Rifles

The great Springfield Model of 1903 saw service in the first World War, and was upgraded along the way to many types and model variations. Around 1918 or ‘19 it was first made in 22 caliber, when Springfield brought out the predecessor to the Model 1922. That first effort apparently was not a great job. Then along came Julian Hatcher and some other designers, who modified the early efforts into what became known as the Model 1922 Springfield. This was a five-shot, magazine-fed 22 LR with a stock that did not have an upper hand guard. In 1937 the rifle was again redone and renamed the Springfield M2, 22LR. These were manufactured until 1942. If you're interested in adding a collectible to your armory that has plenty of history, but which can still shoot, here's what you need to know before you begin searching for one.

Most gun owners choose a handgun or a shotgun for home self defense, with fewer of us picking a rifle for that job. Part of the equation certainly has to do with the portability and maneuverability of the handgun in tight spaces and, in most homes, short hallways. With a 9mm Luger or 45 ACP semi-auto or a 38/357/44 Special wheelgun, we believe we can shoot well enough with enough power and enough capacity to keep firing until the threat stops threatening us. Handguns are also easy to secure by safe or lock from nosy kids who ought not be looking in mom or dad's night stand, but who often do anyway. Other homeowners prefer the snick-snick of a pump or autoloading shotgun in 12 or 20 gauge (the gauge doesn't much matter on the receiving end). But rifles, in particular AR-15s, deserve at least a look in this area because they can be short enough, light enough, deploy enough capacity, and be powerful enough where it counts. Oddly, it is power that stops many self-defense shooters from considering the 5.56 NATO-chambered rifle for home defense, because they don't want to have to worry about penetration through sheetrock, wallboard, or even bricks. According to at least one expert, the trick is to choose the right bullet for the self-defense rifle, because the rifle itself has a lot of advantages over a handgun or shotgun.

J. Buford Boone III, owner of Boone Ballistics in Northport, Alabama, provided expert testimony for the NRA's litigation wing to challenge state attempts to restrict or ban AR-15s (Friedman v. Highland Park, NYSRPA v. Cuomo, Shew v. Malloy, and Kolbe v. O'Malley [now Hogan]), with the banning states' arguments being that civilians shouldn't own long guns that look like military rifles. NRA countered that the prevalence of the AR as a home-defense choice isn't known, and that the landmark Heller decision protects firearms that could be used by civilians in and around the home. That's where Boone's expert report comes in.

Boone has a list of ballistics credentials a mile long, one of which is that he is a retired Supervisory Special Agent (SSA) of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and had primary oversight of the FBI Ballistic Research Facility (BRF) from April 1997 to August 2012. Boone said in his expert report, "The AR-15 rifle has characteristics that make it particularly suitable for defensive purposes."

So with Boone's endorsement in mind, we went looking for a couple of rifles that, with training, could be used by a range of folks — from husky men to small-framed women — in the close confines of a home. That meant the shortest non-SBR barrel, an adjustable-length buttstock, the ability to be fired accurately and fast with open sights or optics out to 25 yards, and either the ability to accept a light or have a handguard shaped appropriately so a light could be held with the front hand. We found two very different approaches that, naturally, cost very different dollars.

The original Henry rifle saw the light of day in 1860. It was an invention of B. Tyler Henry, who was hired by Oliver Winchester around the time the company took the name of New Haven Arms Co. Before that, the company, in which Mr. Winchester owned much of the stock, was named Volcanic Arms Co., and included both Mr. Smith and Mr. Wesson. Due to financial problems, the control of the Volcanic company passed to Mr. Winchester, who was a majority stock holder. Marketing of the 15-shot repeating Henry began in 1862, and quite a few were sold to soldiers of the Civil War. Most of the Henry rifles had brass frames, but some were of iron. The Henry rifle took a rimfire 44-caliber cartridge, known as the 44 Henry Flat, that fired a 200-grain or, slightly later, 216-grain bullet at about 1100 fps. The later bullet had a larger flat area on the nose. After the Civil War, the Henry rifle was redesigned into the side-loading 1866, the first rifle to carry the Winchester name. It again generally had a brass frame and used the 44 rimfire cartridge. Then came the 1873 Winchester and with it, the rimfire cartridge gave way to the 44-40 centerfire. A few revolvers, including the 1873 Colt Peacemaker, were chambered for the 44 rimfire, and once the idea of one cartridge for both long and short guns caught on, a great many period revolvers were chambered for the 44-40, originally a rifle cartridge. Having his sidearm and long gun in the same caliber was mighty handy when you were a long way from nowhere, much less any supply center. Neither the 44 Henry nor the 44-40 cartridge was suitable for buffalo, but did good work on deer and similar-size targets.

To see how these historical rifles and cartridges fare today, we got the loan of a new, U.S.-made Henry rifle and also a new Japanese-made Winchester 1892, both in 44-40 WCF. We tested them with a Black Hills Cowboy Action load, a 200-grain round-nose soft point. Here's what we found.

Sturm, Ruger & Company has announced the Second Edition of the Ruger Collector's Series 10/22 Carbine. The first Collector's Edition sold out quickly.

The Krag-Jorgensen rifle was invented by Capt. Ole Krag and Erik Jorgensen in Norway in the late 1800s. Denmark adopted the design first, in 1889, preceding Norway's acceptance of it in 1894. The Danes had it chambered for the 8x58R cartridge and used it until at least 1940. The first Norwegian cartridge for this rifle was identical to that which has become known as the 6.5x55 Swedish, but the proof-testing cartridges were of lower pressure than those used later in the history of the 6.5x55. Krag ammunition manufactured in this country is limited to about 40-42,000 psi, well within the rifle's capabilities.

By 1890 every major power in the world had a bolt-action rifle for its military services except the United States. After deliberation over more than 50 entries, in 1892 the U.S. decided on the Norwegian Krag-Jorgensen, with a few modifications, as a replacement for the single-shot 1873 "trapdoor" Springfield with its 45-70 black-powder cartridge. According to Frank De Haas in Bolt Action Rifles, 3rd Edition (1995), as finally adopted and produced at Springfield Arsenal, the Krag fired a 200-grain round-nose bullet at a velocity of around 2000 fps. The Krag was used by the U.S. Army in the Spanish-American war of 1898, as was the old 1873 Springfield. The U.S. Navy used the Lee 6mm rifle in that conflict. The Krag rifle saw action in a few other conflicts in U.S. hands as well, but was quickly replaced by the 1903 Springfield 30-06. Although its military life with U.S. forces was short, it saw service up until at least WWII in other nations.

The Krag had its limitations. It could not be stripper-clip loaded, though the infantryman could top off the five-shot magazine without opening the bolt. Each cartridge should be inserted so the rim of the next one would be behind the preceding one, though the Krag's magazine lines them up perfectly all by itself as you close the box. In fact we were unable to intentionally foul the loading process. The Krag's ballistics were a good step behind those of the majority of other countries' rifles at the turn of the century. However, the rifles were well made and turned out to be mighty sturdy despite the so-called limitation of having only one bolt lug. We tested our sample with Remington 180-grain PSP Core-Lokt and with HSM (Montana) 165-grain soft-point boattails. Here's what we found.

In a review of a recent court case, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals has released its full opinion in the case of Trinity Wall Street v. Wal-Mart, and it's a victory for the giant retail chain's ability to sell the firearms it wishes to sell.

At issue was whether Wal-Mart improperly excluded from 2014 proxy materials the church's shareholder proposal to require the corporation's board of directors to have standard-capacity AR-style rifles removed from the…

It isn't unusual for a dozen AR-15 rifles from different makers to be on the shelf at most gun shops. Some are regional makers, some are giants like Colt, and a few are new companies trying to earn a good name for themselves. The modular construction of the AR-15 means that the basic receiver may be fitted with a number of different barrel types, stock designs, and other accessories. As such, the price point is flexible, depending upon whether the user wants an entry-level rifle or something more. We picked the rifles in this report to see if the details and accessory package on a more expensive rifle really offered enough performance to justify the extra money. There are literally dozens of choices to make between rifles in this price zone, so as much as anything, this was a test of accessories and set-up, culminating in our advice on how to buy an AR that's a flexible platform for growth as possible.

Savage Arms Introduces the A17 Semi-automatic Rifle in 17 HMR

The gunny student who knows anything at all about Elmer Keith will probably know many of Keith's guns were sold off recently by a well-known auction house in Maine. Apparently, the auction was a huge success, and some of the offerings proved to be bargains. A brace of like-new Ruger No. 1 rifles sold for less than their combined new MSRP prices today, and a fabulous engraved and gold-inlaid Model 70 made by Frank Pachmayr for Elmer Keith sold for less than some unadorned custom rifles made by some makers on today's market.

Among the auctioned rifles were several by Keith's favorite gunsmith, Iver Henriksen (1910-1987). In fact, our Senior Technical Editor made a solid absentee bid for one of the Henriksen-Keith rifles. Alas, the rifle sold for three times that bid. From this auction, we discovered that if a rifle has Henriksen's name on it, especially if it was owned by Keith, it will have a value of about $5000; but of course that's not guaranteed. So we thought we had lost out on the chance to examine and test a Henriksen rifle. As luck had it, however, a friend of the magazine owned one of Henriksen's rifles, but didn't know it. We were talking with him one day and he said he had a rifle made by some Montana gunsmith. We asked if it could possibly be a Henriksen rifle, and he said he didn't know. When we got a chance to examine it, we saw the Henriksen name written around the base of the barrel, and explained to our friend what he had.

He graciously allowed us to borrow it for this report. He later found out the design and layout of this particular rifle in all its aspects had in fact been suggested by Mr. Keith to its previous owner. The rifle is a custom FN Mauser 98 in 338 Winchester Magnum with fabulous wood, and it is fitted with a classic Balvar 8A Bausch & Lomb 2.5-8X scope with the windage and elevation adjustments in the bases.

We chose to test it against a modern Winchester Model 70 in the same caliber, the rifle having also just been fitted with one of the old B&L Balvar 8A 2.5-8X scopes in adjustable-base mounts. We tested this rifle in the December 2012 edition of Gun Tests where it got high marks (A-). The Model 70, now owned by our Senior Technical Editor, got some serious upgrading, which put it into the realm of the Henriksen for its ability to handle long-seated bullets. Here's what we found.

Springfield Armory is introducing a Flat Dark Earth (FDE) color-tone variant in several categories, starting with the M1A Loaded Precision Adjustable Stock Rifle and the XD-S 3.3-inch pistol in 9mm and .45 ACP chamberings.

If you plan on attending the 2015 National Matches at Camp Perry, Ohio, look for two National Match rifles made by Armalite that seem pretty popular.

The roller-locked CETME Model 58 was the basis for Heckler & Koch's G3-based rifles, followed some time later by a semiautomatic version labeled the HK-91, which isn't gas- or recoil-operated in the conventional sense. The rifle employs a delayed blowback system with a nonrotating head and twin rollers. These rollers, located on the bolt on each side, lock into detents in the trunnion of a stamped steel receiver.

On firing, force on the bolt keeps the action locked until the bullet exits the barrel, then the action unlocks and the bolt is jolted to the rear against spring pressure. The bolt then returns to battery, stripping a cartridge from the magazine along the way. We have previously tested three roller-locked rifles made in the U.S., including the 308 Win. PTR-91 from JLD Enterprises. We mostly praised the PTR-91 rifle in the January 2005 issue, save it needing a trigger job and a flash hider. We also gave Buy recommendations to the Vector Arms V-53 in 5.56 NATO and the Bobcat Weapons BW-5 9mm in that same article.

Here, we revisit the PTR-91 and a similar rifle, the Century Arms C91 Sporter, both chambered in 308 Win./7.62 NATO. The original PTR rifle was first conceived in 2002, when JLD Enterprises purchased tooling and designs for the HK line of roller-lock weapons from Fabrica Militar of Portugal. The original "Precision Tactical Rifle" HK-91 clones were produced mostly from surplus parts acquired around the world from 2002 to 2006. Then, in 2006, PTR91 Inc. was organized and expanded beyond the original 91-style clones. The company was re-organized in 2010 with new management, and then three years later, PTR Industries made news when it announced it was leaving Bristol, Connecticut and was moving to South Carolina because of the former state's just-passed stringent gun-control laws.

Century Arms, headquartered in Delray Beach, Florida, makes and warehouses its surplus firearms and accessories business in Georgia, Vermont. Founded in the 1960s and run by William Sucher and Manny Weigensberg, Century is the largest importer of Romanian-made WASR-10 AK variants. The C91 has been supplanted in the Century Arms catalog by the C308 rifle.

So, no surprise — accurate, powerful, and well-made 308-Win. semi-auto rifles remain strong sellers. The question we wanted to know is, do shooters have to pay a premium to get one of these roller-locked mechanisms? The short answer is "No," but the longer answer appears below: