Guns

We have experienced a rise in airgun innovation and use. Most recently it's been with a push towards larger calibers (a trend air rifle enthusiasts and hunters alike embrace). It's also been with the chasm between low cost, lackluster performance and high price, big-bore precision seems to be widening. In an airgun nutshell, as cliché as it might sound, you generally get what you pay for. The Red Ryder, as cool as it might be, especially at $40, pales in comparison to today’s PCP offerings. Of course, this lopsided comparison further emphasizes polarized costs and performance. So, where does a still-fragile economic climate leave cost-conscious consumers looking for a low-cost, high-quality shooting solution? Enter the SIG Sauer Advanced Sport Pellet Airgun (ASP) Line. It includes "specifications and handling.” It parallels those of SIG’s popular, authentic firearms: P226 and P250 handguns, the MPX short-barreled rifle and popular MCX. SIG has even introduced ammo and accessories for its ASP line. I'm a Marine Corps veteran with an affinity for “scary” black AR platform rifles and a soft spot for airguns. So I jumped at the chance to spend quality time with the .17-caliber SIG Sauer MCX ASP Rifle. After all, those who know me best would suggest my love of firearms of all kinds and fierce protective posture regarding our Second Amendment began with airguns. It's just like America’s Western expansion began with Lewis and Clark’s expedition and their use of what experts generally agree was a Girandoni .46-caliber air rifle. History lessons aside, the question is, “How much bang for your customer’s buck does the SIG Sauer MCX ASP CO2 Air Rifle include?” The SIG Sauer MCX The MCX’s design and the $199 price tag makes it hard not to get excited, but it takes more than low cost to lure penny-pinching customers in for a close. They want premium shootability, maybe a cool accessory or two and some semblance of true firearm trigger time. The consumer dream purchase? Great quality, high-shooting volume, low cost, respected brand. The truth is, SIG answers all of these soundly with the MCX Air Rifle. SIG SAUER is protective of its brand. The MCX’s quality must conform to SIG’s expectation with respect to increasing brand equity and contributing positively to the company’s reputation or risk tarnishing the good name – and it doesn’t take much to upset that balance in our industry. Some might suggest a low-cost firearm of any type bearing the SIG name could be risky; however, such reasoning suggests SIG works even harder to ensure the MCX doesn’t disappoint. And, in my estimation, based on SIG’s callout and my personal experience at this point, it doesn’t disappoint in either aesthetics or feel. True to SIG’s claim, it looks and feels like I’m carrying the real deal, with the exception of the heavy-duty polymer handguards.The Rifle While the MCX incorporates some non-functioning details, such as a mock bolt-release lever, forward assist and dust cover, there are other features at least semi-functional, including the short-travel charging handle, selector switch and what appears to be an ambidextrous magazine-release button (but only the release button on the right side is operational). Surprisingly, the mix of a polymer stock and handguards with a rugged, anodized aluminum receiver and suppressor-like shroud concealing a 17.7-inch rifled barrel result in striking balance, great for effective trigger time and serious training in any shooting position. Unfortunately, the receiver is split vertically, with a left and right side, and doesn’t come apart. The polymer handguard, while exceptionally rugged, may make attaching a keymod accessory mount more difficult. I had a tough time installing a Picatinny rail piece to the handguard because the groove in the keymod nut was narrow enough that sliding the mount forward in the keymod slots took some force; still, it wasn’t impossible and once installed, worked as reliably as you would expect from any keymod mounting system. The stock system was also quite comfortable. Because the stock houses the heart of the MCX, the CO2 canister used to power the rifle, it is not adjustable. However, even after I installed a Sightmark Wolfhound 6x44 Prismatic Sight (mostly for fun), the comb height and length of pull felt nice. Admittedly, this may not be the case for every shooter. I did experience a more stable cheek weld while shooting with the included flip-up sights. I was able to literally sink into the stock and relax. The SIG SAUER MCX also includes a 20mm red dot or variable 1-4x24 tactical scope, but I upgraded to the Wolfhound immediately to test accuracy for grouping. Still, the inclusion of both fixed and a red-dot optic are worth conveying to value-hunting customers. How Does It Shoot? Prepping the MCX for a little precision plinking was fairly quick and easy. The ability to shoot a semi-automatic rifle without the need of an air tank or pump was refreshing. No need to break open or refill to 3,000 psi, just install the CO2 canister in the stock and get back to work. The polymer 30-round magazine operates with a pellet belt. The manual was well written and easy to follow, making removing the belt, loading pellets and re-installing it fast and easy. After a few shooting cycles, I was a pro. Learning the system well enough to help customers should take mere minutes. Using a charged CO2 canister and full magazine, I settled into a comfortable prone position. SIG Sauer’s great-flying .177 pellets and the rifled barrel, I managed a sub 1-inch group at 30 yards. With the flip-up sights I managed 1¼-inch group at 25 yards and sub 2-inch group at 30 yards. Velocity fluctuates some, obviously, with the life of the CO2 cartridge in use. I shot numerous pellets at 700 fps, including many slightly over 700. Close performance that mirrored SIG's specs impressed me. As a result of personal shooting experience, I would have no reservations about hunting small varmints with this particular system although SIG does not advocate such activity with the ASP line. Where confidence is critical to ethical hunting, my shots at varmints would likely remain within 30 yards, perhaps 40, depending on circumstances and continued practice, but no further. From off-hand to prone, considering real-rifle weight, length of pull, comb height, etc., the rifle was incredibly comfortable to shoot. In fact, the only attributes your customers are likely to question are trigger weight and travel. At approximately 6 pounds, trigger weight is a bit heavier while travel is a bit longer than I prefer. When I questioned SIG, its response surprised me. To an extent, it effectively squashed my complaint with completely acceptable design logic. The heavier trigger pull is meant to resemble the real MCX. Understanding this purposeful explanation left me very little to complain about. The rifle feels good, shoots great and comes at a price point customers are sure to appreciate. Even better, while it does have a premium air rifle feel both in handling and shooting, depending on your surroundings it may give customers the kind of backyard plinking opportunities that some of my most prized father/son memories are made of. Man, I wish this rifle was on the shelf back in the 70s! Conclusion In an industry chock full of low-end and high-end air rifles, enthusiasts are starving for mid-level air rifles. Especially when it comes to family fun, recruiting and educating new shooters. The SIG Sauer MCX Air Rifle is available in black or flat dark earth (FDE). It includes open polymer/aluminum flip-up sights, a 30-round magazine and operation manual. Included are a registration card and one-year warranty. If you’re wondering if customers can expect a .177 bang for their bucks, they’ll get to enjoy 30 of them. When it comes to value, the SIG Sauer MCX is on target!

SIG’s new modular handgun system, the P320, has been choosen as the replacement for the M9 service pistol for use by the U.S. Army.

Traditions has introduced three new rifles — the Vortek StrikerFire Backcountry, the PA Pellet Ultralight and Outfitter G2.

GunsAmerica.com is your partner for increasing sales and foot traffic in your brick-and-mortar store.

The new Inland T30 Carbine is a blast from the past, topped with a vintage sniper scope offering the look and feel of a rifle from three historic wars but up to date in every other way.

The International Traffic in Arms Regulations, commonly known as ITAR, refers to the regulations surrounding shipping guns and ammo across national borders. However, companies such as Texas-based Defense Distributed are challenging that restrictive legislation by eliminating the need to cross international borders by producing firearms and firearm accessories in the United States through 3-D printing. For several years now, the company has been creating files that can be fed into a 3-D printer to produce fully functional AR-15 lower receivers (technically the gun, as I’m sure you know) and pistols1. Now, they are even manufacturing and selling entire CNC mills2 so that citizens can produce guns made at home without any BATF licensing and with no serial numbers. Yes, this is legal, as long as you follow various rules as you do this. This is the next step forward from 80 percent receivers that can be turned into complete guns with a few drilling and milling operations and the addition of mail order parts. You can understand why the gun control crowd is terrified. Once this technology is widely distributed, gun control will be as practical and applicable as censorship is in the age of the internet. The U.S. government cannot realistically control the sale of 3-D printers or CNC mills because too much of industrial civilization is dependent on them, and companies like Defense Distributed are doing their best to make sure anyone can buy a CNC mill. The Obama Administration was controlled by the billionaire gun control nuts and, while they would like to make the distribution of the files and other technical information about making your own guns illegal, they are limited by the First Amendment, except when they can attach it to international trade. Hence, ITAR comes into play. Last year, the Obama Administration proposed changes to ITAR that would change the definition of the “technical data” that are subject to export controls to include “diagrams, models, formulae, tables, engineering designs and specifications, computer-aided design files, manuals or documentation, or electronic media3…” And the U.S. isn’t the only country concerned about this. The Australian state of New South Wales has criminalized “possessing digital blueprints for the manufacture of firearms on 3-D printers or electronic milling machines4.” Clearly, the goal is to make it unlawful for Defense Distributed and others to distribute files and other “technical data.” While such a ban theoretically ends at the shoreline (because the internet extends planet-wide and even to space probes elsewhere in the solar system) a ban on exports actually means a general ban on putting this on the internet. In my opinion, even publishing a book in the U.S. might run afoul under the new ITAR standards. In this example, the book is published here, but anyone can buy the book and export it. Is the author in violation? What about the publisher or the person who bought the book and exported it? What are the limits of that “technical data?” I think a good case can be made from a recent Steven Mathews’ article, “AR-15 Lower Shootout,” which qualifies as such when it explains that the spacing of the hammer and trigger pin holes in an AR-15 lower must be exactly .843" center to center5. So, do you have anything to worry about? Perhaps. The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) has recently revised its regulations concerning ITAR, not on the 3-D printing subject, but on one of importance to anyone whose products might be exported or bought by the U.S. armed forces or who imports defense articles. The DDTC has the authority to require licenses from any company or individual who “engages in the United States in the business of manufacturing or exporting or temporarily importing defense articles, or furnishing defense services,” even if it is just a one-time event6. If you are a manufacturer, you may have to register with DDTC if you do any of the following7:Use of any special tooling or equipment upgrading in order to improve the capability of assembled or repaired firearms Modifications to a firearm that change round capacity The production of firearm parts (including, but not limited to, barrels, stocks, cylinders, breech mechanisms, triggers, silencers or suppressors) The systemized production of ammunition, including the automated loading or reloading of ammunition The machining or cutting of firearms, e.g., threading of muzzles or muzzle brake installation requiring machining, that results in an enhanced capability Rechambering firearms through machining, cutting, or drilling Chambering, cutting, or threading barrel blanks Blueprinting firearms by machining the barrelThe National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) is concerned that the issue of the machining or cutting of firearms means that a gunsmith who threads a barrel might be required to register with the DDTC, which requires a $2,250 fee. Failure to do so for even one threading job could get you “huge fines and up to 20 years in prison8.”Are you engaged in the business of manufacturing if you “use any special tooling or equipment upgrading in order to improve the capability of assembled or repaired firearms?”Additionally, this where the 3-D printing files may be an issue. Assisting foreign persons in the design, development, and repair of firearms may constitute the export of a defense service (see 22 CFR § 120.9) and require ITAR registration with and authorization from DDTC. Also, exporting a firearm or any other item on the USML requires ITAR registration with and authorization from DDTC9. You may be wondering if the First Amendment’s protection of free speech and freedom of the press take precedence. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that burning American flags10 and virtual child pornography11 are protected free speech. Alan Gura, who has won many Second Amendment cases recently, is currently suing the Department of State on behalf of Defense Distributed on this very question12. Is technical information protected, especially if it is exported? Probably not. Some years ago, a publisher sought to offer a book about cryptography with two computer diskettes containing source code for encryption. The courts ruled that their export could be prohibited under ITAR as a defense article.13 As another example, some years ago a friend of mine and I wrote and sold (not very successfully) an encrypting program for PCs. One of the orders was to be delivered to the Norwegian Consulate in San Francisco. Fearful of violating ITAR, I contacted DDTC’s predecessor and asked if this required an export license. The answer was, “No, it isn’t leaving the U.S.” If transporting the computer program was an issue and we did so, the DDTC could impose some impressive fines and send you to prison. If you’re in doubt about whether you are potentially breaking the law, contact your attorney. References 1. https://defdist.org/ last accessed June 23, 2015. 2. https://www.ghostgunner.net/ last accessed June 23, 2015. 3. Federal Register 80:106 31526 (June 3, 2015) http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-06-03/pdf/2015-12844.pdf last accessed June 23, 2015. 4. J.E. Reich, “Owning A 3-D-Printed Gun File Is Now Illegal In Australian Province,” Tech Times, November 24, 2015. 5. Steven Matthews, “AR-15 Lower Shootout,” Shotgun News, June 20, 2015, 29. 6. Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, “Applicability of the ITAR Registration Requirement to Firearms Manufacturers and Gunsmiths,” July 22, 2016, 1, http://pmddtc.state.gov (PDF), last accessed August 9, 2016. 7. Ibid., 3. 8. National Shooting Sports Foundation, “NSSF Opposes Actions Forcing Gunsmiths to Register under ITAR,” August 9, 2016, http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/2016/08/nssf-opposes-actions-forcing-gunsmiths-to-register-under-itar/, last accessed August 9, 2016. 9. Ibid., 4. 10. Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1990). 11. Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition, 535 U.S. 234 (2002). 12. Defense Distributed v. U.S. Department of State, http://ia601509.us.archive.org, last accessed June 23, 2015. 13. Karn v. U.S. Dept. of State, 925 F.Supp. 1 (D.C.D. 1996)

The new FN America FN 15 II Family includes the DMR II, Tactical II and Tactical 300 BLK II. The new line is re-thought and re-engineered, featuring the all-new FN handguard system with M-LOK and a unique barrel nut that eliminates the need for gas tube alignment.DMR IIThe DMR II, reengineered for enhanced performance, features the all-new FN handguard with M-LOK that provides extreme rigidity and less deflection ensuring that all accessories that are mounted will remain affixed without any shift in zero, despite pressures that may be applied. Like its predecessor, the rifle offers an 18-inch match-grade, cold hammer-forged barrel with a 1:7 twist, SureFire Pro Comp muzzle device that enhance stability and accuracy for heavier grain precision shooting ammunition and an upgraded Mil-Spec lower with match-grade Timney trigger, Magpul MOE grip and STR buttstock, and Mil-Spec H-type buffer assembly and tube. MSRP: $1,999.Tactical II The Tactical Carbine II is the latest evolution the FN 15 family of carbines. Improving upon the existing platform with the addition of FN’s new handguard,  enhanced Mil-Spec lower receiver and legendary match-grade free floating, chrome-lined, cold hammer-forged barrel offer extreme durability and performance. The second generation of the FN 15 Tactical still offers the distinguishing features like the 3-prong flash hider found on the FN SCAR rifles that reduces flash, mid length gas system and H1 buffer to decrease recoil, a Magpul grip, buttstock and M-LOK accessory mounting system. MSRP: $1,599.Tactical 300 BLK II With its origins stemming from legendary military manufacturing, it only makes sense that FN would chamber its M4-derived FN 15 Tactical Carbine in the popular .300 AAC Blackout (7.62x35mm) cartridge, a cartridge that was developed at military request to offer the ballistic performance of the 7.62x39mm cartridge from an M4-style rifle platform. The first FN-made AR-15 to be chambered in 300 BLK offers optimized performance with extremely low-felt recoil from the FN-signature, 16-inch, alloy-steel, cold hammer-forged, chrome-lined barrel, carbine-length gas system, low-profile gas block, SureFire ProComp muzzle break and Magpul MOE furniture. MSRP: $1,479.

As pistol-caliber carbines gain popularity among green shooters and established professionals alike, we tested two of the more popular designs to see which was best.

Bushmaster’s newest release provides the usual features for a sporting rifle, but it also weighs only 6 pounds, allowing plenty of room for accessories.

After a recovery officer is attacked, one bystander comes to his aid with his concealed-carry firearm.

From AR-15 pistols to SBRs to a growing assortment of accessories to make them, the market for pint-sized personal defense weapons is growing.

Battle Arms Development has made a name for itself in the market for customized AR-15s. Here's how they accomplished that.

U.S. military personnel can now request to carry concealed handguns for personal protection at government facilities.

The X11 Carbine offers superior reliability through innovative engineering and a rugged, ergonomic platform.

Mission First Tactical (MFT), a leader in the design of advanced arms accessories, recently announced the availability for its 30-round MFT Polymer Magazine in a 15-round restricted capacity to comply with Colorado and New Jersey firearm magazine regulations. The popularity of the MFT mags, designed for the AR-15/M4 and capable of use with a variety of non-AR-15/M4 platforms, resulted in customers requesting compliant magazines. According to MFT, the 15-round capacity MFT Mag (PN: 15/30PM556BAG) is made possible by an internal limiter. The bottom of the magazine is "permanently" sealed. On the floor plate, a red pin indicates the 15-round mag block. This 15-round mag is produced from the same military-grade reinforced polyamide from DuPont and is made in the USA like all MFT products. It features a stipple texture and low profile front ribs for confident handling of magazines and easier extraction. The floorplate flares to also aid in extraction while providing drop protection. It is compatible with tight double and triple magazine pouches. An oversized bolt-catch notch, located in the rear of the magazine, allows for more bolt-catch clearance. A fully functional drain hole ensure that the magazine fully drains under adverse weather or shooting conditions. The MFT Mags 15-round capacity 5.56 NATO magazine with a long-life stainless steel spring and four-way, anti-tilt follower ensure reliable and consistent feeding. MSRP is $16.99. For more information, go to www.missionfirsttactical.com.

Built solid like a tank, this Inland Liberator is a fun and great looking pistol.

The 11/111 DOA Hunter has a detachable box magazine, black synthetic stock, matte blued barrel and Weaver Grand Slam rings.