This is a story about a visit to a new indoor shooting range in Helsinki. The place is called Gunpoint and it’s located just beside Varusteleka, one of Europe’s largest army and surplus stores. If you visit one of these facilities, you have to visit the other, if you catch my drift.

With the mad rush on the pistol brace ruling by the ATF, both firearms owners and producers alike are attempting to find ways to salvage their legally possessed firearms without the need to register them under the NFA. Rifle Dynamics is now offering pistol-to-rifle conversions with an additional 20% off select rifle parts as part of their pistol-to-rifle services. This service is for those who don’t want to deal with the NFA and still want to keep their Rifle Dynamics AK without disposing of it or registering it.

5.11’s ABR (Always Be Ready) Academy classes are making a comeback for 2023 with a new twist – they’ll now include instruction from USCCA, one of the country’s largest concealed carry defense organizations. 5.11 Tactical’s ABR Academy will focus on everything ranging from how to set up tactical and preparedness gear, preparing things like bug out bags, and will also now include topics like trauma care, and self-defense for those who want to learn and always be ready. All of these classes are going to be completely free and will be hosted by certified experts from the industry at participating 5.11 Stores across the nation.

At the start of SHOT Show 2023, the news broke that Australian defense company NIOA had purchased Barrett Firearms.  Rob Nioa, the new owner of Barrett Firearms was in attendance at this year’s SHOT Show.  I was given the rare opportunity to interview Mr. Nioa about his history in the firearms industry, and about the future of Barrett Firearms under his leadership.  Without further ado, the interview with the new Barrett owner, Rob Nioa.

I absolutely love being able to compete with firearms. While casual target shooting and firearm reviewing is rewarding in its own right, nothing really quite beats the thrill, and excitement of running your favorite firearms in a competition environment. Unfortunately, for many people firearms competitions can be quite intimidating for newcomers because of the high up front cost of equipment as well as the fear of being judged and ridiculed by fellow competitors who may have been competing for decades. That is why I’m excited to share the news that SIG Sauer has officially launched SHOOT SIG – a new firearms competition that not only welcomes all skill levels of competitions, but also activley encourages shooters to participate at hosting ranges in a fun and less intimidating atmosphere.

The ammunition market is a saturated one, even if it feels like there’s never enough. Competition is tough, especially when it comes to ammunition that everyone is familiar with. That’s what makes the category of “Best Shotshell” so competitive, especially when awarded by magazines like Predator Xtreme. Against the odds, Federal has once again emerged victorious, walking away with the Gold award.

TFB Visits Varusteleka Finland – Europe’s Largest Army, Surplus & Outdoor Shop (according to them). Go to Suomi (Finland) they said. It will be fun, they said. Well, there I was in the middle of the Winter. Of course, it snowed, and it was freezing cold. Luckily I got a ride from a local friend in a posh car, with four-wheel drive and heated seats.

Kimber are hosting the Boot Campaign, which focuses on the wellbeing of US military veterans. To raise money for the nonprofit charity Kimber, as they have in previous years, has introduced a pair of ‘Hero Custom’ firearms. A Hero Custom 1911, a Hero Custom Hunter Pro and a Hero Custom 84M are on display at Kimber’s booth with unique finishes. The two-tone 1911 has an MSRP $1,123 while the Hunter Pro has an MSRP of $1,096.

Australian Defense company NIOA has acquired Barrett Firearms. Founded in 1982 By Ronnie Barrett the company quickly became synonymous with their .50 caliber anti-materiel rifles and later thier precision rifles including the MK22 Advanced Sniper Rifle. Barrett rifles have been used by militaries, police and civilian shooters all around the world.

Remington’s 12-gauge AccuTip Saboted Slugs are quite popular for hunters across the nation who choose to hunt with shotguns. The 385-grain saboted slug normally features an advertised muzzle velocity of 1900 fps and the slugs themselves feature a great combination of both accuracy and terminal performance down range. Remington has just announced a product safety recall on specific lots and types of their 12-Gauge AccuTip slugs that may have left the factory with an incorrect propellant change. Remington recommends that if you find that you own some of this ammunition from the specified lot numbers you immediately cease using this ammunition and contact Remington to arrange for free replacement ammunition.

German police departments who had previously selected Haenel’s CR223 won’t have to destroy their carbines following an earlier ruling by Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court in a patent infringement case. We initially reported on the court’s ruling late last year. Haenel have now released a statement explaining their position feeling that media reporting around the case has not been as nuanced as it should be, noting that “without question, this reporting has led to uncertainty among our customers.”

The new firearms announced by Browning Arms Company for 2023 include four new configurations of the X-Bolt bolt action rifle, fifteen shotguns added to different lines of their shotguns, and three new models of the Buck Mark rimfire pistol. You can find the list of all new Browning 2023 products below. The model names are linked to corresponding product pages where you can find more information.

Winchester Repeating Arms have announced their 2023 new firearms. Compared to previous years, the list of new Winchester guns for this year is rather short consisting of three rimfire rifles: two wood stock versions of the Wildcat semi-auto rifle and the Xpert bolt-action rifle which was actually introduced a year ago, at SHOT Show 2022. Below you can find the list of 2023 Winchester products with manufacturer descriptions and tech specs. The model names are linked to product pages on Winchester’s website where you can find more information.

Davidson’s is one of the nation’s biggest wholesalers and they’re well known for being the sole distributor for a number of exclusive designs of firearms that you can’t find anywhere else. The Davidson’s Exclusive Gunsite GLOCK Service Pistol is their latest offering and is based on the Glock 45 as its core but features an included Holosun Red Dot optics directly mounted to the slide, as well as Ameriglo suppressor-height sights and custom engraving featuring the Gunsite Academy logo – a well-known firearms training academy located in Paulden, Arizona founded by the legendary Lt. Colonel Jeff Cooper.

Laugo Arms, known for designing the Scorpion and selling it to CZ, began making a splash with their Alien pistol in 2018-2019. The Alien is an interesting design, using a gas piston delayed blowback system and incorporating a non-reciprocating modular top sight rail over a fixed barrel. Since the SHOT Show 2020 announcement that they were working on bringing the Alien to the US, Lancer Systems has been Laugo’s American importation, sales, and service partner. This relationship is about to come to an end, however. Lancer Systems issued a press release on January 1st, 2023 stating that Laugo Arms is set to officially open their own US operation, taking over Alien support in the States from Lancer. Read the full press release below.

In this unprecedented episode of TFBTV, JamesReeves has the distinct honor of interviewing Franco Beretta, the 15th generation leader of the oldest gun company in the world, Fabbrica d’Armi Beretta. Mr. Beretta talks guns, hobbies, and even answers viewer questions sent in by SubscribeStar and Utreon supporters of the channel. Despite being perhaps one of the most powerful members of the gun industry, Mr. Beretta is down-to-earth, approachable, and straightforward. Enjoy this one-of-a-kind interview with one of the most influential persons of the gun community.

The Düsseldorf Higher Regional Court has ruled against C.G. Haenel’s appeal against the courts earlier decision that Haenel had infringed on Heckler & Koch’s patents. A statement was released by the Ministry of Justice of North Rhine-Westphalia that outlined the case and the courts ruling on 30 December.

Established in 2020, Gun of the Month Club is a Cabot Guns subscription program that allows its members to acquire a custom limited edition Cabot 1911 pistol each month of the year. Cabot Guns have just released the 2023 collection of Gun of the Month Club pistols which has a total value of over $115,000. Only 23 of each of these pistols will be produced matching the number of members of the club. Below you can find the list of the 2023 pistols with manufacturer descriptions. For more pictures of this collection’s pistols, visit the GOTM2023 page here. To take a look at Gun of the Month Club pistols of previous years, click on the following links: GOTM2020, GOTM2021, GOTM2022.

The GWACS Armory/KE Arms lawsuit saga is set to continue well into 2023. For those who are out of the loop, GWACS Armory is suing KE Arms on the grounds that the KP-15 lower receiver violates certain NDA and trade secrets. If you’re interested in reading what has happened so far with this firearms industry lawsuit, we’ve provided several links down below to articles that should give you a good overview of what has happened so far.

Caracal is a 15 years old firearms manufacturing company based in the capital of the United Arab Emirates, Abu Dhabi. While the name is now known worldwide, the company still faces some misconceptions about its true capabilities. TFB got the chance to enjoy a tour of the facilities of Caracal, and we believe our readers will appreciate it as well.

Maybe it’s my inner nerd acting up, but I find this seemingly bland press release about barrel manufacturing intriguing. The world of barrel makers is small, with only a handful of companies producing barrels for most of the well-known firearms manufacturers. Years ago I had the opportunity to tour Colt’s facilities in Hartford, Connecticut – watching the massive machines cut rifling and profile barrels was like looking back in time to the birth of the industrial age. Vortakt Barrel Works is investing $1.5M in automation processes to boost production efficiency.

Czechoslovak Group (CSG) has acquired a majority 70% stake in Italian ammunition manufacturer Fiocchi. The family-owned business has been producing ammunition since the late 1870s and CSG’s announcement states that the Fiocchi family will retain a minority stake in the company. CSG’s portfolio covers a range of sectors including aerospace, defense and the automotive industry.

When people ask me about my hobbies, I am often hesitant to say “guns”, so my usual answer is “travel”. Frankly, it is both. And the more I travel, the more I understand that there are very few places in the world, outside of the US, that have an actual gun culture. More often than not, guns are a privilege available only to the rich and well-connected, and in very few places gun ownership is mainstream. But the Philippines are a good exception to that rule.

Fiocchi has announced plans for a new primer factory – expanding its operations in Arkansas with a new 281-acre site in the Port of Little Rock. The $41.5 million investment will create 120 new jobs in the region. The company hopes to begin construction in 2023 and anticipates the first stage of operational capacity at its new Little Rock primer manufacturing plant will start early in 2025.

Beretta Holding S.A recently acquired Norma Precision and will now be investing up to $60 million in a brand new 300,000-square-foot manufacturing and distribution hub in Savannah, Georgia. Beretta Holding S.A. is the parent company of the famous Industrial Group, it operates more than 15 manufacturing sites spanning across the globe and employs over 6,500 people.

The Rock Island Auction Company was established in 1993 by Pat Hogan and has since grown to be one of the most well-respected and well-known names in the firearms industry for firearms auctions and other militaria collectibles and curios. Rock Island dedicates a considerable amount of time, and resources to acquiring new and old collectibles alike for their auctions, but does a lot of the behind-the-scenes work in researching each piece to asses not only its physical value but historical value as well. In the past, you’ve seen some pretty high-profile auctions featured here on TFB like the recent one featuring Han Solo’s DL-44 blaster pistol from the movie Star Wars (sold for over $1M USD). Today I bring on Joel from the Rock Island Auction Company to hear about their upcoming Premier Auction #87, as well as some of Joel’s personal favorite auctions from the past and some of the trends he’s noticed about the firearm collecting world during his tenure with RIAC.

Geisslele Automatics won a contract to supply AR-15 rifles to Customs and Border Protection (CBP). This new contract includes both complete rifles and upper receiver groups. Let’s take a look at the specifics of this contract, and what it might mean for Geissele’s future civilian offerings.

Allen Engineering is a well-known name in the world of clone rifles. Their AEM5 silencer is the “clone correct” option for a Mk12 build. Recently, Trajectory Arms announced that they would be taking over production of the AEM5 silencers.

While researching the Indian small arms procurement program and reading the news from the DefExpo 2022 exhibition, I came across quite an interesting Indian rifle called INDRA (name of a Hindu deity) made by Astr Defence, a private small arms manufacturing company from Hubballi, Karnataka, India. INDRA is a gas-operated multi-caliber modular rifle that apparently has been in development for several years. Let’s take a closer look.

In this episode of TFBTV, James Reeves has the honor of interviewing Beretta’s general manager, Mr. Carlo Ferlito, asking him 20 viewer questions about Beretta. Questions include everything from future releases to new calibers, the history of Beretta’s lineup, and the status of current models. These questions were submitted by our supporters on Patreon, Utreon, and SubscribeStar – remember that we are viewer supported and need your help to continue. Consider supporting TFBTV at the links below.