FN America’s Military Collector Series just got a little shorter. And by shorter, we really mean expanded with the M249S Para, a semi-automatic-only, closed-bolt version of the gas-operated gun used by elite operators within the U.S. military. Fed by either belts of 5.56x45 mm NATO disintegrating links or standard AR/M16 magazines, the 16-lb. M249S Para has a 16.1" barrel and a collapsible buttstock with a hydraulic buffer, making it between 4" and 10" shorter than the M249S. And this gun is made by the same workers who make the full-automatics for Navy SEALs. See it fired here, and for more, go to fnamerica.com
Any survey of military firearms isn’t complete without also discussing the development of ammunition across this past quarter-millennium. From a conceptual standpoint, very little has changed.
Initially introduced in 2019 to the international military market in a select-fire format, the IWI Carmel is a modular, durable and thoroughly modern sporting rifle.
Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc. became the first Blue Diamond level sponsor of the Scholastic Shooting Sports Foundation (SSSF) in 2024 by supporting the youth shooting sports program with more than $75,000 a year.
KelTec has brought the stripper clip back with the thoroughly unconventional PR57—a carry pistol with an uncommon chambering, an unusual action and no box magazine.
A number of states in the western U.S. have opened or are planning to open large, versatile ranges to serve the growing need for publicly accessible shooting spaces.