Ballistic April/May 2019

The mainstream media thrives on demonizing firearms enthusiasts these days. That should come as no shock to you, as someone who just picked up this issue of Ballistic. Today, Second Amendment supporters are labeled guns nuts, would-be mass murderers, hillbilly fools, trigger-happy extremists, etc. But let’s be honest. We’ll never shake those titles as long as we’re dealing with people who don’t understand guns and won’t have serious debates or discussions about our rights as citizens to protect ourselves and our loved ones. And I’m willing to bet the farm that if there’s a gun-rights-grabbing activist watching you read this magazine right now, their eyes are probably popping out of their heads at the cover shot of Pop Evil’s Matt DiRito. Their breath is trembling. They’re thinking, “Oh my God, look…

1> COLT KING COBRA Following on the .38 Special Cobra that Colt reintroduced in 2017, the new King Cobra has a beefed-up frame to handle .357 Magnum rounds. The cylinder holds six rounds, and the ribbed barrel is 3 inches long. More features include a brass bead front sight, a fixed rear sight, a brushed stainless steel finish and a Hogue Over-Molded grip. (colt.com) 2> FAXON FX-19 SERIES The new FX-19 series from Faxon Firearms includes two pistols. The Patriot is meant for defensive carry while the Hellfire is suppressor ready. Both use Glock 19 mags, DLC-coated slides machined in-house from 17-4 stainless steel and Match Series barrels. The slides also feature optic cuts for mounting Trijicon and Holosun miniature reflex sights. (faxonfirearms.com) 3> KELTEC CP33 KelTec’s new CP33 is a fullsized pistol chambered for…

THERE’S NOTHING MORE EXCITING to a 1911 enthusiast than a well-made version of John Moses Browning’s fighting handgun. While the world is awash with production 1911s that vary with quality and price, a new company is building guns so good that devotees will find it impossible to overlook them. Using modern manufacturing equipment and materials, Alchemy Custom Weaponry (ACW) builds guns one at a time and uses Old World craftsmanship to provide the fit and finish that is sure to make a true connoisseur smile. For this “Custom Challenge,” ACW gave us two of its current guns: the Brimstone and Anomaly. Both have Commander-length barrels and slides, but the Brimstone has a compact frame while the Anomaly’s is full-sized. And while the two guns share many similarities, they are as different…

FUN WHILE UNDERCOVER Cops used to have contests punking the dumbest crooks. We would wear raid jackets with “police” insignia while buying drugs, or answer the undercover phone with “DEA, can I help you?” Rumor has it that a brash young agent once got the crooks to bring hundreds of pounds of Mexico’s finest mota to the San Diego DEA field office, park in the secured parking area and even help carry the bundles of drugs over to the elevator that carried them to the drug vault. We only catch the dumb ones, but we love to catch the really dumb ones. WOULD YOU RATHER… Shoot a 12-point buck or have sex one time with a supermodel? I originally posed this question using a 10-point buck, and then Nino, my editor, bragged that he…

“The first time I was shot at, I was 14 or 15 years old. I had ventured out to try and catch a glimpse of one of my favorite bands playing at a venue in Detroit called Harpos. Anyone who knows this venue knows that you really don’t want to venture anywhere off the property. The surrounding area is extremely dangerous. It helped give Detroit the stigma that has surrounded it for years. And back in the early 2000s, I remember the venue having two jeeps with guys wielding ARs doing laps around the perimeter. “Being under age and unable to get into the show, my friends and I hung out in the parking lot hoping to overhear the concert or see the band walk in or out of the building.…

“WE CRAFTED A COMPLEX AND PRECISE MECHANISM FROM A SPACE ROCK.” Over the last decade or so, the 1911 has enjoyed something of a resurgence. While the clichés still flew from people who probably never even owned a 1911, the classic pistol was once again in the spotlight. Many gun-makers brought on new lines and designs as the market demand grew. People also began to rediscover an often-overlooked realm inside the firearms community: high-end 1911 builders. Such companies existed long before Gaston Glock started tinkering in Austria, and they will be around as long as there are serious gun collectors and shooters. While many of these shops have their own take on what goes into a special 1911, something unusual was underway with Cabot Guns. With an eye on going far beyond…