As a blogger, one can’t help but make comparisons between SHOT Show and NRAAM. At the same time, it’s apples to oranges as well. SHOT show is for industry and media only. The entire focus is different as a result. NRAAM, however, is for the general public. Any NRA member can attend (if you can get parking) and the vendors are using an entirely different set of tactics to get their products out there.
The NRA convention is significantly smaller than SHOT show and exponentially more relaxed. It’s been fun meeting people who are fans of the site though and that’s been my favorite part of the trip.
Glock 43
For this week’s Free For All Friday, we put out the call for users to send in what they want us to report on for the show. Following that request, we got a disturbingly large number of emails from people who wanted us to check out the Glock 43. It was actually the only question we got but we got A LOT of them (couple hundred at last count).
People have been mercilessly begging for a single stack, 9mm Glock for a while now and they finally listened. While the MSRP is over $500, real street price will more than likely be in the low $400 range once the initial rush to purchase is over. It will come with a flush mag and one with a slight extension on which you can rest your pinky. Quality wise, it’s a Glock. It’s solid, well built and the trigger feels exactly like all other Glocks. It breaks down and functions like a Glock. The night sights from the 42 are useable on the 43 BUT those aren’t available to the general public yet anyway and no one at Glock knows when they will be so it’s kind of a moot point.
Also, much like the Glock 42, the 43 (why don’t they make the names easier to keep straight!?) feels like they took a normal Glock and spent some time on a belt sander. All the edges are smoothed down and rounded more than your typical boxy Glock. If I had to make a comparison, and Chris agrees with me on this one, Glock is very much like Porsche (the car manufacturer). Jeremy Clarkson, formerly of Top Gear fame, once described Porsche as having “the laziest designers in the world”. Every year, instead of make a new style of car, they instead photocopy their old one and then go to the pub. Glock is very much in the same boat. Don’t get me wrong, they’re fantastic guns, but they’re following more of an evolution instead of innovation at this point. So in looking back to my car comparison, if the Glock 19 is the Porsche 911 then the 42 would be the Boxter. Both are great, but it’s getting a bit boring.
I’d still buy the heck out of one.
Springfield Armory
Spent a little time with the XD Mod2. It’s a nice little compact. It’s slightly larger than the XDs and they’ve completely redesigned the grips. Gone are those deep ridges and instead it seems like they’ve integrated Talon grips into the handle. I like it. If I were to carry it IWB, the handle wouldn’t rend my flesh in the way other XD pistols do but it didn’t feel like I would be giving up any grip traction in the process.
5.11 Tactical
They’ve got some freakin’ sweet new shirts coming out as well as a designer-style purse for women that has a nice integrated gun compartment. The thing that struck me about the purse was that it was actually nice. Aside from what she will tell you, I actually do listen to everything my wife says and her common complaint is that it seems few of the carry purse designers ever actually talked to women. Most are absolutely hideous and scream “hey, this is a purse that has a gun in it!”. The 5.11 purse, however, is very understated. It’s a simple black design and, frankly, reminded my of a Coach purse in terms of style. You would probably never even notice a woman carrying it as opposed to some of the other carry purses out there. I know off body carry isn’t an ideal choice but if it’s your only choice then it’s better than not carrying at all.
NRA for Pets
It’s a new program from the NRA where members get all kinds of discounts on various pet products. As someone who loves animals and whose wife is studying to be a veterinarian, this is a fantastic addition to NRA’s benefit package.
FNH
I so want one of their Over/Under competition shotguns. I want one good.
Even though the doctor cleared me to go back to work and such after my pneumonia, my body is still wrecked. Walking around today took a lot out of me and the bed is calling to me. Stay tuned for the report on Day 2!
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