Wiley X, producer of protective eyewear has recently announced that they will be departing the State of California to move their headquarters to Frisco, Texas. Although the company has stated that the move is to improve shipping and distribution efficiency, I personally believe they’ll benefit in a couple other areas as well if they are transitioning from California to Texas.

The MasterPiece Arms (MPA) Facebook page has recently announced a continuance of a special partnership with The Precision Rifle Series. For the 2021 Season, the 5th year in a row, MPA has been announced as the official chassis for the Precision Rifle Series. This partnership solidifies the support MPA has for the Series as a whole and will host both the MPA Spring Shootout and the MPA Summer Shootout – two of the most popular matches during the season. Finally, MPA will provide sponsorship for several Pro matches that are set to take place throughout the year.

Long-time reloaders who favor Dillon Precision Reloading rigs or components will no doubt be familiar with Dillon’s Blue Press catalog. The bi-monthly catalog is a complimentary subscription service that Dillon Precision offers to anyone who desires it. Inside the small magazine is a full catalog that is updated with every new edition as well as articles about reloading and other topics the guys over at Dillion Precision find interesting. The Blue Press is now available in a digital format right to your inbox!

Many of you will remember that last year the Remington Arms Company was broken up by several of its component and brand divisions and sold off in what has probably been one of the largest firearms company selloffs in recent memory. Remington Ammunition was acquired by Vista Outdoors and it’s now back in “full swing” according to the Remington Ammunition president. This acquisition included the Remington Outdoors Lonoke, Arkansas ammunition facility. Remington Ammunition President Jason Vanderbrink had some enthusiastic news about the rebirth of the Remington Ammunition brand.

Bob Nosler, CEO of Nosler Inc., has published an autobiography titled “Born Ballistic”. The new book continues the story started by Nosler Inc founder John A. Nosler in his “Going Ballistic: The Life and Adventures of John Nosler” book. The Born Ballistic book was written in collaboration with outdoor writer and TV host Gary Lewis who also helped John Nosler writing the Going Ballistic.

I know my lane – if you are looking for a 300BLK or rimfire suppressor, I can probably point you in the right direction. But, if you want to see in the dark, I’ll hand you off to someone like Nick C. who, if he can put down his LEGO Millennium Falcon long enough, has enough night vision expertise to outfit a platoon. So, when it came time to talk with our friend Steve Lemenov from ATN Corp, I asked some pretty basic questions about thermal imagery and traditional night vision. ATN Corp manufacturers a wide variety of feature-rich imaging solutions that are affordable for the average shooter. Their new clip-on thermal imagers have really caught my and I hope to dive into a night time pest control series as time permits. Enjoy the listen.

Just shy of thirty years ago, in May of 1991, Karl Brügger and Heinrich Thomet established a company to produce suppressors for their domestic Swiss market. Though Thomet has since moved on, today Brügger and his team are still working to manufacture what they believe are “some of the most technologically advanced, high performance weapons in the business.” Many would agree with this assessment, and more than a few of these B&T fans work here at TFB. These are meant to be premium guns, and they carry premium price tags, but plenty of shooters who have tried them will attest to their quality.

This year has been one of the major ups and downs in the firearms industry and community. However, one thing we can all celebrate is the success of one of the most prolific and dependable firearms manufacturers of all time. 2021 marks the 35th anniversary of GLOCK, Inc., and they are celebrating in a big way.

In celebration of their 10th anniversary, Cabot Guns has released a new collection of deluxe 1911 pistols. Just like other Cabot pistols, each of the eight 10 Year Anniversary Collection guns is unique, however, what all these pistols have in common are the parts made of Damascus steel, a material that Cabot Guns extensively uses in creating their incredible handguns. The Damascus steel used in these pistols was supplied by some of the most renowned master blacksmiths like  Robert Eggerling.

Silencer Central has helped make the process of purchasing a suppressor just a tad bit less of a hassle. They handle all the messy paperwork for you and have your suppressor delivered right to your front door! Due to an increase in business, the company has decided to expand its operation by acquiring a new headquarters building in South Dakota.

At their upcoming May 2021 Premier Firearms Auction, Rock Island Auction Company will be offering a true treasure of American history, a pair of flintlock pistols that belonged to none other than Alexander Hamilton himself. Although over the years, RIAC has sold a number of unique, one of a kind historical firearms like Theodor Roosevelt’s Colt SAA  or “The Danish Sea Captain” Colt Walker (the current record holder of most expensive single gun sold at an auction), this lot that contains a set of pistols owned and used by a Founding Father, has the highest estimated high price ($3,500,000) the company ever listed in their catalogs.

Smith & Wesson believes that their recent boost in gun sales can be attributed to first-time gun buyers according to an earnings release on Thursday, March 4th, 2021. In addition to the impressive sales increase, it also seems that Smith & Wesson has been able to keep up with the demand of the market by delivering over 1.8 million units in the first three quarters of their fiscal year.

Mossy Oak and Nomad are two of the biggest names in the hunting industry. The companies have teamed up to create their exclusive Shadow Leaf camouflage apparel line that is available just in time for Turkey season. Shadow Leaf will be available on Mossy Oak’s vests, pants, gaiters, shirts, and hats.

TFB’s Behind The Gun Podcast continues with an interview with Angela Harrell from Heckler & Koch USA. H&K USA has moved mountains in the past few years to bring the SP5 and SP5K-PDW to the American market – guns that we have begged to own since we were kids watching summer blockbuster movies in the 80’s and 90’s. So what’s next for the German icon? Well, they just slipped in the new SP5L that will hit dealers later this month. But is there more? Listen in and find out.

It seems that the ATF may be targeting Form 1 suppressors soon. Form 1 suppressors are 100% legal to make and own and they in no way violate NFA regulations. However, despite this, last December (2020) Diversified Machine of Detroit had their facility raided by the ATF and had all of their inventory seized by the agency. Just a few short months later on January 14th, the ATF has sized their website DiversifiedMachine.us.

Thirty-five years after it was invented, the 5.7x28mm caliber is now standardized by NATO. The new standardization comes after the 5.56x45mm and 7.62x51mm calibers, which were both designed by FN Herstal, and standardized by NATO in 1957 and 1981 respectively. Two other NATO calibers are the 9x19mm NATO and the 12.7x99mm NATO. The main use for the 5.7x28mm is for handguns and Personal Defense Weapons (PDW) like the FN P90.

Good afternoon everyone and welcome back to another Silencer Saturday brought to you by Yankee Hill Machine, manufacturers of the mighty yet inexpensive Turbo K. Last week we answered the top 20 questions commonly asked by new and potential suppressor owners. This week we take a look at the Pew Science SSS – the Silencer Sound Standard and also get a preview of some upcoming Silencer Saturday reviews.

Brave Castle has just launched their website with new and restocked Load Bearing Nylon Solutions Equipment now available. In addition to the load-bearing equipment, Brave Castle also has patches, stickers, and lifestyle clothing available. Brave Castle has pistol-compatible pouches as well as 5.56 30-round magazine pouches available in addition to various other configurations with different equipment.

If you are old enough to remember the Dot Com and Y2K boom and the resulting crash/bust, you’ll also remember dial-up internet and unforgivably slow websites. The meager beginnings of e-commerce was not pretty. Well, I have flashbacks to those days every time I log into the ATF eForms system to submit yet another Form 1. Not yesterday of course, because somehow the ATF’s internet is closed on Wednesdays. But, better days are ahead; our friends at Orchid Advisors have announced that they have seen a demonstration of the new ATF eForms Form 4 system that will be used to transfer NFA items from dealers to end users and entities.

Germany’s rifle debacle continues with the German government looking set to award the Bundeswehr rifle contract to the only other contender – Heckler & Koch. With Haenel disqualified after infringements of Heckler and Koch’s patents (for the magazine and water drainage holes in the receiver) were found, Germany’s options narrowed dramatically. In October the Bundeswehr’s contract with Haenel for the MK556 was officially withdrawn.

Everything is bigger in Texas, especially firearms and NFA ownership. Today, Silencer Shop is celebrating Texas Independence Day by highlighting the fact that the citizens of Texas own about 1/5th of all the silencers registered in the entire United States. Starting as a dealer and evolving into the nation’s largest national distributor, Silencer Shop has streamlined the NFA application process for over ten years, simplifying the purchasing, transfer and ownership process.

Welcome back to the unofficial debut of Season 2 of TFB’s Behind The Gun Podcast where we dive into the inner workings and the brightest minds behind the industry’s most influential organizations. Like the rest of the world, COVID thrashed our plans of recording in-person podcast interviews at all the industry shows in 2020. Virtual interviews are an acceptable placeholder, but nothing beats a real face-to-face conversation. We open the 2021 podcast season with Cody Wilson and the rest of the team from Defense Distributed Ghost Gunner 3 where they talk about their latest addition – the ability to mill AK receivers. They also share their insights on the industry, the political landscape and various challenges moving forward.

A week or so ago SIG Sauer dropped their 2021 catalog, with a few new gems including new Elite series pistols a new entry to the TREAD line of rifles and SIG’s 277 Fury ammunition. Let’s take a look!

As you know, 2020 was a record-breaking year in terms of firearm sales primarily due to the uncertainty caused by the pandemic. Many people (over 8 million!) who bought firearms in 2020 are first-time buyers. Understanding the importance of educating these new firearm owners on everything gun-related (safety, handling, maintenance, legal aspects, etc.), Nosler started an initiative called  Project 48. The company plans to invite the industry’s most renowned experts, professional athletes and 2A activists to join the Project 48 and create content that will help new firearm owners. Nosler has recently announced that the first partners of Project 48 are Colion Noir and Tim Kennedy.

Two of Brazil’s biggest firearms manufacturers have announced the formation of a partnership for the development of products and services. IMBEL and Taurus have signed a memorandum of understanding which opens the way for the development of new products, production methods and marketing so we’re likely to see the companies work closely on various military, paramilitary and police tenders and contracts.

Holts Auction House based out of North Norfolk, United Kingdom has long been a great place for finding both modern and antique second-hand guns from all across the globe. Holts has seen a recent uptick in bids for auctioned guns as COVID-19 prematurely ended the 2020 shooting season for England’s shooters.

Last week’s announcement finalizing the purchase of Colt by the CZ Group left fans of both brands with more questions than answers. After all, an American icon being acquired by a successful firearms company from the Czech Republic might create a bit of anxiety in the purists of our world. But unlike takeovers of American firearm brands by conglomerates with little to no industry experience, this deal seems to be different. So what does it actually mean when we say CZ Buys Colt? TFB was lucky enough to have access to CZ Group’s President and Chairman of the Board Lubomír Kovařík for an exclusive Q&A session and additional details.

Today’s military operators and shooters aren’t always being deployed with the most consistent equipment. This rings even more true in the civilian world where our nonstandard equipment can sometimes feature anything from gun cases to coolers containing our favorite post-shooting beverages. The TT Load Carrier and Packsack from Tasmanian Tiger make these awkward loads much easier to carry and are made from high-quality materials.

One month ago TFB reported that CZ were in negotiations to acquire Colt, a story that has now developed with an official statement. CZG (Česká zbrojovka Group SE) and Colt Holding Company LLC have signed an agreement which means that CZG will acquire 100% of Colt, including the Colt Canada Corporation. In total, the combined group will have revenues in excess of $500 million per year, and CZ’s production capacity in the United States and Canada will get a significant reinforcement. 

Hot off the presses – It appears that Arizona based Ammo Inc is in non-binding talks to acquire the online firearms auction site GunBroker. The preliminary information surrounding the buy can be found below, but the final details and a finalization date are still to be determined. We’ll keep you updated as additional news is released.