Rifles

Toward the end of each year, I survey the work R.K. Campbell, Roger Eckstine, Robert Sadowski, Tracey Taylor, and Joe Woolley have done in Gun Tests, with an eye toward selecting guns, accessories, and ammunition the magazine’s testers have endorsed. From these evaluations I pick the best from a full year’s worth of tests and distill recommendations for readers, who often use them as shopping guides.

Our rifle timeline has now reached into the late 1940s. WWII is over and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has been constituted. With the idea that member nations’ small-arms ammunition should be as interchangeable as possible, trials begin for a new battle rifle.

Who remembers the first semi-automatic rifle actually adopted by a national military? The year was 1911, and Mexico accepted a gas-operated semi-auto designed by General Manuel Mondragon chambered in 7mm Mauser.

Essentially, the Krag-Jorgensen was obsolete the moment it was adopted. Reloading was too slow, and the ammunition, while light years beyond black powder-loaded 45-70 rounds, performed very poorly in comparison to what was being used in Europe at the time.

The 1880s saw smokeless gunpowder replace black powder that had been in use for centuries. The French were first to adopt smokeless with their 1886 Lebel rifle.

Rifles made by Sako in Finland are renowned for their quality and accuracy — and justifiably so. Tikka rifles are engineered and produced by Sako in the same plant and have a great reputation of their own.

Remington set the rifle world on its ear in 1962 with the introduction of the Model 700 centerfire rifles. Timed to coincide fairly closely with the intro of the new 7mm Remington Magnum cartridge, the Model 700 began life to great reviews and outstanding sales.

Once locked behind the Iron Curtain, CZ (Ceska Zbrojovka) is now set to become a major player on the world stage, especially after CZ’s recent acquisition of Colt Manufacturing, The CZ Mauser-type actions have been coveted by dangerous-game hunters for decades. Here, we got to check out one of the CZ rifles designed for hunting varmints and smaller predators.

The Henry Classic Lever Action 22 looks like a miniaturized Winchester Model 94 with the straight pistol grip stock, smooth satin-finish wood, hooded front sight, barrel band, and adjustable rear sight.

The Taylor’s & Co. Scout looks a shrunken version of the iconic Winchester Model 1873. The bright-silver receiver is highly polished. In fact, these are aluminum plates that screw onto the actual receiver. There is just right combination of bling and Old West look.

The BL-22 is one of Browning’s most classic and iconic rifle designs. It was introduced in 1969, originally manufactured in Belgium. Production moved to Miroku in Japan in the 1970s. Our sample is a new model Grade I, which means it has a deeply polished blued metal finish and high-gloss stock — typical Browning aesthetics.

If you're looking for a 22 lever-action rifle that's fun to shoot and easy to carry, you should check out the September 2021 issue...