Springfield Armory has released pre-cut, optics-ready slide kits for the XD series of handguns. This makes it a breeze to add a red dot sight to your gun, without having to ship it off to a machine shop. How does XD optics-ready slide kit hold up in practice?

The forcing cone of a revolver barrel bears a lot of stress.  They’re not only the first part of the barrel to engage with the bullet coming out of the cylinder, but they’re also largely exposed to all the heat, flame, and gas cutting from the cylinder gap, however infinitesimally small.  This may not be a big deal in a Ruger Wrangler, but it matters a lot more in something like a S&W 629PD, Ruger Super Blackhawk, or S&W 460XVR.

Eemann Tech, a company based in Tallinn, Estonia, was founded by experts with extensive experience and knowledge in the IPSC/Competition shooting arena. The main field of activity is manufacturing high-quality spare and tuning parts, steel targets and accessories for IPSC sports. As a user of Tanfoglio handguns for competition, I’m always on the lookout for new interesting products. According to Eemann Tech, their new DA/SA flat trigger for Tanfoglio pistols allows for a more precise control of the trigger press and reset. It works with the Tanfoglio STOCK II III and Tanfoglio Xtreme II and III pistols.

One of the biggest pet peeves of mine when it comes to optics-equipped firearms is the sheer amount of different mounting footprint options on the market. Although it can be largely distilled down into maybe 4 or 5 different core patterns that all optics use, it’s still extremely frustrating to have to limit yourself artificially based on the type of pistol or optic you have. C&H Precision Weapons has just announced the introduction of a new full line of adaptor plates for select pistols, and pistol-mounted red dots.

SK Customs is well known for producing highly stylized and customized handguns generally honoring or venerating a particular group of people or individuals who have had a great impact on history. Their latest project is the new Limited Edition Purple Heart Commemorative Colt 1911 which aims to give back to those who put their bodies on the line for our nation. The new Commemorative Colt 1911 will be a very limited run of just 240 pistols and will display a custom medallion of the modern-day Purple Heart Medal which is awarded to those who have sustained injuries in the line of duty.

Langdon Tactical Technology is teaming up with the folks over at Heckler & Koch to add to LTT’s existing lineup of fine aftermarket pistol and parts offerings. The new LTT HK P30 Series will feature Langdon Tactical’s premium level of customization which should result in an overall superior firearm that is tailored exactly to your liking. For those who keep close tabs on Langdon Tactical, the new LTT HK P30 Series shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise as rumors have abounded on various gun forums that LTT was likely gearing up to start working with HK products. More details and current offerings in the LTT HK P30 Series can be found below.

European American Armory Corporation have announced a new addition to their line of Girsan-made Hi-Power clones, the MC P35 PI. EAA describes the MC P35 PI as being “easy to carry and conceal”.

Over the last few years, the SIG Sauer P320 has been growing in popularity in the market thanks to the ability to switch out frames and slides to create a handgun truly customized to you. A few years ago, I even wrote about the one handgun I would choose if I could only have one. It ended up being the P320 and that hasn’t changed even after all this time. A new company called Empire has come onto the market offering a high-end customized version of the P320 called the Pointman. I’ve had my Pointman for roughly three months and put it through its paces. Let’s take a closer look at the Empire Pointman P320.

Replica airguns or airsoft pistols are a lot of fun for backyard target shooting, force-on-force training, or even just as a fun and inexpensive way to pass the time without heading to the range. SIG Sauer has just announced the release of their newest air pistol, the new Proforce P365 Airsoft gun. The new Proforce P365 Airsoft pistol shoots standard 6mm bbs, features 12-round magazines, and runs off of 12-gram CO2 cartridges.

Perhaps better known for their bolt action rifles, South Dakota-based Parkwest Arms have introduced a pistol caliber AR-based pistol – the PW-P9. The PW-P9 feeds from Glock magazines, is available with a standard rear or a side charging handle and has a proprietary, patented, bolt hold open design.

There are a lot of new, first-time gun owners out there, and I thought I’d take a moment to make ballistics visualized to help new gun owners with explaining how ballistics work with an easy-to-see and do object lesson. This article isn’t exactly meant for our faithful readers that are already aware of how ballistics work, but they’re certainly free to comment if I’ve missed anything or if they have other suggestions on how they explain the topic. Without further ado, if you’ve recently joined the masses in exercising your right to own firearms and you’d like to know how to get your bullets on target, here are some things to consider.

Throughout all the articles I’ve written on TFB, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve written about things you should carry on your person. What isn’t talked about are some of the things that shouldn’t be carried on you when carrying a concealed firearm. There are way more than just a few, but I tried to narrow it down to the top 4 things I see most when it comes to carrying concealed. Let’s take a closer look at some of the top things not to put on your carry gun.

A couple weeks ago, we took a look at Rudukai13’s “Apache Pug” knuckleduster revolver. Well, he was also been working on a modernized Schofield revolver design that he’s now completed and agreed to share with us on TFB’s Wheelgun Wednesday. I should note that Rudukai based this project around his reproduction Schofield top break revolver, a Uberti Hardin, which is based on Smith & Wesson’s Model 3. Despite not being an original Schofield, the Uberti Hardin reproduction commands its own special price of $1,699, so Rudukai’s desire to modernize, or desecrate it, should show his dedication to making his firearms work the way he wants them to. He also admits that he’s willing to rustle the feathers of purists at the same time. Let’s see how far the desecration of his top-broke revolver goes.

The U.S. Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration’s Office of Secure Transportation are set to procure ZEV’s OZ-9 X Combat. A notice of intent to procure was posted on SAM.gov announcing that the Office of Secure Transportation are responsible for the safe and secure transportation of nuclear weapons and components and special nuclear materials.

The Springfield Armory Hellcat is one of the most popular high-capacity micro 9mm pistols on the market. It is already available in several versions, including “OSP” optics-ready versions and Flat Dark Earth models. New two-tone models will soon be available for those wanting a different look.

Hello and welcome to TFB Podcast Roundup 53! Every year I think the gun industry goes through an intense cycle of focusing on hearing protection and this inevitably sparks discussion around suppressors and other sound mitigation techniques. While over-the-ear hearing protection becomes a must, especially with supersonic or much more powerful or larger cartridges, with many standard intermediate cartridges, a suppressor is often the way to go. In one particular episode that caught my attention this week, Vortex Nation has on audiologist Grace Sturdivant, owner of OtoPro Technologies, to talk about the human ear, how it works, and what really needs to happen in order for us to protect our hearing while handling and enjoying firearms. In addition to that great episode, we’ve got other good podcasts for your commute, chore list, or study session. Sit back, relax and enjoy this week’s selection of gun-related podcast content for TFB Podcast Roundup 53!

Hello and welcome back to another edition of The Rimfire Report! This ongoing series is all about the rimfire firearm world! The OpenTop 11/22 has been a semi-frequent topic of discussion here at TFB. Developed originally by Sebastian Unger and put into production with the help of Fletcher Rifle Works, the 11/22 has thus far proved to be a vast improvement over the standard Ruger 10/22 platform and in my personal opinion represents the next logical step in the evolution of the trusted rimfire platform. Since the release of the OpenTop 11/22 receiver, Fletcher Rifle Works has put together a number of new projects including their very own chassis-equipped pistol – The Bandera Pistol. The Bandera OpenTop 11/22 comes packed from the factory with a ton of great options and improved components to give the end user something a bit more than you’d expect from a standard 10/22 Charger – for an obvious increase in price. Is that price increase worth what you’re getting with the Bandera OpenTop? Let’s find out!

Canik USA recently unveiled a new line within the METE series of pistols, the Canik METE Pro, which has a few additional features over the standard line. The new Canik METE Pro series will feature aggressive slide serrations, a fluted and threaded stainless steel barrel, a front night sight, and a 90-degree trigger profile. The SFx METE Pro is distinguishable by its longer slide and barrel, which measures 5.74 inches, while the SFT METE Pro has a slightly shorter slide with a 5-inch barrel, and both METE Pro’s slides have a noticeable, styled notch just aft of the muzzle. Canik USA’s description and specs can be read below.

Savage Arms Stance subcompact pistols, which previously shipped with one 7 and one 8-round magazine, have expanded their choices across the entire line of pistols to include models that ship with one 7 and one 10-round magazine.  This option is available in all color, safety, and sight options, doubling the array of Stance SKUs from 14 to 28. There does not appear to be an upcharge for the models that ship with 10-round magazines, either.

Last month I was in Germany for a week. While I was there, I stopped by to check out IEA MIL Optics. I know them as one of the premier night vision dealers in Europe. They are an L3, Unity Tactical, EOTech and Wilcox dealer. They have other products not just those and they are a firearms dealer. Their head of workshop, Leon Kurz, gave me a tour of their gun room. They have some very interesting firearms.

When it comes to advancements in carry pistols, one of the most recent jumps in technology has to be the addition of small red dots. Whether it’s the classic Trijicon RMR or any of the other options to plunge into this market, there are a ton of different variations when it comes to handgun optics. I get asked fairly often what the benefit of having one style or the other for concealed carry since there are so many manufacturers supporting this area of the market. Let’s take a closer look at some of the differences when it comes to open vs closed emitter red dots for carrying.

The Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 pistol has been a great success over the years being adopted both by private citizens and law enforcement agencies for its reliability, accuracy, and relative price for performance. Smith & Wesson is excited to announce the introduction of their newest offering in the Spec Series with the new M&P M2.0 Compact Optics-Ready Spec Series pistol kit. This new kit allows you to select from a bunch of different options to customize your pistol and ships complete with a threaded barrel, optics cut slide, suppressor height sights, 23-round magazines, 4″ tanto-style M&P knife, and a Spec Series challenge coin.

Practical shooting organizations have been in existence within the United States for over 70 years at this point and arguably longer if you include competitive Olympic shooting sports. However, with the increase in popularity and affordability of handguns, sports like USPSA, IPSC, and IDPA have come to the forefront of the firearms industry as its flagship sports gaining mass appeal, recognition, and love while still honing in on the intense core skill set required to place in the top spots. Our guest today is someone I’ve met at several firearms industry events and has since become a good friend of mine who is always a pleasure to shoot with. Dave Blanton, aka The Humble Marksman, is here today to talk about USPSA, IDPA, and other practical shooting sports in both a broad sense and in the sense that he’s a frequent and regular competitor heavily invested in the sport. If you’ve ever been interested in shooting sports, tune in and get ready to take a deep dive into practical shooting sports with The Humble Marksman and me.

In one of the previous installments of our Wheelgun Wednesday weekly article series, we took a look at a  Colt 1851 Navy revolver attributed to Wild Bill Hickok that was consigned to May 2022 Rock Island Premier Firearms Auction. Although everything indicated that the revolver belonged to Wild Bill, it was not 100% proven, but apparently, that was enough for the buyer who parted with $616,875 to purchase the revolver, a price that way exceeded the auction house’s estimated high price of $225,000. What we have in today’s edition of Wheelgun Wednesday is another Wild Bill Hickok revolver, a Smith & Wesson Model No. 2 Old Army, which is consigned to the upcoming August 2022 Rock Island Premier Firearms Auction. According to Rock Island Auction Company, this revolver is solidly documented as owned and carried by Wild Bill Hickok.

A quality slide kit can take a lot of the waiting and the work out of upgrading a standard non-optic ready slide. ZEV Technologies has just announced the introduction and availability of their new ZEV Duty Slide Kits that come ready from the factory to accept any optic with a Trijicon RMR footprint. These slides will feature the same workmanship and quality that ZEV is known for.

Anderson Manufacturing introduced the second generation of their  AM-10 .308 Win guns at NRAAM 2022. Initially, this product line consisted of three rifles – Battle Rifle, Ranger and Marksman XL. A couple of days ago, the company announced the addition of a new member to the AM-10 family of firearms, the AM-10 Gen2 Breacher pistol.

When it comes to the more affordable side of civilian reproductions of classic firearms, few names are as well known as Tisas, a Turkish firearms manufacturer with a US branch in Knoxville, TN. Tisas is proud to introduce their new walnut gripped 1911A1 pistols. Following up on the popularity of the previous iteration of the Tisas 1911A1 which featured plastic grip panels, Tisas now includes genuine walnut wood grips with their 1911A1 pistol.

Springfield Armory has announced optics-cut replacement slides for the XD series of handguns. These optics-ready slides are drop-in replacements for current XD owners who want to add a red dot to their slide without obtaining an aftermarket milling job.

Featured in The Walking Dead, The Accountant, and a variety of other Hollywood releases, the SilencerCo Osprey is one of the most recognizable suppressors in modern history. Instead of a nondescript round tube, the Osprey has a rectangular profile that features an offset bore allowing for the use of standard height sights. SilencerCo is announcing the release of the Osprey 2.0 that uses a push button instead of a throw lever to index the suppressor on the barrel. The result is a streamlined, elegant system that brings the Osprey into a new era. If there was a suppressor Hall of Fame, the Osprey would have already been inducted as one of the most recognizable silencers.

In this episode of TFBTV, James Reeves tackles the Glock vs 1911 question. This isn’t the first time or the last time that a “Glock or 1911” video has been or is going to be on YouTube, but it’s definitely the best time. This video features renowned instructor and 1911 guru Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch. But more importantly, James’ mom, Connie, shoots a Glock and a 1911 for the first time ever, side by side, and gives her opinion of which option is the best. The Glock vs 1911 from the perspective of a veteran with decades of experience and from the viewpoint of a new shooter, today on TFBTV.