Post Show Wrap-Up.
The Winchester Repeating Arms team is all back at our offices now. The truck — with our booth and displays inside — is on its way back across the country right now. Here are some of the highlights from the Show. A top six list of Winchester events and products at the Show.
1. SXP. We didn’t talk too much about the SXP (Super X Pump) on the blog. Although Glenn, the Winchester product manager, did do a video rundown on the SXP which you can watch in the Video area of the Blog. The best thing to report is that the concensus at the show was that it will be worth the wait. It is no secret that there have been some starts and stops along the way in the transition from the original 1300 to a new generation Winchester pump shotgun. Now we are on track again. Patrick Flanigan uses a Winchester pump in every show he does (older Speed Pumps). The SHOT Show was his first look at the SXP and his excitment was expressed in these words: “Get me one of those and I’ll go out and break a new world record.” We plan to do just that. The Super X3 styling along with the perfected inertia-assisted rotary bolt design makes it stand out from all the others. Click here to review SXP specs.
2. Expanded line of Historic Rifles. For some of us it is a welcome addition to have 1895s, 1892s, 1885 High Walls and 1885 Low Walls all availabe from Winchester Repeating Arms at the same time. These are in addition to the great, special issue guns that are offered through special distributor programs. The last word on the guns at this years show is that dealer demand has met the production capacity for these products. So if you are looking for one of these special rifles from Winchester, it is the right time to call your dealer and get one on order. A question I heard often was “why are there no sights on the 1885 BPCR. The answer is simple: These are very specialized rifles. Most guys that buy them are familiar with the Creedmoor style ladder style rear sights and spirt level tunnel style front sights that you use on these rifles. Browning and a number of other brands provide them. They are not cheap. But they are what you will be looking for when you buy a BPCR — at least in most cases. So if you are confused by the bare barrel dove-tail and the lack of rear sight, just do a Google search and you can get all the background on what you will need to buy. Click here for specs.
3. A reliable comment from Matt Hughes. In our interview with MattHughes (former UFC champion) there is a disarming moment where he tells how reliable his Super X3 has been for him. Then he comments on why he thinks his friend Patrick Flanigan can shoot the SX3 so fast. These were unscripted and very open moments in the conversation. Matt was simply our guest at the show because he is a Winchester guy. His thinking about the Super x3 is interesting to watch — it is on the video which was made of the interview. In the video expect Patrick to be full of energy — which makes it extra fun. The bottom line: Matt has shot them all and he proclaims a winner in the autoloader fight. Click here to watch the interview (select the interview from the list).
4. Roosevelt Safari 100th Annniversary 1895. The last couple of years have been Roosevelt years at Winchester Repeating Arms. Last year’s SHOT Show special was a beautiful Model 1895 commemorating Roosevelt’s contributions to conservation. 2008 was the 150th anniversary of his birth. And if you remember, 100 years ago in 1908 he called “The Conference of Governors” at the White House to consider the problems of conservation, This was attended by the governors of the states and territories as well as several members of the Supreme Court, his cabinet, leading scientists, and a variety of other national leaders. The result was a declaration supporting conservation — one of the seminal moments in world conservation history. The 150th Anniversary gun celebrates the man and his contribution to conservation and comes in two grades. And, as happens here in the U.S., less than a year after the conference he was no longer president and was doing what every former president ought to do: he was on his way to Africa for an extended safari. This year’s Model 1895 celebrates the historic 1909 safari with two beautiful rifles. It will be a long time before another meaningful anniversary for these historic events arrives again. These are beautiful guns with an amazing history to back them up. To read more on the original 150th anniversary “Conservation” guns click on the following: Custom grade or High Grade. To read more about the new Safari Anniversary guns click here.
5. Super X3. Yes, the Super X3 makes the list of top Winchester items at the show. Every minute during the show a video is playing on a plasma TV facing the center aisle of the show. It shows Patrick doing some tricks and shows him letting off strings of shots that are so amazingly fast his finger is a blur. Still, after three years of Patrick Flanigan working with us in our booth, his videos are a show stopper — clogging up the traffic, dropping jaws and bringing on looks of disbelief. Believe it! The Super X3 is still the fastest and the best. The record breaking video is still on line. Read the story by clicking here.
6. Model 70. Many still don’t believe it is back. Probably because it will take a very long time to catch up on the backlog of orders. The Winchester firearms product manager assured many people at the show that they will be seeing more Model 70s shipping to dealers in 2009. Slow is better than none at all. But more will be much better. One thing is sure, with the new M.O.A. trigger system the Model 70 is clearly able to go toe-to-toe with any bolt action rifle in the world — and come off at the top.
As time permits I’ll add a few more comments about the show in coming days.
