Has American Hand Gunner ever Lied to you?

[Stainz]

When we bemoaned the gaudy new TR21 on various forums, Clint Smith retaliated by labelling us, as mentioned earlier. I like his fire - and was actually somewhat flattered. Of course, I voted with my wallet - wouldn't even touch the TR21/22 when CDNN had them on closeout. Gotta enjoy Taffin - even Venturino, although I still wonder where he got 'Duke' from. I guess the most salient point/suggestion offered thus far was to write them expressing your dissatisfaction - and ask for a refund of your unmailled copies - if you are really upset.

Of course, I am an easy dog to hunt with - I have eight S&Ws with ILs! I do keep looking for that article on deerhunting with hand grenades, however... (TFIC)!

Stainz

 

[MCgunner]

Yeah, they told me the Ramline Exactor .22 pistol was the wave of the future and a great handgun and a huge breakthrough in firearms....... Yeah, well, I have one, bought into the hype. Maybe there'll be collector value someday since I think they sold maybe TWO. Not sure who the other sucker was. Meanwhile, I have a Ruger for actual USE!:banghead: New is not always better. I could use Smith and Wesson as an example, too.

 

[mec]

although I still wonder where he got 'Duke' from

I heard that he picked up that name because he had a horse named Duke when he was guiding horse tours for one of the national parks.

 

[csmkersh]

Taffin and Bart Skelton are two of my favorite current writers. Man, I miss Bart's dad and his "Joe and I" stories. FWIW, I'm from West Texas too - Big Spring.


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[Double Naught Spy]

AH is just another glorified advertising medium. While they may tell you of features they don't like sometimes, they are still very generous with their reviews.

If you want the unvarnished truth, subscribe to Gun Tests Magazine. They have no advertisers to sweat and buy the firearms they test. You may not agree with their choices, but they do call 'em as they see 'em.

I would not called Gun Tests "unvarnished truth" expect to mean they express their true opinions, often salted with ignorance and extreme subjectivity. They will down rate a gun because they didn't like it, even if it was the best performer of the group being tested and not the most costly.

 

[The Tourist]

As a business, clearly a magazine has to make money. The newsstand price is one way, and advertising is openly another. The choices made between honesty and pleasing a major client will always be a delicate balancing act. And I don't think anyone is being fooled.

But there are ways to read between the lines. Anytime a writer uses the phrase, "...(the firearm) was not up to their usual high standards of quality, and simply a tool room mule..." then you know smoke is being directed up your skirt.

As for the subject of recoil, one of the best articles I ever read was on the issue of cumulative recoil and nerve damage in the hand. This got my attention, because I obviously my hands are my bread and butter.

The writer lamented how decades of handgun recoil had damaged a nerve running directly across his palm. Since then I have worn a PAST shooting glove. All ego aside, you might like the thrill of a big bore's blast, but someday you will be an older man and it would be nice to feel with your fingers.

 

[plexreticle]

A gun rag that misrepresents or stretches the truth? I don't believe it.

 

[Matt-J2]

If The Tourist is really a 14yr old female cheerleader, does that mean that responding to uh, her, posts mean we'll all end up on To Catch a Predator?

 

[hrgrisso]

My big issue with Gun Tests

I like the format of Gun Tests but I finally threw in the towel when I got frustrated with them comparing a SigP226 to a SigP220 and two 1911's. Then deciding that the Caliber of the 9mm was the problem and that the 220 wasn't a 1911.

I really hated when they would compare rifles and compare a .308 something and a high priced AR to a Kel-Tec folding rifle and say that the .308 was a better more pleasant rifle and one to trust your life with.... WHAT!?!? They are different guns you rejects! GGGRRRR! It was at that point I couldn't handle it anymore and I surrendered my subscription.

Then they tried to double bill me a 2nd one which didn't make anyone happy!

I'll stick to AH and reading between the lines.

 

[papajohn]

I got my first subscription to a gun magazine 43 years ago, and I've seen an awful lot of BS printed as gospel, mostly to please a manufacturer or ten. I started with Guns & Ammo, later on found Shooting Times, Gun Tests, Petersen's Handguns, there was even one for a while called Handgun Quarterly, which came out six times a year. I still giggle over that.

Sometime during the Cameron Hopkins era, I found American Handgunner and GUNS, their sister publication. Ayoob was there, as was Mr. Petty, and there was a LOT of experience there, if not outright expertise. My subscriptions have never lapsed in the 20 years since, something that can't be said for the Super-shills, the gunzines that never met a piece of junk they didn't love.

I don't over-analyze the writing, I just try to hear what the writer is getting at without parsing it. Venturino is very open about how vacuous most articles are and why they have to be, given the restraints of their editors. Clint Smith has a lot of experience, and makes a good trainer, even if he's not Pulitzer material. No Big Deal, we're talking about guns and shooting here, not Shakespearean theater.

And Massad Ayoob is...........Massad Ayoob. I've been reading his stuff for what seems like 35 years, and it may actually be that long. I may not agree with everything he writes, but I find very few points that aren't well made and well-reasoned. The Ayoob Files is something I savor every 65 days, and I also have the book. There are LOTS of good lessons, for cops and civilians alike. He writes about something no one else even whispered about for a long time.

Roy Huntington may not be Henry Luce, but I like him. He's genuine, passionate, and reminds me of a lot of the cops I've worked with. He doesn't pull punches with readers who send him hate mail over stupid stuff, and if there's something un-PC to be said, he's your man. And proud of that.

Connor writes some stuff I like, when he's talking about past "Excursions" or incidents in faraway places. Most of it includes a lesson, and a well-illustrated point. Some of his columns about equipment and toys are as dry and ponderous as reading Shooting Times cover to cover three times in a row. But when he's funny and/or poignant, he's VERY good.

As for being lied to..........no, never. Disparate opinions, yes. But nobody agrees with much I say, let alone ALL of it. That's why we call them opinions.

Papajohn