Coming from Laura Burgess Marketing, IWI USA has pushed out an announcement about their newest product, a .300 Black Out SAR rifle, and a conversion kit for those with the 5.56x45mm version. The standalone rifle is going with an MSRP of $2,049, a couple hundred dollars more than the standard rifle MSRP. The conversion kit is going for $499. Both the kit and the rifle can be ordered in the 16.5 inch or 18 inch barrel versions. In addition the kit comes with a barrel wrench for those who might not have the issued barrel wrench that the original SAR came with.

Outside of IWI, Gearhead Works has a working .300 Black Out barrel. The last time I talked to Paul Reavis at Bullpup 2015, he said that he was still going through testing of it, because he wasn’t comfortable with several loadings of .300 BLK, and would release it for sale after he completes testing. Manticore was looking into one as well, but the owner decided against it because of the larges costs in barrel manufacture.

The .300 BLK still has a long way to go in terms of use and experience when it comes to really becoming an established cartridge in the firearms world. For any new cartridge, adoption by a military or Police force usually signifies a good grounding, especially in large numbers. As of now, only the Dutch SF has ordered a number of rifles in the caliber. We shall see where this development of the Tavor goes, but I’m still waiting for the commercial release of the X95!

IWI US, Inc., a subsidiary of Israel Weapon Industries (IWI) Ltd., is proud to announce a new caliber for the TAVOR® SAR; the .300 Blackout. The bullpup deemed “Rifle of the Year” by the NRA’s American Rifleman Magazine in 2014 continues to excite the American audience who have embraced the TAVOR SAR and the bullpup concept with open arms. For those who already own a TAVOR® SAR in 5.56 NATO or 9mm, a .300 Blackout conversion kit will also be available.

“We’ve had a ton of requests for this particular caliber as its popularity has grown as a good self-defense round as well as a hunting round,” Michael Kassnar, VP of Sales and Marketing for IWI US explained. “The .300 Blackout is a highly accurate, soft shooting round that is also a very effective hunting round, unlike the lighter more traditional varmint or military calibers. We listened to our customers on Facebook and through our Customer Service Department and this was a round that kept coming up to the top of the wish list. And we listened to our customers express their need for a .300 Blackout rifle that can reliably handle sub-sonic and supersonic loads. The result is an integral gas regulator built into the Tavor barrel that is easily adjustable for sub or supersonic rounds.”

The TAVOR® SAR bullpup configuration offers the short rifle convenience but with a full size rifle’s velocity, energy and accuracy. All of the TAVOR® SAR’s parts are MIL-STD and 100% interchangeable. The 16.5” or 18” .300 Blackout barrel is cold-hammer forged and chrome lined, made from CrMoV steel. The long-stroke gas piston system is also 100% ambidextrous in configuration and operation with an optional opposite hand bolt, and a simple field stripping is all that is needed to quickly and easily break down the TAVOR into two major serviceable subassemblies. MSRP is $ 2,049.00.

The .300 Blackout conversion kit includes a 16.5” or 18” cold hammer forged chrome lined barrel made of CrMoV steel with a 1:7 right hand twist, a headspaced bolt, an A2 flash suppressor and barrel wrench.  MSRP is $499.00.