Now that the barrels of test guns at the SHOT Show have cooled we find that the trend in shotguns this year is light weight and trap-competition-ready models.
Benelli's Ultra Light is a 20-gauge auto loader that weighs in at 5.2 pounds. Talk about svelt. Sign me up to walk all day in woods with one of those.
Franchi, too, has an aluminum alloy 12 gauge auto at a lithe 6.5 pounds. You heard about Browning's BPS in 16 gauge from a previous post, plus the low profile
Cynergy is now rigged for trap shooting. Caesar Guerini is also falunting their
Magnus Trap, which has this DTS system with an adjustable rib to change the point of impact. The Browning and Guerini come with the typical trap features—adjustable stock, extended tubes. Remington has also tarted up thier
1100 with a nickle-plated reciever, gold trigger, and with semi-fancy American walnut. Who are they kidding, that's full-fancy if you ask me. What really caught my eye in the trap offerings, however, is the
H&R Topper Trap gun. Can you image you can get into the trap game for less than $400? I would love to see the faces of those Perazzi guys when they see you break a clean 50 and they ask what type of gun you're shooting.
As went Winchester so goes Marlin. As you may know Marlin was swallowed whole along with H&R late in 2007. With any acquisition, the purchasing company needs to consolidate to save costs. In this case the cost savings comes at the cost of some 625 jobs in both factories. The 140-year-old gun maker will no longer manufacturer rifles in their North Haven plant. The Freedom Group, which owns the Marlin brand along with Remington, Bushmaster, and others, is moving Marlin’s manufacturing to their factory in Ilion, NY. No need to make a mad rush to get a Marlin with “North Haven, Connecticut” stamped in the barrel. The transition will happen over a year. Marlin began manufacturing in CT in 1870. In June 2011the plant will close.
Non Male. Yes sleek, beautiful and Italian. Not bad. Benelli likes to refer to their newest Legacy family member as she. And we can’t blame them. The new 28-gauge Legacy weighs only a lithe 5 pounds. That’s hunt-all-day weight. It comes with either a 24- or 26-inch barrel that's topped with a super-light, carbon fiber vent rib, red-bar front sight, mid-bead and uses Benelli's Crio choke tubes. It supposedly has all the other Benelli hallmarks, too, like fast-firing and ultra-reliable Inertia Driven operating system. With the silver receiver and tasteful engraving along with walnut stock and forearm she is splendid gun to look at. I can only image how delightful she may be to hold.
When you hear words like: “Sleek.” “Beautiful.” “Italian.” The first thing probably not to come to mind is a shotgun, but Benelli is teasing us again this year. Last year it was with the launch of the Vinci. Remember the video that was like an action movie? This year they have gone visceral. Benelli is comparing their 
During the depression, authors like F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote lavishly of the high life. And brother if you could spare a dime, the movie theater was also an escape. They served the purpose that cable TV and the internet do today—they distract the public of hard times and bring us entertainment. Fitzgerald allowed us to peek into an affluent world and become part of it if only for a few chapters. And Hollywood gave us images of we still remember. Benelli is offering more than a peek into that world. A limited edition—only 200 will reach US shores—shotgun called the 
It had become sort of a joke when we would drive through Hartford and pass the Blue Dome of the old Colt factory. I would say to my son: You know that Blue Dome… And he would finish the sentence: ..is the old Colt firearms factory. Today, Colt Firearms is not a big player in the firearms business, but from the late 19th century to the mid 20th century, Colt manufactured many popular firearms. The Single Action Army and 1911 are just two iconic products they produced—and still do today but with fierce competition from domestic and foreign producers. Ironically, one of those knock off manufacturers, United States Fire Arms, actually produced SAAs in the old Colt building. USFA has since moved out of the space and, by the way, makes a swell clone of the SAA. Look for an upcoming Unboxing story on one. Samuel Colt was a true marketer. He produced a good product and he made sure everyone knew about. The 1863 revolver was a revelation. It wasn’t just a single shooter but a six-shooter. Colt never saw the great success of his company, he dies and his wife ran the company for 40 years ushering in its success. I am sure Colt is smirking from wherever he is, knowing his 
NH has been hit hard lately with firearm manufacturing lay-offs. S&W announced a few weeks ago a lay-off and now SIG has announced a 10% lay-off of production staff. In an interesting turn of events and in light of the compensation packages for CEOs, SIG is suing a former chef executive and chairman who headed the company from 2005 to 2008. He is alleged to have gone on African safaris on the company’s dime in excess of $830K. And I have a problem with a $11.99 in-room movie on my expenses. SIG also contends he took at least $552,000 for "purely personal reasons" and collected some $88,000 in stipends. He also rounded up his compensation by $200,000 to cover taxes. And just add the proverbial frosting to the cake, SIG says he took credit for a reorganization plan that was actually the idea of other senior management at SIG. By taking the credit for someone else's idea he recieved some $8 million in equity compensation. Isn't anyone honest these days?
The Beretta Group of companies, which includes Beretta USA, Benelli USA, and Burris has pledged to give the NRA $1 million over the next five years. This gift will benefit the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action and their Civil Rights Defense Fund’s litigation activities to further expand the scope of Second Amendment protections. This is especially important in the wake of the recent US Supreme Court ruling in District of Columbia v. Heller. Beretta USA is part of the Beretta Holding Group, which is controlled by the Beretta family. The family has been in the gun business for 15 generations and dates back to 1526. They also own, among the manufacturers mentioned previously, Franchi, Uberti, Sako and Tikka. The last two are in Finland. They must be doing something right.
First the good news: 
No doubt our troops are the best equipped in the world. It takes more than just coming in with a low bid for Uncle Sam to pull out his check book. 
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery then it is with mixed emotion that someone is taking our cue. We 
No doubt you’d heard the buzz about Wal-Mart agreeing to join the 
Ruger (NYSE: RGR) has been awarded a 5-year contract by the Federal Bureau of Prisons for 1,750 9mm 
Recession? What Recession. Sales in ATK’s ammunition systems group increased by 15% to $381 million, compared to $331 million in the prior-year quarter. ATK Ammunition Systems is the nation’s largest producer of commercial and military ammunition. Part of their product line includes Military Small- and medium-caliber ammunition, propellants for tank tactical rounds, environmentally friendly ammunition and other applications. In the commercial sector, ATK provides Alliant Powder for reloaders and ammunition manufacturers, CCI, Speer, Lawman, and Blazer ammunition; Speer bullets for reloaders, Champion traps and paper, metal and clay targets, Federal Premium, Fusion, and Estate Cartridge ammunition, as well as other gear for hunters and shooters. Olin Corporation’s fourth quarter 2007 income from continuing operations was $29.6 million compared to $15.6 million in the fourth quarter of 2006. Winchester, which is part of Olin, earned $2.7 million in the quarter and completed its best year since 1994. During the quarter, Winchester benefited from higher selling prices and stronger than expected demand, which more than offset higher commodity and manufacturing costs. Oh, and if that’s good news the FBI awarded Winchester a second ammunition contract. Last year Winchester was tapped to supply the FBI with .40 Smith & Wesson loads. Now Hoover’s crew signed up for 9mm ammo. This 9mm contract is worth a $54 million, and the two contracts combined will be worth a maximum of $108 million over five years, making it the largest ammunition contracts in the history of federal law enforcement.
If you are interested the 9mm service round uses a 147-grain, bonded hollow point bullet.
Word on the street is the Winchester Model 70 is back. Winchester Repeating Arms announced the rifleman’s rifle will continue production in 2008 and it will continue to be American-made. I lament the fact that the barrel won’t be stamped with New Haven, Connecticut, but Columbia, South Carolina, is fine by me. Expect the classic pre-‘64 controlled round feeding, characteristic three-position safety, and improved fit and finish. They’ll ad a bit of enhanced accuracy, too. It will also tout a new M.O.A. trigger system. Should Savage and their 
The 36th annual 
American workers make great products, too bad not enough of those products are being sold. That may be a simplistic analysis of a complex situation but with Toyota about to speed past GM as the world’s largest automobile manufacturer and Remington being bought out by 
Orvis just recently opened the Orvis Shooting Grounds at