“Man, I really like Vegas.” – Elvis Presley
LAS VEGAS – Maybe you are an Elvis fan, maybe not. It doesn’t really matter to me, a bigger fan of Flatt & Scruggs or Lynyrd Skynyrd than the King. But Elvis no doubt loved Las Vegas, and I am sure he did well there. I’m just saying I don’t think I will be moving there anytime soon.
No doubt this will endear me to the Las Vegas Commerce Commission people, but Vegas may not be my cup of tea.
Once a year, however, something happens out there in the desert that I do like, and that is The SHOT (Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade) Show, which is owned and operated by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, a trade association for the firearms, shooting, ammunition and hunting industry.
This year’s show, which was Jan. 19-22 at the Sands Expo and Convention Center, featured the wares of 1,600 exhibitors in an area covering more than 13 acres, which I am told is roughly the size of the Superdome in New Orleans or the base of the Great Pyramid at Giza. There are 13 miles of aisles around the booths, and I guarantee I didn’t get to all of them.
I tried! Anything and everything that you can imagine dealing with a firearm, ammo, hunting and shooting is present at this show, which is visited by 63,000 professionals from those industries as well as 2,500 members of the outdoors and mainstream media. So your humble outdoor scribe was in that crowd, and if you think I felt a little lost, you are right!
It would be impossible to tell you about everything I saw (even if I could remember it all), and the editors would not give me enough space anyway. But here are some of the high points of guns and ammo-related products:
‘ CZ-USA Shotguns:
OK, most of you have figured out by now that I have a soft spot for shotguns. I like rifles and have a bunch of them, but maybe I just like shotguns. In line with Case’s Outdoor Theorem No. 3 (“You can never have enough shotguns”) take a look at a couple of new offerings from CZ-USA this year.
The Drake is an over-and-under shotgun in 12- and 20-gauge with black chrome finish on the metal, laser-cut checkering and a Turkish walnut stock. It comes with five flush-mount interchangeable chokes, 3-inch chambers and a single selective trigger. All of that is really nice, but here is the kicker – this is a very nice over-and-under for a suggested retail price of about $600. Go find a comparable shotgun in this price range. I don’t think you can.
If you are a trap shooter (or want to become one), you need to give the new CZ All-American Trap Combo a once-over. This shotgun has two sets of barrels. The single barrel has a dial-adjustable rib that gives the shooter from 50/50 to 90/10 on his point of impact. (Trap shooters know what that is.) The other set of barrels has a stepped rib with a 50/50 point of impact. To ward off corrosion, the CNC-milled action is surface-hardened, resulting in a beautiful white metal finish that resembles brushed stainless.
The inner workings resemble those on shotguns much higher in price, with firing pins that ride in bushings and replaceable locking blocks for when the gun starts to loosen up after heavy use. (cz-usa.com)
‘ The Trijicon MRO (miniature rifle optic):
A sealed miniature reflex sight intended for use on rifles, carbines and shotguns to provide fast target acquisition. The large aperture and tapered light path maximizes the viewing area and allows for better situational awareness and fast target engagement – especially from non-standard shooting positions.
Now before you think I have gone all “Tactical Tommy,” you hunters out there take a look at those two sentences again. Use on shotguns, fast target acquisition, maximizes viewing area and better situational awareness in non-standard shooting positions.
We have just described most turkey hunting situations!
That’s right – I think this sight from Trijicon would make a dynamite optic on your turkey gun. While you are at it, look at the RMR (ruggedized miniature reflex) as well. (trijicon.com)
‘ Aguila Ammunition:
Generally, we do not see as many innovations in shot shells as we do in the rifle cartridge world, but Aguila has some things of interest.
How about a 12-gauge shotgun shell 1 3/4 inches in length? The MiniShell comes in 7 1/2 size shot, 00 buckshot and slugs. The size of the shell allows the shooter to nearly double the loading capacity of most shotguns. New shooters who want a lower noise and recoil level may like the MiniShell.
Aguila also has some very interesting options in various .22 caliber ammo, subsonic hunting rounds and powderless .22 ammunition. (aguilaammo.com)
Although I met some very nice people while I was in Vegas, I won’t go back for the gambling and the night life.
I will go back for The SHOT Show, the greatest show on earth.
“The Trail Less Traveled” is written by Larry Case, who lives in Fayette County, W.Va., has been a devoted outdoorsman all of his life and is a contributing columnist for The Times Free Press. You can write to him at larryocase3@gmail.com.