Table of contents for October/November 2023 in Handguns

Another Seated Option I just finished reading the “En Garde” column by Richard Nance in the August/September issue. I feel Mr. Nance omitted a very important piece of equipment that is a huge aid in drawing from a sitting position; a crossdraw holster. Due to a fall from a roof some 30 years ago, I still have balance problems that require me to use a wheeled walker and shoot from a sitting position. My CCL renewals as well as all my range time have been done from a sitting position. I have used a Wright Leather Works Regulator crossdraw holster for years with my full-size Glock 41 MOS. The only negative issue I have found is the grip tends to print with light clothing. A crossdraw is the most natural…

IF THERE WERE EVER A REVOLVER WITH an intrinsic warmth as you grasp the worn handle, it is the Smith & Wesson Military & Police. Dubbed the Model Ten in 1957, this midsize .38 is among the most popular revolvers of all time, with millions manufactured. Lesser known is Smith & Wesson’s later Airweight version of the gun, the Model 12. Introduced in 1899, the Military & Police revolver line became immensely popular. As a K-frame revolver—larger than the more famous J frame but smaller than the N—it’s easy to handle, fits most hands well, rides relatively light on the hip and offers modest recoil. At the time, it was arguably the most powerful handgun and cartridge combination the occasional shooter could handle well. This made the Military & Police…

IN A HOME-DEFENSE SCENARIO, ARMING yourself and taking cover to monitor the doorway leading to your “safe room” is a solid plan. Unfortunately, you may have to venture out to account for household members who may be less capable of protecting themselves. In such a case, you’ll likely have to open doors to clear what’s beyond them. Cops often refer to a doorway as a “fatal funnel.” That’s because someone lying in wait can simply monitor the door and shoot as soon as you enter. While managing a door with a gun in your hand can be challenging, there are tactics you can use to help you prevail. One of the cardinal rules for dealing with doors is to avoid standing directly in front of one. If the door were…

In an era when most handgun manufacturers are concentrating their efforts on producing affordable polymer-frame semiauto pistols, a custom-built German wheelgun like the Korth Mongoose with an almost $4,000 price tag stands out from the crowd. But Korth’s Mongoose revolver stands out for all the right reasons and offers a level of quality that cannot be achieved through mass production. The Mongoose isn’t for everyone, but for those who appreciate fine revolvers, Korth guns are the benchmark. Korth has been in business since 1954, but for years the brand was barely known outside of Germany. That changed in 2016, however, when Korth selected Arkansas-based Nighthawk Custom to be the sole U.S. importer of its revolvers. For the first time these guns were widely available in the American market, and since…

WHY SHOULD SEMIAUTOMATICS HAVE ALL the fun? With the introduction of the Taurus Defender 856 T.O.R.O., you can now have a concealed-carry revolver capable of mounting a red-dot sight. It’s about time, and you have to wonder what took so long, because Taurus’s solution is as simple as it is groundbreaking. The Defender 856 features a gutter in the topstrap that serves as the rear sight. On the T.O.R.O. version (which stands for Taurus Optics Ready Option), two holes in the gutter are drilled and tapped for attaching an optics plate. The plate is on the Holosun K footprint, which is a modified Shield RMSc footprint. The T.O.R.O. capability aside, the Defender 856 is an excellent defensive revolver. The Defenders in the 856 line have three-inch barrels, which I think…

AT ONE TIME, THOMPSON/CENTER’S custom shop offered hunters and shooters more than 100 chamberings in its rugged Encore pistol. Want a .22 K-Hornet, 6mm Benchrest, .32-20 Winchester or even the brawny .480 Ruger? Ackley Improved cartridges? They were on the list. For a wildcat enthusiast like myself, it was heaven. T/C was well known for its Contender handgun, but in 1983 it introduced the much larger and stronger Encore to handle the high-powered cartridges where the Contender left off. In addition to chamberings, you could order any barrel length within the handgun cartridge range from eight to 15 inches in a tapered, heavy or bull contour. They came in various finishes, and were drilled and tapped for scopes. Iron sights were optional, as was Magna-na-Porting, the T/C Muzzle Tamer or…

NICKEL-PLATED GUNS NEED MORE thoughtful care than blued ones. Gun steel must be electro-plated with a copper base coat for the nickel plate to adhere. Solvents that remove copper fouling from jacketed bullets can also remove the copper base the nickel is adhering to if this chemical is not removed. It won’t happen while you’re cleaning, but if the gun is left soaking or put away wet, you may be in for an unpleasant surprise as the plating begins to lift off the gun where the solvent was left to work. That’s why I like Prolix, which is safe for plated guns. It’s also works great on lead deposits. Lead from cast bullets is difficult to get out of gun barrels. Prolix gets right under lead fouling and helps lift…

I have a theory that I probably stole from somewhere. It is that the era of the combat revolver began when a handful of Texas Rangers armed with Colt Patersons defeated a numerically superior Comanche war party at the Battle of Walker’s Creek in June 1844. It ended on a suburban Miami street in April 1986 when a group of FBI agents found themselves outgunned by a deadly pair of bank robbers. That shootout and its aftermath led to a sea change in firearms and ammunition for law enforcement use. Within a few years, the faithful revolver was soon a rarity in any lawman’s holster. That trend soon spilled over to the civilian side, but three decades later revolvers are experiencing a resurgence in popularity. The fact is that revolvers…

Small pistols are great to carry, but they can be difficult to shoot—especially polymer-frame 9mm offerings, which tend to generate unpleasant recoil. Not only is a snappy pistol uncomfortable to shoot, it can also be hard to shoot well, and shooting well is a requirement of any handgun intended for self-defense. Balancing ease of carry with shootability is the goal of every firearms manufacturer competing in the overcrowded subcompact 9mm arena. To be sure, there are plenty of pistols that fill the bill. However, few distinguish themselves from the pack like the Shadow Systems new CR920P Elite, which sports a proprietary compensator, making it as easy to shoot as a much bigger pistol. Shadow Systems has earned a reputation for offering not modified Glocks but rather Glock clones with plenty…

IS IT POSSIBLE TO OWN TOO MANY 1911S? The answer is, of course, no. One of the latest to consider is Springfield’s Operator, a model that recently added the 9mm chambering in addition to .45 ACP. It’s a Government 1911 with a five-inch, fully ramped, forged stainless steel barrel. It has the traditional barrel bushing and short guide rod. Springfield uses the Operator name to denote its 1911s incorporating an accessory rail, but that’s only the start of its duty-grade features. Springfield prides itself on its forged steel slides and frames. This production method creates components that are denser and stronger, and they’re easier for the company to machine to precise specifications. The bottom line is you get a durable slide and frame that will last for tens of thousands…

HANDGUNS REVIEWED THE SIG SAUER P322—a 20-shot .22 Long Rifle semiautomatic—not too long ago. At the time, there wasn’t a version available for those who live in restrictive states. Recently, SIG introduced a 10-round version of the P322 ($400). It has a four-inch barrel and weighs 17.1 ounces. In many ways it mimics the company’s base-model P320 and P365 9mms, with the same control layout and the same basic grip shape and texture. The magazine well has a slight flare to aid in loading, and there’s an accessory rail out front. The slide is serrated front and rear for easy operation. SIG didn’t skimp on the sights. The front and rear are fiber optic, and if you pop off the rear sight’s plate, you’ll find the slide is cut for…

WHEN RUGER ANNOUNCED IT WAS GOING to get into the reflex-sight game, I don’t think anyone was surprised. After all, SIG and Springfield had done the same by offering branded red dots. But Ruger did something completely unexpected and didn’t offer an electronic red dot at all. Instead, its ReadyDot uses fiber optics to display a big 15 m.o.a. red dot in the window, a design that lacks electronics of any kind. Also, the dot is fixed and can’t be adjusted for point of impact. That’s why when the first ReadyDot landed in the hands of writers, there was a bit of a shock. Why go with something so different? “The major design intent for fiber-only illumination is for simplicity and durability,” Ruger’s R&D manager Gary Hamilton said. “We found…

Time flies. It’s now been four years since Ruger introduced the Wrangler, a single-action .22 revolver that’s a descendant of the Single-Six—one of the company’s most significant early firearms. By all measures the Wrangler has proved popular, at least if the number of variations the firm has introduced is any indication. But one thing was missing. When I interviewed the product manager responsible for the Wrangler, I asked him when we might see a version with a .22 Magnum cylinder. At the time he wasn’t ready to say, but the answer would be “Now,” with the debut of the Super Wrangler. Aside from the additional cylinder, the Super Wrangler also brings a few important changes from the original. One, the cylinder frame is alloy steel and not aluminum. This boosts…

Paper or cardboard targets are convenient and affordable. You can easily transport these types of targets to and from the range. Since they are perforated with each bullet impact, paper targets are useful for measuring shot groups. For the same reason, they don’t have a long life expectancy. When you aim at a particular spot like the bullseye on a paper target, it forces you to concentrate, which can improve accuracy. But when it comes to developing a balance of speed and accuracy with a handgun, nothing beats steel targets. The “clang” of a bullet smacking a steel plate leaves no doubt that your aim was true. Silence when shooting steel is equally telling. This instant audible feedback, combined with visual confirmation, reinforces good shooting habits. With paper targets, it…

BILL RUGER AND HIS COMPANY SINGLEhandedly revived the single-action revolver in the mid-1950s with the Single-Six rimfire and centerfire Blackhawk. Both were huge successes with hunters and shooters who appreciated the nostalgia of the Old West and guns that mimicked the Colt Single Action Army. One of the more recent and coolest outgrowths of Ruger’s single-action family is the Vaquero Bisley, which is available in .357 Magnum and .45 Colt. With its high-gloss stainless finish and simulated ivory grips, for me the gun immediately brought to mind Kevin Costner’s character Jake in “Silverado,” who wore nickel-plated, pearl-handled SAAs. The Vaquero has an interesting backstory. The Blackhawk had gained a loyal following, but then came the 1980s and the burgeoning popularity of Cowboy Action shooting. Ruger found itself missing the boat…