FORT WORTH, TEXAS (05/10/16) – XS® Sight Systems will be celebrating 20 years in business during the NRA Annual Meeting in Louisville, Ky., May 19-22, with product raffles on Saturday and Sunday of the event. In addition to 2016 being XS® Sight Systems’ 20th anniversary, it will be the 19th year in which the company has had a presence at the NRA Annual Meeting.

The raffle will include 20 GOODGUY Swag Bags each on May 21 and 22, at 3 p.m. The winners will additionally have the opportunity to order a set of XS® Sights valued at as much as $200. To participate in the raffle, attendees can drop by the XS® Sights booth and sign up. Participants do not need to be present for the drawing to win.

“Twenty years in, we’re still committed to producing high-quality sight options for handguns, shotguns and rifles that provide fast sight acquisition in low light conditions,” co-owner Jon Pastusek said. “We’re proud to be an NRA member and support the 2nd Amendment rights in the U.S. Constitution.”

NRA attendees will also be able to get a first look at the latest XS® Sight Systems products to be released this year, all with Tritium front and rear sights and both big-dot and standard-dot options available, including:
FNH FNS & FNX
S&W BODYGAURD 380
Ruger LC9 & LC380

These new sight options were designed for concealed carry and provide a shooting advantage in defensive situations. XS® Sight Systems has produced the same sight picture for 20 years, because it is simple and allows you to find your front sight more easily, while maintaining focus on the situation in front of you.
 
About XS® Sight Systems
XS® Sight Systems is the leader in precision manufacturing of hunting and combat tactical sights, lever rails, mounts and other related products for U.S. civilians, law enforcement and military professionals. XS® Sight CNCs all parts in house and only uses the best materials, including 1144 stress-proof steel and 6061 T6 aircraft grade aluminum. Visit XS® Sight Systems to see all products available for sale and the company’s history.

GENESEO, IL May 2nd, 2016 – Springfield Armory® is pleased to announce the Legend Series 1911 TRP™ Pistol. In cooperation with the Chris Kyle Foundation and the Chris Kyle family the company aims to honor the spirit of American Sniper and Navy Seal Chris Kyle while providing direct support to the foundation.

While in combat, Chris chose the Springfield Armory TRP™ for its reliable performance and toughness. In his words in best-selling book, American Sniper, he tells how that TRP™ may have saved his life.

“In 2004, I brought over a Springfield [Armory®] TRP™ Operator, which used a .45 caliber round. It had a 1911 body style, with custom grips and a rail system that let me add a light and laser combo. Black, it had a bull barrel and was an excellent gun – until it took a frag for me in Fallujah. I was actually able to get it repaired – those Springfields are tough.”

Springfield Amory® will produce one thousand TRP™ Legend Series pistols, each with a unique serial number ranging from CK0001 through CK1000. Separately, the company will laser engrave each pistol identifying its placement in the series.

The Legend Series pistols will come packaged in a custom and also serialized mahogany presentation case. Additionally, a memorial copy of the best-selling book, American Sniper, signed by Taya Kyle will accompany the package. The attractive presentation case also includes a .999 pure silver Chris Kyle limited edition challenge coin and a Springfield Armory® certificate of authenticity.

The MSRP of the Legend TRP™ commemorative edition pistol is $2,499, with a portion of the proceeds from each pistol sold benefitting the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation.

The first pistol in the Legend Series was presented to Taya Kyle by Springfield Armory® CEO Dennis Reese at a ceremony during the 2016 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. Kyle immediately announced her intention to auction this one of a kind pistol during the 2016 National Rifle Association Annual Meeting, with all proceeds to benefit the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation. Taya Kyle will auction Chris Kyle Legend Series 1911 TRP™ Pistol #1. This auction will take place in Springfield Armory® booth #5823 at the NRA annual meetings in Louisville, KY.

The on-line auction will go live Sunday May 1st under Springfield Armory®’s charity account on GunBroker.com and will end at 3:00pm May 21st at the NRA annual meetings. Live bidding will start at 2:45pm in the booth. Persons who wish to bid live in the booth for this #1 Limited edition pistol can sign up in the booth at 2:00pm with a Springfield representative and receive a number and bidding paddle.

View live auction: http://www.gunbroker.com/Item/554032581

Taya Kyle will be present to award the winner (if winner is present) with the pistols along with Springfield Armory® President and CEO Dennis Reese. Upon completion of the auction, Springfield Armory® will also present a check to Taya Kyle for the full amount of auction proceeds.

The following people will sign the serial #1 pistol certificate of authenticity: Taya Kyle of the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation, Dennis Reese President and CEO of Springfield Armory®, Wayne LaPierre Executive Vice President of the NRA and Chris Cox NRA-ILA’s Executive Director.

Now run by Taya Kyle, the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation supports members and families of those who serve. According to Taya Kyle, “One of the big benefits of doing this with Springfield Armory® is that part of the proceeds will go to the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation. The mission of the foundation is to honor God, country and family by serving those who serve. To us, that represents the marriages and family life of our law enforcement, EMS, and military communities.”

“We’re very pleased to support Taya and the Frog Foundation,” explained Springfield Armory® CEO Dennis Reese. “When on deployment, Chris Kyle carried a Springfield Armory® 1911 TRP™ Operator pistol, so we felt it appropriate to make this special edition pistol to honor his memory and support the ongoing work of the foundation. Very much like American hero Chris Kyle, this pistol is truly one of a kind.”

The Legend Series pistols feature five-inch stainless steel match grade barrels, low-profile three-dot Tritium combat sights, and black and gray G10 grips with an attractive American flag engraving. The slides are forged carbon steel with Black Nitride™ treatment for durability and corrosion resistance. A National Match full-length guide rod rounds out the 8.6-inch long government model 1911. Each pistol ships with two seven-round stainless steel magazines with slam pads.

At the conclusion of the NRA Annual meetings shipments of the Limited Edition Chris Kyle pistols will arrive at firearms dealers throughout the country.

About the Chris Kyle Frog Foundation
The Chris Kyle Frog Foundation, www.chriskylefrogfoundation.org, is a 501c3 non-profit organization dedicated to serving military and first responders through meaningful interactive experiences that enrich family relationships. Founded and led by Taya Kyle, Chris’s wife, the foundation is entrusted to shepherd a community where the successes and struggles of these families can be shared. Its programs and partners reflect the service excellence that these individuals and families provide in service to their communities and country.

About Springfield Armory®
“The First Name in American Firearms,” Springfield Armory® was founded in 1777, when George Washington ordered the creation of an armory to store ammunition and gun carriages during the American Revolution. In 1794, the armory began to manufacture muskets and spent the next 150 years supplying firearms for every major American conflict. The original armory closed in 1968. In 1974, the Reese family took ownership of the Springfield Armory® name and began making the M1A™ rifle. Today, Springfield Armory® develops many products loyal to the company’s heritage, like the 1911 pistol, while ensuring its future with innovative products, including the XD®, XD® Mod.2™ XD(M)® and XD-S® polymer pistols.

This is one of the many projects I am working on, and one closest to my heart. I am truly enjoying sharing my passion for firearms, and building AR-15’s with my love. The his and her AR-15 project consists of 2 Aero Precision consecutive serial numbered AR-15 receivers. The goal with this project is to build 2 identical, light weight rifles while balancing performance and overall cost.

To help reduce the over all weight we chose to run a 16” pencil barrel from Faxon Firearms this barrel comes in at a low 1.2lbs. The barrel had been a suggestion from Tim @ TACCOM3G.com which also brings up another item, we went with TACCOM’s ultra light weight comp to keep the extended weight to a minimum. A few other items we are working into the light weight mix are a NON-Forward assist upper receiver, an a Air Lite series 15” keymod handguard from GunTecUSA which comes in at only 8.5 ounces. I am anxious to see how this project turns out, once we have the rifles assembled with the components we choose, the next step is a custom Cerakote finish by Applied Arsenal Finishes. Stay tuned and subscribe to the BigGunner81 youtube channel for more updates and videos.

Till next time, “Have Fun Shooting…” -Rick

MIDDLETOWN, CONN. (04/15/16) – Magazine manufacturer Mec-Gar® Srl recently announced the passing of its founder, Edoardo Racheli, 78, after a brief illness. Racheli passed on Feb. 22.

Racheli founded Mec-Gar Srl in 1965 in Gardone Val Trompia, Italy, with a focus on manufacturing high-quality firearm magazines. His passion for the outdoors, toolmaking and metal stamping led to the now-international company’s founding. In the 50 years since, Mec-Gar has grown from simple beginnings in a garage to three modern manufacturing facilities in Italy and a distribution center in the United States.

Mec-Gar has been recognized as the leading manufacturer of magazines in the industry, supplying its products as original equipment for many of the world’s leading firearm companies.

During his time at Mec-Gar, Racheli enjoyed developing many personal relationships with factory owners, engineers, buyers, vendors, distributors and sales representatives, one of them now-Vice President of Mec-Gar USA David Kochol.

“His legacy is seen in the pride, hard work ethic and dedication of the employees at Mec-Gar and the high-quality magazines produced,” Kochol said. “We all feel honored to have known and worked with Mr. Racheli. He was a charismatic and kind gentleman, and he will be missed by his family and many friends.”

About Mec-Gar®
Mec-Gar® Srl is a privately held, family-run business located in Brescia, Italy. Since opening in 1965, the company has been proud of its fully in-house engineering, design and manufacturing process, positioning Mec-Gar Srl as an industry leader in quality and innovation. Mec-Gar® USA is owned and operated by the same family and functions as the sole U.S. importer and distributor for Mec-Gar Srl products in North America. To learn more, visit shop.mec-gar.com.

Are You Competition Ready

This is really awesome! A while back I along with several others had been asked as a beginner in the world of competitive shooting to offer ideas for a checklist for others who are thinking of making the leap into the world of competition shooting. Today the match prep check list is now available for others to see through Armscor / Rock Island Armory’s website. I’d like to thank Armscor for this opportunity to share my ideas as beginner to this project. There are a million different ideas on how to do things, and I’m still learning. Check it out at: http://news.armscor.com/are-you-competition-ready

You may know that for the 2016 shooting season my goal was to attend (and shoot) my first major match. In February I attended the 3 Gun Nation Southeastern Regional. Unfortunately, that trip ended with a visit to Dairy Queen. Yes I DQ’d by making a simple mistake before shooting. So I wasn’t going to give up, I had the opportunity to attend the 3 Gun Nation Southern Regional. I’m proud to say I completed the match, despite a few (ok more then a few) mechanical failures with my shotgun. I look forward to shooting more matches in the future, however for the remainder of this season I plan on shooting relatively local matches.

To hear my match story, along with Josh Tarrant (who happens to be sponsored by RevArms & Taccom) check out this weeks episode of ((BigGunner81 LIVE!)). Again I would like to thank Josh Tarrant for hanging out with us for the re-cap of this match. Till next time “Have Fun Shooting…” -Rick

ST. GEORGE, UTAH (March 25, 2016)– Team Springfield™ eked out a division first-place finish at the TTI Zion Classic March 19-20, in Hurricane, Utah. Thanks to newly minted Team Springfield™ shooter Jalise Williams, the team came out on top in the Single Stack Division. Jalise Williams took first place in the Single Stack Division, High Lady OA and High Junior OA at the event, while her sister, fellow Team Springfield™ member Justine Williams, placed eighth in the Production Division. Shooting her Springfield Armory® 1911 Range Officer® 9mm, Jalise focused her shooting on speed and accuracy for her first division win. “I was hoping for High Lady and High Junior, but have been practicing a lot and really wanted a division win,” she said. “I just wasn’t sure if it was too soon to have that dream cometrue.”

Jalise credited the Williams’ coach Glen Wong with believing in them throughout the competition. The Production Division included some highly competitive battles, and Justine focused on keeping her calm throughout the heated battles, commending her sister’s victory. “It’s nice having a sister to shoot with, because, even if I don’t place well, my sister probably will, so really – we both win,” Justine said. The Untied States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) Level 2 match brought 80 competitors for 10 stages and more than 320 rounds of ammunition total. Stages included technical shooting, steel, moving targets and other unique elements.

When it comes to dealing with primer crimps, we most often see on military surplus ammo I have been cutting my primer pockets. I started with this method because the cost of tooling was much less then buying a swage tool. However I have been thinking that I rather not be removing material it I do not need to from my casings. I started looking at swaging options, and had seen Hornady had come out with this new tool for the lock-n-load progressive press. I said hey I have one of those presses, and this looks like a quick easy option. Drop a case in, pull the handle, pull a finished case out repeat.

So we will be testing this new tool very soon, I’ll be posting a review video once I have it setup. Also I’ve been thinking of ways to add a collection device, so that when the cases eject they can dump into a bucket, automating one of the steps the operator would normally do.

“Have Fun, Reloading” -Rick

I would like to share with you (those who may not have seen this before) a website I like to browse from time to time. When your looking for guns, ammo, reloading components, or other related items check out SlickGuns.com. Slick Guns, is a website that hosts user and dealer submitted “deals”, to help you find the best pricing on the things we are looking for. Find an awesome deal on something? Want to help others find it? Well you can, share it on SlickGuns.com…