Elk hunters take to the field each fall with high hopes of notching their tag on a big bull elk (or even a small bull or cow). Often times success slips through their fingers through a comedy of errors. I’ll cover a few big mistakes that can wreck your hunt, that can easily be avoided.

The post 5 Big Mistakes Elk Hunters Make appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

Large guns have a special place in my heart, as they do for most people. The Taurus Raging Hunter in 44 mag is a handgun that put a huge smile on my face the moment I held it in my hand. The Raging Hunter is well constructed. There is extremely little play in any of the moving parts, the cylinder locks positively in place with a dual latch system and the porting on the end of the barrel is not only attractive but reduces recoil effectively; making for a great shooting experience.

The post The New Big Boy on the Block: Testing the Taurus Raging Hunter 44 Mag appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

Start with a sequence of cow mews and chirps, use non-verbal communication like raking a tree. Take a break and repeat the cow-calf talk after a few minutes. This time, instead of raking try non-aggressive location type bugle.

The post Create The Frenzy – Archery Elk Hunting & Calling Strategies appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

Wildlife management implemented a vasectomy program that's run for three years, however, residents and officials want a better, more effective solution.

The post Staten Island Residents Want to Start Bow Hunting Deer After Vasectomy Program Shows Lackluster Results appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

The Wildlife Research Center is responding to state bans on the use of scented deer lures in Minnesota, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.

The post Wildlife Research Center Responds to Bans on Deer Lures appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

The NRA welcomes the President’s call to address the root causes of the horrific acts of violence.

Have we reached a tipping point? President Trump voiced support for gun confiscation orders on Monday.

The post President Trump Calls for Red Flag Laws, Tweets Support for ‘Strong Background Checks’ appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

The Democrat-controlled state legislature passed the law nearly unanimously. It will allow school districts to opt into the hunter's ed program.

The post Illinois Passes Law Allowing Schools to Teach Hunter’s Education appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

One area of preparation that needs more forethought, but is just as important, is a hunter’s footwear. It can take months to properly break in a pair of quality hunting boots so starting well before you need them is key. Picking a pair of boots that will not only meet but exceed your expectations is vital.

The post Start Now Breaking in Your Boots for Hunting Season appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

The 1:16″ RH 6-groove cold hammer-forged barrel is locked into the receiver with a two-screw, V-block system and the carbine itself, with its light but durable synthetic stock, tips the scales at 4.5-pounds (Photo: Ruger)

SEE 10/22S AT GUNS.COM FROM $181.98

With a promised limited availability, Ruger this month announced two new synthetic stock options for their 10/22 rimfire rifle series: gray and charcoal.

Otherwise standard 10/22 carbines, these .22LR-chambered rifles are loaded with standard features such as an 18.5-inch cold hammer-forged barrel; a push-button, cross-bolt manual safety, and a factory-installed combination scope base adapter for both Weaver-style and tip-off scope mounts. Overall length is 37-inches while they weigh in at very light 4.5-pounds.

10/22 in Charcoal (Photo: Ruger)

Each ships with a single detachable, 10-round rotary magazine and accepts all standard 10/22 mags such as the BX-25 extended magazine series.

10/22 in Gray (Photo: Ruger)

MSRP is $309 and Ruger advises the new models are now shipping.

SEE 10/22S AT GUNS.COM FROM $181.98

The post Ruger Announces Short Run of 10/22 Rifles with Gray, Charcoal Stocks appeared first on Guns.com.

Bill Jordon applied his experience as a Marine in WWII and Korea and along the Southern Border with Mexico to help produce the concept that later became the S&W Model 19 (Photos: Richard Taylor/Guns.com)

SEE S&W M19S AT GUNS.COM FROM $617

Designed with input from an early legend in the gun community, the Smith & Wesson Model 19 Combat Magnum has been a hit with wheel gun aficionados for generations.

To get the appeal of the Model 19, understand that S&W first debuted their medium-framed swing-out cylinder revolvers, known today as K-frames, back in the late 1890s with the Hand Ejector and Military & Police models. Then came the larger N-frame hog legs in 1907 with the advent of the Triple Lock or New Century. While the “Ks” typically ran in .32 to .38 calibers, the “Ns” were offered in beefier chamberings like .44 Special and .44 Russian. Fast forward to the 1930s and when the dream team of Elmer Keith, Phillip Sharpe, and D. B. Wesson joined forces to create the .357 Magnum cartridge, they developed an N-frame model to run it, the Model 27.

And so, it remained for decades until S&W heard from a WWII and Korean War-veteran Marine officer and U.S. Border Patrol supervisor, William “Bill” Jordon, about the what would make the perfect “combat” duty revolver. In short, Jordon advocated a K-frame-sized double-action chambered .357. While today these seems as logical as peanut butter and jelly, it was revolutionary at the time and, after some R&D and trial and error, the K-framed Combat Magnum was created in 1955.

The standard Model 19 runs a 4-inch barrel with a ramp front sight and adjustable rear. Although chambered in .357 Magnum, they also accommodate .38 Special rounds as well. (Photo: Richard Taylor/Guns.com)

“Surely nothing could be more disconcerting to the accuracy of an adversary than a .357 Magnum slug applied judiciously in the region of his belt buckle! It will beat kicking dirt in his face every time!” said Jordon of the caliber in his 1965 book, No Second Place Winner.

Outfitted with a shrouded barrel with an enclosed ejector rod and an adjustable rear sight, the Combat Magnum that hit S&Ws catalog in the mid-1950s was built on a 4-screw frame with a square butt. The frame sported a larger yoke and a fluted cylinder that had been counterbored. Unlike the Model 27 which was offered in numerous barrel lengths, the original Combat Magnum only came in a 4-inch format as standard. While a nickel finish was offered, most were in Smith’s bright blue finish of the time.

Who doesn’t like nickel when it comes to vintage wheel guns? (Photo: Richard Taylor/Guns.com)

“In this country, we are fortunate that we have available to us the finest double-action weapons made in the world: The .357 Combat Magnum,” said Jordan, who later went into a second career as a writer and exhibition shooter. “Better guns cannot be bought at any price, anywhere. You can’t go wrong with one of these hanging by your side.”

By 1957, the Combat Magnum’s name switched to the Model 19 and the rest, as they say, is history.

As later generations of the Model 19 went into production, the general concept of the .357 K-frame endured with additional barrel lengths (2.2- and 6-inch) offered while round butt designs were added to the catalog. The popular revolver was the gold standard across legions of lawmen of the age and was issued to both the Border Patrol and the FBI before those agencies ultimately shifted to semi-autos in the 1990s. This led the medium-framed magnum to become a staple in small-town law enforcement, period bowling pin matches, and for use as a home and personal defense gun.

In turn, a myriad of fictional lawmen portrayed on screens both big and small carried the Model 19 including Danny Glover as Det. Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon franchise, Clint Eastwood (as both Texas Ranger Chief Red Garnett in A Perfect World and Agent Frank Horrigan in In the Line of Fire) and by numerous cops on Hill Street Blues.

Contrary to the he-man grips on the N-frames, the more medium-sized Model 19 K-frame guns allowed those with slightly smaller mitts to carry and use a .357, especially if the factory grips were changed (Photo: Richard Taylor?guns.com

By the early 1990s, the nickel offerings fell out of favor as Smith had previously introduced the satin stainless version of the Model 19 under the standalone Model 66 designation. For those wanting a more “budget” Model 19, the fixed-sight heavy barrel Model 13 M&P K-frame debuted in 1974.

We have several 19s on hand including some earlier 1960s-70s vintage 19-3 and 19-4 models as well as both blued and nickel finishes and specimens with 2.5-, 4-, and 6-inch barrels. (Photo: Richard Taylor/Guns.com)

Sadly, after a more than 40-year run, the Model 19 went out of production in 1999, a deficit that Smith corrected last year by bringing what could best be described as the 19-9 “Classic” back to their lineup.

Got to give the people what they want.

SEE S&W M19S AT GUNS.COM FROM $617

The post Combat Magnum: The Story of the S&W Model 19 .357 appeared first on Guns.com.

SEE AT GUNS.COM FROM $715

Boge Quinn, of the popular Gunblast channel, showed off his Ruger Bisley Vaquero revolver he had customized for the powerful .500 Linebaugh cartridge.

The customized design is special from the Wyoming-based Dustin Linbaugh Custom Conversion. The shop is owned by custom-handgun pioneer and creator of the .500 Linsbaugh, John Linebaugh and his son Dustin.

Quinn explained he first learned about the customized revolver from some friends who bought one for bear hunting up north. “It’s made for packing in bear country, which I don’t really go bear hunting, but it’s a lot of fun to shoot,” he said.

Not long after Quinn ordered it, however, he had a life changing event happen. “Probably eight or 10 months after I ordered it I had a heart attack,” Quinn said. “I came through fine, it wasn’t no big deal, but John Linebaugh wanted to do me a favor so John actually made the cylinder on this and Dustin did the rest of it.”

The revolver features a fixed-sight Bisley Vaquero with custom rear sight insert invented by Dustin. The round-butt grip treatment and ivory Micarta grips are hand-fitted by Dustin, as are the custom drift-adjustable Patridge-blade front sight with gold bar and 4-inch octagonal barrel.

The Ruger Bisley Vaquero converted to .500 Linebaugh. (Photo: Ben Philippi / Guns.com)

The Ruger Bisley Vaquero converted to .500 Linebaugh. (Photo: Ben Philippi / Guns.com)

For great handguns, rifles, and shotguns, check out the Guns.com Vault and collection of Certified Used Firearms. 

The post Gunblast’s Ruger Bisley Vaquero Converted to .500 Linebaugh appeared first on Guns.com.

“Most of the people I work within the wildlife law enforcement field love social media because some people can't resist bragging,” explained Keith Wintersteen.

The post Social Media Proving to be a Useful Tool to Catch Poachers appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

Activists use lies to gain support. As hunter's, we need to find ways to communicate that we're not a bunch of bloodthirsty hicks.

The post New Jersey Anti-Hunting Activists Work To Ban Hunting Town By Town appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

I am no different than the next hunter in that I always look for something to make my hunt better. My old blind bag was wearing out and I was glad when I got my hands on the new Old School Camo Blind Bag offered by Lifetime Decoys. 

The post Lifetime Decoys Blind Bag appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

Our deepest sympathies are with the families and victims of these tragedies, as well as the entire communities of El Paso and Dayton. On behalf of our millions of members, we salute the courage of the first responders and others offering their services during this time.

In August of 1916, the British 100th Company of the Machine Gun Corps fired their ten Vickers guns continuously for twelve hours. Using 100 barrels they fired a million rounds without a single failure. The Vickers gun continued in British military service until 1968.

The post The Death of a Legend: Baron Manfred von Richthofen & the Vickers that may have killed him. appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

With all that Bushnell has done for its professional-grade lines, you might think they had forgotten the hunters. Well, you would have thought wrong. This week, we got down and dirty with a new product from the Bushnell Prime line. If your Christmas missed the mark, fear not. These bad boys won’t.

The post Bushnell Prime Rifle Scope 6-18x 50mm appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

In spite of the desert winds gusting over 18 mph, some of us were making contact with the plate, at 1,760 yards – one full mile – with a 6.5 Creedmoor.

The post The 6.5 Creedmoor – A Serious One-mile Gun with the new Hornady A-Tip appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.

Home invasions happen in even the best of neighborhoods. If it happens to you, your chances are better if you've prepared ahead of time. Here are some tips that can help protect you and your loved ones.

The post Home Invasion Tips appeared first on GunsAmerica Digest.