Burris Optics' Fullfield riflescope earned Outdoor Life's "Great Buy" award in their 2026 Best Rifle Scopes for Hunting test. The scope impressed testers with its straightforward design, simple operation, durable construction, and passed the publication's drop test, earning recognition for its trusted heritage among American hunters.

SIGHTRON Ambassador Jayson Barnes won first place in the Pellet class and second place overall at the N50 National Championship held August 21-23, 2026 at the NRA Whittington Center's Coors Range in Raton, New Mexico, using SIGHTRON's S6 10-60X56 ED FT Snap Focus Riflescope and setting a new record of 749 out of 750.

The National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief with the American Suppressor Association and Independence Institute in the U.S. Supreme Court urging justices to strike down bans on semiautomatic rifles, including AR-15s, in Viramontes v. Cook County and Grant v. Higgins, challenging restrictions in Illinois and Connecticut.

The 41st annual Gun Rights Policy Conference, co-hosted by the Second Amendment Foundation and Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, is scheduled for September 25-27 in Dallas. The event features keynote speaker Honorable Roger T. Benitez and presentations from prominent Second Amendment advocates including Dana Loesch, Brandon Herrera, and Joseph Greenlee of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action.

Safe LivinG, in collaboration with the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES), will bring its free firearms safety and suicide prevention experience to Fort Stewart, Georgia on September 11-12. The event features a mobile range with FATS by Inveris simulators, demonstrations from SABRE® and Streamlight®, and family-friendly firearm safety education.

Conservation partners including NorthWestern Energy, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the Madison River Foundation, and the Bureau of Land Management are launching two side channel restoration projects on the upper Madison River from September through November to improve trout habitat and spawning conditions.

Bleecker Street Publications is giving readers the chance to win a Mossberg 990 AfterShock SPX, a compact 12-gauge semi-auto firearm valued at $1,204. The shotgun features an optic-ready receiver, AfterShock grip for recoil management, and modern tactical capabilities. Free Gun Friday is a signature promotion featuring firearms from major manufacturers like Mossberg, Sig Sauer, and Smith & Wesson.

NSSF, the ATF, and DOJ launched the 26th year of the "Don't Lie for the Other Guy" campaign in Palm Beach County to educate the public about federal penalties for illegal firearm purchases, including up to 15 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.

NSSF celebrated the 10th annual National Shooting Sports Month in August with the theme "Let Freedom Plink." Over 519 ranges, retailers, and shooting clubs participated, with 190 ranges hosting #RangeChallenge events that distributed 19,000 targets. President Donald Trump issued a Presidential Message, and 19 state governors issued proclamations recognizing the shooting sports' importance.

Aero Precision, Ballistic Advantage, Stag Arms, and VG6 have been acquired by a family investment group committed to restoring these firearms brands. Under new ownership advised by W.G. Nielsen & Co., the companies plan to ramp up manufacturing, restore supply chains, and rebuild customer trust through quality products and service.

The NSSF-adjusted NICS figure for August 2026 reached 1,115,410, a 2.2 percent increase from August 2025. NFA checks totaled 185,744, up 201.6 percent year-over-year, with Texas leading at 28,030 checks. Texas, Colorado, and Florida topped adjusted NICS rankings.

Burris Company, Inc. is hiring an Account Manager for Commercial Accounts in Greeley, CO to drive sales growth and brand development across regional accounts. The role requires five years of sales management experience, a bachelor's degree, and 80% or more travel.

Firefield released the Verge binocular lineup in 8x42 and 10x42 configurations, featuring fully multicoated optics, BK7 roof prisms, and IPX4 water resistance. Designed for hunters and outdoor users seeking reliable performance without premium pricing, both models offer durable polycarbonate housing and internal focusing systems for field use.

Trijicon Inc. announced new enhanced RTR reticles for select ACOG Compact models, featuring .223 and 9mm PCC options with battery-free tritium and fiber-optic illumination. The reticles offer increased center-dot size for faster target acquisition and include caliber-specific ballistic holds and ranging capabilities.

President Donald Trump issued a pardon for Patrick "Tate" Adamiak, who was wrongfully convicted of illegally possessing inert RPGs by Biden-era ATF agents. The Second Amendment Foundation's Lee Williams extensively covered the case, writing over 60 articles documenting the lack of evidence and flawed expert testimony that led to Adamiak's conviction.

HeadHunters NW released a podcast episode featuring Ibrahim Pataudi, co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Armanet, discussing how the advertising platform helps firearms and outdoor brands overcome restrictions from Google and Meta. Armanet offers programmatic advertising across 100+ firearms and outdoor websites with measurement and attribution tools designed specifically for the industry.

Magpul announced the availability of DAKA Range Bags in Flat Dark Earth (FDE) color, offered in Small (20-liter) and Large (40-liter) sizes. The bags feature durable DAKA materials, YKK Aquaguard zippers, multiple storage compartments for magazines including AR-10 and GLOCK PMAG compatibility, and a foldable work mat.

Hornady announced expanded access to its 4DOF Ballistic Solver through Leupold's rangefinding products. The technology is now compatible with the Leupold RX-5000 TBR/W rangefinder via free firmware update, bringing advanced ballistic solutions to more hunters and shooters.

MDT released the CKYE-POD GEN3 Compact bipod for low-position shooters, adjusting from 4.6 to 11.9 inches and weighing 20 ounces. The company also added a 1/2-28 thread pitch to the Hunt Brake for ultralight hunting rifles and NRL Hunter competitors. Both products are available September 4th through MDT dealers and mdttac.com.

WOOX, an Italian-American gunstock manufacturer, announces the continued success of its Elegante line of bolt-action rifle stocks introduced in June. The premium Claro American Walnut stocks with aerospace-grade aluminum mini-chassis have exceeded demand expectations, with CEO Ben Fleming noting shooters seek functional stocks with lasting beauty and heritage.

BLACKHAWK introduces the Garra Fixed Karambit, a precision-crafted fixed-blade knife featuring a 3.25-inch D2 tool steel blade and Zytel handle. The knife offers exceptional edge retention, ergonomic design with integrated finger ring, and comes with a conceal carry holster and Kydex sheath at an MSRP of $159.99.

Paul G. Markel releases a new book examining the brain's role in gunfighting, exploring how the prefrontal cortex, basal ganglia, and philosophical principles like Occam's Razor and Hick's Law apply to firearms training and lethal force encounters. The book is available as a paperback, Kindle, and audiobook on Amazon.

Range USA, the nation's premier indoor gun range and firearm retailer, celebrated the grand opening of its 51st location in Monroeville, Pa. on August 28-30, 2026, featuring special promotions, giveaways from USCCA and Q, LLC, and a 12,000-square-foot facility with 14 shooting lanes and certified firearms instruction.

Killough Shooting Sports has launched a new online store at killoughshootingsports.com featuring same-day dispatch from its Brownsville, Texas warehouse and free shipping directly to competitions. The site offers the complete ELEY .22LR range in the United States, from recreational and training grades through to Match and Tenex.

Recently, another internet kerfuffle over – nothing, really.

The premise is that someone, somewhere carries a semiauto pistol for self-protection and carries it half-loaded. 

Bless his heart. 

The arguments were long and loud, in the style of the information two-track (through a farm field), and, in the end, no resolution was found. 

While going over the various (emotional, non-reasoned) arguments, I found some gems, paraphrased here as I don’t have permission to hold denizens of the digital world up to scorn and ridicule. 

The original poster noted that one side of the issue are, functionally, NDPs. Kind of like “non-player characters,” NDP is a Chuck Taylor term for “non-dedicated personnel.” Those are the kind with only the least passing familiarity/skills in the carry of firearms. A “Master-“ class shooter, according to his response, noted that he carries in Condition Three (“chamber empty, full magazine, hammer (if so equipped) down”) for personal protection, not on the range. 

Because you’re an expert in competing in certain range games makes you as proficient in personal security as the typical gun writer is knowledgeable about brain surgery. 

The individual starting the argument noted that the Condition Three crowd never seem to make it into a force-on-force exercise. If they do, in the midst of a pitched, entangled battle, they never seem to get the gun loaded – nor use the hands-on skills to counter the assault, gain distance and sort it out.

Strangely, those who carry “half-loaded” never seem to ask about availability of interactive roleplay training. He notes that those who say “you won’t have time to aim” in an assault figure they’ll have time to load the gun “when the flag flies.”

Or to get back to their vehicle for their “truck gun,” another innovation of insignificant utility.

Some say it’s personal preference and, forgive me for being conciliatory, but that is correct. You ride, you decide. I’m not for a law telling you how to carry that piece. If you want to be like the heroic but unprepared individual in Twin Falls who ran into a gunfight with a holstered, half-empty pistol, that’s your business. 

Congratulations. You gave us another casualty to deal with at a potential mass casualty event. And allowed the offender to continue his homicidal stupidity. 

Don’t want to carry “appendix” (sic) with your striker fired gun? Get a hammer-fired gun, perhaps a revolver. 

Or change your carry location. Or, if you prefer – and I do not recommend it – carry it half-loaded. 

Years ago, I had a trainer of firearms self-protection (using a foreign inspired training program and doctrine) chastise me online for carrying a gun in Condition One (actually loaded). I responded to him that carrying it in that fashion was obligatory by agency regulations (and common sense). 

Actually, I don’t approach the issue from the “speed to the first good hit” direction. I do insist on rational discourse, something that flees from the “outrage-addicted” crowd who concentrates on the emotional aspects. 

First is safety. Condition Three carry promotes violations of Rule 1, also a Cooper-inspired bit of doctrine: All guns are always loaded. 

Examine that for a bit: always. The approach to a gun that is – or may be – loaded is caution. Because Rule 1 is true, we never allow to muzzle to cover anything that we want to avoid destroying. That’s Rule 2. 

The problem with half-loaded/Condition Three/chamber-empty carry is that it allows you to handle the gun as if it’s not loaded. But without X-Ray vision, how can you know?

Rule 1. And if it’s Rule 1, it’s loaded. All the time, everywhere.

I know of around a dozen gun accidents directly attributed to Condition Three carry. In each case, the reflexive response was “it wasn’t loaded.”

Hence the ringing in your ears, the accelerated pulse with corresponding blood pressure, the appearance of a new hole in something (please, not “someone”) …

So Condition Three of a defense handgun is, demonstrably, unsafe.

Consider also the aftermath of a shooting engagement. Let’s say that you, the lover of the empty chamber, get involved in a shooting. Perhaps it loaded when you fumbled about with fingers that felt like bananas trying to rack the slide. Maybe you made the hit (please, no YouTube mag dumps) and he went down. Or ran off. 

Now what do you do?

There are likely other armed citizens about, some members of the constabulary, and you’re standing there with a smoking gun. 

Reholster it? No – that would be “unsafe,” in the Condition Three world. Unless you induced a stoppage (more likely in real life engagements than in range world), there’s another round in there and you can’t holster it like that. It “wouldn’t be safe.”

But now, post-engagement, and having faced a near-death experience (it was justified, right?), now you have to fumble around trying to unload the very implement that saved your life. Fingers cold and trembling from vasoconstriction, shallow and rapid breathing, pupils blown, you try to download the gun by one round. 

You did remember to pull the mag first, before trying to rack the slide with shaking hands, right?

Perhaps the downed offender reanimates (something that’s not rare in the world of the pistol fight). Or his pals show up. 

Or the sudden shout, POLICE! DON’T MOVE!

Yeah. Condition Three ain’t for me. You do what you want, but try to have your eyes open, examine the facts. 

Lose the fears and emotions, make your decision. I know what mine is. 

– Rich Grassi