It’s that time of year again, the SHOT (Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade) Show. It is here that firearms and accessory managers introduce more new products than any other time of the year.
For part of it, I’ll be commenting, and for part of it, I’ll be channeling posts from my good friend Jeff Chudwin. A champion shooter and master instructor, Jeff is one of the world’s foremost experts on tactical police use of weapons, so don’t be surprised if his observations trend more to “protection of life” stuff than “sporting” stuff.
I’ve just gotten done putting beaucoup bullets through the Walther PPS M2 9mm pistol, a more ergonomic upgrade of one of the most successful sub-compact, small frame, full power semiautomatic handguns. Definite thumbs up. Something I haven’t handled yet is Kimber’s announced first revolver, an all-steel 23-ounce pocket size .357 Magnum with a six-round cylinder. I hope to have an opportunity to test one before long.
Rifles? Colt has announced an economy-grade version of their AR15, which many still consider the gold standard for the breed. It’s good to see that company paying more attention to the civilian market. I wouldn’t be surprised to see some new .17 caliber offerings across the board for varmint eradication.
Shotguns? The biggest “new thing” I see there so far is a new 12-gauge slug from OATH, which promises shallower but wider and more devastating wound effect. Apparently geared more toward anti-personnel work, which will make it of interest for farm and ranch defense for example, if it works out I can see it as having an application in the hunting fields. There are lots of places where deer hunters are restricted to shotguns; where the deer don’t run terribly large; and where hunting pressure is so intense that if your quarry runs over the top of the hill before it dies, another hunter might claim what should have been YOUR venison. Doesn’t sound like the right wound profile for Alaskan grizzlies, though. Time and testing will prove its worth.
More to come. Any new stuff all y’all are particularly interested in?
Any and all updates are appreciated here, SHOT is better than Christmas for me. I’m particularly interested in seeing if Caracal will actually be bringing back the F model. Hope you have a great time out there Mas, God bless.
I too appreciate reading the updates, but I’ll somewhat sheepishly admit that “new” firearms don’t excite me. Still, if someone out there produces an affordable Webley copy (the originals are out of my range) in .357, I might be intrigued…
But Mass, The Walther PPS M2 9mm pistol is soooo Ugly!
The Colt economy AR sounds interesting. I’d like to hear your take on it. Of course they’ll have great shooters there but can they keep up the quality for production guns over time? The 1911 quality has had more than it’s share of highs and lows since I’ve been shooting 1911s. A looong time. The Colts I have are good ones but I really like my Springfields. It seems as if they lose focus as a company. They need to keep their quality up over their whole line, keep prices reasonable and give great customer service. Then maybe they can keep off the edge of bankruptcy.
I can’t imagine how many times Mas has to shake hands and take photos with gun enthusiasts at an event like SHOT, must be in the thousands
Enjoy the show and I’m sure I will enjoy reading about any new products you deem newsworthy or interesting, especially concealed carry and civilian personal protection items.
Still looking for new makes/platforms in 10mm!
Paul, that’s just one more reason to carry them concealed.
Marc, considering all their financial troubles, Colt has been putting out some fine pistols and rifles the last few years.
Mas, how is the trigger on the new PPS? I have a current gen PPS, and I have hopes Walther will bring the PPQ trigger to the PPS, but I’m not holding my breath…
Tyler, they’ve definitely improved the trigger. The creep I’ve seen in earlier models is pretty much gone. Light take-up, then a short, smooth roll and a clean break on this one. No complaints from any of the testers.
@Jaji
A Webley in .357 Mag?
That would be a technical challenge given the relatively high pressure of the .357 Mag cartridge since the Webley is a top break rather than a solid frame design.
Most top break revolvers (made by Webley, S&W, IOF, etc.) are chambered in cartridges like the .455 Webley, .38 S&W, .32 S&W Long, etc.) that operate at less than 20,000 psi.
The .357 Mag operates at a Maximum Average Pressure (MAP) of 35,000 psi.
I suppose it could be done. However, the frame and locking mechanism would have to be particularly strong. I don’t know that the market demand for such a revolver would justify the R&D required to produce it.
Mas,
Could you tell us about the Snagmag? I understand you had a hand in the design. May pouches either ride too high and they lean out and print or they ride too low and the bottom is no longer concealed.
Also can you get the skinny on .22rf ammo. I have conversions for my 1911s and Glocks but CCI mini-mags are the only brand I have found the works reliably enough to bother using them for practice. I wish I had bought a couple of cases when they were available. I have tried reloading.22rf but getting the primer mix just right is a real bitch. 🙂
Mas, I am interested in a single stack .380 with a manual safety about the size and weight of a Bersa BPCC (and is not a Ruger LC380). With an old wrist injury and a preference for manual safeties, I feel like I am looking for a unicorn. If you see either the gun or a unicorn please take a picture and provide analysis (good trigger, good teeth, needs to be dehorned a bit, etc).
Shaking my head that Colt dropped out of the CA market (only a Commander left on CA Roster). Anyway, the Kimber K6s seems most interesting to me… not exactly revolutionary, but INTERESTING nonetheless. 🙂
Randy, I didn’t have anything to do with the Snagmag (pocket carrier for spare pistol magazine) but when the man who did come up with it showed me the design, I thought it was ingenious and did what I could to promote it.
John, if you’re comfortable with a 1911 design cocked and locked, check out Browning’s neat mini-1911 in the .380 caliber you’re looking for, or the SIG P238.
@ TN_MAN
I stand corrected, and plead lack of caffeination! I was thinking .38 special (my SP101 will shoot both that in +P and .357) when I posted incorrectly. My bad!
What I was trying to get across (and failing, apparently! :-D) was that I would prefer a Webley in a more commonly available caliber than the Euro and Brit ones. It’s bad enough to depend on the vagaries of the surplus market for the other old pieces I have and not add another white elephant to my collection.
Of course, that should tell me that I really don’t *need* a Webley as such…but what the hey. You only live once, right?
@ Jaji, & TN_MAN
Well, if they figure out how to beef up he old Webley to use the .357 cartridge, maybe they can also duplicate the the Semi-Automatic action of the Webley revolver too?
Paul
Jan 1st I was at a range near Laconia, NH. I shot a friend’s Ruger LC9s. Nice trigger! My groups were good at 50 to 75 ft (for me with a hangun and no glasses, lol). The first round truly surprised me yet hit in the 10 ring. Smooth!
Mr. Ayoob, have you had a chance to check out the Honor Guard handguns? There’s been buckets of hype surrounding this new manufacturer but I’m not able to find any info from anyone whose actually ran one.
Thanks a bunch
Jim, the Honor Guard handguns are on my list to look at, but I haven’t had one in hand yet, and unfortunately couldn’t get to Vegas in time for the hands on shooting on Media Day.
Mr. Ayoob, when you review the Kimber K6s do you think you’ll give us your thoughts of to what extent, if any, it superannuates the Ruger SP101 2.25″ internal hammer revolver (cost not being a factor)? Thank you, sir.
backwoodsloafer, the SP101 has external hammer though it can be had in a spurless configuration; the Kimber is a true internal hammer design like Ruger’s LCR. The Kimber will also have a sixth shot, and may be a wee bit lighter than the SP101.
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