NRA American Rifleman Gun Reviews

atblis · Mar 15, 2017

I found this odd.

In the February issue they reviewed the Arex Rex Zero 1S. The accuracy test results were the best I can remember for a 9mm auto. Average group size of all ammo tested was 1.42" at 25 yards. Commentary was something along the lines of this being good enough for sport shooting

In the March issue they reviewed a Nighthawk Custom Hi power. The accuracy test resulted in an average group size of 1.73". This was described as "excellent accuracy for a handgun".

So
$500 pistol putting out 1.42" average groups
versus
$3000 pistol putting 1.73" average groups

It looks like they used better quality ammo for the Night Hawk testing also!

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hodgepodge · Mar 15, 2017

Nighthawk buys more ads. (This is more a Guns & Ammo thing.)

Editorial inconsistency. There's no real standard for 'accuracy'. That's all.

Qbeam · Mar 15, 2017

Was it the same person doing the review? Different authors, different opinions?

Q

atblis · Mar 15, 2017

I don't see an author listed for the HiPower review. Don't have the other issue in front of me.

nomade · Mar 15, 2017

Temperature and humidity are different. 83 F, 7 % RH.
Shooting in the desert?

Biggfoot44 · Mar 16, 2017

Reviews will always be subjective to a degree. The Am Rifleman is more consistent and less subjective than most of the gun press.

And both of them are excellent for production Bottomfeeders .

Qbeam · Mar 16, 2017

Production bottomfeeders?

Q

BuildnBurn · Mar 16, 2017

I learned the hard way not to pay attention to gun reviews in magazines. I ended up buying a S&W Sigma .380 based on the glowing review from a Shooting Times article. WHAT A PIECE OF SHIT!
I don't have much faith in American Rifleman any more either, it's half a shadow of its former self.

E.Shell · Mar 16, 2017

hodgepodge said:
Nighthawk buys more ads. (This is more a Guns & Ammo thing.)

Editorial inconsistency. There's no real standard for 'accuracy'. That's all.

Sad, but true.

I've been an NRA member and getting the American Rifleman since 1967. I have seen it go from a very technical, objective and scientific approach to just being another gun rag shill for the manufacturing industry. Magazines from the 60s and 70s are VERY different from today.

Further, about half of the magazine is now devoted to advertising, fund raising and political issues they cry wolf about but seldom commit to involvement. They drum up enough outrage over the latest travesty to generate donations that don't ever seem to be applied to the problem at hand. They even said "WE WON!!" when the Heller verdict was handed down, yet they initially objected to going to court over that case and didn't actually do anything for "us". In reality, "we" didn't do very much, unless "we" includes the SAF, which totally ran with the ball, but didn't get mention, let alone full credit for picking up where the NRA left off and actually winning the case.

I still get the magazines every month, but I may or may not even open it before giving it away.

nomade said:
Temperature and humidity are different. 83 F, 7 % RH.
Shooting in the desert?

25 yards is too close for factors like these to matter. Temperature would have to be much higher to matter, since cartridge temperature will exceed this (80-90oF) after less than a minute in a warm barrel...RH will never matter to the cartridge, with its self-contained fuel and oxidizers, and will not matter to exterior ballistics at typical handgun ranges.

Otherwise, great magazine and top notch outfit.

Neot · Mar 16, 2017

Honestly most gun magazines, American Rifleman included, produce nothing but fluff pieces in my mind. They rarely, if ever, give any negative feedback on the gun they are writing about. One of the few magazines that I've actually liked and would consult if I was buying a new gun would be Gun Tests magazine (http://www.gun-tests.com/). They aren't afraid to tell you if your $2500 gun is a piece of crap and can be out-performed by a $900 one.

Biggfoot44 · Mar 16, 2017

Bottomfeeder = tongue in cheek term used by Revolver Guys to refer to semiauto pistols. Magazine goes into grip from below, hence bottomfeeder.

Production = Not specialized or modified for target shooting, ie a "normal out of box pistol.

Added to the Topic in general- The OP specified a handgun shooting analogues to 1moa @ 100yds. I'm taking this to mean a level that is somewhat doable, but a note worthy achievement. If the original inquiry were to accuracy needed for statistically average defensive situation ( or average shot for deer, or whatever indici of reasonably adaquate for most occasions) eould be different discussion

Qbeam · Mar 16, 2017

Thanks for clearing that up. I was taking bottomfeeder to mean the other definition, lol.

Q

atblis · Mar 16, 2017

I'd be curious to see another REX tested as perhaps the sent a ringer in for testing. It's on the roster. I might just order one.

Johnthetoolguy · Mar 17, 2017

Want to read a good unbiased gun magazine? Read Gun Tests. They take no advertising. The monthly publication is about 30 pages on average.
Also, the magazine comes with holes punched in it for a three ring binder.

Cal68 · Mar 17, 2017

Neot said:
Honestly most gun magazines, American Rifleman included, produce nothing but fluff pieces in my mind. They rarely, if ever, give any negative feedback on the gun they are writing about. One of the few magazines that I've actually liked and would consult if I was buying a new guy would be Gun Tests magazine (http://www.gun-tests.com/). They aren't afraid to tell you if your $2500 gun is a piece of crap and can be out-performed by a $900 one.

Johnthetoolguy said:
Want to read a good unbiased gun magazine? Read Gun Tests. They take no advertising. The monthly publication is about 30 pages on average.
Also, the magazine comes with holes punched in it for a three ring binder.

Thanks for the tip, I'm going to subscribe today! I also found out that their policy regarding archived issues is very generous compared to other magazines. They allow access to all web archived issues with a paid subscription when most other magazines only grant access to archived issues from the time the subscription was started. Looking forward to some good reading soon.

Cal68

Biggfoot44 · Mar 17, 2017

Yes, Gun Tests accepts no advertising, and isn't beholden to mfgs.

The bad news is the actual reviews are pretty inconsistant. The supposed direct comparisons are frequently grossly mismatched, the reviewers don't always understant what they're testing, and the rankings use arbitrary criteria, and too much ( non-commercial) subjectiveness.

I used to subscribe, but let it expire.

Back in the day when run by Phil Engledrum, and published in magazine format, it was the bomb.

Doesn't help with Rifles, but American Handgunner at least occasionally calls a spade a spade ( the term refers to the digging tool, not racial) , and didn't back down when major advertisers pulled ads for a period of time.

Yeah,* most* reviews are positive, but they are fiestier than any other slick magazine.

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