Mike Dickerson

Reliability, accuracy, and competition-friendly features – and you’ve got quite a bit of gun for the money. This gun is not cheap, but you could easily pay twice that amount for a gun with similar performance.

I have enjoyed testing and hunting with CMMG rifles so I didn’t hesitate when offered a chance to test a newer gun in a newer cartridge specialized for long-distance hunting.

From time to time, Ruger produces the rifles in chamberings more suitable for hunting African plains game and big game elsewhere. The newest of these is the Ruger Hawkeye African chambered in 280 Ackley Improved. For my money, Ruger knocked it out of the park with this gun.

That 10-pointer was one of the first whitetail deer ever taken with the new 6.8 Western centerfire rifle cartridge from Winchester and Browning. He won’t be the last.

The FN 15 Tactical Carbine FDE P-LOK hasn’t garnered a lot of attention since its introduction a couple of years ago, and that’s a shame because this is one very well-conceived and executed rifle that you can buy at an affordable price.

Even a quick glance tells you this is not your granddaddy’s lever rifle. The new Henry Big Boy X rifle is a modern refresh of the iconic lever-action rifle design, boosting performance and versatility to entirely new levels.

Rifles and optics aren’t cheap. Don’t settle for cheap protection for them when you’re traveling.

You can do many things, ranging from simple and cheap to costly and complex, to make a rifle more accurate. You may be able to do some jobs yourself with the proper expertise, tools, and machinery, but some are best left to a competent gunsmith.

“To approach the badlands,” wrote author Robert Kroetsch, “is to find a gap in the known and expected world.” That statement could easily apply to one of the newest Weatherby Vanguard rifles. It is named, appropriately enough, the Vanguard Badlands.