2011 SHOT Show
My impression from this year’s show as compared to those in the past, sound suppressors are much more popular this year. In alphabetical order, here’s a list of the businesses I visited and my notes.
Full Canopy Armory – Troy Hansen is a FFL gunsmith located in Flagstaff, AZ. Lou Biancospino, Rich Cabral and I had an opportunity to chat with him and his wife at the LRB Arms booth. Troy is a U. S. Army veteran (infantry M60 machine gunner and unit armorer). He has years of experience repairing and building M1, M14 and AR-15 rifles. Troy and his wife have a great sense of humor and were a lot of fun to spend time with.
J. Allen Enterprises – The big news for J. Allen Enterprises is its new JAE-700 stock for the Remington 700 bolt action rifle. That’s not my area of study but hats off and congrats to Jeff and Lisa are definitely in order. The JAE-700 does have some advances over the current JAE-100 G2 stock that will be carried over into the JAE-100 G3 stock to debut in the spring this year.
I think the following is correct so apologies up front to Lisa if I didn’t get this right. The JAE-100 G3 will have an optional QD cheek rest, optional extended butt pad, and optional thumbwheel with an adjustable brake. By removing the cheek rest, the shooter can use the iron sights. The G3 will have a narrower fore end. The result is a lighter and more balanced stock as compared to the G2. It will have eight sling attachment points, front and rear bottom and three on either side. The JAE-100 G3 will allow the end user to add any option in the field or at home with the exception of the side rail adapters, thumbwheel cheek rest and the QD cheek rest mechanism will require factory installation.
James River Manufacturing – I managed to grab a couple minutes with Mark Hartman, owner of James River Manufacturing. Mark builds semi-automatic M14 rack grade rifles for M14 fans looking for a high percentage of USGI parts. The receivers and chromium plated barrels are commercial manufacture but he has USGI parts to build his rifles with.
LRB of Long Island, Inc. – It was good to see Lou, Paul and Joe (J V Precision Machine Co.) again this year. LRB has a batch of 100 M14 bolts in production. These are forgings being machined at J V Precision. Half of the lot has already been heat treated. The method of how the LRB bolts will be marked is being evaluated. For the bolts that are already heat treated, one solution could be laser engraving. As I understand things, once the bolts have been marked they will be available for sale. ETA for the bolts is mid-February.
Lou reports that demand remains strong for LRB rifles. Without disclosing any specific plans, he is considering different avenues of meeting customer demand for complete rifles. Also, Sadlak Industries, LLC is making the extended rail mount for the LRB Arms M25 receiver. LRB Arms receiver numbers are now in the 029XX (M14SA) and 107XX (M25) ranges. Lou has a batch of ninety receivers waiting for him to work on when he returns from the SHOT Show.
ProMag Industries – I met and chatted with Drew Kelley, Technical Support, ProMag Industries. He’s a M14/M1A shooter as well so we had a delightful conversation. ProMag Industries is still producing a copy of the M2 bipod and its twenty round M14 magazines. The biggest buzz of the show this year for the M14 is the introduction of the ProMag Industries Archangel M1A stock. The Archangel M1A stock is made from carbon-fiber reinforced polymer. There is no selector cutout. The butt stock has an adjustable cheek rest and adjustable butt pad. If you adjust the cheek rest to its lowest height, you can use the iron sights. The pistol grip has a storage compartment. There are six sling attachment points, two on the bottom and two on either side of the stock. The fore end of the stock has an integral six o’clock Picatinny rail. A rail cover is supplied to cover the six o’clock rail, if desired. The twelve o’clock Picatinny rail cover replaces the OEM hand guard. It is only offered in black color at this time. Since the stock and top rail cover go on and off the like a USGI stock, there is no gunsmithing involved. The Archangel M1A stock MSRP is $299.00. Drew invited me to hold the display model. The M1A with the Archangel stock did not feel burdensome to shoulder and it balanced well. I’m curious to know if this stock will work with the early SA, Inc. M1A receivers with the underside right hand ridge. Commercial M14 receiver width can vary by as much as 0.080 “ so the Archangel M1A stock may fit a little snug or a little loose, just like USGI stocks, just my guess. IMHO, I don’t believe the Archangel M1A complies with CA DOJ regulations unless your rifle has a fixed ten round magazine. YMMV
Sadlak Industries, LLC – I last saw Mike in Connecticut, shortly before we evacuated to Las Vegas in 2007. IIRC, the last time we met he showed me the then brand new Sadlak Airborne scope mount. The latest innovation is a cleaning tool (drill bit with handle) sized for the Smith Enterprise, Inc. M1A SOCOM gas cylinder plug. I must be getting long in tooth. Mike did not recognize me for a few seconds when we first met up at the SHOT Show. <grin> I asked about Dee and he said she was back to work with all fingers and thumbs in working order. That was the best news of the show.
Short Rifle Stock Systems, Inc. – Rich Cabral of SRSS, Inc. was at the LRB Arms booth as well. He had one of the BullDog762 rifles on display. He showed Lou and I how to disassemble and assemble the BullDog762. The BullDog762 is currently made from 6061 T6 alloy aluminum. Rich is looking at shaving a pound or more of weight by having it made from carbon fiber – aramid composite. Rich and I plan to make a video next month to show the BullDog762 in automatic fire. Nevada is full auto friendly so we’ll use my select fire M1A for the video.
Smith Enterprise, Inc. – There were several completed M-14 receivers on display, one was part of a complete rifle. John Bainer says he’s waiting on paperwork from the BATFE regarding the new SEI M-14 receiver. He expects that in about four weeks they will be good to go for supplying the commercial market with semi-automatic M14 receivers. R Guns will be the distributor for sales to the public. The receiver MSRP is estimated by John to be about $950.00. Andy Horton showed me the redesigned M14DC sound suppressor pouch and the new SEI M14 tool kit pouch. Andy is the creative genius behind the redesigned suppressor pouch and the tool kit pouch. I will get photos of these two items up on my web site ASAP. AFAIK, the first build of a M14 type rifle with a Sage International M14 EBR-RI NM stock and a 16 “ barrel was on display at the SEI booth. It was noticeably lighter than the first generation M14 EBR. Sage International has shaved a bunch of weight with this latest iteration of the M14 EBR stock as compared to the original version.
Springfield Armory, Inc. – I picked up a copy of the factory catalog and price list. The only new item I see, AFAIK, is that Springfield Armory, Inc. will offer to retrofit your rifle with a standard or extended Vltor cluster rail assembly (factory installation required).
The Beta Company – According to a company sales representative, the G3 drum magazine will be made available next. After that, the M1A drum magazine is to follow later this year. Drum magazines will be shipped to distributors to sell back orders first. I was given similar information in 2006, 2008 and 2010 . . . .
Troy Industries – It had been several years since I last saw Tony aka LAW483 so it was a pleasure to see him and catch up. Troy Industries had its CAR-14 SBR on display in a glass case in the center of its exhibit. The CAR-14 is a highly modified semi-automatic M14 type rifle.
The CAR-14 barrel is 12.5 “ long. It has a proprietary gas system and is housed inside a new Troy Industries design metal chassis stock. There is no selector cutout on the chassis stock. The stock was fitted with a Troy Battle Axe collapsing butt stock including a built in GPS unit on the right hand side of the butt. Like the Troy MCS, the CAR-14 stock has a flared magazine well but it differs in that the interior of the magazine well has vertical relief cuts. The top rail cover of the stock partially covers the operating rod handle section. There is no quad rail but instead, the fore end has been narrowed, rounded and drilled with lightening holes. At six o’clock along the length of the fore end are small threaded holes for attachment of QD studs.
The CAR-14 sound suppressor was installed. Installation and removal of the sound suppressor is by way of a QD mechanism. At the same time the sound suppressor is attached or detached to the muzzle, the gas system is automatically adjusted accordingly. My guess is that the rear end of the sound suppressor pushes on or engages a gas bleed valve. The entire system, everything, was flat dark earth in color. The CAR-14 was built according to a specific military requirement. Troy Industries hopes to receive a government contract for the CAR-14. The Troy Industries CAR-14 is not available for sale to the public. It is not yet in production.
Vltor Weapon Systems – I spoke with one of the company representatives. Vltor hopes to bring its new M14 rail cover to market this spring, the CAS-M1A. The CAS-M1A will be a “drop-in” top rail cover that works with USGI or commercial traditional design M14 stocks. It clamps to the barrel chamber and does not use the receiver scope mount bolt hole as an attachment point. There will be a substitute dovetail rail block so that you can mount a scope over the receiver. An optional fore end six o’clock Picatinny rail pad slips on the stock channel but does interfere with the top rail cover. The fore end rail pad will also accept a QD stud. The fore end rail pad is 2 ½ “ long. It will be available I black, green or tan.
X-S Products – X-S Products has developed and tested a prototype fifty round drum magazine. A video showing a function test of the prototype is posted on YouTube. I was hoping to meet up with one of the company representatives at the SHOT Show to see the M1A drum magazine but it didn’t come to pass.
My impression from this year’s show as compared to those in the past, sound suppressors are much more popular this year. In alphabetical order, here’s a list of the businesses I visited and my notes.
Full Canopy Armory – Troy Hansen is a FFL gunsmith located in Flagstaff, AZ. Lou Biancospino, Rich Cabral and I had an opportunity to chat with him and his wife at the LRB Arms booth. Troy is a U. S. Army veteran (infantry M60 machine gunner and unit armorer). He has years of experience repairing and building M1, M14 and AR-15 rifles. Troy and his wife have a great sense of humor and were a lot of fun to spend time with.
J. Allen Enterprises – The big news for J. Allen Enterprises is its new JAE-700 stock for the Remington 700 bolt action rifle. That’s not my area of study but hats off and congrats to Jeff and Lisa are definitely in order. The JAE-700 does have some advances over the current JAE-100 G2 stock that will be carried over into the JAE-100 G3 stock to debut in the spring this year.
I think the following is correct so apologies up front to Lisa if I didn’t get this right. The JAE-100 G3 will have an optional QD cheek rest, optional extended butt pad, and optional thumbwheel with an adjustable brake. By removing the cheek rest, the shooter can use the iron sights. The G3 will have a narrower fore end. The result is a lighter and more balanced stock as compared to the G2. It will have eight sling attachment points, front and rear bottom and three on either side. The JAE-100 G3 will allow the end user to add any option in the field or at home with the exception of the side rail adapters, thumbwheel cheek rest and the QD cheek rest mechanism will require factory installation.
James River Manufacturing – I managed to grab a couple minutes with Mark Hartman, owner of James River Manufacturing. Mark builds semi-automatic M14 rack grade rifles for M14 fans looking for a high percentage of USGI parts. The receivers and chromium plated barrels are commercial manufacture but he has USGI parts to build his rifles with.
LRB of Long Island, Inc. – It was good to see Lou, Paul and Joe (J V Precision Machine Co.) again this year. LRB has a batch of 100 M14 bolts in production. These are forgings being machined at J V Precision. Half of the lot has already been heat treated. The method of how the LRB bolts will be marked is being evaluated. For the bolts that are already heat treated, one solution could be laser engraving. As I understand things, once the bolts have been marked they will be available for sale. ETA for the bolts is mid-February.
Lou reports that demand remains strong for LRB rifles. Without disclosing any specific plans, he is considering different avenues of meeting customer demand for complete rifles. Also, Sadlak Industries, LLC is making the extended rail mount for the LRB Arms M25 receiver. LRB Arms receiver numbers are now in the 029XX (M14SA) and 107XX (M25) ranges. Lou has a batch of ninety receivers waiting for him to work on when he returns from the SHOT Show.
ProMag Industries – I met and chatted with Drew Kelley, Technical Support, ProMag Industries. He’s a M14/M1A shooter as well so we had a delightful conversation. ProMag Industries is still producing a copy of the M2 bipod and its twenty round M14 magazines. The biggest buzz of the show this year for the M14 is the introduction of the ProMag Industries Archangel M1A stock. The Archangel M1A stock is made from carbon-fiber reinforced polymer. There is no selector cutout. The butt stock has an adjustable cheek rest and adjustable butt pad. If you adjust the cheek rest to its lowest height, you can use the iron sights. The pistol grip has a storage compartment. There are six sling attachment points, two on the bottom and two on either side of the stock. The fore end of the stock has an integral six o’clock Picatinny rail. A rail cover is supplied to cover the six o’clock rail, if desired. The twelve o’clock Picatinny rail cover replaces the OEM hand guard. It is only offered in black color at this time. Since the stock and top rail cover go on and off the like a USGI stock, there is no gunsmithing involved. The Archangel M1A stock MSRP is $299.00. Drew invited me to hold the display model. The M1A with the Archangel stock did not feel burdensome to shoulder and it balanced well. I’m curious to know if this stock will work with the early SA, Inc. M1A receivers with the underside right hand ridge. Commercial M14 receiver width can vary by as much as 0.080 “ so the Archangel M1A stock may fit a little snug or a little loose, just like USGI stocks, just my guess. IMHO, I don’t believe the Archangel M1A complies with CA DOJ regulations unless your rifle has a fixed ten round magazine. YMMV
Sadlak Industries, LLC – I last saw Mike in Connecticut, shortly before we evacuated to Las Vegas in 2007. IIRC, the last time we met he showed me the then brand new Sadlak Airborne scope mount. The latest innovation is a cleaning tool (drill bit with handle) sized for the Smith Enterprise, Inc. M1A SOCOM gas cylinder plug. I must be getting long in tooth. Mike did not recognize me for a few seconds when we first met up at the SHOT Show. <grin> I asked about Dee and he said she was back to work with all fingers and thumbs in working order. That was the best news of the show.
Short Rifle Stock Systems, Inc. – Rich Cabral of SRSS, Inc. was at the LRB Arms booth as well. He had one of the BullDog762 rifles on display. He showed Lou and I how to disassemble and assemble the BullDog762. The BullDog762 is currently made from 6061 T6 alloy aluminum. Rich is looking at shaving a pound or more of weight by having it made from carbon fiber – aramid composite. Rich and I plan to make a video next month to show the BullDog762 in automatic fire. Nevada is full auto friendly so we’ll use my select fire M1A for the video.
Smith Enterprise, Inc. – There were several completed M-14 receivers on display, one was part of a complete rifle. John Bainer says he’s waiting on paperwork from the BATFE regarding the new SEI M-14 receiver. He expects that in about four weeks they will be good to go for supplying the commercial market with semi-automatic M14 receivers. R Guns will be the distributor for sales to the public. The receiver MSRP is estimated by John to be about $950.00. Andy Horton showed me the redesigned M14DC sound suppressor pouch and the new SEI M14 tool kit pouch. Andy is the creative genius behind the redesigned suppressor pouch and the tool kit pouch. I will get photos of these two items up on my web site ASAP. AFAIK, the first build of a M14 type rifle with a Sage International M14 EBR-RI NM stock and a 16 “ barrel was on display at the SEI booth. It was noticeably lighter than the first generation M14 EBR. Sage International has shaved a bunch of weight with this latest iteration of the M14 EBR stock as compared to the original version.
Springfield Armory, Inc. – I picked up a copy of the factory catalog and price list. The only new item I see, AFAIK, is that Springfield Armory, Inc. will offer to retrofit your rifle with a standard or extended Vltor cluster rail assembly (factory installation required).
The Beta Company – According to a company sales representative, the G3 drum magazine will be made available next. After that, the M1A drum magazine is to follow later this year. Drum magazines will be shipped to distributors to sell back orders first. I was given similar information in 2006, 2008 and 2010 . . . .
Troy Industries – It had been several years since I last saw Tony aka LAW483 so it was a pleasure to see him and catch up. Troy Industries had its CAR-14 SBR on display in a glass case in the center of its exhibit. The CAR-14 is a highly modified semi-automatic M14 type rifle.
The CAR-14 barrel is 12.5 “ long. It has a proprietary gas system and is housed inside a new Troy Industries design metal chassis stock. There is no selector cutout on the chassis stock. The stock was fitted with a Troy Battle Axe collapsing butt stock including a built in GPS unit on the right hand side of the butt. Like the Troy MCS, the CAR-14 stock has a flared magazine well but it differs in that the interior of the magazine well has vertical relief cuts. The top rail cover of the stock partially covers the operating rod handle section. There is no quad rail but instead, the fore end has been narrowed, rounded and drilled with lightening holes. At six o’clock along the length of the fore end are small threaded holes for attachment of QD studs.
The CAR-14 sound suppressor was installed. Installation and removal of the sound suppressor is by way of a QD mechanism. At the same time the sound suppressor is attached or detached to the muzzle, the gas system is automatically adjusted accordingly. My guess is that the rear end of the sound suppressor pushes on or engages a gas bleed valve. The entire system, everything, was flat dark earth in color. The CAR-14 was built according to a specific military requirement. Troy Industries hopes to receive a government contract for the CAR-14. The Troy Industries CAR-14 is not available for sale to the public. It is not yet in production.
Vltor Weapon Systems – I spoke with one of the company representatives. Vltor hopes to bring its new M14 rail cover to market this spring, the CAS-M1A. The CAS-M1A will be a “drop-in” top rail cover that works with USGI or commercial traditional design M14 stocks. It clamps to the barrel chamber and does not use the receiver scope mount bolt hole as an attachment point. There will be a substitute dovetail rail block so that you can mount a scope over the receiver. An optional fore end six o’clock Picatinny rail pad slips on the stock channel but does interfere with the top rail cover. The fore end rail pad will also accept a QD stud. The fore end rail pad is 2 ½ “ long. It will be available I black, green or tan.
X-S Products – X-S Products has developed and tested a prototype fifty round drum magazine. A video showing a function test of the prototype is posted on YouTube. I was hoping to meet up with one of the company representatives at the SHOT Show to see the M1A drum magazine but it didn’t come to pass.
man H2O MAN...
