Rifles Only Introduces New Products – 2017 SHOT Show

Kingsville, Texas based Rifles Only plays host for the annual Bushnell Brawl that I attended a few years back. I liked the event a lot even though I got my ass handed to me. The wind was fierce and the course of fire was incredibly difficult (nearly impossible), not surprising given that Jacob Bynum, Rifles Only’s owner, designed it.

Without fangirling too hard, Rifles Only is sort of a training mecca and try as I might to find them, nobody has any bad words to say about the company, Jacob, or his training. It seems that everyone who ventures down to Rifles Only just gets better at shooting their rifle.

Given how much time they spend on the range with shooters of all types, it’s not surprising that they have expanded their line of accessories to meet their needs as well as the needs of the shooters they work with every day.

First up is their oversized suppressor case called The Fatty. The Fatty, as the name would have you believe, is an oversized pouch for your seven to nine inch silencer. Made to fit silencers with mirage covers installed, it is lined with a heatproof material that won’t melt under the high temps a freshly removed silencer can reach. Simply pop your can off, drop it in the case, close the flap, and throw it in your bag. Retail pricing is $60 and available directly through Rifles Only.

Speaking of silencer covers, Rifles Only had their relatively new Heat Abatement Device (HAD), Mirage Abatement Device (MAD), and Skinny on display as well. Each is designed to fill a specific niche with the Skinny working like a typical mirage cover, and providing some protection from hot silencers. It doesn’t hold up to full auto fire and is designed for the bolt gun shooter looking to cut mirage with a fairly low profile cover.

Instead of using shock cord like other covers on the market, the Skinny uses a heat resistant cord that holds up much better and is able to lock the cover down much tighter. As proof, the instruction manual recommends that you wrap the cord behind the backside of the silencer to keep the Skinny from moving forward under recoil. Retail on the Skinny is $50.

The MAD and HAD are the more robust covers that include an almost rubber like inner sleeve that’s capable of sustained 3000 degree (F) temps with momentary spikes of up to 3500 degrees (F). The MAD uses an outer Cordura sleeve that can be customized for color or pattern and is affixed with 550 cord. The MAD is designed to be a step up from your typical mirage mitigating cover, one of the most robust on the market, and while it can take full auto fire, it will start to lose effectiveness and eventually fail. Retail on the MAD is $84.95.

For those looking to go bigger, badder, and stronger, the HAD from Rifles Only offers the same rubber like inner core, but a stronger and more heat resistant outer cover. The 550 cord is also dropped in favor of the heat resitant cord used on the Skinny. Retail on the HAD is $94.95.

The last item on the table, jokingly referred to as the Trapper Keeper for rifle shooters, is the Shooter’s Book. The $90 Shooter’s Book was designed to be a one stop shop for everything you’d need for a day at the range up to  and including ammo storage. Having looked to minimize the amount of crap I’m taking to the range on any given day, the Shooter’s Book makes a ton of sense and has my interest.

Jacob does a great job in the video above of explaining what’s all inside and how it’s used, but I’ll do my best to add some color.

First and foremost, the book makes heavy use of velcro on on the spine to allow the user to remove the “cards” completely, move them around, or pop them out to be stuck on the Rifles Only Shooting Mat. Included with the Shooter’s Book are two of the ammo cards, along with a velcro backing, and a clear windowed slap card. For an extra $25, you can add a Kestrel pouch to the book so you can keep everything at hand.

The ammo cards are capable of holding everything from .223 REM to .338 Lapua with each “card” holding 10 rounds. With the included loop Velcro panels, the Shooter’s Book is easily capable of holding forty rounds, enough for a quick practice session or a few stages at your local precision rifle match.

The slap cards are velcro lined so they’ll stick to the shooter’s mat as well, and feature a clear window for usage with electronics or paper range cards. Rifle’s Only sells their own range cards, but you could just as easily make your own out of heavy card stock. The clear plastic face is designed to work with grease pencil as well so you can make up a single data card and make changes that can easily be erased.

If you grew up in the 90’s, you likely remember the metallic slap bracelets that were all the rage. Rifle’s Only has implemented the same system for their range card to allow you to “slap” it on your forearm to give you a wrist coaching guide, useful for those competition stages where you’ll have to run to various points and dial/hold. Simply look down at your wrist coach and make the necessary changes.

The optional Kestrel pouch holds, you guessed it, a Kestrel, but also might be useful for some range snacks or a decent sized bottle of Ibuprofen. Like the rest of the book, the Kestrel pouch is more durably built than it needs to be and looks to be the sort of thing you’d pass on to your children.

I’ve always associated Rifles Only with quality instruction, but after looking at their gear selection, it seems that have done a great job of implementing thoughtful design in a broad line of range accessories. The silencer covers are very well built, and look ready for whatever comes their way and their Shooter’s Book looks like the sort of thing I’m going to have to begrudgingly purchase because it’s better than the hodgepodge storage solution currently occupying my range bag.