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Barrett's Fieldcraft is great for backpacking, and the Browning Hell's Canyon can compete on Saturday and hunt on Sunday. Howa's H-S Precision is a fine all-purpose rifle in this trending long-range round.

For six years, I was an attorney for a national firearms legal-defense program. I represented gun owners who acted in self-defense and traveled the country speaking on firearms issues. I've taken countless questions regarding a person's legal right to self-defense. Over the years, I started to see a pattern — people have the same questions. From your brand-new gun owner to the seasoned carrier, the questions and misconceptions were the same. I've heard it all, and nothing catches me off-guard, so I've drawn on these experiences to put together the top 10 misconceptions gun owners have when it comes to their self-defense rights.

The selective-double-action handgun isn't always well understood by the buying public. Yet, for many, this action represents the best combination of speed, readiness, and safety. The CZ 75 is easily the best known of the type, but other makers have offered selective-double-action-operation handguns. Recognizing the current popularity of the high-capacity 9mm handgun, our team went searching for good buys in this popular chambering. We wished to test the accuracy of a number of selective-double-action (SDA) handguns. With a long trigger press for combat use with the first shot and excellent accuracy potential in the single-action mode, we feel that these service-size handguns offer a good choice for many shooters. We tested the following handguns:

Action Arms ITM AT-84. This pistol is among the units assembled and finished in Switzerland from Tanfoglio parts. It is perhaps twenty years old. This pistol is similar to the modern CZ 75; however, it is a pre-B, in that there is no firing-pin block or drop safety. Modern magazines fit the AT-84, but AT-84 and pre-B CZ 75 magazines will not lock into the modern CZ75B. The original spur hammer is used on the AT-84. All in all, it offered a pleasant and perhaps retro appearance. This pistol isn't offered in a current configuration, so you would have to roam the used-gun counters and the bowels of the internet to locate one. But they are out there in reasonable numbers.

CZ 75 B Matte Stainless 91128. We have previously tested a 75B, in the June 2016 issue, Model No. 01120 in 40 S&W. The ‘B' designation indicates that the model is equipped with a firing-pin-block safety. That CZ 75B was finished in a black coating, and the pistol's dust cover is thicker than on the 9mm, so some holsters, such as the tightly fitted Lobo Gunleather IWB, would require a significant break-in period before the handgun will properly fit a holster blocked for the 9mm CZ 75 B. The sights on that pistol were enameled with a green three-dot treatment. The paint was self luminous and glowed green for some time after being exposed to light. Raters were split on the CZ 75 B. All gave the pistol high marks for reliability. Accuracy was excellent, and the pistol was comfortable to fire. The lack of a decocking lever was a serious drawback to some, and it didn't have an accessory rail. In the August 2008 issue, we tested a 75 B in 9mm, it also with a blued finish. We said of that B+ handgun: "The single-action CZ 75 B was one of the finer 9mms we've tried. It fit our hands well, pointed superbly, was reliable, comfortable and pleasant to shoot. The only flaw we found in this sample was a trigger that needed work. This gun had an ambidextrous safety that did not interfere with the shooting hand. The only control other than a two-position hammer (no half-cock position, and none needed) and the trigger was the slide lock, which was also the takedown lever." A few months later, we looked at another 75 (B-), this one a 16-shot double-action pistol that "can be carried cocked and locked, which solves problems for some who are required to pack a DA pistol. The matte-black finish was well done, and the entire gun seemed to be built to last." The accuracy of the CZ was about 2.5 inches for all shots fired, and we thought that was more than adequate. The CZ was notably heavier than the M&P, and that helped dampen recoil. There were no problems with the CZ whatsoever. It fed, fired, and ejected all our loads. We liked the fact that it could be fired with the magazine removed. The empties didn't go far, but they all got out of the gun. Other than the poor trigger and its sharp edge, we liked this gun. It appeared to be very well made." If buying used firearms isn't your thing, this pistol is still being offered under the 91128 model number.

Taurus PT 92 AF 92B-17. We tested an early incarnation of this pistol in the June 1994 issue. We looked at a Taurus 92 AF 9mm, saying of it, "Overall, this Taurus' trigger was satisfactory. The trigger itself was 3⁄8-inch wide and had a smooth face. In the single-action mode, the pull had almost a half-inch of take-up before breaking at 6 pounds. The long double-action pull had a full inch of travel. However, it released with only 10.5 pounds of pressure, making it easier to control than most. Bottom Line: The PT 92 performed satisfactorily so long as it was heavily lubricated, but eliminating the [tool] chatter marks on the slide rails seems a better option to us."

John Browning's 1911 handgun design has been produced the world over in some of the finest factories in the world, as well as some copies beat out on a rock in Afghanistan. Some 1911s have been downsized — in what they shoot — to a variety of cartridges smaller than 45 ACP, such as 40 S&W, 38 Super, 9mm Luger, and 22 LR, to name just a few. The handguns reviewed here, the Browning 1911-380 and the Kimber Micro Carry Advocate, are likewise downsized in cartridge to the 380 ACP (aka the 9mm Kurz, or 9mm Short), and they are physically downsized as well. This has been done before in the form of several variations by Colt, the Mustang being among the best known. Older raters fondly remember the Star 380 ACP handguns that were available in both service-size and micro-size variants. Going further back, the Colt 1903 Pocket Hammerless that preceded the 1911 was a compact 32 ACP pistol that saw action all over the world. It was also chambered for the 380 ACP in later variations. The popularity of the 380 ACP round is certainly a result of its easy shooting characteristics, made even easier in the larger variants with bigger grips and more weight.

The 1911 market is huge, as is the 380 ACP market, but there are only a relative handful of firearms that combine the ergonomics of the former and the soft recoil of the latter. In particular, Browning and Kimber are not willing to leave the 380 ACP market to Colt and SIG, so they have attempted to marry the big gun's controls with the pocket pistol's shootability in their respective handguns, the 1911-380 and the Micro Carry Advocate. Each rides on the coattails of the full-size 1911; however, only the Browning is a true miniaturized 1911. We call the Kimber "1911-like."

In this test, our shooters found out that both sidearms work well, and that the Kimber is a very good pocket pistol to boot. The Browning will not fit in an average pocket, and that makes its place in the scheme of personal-defense carry guns problematic. Here are more of our insights on these two handguns:

To be blunt, if you fire even a single round at the shooting range or in your shop with the Snail Trap without high-quality eye and ear protection, you are a total moron. One simple question, how much hunting, shooting or tinkering on guns are you going to be doing when you are blind? I suppose you can still do most of that if you are deaf, but it won't be fun and your success will be less than sterling.

Any mass-produced product, no matter how technically advanced, will have manufacturing tolerances that will dictate a variation in the dimensions of the parts. Rifles are not exempt from this, but it is inarguable that with the increasing use of computer controlled manufacturing machines, today's factory rifles have reduced these tolerances dramatically. Enough, it would seem, that the accuracy goals of a "tuned" rifle from a couple of generations ago are generally close to the minimum out-of-the-box standard today. However, while we may be getting closer, perfection is still elusive.

The collaboration between Samuel Colt and Captain Samuel Hamilton Walker in 1846 resulted in the Colt Walker revolver, a massive six-shot 44-caliber handgun. The largest and most powerful percussion revolver ever made, it weighed nearly 5 pounds and was more than 15 inches long. Captain Walker wanted a revolver for cavalry troops that could dispatch opposing adversaries as well as horses in close combat situations. The massive Walkers were held in pommel holsters thrown over a saddle horn. Captain Walker used a pair of his namesake revolvers during the Mexican-American War and was killed in action shortly after the Colt Walkers began production. Numerous copies of the Walker are available today, with most made in Italy by companies like Uberti and Pietta. However, our second-generation Walker tested here was made by Colt Blackpowder, which was, at one time, part of Colt in the 1970s thru the 1980s. The Italian companies manufactured components, and Colt Blackpowder finished the gun. Our test item is known by collectors as one of the "black box" percussion Colts because it was packaged in a black box. Many shooters will recognize the Walker as the handgun Clint Eastwood carried in a belt rig in the movie The Outlaw Josey Wales.

Bill Ruger loved old guns, and his design for what he called the finest percussion revolver was the Old Army, introducing the cap-and-ball revolver in 1972. Ruger built the design around the old three-screw Blackhawk revolver. Unlike the popular open-top Colt percussion revolvers like the Walker, Ruger's Old Army uses a full frame with top strap and looks very similar to the Remington Model 1858 percussion revolver. Ruger redesigned the loading lever to be more secure and added adjustable sights. Adjustable sights on a black-powder revolver was virtually unheard of, and they take the guesswork out of shooting these revolvers, as you will see.

While we wanted the authentic black-powder experience, we also wanted to see how a cartridge-conversion cylinder would fare in these handguns. Taylor's & Co. (TaylorsFirearms.com) imports cartridge-conversion cylinders from Italy, so we ordered a 45 Long Colt cylinder for both the Walker ($250) and the Old Army ($240) from Brownells.com. The back plate, or rear of the cartridge conversion cylinder, is pulled off, the cylinder loaded with cartridges, the back plate replaced, and then the cylinder is inserted into the revolver's frame and the revolver reassembled. It takes longer to describe than to do in actual practice for one of these revolvers. The back plate holds six firing pins, and a pin in the cylinder and a hole in the back pate mate to ensure they are reattached the same way each time. The cartridge-conversion cylinders are not conducive for fast reloads, but they do allow shooters to fire cartridges in percussion-style guns without the fuss of loose fixin's like ball, caps, and powder. In fact the Taylor's & Co. cylinders are patterned after an original Remington design for a drop-in fit.

The popular AR-15 platform is spurring modifications on over-the-counter guns that heretofore were the province of do-it-yourselfers who had a Brownells catalog and a credit card handy. Two modifications of the original design found on more and more ARs are the "tactical" forend, consisting of a four-sided Picatinny rail and flip-up sights that can be raised into position when needed. The tactical forend is especially useful when applied to a flat-topped receiver topped with a matching Picatinny rail. The forend rail can receive any type of laser or illuminating device that carries a clamp. These features were developed to answer the needs of military and law enforcement and action-rifle competitors.

The AR-15 platform lends itself to fulfilling the needs of the user like no other design, which made our task of assembling four different carbines both a challenge and a pleasure. They are the $1054 DPMS RFA2-AP4A Patrol Carbine and a Bushmaster Patrolman's Carbine No. BCWA3F 16M4, which comes with options that bring the total suggested retail price to $1534. Each of these compact ARs offer the tactical forend and flip-up sights mentioned above and a flash hider, adjustable-length stock, and single-stage trigger. Also, the DPMS Patrol Carbine and the Bushmaster came with A2-style front sights that were adjustable for elevation.

Both were chambered for .223 Remington or 5.56mm rounds. For test ammunitions, we chose two premium rounds and the highest quality, most economical remanufactured ammunition we could find. The premium rounds were 62-grain Hornady TAP and 62-grain Federal American Eagle FMJ ammunition. To perform the bulk of the work, such as zeroing our scopes and performing rapid-fire drills that ate up hundreds of rounds, we chose 55-grain full-metal-jacket rounds from Georgia Arms (Georgia-Arms.com).

Our test procedure was arduous. To collect accuracy data we fired five-shot groups from the 50-yard benches at American Shooting Centers in Houston (AMShootcenters.com). Each gun was tested with the supplied open sights and with a Millet DMS-1 variable power scope set at 4X magnification. Mounting the scope with Zeiss rings upon a one-piece riser from Yankee Hill Machine (part number YHM-227A, $33 from YankeeHillMachine.com) made the transfer from gun to gun simple.

For the results of this test of four compact ARs, purchase the AR-15 Rifles E-Book, Part 1 from Gun Tests.