TriStar announced that the company would now sell its 12 gauge Cobra pump action shotguns with 3.5″ chambers. The new guns will be called Cobra Mag shotguns.

Remington announced the brand new V3 shotgun in December and the company has finally (officially) announced the full line specifications. They are already shipping to dealers.

Gun safes have been on our minds as of late thanks to a recent rush of said safes on the market. Among those recently announced: Winchester’s 150th Anniversary safe and Realtree’s under-the-bed and stackable safe. Just how theft-proof is your safe? Unfortunately for one Missouri gun owner, it wasn’t enough.

Starting where I left off on part one of the Ilion, Ny Remington plant tour let’s move on shotguns and a short tour of the rifle area and what goes into parts making and assembly of these guns.

When reading through comments on a webpage or social media site, a response of +1 typically means the commenter agrees with something that was previously stated by saying he or she is one more person to state whatever point was made. O.F. Mossberg & Sons is applying a similar line of thinking to its 590A1 line of shotguns. Only for them, the +1 means one additional round of authoritative 12 gauge ammunition in the tube.

This is the second part of the Remington Tour. This is the Ilion, Ny plant in Herkimer Co. Let me start by sharing some statistical information on the area, the employees and the plant itself.

Gun storage is something that comes up with increasing frequency in my house thanks to the way our firearms seem to multiply like rabbits. Efficient organizing is something else I, personally, attempt to carry out, and that certainly comes into play with storing firearms. There are quite a few safes out there from full-sized, fire-resistant uprights to smaller bedside options to truly small single-pistol safes. Each type has a use but the average safe doesn’t utilize a space so many of us tend to overlook when it comes to firearms storage (and I do not mean sliding your gun under the bed at night, a habit some have which we can discuss at a later date). New from Realtree is a safe that does just that: makes use of that unused space under your bed for locking away your guns.

Gardening and guns, they go together, right? Well, that’s apparently what Per Cromwell of Swedish “guerrilla” marketing group Studio Total thought when he came up with the idea of the “Flower Shell”, a 12 Gauge shotgun shell that shoots seeds instead of shot. The studio released two videos showing the shells “in action”, where a hatted individual stands around somewhat awkwardly with a shotgun before firing it into the ground to plant seeds, and at waist-height to “disperse” them. Somewhat anti-climactically, Studio Total neglected to show any shots of the plants subsequently growing, which leaves the videos as essentially artistically edited segments of someone goofily shooting a shotgun at nothing for no reason.

In the hunting world there tend to be some fairly fiercely-held beliefs when it comes to the rifles-versus-shotguns argument. While there are pros to each, there’s one way to bring some rifle fans into the shotgun-loving camp: make a better choke tube. Or at least that’s the way to get some hog hunters using shotguns next time they’re going out after a big boar. Trulock has decided to make that happen.

In what is looking to be a real blast from the past, a group of individuals are putting together something called Resurgence 3-Gun. It is a 3 gun competition, but the similarity with current 3 gun competitions is where it ends. Unbeknownst to me, the sport of 3 Gun as we know it today, got its origins in the early 1980s with the Soldier of Fortune Magazine competitions that initially started the activity, basing it on realistic fighting conditions, using the three disciplines. The last Soldier of Fortune 3 gun match happened in 2001, and there hasn’t been one since. A number of folks have reinvented the matches, using the same rules as the original match, but there hasn’t been anything put on that level of organization. This “Resurgence 3 gun” match will be from September 21-25 of this year, in Logan, New Mexico, at the Blue Steel Ranch. The emphasis will be on military/LE rifles, military equipment, and physical fitness. It doesn’t seem that this is a Soldier of Fortune magazine officially sanctioned and sponsored event, but instead is taking the spirit of the original competitions as an avenue for competitors who may want something more than today’s 3 gun matches, or for those who want something more from the match.

Winchester was founded in 1866 and as you all know the legendary company is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. That celebration kicked off at SHOT and will be continuing throughout the year. Next on the celebration agenda is an anniversary safe which was part of the company’s booth at SHOT Show this past January.

Christian Brown is a wounded Marine Veteran who lost his legs in Afghanistan. He still likes to shoot and he shot a 3Gun match with the help of a friend.

This picture has been making the rounds since at least 2012, when it first came out in a news report from New York. Since then the original description has been convoluted throughout different posts and articles, all either half true or completely incorrect. The original memo apparently came out from the Indianapolis Metro Police Department and included a picture from a confiscated source, while the news story in New York included an actual example. Either way, Snopes has the full story on it.

We all know that when the importation of Saiga rifles and shotguns was halted as a result of some political nonsense that we aren’t going to dive into several companies made a go at filling that void. Sadly nothing was quite what the market wanted as a replacement for the Saiga. Kalashnikov USA has come up with a shotgun that they feel will fill that void. After looking the shotgun over I happen to agree with them. The build quality of the KS-12 that I was able to inspect is about what one would expect from a Izhmash produced gun and they made sure that it accepted the Saiga 12 magazines. Thankfully that allows shooters use any of the metric ton of magazines that are currently on the market.

Benelli was founded in 1967 and quickly built a reputation for designing and manufacturing well-made firearms. Their attention to detail and willingness to think outside the industry box has proven successful on more than one occasion, especially as of late, and now they’ve turned that attention to pheasant hunting. The Ethos is Benelli’s newest offering, but it is not just any 28-gauge shotgun. This shotgun takes 3″ shotshells.

Oleg Volk produced a Youtube video with Fostech’s Origin 12, 12 gauge shotgun, shooting through a suppressor, and a drum. It was all over the internet in days and we got a chance to check out the shotgun while at SHOT. Fostech is a family run business that takes its name from the founders last name, Foster.  They make a number of AR related parts in addition to the Origin 12 shotgun, such as bumpfire stocks, triggers, and complete AR lowers. However their shotgun has been around for a couple of years and is available in either NFA Short Barrel Shotgun or legal barrel lengths. Essentially it is an extremely modified Kalashnikov action with a number of changes.

Toby Mellville of Bad Company Tactical was out at SHOT with his rifle and handgun rapid retention systems on hand. These systems have been out for a while now, but this was the first time I had heard of them. Unlike some of these kydex “M4 holsters” out on the market, the R2S works as a picatinny mounted retention system. The mount can go on the top rail, or some versions go on a side rail. Either way, imagine a complete minimalist Safariland holster, with just the ALS system, sans the actual holster covering. There is a square mounted piece that attaches to MOLLE, or a belt, that has a V shaped opening, with a clip at the bottom of the V, and a square shaped button at the top. The weapon system mount has a picatinny mounted V shaped extrusion, that is then slipped into the V shaped opening on a users belt/flak jacket, thus holstering the weapon until the square shaped button is pressed to release it.

There were a number of Turkish companies at SHOT, specifically three that I came across while on the lower level. There might have been more among the booths, but these were the ones that I was able to make contact with. You might notice that Uzkon and Deryra have very similar designs of semiautomatic shotguns, both visually like an AR, magazine fed, carrying handle, and picatinny rails on the handguard. I’m assuming that the design is made by both, with royalties paid to one or the other.

Last year Mesa Tactical partnered up with Beretta to make accessories for their shotguns. Well Mesa Tactical just released their new telescoping and hydraulic recoil stock kits for the Beretta 1301 semi-auto shotguns. Their stock kit is actually available in three different variations, you can get just the adapter where you can add your own AR-15 pistol grip, buffer tube and stock of your choice. The second option is their kit that includes the adapter, a Hogue rubber overmold pistol grip, aluminum mil-spec buffer tube and an M4 polymer stock. The third option includes their telescoping hydraulic recoil system that reduces felt recoil by up to 70%.

I stopped by Crye Precision’s booth today to see what was going on with the SIX12, as nothing had really been heard about it over the last year.  Unfortunately the shotgun’s lead designer wasn’t there at the time, but Caleb Crye took the time to explain to me the current state of development, and any changes that had been made.  The most significant change that he pointed out to me was that the barrel and cylinders are now made out of titanium.  Another thing I noticed about the cylinders is that they now do not have any cuts on the side.

It’s official: Remington is now shipping the V3. I covered this last year in a review you guys can see at http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2014/12/31/review-new-2015-remington-v3-shotgun/ (yes, Phil’s name is on it but as you can see by the note at the bottom of the review, it was actually written by yours truly).

Adaptive Tactical had a number of interesting products available for SHOT 2016. The first one is a sort of replacement pump for the Mossberg and Remington pump action shotguns. It is a polymer wraparound pump that incorporates picatinny rails on the top and on the sides of the wraparound section, while including a rearward and a forward handstop while operating the pump action. It being a wraparound pump, it includes an empty space through which a shooter can still fully acquire the front bead, while having the ability to mount a light, or even an optic on top of it. It is called the Wraptor Forend, and retails for $49.99.

If there’s one thing all gun owners have, it’s ammo – lots and lots of ammo. Finding ways to store said ammunition can be a bit of a challenge, especially if you’re looking at longterm storage or reloading. Thin cardboard boxes, although capable of showcasing colorful designs and brand logos, don’t stand up to the test of time. With that in mind, if you’re looking for a storage option that can stand up to the passage of time, take a look at what’s new from MTM Case-Gard: the Shell Stack.

Kel-Tec brought out their line of firearms to the range at Media Day. The suppressed KSG caught my eye. At first glance I thought it was a SilencerCo Salvo 12 but the shape is different. This is made by Aklys Defense and uses a unique QD attachment muzzle device. This allows the user to install muzzle brakes, standoff devices and their suppressor at a whim. The suppressor retails for just a little over $1,000. Check them out here.

While I was at the booth shooting the DP-12 double barreled pump shotgun I noticed two other shotguns on display. The makers of the DP-12 are branching into semi-automatic shotguns. They have two versions of magazine fed semi-auto shotguns.  A standard shotgun configuration and a bullpup. Unfortunately they were non-functioning prototypes with 3D Printed components.

Samco Global was a firearms importer and distributer that has been around for decades. Recently the company got into a large legal battle in July of 2015. This was between two of the owners both arguing over how much of the company the other owned and who owed whom. That legal battle has ended in the company filing for bankruptcy, and the entire warehouse inventory is now up for auction. Unfortunately this isn’t an individual auction where the public can attend, and bid on firearms like with Rock Island Auction Company or James Julia. The auction is for the entire warehouse, of not just firearms, but also all the assorted ammunition, spare parts, and warehouse equipment such as forklifts and tools. A local Miami newspaper lists the assets and liabilities from one to ten million dollars, while the actual auction page lists it as 1.5 million dollars. It is a pity that such a good supply of historic rifles had to go under due to money squabbling, but it appears that it was for the best, many people have recently complained of bad service from the company, and it appears to have been equally mismanaged from the inside.

This video came out in March of 2015, but is really a hoot of sorts to watch. Two women in Canada combine their love of skeet shooting and hockey, in addition to a very well choreographed drone camera, and create an excellent video of them hitting clay pigeons while hitting them off a ramp with a hockey stick! The one woman is in the kneeling, while the other shoots clay pigeons off of a ramp into the direction of the shotgun.

Winchester as founded in 1866 by Oliver Winchester as the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. The company’s first gun was, of course, the Model 1866, a lever-action repeating rifle chambered in .44 Henry. The Model 1866 was nicknamed the “Yellow Boy” due to the color of its receiver which was made from a bronze and brass alloy that resulted in a dull yellow coloration. Then there was the Model 1873 which became known as “The Gun That Won the West”. Over the years there have been many changes as is the norm for the majority of companies, but the name of Winchester remains synonymous with the Wild West and a certain dedication to quality. This year, in 2016, Winchester is celebrating 150 years.

The NRA Whittington Center is an absolute gem of American shooting. I’ve always been looking for an excuse to blog about the world renowned shooting center for a while, but this short video recently posted by Nosler Ammunition highlights the center in a way that I’ve never seen before. They’ve used some high quality footage of shooters, and combined it with some excellent drone shots of the area to put together an awesome video overview of the entire place.

Smart guns are at the front of the gun industry’s mind right now. This is due in large part to Obama’s recent order that the Department of Defense, Justice Department, and Department of Homeland Security must come up with a viable plan to speed along the progress of smart gun technology. In the wake of Obama’s executive order announcements at the beginning of January 2016, a company by the name of Sentinl took it upon themselves to make a big announcement: they just happened to have a product coming out of R and D capable of fulfilling Obama’s request.