Table of contents for June/July 2022 in Ballistic

IT WAS OCTOBER 1982. I recall sitting on the edge of my seat in the Juliet Theater in Poughkeepsie, New York. Next to me was my dad, who watched while chain-smoking a full pack of Salems—impressive because First Blood had a scant 93-minute run time—as we rooted for Rambo to survive the onslaught of firepower from mean folks who hadn’t a clue what this Green Beret was capable of. John Rambo—the ultimate survivalist. My pals and I spent the rest of the fall acting out scenes in the woods, using pocketknives, of course. We weren’t quite ready to step up to the Bowie plate. We crafted spears and traps (never caught jack), and climbed through boulder fields and Laurel-laden hillsides hiding and avoiding being hit with BBs from our war-scarred…

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, the Ballistic Custom Challenge is back again! It has been almost a year since I’ve had the pleasure of showing our readers work from the top customizers in the business, and it seemed fitting to bring back the pros at Outlaw Ordnance to show off some new coating tricks on a pair of rowdy troublemakers: Springfield Armory’s new Hellion 5.56 bullpup rifle and upsized Hellcat Pro 9mm wearing a Hex Wasp red-dot optic. While the etymology of their names doesn’t seem to have any particular relevance concerning fiery and eternal punitive suffering, it does seem the most obvious theme for a custom paint job. Also, it would be hard to argue that Springfield had no intention of conjuring devilish thoughts releasing these guns after their Saint series…

I have been keeping my eye on Vaultek and its products. I am drawn by the elegant designs and modular interiors of their safes. Their Lifepod series is a huge hit as a portable lockbox. Now, Vaultek has meshed the modularity of their safes with the weather-proof, go-anywhere comfort of the Lifepod into their new Lifepod XT. EXTERIOR The first thing you’ll notice is that the Lifepod XT looks sleek and indestructible. In fact, if I ever ran out of ammo in a gunfight, I would definitely use the Lifepod XT as a bashing melee weapon. The case is lightweight and comes in a high-impact T3 polymer housing. Antitheft protection features a reinforced steel interior hinge system, dual anti-impact latches and a quick-release steel security cable mount. It is water-resistant,…

Shotguns have been around for centuries, and because shotgun ammunition just keeps getting better, they are likely to be around for a long time to come. One important reason is the shotgun’s versatility. Load your shotgun with the appropriate slugs or buckshot and you can use it for home-defense, big-game hunting, law enforcement and military applications. In addition, you can load that same scattergun with various sizes of birdshot and eliminate varmints and dangerous snakes, hunt birds and small game, or shoot skeet, trap, five-stand and sporting clays. All you’ll need to do is pick the appropriate load for the task at hand and install the indicated choke tube. Ammunition manufacturers understand the many uses of shotguns very well. And even though they’ve been very busy trying to fill orders…

Pre-charged Pneumatic air guns need a source of high-pressure air to run. Let’s just say that Harbor Freight auto compressor isn’t going to generate 3,850 psi—you can likely take a digit off that and half it. These compressors are only designed to fill tires and run hand tools, which run somewhere around a paltry 100 psi. The Umarex ReadyAir is designed to pump up air guns to their fourdigit working pressures and can take things to as high as 4,500 psi, fueling even the largest air cannons. Aside from being small enough to carry with one hand, the ReadyAir can run off of 12v DC or standard 110 AC, allowing you to charge up at home and even top off in the field with your truck or ATV.…

In the world of combat handguns, it’s easy to get lost in a sea of operator beards and tattoo sleeves as we make our purchase decisions. While we gear up for life-changing moments that might arrive with a potential threat, we sometimes forget to have a little fun along the way. Competitive shooting is a great way to hone your skills, and it also facilitates more social interactions with people of like mind, resulting in strong camaraderie and a good time had by all. To help pave the road to competitive shooting, Canik has just introduced a new model that offers top-tier features and performance without the consumer having to take out a second mortgage to get in the game. The new SFx Rival was specifically designed to compete in…

“Meat! equipment is easy to use and easy to clean and maintain. And best of all, easy to love!” Meat! has made it easy and affordable for hunters and fishermen to be able to own commercial-grade processing equipment at a great price. Essentially, they have taken out the retailer and sell directly to the consumer. That equates to savings and awesome equipment. Meat! has a full line of equipment, including slicers, grinders, stuffers, mixers and dehydrators. Vacuum sealers and sous vide machines are also in the Meat! arsenal. Their goal is to enhance your field-to-table experience. The website has tips and recipes from the pros and will answer any questions you may have. Whether novice or expert this site is there to bring the outdoor community together and to share…

Approximately 21.5 million Americans now have stateissued concealed carry permits. In addition, the number who carry legally in public places increases by an unknown amount when considering retired police officers carrying under HR 218 and others who carry in accordance with state “constitutional carry” statutes. Combine this with the number of active law enforcement officers and military personnel who carry handguns on a daily basis, plus those who keep guns for home-defense, and it’s clear why the market for handgun ammunition in the United States is very large, especially at this time of uncertainty. All of this has stimulated significant competition among ammunition companies to come up with new products, extend existing lines of ammunition and re-introduce older lines, often repackaging them in smaller boxes to make them more affordable.…

Apart from hardcore fans of Stallone, few of us could likely name any of his characters apart from Rocky and Rambo, but some might know of Barney Ross, leader of the “Expendables,” the team of elite soldiers of fortune who operate out of New Orleans. Developed by David Callaham and Stallone, who also directed the 2010 film The Expendables, the series was really just an over-thetop satire of the action genre. Part of the success was that it was an all-star action romp that was never too serious. It included the likes of Jason Statham, Jet Li, Steve Austin, Dolph Lundgren and Mickey Rourke. Bruce Willis and Arnold Schwarzenegger even appeared in uncredited cameos in the first film and returned in bigger roles in the 2012 sequel, The Expendables 2.…

Readers, it was recently brought to Ballistic magazine’s attention after pitting AK guy vs. AR guy and then 1911 guy vs. Glock guy that the gun world is full of feuds. Whether it is 9mm vs. .45 or Matchlock vs. Flintlock (no, I don’t know the difference, either), there are dozens of dichotomous quandaries waiting to be settled once and for all. Most sane men would run away at the thought of jumping in and trying to settle these quarrels. Ballistic sent out word that they were looking for a level-headed firearms expert with the patience of Job to sit down and help negotiate peace between all of these conflicting opinions. No one wanted the job, so they picked me: a true gun nut with hints of mental illness, a…

SALT & PEPPER The average human is born with more than 9,000 taste buds that work side by side with your sense of smell. Your taste buds decrease in your 40s and 50s, even more so in your 60s, and by your 70s your sense of smell checks out too. It is not exactly known why this takes place in your body, but it does start to explain how all those Golden Corrals stay in operation. SHOUT AT THE DEVIL Left-handed people comprised only about 5% of the population in the 1800s and were seen as being in union with the devil. As of today, lefties have only increased their numbers on the planet to about 12%. Over time, studies have concluded that left-handed people are more prone to autoimmune…

AERO PRECISION is a company that I hold in high regard. I have been mixing, matching and building with their components for the better part of four years. I am thankful to Aero Precision for their continued support of the shooting sports, specifically 3-Gun. Aero is well known in the 3-Gun community as one of the go-to brands for dependable and customizable components for an AR-pattern build. Their intuitive design for their parts, the dependability of their components and their interchangeability are why I always recommend Aero Precision to people who are looking for an AR-pattern build. That said, Aero’s effective and utilitarian nature is why I am so excited to bring forth a review of their EPC-9 AR-pattern gun. MAKING CHOICES Aero Precision’s Enhanced Pistol Caliber AR is a…

Ah, malt liquor—the trailer park cousin of the American beer world. This golden pain reducer is usually found on the bottom shelf of the corner cooler with a light burnt out. As you open the cooler to grab your favorite 40, the slight tingling of regret begins to nudge at your consciousness. To hell with it you say and grab your 40 and roll. After all, you are the OG and there is a street calling your name. Drunk History Malt liquor technically is beer with high alcohol content. Legally, it often includes any alcoholic beverage with 5% or more alcohol by volume made with malted barley. That sounds innocuous enough, but there is a phrase in that description that is the key to malt liquor’s popularity with the drinking…

DANIEL DEFENSE DD4 RIII FAMILY There’s never any quit over at Daniel Defense. They’re always looking to improve on their shooting systems. The new RIII family of AR-15-style rifles is enhanced with fully ambidextrous lowers (bolt catch, mag release, safety) and the new RIII rail system, which is modeled after the revolutionary RIS II two-piece handguard developed for SOCOM. It features M-Lok attachment for lighter weight while still offering M203 grenade-launcher attachments. New family members include DD4 RIII (16-inch barrel), DD4 RIII S (11.5-inch barrel), MK18 RIII (10.3-inch barrel) and the M4A1 RIII (14-inch barrel). (danieldefense.com) SPRINGFIELD EMISSARY 4.25” 1911 There are no signs of slowing down in 2022 for the folks at Spring field Armory. The next evolution of its Emissary line is the 9mm, 4.25-inch, forged stainless steel,…

BACK IN 2018, SIG STARTED A TREND WHEN THEY INTRODUCED THE P365, a tiny gun with a big capacity. It came with a great trigger, night sights and a very reasonable price tag. Other manufacturers sat up and took notice. Sig will forever be known as the originator of the micro-compact. The following year, Springfield Armory introduced their Hellcat, which was billed at the time as the smallest micro-compact 9mm with the highest capacity. It holds 11+1 rounds with its flush-fit magazine, 13+1 with its extended magazine and has a 3-inch barrel. The Hellcat is almost effortless to carry, very accurate and possesses flawless reliability. For these reasons, it became my everyday carry gun. Lightweight micro-compacts loaded with hot defense loads can be a handful, and the Hellcat is no…

When you hear the word “bullpup,” what is the first thought that comes to mind? If you don’t know or have never heard of a bullpup before, it’s a rifle with the action located in the rear of the rifle behind the grip and trigger. This results in a more compact firearm while still taking advantage of a 16-plus-inch barrel. Bullpups have their place in this world but are not for everyone. A bullpup takes some adjustment to get accustomed to working the manual of arms. I’ve had a chance over the years to get trigger time with almost every bullpup on the market. I spent a day with the British SA-80 back in 1996 while training the “Kings Own Royal Regiment” in Wales, UK. We traded our Colt Jamomatic…

Supply chain problems and high demand have led ammunition manufacturers to concentrate on meeting the demand for their most popular cartridges and introduce fewer new rifle loads so far in 2022. On the other hand, products announced in time for the SHOT Show indicate that research and development continues at a healthy pace. This has led to improvements in loaded cartridges and also in components like projectiles, powders and cartridge cases. These developments are leading in the direction of improved ballistic performance, better accuracy and enhanced terminal effects on game. This, in turn, will enable shooters to take full advantage of the latest innovations in rifles, optics and accessories. However, 2022 is not just seeing the appearance of some exciting new rifle cartridges. It is also a year in which…

In the 2005 film Lord of War, Nicholas Cage’s arms dealer character was asked to supply “the gun of Rambo,” to which Cage replies, “Which one?” That is a good point, as John Rambo carried a number of different weapons, but is usually associated with the M60 that he removed from the back of a National Guard truck in First Blood. In Rambo: First Blood II, Stallone was seen with the M60E3, wrapping the ammo belt around his left forearm to ensure proper feed. The film’s plot suggests the weapon was a holdover from the Vietnam War, yet the M60E3 version wasn’t actually introduced until the 1980s. When John Rambo headed to Afghanistan in Rambo III, he didn’t bring an M60 and instead was seen to carry a variety of…

Go find a kid, pick up their favorite toy and ask them how you could make it better. In their simplistic, innocent wisdom I’ll bet they’ll say, “Make two of them!” I’d like to tell you that we grow out of that. I really would, but the truth is that in many areas of life we simply just want more. Umarex isn’t numb to this idea, and the company surely has its audience dialed in if you ask me. This is apparent through the introduction of the AirSaber Elite X2, a double-barreled version of its hit arrow-firing PCP…rifle? Yep, that’s right. It’s an airgun that shoots freakin’ arrows (again, something probably dreamed up by a five-yearold), and it has a surprising amount of utility, plus a grin factor that is…

Over the centuries of human existence, one constant has always remained even to this day—change. Weather, economics and politics, the whole of our very existence is based on the changing tides of time. What we are faced with today, although it may seem troubling in entirely new ways, is simply indicative of what we’ve always faced. One could even make the argument that’s how things have always been; we just now have greater access to the information. With that in mind, a solid group of people that you are integral to has become more than a passing interest, it’s now a necessity. In the age of information, it’s no longer what you know. It’s who you know that gives power and meaning. Surrounding yourself with others who are compassionate, reliable,…

I am always interested in innovation in the firearms industry. However, with innovation comes a certain level of doubt that the innovation is a good idea and whether it will function the way it is advertised. While there are many new products introduced at a regular pace, few are truly innovative. Most of the time it is the same gun or part in a different color or caliber. Most companies will advertise their new products as innovative and the first of its kind, but the truth is, there is a lack of actual innovation most of the time. I’m always a sucker for a product that solves a problem, which is why the LevAR from Springfield Armory instantly got my attention. UN-STUCK IT If you shoot AR-15s often, I can…

Sitting on a bluff overlooking the upper Brazos River, I could feel the presence of a band of Comanche Indians. It was around 4 p.m. on this mild early winter day. I knew the time by the position of the sun. The breeze was lightly on my left, which told me another northern would sweep across the plains in the next day or two. That would explain the movement of the enormous herds of buffalo and the handful of whitetails that my Indian friends and I had been surveying. I suspect they knew the cold front was coming in also, and that is why it was more important to them to hunt for food than to attack and kill me. We both had the same goal—to eat. The problem for…