Author: Michael Crites

Michael Crites has served as executive editor of AmericanFirearms.org since 2016 and previously held positions as associate editor and range correspondent dating back to 2000. He discovered his passion for precision shooting at age 12 during his first visit to his grandfather's shooting range, eventually earning an Expert classification in three different shooting disciplines before age 18.

During his studies at University of Wyoming, he earned four varsity letters on the collegiate rifle and pistol teams, serving as team captain for three consecutive years. He became the first UW student to complete the NRA Range Safety Officer certification while maintaining full-time student status. He graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in Sports Communications.

His diverse career has included roles as Range Safety Coordinator for the National Rifle Championships in Camp Perry 2001; editor-in-chief, Precision Shooter Quarterly; series editor, Modern Firearms Handbook collection; managing editor, National Shooting Sports Foundation Newsletter; editor, Competitive Shooter Magazine; operations director for Western Arms & Ammunition Co.; senior editor for the Shooter's Reference Annual (Cheyenne); content director for The Firearms Report, published by the American Shooting Coalition in Billings, MT; firearms correspondent for Hunting & Shooting, produced by Outdoor Sports Media Group in Jackson, WY; and publisher for Wyoming Shooting Sports Journal in Casper. He has contributed as a regular columnist for American Rifleman (NRA Publications), technical editor for Precision, a publication of the National Bench Rest Shooters Association (Phoenix, AZ); and as firearms specialist for the Gun Owner's Annual.

As a digital content creator, he has written more than 400 articles on AmericanFirearms.org, developed shooting technique coverage for the Brownells Shooting Blog (Montezuma, IA) and Federal Premium "Range Notes" platform (Anoka, MN), and served as lead content strategist for International Defensive Pistol Association (Berryville, AR). Beyond Tactical Firearms, his current endeavors include content development for the Wyoming State Rifle Association (Cheyenne, WY) and technical manual production for High Plains Publishing of Laramie, WY.

He has contributed to the 12th, 13th, and 14th editions of Modern Sporting Rifles Guide and edited The Complete Guide to Tactical Shooting and Competitive Shooter's Reference Manual (Gun Digest Books).

Micro 9 Sales on the Rise in a Big Way

The National Association of Sporting Goods Wholesalers, kind of the smaller, quieter brother of the NSSF, has crunched the data and found that sales of “Micro 9” pistols– you know, the Taurus GX4, Springfield Armory Hellfire, Ruger MAX-1, and so forth– are steadily climbing the charts.

Team uses one-of-a-kind 416 Barrett rifle to reach 4.4 miles

From a hillside outside of Jackson, Wyoming, a team of extreme long-range shooters and spotters were able to (eventually) lob a round into the 8-inch bullseye of a target set up some 23,322 feet, or just over 4.4 miles, away. The shooters, Scott Austin and Shepard Humphries of Nomad Rifleman, used a custom long-range rifle… Continue reading Team uses one-of-a-kind 416 Barrett rifle to reach 4.4 miles

Beretta Goes Ultralight, or we should say, Ultraleggero

Those Italian shotgun experts in Gardone have flexed their way to another interesting modern design with classic styling: the Ultraleggero. A 12 gauge double-barreled over-and-under design whose selling point is that it uses a steel receiver and barrels but still hits the scales with a fighting weight in the 6-pound range, as you may have… Continue reading Beretta Goes Ultralight, or we should say, Ultraleggero

3 Things to Do Before You Take That Used AR Home

Guide to Everything AR Unless you assembled your upper and lower and plan to build your rifle from the ground up, chances are you purchased (or plan to purchase) a complete rifle, and with millions of used ARs on the market, it’s certainly reasonable to pick up a used rifle to save a few bucks. … Continue reading 3 Things to Do Before You Take That Used AR Home

AR Barrels Explained: From Basics to Bores to Ballistics

Guide to Everything AR While most, the business end of their AR-15 just involves “the barrel” — but that hollow steel tube is a pretty astonishing product of manufacturing prowess, both straightforward and decidedly nuanced. If you’re serious about your AR’s accuracy and performance (or want to be) you could do worse than studying the… Continue reading AR Barrels Explained: From Basics to Bores to Ballistics

Foundation: Shadow Systems Makes a More Affordable Elite Series

Shadow Systems of Plano, Texas has been beating the drum of better Glock clones since 2016 with their (now discontinued) MR918 series and its follow-on DR/MR920s in Combat and Elite formats, the latter of which had all the Gucci high-speed features like compensators, gold barrels, and window-cut slides. The thing is that their Elite series… Continue reading Foundation: Shadow Systems Makes a More Affordable Elite Series

Sig Sauer Debuts the MCX Spear LT series, now in 7.62×39

Launched almost a decade ago, the MCX series from Sig Sauer was originally developed for Special Operations use. Since then, it evolved into two different paths, one military, which saw adoption this year by the Army and SOCOM as the XM5 and Rattler, and the other a consumer avenue exemplified by the MCX Virtus and… Continue reading Sig Sauer Debuts the MCX Spear LT series, now in 7.62×39

GForce GF2P Shotgun Review: A Budget-Friendly Home Defense Option

While it’s hyperbolic to say budget shotguns are a dime a dozen, there are a LOT of shotguns targeting the sub-$500 market, with GForce among their legions. These spartan scatterguns won’t set you back much money, they can fail to impress when push comes to shove. I love shotguns of all stripes but haven’t spent… Continue reading GForce GF2P Shotgun Review: A Budget-Friendly Home Defense Option