#Shot

Troy Industries has introduced their “Alpha” battlerail at the 2011 SHOT SHOW. Built for the AR-15 weapons platform the Alpha rail is Troy’s version of a modular free floating rail system. This new version was based on the very popular TRX Extreme design that Troy offers. This rail system is made of 6061-T6 hardened aircraft aluminum which is finished off with mil-spec Type III hard coat anodizing.

Crimson Trace had announced a new series of custom-style laser grips for the 1911. High-end 1911 owners can now have a laser sight grip without having to use rubber grips. The Master Series grips will be made from a variety of materials including laminated wood, stabilized wood and Micarta.

While shooting all of the free ammunition at the Media Day event in Las Vegas this year, I came across the ArmaLite SPR Model 1 AR-15 and ArmaLite engineer Nathan Brinkmeyer. Nathan showed me the ins and outs of their AR-15 platform.

The Knight’s Armament Knight Hawk Limited Edition set includes a custom KAC SR-15 E3 Rifle, a custom .45 ACP Nighthawk 1911 and a custom Strider Knife. Only 100 sets will be sold.

Of all the weird guns at SHOT Show, none left me more puzzled than Mossberg’s new range of Blackwater branded shotguns.

Later this year DoubleStar will be introducing a .308/7.62mm NATO chambered AR-style rifle to the market. The below photos are of a prototype. The prototype is so new that it was not available to DobleStar’s SHOT Show staff when they were setting up the booth. It arrived during the SHOT Show week. The booth staff were not able to tell me how much it will cost or when it will go on sale.

Sun Devil Manufacturing has two new billet-CNC’ed lowers for 2011. The one is for DPMS-compatible (.308) rifles and the other for standard AR-15 rifles. They both feature integral trigger guards.

Trijicon unveiled their first bow sight at SHOT Show. It features Trijicon’s dual illumination system that is used on all their scopes. Fiber-optics are used to capture daylight for illumination and when there is not enough natural light a tritium lamp is used.

The most nifty gun at SHOT that I did not see must have been the Beretta A400 Xcel, the new competition model in the Beretta A400 line.

Accuracy International, whose rifles are widely regarded as the best money can buy, have launched a new long range .338 Lapua rifle. It builds on its predecessor, the .338 Lapua AX Magnum, adding a more modern looking stock as well as an improved bolt and action.

The Aimpoint PRO (Patrol Rifle Optic) debuted at SHOT last week. The scope has been put together with law enforcement officers in mind. The basic optic is comparable to the Aimpoint CompM2 but with the more popular 2 MOA dot (emitter) rather than the larger 4 MOA dot. It features a QPR2 quick release mount which is also found on the military Aimpoint CompM4. With its 30,000 hour (3 – 4 year) battery life Aimpoint recommends turning it on and leaving it on. The MSRP is $440.

On Friday night Michael Bane told me that BATFE visited the Taurus booth at SHOT Show and declared that the 28 gauge revolver was in fact a SBS (Short Barreled Shotgun), not a handgun.

Leupold has introduced a new inexpensive illuminated scope line. The scopes are pretty basic, unlike the higher end VX3 and Mark 4 illuminated scopes, but they feature good quality glass unlike the cheaper illuminated scopes currently on the market.

Like I did last year, I am disclosing the free stuff that I was given at SHOT. As far as I know, none of these were personal gifts, but promotional material handed out to many other members of the media or to SHOT attendees. I did not take all the free gear home with me as I ran out of space in my bag (SHOT brochures weigh a lot!).

Yes, I did just use the word “Super-Cool” in a blog post title. I have run out of adjectives to describe this rifle. Let me just say that I could hardly put this gun down. I seriously contemplated grabbing it and doing a runner 😉