Handguns

We had a reader ask for a review of this SDS, and we are glad he asked. The SDS is made by Tisas in Turkey and looked like an M1911A1 fresh off the assembly line circa 1943. In the hard case were two steel magazines, an extra set of checkered plastic grips, bushing wrench, and cleaning rod and brush.

The Rock Island Armory wore a well-executed matte-black Parkerized finish and smooth wood grips. It takes design cues from both the M1911 and M1911A1 and is perhaps the most bastardized of the GI 1911 tested.

The Taylor’s gun had a nice Parkerized matte-black finish and checkered wood grips that felt slightly fat in hand.

When was the original M1911 adopted by the U.S. Military? As you might guess, the year was 1911, and the first model, the M1911,...

Magnum Research has introduced its third handgun influenced by Norse warrior culture, the “Viking L5 Desert Eagle.” Norse long swords taken from archeological digs inspired...

The Smith & Wesson 640 Pro doesn’t use the company’s controversial action lock, which isn’t desirable on a hard-use Magnum revolver. While problems are few on most wheelguns, one is too many in personal defense.

The revolver’s satin stainless finish is attractive. Unlike the highly polished Smith & Wesson 640 Pro, the Defender and the Boxer revolvers each use a matte finish. The Defender features rubber grips.

The revolver tested is the new Charter Arms Boxer 38 Special. This is an outgrowth of the Charter Arms Bulldog revolver. Charter Arms has offered six-shot 32-caliber revolvers on the five-shot 38 frame and five-shot 32 Magnum revolvers, as well as various rimfire models.

The grip is the story with the F-Series pistol, and we found the grip is nicely textured and offers an ideal balance of abrasion and adhesion.

The pistol is supplied with a hard-plastic case. Two backstraps, a standard and extended magazine, mounting plate for a red dot, Allen wrench, a manual, and a credible plastic holster are included.

Despite there being a bad shortage of 9mm handguns a couple of years ago, in 2023 many well-known brands are reasonably available and are...

FN America's new micro-compact pistols are the FN Reflex and Reflex MRD 9mm pistols. The pistols are available in both standard and MRD (micro...