[jyl]

I was browsing magazines at the grocery store. Hmm, maybe I'll see what's up with guns. It feels like time to buy a new gun.

There are eight gun titles. They all have some combination of one or more of these objects on the cover: a black AR, a black 1911, a black machine pistol.

Similarly, the titles are all permutations of the Five Holy Words. "Concealed. Combat. Handgun. Special. 1911."

Leafing through these magazines, I quickly got bored with the endless variations on the "custom combat 1911" and "pocket carry BUG", and started looking for something actually new and different.

That was thin pickings. There was a polymer framed 1911 from RRA. Barely lighter than a standard steel-framed single stack, fatter grip, and indistinguishable to look or touch. Must have been a point to this, but I missed it. There was a S&W revolver with a Weight Under The Barrel ! ! ! That seemed radical, yup.

Then I came across a brand new gun make. The "Caracal", made in the UAE. The basic gun looks like any other striker fired polymer framed Glock/SR9/M&P clone. But the sights are really different, front and rear sight both up at the barrel end of the slide. They are not adjustable - note that point.

Read the test. Seems okay. Then I come across this.

"During my accuracy testing, I observed that the point of impact varied widely (from 3 inches low to 5 inches high) depending on the ammo used. Much of this dispersion was vertical, so I believe it was primarily due to the varying velocities of the projectiles."

The rest of the review showed that the accuracy testing was 25 yards benchrested, that the mean velocity of the different ammunition ranged from 984 to 1213 fps, and that the typical group measured 4 inches in diameter. And, again, the different groups were strung out vertically over an 8 inch range.

The analysis is left up to the reader. (Hint: calculate the bullet drop over 25 yd due to a 229 fps difference in muzzle velocity and assess the validity of the reviewer's excuse.)


The review concludes: "Is the Caracal shootable? Yes. Would I carry one? Yes."

And I concluded:
1. There is something quite wrong with this gun.
2. The writer is a gun-whore who will carry anything.
3. It is not possible to make a gun bad enough to get a negative review in the mainstream gun press.

Oh well, my search for My Next Gun continues.