WIN! SPECIAL! Enter To NAA .22 LR/.22 MAGNuM! $4.95 $4.95 OUTSIDE OUTSIDE U.S. U.S. $7.95 $7.95 JULY 2009 GUNS OF RUGER FLATTOP
Big Gun . Small Price The 1911 That Makes You an Expert Shot GI Expert™ Product Code: GI45 Para’s NEW GI EXPERT delivers: • • •
New! Cleaning Kits for Hunters in RealTree® and Mossy Oak® ® Extra Brushes & Optics Care for Hunters! OTIS TECHNOLOGY, INC. The
Vol. 56, Number 7, 645th Issue 6 8 MODULAR MAGIC SIG’s P250 .45 ACP STORY: Massad Ayoob PHOTOS: Chuck Pittman JULY 2009 CROSSFIR
46 PHOTO: JOSEPH R. NOVELOZO AN AMERICAN FIRST THE BIRTH Of THE SPORTERIZED MILITARY RIfLE 36 40 46 52 56 AN ENDURING CARTRIDGE
CROSSFIRE GUNS MAGAZINE MAY 2009 THE FINEST IN THE FIREARMS FIELD SINCE 1955 LETTERS TO GUNS BOARD OF DIRECTORS thomas von rosen
RELIABILITY. FIRST TIME, EVERY TIME. TM P229 SAS ® TM NEW GEN 2 FEATURES: DA/SA SRT™ Short Reset Trigger System SIGLITE® Night S
UPONARS • GLEN ZEDIKER • biG GUNS Taming the beasts. nce there was one. Then another. And now they’re all over O the daggone pla
Whoa. That’s a big piece of metal. The bigchassis carrier is nearly twice the weight of an AR-15 carrier. Not often considered,
If you’re a handloader and shooting .308 Winchester, replicating Lake City Match ammunition will result in similar port pressure
MONTANA MUSINGS • MIKE “DUKE” VENTURINO • PHOTOS: YVONNE VENTURINO tHe HappieSt place oN eartH My Shooting House. such a shack I
“America’s Choice in Recoil Reduction, Tools and Accessories” Taming Tough T/C Recoil. Upgrade the comfort, style and performanc
HANDLOADING • JOHN BARSNESS • lotS of rifle roUNdS With accuracy. his is the time of year T when many shooters load a lot of rif
With tapered cartridges, a 7/8" washer between the sizing die and the press can eliminate the need to lube cases. 1/8" thick, so
HANDGUNS • MASSAD AYOOB • A less-expensive alternative to custom revolver stocks. irca 1932, Smith & Wesson C introduced the gri
Deformance_4.625x7.5Ad:Layout 1 11/26/08 11:04 AM Page 1 Grip adapters’ heyday of popularity was in the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s. O
RANGING SHOTS • CLINT SMITH • Practice shooting from the other eye as well as the other hand. n a recent article, one of our wri
Opposite hand, strong eye. Opposite hand, opposite eye. All of the above using only one eye. All of the above, both eyes open. R
RIMFIRES • HOLT BODINSON • Space GUN redUx Return of the Whitney Wolverine. pening your mailbox in March, 1958, you would have b
SUREFIRE TRAINING FACILITY, GILLETTE, WYOMING AUGUST 21, 22 & 23 finished. Most parts were subcontracted. The barrels, for examp
The Wolverine design features a shrouded external hammer rather than a striker. Olympic Arms’ safety blocks the sear and disconn
SWAT. Special Forces. And the covert operators who work in a dark world most of us can’t even understand. They’re the kinds of p
RIFLEMAN • DAVE ANDERSON • optic oddballS Some were good ideas, others weren’t. iflescopes have been around R for a long time, e
The NEW Hornady GMX™ (Gilding Metal eXpanding) bullet offers the best choice for a high-performance monolithic solid that delive
external adjustments. And maybe we don’t need it. But for a really tough system I think a simple scope with adjustable mounts is
™ • HOLT BODINSON • tHe McNelly SHarpS Cimarron’s Model 1859 .50-70 Texas Rangers classic. magine yourself as the Chief of Ordna
diameters of the percussion models. He insisted that any bores over .5225" in diameter be relined. Richard Lawrence at Sharps re
The McNelly Sharps sports the correct, flip up rear sight with an elevator graduated to 800 yards. heavy, single-shot Sharps — w
• HOLT BODINSON • caSt it Don’t slug it. etermining bore D measurements by ramming a lead slug down the tube may be a classic me
• JEFF JOHN • blackHorN 209 poWder A smokeless substitute for black powder. olt Bodinson wrote about the H new smokeless substit
Rifle loads were assembled in .45-70 and .45-90 with a 500-grain RCBS and 540-grain NEI, both cast by Montana Bullet Works. Winc
• Jeff John • I’ve got a Winchester Model 70, made in 1946. As is the case with yours (January 2008 Medley), there’s two tapped
odern 9mm pistols I could give a flip about. But, in the last 18 months I’ve bought six guns chambered for 9mm Luger. All are hi
This 1941-vintage German MP40 9mm got Duke started with historical 9mms. To the left is a 1938 vintage German Luger or, more cor
Duke’s Canadian-made Inglis made Hi Power 9mm delivered a 3-1/4" group at 25 yards using the FMJ handload. The FN Hi Power 9mm d
alike but different. The Nazi marked one is blued but exhibits the poorer finish they received as the war dragged on. Its rear s
1 (And EvEry womAn’s) 2 EvEryman’s GamE DAVE ANDErSON PHOTOS: CHUCK PITTMAN UsPsa Production Division nly a small percentage of
M625 his unit of army recruits during WWII. Grandfather Maker: s&w 2100 roosevelt avenue was a firearm instructor sPrInGFIeld, M
(And EvEry womAn’s) UsPsa Production Division EvEryman’s GamE 42 WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM • JULY 2009
WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 43
XdM Maker: Hs Produkt d.o.o. M. boGovIca 7, 47000 karlovac, croatIa IMPorter: sPrInGFIeld arMory 420 west MaIn street Geneseo, I
Gold Cup .45. That was about the time when innovative (and usually expensive) concepts began being introduced. A fullhouse gun w
The Cimarron Spencer was a dandy platform for Hawkenstyle sporting rifle in 56-46 Spencer. Just after the Civil War, a Western-b
miliTary rifle. or spoil in a river crossing as did paper ammunition. The Spencer proved its worth again in the Indian Wars, mos
Spencer rifles take down easily for cleaning with the removal of the lever pivot screw. Then, the whole breechblock can be pulle
one, I figured Gemmer wouldn’t have browned any parts if the case hardening was sound, so I left the hammer, trigger ’ve wanted
Feeding and ejection requires rhythm in the manipulation of the action. Even worked smoothly, the ejected cartridge often as not
brownells 200 soutH Front street MontezuMa, Iowa 50171 (641) 623-4000, www.brownells.coM dowels on deMand 45 cHurcH ct. se MedIc
iamond Dot and I have reached the time of our lives when we no longer exchange gifts for any special holidays including Christma
Ruger Blackhawk Sixgun Evolution at work (from left to right) are the .357 Magnum, 1955, .44 Magnum, 1956, 50th Anniversary .44
cylinder and using a Ruger .44 Magnum barrel. At that time, New Vaquero. The Vaquero, which arrived in the early 1990s Skeeter d
B igger rifle cartridges tend to be less accurate than smaller rifle cartridges. This tendency was first publicized by the late
At .250 Savage muzzle velocities you don’t need a premium 100-grain bullet for deer hunting. This big Montana mule deer doe was
This pair of .257 Weatherby Magnums (above) both regularly shoot 1/2" 3-shot groups at 100 yards. On top is a Weatherby Vanguard
be noted I’ve never shot at a pronghorn beyond 430 yards. It is quite possible to hit them beyond 500 yards, but for me much of
weight was chosen by the Savage firm over the protests of Charles Newton, the .250’s designer. Newton had a 100-grain bullet in
SPECIAL WEAPONS For a single, precise shot to resolve a situation, it has to be fired from a special weapon. Enter the Savage LE
INTERNATIONAL VIEWS NEWS AND REVIEWS RIGHTS WATCH • DAVID CODREA • Products For The Precision Shooter Holder SHowS Hand Too Soon
Clearing THe Tangi Valley arm attempt to strike fear into the local population, officials said. C oalition forces cleared one of
to Afghanistan and leading the dismounted clearing operations for the 2-87th. “The worst part about it was the physical part. Be
inSurgenT CaCHeS deSTroyed Private Brendan Bottalico, manning the F89 machine gun provides cover as members of his platoon move
JaVelin Clint Smith uch of the firearms industry and the marketing thereof today leans toward the “tactical” application of fire
A GUNS MEDLEY • JOHN SHEEHAN • be prepared Physically. aramba! … huff, puff, “C wheez! mi amigo, huff, huff, puff. Un momento po
JULY 2009 Classified ads $2.00 per-word insertion. ($1.50 per-word insertion for 3 or more) including name, address and phone nu
NEW PRODUCTS PRODUCTS BY: BY: JEff JEff MOREY MOREY NEW nEW BoLT AcTion RiFLES From NIGHtHaWK Nighthawk Custom has two new lines
For more New Products visit us online at www.gunsmagazine.com ThE SpEciAL FoRcES cARRy From ed BroWN ProduCtS Built for pure per
orth American Arms, most famous for their neat little mini revolvers, now has a “belt size” mini revolver affectionately named “
Need more? You’ll also feel protected with Kimber’s new “Guardian Angel” less-lethal OC response tool. The Guardian Angel Pepper
ODD ANGRY SHOT • JOHN CONNOR • SHrap & FragS* Keep your helmet close. f universities offered degrees I in some subjects I’ve don
Lord Chief Justice, admitted that five Sharia courts were already quietly but officially operating in Britain, handling civil ca
ADVERTISER PAGE ADVERTISER PAGE JULY 2009 ADVERTISER’S INDEX The companies listed have featured advertisements in this issue. Lo
continued from page 82 Firearm in Personal Protection. This little book is filled with no-nonsense information concerning carryi
THe learning neVer STopS Part IV: Today’s Teachers n our last session on the Old Masters it was, of course, necessary I to leave
This is no ordinary old 1911—it’s a newly engineered 21st century hot-rod designed to outperform customized .45s in accuracy, ha