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SHOP NOWDay one at IWA Show 2024 in Nuremberg focuses on new European firearms headed for the U.S. market. The team visits Tink Arms and Grand Power to examine updated rifle platforms and a new 9mm pistol design.
Day one at IWA 2024 in Nuremberg, Germany follows immediately after the Enforce Tac show, which focused on law enforcement and military-only products. IWA is described as a much larger event, essentially the European equivalent of SHOT Show, with a broader range of firearms and accessories that are more likely to reach civilian markets. The crew plans to explore new guns and technologies that may come to the United States, highlighting manufacturers they previously covered and revisiting standouts from last year’s show for updates and new models.
The first stop is Tink Arms, where Peter introduces the new X17 rifle chambered in .308. It is presented as an evolution of the earlier X16 Peroon in 5.56, which had previously been selected by Classic as its rifle of the IWA show. The X17 keeps the same core hybrid operating concept while scaling it to an AR10-sized platform. Peter explains that the design aims to address long-standing shortcomings of AR10-style rifles, particularly the lack of a folding stock option and the ergonomics of traditional rear charging handles. The X17 uses a side-mounted, non-reciprocating, ambidextrous charging handle placed where the shooter naturally expects it.
Peter details the X17’s hybrid operating system, which blends aspects of direct impingement and short-stroke piston operation. A gas tube feeds a gas chamber, where gas pressure drives a gas bolt rearward about 10–12 mm, providing enough inertia to cycle the action, extract the spent case, and chamber a new round. He compares the feel to inertia-driven systems used on some .50 caliber rifles. A key feature is gas management: when the gas bolt moves into position, it seals against a flat internal wall, and approximately 95% of excess gas is vented forward under the handguard instead of into the receiver. This keeps the operating mechanism significantly cleaner and reduces fouling and jams, especially when shooting suppressed, since there is no traditional rear charging handle for gas to leak through.
The X17 uses a standard AR10 lower receiver, allowing compatibility with common AR10 magazines, drop-in triggers, safeties, and other lower components, including various finishes and ambidextrous magazine releases. The upper incorporates an adapter that accepts stocks designed for SCAR or ACR platforms, enabling a folding stock configuration. The operating group can be removed as a single unit by detaching the stock adapter and using the charging handle, leaving the remaining receiver essentially an empty shell with no moving parts. Standard AR10 components are retained where possible, including the bolt, firing pin, barrel, barrel nut, and overall barrel interface, simplifying maintenance and parts sourcing. The same operating system used in the 5.56 Peroon X16 is carried over to the X17, and Tink Arms reports no significant negative feedback on the X16 from private users or online reviewers, suggesting strong reliability so far.
Responding to user feedback, Tink Arms plans to refine the gas adjustment on the Peroon system for both the X16 and X17. Operators requested easier access to switch between suppressed and unsuppressed settings, so the company intends to add a small cutout in the handguard area to reach the adjustable gas system more directly. This change is aimed at professional users and military or law enforcement operators who frequently transition between configurations, but it is also expected to benefit civilian shooters by making the hybrid DI/short-piston system simpler to tune. The goal is a fully functional, easy-to-use gas system that maintains reliability while accommodating suppressor use without excessive gas blowback.
The next segment moves to the Grand Power booth, where Eric introduces the new LP24 pistol. The LP24 is a 9mm, long-slide handgun that departs from Grand Power’s traditional rotating-barrel designs and instead uses a conventional Browning-style tilting barrel lockup. It is striker-fired, very slim in profile, and feeds from Glock-pattern magazines, specifically G17 17-round magazines. The pistol is optics-ready and configured as a long-slide model intended to offer a longer sight radius and improved shootability. Eric notes that the LP24 is being debuted at the show and represents several firsts for the company in terms of design choices and magazine compatibility.
The LP24 features aggressive front and rear slide serrations, a low bore axis, and a slim grip that visually resembles a narrow-profile pistol while still chambered in 9mm with a 17-round capacity. The frame includes a Picatinny rail for mounting accessories. The grip uses a diamond-style texturing that provides a secure hold. The pistol is optics-ready and ships with four optics plates covering common footprints, including options for Vortex, Shield RMS, and Trijicon RMR patterns, plus an additional plate for another popular micro red dot. The sights are competition-style but can be swapped for three white-dot sights. Grand Power designed a proprietary trigger for the LP24, distinct from Glock triggers, with a defined wall and a clean break at roughly a 90-degree angle and a short, positive reset. Controls include an ambidextrous slide stop and a reversible magazine release. The pistol is currently at the ATF tech branch awaiting approval, with serial production for the U.S. market expected around late summer 2024.
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