Seven New Guns

Bushmaster and Advanced Armament Corp. joined forces to introduce a carbine chambered in .300 AAC Blackout. The predictably named 300 AAC Blackout Carbine has a 16-inch barrel with 1:7-inch, 5R rifling and ends in an AAC Blackout muzzle brake/suppressor mount. Other furnishings include a rifle-length, quad-rail fore-end, and Magpul’s ACS buttstock, MOE grip and Enhanced Triggerguard. What isn’t included in the $1,471 MSRP is a suppressor.

DPMS will also offer two carbines chambered for .300 AAC Blackout, both having a 16-inch barrel and the company’s new M111 modular, free-floating fore-end. In a move intended to educate shooters about suppressors (and no doubt turn heads at the gun shop), one model will come with a threaded muzzle and a removable, inert suppressor, along with an introduction to “silencer” facts from AAC’s CanU website. For those of us already schooled on the benefits of signature reduction, the other carbine will ship suppressor-ready, with an ACC Blackout muzzle brake.

Three new carbines wouldn’t be much fun without ammo, so Remington will add three .300 AAC Blackout loads to its lineup. The 125-grain Premier AccuTip load has a reported muzzle velocity of 2,230 fps from a 16-inch barrel, while the 125-grain Premier Match OTM clocks 2.220 fps. The subsonic 220-grain Express OTM load reaches 1,010 fps. All loads fit in a mil-spec M16/AR-15 mag without reducing capacity.

Sporting a 16-inch barrel but a rifle-length gas system, the DPMS Tac 2 is a compact carbine that offers many of the same benefits as longer models. The rifle-length gas system provides reliability and a long sight radius, while the full-length, free-floating M111 fore-end offers plenty of real estate for accessories but remains comfortable in the hand. The Tac 2 has a 4150 steel, chrome-lined, lightweight barrel and comes with Magpul’s ACS buttstock, MOE grip and trigger guard, and rear MBUS backup sight. Three-gunners, take notice.

The Tactical Precision Rifle from DPMS is built for those of us who measure meters by the hundreds. A lighter, enhanced version of the company’s SDMR discontinued in 2009, the Tactical Precision Rifle has a 20-inch, 416 stainless steel heavy barrel. Production models will ship with an AAC Blackout muzzle brake/suppressor mount. Other amenities include a low-profile gas block, an M111 fore-end, a B5 Systems Enhanced SOPMOD buttstock and Magpul’s MOE grip and trigger guard.

It has become almost mandatory to have a rimfire AR in your safe, and DPMS will provide an attractive option with its A-22 .22 LR upper assembly. The A-22 upper receiver is forged from 7075 aluminum and will fit any mil-spec AR lower. It also accepts aftermarket free-float fore-ends, so you can swap out for something with rails if you want to accessorize. The blowback operating system utilizes a Melonite-plated, stainless steel bolt, and the upper ships with a 10-round magazine from Black Dog Machine. It won’t take long to burn through 550 rounds with this baby!

Remington’s Versa Max shotgun introduced earlier this year to hunters will take on a tactical role in 2012. The Versa Max Tactical uses the same semi-auto Versa Port gas system as its predecessors, but it has a number of features that tailor it to home-defense and other personal-protection uses. Remington lopped the barrel back to 20 inches but extended the magazine tube to hold eight 2 3/4-inch shotshells. The Versa Max Tactical also comes with an extended charging handle and an oversized safety button. Its receiver is drilled and tapped for the included Picatinny rail, and interchangeable inserts allow you to raise the comb for use with an optic. A short length of rail on the barrel/magazine tube clamp gives you the option of mounting a light or laser. The 12-gauge shotgun has a 3 1/2-inch chamber, but in recent testing it handled hundreds of 2 3/4-inch rounds, including light game loads and Managed-Recoil Sluggerloads, without a hitch.

For those shooters who like their pistols bright and shiny, the Remington R1 1911 will be available as a stainless steel model. A stainless steel frame and slide, checkered, double-diamond walnut grips and dovetailed, three-dot sights make the R1S as functional as it is attractive. The pistol ships with two, seven-round magazines in a “custom” carrying case. If you need a new load to go with this new pistol, UMC ball rounds will be loaded with brass-jacketed (instead of copper-jacketed) FMJ bullets starting in 2012.