As we bid farewell to 2025, our final cover story of the year is a deep dive into the Solus Hunter Lightweight bolt-action rifle by US manufacturer Aero Precision. Our reviewer Paul Miller was the man tasked with putting the rifle through its paces and it turned out to be a mission he embraced with gusto. While the price may prove restrictive for many, Paul tells us “I’m not going to say it’s the finest hunting firearm I’ve ever reviewed, but it’s certainly up there as an example of a remarkably well-built and ridiculously accurate rifle”. Still on firearms and senior correspondent Rod Pascoe has run the numbers on a tempting package from Magnum Sports. This one features the versatility of Howa’s 1500 barrelled action which they’ve paired with an SCSA metal chassis and topped with a Nikko Stirling riflescope for a combo Rod says has been “well thought-out to provide an excellent, value-for-money way of breaking into some of the long-range precision shooting sports”. Also in review this time is some explosive hunting ammunition by Swedish player Norma and the nifty new Reloading Measure Tool kit for handloaders by Canberra-based Derraco Engineering. We also have a pleasing mix of hunting tales, book reviews and all our regular features to tide you over until our next edition in February. Merry Christmas one and all from everyone at Australian Shooter!