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This is a groundbreaking new rifle from Savage made for the new .17 Super Magnum **RIMFIRE**. You may not have heard of this cartridge yet, but it shoots a 20 grain bullet at about 3,000 feet per second, at .17 caliber of course. This means fairly flat shooting at devastating velocities out to 300 yards and beyond. What makes this particular gun special is that it is from Savage, the leader in out of the box accuracy in bolt guns. They have incorporated several centerfire bolt gun features into this rimfire rifle, at a rimfire price of $349. As ammunition gets more and more expensive, that you can go shoot prairie dogs, crows or even tin cans all day at 300 yards on the cheap may make this the biggest story of SHOT Show 2013. Bill is correct here in the video when he says that Savage won’t be able to make enough of these guns. If you are a new gun owner and you bought a pistol or an AR first, this would be your ideal second gun that you will never outgrow and that you will still enjoy shooting in 30 years, with your grandchildren. Another great rifle idea from Savage. Get yourself on the list with your local dealer, because supply may not catch up with the demand in 2013.

Glock has the luxury of being able to sell pretty much as many guns as they can make, but they still have a finely tuned ear to consumers and LE in order to figure out exactly what is the next Glock that will make you happy. This G30s is a compact .45ACP with a 10 round magazine and slightly thinner grip, and the unique feature is that they have put a G36 slide on it, making it thinner and easier to conceal. They can use the thinner slide because the .45ACP is not a particularly high pressure cartridge. It was designed just after the turn of the last century and is known as the ultimate manstopper in a handgun. A lot of us prefer to carry it, but the guns can be bulky. This new G30s reduces the footprint of Glock’s 10 round 45ACP gun, making it a great choice for concealed carry. Glock also has a few new Gen 4 guns this year, and they hope to release this 30s in Gen 4 as well as the G36.

Flashlights may be one of the less exciting products to talk about, but if you have ever used a 500 lumen SureFire, there is plenty to be exciting about. THEY ARE LIKE LIGHT SABERS. And now SureFire has upgraded their Defender, X400GN, and X400V flashlights from 200 lumens to 500 lumens with no loss in runtime. Also check out the video for their new “teal green” lasers, which is a pretty gutsy color to advertise in a male dominated market, specifically because according to their own SureFire research, teal green is what the human eye works best with. SureFire products aren’t cheap. These lights will be in the $500+ range, but our experience has been that when you compare relative costs to the Chinese copies, SureFire is 5 times brighter, 5 times more durable, and give you 5 times less problems, at roughly 3 times the cost. And here is an extra tip. Those red SureFire batteries that you can buy from SureFire or even on Amazon in 12 packs last twice as long as Energizers. We use them exclusively on all of our 123A devices.

For several years Federal Premium has been making a personal defense handgun round exclusively available to the LE market called HST. There is of course no law prohibiting civilians from owning this ammo, so a lot of us have been trying to get it through private LE contacts. Hearing the demand from consumers, ATK, the parent company of Federal, has decided to make the same ammo in a consumer product, available at your local gunshop. They also have developed a round in their Fusion line specifically for hunting with the velocities of an M4 length rifle, which are generally 200 feet per second or so less. This is important because expanding bullets are all optimized for specific velocities, and very few if any are optimized for the reduced velocity of the 16″ barrel that you find on an M4. A ton of us are out using M4 rifles to hunt with, and this ammo is specifically made for this, as well as for hunting with a suppressor. Suppressors are dirty, so cleaner ammo is a huge score if you are a suppressor hunter. The new MSR bullet and the cleaner powder sound like a great combination from Federal this year.

The biggest stories at SHOT this year are about technology, and the king of them is this CCAS scope from Trijicon. The story is a little hard to understand because none of us have been able to play with it yet, but it seems like you first “paint” the target with the laser, then it follows the target for you, changing the point of aim in the reticle. It also calculates weather, distance and other factors, and you manually enter the wind. The goal is go improve first shot hits, and the fact that it comes from Trijicon is probably the most important point. This is not some kind of experimental product from a potentially fly by night company. This is Trijicon, a major military contractor, and a company known for putting out battle hardened products that work and last forever. Right now this is only available to military and LE, but, assuming the politicians can’t come up with another war very soon, and after the politics calm down of course, don’t be surprised if this comes into the civilian market. It’s a cool toy that could open up a whole new type of high end competitive shooting. Also check out the new ACOGs, including a simplified .300 Blackout reticle in the 3x, and some silvery finishes for your silvery AR. Add matching shoes and a clutch and we’ll have a complete outfit. At the very end of the video there are new Trijicon Glock suppressor sights.

If you are a gun nut most likely you have already heard of Ed Brown. They are the defining 1911 by which all the other 1911 companies have been measured, because they make everything in the gun in-house, and their quality is second to none. Innovation in 1911s isn’t something many people talk about, because the gun is after all over 100 years old, but Ed Brown actually has a patent on that bobtail grip. Apparently other companies license it or buy the parts. They are also an innovator in checkering patterns, because besides new customers who want the latest and greatest, there are a ton of collectors of… Ed Brown. Because they make everything themselves, you don’t see the excuses and bottlenecks of why you can’t get your gun with Ed Brown. Delivery time has been in the half a year or so range for a while and if you order now you’ll have it by summer most likely. If you are silly in love with the 1911 and you want one of guns called “the best money can buy,” treat yourself to an Ed Brown 1911.

We don’t usually take the time to cover any of the non-gun exhibitors here at SHOT Show, but with over 1500 different companies represented, you can find everything from turkey fryers to monster trucks here. This is a camo version of a custom hotrod called a Rally Fighter, and it costs 100 grand. If you check their website, they make them in other colors too. They are made in America by Americans and they actually involve you in the building in the car if you wish. Something a little different and interesting for SHOT Show. Now we’ll get back to the guns.

The biggest secret in rifleslings is the Kodiak Sling from Limbsaver. You probably know this company for their damping technology and sights in the archery business, but they have secretely created the best riflesling ever made as well. You have seen our Kodiak sling on the Ambush Rifle we use all the time in our hunting articles with our guide Dwayne Powell at Kissimee River Hunt & Fish, and now they have come out with a lighter version that uses nylon instead of rubber for much of the non-bearing surfaces. Something as simple as a riflesling isn’t usually a big story, but these slings have a handle on them, made of rubber, so you have a firm place to hold the weight of your arm up as you walk along with your rifle. They sell these at most big box stores and a lot of stocking gun dealers, so stop and try one. Also check out the new AR accessories. They have a front grip with a riflestock profile. Neat stuff from Limbsaver for 2013. Note that if you order the Kodiak online, the “crossbow” sling is the same as the rifle sling and is easier to find.

In a gunfight microseconds count. Turning on a laser can cost you a bunch of time, so several of the laser companies have come up with different ways to turn on the laser instinctively, without a separate thought operation required. Viridian’s take on it is the Tac-Loc holster, which they call an Enhanced Combat Readiness technology. Marketing terminology aside, the holster actual turns on the laser as you draw it, so you don’t have to put your finger in a certain place and press, and you don’t have to hold the gun in any particular way for the laser to go on. We have not tested this in house, so this Media Day at the range outing was the first we got at it in actual use. If you have been wondering how it actually works, it works great, but be aware that not all of their units fit all of the holsters. If you already have a Viridian green laser, make sure it actually fits the Tac-Loc holster before you buy one. We should have more stuff from Viridian this week. This is kind of a follow up to the introduction at last year’s SHOT Show because we haven’t actually gotten our hands on one over the course of the year.