Industry Day at the Range: A First Time Perspective from SHOT Show 2024

This year was my first opportunity to go to SHOT Show, and it was a mixture of excitement and being overwhelmed at the same time. The day before the show officially starts is aptly called Industry Day at the Range (or simply “Range Day” to most attendees), and it’s quite possibly the best part of SHOT. On range day, people from all walks of life gather in Boulder City, Nevada for one common interest: Guns. Lots of guns.

To someone new like me, this is an exciting experience and, as I said above, somewhat overwhelming.

Have you ever watched a kid look around in a toy store with a dazed expression on their face? It’s like they don’t know which toy to play with first, and their brain freezes trying to decide. Well, that’s me and most other people at range day. Guns were everywhere, and you could shoot any of them you wanted. But it’s impossible to see and shoot everything. It’s just a huge event!

Cool temperatures and rain moved in early, but that wasn’t enough to keep us away. Each booth had swarms of buyers and members of the media flocking around to get behind the trigger of the latest and greatest guns to hit the market.

Going into range day, I planned to start at one end and work my way to the other. However, I didn’t account for how long it would take to get into some of the booths. Lines protruded from each vendor, so a short wait was required at most tables. But we’re talking about shooting free ammo in just about every type of gun you could ask for. That’s definitely worth the wait in my book.

What’s the point of Industry Day at the Range?

More than 200 vendors have booths to display their products, and most bring multiple guns to show off. While SHOT is held in Las Vagas, Industry Day at the Range is technically a separate event, which is held at the Boulder Rifle & Pistol Club just outside of Vegas. An app is available to help locate specific vendors (and to figure out where you are). It would be hard to stop at every booth and shoot every gun, so you have to plan. I struggled somewhat with this because I wanted to shoot every gun I saw!

The point of range day is to let buyers and media get their hands on new guns for some first-hand experience. What better way to show off a new gun than to let people shoot it? All the hustle and bustle reminds me somewhat of an old-style fair. Food trucks offer a variety of good eats, and some vendors passed out snacks along the way. Iron Clad Tactical even gave out a free pair of shooting gloves for those who wanted them. Subtracting the on-again-off-again rain, the day was extremely pleasant overall.

I was attending as a member of the media, so my goal was to check out some cool guns and optics. I wasn’t disappointed, either. Most vendors supply 5 rounds of ammo for each gun you wish to shoot. There were a few guns I wanted to shoot more than once, and they didn’t hesitate to hand me another mag. Here are some of the guns that stood out to me during my first Industry Day at the Range.

CZ Shadow 2 Compact

This isn’t a new gun by any means, but they did have some updates to the CZ Shadow. Known for their high-quality and competition-grade guns, the Shadow line of pistols is among the best. For this year, they introduced the Shadow 2 Compact. It launched several months ago, but SHOT is the first time most people could get their hands on one. This gun brings the quality and feel of a competition gun into a CCW package. An aluminum frame keeps it light, and of course, it has a shorter barrel and slide than what we are used to seeing on the Shadow.

It comes with a removable optics plate, raised sights, and some very nice-looking greyish grips. I was able to shoot the new Shadow several times and the feel of this gun is exceptional. Because of the short height of the slide, the recoil is great for a 9mm. It uses a 15-round mag, which has become the industry standard for compact 9mm pistols. Overall, this was one of the best shooting handguns of the day.

Primary Weapons Systems UXR

For innovation, the new Primary Weapons Systems took home the gold, at least in my book. This modular rifle has a hint of SCAR DNA but has some amazing features. The biggest feature is what PWS is calling “XCHANGE” meaning you can exchange the caliber. The one I fired at SHOT was configured with a 5.56 platform and standard AR mags. But with a quick change of the barrel, magwell, and bolt head, it can fire 7.62x39mm and use standard AK mags. It’s not limited to that, however, as the UXR will be available in multiple calibers.

It was a bit on the heavy side for a modern rifle, but I can get over that for a quality rifle that can adapt to so many platforms. At the moment, retail appears to be in the $1,600 range, with conversion kits selling for around $550. That sounds a little high for a conversion kit, but when you factor in the cost of a new rifle in multiple calibers, it’s a money saver. Only time will tell how well the UXR holds up after some serious ammo has been fired through it, but for now, it looks promising.

Kel-Tec KSG 410

This isn’t a new gun, but Kel-Tec had several KSG shotguns on display for eager shooters to try out. I’ve shot the KSG many times before, but I’ve never had an opportunity to try out the .410 version. I don’t really see the point in a shotgun that isn’t a 12 gauge. Ammo is cheap and it carries a big punch. But after shooting the KSG .410, I can say I was more than surprised. It’s expected that a .410 will have little recoil, but this thing has virtually no kick. It may have kicked more than a .22, but not by much.

For younger shooters or someone just wanting to have fun without the power of a 12 gauge, this is a great option. It’s light, and surprisingly thin for having two tubes under the barrel. In case you didn’t know, it’s also the only dual-tube .410 shotgun in the world. Retail is just under $500, making it a good option for those needing a pump shotgun with low recoil. For a while, .410 was getting hard to find, but GunMag Warehouse has you covered on that, and it’s fairly affordable, too!

Is it worth the wind and rain?

I wish I could have made it to every booth and tried out every gun. But we don’t always get what we want, and there’s always next year, right? I know it’s a little too much to ask for, but if we could have some sun in the middle of the desert it would make range day even better. But, overall, it was a trip well worth the rain and wind. I got to meet great people, shoot some cool guns, and share my experience with you. I plan to be back next year and, hopefully, stop by more booths than I did this time. Until then, we have an entire year to sort out the new guns introduced at SHOT for 2024, and oh what fun that will be.