Gun Magazines

[tnek]

A few years ago I went to my local club and there was a guy testing a new US made Walther I think it was. Dude was some kind of gun rag writer and pretty sure he is the next thing to Jeff Cooper. Most people thought it was funny to watch and listen to himself strut like a peacock.
Anyway this guy is so full of himself its pathetic and recruited guys there to rapid fire this gun for an endurance test. I got sucked in to helping and long story short at a point the gun broke. He was ticked off cause now he could not write the article for one of the most popular gun rags cause in his words " I wont get paid for it now".
That reinforced what I thought already about gun rags.

I listen to what average shooters like members here and other forums have to say on a firearm much more than some pimp like rag.

 

[shooter521]

My comments from January of last year still hold.

What can I say? I'm nothing if not boringly consistent.

A few years ago I went to my local club and there was a guy testing a new US made Walther I think it was. Dude was some kind of gun rag writer and pretty sure he is the next thing to Jeff Cooper. Most people thought it was funny to watch and listen to himself strut like a peacock.

Was this @ Wildcat? I'm pretty sure I know who you're talking about.

 

[steve666]

And some of them are like Jerry Ahern who seemed to think he was his character - John Rourke, super mall-ninja incarnate!

 

[dhdoug]

INGO too is my gun mag rag jk...kinda. i await the finely tuned articles from the likes of shooter521, esrice etc....the big dogs. also enjoy the comic relief at times offered by printcraft, indymonkey and on. usually something for everyone. should be some purple in their but this much typing has already taken its toll.

 

[shooter521]

should be some purple in their

Like the "finely tuned articles" part?

On a related note, a prominent member of another forum who's done some articles in the past recently mentioned that an editor refused his latest work, with the comment that "telling people to NOT run out and buy something doesn't sell magazines." They encouraged him to rework the piece to be less "negative".

 

[esrice]

Like the "finely tuned articles" part?

I like to think of my additions as "Evan's opinions surrounded by lots of pictures to make him look cooler than he really is".

They encouraged him to rework the piece to be less "negative".

On a related note, have you seen SWAT's most recent article where they test a Taurus Judge? Holy cow they hated it! They had all kinds of problems with their sample.

I like when a magazine is honest enough to say "stay away".

 

[dhdoug]

i dont think i buy into that type of thinking. me thinks a safe bet that the "ingo type of person" would buy something as long as it was true and accurate. you know....fair and balanced... sorry shooter521.. i should have done the quote thing to be more clear.

 

[shooter521]

On a related note, have you seen SWAT's most recent article where they test a Taurus Judge? Holy cow they hated it!

Heard about it, but haven't read it. There is currently a thread on M4C with some scathing commentary regarding the Judge; I believe the SWAT review was the genesis of that.

SWAT has the occasional brutally honest review (esp. when Jeff Randall does survival gear), but OTOH, they also publish reviews of dubious objectivity that read like the same pap you get in all the other gun rags. I think it comes down to individual authors. Some on the SWAT staff are quite good about speaking their mind and not feeling beholden to advertisers; others, not so much.

surrounded by lots of pictures to make him look cooler than he really is".

LOL.

Say "thanks Mom".

sorry shooter521.. i should have done the quote thing to be more clear.

Self-deprecating humor. I haz it.

 

[Hawkeye]

I've gotten kind of tired over the years of gun magazines that seem to really be shills for the manufacturer's marketing departments. Whether its a new firearm or a new cartridge, I've yet to see someone say that its already pretty well covered by what's out there. I'd like to see more "how to" articles, but I guess those don;t really sell advertising pages.