Rifle November-December 2025

The 7mm Remington Magnum was formally introduced in 1962 along with the new Remington Model 700 rifle. Despite company executives being nervous about whether their new product would be well-received, both the rifle and cartridge became popular among hunters, target shooters and riflemen. Many new 7mm caliber cartridges have been in the spotlight over the past couple of decades. Several of those had notable issues and have mostly faded away, though others are very good cartridges with merit. Regardless, the original Remington cartridge remains a worthy choice for hunters and sportsmen, and it remains hugely popular. ...Read More >

In a previous issue of Rifle magazine (No. 340, May 2025), I reported on the U.S. Army’s first experiment 130 years ago with a 5.56 cartridge - the “0.22 Inch Caliber Cartridge for Experimental Arm” mounting a .223-inch bullet on a totally proprietary rimmed case to be launched from a re-barreled Krag rifle at an intended 2,600 feet per second (fps). Frankford Arsenal made up only 250 cartridges, and the results of the experiment evaporated into history. A Rifle reader in Michigan subsequently sent me an email describing his own experiments in recreating this lost cartridge, which he has dubbed the “.22 Gov’t 1895 MK II.” ...Read More >

Not everyone has succumbed to the Modern Sporting Rifle (MSR) craze. This was proven one day by a knock on the shop door. It was an old friend who collected all forms of British and European bolt-action sporters and had the resources to afford them. He was obviously very happy. ...Read More >

German Precision Optics (GPO) is an American-based company that sells both German-engineered and designed optics made from German-manufactured parts. These are assembled in major offshore facilities and then returned to Germany for rigorous quality inspection. The result is top-quality German glass and mechanical systems at a working man’s price. I have had the opportunity to test several GPO scopes in the past, all retailing for less than $1,000, but with optical quality and features comparable to much more expensive riflescopes. GPO also has a knack for offering scope configurations often missing from other brands, filling voids that appeal to serious shooters. These designs are the brainchild of GPO owner and CEO Mike Jensen, an avid big-game hunter himself. ...Read More >

Writing about the latest from J.P. Sauer & Sohn is always a pleasure, for several reasons. First, Sauer is the world’s second-oldest gunmaking company in continuous operation, after Beretta. Founded in 1751, during its 274 years, Sauer has survived wars, depressions, more wars and Joseph Stalin, all of which takes some doing. Being a sucker for history, well, who could resist? ...Read More >

I found myself in an outdoorsmen’s store with my nine-year-old son looking for his first deer/coyote rifle. This to me was a day I had been looking forward to since I found out that I was going to have a boy. I remember going into Walmart when I was 13 with my dad and picking out a Remington Model 710 with a 3x9x 40mm Bushnell setting on top and chambered in 30-06 Springfield. It’s a memory I will never forget nor will the memory of taking my first deer with that rifle and many more scenes. It’s still to this day my favorite rifle and it is accurate. So, for a 350-dollar rifle back in the early 2000’s it is still putting in work. ...Read More >

Finland enjoys a deep and hallowed firearms history, including 115-year-old Vihtavuori, 125-year-old Lapua and firearms brands such as 105-year-old SAKO and 125-year-old Tikka. These companies produce shooting products that are considered best in class by discriminating firearms enthusiasts. I was surprised to learn Tikka is older than SAKO, as I had somehow gotten it into my head that Tikka was a later-arriving offshoot of SAKO. Tikka is now cojoined with SAKO, and the two companies are part of the greater Beretta Holding Group. It is embarrassing to admit I have never shot a Tikka, and the only Sako rifle I have fired was manufactured in 1950. ...Read More >

While many riflemen think of handloading as a way to save money, that is literally the very last reason on a long list as to why I prefer to “roll my own” for pet rifles. Let’s take a closer look at the huge advantages associated with handloading for casual target work, competitions wherein accuracy is paramount, hunting or when specialized loads are needed that are not available commercially from ammunition companies. ...Read More >

Since its debut in 2018, Ruger’s Custom Shop has produced quite a few special variations of standard-production handguns and rifles, and the 10/22 Competition (Model No. 31227) with a carbon fiber tensioned stainless-steel barrel featured in this column is the latest. My digital postal scale put its weight at 4 pounds, 6.5 ounces. I am not sure when or where the tensioning concept pertaining to firearm barrels originated, but I first encountered it years ago on revolvers built by Dan Wesson. I still have the Pistol Pac option in .357 Magnum with barrels in four lengths. Quite thin, the non-tapered barrel measures only .470-inch in diameter and is threaded at both ends. When installing a barrel, one end is turned into the frame of the pistol until it makes contact with a feeler gauge used to set the cylinder gap. A steel sleeve containing the front sight is then slid over the barrel until it rests against the front of the frame. The muzzle end of the sleeve is recessed for a spanner nut, which engages the threads in that end of the barrel. Using a wrench (included with the gun) to tighten the nut secures the barrel in position while exerting a stretching or tensioning force on it. Due to excellent accuracy, Dan Wesson revolvers became quite popular among those who shot revolvers in metallic silhouette competition. ...Read More >