Combat Handguns November/December 2019

OPEN CARRY, where you wear a handgun visibly, is a controversial issue among law-abiding armed citizens. The practice can deter criminals who might otherwise have carried out violent assaults. Unfortunately, it can also become the motive for a deadly surprise attack on the carrier. Open-carry advocates at frontiercarry.org are honest and share the dangers with their fellow enthusiasts. They speak of what I’ll call Case One here in Phoenix, Arizona. The victim in question had a handgun obviously protruding out of one pocket. An opportunistic thug simply jogged up to him, grabbed the gun and ran off with it. One might argue, “No one was shot or killed in that incident, so it’s irrelevant.” But I think that such a situation, where a law-abiding gun owner was rendered helpless and…

This edition of “Ask The Pros” is special because it focuses on 2019 World Speed Shooting Champion and USPSA Grandmaster KC Eusebio, and that’s only listing two of his many achievements. Eusebio is currently the captain for Zev Technologies’ shooting team, and he’s one of the most respected competitors in the gun world today. Now 28 years old, Eusebio entered his first competition at the age of 8. Carefully instructed by his father, he soon became a shooting prodigy. At 10, he became the youngest USPSA Master, and at 12, he earned the title of USPSA Grandmaster. Eusebio also became the youngest person to win a world speed shooting title when he was just 15. Then, when he was 18, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and joined the elite…

IN April of this year, I was fortunate to be invited to an event hosted by Taurus USA and held in Bainbridge, Georgia. But what was Taurus doing in South Georgia, and not South Florida? It turns out that Taurus is moving its operations and manufacturing headquarters to Georgia. The event allowed everyone in attendance to see the company’s new 200,000-square-foot facility. And while the plant itself was still under construction, we were all impressed with the future plans for the company. By the end of this year, the plant should be fully operational and provide more than 300 jobs for Bainbridge residents. The rest of the event was held at the Southwind Plantation, a five-star bird-hunting facility just outside of Bainbridge. During the event, we tested a wide range…

I spent the better part of two years building a database of gun values for a previous employer, and I was fascinated by the factors that drive gun prices to escalate. Smith & Wesson’s Model 610 was an interesting case study, with some variants commanding more than $2,000. Slow sales killed the original Model 610. The gun was first launched in 1990, but the popularity of the 10mm Auto round was already in decline due to several factors. By 1992, sales were so poor that Smith & Wesson discontinued the model. 10MM BACKSTORY A study of the 10mm Auto cartridge, and the early weapons designed for it, provides some backstory for initial and subsequent Model 610s. Going back to the early 1980s, Michael Dixon and Thomas Dornaus got together with…

“…it recoils like a heavy-barreled .357 Magnum, and it’s exceptionally accurate.” If you’re an avid movie fan and gun enthusiast, you might already know the one thing Arnold Schwarzenegger, Chow Yun-Fat, Don Johnson, John Lithgow, Kurt Russell and Christopher Walken all have in common. At some point in their careers, each of them has used a Desert Eagle on the silver screen. Over the past three decades, this iconic pistol has been used dozens of times in movies by a multitude of actors, and is highly sought after by collectors and high-powered handgun enthusiasts. Despite its highly recognizable profile, the Desert Eagle has undergone a lot of changes over the years, including tweaks to the trigger system and slide catch, the type of rail offered on the barrel, numerous finish…

There is undeniably something special about the .44 Special. From its humble beginnings around 1907 to more modern times, penned by the greats of the golden age of shooting, including Elmer Keith, Charlie Askins and Skeeter Skelton, the .44 Special cartridge seems to please all. Despite the competition of the .44 Magnum in recent years, this cartridge still ranks up there as the favorite of big-bore buffs. And why not? With its ability to be fired in guns chambered for the .44 Magnum, it is the perfect stress reliever for shooters who dote on heavy, large-framed revolvers for casual plinking and small to medium game depending upon the species. Over the years, the variety of guns just chambered for the .44 Special has dwindled in favor of the “one gun…