very impressive gear on show; our mates at First Tactical had a
superb new update with their “Defender” pants and combat shirt,
and their new “Operator” boot looks absolutely first rate.
Vertx, a favourite of the PMCI crew, announced the expansion
of their RECON line with a new pant and combat shirt, but the big
news of the show for me was the first showing of the Outdoor
Research tactical clothing line. Best known for their gloves and
accessories, which again are used by the PMCI team, the clothing
line arrived fully matured using some of the most cutting-edge
fabric technologies available, and looked very impressive to say
the least.
In relation to footwear LOWA had some new models to show off,
including the INNOX mid which you’ll see reviewed this month
in “Gear”; they also had some new low cut models which look
excellent. Salmon had some new colours in evidence, and both
Bates and Rocky had some tactical models that were worth a
look. Industry veteran ALTAMA also entered new territory with
their OTB maritime Assault Mid. I spent some time with the guys
at 707 Tactical Gear that run the SIXKA range of boots and I’ll be
reporting on those in more depth very soon.
Yet again when it comes to knives and tools the “usual
suspects” like Gerber and Leatherman had new things to show,
and you’ll find a report on new models from SOG Knives also in
this issue. As always though we like to work also with the “little
guys who do cool stuff” and it was a real pleasure to meet up
with Spartan Blades and Skallywag Tactical.
they’ve also delved fully into “M-LOK” as well. There were some
great rails and accessories on show for AK variants, but it was
their “PRO 15 inch Super Slim” system that really caught my eye;
if you’re looking to build a “lo-drag rifle” then this comes in a
whole range of models and is extremely light and low profile!
Also worthy of note in respect of accessories were GUNTECH
USA with their Air Lite handguards; they make over 700 AR parts
and accessories! Adaptive Tactical were certainly worth a look too,
especially for their VENOM shotgun magazine conversion kits.
Trinity Force also put in a strong showing with some really, really
well-priced stocks and stock packages.
In terms of Tech that caught my eye the big one has to be
the MantisX training system which you’ll find detailed further in
this issue. Ascendance “INTHERM” handguards I also mentioned
earlier, but on Range Day I also spent some time with the
guys from Tracking Point; this uses the same “lock and launch”
technology found in military fighter jets but for your rifle or
carbine and is very interesting indeed. Sometimes though it’s the
tiny things that really make you smile, and the miniscule “Ulti
Clip”, which offers up to 10x greater retention for your concealed
carry holster, ranks pretty highly in this respect.
IT’S A WRAP!
CLOTHING, FOOTWEAR, AND BLADES
It would be utterly impossible to cover every clothing and
footwear manufacturer, but suffice to say the “big boys” like
Blackhawk! And 5:11 had updates and additions to their already
extensive ranges. It was the smaller outfits though that had some
Of course what I’ve brought you here is just the very tip of the
iceberg, and there is SO much more exciting news that will be
coming by the time that IWA is upon us, and visiting SHOT show
this year has let me tap into it earlier than ever before. Of course
I also spoke at length to more manufacturers in the footwear,
clothing and equipment sectors, but that’s a whole other story
which I tend to concentrate on at IWA; suffice to say that there’s a
lot of tactical goodness lined up for evaluation and review, which
will drop into PMCI in the coming months.
SHOT Show is the largest trade show of its kind in the world,
attracting attendees from more than 100 countries, and it was
truly great to see friends old and new. Preparations have already
begun for next year’s 40th anniversary SHOT Show,
which will return to the Sands Expo on January 23rd-
26th 2018; hope to see you all there!
pmcimagazine.com