Finding the best AR-15 sling is part of building your rifle. Sure, your rifle can function without it, but you can’t. Once you start taking that rifle to training sessions, you will need a sling to keep it close to your body.  Or you can let it hit the floor (don’t do that).  Finding a suitable sling also begs the question of “how many points?”  If you don’t know what I meant by that, we have some work to do here. Let’s talk about the points of a sling, and I’ll give you my recommendations on the best slings for an AR-15 (or any Armament rifle)  What Are The Points Of A Sl ..read more

The AR-15 magazine market offers more options than rounds that will fit in a Magpul D-60 drum magazine. Especially given today’s political and economic conditions, it may be wise to stock up on a few of your favorite magazines; just saying.  But it can be hard to tell where to start if you’re new to shooting or simply want to explore other magazine options. There are polymer, steel/aluminum, and hybrid mags, all of which come in various capacities and colors. With all of them though, especially hybrid mags, which we’ll get into shortly, the most important part of the magazine is the ..read more

People don’t usually have just one magazine for each gun they own. Heck, most guns even come with more than one magazine. So, what does one do with those extra magazines? They need to be stored. But, should they be stored loaded, or unloaded? That is the topic of the day. I don’t typically flip-flop on ideas, but this is one where I’ve found myself leaning different ways at different points in time. To keep loaded or unloaded…that is the question. I’ll discuss the thought process behind both ways, touch on their respective pros and cons, and ultimately reveal which side of the fence I now re ..read more

The newest iteration of Smith & Wesson’s M&P M2.0 line delivers several welcomed upgrades to what was already an excellent set of guns. Even though I’ve had the original M2.0 for a couple of years with no complaints, I had to jump on one of these once I saw the upgrades. I wound up liking it so much, that I now have two; one for training and one for carrying. After more than 1,500 rounds between the two, I’m more than capable of helping you decide if one of these should be your next pistol. The Holosun SCS has proven to be a great addition to the M2.0 and doesn’t require any mounting ..read more

By: Gunmade.com   So, you finally decided to bite the bullet and buy your first gun. Excitement is through the roof. I’d even say you’ve watched a few YouTube videos and are ready to go.  But with all that excitement, you might still be confused and ask yourself, “What is the best first gun?” That’s a great question with a bunch of different answers. I will do my best to cover options for every new shooter’s needs and find exactly what you want.  You can call me the Sommelier. I will ensure you’re set up for success (well, with a firearm, at least).  I have a question for y ..read more

Oh .40 S&W. If you really want to start a fight in the Second Amendment Internet Universe, just post “.40 Smith & Wesson”, step back, and watch the threads burn. With even more fervor than the classic 9mm vs .45 ACP battle, .40 S&W alone will start a war of words for the ages. To frame the debate, for awhile, the .40 S&W catridge was the “go-to” for law enforcement at all levels here in the US, and even in some other nations. Which made sense – the round was developed to satisfy a law enforcement requirement, specifically one from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, aka the FB ..read more

It’s one thing to have an AR-15. Every able-bodied citizen in the United States should own at least one version of Eugene Stoner’s most well-known creation. Easy to learn, and easy to get competent with, the AR is truly an “everyman” weapon. With an entire universe of accessories (including the impressive inventory of AR magazines at The Mag Shack!) and configurations, the AR should be the “default” firearm for an American. Well to be fair the default rifle for an American should be an M4A1, but that’s for another discussion. That being said, there’s a certain appeal to that most famous creat ..read more

By: Brady Kirkpatrick at Gunmade.com   Have you ever wondered what grain weight means in ammo? Of course, or else you wouldn’t be here. Plenty of people ignore grain weight altogether, whereas some shooters consider it carefully when choosing the weight due to how it can affect the gun.  If you need a quick answer, grain weight is the weight of the bullet itself. Not the whole cartridge, just the projectile coming out of the end. It’s also common for it to be called ‘bullet weight’, so don’t get thrown off by lingo.  As for why grain weight in bullets is important, let’s ge ..read more

By: Brady Kirkpatrick at Gunmade.com I’ll tell you a story. We’ll get right into this.  Sidenote: American Defense Manufacturing (ADM) does not know who I am. This is about my experience with their UIC Mod 2 and my research on the company.    Last Saturday, a friend invited me to shoot up behind Mt. Rainier. He had a new rifle and would only disclose what it was once we met up for a range day, only telling me it was an AR-15. And he talked about wanting to break it in some, so with childish excitement, I went up.  Collin lives 30 minutes closer than I, so he had it set ..read more

By: Brady Kirkpatrick at Gunmade.com Are you looking for an AR-15 that will complement your skills as a shooter? You may want to buy an AR-15 that will keep up with your training cycle and the amount of brass you plan on running through it.  Either way, I’ve got my hands on these rifles and a few others so that I can recommend five of the best manufacturers on the market.  It’s not easy finding these rifles since plenty of manufacturers have their own gimmicks, whether it be different coatings on their bolt carrier groups like Scionics or using a thicker barrel profile like Nove ..read more