There’s a lot to cover during Range Day of SHOT Show, and unfortunately I cannot get to everything in one day. Here’s a wrap-up of other notable new releases I got a peak at during my brief time on the range.
Henry Repeating Arms made a splash for the second SHOT Show in a row this year. Coming out of left field is the Henry Lever Action Supreme. This is a lever-action rifle that feeds from standard AR-15 magazine, chambered in .223REM and .300BLK. The gun features a threaded and free-floated barrel, and is optics ready from the factory. Triggers are adjustable, and the lever has a fairly short throw.
This is a completely new design, with multiple patents putting the gun together. MSRP on the Henry Lever Action Supreme is expected to be between $1280-1300. Guns should be available by the end of Q1 this year.
Diamondback Firearms is not a company I’ve been particularly interested in the past. A few days before SHOT Show, Diamondback managed to grab my attention.
As a certified revolver guy, I’m always at least mildly interested when a new wheelgun is announced. Diamondback did just that with their SDR. Despite some initial hesitations, I made my way to their booth during range day to see the SDR for myself, and I was pleasantly surprised.
The Diamondback SDR is a six shot, snub nose, .357 Magnum revolver. Stand-out features include a quick-detach cylinder to aid in cleaning (caliber conversions are on the table), a push button cylinder release, and a nice trigger. The SDR is compatible with some J-Frame holsters, along with J-Frame grips to ease accessory purchases. Interestingly, their rear sight dovetail is the same as a Glock, though the company won’t go as far as calling it compatible with Glock sights.
I was given six rounds to fire out of the SDR, so my first impressions are very limited. That said, I was impressed with the gun. Fit and finish is solid, at least on par with modern Colt offerings in my short time. The trigger was excellent, smooth and consistent, making double-action shots easy. The booth rep touted their light weight, coming in at only 21.2 ounces despite being chambered for .357 Magnum. While I’m unsure of how that’d handle a full diet of full power ammunition, it’s perfectly reasonable for someone like me who’d only feed the gun .38 Special.
MSRP on the Diamondback SDR is $777. Check back here for updates, as the SDR is firmly on my radar.
A few years ago I touched on the Savage Renegauge when it was first shown. Since then, Savage has come out with the Security variant, aimed at defensive or tactical applications. This isn’t a new release for 2024, but it was the first time I got my hands on the gun.
The Renegauge Security is a twelve gauge, semiautomatic shotgun featuring a three-inch chamber. Taking cues from popular aftermarket offerings, the gun comes standard with some impressive features. The stock allows for adjustable length of pull, along with comb height to fit the gun to the shooter. Sights are fully adjustable ghost rights, with a high visibility front sight. The receiver is tapped for optics, allowing for red dots, and more.
I fired a handful of rounds on the shotgun range, taking 5/5 clays thrown for me. As someone who hasn’t shot a flying target in nearly a decade, and using what many would consider a sub-optimal gun for the task, I was pretty happy. As with the original Renegauge, recoil is minimal thanks to a proprietary gas system.
Savage, I want to do a long-term review on this gun. Someone get one of these in my hands for 2024.
Holosun had their new weapon mounted light (WML) on display on the range. Unfortunately this is a daylight-hours event, so I cannot speak much to output or performance outside of numbers. The Holosun RAID features 80,000 candela with 1,000 lumens, powered by a single 18350 battery. Switching is done via a small button on the tail, which offers momentary and constant on. The light body is fairly slim, coming close to some older Surefire Scout profiles.
MSRP is $180 on the Holosun RAID. Expect it to hit the streets in Q2 of this year.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading! Writing isn’t my full-time profession, and nearly everything I do comes out of my own pocket. Between ammunition, tuition, range fees and more, expenses add up fast. If you like what I have to offer, consider making a donation to my Patreon.
Every bit helps bring more work like this to you, and contributes to shortened timelines or more in-depth work on my part. You’ll also have more direct access to me, offering suggestions for future projects, looking behind the scenes, and getting early access to some content. You can find my Patreon >>HERE<<
In the first edition of this series we chatted with Tom Givens of Rangemaster. Today…
While people know Ian Fleming for his James Bond series, he also published a handful…
I've never been a big competitor, but I have dabbled in a variety of competitive…
I spent a lot of time behind the Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol throughout 2023. In…
Back in 2022 I wrote a series of articles titled "How to Choose a Good…
I'm a pretty big fan of the shotgun. While handgun shooting makes up the majority…