Don’t give up if a replacement firing pin is unavailable from your catalog suppliers. Instead, use these tips to solve the problem.

Here are all the items tested in Gun Tests magazine from 2011 back through 1999.

The group Media Matters for America hates NRA. Few organizations have more strongly proclaimed their disdain for our right to keep and bear arms and self-protection, says the NRA-ILA.

Lethal Force Institute’s Massad Ayoob gives a lesson on what to do if you are stopped with firearms in your vehicle. These essential tips will teach you how to safely interact with police when carrying a firearm while driving. (3:47).

Gun of the week list

S&W Model 442 Centennial Airweight 38 Special

The 38 snubnose revolver is a staple of murder mysteries, cop TV shows for many decades, and of real-life cops who need a good, light backup. Everyone over the age of, say, 40 has seen a snubby at one time or another. Today’s TV cops favor all manner of automatic pistols, so the snub 38 is not often seen. But that doesn’t mean it’s no good. The bottom line is, if all you have is a 38 Special snubnose with only five shots, you are a very long way from being unarmed. If you carry five more in a speed loader, well, what more could you want?

FN Police Shotgun No. 17674 12 Gauge Pump

Gun Tests recently tested an FN Police Shotgun 12-Gauge Pump No. 17674 that came with an extra stock for $270.

Ruger SR556 5.56 NATO/223 Rem.

There’s no doubt about it; the AR-15 has gone mainstream. Over the last several years, the growth in demand for black rifles has lured many manufacturers (including the big guys) to introduce their own versions of the venerable Eugene Stoner direct-gas-impingement design. Now that the market has matured, Gun Tests magazine is seeing engineering departments introduce versions that are claimed to improve upon the original AR-15 through the use of gas-piston systems.

S&W Model SW1911 No. 178017 9mm

Gun Tests Magazine recently tested a 9mm 1911-type pistol in the SW1911 Pro Series (No. 178017, $1683).

Guncrafter Industries Conversion Glock Model 21 50 GI

Alex Zimmerman has a great idea. Gun Tests magazine first experienced it in a review of one of his Guncrafter Industries' 50-caliber 1911s, which they found to be a well-made handgun, if a bit on the costly side. Zimmerman's idea is to give the shooter something more without the cost of broken hands. Rather than a bang-up, hot and heavy blaster, the 50 GI is a throwback to older times when big bullets traveled at low velocities and got the job done at least as well as any small-caliber, high-velocity round.

Guncrafter Industries Conversion Glock Model 21 50 GI

Alex Zimmerman has a great idea. Gun Tests magazine first experienced it in a review of one of his Guncrafter Industries’ 50-caliber 1911s, which they found to be a well-made handgun, if a bit on the costly side. Zimmerman’s idea is to give the shooter something more without the cost of broken hands. Rather than a bang-up, hot and heavy blaster, the 50 GI is a throwback to older times when big bullets traveled at low velocities and got the job done at least as well as any small-caliber, high-velocity round.

Mossberg SA-20 No. 75771 3-Inch 20 Gauge

One of the major reasons hunters choose a 20 gauge over a 12 gauge is the former's smaller frame, weight, and recoil. Though they may already own a 12, many field sportsmen wind up reaching for their 20s because the smaller gun is just easier to handle, and there are just a few hunting situations -- layback goose hunting and spring turkey hunting, to name two -- in which the bigger payload might make a difference. Gun Tests magazine recently tested an autoloader in 20 gauge that offers quite a savings in physical form over its bigger stablemates. Its 3-inch-chamber 20 gauge was a Mossberg SA-20 No. 75771, $496.

Mossberg SA-20 No. 75771 3-Inch 20 Gauge

One of the major reasons hunters choose a 20 gauge over a 12 gauge is the former’s smaller frame, weight, and recoil. Though they may already own a 12, many field sportsmen wind up reaching for their 20s because the smaller gun is just easier to handle, and there are just a few hunting situations—layback goose hunting and spring turkey hunting, to name two—in which the bigger payload might make a difference. Gun Tests magazine recently tested an autoloader in 20 gauge that offers quite a savings in physical form over its bigger stablemates. Its 3-inch-chamber 20 gauge was a Mossberg SA-20 No. 75771, $496.