Honest and objective, never negative. One of my first full gun reviews on the Remington 1911 Model R1. Look at all that hair!
A few weeks back onthe Haus of Guns Facebook page of love I posted a question wanting to know what you guys claim a gun review is. Meaning, is just sitting at a table with your camera on a gun and talking through the features of that gun legitimately a gun review? Or doing a write up which basically consists of the same general specifications and adding a canned stock photograph without ever actually handling or shooting the gun they’re “reviewing.” What about a post that only really “reviews” the features by listing them just like the manufacturer does? Is that a gun review?
Then there’s the “Opinion Factor.” Sometimes it’s easy for an opinion to potentially cloud the legitimate findings of a gun review (See Ruger SR22 Review). On the flip side, the reviewer has the ability to sway the reader/watcher one way or the other based on their opinion of the handgun, rifle or shotgun under the microscope. But when the author develops a reputation for accuracy and gains the trust of his or her readers, there is the possibility that opinion could become an important part of the author’s gun review.
This is what I’m thinking a Haus of Guns gun review should be:
- An accurate portrayal of exactly what the gun is or claims to be including purpose of use.
- How it functions including reliability, accuracy, comfort, and safety, and even likability.
- Technical truths about the gun based on factual findings with photographs [and video] to support claims.
- Well written/spoken, entertaining and to the point without leaving out critical information. Details shouldn’t be sacrificed with brevity.
- AND opinion. YES opinion regarding value, likes and/or dislikes, and overall final thoughts on the product itself. No favoritism undisclosed or an axe to grind taking a fresh approach from the beginning with every review.
In the end I’ll say what I’ve felt from day one. I want the reader/viewer to feel like they’ve had the chance to personally fire the firearm or product being reviewed so they can make an informed decision about where to spend their hard earned cashola. Haus of Guns will seek to display all of the above points with relevance and willingly add humor with reference and emphasis to the nuances and often overlooked points about that often come up when a gun is being reviewed.
My gun reviews are written from the perspective of what I would want to know about the gun if reading the same review.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
7 Responses to What is a Gun Review?
Leave a Reply
FIND US HERE TOO!
Works for me. I read multiple “reviews” of the same gun, each restating the same specifications and using the same photos from the manufacturer’s website, each and every day. Yadda yadda yadda.
What I really want to know is some of that plus how the gun runs, its suitability to purpose, relative value and, at the very least, the author’s honest opinion of the gun. Theoretically, no two people should like the same gun or in the same way, but too many of the mainstream writers (and some of the e-writers) are too afraid of pissing off the manufacturers who provide the guns to ever give a bad review. Even those who swear up and down that they give totally honest reviews will word them such that the negative aspects are minimized or ignored altogether.
Give it to us with both barrels, Ebbs. We can appreciate a little honesty!
Ditto what PC said. I appreciate your objectivity. I’ll probably only ever own 2% or less of the guns I view on the Net, but I don’t want to get burned when I decide to spend my hard earned scratch for a firearm. I’d say don’t change a thing. Wishing you much success in the future.
Couldn’t agree more. And ultimately opinion matters most. I like hammers and safety catches that I can put on/off. I’m not saying Glocks and S&W M&Ps aren’t fine pistols. All those police and and military’s can’t all be wrong. But I have my preferances as we all do. Most reviewers make a living getting on the good side of the manufacturers. Many reviews have no relation to what I bought. And I’ve bought my share of turkeys. Also, most of us consumers are “amatures” The pro’s often look for diffrent things. I want reliability and fun. Fun for me means accurate. And I have no illusions I’m a competitive level shooter. So I’ve given you my two cents worth.
Cool topic Ebbs, it’s something I would like to flesh out a little more myself (so maybe we have a response post pending). Personally, in a nutshell, I’m totally with you. I like to provide the facts. I know facts are boring, and those who really care about the product will probably already know most of the specs, but I like providing some levels of relevant fact to base my reviews off, and then color in with some opinions. I try to provide a “balanced” opinion, but you know – everyone has their take on stuff and people are tuning in to get your thoughts, not what you think they want to hear.
Also, I like original photography and video – pretty much a must at this point. Finally (and in some ways this is the most important thing for me) – I gotta organize and articulate the review in a way which is easy to get from a glance, and also (hopefully) kind of fun / entertaining. Anyhow, my reviews are constantly evolving (and I’ve noticed yours are too), so at the end of the day it’s important just to have fun and keep improving.
Yessir, evolving every single day. Hard to even tell if my older reviews are even mine.
interesting. Have been out of hunting for 53YRS. have a 30/06 but with out a scope. Trying my best to pick a scope but with so many out there, it is hard to pick one. Going to hsve to do a lot looking. thank’s Lloyd B.
[...] Read more from EBBS here [...]