Kahr® Announces Gen2 Premium Series Pistols

Pomona, NY – There was quite a buzz at the 2015 SHOT Show in Las Vegas in January, and a lot of that excitement was due to the unveiling of the new Gen2 Kahr Premium Series pistols. A year ago, the engineers at Kahr took a look at their existing premium line and decided to start with the basics, but then re-engineered it to give it a refreshing new look. The result is a new design that is sleeker and more tactical in appearance than their existing premium models.

The new Gen2 Premium pistols speak to the quality, accuracy and 100% made in the USA product that has always been Kahr’s mission. With even tighter tolerances and so many upgrades, it truly is the second generation of Kahr pistols. Some of the added value features of the new Gen2 Premium series include: Read more

Firearms

Turkey Hunting During the Good ‘Ol Days

By Glen Wunderlich

When I first discovered the presence of wild turkeys in the northern reaches of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula back in 1980, my first-ever turkey permit arrived in the mail.  I knew very little about the wary birds back then but began my education by listening to cassette tapes by Rob Keck, who led the National Wild Turkey Federation for 27 years as its CEO and was instrumental in the successful reintroduction of the turkeys from Mexico to Canada.  I just about wore those tapes out before heading north alone with my small backpacking tent.

On state land in the Atlanta/Lewiston area, I ventured to the tallest point in the vast network of two-track roads in the setting sun in an effort to learn where the birds were roosting.  It worked.

In the pre-dawn darkness, an impromptu blind was fashioned from fallen branches along the edge of a field where the big birds were spotted the day before.  I settled in with my double-barrel 12-gauge shotgun and 3-inch shells of copper-plated 4 shot.  That old box call rang out a few hen sounds and much to my amazement, two gobblers responded – one on each side of me!

Within minutes one of the puffed up males strutted from the timber directly to my left into the field.  Lacking confidence to coerce the bird closer, I anxiously watched as the bird wandered farther and farther away.  It was now or never and when I regained my composure after the shot, my first wild turkey wasn’t mine at all, as it scampered back into the woods.

Back then, as I recall, the success rate was about 3 percent for turkey hunters.  The turkeys were still being trapped and relocated to areas across the state and the total kill in Michigan was less than 1,000 birds.  Since the year 2000, however, the number of birds taken in Michigan’s spring season has surpassed 30,000 annually with the take peaking in year 2008 at over 42,000 birds in the spring season alone.

According to Michigan Department of Natural Resources Upland Game Bird Specialist Al Stewart, “Eastern turkey numbers have stabilized across much of their range after decades of expansion and reintroduction into new habitats and suitable range.  There’s no state where turkey hunting is as good as it was 10 years ago.”  Stewart also notes that in the Upper Peninsula turkeys are expanding west and are presenting new opportunities for hunters.

Some areas of the northern Lower Peninsula were met with severe winter weather the past two years and turkey populations there may be half or less of what they were a few years ago.

Although turkey numbers have declined in most of the central and southern portions of the Lower Peninsula, the outlook for spring turkey hunting is still good.

Resident tags are only $15 ($6 for seniors).  So, shake off the winter blahs and enjoy some of the most exciting and accessible turkey hunting found anywhere, because these are the good ‘ol days.

Hunting

Thompson/Center Arms™ Offers Rebate

SPRINGFIELD, MA— Smith & Wesson Corp. announced today that Thompson/Center Arms is currently offering consumers a limited-time mail-in rebate for the purchase of any new T/C Venture rifle. Available from now through December 31, 2015, the Thompson/Center Arms promotion will provide new purchasers with a $75 mail-in rebate. The T/C Venture is available in 15 different calibers. Models include the T/C Venture blued, T/C Venture Weather Shield®, T/C Venture Predator and T/C Venture Compact. The T/C Venture lineup provides today’s all-season hunter with a variety of options.

Noted for their consistent performance and guaranteed Minute of Angle (MOA) accuracy, the T/C Venture family of bolt-action rifles provides consumers with a variety of high quality features only available through Thompson/Center Arms. Dependable, versatile and value packed, the award-winning T/C Venture rifle was engineered specifically for today’s dedicated sportsmen and women. Each T/C Venture rifle features a match-grade precision barrel, match-grade crown and 5R rifling for superior accuracy and performance. Additional standard features includea user-adjustable trigger, nitrate-coated fat bolt design with 60-degree lift, composite stock featuring traction grip panels, QD sling swivel studs, and a single stack 3+1 detachable nylon magazine. Read more

Firearms

Premier Series Production Rifles Available From Bergara USA

Bergara Premier Series Rifles offer all of the features and performance of Bergara Custom Rifles at affordable prices.

Duluth, Ga. (March 2015) – Bergara USA, a division of Blackpowder Products, Inc. (BPI Outdoors), introduces new production rifles for sport shooters and hunters with the Premier Series BPR-16 Classic and BPR-16 Stalker bolt-action rifles, combining custom looks and performance with the affordability of a production rifle.

Bergara Barrels, already a well-known OEM supplier to several of Bergara BPR 16 Premier Riflethe world’s top rifle manufacturers, entered the custom rifle business three years ago. Incorporating its proprietary rifling process, and under the direction of former Marine sniper rifle builder, Dan Hanus, Bergara’s custom rifles have become widely respected by big game hunters, law enforcement and long-range shooting enthusiasts.

Bergara’s high-performance 416 stainless steel barrels receive a proprietary honing process at its Spanish barrel-making facility. Then, at the Bergara USA factory, this barrel is coupled with the Bergara PREMIUM action, featuring a coned bolt nose and breech and sliding plate extractor. Premier Series BPR-16 rifles are built on your choice of hand-laid fiberglass or Grade 5 highly-figured walnut stocks, both featuring an aluminum bedding block, providing beneficial strength without adding unnecessary weight to the rifle. The barrels and actions receive a Cerakote™ finish, eliminating the glare of the stainless steel and providing extra protection against the elements. A world famous Timney trigger rounds out this rifle’s line-up of best quality components. Read more

Firearms

Smith & Wesson Introduces M&P 22 Compact Suppressor Ready

Suppressor Ready Pistol and Sound Suppressor Adapter Kit Now Available

SPRINGFIELD, MA— As shooting enthusiasts across the nation continue to incorporate the use of sound suppressors in their shooting experience, Smith & Wesson is poised to help extend the trend by offering the new M&P22 Compact Suppressor Ready model. Based on the highly popular M&P22 Compact rimfire pistol, the new suppressor ready model is equipped with a supplemental thread adaptor and packaged with the required installation tools that allow owners to quickly and easily add the suppressor of their choice.

Manufactured entirely in the United States by Smith & Wesson, the .22 LR pistol provides shooting enthusiasts with M&P accuracy and reliability in a new fun-to-shoot, compact profile. Engineered to professional standards, the new tactical rimfire pistol incorporates a variety of features inherent to the design of the full size M&P centerfire pistol in a new, smaller scale suppressor-ready version. Read more

Firearms

How Accurate Are .22 Rounds At 100 Yards?

In the latest “Roy’s Insider Tips” video, American Handgunner Publisher Roy Huntington continues his ongoing quest to discover and share the accuracy, versatility and fun of shooting .22 rounds. In this segment, Roy examines the capabilities of Anschütz bolt–action rifles in .22 LR and .22 Magnum using a variety of ammunition out to 100 yards.

“Even today, after over 50 years of shooting, I can still smile broadly when I have a .22 in my hands,” Roy explains. “It’s not just the memories, but the fact you can have more fun than might be allowed and hardly spend any money doing it!”

In testing varied rifle and ammunition combinations, Roy discovers some interesting possibilities on the use of these two rifles for small-game hunting at longer ranges.

“I think many shooters tend to think of .22’s as short-range propositions,” Roy says. “Some of that comes from cheap rifles and handguns, but much of this notion comes from the fact many people simply don’t take the time to learn to shoot well. At many levels, wringing out the best accuracy from a good .22 rifle at 100 yards is a mini-course in how to become a better rifle shooter. And, there’s something very satisfying about watching those tiny bullets cluster into small groups — almost by magic — ‘way out there’!”

“Roy’s Insider Tips” videos are in response to American Handgunner and GUNS Magazine reader questions, ideas and challenges. In next week’s video Roy takes his Anschütz .22 Magnum out to 200 yards — getting surprising results. If you’d like a question answered or have an idea for a future video, drop Roy a note at editor@americanhandgunner.com.
Contact: Roy Huntington 858-605-0243 or editor@americanhandgunner.com

Ammunition, Firearms

Coast Guard Medevacs Sailor After 66 Days at Sea

A Coast Guard MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter crew medevacs a man from motor vessel Houston Express off the North Carolina coast Thursday, April 2, 2015. The crew aboard Houston Express spotted the man on a disabled sailing vessel and took him aboard approximately 200 miles east of Cape Hatteras. U.S. Coast Guard video by Air Station Elizabeth City

PORTSMOUTH, Va. — The Coast Guard medevaced a man who was located on a disabled sailing vessel Thursday approximately 200 miles off the North Carolina coast.

Watchstanders at the Coast Guard 5th District Command Center in Portsmouth received notification from the 1,085-foot, German-flagged motor vessel Houston Express at approximately 1:30 p.m., indicating they spotted a man and the vessel approximately 200 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, and took him aboard. Read more

General

Dismissed: HSUS Lawsuit to Silence Maine’s Wildlife Professionals

On Friday, April 3, 2015 Maine Superior Court Justice Joyce Wheeler issued a final judgment in the question of the state’s ability to comment on wildlife issues. In her ruling, Wheeler sided with the U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance and fully dismissed a lawsuit aimed at silencing Maine’s wildlife professionals.

The case started in the closing weeks of the Maine bear campaign over Question 1 on last November’s ballot. The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS), through their front group Mainers for Fair Bear Hunting, sued the state of Maine alleging an improper level of engagement in the. The “state,” in this case, was the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, whose vocal and public opposition to Question 1 didn’t mesh with HSUS’ wish to stop bear hunting in the state.

The original lawsuit sought an injunction that would remove the TV advertisements being aired by the Maine Wildlife Conservation Council that featured department personnel talking about the dangers of Question 1.

“Political campaigns are won and lost on TV, especially in the case of ballot issue campaigns,” said Evan Heusinkveld, USSA Foundation’s vice president of government affairs. “There is no doubt that our opponents saw the wildlife management professionals at the department as a distinct threat to their campaign. In response, they attempted to silence the only true experts—the professional staff at the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.”

On Oct. 22, 2014, Maine Superior Court Justice Joyce Wheeler denied the request for a temporary restraining order by Mainers for Fair Bear Hunting, which sought to remove television commercials opposed to Question 1. In her ruling, Justice Wheeler sided with the right of the state to provide comment. This ruling ensured the TV commercials remained on the air, and just a few days later sportsmen were victorious at the ballot box, defeating Question 1 by a 53-46 margin. Despite the victory on the temporary restraining order and at the ballot box on Nov. 4, the lawsuit remained active.

In light of judge’s decision and with the election over, on Feb. 24 the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife moved to have the case dismissed because of mootness—a move wholeheartedly supported by Maine Wildlife Conservation Council. However, HSUS lawyer Rachel Wertheime countered that the lawsuit was still valid because the organization would be filing paperwork to once again put a bear-hunting ban initiative on the state’s 2016 ballot.

In her ruling today, Justice Wheeler responded to that motion by fully and finally dismissing the case at the Superior Court level, leaving HSUS, and their front group Mainers for Fair Bear Hunting, with few options outside of appeal to the state’s Law (Superior) Court.

“The Superior court already ruled that the state was well within its right to speak out on this issue, and now they have now decided that since the election is over, the case is moot,” said Heusinkveld.  “This ruling just reaffirms our position and is a clear victory for sportsmen and women. There should be no doubt left, the people of Maine deserve to hear from the experts when it comes to these issues.” Read more

Animal Rights, Hunting, Wildlife

The North American Virtual Sportshow

The North American Virtual Sportshow announces the Biggest Gun Giveaway Since WWII Sweepstakes.  The sweepstakes will begin April 2, and consumers can easily enter the giveaway here. 

Firearms from Smith & Wesson, CZ, Mossberg, Taurus, Rock River Arms, Heritage, Howa, and Remington will be given away during this sweepstakes. In addition to the firearms, bricks of .22 ammunition will also be given away.  

“We are excited to announce such a great giveaway for outdoor enthusiasts that attend the North American Sportshow,” said David Gray, North American Sportshow President. “Consumers can visit the show online for 10 minutes or two hours, see some great outdoor exhibitors and enter to win some great prizes.”  Read more

Firearms
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