They may be familiar to some, but not every gunsmith knows the ins and outs of drill bits. Here are the basics.

The graceful, light, and distinctive L.C. Smith Hammerless Double sidelock is a favorite of American shotgunners. Here’s how to fix its most common problems. If you own a Smith and want to make it suitable to shoot again, or if you are presented a Smith to repair, here’s what you need to know about the shotgun.

In June 2010, Kahr Arms purchased Minnesota-based firearms manufacturer, Magnum Research, Inc., maker of the Desert Eagle Pistol and BFR Revolvers in .44 Magnum, .45 LC/.410 or .45/70. Kahr Arms offers a selection of other niche-type firearms, such as the “Tommy Gun” and Auto-Ordnance line of M1 .30 caliber carbines. In this video, Gun Tests Contributing Editor Roger Eckstine shows off two of the company’s big-hole BFR wheelguns.

Beretta USA introduced the BU-9 Nano as its entry into the pocket 9mm pistol category last September. Initial shipments of the American-made pistol left the Accokeek, Maryland factory beginning in November 2011, with a suggested retail price of $475. In this video, Gun Tests’ Contributing Editor Roger Eckstine gets a detailed explanation of how easy the Nano is to break down for maintenance. The Nano's modularity provides for simple disassembly and easy cleaning. Safely disassemble the pistol by first engaging the striker deactivator, a patent pending safety mechanism that eliminates the need to pull the trigger prior to disassembly.

Ruger GP-100 .357 Magnum, $474

Courtesy Gun Tests

The GP-100 had some minor fitting problems, such as an overly long grip screw, but it worked reliably with the ammo we used.

Some time back on these pages we gave you the results of a test of three .357 Magnum double-action revolvers with four-inch barrels. However, our gun stores tell us that, because so many shooters don’t read Gun Tests, folks continually come in and ask which brand of .357 they ought to buy.

We chose the Ruger GP100 as one of the test guns. It had a semi-matte gray appearance, black rubber grips, and adjustable sights featuring a white-outlined black rear sight. The sight radius of the revolver was 7.5 inches. There was no provision for mounting a scope.

The Ruger GP100’s grips were black rubber without grooves, but the sides had decorative inserts of brown wood-like material (which some actually found attractive) that give the gun a distinctive look. The grips felt just great in both aimed single-action fire and in rapid-fire double action. Recoil was spread over a large area of the hand and that made for good shooting comfort, even with the heaviest loads.

The controls all functioned well and positively, and we found this to be a pleasant gun to handle and shoot. The trigger was well curved and smooth, and the double-action cycling was just slightly heavier than that of the Smith & Wesson. Trigger movement was even and smooth enough to permit good accuracy when shooting it slowly in the double-action mode. Because it sat lower in the hand than the S&W, the muzzle didn’t rise as high. Thus, it allowed faster follow-up shots.

The Ruger GP100 was equipped with a front-end latch that secured the cylinder at the crane. After firing about 50 rounds through each gun, we found some wear marks. The Ruger’s hammer was noticeably scuffed on the left side, which showed that it was rubbing against the frame.

The single-action trigger pull was quite crisp with no apparent creep. The Ruger GP100 had a 0.006-inch barrel-to-cylinder gap and a pull of 5.5 pounds.

We measured the forcing cone diameter as 0.375 inch for the Ruger. Note that

Courtesy Gun Tests

From left to right: Taurus Model 689VR, Smith & Wesson Model 686, Ruger GP100 and Colt King Cobra. Only the Ruger didn't have a red front sight insert, but the GP100's sight picture was clear and sharp.

Overall group size averages with the hot and popular Federal 125-grain JHP ammo were: Ruger, 2.1 inches. The Ruger seemed to like the 158-grain lead semi-wadcutter bullets of our Black Hills test ammunition. If we threw out one shot from each of the Ruger’s groups, its accuracy results would have been stunning with this ammunition.

There were no mechanical problems. None of these guns had ejector rod throws that were long enough to fully remove fired cases from the cylinders, but that didn’t matter. Also, we found no binding in double-action mode, even after firing many rounds with no cleaning. This was commendable.

The Ruger GP100 felt really good in the double-action mode, either fast or slow fire. We were able to make relatively good hits on target at long range, not exactly the realm of the double-action system. Up close and personal, the Ruger fired shots smoothly and reliably as fast as we could stroke the trigger, and it was by no means clean at this point in testing. With some handguns, carbon and unburnt gun powder will often tie up the double-action mechanism so that repeated rapid-fire shooting becomes difficult, if not impossible. This wasn’t so with the Ruger. It kept on ticking.

Reader Comments

I have had a great experience with the Ruger SP 101, 3" barrel. Put a Hogue grip on it and I can shoot all day with any commercial load. I also rounded the trigger. My 89 # wife can also handle it easily.

Comment by: M F | February 25, 2010

My Wife sold guys for years at the Marine Corp Gun Shop and her personal choice was the GP-100 with a 6" barrel. I love shooting her gun. With 357 ammo it went BOOM and more fun than my SIG P226 with 9mm that went bang! Enjoy it.

Comment by: Mike F | February 25, 2010

When they say that the cylinder was tight, that means that the ratchet, or the hand need a little work with a very fine stone to make things right. This also stops "material" from spiting back.

Comment by: lotoofla | February 26, 2010

That may be true, however if the barrel is not lined up with the cylinder it will spit at you tight or not. That's why the author said the proof is in the shooting. Nice gun, my friend has one that I have shot a few times. I like my S&W 686 better.

Comment by: Robert J | February 26, 2010

I have a 4" model. Came with a terrible trigger that was smoothed out by a great smith. Now it is one of my favorite guns. A real shooter.

Comment by: Anthony C | February 26, 2010

I have owned a GP100 6" barrel since 1986. The pistol is a handful for women. My wife does not care for it due to the .357 recoil. I have found as the gun has grown older that my shot pattern has moved to the left of target. I have readjusted the sites to compensate. I love the feel and reliability of this pistol. Bar none, it's the most fun to shoot of all my pistols. When you first pull the trigger, it really gets people's attention at the indoor NRA range after everone else has been firing semi-autos.

Comment by: Superbee1 | February 26, 2010

I have a GP100 and have found it to be accurate and reliable especially with 158gr cast bullets. The action of my Smith & Wesson Model 27 is much smoother though.

Comment by: Glenn G | February 26, 2010

Owned one since 1990, love the look in SS with the rubber and wood grips and 6 inch barrel. Firing .38 Special rounds makes it a bit tamer and just as accurate as firing the .357 rounds. Great handgun...

Comment by: DICKWEED | February 27, 2010

I am planning to buy the GP100; and already have a gun smith for a trigger job. I have the 686, and think of it as an almost perfect gun -- nice trigger. However I do question the design of the firing pin, My SP101 is a pleasure also.

Comment by: tovlogos | February 27, 2010

My Ruger Security Six was (pardon the pun) bullet-proof. More reliable and durable than any Smith or Colt I've ever owned. Did the action job myself, Wolff springs, 4.5# trigger pull like breaking glass. Gave it to my sister to keep my ex from getting it. Wonder if she'd sell it back to me, or should I upgrade to the GP-100?

Comment by: Lee W | February 27, 2010

Traded for a SS 4" model. Had typical rough trigger. Found a total rebuild tutorial from a retired gunsmith from Iowa. That and a calibration kit from Wolff Gunsprings has turned it into a superior arm. Can easily keep it on-target when fast double action, and accuracy is match grade.

Comment by: wirelessguy | March 1, 2010

I have a gp 6". my wife likes the target loads for it. I of course love the slow burning stuff. topped with a leupold 4x over 3500+ rounds thru it.

Comment by: ken h | March 4, 2010

I am lucky enough to have bought quite a few of the test fungs from GT, including THIS GP-100. There is no spitting. There is no misalignment of the hand or ratchet. There was no stoning or fitting required. There has been no malufunction whatsoever. Though the trigger cannot compare to my S&W 686 (seriously... how many non custom revolvers can?) it is a good trigger and is suprisingly accurate. Though the barrel/cylinder gap is not ideal on paper, this has caused zero issues as the cylinder lockup is tight and there was no shake or end play. This gun is a winner. Don't let hear-say and mis-reading between the lines scare you away from one.

Ken H: What mount did you use to mount your scope?

Comment by: Markbo | March 11, 2010

Markbo, I used a B- square mount. take the rear sight off and mount it. directions came with mount, and has not loosened up at all. I found mount on e-bay from someone who acquired misc. stuff from a gun shop that was closing its doors. I paid w/ shipping $12. normally this goes for about $40- $50. hope this helps. Ken

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