SHOT Show 2026

Great Lakes Firearms and Ammunition is a family-owned company in Sparta, Michigan, best known for producing AR-pattern rifles chambered in long-action cartridges (.270 Winchester, .30-06 Springfield, .300 Win Mag, 7mm Rem Mag). I stopped by their SHOT Show 2026 booth to take a look at these long-action ARs and when I asked the company reps if they had anything new, I was shown a rather interesting product prototype: a Remington 700 footprint receiver made of carbon fiber with metal reinforcement elements.

Loading double-stack single-feed pistol magazines by hand can be difficult, tedious, time-consuming and even painful depending on the number and/or capacity of magazines you load. Thankfully, there are multiple different speed loaders available on the market that make the loading process of the aforementioned magazines easier. Most of these devices are manual, though. Last time I checked, we are a quarter of the way through the 21st century, cars are self-driving, mail is delivered by drones, so maybe it’s time to have power tools for loading pistol magazines. The question is, does anyone make one? Well, there is at least one option - the Magpie handheld electric speed loader by Kinetic Blossom. In fact, the company claims that this is the world's first automatic handheld 9mm magazine loader.

At SHOT Show 2026’s Industry Day at the Range TFB had the privilege of getting early access to the range to cover the ceremonial First Shot of SHOT. One of the benefits of this was we were able to get hands on as soon as the range went hot and I was able to put a couple of magazines through Steyr’s new AT family of 9x19mm pistols.

An integrally suppressed bullpup precision rifle - now doesn’t that sound like a cool package? Well that’s what Desert Tech have put together, a new handguard for an integrally suppressed version of their SRS series of rifles. The SRS SD kit is a carbon fiber handguard an and a full length Picatinny top rail which can be mounted on late model SRS A2s and SRS M2s.

Last year at SHOT Show 2025, I was stoked to run into the guys from Ally & Kaufman who were offering a cool lower receiver kit that pairs with a Brownells BRN-180 18.5" upper receiver to create the ‘SA80 at home’. This set up, the AKB-23 got a lot of attention and had developed further with an SA80-style pistol grip, a ‘Carbine’ handguard, L85 flash hiders and a range of SA80-style carry handles with sight mounts for ACROs and Micros.

Rost Martin RM1F pistols are polymer-framed striker-fired handguns chambered in 9x19mm. The grips of these pistols feature the company’s signature Responsive Grip Texture and interchangeable backstraps. The magazine release buttons and the slide release levers are ambidextrous. The capacity of the flush-fit magazine is 17 rounds. With the flush-fit magazine inserted, the RM1F pistol has a height of 5.1” and weighs 23 oz.

Have you ever wondered what the SHOT Show is like through fresh eyes? Return guests Kevin and Bryce from The Carry Handle Podcast just made their debut on the show floor, and they’ve got stories to tell. Tune in this week as these SHOT Show virgins unpack their first-time experience, the standout gear that caught their eye, the places they went, the good and bad that they saw, as well as the hard-earned lessons from diving headfirst into the firearms industry's biggest event of the year. Please give a warm welcome back to returning guests Kevin and Bryce!

Over the last couple of years the guys at MK Machining have been working up their MK2.6 bullpup rifle chassis series. This year at SHOT Show they had some brand new prototypes of a new type of bullpup - a straight-pull.

American-made AKs definitely saw a resurgence at this years SHOT Show with strong offerings from companies like Stenzel Industries and Black Rain Ordnance. Black Rain introduced the Freedom Fighter which they describe as ‘a modern American-made evolution of a proven fighting rifle’.

Staccato, one of the pioneers of double-stack 1911s and the actual owner of the 2011 trademark, has added a new compensated option to their HD line of pistols - the 9mm Staccato HD C4X. The new pistol was designed in collaboration with and to meet the requirements of an elite tactical surveillance unit and is advertised as the ultimate carry pistol, combining HD reliability, 2011 shootability, and refined performance.

Expanding their RFX line of reflex sights, Viridian introduced at SHOT 2026 the RFX1, a green dot sight designed specifically for the Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 2.0 pistol. As you can see in the images, the serrations of the sight's housing as well as its contours match those of the pistol’s slide, giving the assembly a nice, streamlined look. With dimensions of 1.63" x 0.81" x 1.02" and weighing 0.53 oz, this optic is claimed to be the smallest reflex sight in the world.

At SHOT Show 2026, Caracal USA announced that the CMP9 and CMP9K pistols, as well as the CSR308 and CSR338 bolt-action rifles, have finally hit the US market. In my opinion, what should make these firearms appealing to customers is that Caracal is a well-established player in the military small arms market, and the designs of these guns have undergone rigorous military endurance testing, as these are civilian counterparts of their military products. Let's take a quick look at the key specs and features of the four Caracal firearms mentioned.

At SHOT SHOW, South Carolina’s biggest MP5 fans, PTR, were showing off their latest addition to their roller-delayed blowback PCC line up, two new integrally suppressed SD models. Available in two versions, the 9SDM-A and 9SDM-B they are based on PTR’s 9CT. Intriguingly, both of the 9SDMs are three-stamp guns, just a couple of months ago that would have made these guns a commercial nightmare but now the changes to the NFA have come into effect, a three-stamp gun is likely to become much less of a rarity!

Gunslinger Tactical, a company from Holly Springs, North Carolina, has introduced a new weapon-mounted illumination and aiming device called SeraphIM. Attaching to the handguard of a firearm via a 1913 rail, the SeraphIM integrates several LED and IR lights and lasers with a front grip. One of the primary advantages provided by this device is the minimal exposure of the shooter’s body when using a light or laser to aim around a corner. The built-in joystick allows smooth transitioning between the different lights and lasers.

For your product to be successful in this industry, it has to take Glock mags, even if it’s not a firearm. Ghoststar Tactical apparently acknowledges this axiom, as their AR15 stocks do take Glock mags. Yes, these stocks are designed with storage compartments for housing Glock magazines. The Glock mags are inserted into the Ghoststar stocks from the opening in the buttpad and are locked in place. Pressing the button on the side of the stock ejects the magazines out.

Another SHOT Show is officially in the rear-view mirror, and, as is my custom every year in this series, today we’re going to go over some of the more interesting or intriguing rimfire releases from SHOT Show 2026. While covering rimfire topics specifically is a significant chunk of what I do here at TFB, during SHOT and most of the rest of the year, I’m often covering or researching other topics, so a majority of these items this year are ones that I’ve probably seen or heard about, but not actually touched myself just yet. So without further ado, let's take a look at some of the best that the industry had to offer us, rimfire junkies, at SHOT Show 2026.

You gotta love the mad scientists at Hydra Weaponry. While everyone else is busy building AR-pattern rifles with modern lightweight materials and trick designs, the crew at Hydra isn’t afraid to delve into history, reproducing the designs of Mack Gwinn Jr. At SHOT Show 2026, they were showing off one of their latest creations, a revival of the Gwinn Assault Rifle, aka the “Original Bushmaster.”

Thermal optics are still hot in the tactical and hunting markets these days, and Pulsar has two new options for 2026. The Trail 3 LRF XR50 and Trail 3 LRF XQ50 both aim to deliver affordability, with slight differences because they’re intended to hit targets at different ranges.

Most of the new rifles of the past couple of decades have fallen into the following classes: M4geries, long-range “backcountry” hunting rifleS, low-priced entry-level bolt guns or nostalgia-milking lever-actions. But another style of rifle is always lurking in the background, just waiting for a manufacturer to try it again. I’m talking about scout rifles, and this year at SHOT, the Ruger American Gen II Scout was on display in their booth.

European American Armory was back at the SHOT Show for 2026 with a booth full of their usual mix of imported firearms—handguns, shotguns and rifles. And in one corner, they had a few firearms that were both shotguns and rifles at the same time. They’re bringing combination guns into the U.S. market soon, and they should be affordable—a hard thing to find these days.

TheFirearmBlog (TFB) was in attendance of SHOT Show 2026 and their Industry Day at the Range last week in Las Vegas, and we stumbled across an interesting find while at the Colt pistol bay: a blued Anaconda with enhanced grips and a factory optic. This is definitely not something on their website, and it is supremely rare to see factory-mounted red dots on revolvers. So, we tried to gather some more details for ya’ll!

Never ones to stay still Olympus Arms, the Montana company that brought you the long-stroke Vulcan rifle, have announced that they have developed not just a new carbine but also a new round for the carbine. Olympus have spent a year and a half working on the new project.

Barrett has long been a player in the US Army’s developing Precision Grenadier System program. They took part in some of the precursor competitions which helped refine the program requirements and engage with industry. Barrett previously worked with Mars Inc. who were successful in the xTech Soldier Lethality competition early in 2025. But now it appears they’ll have two horses in the race.

⁨@BallisticAviation stops by the curiously vacant FN booth to grab a quick, unsupervised look at the new FN 309 MRD. As staff rushed out ahead of Winter Storm Fern, Luke swooped in for one last peek at what could be a great contender for the best new budget compact 9mm pistol. This budget-friendly 9mm internal hammer-fired pistol delivers user-friendly features like an easy-rack slide (25% less effort), softer grip texture for better control, optics-ready direct mount for Shield RMS/DeltaPoint Pro patterns, and 16/20-round polymer magazines, all for a street price of around $450. Multiple passive safeties and a green fiber front sight make it approachable for new shooters while maintaining FN reliability for EDC carry.

Steyr’s long-awaited ATD and ATC hammer-fired 9mm pistols are finally making their way to the U.S. market, and this video covers what American shooters can expect from the new lineup. The ATD “defense” models are aimed at carry and duty use, and the ATC “competition” variants with longer barrels, heavier frames, and optics-ready slides, along with capacities up to 24 rounds. If you’ve been waiting for a metal-frame, DA/SA Steyr with modern features like compensators, 3D-printable grip modules, and red-dot readiness, this first look at the ATD and ATC shows why these pistols are one of the biggest handgun launches of SHOT Show 2026.

Hoplopfheil⁩ is stopping by the Trijicon Booth at SHOT Show 2026 to speak to Chris about the brand-new Trijicon AccuPoint 1-8x24 riflescope, a true 1x-to-8x LPVO perfect for hunters needing speed at close range and precision at longer engagement distances. This scope features Trijicon’s battery-free Hunter Holds MOA reticle that glows with ambient light for quick holds without electronics failing in the field, tool-less turrets, and a rugged build ready for recoil and weather. Chris breaks down why this AccuPoint brings legendary Trijicon reliability to the versatile LPVO category at SHOT Show 2026.

Hoplopfheil interviews the Streamlight team at SHOT Show 2026 about the new ProTac Rail Mount VIR Pro, a rail-mounted long gun light delivering 1,100-lumen white LED (high: 40,000 candela, 400m beam) plus selectable IR output (2,300mW high/600mW low). A possibly wallet-saving option for those who are craving night-vision shooting on a budget, the ProTac Rail Mount VIR is going to retail for around $300 street price.

BallisticAviation interviews Gerard Wayne Weber, CEO of Steyr Arms USA, about the brand-new SSG M1 A2 precision rifle, released in January 2026, just ahead of SHOT Show. This updated bolt-action beast now comes standard with an Arca-Swiss rail for tripod compatibility, an improved M-LOK handguard, expanded barrel options optimized for suppressors, and other user-requested upgrades like enhanced adjustability and an improved quick-change barrel system. Whether you're into long-range precision shooting in .308, 6.5 Creedmoor, or .338 Lapua, this deep dive reveals why the SSG M1 A2 sets a new standard for tactical precision rifles.

It was only a matter of time before someone tried to sell us plastic crack—and it finally happened when Hammy showed up at SHOT Show 2026. ⁨@BallisticAviation⁩ sits down with  ⁨@hammy3dprints to check out some of his latest and most thoughtful 3D-printed gun parts and accessories. A one-man show in the most literal sense of the word, Hammy3DPrints is a company that’s consistently updating its catalog, refining its designs, and keeping up with the latest trends in the firearm world.

Luke C. ( @BallisticAviation )is back at SHOT Show 2026 to have a quick sit-down with Surefire’s Andrew Wright to dig into the new SOCOM RC4 suppressor and what sets it apart from previous generations. They break down how the RC4’s updated unique design cuts back pressure, reduces gas to the face, and tames flash without adding unnecessary length or weight.