When you spend a lot of time at the range firing off loads of rounds in a sitting, it doesn’t matter to you or your equipment whether your purpose is competition, training, or preparing for self-defense. The point is, being proficient with your weapon requires hard, constant, and consistent use, and that means firing lots of rounds. If this is the case for you, you know that even in the best of conditions constantly loading rounds into your magazines by hand will wear out your fingers and your magazine feeds long before you have finished shooting.

The popularity of SKS rifles is not a surprising fact, considering the efficiency of the semi-automatic platform and its pairing with the immensely capable 7.62 x 39 cartridge. Effective for military applications, target and competition shooting, even hunting. The SKS carbine has a loyal following and for good reason. However, the fixed wood stock that it is frequently built around has its drawbacks.

Doing a lot of shooting means porting your guns around, sometimes several of them at a time, on long trips to and from the woods and clubhouses, and also to and from ranges for practice and competition. Naturally, you’re going to want a decent case to keep your firearms protected, especially your more fragile guns with mounts and accessories. Sometimes you need the protection of a padded hard case to keep the very fine-tuning of a scoped long-range rifle or a tactical outfit protected. Then, however, there are those days heading to or from the deer woods for a few hours in a stand when you only need a soft rifle case to get the job done.

The Smith & Wesson M&P 2.0 is a serious workhorse with some elements built into the design to make it rise above the competition of other handguns and even above its predecessors at Smith & Wesson. Features incorporated into its design include a stronger steel frame and altered grips to enhance tracking of the pistol and control of the muzzle during firing. Available in 9mm and 40 S&W and able to accept a number of accessories, it is an extraordinarily adaptable and serviceable platform that you can expect to serve you through a lifetime of target shooting or self-defense. All in all, it’s a great platform with a number of improvements over the original M&P.