Table of contents for October 2025 in Guns & Ammo

WRITE US! “Letters,” Guns & Ammo, 2 News Plaza, 3rd Floor, Peoria, IL 61614, or email us at gaeditor@outdoorsg.com. Please include your city and state of residence. Letters may be edited for brevity and clarity. SUPPRESSED LEVERS I enjoyed the article about the Henry HUSH rifle in the August 2025 issue. I’ve owned and hunted with a suppressed Henry Big Boy X Model — mine is a .44 Magnum — for several years. There are a lot of similarities between the X Model and the HUSH. I think it’s important to point out one thing about the rifle that was not addressed in the article. Yes, a great feature of the HUSH is that it can be loaded either through the side gate or the magazine tube. However, this statement…

TYPICALLY, shotguns are long and often unwieldy. However, there is a type of compact and portable shotgun that is short and handy. It’s a style of shotgun that’s seen more interest in recent years. It’s a type of shotgun that isn’t, technically, a “shotgun.” I’m referring to the non-shotgun firearms. The first by Mossberg was the pump-action 590 Shockwave ($581, mossberg.com), launched in 2017. It was the gun that grabbed everyone’s attention and caused the segment to explode. It resembles a “sawed-off” pistol-gripped shotgun — but it’s not. Though it fires shotshells, legally, it’s not even a shotgun! Since its inception, people have been begging for a semiauto model. Here we go. Meet the 990 AfterShock. Initially, the AfterShock will be available in three versions. The standard model has a…

IT SHOULD COME as no surprise that the most rifles sold in America are the least expensive models. Most of us are looking for a responsible way to go hunting and do some shooting without going broke, so the number of rifle models at the low end of the price spectrum far exceeds the number at the high end. The issue becomes what makes one of the less-expensive rifles different from the others? Let’s dissect Savage’s Axis 2 Pro for a detailed explanation of why and how these rifles are made the way they are. THE BARRELED ACTION The heart of any rifle is the receiver or “action.” The Savage Axis 2 receiver is the same as the original Axis, and its design shows why it both performs well and…

IT SEEMS THAT WITH HI-POINT everyone has an opinion. People either love the brand or think the worst. Haters assume they’re unreliable due to its firearms’ low price and non-traditional appearance. Then there’s the folks who love Hi-Point because they are so different, tough and affordable. Hi-Point has leveraged its uniqueness to attract a cult-following for offerings such as the YC9 Yeet Cannon ($236, hi-pointfirearms.com). Since “yeet” is slang for “a powerful throw,” the name tracks. One thing most can agree on is that Hi-Point firearms are reliable. These are among the most budget-friendly pistols on the market, but there’s more to Hi-Point than pistols. For years, Hi-Point has manufactured pistol-caliber carbines (PCCs). Like the pistols, Hi-Point PCCs are straight blowback operated and aesthetically unique. They look like something you…

ON JULY 4, 2025, President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act into law. The Act, also known as “H.R. 1,” is a wide-ranging budget package that made its way precariously through the closely divided U.S. Congress. For firearm enthusiasts, one small section stood out: The elimination of the $200 tax on the registration of suppressors — referred to as “silencers” according to the law — short-barreled rifles (SBRs), short-barreled shotguns (SBSs), and any other weapons (AOWs). Not only did the provision put an end to the unconstitutional tax on the ownership of these firearms and accessories, it also set the stage for a viable legal challenge to the National Firearms Act (NFA). The law that became known as the “NFA” was introduced in the U.S. House of…

THE LATE Col. Jeff Cooper had no use or love for the 9mm Parabellum cartridge, but there was one 9mm pistol for which he had a good word: The CZ 75. Cooper revealed its existence in a one-page article published in Guns & Ammo’s February 1977 issue. Until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the Czech Republic’s independence in 1993, the CZ 75 possessed an aura of secrecy and intrigue among firearm enthusiasts. For 2025, CZ-USA is offering a CZ 75 B anniversary model. Guns & Ammo first spotlighted the 25th Anniversary CZ 75 on the cover of the August 2000 issue. It was plated in silver and gold, and featured engraving and wooden grips. Again, an anniversary model appeared in G&A or on the covers for…

GUNWRITER JACK O’CONNOR (1902-1978) was the .270 Winchester’s best-known and most outspoken proponent, almost to a fault. It’s nearly forgotten that the professor had other lifelong favorites: 7x57mm, .30-’06 Springfield, and .375 H&H Magnum. Nor is it widely remembered that he wasn’t shy about using big guns for extra-big game. He owned .416s, a .400 Jeffery double, and a .450 Watts, forerunner to the .458 Lott. Also nearly lost to history is that his wife, Eleanor, was an accomplished hunter. Lions and tigers and bears (“oh my!”), along with some big rams. Neither O’Connor liked recoil, and Mrs. O’Connor hated it. She used her husband’s .270s, but she was more a 7x57 girl. She took her big cats and elephant with the .30-’06, which she considered a cannon. Professor O’Connor…

WHEN PEOPLE FIRST GET EXCITED about a new interest — especially a topic such as shooting — many can spend excessively and purchase far more than what’s realistically necessary. Buying “stuff” is not a bad thing if you can afford to, but the storage tubs filled with gadgets and gizmos in our garages suggest that we can be wiser with our money. What do we really need for a productive range day? An experienced shooter will agree: A little goes a long way. The following is what an editor or gunwriter typically brings to the range to test and evaluate firearms. SAFETY FIRST Eye and ear protection. Your two most valuable senses are worth protecting. A pair of gas-station aviators and 9mm brass in the ears don’t cut it. (Yes,…

A FARM IN CENTRAL ILLINOIS has long been a proving ground for me to evaluate certain firearms, optics and ammunition for Guns & Ammo. In addition to growing corn and soybeans, my in-laws raise everything from chickens to several head of cattle for beef while maintaining land in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) to enhance wildlife habitat and reduce erosion from the river that runs through it. Ducks, geese and whitetail often find sanctuary in cordoned-off sections of property; only once did we trespass to recover a deer. Though it proved to be hard work at times, hunting coyotes at night was always a job I volunteered for. When you raise chickens and cattle, transient coyotes target the property. They seemingly know how far to buffer when scouting the perimeter…

THERE ARE FEW PISTOLS that are perfect out-of-the-box. Sights, triggers and other parts are common aftermarket purchases. Better sights and triggers help with faster target acquisition and follow-up shots. The problem with customizing a pistol is that it can double the cost of the firearm, and aftermarket parts may create malfunctions. The Shadow Systems series of Glock-inspired handguns have the customizations many want without the cost or headache of aftermarket parts. The California-compliant MR920, for example, is about as close to an ideal polymer-framed handgun as a production model can get for restrictive states. CALIFORNIA COMPLIANT Any new semiautomatic handgun intended for California’s civilian market must abide by the Unsafe Handgun Act (UHA). Among the many requirements, the pistol must be safety tested by a state-approved laboratory. It must have…