The Commonwealth of Virginia has a strange history with gun laws. What I mean is that depending on who is in power, it’s either uber pro-gun or uber anti-gun, and those seem to swing faster than a screen door in a tornado. After the recent elections, though, it’s clear the state is headed deep into the anti-gun side of things, with a plethora of gun control proposals already introduced, and there being little doubt of more to come.Which brings us to Lobby Day in Richmond. That’s the annual gathering of gun rights advocates outside the…
Ambient Arms suppressors utilize intake technology that pulls ambient air into the suppressor. This cooling and flow-through design cuts heat, reduces back pressure, and stabilizes bullets at the muzzle. Exo 5.56 Mini: Compact Can, Big Heat Management The Exo 5.56 Mini sits at the center of this lineup. The suppressor uses Inconel construction with an integrated flash hider. It targets shooters who want durability without giving up size. The Exo Mini 5.56 is 5.9″ long, which is an inch shorter than the full size Exo. This suppressor is 19.4 ounces, which is heavier than the Exo due to its inconel…
Pentagon Signals Rare Domestic ReadinessThe Department of Defense has placed roughly 1,500 active-duty Army soldiers on standby for possible deployment to Minnesota following escalating unrest in Minneapolis tied to federal immigration enforcement operations and a fatal shooting involving an ICE agent. Defense officials confirmed the troops were given prepare-to-deploy orders as a contingency measure after President Donald Trump publicly warned the federal government could invoke the Insurrection Act if local authorities failed to maintain order.According to defense reporting, the soldiers are assigned to the Army’s 11th Airborne Division based in Alaska. The unit specializes in rapid response in extreme winter…
Every now and then, I stumble on a survival hack that really makes me think, “Wait, why isn’t everyone doing this?” That’s exactly what happened when I came across this candle hack. In all the years I’ve been doing this, somehow I never heard about this one.The idea is to use steel wool in place of standard candle wicks, which slowly burn up over time. The steel gets hot enough to vaporize the wax and sustain a flame, but it doesn’t actually burn away like other wicks. That means the wick lasts practically forever. All you have to do is…
What’s better than getting a new reel that changes color with water temperatures? Knowing part of your purchases goes back to conservation, protecting our streams and wildlife for future generations. Ross Reels and Coors have partnered again in 2026 to introduce a new limited-edition collection that includes the Coors Banquet Cimarron Creek reel, The Coors Banquet Airlite Aspire 905 Fly Rod, and the Coors Light Cimarron LT reel. And this year, the partnership brings a first-of-its-kind innovation to the market. Ross Reels x Coors Light Collection Review The Ross x Coors collab features three new items; (photo/Ross Reels) The Ross…
The annual Gundie Awards in Las Vegas have come and gone. Who came out on top? Massad Ayoob was named “Top 2A Writer” for the second year in a row!The seventh annual Gundie Awards happened on Jan. 19, 2026. The Gundies celebrate the top Second Amendment advocates, activists, podcasters, YouTubers, personalities, and writers. 2026 was the second year that the category of Top 2A Writer was in the mix. Second Amendment Foundation president, writer, and use of force/firearms trainer extraordinaire Massad Ayoob was named as the top scribe for the second year in a row. …
A female soldier who was attacked and raped by a convicted serial predator at Fort Hood has filed a $10 million personal injury complaint against the U.S. Army, alleging that the service was aware of sexual crimes and physical abuse but did nothing to warn others or to put additional safety measures into place.Mayra Diaz, 22, filed the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) administrative complaint on Jan. 20 based on what she endured earlier this decade at Fort Hood (known as Fort Cavazos at the time) at the hands of Sgt. Greville Clarke, an Army noncommissioned officer who after three…
Are you sick of polymer-frame, striker-fired handguns? Tired of the newest Glock imitator trying to promise a revolutionary design? Me too. So, after I saw the giant posters at Range Day advertising the Steyr ATD and ATC, I knew I had to zoom over there and check them out. I saw a hammer and a metal frame, and I had hope. The ATD I hopped on my “Lamborfeeties” and marched over to Steyr. What greeted me was a mix of black and stainless guns in various sizes and configurations. The ATD is a DA/SA (double-action/single-action) gun. I found myself a…
Base layers for women are one of those gear categories that don’t get much attention. When they work, you forget about them. When they don’t, you notice immediately. I tested the REI Co-op Midweight Long Sleeve Base Layer Top and Tights across a mix of activities, and I have some good news: They worked! I wore this set while resort skiing at Snowmass Ski Resort, uphill skiing at Buttermilk, trail running in the hills around our neighborhood, and hiking with our dog. As a true midweight synthetic base layer, this set is designed to add noticeable warmth while still functioning…
The .22 Thompson from the Kahr Firearms Group delivers the iconic Thompson profile using modern polymer construction and a lightweight rimfire operating system. Modern Materials, Classic Appearance At first glance, the rifle looks traditionally finished. In person, the polymer furniture is realistic enough that it initially appears to be walnut. Only closer inspection reveals the material choice. Kahr builds this .22‑caliber Thompson primarily from polymer components. The receiver uses polymer construction, and the barrel sits inside a polymer shell. As a result, the rifle weighs far less than steel‑framed Thompson variants while retaining the familiar exterior lines. Kahr manufactures the…
We reported last summer how the pro-gun group Gun Owners of America (GOA) had filed a lawsuit challenging the nearly-century-old law that deems it illegal to ship handguns via the United States Postal Service (USPS). At the time, GOA argued in the case Shreve v. United States Postal Service that the ban was “inconsistent with Founding-era historical tradition” of firearm regulation, thereby failing to fulfill the Second requirement set down in the 2022 ruling in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen. “These prohibitions plainly violate the Second Amendment, and this case is easily resolvable under Bruen,” the complaint stated.…
Late January means two things: playoff football and the kickoff of professional bass fishing tournaments. While teams battle it out for a slot in the divisional round of the NFL playoffs, bass heads are just getting started. Major League Fishing hosted the Bass Pro Tournament Stage One at Lake Guntersville this weekend, marking the beginning of a season as one comes to an end. The 2026 MLF Bass Pro Tour promises to be a good one, with new rookies joining the field. For bass fishermen, one question stands at the forefront of mind: Will forward-facing sonar techniques continue to dominate,…
A majority of Supreme Court justices appear ready to strike down Hawaii’s “vampire rule” that prohibits lawful concealed carry on all private property unless the property owner expressly gives their consent, though during oral arguments today the three liberal justices seem inclined to uphold the law. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, for instance, repeatedly questioned plaintiffs’ attorney Alan Beck and Deputy Solicitor General Sarah Harris (who participated in the oral arguments alongside the plaintiffs) about why this case wasn’t simply about property rights, without any Second Amendment implication whatsoever. When Jackson asked whether this was really a…
At SHOT Show 2026, the HUXWRX booth wasn’t pushing gimmicks. Instead, they showcased the FLOW 45: a modular .45-caliber handgun suppressor that prioritizes simplicity and weight reduction. The FLOW 45 is designed for shooters who want fewer parts, fewer tools, and less hassle when running a pistol can. 3D-Printed Titanium, One Solid Unit The suppressor is fully 3D printed from Grade 23 titanium. Rather than using stacked or removable baffles, each section is a single monolithic piece. This design choice eliminates common failure points and simplifies maintenance. There’s less concern about components coming loose, and no baffles to misalign when…
Many military diving and rescue swimming training programs include a wide variety of pool skills. One of the most overlooked and frankly ignored by students is treading. Because treading is easy, right? Wrong! Here is a question from a recruit preparing for a military diving program in the future, who is curious about how to add in treading workouts:Stew, do you have any recommendations on how much I should be treading before Navy Dive School? I can swim well, but I struggle to tread water without my hands. It is much easier for me to sink than float. Thanks, Joseph.Joseph,…
Take a proven, multi-championship-winning powertrain and put it in a bespoke, rally-focused chassis, and what you get is the STRYKER. A new rally vehicle, which will have its own class in the American Rally Association (ARA) series in 2026 — the ARA STRYKER Challenge Series. The whole idea of this new vehicle is to offer extremely high performance in a cost-effective platform. Then, line up identical machinery at ARA rally events and let driver skill determine the results versus machinery and money. (Photo/STRYKER Motorsports) What Is a STRYKER? What exactly is this alien rally beast? The STRYKER is a custom-designed…
The NFA restrictions on machine guns wouldn’t be quite so bad without the 1986 machine gun ban. That law, signed into being by President Ronald Reagan, basically said private machine gun ownership was restricted to only those firearms made before the law went into effect. At the time, this was a mild inconvenience, but what happened in the long run is that full-auto firearms became increasingly difficult not just to find, but to afford. Today, a machine gun can cost as much as a nice house, depending on the firearm, and the ban itself just…
SIG Sauer’s XRAY7-CO red dot totally redefines what red dots can be, utilizing zero moving parts, and onboard ballistics capabilities. This red dot uses a distortion-free digital display and zero moving components to deliver a rugged, data-driven combat optic designed for belt-fed machine guns. A Different Approach to Red Dot Design The SIG XRAY7-CO doesn’t follow the traditional red dot formula. Instead of reflecting an emitter off a curved lens, it uses a roof-mounted digital display paired with flat plate glass. That design choice removes the spherical lenses that often introduce distortion in conventional optics. SEE ALSO: Seekins SIC: SF-Bred…
Newer email correspondence from the Pentagon inviting individuals to partake in a Christian prayer service within the Department of Defense was sent to at least eight U.S. defense contractors, Military.com has learned.Emails scribed by DoD and sent last week to an undisclosed number of individuals were shared with Military.com, inviting the persons to join a “Christian prayer and worship service” between 12-12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 21, in the Pentagon auditorium. The correspondence was sent from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office, labeled the “Department of War.”The correspondence was strongly chastised by groups like the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF), whose…
When FN killed the SCAR, I think most of us knew it was going to come back, right? The SCAR had lagged behind modern rifle design and was starting to show its age. I’m a SCAR fan, mostly because it was in seemingly every video game of my youth, and it has an iconic appearance. I also just enjoy shooting the SCAR. It’s just different enough from the AR to be interesting. The SCAR admittedly had its issues. The handguard was too short for modern shooters. Suppressing the gun violated the warranty. The charging handle reciprocated, and the gun lacked…
United States Senator Rand Paul said that the U.S. is in an ongoing war with Venezuela. “That is an act of war. It’s an ongoing war, to continue to take their oil; ongoing war to distribute it,” Paul said during a Sunday appearance on NBC News’s “Meet the Press.” Most of the public has figured out that this war was never about “narco terrorism” as the U.S. ruling class has claimed. It’s always been about controlling Venezuela’s natural resources. It’s All About The Oil: Trump Wants “Oil Rights” In Venezuela “This Oil will be sold at its Market Price, and that…
