“blind side”

On Friday, the stores will be jam-packed with folks looking for the best deals they can find on Christmas gifts, while Monday will see a similar flurry of activity from behind computer screens. We here at American Hunter figured we’d lend a helping hand, with the sportsman’s guide to Black Friday, and Cyber Monday gift-buying.

Hunters in this Golden Age of Waterfowling have the best guns and shotshells in history.

From trash the author gleans a treasure trove of information about waterfowlers’ preferences in shotshells.

Make your life easier by knowing the rules for traveling with a firearm.

In this, its 150th year in business, the history of Winchester firearms is well known. After all, “The gun that won the west” was a Winchester, the Model 1873. The Winchester Model 70 is known as the “Rifleman’s Rifle” and the Model 1894 is perhaps the most successful sporting rifle in history. The company also shook up the scattergun market with classic shotguns like the Model 1897, Model 21 and Model 12. The raw truth, however, is that none of these guns could have made their mark in history without ammo to shoot out of them. It’s kind of the red-headed stepchild in terms of glory and glamor, but Winchester has been in the ammo business as long as they have been in the gun business.

Here’s why lightweight, fast-moving steel waterfowl loads are preferable to heavier, slow-advancing ones.

A solid understanding of shotshells will make you a better hunter. Here’s a detailed look at each of the five primary components.