Reviews

Good afternoon, everyone, and welcome back to TFB’s Silencer Saturday, brought to you by Yankee Hill Machine, manufacturer of the new Victra 20-gauge shotgun suppressor. Precision rifle competition is one of the most popular shooting games these days, and a recent match in Utah may have been the first of its kind. The Silent But Deadly match was a PRS-style competition for suppressed centerfire rifles firing subsonic ammunition.

There is a growing roar for Smith & Wesson to bring back the 3rd generation of metal-framed pistols, with a particular interest in the classic 5906 series. The classic non-railed versions were discontinued back in 1999, with the railed versions discontinued back in 2004. So after 20 years, why are people constantly yelling at the Smith & Wesson marketing team online to bring back the classic metal-framed line of handguns? Are we remembering them with rose colored glasses when they were a disaster? Let's take a closer look at why people love the Smith & Wesson 5906 handguns.

This Photo of the Day has a lot going on, just the way we like it. Some training days need more real estate than others. During a Visit, Board, Search, and Seizure exercise at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia, the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit turned the surrounding sea and airspace into one crowded stage.

Like so many hunting calibers of the 20th century, particularly in the sub-30 caliber segment, the .243 Winchester is a descendant of wildcatter experimentation. As early as the 1940s, Warren Page was experimenting with .243-caliber rounds, and when the Winchester .308 was released in the early 1950s, he necked down the case, jammed a quarter-bore bullet in there, and wrote it up in magazine articles. Winchester realized the benefit of a small-bore bullet that used the same parent case as the .308, and the .243 Winchester was released commercially in 1955.

Trijicon has announced the REAP-IR-50 thermal riflescope series, an all-new platform combining high-resolution thermal imaging, media capture, wireless connectivity and an available integrated laser rangefinder. The REAP-IR line has until now been offered with 24mm and 35mm objective lenses. The REAP-IR-50 steps up to 50mm, increasing the ability to collect more thermal energy from the scene.

LTT CEO Ernest Langdon says the ATD caught the team's attention because Steyr approached the DA/SA platform with a fresh perspective instead of simply updating an existing pistol. It gives LTT the chance to apply decades of experience with these systems to a platform built for where shooters are today.

HUXWRX Safety Co. has launched the FLOW 9 M, a lightweight modular suppressor designed to adapt across a range of compatible firearm platforms. It is built around short and long configurations, so shooters can prioritize compact handling or a full-length setup depending on the platform and the application.

Welcome back to Front Line Friday. This week is an editorial, and the topic is the wave of drones, license plate readers, and other technology moving into patrol work, and what actually changes officer capability versus what just moves money around. Front Line Friday is brought to you by Dead Air Silencers, whose support keeps this column going every week.

As the introduction of the SIG M250 potentially opens a new chapter in the U.S. Army's squad automatic weapon story, or more accurately, the GPMG role, it is worth looking back at the excitement around the M249 when it was adopted. The U.S. Army type-classified the M249 on February 1, 1982, filling a long-standing gap in U.S. squad-level firepower.

Everyone recognizes GSG 9. Fewer people have heard of the BFE+, the specialized unit that exists precisely to fill the gap between Germany's standard federal riot police and its famous counterterrorism unit. Officers don't arrive at the BFE+ directly. They first serve in a standard evidence-gathering and arrest unit, and only after proving themselves physically and personally qualified do they earn the additional certification needed to advance.

Welcome back to another edition of Concealed Carry Corner. Last week, we talked about the basics of finding the right optic for your carry gun. If you happened to miss that article, be sure to click the link here to check it out. This week, I wanted to take a look at how the Glock 19 rose to the gold standard of the carry gun market. I am well aware this article spot is sponsored by Glock, but if you go into the comment section of any top carry gun article, you will always see random people continuously say the Glock 19 is the absolute best. How did we get to this point and is it still true? Let's take a closer look at how the Glock 19 became the standard.

6.5mm shooters have something to celebrate. The COMP 6.5 series of suppressors is optimized for competition use. They are in stock and ready to order today.

Over the past few years, marketing has been one of the flashpoints of legal battles in the firearms world. In 2022, Bushmaster’s militaristic advertising was one of the sticking points in the Sandy Hook lawsuits that saw Remington forced to pay $73M in a lawsuit. However, the SAF says that’s unfair, and in the Daniel Defense v. Lowy case, they say a manufacturer’s advertising shouldn’t be held responsible for a third party’s actions. Quoting from the SAF’s press release describing their legal intervention:

Swiss small arms and accessories manufacturer KUGS has introduced a new bipod line for the SIG 550 series of rifles. The KUGS bipods are designed to provide greater stability, which is primarily achieved by increasing the leg angle from the standard 60 degrees to 90 degrees.

More TFB Behind the Gun Podcast Episodes:

When you envision “bulletproof” firearms your mind might immediately leap to something steel, forged for strength, and with countless years of experience. We’re talking millions of guns made and billions of rounds fired through them. That firearm is the Model 1911. I can hear the two World War jokes coming from the peanut gallery already. Yet, without the timeless Model 1911, we don’t get the legendary TRP (Tactical Response Pistol) or the tricked, modern version that is the 2011. Next, if you want to tie in a bulletproof optic, most people would argue for something like an enclosed emitter red dot, or more specifically, the increasingly-popular Aimpoint COA. So, if we want to make ourselves a bulletproof combo, the logical combination is the Springfield Armory TRP topped off with an Aimpoint COA, and that is exactly what we are going to be reviewing here today. Let’s dive in!

Ok, this is big and thoughtful. This TFB Photo of the Day pairs an 1870 canvas with its modern answer. Alphonse de Neuville's "Les Dernières Cartouches" captured French marine and artillery troops making their final stand inside the Bourgerie inn during the Battle of Bazeilles, fought August 31 and September 1, 1870, as far larger Bavarian forces closed in. Outnumbered and running low on ammunition, the soldiers held the position until the cartridges ran out. More than a century later, the French Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment restaged the same composition, swapping period rifles for modern carbines and turning a rubble-strewn room into a near shot-for-shot recreation, right down to the wounded man propped against the wall.

North American Arms’ revolvers are very well-known for their ability to offer self-defense in a micro package. Not everyone wants to stake their life on a rimfire round, but sometimes you’ve got no other choice. I remember reading about one undercover narcotics cop who hauled an NAA revolver to beachside meet-ups hidden away in a soft drink cup, because that’s all they could bring for a SHTF scenario. Other owners will tell you similar stories. There’s no smaller, more discreet firepower available.

A good spotting scope can mean a huge difference when it comes to zeroing or getting those long-range hits exactly where you want them on the target. Leupold has announced the MX-6HD family of spotting scopes, a first focal plane design aimed at spotter and shooter teams, or for anyone calling impacts, scanning terrain or identifying targets at a distance. Leupold's product manager John Snodgrass says the goal is for a team to be "seeing the same thing and speaking the same language." If you’ve ever seen a sniper team work together, you know what it means.

Back in 2022, when MDT released the ACC Elite chassis for the first time, Hrachya wrote it up and told us:

Almost ten years ago, when the U.S. Army announced that a customized version of the P320 had won the XM17 Modular Handgun System competition, the pistol that emerged became one of the most recognizable sidearms in the world. Now SIG Sauer is taking that platform in a more purpose-built direction with the M17-SOF, which the company describes as "A Mission-Focused Evolution of the M17."

 Franklin Armory, are getting into the ammunition business and its not just a typical 55gr 5.56 round. They’ve launched out the gate with something pretty interesting - Rabbit Rounds. A new multiple-projectile cartridge designed to more effectively harvest smaller game with the ubiquitous AR-15-style modern sporting rifle.

First, before buying and using the weapon, visually inspect the rifle for damage to better assess its condition. Begin with an overall examination of the rifle. Inspect for obvious damage, corrosion, contamination, missing components, and other visible deficiencies. During this inspection, you also conduct a function check to ensure everything works. If a gunsmith or maintainer can check the headspace, that's beneficial.

Ask any photographer who tried; muzzle flashes rarely come out as well as this one. At Kapaun Air Station, Germany, an Airman with the 86th Airlift Wing fired an M4A1 carbine during a NATO training exchange focused on interoperability between Allied and partner forces, and the resulting flash looked bright enough to double as an aircraft landing light guiding a C-130 down through fog.

Wilcox has a new, programmable sighting system. The VIPR (Visually Integrated Precision Reticle) optic has a range of digital reticles that can switch on the fly to accommodate different ammunition types or use cases. Those options allow the user to switch to counter UAS ammo and reticles should the need arise.

Bergara has a new rifle model optimized for the PRS production class. The Premier Competition Elite family of rifles is built to be an off-the-shelf match winner. Keep reading for all the details.

HEVI-Shot is the company that’s always been known for making upland and waterfowl loads that hit harder. This has been understood by hunters for years, and this unspoken agreement amongst their customer base is what the same company is leaning harder into now. HEVI-Shot is officially - HEVI - and the tagline of "Hit Harder" is their new ethos as HEVI’s new brand identity and website reinforce what it has always stood for: delivering uncompromising performance for hunters and shooters who demand the best.

Carrying a pistol with a weapon light attached is one of those things that sounds simple until you go shopping for a holster. Add a light to your carry gun, and your holster options collapse from hundreds down to a handful, or none in some cases, and half of those that do fit your gun only support one or two light types. Run something outside the mainstream, and you're often stuck waiting on a custom build or settling for a holster that fits the light but not the way you actually want to carry. FALCO's TalonGuard line is built specifically around that problem. I've been carrying two of them, the A911 L inside the waistband and the C915 L outside, both set up for light-bearing guns, to see whether the leather-and-Kydex hybrid approach actually holds up when there's a light hanging off the dust cover.

Not every recruit arrives at basic training already squared away, and that is exactly what RAMP (Recruit Adjustment and Motivation Program) exists to fix. Some of us have “been there, done that”, or been in similar places. Here we see a U.S. Coast Guard company commander walk a recruit through the correct way to hold his rifle during the Recruit Adjustment and Motivation Program, a weekly session built for newcomers who need extra reps before they can keep pace with the rest of basic training.

The first rifle I ever really shot was a plain old Ruger 10/22, and the ammo feeding it came out of a brown box that looked like it belonged in my grandfather's tackle shed. Peters. Forty grains of lead, high velocity, round nose, and in my memory it never once let me or my 10/22 down at the range. Every round went bang, every can went flying, my groups were as good as they could be for a new shooter, and I never thought twice about it as a child, just happy to be at the range with his dad. Years and a lot of ammunition later, a friend randomly handed me a near-full brick of the stuff. Same brown box, same old-timey lettering, stored so carefully it could have rolled off the line last week or thirty years ago. Between the sands of time and my slowly deteriorating memory, there's no honest way to tell just by looking at this stuff to tell if it's any good anymore, so today we’ll group and chronograph a box of it to see if its performance lines up with my memories of it.