Guns Magazine articles from January 2004

Guns Magazine archives from January 2004

Letter of the month.(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... Reference your November issue, page 30, I'd like to know what kind of a gun magazine devotes a whole page to a letter from a GI written on a fragment of MRE wrapper? My kind, that's what. This page with the nice message to our troops as...

That darn editor!(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... I was delighted to see the article in the November 2003 issue of GUNS Magazine on the RCBS "L'il Dandy" powder measure. I've owned and used one of these little gems for many years, and it's always given great service. The powder reservoir...

More brass on the trail.(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... Enjoyed Sam Fadala's article. I too have found some interesting brass while hunting or working. It's great to imagine how and who might have discarded it. My favorites are: .30-'06 brass from the mountains around old Camp Hale Colorado,...

Test request and great service.(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... If you have not investigated the little Henry .22 caliber lever action gun I think it would be of interest to many shooters, especially younger ones. My gun is very accurate, not too heavy and the action works like a charm-smooth and locks up...

How about it?(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... Re: the camp stove article by Carolee Boyles in the October issue, why didn't she report on the Coleman two-burner stove model 424-700? It's about equal to the 414-700 (which she reviewed), except in fuel capacity and a whole lot cheaper at...

Cautionary note.(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... Just a word of warning to those who are considering having your firearm CombatCoated (GUNS November page 8). Be prepared to spend a lot of time with your fellow gun enthusiasts telling them where you got such a unique finish on your weapon. ...

Make mine modern.(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... In the October issue, Charles Petty's article called the Marlin 1894SS in .44 Magnum "the ideal woods rifle." I sometimes think Marlin is run by the original founders with the watchwords, "let's not move too fast here." To be ideal, it...

Wish lists continued.(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... This wish list stuff seems like a pretty good idea. I figure I might as well get in on it. If Winchester would bring back their wonderful old Model 88, I'd be a happy man. If they can't do that, I'd settle for one of the following. *...

Now that's a Guns reader!(Crossfire: letters to Guns)
January 1, 2004... I'd like to see Ruger make a Single Six Buntline stainless steel in caliber .17 HMR, with white pearlite grips. P.S. Sorry about the hand-written note, I'm on my way to a gun show. Art Riviere Pekin. Ill.

Of myths and legends.(Ranging Shots)
January 1, 2004... Living humans tell stories of myths and legends, and often the tellers to serve a personal purpose manipulate them. Being forthright, the tellers often have the best of intentions or in other words their heart is in the right place--even if the...

Yes, you can!(Shotgunner)
January 1, 2004... The arrival of Brownells' latest No. 56 master gunsmithing catalog reminded me how easy it is today to repair or make modifications to your shotgun with nothing more than simple hand tools, if that. And it's a recent development. For decades,...

Safari Ching Sling.(Rifleman)
January 1, 2004... How do you improve something as simple and basic as a rifle sling? Eric Ching has done it not once but twice. Regular shooting slings serve to carry the rifle, and to steady it for more accurate shooting. I use a shooting sling when...

Outer Pistol Perch.(Quartermaster)
January 1, 2004... It's a plain shooting fact the only way to determine the true accuracy of any given load in your handgun is to test it from a rock solid rest. Sure, the old time-honored method of using sandbags works fine unless the sand decides to shift...

Nosler Sporting Handgun bullets.(Quartermaster)
January 1, 2004... The heart of any well-tailored handload lies in a properly constructed bullet. Tack driving accuracy is no accident as professional paper punchers, silhouette shooters and hunters have proven time and again. If you can pull one of these guys...

Stoney Point Steady Stix II.(Quartermaster)
January 1, 2004... Shooting isn't just a sport nor is it simply a hobby. Many gunners, myself included, view firearms as an important part of our everyday lifestyle. I'm not particularly a gadget freak, but I do spend more money than I probably should on the...

How light a trigger pull do you really need?(Handguns)
January 1, 2004... The conventional wisdom is that you'll shoot better with a light trigger pull, but the conventional wisdom isn't always wise. I was reminded of this recently during a couple of weeks of teaching deadly force and tactical handgun use at Firearms...

The frog is our friend: or how a bunch of skeptical gun guys found a new weapon against rust.
January 1, 2004... That ol' devil rust is a mighty sneaky character. Just when you think you've got him beat and can relax your guard, you find those @#*&%!!! orange blisters creeping along the surface of your favorite sixgun. We've all used a variety of oils,...

The .500 S&W Magnum.(Handloader)
January 1, 2004... The hottest thing in handguns right now has to be the .500 Smith & Wesson Magnum. This is definitely not everyman's gun, and at the upper levels of loading, brutal is inadequate to describe the recoil. But it surely is an effective tool, for...

Rugged Rugers.
January 1, 2004... The emergence of Sturm, Ruger & Co. as perhaps our pre-eminent firearms manufacturer is a remarkable story. In 1949 production started in the now-famous (and still standing) "little red barn" in Connecticut making just one item, a .22...

Eye popping optics.
January 1, 2004... Today's optics market is phenomenal. Just consider the choices, the quality and the technological sophistication that is available in scopes, binoculars, and rangefinders at increasingly competitive prices. It's a boon to every shooter and...

"Practice" loads for big-bore sixguns.
January 1, 2004... For many years my "runnin' around car" was a 1970 El Dorado. By today's standards it was think many currently manufactured cars would fit in its engine compartment. It was heavy, and with front wheel drive was a great snow car. It also had what...

Wonderful world of surplus arms: Part one: the Lee-Enfield.(Surplus Locker)
January 1, 2004... These are the best of times for collectors and shooters of obsolete military arms. Since the 1985 lifting of importation restrictions imposed by the Gun Control Act of 1968, exceptional quality military arms and ammunition have come on the...

Ruger's P-Series: what's wrong with Ruger's P-Series semiauto pistols? Not a darn thing, says the author.
January 1, 2004... I've always detested the word "change." Usually when that little word pops up in conversation around my home, it means I've done something wrong once again and need to "change" my ways, or "change" this, or "change" that. Seldom is the word...

The most famous rifle of Texas! Recreating Colonel Crockett's rifle at the battle of the Alamo.
January 1, 2004... Mystery surrounds the most famous rifle of Texas--the one Colonel David Crockett used in combat at the battle of the Alamo. The guns Crockett fired during the siege of the Alamo, or which rifle finally fell from his hand when the Mexican...

Caywood's Crockett.
January 1, 2004... "I had by this time got to be very fond of the rifle, and had bought a capital one. I most generally carried her with me wherever I went, and where they shoot for beef." A Narrative of the Life of David Crockett of the State of Tennessee...

The Savage Cub.
January 1, 2004... I hope you'll forgive me a few moments of reflection, but the opportunity to review Savage's new Cub .22 single-shot rifle evolves strong memories of how I began shooting more than 50 years ago. There were two key things: a single-shot...

Darn good gear.
January 1, 2004... Being an inveterate gun trader, on more that one occasion I've swapped off to one of my shooting amigos some handgun or rifle that didn't hold a lot of interest for me at the time. It never fails that sometime soon after, when were at the range...

The long and the short of it: are long barreled rifles necessarily more accurate?
January 1, 2004... There is often a general belief that longer barrels are more accurate than barrels of a shorter configuration. Part of this thought may extend from the period when most rifles were equipped with iron sights. In that era the longer sight...

CZ P-01.(Out Of The Box)
January 1, 2004... The firm of CZ has been making well-designed guns since 1936. The free world found them hard to come by during the Cold War. But with the fall of the Berlin Wall, they have become available to us at very reasonable prices. The CZ P-01 is one of...

The Rodeo Heritage.(Out Of The Box)
January 1, 2004... In addition to a number of custom 1873 single action handguns, United States Fire Arms Mfg. Co. makes a basic cowboy handgun called the Rodeo. They consider this their entry-level gun for cowboy action shooting. Fear not regarding the "entry...

Safari Quick Safe.(Out Of The Box)
January 1, 2004... The problem is easy to describe: If you keep a handgun for home defense, how do you keep it loaded and ready, yet safe from curious little hands or other unauthorized access? We've seen a lot of different answers to this question proposed over...

Improved AccuPoint scopes.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Trijicon Trijicon has made a number of important improvements to its line of popular AccuPoint dual-illuminated rifle scopes. Revisions include a wider rubber armored ring to change magnification, larger diameter quick focus eyepiece,...

Vault Door In-Swing.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Ft. Knox Security Fort Knox Security Products has developed a new Vault Door In-Swing mechanism, which enables the safe to be opened from the inside when used as a personal shelter. The inside release mechanism enables the safe door...

New .45 ACP.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From CZ America ADCO Sales and CZ America have introduced the new Model TT in .45 caliber. The polymer framed pistol has an integral pebbled polymer grip with the traditional CZ logo embossed. It will also be available soon in .40 and 9mm...

Gun safes.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Sentry The Sentry Group offers an extensive line of firearms safes. The line features full steel exterior construction, electronic locks programmable up to five numbers with key override, UL-listed, Group 2 combination locks, star...

Match grade .270 WSM.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Norma Precision Norma Precision has added the new match grade .270 Winchester Short Magnum (WSM) cartridge case to its family of high performance ammunition. The cases are manufactured to extremely tight weight, length and...

Copper Removal Foam.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From GMS GMS imports Forrest professional Copper Removal Foam gun cleaner in a three-ounce can from Finland. This versatile maintenance product is suitable, for all firearms and it contains no ammonia, is non-toxic, non-corrosive and...

Long Gun lock.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Gun Vault Gun Vault, the developer of the Mini Deluxe and Multi Deluxe Vaults, has created the Long Gun Vault for rifles and shotguns. The Long Gun Vault has a programmable computer lock, key lock override and spring-loaded access....

New Pro Chronograph.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From PACT The new Professional Chronograph from PACT has a built-in full-function ballistic computer and dot matrix printer. The Pro model enables the user to calculate the correct zero for a given load at the range, based upon the actual...

New Walter P22 holster.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Fobus USA Fbus USA has created a new synthetic holster for the Walther Model P22 semiautomatic handgun. The holster features the Fobus passive retention system that secures the weapon while allowing instant access without disengaging...

Smith & Wesson safes.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Heritage Heritage Safe Co. and Smith & Wesson have partnered to produce a line of artisan-quality firearms safes. The line comes with a lifetime warranty against forced attack, forced entry, fire, flood, tornado, hurricane and...

Security Vaults.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Tough Stuff Tough Stuff Products introduces its new Long Gun and Handgun Security Vaults. These sturdy, but lightweight solid steel boxes are designee to fit inside the bed of all General Motors Ford and Dodge full-size and compact...

.500 S&W bullets.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Sierra Sierra has created two bullets for the powerful Smith & Wesson Model 500, .50 caliber revolver. One bullets is a 350 grain jacketed hollow point ant the other a 400 grain jacketed soft point. The jacket on both models have six...

New reloading trays.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Battenfield Battenfield Technologies is marketing the new Frankford Arsenal wood-based composite reloading trays with correctly-sized holes for complete security during the entire reloading process. These sturdy, lightweight,...

Black Talon folder.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... from Cold Steel The new Black Talon folding knife from Cold Steel is designed to rip, cut or slash through any material vulnerable to a razor-sharp edge. The 440A stainless steel blade is hollow ground to a thin edge and the two-part Zytel...

Compact Classic Companion.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Uselton Arms Uselton Arms welcomes the new Compact Classic Companion to its family of fine semiautomatic handguns. The Classic Companion comes with interchangeable barrels in .357 SIG and .40 S&W. Features include a 3.5-inch barrel...

New Millennium rifle.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Sinclair Inter'al Sinclair International introduces the new Millennium rifle for long-range marksmanship. The Model A is chambered in .308 Win. with a 1:13 twist and a Krieger barrel, It is designed to shoot 155-grain bullets for...

VX-I riflescopes.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Leopold The popular Leopold VX-I riflescope line has expanded to include gloss black and mate black finishes in 2-7x33mm 3-9x40mm and 4-12x40mm powers. Hunters will appreciate the bright sight picture, enhanced by the use of Leupold's...

New Bore Cleaning Foam.(New Products)
January 1, 2004... From Break-Free Break-Free's new non-toxic Bore Cleaning Foam offers a gentle and effective method of removing copper and brass compounds without mechanical friction from firearms. It leaves a protective film that retards the accumulation...

Guns salutes one of its own.
January 1, 2004... Trenton Peterson, serving with the distinguished 10th Mountain Division and currently stationed near Kandahar, Afghanistan, recently dropped us a line with this photo. He's the son of Linda Peterson, Advertising Production manager for GUNS.

Ready! Aim! Fire!(Campfire Tales)
January 1, 2004... "R-E-A-D-Y!" As I shouted, seven men as one raised their single action .45 Colt sixguns to the ready position. "A-I-M!" Once more seven men in unison stretched out their arms and took aim at the rock in the middle of the mountain in front of...