NRA Annual Meeting - Post your impressions, pics, etc.

[benenglish]

Looking to start a "master thread" for the NRA Annual Meeting.

I can't get to everything but I'll post about everything I do here. If others will do the same, we'll have a go-to thread for impressions, neat new products, and everything else.

The events have been ongoing at different levels for a couple of days. I'm not on staff or a bigwig with the NRA so I didn't go to those.

NSSF Annual Meeting

The NSSF had their annual meeting in the Hilton today. Did anybody go? I'd love to hear about it.

Antique Guns and Gold

The first event in the Convention Center was the Antique Guns and Gold event. It's like Antiques Roadshow for guns and gold. The procedure was pretty simple, at least, it was simple the way I approached it. First, go to the spot where it was supposed to be held (Hall E, second floor) early to get in line. Be subjected to Convention Security telling you to get lost and come back at 2PM.

Second, notice that they've moved the "Guns and Gold" sign sometime about noon to the front of Hall C. Head over there and stand in line outside for 2 hours. Be subjected to a Convention staffer coming outside to scream at the crowd (in his "command voice") about the rules (guns must be cased, something that was quite clear from the web site instructions) and the time frames. At 2PM, go into the Convention Center, up the escalator, and walk to the area above Hall A, the exact opposite end from where the event was originally scheduled.

Get in another line to have your gun checked for safety and zip tied.

Get in another line to wait for entrance to the appraisal area.

Get in another line at the entrance to the appraisal area. Be assigned to an appraiser.

Those last three lines were no big deal. By the time you got there, you were being handled by folks from the show or Brownells or the NRA or some combination of the three. They were all courteous and competent. Extra points for providing the stunning young ladies to hand out Brownells swag bags.

I got my old target pistol appraised by S. P. Fjestad, the man who authors/compiles The Blue Book of Gun Values. Suffice it to say, he knows his stuff and is the only person I've ever met who had previously seen the type of pistol I brought. He appraised it for roughly three times what I paid and I was a happy camper.

I didn't get invited to be filmed. I imagine the lady and her daughter two spots behind me probably did, though. She had not only a Gyrojet carbine (the only one I've ever seen) but also a Gyrojet pistol or two and lots of accessories.

Book Signings

Book signings will be done (mostly) in the middle of the second floor. Oliver North has an area set aside just for him. Ted Nugent will be signing elsewhere.

Guns on the second-floor concourse

Some guns were already on display. There was the "Wall of Guns" with all the tags attached, for those of you familiar with that. It was long and there were a bunch of very nice firearms of every sort.

I got to handle a Heiser, something I've been wanting to do for a long time. It was chambered in .45LC/.410. First, I didn't know they made such a thing. The extra cartridge storage in the butt, one of the big features of the pistol, looked too small for .45LC cartridges and I know that even a single .410 shell wouldn't fit. Second, it was the aluminum (not titanium) version. Third, the bore was absolutely filthy. They couldn't run a bore snake through it before putting it on display? Finally, it fits my hand pretty much wrong in every dimension. The butt is just long enough that I can firmly get just one finger around it and the bottom, rear corner of the gun protrudes uncomfortably into the palm of my hand while I'm just holding the gun. I really don't think I want to fire this thing. I wouldn't turn down a chance but, for now, color me underwhelmed with the ergonomics. That said, the design is clever and the workmanship appeared to be quite good...but, boy, was it dirty.

I headed home early and tentatively plan to attend the breakfast fundraiser tomorrow to hear Mr. Heller speak.

I'll report back with more info every evening and I'll try to post all the pictures I can.

I hope others will do the same.

 

[benenglish]

Forgot to add these sections.

Security

Convention Center employees are on Security Level Red, Ultra-Paranoid (tm). They were as brusque as I've ever seen them, not friendly at all. All doors stayed locked at every entrance. When you tried a door, they'd open it and demand your credentials right off the bat. Trying to enter the second floor via the skybridge wasn't even funny; they had 3 security guards and an HPD officer to keep people out...even if you were just trying to get back in after already being admitted previously through a different entrance.

I have to assume that things will be much, much looser tomorrow. If they aren't, they'll have riots at the entrances.

Stupid people

OK, we're all gun lovers here, but some of us need to take our brain meds on a more regular basis. The Exhibition Hall doesn't open until tomorrow but lots of people in line didn't realize that. They actually thought the line was to get into the main Exhibition Hall. (How can they not just know? It boggles the mind.) You also would not believe the number of people who got in line for the Antique Guns and Gold event without something for appraisal. They weren't admitted. The only thing open in the Convention Center today was an event for people to get something appraised yet person after person made it clear that they were there to purchase guns. Lots of people are under the impression that this is a regular gun show (just, you know, bigger because the NRA is running it) and they should just show up with guns to buy and sell. One guy was shocked that he couldn't rent a table to sell the guns he had brought.

I could go on and on (like the guy from Louisiana standing in line and explaining, very loudly and very incorrectly, the concealed carry statutes of Texas) but it's just too depressing.

If I think of more, I'll post again later. Otherwise, that should be all for now.

Who else was there today?

 

[benenglish]

Is anybody going to the Steve Stockman fundraiser in the morning at 7:00AM? I'll probably go. It's at Vic & Anthony's. Admission is $125 with general admission credentials to the Annual Meeting.

Dick Heller is the featured guest. I don't care about raising money for Stockman but I am willing to pay to hear Dick Heller speak.

 

[Lady Blue]

I will be hitting the exhibit hall Saturday and plan on getting Maj. Rooney's book signed. Not doing any of the ticket events this time around because.my time is limited and I want to catch up with some old friends from my years in Pasadena.

 

[benenglish]

Scheduling

Slept late and I'm going to miss the breakfast.

I'm beginning to remember how much i hated the morning commute before I retired.

 

[benenglish]

Parking

Yes, it's only an option if you arrive early but whenever I go to something big at the George R. Brown Convention Center (henceforth "the GRB")' I just drive to the front door of the Hilton and valet it. If you're on site for less than 5 hours, it can sometimes be cheaper than surface lots. For all day, it's $32 but oh, so convenient.

If you want to park under Discovery Green, be advised that the left turn into the parking just across the street from the GRB is blocked. You must approach on Avenue of the Americas from the north, proceeding south, and make a right turn into the parking.

 

[lucas1992]

..

 

[Glockster69]

As usual good stuff from Ben, thanks.

I found parking 2 blocks away for only $10. The crowd was pretty thick between 11a-2p but well behaved and polite as we bumped into one another. Time permitting I suggest you use nraam.org to view the list of exhibitors and the floor plan and map out your top 10 (pick your number) list of *must sees*, otherwise you may not make it to each booth. They also provide an exhibit guide soon after you enter the hall.

 

[Acera]

Great show, spend 8 hours there and only got about 75% of it covered.

Will try and get back tomorrow for the rest, hopefully.

Met some great folks at the booths.

F'n Cabot guns. Stopped by them early, and near the end of our stay. S.O. did not like 1911s until she saw theirs. Probably drop a deposit on one tomorrow, damn it. Brian Zin being there and easy to talk to did not help our pocketbook.

Amazing how many head of companies were there and accessible. News says it will probably be the biggest annual meeting ever!

Yeah baby, don't miss event of the year in Houston.

 

[benenglish]

Friday, Day Two

This will be a short synopsis of what I saw that interested me. I got through maybe 30% of the main exhibition hall real estate today and took pictures of whatever interested me. With short descriptions, they follow.

Keep in mind, I'm weird; what interests me will likely not interest anyone else. I encourage other folks to post pictures and text about their experiences at the Annual Meeting.

One picture that I didn't get because I didn't want to humiliate the guy any further was of the fellow who showed up with multiple rifles slung on his shoulders complete with small, crude signs. He had expected to walk in, walk around, and sell his guns. After all, this is a gun show, right?

No, it's not. <sigh>

I took some additional notes and have more impressions that I'll post later when I've had a chance to organize them. For now, though:

Carry Options for Women

Many years ago I had a devil of a time helping my sister find a purse designed to carry a pistol. That no longer seems to be a problem.

Concealed Carrie was out in force. A number of other booths featured products from this company.

There was an outfit called Concealment Shop.

I'm not sure but I think these were from Woolstenhulme Designer Bags.

Reloading Tools

Naturally, Dillon was there. I was surprised at the small size of their booth but I guess when you're the industry leader, you don't really have to try to make too big of a splash.

However, a company named GSI International was also there with high-quality motorized add-ons for Dillon products featuring things like case and bullet feeders for volume reloading.

It's tough to reload without brass, so Brass Magnet was there with their lawnmower-like brass picker-upper. It only works on uniform surfaces and won't pick up .22s so I'm not sure of the real utility of the device; my local indoor range bought one and stopped using it in short order. Still, it's a neat idea.

American Workbench had some truly stunning wooden artworks on display. This reloading bench was the smallest.

It's a stretch to put this under "Reloading" but since you must laboriously reload a black powder muzzle loader every time, perhaps this fits. The good folks from Swiss Black Powder (No religious arguments, please; we all accept that Swiss vies for the title of Best Genuine Black Powder Brand and there's no need to bring up others) were showing off a new muzzleloading rifle that they swore made for a for-real 200-yard deer gun. It didn't look like any muzzleloader I'd ever seen but I examined it closely. It's an inline rifle with all the modern ergo touches.

 

[Lady Blue]

I called the NRA ticket number today to see if I could find out when Maj Dan Rooney would be having his book signing. The young lady I talked to answered.my question and then felt the need to inform me that if I had a CHL the state of Texas would allow me to carry but it does require the firing pin be removed from all concealed weapons. I certainly hope she works for which every ticket agency is handling the sales and not actually the NRA.

 

[benenglish]

Friday, cont.

Sighting the Rarities of Kel-Tec

A few firearms that most people have only seen on the internet or YouTube were prominently displayed in the Kel-Tec booth.

The PMR-30 -

The RFB -

That double-mag-tube hi-cap pump, whatever it's called -

Big Iron

Some truly massive rifles were present. In person, they're far more impressive than they are in the pages of magazines.

An Armalite AR50

One note on the Armalite target/sniper/whatever rifles: They recently re-designed their AR-30 series and dropped the .308 chambering. It's now only available in .300 Win Mag and up. However, the rep said that the AR-30A1 will be made available in .308 in the future.

Even I found this one exciting. It's the final prototype of an Alexander Arms piston-driven semi-auto that looks roughly like an AR on steroids but sleeker and with impeccable build quality. Not yet in the catalog, what's cool here is the chambering. This 20-pound beast fires the .338 Lapua. Now, that's cool.

Just Plain Pretty Stuff

Eagle Grips had a whole bunch of their custom grips, sometimes in pretty wild colors.

EMF displayed wares that varied widely. Some seemed almost crude but those birdshead thumb-cockers in the display case were quite lovely and felt good in the hand.

Someday I really want to own a Merkel rifle.

 

[benenglish]

Friday, cont.

Target Stuff

If you've never shot on real, imported-from-Europe-where-they-still-take-this-stuff-seriously targets, you owe it to yourself to try some Kruegers. (Yes, I'm on record as preferring Edelmann but these are almost as good.)

On the other hand, if you prefer to set up a bullet-catching box somewhere convenient, the folks at TheBulletBunker.com had a variety of ready-made boxes that appeared incredibly massive and overbuilt.

Cars

Business promotion is always a convenient way to write off expenses for building the toy you always wanted. There were several vehicles on the floor.

Magpul had a..a...What the hell is that thing?

Ammo to Go seems to feel that for some reason a simple truck will bring people to their booth.

And somebody customized an early VW van with some sort of weaponry on top. I don't know who and didn't care to find out. I actually had two reactions: "Why?" and "No. Just...NO."

Seeing Better

Decot had some serious expertise in their small booth. Bring this guy a copy of your prescription for your regular glasses and your prescription for your shooting glasses and he'll tell you if your optometrist knows what they're doing.

On the other hand, if you need high-quality glass in the field, there were dealers there with all the big names - Leica, Swarovski, Meopta, etc.

 

[Das Jared]

That was magpuls vw van.

sent from my dishwasher

 

[Acera]

I called the NRA ticket number today to see if I could find out when Maj Dan Rooney would be having his book signing. The young lady I talked to answered.my question and then felt the need to inform me that if I had a CHL the state of Texas would allow me to carry but it does require the firing pin be removed from all concealed weapons. I certainly hope she works for which every ticket agency is handling the sales and not actually the NRA.

That is crap. No metal detectors. No one asked if I was armed. Plenty of CHL's in there properly armed and ready to go.

Only saw one open carry from a vendor, and he had the mag removed, LOL.

 

[benenglish]

Friday, cont.

Miscellaneous

Who doesn't want everything in the Gerstner catalog? It sure was fun to get hands on some of these jewels.

In other woodworking news, the folks at a cleverly-named company called Secret Compartment Furniture had a gigantic display of nice furniture with secret compartments.

And I've left the stupidest for last.

Why is Cold Steel marketing truly silly items like non-metallic war clubs and pikes? I don't know if it's the company or their customers who are being so aggressively idiotic. I looked through the booth (perhaps too quickly) and didn't see a single one of those mirror-polished, finely-made Tantos that used to elevate my heart rate. Everything was matte black and utilitarian or matte black and utterly useless. (To be fair, I hope somebody else stops by their booth and finds some of the sorts of goods that made the company famous. I just moved on.)

 

[benenglish]

Friday, conclusion

The day was exhausting because of the crush of people. Traffic was a nightmare. I think every flu bug in the world was flown in for the event; I'm definitely now sick.

And I loved every minute of it.

Now, somebody ask Glockster69 about his hat; I'll let him tell that story.

 

[Dredge]

I got there around 4:30 pm and felt like a kid in a candy store. I forgot to take pic until I left and saw some protestors across the street....a whole 2 of them...

 

[BG1960]

thanks for the report, I'm wavering on goin' first thing in the am...

 

[benenglish]

Time permitting I suggest you use nraam.org to view the list of exhibitors and the floor plan and map out your top 10 (pick your number) list of *must sees*, otherwise you may not make it to each booth. They also provide an exhibit guide soon after you enter the hall.

+1 on this.

The booths are not laid out with consistent front-to-back aisles. Big booths will span multiple rows. In other words, this is not a show where you can simply start at one end and walk up and down the aisles easily. Pre-planning is essential unless you just want to go all day every day in an attempt to see everything and photograph the interesting stuff for some blog.

I don't know anybody who'd be stupid enough to try that.