Primo Prestige Police Pistol of the Past — Is Present!
If we don’t know where we’ve been, it’s harder to tell where we’re going. In 2020 Colt re-introduced their top-of-the-line Python revolver. It hit the covers of gun magazines, and likely set a posts record on coltforum.com. But what does that have to do with today, when virtually all American cops carry autoloaders? In 1955, when Colt introduced their Python .357 Magnum top-line target revolver, it quickly became a prestige gun in law enforcement. Some [...]
Ruger Security-9: Defensive 9mm Firepower
The Ruger Security-9 is arguably the best value in a domestically produced defensive handgun today. This new Ruger pistol sports plenty of whiz-bang features along with a price that will just drop your jaw. The Security-9 is purpose-designed for the concealed carry holder who’s serious about packing heat. I came [...]
The New Colt Python: A Delightful Retro-Surprise
It was circa-1955. Bullseye shooting, where you stood on your hind legs and shot one-handed is king. Cops’ holsters are filled with either a Colt or S&W DA revolver, with more of the former than the latter. Both companies are about to make major changes in their sixguns — one [...]
Pocket Power Perfected: Springfield XD-S Mod. 2 .45
The Springfield XD-S Mod.2 Subcompact is a polymer-framed .45 ACP carry gun thinner than a 9mm GLOCK 43, weighing two oz. less than a .380 ACP Walther PPK/S. The XD-S Mod.2 Subcompact packs 6+1 .45 ACP flying ashtrays into the grip yet carries almost as well as your smartphone. Amazingly, [...]
Big Bad Belly Gun
Smith & Wesson Redefines CCW With The X-Frame .500 S&W For Defense Against, Well... Anything By Mark Hampton Photos: Joseph R. Novelozo A few short years ago one of my best friends and I were enjoying some incredible fishing on the Naknek River in Alaska. Those big king salmon could [...]
SIG P210 Target 9mm
Made In America: Legendarily Accurate Competition Classic SIG’s original military Model 210 was introduced in 1949 and shipped with a 50-meter test target with a 5-shot, sub-2" group, establishing a reputation for stellar accuracy. Variations served the Swiss military until the early 21st Century and created a solid niche market [...]
New Era, New Snake
Payton Miller The Colt Cobra—introduced in 1950—was the company’s second “snake gun” (the first being the super-premium Python). A lightweight alloy version of the steel “D-frame” Detective Special, the original First Model Cobra featured the distinctively Coltish unshrouded ejector rod, which eventually gave way to the shrouded rod of the [...]
Les Baer’s American Handgunner Special Edition 1911 .45 ACP
It’s here, rendered in steel, a sort of living performance of a dream Les and I have shared right along with many of you. This project is one of those times when an idea pinging away at you finally pushes itself to the front. Or, in this case, bashes down the door, demanding to be attended to. Then, suddenly, it’s real and I’m holding it in my hand, answering the question: What would be a “perfect” 1911?
Nighthawk Custom Browning Hi Power
A Splendid Iteration Of A Classic 9mm Photos: Chuck Pittman, inc. A classic since its introduction in the year 1935, it’s known in Europe as the GP for Grande Puissance and in the USA by the English translation, High Power or more commonly, Hi Power. The Browning 9mm remains popular [...]
A Less-Filling Handful
Springfield’s EMP4 Solves The 9mm/1911 Conundrum Story And Photos: Jeff John The slim wood grips are delightfully flat (held by flat-black Torx screws) and the new EMP4 frame is 1/2-inch longer than the 3-inch version. The EMP4 is more like a full-size gun—still very concealable—and fits my hand better. The [...]
Beer Or Champagne?
For 2017, my training year ended in mid-December with a third-level class requiring the lead instructor (me), to demonstrate a triple-speed pistol qualification. Ego being what it is, it seemed a good idea to go to the range beforehand and see what I would shoot best. The test: to stand at 15 yards, shoot as fast as I could hold the sights on target, and see where the bullets landed.
