2010 SHOT Show - Day One

From Las Vegas

If there is one word to describe the annual SHOT show, it’s the word BIG. This thing covers an entire convention center. Last year someone estimated it contained 19 miles of walkways between the vendor booths.  I arrived midday on the first day after spending 9 hours driving through torrential rains from California to a cool and partly-cloudy Las Vegas. As tired as I was, I managed to peruse one hall of the show.

One of the first things to catch my eye was a copy of the Baby Browning .25ACP from Precision Small Arms. While I’m not usually a fan of the .25 caliber pistols, these are very well made under license from Fabrique Nationale (FN) in Belgium. If you appreciate the genius of John M. Browning’s 1911 and Browning High Power, this might be another pistol to add to your collection.

At an average of about 8oz (1/2 lb), the Baby Browning is a single action, 6+1 self-loading blow-back semi-auto pistol. A mere 4.11 inches long, 2.88 inches high and only .88” wide. Trigger pulls are set to 5.25 pounds out of the box. For those wanting a truly “deep cover” gun, it’s hard to find something smaller. Retail prices for these quality “pocket pistols” will run between $525 to $575.

For those of you who looking for a .380 pistol, Task Firearms of Miami is importing a Turkish made copy of the venerable Beretta Model 84. Named the Fatih 13 (yes, that is spelled correctly) .380 ACP pistol, it holds 12+1 rounds of .380 just like the Beretta 84. What you compromise on is the fine polished blue finish. The Fatih 13 has a matte blue finish with durable black plastic grips. Retail pricing will save you anywhere from about $225 to $300 over the Beretta, starting around $500-$525.

This first half-day didn’t yet touch on the main firearms vendors. But stay tuned for tomorrow’s visit. That’s when I plan to hit up S&W, Colt, Ruger, Sig-Sauer, SA, Taurus and the other major players.