Put any two gun people in a room and ask them one question, like, say, "What's the greatest semi-auto pistol of all time?" Just watch: From those two gun guys, you'll get at least three different answers. Honestly, that's part of the fun. A lot of us gun guys like talking about guns as much as shooting them, and the American history of firearms gives us a lot to talk about. Trust me, I'm approaching the start of the fourth year of my Sunday Gun Day columns, and I've still got plenty to write about.

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Since this weekend sees us celebrating 250 years of American liberty, and since the Second Amendment and our right to bear arms are one thing that's unique about American liberty, it may be fun to toss some "all-time greats" out there for discussion/argument. So here are what I think are America's greatest commercially-produced guns; for discussion, let's look at two sidearms, two rifles, and two shotguns.

First, handguns. There's a wealth of American-made sidearms, but if I were to narrow it down to two, I'd have to go with the Colt-Browning 1911 and the Colt Single Action Army. Why? Well, the 1911 may well be the greatest martial sidearm ever designed. A brainchild of the Da Vinci of guns, John Moses Browning, it's tough, powerful, and reliable. It was designed around the big, hammering .45 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol) cartridge, and if you want evidence that it still is among the very best, note that almost every manufacturer of handguns has some version of the 1911 for sale. As for the Colt Single Action Army, it's not only an essential part of every Western movie ever made, but it's a piece that's uniquely American: Rugged, powerful, designed to be loaded and fired while on horseback. I own a modernized version, a Ruger Vaquero, in .45 Colt, and it's my second-favorite sidearm.

Read More: Second Amendment Wins Big: A Conversation With the NRA

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Second, rifles. Here, the work is a little easier for the first pick, which has to be the Armalite AR-15. It's replaced the 1894 Winchester as "America's Rifle." Almost everybody makes one. The AR platform is versatile, endlessly customizable, accurate, with pretty good ergonomics. If you want more horsepower, the bigger AR-10 is available as well. But for the second, I'll have to go with the Rifleman's Rifle, the Winchester Model 70, especially a pre-64 version. The Remington 700 belongs right up there too, but my heart will always go with Winchester. The Model 70 is the product of decades of development by some of the greatest gun designers in history, and it's still selling briskly today, after 90 years on the market.

Third, shotguns. On this, I have to go with a design, not a specific one: Any pump-action 12-gauge. Special mentions go to the Winchester Model 12, the Perfect Repeater, along with the immortal 870 Remington and the tough Mossberg 500. I've always written and said, if you can only own one gun, buy a 12-gauge pump shotgun. You can deal with any game from quail to moose with the right ammo; you can buy that ammo anywhere, and if you choose one with quick-swap barrels, like the Remington and Mossberg, it's even more versatile. In the defense role, well, I can tell you from personal experience that taking a close-range hit from a 12-gauge is a lot like having a big man hit you with a sledgehammer.

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I leave the certain ensuing discussion on these to you, the readers. And as we enjoy this wondrous 250th anniversary of American liberty, keep in mind the one key provision that the Founders left us, not granting but recognizing and guaranteeing our right to something that most of the world is unfairly denied: The right to arms, for the defense of home, community, and country. This guarantee:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

Happy Independence Day.

Editor’s Note: President Trump and Republicans across the country are doing everything they can to protect our Second Amendment rights and right to self-defense.

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