Range Report: The RIA AL22M .22 Magnum Revolver

It has been quite some time since I’ve spent appreciable time with a revolver. That recently changed when Mike asked me to review a couple guns from Rock Island Armory. I planned to review the RIA AL22M in .22 WMR first, followed by the .357 Magnum RIA AL3.1, but it didn’t quite work out that way. I’m sorry to report this is one gun I would strongly recommend against buying; Read on to find out why. Continue reading “Range Report: The RIA AL22M .22 Magnum Revolver”

Meeting Time at the HGC

The glow from the embers painted their faces an orange-yellow, and delivered a heat that warded off the slight chill in the air. The bright, dancing flames before them reduced their world to the group that ringed the fire pit, and their eyes struggled to see the details in the black, beyond. It was only by looking straight up, with chins thrust towards the sky, that they could see the heavens aglow with the fires of an endless number of distant stars and planets. Continue reading “Meeting Time at the HGC”

Simply Rugged Ammo Pouches

If you’ve been a regular RevolverGuy reader for a while, you’ll probably recall our earlier coverage of the premium leather goods produced by our friends at Simply Rugged Holsters. Proprietor Rob Leahy and his talented crew of artisans are producing some really neat holsters, belts, ammo cuffs, slings, and other leather goods that are as beautiful as they are strong, and we’re definitely big fans of their work, here. Continue reading “Simply Rugged Ammo Pouches”

Revolver Malfunctions and Stoppages

The revolver was the mainstay defensive handgun in America through the mid-to-late 20th Century. While a variety of autopistols (many of them John Browning designs—all rise!) were popular with American gun carriers as well, and eventually supplanted the revolver as King, it was the revolver that filled most holsters, pockets, and nightstands. Continue reading “Revolver Malfunctions and Stoppages”

The Day the Arkansas State Police Fought a Gun Battle with a Remnant of the Barrow Gang

Renowned Texas Ranger, Frank Hamer, and five other officers stopped the Barrows—permanently–on a country road outside Gibsland, Louisiana on May 23, 1934.  Three years later, in 1937, one of the country’s great state police organizations was reorganized as the Arkansas State Police (ASP).

So, if the Barrows were killed in a shooting by Hamer and his fellow officers in 1934, how did the newborn ASP get into a gunfight with a remnant of the Barrow Gang, many years later? Continue reading “The Day the Arkansas State Police Fought a Gun Battle with a Remnant of the Barrow Gang”

A Pretty Capable J-Frame

I bought a lightly used S&W 640-3 about four years ago. A friend’s elderly neighbor was thinning his collection and didn’t want his guns getting into the wrong hands. It was priced fairly, and I rationalized the purchase as an altruistic deed to help the man out. Continue reading “A Pretty Capable J-Frame”