SHOT Show Archives

This is a very good video on the subject of “what the heck would you want that for” for offset sights on your tactical rifle. At first you might think, like many of us did, that they have become popular just because people like to look like they are going “gangsta” during competitions, by holding their rifles sideways, but that isn’t the case. XS Sights has developed these 45 degree offset sights for both tactical and competition shooters who are using optics with magnification, and who may have to switch between very close and very far targets quickly. At magnification it is very hard to “find” close targets in your scope, and your field of view is extremely compromised, as is your periferal vision, because your eye is focussed into the magnification. In such cases, you can leave your scope at magnification and just turn the rifle sideways to use the fixed sights for close shots. This video is worth a watch if you use an optic with magnification on your tactical rifle.

This Escort line of shotguns from Legacy Sports International is made in Turkey by Hatsan. It seems to be modelled after the Remington 1100 and since the brand has been in the market for several years, this appears to be an extremely mature product. The guy in the video is in one of those Sportsman’s Channel shows that those of us with Comcast, Direct TV, and most other cable/satelite systems don’t get, but he seems to have used the guns in the field quite a lot and believes in the quality of them. Googling around I found no bad reviews of them, and in general all the Turkish guns have been reliable and extremely well received. Hopefully we’ll get a review gun over the coming year and test these guns with a variety of hunting loads. They seem to be worth checking out if you are in the market for an auto-shotgun, and they do make tactical as well as hunting models.

You wouldn’t think that a gun would be made specifically to bang around behind the seat of your truck, to get banged and bumped on who knows what, and to get dripping wet, dirty, and still work, but that is exactly what Savage has done with the new Hog Hunter line of rifles. They aren’t pretty guns, but they aren’t for pretty game either.

The TC Arms Venture is one of the best value in American made bolt action rifles, and this year TC answered the call to make a youth sized version. It has an 11.5 length of pull out of the box and it will be available in .223, .243, 7mm-08 and .308 for now. The barrel is only 20 inches for good balance in a small gun, and it comes with a 1 inch spacer for the stock, so the gun can grow with your child. All of the Venture rifles come with an MOA gaurantee, and we proved this out easily with a rifle they sent us for testing. There is also a new winter camo Venture as well. TC makes a lot of “gotta have it” guns and this looks to be another.

Ultrasonic cleaners have come a long way in the last few years and these new Turbosonics are cutting edge. After a 10 minute cycle you can clean 1300 9mm cases, or 4 pistol frames, and the Lyman solutions have a rust inhibitor in them so you can leave them on steel. All of their concentrated formulas are formulated to clean both the insides and outsides of your cases and metal parts. The coolest thing about this big model is that it has a drain, so you don’t have to dump it out manually, and that makes for an easy to use machine that will be welcome on your bench.

The AR-10 finally is available with a non-proprietary magazine, it takes Magpul P-Mags now. Also some new uppers from Armalite as they charge ahead with a 7.62×39 and 6.8SPC upper for their iconic rifles.

New from Century Arms this year are two 9mm pistols, one a striker fired gun with a decocker, and the other a CZ75 clone called a Stingray. Also a new line of French Sauvestre lead-free hunting ammo, including shotgun slugs in both lead and lead-free, plus a brand new line of new production Zestava Mausers, including a micro-action in .22 Hornet with a detachable magazine. These are commercial Mausers with the side flip safety and a hinged floorplate, and if you look in the video, really nice dark walnut. Century is an ever-present supplier of cool guns nobody else has and we hope to take a look at a few of these this year.

Take a look at this video on how the new Mossberg FLEX system actually works. Now you can buy one shotgun and have it perform various functions for home defense, hunting, and tactical work.

If you carry a .40S&W duty pistol and would like to be able to use all those extra rounds in your backup revolver, Charter Arms has finally come to market with their affordable line of revolvers for rimless cartridges. The guns are currently available in gunshops and from what we saw at SHOT Show this year, they work great, even in the blowing sand of the desert with dirty cheap surplus ammo.

Sig Sauer brings a lot of new products this year, and they all have the common theme that they are based on guns we already know and love, and probably even own, from Sig. The P224 pistol is the same doublestack 9mm, .40S&W or .357Sig. as your P226, but in a compact for concealed carry. The SIG716 is a 7.62NATO rifle based on the successful SIG516 platform, the M400 is finally a standard AR from Sig for you police armorers & Sig enthusiasts out there, and the 551-A1 is just like the Swiss 550 on which the 556 is based. Also SBRs!

Daniel Defense has a novel concept in the “modern sporting rifle” (otherwise known as ARs made for hunting). They have decided that rather than just paint some camo on one of their existing rifles, it would be much better to actually build an actual hunting rifle from the ground up. Ambush Firearms is a separate effort from DD to do just that. Watch the video for the details. They even have a forend for the guns that feel like a shotgun forend. It is a great approach that is refreshing for those of us who hope the AR-15 platform hunting rifle becomes a big part of the hunting market. And yes, they make a .300 Blackout!

A real StG 44 is out of reach for most WWII enthusiasts, but this .22LR replica, made in Germany and imported by ATI could give you that fix of history you are looking for. At full weight and $599 it will fly off the shelves, so get one while you can.

Every gun used for daily carry deserves a quality and comfortable leather holster system, and these belts and holsters from Aker Leather are second to none. Aker is a small company with big products, and these are new for SHOT Show 2012.

Two new products from Crimson Trace for 2012. The first is a light for 1911 style pistols that mounts on the trigger gaurd with no gunsmithing. And a first for CT, a rail mounted laser that is not the wrap grip we are all used to from them. It is really slim and snag free and worth watching for the video. Cool new stuff from Crimson Trace, the professional choice for weapon mounted lights and lasers.

This is a company we bumped into on Media Day before SHOT Show 2012, and they seem to have nailed the whole plastic cased ammo thing. It is a dream come true if it is what they say it is, but from what we could tell these were just test rounds made for the show. Hopefully we’ll see more of PCP Ammo, and hopefully the stuff works as good as it appears to.

Made in USA with US materials, the Crossfire approach to holsters is different that other nylon holster companies, and they are a company you should check out. Ingenuity reaches across law enforcement, civilian carry, and even shooting bags, so check out Crossfire today.

Everyone loves the hammer fired guns from FNH and now they have a striker pistol in pre-production that looks to be yet another great gun, and a serious competitor in the striker fired pistol market. FNH guns are known to be extremely reliable and a great value, and the FNS looks to be yet another one.

Franchi, the mid-level priced shotguns of the Benelli/Franchi/Stoeger family, is completely rebranding itself for 2012 with an emphasis on “Franchi Feels Right.” If you are looking for a truly classy Old World Shotgun that fits you and helps you shoot better, the Franchi guns are known to be a great value in a sporting shotgun.

Redding Reloading is a stalwart of the American reloading tradition, and this new “green” case lube may sound a little flaky for them, but there is actually a point to it. Not using an oily petroleum based case lube will keep your vibratory tumbler media fresh, and it won’t leave a puddle of oil on the top of the water if you use an ultrasonic cleaner for your brass. If Redding makes it, it is because they saw a need and filled a need. They are a smart company committed to the needs of the dedicated handloader.

Fiocchi has been our sponsor of the GunsAmerica Blog throughout the entire SHOT Show week. We are going to help them get the word out this year about their new and available “canned heat” line of ammo. They are hermetically sealed in a real can, with a dessicant pack, so they are ideal for long term storage, hunting trips into wet and sandy places, and even desert warfare. We have already used their new cowboy loads on a Cimmaron GunsAmerica Blog post recently, and we hope to go over the whole caliber availability as well (they even come in .32S&W). This video wraps up with some calibers you may not have heard of, and that is just the point. Fiocchi is the only producer of several obsolete calibers, so you can shoot and hunt with those old drillings and oddball European guns, not just look at them. It will be an exciting year for Fiocchi, and we hope to bring you more from them soon.

Vortex Optics is one of the best buys in riflescopes, and they are bringing a new level of clarity and reliability to their well under $200 CrossFire line. They also have a new Razor Red Dot for 3-Gun and tactical applications, and coming in the fall, a first focal plane Viper LS HR with customizable turrets to your ballistics. We hope to get one of each this year for testing, because everything we have ever seen from Vortex is really fantastic. Check out this video from Vortex on the SHOT Show 2012 floor.

The MR762A1 from H&K is a 7.62×51 (.308 Winchester) descendent of the HK416/417 series, a semi-automatic rifle for civilian users. This system uses a solid “pusher” rod instead of the gas tube on a standard AR, and this makes the system very clean, because gas never gets into the receiver. It takes HK417 mags, and as you can see from the video, there are a number of features built into this rifle that make it more sure and stable than a standard “legacy rifle” AR-platform configuration.

You may already know about these two groundbreaking bullpups. The big thing for a long time on both the KSG and the RFB is getting one. Everyone wants one and they are extremely hard to get. Kel-Tec has added a whole new wing to their plant this year and are ramping up production on these in-demand guns. We hope to get one of each soon.

Eotech is a name we have all trusted for many years, and this addition of a shotgun forend is pretty exciting. It fits the Remington 870 and Mossberg 500/590 line of pump guns, and I can’t imagine a homeowner who wouldn’t want this ambidextrous wonder. Also a new version of their holo-sight in Zombie garb, nifty beans!

We saw the Sphinx line of pistols last year at Media Day at the Range, SHOT Show 2011. For 2012 the importers, KRISS, have a new model for us made specifically for “operators” and heavy duty competitors in the case of the pistol. The Sphinx pistols are novel because they are in three pieces, and all pieces can and usually are made of 3 different materials. The Defiance Suppressors are unique in that they are adjustable for point of impact, to match your gun with the can off or on. Truly an OPERATOR tool.

The new Hordady Zombie Max ammo gets a lot of attention, but the real story this year from America’s finest ammo maker is Critical Duty, a new handgun ammo for barrier penetration. Read the article and check out the video on what’s new from Hornady for 2012.

Even though there were little .380 pistols on the market before it, the introduction of Ruger’s LCP set off a .380 buying craze to such a degree that there were localized ammunition shortages. These guns are now so prevalent among the concealed carry crowd that shooting schools are, for the first time I can recall, teaching specialized little gun tactics and courses. There are a lot of benefits to such a compact defensive package, but as with many things in life, to get something you have to give up something.

If there is a must have product at SHOT 2012, it is the Akdal MKA 1919 semi-auto shotgun, exclusively imported in the US by RAAC. It looks like an AR-15, but it is a super-sized version made for 12 gauge shotgun shells in both the 2 3/4″ and 3″ size.

Many shooters will recognize Chiappa as the company offering the distinctive Rhino revolver. That innovative design fires from the bottom cylinder resulting in recoil dynamics that tame loads otherwise punishing to shoot in conventional snub-nose revolvers. But that’s not all Chiappa has. They also offer a line of dedicated rimfire guns that replicate the look, feel and function of popular defensive firearms including the 1911 pistol and M4 carbine. New this year is Chiappa’s rimfire version of the Beretta M9 pistol called the M9-22.