Once again, SHOT Show 2025 in Las Vegas proved to be a top-tier event for showcasing the latest and greatest from the firearm industry.
Shooting Sports USA was on the ground in Las Vegas to cover the biggest firearm, ammunition and gear announcements, along with a few surprises. Below, you can find some highlights from SHOT Show 2025.
Savage’s First Since The 99
Announced in September last year, Savage Arms brought its .22 Long Rifle Revel lever-action rifle to SHOT Show, where I finally got an opportunity to examine and fire it during Industry Day at the Range. In the Revel, Savage has melded the classic lever-action .22 rifle with modern materials and manufacturing to create one of the smoothest lever-action rifles I’ve ever handled.
How Savage managed that slick, smooth action (perhaps via a rack-and-pinion system like that found on the smoothest of lever-action rifles such as the Bullard and Henry Long Ranger,) I intend to discover when I receive a rifle for a full evaluation. At the range, Savage Arms Rimfire Product Manager Brett McKenna described the rifle’s materials—wood buttstock and fore-end, aluminum receiver, steel where it needs to be, rubber recoil pad—and showed the tool-less takedown that disassembles the rifle into two halves. Takedown is as simple as pushing the two receiver pins to one side; the receiver then separates into upper and lower halves. Reassembly is equally simple.
A crisp trigger that broke at what seemed about four to five pounds and an 18-inch medium-contour barrel aided precision shooting (taking into account I was shooting offhand in a 30 m.p.h. wind), and that smooth action and rubber recoil pad made it easier to hold sight picture on the target under recoil and cycling the lever. The clang of bullets ringing steel was clearly audible thanks in part to the new Savage suppressor attached to the factory 1/2-28 threaded muzzle (deciding to hold the Revel back for muzzle threading was a reason why Savage delayed release of the rifle). Savage’s new .22 Long Rifle suppressor itself is minimal size and can be disassembled for cleaning with ordinary socket and combination wrenches—but that’s a different story.
I believe the Revel is the first lever-action rifle from Savage since the venerable Model 99, discontinued many decades ago. Unlike a great many new firearms that are coming out of Turkey these days, the Revel is made up north by our Canadian friends. Savage offers the Revel in two models, the straight grip Classic ($439) with a Turkish walnut stock, and the pistol grip DLX ($539) featuring some carving and stippling on wood that’s a bit more plain. Both models feature medium-contour barrels and adjustable iron sights, and the receivers of both are drilled and tapped to accept proprietary Savage mounts. We can expect to see .22 WMR and .17 HMR versions later in 2025.
Berger + Lapua + Vihtavouri
Capstone Precision Group in Mesa, Arizona, acquired Berger Bullets some years ago and is the sole importer of Lapua brass and Vihtavouri powder, so it’s a no-brainer that Capstone would combine the three to produce top-tier loaded ammunition featuring these quality components.
Capstone announced at SHOT Show 2025 the introduction of new Berger Target ammunition for long-range competition shooters built with Berger bullets, Lapua brass and Vihtavouri powder. These are .300 Norma Magnum 245-grain Long-Range Hybrid Target (LRHT), and .338 Norma Magnum 300-grain Hybrid OTM Tactical, the same loadings utilized for more serious purposes by “our nation’s elite operators,” Capstone says.
For competitors who handload, Capstone introduces highest quality Lapua brass in 6 mm Dasher and 7 mm PRC, to become available later this year. Also new for handloaders of 6.8 Western and 277 Fury is the .277-inch Berger 270-caliber 150-grain Hybrid target bullet boasting a high BC of .580 (G1) and .297 (G7). The hybrid ogive is “jump tolerant,” making it an excellent choice when magazine length is a factor to consider, and its remarkably consistent J4 jacket gives the bullet a total indicated runout (TIR) of only .0003 inch.
6 mm GT from Hornady
The term “GT” as a measure of performance first referred to Grand Touring cars intended for high speeds and long distances. The fairly new 6 mm GT cartridge brings those attributes to Mid-Range, Long-Range, NRL and PRC-style competitors considering going to a 6 mm. Conceived by George Gardner of GA Precision and Tom Jacobs of Vapor Trail Bullets and introduced to Precision Rifle Series (PRS) and National Rifle League (NRL) competition in 2019, the competition cartridge is a bridge between the 6 mm Dasher and 6 mm XC. Its purpose is to feed reliably from a magazine, extend barrel life and ease load development when replacing a worn barrel.
Beginning in 2025, Hornady aids in popularizing the 6 mm GT for competition by offering loaded ammunition. Hornady’s 6 mm GT 109-grain ELD Match loading launches that 109-grain ELD match bullet (with a G1 BC of .557) at 2,870 f.p.s. For this load, Hornady says these small primer pocket cases are carefully selected based on strict criteria of wall thickness uniformity and concentricity, volume and case weight.
Note that also that, when you’ve accrued a hefty pile of fired brass, Hornady has reloading dies for 6 mm GT.
Low Decibel .410 From Remington
Remington has a new ammunition option for shotgun (and yes, handgun) shooters in its .410 bore Low Decibel offering just now hitting dealer shelves. Featuring what Remington Ammunition calls a “low velocity propellant,” throwing a half-ounce of No. 9 lead shot at 650 f.p.s., the 2½-inch shell will still reliably cycle semi-automatic shotguns, feed reliably in pump-action shotguns and of course chamber and extract flawlessly in revolvers. Low Decibel .410 should be an excellent choice for those metacarpal-cracking .410 derringers, for training gun dogs, training beginners on closer targets, for the recoil-shy and for the snake-fearful.
A half-ounce of lead shot is standard for .410 shot sizes 7½, 8 and 9, so Low Decibel loses nothing there in reducing noise or recoil. Compare its 650 f.p.s. velocity to that of typical .410 game load velocity of about 1,100 f.p.s. and about 750 f.p.s. for a self-defense load, and the recoil reduction becomes apparent. And while larger shot for a self-defense .410 revolver may penetrate deeper into soft tissue, a load of No. 9 at across-the-table distance is no slouch, either. MSRP for Remington’s .410 Low Decibel ammunition is $28 per box of 25.
Modular, Aesthetic WOOX Stocks
SHOT Show attracts a great many smaller companies eager to share their products with media and the rest of the industry, and among them is where I find each year some of the most interesting new ideas. This year, the non-firearm manufacturer that stood out for me was WOOX, which perhaps has the first truly major innovative approach to rifle stocks in years.
WOOX combines wood, carbon reinforced nylon, precision metal work and modularity to create stocks for competition rifles that are absolutely functional and ergonomic, and WOOX does the same for hunting rifles while maintaining the aesthetics of classic rifle lines still appreciated by riflemen. The unusual construction of WOOX stocks can also shave weight; the handsome SuperLeggara stock ($749) for bolt-action hunting rifles weighs only 2.2 pounds.
WOOX’s approach to modularity means the buyer can select a variety of custom options in color, fore ends, interior fore end weights, adjustable butt plates, recoil pads and even add names or initials. Carbon reinforced chassis inserts preclude the need for bedding, pillars or any other gunsmith fitting—barreled actions drop right in, and customers report the stocks improve the precision of their rifles. At Range Day, I tried out the WOOX Bravado stock ($498) on a Henry lever-action rifle, which featured M-LOK attachment rails on the hand-filling fore-end and on a buttstock with adjustable comb height that made the rifle snap right into position when bringing it up.
WOOX makes these modular stocks for the most popular rifles and shotguns, including the Remington 700, Savage 110, Weatherby Vanguard, CZ 457, Ruger 10/22 and even for AR-15 and AR-10 rifles. And if you’ve never seen it, wood alone can change the AR’s character from “assault” to “aesthetic.” Visit the WOOX website and check it out.
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