As a youngster I was fascinated by the lever-action rifle, John Wayne striding down Main Street in all his glory, picking off the bad guy on the roof of the livery store. So for this month’s cover story I was more than a bit eager to see what rifle aficionado Chris Redlich made of the latest Rossi Puma lever-action, this one with a 20^ barrel and chambered for the small .357 Magnum/.38 Special calibre. As it turns out he put it to very good use on some feral pigs and, so impressed was he, the review rifle now has pride of place in his own gun safe. And sticking with rifles for now, Daniel O’Dea has been busy with the Winchester SXR2 pump-action which, for general shooting, he found “came to point easy and was fast to operate” and should find favour with sambar hunters or those chasing pigs in the lignum. And if that’s your mission then a decent spotlight would probably come in handy so, to that end, Nick Rositano has put three from Pro-Tactical to the test, covering all options from beginners right through to professional shooters. And when the hunt’s over you may need to process that carcass, so Derek Nugent has assessed an impressive trio of cleavers from Aussie Outback Supplies which will cover every eventuality should the need arise. Add to that some handy hints to extend the life of your double shotgun along with our usual columns, Top Shots and letters and there’s plenty to be going on with in another feature-packed edition.