12 Guns of Christmas: Best Guns for Gifting this Holiday Season

Oh boy, it’s getting chilly, lights are going up, and some of you are seeing snowfall, so what holiday are we looking forward to?

Christmas, of course! With that in mind, today, we are looking at the 12 Guns of Christmas.

There are tons of great guns out there, and a lot of people already have defensive weapons, hunting rifles, and trap shotguns in their possession. But what about fun guns – guns that are a blast to take to the range?

With that in mind, I put together this list to help you and your loved ones have the most fun at the range this holiday season.

THE QUICK LIST

1. Best .22 LR Rifle

   Ruger 10/22

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2. Best Defensive Shotgun

   Mossberg 940 Pro Tactical

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3. Best .22 LR Pistol

   Sig Sauer P322

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4. Best PCC

   CMMG Resolute MkGs

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5. Best Bolt-Action

   CZ 600 Lux

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6. Best Gallery Gun

   Rossi Gallery Gun

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7. Best Modern Rifle

   Ruger LC Carbine

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8. Arex Delta Gen 2 M

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9. Best Budget Shotgun

   Rock Island Armory TPAS

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10. Best Lever-Action

    Henry .410 Axe

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11. Best Revolver

    Taylor’s & Company TC9 1873 Revolver

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12. Best AK

    PSAK-47 GF3

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Show more (5 items)

Guns of Christmas Comparison Chart

	Type	Caliber	Barrel Length	Capacity	Price
Ruger 10/22	Bolt-Action Rifle	.22 LR	8″ – 18.5″	10	$199
Mossberg 940 Tactical	Semi-Auto Shotgun	12 GA	18.5″	7+1	$789
Sig Sauer P322	Handgun	.22 LR	4″	20+1	$399
CMMG Resolute MkGs	Semi-Auto Rifle	9mm, .40 S&W	16.1″	22 (.40 S&W), 33 (9mm)	$1,532
CZ 600 Lux	Bolt-Action Rifle	.223, .308. .30-06, .300 WM	20″ (standard), 24″ (magnum)	5 (standard), 3 (magnum)	$733
Rossi Gallery Gun	Pump-Action Gallery Gun	.22 LR	18″	15	$278
Ruger LC Carbine	Semi-Auto Rifle	5.7x28mm	16.25″	20	$749
Arex Delta Gen 2 M	Handgun	9mm	4.7″	17+1	$445
Rock Island Armory TPAS	Pump-Action Shotgun	12 GA	18.5″	5+1	$465
Henry Axe .410	Lever-Action Rifle	.410 Bore	15.14″	5+1	$769
Taylor Firearms TC9 1873 SA	Revolver	9mm	4.75″ – 5.5″	6	$535
PSA AK-47 GF3	AK-47	7.62x39mm	12.7″ – 16″	30	$649

How We Chose the Best Guns of Christmas

For this article, we gathered a bunch of guns we felt would be ideal Christmas gifts or just fun plinkers. We’ve personally shot, reviewed, and owned a lot of the guns you’ll see listed. The entire Pew Pew Tactical team, as well as freelance writers, contributed to this to offer different opinions based on ergonomics, size, and experience.

For guns we have reviews on, we’ve linked those so you can read more. Every review handgun undergoes a strict testing protocol that requires a minimum of 500 rounds of both FMJ and JHP ammo through it at 5 and 7 yards.

Meanwhile, every review rifle undergoes 500 rounds of practice ammo and heavier match-grade ammo at 50 and 100 yards with a 5-25x scope (unless otherwise noted). We require all AR-15s to be tested with at least 3 magazines to assess compatibility, and we use a Lyman Digital Trigger Gauge to measure the average trigger pull for all guns.

12 Guns of Christmas: Best Guns for the Holiday Season

1. Ruger 10/22 – Best .22 LR Rifle

Specs

• Caliber: .22LR
• Action: Semi-auto, direct-blowback
• Capacity: 10
• Barrel length: 8″ – 18.5″
• Weight: 3.25 lbs – 6 lbs

The Ruger 10/22 tops the list because it’s the premier plinker. With millions produced, sold, and fielded by generations of shooters, it’s earned that title.

It’s the AR-15 of .22LR rimfire guns in terms of customization and models produced too.

You get a rifle, a carbine, or heck, the Charger variant as a pistol. You can get classic variants with wood stocks and iron sights, competition models with bull barrels meant for optics, and tactical models with fancy black stocks and M-LOK. Not to mention the take-down models that allow you to break the gun down.

Then we dive into the aftermarket that lets you make it a bullpup or fit with an M4 style stock and so much more.

Ruger’s 10/22 series of rifles dominate because they are reliable, easy to shoot, and accurate. Oh yeah, and they happen to be affordable.

I learned to shoot on a Ruger 10/22, and that same Ruger has been around long enough to teach my son how to shoot.

If you are looking for a great firearm to pass down the tradition of gun ownership to your kids, then the Ruger 10/22 is the way to go.

Kids get a fun and frustration-free experience with an easy shooting platform. Plus, over time, they can apply upgrades and alter the gun as they see fit.

2. Mossberg 940 Tactical – Best Defensive Shotgun

Specs

• Caliber: 12 GA
• Action: Semi-auto, gas-operated
• Capacity: 7+1
• Barrel length: 18.5″
• Weight: 7.5 lbs

The Mossberg 940 series builds on the 930 series of shotguns and embraces what worked while eliminating what didn’t. This means the gun runs better, cleaner, and is lower maintenance than the older 930 series.

But why does the tactical model make the list?

Well, I recently received one, and while I’m still in the early parts of testing the gun, I see an opportunity for America to catch up with Italy on the shotgun front finally.

Mossberg’s 940 Tactical comes with tons of features you’d often have to buy separately. This includes massive controls and the best bolt release I’ve ever used on a stock shotgun.

On top of that, it comes red dot ready with a direct mounting option for Shield RMSc pattern optics. Of course, you can always add an optics rail and more optics.

Shooters get a smooth gun with a good bit of the recoil cut out from the design to form a nice, easy shotgun.

If you need a good scattergun this Christmas, you now have a quality American option with more features than I could ever list here.

We had the chance to review the Mossberg 940 Tactical Pro, so head to the written review or peep the video below for our experience.

3. Sig Sauer P322 – Best .22 LR Pistol

Specs

• Caliber: .22LR
• Action: Semi-auto, direct blowback
• Capacity: 20+1
• Barrel length: 4″
• Weight: 17.1 oz

Who doesn’t love a good plinking pistol? The market already has guns like the Ruger Mark series, Browning Buckmark, and Smith & Wesson Victory.

What about a gun that looks and feels like a modern tactical pistol?

Welcome to the Sig Sauer P322. Sig used a familiar direct blowback design with a single-action hammer concealed within the weapon.

Outside of that, it’s a good deal different from the standard .22 LR handgun flair.

It offers a polymer frame outfitted with a Picatinny rail for all your needs. It’s cut at the rear for an optic and has adjustable high-visibility sights. The magazine packs 20 rounds of .22 LR in a flush-fitting magazine design, and they work!

In fact, the gun works exceptionally well. It’s accurate, reliable, and easy to shoot.

My son passed the NRA Pistol Qualification with a P322, and it’s slowly becoming more his gun than mine.

It’s the right size to fit a majority of shooters, and it’s also a suppressor ready to take some sting out of the bang for new shooters.

We took this one out to the range, so be sure to watch the video below or read the article for all the deets.

What do you think of the Sig P322? Rate it below!

4. CMMG Resolute MkGs – Best PCC

Specs

• Caliber: 9mm, .40 S&W
• Action: Semi-auto, radial delayed blowback
• Capacity: 22 (.40 S&W), 33 (9mm)
• Barrel length: 16.1″
• Weight: 6.2 lbs – 6.4 lbs

When it comes to PCCs, the CMMG brand of Banshee and now the Resolute series has gripped me.

I love the rotary delayed blowback design, and it absolutely takes the recoil out of a standard direct blowback gun.

I’m really trying to break into competition shooting, specifically, the PCC division, and I recently got a Resolute MkGs to do so. I have fallen in love with this gun.

The Resolute series are full-sized rifles with 16.1-inch barrels. The MkGs means the gun uses Glock mags, and as you and I know, Glock mags are available in abundance.

From an accuracy standpoint, the gun is ridiculous. It drops 9mm pills right where I want them to be, and I can stack rounds into one hole at 25 yards with the cheapest 9mm I have on hand.

Outside of being accurate and easily handled, it’s decked out with tons of features. It’s crazy ergonomic and provides lightweight, easy-handling rifles with lots of bells and maybe even more whistles.

When it comes time to open that big box under the tree, the MkGs is a great option for both experienced and newer shooters.

5. CZ 600 Lux – Best Bolt-Action

Specs

• Caliber: .223, .308. .30-06, .300 WM
• Action: Bolt-action
• Capacity: 5 (standard), 3 (magnum)
• Barrel length: 20″ (standard), 24″ (magnum)
• Weight: 6.8 lbs – 8.6 lbs

Alex C. at TFB once said, “CZ, come for the pistols. Stay for the rifles.” That’s the truest statement I’ve ever heard. CZ rifles are very underappreciated and underrated.

The CZ 600 series delivers shooters with a wide variety of great rifles, but the Lux stands out.

It’s a wood stock, bolt-action rifle that is to die for. They come in various calibers, from the little .223 Remington to the big and mean .300 Winchester Magnum.

These rifles offer you a sub-MOA guarantee. With their cold hammer-forged barrels and adjustable triggers, it’s easy to see why they make that claim.

On the outside, it’s a beautiful gun, but the inside matches it in terms of function. It brings a tang-style safety, a controlled feed design, and a removable or lockable magazine.

The Lux models feature a set of iron sights but can use Remington 700 series scope mounts.

It’s a wonderful series of rifles, and I might have asked Santa for one in .30-06.

6. Rossi Gallery Gun – Best Gallery Gun

Specs

• Caliber: .22LR
• Action: Pump-action
• Capacity: 15
• Barrel length: 18″
• Weight: 5.2 lbs

The term “Gallery Gun” used to be applied to rimfire rifles, commonly pump actions, that were used in shooting galleries that became popular in post-World War I America.

These guns were always built for fun, and Rossi has brought them back.

The Rossi Gallery Gun gives you a pump action .22 LR rifle with a tube magazine that holds 15 rounds of America’s favorite rimfire cartridge. Rossi’s throwback Gallery Gun includes the exposed hammer and iron sights.

They make a standard model with classic wood furniture, as well as an oddly tactical model with an M-LOK pump and polymer furniture.

Either way, it’s a lightweight little gun that is fun and fast to shoot with the pump action. At the same time, the single-shot, manual action design makes it safe for new shooters who might need trigger discipline lessons.

The Rossi Gallery Gun is a great Christmas present for when it’s time to upgrade from the Red Ryder.

7. Ruger LC Carbine – Best Modern Rifle

Specs

• Caliber: 5.7x28mm
• Action: Semi-auto, direct blowback
• Capacity: 20
• Barrel length: 16.25″
• Weight: 5.9 lbs

Ruger has been knocking it out of the park lately. The PC Carbine series delivered an awesome rifle, and the LC Carbine is building on that success but taking it in a different direction.

With the LC Carbine, we change things up a bit.

This gun fires the 5.7x28mm round and uses the Ruger 57 magazines as its base. The magazines sit in the pistol grip, which creates a small overall platform.

Using the 5.7x28mm round creates a very light recoiling design that’s flat, shooting well beyond your average pistol caliber.

Ruger’s LC Carbine comes with a modern M-LOK handguard, a folding stock that also collapses, and a massive 1911-like safety.

It’s very modern with a unique take on the rifle. It’s not normal, and that’s perfectly fine with me.

Sometimes the AR and AK platforms just get boring, and if you feel that sense of listlessness this Christmas, the LC Carbine delivers something different.

The Ruger LC is light, compact, easy to shoot, and crazy accurate. What’s not to love?

We reviewed the Ruger LC Carbine, so be sure to read the article or check out the video review below.

8. Arex Delta Gen 2M – Best 9mm Pistol

Specs

• Caliber: 9mm
• Action: Semi-auto
• Capacity: 15, 17
• Barrel length: 4.7″
• Weight: 21.6 oz

The Arex Delta Tactical comes in hot out of Slovenia for this holiday season to give you a pistol so tactical it hurts.

It’s optics-ready, and comes with ambidextrous controls. Shooters get a 17-round magazine with a baseplate…all for a price under $500.

It’s not just a cheap gun with basic features. It’s a very nice and well-made gun with an excellent trigger, a surprisingly thin grip module, and excellent ergonomics.

With Christmas around the corner, the Arex Delta is the perfect time to jump on them before the world figures out how great they are and eats them up.

Read up on the Arex Delta in our full review or watch the full review video below.

9. Rock Island Armory TPAS – Best Budget Shotgun

Specs

• Caliber: 12 GA
• Action: Pump-action
• Capacity: 5+1
• Barrel length: 18.5″
• Weight: 8.1 lbs

If you need a budget-friendly but fun-oriented firearm this Christmas, then the Rock Island Armory TPAS shotguns are for you.

These budget-friendly guns take a trench gun-like approach to their shotgun, specifically an Ithaca 37 series gun.

Getting an affordable Ithaca 37 these days isn’t easy, and getting one in a trench-style configuration isn’t going to happen affordably, either. The TPAS offers you a budget-friendly trench-gun-style Ithaca 37 clone that is a ton of fun to shoot.

Don’t let the budget fool you. It’s affordable, but it doesn’t suck. The action is crazy smooth, reliable, and outfitted with good-looking wood furniture. It’s deceptively nice for its low price point.

It’s a pure range toy, and range toys aren’t bad. In fact, my favorite guns are range toys. The only downside the gun has is that it doesn’t have a bayonet lug.

10. Henry Axe .410 – Best Lever-Action

Specs

• Caliber: .410 Bore
• Action: Lever-action
• Capacity: 5+1
• Barrel length: 15.14″
• Weight: 5.75 lbs

Oh boy, when it comes to having fun, it’s tough to beat a lever gun, especially when that lever gun is a “firearm.”

By firearm, I mean a pistol grip-only weapon with a smooth bore that fires shotshells. Lever actions and these PGO firearms top the list of fun guns to me, so combining the two only makes sense.

The Henry Axe .410 offers very little recoil, a rare feature of shotshell firing PGO weapons. It’s a total blast to blaze through half a dozen .410 shells as fast as you can work that lever.

You get something truly magical when you combine light recoil and shotgun shells.

Making a Caldwell Duramax ball jump and jive or crushing clay pigeons deliver a snicker-inducing experience. It’s mostly designed to be silly but a fun gun.

It can be a fairly formidable weapon loaded with buckshot, although not optimum compared to other shotgun options.

I enjoy hunting small game, and I enjoy a challenge. The Axe allows me to do both at the same time.

Christmas is a time for family, and the Axe provides an option for shooters, both big and small. My 11-year-old son can handle it just fine, and has cost me a lot in .410 shells.

It’s unconventional but has that Henry quality you can’t help but love and adore.

We have a full rundown of the Henry Axe here!

11. Taylor Firearms TC9 1873 SA – Best Revolver

Specs

• Caliber: 9mm
• Action: Single-action only
• Capacity: 6
• Barrel length: 4.75″ – 5.5″
• Weight: 2.45 lbs – 2.5 lbs

Taylor Firearms makes Old West guns, and Old West guns are always cool. Who doesn’t love a lever gun, a six-shooter, or a coach gun?

The real downside to most cowboy guns is that they chamber calibers like .45 Colt, which while great, tends to be fairly pricey.

That is until Taylor Firearms seemingly recognized the problem and brought forth the TC9 1873 SA. This gun gives you that single-action army feeling without the attached expensive ammunition.

It fires the 9mm round, and 9mm is super cheap…and cheap ammo means more shooting. It’s not accurate to the era, and some would say that it’s cheesing the cowboy experience.

To them, I say nothing because I can’t hear them over all the 9mm I’m shooting through a single-action cowboy gun.

To go along with the affordable ammo, you have an affordable revolver that starts at a little more than $600.

SASS might frown on them, but they are a great way to get the cowboy experience without the cowboy price tag.

12. PSA AK-47 GF3 – Best AK

Specs

• Caliber: 7.62x39mm
• Action: Semi-auto, piston operated
• Capacity: 30
• Barrel length: 12.7″ – 16″

I wish Palmetto State Armory would be a little more specific with their weapons’ names. The AK series, for example, has dozens of different entries with just AK-47 GF3 and then a list of features.

My pick is specifically the PSA AK-47 GF3 with a 14.7-inch barrel pin and well, ALG Trigger, and JMAC Keymount Brake.

Yep, it’s a long name, but it’s one of the cooler AKs on the market and my personal favorite from PSA.

It’s fancy from the ground up. As the name implies, it’s also nice and short with a pinned and welded muzzle device. This means you can’t swap the device, but you won’t need to.

It’s a muzzle brake designed to help cut recoil through four large ports. The device eats up recoil, although if you thought a Krink was loud, you ain’t seen anything yet. If you ever want to attach a can, then have no fear. You can.

This muzzle device is designed to work with the Sandman series of suppressors from Dead Air.

On top of that, we get a wonderful ALG trigger that cleans the Commie right out of the gun. For accessory attachment, we have a JL Billet extended M-LOK handguard that’s metal and is mounted to be rock solid.

The Magpul stock and pistol grip set it all off. You get a factory-ready modern AK platform designed to perform and melt a little snow this Christmas.

You guessed it; we have a review of the PSA AK-47 GF3 right here!

Why Trust Pew Pew Tactical

Pew Pew Tactical author Travis Pike led the research and testing for this article. Travis has spent a lifetime shooting as a kid and later joined the United States Marine Corps where he spent five years as an infantryman. In the middle of his Marine Corps career, he began writing and never stopped. He has thousands of articles to his name with a variety of publications, including Pew Pew Tactical.

Editing and adding to this article is Wyatt Sloan, Jr. Editor. Wyatt is an NRA-certified instructor with previous experience as a USPSA competitor. Wyatt personally owns over 200 firearms and has 10 years of home-based FFL firearm sales. He has used his extensive experience with firearms at large to test guns for Pew Pew Tactical — evaluating them based on our standards and metrics.

Editor-in-Chief Jacki Billings runs our experienced team of reviewers. She is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists, ACES: Society for Editing, and the Professional Outdoor Media Association. Jacki has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and has worked as a media professional for close to 20 years, specializing in gun media for almost 10 years. With 2,000+ articles to her name, she uses her professional journalism and editing experience to set testing protocols and editorial standards for Pew Pew Tactical.

Final Thoughts

Maybe you’re hoping for a white Christmas, but I’m hoping for a brass-colored Christmas. If you are a regular reader of Pew Pew Tactical, I’m betting you want the same.

And you’re bound to have a happy holiday season with any of the guns listed!

These are my 12 guns of Christmas. What are yours? Share your favorites in the comments below. For more gift guides, check out our picks for the Best Gifts for Gun Lovers [$25, $50, $100+], or if you have a survivalist in your life, check out the Best Gifts for Preppers.

Latest Updates

December 2024: Swapped Arex Delta Tactical for Arex Delta Gen 2 M.