Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2020 i Handguns

“RUBY” IS A GENERIC TERM FOR NEARLY a million .32 caliber pistols delivered to the French military during World War I. By most accounts, the French fielded nearly 10 million men during the war, and the standard service pistol of the French army at the time was the rather ineffective 8mm Lebel revolver. While the .32 ACP is no powerhouse, when compared to the 8mm Lebel the .32 is a stronger cartridge with greater penetration. Most .32 ACP loads make 900 to 1,000 fps, and while modern Fiocchi 8mm Lebel ammunition reaches 730 fps, original loads are as slow as 650 fps. The French also bought 40,000 Savage 1907 .32 ACP pistols, but that number pales in comparison to the nearly 1 million Ruby guns it purchased. The French awarded…

MOST GUNFIGHTS ARE OVER IN SECONDS, with few rounds being fired. However, depending on the ammunition capacity of your pistol and the type of threat you’re faced with, you may need to reload—either mid-fight or once there is a break in the action. Of course, this is only possible if you carry a spare magazine. Assuming you have a spare magazine, it should be worn opposite your holster. For instance, if you wear your holster in the three o’clock position, your magazine pouch should be worn in the nine o’clock position. This helps to balance the weight of your gear on your belt and allows you to use the same garment removal method to draw your magazine as you would to draw your pistol. Your spare magazine should be carried…

Mossberg surprised everyone last year with its MC1sc. Not only was it the first handgun from that company in a century, but also was a surprising combination of looks, size, features, performance and affordability. Suggested retail on the MC1sc was just $421, which meant actual retail prices started with the very affordable number “3.” The only problem with the pistol is the same problem shared by all subcompact pistols. Subcompact pistols are easy and convenient to carry, but they are more difficult to shoot and have reduced capacity. Enter the Mossberg MC2c. It’s still small enough to conceal, but it’s enough gun to handle just about any problem you might have. Anyone paying attention should have been able to predict the arrival of this pistol. After all, the gun wasn’t…

AFTERMARKET PARTS FOR THE GLOCK, the most successful modern pistol design of the past 50 years, have been available since the early 1990s, but it wasn’t until the last few years that you started to see not just slides but also frames and then whole guns built in the Glock pattern—by companies other than Glock. One company I recently discovered is Rival Arms ( RIVAL-ARMS.COM ) out of Texas. Rival Arms doesn’t make frames or trigger groups, but it makes every other part found in 9mm Glock pistols. And I do mean every other part. You can buy individual frame pins one at a time or a 12-piece slide completion kit, in addition to slides and barrels. The Glock 19 has been the most popular model since it was introduced,…

Over the last few years Taurus has been in the process of revamping its striker-fired pistol lineup, a process that began with the G2 and continued with the G2c. Compared to previous models, the G2’s improved ergonomics, build quality and reliability paved a way for Taurus guns to come, and when Taurus wanted a new full-size striker-fired pistol, it already had a successful platform in place. Enter the G3. Borrowing the best elements of the G2’s architecture, the G3 offers the same firing system with a beefier frame and a longer slide. It comes with a four-inch barrel, the dividing line between full-size duty guns and carry pistols, and the full-size polymer frame provides plenty of space to fit double-stack magazines. The gun comes standard with one flush-fit 15-round magazine…

The first handgun I ever fired was a Smith & Wesson K-22 Masterpiece, an unblemished walnut and blued steel beauty that resided in a Hoppe’sscented box on a top shelf in my father’s closet. That gun set the bar pretty high for a kid who had never fired anything more potent than a water pistol, and I still remember the heft of it in my hand and the sleek, precise movement when I cocked the hammer. Though that particular gun was 40 years old when I first fired it, the K-22 Masterpiece was hardly the first of the Smith & Wesson hand-ejector K frames, which date back to 1899. Those early Smith & Wesson double-action revolvers were known for their robust build quality and outstanding accuracy, and in the early…

WHEN THE SIG P320 WAS INTRODUCED IN 2014, a lot of people weren’t quite sure how to react to it. It was, after all, just a striker-fired reworking of the arguably failed double-action/single-action P250. My, how things can change in five years. The P320 became one of the most successful handgun introductions in the modern era, securing a huge military contract and being adopted by police agencies around the country. The P320 is available in two main flavors: the standard P320 and the XSeries. The latest model in the XSeries is the P320 XCompact, and you should expect it to exceed your expectations. This is a striker-fired handgun, currently chambered only in 9mm. Sporting a 3.6-inch barrel, the XCompact comes with two flush 15-round magazines where legal. The slide is…

I WOULDN’T NECESSARILY CALL MYSELF a prepper or survivalist, but I do keep a grab-n-go bag filled with ammo, spare mags, flashlights, batteries and the like, so I can appreciate the utility of Smith & Wesson’s survival kit. At the heart of the kit is a Model 360 Airweight in .357 Magnum, a handy, dependable and fairly versatile revolver. But that’s just the start of what you’ll find inside the lockable, foam-lined hard-plastic case. Let’s go through them one by one. WATERTIGHT SURVIVAL KIT The water-resistant case holds a four-inch weatherproof light stick, providing soft area illumination for tents and vehicles. Also included are a synthetic survival towel (hello, fans of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy) and a compact, lightweight, waterproof survival blanket. There’s also a small liquid-filled compass. FIRST…

WALTHER CCP M2 .380 Walther’s CCP M2 impressed me by how easy it was to work the slide and how softly it shot for such a small 9mm. Now Walther is offering the gun in .380, aiming squarely at the women’s market. The SoftCoil piston design should make this new .380 version a real puppy dog in the hand while providing plenty of power at the business end. With a 3.5-inch barrel and a 19.4-ounce weight, it’s great for both concealed carry and home defense, and Walther’s legendary ergonomics mean most anyone will be able to shoot it well. The CCP M2 .380 features a single-side thumb safety and an ambidextrous magazine release. Available in black, stainless and Angel Blue. {$469–$489, WALTHERARMS.COM} RUGER LITE RACK LCP II Ruger is now…

In 2016, Wilson Combat changed the game when it released the EDC X9 9mm. That pistol, which combines the best features of the 1911 and more modern handguns, was an immediate success. Wilson’s next evolution on the X-Frame was the full-size X9L, which couples the features of the X9 but with a five-inch barrel. This year the company released the latest model in the series: the subcompact EDC X9S. The X9S has many of the design hallmarks that have made the X9 popular but in a smaller format. This handgun has a similar footprint to many of today’s most popular carry guns but with some highly upgraded features. Unlike previous offerings from Wilson, which have all been true 1911s of one flavor or another, the X-Frame series is its own…

FRANTIŠEK KOUCKY AND HIS BROTHER Josef were already influential firearms designers in Czechoslovakia when they were hired by Ceska zbrojovka Uhersky Brod to come up with a semiautomatic pistol chambered to 9mm Luger. The result was the CZ 75, one of the most popular pistols of all time. The CZ 75 was part of the “wonder nine” phenomenon of the mid 1970s as law enforcement transitioned away from revolvers. Over the years this all-steel pistol with its high capacity, staggered magazine has been produced in a wide array of versions—both duty/defense and competition guns. It was love at first sight for me when I first tested a CZ 75 15 years ago. The slight arch on the grip reminded me of the Browning P-35, and I liked the safety and…