Reviews

Gun reviews: Tikka T3 .243 Win laminate rifle: This accurate stalking rifle justifies its reputation for reliability, and it looks good.

The Browning 725 has been around for a year or more and has been well received. Now comes the Grade 5 — which, for those who are more used to names rather than numbers is the equivalent of what was known as the “Prestige” on the 425 and 525. Mechanically, it has the same features…

If any single rifle in the stalking world was instantly recognisable, rather like an E-Type Jaguar, this one stands out instantly. Its design was far ahead of its time. It was the brainchild of David Lloyd, who was born in 1910 in Northamptonshire. A keen deerstalker and riflemaker, he had a huge knowledge of ballistics and metallurgy….

We Brits can be a bit blinkered when it comes to choosing rifles that we perceive to be the norm for us — we tend to go for the same old models, styles and manufacturers. There are a lot of very good makes, especially on the Continent, that are popular there but not here. Edgar…

Interest in the revival of muzzle-loading took off in the early 1970s, extending beyond the clay shoot to use in the field. The owner of one quite large shoot that I knew insisted that at the latter end of the season only muzzle-loaders were used. Though interest has declined a little, Shooting Times still reports…

The semi-auto market is a major arena for most gunmakers. One of the leaders in this market is Beretta. They are constantly innovating and looking for a new angle. Semi-autos are increasingly common in 20-bore, but smaller than this and the choice narrows considerably. Some years ago, Remington made smaller-bore semi- autos; the .410 had…

Although not one of the names you might first think of when considering mass-market gunmakers, Franchi has had a presence in the UK market for many years. The company was first founded in 1868 and there are few gunmakers of that age still around. Though Franchi has altered somewhat in recent years. I can remember…

The Turkish invasion carries on unabated with the Huglu 103DE. Huglu have been involved in gun manufacture for around 100 years, but ASI, historically famous for distributing AYA and more recently Rizzini shotguns, has taken over distributorship of these guns. Huglu are continually working on their range and are in the process of introducing some…

For the past 30 years or more the only real question many sportsmen and women have asked themselves when buying a new gun has been a simple one: Beretta or Browning? The likes of Beretta’s 680 line and Browning’s 525 and now 725 have long dominated most buyers’ thinking when looking for a gun in…

Perazzi MXS shotgun review The latest entry-level gun from Perazzi is the MXS, though at £5,500, this makes for a relatively expensive level to enter. Fortunately, Perazzi makes excellent quality guns which are fairly simple in design, strong and very well made. The company dates to the 1950s and is still run by the Perazzi…

The new Hatsan Escort XtremeMax is a real workhorse gun offering great value for money, reports Jason Harris