Ballistic December/January 2022

Welcome to the fourth annual edition of Ballistic’s Best Guns Of The Year Awards issue. Let us nutshell the mission for first-timers. We utilized 10 three- to five-man groups of firearms evaluators to testfire the newest and the best guns within 10 specific gun categories. Every gun in every category was awarded points based on nine criteria. All guns within a category get ranked based on the total points awarded. The maximum final score is 45. This year we had no ties. There were 10 categories, and 10 total winners. As you’ll note from our covers, the total number of guns reviewed in this 164-page special is a whopping 80. And since 2021 was another record-breaking year for new gun owners, this awards magazine is a valuable resource for those looking…

While micro-compacts may be all the rage right now, full-size pistols are still where it’s at when you want to squeeze out every drop of performance possible from a handgun. It’s the form factor of choice for tactical work and competition, and for good reason. It has several advantages including capacity, longer sight radius, and both size and weight for recoil reduction and better control. The smoke hadn’t cleared for very long after our compacts evaluation (see next feature) on the first day before the guys and I settled in to evaluate the batch of full-size pistols we had on hand. Unlike the first roundup evaluation, there were no major, ground-breaking designs to be had like we found with the new micro-compacts earlier. What we had before us was a nice…

A thick veil of fog stood forever in front of me as I cruised down the highway at 6:30 in the morning. A large cup of coffee gave up a column of steam as tribute to the cool mountain air as I nervously checked my six in the rearview mirror. After all, it’s not every day that I drive a vehicle stuffed with 20 pistols and more than 10,000 rounds of 9mm ammunition. We’ve all heard the news stories about the guy caught with an “arsenal” of guns and ammo in his car that later turns out to be a couple of pistols, a rifle and a few hundred rounds. As Jack Nicholson once said, “Wait until they get a load of me.” The first of a couple of days range…

FORTHRIGHTTM SLINGBAG MULTICAM🅁 BLACK & BLACK $115-125 Originally designed for officers working plainclothes duty at high-threat events, the Forthright™ slingbag can pack a large amount of firepower in a low-optic chassis. Short barrel rifles and magazines can be fastened to the internal MOLLE system for secure transportation and quick access. Multiple pocketing solutions allow access to the included CCW holster, capable of carrying full-size pistols with optic. Should your daily gunfight requirements be a bit more mundane, the rear compartment incorporates a 16” padded laptop sleeve. The ambidextrous shoulder strap is padded for comfort with full load-outs. Overall dimensions 18” H x 11.5” W x 7” D. FOOTWEAR, GLOVES, AND TECHNICAL APPAREL PURPOSE BUILT FOR YOUR DAILY GUNFIGHT GO TO WWW.VIKTOS.COM FOR MORE…

We were all licking our wounds as we rolled into 2021. Coming off a summer of extreme civil unrest, Covid shutdowns and an election that left us with more questions than answers, I think we all shared a belief that things would get better. All of these factors affected the firearms industry, too. The pandemic affected every aspect of firearms manufacture. From getting raw materials from suppliers to having an adequate workforce with socially distanced workers and a sanitized facility to even packaging and shipping, new guns slowed to a trickle. With backorders unfilled and demand for existing guns unmet, there was little reason for manufacturers to introduce new models. Three of our regular contributors to the Ballistic’s Best 1911 challenge just didn’t have guns to send us this year. But…

We all hoped that 2021 would be better than 2020! In some cases, things improved, but ammo and firearms continue to be hit or miss. Manufacturers continue to maximize production while the consumer buys just about everything on the shelves. As I write this, ammo is becoming more plentiful and prices are getting more reasonable. The shelves at the local gun stores are full of polymer wonders and black rifles. I was happy to see more revolvers on the shelves. So, we can hope things will continue to improve in 2022. THE LINEUP This year, there is good news and bad news. We started out this roundup with commitments from six manufacturers. Unfortunately, three of those companies were unable to deliver samples prior to the deadline. The good news is that all…