B&T AG is getting ready to start production of the new APC 300. Â The APC, or Advanced Police Carbine, will be chambered in .300 Whisper, and is designed from the ground up for the cartridge. Â The gun is full-auto capable and is intended for use with a sound suppressor. Â The APC 300 fires from a closed bolt.
B&T states the gun is adaptable to right- and left-handed shooters, and comes with an ambidextrous charging handle, magazine release, bolt release and selector switch.
A bit of an enigma for the past several SHOT Shows, the Taurus CTG29 carbine is now shipping according to the company’s website. The carbine is based on the the SMT 9 and SMT 40 submachine guns the company produces in Brazil.
The Caracal Assault Rifle 816, or CAR 816, is a piston-operated M-4 type carbine that was introduced earlier this year. Â The gun uses a two-position gas port for normal operation and suppressed shooting. Â Rate of fire is listed as 850 rpm. (Ed. note: Â See the September 2013 update at the bottom of the article regarding the gas port and rate of fire.)
The CAR 816 is chambered in 5.56 NATO and comes in three barrel lengths:  10″, 14.5″ and 16″.  The barrels are chrome lined and cold hammer forged from chromolybdenum steel.  The barrel uses a 1:7″ twist.
The barrels are threaded, and come with a “standard muzzle break [sic].” Â From the photos, it appears the muzzle device is a standard A2 type birdcage flash hider. Â Of course, with so many different muzzle devices on the market today, it is hard to say for certain from the photos alone.
According to Caracal, the rifle comes with a magazine release on the right side of the receiver, but an ambidextrous option is available.  The gun uses STANAG-compliant magazines, and ships with a 30 round mag.  The rifle is shown with a PMAG, but it is not known if Magpul magazines ship with the gun, or more pedestrian USGI mags.
Paul Howe worked with Wilson Combat to build a new rifle that bears his name. Â The Paul Howe Tactical Carbine is an AR-platform gun chambered in 5.56 NATO. Â It has a very distinctive look and some very nice features and add-on options.
The carbine has a 14.7″, match grade barrel with a 1:8″ twist. Â The barrel has deep fluting. Â Permanently attached to the barrel is a three-prong Accu-Tac flash hider, which makes the gun legal without the need for a NFA stamp.
On this gun, Howe selected a two-stage Wilson Combat TTU trigger that uses heavier springs. Â The trigger release is set at 4.5 pounds, which Howe preferred for golved shooting. Â The weight of this gun is 7.5 pounds.
The finish is called Camouflage Armor-Tuff and it is a hand-applied pattern. Â According to the Wilson Combat press release, the finish also reduces the gun’s IR signature and can help to keep the rifle cool in hot weather.
Introduced in the summer of 2012, the 2013 SHOT Show was our first opportunity to get our hands on the new Caracal CC10 9mm carbine. The “CC†stands for “Caracal Carbineâ€. The CC10 has a steel receiver and barrel, with a polymer frame, however no details were given on the type of steel.
The CC10 will come in (2) variants – the SB (short barrel version) and the LB (long barrel version). The SB versions are marketed towards law enforcement, while the LB versions are promoted to the civilian market. Unfortunately, I was not able to put some rounds downrange with this carbine to truly give it a full review.  [Ed. note:  When we were at the morning session of Media Day during the 2013 SHOT Show, Caracal did not have the CC10 at the range.  They promised to have it there later in the day, but it was never seen by any of our writers.]