SHOT SHOW 2024 is in the books now and there are many lessons, ideas and industry trends that are coming so we take a look at a few of them.
TRAINING
Specifically training using technology which has been making a bigger impact every year. This year is no exception and see’s technology being used to make training safer, cheaper and give better information on what people are doing wrong. While at Industry Day I had the opportunity to look at Mantis X training systems and I was very impressed by the amount of data readily available immediately after I shot at their booth. I could tell what I did before, at the time of the shot and after during sear reset, all safely at their booth and without ammo. As we spoke about in the video, this takes new shooter training to a much higher level and does it safely. See Mantis X here: https://youtu.be/PGIDFnm5m04
There are many other training systems leveraging technology but the way forward is clear, training without ammo, safely with mounds of data available to help shooters improve, is a hot topic in the industry and the field is expanding at a rapid pace.
LEAD FREE AMMO
SIM-X says, “Get the lead out” and they aren’t the only company moving forward quickly in that direction. SIM-X approaches the problem with a lighter lead free core bullet encased in a copper alloy jacket that is lighter in weight and in 9mm Luger can exit the barrel of your pistol at 2200+FPS using a 50 grain bullet while standard 9mm Luger ammo is normally in the range of 1110 to 1200FPS using 124/115 grain bullets. In 45 Auto SIM X uses a 78 grain bullet that exits the barrel at over 1800 FPS where normally you see 230 and 200 grain bullets exiting at 850 to 900 FPS. That is quite a difference but when I observed them at the range the effect of the lighter bullet on steel was immense. Seeing the results of their ammo testing in a FBI Gel Block proved the impact of SIM-X ammo is greatly enhanced by using their technology, it was impressive but more so when you factor in the felt recoil is 40 to 50% LESS than the standard lead based ammunition.
SIM-X isn’t the only ammunition provider moving away from lead based ammo, APEX is also in that field via their Tungsten Super Shot line of shotgun ammunition. By using their ultra -high-density tungsten rather than steel, APEX is able to put more shot into each cartridge shell, maintain a tighter pattern down range and deliver increased knockdown power while being non-toxic to the environment. APEX deliver’s the most consistent patterns in the industry, and utilizes their ultra-high-density tungsten shot in it’s Turkey, Upland, Waterfowl and Predator hunting loads all available in 12, 16, 20 and 28 gauge and .410 shot shells. There are other non-toxic alloys on the market but so far none have managed to match the density of APEX’s new tungsten shot.
A newcomer into the ammunition field is TYPHON Ordnance dealing strictly with lead-free ammunition. They also use a patented high density ammunition allowing shooters to have superior external ballistics and still maintaining devastating terminal effects downrange versus standard lead projectiles. They are a young company, established in 2023 but they excel in manufacturing premium, eco-friendly and performance driven lead-free ammunition. By starting out in a totally lead-free product they are leveraging the 100+ years’ experience of their staff, a meticulous manufacturing process and cutting-edge technology to produce their high performance ammunition in hopes of becoming a benchmark in the industry.
This new type of alloy based/high density ammunition offers better performance, more control over penetration, less recoil and is non-toxic to the environment. So, lead-free ammo is here to stay and while it’s not replacing our old lead based favorites today, it will in the near future.
TECHNOLOGY in COMMUNICATIONS
Technology is permeating the entire industry making better guns, ammunition, communications and personnel protection. In communications, companies like GoDark Bags offer electronic device protection from EMP that anyone can have and use. Also helping to keep communications operational on another front, Bolton Technical offers a system that can help fix poor cellular and network signals, and even better it’s portable! Living in NW Florida we sometimes joke “being prepared for the Zombie Apocalypse but hurricanes come every year” and every year they seem to hit somewhere in Florida and/or the Gulf Coast. Trying to provide aid to trapped people and Emergency Services is extremely difficult but made worse with no communication lines to the outside world. Bolton Technical is working on improving that with Cell signal boosters and pushing into the SATCOM realm as well. They understand the need of portable communications and are stepping up to do something about it so that “the lines stay open” when they need to.
I’ll have more to come highlighting other great companies and products from SHOT SHOW soon.
Garfield out
