Collecting and Shooting the Military Surplus Rifle (2008)

Article Published Date: 03/01/2008

Article by Layne King

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If you�ve read Shotgun News or receive catalogs from gun distributors like Century Arms, you�ve probably heard of the Shot Show�but what the heck is it? I had a vague idea, but after hearing descriptions like �It�s like walking through the biggest and best gun and outdoor catalog in the world!� and �If you�re in the gun industry and you�ve never been�you�ve gotta go!�, I decided I needed to see for myself. A quick web search helped me locate the Shot Show website, where I found (and consolidated) the following info�.

The Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show and Conference (SHOT Show)

The Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show and Conference (SHOT Show) is the largest and most comprehensive trade show for all professionals involved with the shooting sports and hunting industries. It is the world's premier exposition of combined firearms, ammunition, archery, cutlery, outdoor apparel, optics, camping and related products and services. According to "Tradeshow Week," the SHOT Show is the 29th largest trade show in the nation. The SHOT Show attracts buyers from all 50 states and more than 75 countries. The SHOT Show is owned and sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Foundation and is produced and managed by Reed Exhibitions.

At $3.7 billion per year, the U.S. hunting and shooting sports market is huge.

If anything demonstrates its size, it is the Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor industry's annual Trade Show -- SHOT Show -- which runs Feb. 2-5 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Owned and sponsored by the industry's trade association, the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), the SHOT Show is by far the largest trade show of its kind. It is where the industry each year rolls out the latest hunting, shooting and outdoor gear that will adorn sporting goods store shelves and equip law enforcement agencies in the coming year.

In its 30th year, the 2008 SHOT Show will be the largest ever. With 1,948 exhibiting companies encompassing more than 715,000 net square feet of space, it is one of the top 30 trade shows in the country, as well as one of the fastest growing, regardless of industry. More than 50,000 industry professionals have registered to attend the SHOT Show from the U.S. and 75 foreign countries.

"The SHOT Show is the traditional kickoff to our industry's business year," said Doug Painter, NSSF president. "From hunting gear to law enforcement products, buyers and media from around the world will gather to see the industry's newest offerings."

According to the National Sporting Goods Association, hunting and firearm sales topped $3.7 billion in 2006, up 4 percent from the previous year. That growth is reflected this year at SHOT Show, which at 715,000 net square feet is 9 percent larger than last year's show in Orlando.

After a short discussion with my wife, it was quickly decided that we would both go to Las Vegas�.since her sister lives there it would be a perfect opportunity for her to spend some time with her family while I was off doing my �gun business stuff�.

The flight to Vegas was pleasant (well�.except for that one extremely violent bit of turbulence just outside of Phoenix�.it was sudden�.short�.and violent�.my spontaneous comment�.�What the heck was that????�did we hit a dog or something?� brought nervous laughter from the passengers around me.)

Yep�.It�s handy to have a sister-in-law that lives in Vegas�my wife�s sister, Brenda, and her husband Bob met us at the airport and took us straight to �The Cannery� casino where we met their son Kenny and his girlfriend Tiffany. Bob treated us to a very nice crab leg/seafood buffet�even if Vegas doesn�t have anything else that interests you�.if you like food�.you�ll LOVE Vegas!

Saturday morning Bob dropped me off at the Las Vegas Convention center�it is a HUGE facility where many trade shows are held every year. I quickly found the Media Center (Press Room) and check-in counter�.got my Press Pass, picked up a bunch of catalogs, flyers, etc. from the 50 or so tables full of things the vendors wanted the press to have, grabbed a map, and sat down to figure out what I was going to see first. Since there isn�t a �mil-surp� section I decided to just wander around and see what there was to see�.and BOY!�..was there lots to see! Everybody that is anybody in the gun industry was there� I would be hard-pressed to think of a single manufacturer that wasn�t there. As these photos show, it was a gun-guys� paradise!

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The only mil-surp dealer I saw was Century arms, with a great display of various AKs, as well as some Mausers and Mosin Nagants.

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Armscor had every gun guys� dream 4-wheeler on display�(no drooling, please!)

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Every AR-15 manufacturer under the sun was there�but the guys from Olympic Arms were the friendliest and let me take a bunch of pics�

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I was expecting to see lots of neat guns and accessories�.no surprises there�.what did surprise me was the size and complexity of the display booths. Several of the booths were larger than my home�� much larger! The Realtree/Advantage Camo booth was made to resemble a mountain chalet�.a large mountain chalet! The display was 145ft long by 30ft wide and at least 30ft tall�.wish I could live in it!

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Needless to say, I had a GREAT time�I spent three days at the show�.still didn�t get to see everything. The descriptions that first got me interested in the Shot Show� �It�s like walking through the biggest and best gun and outdoor catalog in the world!� and �If you�re in the gun industry and you�ve never been�.you�ve gotta go!��.turned out to be true�.you�ve gotta go!

The 2009 Shot Show, January 15-18, 20098 - Orange County Convention Center
Orlando, FL.

Guess where I�ll be next January!

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