Rifles

For this test of vintage bolt-action 22 rifles, we had the loan of two old-timers, a Remington Nylon 12 and a Winchester Model 69A. We tested with three types of ammo, Wolf, CCI Velocitor, and Blazer, all in Long Rifle persuasion. Both rifles were supposed to handle Shorts and Longs too, so we also tried a few of them. Both rifles fed Long Rifles, Longs, Shorts and also CB caps perfectly. The Winchester's longer barrel made lots less noise with Shorts and especially the CB caps than the Remington. The report of CB's out of the long-barreled Winchester was just a click. Are these old rifles worth looking into? Let's see what we found.

In our test teams initial discussions about evaluating production bolt-action rifles, an interesting sideline emerged. One member of our test team owns a bolt-action rifle built by Roger David of Sulphur, Louisiana (Davids Gunshop, 337-527-5089). Evaluated in our November 2004 issue, it turned out to be a super-accurate rifle. And why not, considering it was hand-built by a master gunsmith and utilized the finest components. But in the last year or two, weve been seeing accuracy results from inexpensive assembly line rifles that come close to the performance of our most prized custom guns. Which leads us to two questions. First, how is that possible? The answer is computer numerically controlled (CNC) machining and new methods of computer-aided design.Our second question was, if we were to choose a couple of these new bolt-action rifles that sell for less than $500, would they really perform at a level of accuracy that just as few years ago would be much more costly in terms of time and money? To see if todays rifle shooters really are being treated to superior accuracy at a bargain price, we decided to test two synthetic-stocked rifles from Ruger and Mossberg. Our choice of cartridge was 243 Winchester because of its reputation of delivering more than adequate power to take down deer while disturbing a minimum amount of meat. Plus, 243 Win. is an effective choice for hog and coyote hunting. Our rifles were the $449 Ruger American and the $471 Mossberg 4X4. Both rifles are lightweight hunting models fitted with black synthetic stocks, matching blued barrels with recessed crowns, pre-mounted two-piece scope bases, sling attachments front and rear, rubber buttpads, and removable box magazines. Barrel lengths for the Ruger and Mossberg rifles were 22 inches and 24 inches, respectively.To give our budget rifles the opportunity to excel, we chose a little more scope than might be found on an everyday hunting rifle. The new Steiner Predator Xtreme model 5003 offered 4-16X variable power with a 50mm objective lens. Built on a 30mm tube, it measured 15 inches in length and weighed 22 ounces. Side parallax adjustment was calibrated from 50 yards to 500 yards to infinity. Click-adjustment value was MOA. We counted 240 total clicks of elevation and 200 clicks of windage from lock to lock. The Steiner Plex S1 is a second-focal-plane reticle that offers ballistic lines for holdover calibrated for most popular calibers and bullet weights. Stick-on reference charts are supplied. In addition, the hold-over lines were bordered by a series of cascading dots to the left and right to help compensate for wind. The dots are calibrated for a 10-mph wind value, according to the owners manual. We found the added visual reference to be useful and clear. The Steiner Predator Xtreme comes with a 30-year warranty.After successfully mounting the Steiner on the Mossberg rifle, we couldnt get the scope to stay seated atop the Ruger. Measuring the interior dimensions of the slots on the Mossbergs scope mounts we found that rear notch on the Mossberg measured only 0.146 inches wide, but the two notches on the front base were larger, measuring only about 0.150 inches across. Whereas the mounts didnt match, they still were able to provide a good enough fit for the thin, round cross bolts of our Leupold Rifleman rings. The Rugers cross-slots were uniform but wider, measuring about 0.156 inches across. Switching to a set of Warne Maxima rings (No. 215M), which utilize rectangular lugs for seating, solved the mounting problem.To test, we chose ammunition topped with four bullet weights. They were Black Hills Gold 85-grain Barnes TSX, Winchester Super X 80-grain Pointed Soft Point, Black Hills Gold 62-grain Varmint Grenade, and 58-grain Hornady Varmint Express ammunition. Each rifle was tested for accuracy from a bench. We shot at targets located 100 yards away. Heres how our rifles performed:

There are groups that undermine and manipulate systems across America to end hunting, trapping and fishing. These same “less-than-honest” groups also often then exploit wildlife and conservation issues in the name of raising dollars for their devious causes. The U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance has identified a dozen organizations that have taken efforts in the past year to prevent you from hunting or trapping:

GunReports.com finds that the Model 788 rifle Remington built to compete with cheaper items remains one of its most popular years later. Repairing it gets complicated.

Joshua Stevens was born in Massachusetts in 1814, when the flintlock was still the 'King of the Hill' among guns. The 'King' ruled until 1830, when the percussion cap dethroned it. In those days, it was customary to learn a trade by serving an extensive apprenticeship, so Stevens worked for a number of years as a machinist's helper before being hired by Cyrus Allen, a gunmaker operating out of Springfield. There, Stevens' machinist skills were…

There will always be a need to identify chamberings of firearms that have been inherited or bought at yard sales. The lure of buying for bottom dollar and discovering a real jewel is ingrained in most of us, so a little thing like no chambering marks on a rifle or handgun is no deterrent to a gun fancier.

The SLR-106FR is a U.S.-made AK-74 variant that comes with a magazine, cleaning rod, accessory case, drift pin cleaning jag, bore brush, combination tool, oil bottle, cleaning rod, and a web sling.The SLR-106FR is 922(r) compliant, meaning it contains 10 or fewer foreign-made parts, according to Arsenal documents. Those parts include the major Bulgarian-made items, such as the barrel, receiver, and bolt. To make the gun U.S.-compliant, Arsenal takes a Bulgarian gun and adds six U.S.-made parts: the hammer, trigger, disconnector, buttstock, pistol grip, and handguards.

Varmint X, the new line of predator and varmint ammunition from Winchester, is being touted as a super-accurate lineup of the most popular centerfire rifle calibers for predator hunting: .204 Ruger, .223 Rem, .22-250 Rem and .243 Win.

ArmaLite’s new AR-10 Law Enforcement Carbine takes the durability and performance of the company’s LE carbines chambered in .223/5.56X45mm NATO and mixes in the stopping power of the .308 cartridge.

USA-based Magnum Research, Inc. (MRI) has re-engineered the Magnum Lite MLR22 Win Mag rifle series in a semi-auto configuration.

The Delaware State Police Special Operations Response Team (SORT) has chosen SIG Sauer’s SIG516 as its new duty long arm.

Visit a public shooting range and it becomes apparent that the M16 platform has successfully made the transition from military weapon to serving the public as a means of recreation as well as home defense in the form of the AR-15 semi-automatic. Accordingly, model development for this platform continues apace, so in this article well consider three new carbine-length AR-15s in 5.56mm NATO and 300 Whisper. Our first two AR-15s were chambered for 223 Remington or 5.56mm ammunition, by far the most popular calibers for the AR.They were the Mossberg MMR Tactical Rifle (w/sights) and the Olympic Arms K3B-M4-TC-M4 Tactical Carbine, which Oly calls the alphabet gun for obvious reasons. Our third test gun is Smith & Wessons M&P15 300 Whisper, which stands out because it uses magazines interchangeable with the 223/5.56mm models but fires 30-caliber bullets. Our previous test of a 300 Whisper AR-15 featured a carbine directly from SSK Industries, the home of 300 Whispers inventor, J.D. Jones, (SSKIndustries.com). The Smith & Wesson M&P15 300 Whisper is, to our knowledge, the first production model of this chambering from a high-volume major manufacturer. Mossberg is another volume manufacturer, but the MMR is the companys first production-model AR-15.To establish accuracy data, we visited the 100-yard range at Houstons American Shooting Centers, (AMshootcenters.com). To determine muzzle energy, we utilized an Oehler chronograph to measure velocity so we could enter it into the appropriate equation: Does computation of muzzle energy truly measure stopping power? Not necessarily, but it does provide a reliable indicator of the amount of force the projectile starts out with, just like MSRP (Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price) indicates possible retail pricing.Test ammunition for our 223/5.56mm guns featured the three most popular bullet weights. We fired Sellier & Bellot 55-grain FMJ rounds, and two selections manufactured in Rapid City, South Dakota, by Black Hills Ammunition. They were the 60-grain V-Max and the 69-grain OTM. The Black Hills OTM (Open Tipped Match) rounds were marked 5.56mm NATO while the other rounds were designated 223 Remington. To test our Smith & Wesson rifle, we chose 208-grain Hornady A-Max and Hornady 110-grain V-Max 300 Whisper ammunition. Plus, we shot Remington 125-grain Accu-Tip rounds marked 300 AAC Blackout.We should note that the use of names other than 300 Whisper was reportedly an attempt to avoid the expense of paying royalties to its inventor. This practice appears to be fading out. That Smith & Wesson lists 300 AAC Blackout only as a co-chambering but chose to designate this rifle as the M&P15 300 Whisper tells us that the Whisper name will win out.Optics for our bench session consisted of the same Burris Xtreme Tactical 6-24X50mm with Mil-Dot reticle on each rifle (previously tested in our May 2011 issue). We also tried the new Brownells CQB T-Dot holographic sight by EOTech for offhand shots ($549, from Brownells.com). This scope provided a hologram-style projection that offered a large circle surrounding a central dot for zero and a second dot for hold over to extend aim to additional points of elevation. The CQB T-Dot can be used as a standalone sight or in co-witness with iron sights. An outer shell provided impact protection and a quick-release mounting system. This type of sight is a popular add-on, and we wanted to know how our test guns would accommodate this system. Our team of test shooters included a highly ranked High Power competitor and a third generation United States Marine recently discharged and now serving in law enforcement. Lets see how each of our AR-15s performed.