Shotguns

Lynch Hummer, a $7.5 million Hummer facility in an upscale St. Louis suburb, has announced the opening of the world's first combined Hummer and firearms dealership.

NC Federal Grand Jury Indicts 9 in Firearms Thefts Ring, Organized Firearms Home Theft Conspiracy Revealed

The travel writer Arthur Frommer has authored dozens of Frommer’s Travel Guides, and he writes a blog called Arthur Frommer Online. Now he’s trying to organize a boycott of Arizona’s travel industry because he disagrees with its gun laws.

Houston-based B.A. Brooks Sports is a Federal Firearms License dealer who supplies firearms for Gun Tests evaluations. B.A. Brooks Sports sometimes has guns acquired for Gun Tests evaluation that readers might want to purchase. The following list describes those firearms and accessories.

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 1988, the last "new" production shotshell cartridge of any note was introduced by Federal Cartridge Company: the 31/2-inch 12 gauge. It was the Mossberg 835 slide-action that helped launch it, and it was the proliferation of the long shell that sealed the demise of the 10-gauge shotgun, as you can actually get more performance out of a 12-gauge 31/2-inch load, chambering it in a shotgun that is less bulky, more versatile, and less costly to shoot than a comparable 10-gauge gun. Thats not quite obsolete, but Federal Cartridge currently lists only five 10-gauge loads, while the company offers more than 75 different 12-gauge shotshells. Whether a 31/2-inch 12 gauge makes a lot of sense today is another matter. The preconceived notion is that a 31/2-inch shell is automatically a Roman candle-but that is far from the truth. The 23/4-inch "baby magnum" lead shotshell has always had a 11/2-oz. payload. Typical steel 31/2-inch shells are 13/8-oz. to 11/2-oz. payloads: no heavier than many older 23/4-inch lead loads, much less 3-inch 12-gauge shells.But even though standard-length shells and the guns that shoot them can certainly get the job done, we cannot deny the appeal of shotguns that will shoot 31/2-inch shells, in part because they will shoot nearly any 12-gauge shotshell out there. Here, we look at two of the latest and supposedly greatest of the long-chambered slide-action twelves, the Benelli SuperNova No. 20115 MAX-4 HD Camo 12 Gauge Pump, $599; and the new-for-2009 Remington M887 NitroMag No. 82500 12 Gauge, $399. We should note that Benelli offers a matte black version of the SuperNova at $499 and that Remington offers the camo version of the M887 at $532 MSRP, but the differences were so significant that finish and price were secondary issues.

Somewhere in the neighborhood of 1988, the last "new" production shotshell cartridge of any note was introduced by Federal Cartridge Company: the 31/2-inch 12 gauge. It was the Mossberg 835 slide-action that helped launch it, and it was the proliferation of the long shell that sealed the demise of the 10-gauge shotgun, as you can actually get more performance out of a 12-gauge 31/2-inch load, chambering it in a shotgun that is less bulky, more versatile, and less costly to shoot than a comparable 10-gauge gun. Thats not quite obsolete, but Federal Cartridge currently lists only five 10-gauge loads, while the company offers more than 75 different 12-gauge shotshells. Whether a 31/2-inch 12 gauge makes a lot of sense today is another matter. The preconceived notion is that a 31/2-inch shell is automatically a Roman candle-but that is far from the truth. The 23/4-inch "baby magnum" lead shotshell has always had a 11/2-oz. payload. Typical steel 31/2-inch shells are 13/8-oz. to 11/2-oz. payloads: no heavier than many older 23/4-inch lead loads, much less 3-inch 12-gauge shells.But even though standard-length shells and the guns that shoot them can certainly get the job done, we cannot deny the appeal of shotguns that will shoot 31/2-inch shells, in part because they will shoot nearly any 12-gauge shotshell out there. Here, we look at two of the latest and supposedly greatest of the long-chambered slide-action twelves, the Benelli SuperNova No. 20115 MAX-4 HD Camo 12 Gauge Pump, $599; and the new-for-2009 Remington M887 NitroMag No. 82500 12 Gauge, $399. We should note that Benelli offers a matte black version of the SuperNova at $499 and that Remington offers the camo version of the M887 at $532 MSRP, but the differences were so significant that finish and price were secondary issues.

When it comes to defending the home, the shotgun is and probably always will be a popular choice. The favorite design for this purpose has long been the pump-action shotgun. Simplicity, low cost, and reliability are their hallmarks. Cycling a pump shotgun relies directly upon the operator, while semiautos load themselves. Perhaps this is why the pump is more widely trusted. In this test we will find out if two semiautomatic shotguns can earn the same high level of confidence as the shuckers have earned. Furthermore, we'll pit a base-model autoloader against a fully dressed tactical model to see just what upgrades help or hinder. Our test shotguns were the $458 CZ-USA No. 06029 712 Utility 12 gauge and the $700 Mossberg Special Purpose 930 Tactical No. 85360. Both shotguns were constructed with black synthetic stocks and black aluminum receivers. The CZ shotgun was a basic model, as its name would imply. The Mossberg was outfitted with several upgrades from the tactical aftermarket.

To test our shotguns we did not take them to the skeet range. Nor did we take them hunting. Here is what we were looking for: First, we wanted to find out the size and the density of pattern we could deliver shooting nine-pellet 23/4-inch 00 buckshot. Our buckshot test patterns were produced from a maximum distance of 25 yards. We also fired for pattern from 30 feet, a typical distance between a bedroom door and the main entrance of a home. For this test we fired the Winchester Super X XB1200 load, the Federal Low Recoil H132 00-buck shotshells, and Rio Royal Low Recoil shotshells, No. RBLR 129. At first we chamber-loaded one at a time. Then we loaded the magazines to check for cycling. What we found was that our entire supply of Rio slugs and buckshot would be useless in this test. Neither shotgun would cycle the Rio ammunition. In fact, the Mossberg would not even allow it to enter the magazine. Both shotguns were built to chamber 3-inch rounds, so the added length of the Rio (about 0.12 inches) was not the problem. After failing to pass through a MEC shell-check gauge ($12, from recobstargetshop.com), we think it was the high-wall brass that was responsible. However, these rounds cycled easily in the two pump shotguns we tried, a Remington 870 Express Magnum and a Mossberg 590A1.

We also tried firing slug ammunition from a benchrest at a distance of 50 yards. Our choice of slugs was the Federal Vital-Shok TruBall Low Recoil Rifled Slug HP No. PB127 LRS. To help us steady the shotguns and also soak up recoil, we mounted the shotguns in a Caldwell Lead Sled. Test rounds were chronographed to measure velocity and compute muzzle energy.

Semiautomatic firearms require energy supplied by the ammunition to cycle. So we fired less powerful ammunition as well. For this segment of our test, we fired Super Sport Competition Target loads from Estate Cartridge, Inc., and another inexpensive round, Rio's Trap 32 target load. Both rounds were rated at about 1150 fps and were 23/4-inch 23/4-dram shells with 11/8 ounces of No. 8s. Each of these rounds featured low-brass hulls. Our function-fire test included a timed rapidfire exercise aimed at a steel target placed 12 yards downrange. To ensure safety we chose an Evil Roy Practice Target from actiontarget.com. The Evil Roy was safe to use because it directed the ricochet downward almost directly in front of its collapsible stand. We used a shot-activated timer to record five five-shot strings of fire beginning with an audible start signal. Our intent was to drive the guns as fast as possible to see if we could make them stumble. By racing against the clock we were adding artificial stress. In this way we hoped to learn more about the basic operation of each gun. That is, knocking off the safety, achieving a mount, finding the target and keeping our hits on steel. Start position was port arms with the butt of the gun lowered to about the belt line with the front sight, or bead, held high enough so that it was at the periphery of our sight picture between our eye and the target. Would the performance and reliability of either shotgun be enough to win over a pump-gun devotee? Let's find out.

In Arizona and several other states, it happens to be legal for people to purchase and carry these types of weapons without a permit. Gun-rights advocates say they are exercising their constitutional right to bear arms and protest; others who argue for more gun control say it could be a disaster waiting to happen.

The 2009 Shotgun National Junior Olympics came to a close on August 1 with Collin Wietfeldt (Hemlock, Mich.) and Rachael Heiden (Clinton, Mich.) earning titles in the Trap event.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation reports that according to the most recent Firearms and Ammunition Excise Tax Collection Report released last week by the Department of the Treasury, firearm and ammunition manufacturers paid more than $109.8 million in the first calendar quarter of 2009; up 43% over the same time period reported in 2008.

Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. (NYSE-RGR) announced last week that for the second quarter of 2009, the Company reported net sales of $72.4 million and earnings of 46¢ per share, compared with sales of $38.7 million and earnings of 5¢ per share in the second quarter of 2008.

Beretta U.S.A. Corp. announced outstanding June sales results last week.