a dozen birds by
the end of the second day. It wasnt
the dozens or even hundreds of
birds that are sometimes taken, but
it was enough for everyone to take
goose meat home with them and
gave the Intensity a workout.
All told, I put something like 60
shells through the Intensity over the
course of two days, enough to understand how the gun works and reacts. This is a well-designed and
tough gun, and its a bargain at the
listed price. The next time Im in the
snow pit, preferably one without
spiders or snakes, you can bet that
if I have my choice, Ill stick with the
Intensity. Its proven that it can perform in the toughest conditions.
GW
CONTACT
Franchi USA
www.franchiusa.com
(800) 264-4962
www.winchester.com
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_37 5/25/14 11:55 PM Page 37
GW-1408-GLOCK41-38-45.qxp 5/26/14 3:18 AM Page 38
A LONG SLIDE
TOWARD
GREATNESS
The GLOCK 41 May Be the Iconic Austrian

Makers Best-Handling .45
Story & Photos by Jerry Catania
he Glock 41the newest .45 Caliber

pistol from Austriais a full-sized
model called a Longslide because
of its 5.31-inch barrel, compared to the G21s
4.6-inch tube. It is, like its little brother the
G30S, a hybrid design. Glock basically took
the slide from the G34/35 and mated it to
the full-size G21 Gen4 frame.
Unlike the G34/35 slide, however, the
G41 frame has no cutout on top; it is solid
all the way. This gives the G41 two advantages: one, it is closed to dirt and debris.
Two, it provides a little more mass to re-
38
duce felt recoil, a good idea when firing the

.45 ACP cartridge.
The Gen4 system on the new 41 may be a
little different than what you have previously seen from Glock. Other models were
provided with three back straps (a medium
back strap installed, and both a smaller and
larger back strap provided as replacements), but the G41 comes with four (two
medium and two large): two with a beavertail and two without. Each increases the
trigger reach, and each attaches to the existing frame with nothing to remove.
www.gunworld.com
Left side view of Glocks 41 Gen 4 in .45.
www.gunworld.com
39
OUT OF THE BOX

Right out of the box, the G41
comes with the same grip/trigger
reach dimensions as the Glock 21
Short Frame (SF), but with aggressive checkering. This conguration of
the G41 provided an ideal reach for
me, and although I liked the feel of
the gun with the medium beavertail
backstrap installed, I shot it only with
the out-of-the-box standard short
frame dimensions to get the proper
nger/trigger relationship. Conveniently, the Glock 41 comes with both
the tool to change the back strap
(just push out one pin), as well as a
longer pin to use with any of the four
add-on back straps.
The checkering on the Glock 41
Gen4 model is very crisp (almost
sharp) and provides superior traction in the shooting hand. For those
who may have handled previous
models, it feels much different than
the stippling used on the regular
G21 SF and almost completely
wraps around the grip. The Glock 41
Gen4 also features a reversible
magazine catch button. The magazine release button is very well
shaped and large enough for speed
reloads and for use with gloved
hands. It does not have the sharp
corners found on some Glock models. The slide lock lever is new as
well. It feels much sturdier than the
older ones and protrudes just the
right distance for speedy tactical
reloads, while not obtrusive enough
to get in the way and lock itself
open at the wrong time.
The rear sight on the Glock 41 is
40
A close-up of the reversible

magazine release button.
A gaping magazine well allows easy and rapid magazine changes.
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-GLOCK41-38-45.CX 5/30/14 7:11 AM Page 41
CHRONOGRAPH DATA
LOAD
MUZZLE VELOCITY
MUZZLE ENERGY
DOUBLETAP 200 GRAIN BONDED
1,081 FPS
DOUBLETAP 230 GRAIN FMJ
939 FPS
519 FT. LBS.

451 FT. LBS.
HORNADY XTP +P 230 GRAIN JHP
989 FPS
499 FT. LBS.
HORNADY +P 220 GRAIN CRIT. DUTY (LE)
1,021 FPS
521 FT. LBS.
FED 230 GRAIN HST (LE)
893 FPS
408 FT. LBS.
FED 230 GRAIN HYDRA-SHOT TAC (LE)
887 FPS
401 FT. LBS.
CORBON +P 185 GR. DPX
1,086 FPS
484 FT. LBS.
LEGEND: All readings were taken on an Oehler 35P professional chronograph set 8 feet from the muzzle of the pistol. FPS means
speed of the bullet in Feet Per Second. Elevation: 1,200 feet. Temperature: 73 degrees Fahrenheit. All readings are the average of ve
shots. LE: available to Law Enforcement only.
A close-up view of the slide lock lever. Note how it protrudes from the frame and slide.
www.gunworld.com
xed for elevation, but drift-adjustable (read: hammered) for

windage. Glock sights are made in
four heights: 7.3, 6.9, 6.5, and 6.1.
The sight on the G41 is the 6.9; the
second highest sight installed by
Glock, and is designated by a symbol on the right side of a small line
over a larger line. Is your G41 shooting high? You would install the 6.5,
designated by just one line, or the
6.1, with a large line with a smaller
line beneath it. Two small lines
above a large line designate the
highest sight, which is the 7.3. Re-
41
DEFINING A GENERATION
Glock continually upgrades models to address issues and generally
improve product performance (with actions such as adding a ring pin
channel liner, changing spring shapes, etc.), but the release of a Gen4
model begs the question of how Glock has dened each generation.
Heres a quick-and-easy list for comparison:
Gen 1
Original model, 1980-1989
No locking block pin
Smooth pebble nish
No nger grooves
Gen 2
1989-1997
Checkering front and rear
Smooth Pebble nish panels
Locking block pin added with .40 S&W intro, later added to all models.
Gen 3
1997 - Current
Finger grooves with checkering between
Thumb recess
Forward equipment rail added to receiver
Short frame added to 10mm and .45 ACP models (2007)
Rough Textured Frame added to G22s (2009)
Gen 4
2010 - Current
Sharp checkering all around
Reversible magazine release button
Replaceable back straps
New dual recoil spring assembly
Gen4 roll-marked on the slide
member, higher rear sights make

bullets impact higher, the opposite
of what the front sight does. And no
matter your preference, Glock
sights are easily obtained, easily installed and affordable.
SAFETY FIRST, SECOND &

THIRD
The G41 features the Glock
Safe Action. Some believe Glocks
have no safeties, but this is not true.
They actually have three, plus two
visual clues informing you that they
are loaded and ready to re. All
Glocks, the G41included, share
these safeties. Thats the beauty of
the Glock system.
The rst safety is the trigger
safety. This is incorporated into the
trigger in the form of a lever, and
when in the forward position, it
blocks the trigger from moving rearward. To re the pistol, the trigger
safety and the trigger itself must be
deliberately depressed at the same
time. If the trigger safety is not depressed, the trigger will not move
rearwards and allow the pistol to re.
The second safety is the ring
pin safety. The spring-loaded, ring
42
pin safety projects into the ring pin

channel and mechanically blocks
the ring pin from moving forward.
When the trigger is being moved
rearwards, a vertical extension of
the trigger bar pushes the ring pin
safety upwards, clearing the ring
pin channel. During the slide cycling
process, the ring pin safety automatically reengages.
The third safety is the drop
safety. The rear part of the trigger
bar, which has a cruciform shape,
rests with both arms on the drop
safety shelf located in the trigger
mechanism housing. When the trigger is pulled to the rear, the trigger
bar begins to move down off the
shelf until nally separating from
the ring pin lug. During the slide
cycling process, the trigger bar is
lifted and caught by the ring pin
lug. The trigger bar is reengaged by
the ring pin lug. Be advised that all
three safeties are automatically disengaged when the trigger is pulled.
If there is a round in the chamber,
the Glock will re.
There are two more visual clues
as to the readiness of the Glock pistol. First is the trigger. With the typi-
cal 5.5-pound connector and

spring, the G41 trigger will remain in
the rear (or red) position if the pistol is not cocked, and in the forward
position if it is. In addition, the extractor will jut out from the frame if
there is a round in the chamber; this
can be seen as well as felt, an excellent tactile feature in the dark.
However, these are visual and
tactile indicators of the condition of
the Glock and should be veried by
actually checking the chamber before jumping to the conclusion that
the Glock is in condition ONE
(loaded weapon, ready to re) or
condition THREE (unloaded chamber, magazine loaded). The Glock
safe action: Always safe, and always ready.
SHOOTING THE G41

Shooting the Glock at our outdoor range revealed no surprises.
Several shooters handled and red
the G41, and all had positive comments. Of course, it helps when a
gun loads, res, and ejects with 100
percent reliability, as the G41 did.
No one was pinched or cut, nor had
empty cases hitting them in the
face or head. Felt recoil was managed by the weight and grip design.
Accuracy was pretty good, even
with old, tired eyes. Groups of 2 to 3
A muzzle view of the Glock 41.
www.gunworld.com
Compare the slide length of the Glock 41

(top) and Glock 30S (below).
The checkering on the Glock 41

Gen4 model is very crisp and
provides superior traction...
Balance of Power
Compact, Comfortable, Accurate.

The Tavor SAR was developed in close cooperation with the Israel Defense
Forces. Now available in the USA for the rst time, the TAVOR SAR features an
optimized ergonomic design with short rie convenience and long rie accuracy.
IWI US, Inc.

info@iwi.us
w w w.iw i.us
Balance the Power in your hands today!
www.gunworld.com
43
SPECIFICATIONS
G41 GEN4
Caliber: .45 ACP
Oal: 8.9 inches
Barrel Length: 5.31
inches
Weight: 27 ounces
(with empty
magazine)
Trigger Pull: 5.5
pounds
Width: 1.28 inches
Magazine Capacity:
13 rounds
(Three included)
Sights: Fixed
white-outline rear (adjustable for windage);
white dot front
Line of Sight: 7.56
inches
Extras: Tool to change
backstraps and longer
pin for them, cleaning
kit, manual
MSRP: $775
44
inches were common. I believe a really good, sharp-eyed pistolero ring select ammunition from a rest
could achieve groups of an inch at
25 yards without much trouble.
The higher-than-average muzzle velocities obtained prove the
Glock 41 would make an awesome
duty weapon for SWAT teams,
other law enforcement officers, armored truck guards anyone who
needs an accurate and very powerful handgun.
In my opinion, this is Glocks
best handling .45 ACP pistol.
The G41 Gen4 is one of Glocks
best efforts, combining the inherently superior features that all
Glocks share, along with some new
ones: dual recoil spring, adjustable
grips, revised slide lock lever, reversible magazine release button,
longer sight radius well, you get it.
Easy handling and great shooting, with power, capacity, and accuracy to spare, the G41 is truly an
advanced .45. Before you buy a .45
ACP by any other manufacturer, Id
advise you to check out the new
Gen 4 Glock 41. GW
CONTACTS
Glock
www.Glock.com
770-432-1202
Hornady Ammunition
www. Hornady.com
800-338-3220
DoubleTap Ammunition
www. Doubletapammo.com
866-357-10mm
Federal Law Enforcement
Ammunitionle.ATK.com
CorBon ammunition
www.Corbon.com
800-626-7266
Some believe Glocks have no

safeties, but this is not true...
Glock 41 Gen 4 repower:

one magazine, plus one up
the pipe.
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_45 5/23/14 3:16 AM Page 45
WITH 8X ZOOM, THE MARK 8 3.5-25x56mm M5B2

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GW-1408-PATRIOT-46-53.CX 6/1/14 10:45 PM Page 46
BEYOND
BULLETS
Story & Photos by Thomas C. Tabor
Noslers New Patriot Rie Adds Bolt-Action

Firepower to the Company Legacy
46
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-PATRIOT-46-53 5/27/14 2:44 AM Page 47
ost shooters naturally associate the

name Nosler with quality hunting bullets.
Heck, Ive relied on Nosler Partitions for
decades, and more recently, Nosler Accu-Bonds
have helped me take many of my best trophy
animals. There is, however, another side of Nosler
that is not as well known, but which is every bit as
respected within the shooting and hunting
communities: the rst-rate ries that bear the
Nosler name.
Toms range testing of the Nosler Patriot took place on his private ring
range. He began by punching holes in paper targets at 100 yards, but soon
turned to shooting 300- and 375-yard silhouettes.
www.gunworld.com
47
For years, the Nosler staff built

custom rifles to test its bullets at
the factory and in the field. Finally,
management decided to take full
advantage of that acquired expertise and began building rifles for
sale to the public. Recently, it has
expanded its rifle offerings to include ARs, including one known as
the Varmageddon. The majority of
Nosler rifles remain bolt actions
however, and I recently had an opportunity to test one of these, a
Nosler Model 48 Patriot chambered in .270 Winchester.
The Patriot is loaded with the
attributes shooters frequently seek
when selecting a rie, all combined
in a weather-resistant package capable of enduring whatever conditions the environment throws its
way. It is available in a wide variety
of the most popular and common
centerre calibers and even some
of the not-so-common ones. Those
include short- and long-action cartridges ranging from .22-250 Remington all the way up the .35
Whelen and Noslers brand-new
magnum, the .26 Nosler, which is
said to even exceed the capabilities
of the .264 Winchester Magnum.
HIGH-CALIBER FINISH
Each Patriot rie comes
equipped with a 24-inch, stainless
steel, hand-lapped, match-grade
barrel. The twist rate and barrel
contours differ based on what the
company engineers feel produces
the best results for that particular
cartridge and the overall weight
also varies, but ranges from 6.75
pounds up to 7.5 pounds. All metal
surfaces are coated with the
durable NIC Industries Cerakote AllWeather Finish, and the lightweight
aramid-ber-reinforced composite
stocks are both rugged and attractive. These stocks are equipped
with a non-ventilated-style, 1-inch
recoil pad and front-and-back sling
swivel studs.
My initial impression of the Patriot stock took me back many
decades to my previous life as a
Fiberglas laminator. Prior to, and
immediately after, my stint in the
U.S. Navy during Vietnam, I worked
at a small Fiberglas manufacturing
plant in the state of Washington.
Unlike most composite stocks,
which undergo an injection-molding
process that generally produces
smooth surfaces on all sides, most
The two-position, rocker-style safety

was conveniently located on the right
side of the rie action.
The Nosler Model 48 Patriot Rie sports a

durable, weather-resistant appearance.
48
www.gunworld.com
The Nosler Patriot rie comes with a very solid and

secure action to stock bedding, which consists of a
combination of aluminum and Fiberglas.
hand layup Fiberglas operations

create parts that are glossy smooth
on the mold side, but are rough on
the opposing surface. In order to
make those parts a bit more appealing to the customers eye, we
often used a process of spraying on
globs of thick gelcoat on those
rough surfaces. Gelcoat is nothing
more than colored resin, but in this
case it was thicker, and when
sprayed, it came out of the spray
gun in elongated globs or strings.
The contrasting colors produced by this procedure add greatly
to the overall appearance of the
part, so instead of a basic battleship gray-colored stock, the Patriot
stock possesses hundreds of tiny
black streaks over the entire surface. This process is not meant as a
way of covering up aws or imperfections, but merely to add eye appeal to a stock that would normally
appear plain and unattractive otherwise. And as a side benet, it
adds a bit of needed texture to the
stock for better gripping potential
when the shooter faces cold, wet
and inclement weather conditions.
The ries two-position rockerstyle safety is positioned along the
right side of the action, just behind
the bolt handle when in the closed
position. Like most quality bolt-action ries, the oor plate of the Patriot is hinged to provide ease in
emptying the cartridge magazine
and was made of aluminum. The
release is a plunger style and located on the outside front of the
trigger guard. Nosler classies the
.270 Winchester as a long-action
www.gunworld.com
The Patriot
is loaded with
the attributes
shooters
frequently seek
when selecting
a rifle...
caliber (its term) and it came with a

1:10-inch twist sporter-style barrel.
The top of the action was attractively squared off in the usual
Nosler manner. The barrel comes
without sights, but is tapped for
scope bases, which do not come
with the rie. The top of the receiver
is at on the rear portion and
slightly rounded on the front, which
conforms to the base specications
used for the Remington Model 700.
Fortunately, I had a set of two-piece
bases in my inventory of mounts,
and soon had them in place.
Im a bit of a fanatic (can you be
a bit of a fanatic?) when it comes
to triggers. A trigger possessing a lot
of slop or creep in its movements,
that is set too heavy, or that doesnt
have a crisp and sharp let-off has the
potential to severely and adversely
affect my ability to shoot accurately.
But I was pleasantly surprised with
the trigger on the Patriot, and found it
to be excellent in every aspect. Even
though the Nosler rie triggers are
fully adjustable, I felt this one had
been set very well, particularly if the
rie is intended to be used for hunting purposes.
My Lyman trigger pull gauge
revealed a ve-pull average weight
of 3 pounds, 4 ounces. After thoroughly checking the trigger, I removed the stock and again was
impressed when I saw the degree of
bedding placed by the Nosler factory. All pressure points and critical
areas had been reinforced with aluminum or Fiberglas bedding material, or a combination of both. This,
Tom felt the Nosler Patriot trigger was one

of the best he has encountered in a production rie. The trigger had been set at
the factory to a moderate pull weight of 3
pounds, 4 ounces, and its movements
were crisp. The let-off was sharp and approaching perfection.
49
NOSLER PATRIOT .270 WINCHESTER RIFLE

ACCURACY AT 100 YARDS (THREE-SHOT GROUPS)
Cartridge/Load
Smallest Group Largest Group
Average Group
Federal Premium 130-grain Trophy Bonded
1-5/8 inch
2-1/2 inch
2 inch
Remington Factory 130-grain Core-Lokt
15/16 inch
1-5/8 inch
1 3/16 inch
Handload 130-grain Nosler E-Tip 52-grains IMR4850
1-3/16 inch
1-1/2 inch
1-5/16 inch
Handload 130-grain Nosler E-Tip 53-grains IMR4850
1-1/8 inch
2-5/16 inch
1-9/16 inch
Note: The handloading data contained in this article was felt by the author to be safe for use in this particular rearm, but it may not be
safe in other rearms, even those of like construction. Neither the author, nor Gun World Magazine, assumes any liability or responsibility
for such use. For load data, it is strongly recommended that you consult only highly reputable handloading guides published by the component manufacturers and never exceed those deemed to be maximum loads.
The aluminum oor plate was hinged to

allow quick and easily unloading of the
magazine held cartridges.
of course, adds to the stability of

the stock and encourages a higher
degree of shooting accuracy.
ON THE RANGE
Before mounting a scope, I ran
a few solvent-soaked cleaning
patches down the bore to remove
any residue that might have been
left behind in the manufacturing
processes. After securing my scope
bases, I used a set of Leupold QRW
Quick Release 1-inch rings to mount
a Leupold VX-II 3-9x40mm scope.
Ive become extremely fond of the
Leupold QRW rings over the years,
and now use them on the vast majority of my ries. The quick release
50
The aramid ber-reinforced composite stock of the Patriot rie was designed with a shadow-line cheekpiece to encourage consistent and comfortable cheek weld and comes with a textured nish to encourage a slip-free hold during wet or cold conditions.
www.gunworld.com
and reliable realignment abilities of

these rings make them a great
choice for a wide variety of shooting applications. The nal step before burning a little powder was to
stick my Leupold Zero Point Boresight on the rie to get the scope
crosshairs roughly aligned.
For live-re testing, I shot a
combination of ammunition consisting of two factory loads and a
couple of randomly selected handloads consisting of two different
powder weights. The factory loads
were made up of Federal premium
cartridges, which came loaded with
130-grain Trophy bonded-tip bullets, and Remington brand shells
loaded with 130-grain Core-Lokt
bullets. After working the handloads up to ensure there would be
no pressure issues, I settled on two
slightly different charges of the
same IMR4350 powder. Those
loads consisted of Remington
once-red cases, Nosler E-Tip bullets and 52.0 and 53.0 grains of the
IMR4350 powder. A summary of
the red three-shot, 100-yard
groups can be found in the accompanying chart.
Like all ries, the Nosler Patriot
I tested showed a preference to certain loads over others, but dont
conclude that those same preferences will necessarily be the same
for other ries, even if they consisted of the same make, model
and caliber. Each rie is unique in its
own way, and its accuracy and preferences will vary, sometimes quite
dramatically.
Nevertheless, the Patriot shot
everything I sent down its barrel
fairly well. If Id invested more
My Lyman
trigger pull
gauge revealed
a five-pull
average weight
of 3 pounds,
4 ounces.
The Nosler Patriot shot the Remington factory loads very well.
time trying different factoryloaded cartridgesones possessing different weight bullets and
types of bullets and/or different
handloading componentsit is
very likely the accuracy potential
would have been improved. In
fact, Nosler Patriot rifles come
from the factory with a guarantee
of MOA accuracy when shot using
prescribed Nosler ammunition.
After a sizable length of time
punching holes in paper targets, I
turned the Patriots muzzle in the
direction of my free-hanging, 300yard metal silhouette target. Each
trigger squeeze was consistently rewarded with a loud gong immediately following the report of the
rie. Unfortunately, the fun came to
an abrupt halt when the target
came crashing to the ground with a
broken weld joint. Fortunately, I had
other target choices, and soon my
muzzle was pointing in the direction
of my 375-yard silhouette. By elevating the crosshairs only slightly
higher, the pleasant gonging resumed once again in earnest.
52
LIKES AND DRUTHERS

I found the action of the Model
48 Patriot to be extremely smooth,
and it fed the .270 cartridges from
the enclosed ve-round magazine
effortlessly each and every time.
The nickel plating on the Federal
premium cartridges may have contributed to the smoothness of their
feeding, but the cartridges with no
plating fed very nicely, as well. The
overall movements of the pushfeed designed action were exceptional and clearly a cut above many
other ries I have used.
As I mentioned earlier, the
nely tuned Nosler trigger was
much to my liking, and was a real
asset to the rie. A poor quality trigger can result in making a shooter
jerky and jumpy and lead to persistent inching problems, but that certainly wasnt the case here.
The shadow-line cheekpiece
was a nice feature, as it provided a
comfortable and consistent cheek
weld each time the stock was
brought to my shoulder, but at
times I felt the stock seemed just a
bit too beefy to suit my personal

taste. I dont have the largest
hands, so the pistol grip felt a bit
oversized to me, but this increased
size translates into a higher degree
of stock strength at this most vulnerable area of a stock. On the
other hand, the bedding of the Patriots barreled action really impressed me.
Overall, the Nosler Model 48
Patriot Rie turned out to be a great
product and one the company
should be very proud to produce.
GW
CONTACT
Nosler
(800) 285-3701
www.nosler.com
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_53 5/28/14 10:32 AM Page 53
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GW-1408-GATOR-54-61.qxp 5/26/14 3:35 AM Page 54
The Remington 870 Express Tactical with

Gator choke displayed along with an array of
#4 buckshot loads.
54
www.gunworld.com
WANNA BUY
A DUCK BILL?
Story & Photos by Leroy Thompson
Broaden Your Effective Range

with the GATOR Spreader Choke
ve been fascinated by combat shotguns for many years, so

much so that Ive written two books on them. As a result,
Ive red most of the ghting shotguns available over the
last century. Although there are some excellent self-loading
shotguns, and the double-barreled shotgun retains some
viability for close combat, the slide-action or pump shotgun
remains the standard for most law enforcement and police
usage. Of these, the Remington 870 remains the most widely
used ghting shotgun, although Mossbergs 500/590
continues to offer a good challenge.
www.gunworld.com
55
If it is necessary to take a shot at one individual

rather than a group, the shotgun may be rotated
onto its side and red, thus changing the strike
pattern from horizontal to vertical.
I have two 870s Ive used for

years. One, in fact, is leaning
against the wall a couple of feet
away from me as I write this in my
office. Scattergun Technologies
originally built the other for a friend
of mine who was a police captain
before he passed away. Given the
870s reputation for standing up to
hard use, those two should have
been enough to suffice. Recently,
however, I decided to test the
GATOR Duck Bill Spreader Choke
from Paradigm SRP, so I now have
an 870 trio.
Ive been interested in duck
bill spreader chokes since the Vietnam War, when the U.S. Navy
SEALs used them on Ithaca Model
37 riot guns (see sidebar). The
GATOR screws right into shotguns
with certain internal choke systems,
and since Remingtons Model 870
56
Express Tactical guns use the Rem

Choke tube system, this seems to
be as good an excuse as any to purchase one.
Although Ill focus primarily on
the GATOR Choke on these pages, I
do want to write a bit about the
870 Express Tactical, which is an
excellent update of the classic 870
riot gun. Basically, it has the features I consider most useful on a
combat shotgun as standard. It
takes either 2 - or 3-inch shells;
holds seven rounds (6 +1); has an
18.5-inch barrel; is tted with a
thick recoil pad; allows mounting of
optical sights, as well as the ghost
ring sight that is standard on a Picatinny rail; has sling swivel studs,
and incorporates the Rem Choke. It
is also very reasonably priced, with
an MSRP of $572.
I am a great believer in the
The GATOR Choke mounted on a Rem

Choke tube ready to be screwed into the
barrel of the Remington 870 Express
Tactical.
www.gunworld.com
U.S. NAVY SEALS AND

VIETNAM-ERA DUCK BILL CHOKES
Perhaps the best-known users of the duck-bill spreader
choke were the U.S. Navy SEALs in Vietnam. These chokes
were installed on Ithaca Model 37 Riot Guns and were
used with #4 buckshot. Most commonly, the Model 37s
were used by point men on patrol so that they could
quickly clear a trail of enemies. They were also used in ambushes to sweep the killing zone. The Ithaca 37 was especially effective with the duck-bill choke because it lacked a
trigger disconnect, which allowed the shooter to hold back
the trigger and keep pumping the shotgun until it was
empty.
SEALs also found the duck-bill choke effective in
sweeping the deck of a ship or boat during boarding operations. Probably the most famous user of the duck-billed
Ithaca 37 was Chief Jim Patches Watson, who used the
weapon in Vietnam. He describes various times when he
used his Duck Bill in his book, Point Man. In addition to the
effectiveness of the duck bill and the ability of the Ithaca
37 to be red quickly, Watson also discusses the advantages of being able to quickly load the shotgun from the
bottom and the ease with which the Ithaca could be
cleaned on the move by dunking into rivers or ponds, then
drying it off.
Although the SEALs primarily used #4 buckshot in their
Ithaca Model 37s, they also used echette rounds, which
contained small arrow-like darts. Although the echettes
had better aerodynamic qualities than buckshot, they did
not strike with the same killing effect.
The duck-bill chokes used by the SEALs proved prone to
fracture, so some later versions incorporated a band
around the lips to keep them from exing during ring.
combat shotgun as an equalizer,

and the 870 Express Tactical is excellent for that purpose.
THE DUCK BILL

Now, before specically discussing the GATOR (Ill get to it, I
promise), let me say some general
things about duck bill-type
spreader chokes. As you can well
imagine, spreader chokes of this
type take their nickname from their
An Ithaca Model 37 with duck-bill choke similar to the ones used by the U.S. Navy
SEALs in Vietnam. The Model 37 did not have a trigger disconnect, so rounds could
be red with the trigger held back by just pumping the shotgun. The knife is a Randall Model 18, widely used by special ops personnel during that war.
resemblance to a duck with its

mouth partway open. They are designed to spread a shotguns pattern horizontally to make it more
effective against multiple opponents, or when sweeping the area
of an ambush or a ships deck. Generally, spreader chokes are designed to give a pattern with a ratio
of two wide to one high (2-1) or four
wide to one high (4-1). To maximize
the effect of the wider pattern,
A spreader
choke works best
when everyone
down range is a
bad guy.
A cylinder bore Briley

Rem Choke comes
with the Gator Choke
and the GATOR. The
GATOR is Loctit-ed
onto the forward
threaded portion of
the cylinder.
www.gunworld.com
57
loads using #4 buckshot are to be

preferred, though shells loaded
with BB shot or even #2 shot could
be used at close range if buckshot
were not available.
The greatest advantage of the
spreader choke is its wide pattern,
but this is also its greatest disadvantage, as its use could endanger
any innocent bystander behind
Side view of the 870s front sight, the

GATOR, the extended magazine, and the
sling swivel stud.
Spreader
chokes...take
their nickname
from their
resemblance to
a duck with
its mouth
partway open.
The 870 Express Tacticals crossbolt
safety and slide release controls are
readily visible in this photo.
SPECIFICATIONS
REMINGTON
870 EXPRESS
TACTICAL
The 870 Express Tacticals Picatinny

rail and ghost ring peep sight give
versatility in sighting.
58
Action: Slide action

Caliber: 12 guage, 2 or 3 inch
Overall Length: 38.5
inches (41.25 inches
with Gator choke installed)
Barrel Length: 18.5
inches (21.25 inches
with Gator choke installed)
Weight: 7.5 pounds
Magazine Capacity:
6+1
Sights: Rear: XS ghost
ring; Front: XS BLADE.
Also, Picatinny top rail
for optical sights.
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_59 5/28/14 10:40 AM Page 59
The aggressive front view of the GATOR,

which seriously increases the intimidation
factor, as well as the actual overall effect.
and/or to the side of the intended

target or targets. As a result, the
spreader choke would not be desirable on a police patrol shotgun.
Original Duck Bill chokes used during the Vietnam era also had a tendency to fracture with extended use
unless reinforced with rings around
the mouth.
TESTING THE GATOR

The GATOR spreader choke has
been engineered to eliminate the
problem of fracturing at the lips. By
designing the GATOR to t any
shotgun with an interchangeable
choke system, the shotgun has a
built-in versatility; it can be used
with other chokes and then have
the GATOR installed for specic
missions. The most popular model
will most likely be the one I am
using, which is designed for 870
shotguns with the Rem Choke.
Other models for which versions of
the GATOR are available include:
Win Choke Invector, Winchester Invector, Benelli Mobil, Benelli Optima Plus, Benelli Crio Plus, Beretta
Optima, and Beretta Mobil.
The Rem Choke model of the
GATOR is quickly and easily installed. After the ported barrel extension that comes with the 870
60
Express Tactical is removed, the

Briley Rem Choke Cyl tube that
comes with the GATOR is screwed
into the barrel. Once it is in place,
the internal threads of the GATOR
are coated with Loctite, and the
choke is screwed on the tube until
tight. Then, it is backed off just
enough so the mouth of the GATOR
is positioned correctly as described
in the instructions, with the twin
ports at the top.
I wanted to test the GATOR at
varying distances to see how well
the choke worked. On my rst range
trip, I only had 2 Federal #4 buck
available. This load throws 27 pellets. I wanted to get an idea of how
wide the spread was at varying
ranges between 10 and 35 yards. I
had some Zombietargets.net targets with me so I set up two zombies at 25 yards, positioned next to
each other. The results did show
some horizontal spread, with two
hits on the left-hand zombie and
four on the right-hand zombie. One
of those on the left-hand zombie,
however, impacted the throat in the
mid cry of Brains! A lot of the pellets actually impacted on the white
portion of the targets between the
two zombies.
It could be argued that since the
zombies often shuffle along in a

pack, many other pellets would have
impacted those behind them. This
argument, of course, points out the
disadvantage of spreader chokes for
law enforcement use, as there is too
much of a chance of pellets hitting
bystanders to the sides or rear of the
intended target or targets. A spreader
choke works best when everyone
down range is a bad guy.
When I measured the pattern
The GATOR
spreader choke
has been
engineered
to eliminate the
problem of
fracturing at
the lips.
www.gunworld.com
at 25 yards, 22 of the 27 pellets impacted into an area 31-inches wide

and 18-inches high. That is approaching a 2:1 ratio of horizontal
spread to vertical spread. At 35
yards, the spread was 37 inches
horizontally. What if it is necessary
to engage a single target to ensure
more hits? The solution is simple.
Turn the shotgun on its side, and
the GATOR throw pattern instantly
becomes vertical.
I also wanted to see how the
GATOR would perform with more
pellets heading down range, so for
my next session, I acquired some 3inch #4 buckshot rounds, which
carry 41 pellets. I discovered that
the Federal 3-inch #4 buckshot
rounds performed especially well
with the GATOR. At 15 yards, all 41
pellets stayed on a 4-foot wide target and impacted in a pattern 41inches wide by 11-inches high; thats
approaching a 4:1 ratio. This is precisely the type of horizontal spread
that should be expected from a
spreader choke.
The GATOR Choke is a very well
made product, is easy to install on
an 870 with a Rem Choke, and
gives a good horizontal spread, especially with 3-inch, #4 buckshot
loads. As was discussed above,
however, the GATOR is a specialized accessory, one that would not
normally be suited to home defense in most circumstances. In
case of extreme civil unrest, or the
hypothetical zombie apocalypse
where a homeowner might face
multiple dangerous intrudersthe
GATOR would offer a solution.
As I write this, the price of the
GATOR (ready to install) is $199.
GW
CONTACT
Paradigm SRP
877-677-9899
www.paradigmsrp.com
Remington Arms
Company
800-243-9700
www.remington.com
www.gunworld.com
61
GW_1408_62 5/28/14 10:30 AM Page 62
JANTZ
ESSENTIALS
ALABAMA DAMASCUS
The forging process on our damascus billets

starts out a mixture of 13 layers that include
5160, 203E, 15N20 and 52100 high nickel, high
alloy steels and then folded 5 times to produce
a high contrast 416 layer damascus billet. All
sizes are approximate. Sizes are over sized in
thickness up to .010".
Heat
Treat
Ovens
In Stock Now
for Immediate Shipment.
Random Pattern
These Evenheat Knife Ovens are equipped with

the Rampmaster Control. The Rampmaster
Control allows up to 12 programs and uses a
numerical keypad for data entry.
Available in
four sizes, all models measure 10 width x 6.5
height inside chamber. Maximum temperature
is 2200 degrees F.-all are 240 volt, single phase.
For more information visit www.knifemaking.
com. Actual shipping charges apply.
CAT.#
DEPTH
SHIP WEIGHT
PRICE
13.5
87 LBS
KF135R
1013.00
18.0
95 LBS
1070.00
KF180R
22.5
104 LBS
KF225R
1122.00
36.0
200 LBS
KF360R
2089.00
CAT.#
AD100
AD120
AD140
AD155
AD190
SIZE
3/32 x 3 x 15
1/8 x 3 x 15
9/64 x 3 x 15
5/32 x 3 x 15
3/16 x 3 x 15
PATTERN
Random
Random
Random
Random
Random
Ladder Pattern
Knife Sharpening Wheels

Kit includes
two wheels,
one wheel is
slotted for
polishing
and
the
other wheel
is
coated
with silicon
carbide grit for sharpening, white rouge, silicon
carbide grit, lubricant, appropriate bushings &
instructions. 7 1/2 diameter x 3/4 thick with 1
arbor hole & reducers for 1/2, 5/8 & 3/4 holes.
CAT.#
WKS800
DESCRIPTION
Knife Sharpening Wheel Set
CAT.#
AD300
AD320
AD340
AD355
AD390
CAT.#
JS304
JS305
JS307
DESCRIPTION
Scribe without Adjustment
Scribe with Adjustment
Replacement Carbide Tip
PRICE
34.95 CAT.#
AD400
AD420
AD440
AD455
AD490
PATTERN
Raindrop
Raindrop
Raindrop
Raindrop
Raindrop
Used to acid etch damascus after

heat treating. Dilute with distilled
water or vinegar as needed. Keep
bottle sealed tightly and stored in a
cool place. Can Not Ship Air.
PRICE
29.95 CAT.#
39.95 BS110
9.95
This versatile tool can be used for holding your

knife blades to do complex file work, filing slots
for guards to reach angles needed when hand
sanding your blades. Our file guide is precision
machined
and ground from A-2 tool
steel and hardened to
62RHc for long wear.
Overall length 3.250,
maximum blade width
2, each jaw is 3/8
x 3/4. Made in
the USA.
DESCRIPTION
File Guide
SIZE
3/32 x 3 x 15
1/8 x 3 x 15
9/64 x 3 x 15
5/32 x 3 x 15
3/16 x 3 x 15
Ferric Chloride
Hardened File Guide
CAT.#
FG100
PATTERN
Ladder
Ladder
Ladder
Ladder
Ladder
Raindrop Pattern
Knifemakers Center Scribe

Use this precision scribe
for marking center lines as
a guide for grinding knife
blades. It is designed for
accuracy, this scribe can
be adjusted from 0-1/2.
Adjusts 1/32 per revolution
using fine adjustment screw.
Replaceable
carbide
tip
marks even the hardest knife
steel. Made In USA.
SIZE
3/32 x 3 x 15
1/8 x 3 x 15
9/64 x 3 x 15
5/32 x 3 x 15
3/16 x 3 x 15
PRICE
49.95
PRICE
119.95
119.95
139.95
139.95
149.95
BLADE STEEL
All steel offered below by JANTZ is mill nished

steel and made in the USA. Other widths and
thicknesses available. Visit www.knifemaking.com
to purchase blanchard ground and precision ground
steels. We also have available 154CM, 1095, 5160,
15N20, O1, A2, CPMS 90V and Cowry Steels
440C
CAT.#
CF418
CF518
CF558
CF618
CF658
CF718
CF758
CF778
CF918
CF958
PRICE
14.95
19.95
24.95
22.95
30.95
26.95
34.95
64.95
34.95
44.95
CPMS 30V
CAT.#
LF118
LF218
LF228
LF318
LF328
PRICE
LF418
119.95 LF428
119.95 LF448
139.95
139.95
149.95 CAT.#
SIZE
1/8 x 1 x 18
1/8 x 1 1/2 x 18
1/8 x 2 x 18
5/32 x 1 1/2 x 18
5/32 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 1 1/2 x 18
3/16 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 4 x 18
CPMS 35VN
HF118
HF218
HF228
HF318
HF418
HF508
PRICE HF518
HF548
119.95
119.95
139.95
139.95 CAT.#
149.95 PF118
PF218
PF228
PF318
PF328
PF418
PF428
PF448
PRICE
23.95
32.95
42.95
40.95
56.95
51.95
65.95
125.95
SIZE
1/8 x 1 x 18
1/8 x 1 1/2 x 18
1/8 x 2 x 18
5/32 x 1 1/2 x 18
5/32 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 1 1/2 x 18
3/16 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 4 x 18
PRICE
24.95
33.95
39.95
43.95
58.95
51.95
69.95
129.95
SIZE
1/8 x 1 x 18
1/8 x 1 1/2 x 18
1/8 x 2 x 18
5/32 x 1 1/2 x 18
5/32 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 1 1/2 x 18
3/16 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 4 x 18
PRICE
23.95
30.95
39.95
39.95
52.95
46.95
60.95
116.95
SIZE
5/32 x 1 1/2 x 18
5/32 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 1 1/2 x 18
3/16 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 4 x 18
1/4 x 1 1/2 x 18
1/4 x 2 x 18
1/4 x 4 x 18
PRICE
37.95
49.95
43.95
57.95
113.95
55.95
73.95
143.95
SIZE
1/8 x 1 x 18
1/8 x 1 1/2 x 18
1/8 x 2 x 18
5/32 x 1 1/2 x 18
5/32 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 1 1/2 x 18
3/16 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 4 x 18
1/4 x 2 x 18
1/4 x 4 x 18
PRICE
13.95
18.95
24.95
21.95
29.95
26.95
34.95
63.95
41.95
78.95
CPM 154
CMP 3V
CAT.#
PRICE
VF618
14.95 VF628
VF718
VF728
VF748
Premium quality quenching oil designed to VF918
provide controlled cooling of steel which is VF928
important in steel hardening. When quenching VF948
is started, Chevron Quenching Oil 70 provides
a high initial cooling rate inducing maximum
hardness, yet once the critical transformation CAT.#
temperature is passed, the ideal fluid cooling
rate decreases to eliminate the possibility of YF218
stresses and metal distortion. This highly stable YF318
oil resists the oxidizing effects of quenching and YF328
is less sensitive to the effects of agitation. It is YF518
highly heat resistant. No additive replacement YF528
is required and, in normal service, the product
YF718
retains the original viscosity indefinitely.
YF728
CAT.#
DESCRIPTION
SIZE
PRICE YF748
Quench Oil
1 Gallon
BS101
49.95 YF818
Quench Oil
5 Gallon
BS105
149.95 YF848
DESCRIPTION
Ferric Chloride
SIZE
1/8 x 1 x 18
1/8 x 1 1/2 x 18
1/8 x 2 x 18
5/32 x 1 1/2 x 18
5/32 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 1 1/2 x 18
3/16 x 2 x 18
3/16 x 4 x 18
1/4 x 1 1/2 x 18
1/4 x 2 x 18
SIZE
16 oz.
ChevronTexaco
70 Quench Oil
D2
GW_1408_63 5/28/14 10:31 AM Page 63
Your Complete Source For
USA MADE BLADES
STABILIZED WOODS
JANTZ custom quality blades are 100% made Hand selected for gure and color then impregnated
in the USA. Flat ground from the best USA made completely through with resins. Scales are 2-piece
steels available and cryogentically heat treated you matched sets.
will not nd a better product or value.
California Buckeye
Pattern 21
High Contrast
CAT.#
TW119
PRICE TW419
99.95 TW219
31.95
31.95
9.95
9.95
Overall 7 7/8, Blade 3 1/8, 1 1/8 wide and 5/32 thick.

CAT.#
J2189
J2108
J2128
K218
K219
DESPRIPTION
Pattern 21 Damascus Blade
Pattern 21 440C Steel Blade
Pattern 21 D2 Steel Blade
1/4 Brass Bolster and Rivets
1/4 Stainless Bolster and Rivets
DESERT IRONWOOD
We have the largest selection of ironwood burl

available. Ironwood is the hardest, rarest and most
stable wood on earth. It will not shrink or move.
This naturally stable wood is easy to work. Scales
are bookmatched for perfect mirror imaged sets.
All sizes are approximate.
DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
1 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
Spalted Birch
PRICE
39.95
24.95
39.95 CAT.#
EW170
EW270
EW370
DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1-1/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
PRICE
16.00
21.00
14.95
Dark Exhibition Burl
Pattern 22
CAT.#
TW141
TW441
Overall 8 3/8, Blade 3 1/2, 1 3/32 wide and 5/32 TW241
thick.
CAT.#
J2289
J2208
J2228
K228
K229
DESPRIPTION
Pattern 22 440C Steel Blade
PRICE
99.95
31.95
31.95
9.95
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29.95
19.95
29.95
Maple Burl
DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
1 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
PRICE
29.95
19.95
29.95
Reddish Spalted Maple

Overall 7 5/8, Blade 3, 1 1/8 wide and 5/32 thick.
CAT.#
DESPRIPTION
PRICE
J3189
99.95
J3128
31.95
Pattern 31 1095 Steel Blade
J3198
24.95
K318
9.95
K319
9.95 CAT.#
TW135
TW435
TW235
Pattern 38
DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1-1/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
PRICE
30.00
35.00
24.95
Overall 7, Blade 2 1/2, 15/16 wide and 5/32 thick.

CAT.#
DESPRIPTION
PRICE
J3889
69.95
Pattern 38 CPMS 30V Blade
J3838
39.95
Pattern 38 1095 Steel Blade
J3898
24.95 CAT.#
1/4 Brass Bolster and Pins
K388
7.95 TW191
1/4 Stainless Bolster and Pins
K389
7.95 TW491
TW291
CAT.#
EW172
EW272
EW372
DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1-1/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
PRICE
35.00
40.00
27.95
Presentation Burl
DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
1 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
PRICE
34.95
24.95
34.95
CAT.#
EW173
EW273
EW373
EW473
Black Palm
Pattern 33
CAT.#
EW171
EW271
EW371
Exhibition Burl
CAT.#
TW113
TW413
TW213
Pattern 31
DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
1 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
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1 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
PRICE
29.95
19.95
29.95
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DESPRIPTION
3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
1-1/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Block
1/4 x 1-1/4 x 4 Scales
3/16x1-1/4x3-3/4 Scales
PRICE
40.00
45.00
36.95
26.95
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309 W MAIN
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Overall 7 1/8, Blade 3 3/16, 5/8 wide and 1/8 thick.

CAT.#
J3389
J3348
J3328
K338
K339
DESPRIPTION
Pattern 33 154CM Steel Blade
1/4 Brass Guard and Pins
1/4 Stainless Guard and Pins
PRICE
49.95
24.95
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CAT.#
TW117
TW417
TW217
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3/8 x 1-1/2 x 5 Scales
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Knifemaking supplies, tools, equipment, leathercraft,
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GW-1408-HUNTER-64-69.qxp 5/26/14 3:43 AM Page 64
TODAYS
HUNTER
64
www.gunworld.com
DOGTOWN
DELIGHT
Story & Photos by Thomas C. Tabor
Caution: Prairie Dog Hunting

Can Be Highly Contagious!
ome of my best childhood

memories took root when
my family hardly had
enough money to put a pot of
beans on our dinner table. My
mother and father must have
worried continuously about how to
provide for a family of six as they
eked out a living on a tiny, western
Washington dairy farm. But once a
month, as part of that basic
survival plan, we would all pile into
our barely operable car and travel
a few miles to our local farm store,
one that sold virtually everything
from barbed wire to baking our.
A portable bench rest is a great asset to bring
along on a prairie dog hunt. Here, Tom uses a
Savage rie chambered for the relatively new
.17 Hornet centerre cartridge.
www.gunworld.com
65
TODAYS HUNTER
A part of Toms rimre prairie dog arsenal consists of (L-R): Browning BAR .22 LR, tricked-out Ruger 10/22, Ruger B-Mag .17 WSM, Kimber .17 Mach 2, Savage
93R17 BTV .17 HMR and a Savage Model 93 BTVS chambered in .22 WMR.
Back then, when asked, a store

owner would consider breaking a
box of cartridges so customers
could purchase what they could afford. My father certainly wasnt a
lover of guns, but he must have
known that shooting established
something of value in kids that was
worth encouraging. So despite our
hardships, he would occasionally
nd a few extra coins to purchase
at least a partial box of .22 shells
for us kids.
Then, after church on Sunday,
wed head out for a little rat shooting, traipsing down the road to the
dead end where the people would
dump their garbage down the hillside. Dumps being what they are,
there were always plenty of rats to
keep our ancient Remington singleshot .22 LR active, at least as long
as our shells would hold out.
My dump rat shooting days
have long since passed, but heaven
has provided me with a near-perfect substitute, one that shooters
like me consider the holy grail of
pest shootingthe prairie dog.
66
YOUR HUNT, YOUR CHOICE

When it comes to prairie dogs,
hunters seem to fall into one of two
categories: those that shoot them,
and those that wish they could
shoot them. If you nd yourself living on the right side of the country
(which in the case of prairie dog
hunting is the wrong side of the
country), you probably fall in this
latter group, because unless you
put the Mississippi River in your rear
view mirror and go like a bat out of
hell toward the setting sun, there is
virtually no way to enjoy the sport
of prairie dog shooting. Youll be
burning a bit of gas to do so, but it
certainly is worth the time and expense. Once in good prairie dog
country, you will likely burn more
powder in a single hour of shooting
than most hunters can in an entire
lifetime.
Many western states have sizable prairie dog populations, but
for the devoted shooter, Wyoming
is the land that prairie dog dreams
are made of. There, youll find
enough craters and burrows to
www.gunworld.com
WHAT TO TAKE ALONG

1. Good optics: high-powered rie
scopes, binoculars, and a spotting
scope.
2. A diversity of both rimre and
centerre ries capable of at
trajectories.
3. A cooler loaded with drinks and eats.
It can be a long way between stores
and restaurants in prairie dog country.
4. Sunscreen, a hat, and lip balm.
5. Hiking or hunting boots capable of
repelling cactus spines.
6. Shooting mats, portable shooting
bench, shooting sticks, bi-pods, etc.
7. Rangender.
8. Camera.
9. Lots of ammo.
make the countryside look like a

miniature moonscape as far as the
eye can see, so its easy to understand why farmers and ranchers
despise such an infestation. Nevertheless, a pest the ranchers view
as a thorn in their sides is a blessing to those of us who no longer
have dump rats to shoot.
One of the really neat things
about prairie dog shooting is there
are essentially no set rules for what
types of rearm to use. Ive used
just about every type of weapon
imaginable on these hunts, including pistols of various congurations,
ARs, and most every known rimre
cartridge as well. For longer range

shooting, Ive also broken out some
of my centerre ries. I even have
one friend who wanted to train with
his big bore .416 Rigby in anticipation of some day going on safari.
After a couple of boxes of cartridges, however, his shoulder
began screaming for relief, so he
packed away the big bore in lieu of
a more shoulder-friendly caliber.
So, what is the best caliber for
prairie dog shooting? Ask that
question of 10 people and youll
likely to get 10 different answers.
What cartridge you choose will be
largely dependent upon the range
at which you prefer to shoot. Unlike
other species where the terrain and
habitat frequently dictates shooting
distance, with prairie dogs, the
range is strictly up to you. If you prefer to shoot at shorter distances,
simply set up closer to the burrows
and use a rimre rie or pistol. If you
like the challenges of long-range
shooting, move back and use a centerre rie.
I absolutely love my rimres for
prairie dog shooting, especially my
little .17 Mach 2, but the .17 HMR and
the .22 LR and .22 magnum also
works great out to about 100 yards.
Of course, that range could logically
be stretched out a bit further if you
are shooting Winchesters new .17
WSM. If you prefer using a center-
Tom frequently uses one of his custom-built Ruger 10/22

.22 LR ries for close-range prairie dog shooting.
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67
GW-1408-HUNTER-64-69.CX 5/30/14 7:14 AM Page 68
TODAYS HUNTER
A bench rest located on the back of a trailer

is a great advantage for long-range shooting. A spotter is also helpful, particularly
when the wind is howling.
Prairie dogs can provide a good challenge to

shooters at both short and long ranges.
re rie, you might think about such

calibers as the .223, .22-250, .220
Swift, .204 Ruger, .17 Hornet, .17
Fireball, or one of the many wildcat
choices. In this case, the distance at
which you choose to shoot would
be limited to only your own imagination and abilities.
Generally, I bring along a collection of both rimres and centerres.
When the shooting gets really hot
and heavy, having a variety of
rearms to choose from allows me
to switch back and forth when my
barrels start to heat up, or be able
to switch out a rie that has its bore
fouled and needs cleaning.
CATCHING THE DRIFT

One of the major limiting factors in long-range prairie dog shooting is bullet drift. After shooting on
the open prairie for decades I can
condently say that there are virtually no calm days where prairie
dogs thrive. As many ranchers are
68
quick to point out, When the

wind isnt blowingit sucks.
When it comes to shooting
under those conditions, it essentially comes down to how
much the shooter has to hold
into the wind in order to make
the shot, rather than simply how
many miles an hour it is blowing. On
more occasions than I can remember, Ive not only had to compensate for the normal trajectory drop
of the bullet, but at the same time
hold as much as a couple of feet
into the wind just to stie the distant barking of a dog. But, to me,
thats just another aspect of the fun
of prairie dog shooting. So the bottom line is this: if you like to shoot
prairie dogs long distance, you need
to be shooting a rie that is
equipped with good optics, and you
need to use a cartridge capable of
bucking the wind and with a at
trajectory. You must also know and
understand the ballistic performance of that cartridge.
One thing that sharply differs in
prairie dog shooting as compared
to other hunting situations is that in
many cases you can set up much as
you would when shooting on the
rie range. If you have a portable
bench rest, bring it along. If you
have a comfortable shooting chair,
bring that along, too. And dont forget to take along a shooting mat
and a variety of shooting bags
and rests.
Prairie dog towns may cover a

hundred or more acres, so why not
take full advantage of the opportunity to set up comfortably with the
steadiest possible rest? In a few
cases, you may have to walk a short
distance, but often you can drive
right up to the prairie dog town.
Some very serious-minded prairie
dog shooters even have been
known to tow specically built trailers equipped with shooting
benches and, in some cases, an elevated platform or tower to shoot
from. Other enthusiasts have similar structures built on the bed of a
pickup truck. These elevated platforms work well because they not
only provide better viewing opportunities, it is less likely that the bullets they re will encounter any
vegetation in ight.
Many states consider the
prairie dog a vermin species. As
such, there are frequently few or no
restrictions on the shooting of them
and no licensing requirements. On
the other hand, each state differs in
its requirements, which makes it
imperative that you check the local
regulations before you begin to
squeeze the trigger.
A word of caution: prairie dog
shooting can get in your blood, and
the allure of the sport can draw you
back time and again, no matter how
many miles you have to log on your
vehicle to get to a good location.
GW
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_69 5/23/14 4:13 AM Page 69
P320
WE
DROPPED
THE HAMMER
ON THE COMPETITION.
THE NEW P320. We asked leading law enforcement professionals

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Learn more at
SIGSAUER.COM/P320
GW-1408-RELOAD-70-75.qxp 5/26/14 3:53 AM Page 70
RELOAD
Producing safe, accurate ammunition

begins with properly prepared cases.
GETTING
DOWN
TO CASES
Understanding the Cold, Hard

Facts About Powder-Packed
Projectile Pushers
Story & Photos by James E. House
eloading is currently enjoying increased popularity,

with thousands of beginners joining scores of longtime practitioners. Most of my columns detail what
I load into cartridges, but rarely about what Im loading the
various propellants into. Although many veterans of the
reloading bench will know much of the material contained
below, a good refresher course cant hurt, as it is important
for everyone from beginners to experts to remember and
understand the basics.
70
www.gunworld.com
www.gunworld.com
71
RELOAD
This case shows the result of near catastrophic

failure. The primer pocket is enlarged and the case
has expanded in the ejector recess.
With that being said, lets get down

to cases. Cartridge cases, that is.
Cartridge cases are generally
made of brass. This alloy of copper
and zinc is tough, easily resized, and
resists corrosion. When cartridges
are red, pressures are generated in
the range of about 15,000 to
60,000 psi. The case must be
strong, but also somewhat pliable.
When a cartridge is red, the
case expands to provide a seal so
that gases are forced forward down
the bore rather than escaping backward. As a general rule, the case
mouth and neck are somewhat
softer, whereas the base is harder.
In order to make the neck soft, it is
annealed by heating and then
cooled quickly by quenching. If you
examine cases before they are reloaded, you will usually be able to
detect the difference in the color of
the two areas.
expanded by the expander plug as

the case is withdrawn. Firing the
loaded round again expands the
neck, and the cycle is repeated with
each ring and loading process. As
a result, case failure most often occurs at the neck where this reworking has caused the brass to become
brittle. Older cases are particularly
suspect. If they are quite old, they
may have been originally loaded
with primers that contained a compound of mercury. Upon ring, the
mercury is liberated and forms an
alloy with brass known as an amalgam, which weakens the case and
causes it to become more brittle.
When cases are annealed to return the neck to its resilient state,
the base must not be allowed to
become soft. Therefore, the usual
procedure is to place the cases sitting upright in a shallow pan containing water to keep the bases
cool while heating the mouths, usu-
...Copper
becomes
strengthened as
a result of what
is known as work
hardening.
ally with a torch or some other heat

source. When the desired degree of
heating has been reached, the
cases are quickly toppled so that
the temperature is reduced rapidly
producing annealing. Commercial
kits are available for the reloader
who wishes to anneal cases.
Another concern is with cases
that have been reformed to change
caliber. For example, if a case such
as the 308 Winchester is reformed
to make it have 243 Winchester or
260 Remington dimensions, the
neck becomes thicker. Therefore,
when loaded with the smaller diameter bullet, there may be insufficient space for the neck to expand
in the chamber properly, which can
ANNEAL APPEAL
Although brass is a wonderful,
workable alloy, it has a deficiency
that may be illustrated in the following way. Take a piece of wire,
such as a clothes hanger, and
bend it repetitively until it breaks.
Now, take a piece of copper wire
and try the same action. You will
find that after one or two bending
operations, the wire no longer
bends at the same point but
rather beside that point. The reason is that copper becomes
strengthened as a result of what is
known as work hardening.
Brass cases undergo the same
change as they are loaded numerous times. When a bottlenecked
case is reloaded, the neck is rst
constricted during resizing and then
72
An accurate measuring device such as

a digital caliper is an essential tool for
preparing uniform loads.
www.gunworld.com
A case trimmer makes it easy to achieve

correct and uniform case length.
cause higher pressure. It is advisable for case necks to be turned to

the appropriate internal and external dimensions when case reforming involves signicant reduction of
the original case in caliber. This is
usually not a problem when cases
are expanded to hold bullets of
larger caliber because case necks
become thinner in that operation.
CASE VERSUS
CALIBER
I once took some 30-06
Springeld cases and resized them
for use in my 270 Winchester. That
causes no problem except that the
cases are slightly shorter than original 270 cases. The case length for
the 270 is 2.540 inches,
whereas that of the
30-06 is 2.494
inches. The 270
is actually a
necked-down
30-03 case,
which was the
predecessor of
the 30-06.
All cases of
the same caliber are
not the same. For example, the 257 Roberts, originally a wildcat caliber that
became a factory offering in 1934,
was introduced with a relatively low

maximum pressure. Many years
ago, Winchester introduced a load
that produced a higher pressure
and designated it as 257 Roberts
+P. The new load, which is now
standard for the 257 Roberts, utilized a more strongly constructed case. I happen to
have a supply of new
Winchester cases of
both original and
+P versions.
After cases are trimmed, the mouth

should have the burrs removed.
Expanding case mouths during loading handgun

cartridges causes the mouth to become brittle.
All cases
of the same
caliber are not
the same.
www.gunworld.com
73
RELOAD
This RCBS tool can be used
to remove burrs on both
outside and inside of case
mouths.
The average weight for the original

cases is 159.4 grains, whereas that
of the +P cases is 171.2 grains. Currently manufactured Remington
cases average 168.8 grains, which
shows that they also are of the +P
variety even though it is not stated
on the head stamp. If cases have
the same external dimensions,
heavier cases have smaller internal
capacity, which results in higher
pressure with a given load. The wise
reloader knows which cases are
being used, as well as the type used
by developers of loading data.
When I began reloading, I was
using a very basic kit that contained
a die to resize only the case neck. As
a result, after several reloadings,
the case necks became wavy and
uneven because they were not resized the same amount all around
the mouth. I had no way to measure
case length or trim them to a uniform length. Fortunately, the old
222 Remington I was loading was
very forgiving and I got good accuracy anyway.
74
For best accuracy, cases

should not only be of the
same brand and type,
but also of uniform
length, with
mouths that are
perpendicular to
the case axis. In
most instances,
the recommended trim
length is 0.010
inches shorter
than the maximum case
length.
Trimming is
best accomplished by means
of a commercial
case trimmer utilizing
a cutting tool held rigidly
perpendicular to the case
axis and rotated by hand or an
electric motor. Such case trimmers
have some means of limiting the
trimming by setting a stop to a
specified length. If no case trim-
mer is available, one can make do

with a good file. Just be sure to hold
the case so that the file passes
squarely over the mouth and file
slowly and carefully. Measure the
case frequently to make sure that
the appropriate length is attained.
During the process of giving
cases the appropriate length, a bead
is typically produced around the outside and inside edges of the case
mouth as a result of brass owing
rather than being removed by abrasion. The inside bead can be removed with a countersink if
necessary, but a special tool is much
simpler to use. Such a tool has two
tapered cutting surfaces, one that
can t over the outside of the case
mouth and the other inside the
mouth. As the tool is rotated, the inside and outside wire beads are removed. The slightly beveled inside
edge of the case mouth makes it
easier to start bullets in the seating
operation. Proper case preparation is
the rst step in producing high quality reloads.
As I work on numerous reloading projects, it seems as if I am perpetually doing case preparation.
However, you must remember it is
the case that keeps the gas out of
your face.
And whether you are a shooter, a
reloader, or both, thats exactly how
you want it, so case closed. GW
This unusual event occurred with a case in good

condition and a load that was well below
maximum. It appears that the primer did not seal
properly, which allowed gas to leak.
www.gunworld.com
Shown
Actual
Size
CCO - A HANDFUL OF CONFIDENCE
GW_1408_75 5/23/14 3:55 AM Page 75
GW-1408-CONCEAL-76-81.qxp 5/26/14 3:57 AM Page 76
CONCEALED
CARRY
MIX YOUR AMMO FOR

MAXIMUM PERFORMANCE
Your First and Last Priority is to
Survive an Attack by Stopping Your
Attacker, and This Trick Can Help.
Story & Photos by Dave Workman
In six-shot wheelguns like the authors vintage Colt Diamondback, one might have a
speedloader loaded with three hollowpoints and three frangibles. Workman suggests
practicing a reload with this setup until the operation is smooth.
76
www.gunworld.com
ometime back, I mentioned a

trick about loading pistol
magazines with alternating
hollowpoints and FMJ ammunition,
always with the FMJ being at the
top so it is the first round into the
chamber after the first shot is fired.
In a revolver, loading a hollowpoint followed

by a frangible just might be the strategy that
separates a gunght winner from the loser.
www.gunworld.com
77
CONCEALED CARRY
The setup is two-fold. First, it
ensures better feeding of that important rst follow-up shot, and
second, if the opposition is wearing
layered clothing, that ball round is
going to punch deep.
Well, that advice, from an old
Texas Ranger pal, prompted an inquiry from a reader who wanted to
know about how to load a revolver
for maximum performance. While
that may seem like a pretty foolish
request, there are several legitimate
reasons to ask.
Lets conne this to a couple of
my favorite wheelguns, because
what were about to discuss will
pretty much cover all the bases.
Some years ago, I acquired a
Model 442 Smith & Wesson Jframe revolver, a little five-shot
hammerless double-action-only
piece with an alloy frame to save
weight. It is a marvelous little carry
gun, and it will handle +P rounds.
Occasionally, when I carry this
revolver, I load three Winchester +P
rounds topped with 158-grain lead
hollowpoints, and two MagSafe
rounds topped with 52-grain frangible bullets, alternating between
rounds, with the rst and last shots
being the heavy lead bullet and the
frangibles in chambers two and
four. Whats this all about?
The heavy +P hollowpoints are
for penetration and the frangibles
cause serious tissue damage,
enough to quickly stop an attacker
if necessary. This is not a primer on
maiming some thug, but a discussion on avoiding personal injury and
even death. Remember, the bad guy
calls the play, not you. Ideally, your
gun will never leave its holster or
your pocket.
Of course, Winchester is not
the only source of good lead hollowpoints, and one can also opt for
Glaser Safety ammunition. The
point of this exercise is how to stuff
a cylinder with a very effective combination of ammunition.
In my six-round .38 Special
Colt revolver, I would run three and
three, again alternating between
the frangible and the hollowpoints. Step up to a .357 Magnum
and it would the same combination, except instead of the +P lead
hollowpoints, I like a 125-grain JHP,
which has a sterling reputation as
a fight-stopper.
THEYRE NOT CHEAP

Frangible ammunition is expensive. Cartridges average slightly
78
Author sometimes packs his J-frame S&W

Model 442 in this Mitch Rosen Workman rig.
Workman designed this deep concealment
holster for small revolvers and semi-autos.
more than $2 apiece, whether they

come in Glaser six-packs or
MagSafe ten-packs. Whats your
life worth? Frangibles are denitely
not for practice, nor would one wish
to use them for long-range shooting. The frangible bullet, typically
stuffed with size 6 or 12 lead shot
encased in some kind of resin compound, has a copper jacket and it
exits the barrel like any other jacketed projectile.
These rounds are for close-up
work, and not necessarily just
against bad guys. Ever been attacked by an aggressive dog? I
know people who have, and they
would clearly have had an advantage, had they been armed.

Mean, dangerous dogs are not
interested in negotiation, placing
them pretty much on the same level
as a mean, dangerous criminal, with
the exception that the dog may not
know any better. Criminals, on the
other hand, make their life choices
and sometimes have dogs that are
essentially used as weapons.
Ive chatted this over with different prosecutors and reached the
conclusion that in most jurisdictions, someone who shoots an attacking dog is not likely to face
charges. This is not always the case.
www.gunworld.com
Dont try to cut corners by substituting snake

shot for a frangible. There is no comparison.
SURVIVE
THE FIRST DAY
The new Taurus First 24 kit, featuring its Judge revolver.
Shown for the first

time publicly at the National Rifle Association
exhibits in Indianapolis
earlier this year, the
Taurus First 24 Judge
Kit is designed for
emergencies.
The heart of this kit,
which comes in a lockable hard case, is the
Judge revolver, capable
of handling .410 shells
and .45 Colt cartridges. It
is tted with a Hogue
Mono-grip and nished
with a tan X-Coat. It has
an AimPro Tactical knife,
20 feet of nylon Para
cord and a box of Hornady Critical Defense
ammunition in .410bore, a Zippo Fire Starter
with waxed tinder sticks, a Suunto compass and six AA batteries.
Included as accessories are a pair of Bianchi Speed Strips, a Brite-Strike ELPI 160lumen ashlight that has an on/off/strobe switch, and Brite-Strike APALS waterproof
lighting/marking devices that have adhesive backing.
One person asked me if the kit lacked anything and I suggested adding a tough, nylon,
pancake-type holster. The MSRP on this kit is $1,499.
Theres another version of this kit, with a Taurus .357 Magnum revolver and associated
accessories. Ive arranged to get one of these for a full evaluation in these pages.
www.gunworld.com
Remember,
the bad guy
calls the play,
not you.
A friend of mine, retired Cincinnati

police lieutenant Harry Thomas,
was forced to simply re a round
into the ground next to a dog that
was attacking him. The local cops
and prosecutor tried to make a case
against him until he pointed out the
language of the self-defense
statute to a judge.
If you have to shoot an attacking animal, a Glaser or MagSafe is
going to ruin his day. And that is
going to be a close contact shot.
79
GW-1408-CONCEAL-76-81.CX 5/30/14 7:16 AM Page 80
CONCEALED CARRY
Another way to pack a defensive
snubbie is in an ankle holster like
this one from Mitch Rosen.
SPEEDLOADERS?
There is a visible difference between the Glaser and MagSafe that
may make the former more useable
in speedloaders. The Glaser has a
rounded front end where the
MagSafe is rather blunt. That doesnt mean they cant be used in a
speedloader, but they just might
hang up momentarily on a reload,
so that might be a consideration.
I will offer this observation: By
the time youve emptied a cylinder
and pumped two or three frangibles
into an attackerman or beast
there is not much likelihood that a
quick reload will be necessary.
However, dont count on it. Practice
with speedloaders until you get it
down pretty well.
Keep in mind that this alternating cartridge setup will work
whether your revolver is an S&W,
Taurus, Charter Arms, Ruger, Colt or
some other brand. One only requires a revolver that is in proper
working order.
Glaser and MagSafe ammunition is available in most popular
calibers, with the exception of .41
Magnum, .32 H&R Magnum and
.327 Federal. I only mention that to
needle both companies, as my
affinity for the .41 Magnum is pretty
widely known, and the .32-caliber
cartridges are good choices as well
for personal protection.
However, for serious defensive
work, Id go with the .38 Special or
.357 Magnum in a revolver. Recoil is
80
manageable, and the handguns

made for these cartridges are reliable.
Now, there is one nal note.
Under no circumstances should anyone substitute snake shot cartridges
for frangible ammunition and expect
the same results. Its not going to
happen. Snake shot is for snakes,
and about the best one can expect
from one of these rounds, should
they have to re at an attacker, is to
blind them with a facial shot or simply make them mad.
Ive written in the past about a
pharmacist I once knew early in my
career who did have a .38 Special
snub gun that had a snake load out
rst, specically to blind a robber.
Im not endorsing that, and to my
knowledge, he never had to put that
to the test.
The best course of action is to
stick with the best ght-stopping
cartridges, and make them count.
Mixing them up a bit could provide
the advantage one needs to come
out of a ght standing up. GW
Practice with
speedloaders
until you get it
down pretty
well.
CONTACT
http://magsafeonline.com/
http://corbon.com/safetyslug/general/glaser-safety-slug
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_81 5/23/14 3:57 AM Page 81
GW-1408-SMITH-82-91 5/26/14 4:20 AM Page 82
GUNSMITHING
For a more thorough cleaning,

disassemble the rie from the
stock, removing the trigger from
the action and disassembling the
bolt. Here, Im using the torque
wrench on the project rie, a
Savage Model 10 Precision
Carbine in .223 Remington.
82
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-SMITH-82-91out 5/30/14 7:20 AM Page 83
CLEANLINESS
COUNTS
A Quick and Thorough

Guide to Cleaning Your
Bolt-Action Rie
Story & Photos by Steve Sieberts
or many people, cleaning their rearms after

a fun day at the range
is about as exciting as a trip
to the dentist. But, like a
good teeth scrubbing, caring
for your rearms is just as
important to proper functioning and longevity. Your
mom really was right: cleanliness counts!
Certain classes of
rearms require more cleaning and maintenance than
others. Fully automatic

rearms generally require
regular cleaning because of
the volume of rounds put
through them. Handguns are
different. Ive shot literally
hundreds of rounds of factory ammunition through my
Glock 17 with little to no
cleaning. Not that I recommend doing that, I was just
seeing how susceptible the
gun was to malfunctioning
when I rst purchased it.
After a few thousand rounds, I

stopped and cleaned it. Not cleaning and lubricating your rearms
will denitely increase wear and
tear as the powder fouling acts like
an abrasive as the parts rub together.
If you reload, this can also affect how often you need to clean
your rearms. Certain reloading
powders are known to be dirtier
than others. Semi-automatic
rearms are especially prone to
malfunctions due to lack of cleaning than others, such as a pump-action shotgun.
This month Im going to focus
I always place a rag underneath the solvent port of the bore guide in case I get sloppy. Always keep scope covers on the scope when cleaning the rie to keep
cleaning solvents off of the delicate coatings that are applied on all scope lenses. If you dont have scope covers, you should!
www.gunworld.com
83
GW-1408-SMITH-82-91 5/26/14 4:21 AM Page 84
GUNSMITHING
Bore guides are critical to

cleaning a precision rie.
Here I mounted a Universal
bore guide into the Savage
Model 10.
So, to begin, lets assume that I

didnt clean the rie at the range
and Ive brought the rie home to
clean after about ring about 20 to
30 rounds through it. The rst thing
I want to do is to make sure the rie
is unloaded, and then place it in my
rie cradle. This makes it easy to
clean and inspect. There are several
on the market, but I really like the
Lyman cradle available from
Brownells.
The rie Im using for this article is the Savage Precision Carbine
in .223, so some aspects will be different for your particular rie regarding disassembly and
reassembly.
I open the bolt, and then press
the trigger while depressing the bolt
removal latch. Remove the bolt and
set it off to the side. Since this is a
quick clean, Im not going to remove
the scope or remove the barreled
action from the stock, but I will
when doing a more extensive cleaning later in the article.
Since the scope and barreled
action will stay attached, we need
to protect them from the cleaning
solvents. This rie has the Leupold
Mk 6 tactical scope already
mounted, but it comes from the
factory with scope covers, so I make
sure they are closed when cleaning.
This is especially important when
trying to clean the rie on the range
when the wind is blowing. Cleaning
solvents can damage the coatings
on any optics, so I want to be careful to protect them.
CRUCIAL TOOLS
& SOLVENTS
There are a couple of tools that
are crucial to properly cleaning a
on cleaning and maintenance tips
for the bolt-action rie. Most of
these are not specic to any particular rie brand, as it would make for
a very long article to demonstrate
how to disassemble and reassemble all of them. So I will try to keep
it generic to bolt actions in general.
QUICK OR THOROUGH
There are two ways to clean a
rie, the quick way and a more thorough way. The quick way involves
focusing on cleaning all of the powder and copper fouling from the
bore, and a quick wipe on the bolt
and a small amount of oil in strategic places.
A more through way would be
to disassemble the rie from the
84
stock, removing the trigger from the

action and disassembling the bolt.
Ill start off with the quick method
for cleaning a rie after a trip to the
range.
If Im shooting a precision rie
at the range, for best accuracy, Im
going to clean the bore after every
20 shots or so, ideally after 10
rounds. So I would take my cleaning
gear to the range. I denitely clean
the bore when on the range and Im
testing ammunition and switching
from one type or brand of ammunition to another. I also do so when
changing bullet weightseven with
the same brandas I want my test
and evaluation to start from the
same clean rie for each variable so
it does not skew my data.
Shooters Choice Bore cleaner is an excellent

powder remover, and Sweets works on copper
fouling. Never mix the two chemicals in the bore
at the same time.
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-SMITH-82-91 5/26/14 4:21 AM Page 85
rie. One of them is a bore guide.

This is a tool that does a couple of
important jobs. Probably the most
important is to protect the bore of
the rie from the cleaning rod itself.
Dirt, grit and powder fouling can
embed itself to the cleaning rod,
and if the rod contacts the interior
of the bore, it can damage the lands
and grooves, degrading accuracy
over time. The bore guide and the
coated cleaning rod both came
from the benchrest shooting community. In other words, shooters obsessed with accuracy.
The bore guide keeps the
cleaning rod centered in the bore
and away from touching the riing.
Semi-automatic
firearms are
especially prone to
malfunctions due
to lack of
cleaning...
Starting a patch into the bore guide.
The pointed end of the cleaning jag. Never use a loop jag on a rie, because
you dont want to drag a dirty patch back through the bore. Loop jags are
good for shotguns, semi and full auto weapons and most handguns.
www.gunworld.com
85
GW-1408-SMITH-82-91 5/26/14 4:21 AM Page 86
GUNSMITHING
The bore guides have a handy port to apply
solvent. Notice I keep Shooters Choice in a
handy dispenser bottle. Never dunk a dirty
patch back into the original bottle, as this
will contaminate the solvent. This is why I
never use a loop jag on my rie cleaning
rods. I let the patch fall off when it exits the
muzzle and get a fresh one.
The other function of the bore

guide is to keep cleaning solvents
from entering the stock when pushing solvent-soaked patches through
the bore. It does this by sealing off
the chamber area so the excess solvent doesnt run back into the action area. This is especially
important with a wood-stocked
rie. Solvent can soak the wood,
causing the stock to get spongy
under the front and rear guard
screws. This will cause accuracy to
go south really fast.
We also need a coated, onepiece cleaning rod, and for years the
gold standard has been the Dewey
rod. Make sure you use the type of
jag that pierces the patch and not
the loop-type patch, as we want to
only run the patch through the bore
and then let it fall off when it exits
the muzzle. Never drag a dirty patch
back through the bore. Never use a
jointed cleaning rod in a precision
rie, and always wipe off the rod
between passes.
There are two types of chemical solvents I use for cleaning a rie.
One removes powder fouling and
the other removes copper fouling.
Both need to be utilized in order to
get the barrel clean. For powder
fouling, I use Shooters Choice. For
copper fouling, I use Sweets 7.62
solvent.
86
The wet patch, covered in powder fouling

exits the bore, and falls off the tip of the
cleaning rod. The muzzle cap on the Savage
carbine protects the threaded end of the
barrel. The barrel is threaded to accept a
suppressor.
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-SMITH-82-91 5/26/14 4:21 AM Page 87
The ways to remove fouling

and copper residue to clean a rie
can be categorized as either removing it chemically with solvents or
mechanically with mildly abrasive
compounds. Chemical solvents like
Shooters Choice and Sweets do a
great job. Some people like to use
various abrasive pastes (such as JB Bore Compound) that dont use
chemicals, but instead use an extremely mild abrasive paste to remove powder and copper fouling.
Many people swear by this method
and I have used it as well with excellent results.
So the drill for cleaning our rie
will be to remove the bolt and install the bore guide. Get the patch
of the appropriate size. Wet the
patch and push it once through the
bore and let it fall off when it comes
out of the muzzle. Install a bronze
brush on our rod, and push the
brush back and forth through the
bore once for each shot red. Make
sure you completely exit the bore
before you pull it back through.
Never reverse direction while the
brush in still in the bore. Also, when
I pull the brush back through the
bore, I ease it back into the barrel,
as I want to protect the critical
muzzle crown from any possible
damage. I usually use a new solvent-soaked patch after about
every ve strokes or so.
This cleaning regime will take
care of the powder fouling, but I
also have to remove the copper
fouling. I usually push a patch with
a neutral solvent or a couple of dry
patches to remove the Shooters
Choice before I use the Sweets solvent, so I dont get a chemical reaction. Some say this chemical
The bore guide inserts come in three sizes. These must be mated to the correct caliber. The tapered ends
of the bore guide ensure the chamber area is sealed off so excess solvent doesnt run back into the front
guard screw area and saturate the stock. Its not as critical with a composite stock as it is with a wood
stock, but still a good technique.
The bore guide

keeps the
cleaning rod
centered in the
bore and away
from touching
the rifling...
www.gunworld.com
87
GW-1408-SMITH-82-91 5/26/14 4:22 AM Page 88
GUNSMITHING
MAXIMUM RECOMMENDED TORQUE SETTINGS
8-40 scope base screws
28 in/lbs
8-40 scope ring screws
28 in/lbs
Mk 4 Ring Keeper screws
45 in/lbs
Front and rear action screws

(wood stock, non glass bedded action)
35 in/lbs

(wood stock, pillar bedded action)
50 in/lbs

(composite stock pillar bedded action)
65 in/lbs
Shows the coated

rod, the bronze brush,
and pointed jag tip.
reaction can etch the bore. When

using Sweets Copper remover,
never use a brush, just keep pushing
wet patches through the bore until
they come out clean. Patches will
come out a shade of blue, indicating that the solvent is working at removing copper. Never leave Sweets
in the bore; push dry patches
through until the bore is completely
dry. Once the patches come out
clean, your barrel has been cleaned.
This procedure doesnt take long
and is vital to keeping a precision
rie shooting at peak accuracy.
DEEP CLEANING
If we are performing a deep
clean on the rie, all of the above
applies, but we also need to remove
the barreled action from the stock.
If the rie has been exposed to the
Only use one-piece plastic-coated rods when cleaning a precision rie, and wipe off the rod after each
pass to make sure any grit, grime or powder fouling is not transferred back into the rie.
88
One good
wayto clean
out the trigger
without
removing it is to
spray it out with
brake cleaner
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_89 5/25/14 11:57 PM Page 89
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HQRXJKIRUWKHPRVWPRELOHKXQWHU$OOEDFNHGZLWKOLIHWLPHZDUUDQWLHVDQG
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GW-1408-SMITH-82-91out 5/30/14 7:21 AM Page 90
GUNSMITHING
elements, rust can form very quickly
between the action and the stock.
Remove the scope, and remove the
stock screws. Lift the barreled action from the stock. Place the barreled action in a padded vise and
perform the cleaning steps as outlined above.
Since we have the barreled action out of the stock, we can wipe
down all of the exterior surfaces
with an oily rag, and clean out the
trigger mechanism. One good way
to clean out the trigger without removing it is to spray it out with
brake cleaner. This will clean the interior trigger surfaces, remove
water, dry fast and wont leave any
residue. I usually dont put any oil in
the trigger mechanism since this
will just attract dirt.
When reassembling any precision rie we will need another tool,
and that is a torque wrench that
measures in inch/pounds with a
range of 20-100. The Leupold tactical scope rings need to be torqued
to a specic setting, as does the nut
on the mounts. Also, the front and
rear stock screws also need to be
torqued. Ive included a handy
cheat sheet (see sidebar) that
shows the recommended torque
settings for various parts of a precision rie. Remember, this cleaning
regimen does not just apply to tactical ries, but to any rie that you
want to keep shooting as accurately
as possible, be it a varmint rie,
competition rie, or a custom hunting rie. And when it comes right
down to it, when we are talking
about ries, isnt accuracy what its
all about? GW
This is a shot of the inletting area of the Savage stock. Wipe this area out with a rag and compressed air
if the rie has been subjected to the elements.
CONTACTS
Brownells Inc.
(800) 741-0015
www.Brownells.com
Savage Arms
(413) 642-4260
www.SavageArms.com
Leupold Optics
(800) LEUPOLD
www.Leupold.com
Using the torque wrench and the Allen wrench attachment to apply the proper torque setting to the rear
guard screw of the Savage rie.
90
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_91 5/23/14 3:58 AM Page 91
View our catalog
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With a .410 under and a .22 Long Rifle over, you can put meat in your own
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Also available in .22 WMR and .410.
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GW-1408-PRODUCTS 2-92-95.qxp 5/26/14 4:28 AM Page 92
NEW
PRODUCTS
THREE FOR
THE SHOW
A Trio of Products from the
Recent NRA Show Rates More
Than a Mention Gun World Contributors
The Tac-Con 3MR trigger for AR

ries from Tactical Fire Control,
Incorporated.
TAC-CON 3MR TRIGGER

FOR AR RIFLES
The recent upswing in the popularity of AR ries has seen a ood
of new products for this platform
over the last few years. Some of
these products are truly innovative
and relevant, and one such product
is Tactical Fire Controls new TacCon 3MR trigger, a design that allows the shooter to re their
weapon in two modes. The rst is
traditional semiautomatic mode,
but the Tac-Con trigger is a big improvement over factory triggers,
breaking cleanly at 4.5 pounds. The
third mode of operation allows for
assisted trigger reset, a process
92
that allows for much faster followup shots. Unlike automatic triggers,
the Tac-Con 3MR trigger is not an
NFA part, meaning that theyre perfectly legal in any AR.
The Tac-Con is not fully automatic, and it requires the trigger to
be pulled each time the gun is red.
Nor is it a bump re system, which
operates on the movement of the
stock. Rather, the Tac-Con system
provides a short reset for the
fastest follow-up shots youll nd in
a true semiauto. The weight of the
trigger is set at 4.5 pounds, which
falls within the regulations of most
law enforcement agencies around
the country.
I tested the Tac-Con trigger in a

Mossberg MMR with an A2 type
stock (some believe that the TacCon requires a specic stock conguration or alteration to run properly,
but I havent found that to be the
case). In semiauto mode, its a
crisp, clean, target trigger that
makes it easy to hit your target. In
reset assist mode, the trigger can
be red very rapidly by pressing it
after each short reset.
I struggled to get the trigger to
work properly on my rst magazine,
but by the second magazine, I had
the process down. Its simply a matter of nding the sweet spot on the
trigger, pulling just enough to re
and releasing tension just enough
to reset the trigger, which is minimal.
The Tac-Con 3MR trigger is
made in America and comes with a
letter from the ATF stating it is not
an automatic weapon, nor does it
require special licensing. Its coated
with NP3 nickel Teon for the ultimate in corrosion resistance. It is
made in the United States. Each
trigger is tested for quality, pull
weight, and function before shipping, and they are backed by a limited-lifetime guarantee.
- Brad Fitzpatrick
CONTACT
www.TacConUSA.com
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_93 5/26/14 12:04 AM Page 93
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GW-1408-PRODUCTS 2-92-95out 5/30/14 7:23 AM Page 94
NEW PRODUCTS
CONTACT
www.BurrisOptics.com
The Burris Veracity riescope is backed up by the companys Forever Warranty.
BURRIS VERACITY
RIFLESCOPE
Long-range shooting is trendy,
but accurate long-range shooting is
tough, so hunters and shooters
need a scope that provides a clear
sight picture, good light transmission, and precise adjustments.
The Burris Veracity features a
5X zoom and a front focal plane
that allows for accurate range estimations if you happen to forget
your rangender. It offers a side parallax adjustment thats easy to use
and comes in four different congu-
TROPHY COPPER MUZZLELOADER BULLET FROM

FEDERAL PREMIUM
One of the more interesting
products we came across at the recent NRA meetings was an offering
from Federal Premium, a very different muzzleloader bullet. If you
shoot smokepoles, you know the
challenge. To produce high velocities and good accuracy, the bullet
must t tightly in the bore to engage the riing and provide a seal
for the gasses propelling it. The
problem is you also need to push
that same projectile down the barrel in the rst place during loading.
Federal Premium recently addressed these issues with what it
believes is a new class of projectile
in its Trophy Copper muzzleloader
bullet, featuring a polymer cup permanently attached to the bullet
base. The unred bullet and cup are
slightly smaller than the bore, but
the force of ignition pushes the cup
forward onto two raised bands
along the bullet shank, which essentially increases the diameter of
the projectile. This engages the riing and seals the bore, optimizing
94
rations, a 2-10x42mm model, a 315x50mm, 4-20x50mm, and 525x50mm, which offer plenty of
magnication for the vast majority
of hunting and shooting scenarios.
Front focal plane scopes are popular with long-range shooters because they allow for accurate range
estimation, but at high magnication at long range, the large
crosshairs can completely block the
target, and at short range and low
magnication, the small crosshairs
can become too small to be easily
visible.
velocity and accuracy.
The rear of the B.O.R. Lock cup
features a hard, ber-reinforced
polymer ring that scours fouling
from the breech as the bullet is
pushed into place. This decreases
the need to clean between shots
and makes it easy to seat the bullet
at the exact same depth.
According to Mike Holm, Federal Premiums ammunition product line manager, For the rst time
ever, muzzleloader hunters can get
ragged-hole sorts of groups at long
range, with bullet performance
the weight retention, expansion and penetrationthey
expect out of their centerre
ammunition. Weve created a
whole new class of bullet.
Youll be reading more
about the bullet in these
pages, as weve asked Federal
Premium to get some out to
one of our resident muzzleloader fans for testing.
Burris Progressively Thick

Crosshairs (PTC) system helps alleviate this problem; the center
crosshair is very ne for high-magnication, long-range shooting, and
the progressively widening
crosshairs allow for rapid target acquisition on low magnication at
close range. All models come with
ballistic turrets to help simplify elevation and windage adjustments.
I tested the 2-10x42 on Weatherbys new Terramark rie, and the
combo proved to be deadly. The Veracity, like other Burris scopes Ive
tested, provides a crisp, clear, bright
sight picture. If anything ever does
go wrong with your Veracity scope,
though, Burris backs it with the
companys Forever Warranty.
MSRP: $899 to $1,350

- Brad Fitzpatrick
CONTACT
Federal Premium
Ammunition
(800) 322-2342
www.FederalPremium.com
Federal Premiums new Trophy Copper

muzzleloader bullet features glass ber in
the B.O.R. Lock cup designed to cut
through any fouling, providing a solid seal.
MSRP: $24.95 for

a 15-unit pack
- The Editor
www.gunworld.com
GW_1408_95 5/26/14 12:02 AM Page 95
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GW-1408-BACK-96-97 Erc out 5/30/14 7:24 AM Page 96
BACK
PAGES
The August 1989 cover featured the good news that Gun Worlds Dean Grennell had been selected as
American Handgunner of the Year.
THE DEAN OF
Hal Swiggett, Bill Jordan and

Frank Pachmayr.
Before the night was over, he
was also named as the recipient of
the Federal Cartridge Corporations
1989 Writer of the Year. All in all,
not a bad night for the man many
still consider among the best reloading writers.
Grennell was born in Humbolt,
Kansas on November 1, 1923, and
enlisted in the U.S. Army Air Corp
in 1942. Among other assignments,
he served as an aircraft armorer,
marksmanship instructor and aerial gunner. Following his discharge
in 1946, he went into sales, writing
articles for firearms publication on
the side. He became interested in
reloading in the early 1950s, and
joined the Gun World editorial staff
in 1963. He became Managing Editor in 1966. His column, Reload
Clinic, ran for more than three
decades.
Besides writing scores of articles for this and other popular
rearm and reloading publications,
Grennell authored dozens of books
and annuals, many published under
the Gun Digest imprint. These include The ABCs of Reloading,
The Gun Digest Book of Handgun
Reloading, and The Gun Digest
Book of the .45. He is also credited
with developing or helping develop
some cartridges, including the .45
Super pistol cartridge and the .25
Ugalde wildcat cartridge. He also is
credited with creating the NEXPANDER, a cartridge reloading tool.
Grennell was also a science ction fan, and self-published a SciFi
fanzine titled Grue. The Dean of Reloaders passed away in Southern
California on April 10, 2004. GW
RELOADERS
By Craig Hodgkins
If Id known I was going to win,

Id have brushed off one of my old
acceptance speeches.
The speaker was Dean Grennell,
and the honor he was accepting with
a dose of good humor was the 1989
American Handgunner of the Year
Award. His off-handed comment
made perfect sense to the nearly
three hundred in attendance, because Grennellfor three decades
96
the managing editor of Gun World

had seen his name on the nomination list seven previous times.
By winning the award on his
eighth try, he was also inducted
into the Outstanding American
Handgunner Awards Foundation
(OAHAF) Hall of Fame, joining
such well-known personalities as
Elmer Keith, Colonel Charles Askins, Elgin Gates, William B. Ruger,
Dean Grennell accepts the 1989 Writer of the Year

award from Federals Mike Bussard.
www.gunworld.com
GW-1408-BACK-96-97 Erc 5/28/14 10:38 AM Page 97
...Not a bad night for the man many still consider among
the best reloading writers.
In addition to writing hundreds of gun tests and

reloading columns, Grennell occasionally took on
the role of cover model. This photo is from January 1969.
Advertiser Index
Find us on
Ambush Arms
89
Les Baer Custom,Inc.
29
ATK - Savage Arms
91
Leupold & Stevens, Inc.
45
Barnes Bullets Inc
53
Major Surplus & Survival
Mec-Gar
Black Hills Ammunition
13
Numrich Gun Parts Corporation
Browning
11
Pat Crawford Knives
98
CampCo
59
Rio Grande Custom Grips
98
Colt's Manufacturing Company
61
51
Rock River Arms
87
21
S&K Scope Mounts
98
CZ-USA
67
SCCY Industries
25
Daniel Defense
37
Secure Medical
Cor-Bon
Davidson's
DoubleTap Ammunition
European American Armoury
GTUL
21
Sig Sauer
69
98, 99
Sportsman's Guide
98
Springeld Armory
51
Guncrafter Industries, LLC
Discover the
world of rearms at
your ngertips.
BARSKA
75, 98
Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc.

ULTIMAK
81
100
98
Hogue Grips
61
Umarex USA, Inc.
27
IWI US
43
WILSON COMBAT
97
World Skin Institute
51
Jantz Supply
Kel-Tec CNC Industries, Inc
62-63
41
The advertiser index is provided as a service to Gun World readers.

Gun World is not responsible for omissions or typographical errors on
names or page numbers.
www.facebook.com/gunworldmagazine
www.gunworld.com
97
GW_1408_98 5/23/14 4:06 AM Page 98
BUSINESS
DIRECTORY
John Bartulin
866-866-5146 ext:2746
jbartulin@beckett.com
GW_1408_C3 5/23/14 4:10 AM Page C3
GW_1408_C4 5/23/14 4:12 AM Page C4
THE RUGER SR45
High-Visibility 3-Dot Sight System
Unique Reversible Backstrap is

Adjustable for a Flat or Arched Fit
Ambidextrous Thumb Safety and D-Shaped

Ambidextrous Magazine Release
Large Caliber Pistol with a Trim, Ergonomic Prole
Brushed Stainless or Black Nitride Finish
Like the popular Ruger SR9 and SR40

pistols, the SR45 is perfectly sized to be
comfortable and controllable with a slim, ergonomic
grip and narrow slide. A short reach from the backstrap to the trigger
creates a comfort level that will challenge any standard-sized, striker-fired
pistol available today. Its structurally rigid, recoil-reducing, glass-filled nylon frame and alloy or
stainless steel slide combine to create a low-maintenance, rugged and reliable handgun.
RUGER.COM/SR45
2014 Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc.
050614

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