A quick look at .30 Remington AR, a cartridge designed for big-game hunting with an AR-15.
The .30 Remington AR was designed by Remington as a big-game cartridge specifically for the company’s R-15 rifle. It was introduced in 2009. Remington engineers started with the .450 Bushmaster case and went from there. A pointed .30-caliber bullet of reasonable weight is longer than a blunt-nosed .45-caliber bullet, so, to keep overall cartridge length compatible with the standard AR-15 magazine, the case was shortened to 1.525 inches from the original 1.7 inches of the Bushmaster design.
Back at its base, the .30 AR case starts with a diameter of 0.500 inch, and from there it tapers to 0.488 inch at the juncture of the body and shoulder. Neck diameter is 0.341 inch, and the case has a shoulder angle of 25 degrees.
The AR-15 rifle in .450 Bushmaster utilizes the standard .223 Remington bolt, modified by increasing its bolt face diameter to a nominal 0.473 inch (same as the .308 Winchester). When this is done, the counterbore wall, or shroud of the bolt, becomes rather thin. This is considered a safe modification because the cartridge operates at a maximum chamber pressure level of 38,000 psi (same as the .30-30 Winchester).
But, because the .30 AR is loaded to 55,000 psi, Remington opted for additional case rim support. This was accomplished by modifying the larger-diameter AR-10 bolt to fit the AR-15 upper. The face of that bolt is commonly sized for the 0.473-inch rim diameter of the .308 Winchester, but Remington went one step further by opening it up a bit and increasing the rim diameter of the .30 AR case to 0.492 inch.
By the time the job was done, the only thing the .30 AR case had in common with the .450 Bushmaster case was a base diameter of 0.500 inch. Remington went with a case rim diameter larger than that for the .450 Bushmaster to prevent a bolt built for that cartridge from being used in an R-15 upper with a .30 AR barrel.
General Comments
With a length of 0.305 inch, the neck of the .30 Remington AR is capable of exerting plenty of tension on the bullet, a good thing to have on a cartridge designed to survive the rather violent trip it must take from the magazine to the chamber of an auto-loading rifle. The short, fat case of rebated rim design has a gross capacity of 44 grains, about 10 grains less than in the .308 Winchester case, or approximately the same as in the .30-30 Winchester case.
But because the .30 AR is loaded to higher chamber pressures than the .30-30 Win., it exceeds the maximum velocity of that cartridge. When the 125-grain Core-Lokt factory load is zeroed 3 inches high at 100 yards, it will strike about 2 inches above point of aim at 200 yards and approximately 7 inches low at 300, where it’s still packing upward of 1,000 ft-lb of energy. The .30 AR comes close to duplicating the performance of the .300 Savage when both are loaded with a 125- or 150-grain bullet.
The allure of this cartridge is that it turns the AR-15 platform into a true big-game rifle capable of terminal performance identical to that of the .300 Savage with bullets weighing 150 grains or less. It’s suitable for deer, black bear and similarly sized game out to around 300 yards. Also, wildcatters have necked the .30 Remington AR case up and down, further increasing the versatility of the AR-15 platform.
Things are getting really complex around here. From precision rifles with micro-adjusting stocks, to a flood of black striker-fired pistol options, to ARs with enough handguard attachment room that it’s quite literally possible to make that gun too heavy to carry — there’s a lot going on in the world of new guns right now.
Don’t break your neck reading too hard between the lines: Each one of those categories has its place, and I enjoy tinkering with all new guns more than most. But with all that happening, the classic bolt-action sporting rifle platform has been all but overlooked. And that’s a shame, because there’s nothing more therapeutic than slow-rolling a buttery bolt and watching a round slide up into a hungry, long-action chamber.
Here’s a nod to those who are not only keeping the sporting bolt-gun heritage alive, but who are making impressive improvements on a platform that was never broken to begin with.
Franchi Momentum
Known exclusively for its waterfowl, sporting and upland shotguns, Franchi enters 2018 by not just dipping their toes into the sporting bolt-action world, but by going all in with their Italian influenced Momentum. Leading the momentum of the Momentum (sorry, couldn’t help it), is the stock, which combines raised curves and checkering in the hold areas of frequently used shooting positions.
Let me say it like this: Think about where you put your hands to support the rifle while shooting from prone, or kneeling, or sitting — or while shooting offhand. The Momentum features unique grips in each of these locations.
In addition, the tri-lug bolt is spiral fluted for a rock-solid lockup and features a short 60-degree throw. While I appreciate the convenience of a rotary box magazine, Franchi chose to go with the more classic hinged floorplate mag, which I like. During some shooting of the Momentum prototypes, I had suggested that Franchi etch an elegant “F” on the belly of the floorplate to further distinguish the fine Italian craftsmanship within, but I’ve yet to see that come to fruition. Maybe on a Gen 2 model?
I also appreciate that I could still operate the bolt with the two-position safety engaged, and the single-stage trigger is adjustable from 2-4 pounds and is built to impress — especially on a rifle of this price point.
Other features include a TSA recoil pad; and a cold-hammer-forged, chrome-molybdenum, free-floating threaded barrel. The 6.6-pound Momentum has an impressive offering of calibers and color options right out of the gate.
MSRP: Starts at $799
Mauser M18
More than 120 years ago, the introduction of the M98 action transformed everything that was known about bolt-action rifle design. While the M18 Mauser isn’t as monumental as the M98 was in its day, the level of quality Mauser has brought to the budget-friendly sporting rifle category is equally as jaw-dropping.
According to Mauser, the goal of the M18 is to return the art of rifle building to its original form — pure, no-frills workmanship — by offering a genuine tool for genuine hunters with a sensational price-to-performance ratio.
Features of the M18 include a three-position safety system that acts directly on the trigger lug, soft grip inlays on the grip and forend, a removable double-row five-shot magazine, cold-hammered barrel and an adjustable direct-action trigger.
Unique to the M18 is what Mauser is calling a “multi-purpose-cap,” which consists of a quickly removable butt pad that opens to allow access to an in-stock storage compartment. The rifle is currently offered with in different configurations and caliber options include .223 Rem., .243 Win., .270 Win., 6.5 PRC, 6.5 Creedmoor, .308 Win., .30-06 Spring., 7mm Rem. Mag. and .300 Win. Mag.
MSRP: Starts at $901
Bergara B-14 Ridge
If you’re seriously shopping for a bolt-action sporting rifle and have yet to look under the hood of a Bergara, your search simply is not complete. New for 2018, the B-14 Ridge features a molded synthetic, glass-fiber reinforced polymer stock, which adds as much strength to the rifle as is does beauty. A SoftTouch coating is then applied to create a soft yet tacky feel for exceptional grip. The Bergara 4140 CrMo steel barrel is finished in matte blue and available in a 22-inch (7.9 pounds) and 24-inch (8.1 pounds) configurations. B-14 Ridge stocks are bedded with integral pillars for stability and enhanced accuracy, and the barrel is threaded to accept muzzle brakes or suppressors.
And, of course, what would a Bergara rifle be without mentioning the Spanish Bergara barrel around which this rifle is built? The action is Bergara’s own B-14 Action, featuring a two-lug bolt with a sliding plate extractor and a “coned” bolt nose and breech to create ultra-smooth feeding and extraction. The Bergara curved trigger comes set at near 3 pounds, and the action is drilled and tapped to fit Remington 700 style rings and bases.
The B-14 Ridge is available in: .308 Win., 6.5 Creedmoor, .243 Win., .22-250 Rem., 450 Bushmaster, 7mm-08, 6.5 PRC, .30-06 Spring., .270 Win., .300 Win. Mag., 7mm Rem Mag, 300 PRC and 7mm PRC.
MSRP: Starts at $929
Mossberg Patriot LR Hunter
It’s been a handful of years since Mossberg first unveiled the Patriot, and the family of Patriot rifles has continued to grow each year since. To date, Patriot models include: Hunting, Vortex-scoped combos, Night Train, Youth, and Predator— with stocks available in either walnut or synthetic. For 2020, Mossberg added the Patriot LR Hunter to the lineup.
The entire Patriot line is best known for Mossberg’s LBA (Lightning Bolt Action) Adjustable Trigger, which is adjustable from 2 to 7 pounds and designed to eliminate creep. The Patriot’s button-rifled fluted barrels are free-floated and have a recessed crown, and the spiral-fluted bolt features an ergonomic bolt angle and knurled bolt handle for quick cycling of the action. They’re sweet-looking rifles.
New features on the LR Hunter include its Monte Carlo stock with machined aluminum bedding pillars, a fluted and threaded barrel and an ergonomically shaped stock with grips that are ideal for both benchrest and field shooting. The stock is also polymer-coated to provide a micro-texture surface for an improved grip.
The Patriot LR Hunter is available in either .308 Winchester, .300 Win. Mag., 6.5 Creedmoor or 6.5 PRC.
MSRP: $847
Savage Impulse
When most people hear “straight-pull bolt-action”, they think of European rifles. Understandable, as the system was pioneered by Mannlicher and is probably best known for its use in the Swiss K31. Savage was looking to change that perception in 2021 when they introduced the Savage Impulse. An American-designed and made straight-pull rifle, the Savage Impulse utilizes modern manufacturing methods to create a system that’s smoother, faster and at least as accurate existing straight-pull rifles.
The Impulse uses what Savage calls the Hexlock action, which features six ball bearings and corresponding detents as opposed to traditional locking lugs. Because of how this design cleverly takes advantage of leverage, it requires the shooter to use less force to unlock it. The resulting action is incredibly smooth and fast, enabling faster follow-up shots and target acquisition.
Like many Savage bolt-actions, the Impulse features the company’s AccuFit, AccuStock and AccuTrigger systems for enhancing ergonomics and practical accuracy. As a bonus, the bolt handle on the Impulse is easily reversible too, making it a great choice for lefties.
Savage now has seven Impulse models available in a variety of calibers, making them suitable for hunting a wide variety of game as well as for more tactical applications. Pictured is the Hog Hunter Impulse model, available in 6.5 Creedmoor, .30-06 Spring., .300 Win. Mag. and .308 Win.
MSRP: Starts at $1,509
Savage 110 Storm
For rifle shooters, the Savage 110 is as much a household name as Remington 870 is for shotgunners. The 110 has seen its share of innovation in its 60-year reign, but 2018 perhaps marks the biggest advancements that the 110 has ever experienced.
New for 2018 is the Savage 110 Storm, which features all the tried-and-true guts of the Model 110 action, but with a completely different body centering around the AccuStock. The Savage AccuStock consists of a rigid rail system embedded in the stock that extends through the fore-end of the rifle, engaging the action three-dimensionally along its entire length. But here’s the tangible part: The AccuStock also features five comb risers and four length-of-pull inserts that are included to provide the perfect fit — and it’s all easily interchangeable and locked down by the buttplate screws.
And, with 12 chamberings available, finding a Model 110 Storm to “fit” your needs should be quite simple.
MSRP: $989
Weatherby Mark V Backcountry 2.0
As the name implies, Weatherby designed the Mark V Backcountry 2.0 to be the ultimate backcountry hunting rifle. Built to be rucked long distances deep into rough country without becoming cumbersome, Weatherby utilized many modern materials and construction methods to bring the weight of the Mark V Backcountry 2.0 to be as low as possible.
Space-age materials like carbon fiber and titanium are expensive, however, so the Backcountry 2.0 is available at a few different price points depending on options. If purchasing the most expensive variant, the Backcountry 2.0 can weigh in at less than five pounds, making it ideal for hunting that requires a good amount of trekking. Regardless of the price, each Backcountry 2.0 comes bedded in a carbon fiber Peak 44 Blacktooth stock, still making the rifle much lighter than most similar models on the market.
Because large calibers fired from light rifles aren’t always the most fun to shoot, Weatherby has also included a 3DHEX recoil pad and Accubrake ST with each Backcountry to help ease the pain.
In terms of mechanical accuracy, Weatherby guarantees sub-MOA capabilities out of the Backcountry 2.0, and the included adjustable single-stage TriggerTech trigger should help with practical accuracy as well.
The Weatherby Mark V Backcountry 2.0 is available with an impressive 17 different chambering options, ranging from standards like .308 Winchester to powerful Weatherby Magnum cartridges. Some are available in left-hand configurations as well.
MSRP: Starting at $2,699
Kimber Open Range Pro Carbon
Launched in 2020, the Kimber Open Range Pro Carbon series was yet another rifle line to get caught up in the carbon fiber craze. It features an AG Composites carbon fiber stock, a 24-inch PROOF Research carbon fiber-wrapped barrel and a total weight of just over 6 pounds when unloaded.
The Kimber Open Range rifles utilize Mauser-style, controlled-feed actions and feature precision machining in their barrels and chambers. This results in an incredibly consistent lockup and is what enables Kimber to guarantee sub-MOA accuracy out of these guns. The adjustable match-grade trigger should help shooters squeeze every last bit of accuracy out of the design as well.
For hunters or shooters who tend to subject their rifle to the conditions of the great outdoors, the Open Range series features Kimber’s all-weather KimPro finish, and the stock is available in a camouflage pattern as well.
Kimber Open Range Pro Carbon rifles are available in either 6.5 Creedmoor or .308 Winchester.
MSRP: $3,301
Springfield Waypoint 2020
Springfield turned some heads in 2020 when they released the Waypoint, the company’s first bolt-action rifle in over 100 years. It uses a Remington 700 action, but a lot has been done to improve upon the design. The bolt has been spirally fluted, polished and then nitrided to reduce friction as much as possible, resulting in what feels like an action that’s much smoother than traditional Remington 700s.
The Waypoint’s barrel is advertised as being capable of .75-MOA accuracy and is threaded 5/8×24 for attaching suppressors, although they ship with an SA Radial muzzle brake attached. The barrel is also available with an optional carbon fiber sleeve.
The stock is made from carbon fiber and includes an adjustable cheek comb, and each rifle includes an adjustable TriggerTech trigger as well. The cherry on top of each Springfield Waypoint is the slick camouflage paint job each receives before shipping, with two different patterns to choose from.
The Springfield Waypoint is available chambered in .308 Winchester, 6mm Creedmoor, 6.5 Creedmoor and 6.5 PRC.
Sig shook things up in 2019 when they announced the CROSS. It was the company’s first bolt-action rifle to be released since the 1990s, but being made by Sig wasn’t the only thing unique about it. Sig claims that the CROSS was designed to “meet the demands of both precision long-range shooting and extreme backcountry hunting”, and one look at the gun will tell you that is true. With skeletonized parts throughout and the liberal use of lightweight materials, Sig markets the CROSS as being the “lightest and most portable rifle in its class” due to its sub-6.5-pound weight and folding buttstock.
Portability and a light weight do not a precision rifle make, however, but thankfully, the CROSS is plenty accurate as well. Available in either .308 Winchester or Sig’s .277 FURY with a 16-inch barrel, or in 6.5 Creedmoor with an 18-inch barrel, all CROSS rifles feature a solid, single-piece receiver that is more than capable of producing sub-MOA groups.
Other precision features on the Sig CROSS include its highly adjustable buttstock, 2-stage match trigger and three-lug bolt.
MSRP: $1,779
Editor's Note: Adam Borisenko contributed to this article.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the Shooter's Guide 2018 of Gun Digest the Magazine.
Build Your Rifle IQ:
5 Best Scout Rifles To Seriously Consider For Survival
Whether in an Excel spreadsheet or in a notebook, recording your reloading data is invaluable.
A friend recently purchased a used rifle—a cool, old Remington 700 in the classic .280 Remington—which proved to be particularly finicky. He got his hands on what factory ammunition he could find, and the gun just didn’t seem happy. It was struggling to print 1½ MOA, though the previous owner had insisted it was a “tack driver.” Scratching his head, my pal asked the previous owner exactly what ammunition it shot so well, and the older gentleman proudly told him, “My handloads.”
“Um, sir, do you by any chance have that data for the rifle you sold me?” The gentleman proudly nodded in the affirmative and ambled off to find “the book.” Thumbing through the pages, he stopped on a page that contained a rather detailed record of the old timer’s load development, culminating in the final choice: a 160-grain Nosler Partition over a load of IMR-4350, all sparked by a CCI-200 large rifle primer. Cartridge overall length was also noted, along with a velocity as suggested by whatever reloading manual the gent had used.
My friend brought that data to my shop. With all those components on-hand, in a matter of a half-hour we had some test loads cobbled together, and I sent him on his way to the range. When my phone rang about 90 minutes later, my friend’s elated voice told me all I needed to know—the rifle was shooting as he wanted it to. Three of those classic Noslers were printing groups measuring less than ⅝-inch at the 100-yard target board, and we had a happy camper on the butt end of the rifle … all because a reloader had the wisdom to keep diligent records.
When loading different projectiles for the same cartridge—such as the 180-grain Scirocco and 220-grain Hornady shown here in the .300 Winchester Magnum—it’s good to keep very specific notes regarding all aspects of each load. Photo: Massaro Media Group.
Be Diligent
Fast-forward to the digital age, where smartphones, voice notes and the evil Excel spreadsheet have all helped to displace handwritten notes, the keeping of records has been both enhanced and diminished equally.
I was raised working as a land surveyor. In that aspect, I have a deep and unwavering respect for keeping detailed and diligent notes, and that undoubtedly carried over to my time as a reloader. Now, with the technological era having firmly taken root—even in the reloading world—there are some wonderful benefits to having these digital tools and the ability to store our data within the machines. However, there are very strong points to be made for keeping a good, old-fashioned notebook for all of your reloading experiences and adventures.
I’ve often referred to reloading manuals as a simple snapshot in time, or a laboratory report of one particular rifle’s interactions with varying combinations of bullet, primer, case brand, and powder type and charge weight. As serious reloaders know, few—if any—loads are universal, as the subtleties involved with the components of the load and the construction of the rifle or handgun can play a huge role in the variations from the listed data in any manual.
So, it’s essentially up to the individual reloader to create their own manual for the firearms they own and load for. Keeping detailed records of both successes and failures will not only shed light on the trials and tribulations of load development, but it will save time in future endeavors.
What data should we be keeping records of? I’m glad you’ve asked.
With precision tools like the Redding Micrometer Adjustable Crimp die, even more parameters of your handloaded ammo can be recorded. Photo: Massaro Media Group.
Reloading Data: Which Numbers Matter?
Quite obviously, for each cartridge loaded for, you’d want to know the case brand; primer brand and type; powder brand and charge weight; bullet brand, make and weight; and seating depth. I also want to see the number of times these cases have been fired and/or trimmed (if at all), and the depth to which they were trimmed. I want to know whether the bullet has been crimped, whether it was a roll crimp or taper crimp.
For the long-range crowd, the double-rifle shooters or even for the more picayune reloaders, group size and velocity measurements taken at each range session could be recorded, along with the correlative weather conditions, including temperature and humidity, to derive the effects of environmental factors.
For those who make every effort to keep things as consistent as possible, the lot number of the powder used might even be recorded.
Those disciples of the long-range arts are heavily dependent on uniform velocity figures, much more than hunters who spend the vast majority of our time inside of 300 yards. To those “reach-out-and-touch-’em” folks, variations of 25 to 50 fps will make a definite difference out past 1,000 yards.
A proper roll crimp—as shown here on the hard-kicking .500 Jeffery—requires a balance of case length, bullet seating depth and seating die setup; detailed loading notes can help save time in setting up the needed components. Photo: Massaro Media Group.
For the double rifle crowd—who are aiming for a specific velocity to match the ammunition with which the rifle was regulated—you’ll often see a summer load and a winter load developed. The temperature difference can have a measurable effect on accuracy and how well the two barrels throw their shots.
All this information can be entered into a computer program—I do like Excel for its ease of layout—but I only use the electronic means of storing data as a backup. I still prefer to handwrite my notes, as it allows me to record my thoughts and observations without the confines of a box on a spreadsheet.
And, to me, that notebook is sacred: the one that has all the reports of finally finding the perfect combination, or has the red letters, “DON’T EVER DO THAT AGAIN!”
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the March 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
The author reviews the classic Springfield M1903 Mark 1, a historic gem still capable of producing impressive results.
The M1903 Springfield is one of those guns that just about every shooter knows, and for the most part, it needs no introduction on these pages. It’s certainly not the last bolt action rifle issued to American forces, though to truly appreciate it you must understand just how advanced this rifle was at the time it was introduced.
What follows here is the story of not just the M1903, but the significant thinking that spawned concepts we now use today. The rifle was on the edge of technological advancement in its day, and it was called to do some incredible things … including transforming into a semi-automatic, pistol-caliber rifle.
The Pretender Takes The Throne
In the turmoil and uncertainty of the late Industrial Revolution, most of the world’s great powers were in an era of colonial expansion. The threats they encountered ranged from hostile natives to forces with similar or better technology. These were the days before tanks, drones, missiles and all sorts of modern horrors. The horse and saber were still in regular use, and forces were just as likely to meet a violent end at the tip of African spears as they were machine gun fire in some places in the world.
The British were dominating entire mounted armies with just a few Maxim guns that cut down thousands of men in mere minutes. America, like the rest, sought to expand its influence into the Philippines and the Gulf of Mexico in a war against Spain. While American military intervention was likely not the best course of action against a better-prepared foe, our country went anyway and found that boldness was a bandage, not a cure, for their obvious technological shortcomings.
The M1903 loads from five round stripper clips in the exact same way that Mauser rifles do … because it’s a Mauser.
American forces fought against the Spanish in Cuba with the Krag rifle, a gun that was inferior in design. The Germans, Russians and British all had stripper clip-fed magazine rifles, all of which were obviously better than the slow loading, underpowered Krag and its .30-40 cartridge. The American military mind at the time was regressive; many of the officers in charge of procurement had kept the single-shot Trapdoor Springfield in .45-70 until the last minute, while European powers were already fielding belt-fed machine guns.
The Spanish had the Mauser rifle in 7mm—a cartridge that’s still theoretically relevant judging by how the 6.8 and 7mm bores are being reevaluated today. The Spanish Mauser was a wake-up call to the American military, and an immediate response was issued that demanded the same performance … and a more powerful cartridge.
And this is where things get a bit muddy. Instead of designing a totally new rifle or looking at European cartridges, the American government essentially ripped off Mauser and copied the design with a hilariously small amount of alteration. Copying someone else’s homework is usually cool with the teacher as long as you don’t write it word for word, but the American government simply didn’t care and, sure enough, they lost an international lawsuit and had to pay the Mauser company what was a fortune at the time.
To make it worse, the original cartridge, the .30-03, was an immediately outdated round-nose design, making it inferior to all the European cartridges of the time, which were all “pointed” or spitzer versions. Few .30-03 rifles exist today, and they’re very valuable: The government converted all rifles in inventory to the new .30-06 cartridge.
Remington UMC 150-grain loads are great for general use in the M1903. Hornady’s M1 Garand 168-grain match load is excellent and very accurate. If you want some great, traditional hunting fun, load the 220-grain Hornady bullets with Hodgdon powder.
Now, with a suitably advanced bolt action, America was ready for what came next.
The prewar years were easy on the M1903. It was used in military actions, some of questionable legitimacy, in Mexico and in South America. The rifle performed very well, and the design was well known to be very accurate and lethal. This time period saw calvary troopers with bolt-action rifles, lever actions, automatic pistols, revolvers and all sorts of varied attempts to integrate these new systems.
George Patton cut his teeth in these conflicts, as did other famous names like Pancho Villa and Gen. Pershing—all deeply associated with the early history of the M1903. All this romanticism would soon end, and the era of colonial adventurism would take a sour turn as European brothers turned their new guns toward each other instead of joining forces to continue conquering the world and spreading industrial civilization.
The most “civilized” nations on Earth would rip each other to pieces and send an entire generation of young men to death in the mud. American forces entered this horror with the M1903 in hand, an already outdated rifle but with no good replacement on the horizon. Automatic rifles were the next thing, but that need wouldn’t be met until millions of lives had already been lost.
The Springfield rear sight is advanced yet simple, affording the shooter four aiming points either as U-notch or peep sight, and it even incorporated spin drift. Outside of an optical sight, this rear sight is about as good as it gets for the era.
A Legacy Of Attempted Innovation
What people often fail to realize was that the M1903 was probably the most accurate, reliable and advanced bolt gun of its day, but it struggled because it largely wasn’t meant for the terrain and style of fighting that occurred in the war. The armies were uniformly armed with what amounted to target rifles geared for long-range use in open spaces.
Most of the wars fought up until this point, from an American point of view, were dynamic with high levels of movement … such as in the running battles fought in Mexico. Slow-firing, highly accurate bolt action rifles were ideal for that version fighting, but in the trenches, the rifles were used largely in frontal attacks: large artillery shells and gas were the leading cause of casualties … next to machine guns. The individual soldier was literally outgunned and had to rely on the bayonet if things got close, and close combat was a norm inside the trenches.
Variations on the M1903 began to pop up, including versions with extended magazines, suppressors and optics. These designs had been tested, and it’s believed that there were suppressed M1903 sniper rifles in use as early as 1916 in Mexico. “Periscope” rifles were also developed to safely shoot from inside a trench.
The M1903 features a magazine cutoff switch—an interesting idea, but it was a holdover from the old school of thinking. A soldier would load five in the magazine, activate the cutoff, then single feed individual rounds on top of the magazine to save ammunition.
Yet, for all this, the M1903 was still a powerful bolt-action rifle, and the need to increase firepower was of utmost importance. Many designs were in the works, such as the Thompson submachine gun, but they would arrive too late to make a difference. To bridge the gap and provide the individual soldier with an appropriate weapon for all uses, the M1903 was looked at as the base for a wild concept: converting a powerful bolt-action rifle into a semi-auto, pistol-caliber rifle—with the ability to simply switch back and forth.
As strange as it sounds, this is exactly what happened.
The Pedersen Device
While it appears in video games and media occasionally, the Pedersen Device was very rare—even when it was introduced. The concept was supposedly going to be adapted to other rifles, such as the Mosin Nagant (interestingly enough, Mosin rifles were made in America as well as Russia), and it was intended to be included as a complete system for infantry rifles. This never happened, and it’s extremely unlikely that the devices ever saw combat.
The idea behind this device was that a group of soldiers could attack and defend with greater effectiveness at close distance, while at the same time being able to fight at longer ranges with full-power cartridges. Because the Springfield rifle is .30 caliber, the device used a special cartridge that originated in America, the 7.62x20mm. It’s better known by its metric designation because France actually adopted it after the war and used it well into the Vietnam era.
The idea that soldiers could hold ground better with these underpowered pistol rounds is dubious at best, but it demonstrated that there was a general need for something of an in-between cartridge that was able to be fired in rifles but had a weight savings and capacity advantage. Many attempts would be made over the next decades, until the first true intermediate rounds were developed by the Nazis with the 8x33mm for the STG44, making it the first true “assault rifle” that eventually antiquated many full-size rifles.
In the meantime, the concept of the Pedersen and its small .30-caliber cartridge led to the thinking behind the M1 Carbine and its own .30 Carbine cartridge, which proved to be a far more successful product that saw plenty of use … despite better options existing.
Since the concept was largely unviable, production ended about as soon as it began, and most Pedersen Devices were destroyed or lost to time. Surviving examples are very rare, commanding prices upward of $60,000. Rifles that were designed to use the Pedersen Device are a separate evolution of the M1903 and carry the designation “MARK 1.”
The number of Mark 1 rifles manufactured is up for some debate. Some estimates place them as high as 10 percent of total M1903 production, but in my own research and my two decades as a CMP shooter and collector, I’ve only come across one of these rifles in original, but re-arsenaled, condition … and it’s in this article.
There are definite discrepancies in the serial number ranges and apparent numbers that are on the market, and more than that, I estimate that 99 percent of these rifles had their altered parts swapped in for standard M1903 parts by the military. In other words, collecting these rifles is a crapshoot. The only real way to get close is to check for the Mark 1 stamping and, of course, the telltale ejection port cut in the left side of the receiver.
The number of these rifles available today is quite small, and their value is extremely subjective. My rifle retains most of the original parts, including the smooth Mark 1 trigger. That trigger alone is worth a good amount. I replaced it in my gun with a standard serrated M1903 trigger, knowing I was going to shoot it in CMP matches. My rifle was original and even had the original cosmoline, rust-inhibiting wax wrapper.
I bought the rifle for a song because it was encased in a hardened layer of said cosmoline, and the owner thought it was trash. I had to keep a straight face after examining it, because it was worth easily four times what I paid. The cosmo layer only took me an afternoon to remove, and I found that the rifle was in un-issued condition with a 1919-dated barrel that corresponded to the serial number, meaning it was likely this barrel was original to the receiver. Of note, the presence of a wrapper on the gun and the fact that mine has a standard “S” stock with correct acceptance stamps (no ejection port cut) proves that it was a re-arsenaled gun.
The ejection port for the small, .30-caliber cases is on the side of the main M1903 receiver. Note that the author’s example was re-arsenaled to standard M1903 configuration, and by this time the Pedersen Device was already in the trash.
In my experience, the Mark 1 variants are exceedingly difficult to find. The receiver markings are valuable on their own, even if the rest of the rifle is unoriginal, the special receiver can add as much as $1,000 on top of the base 1903 value. My rifle in this article would sell for around $3,000 given that it retains many of the original Mark 1 small parts but has a later Parkerized finish, as opposed to the glossy black common to truly original guns. A complete rifle with original finish would be valued at somewhere around $5,000.
Now, could an enterprising man simply buy the correct small parts and add them to his Mark 1 receiver? Sure, and few would know any different because most of these guns were re-arsenaled in the interwar years, much like mine. You should exercise caution at these prices. If you’re looking for an original, it should have the straight “S” stock with two crossbolts, correct Mark 1 stamping, ejection port cut and slightly swept bolt handle. Finding rifles with original triggers designed for alternating between bolt action and semi auto are rare, and, as I mentioned, I swapped mine out to prevent it from getting damaged.
The M1903 Mark 1 In Action
It’s extremely likely that I’m the first person outside of the arsenal to fire this rifle. As a result, I’m able to fully assess what a 105-year-old rifle was truly capable of. I found that, off the bench, the Mark 1 rifle was capable of easily holding 1.5-inch groups using modern Hornady 168-grain M1 Garand match loads. For comparison, my Fulton Armory M1 rifle, essentially a new gun in all respects that matter, is capable of the same accuracy with the same ammunition. I shot both the Fulton M1 and the Mark 1 rifle at the 2023 Camp Perry National Matches and took a silver and bronze, respectively.
The M1903 would serve alongside the M1 rifle in WWII, in both the M1903 configuration like the author’s rifle or, in the later, mass-produced M1903A3 model.
Ammunition in the 150-grain class is substantially more comfortable to fire in the Mark 1. My personal favorite is the Remington UMC load; it’s affordable and able to print groups around 2 inches for 10 shots at 100 yards. In fact, it’s my go-to load for this rifle, being that I really only shoot iron sights out to 300 yards.
I’m extremely impressed with the craftsmanship of the rifle overall, and the ammunition was the limiting factor in the day. A Camp Perry legend and record set in 1921 by Bob Farr was done with an off-the-rack M1903. He shot 71 consecutive bull’s-eyes at a staggering 1,000 yards until the coming darkness of night made him stop. This feat has never been bested, and his overall record still stands.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the March 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
More Classic Military Guns:
Why The Mauser C96 “Broomhandle” Still Looms Large
What do you get when you cross a time-tested platform with the most popular centerfire handgun cartridge? The 9mm revolver. Here are five that are fit to cover your six.
Ah… the revolver. Timeless and still highly trusted. Why not? Outside the side-by-side shotgun, few firearms have more on-the-ground, behind-the-trigger practical testing backing up their prowess. Old West gunslinger Wyatt Earp and modern-day New York lawman Jim Cirillo bet their lives regularly on the wheelguns. Both came out winners.
Far from outdated, the revolver is tried-and-true. Even so, the handgun has remained relevant to modern shooters, evolving into more useful and convenient forms. Next to light alloy frames and hammerless designs, one adaptation gaining favor presently is the 9mm revolver. Though, truth be told, the concept is nothing new. Gun designers have squeezed in the 9mm and other semi-automatic pistol cartridges into wheelguns for decades creating classics along the way. The .45 ACP M1917, for instance.
If you aim to shoot a 9mm revolver get use to these. Moon clips are the standard for this caliber wheelgun.
While the 9mm doesn’t have as storied a model to its name, I've found gunmakers have cooked up some dandy revolvers for the cartridge in recent years. Competitive shooters have especially benefited from geeked-out, highly-tuned race guns hitting the scene. Smith & Wesson’s PC Pro 986 and Ruger GP100 Match Champion are a couple high-octane wheelguns that come to mind.
Concealed carry hasn’t been left out in the cold. While the selection pales to standby revolver chamberings—.357 Magnum and .38 Special—there are options. And as interest in 9mm revolvers continues to grow, it’s expanded. So, what’s available now? We’re going to take a look with five 9mm revolver options fit for concealed carry.
Optimized for carry, with all snag points eliminated
Cons
Light enough it proves a bit bucky
DAO trigger not the best choice for beginers
Honestly, the LCR has looks to rival a mud fence. Matte black all around and a cylinder profile reminiscent of a wasp nest, the lightweight 9mm revolver (it also comes in .38 Spc. and .357 Mag.) won’t win any beauty contests. It doesn’t have to. From my experience, its attractiveness comes from its reliability and convenience, making it among the most cherished modern-day defensive wheelguns.
The LCR’s greatest advantage is eminent concealability, which few other revolvers rival. Weighing in at a hair over 17 ounces unloaded, and boasting an 1.8-inch barrel and 6.5-inches in overall length, the gun is unassuming and anything but cumbersome. Having carried the LCR, I can attest it is likely the one revolver you'll carry every day.
Furthermore, the aircraft-grade aluminum-framed revolver is demure enough to fill a backup gun role, one you can dual-purpose ammo with a semi-auto pistol.
Light as the 5-round revolver is, those who are new to snubbies might find it bucky, but that’s nothing some practice won’t cure. Ruger gives you a leg up in this department with an excellent double-action trigger—a must on a DAO gun. Smooth as polished marble, the friction-reducing cam system doesn’t stack and makes the 9-pound pull weight much more manageable.
Optimized for concealed carry, Ruger removed every conceivable snag point, such as an exposed hammer and rear sight (it’s integral with the frame). Additionally, the LCR 9mm is fast on the reload—when you get the system down—utilizing full moon clips. Overall, it deserves its place among the best 9mm revolvers.
Its trigger–Performance Center tuned–is the best on the list
Proves a very shootable revolver, capable of delivering shot-to-shot accuracy quickly
Cons
By nearly any standard, the 986 is a boat anchor
It is almost strictly limited to OWB carry for most folks
Granted, the PC Pro 986 is a beast of a snub-nose and might not exactly fit every armed citizen’s definition of the ultimate clandestine 9mm revolver. But if overcoming the platform's main constraint—firepower—is your concern the handgun’s extra bulk pays you back 10 fold. Holding 7-rounds in its ample titanium cylinder, the 986 flirts with the capacity of many micro 9mm pistols that have become the hot ticket in recent years.
First off, I'll point out the obvious–the revolver is turned and designed for competition. Yet, this facet means the revolver is very responsive, particularly its trigger. I might say its the best I've felt on the list. In double-action it is smooth and lighter than most production modes, vastly improving the 986’s accuracy. At the same tick, shot-to-shot, the revolver is quick thanks to an overtravel stop that ensures efficiency in rapid-fire. Adding to this, the gun comes with an adjustable rear sight, which goes a long way in taking advantage of the other accuracy enhancements.
So, all of this is great, but the Performance Center marvel is still a 31-ounces L-frame revolver, with a William Taft-sized monolithic cylinder. Yes, this adds up to a milder shooter, thus better accuracy. But, it will take some consideration to puzzle out if it fits your carry profile. As do the sights and hammer spur, which all have the potential of hanging up on the draw if you’re not practiced. I'll be the first to admit, this option isn't for everyone–particularly those who aim to carry IWB. But I firmly believe for the right armed citizen, the 986 is an excellent 9mm revolver option that will perform well above many in its class.
Barrel is long enough to get a near full burn from most loads, thus good velocity
Novel ejectors do away with moon clips
Compatible with strip-style speedloaders
Cons
Trigger tends to be stiff and heavy
A bit heavy compared to other options
Sooner or later, nearly every wheel gunner has an inkling to toy around with a .44 Special. This inevitably leads to one gunmaker—Charter Arms. Its long-standing Bulldog has become legendary at this point, if for no other reason than it’s one of the only dedicated .44 rigs configured for carry. More recently, the company has shown a real knack with 9mm revolvers too.
Starting life a decade ago, the Pit Bull is an ingenious system doing away with moon clips—half or full—for spring-loaded ejectors. Just snap a round in the cylinder and there it stays until ejected, just like it was a rimmed cartridge. Anybody who’s dealt with moon clips, particularly well-used warped ones, get the advantage the ejectors offer. Additionally, the feature makes the gun compatible with strip speedloaders, which—while not the fastest—are among the most convenient.
About as plain Jane as a revolver gets, the Pit Bull won’t turn any head—aside from an icon of its namesake on the barrel. Matte blasted stainless-steel finish, ramp front sight and integral rear are the order of the day, and the trigger isn’t a polish job for sure. But the gun’s fit and finish are downright decent, and its tight cylinder lockup gives it an overall solid feel and dependable performance. I like that a hammer is part of the package, one with a somewhat muted spur. In turn, with a little familiarity, it can be drawn with little worry of getting tangled up.
Heavier than many would care to tote on a daily basis
Snag points on rear sight and spur
Most think fairly economical 1911 pistols when Rock Island Armory is the topic of discussion, but the gunmaker has proven a more than adept revolver-smith over the years. Added to the gunmaker’s lineup a few years back is a jack-of-all-trades 9mm revolver that certainly has the stuff to fill a defensive role. To this end, I find the AL9.0’s capacity an especially tantalizing aspect, holding 6 rounds of Parabellum and quickly reloading via full moon clips.
The tradeoff with the AL9.0 is its measurements. While its width–1.5 inches–and barrel length–3 inches–are more than manageable, the gun tips the scales at 32 ounces. That doesn't exactly make it a featherweight. But it does add up to a very comfortable shooter, especially digesting the already well-mannered 9mm. In shooting it, despite a somewhat heavy DA trigger, I've found the gun very responsive and have been able to clear plate racks quickly once in a rythem.
I like the rubberized grip and the adjustable rear target sight–though the latter does concern me as a snag point. But the my real nit to pick is with the AL9.0's hammer spur, which prominently sticks out. But, if you’re willing to put in the time with the heater, and learn its ways, the revolver should prove more than manageable.
Weight provides just the right balance between ease of carry and shootablity
Steller Clips makes reloads quicker
Cons
Concealed hammer not available on 2-inch barreled model
It comes as no surprise Taurus has had a 9mm revolver for some time. After all, the gunmaker has wheelguns chambered for nearly everything under the sun. The 905 has been a mainstay for many for the past decade or so and is a more than capable defensive gun, along with about anything else you’d want out of a 9mm.
Granted, the steel-framed handgun is on the lower end of capacity holding 5-rounds, but that’s fairly standard for a majority of concealed carry revolvers regardless of caliber. The 905 makes up for this by coming in lighter, 21 ounces, and slightly narrower, 1.4-inch width, than other 9mm revolvers. Plus, it’s fairly streamlined with a built-in rear sight (ramp front) and all its edges fairly smoothed down. The only hitch, at least for some, is the spur on the hammer, though it’s not a dealbreaker.
Handily, the 905 utilizes Taurus Stellar Clips (and moon) to hold the rounds in place, a neat bit of engineering that makes loading the clips easier than traditional moon clips. Like any 9mm revolver using clips, the gun itself is quick to reload with practice. The one hitch in the 905’s giddyap is a substantial double-action trigger pull, out-of-the-box flirting with 12 pounds.
I'll also pitch in one more thing. Taurus makes a concealed hammer model of the 905, however, it's only available with a 3-inch barrel. It's definitely still a carry option, but it's disappointing the company hasn't come out with a similar feature on its 2-inch barred model.
Languishing in semi-obscurity for a good quarter century, the 10mm has earned new-won respect in recent years. There’s plenty of reasons for Col. Jeff Cooper's darling wandering the wilderness all those years. The first pistol chambered for the powerful cartridge – the notorious Bren Ten – didn’t exactly pirouette onto the stage. And similar to the .44 Magnum, average shooters liked the concept of the snappy cartridge on paper better than when the squeezed the trigger.
As to its rise, who’s to say exactly? From my perspective, the safe wager is that it’s the 10mm’s versatility that has captured ever-fickle shooters’ imaginations. It shoots longer, hits harder and has potentially more applications than any other semi-automatic pistol cartridge today. If you’re willing to spend the time to master the 10mm’s stout, yet manageable recoil you have an unparalleled self-defense cartridge and top-notch medium- to large-game option. Heck, once you get to know it, the big ten is also plenty of fun at the range.
Choosing 10mm Ammo
Multi-talented, the 10mm is generally preferred for two primary purposes: self-defense and hunting. There is a crossover between 10mm ammo and these applications. But outside revolvers, perhaps no other caliber has more specialized rounds for these purposes.
This means that not every self-defense round cuts muster on the hunt and not every hunting round is appropriate for personal protection. With that in mind, we've created a 10mm ammo list broken down to these purposes (plus a range fodder suggestion) and we set slightly different criteria in their selection. For self-defense ammo the benchmarks we considered were: met FBI penetration protocol, substantial bullet expansion, manageable recoil for bullet weight and reliable feeding. On the other hand, hunting ammunition was measured on maximum penetration, bullet robustness and potential maximum range. Not that you want to push a handgun shot in the field, but it’s peace of mind if the first shot fails to do the job and you need to follow up.
Delivering you the top pick in 10mm ammo was a team effort, involving not only myself, but other Gun Digest staff and some of our most trusted long-running freelancers. Our backgrounds include everything from master gunsmith to law enforcement and one absolute, dye-in-the-wool 10mm hunting fanatic. These ammo options were tested through multiple handguns by multiple shooters for accuracy and terminal performance. Other options were tested, but these were the ones that came to the top.
Defensive Ammunition
Hornady 175-grain Critical Duty
Specs
Bullet: 175 gr. FlexLock Muzzle Velocity (fps): 1,160 Muzzle Energy (ft-lbs): 523 Ballistic Coefficient: .160 Sectional Density: .156 MSRP: $37.99 box of 20
Pros
Designed for professional law enforcement use
Very reliable terminal performance
Consistent performance in all pistols tested
Cons
Middling velocity
Why We Picked It
In our testing, we found this a showstopper defensive round.
The 175-grain round is tailored for full-sized handguns and is loaded to provide excellent ballistics and penetration. To the latter, it fully meets not only the FBI’s penetration standards, but also the agency’s barriers tests, giving you a powerful upper hand in almost any self-defense situation.
Over-engineering, a hallmark of Hornady, is to thank for the top-performing 10mm ammo’s performance. Thick jacketed and aided by a Flex Tip core, the FlexLock bullet is designed to expand only when it's supposed to — which isn’t in plywood or heavy clothing.
Furthermore, a jacket-to-core band (Interlock band in Hornady terminology) ensures the bullet holds together and lead core retains mass as it expands. By the company’s statistics, the FlexLock bullet preserves 99-percent of its weight after expansion.
Here's the best part of this ammo, overall we found it extremely manageable out of most handguns we tested it from. Certainly, compact pistols prove jumpier — in our case a Springfield XD-M Elite Compact — but with practice and familiarity controlled followups were achievable.
Speer 200-grain Gold Dot
Specs
Bullet: 200-grain Gold Dot HP Muzzle Velocity (fps): 1,100 Muzzle Energy (ft-lbs): 537 Ballistic Coefficient: .151 Sectional Density: N/A MSRP: $48.99 box of 20
Pros
Managable for most shooters
Devastating terminal performance
Professional-grad ammunition
Cons
Tends to be more expensive
In terms of defensive 10mm ammo, 200-grain options are few and far between. Given this, the buzz Speer started at the 2018 SHOT Show with this behemoth addition to the iconic Gold Dot family is understandable.
It’s a lot of jacketed lead to pitch, but it's not just its size that matters.
The round's terminal performance makes it more than worthy of consideration. From our testing on bare ballistics gelatin, the hollow-point expanded nearly a full ¾ of an inch. No matter the situation that should prove more than enough persuasion to halt most attackers dead in their tracks.
Packing plenty of punch, this Gold Dot isn’t loaded to the hilt, thus we found the round very shootable — particularly out of duty-sized pistols (we liked it out of the good ol' Glock 20).
The other area where the ammo acquitted itself well was reliablity across all the pistols we tested it in. Even when the guns were running dirty, we didn't experience a single failure with the ammo.
Near blister hot and offering incredible expansion, SIG Sauer has produced one of the wickedest defensive 10mm ammo choices out there.
While the round kicking out of the muzzle around 1,250 fps is right around what most 10 mm aficionados like to see, it’s what the V-Crown bullet does when it hits the target that turns heads. That said, we found for our defensive rounds that SIG tended to produce the most recoil no matter the platform.
In ballistic gelitan the V-Crown projectile balloons like it's gone off its diet, expanding right around ¾ of an inch. But from our experience, all V-Crown options produce these results relative to caliber. It's just mean ammo.
Geeking out a bit, the expansion is thanks to SIG going the extra mile. While many ammo makers are content skiving just the jackets of a defense round, SIG takes these through the hollow point’s lead core ensuring consistent and dynamite expansion round in and out.
Nickel-plated cases are a nice addition to the round, not only for their deadly good looks, but also making chamber checks easier.
Designed to smash through tough hide and bone, Federal’s specialty 10mm hunting ammo is a proven game getter. Topped with a bullet from the renowned Trophy Bonded line, the jacketed soft point won’t go to pieces in medium- and large-sized game — an absolute must in a handgun hunting bullet.
However, in our testing, it's not the terminal performance potential that turned heads, but the light's out accuracy. At 25 from a rest and out of Glock 40 MOS, the ammo printed .44 inches in it's best group and average 1.5 inches at that range.
Furthermore, we found Trophy Bonded 10mm to be very managable as far as huning ammo is concerned. If required, a follow-up shot is more than feasiable.
From our standpoint, the ammunition is right on target as a deer round and other medium game. But it might not be our first choice as backwood protection against more dangerous game.
Buffalo Bore Heavy Outdoorsman 220 grain
Specs
Bullet: 220-grain Hard Cast plain based LFN Muzzle Velocity (fps): 1,200 Muzzle Energy (ft-lbs): 703 Ballistic Coefficient: .219 Sectional Density: N/A MSRP: $44 box of 20
Pros
Maximum penetration for caliber
Respectable accuracy
Cons
Expensive
Plenty of recoil
Near the heaviest bullet the 10mm can digest, Buffalo Bore has cooked up the answer if penetration is the question. Launching a hard-cast flat nosed bullet, the 220-grain round is designed to handle the largest and toughest critters you’d logically take with a 10mm. A good bet for hunting larger Cervidae or as an insurance policy when traversing bear country.
Engineered for minimal expansion, the bullet nonetheless punches a devastating hole in game and makes child’s play of hide and bone. And with 3 feet of potential penetration at hand from what we saw in ballistic gelatin tests, a well-placed shot will destroy all vitals in the bullet’s path.
The trade-off for these excellent terminal ballistics, Buffalo Bore isn't for the faint of heart. Pushing a 220-grain bullet at around 1,200 fps at the muzzle tends to get a handgun hopping and did so in our case.
Don’t let its lightweight fool you, Underwood’s 10mm hunting round is pure dynamite.
Solid copper, the 150-grain round offers incredible penetration potential. Plain and simple, it won’t break up even against bone and pushes well through most targets.But it perhaps has an advantage over some the hard cast options previously mentioned – wound channel. Milled fluting gives the Xtreme Hunter the unique property of creating a permanent wound cavity greater than many bullets designed to expand.
Even more impressive was Underwood’s 150-grain Xtreme Hunter produced light's out accuracy averaging 1.24 inches at 25 yards and printing a very impressive best group of .53 inches.
Being a lighter round, we also found the option much easier to shoot, despite leaving the barrel at a screaming clip — 1,425 fps. At this velocity, its energy at the muzzle is akin to a projectile 30-grains its weight. At first, it may not look it, but the Xtreme Hunter is more than capable medium to large game 10mm ammo.
If your only goal is to shoot as much 10mm ammo for the least amount of money possible, CCI Blazer may be the way to go. This stuff is as accurate as the dickens, producing 1.24-inch groups for us at 25 yards, which is pretty dandy for training ammo.
The author reviews the Finks GSP 1911, a hand-tuned 1911 known as the Gunsite Service Pistol.
How is it possible that a handgun design that’s more than a century old is still one of the most popular? The answer is simple: The 1911 is still with us because it still works. Of course, modern 1911s are a bit different from the original, and over the years a collection of custom modifications are now mostly standard. Some might wonder which of these modifications are important. Well, the oldest and largest civilian firearms training academy in the world has answered that question with the return of the Gunsite Service Pistol (GSP).
Origin And History
In 1976, Jeff Cooper, Marine, international firearms trainer and founding president of the International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC), took a ranch in Arizona and turned it into a shooting school. The American Pistol Institute (API) is where Cooper taught upstanding Americans to defend themselves with a handgun. Now known as Gunsite Academy, which also trains military and law enforcement, it’s the world’s oldest and largest civilian firearms training school.
This ivory-stocked 1911 Government Model belonged to Jeff Cooper.
As participation there grew, students would often get their handguns tweaked to Cooper standards by the Gunsite Smithy, and it wasn’t long until Gunsite began offering custom pistols. Up until about 2002, you could order a custom 1911 from Gunsite, but over the years the particulars of these pistols varied. However, Gunsite smithy Robbie Barrkman of ROBAR fame did offer a hand-tuned 1911, which was referred to as the Gunsite Service Pistol (GSP).
When Buz Mills purchased Gunsite in 1999, he decided it shouldn’t be in the gun-building business but did offer Gunsite “approved” 1911s through their Pro Shop, which were manufactured exclusively—to Gunsite standards—by Colt. The idea was that these pistols—now known as the Colt Gunsite Service Pistol (GSP)—would be an embodiment of what Cooper felt 1911 perfection to be. Unfortunately, through the years, the Colt GSP has been only sporadically available.
This early staghorn-stocked 1911 Government Model belonged to Jeff Cooper.
When Mike Moore retired as the Gunsite Smithy a few years back, Finks Gunsmithing of Chino Valley, Arizona, and Tyler Gunworks of Friona, Texas, began filling in. They completely renovated the shop to best service Gunsite clientele, and since then the talented smiths at Finks have repaired the guns that break during training classes while also offering full custom work. With a master class smithy once again on-site, retired Sheriff Ken Campbell, Gunsite’s CEO, decided it was time for the GSP to ride again. The result is the latest version of the GSP, and it’s 100-percent hand-built by Fink’s Gunsmithing at Gunsite.
The allure of this pistol should be clear: It continues a legacy that’s integral to Gunsite’s history. More importantly, it should be looked at as what’s arguably the best example of a fighting 1911. Its origins date back to when the Gunsite Ranch and API were founded, when Cooper codified the Modern Technique of the Pistol, laid the foundation for defensive handgun training as we know it, and once wrote, “The great 1911 .45 was a very nearly perfect artifact from the day of its birth.” The new GSP from Finks is an expertly crafted amalgamation of nearly 50 years of lessons learned at Gunsite Academy. No other pistol on Earth can claim that.
A decade-old 1911 crafted for Gunsite by Springfield Armory.
The Details
Finks starts with a 70 series, forged steel frame and slide sourced through Tyler Gun Works. It’s fitted with a hammer-forged match barrel with a recessed target crown, duty weight springs, extended grip safety, Wilson Combat thumb safety, long skeletonized match trigger, scalloped EGW main spring housing, and the trigger guard is undercut. The entire pistol then receives a carry bevel/de-horning treatment to do away with its sharp edges, front strap serrations, wide-cut cocking serrations on the front and rear of the slide, reliability and trigger job, lowered and flared ejection port, and the magwell is beveled too. A U-notch Wilson Combat battlesight is installed to mate with a Novak yellow outlined tritium front sight that stands out like a ready-to-bust pimple on a fashion model’s nose. The pistol then receives a satin blue finish, and G10 Super Scoop grips are installed with chromed hex head screws.
The Finks GSP is a 1911, optimally configured for training and fighting.
Other features include a most unique Commander-style hammer with a cutout in the shape of the Gunsite raven. Also, on the right slide of the slide just behind the rear cocking serrations is an engraved Gunsite raven. Just under the ejection port, “GSP Government” is engraved and “Gunsite Service Pistol” is engraved on the left side of the slide. Additional customization is optional, but limited if you want the pistol to retain its GSP identity.
There’s a lot to look at in this picture, but notice the keen carry bevel on the bottom edge of the slide.
I consider myself somewhat of a 1911 snob: I’ve been carrying 1911s for protection, training and competition, for more than a quarter century. The only thing I would change on this pistol is for the slide stop to receive just a touch more de-horning along its forward edge to keep it from eating into the holster. And I’d also moderately smooth the texturing on the front edge of the left grip scale where your fingers rest. Yeah, as 1911s go, this pistol is that perfect.
The magazine well on the Finks GSP is expertly beveled to assist with magazine insertion.
Range Time With The Finks GSP 1911
This is a pretty pistol to look at; it checks all the boxes most often associated with a custom 1911, but there are a lot of modernized 1911s that are very similar. For a pistol like this to be worth the money or suitable for carry or training, the thing has to shoot where it’s pointed, and it needs to go bang every time the trigger is pulled. Time on the range is the only way to sort this out, and I put 300 rounds through the new GSP. After some familiarization fire, I ran an 8-inch plate rack at 25 yards, which quickly established that the pistol shot better than I’m capable of. The next thing I did was expose the pistol to the two shooting drills that I use with every pistol I test.
The first is the Forty-Five Drill, and the goal is to draw from concealment and put five rounds into a 5-inch circle, at 5 yards in 5 seconds. Using Black Hills 200-grain SWC load, I ran this drill five times and cleaned it on all but the first run, where I hammered the first shot and hit a bit low. My average time for this drill was 3.88 seconds, which is about a half-second slower than I can run the drill with my Wilson Combat, commander-sized EDC X9 in 9mm.
The second drill is the Step Back Drill, which I think is one of the best drills to establish shooter proficiency with a pistol. For this drill, you draw and engage an 8-inch steel plate with two shots at 5, 10, 15, 20 and 25 yards, but each two-shot string is timed separately. To pass, you must get all 10 hits in less than 20 seconds. I ran this drill with standard velocity 230-grain ball five times. On the first run, I missed a shot at 20 yards and both shots at 25. On the second run, I missed one shot at 20 and one at 25. Realizing I needed to hold near the bottom of the plate at 20 and 25 yards, I cleaned the drill on the last three attempts with an average time of 18.68 seconds.
Of course, this isn’t intended as a pistol to just be used on the range; it’s a fighting handgun, and fighting handguns need to be reliable with hollow-point ammunition. Mostly playing with the plate rack and running a quasi-El Prez Drill on life-size steel silhouette targets, I put a good mix of hollow-point ammo through the pistol. Every time I pulled the trigger, with every load tried, the pistol went bang, ejected the empty, and loaded the next round until the magazine was empty and the slide locked back.
Clearly capable of delivering more precision than I can extract from a pistol, four loads were tested at 10 yards from a sandbag rest. The average for 12, five-shot groups—three each, with each load—was an impressive 1.03 inches. The pistol really liked the standard pressure 185-grain Buffalo Bore flat nose FMJ load. It averaged right at a half-inch for three five-shot groups. There are some other good-looking 1911s out there that are reliable and cost less, but they won’t shoot that good.
Deserving
In 2003, Cooper wrote, “People who write about the ‘comeback of the 1911’ do not seem to be aware that it has never been away.” Two decades later, those words are still true. Countless manufacturers are turning out all manner of 1911s, priced from less than $500 to more than 10 times that much. Kimber and Springfield Armory 1911s are a great example of what the modern 1911 has become, and both offer several versions approaching or near the price point of the Finks GSP. I’ve shot most of those pistols a good bit, and I can confidently tell you, they’re not in the same class as the GSP. Though I cannot speak to its longevity, the GSP does come with a warranty for the lifetime of the original owner, and I think it’s worth the asking price if not more.
Tested as a fighting handgun, the Finks GSP is accurate, reliable and trustworthy.
This pistol is deserving of the Gunsite and GSP name it carries. As a multi-course Gunsite Academy graduate, where the only diploma on my wall—of the many I’ve earned at many schools—is the one from my first Gunsite 250 Pistol Course, I can proudly say this pistol carries the Gunsite and GSP names. But you don’t have to be a Gunsite alumni to appreciate a 1911 this good, you just need to understand what a trusted and reliable 1911 designed to train and fight with should be. How can you get yours? Call the Gunsite Academy Pro Shop. They have them in stock just waiting for an American patriot like you.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the March 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
The author debunks some dangerous assumptions that surround qualification drills and what they really mean.
The military and law enforcement have long used qualification courses to validate a soldier’s or cop’s shooting skill. Qualification is also a part of most defensive handgun training courses and, in some cases, it’s a requirement to obtain a concealed carry permit. The difficulty of these shooting evaluations varies; there’s no universal standard, and a passing score is subjectively set by the responsible administrating body.
So, what specifically does the successful completion of a qualification course really mean?
I’m not exactly sure. This is partly because of the varying requirements, but it’s also because of the tendency to rank performance—based on score—with identifiers such as marksman, sharpshooter, expert or master. It’s hard to divine any real meaning from these scores or ranks, which are mostly used to incentivize shooters to strive to perform at a higher level. If you’re qualified, you’re qualified, right?
Beyond that, what else matters?
I’m not exactly sure about that, either.
On my first day of work as a police officer 32 years ago, the range officer took me to qualify with my service revolver, and I shot expert on the department’s qualification course. But, in no one’s imagination should I have been considered an expert—or maybe even qualified—with a handgun in a law enforcement setting. I didn’t receive any law enforcement specific training; all I’d managed to do was hit the required area of the target 90 percent of the time.
This is one of the two things that troubles me the most about qualification courses.
Firearms qualification is partly a measure of skill, but more than anything it serves as an administrative protection from liability.
Troubling Parameters
The object of shooting is hitting, and a failure to hit what you’re shooting at is, by any measure, a failure. Had I only achieved 70 percent of my hits on that course of fire I would’ve still qualified. How could that be? How could a police officer fire 60 rounds, miss 18 times and still be considered “qualified” to carry, and, more importantly, shoot a handgun in a public setting where real, live, innocent human beings might be walking around Googling their smartphone?
When I went to work as a special agent for the railroad police, I was shocked to discover that, to qualify with my duty handgun, I had to shoot 100 percent—no misses were allowed. This made perfect sense because you’re responsible for every bullet you fire. The other surprise was what the qualification course amounted to. Though my memory is now a bit cloudy on the exact details, it went something like this:
You started walking toward the target with your pistol in the holster. At about 5 yards from the target—on the start signal from the instructor—you drew your pistol and had to place multiple shots inside an 8-inch circle in just a couple seconds. Simple, right?
In theory, maybe, but not so much in practice. As a law enforcement firearms instructor, what I ultimately learned was that the shooters who could pass this simple qualification course also had the ability to pass most any other qualification course in use by other law enforcement agencies.
Interestingly, a few years ago I asked retired Sergeant Major John “The Sheriff of Baghdad” McPhee of SOB Tactical if he could require a shooter to perform a single drill to establish proficiency, what it would be? McPhee said, “That’s one of the most common-sense questions I’ve had in a long time,” and he went on to say he’d use a drill he calls the Placement Test.
The Placement Test
In McPhee’s Placement Test, which is about as minimalist as it gets, you’re required to draw from the holster and put three shots inside a 3-inch circle, at 3 yards, in less than 3 seconds. According to McPhee, if you can do this, you can shoot—meaning, you have a solid grasp of the fundamentals. It’s also a very real-world, because as John’s research in self-defense shootings has shown, in a generic way this drill closely replicates real-life situations. Ironically, the drill is very similar to my often used Forty-Five Drill, which mandates drawing from a concealed holster and putting five shots, into a 5-inch circle, at 5 yards in less than 5 seconds.
Our tests are very similar to the qualification course the railroad police used. What’s most important is that they’re 100 percent pass or fail. Though you could classify performance based on the actual time to successfully complete the drill, it’s unnecessary. These are no-B.S. drills that plainly illustrate whether you can shoot a defensive pistol … or not.
I know some of you are screaming, “That’s not enough shooting and does nothing to document that you can hit at greater distances, shoot from behind cover or from other positions!” You’d be correct. But, if you can pass either of these drills, you’re very likely skilled enough with a handgun to do all of those things, especially with a bit of training. And let me repeat that last word with emphasis: training!
What Really Matters?
When we showed up for qualification day with the railroad police, qualifying was the first thing we did. It took about an hour for a bunch of us to do it—one at a time with an audience watching—and then we spent the rest of the day learning and practicing with our pistols to the point where we were challenged with scenarios and drills of ever-increasing difficulty. We did the single most important thing that too many police departments, military units and civilian gun owners fail to do. We trained!
And that’s the second thing that bothers me about qualification courses—especially those that turn out marksmen, experts and masters—which is also the main point of all this pontificating: You should not put too much credence on your ability to qualify on any course. Sure, you might need to shoot a passing score to go to war, work the street or carry a concealed handgun, but qualifications tend to bring with them the illusion that you’re actually qualified. And that tends to develop the notion or mindset that no other work, training or practice is necessary.
Being qualified by the government, a school, or some other organization is one thing, but it has no real bearing on the ultimate goal—which is actually being capable of winning a fight with a pistol. The only way to come even close to that is through frequent and continual efforts to learn, train and improve your skill set that challenge you to get better so that you can always hit what you shoot at and never miss. One hundred percent!
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the March 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
The author reviews a West German LE surplus Sig P6, a handgun that’s remained practical while becoming collectible.
It was the early 1970s, and European police forces had a new problem: terrorists. Those LE officers had a miscellaneous assemblage of .32s and .380s in their armories … while the bad guys were starting to use 9mm SMGs.
Not good.
So, the West German Federal police issued a request for a new sidearm, and it was to be in 9mm Parabellum. HK offered up the PSP (which we know as the P7), and Walther offered up a newly built P38 with a shorter barrel, dubbed the “P5.” In-between, the tasking authority dubbed the Sig entry as the P6, the model we know as the P225.
All of the new pistols accepted for use were single-stack 9mm pistols, and that was considered a big step up by the police forces (compared to packing a .32 Auto, any of them would be). All three were approved, and each law enforcement agency or administrative state was free to purchase and issue any of them. The P5 (P38) wasn’t popular, and the P7 (HK) was the more expensive one, so most states bought P6s.
The later of the author’s two guns came in a commercial P225 box, but with the issued officer’s name handwritten on the lid. Again, why the difference? Who knows.
Rising To The Top
The P6 is basically a pared-down single-stack P226, or a compact P220. It’s smaller and lighter than either, and since it has a single-stack magazine, it’s easier to grasp for those with smaller hands. It’s a traditional double-action system, trigger-cocking on the first shot and with the hammer cocked by the slide on subsequent shots. There’s a hammer-dropping safety lever on the left side, and this safely lowers the hammer after it has been cocked. Manufactured in Eckernförde, Germany, at the J.P. Sauer plant (which Sig bought a controlling interest in so they’d qualify for contracts), most German states purchased the P6 due to it costing less than the other two pistols.
The special hammer spur, with the notch that lets the police armorers know when a pistol has been dropped on its hammer. Before you laugh, the Germans aren’t the only ones with persnickety regulations.
One interesting detail found on the P6 pistols, and not on the P225 pistols, is the hammer. The German police standards called for a special hammer, where the rowel of the spur has a notch cut through it. This is the Deformationssporn, or “deformation spur.” It exists for one purpose only: to determine if the pistol in question has been dropped and fell on its hammer. If that happened, the spur would be bent and not be bendable back—uh-oh. The obsession with pistols being dropped, especially on the hammer, is a mystery, but once something is written into the specs, it’s there until the end of time.
The P6 trigger pulls are reported to be heavier than the P225s exported to the U.S., but I don’t have a representative sample to check. I also don’t know if this was due to the West German police wanting to reduce ADs, or that they had to deal with harder primers, or Americans wouldn’t put up with a heavier trigger pull. Mine isn’t bad at all.
The breechblock, a separate machined piece of steel, is pinned into the stamped, heavy-gauge steel slide.
One aspect of the Sig design (that created part of the lower cost) was the slide manufacture. The slide was a heavy (really thick gauge) steel stamping, with the muzzle end block welded to it, and the breechblock pinned into it. The earliest P226s are built like this, as well as the early P220. The feed ramp of the barrel was designed to be best-feeding for FMJ ammunition (can’t have any of those nasty JHPs now, can we?), and some report that their P6s don’t like JHPs. Neither of mine has ever noticed.
The giveaway for the pinned-in breechblock is the joint on the top of the slide. Later Sig slides, machined from solid, do not have this.
Two, But Different
I actually have two, and they came in different boxes. One came in a fiberboard box, looking very commercial, and the other in a hinged hard plastic (blue) box, apparently the standard police issue box. This is where collecting can come in. Both boxes had the name of the officer to whom they were issued (last names of Kurio and Schaniejel). And my two came in through two different importers: PW Arms and Century Arms.
The author’s two P6s—the one in the blue plastic box dates from January 1980, while the other dates from December 1995.
They also span most of the period of issue. The older one has a “proofmark,” or acceptance date, stamped on it of 1/80, while the other is stamped 12/95. Both came from the German state of Nordrhein-Westfalen, and a lot of the ones you’ll see (if you go looking) will be. It happened to be the most populous state in West Germany (now all of Germany), half again as many people as either of the next two. (No big surprise there. It’s the state encompassing the Rhine-Ruhr industrial area.)
Both of the author’s guns are marked on the left side with the Sig Sauer name and “Made in Germany”. Commercial pistols were marked on the right side with the Sig name and P225.
And, clearly, they used them; by December of 1995, the new standard for police pistols had been adopted, and the P6 was on the way out.
The grips are the same between the P6 and the original P225, as are the magazines and internals. They differ only in markings. However, when Sig went and updated the P225 to the P225A1, they changed the magazines and pretty much everything else. The P6/P225 magazine has a reputation of having feed lips that don’t like to always be loaded. Over time, they’ll wear, and this causes failures to feed.
We Americans expect (and get) magazines that can be left loaded literally for decades and still work. The European police department’s usual process is for an officer to be issued his pistol, magazines and ammo when he reports for duty, load up, go to work, finish his shift, unload and turn it all in. In that process, who would notice a problem? A magazine feed lip that doesn’t like to be loaded for years? They stay loaded eight hours at a time … no problem here.
Well, Sig updated the magazine design, and it’ll withstand American use, but it’s not, alas, compatible with the old P6/P225 (rats!). Grips don’t interchange, nor do much of any other parts. So, if you need to repair or want to upgrade, you need to be very careful, as a lot of sellers don’t know or care between P225 and P225A1 parts.
The older one, with the slide markings of the German State that bought it, and the acceptance date. Also note the importer and that the barrel is marked with the last three digits of the serial number.
The West German P6s were marked as to the state that bought them, and mine are marked with the date of manufacture and the state on the right side of the slide, along with the last three digits of the serial number. They don’t have the commercial Sig markings, while the P225 imports do. However, the P6s are marked on the left side of the slide, and the left side of the barrel chamber: “Sig Sauer.” They also have the German-law required proof marks, and here things get interesting for my pair.
This had to be one of the last P6s the State of Nordrhein-Westfalen, bought in December of 1995.
The slide nose undersurface is the usual place to mark them, and the markings on mine differ. You’d think, with the P6s being built at one plant, and in this case with them being purchased by Nordrhein-Westfalen, that the proofmarks would be the same. Nope. More collectability variance. The surplus ones will, of course, have markings from the importer, most of which were through Century Arms International, but not all.
The slide is proofmarked on the bottom of the nose, and the two P6s the author has sport different proof houses marks. Why? Who knows.
Calculated Rarity
You may wonder why you don’t see (or didn’t back when they were coming into the U.S.) many of the P5, P6 and P7 pistols. What I’ve been told is this: When the standards changed back in the mid 1990s, the states (each German state is like a U.S. State with their own responsibilities and authorizations, etc.) were told by the Federal government they could get new pistols from the new list. And the Federal government would trade them, one-for-one, or whatever they needed, provided they traded the old ones in.
If they didn’t trade them in, then they’d have to purchase new ones out of their own budget, and the old ones would have to be disposed of within the requirements of the very strict German laws concerning firearms. Taking the easy way, they just handed them over and got new ones.
Some states didn’t, or they at least tried a few lots of test sales, and that’s how we got the ones we got. This amounted to tens of thousands of P6s, but not the whole lot of them. Still, they’re common enough and less expensive (curiously) than the P225 or P225A1, so if you want to get into collecting easily and without breaking the bank, this is one place to start.
Accuracy results were to be averages of three, five-shot groups at 50 yards off a Champion shooting rest. Velocities are averages of 10 shots measured on a Labradar chronograph set to read 15 feet from the muzzle
I tested mine when I first got them and found that they were, not surprisingly, just like all the other Sigs I’d shot up to that point: accurate, reliable, easy to take apart and clean, and resemble a Sig (which is a good look). I seriously considered using one as an everyday carry pistol, but the background on the magazines was just enough to give me pause. It may be true, or it may take years to happen, but who wants to run the risk?
I could load up a magazine and leave it loaded for a few years (I have tests like that going on right now; the longest one is up to 14 years), but I can’t trust it until I know and that’s years away. Plus, if the test magazine does fail, I’ve just thrashed one of a very few I have.
So, mine are range queens and teaching pistols for new shooters. The grip is big enough to hold, but small enough to be managed by shooters with small hands. While the DA pull is more than I’d want a new shooter to struggle with, the SA trigger pull is plenty nice enough and yet not too light. And either are accurate enough that a new shooter who pays attention will hit what they’ve aimed at.
Collectible, but usable, suitable for teaching new shooters, but fun to shoot for the experienced. It uses standard 9mm ammunition (unlike some historical pieces I have in the safe) and doesn’t mangle the brass. Made by the Swiss in Germany for Germans, but now here in America. What’s not to like?
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the March 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
Semi-Auto shotgun makes and models abound. Picking one that will enhance your shooting ability and enjoyment means understanding their operating systems and yourself.
The turn of the 20th Century must have been an amazing time to be alive. The advent of the electric light, moving pictures, the internal combustion engine and, of course, the semi-auto shotgun. The mind reels at the technological advancement. Particularly the smoothbore.
Not to take anything away from the horseless carriage and illumination at the flick of a switch, but the autoloading scattergun must have been mind-boggling to the folks of the age. Five shots with little more than the pull of a trigger? The devil you say! Two short decades before 1905, shotguns were exclusively single barrel or side-by-side affairs, complete with external manually cocked hammers. Not exactly the stuff for rapid-fire. Moving to an autoloading system was dang near akin to jumping from ox-and-cart to GTO.
No wonder the semi-auto shotgun dominated much of the past century and only continues to get better with time.
Already know all this stuff? You can JUMP AHEAD to our picks for the best semi-auto shotguns.
Why A Semi-Auto Shotgun
Avoiding the obligatory Why not a semi-auto shotgun? there are some solid logical reasons to consider this type of smoothbore. The two most significant: firepower and ease of use.
Seriously, who doesn't want a beast such as the Beretta 1301 Tactical. Photo by Robert Sadowski
The first is fairly self-explanatory, in most cases, a semi-auto shotgun is capable of delivering more shot downrange in a shorter period of time than anything else. Competitors understand this, with various semi-auto models—such as the Remington Versa Max Competition Pro—dominating 3-Gun Matches. This advantage translates over to any endeavor you might need to send a mass of pellets on target and quick, from knocking down white wings to protecting hearth and home.
As for ease of use, well that too is pretty simple to get a handle on. Once you know how to load a semi-auto shotgun and chamber a shell, the only thing you concern yourself with—barring a malfunction—is aiming and trigger pull. That’s quite a load off the mind—and muscle memory—allowing you to focus on what’s important—hitting the target.
Though, don’t confuse ease of use with a less complex system. Compared to its cousins—the double-barrel shotgun and pump-action shotgun—the semi-auto shotgun is most certainly not a simpler machine. Granted, its operational systems—recoil (inertia) or gas, we’ll get to those in a second—aren't beyond the grasp of a well-seasoned novice. But they do involve a bit more understanding to troubleshoot, which means dedication to learning exactly what goes on under the hood.
So, what is going on under there?
Recoil Operated Semi-Auto Shotgun
Now dominated by the inertia system, shotguns that cycle via the kinetic energy from a shot being fired have been with us for some time. The semi-auto alluded to at the beginning that got its start around the time light bulbs were becoming a thing, was recoil-operated. In fact, it was an all-time great—John M. Browning’s Auto-5, which ruled semi-auto shotgun sales for the first 60 years of the last century. Though, its operation was much more complex than what we see today.
Consider by many, especially waterfowlers, one of the finest hunting semi-autos around, Benelli's inertia driven Super Black Eagle is a classic.
A long-recoil gun, the A-5’s barrel and bolt both moved rearward in unison after a shot, the barrel returning first and ejecting the shell, then the bolt to load a fresh round. After Browning ironed out the initial bugs, the “Humpback” —so-called due to the prominent rear of its action—became renown for its reliability. Replacing the long-recoil semi-auto is a system that draws upon the same force to cycle the gun, but in a slightly different fashion.
In the inertia operated semi-auto shotgun, the bolt carrier and what is known as an inertia spring float freely in the receiver. When fired, the shotgun as a whole recoils rearward, while these components initially retain their position in a state of inertia. The difference in motion compresses the very stiff spring. The force of the spring decompressing unlocks the bolt head, throws the carrier rearward and cycles the gun.
It doesn't get much simpler than this. An inertia drive system from a Franchi shotgun. The carrier, bolt head and spring (inside the carrier) are the only moving parts of the action.
While the system gained popularity with Benelli engineer Bruno Civolani’s improvements of the late 1960s, the system came about soon after Browning’s A-5, developed by Swede Carl Sjögren. The genius of Civolani’s design was its simplification. Sjögren’s system required a separate weight, while the Italian made the bolt carrier the weight. A small detail, but one that gives inertia semi-auto shotguns one of their most favorable attributes—simplicity.
The Benelli proudly boasts its modern inertia operated shotguns only have three moving parts—bolt head, inertia spring and bolt carrier. In turn, they are easy to maintain and tend to stand up to a licking. Waterfowlers love them, given they’ll take all their marshy abuse and still fill a bag.
Inertia guns are also light, which might be good or bad depending on your standpoint. It’s good if you value a nimble field piece you won’t get bogged down carrying all day. The bad of it, light means thump. By and large, the guns generate more felt recoil than gas-operated guns, which can prove problematic for the recoil sensitive and high-volume shooters.
Gas Operated Semi-Auto Shotgun
High Standard was the first to cobble together a gas-operated semi-automatic shotgun in the late 1950s, sold by Sears and marketed under the retailer’s J.C. Higgins brand. But for the most part, the development of the system—especially as we know it today—was a Remington affair. And while it came out with a few models prior—Model 58 for example—Big Green’s Model 1100 set the standard of what became the dominant style autoloader of the latter half of the 20th Century. Reliability of what was considered a finicky system up to that point, along with shootiblity are what etched the 1100 into shooter’s hearts.
Remington Model 1100 12 gauge. Although a bit hefty at around 7-1/2 pounds, it was still very popular with upland gunners through the 1960s and 1970s. In the lighter 20 gauge at 6-1/2 pounds, it continues to be a popular upland gun.
Opposed to recoil, gas-operated shotguns bled off some of the expanding gas of the deflagrated propellent to cycle the gun. The gas drives a piston(s) reward with it the action bars that subsequently operate the bolt. Out with the old, in with the new, hammer cocked and you’re ready to do it all over again. Simple enough, but it is a slightly more complex system that does overall have more components than inertia guns.
Given this, gas-operated semi-auto shotguns tend to be heftier. This aspect is actually a benefit for many, given the weightier firearms soak up more recoil, thus has built a reputation of being easier to shoot. Trap shooters and the like have gravitated to gas guns exactly for this benefit.
Of course, this can make gas guns more burdensome when you’re on the hoof. On top of that, and compared to inertia guns, they're dirty. Even if it isn’t the poop where it eats AR rifle situation, gas-operated semi-auto shotguns require regular cleanings, lest carbon fouling, well … fouls everything up.
A look at Remington's VersaPort layout. Shorter shells cover up fewer ports allowing more gas to escape, while larger shell cover up more venting less gas. In turn, the shotguns self regulate to cycle no matter what they're fed.
This style of semi-auto shotgun, in the past, has also proven difficult to run a wide spectrum of shells through reliably. While most will kick high brass out like it’s late on its bar tab, low brass often doesn’t have enough oomph to cycle. This has changed in recent years with Remington’s Versa Max and V3, and Savage‘s Renagauge shotguns. Each is designed cycle shells with no gas adjustment, no matter the load. Remington does this through numerous ports and Savage values.
Gas Vs Inertia: Which Wins Out?
The correct answer is both. Honestly, if you buy a reputable brand, which there are many nowadays, you’ll get a semi-auto shotgun that will run like a top. What you have to decide is, given the strengths and weaknesses of each operating system, which fits you best as a shooter?
If you shoot mountains of clays each month and want to stay sharp first shot to last, the slightly milder gas-operated semi-auto might be your cup of tea. If you head into the depths of flooded timber for duck season and need a gun that will function no matter if you drop it into a mud hole, well the inertia system will most likely shine for you. Be honest with yourself about your endeavors and you’re personal preferences as a shooter and the right choice should standout.
Benelli M4, is it the right gun for you? Could be, if you're in the market for a tactical option known for its manageable recoil.
The same holds for self-defense. Overall, both gas- and inertia-operated shotguns are more than capable of holding their own as defensive guns. And there are many fine examples of each with a tactical bent, from Stoeger’s inertia-driven M3000 series to Mossberg’s gas-operated 930 Tactical options, among many others. You just need to figure out what will enhance your shooting and not hinder your training.
Our Selection Process
So, what's our criteria for determining the best semi-auto shotguns? It boils down to personal experience with the guns and our team’s hours behind autoloaders. We’ve weighed the guns on a number of factors, some of the most important being:
Overall reliability
Quality of manufacturing
Shootability
Aesthetics
Semi-Auto Shotguns Buyer's Guide
Beretta A400 Used by plenty of competition shooters and hunters, Beretta’s semi-auto shotguns are well respected. The A400 series has more to offer than reliability, however. Equipped with Beretta’s Kick-Off hydraulic dampener recoil reduction system and the Blink gas operating system, each A400 is also fast-cycling and easy on the shoulder. This makes follow-up shots in the field as easy as can be. The controls are also enlarged for easier operation, especially while wearing gloves.
Beretta has several different A400 models available with varying barrel lengths, gauges, stock styles and other features to choose from, each geared toward a specific shooting discipline. Regardless of whether you’re after deer, birds or clays, there’s a Beretta A400 out there that could serve you well. MSRP: Starts at $1,849 // beretta.com
Benelli Super Black Eagle 3 Benelli needs no introduction, as the company’s shotguns are widely regarded as some of the best in the world, regardless of the application. When it comes to waterfowl hunting, however, it’s the Super Black Eagle 3 that takes the cake. It uses a gas-less Inertia Driven System action, similar to the above-mentioned CZ 1012, but Benelli claims that its shotguns have been known to fire over 500,000 rounds without a malfunction. This system also enables reliable function with everything from weak target loads to 3.5-inch magnum shells.
Available in both right- and left-handed configurations, the Super Black Eagle 3 has several features designed to aid with usability and ergonomics. The Comfort Tech 3 stock has shock-absorbing inserts to reduce felt recoil on the shoulder and face, the controls are oversized for faster and easier use and a new loading mechanism makes reloads fast and smooth. It’s available in 12-, 20- and 28-gauge configurations with varying chamber sizes, with a 24-, 26- or 28-inch barrel and with several finish colors and patterns. MSRP: Starts at $2,199 // benelliusa.com
Beretta 1301 Tactical Another great semi-auto shotgun option from Italy, the Beretta 1301 Tac is the more tactical cousin of the A400 featured in the hunting shotgun section. Like the A400, the 1301 features Beretta’s BLINK gas operating system, allowing for a 36-percent faster cyclic rate than similar designs. This system allows for reliable operation with a variety of shell types as well.
Other tactical features include a 7+1 capacity when using 2.75-inch shells (though it functions with 3-inch shells as well), ghost ring sights with a Picatinny rail for optics and enlarged, highly textured controls. It also has provisions for mounting a light or laser on the forend. Two models are available, one with a pistol grip and one with a traditional stock, but both feature an 18.5-inch barrel and black synthetic furniture. MSRP: Starts at $1,720 // beretta.com
IWI TS12 Like the KS-12, the IWI TS12 is another model that excels at on-board ammunition capacity, but it comes at the cost of reload times and bulk. This bullpup semi-auto 12-gauge shotgun holds 15+1 rounds on tap between three rotating tube magazines, but reloading those tubes in a hurry will be much more challenging than swapping box mags.
Despite being so large and bulky, the TS12 weighs only 8 pounds unloaded thanks to its polymer chassis. Its 28-inch overall length keeps it surprisingly compact as well. Another benefit for the tactically-minded is the inclusion of M-LOK rails as standard on the handguard. It’s available in three different finish colors too. MSRP: $1,399 // iwi.us
CZ-USA 1012 The biggest appeal of the CZ-USA 1012 semi-auto shotgun line is its gas-less inertia operating system, as it makes for some supremely reliable firearms. The system not only allows for the reliable cycling of a wide variety of shells (from low-power birdshot to hot 3-inch magnums), but it also increases the durability of the system and eliminates the need for regular cleaning. During testing, CZ-USA put 5,000 rounds through a 1012 without any maintenance and experienced zero malfunctions and no broken parts during that time. This means that for the average shotgun user, a CZ-USA 1012 will always be ready for the task at hand regardless of how infrequently it’s been cleaned or oiled.
The standard CZ-USA 1012 comes with handsome walnut furniture and a black metal finish that is available with both 28-inch and 26-inch barrel lengths, as well as two different metal finish colors with 28-inch barrels. Synthetic stock models with camouflage finishes are available too. MSRP: Starts at $679 // cz-usa.com
Browning A5 The Browning A5 is the OG semi-auto shotgun, and it will never go out of style. While its features might not stand up next to some more modern offerings, just like Browning’s 1911, it’s a truly good-enough design to still be perfectly functional over 100 years after its invention. Whether you pick up an older model made by Browning or FN or a new production Browning with their new Kinematic Drive System, an A5 will serve you well. The new-production models feature some improvements, however, so we’ll look more closely at that.
Besides being available with synthetic stocks in various camo patterns and coming with fiber optic front sights, the new Browning A5s also feature the Kinematic Drive System which Browning claims to be extremely reliable, fast-cycling and soft-shooting. Browning’s confidence in the system is backed by a 100,00-round/five-year warranty. Several models are available with different barrel lengths, chamber sizes, stock materials and finishes. MSRP: Starts at $1,539.99 // browning.com
Benelli M4 Benelli graces this list again, only this time on the tactical side. The Benelli M4 has been considered by many to be the gold standard of tactical semi-auto shotguns since it was first introduced in the late 1990s. This shotgun was designed in accordance with U.S. Army specifications for a new 12-gauge semi-automatic shotgun, and it’s been in military service around the globe ever since.
The main appeal of the Benelli M4 is also the system that warranted its adoption by U.S. Marines—the ARGO (Auto Regulating Gas Operated) system. The system runs much cleaner than most gas-operated weapons, improving reliability in all environments and increasing the possible round count between cleanings. These guns have been known to be run long and hard in very harsh conditions only to keep on ticking. Benelli offers the M4 with a couple of different stock, sight and finish options, but all come with an 18.5-inch barrel and a 12-gauge chambering. While the M4 has become a timeless classic, it comes with a hefty price tag, and its 5-shot tube makes it a bit less tactical than some of the other tactical semi-auto shotguns available today. MSRP: Starts at $2,299 // benelliusa.com
KUSA KS-12 The Kalashnikov system has been a good fit for semi-auto shotguns ever since the concept was first fielded in Russia in the 1990s as the Saiga-12. Saigas and VEPRs in 12-gauge, 20-gauge and .410 were imported into the U.S. in large numbers until they were cut off by import bans, but in that time they established themselves as an excellent and reliable semi-auto shotgun system.
While Russian-made examples are no longer available new, the concept is still on the market in the form of American- and Chinese-made clones. Of these choices, the KS-12 from Kalashnikov USA is the best. Each KS-12 comes with black synthetic furniture, although models with side-folding stocks and tactical rails are available as well. All the barrels are threaded to accept 12-gauge muzzle brakes, and they’re compatible with most Saiga-pattern accessories. Arguably the most tactical feature of the KS-12, and one that makes it stand out from many other models on this list, is its ability to feed from detachable box magazines. It comes with a 5-round as standard, but KUSA makes 10-rounders too and aftermarket Saiga drums are still available as well. When it comes to fast reloads and having a lot of ammunition on deck, the KS-12 wins. MSRP: $1,066 // kalashnikov-usa.com
Mossberg 930 SPX Pistol Grip
While Mossberg is best-known for its pump-actions, we think that the company’s tactical semi-auto shotguns are worth a look too. Namely, the 930 series. Based on a dual gas-vent system, Mossberg promises the 930 to be reliable, durable and smooth-cycling.
Mossberg has a more traditional Slugster model available as well, but the 930 SPX Pistol Grip comes with black synthetic furniture with a pistol grip, an 18.5-inch barrel, ghost ring/fiber optic iron sights and a Picatinny rail for optics. It features a 7+1 capacity, a 3-inch chamber and an ambidextrous safety, plus a button for quickly unloading the tube. It's available with either a black or tan finish. MSRP: $1,191 // mossberg.com
Editor's Note: Adam Borisenko contributed to this article.
Looking for a new iron or piece of kit to enhance the one you already own? Check out these 7 new bits of guns and gear to grow your firearms wish list.
Unless you’re still packing a flintlock as your main shooting iron, the rise of suppressors in recent years most likely hasn’t escaped your notice. While a difficult niche to truly innovate in, Alpha Silencers has done a pretty solid job. The Titan series combines two of the most demanded features—aside from sound and recoil suppression—shooters have sought: weight savings and reduced back pressure. To the former, the user-serviceable cans are constructed with rugged titanium, considerably cutting down on overall mass. The latter is hastened on by Alpha’s flow-through baffle design, pushing the expanding gases forward, thus mitigating undesirable gases in a shooter’s face. The line is composed of five suppressors—A22 (rimfire), Titan 223, Titan 30, Titan 9 and Titan 45. MSRP: Starting at $500
Armasight Sidekick 320 Thermal Monocular
Generally, owning the night involves a hefty investment coupled with relatively bulky gear. Armasight, however, may have hit the sweet spot with its Sidekick 320 Thermal Monocular. The smallest fully multi-functional 12-micron 320 thermal imaging monocular on the market, the optic opens the dark to scouting, shooting and recon—all at a relatively competitive price. Boasting a 60Hz frame rate delivered to a high-definition 1024×768 OLED display, the unit provides a seamless and crisp image. Furthermore, weighing in a tick under 7.5 ounces, the headset/helmet mountable optic doesn’t add much to an overall loadout. And, it comes with some nice bells and whistles, such as a simplified three-button control system and one-touch video recording. MSRP: $2,300
FN 5.7x28mm DFNS Ammunition
After wandering the wilderness for the better part of three decades, the FN 5.7x28mm has received some much-needed support as of late. Chief among its patrons has been the company that developed the red-hot mite. Perhaps one of the more intriguing developments is FN’s self-defense line of 5.7 ammunition: FN DFNS. Sport-ing a unique frangible copper jacketed, copper-tin metal core bullet, the 30-grain projectile offers devastating terminal ballistics, without pass-through concerns common to the cartridge. Additionally, FN has tuned the ammo’s load for top performance both out of pistols and carbines—with around 1,900 fps velocity reported out of the former and 2,200 fps out of the latter. This is an intriguing option for the fireball, one certainly upping its self-defense resume. MSRP: $40 per box of 50
Weatherby High Country Rifle
Push a few ridges back during hunting season, and you become cognizant of the importance of weight management. This is where Weatherby’s newest mountain rifle proves a valuable asset. Starting at just 5.7 pounds, the Mark V High Country offers an ultra-light hunting rifle that’s easy to carry and deadly accurate. Much of the rifle’s svelteness is thanks to its Peak 44 Bastion stock, a carbon-fiber stick that tips the scales at an incredible 24 ounces. Additionally, the stock’s profile features a more vertical grip, dual front swivel studs and a 3D HEX recoil pad—helping the featherweight not prove too much of a thumper. To the final point, Weatherby also includes an Accubrake on the High Country to tame the gun’s kick even more. Available in a host of popular hunting calibers, the rifle should prove a boon to backcountry hunters. MSRP: Starting at $2,700
Hornady ELD-VT Bullets
Varmint and long-range bullets, for the most part, have resided at opposite ends of the spectrum. Until now. Hornady has combined the best of both worlds in a unique line of projectiles meant to deliver devastating terminal performance at extremely long distances—the ELD-VT. Conceived as a dual-purpose varmint/target bullet, the offering is meant to strike a balance between the disparate disciplines. It does so by employing the long, sleek and ballistically talented Extremely Low Drag bullet profile, to extend the projectile’s range. Then, it maintains the explosive terminal ballistics at the target with a unique internal design, where the lead core is moved rearward, leaving a cavity that ensures rapid fragmentation and energy transfer. MSRP: Starting at $33
Girsan MC14T Lady Pistol
Inspired by the classic Beretta Model 86 Cheetah, the Girsan MC14T Lady offers a self-defense option to women with some unique twists. Like the Cheetah, the Turkish-made .380 ACP offers a tip-up barrel, which allows a round to be loaded without having to manipulate the slide. Not a bad system, especially for those without the hand strength to rack a slide under pressure. Additionally, the hammer-fired pistol comes with an attractive glossy black finish, wooden grip panels and gold-colored accent parts to give it a classy and timeless look. The pistol is also outfitted with a Picatinny-based railed dust cover and ported barrel, the latter mitigating a ton of barrel rise. MSRP: $682
Smith & Wesson Response Carbine
The issue with many pistol-caliber carbines (PCC) is non-compatibility with guns in their own class. That is to say, many of the designs are proprietary. Not so with the Smith & Wesson Response Carbine, which is based on the nearly ubiquitous AR-15 chassis. This makes the 9mm play nice with a great swath of existing parts and accessories, allowing you to tailor the carbine to your needs and wants. Making it even better, the Response boasts what S&W calls its Flexmag System, which makes it compatible with both M&P and Glock-style magazines. As to the carbine itself, it’s outfitted with a 16.5-inch threaded barrel surrounded by a polymer handguard with a Picatinny-style rail on top and M-Lok slots on the sides and bottom. It also comes with a Magpul MOE SL adjustable stock, a flat face trigger and an M&P grip with four interchangeable palm swell adapters. MSRP: $800
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the February 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
There was a time in deer camps when the “Thirty-Thirty” reigned supreme. The .30-30 Winchester cartridge offers a good compromise between power and recoil, plus the rifles and carbines it was typically chambered in were easy to maneuver and carry all day. While many hunters started with a .30-30 before moving on to something bigger, plenty of others chose to stick with it. After all, why fix what ain’t broken? With modern advances in ammunition and new cartridges being introduced, one would expect the .30-30 Winchester (with over a century of use under its belt) to have faded away into the sunset. Not a chance. The .30-30 is the American deer cartridge, and it remains the benchmark by which all others are compared.
.30-30 Is Born
Winchester had been providing Americans with lever-action guns since the 1860s, and while popular and effective, these older models were designed to only shoot black powder cartridges. This includes the first iteration of the Winchester Model 1894 which was chambered for .32-40 Winchester and .38-55 Winchester. Smokeless powder was beginning to catch on, however, and Winchester decided to keep up with the times. Just one year after the Model 94 was introduced, the design was revamped to use a harder steel to allow the use of higher-pressure smokeless powder cartridges. The smokeless cartridge they developed for the new Model 94 was called .30 Winchester Centerfire or .30 WCF, more commonly known today as .30-30. This cartridge and rifle combo is perhaps the most popular hunting setup ever made.
The new .30-30 round was originally loaded with a 160-grain .30-caliber bullet over 30 grains of early smokeless powder. This was the old-fashioned way of naming a cartridge similar to the .45-70 Government—.45 caliber bullet over 70 grains of black powder. The .30-30 name stuck. That original load had a muzzle velocity of about 1,970 fps.
While 1,970 fps is slow by today’s standards, back in the late 1890s the cartridge was seen as a fast, flat-shooting round. It was popular from the beginning, and that helped stoke the legendary status of the cartridge. Today the .30-30 has two common bullet weights in its sweet spot: 150- and 170-grain. Lighter and heavier bullets are available, but these two weights best show off the .30-30’s abilities.
Game Getter
In the U.S. alone the .30-30 has been used to hunt all sizes and types of beasts: whitetail deer, mule deer, pronghorn, caribou, elk, moose, and black bear as well as wolves, coyotes and an assortment of other varmints and critters. The round is quite capable of taking game at modest ranges. It is by no means a long-range cartridge. The caliber is best suited in scenarios where shots will be under 100 yards. It is a caliber for the woods and not the prairies for sure.
Common .30-30 Loads
The most common .30-30 factory loads are with 150- and 170-grain bullets. Looking at Winchester factory data on Power-Point ammo, the 150-grain soft point has a muzzle velocity of 2,390 fps and 1,902 foot-pounds of energy. The Power-Point 170-grain load only loses a bit of speed and energy with a muzzle velocity of 2,200 fps and 1,827 foot-pounds. The best zero for both of these loads is 100 yards. At 200 yards, the 150-grain bullet drops almost 6.5 inches and has 1,116 foot-pounds of energy left, which means the round is capable of a 200-yard shot but only by a capable marksman. For most hunters, that holdover makes for a tricky shot that is best to pass by.
One more bullet weight offered for the .30-30 is the 125-grain soft point. Remington makes this cartridge as a managed recoil round. It offers more velocity, but less energy downrange than either the 150- or 170-grain bullets. Another less common bullet weight to consider is 190 grains. These rounds are best suited for long-range shooting or defense in grizzly country.
The best update .30-30 has received in the recent past was in 2006 when Hornady introduced LEVERevolution ammo. One drawback of .30-30 ammo is the need to use flat- or round-nose bullets. The reason for this is the cartridges feed from a tubular magazine, with the bullet of one round touching the primer of the cartridge in front of it. The blunt bullet design ensures the tip of the bullet doesn’t accidentally fire the cartridge in front during recoil or when dropped. The bad news is these round- and flat-nose bullets have a lousy BC and drag through the air. Hornady cleverly placed a soft rubber tip on a more pointed bullet with a better BC which translates into increased accuracy and power at longer ranges. Best of all, they’re safe to use in tube mags.
Hornady loads these rounds with 140- and 160-grain bullets that have muzzle velocities of 2,465 fps and 2,400 fps, respectively. As you can see in the chart below, the Hornady 140-grain bullet has a slightly flatter trajectory and drops less than five inches at 200 yards. Less common are 165- and 175-grain cartridges. Both of these bullets are specialized, subsonic bullets that offer low noise and reduced recoil.
.30-30 Vs. Modern Cartridges
Two modern cartridges that have similar ballistics to the .30-30 are 300 BLK and .350 Legend. The 300 BLK was designed to fire a .30 caliber bullet in AR-15-style rifles. This cartridge is offered in sub and supersonic options in bullet weights ranging from 100 to 220 grains. Winchester offers a 150-grain bullet in the 300 BLK under their Power-Point line. The .350 Legend was designed for use in states that allow straight-wall cartridges and is used in AR-15, bolt-action and single-shot rifles. Bullet weights for the .350 Legend range from 140 to 255 grains with 150-grain bullets being popular. This chart compares the two modern 150-grain bullet loads—the 300 BLK and .350 Legend—against the old-school 150-grain .30-30.
What’s newer doesn’t necessarily translate into better. All three of these rounds are evenly matched, but interestingly, the .30-30 actually shoots a bit flatter than the 300 BLK and .350 Legend. At 200 yards the 300 BLK drops 11.3 inches and the 350 Legend drops 7.5 inches; the .30-30 only drops 6.4 inches. At 100 yards, the .30-30 has 1,468 foot-pounds of energy, the .350 Legend has 1,290 foot-pounds and the 300 BLK has only 907 foot-pounds. Clearly, the ballistics of the older .30-30 is the top dog in this comparison. All three calibers offer mild recoil. The only disadvantage I see with the .30-30 is the limited types of rifles chambered for it. You have your choice of a lever-action or a lever-action. That might be a detriment to some hunters, while others may just want to cowboy up. Hunting ammo cost for all three calibers is comparable.
So, why choose the .30-30? The cartridge has been around for well over 100 years now and in that time it’s more than proven itself in the field. It’s a timeless, all-American cartridge that can serve you just as well today as it did when it was invented (or likely even better, given modern ammo developments). If you’re a hunter looking to bag some game with a lever-action, the venerable .30-30 remains an excellent option.
Top Ten .30-30 Hunting Loads
150-Grain Winchester Super-X
Super-X ammo is loaded with 150-grain hollow point bullets that feature a rearward weight design to enhance bullet accuracy. At the business end, the jacketed hollow point offers rapid expansion on impact. I’ve used these 150-grain bullets in the past and found that at 50 yards they knock deer down. Factory data states muzzle velocity is 2,390 fps and muzzle energy is 1,902 foot-pounds. The cost per round is about $1.97 or $40 for a box of twenty. Winchester usually runs old-school mail-in rebates where you snail mail your receipt and UPC code on the side of the box, along with a form. All that paperwork knocks a few bucks off the price. This is a great option for deer, black bear and pigs.
This time-proven ammunition uses a 170-grain Power-Point bullet for more penetration. I have shot a lot of this ammo, as have many other deer and bear hunters, in all types of lever-actions, and found I can depend on it to help me fill my tag. Factory muzzle velocity is stated at 2,200 fps and energy is rated at 1,827 foot-pounds. I actually got a bit more speed—2,233 fps—out of my Winchester Model 94 Short Rifle with a 20-inch barrel, and that was on a cold day. Average groups measured 1.8 inches at 50 yards using open sights. This ammo is less expensive than other Winchester cartridges. Expect to pay about $1.20 a round or a bit over $24 for a full box of twenty. Another good option for deer, pigs, and black bear.
This .30-30 ammo choice is really a go-to deer cartridge. The 150-grain Core-Lokt soft point bullet with the scallop edge jacket has been extremely popular with hunters for decades. It’s a no-nonsense bullet designed to mushroom on impact. Remington’s marketing used to call Core-Lokt bullets the deadliest mushrooms in the woods. Dad's pal had a Sears Model 100 lever-action (that was made by Winchester) that grouped Core-Lokts at 2.1 inches at 50 yards with open sights. That’s MOD (Minute Of Deer) in my book. Muzzle velocity and energy are 2,390 fps and 1,902 foot-pounds, respectively. They go for about $1.40 each or $28 for twenty. It also comes in a 170-grain bullet version and a 125-grain Managed Recoil option that produces 50 percent less recoil. A good option for deer.
This is another go-to .30-30 deer round loaded with a 150-grain jacketed soft point flat-nose bullet. Some Marlin 336 hunters find it very accurate in their rifles. Ballistics are what you expect: 2,390 fps muzzle velocity and 1,902 foot-pounds of energy. This ammo is affordable at about $1.13 per round; boxes are about $23. At this price, you can buy more ammo for next season or share it with that buddy who never seems to have ammo come hunting season. Also a good option for whitetails.
I'm a big fan of Barnes TSX bullets since they retain weight, consistently expand to nearly double the diameter and offer great penetration. They have a monolithic copper construction, too, and the bullet shank is grooved for accuracy. The 150-grain offers great penetration, so if it’s feral pigs or black bear you are after, I'd load up with these. Out of my Winchester 94, muzzle velocity clocked at 2,200 fps and 1,641 foot-pounds of energy. I averaged 1.5-inch groups at 50 yards. These rounds are a bit pricey, as they have an MSRP of about $56 per box. This a good option for larger body animals like moose and elk where more penetration is required. It’s also a good choice where hunting regulations dictate or encourage the use of non-lead bullets.
I have had excellent results with this Serbian-produced ammo in a variety of different calibers, especially the .30-30 loaded with a 170-grain soft point. Not only is this ammo inexpensive, but it does not compromise on performance. It cycles smoothly and loads easily. Muzzle velocity is 2,181 fps and muzzle energy is 1,792 foot-pounds. I have seen this ammo advertised as low as $1.04 a round or $21 for a box of twenty. That strokes the frugal Yankee in me. Good choice for deer and pigs.
The 160-grain FTX bullet literally revolutionized ballistics out of the lever-action rifle. I recommend this for everything from whitetails, pigs and black bear to even large game like moose out to 100 yards. The secret to the performance of this ammo is the elastomer Flex Tip of the FTX bullets. These pointed bullets are safe to use in tubular magazines, and the higher BC offers a flatter trajectory so it drops less than the typical .30-30 bullet. Muzzle velocity is 2,400 fps and muzzle energy is 2,046 foot-pounds. Zero your gun at 200 yards and it will shoot about 3 inches high at 100, but that means you can hold dead-on out to 200 yards and still nail the kill zone of a whitetail. My Model 94 groups these Hornady loads at 1.1 inches at 50 yards. The only downside is price, as these can often go for over $1.50 per round. This is a great choice for black bear, elk, moose and longer shots on deer.
This 190-grain jacketed flat-nose round is jacked up in speed and power with a muzzle velocity of 2,100 fps out of the typical 20-inch barrel on .30-30 rifles. The load uses a Hawk Bullet with a hard core and thicker than typical jacket so it penetrates more than it expands. This is a heavy-duty round well suited for larger beasts like elk and moose or protection in grizzly bear country. This is definitely no plinking round though, as MSRP is about $86 for a box of 20. I do not recommend this round for deer because the bullet will easily over-penetrate.
This ammunition is specifically designed for use in lever-action rifles to cycle smoothly and deliver on performance. The 190-grain all-copper flat-nose projectile offers expansion, weight retention and penetration with a muzzle velocity of 2,040 fps and 1,756 foot-pounds of energy. This is a great general-use cartridge for deer, boar and black bear. The price is a little steep, about $2.15 per round or $34 for twenty rounds.
This ammunition uses an all-copper 150-grain round-nose polymer-tip bullet. The bullet's boat-tail configuration reduces drag and, when combined with the streamlined polymer tip, wrings out longer-distance shots. Like all Nosler E-tip bullets, the polycarbonate tip prevents deformation in the magazine while boosting aerodynamic efficiency and initiating expansion on contact. Muzzle velocity is 2,250 fps and energy is 1,698 foot-pounds. The cost is about $2.90 per round or $58.00 for a box of 20 rounds.
Not all sniper rifles are created equal. With such an intimate firearm there are many details to consider that might make all the difference to one shooter and no difference to another. Chassis construction and material, ease of disassembly, action type, chambering, and barrel design are all worthy of careful consideration.
Best Sniper Rifles On The Market
Barrett MRAD
Can one rifle do it all? The Barrett MRAD is trying to adapt to a variety of user needs without sacrificing performance. This bolt-action newcomer defines a whole new class of long-range rifles.
The heart of the MRAD is the rifle’s user-changeable barrel system. This is truly a modular rifle. The precision-grade barrel can be removed by simply unscrewing two bolts using a standard Torx wrench. Besides reducing maintenance and logistical burdens, this unique design paves the way for future caliber interchangeability and serviceability. The base rifle is offered in .338 Lapua and barrels for .300 Winchester Magnum and .308 Winchester are in the pipeline.
The MRAD also boasts Barrett’s new easily accessed trigger module. This match-grade trigger is drop-fire-proof and combat-ready. The thumb-operated safety can be configured for left- or right-handed operation. The ambidextrous magazine release can be used intuitively while retaining a firing grip and cheek weld. Integrated into the MRAD rifle’s 7000 series aluminum upper receiver is an M1913 rail with 30 MOA taper and 21.75 inches of rail space.
The MRAD rifle’s stock is foldable for enhanced portability yet locks in as solid as a fixed-stock rifle, creating a rigid platform for consistent firing. When folded, the stock latches around the bolt handle for added security during transport. Because the stock folds to the bolt handle side of the action, the rifle is the same width overall, folded or extended. The rifle’s length of pull can be set to five different positions with the push of a single button.
IWI US DAN
IWI US is best known stateside for its Tavor-style bullpup carbines and Galil ACE on the rifle side of things, but the manufacturer recently unveiled its DAN bolt-action rifle. Chambered in the long-range favorite .338 Lapua Magnum, the DAN rifle was designed with input from Israel Defense Forces special forces operatives and was built to fill a long-range sniper and anti-material rifle role.
The rifle is built on a one-piece, lightweight aluminum-alloy chassis and features a full-length, one-piece Picatinny rail up top with 20 MOA of built-in canted drop, along with a full-length bottom rail as well. The DAN’s skeletonized stock is fully adjustable for length of pull, drop of heel and comb height, and it folds to the side to reduce the overall length of the rifle when needed.
The DAN utilizes a 1:10 twist, 28-inch heavy, fluted, free-floating, cold hammer-forged barrel that has 5/8-24 threads at the muzzle for attachments. To support this long and heavy barrel, the DAN comes with an Atlas BT46-LW17 PSR bipod, as well as an ACCU-SHOT BT13-QK-PRM adjustable folding monopod.
The IWI US DAN also features a two-stage adjustable trigger and an ambidextrous safety and mag release. IWI states that the gun achieves sub-MOA accuracy, and reports suggest the rifle is capable of this to ranges of 1,200 meters and perhaps more. At about $9,000, however, you do pay for this performance.
Barrett M107A1
In combat ounces and pounds add up quickly. So Barrett opted to remove some from the equation and help snipers stay hidden as well.
The newest .50 BMG sniper rifle from Barrett may be related to the Model 82A1/M107, but the M107A1 is far from a simple evolution. Driven by the demands of combat, every component was re-engineered to be lighter yet stronger. The result is a high-performance rifle that weighs 4 pounds less than the original M107, but is every bit as tough.
Designed to be used, with a suppressor, the M107A1 allows operators to combine signature reduction capabilities with flawless reliability. An all-new bolt carrier group is key to making the rifle suppressor-ready. Its titanium four-port muzzle brake is engineered to work seamlessly with a quick-attach Barrett .50 BMG Suppressor.
The lightweight aluminum upper receiver features an integrated, rigid 27 MOA optics rail. Inside the upper receiver, the bolt carrier rides on a hardened steel, anti-wear strip for added durability. A thermal-guard cheek piece protects the user’s face from extreme heat or cold.
The rear-barrel stop and front-barrel bushing are bolted and bonded with a compound similar to that used on space shuttles. A titanium barrel key and fully chrome-lined bore and chamber add to the rifle’s durability.
The M107A1 rifle’s lower receiver includes a new aluminum recoil buffer system that’s optimized for use with a suppressor. The bolt carrier’s components are protected with a mix of ultra-hard PVD coatings and advanced nickel Teflon plating that increases lubricity, is corrosion-resistant and greatly eases cleaning.
This is a rifle built for the extreme duty required in modern combat.
Knight's Armament M110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System (SASS)
The M110C is the latest version of the Knight M110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System (SASS) is the U.S. Army’s latest medium-caliber sniper rifle. There are also reports that the United States Marine Corps will soon adopt the weapon. The M110C is lighter than the original version but maintains that legendary Knight reliability and accuracy. The 7.62mm SASS delivers a new level of long-range precision rapid fire that enables execution of operational missions not possible using manually operated weapon systems.
High-capacity, quick-change magazines enable ammo selection optimization in both the suppressed and unsuppressed firing modes. The semi-automatic M110 has increased sniper rate of fire, precision and lethality against personnel and light material targets, especially in target rich environments and scenarios requiring multiple follow-up shots. The SASS is also the first U.S. Army weapon system that integrates an optimized quick attach/detach sound suppressor to aid with Warfighter survivability by reducing weapon firing signature.
Chambered for 7.62 NATO the M110C weighs in at 16 pounds with a barrel length of 20 inches. And an overall length of 47.25 inches.
Savage Model 10 GRS
Savage’s time-tested Model 10 action has been around for a while, and although it may not seem as fancy as some of the others floating around out there, it has proven to be an accurate and reliable platform. And it’s also, generally speaking, less expensive, without much, if any, sacrifice in terms of quality.
The new GRS model, available in .308 Winchester, 6.5 Creedmoor and, recently, 6mm Creemdoor, pairs this classic action with GRS Riflestocks’ excellent Berserk stock. The rock-steady stock is adjustable for length of pull and comb height and is constructed using 15-percent fiberglass-reinforced Durethan, with 65-percent glass bedding material. The stock also features a slim design along with textured rubber surfaces for improved grip, even in wet conditions.
Other great features include 5/8-24 threading for attaching muzzle devices; a fluted heavy barrel of 20, 24 or 26 inches, depending on caliber; and flush cup sling loops and sling mount for bipod use. It’s also pretty affordable for a rifle in this category at right around $1,500.
Ruger Precision Rifle
Ruger’s Precision Rifle (RPR) has been one of the hottest commodities of the past couple years in the firearms industry. Designed to be relatively affordable while retaining a pretty high degree of performance, the RPR is truly packed with features.
The “upper” receiver and one-piece bolt are both CNC machined from pre-hardened 4140 chrome-moly steel, while the “lower” half is precision machined from aerospace-grade 7075-T6 aluminum and receives a Type III hardcoat anodized finish. The rifle utilizes a medium-contour, cold hammer forged 4140 chrome-moly barrel featuring 5R rifling and equipped with the RPR Hybrid Muzzle Brake.
Up top is a 20 MOA Picatinny rail for mounting optics. The RPR Short-Action Handguard also offers improved scope clearance for some of the larger optics used in long-range applications. The stock is Ruger’s Precision MSR stock, which is a left-folding design that works with an AR-style buffer tube; the use of the AR-style buffer tube also permits the use of other compatible stocks, if the user desires.
The rifle’s three-lug bolt features a smooth, 70-degree throw. And it comes with an oversized bolt handle for more fluid operation. An extended trigger-reach, AR-style grip rests below the bolt, though, any AR-style grip is compatible. In terms of the trigger, the gun uses Ruger’s Marksman Adjustable Trigger, which is variable from 2.25 to 5 pounds of pressure.
All in all, there’s a lot to like about the RPR. And at right around $1,600, it won’t break the bank. It’s available in .308 Winchester, 6.5 Creedmoor, 6mm Creedmoor and .223 Remington/5.56 NATO.
FN Ballista
Although SOCOM ultimately awarded its relatively recent PSR (Precision Sniper Rifle) contract to Remington’s MSR, the FN Ballista was also a competitor, and it remains a highly capable sniper rifle system. Featuring a modular, multi-caliber design, the Ballista can be configured, or reconfigured, to shoot .308 Winchester, .300 Winchester Magnum or .338 Lapua Magnum in under two minutes.
The FN Ballista utilizes a lightweight, high-strength, vibration-isolated aluminum-alloy receiver that features a full-length top rail and multiple rail segments at other positions. The barrels are each 26 inches in length and are fluted and come with polygonal rifling.
A fully adjustable trigger (single- or two-stage) is included and breaks at between 3 and 5 pounds of pull. The sniper rifle incorporates multiple safety systems, has an ambidextrous magazine release forward of the trigger guard and features an ambidextrous folding stock.
The MSRP of the Ballista is listed at $7,499.
Kimber Advanced Tactical SOC II
Developed to meet the needs of military or law enforcement professionals, the Advanced Tactical SOC II (Special Operations Capable) is available in .308 Winchester or 6.5 Creedmoor and is built by hand. Assembled around Kimber’s 8400 Magnum action, the Advanced Tactical SOC features an adjustable aluminum side-folding stock with a 1-inch Pachmayr Decelerator recoil pad.
The rifle has a 22-inch stainless steel barrel, which is threaded and receives a matte black, KimPro II finish. It comes with an adjustable trigger, which is factory set at 3 to 3.5 pounds.
The Kimber Advanced Tactical SOC II weighs 11 pounds, 6 ounces and comes with a sub-half-MOA guarantee. It is available for $2,583.
Tikka T3x TAC A1
Although it’s perhaps best known for its hunting rifles, the Finnish manufacturer Tikka made an interesting move into the tactical realm at the start of 2017 by introducing its new T3x TAC A1. Built around Tikka’s proven T3x action and a rugged chassis system, the T3x TAC A1 is a highly capable rifle.
Comb height and length of pull are fully adjustable with the chassis system, and a full-length 20 MOA Picatinny rail runs along the top. M-Lok slots are located along the rest of the handguard.
The rifle utilizes a cold hammer-forged barrel (16, 20 and 24 inches, depending on caliber) that is threaded (5/8-24) for attaching muzzle devices. Available chamberings include .308 Winchester, 6.5 Creedmoor and .260 Remington.
Like Ruger’s Precision Rifle, the T3x TAC A1 has a chassis designed to be compatible with any AR-style stock that mounts to a buffer tube, as well as any AR-style grip. The rifle’s two-lug bolt is Teflon coated and features an oversized bolt handle. Both help ensure quick and flawless cycling of the bolt.
The trigger is an adjustable, two-stage design. Pull weight can be set anywhere between 2 to 4 pounds, which is plenty serviceable for any precision rifle.
Sako TRG M10
Like the Remington MSR and FN Ballista already mentioned, the Sako TRG M10 was a contender for SOCOM’s PSR contract. In the end, it came down to the MSR and the TRG M10, and the MSR ended up edging out the Finnish design.
Just as with the other two precision sniper rifles, the TRG 10 is a highly modular design, which makes it quite versatile. The stock is fully adjustable and requires no tools to make changes. Similarly, the pistol grip comes with interchangeable backstraps.
Controls are ambidextrous and are large enough to be easily manipulated, even with gloves. The rifle features a two-stage trigger mechanism similar to those found on Sako’s TRG-22 and TRG-42, user adjustable between 2.2 and 4.4 pounds. The three-lug bolt with 60-degree throw is likewise taken from the TRG-22/42, and results in an equivalently short and smooth operation.
The TRG M10 is available in .308 Winchester or .338 Lapua Magnum.
McMillan TAC-50A1
The recoil on a 50 BMG rifle can be stout. McMillan has cut it by 90 percent with a new hydraulic recoil mitigation system for the TAC-50.
The heart of the new TAC-50 A1-R2 recoil mitigation system is a proprietary hydraulic piston in the buttstock. As the rifle is fired, the piston compresses, softening the recoil by lowering the peak recoil force and spreading out the recoil over several milliseconds. The sensation for the shooter is that of a long push, rather than a violent punch.
Without the R2 recoil mitigation system, the peak recoil from a 50 BMG cartridge is approximately 7,500 pounds of force. From start to finish, the recoil lasts 1 millisecond in a machine rest. With the R2 system, the peak recoil is only approximately 520 pounds of force. What’s more, the force is spread out over 6 milliseconds. While the total recoil energy is roughly the same, the hydraulic piston lowers the perception of recoil dramatically for a shooter by lowering the peak force and spreading the recoil out over time. The proprietary muzzle brake offered on the TAC-50 A1-R2 provides additional recoil reduction.
In addition to the new R2 recoil mitigation system, the TAC-50 A1-R2 features a new take-down A1-style fiberglass stock with a forend that is 5 inches longer than the original TAC-50 stock, moving the balance point for the bipod forward. There is a saddle-type cheekpiece, and the removable buttstock is attached to the rifle with a quick-detach push pin. The stock incorporates a smaller pistol grip to fit a wider range of hand shapes, with and without gloves.
The TAC-50 A1-R2 has a new bipod that is lighter, yet sturdier than the original TAC-50. The legs adjust vertically, as well as forward and rearward to fine-tune the rifle for elevation.
A new magazine system offers a positive, self-locking magazine latch that is easier to operate with gloved hands. The magazine release lever is repositioned ahead of the trigger bow.
As with the original TAC-50, the TAC-50 A1-R2 features a 29-inch premium selected, hand-lapped match-grade free-floating barrel, threaded muzzle brake, detachable 5-round box magazine, tuned 3.5-pound trigger, and extra-long bolt handle to clear large optics. It utilizes the proven McMillan 50 caliber action. All components are built to benchrest precision tolerances.
The McMillan TAC-50 product line continues to be used by military forces around the world as both an ultra-long range anti-personnel tactical rifle, as well as an anti-materiel rifle used for disabling assets at long range.
For many military units, it is the benchmark for extreme long -range accuracy in a tactical rifle weapons system.
Accuracy International AXMC
From the same company that created the iconic “Green Meanie” L96A1, Accuracy International is still making some head-turning precision rifles. While this model is not a member of the classic Arctic Warfare series of sniper rifles, the company’s AX series has a similarly impressive set of features. The AXMC is the user-configurable, multi-caliber model in the lineup.
This 15-pound bolt-action rifle features a 27-inch barrel, a recoil-reducing tactical muzzle brake and a folding stock. An optional threaded muzzle brake can be used to mount an Accuracy International suppressor as well. It feeds from detachable 10-round box magazines and has enough rail space to mount an optic, a bipod and any other accessories that one might desire. All these features are fairly standard for a modern tactical sniper rifle, however, so let’s dive into what truly sets the AXMC apart.
The “MC” in “AXMC” stands for “Multi Calibre”, the defining feature of this model. This means that while the rifle comes standard chambered for .338 Lapua, it can be easily and quickly swapped to either .300 Win. Mag. or .308 Winchester in the field.
All the caliber conversion process entails is replacing the barrel, bolt and magazine. The only tool required to do so is a 4mm hex key, which is conveniently stored right in the buttstock. The quick change barrel feature could also potentially be used to keep the gun cool during severe fire schedules.
The AX series of rifles have been proven in combat, and the AXMC merely adds an extra level of versatility to this already well-respected sniper rifle line. It has all the features that would be expected and desired in a modern, tactical bolt-action precision rifle, but now with the option of three calibers in one. The .300 Win. Mag. and .308 Winchester conversion kits are sold separately, of course, but that’s still much cheaper than buying three individual rifles of this quality.
Editor's Note: Adam Borisenko contributed to this article.
Daniel Defense has just announced the DANIEL H9, a redesigned and updated version of the original Hudson H9 9mm handgun.
Originally announced at SHOT Show 2017 by Hudson Mfg., the Hudson H9 made a big impression. The 9mm handgun had a lot going for it thanks to its unique design, and those who bought one seemed to be pleased with it, but the company unfortunately went under just a couple of years later. Fans of the H9 should be excited then, as Daniel Defense announced at SHOT Show 2024 that it had purchased Hudson’s patents and was bringing the pistol back as the DANIEL H9.
Despite looking nearly identical from the outside, the DANIEL H9 only shares a single component with the original Hudson. This is because of Daniel Defense’s commitment to quality, and while the Hudson H9 boasted a very innovative design, it ultimately didn’t meet Daniel Defense’s manufacturing standards. A few years, a million rounds of 9mm and a lot of research later, the refined DANIEL H9 was born. Now, Daniel Defense is confident that the pistol will share the same reputation of quality as the company’s rifles.
If you’re not familiar with the H9 design, it’s probably best described as a 1911 updated for the 21st century. It keeps many of the same well-loved features of the 1911, like a slim profile, a straight-pull trigger and a naturally pointing grip angle, with modern features like a striker-fire mechanism, an optics-ready slide and redesigned internals that allow the pistol to have the lowest bore axis in its class. That last detail is probably the most significant. Further, the DANIEL H9 is lighter than the original Hudson thanks to its aluminum frame—an update that Hudson had planned on incorporating before going bankrupt.
There’s a lot more that could be said about the H9, both the original concept and Daniel Defense’s redesigned version. This post isn’t for discussing every unique detail, however. It’s for bringing the good news that one of the most interesting pistols to be announced in recent years is not dead. Now in the hands of a large, reputable manufacturer, its life has really just begun. The DANIEL H9 is available now at select dealers and has an MSRP of $1,299.
For more information on the DANIEL H9’s specs, the features that set it apart from other modern pistols and what Daniel Defense did to improve upon the original Hudson, please visit danieldefense.com.
A peak at Midwest Industries’ Premium Lever Action Stock Series, the company’s latest accessories for modernizing your lever gun.
The last time lever-action rifles were this popular, horses were probably still in vogue too. Regardless, new lever gun models weren’t the only thing to be released at SHOT Show 2024, as Midwest Industries announced several new accessories for lever-action rifles as well.
Called the Midwest Industries Premium Lever Action Stock Series, the lineup features more than just stocks. The stocks are compatible with rifles from Marlin, Winchester, Rossi and Henry, and the other new accessories add a lot of potential for customization for anyone looking to bring a lever-action into the 21st century. The new products include ambidextrous stocks with various profiles, G10 M-LOK and grip panels, an M-LOK shell holder, stock spacer plates and more.
Troy Storch, owner of Midwest Industries, said this about the new lineup:
As the company that kicked off the lever action revolution all those years ago, it feels great to get back to redefining what a lever action rifle can be … Adding modern components and accessories shouldn’t force lever action enthusiasts to sacrifice the old-school feel that drew them to the platform in the first place. We aimed to take what makes a lever action rifle great and make it even better, and I think we accomplished that.
The accessories in Midwest Industries’ Premium Lever Action Stock Series are available now.
The author discusses Faxon Firearms' new 700-footprint FX7 action and uses one to build a precision rifle.
There seems to be no limit to the number of variants that can be extrapolated upon using the classic Remington 700 screw spacing. In the past decade, countless actions by dozens of companies, big and small, have introduced their own spin on making a turnbolt action that feeds from AICS mags. The short-action bolt gun is dominant in America and, as a result, there’s a race to make what could be the best one at the best price.
Indeed, in our era, we have seen the actions—not completed rifles—run up a bill in excess of $1,500 … and sometimes even more.
Factoring in barrels, stocks, optics and accessories, you can rack up a build easily exceeding $10,000 for a slight edge in performance against other high rollers (you can at least spend that money on a Barrett M107 if you want to truly dunk on your range buddies, but that’s up to you).
Faxon Firearms sought to change this paradigm and launched what is perhaps the most adaptable, feature-rich action on the market for the price … and the future will only hold more options for their new action at a fraction of the cost of the competition.
Oh, and they have the ability to swap calibers with pre-fit barrels.
The Bolt Gun Of Tomorrow
Bolt-action rifles today are unilaterally descended from the Mauser 1896. Why not the Mauser 98, arguably the most famous Mauser, the Backbone of Hitler’s Wehrmacht? Simply because 1898 actions have a third lug on the bolt—not even the 1903 Springfield, itself a Mauser, can claim true fatherhood of today’s most common actions. The main difference in the operation mode is 1896 actions are cock-on-closing, where today’s guns, and the Mauser 1898, are cock-on-opening. The latter cocking feature has become the predominate mode of fire control, where the lug-free tubular bolt akin to the 1896 action has assumed the role of dominant action style.
Truth told, the 1896 action, as well as the 1903 Springfield, were “overly safe” in terms of construction; the cartridges and associated pressures present in the earlier Mauser designs were all within standard range, and the 1896 locking lugs were plenty even for modern cartridges. Needless to say, there has been a never-ending attempt to increase the strength of the common bolt gun, largely in a move to increase the number of cartridges that can be fired from one action. The short action needed to exceed what Mauser started, and what we see with the new Faxon FX7 action is one of the strongest to date for its size.
The Faxon FX7 action in .308 Win., as it arrived from the factory.
Faxon has dabbled in bolt actions for a little while. Years ago, the company made Ruger Precision rifle barrels as an aftermarket option. They also did OEM work for some companies. The turn came when Faxon partnered with Stiller for the launch of the 8.6 Blackout as a limited first run.
Faxon did an incredible job on the barrel, the cartridge itself I found a bit wanting across the board, notably due to some mathematical snake oil found in the advertising from Q, the company from which the 8.6 Blackout “originated” (JD Jones had the .338 Whisper decades ago, just like he also had .300 Whisper. Rebranding is a hell of a thing, I suppose).
I appreciate Faxon’s enthusiasm for what amounted to a wildcat cartridge at the time, though the overall status and acceptance of the 8.6 Blackout is still in flux. I don’t personally see a glittering future for the conspicuous cartridge beyond boutique end use, though I have been wrong before. Eating crow is a staple diet for gun writers.
The 8.6 RemAge (a name for barrels that used a Remington 700 standard thread but utilized a Savage-style barrel nut for headspacing) style barrels came after, and these products did very well with consumers. The question then came up, “What if we did this our way? A high-quality product without breaking the bank?”
It was decided that Faxon would make their own actions in 2022. It was kept relatively quiet and was released with excitement at SHOT Show 2023. The product line was launched to include rifles, barreled actions and pre-fit barrels. Every core component is made in-house, from the bolt to the action body.
Note the two small screws holding the trigger hanger plate to the receiver. You won’t need to pound your pins out with a punch like other 700 actions: The heavy lifting is done for you. In fact, this was the easiest trigger install the author ever accomplished.
The products consist of a strong 416 body and 4340 bolt, easily able to withstand modern ammunition. The design was meant to keep price manageable but offer a feature-rich end-product to include an integral recoil lug and optics rail, 70-degree six-lug bolt (wow!) and Remington 700 compatible trigger options. In short, it would be the strongest, most variable action on the market at a savings compared to other options.
But Faxon didn’t just settle here: They also wanted the smoothest action and went to great length to provide the user a satisfactory experience in overall operation. The smoothness, they felt, has to be there, and they achieved it. They focused in on the handling experience and not just high-performance function. I, personally, enjoy this approach.
Actions will include trigger pins, though they’re laid out very differently than in typical 700-footprint actions. The trigger cassette, in this case a Timney Hunter model, is held in by a separate part entirely as opposed to being pinned to the receiver directly, as is done with most 700 clone actions. You will use a Phillips (in the age of Hex bits?) driver to remove two tiny screw on a plate. This plate has contained pins that enable you to attach it to the trigger of tour choice. This plate is then screwed back down to the action.
In the name of full disclosure, I experienced a bit of wiggle when the firing pin was down/action open, and it made me nervous initially. The wiggle isn’t a worry, and I put several hundred rounds of .308 Win. through the complete rifle prior to taking it hunting … with zero issues. Of note is that the stock itself will keep this separate plate section flush to the action. I was worried it would be an issue, but I tested it with shims to be sure that there was no chance for this novel trigger installation setup to create an issue.
The Magpul folding chassis makes for a compact package for easy transport.
Two finishes, polished DLC and ArmorLube matte finish, are currently being offered. I’m unsure what time will bring on the finishes of the future, but I hope that they are as diverse as the options currently available on Faxon’s other products. I’m not a “tactical” guy or mall ninja, and I like bold, interesting finishes on my guns: I’d love to see a Faxon barreled action in rainbow DLC or gold in the future.
Faxon plans to offer barrels for their actions and others: Pre-fit, RemAge and profiled blanks coming in 6.5mm, 8.6mm and 7.62mm as main launch calibers. Short mag and .223 bolt-face actions may yet be forthcoming. Short action will be the primary offering, options in long action and rimfire are being considered.
Also of note, not all the short-action offerings will be caliber compatible: Expect .308-bolt face options to be barrel compatible … but not able to cross over to options using the .223 bolt face. Stand-alone actions will be shipping quarter four of 2023 (at press time barreled actions will likely be shipping already). I eagerly await what may come from Faxon simply as a hobby builder. I take pride in assembling my own guns, and I love that I can now add bolt action complete builds and barrel swaps to my list.
The Faxon FX7 Action Build
The rifle I elected to build was to be one that fit in a backpack, namely an Eberlestock Gunslinger 2. This is an excellent pack that, while heavy for a three-day pack, is ideal for transporting a rifle hands-free. I used the progenitor of this pack over a decade ago for coyote and deer hunting, and I am pleased to be using the modern variant for the same animals, plus a ram I put down.
The finished build readily fits into the rifle sleeve of the Eberlestock Gunslinger two-pack.
I chose a stock I’ve used from time to time on these pages, the Magpul 700 Pro, to give me a reliable base and folding stock capability. The overall length of the finished rifle, with suppressor removed, was just over 28-inch folded, truly backpack concealable. I wanted to make a gun that was not only packable but functional for the role of hunting at medium range, while not sacrificing compatibility with modern ARCA and optical systems.
In short, I wanted a gun that was able to take game at all reasonable ranges using advanced support gear while at the same time being reasonable in weight and accuracy. I did accomplish this, but I do feel that I still could have saved a few pounds. Call it a prototype if you want, but I think that the 18-inch, medium contour .308 Win. with a 10X optic can accommodate 95 percent of all hunting in America.
Suppressing a Medium Weight Barrel
There has to be some discussion on the weight ratio to barrel length when talking suppressors. Ideal barrel length for a .308 Win. rifle is 18 to 20 inches in all platforms; you don’t give up much going to 16 inches, and I’ve gone as short as 13.5 inches, but as far as reason is concerned, the 18- to 20-inch range is categorically ideal for weight to velocity. For field use, the objective should be hearing-safe suppression for 300-yard shots on a kill-zone-sized 10-inch plate. This doesn’t seem unreasonable, but so few hunters or shooters ever shoot this distance enough to know how a rifle and cartridge perform.
Accuracy with all .308 Win. loads tested was excellent, all shooting ½ MOA at 100 yards. There was really no difference between all Remington, Federal and Hornady factory loads ranging from 150 to 180 grains. My own handloads consisted of Lapua brass and Hornady 168-grain BTHP match bullets over Hodgdon Varget powder. In total, I fired seven factory loads and three handloads, and I’m exceedingly pleased with the accuracy this barreled action delivered.
The SilencerCo Omega 36M is a great can, but it is on the heavy side if you’re using all the bells and whistles. It’s possible to convert this can to be lighter, but the QD function is really nice for transport to help reduce overall length. The Armageddon Gear cover helps reduce mirage and also keeps you from burning your hands.
This article features a SilencerCo Omega 36M with .30-cal. endcap and Armageddon Gear suppressor cover. This is a heavy can that can handle up to .338 Lapua Mag and everything in between, and while super quiet in .308, it does show some vertical stringing when warmed up. If you plan to hunt with the Gunner profile barrel, be aware of the weight of your suppressor and what it does to your point of impact. In my case, the gun shoots 2 MOA high unsuppressed, which is over a half MIL of elevation difference between suppressed and unsuppressed. I do have the option to swap barrels later on as Faxon pre-fits become available, but I sort of like my results using the light barrel as featured here. If, by chance, they come out with a fluted 16-inch M24 profile barrel in .308 Winchester … well, I’d be interested.
U.S. Optics And A Reasonable Scope Layout
I originally began using U.S. Optics a half-decade ago, and I’ve always been impressed with their custom quality. After using their Foundation 5-25X in MOA for years, I contacted the company to send a more compact optic in the same line, but in a max 10X in MIL/MIL. I wanted it in OD green with an integral bubble level and illumination … and they delivered.
The US Optic featured here is a custom build that the author specified. It’s a solidly built, if not overbuilt, optic that provides a host of features and is very rugged. There are more features packed in than can be taken advantage of by a midrange backpack .308 Win., but they are there if you need them.
I used this optic on various projects for the past year before it found a final home on the new Faxon action. For .308 Win., there’s no better partner than a high-end optic ending in 10X. It can accomplish everything the cartridge has to offer to its effective distance. I like the U.S. Optics I have here for its raw function on a functional rifle, no other notes required. It gets the job done.
Closing The Bolt
I find that what Faxon delivered here is emblematic of what is to come of 700-footprint actions. I love that the company offers an incredibly strong, smooth action, and I love that there’s the ability to field future cartridge designs, thanks to the versatility of the action’s six-lug bolt.
In my time with their new bolt action, I’ve seen it perform very well … and I think you will be as well should you order one.
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared in the February 2024 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
Looking to go armed, but are stuck in the weeds as to what to arm yourself with? Here are 20 excellent concealed carry gun options that will keep you on the defensive.
