The Browning Tracker Plus XP gives you a comfortable, Mossy Oak camo seat in the woods. It folds up and goes on your back, pack style. $49.99 – Phil BourjailyBushnell announced its new Fusion 1600 laser rangefinder-binocular. Fully multi-coated, with rifle and bow modes and 10- to 1600-yard ranging performance, the Fusion lets you adjust for angles and bullet compensation. A very cool piece of gear, priced at a competitive $900. – Jay CassellFans of hammer doubles should love CZ’s new Hammer Classic. The 12 gauge combines old-fashioned good looks with modern choke tubed 30-inch barrels. There’s also a 20-inch barreled cowboy action model. $915. – Phil BourjailyBonnie Huseby at the American Tactical BoothAt the Columbia booth, VP Joe Boyle told me about the new Omni-Heat Technology, a fabric that has the attributes of a space blanket but is breathable. Columbia has put Omni-Heat into a number of its jackets, including the Wader Wigeon jacket, as well as a boot that features electric heat. Simply charge the boot, which has micro wires throughout, and you’re good to go for six hours on high (168*) or 8 hours on low (148*). – Jay CassellCampco’s UZI Tactical Pen has a sharpened bezel top allowing you to gouge a DNA sample out of an attacker. Here it is next to your average pen. $19.99 – Phil BourjailyThis year’s headliner at Gerber is the Octane Multitool, a new model with 9 tools (including a plastic clamshell opener), partially serrated blade, and black or gray handle. Retail price on the Octane is an inexpensive $67.50. – Jay CassellLaura Francese at the Redfield booth.The new short stoke piston design of the** PPS** from Rock River Arms makes it possible to fit this carbine with a folding stock. Like all Rock River rifles, it can be built to customer order. $1500-$1600 – Phil BourjailyFiocchi’s new** Tundra ammunition** is green and choke friendly. Tungsten based, mixed with a polymer, the shot is not as heavy as lead, and deforms easily, making it ideal for use in older barrels. It’s competitively priced, according to marketing director Dave Shaw, and it’s available in sizes BB to 6. – Jay CassellThis neoprene sling from Vero Vellini lets you carry your rifle backpack style over both shoulders if you have a heavy load to carry. $94.99 – Phil BourjailyTraditions, which won Best of the Best two years ago, now has a new 50-caliber Vortex ultralight rifle, with a chrome-moly barrel, that weighs only 6 1/4 pounds! The barrel has a Cerakote finish, the trigger is lighter than 3 pounds, and the gun comes in black or Realtree AD. Price is an amazingly low $499 for the camo gun, $439 for the black model. If you haven’t gotten into muzzleloading, this gun will make you reconsider. – Jay CassellHooter’s hot wings, anyone?From Auto Ordnance comes this replica of the WWII .30 caliber carbine. This is the folding stock version made popular by the miniseries “Band of Brothers” $899 – Phil BourjailyG-Man Art Moore of Auto Ordnance holds a TAS pistol version of the iconic Tommy gun.Wenger has a bunch of new knives this year, with a number of takeoffs on their Ranger series. I was impressed with three new yellow knives Wenger is doing in cooperation with Patagonia. Called WPER (Wenger-Patagonia-Expedition-Race) knives, the series includes the EvoGrip 81WPER, with knife and scissor ($27); the EvoGrip S18 WPER, which includes a blade, saw, and scissors ($62); and the Ranger Grip 179WPER ($73). – Jay CassellThe Fully Flocked King Strut Decoy is a collapsible foam gobbler decoy that adds realism. $84.99 – Phil BourjailyThe M3LT Combat Light from Surefire also caught my attention. One of a number of innovative introductions from this edgy company, the Combat Light can deliver from 70 up to an incredible 400 Lumens at a time. Run on three Lithium batteries, it retails for $450 – which may sound like a lot until you’ve actually seen how this light can thoroughly illuminate a whole area. – Jay CassellBiff Sumner of Biff’s Gun World has been to every SHOT Show but one. He’s shown here with employee Nancy Bratcher.This new** T/C** single shot youth rifle called the Hot Shot is scaled down to fit younger shooters with a short stock and a 20-inch barrel. It has a peep sight and a hammer block safety. – Phil BourjailyRocky has a new line of mountain stalker apparel, a lightweight “Broadhead” jacket designed for bowhunters (featuring a compressible zippering system and safety harness slot–$140), and an extremely lightweight Broadhead bowhunting shoe, which retails for $149. – Jay CassellChampion’s two-ton safe holds an arsenal. $11,999. – Phil BourjailyThis year Filson has raised the bar on a number of lines, with three shooting vests leading the way. The one I was drooling over was an oil-finish cloth shooting vest. Fully lined, with a Moleskin upper and fully lined pockets, it will accept Limbsaver pads on either shoulder, so both right- and left-handed gunners can use it. Price for this vest, and the new Dry Finish Tin Cloth vest, is $200. – Jay CassellThese bad guy paper targets from PJL in Belgium can be switched from gun-wielding assailants to innocent bystanders by replacing the weapons with everyday objects. – Phil BourjailyThe Lead Sled FCE combines two of Caldwell’s most popular products: the recoil-taming Lead Sled and the steady, easily adjustable Fire Control rest. $350 – Phil Bourjaily
