Handguns

Dick Heller walked out of D.C. police headquarters Monday, clutching a yellow firearms registration certificate stamped 'approved.' He gave the thumbs-up sign, grinned and said, 'Victory!'

It seemssome of the really nice stuff in firearms doesnt last long enough for all good men and women to hear about it, spread the word, and go out and buy it. How many times have we all said, "If only such and such company would make this or that," only to have it pointed out to us that they used to make this or that, no one bought it, so it was dropped from the lineup. Weve encountered several Taurus firearms on the company website and in local gun stores that looked like really good ideas, only to find out theyd been recently discontinued. The same could probably be said of many gun makers who had a product that fit a niche market, failed to promote it sufficiently, and had to stop production. Such is apparently the case with two of the three guns in this report, though one of those two is still available in a specialized form.The concept of a revolver chambered for 45 ACP goes back to WWI, when Colt and Smith & Wesson brought out their Model 1917s to fire the semiautomatic-pistol cartridge through the use of half-moon clips. With the more recent introduction of full-moon clips, these six-shot revolvers can be reloaded very quickly as long as you have a supply of loaded clips. The original S&W Model 1917 had a detent to hold the cylinder fully open, which helped expedite the reloading process. Recently, revolver maestro Jerry Miculek proved just how fast a 45 revolver can be reloaded. He fired six shots from his gun, dumped the empties, reloaded, and fired six more-all in less than three seconds.We acquired three 45 ACP revolvers, an early S&W Model 625 (Model of 1989) with 4-inch barrel (about $900), a new S&W Model 325 Night Guard with nominal 2.5-inch tube (MSRP $1082), and a Taurus Tracker Model 455 SS4 with 4-inch barrel and integral muzzle brake (about $500). The S&W Model 625 is apparently only available today as a Jerry Miculek Special version at $1011, or as a Performance Center gun with 5.2-inch barrel at a higher but unspecified price. You might also find a 3-inch version of the blued Model 25 as a Dealer Special. Still another S&W 45 ACP revolver is the Thunder Ranch Special, with 4-inch tube and flashlight, for $1335. These last two still appear on the company website. Be aware it might not be easy finding a 4-inch or 5-inch S&W 625 like our test gun. A search of 350 S&W revolvers at the Guns International website (gunsinternational.com) found not one Model 625. The neat, efficient five-shot Taurus was recently discontinued, but you can still find samples here and there.Both the Taurus and S&W 625 had excellent adjustable sights. The Night Guard comes with fixed sights with a tritium insert in the front post. All these revolvers supposedly could be fired with 45 ACP cartridges dropped individually into the chambers, or with full-moon clips, or with 45 Auto Rim cartridges. The two Smiths could also accept the older three-shot, half-moon clips. We tested with Black Hills 230-grain ball, Federal Hi-Shok 185-grain JHP, and Cor-Bon 185-grain JHP. We also tried a few Auto Rim cases handloaded with 260-grain Keith cast bullets, but didnt include them in the formal results. Heres what we found.

It seemssome of the really nice stuff in firearms doesnt last long enough for all good men and women to hear about it, spread the word, and go out and buy it. How many times have we all said, "If only such and such company would make this or that," only to have it pointed out to us that they used to make this or that, no one bought it, so it was dropped from the lineup. Weve encountered several Taurus firearms on the company website and in local gun stores that looked like really good ideas, only to find out theyd been recently discontinued. The same could probably be said of many gun makers who had a product that fit a niche market, failed to promote it sufficiently, and had to stop production. Such is apparently the case with two of the three guns in this report, though one of those two is still available in a specialized form.The concept of a revolver chambered for 45 ACP goes back to WWI, when Colt and Smith & Wesson brought out their Model 1917s to fire the semiautomatic-pistol cartridge through the use of half-moon clips. With the more recent introduction of full-moon clips, these six-shot revolvers can be reloaded very quickly as long as you have a supply of loaded clips. The original S&W Model 1917 had a detent to hold the cylinder fully open, which helped expedite the reloading process. Recently, revolver maestro Jerry Miculek proved just how fast a 45 revolver can be reloaded. He fired six shots from his gun, dumped the empties, reloaded, and fired six more-all in less than three seconds.We acquired three 45 ACP revolvers, an early S&W Model 625 (Model of 1989) with 4-inch barrel (about $900), a new S&W Model 325 Night Guard with nominal 2.5-inch tube (MSRP $1082), and a Taurus Tracker Model 455 SS4 with 4-inch barrel and integral muzzle brake (about $500). The S&W Model 625 is apparently only available today as a Jerry Miculek Special version at $1011, or as a Performance Center gun with 5.2-inch barrel at a higher but unspecified price. You might also find a 3-inch version of the blued Model 25 as a Dealer Special. Still another S&W 45 ACP revolver is the Thunder Ranch Special, with 4-inch tube and flashlight, for $1335. These last two still appear on the company website. Be aware it might not be easy finding a 4-inch or 5-inch S&W 625 like our test gun. A search of 350 S&W revolvers at the Guns International website (gunsinternational.com) found not one Model 625. The neat, efficient five-shot Taurus was recently discontinued, but you can still find samples here and there.Both the Taurus and S&W 625 had excellent adjustable sights. The Night Guard comes with fixed sights with a tritium insert in the front post. All these revolvers supposedly could be fired with 45 ACP cartridges dropped individually into the chambers, or with full-moon clips, or with 45 Auto Rim cartridges. The two Smiths could also accept the older three-shot, half-moon clips. We tested with Black Hills 230-grain ball, Federal Hi-Shok 185-grain JHP, and Cor-Bon 185-grain JHP. We also tried a few Auto Rim cases handloaded with 260-grain Keith cast bullets, but didnt include them in the formal results. Heres what we found.

In this test we will evaluate three handguns for self defense that we would regard as enhanced versions of more basic models available from their manufacturers. First up is the Sig Sauer P229 SCT, an $1100 40 S&W that "improves" on the $929 base model P229 in a couple of important areas. The P229 SCT is about a $200 upgrade of the model P229 that is popular with law enforcement in 357 Sig and 40 S&W. The SCT Super Capacity Tactical pistol offers upgrades in the form of a TruGlo tritium fiber-optic front sight, front cocking serrations on the slide, and a supply of four 14-round magazines. The standard magazines for the P229 pistols carry 12 or 10 rounds of 40 S&W or 357 Sig.Next is Springfield Armorys $749 XDM, wherein the letter "M" does not stand for "mystery." Instead, Springfields website explains that this gun contains several M-nomenclature upgrades from the base model XD, including Major Grasp Serrations, Model Contour Frame, Max Reach Magazine Release, Mega Capacity magazine, Mega-Lock Texture, Melonite Finish, Minimum Error Disassembly, Minimal Reset Trigger, Multi-Adjust Rail system, Multi-Use Carrying Case, Match Grade Barrel, and interchangeable Mould-Tru back straps. These "mupgrades" come in a gun chambered only for 40 S&W, and they create a $200 premium for the XDM over the standard XD40, which costs $543.Kimber was among the few manufacturers that believed the onslaught of high-capacity 9mm handguns could be beaten back with a traditional American design. The lowest-priced 1911 we could find on the kimberamerica.com website was the $815 Custom II. This is a full-size 45 ACP. The Pro Carry series is based around a full-size grip capable of housing full-length seven- or eight-round magazines, but with a shorter 4-inch barrel. The lowest MSRP for a Pro Carry we found on site was an $850 45 built on a matte-black alloy frame. The Heavy Duty HD model is constructed of stainless steel with satin finish. Our Pro Carry HD II was one of the few Kimber models available chambered for 38 Super, and it runs $1010. Are the upgrades worth the extra money? If the answer is not obvious, then at least we will try to explain the purpose of each upgrade and leave it to our knowledgeable readers to decide.

Kimber’s Custom SIS RL recently won a test of three 45s in the February 2008 issue of Gun Tests, earning an A- rating. One of the concerns the Gun Tests staff had about the gun was its price, a list of $1421. Based on our research, tight supply seems to keep the gun’s price up.

Common items like 357 Magnum revolvers usually mean wide supply, as a recent check of Gunbroker.com showed when we began looking for a Taurus 605.

The school superintendent in Harrold, Texas, who is making news with his plan to arm teachers and administrators, says that in spite of high-tech security systems, there is a flaw that exposes students to danger. That was his prime motivation for getting the unanimous approval of the school board for teachers and administrators to be able to carry guns concealed on school grounds.

BEIJING, China (August 15, 2008) — U.S. shooter Jason Turner was awarded a bronze medal in the 10m air pistol event after Kim Jong Su from North Korea was disqualified for a positive drug test.

FORT SMITH, AR — Umarex USA has broken ground on a new 100,000+ square foot facility in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Umarex USA is part of Umarex Corporate Group, a diversified German-owned holding company whose holdings include Walther GmBH. Umarex plans to include a 35,000-square-foot manufacturing operation for its newly created U.S. entity, Walther Industries, Inc. in the new building.

The M&P45s feature a 4.6-inch barrel with an overall length of 8.0 inches. The M&P45 comes standard with three interchangeable grips, a steel dovetail mount front sight and a steel Novak Lo-Mount carry rear sight. Tritium sights are also available. A universal Picatinny-style equipment rail has been incorporated for tactical lights and lasers. Our polymer pistol had an empty weight of 25.1 ounces.The new frame-mounted ambidextrous thumb safety acts as a passive safety device, allowing the slide to be pulled toward the rear, clearing the firearm without disengaging the safety. Another feature is the lanyard attachment. All M&P45 pistols feature a Zytel polymer frame reinforced with a stainless-steel chassis and a hardened black Melonite-finished stainless-steel barrel and slide and a Dark Earth Brown grip. This is a silly name for a color—Sand would have been fine—but we overlooked it.

Smith & Wesson’s M&P45s continue to win new converts. A test of the gun in the January 2008 issue of Gun Tests rated it as an “A-“ pick. A search of Gunbroker.com found a handful of the guns with current bid prices below the $619 MSRP cited in the GT article.

Gun owners in Baltimore whose firearms are stolen would be required to report the theft to police under legislation approved by the City Council yesterday—despite questions about whether the proposal is legal.