The IWA Outdoor Classics, aka the “Euro SHOT Show”, took place in Germany earlier this month. This show, the largest gun/hunting/outdoors trade show in Europe, ran for four days, March 2-5, 2023, in Nuremberg, Germany. Approximately 1,100 exhibitors attracted 34,000 visitors from 119 countries. With those numbers, the IWA Outdoor Classics ranks second only to the USA’s SHOT Show as a global trade show for shooting, hunting, and outdoor activities. This bodes well for IWA Outdoor Classics, which marks its 50th anniversary next year in 2024.

Legendary American Shooter Meets VIPs at IWA Show

There were quite a few notable American shooters at the IWA Show in Germany. Here, at the Mossberg booth, legendary pistol and rifle competitor Jerry Miculek meets with Roland Weigert, Bavaria’s State Secretary for Economic Affairs.

Feinwerkbau 900 Competition Air Rifle

German gunmaker Feinwerkbau GmbH displayed a variety of Olympic-grade target rifles, including this impressive Model 900 with aluminum stock. The maker states: “Quality components come together to form a high-precision sporting rifle and a multitude of adjustment options ensure optimum ergonomics. The maintenance-free pressure reducer has been redesigned for even smoother system operation and ensures significantly reduced noise during firing. The optimized system bedding with double barrel clamping ensures highly precise groupings. This results in a new pace setter in the match air rifle sector.” The 900 Aluminum model is available in silver or black as standard, and, in addition, the model can be customized in 13 special colors for an additional charge.

Jumbo Display Bullets from Sax Munitions

Bullet and ammunition manufacturer Sax Munitions GmbH, had an eye-catching display of super jumbo-sized bullets. Just what you’d need to hunt a Dinosaur in Jurassic Park.

There were many innovative optics on display, such as this ATN ThOR LT day/night thermal rifle scope.

Mauser K98 Stock from Pro Mag | Archangel

Do you have an old Mauser K98 that you’d like to modernize with a more ergonomic stock for hunting and fun competition? Well ProMag Industries has you covered. This polymer stock fits the classic K98 Mauser, and variants including German K-98s, Czech VZ-24, Yugo 48 / 48a, and Turkish. The stock is made from high strength carbon fiber and glass-reinforced black polymer. Actions are secured with precision-fit, inlet steel pillar bedding with free-floated barrel channel. Length of pull is thumbwheel-click-adjustable from 13.5″ to 14.25″. This ProMag K98 stock is offered in black (as shown), desert tan, and olive drab colorsl. This modern stock design lists for just $185.99 MSRP.

Chayeh Z20 — New Straight-Pull Hunting Rifle

The Chayeh Z20 from Liwa Arms in Slovakia is a new, straight-pull, bolt-actuated hunting rifle with five-round magazine. The maker states that the Chayeh Z20 is “accurate, safe, fast and reliable rifle with high-end finish for a very surprising price.” The Z20 is currently available in 6.5 Creedmoor and .308 Winchester with three different barrel lenghts and various stock designs.

Walther LP 500 Competition Air Pistols

Along with a variety of rimfire and centerfire rifles and pistols, Walther showcased its impressive LP 500 air pistol. This beautifully balanced and very ergonomic air pistol is used by top competitors in ISSF 10-meter air pistol events.

ISSC SPA Hunter Toggle-Action Rimfire Rifle

We like toggle-link actions. Originally developed for biathlon rifles where rapid cycling (with minimal rifle movement) is critical, toggle-link actions are now available for rimfire sport and hunting rifles. We were impressed with the ISSC toggle-link action rifle, displayed by the Waffen-Pfandleihhaus group at the IWA show. This ISSC SPA Hunter rifle features a nice wood stock and is offered in three (3) rimfire chamberings: .17 HMR, .22 LR, and .22 WMR. We’d like one of these rigs for ground squirrel safaris.

Classic Wood Stock on Modern Air Rifle — HM1000

The HM1000 from Rapid Air Weapons derives it’s linage from the Theoben Rapid 7. Featuring many of the same design cues, the HM (Hunting Model) departs from its family history with such features as side lever cocking, an on-board manometer, an easy access Foster-style fill adapter and fully regulated design. This Hunting model offers a very handsome, high-grade would stock. The fit and finish of this rifle is matched by high standards for accuracy and reliability.

Mini Spotting Scope from Noblex

There are times when you want something steadier and more powerful than binoculars, but you don’t want a massive, heavy spotting scope that might weigh 6 pounds or more. The European optics company Noblex offers a very lightweight (18.7 ounce) 6-24x50mm Mini Spotting Scope. We think many hunters and varmint shooters could use a product like this. Small and light (at just 1.17 pounds), it is also very affordable, with a $419.00 MSRP.

BONUS BLADES — IWA Knife Spotlight

Along with the many pistols, rifles, optics, and accessories displayed at the 2023 IWA show in Germany, there was a special award program for knives. Here are two of the award-winning blades at the IWA Knife Award Ceremony.

Ever shot a straight-pull (aka toggle-link) action rifle? We like these action types, which were developed for Biathlon competitors who needed to shoot fast, but were not allowed to use semi-auto actions. The biathlon-style toggle action features a lever on the side of the action. Pull the lever back with your index figure to open the bolt, then push forward with your finger to close the bolt*. It’s fast and efficient. With some practice, you can cycle the action in a couple of seconds — nearly as fast as a semi-auto.

The Volquartsen Summit .22 LR rifle is based on a concept originally developed by Primary Weapons Systems. Designed for both competition shooting as well as small game hunting, this unique rifle features a straight-pull, toggle-style action with a Ruger 10/22 profile. That means you can run 10/22 magazines, swap into stocks inletted for the 10/22, and even use after-market 10/22 barrels. The CNC-machined receiver features an integral 20 MOA Picatinny Rail. The Magpul stock adjusts for length of pull. Weight is 5.8 pounds, so this is easy to carry in the field.

The Summit features a lightweight carbon fiber-wrapped barrel, threaded 1/2×28 at the muzzle to be suppressor-ready. One of our favorite features on this little rifle is the trigger — which has a light, crisp 1.75-lb pull weight. Watch the video above to see the Summit .22 LR in action. The tester, 22 Plinkster, was impressed with the rifle’s ease of use and accuracy. The Summit delivered a 0.277″ group at 50 yards, shot from the bench.

Tech Analysis of PWS-designed Action as used in Summit

Check out the Summit at NRA Show in Dallas
Volquartsen will have the new Summit straight-pull rifle on display, along with a wide variety of rimfire firearms, at its booth at the NRA Annual Meetings in Dallas this week. The Exhibit Hall opens May 4, 2018. You’ll find Volquartsen at booth #2520.

Big Names at Volquartsen Booth at NRA Show
Volquartsen has invited a number of notable shooters to the NRA Show, including 22Plinkster, who did the video review of the Summit included in this story. Here is the list of celebrity guest appearances at the Volquartsen booth (#2520) this week:

Friday May 4, 2:00 – 3:00 pm — 22Plinkster will be there to discuss all things rimfire. 22Plinkster has a great YouTube channel that boasts over 472,000 suscribers.

Friday May 4, 3:00 – 4:00 pm — Team Volquartsen shooters Cheyenne Dalton and Cole Busch talk about rimfire steel shooting

Saturday May 5, 11:00 – 12:00 pm — Fox News commentator and best-selling author Katie Pavlich will discuss Second Amendment issues.

Saturday May 5, 1:00 – 2:00 pm — Multi-time world champion shooter KC Eusebio will answer questions about action shooting.

* Biathlon shooters cycle their Fortner toggle actions even faster, using their THUMB to close the bolt. This allows them to get the index finger on to the trigger blade faster. The whole process takes maybe a second — as fast as you can say “snick-snick”. To use the thumb effectively, you need a stock with a more vertical pistol grip. The Magpul stock on the Summit moves your thumb a bit too far back to use comfortably to close the lever without shifting the hand.