Rifle March/April 2023

Rifles have really changed over the past few decades. In the post-World War II era, many sporting bolt-action rifles were not even drilled and tapped for top-of-receiver scope mounting, They were equipped only with good old iron sights. Also, it was not that long ago that I was fabricating hardware to attach large and low-power flashlights (at least by today’s standards) to rifles to deal with barnyard pests and varmints after sundown. Today, many sporting rifles are standard with cross-slot accessory mounts and/or a Picatinny rail that readily accepts compact, lightweight, yet powerful lights. ...Read More >

Winchester put its brand on a great many cartridges using several acronyms. There have been Winchester Center Fires (WCFs), Winchester Rim Fires (WRFs), and Winchester Self Loading (WSL) and Winchester Short Magnums (WSMs). Early on, the term “center fire” was important because there was also a myriad of “rim fire” cartridges. Decades later, when rimfires were mostly .22s, the company’s names for its own developments became simple ones like .270 Winchester or .308 Winchester. ...Read More >

The response of many rifle folk to the above title will be something like, “Winchester Model what?” This is not surprising. The Model 52 was designed, built and continually improved to be a bullseye .22 rimfire target rifle only. It was full-size, heavy and expensive. Anyone not involved in small-bore target shooting would never see one. ...Read More >

Thermal imaging optics have exploded onto the firearms scene in pace with the meteoric popularity of nighttime wild hog and varmint hunting. Thermal-imaging optics mounted atop AR-type rifles have proven to be the most reliable weapon in the ongoing effort to curb the exploding feral hog population. As popularity increases, the scale of economics has slowly lowered prices while also providing increasingly user-friendly operation and improved reliability. ...Read More >

If you are the type of hunter who likes your rifle chambered for the same cartridge as your six-shootin’ single-action handgun, this Winchester Model 1892 is for you. Aside from this, Turnbull has literally taken the gun by the lever and turned it into a work of art – period correct in all features. ...Read More >

On November 3, 2022, Tom McIntyre died at his home in Sheridan, Wyoming. Tom was the long-time hunting editor of Sports Afield, and a writer of such prodigious gifts that he did not belong among us mere mortals, and almost certainly not as an outdoor writer. ...Read More >

Several “Mauser” rifles grace my gun safes, or at least rifles built on Mauser actions. Unsurprisingly, these actions were stripped World War II Mauser ’98s imported following the 1947 Paris Peace Treaties, as most include thumb indents on the left wall of the receiver designed to accommodate military stripper clips. Mauser’s 2022 M18 Savanna is a different kind of Mauser, a modern “Das Original” Jagdwaffen (hunting weapons) rifle. The fact Mauser acknowledges that these are true hunting rifles, made for serious hunters, garners my utmost appreciation. ...Read More >

The late Bill Ruger (1916-2002) boasted of many talents that included patenting a significant number of new firearm designs, but also, he often improved upon previous designs, developed innovative manufacturing methods and maintained savvy, ethical business practices. He also seemed to have a certain knack or intuition to identify a void in the marketplace. He would then either design the gun himself or employ the proper engineers to design it. Such was the case with the Ruger M77 bolt-action rifle that was first offered in 1968. While it has undergone several design changes and improvements, the basic rifle has been in continuous production for nearly 55 years. ...Read More >

Joshua Stevens first patented his swinging block rifle in 1884, a model known as the “Side Plate” because, well, it had one for accessing the innards. The J. Stevens Arms & Tool Co. of Chicopee Falls, Massachusetts, made Side Plates in two sizes; the larger came to be called the Model 44 and the smaller, the “Favorite.” ...Read More >

Although I’ve been a student of military history since my preteens, until the year 2000, my familiarity with World War II rifles was cursory. Then, a rifle encountered at a Montana gun show triggered something in me. Standing at a friend’s display table and visiting with him, I happened to glance down at his offerings. My eye caught a fine condition ’98 military Mauser. I knew not what country it had belonged to or what cartridge for which it was chambered. Asking him about its origin and price, he replied that it was a German K98k, 8mm made in 1937 and he’d take $300 for it. He also added that it had all numbers matching except for its bolt, adding, “It’s pretty hard to find them with matching bolts anymore.” Puzzled by that latter comment, I still bought it. ...Read More >

Of all the arcane corners of gun collecting, German Schützen rifles take the prize for being complicated and confusing. There are so many different types, designs, and styles, it seems, no two are exactly alike, even seasoned collectors throw up their hands. ...Read More >