New Gear I Found At The NRA Convention

The National Rifle Association Annual Meeting (NRAAM) is a must-attend event for gun owners and industry professionals. This year’s event, which featured some of the best and newest items on the market, drew nearly 80,000 attendees. It’s safe to say that the people who came were not let down.

Here are a few products that stuck out from the crowd because they were unique or brand new to the market.

Mantis X Blackbeard

I had not gotten a chance to get my hands on the Mantis X Blackbeard auto-resetting trigger system by Mantis X. It’s a kit for an AR-style rifle you can use for dry-fire practice. If you want to do dry fire practice using your AR-15 without manually cycling the charging handle between trigger pulls, this is the way to do it. The Blackbeard replaces your bolt carrier and magazine and resets the trigger after each pull.

XS Sights Glock Sight Install Tool

XS Sights came out with a new Glock sight installation tool that is lightweight and compact, making it simple to adjust or install sights on the go. It has an open-top design that allows for sight installation even while an optic is still attached, or you can use it on suppressor height sights. The sight pusher has an integrated centering scale for fine-tuning before you put rounds down range, saving you some frustration. It works on any Glock firearm, regardless of model or generation. This is definitely worth looking at, along with their full line of sights. I have been running a set of their R3D Night Sights on my EDC Smith & Wesson Shield for a few months now. I should have swapped the stock sights out for the R3D a long time ago.

Handi-Racker

Even with the correct technique, some people still struggle to rack a slide. I have been an instructor for a long time, and I don’t know how I didn’t run across this before. The Handi-Racker is a tool designed to help those who have trouble racking a handgun. You put the Handi-Racker on top of the slide and place it on a table or hard surface. Push the handgun grip forward until the slide is all the way back, and then quickly remove your gun from the slot. It can be used to load and unload rounds, clear malfunctions, and take your pistol apart so you can clean it.

Charter Arms Undercover Lite Southpaw

Charter Arms makes an Undercover Lite Southpaw, a compact, lightweight defensive-style revolver designed specifically for left-handed shooters, which is why it caught my attention. The Southpaw is the lefty version of their Undercover Lite with a 5-round capacity and a 2-inch barrel. The rated trigger pull is 10 lbs., but it seemed pretty smooth when I dry-fired it.

Charter Arms Undercover

This is the right-handed version of the Charter Arms Undercover 38 Special, and it seems like it’s a quality gun. I will try to get my hands on this to take to the range for a full review.

Savior Equipment Pistol Rack

Savior Equipment offers a quality pistol rack with four, six, eight, or twelve slots. Its polymer plates and cushioned foam prevent firearms from banging into one another. Its large individual slots are ideal for even long-barreled semi-autos and revolvers. This is perfect for the inside of a safe or shelf in a gun room.

AXIL GS Extreme

One thing I do not like about a lot of the inside of the ear hearing protection is that it falls out whenever I am on the move. The AXIL GS Extreme prevents that because the flexible piece on the first couple of inches of the cord can be bent to go over your ear. I am not usually one for the added gimmicks in some products, but I like the Bluetooth feature now that I have tried it. I have yet to take these to the range, but I have used them around the shop, and so far, I like them, so I have my hopes up for the hearing protection portion. After my next range trip, I will let you know how the noise cancellation performed.

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Stealth Arms Platypus

I wanted to try and walk off with the Platypus by Stealth Arms, but it wouldn’t have fit in my backpack. This is another one I will fully review in the near future.

Beyond the actual products, the NRA Annual Meeting provided an opportunity for like-minded people to come together and share their passion for outdoor shooting sports. In addition to meeting other people who share your interests, you can also pick the brains of industry professionals and make some new friends.

I look forward to seeing everyone at next year’s NRA Annual Meeting!