Book Review: Storefront Newsprints

Storefront Newsprints: 1982-2009 by Storefront for Art and Architecture
Storefront Books, 2009
2-volume paperback with slip case, 1,000 pages



Anybody who has visited the Storefront for Art and Architecture has probably walked away with a folded piece of newsprint with details on the exhibition on display. Since my first visit in 1997 I've amassed quite a few, storing them in a shoebox with pamphlets from other museums and venues I've visited in New York City and beyond. The Storefront newsprints have a way of standing out from the rest, in large part from the material they are printed on as well as the monochrome graphics employed. They are anachronistic without being reactionary. They recall a time before ink-jet printers and digital publishing, a time of literal cut-and-paste graphic design and printing in local copy shops. Yet the newsprint is a consistent medium in the nearly 30-year Storefront history, spanning a time of great changes arising from digital technologies, be it graphic design, publishing, or architecture. That Storefront continues to use the format points to a desire to keep in mind the organization's origins, even as it grows in scope and influence beyond the confines of 97 Kenmare Street.



Storefront Newsprints collects over 150 of the newsletters from its early days on Prince Street to last year, reprinted in two volumes nicely packaged in a black slip case. This is book as historical artifact, focused on what could be considered Storefront's unintentional archive. Not all of the text in the reprints is legible (essays by Lebbeus Woods, Michael Webb, and Vito Acconci are reprinted in easy-to-read format), but it is the images, layouts, and most of all the subject matter that rises to the fore while perusing the collection.

Storefront Newsprints comes at the end of Joseph Grima's three-year directorship. Heading for Italy and Domus, he followed Sarah Herda, who is now at the helm of the Graham Foundation in Chicago after her eight-years at Storefront. Before them founder Kyong Park directed the space's exhibitions, and Grima's interview with him is particularly revealing about the organization and its newsprints. As the Storefront searches for Grima's replacement, the past tenuousness of its existence seems to have given way to a widespread appreciation of the organizations, its space (restored in 2008), and its place within the broader architectural community. The influence of its programs reaches beyond its 868sf home (PDF link), but the newsprints are unique artifacts for those able to visit the gallery in person...and now for those willing to spend $49.

US: or at Storefront Bookstore

Training Update

Chris and I are training for the 1/2 marathon on May 30th. We are in the midst of week 5 of training and have 8 more weeks to go. Up until this point I was feeling pretty good about running. This week I have found the runs to be more challenging. We are doing most of our running on the treadmill at this point, primarily due to weather, and also because it is very convenient to run at the gym while the kids are in the daycare. So far we've logged in 46 miles, and plan to run 146 more miles before race day! (yes, I actually did just look at our training calendar and count up all the hours) We've been running 3 shorter runs and one long run per week. This week our long run is 6 miles. Each week we will increase by 1 mile until we are up to 12 miles. That is the most we will run at once before the race. We've been sprinkling cross training into our program to balance out all the running we've been doing, so I've been lifting some weights. One thing I know for sure is that I have weak arms. You would think I would have super strong arms carting these kids around all day!

For those of you who want to support our racing endeavors monetarily, we are racing for the American Cancer Society. Over there on the left underneath our racing countdown you can click on the ACS logo to be re-directed to our fundraising page. We greatly appreciate any support, and hope to see many cheering on race day!

10 Months!

Not quite sure what is going on with Jake's hair in this picture, but regardless, this handsome little boy is 10 months old! As you saw earlier this week, Jake is crawling, cruising and doing a bit of free standing. If there is something he wants that is off in the distance, just call him Speedy Gonzalez. We can no longer leave Samantha's snacks lying around on the coffee table because Jake will get them! He is very curious and wants to know what everything is.

Jake is forming more sounds, but no words yet. He like to make lots of noise, especially when he is riding in the car. Most recently Jake is realizing what it is like to scream. This has been lots of fun for me. Luckily Samantha hasn't really joined in on the fun when he screams. Jake screams mostly when I first put him in his high chair as if to say "you are not getting my food fast enough!" Jake still has 6 teeth, but I have a feeling a few more are not far away. He has started biting us when he puts his head down on our shoulders. We just can not believe that this energetic boy is getting so big already!

Extracts of local distance

Extracts of local distance is a project by Benjamin Maus, Frederic Gmeiner and Thorsten Posselt. "Countless fragments of existing architectural photography are merged into multilayered shapes. The resulting collages introduce a third abstract point of view next to the original ones of architect and photographer." Take a look at the project video:

Extracts of Local Distance from STOESELTNTPRO on Vimeo.

Now take a look at one of the finished pieces:


[Elbberg Campus, top with detail below | image source]

The project, Elbberg Campus by BRT Architekten was featured on my weekly page in 2004:





The original photographer is Klaus Frahm, though I'm not sure if the three photos from my feature are the ones used for manipulation. Pieces of the wood louvers, curling metal facade, and wood decking can be seen in the collage, taking the space between the buildings and making it 100 times more dynamic. The image recalls Zaha Hadid's paintings, but it also makes me think of exploded diagrams, where pieces are pulled away from their final location for ease of understanding. In a sense these collages do the same thing, they extract information from the architectural photography and isolate individual pieces for regrouping into something new yet still recalling the original. Do the technique and its result have the potential to reorient how architects design space? Or are they just a commentary on the fairly consistent world of architectural photography today? Whatever their influence, they are striking images that I'm sure most architects would love to have gracing their walls.

(via PYTR 75)

Tuesday Thoughts

It is only Tuesday. And a rainy one at that. And Monday was rainy as well. I keep telling myself that I can deal with two crazy rainy days in a row because the next several days are supposed to be gorgeous! Days of the week take on a whole knew meaning when Chris is traveling. It's a completely mental game getting through 5 days and 4 nights without him here. Tuesday always seems to be the longest.

Last night when putting Samantha in her crib for the night I noticed that her fish toy needed new batteries. I told her I'd take the toy downstairs to replace the batteries and that I would bring it right back upstairs for her. After replacing the batteries I hung the toy back on her crib and pushed the button that starts the lights and music. Upon seeing that the toy was fixed, Samantha excitedly declares "It's working; YEAH MOMMY!" This was said while raising her arms and fists up into the air!

Jake has decided that he no longer wants any part of baby cereal and pureed fruits and veggies. He is done! So, we are going back to a little bit more formula while he learns how to eat a few more solid foods. He is doing pretty well with peas, apples, pears and anything crunchy. Today I tried spreading some of the pureed veggies onto ritz crackers and he still ate it! To take a quote from Samantha "My fooling you Jake!"

Pritzker Musing

It's virtually impossible to write about The Pritzker Architecture Prize without discussing what other people are saying about the newest recipient. Coverage is fast and furious (see yesterday's ArchNewsNow for a few links and Google News for many more), and questions of "are they worthy" seem to take precedence over other concerns. This year's winners, Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa (aka SANAA), are known for minimal, ethereal designs of glass, metal and concrete. This fact is seen by James S. Russell (Bloomberg) as a disservice "at a time of profound challenges in the field." That they are the second duo (after Herzog & de Meuron) and Sejima is the second woman (after Zaha Hadid) to win the coveted prize is mentioned in just about all coverage (Cityscapes), and Christopher Hawthorne (LA Times) focuses on the former. While he quotes how the jury believes "it is virtually impossible to untangle which individual is responsible for what aspect of a particular project," there is one thing missing from this and other coverage: the individual practices of Sejima and Nishizawa that exist alongside SANAA.

The collaborative aspect of SANAA that Hawthorne and the jury praises is certainly nothing new, but that each retains their own individual practice is very unique. Many partnerships splinter as two or more designers and their egos do battle. Thom Mayne received the prize in 2005, but for a long time Morphosis was him and Michael Rotondi, who formed ROTO Architects in 1995. It's cliche but oftentimes true to say that a firm does not have room for more than one great designer. I think SANAA manage by allowing their own practices to exist and be treated equally; SANAA does not take precedence over the others, even though the commissions may get more press. But what is also important about this three-part structure, and is something that makes their choice for the Pritzker a little more complicated, is how the projects of each practice are not so easily distinguishable from the others. To be sure SANAA's commissions tend to be larger, but the minimalism, pristine surfaces and complex spaces are present in all their output. The award is given to Sejima and Nishizawa, but it can also be seen as a validation of all their work, whichever name gets the formal credit.

Previous Sejima/Nishizawa/SANAA coverage on my web pages:

:: Dior Building (Sejima)
:: Moriyama House (Nishizawa)
:: New Museum of Contemporary Art (SANAA, building)
:: New Museum of Contemporary Art (SANAA, project)
:: Onishi Hall (Sejima)
:: Rolex Learning Center (SANAA)
:: SANAA Houses (Sejima, Nishizawa, SANAA)
:: SHIFT: SANAA and the New Museum (SANAA)

03-31 Correction: Christopher Hawthorne does indeed mention the separate practices of Sejima and Nishizawa: "Both continue to operate their own smaller, separate firms."

Russia may Unveil New Super-tank in Summer 2010

Russia's new main battle tank (MBT), the T-95, could be exhibited for the first time at an arms show in the Urals Region this summer, the developer and future manufacturer of the tank has said.

The development of the new tank dubbed "Item 195" began at the Uralvagonzavod design bureau in the early 1990s. Russia will become the first country in the world to have the 5th-generation MBT if the military commissions the vehicle.

"The work on the project has been conducted for many years. If the government gives us a 'green light' we will exhibit the tank at the [Russian Expo Arms 2010] arms show in Nizhny Tagil this summer," general director of the Uralvagonzavod plant Oleg Siyenko told RIA Novosti in an exclusive interview.

"I cannot disclose the characteristics of the tank, but I can assure you that we have met all the requirements put forward by the military," he said.

According to unofficial sources, the T-95 will feature better firepower, maneuverability, electronics and armor protection than Russia's latest T-90 MBT or comparable foreign models.

It will weigh about 55 tons and its speed will increase from 30-50 kph to 50-65 kph (19-31 mph to 31-40 mph).

The new tank may be equipped with a 152-mm smoothbore gun capable of firing guided missiles with a range of 6,000-7,000 meters.

In contrast to existing designs, the gun will be located in a remotely-controlled turret to improve 3-men crew survivability.

Meanwhile, the T-90 MBT, developed in the 1990s on the basis of the T-72B tank, will be the backbone of the armored units until 2025, according to the Russian military.

Russia currently produces up to 100 T-90 MBTs annually and plans to have at least 1,500 vehicles in service with the Ground Forces.

Monday, Monday

My weekly page update:

This week's dose features Kirkwood Public Library in Wilmington, Delaware by ikon.5 architects:


The featured past dose is Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas by Polshek Partnership:


This week's book review is Hunch 13: Consensus edited by Salomon Frausto:


Some unrelated links for your enjoyment:

2010 Pritzker Architecture Prize
The $100,000 prize goes to SANAA, Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa. (More coverage to follow.)

Architectural Braindump
"The ever-changing profession of architecture." (added to sidebar under blogs::architecture)

architecture for the masses
Blog of Populous, the firm formerly known as HOK Sport. (added to sidebar under blogs::offices/architects)

arkinet
"Sharing architecture - connecting architects." (added to sidebar under blogs::architecture)

Today's archidose #404

London Olympics 2012, originally uploaded by Manuel.A.69.

The View Tube for the London Olympics 2012 in London, England, 2009. Please comment if you know the architect responsible for the View Tube's design.

To contribute your Flickr images for consideration, just:

:: Join and add photos to the archidose pool, and/or
:: Tag your photos archidose

From the Archives

I discovered this video of Samantha and Avery on Christmas morning.

Just had to share!

Visiting Gamma and Gampa!

We had a great week this past week at my parents house. Chris and I drove down last weekend, and it just happened that this past week was his first week at his new job, so after driving us down on Saturday, we dropped him off at the train station on Sunday so that he could come back to head to his first week of work! I would have driven down by myself, but somehow making a 4.5 hour drive by myself with two babies, just didn't sound like a good time! We had some beautiful weather that got us outside without having to wear our coats! We spent a rainy day inside at Tumble Town, and got to visit with my grandparents (Gamma Effie and Gampa James). I was also very happy to spend a little bit of time with my high school friend Beth and her daughter Anna.

It has been several months since Chris traveled from home for work, since his last contract ended with him working from home. Samantha's level of comprehension has been amazing. Nearly every night when she would talk on the phone with Chris, her conversation would go something like this: "Love you Daddy, miss you, come home daddy, come home!" Jake is not yet at a point where he really understands what is going on, but he does seem to enjoy "talking" on the phone to Daddy.

Gampa drove back home with us yesterday and then took the train back home this morning. Chris was glad to not have to do that leg of the traveling. Samantha and Jake were very happy to be back with their Daddy as well as Mammo and Papi!

Here is Jake helping to load the dishwasher:

Samantha goes through the tunnel at the park:

Jake, Gamma, and Sammy

Reading with Gamma Effie and Gampa James:

Climbing at Tumble Town:

Jake gets a kick out of the ball pit:

Jake gets around Tumble Town:

This bridge was a big hit:

All smiles for parks and beautiful weather!

Baby Noah

We made a visit to the hospital today to meet baby Noah and check up to see how Amanda and Chris were doing. Noah is very cute, and looks a lot like Ethan when he was a baby. Chris and Amanda have been saying that they hope Jake has been sending the baby his chill vibes, and so far so good because Noah made hardly a peep while we were there! I was holding him and asked Chris if he wanted to hold him. He hesitated and said, "I do, but I am afraid if I do I will want another one!" At this point I could have given him right back to his mother, but Chris did hold Noah. I guess only time will tell. :)

The little man of the hour:

Noah and Chris

Noah and Emily

Wedneday, March 31st

On Wednesday night we'll be screening the documentary, Still Bill about the legendary Bill Withers. We're really looking forward to it. DJ Toby will be playing some Soul classics after the film. Showing at 9:30pm sharp. T'is free. Come on by.

Monday, March 29th!

Awesome shredders coming through from Florida (Yay, Tubers!) and San Francisco (Yay, Street Eaters!). Come see these punks do their surf punk slip on jams!

Jake on the Up and Up!

I spent this past week at my parents house where Jake was just moving and cruising all over the place. I shot these two videos of him climbing up their stairs. He has been standing and cruising all over furniture, and doing some free standing. He'll be turning 10 months this week, and I have a feeling we might be seeing some walking out of him in this next month!

The open stairs make for lots of laughs!

Rising Currents and Open Piers

On Monday the first section of Brooklyn Bridge Park, Pier 1, opened to the public, and on Wednesday the exhibition Rising Currents: Projects for New York's Waterfront opened at MoMA. The first is a six-acre portion of an 85-acre park that stretches from roughly Atlantic Avenue on the south to the Brooklyn Bridge on the north (see interactive map) along the East River. The second consists of artists-in-residence at P.S.1 addressing the challenge of sea levels rising from global climate change. So how do we reconcile these apparently opposite ways of thinking about New York's waterfront, when issues of public space (short term) and eco-sustainability (long term) are both seen as important?


[Brooklyn Bridge Park Opening | image source]

Brooklyn Bridge Park is the result of a post-industrial landscape shaped by storage and shipping. The park can be seen as the successor to the warehouses that lasted about a century. But if predictions for rising water levels come true, the waterfront's use as a park would have an even shorter lifespan. The Brooklyn Height Promenade overlooking the park will be okay, but the playgrounds and other features designed by Michael Van Valkenburgh would become submerged by the East River. But can lessons from the MoMA exhibition be applied to the design before it's complete? Or will infrastructure addressing rising waters address this and other stretches of New York City shoreline?


[Rising Currents Zones | image source]

Brooklyn Bridge Park sits just north of Zone 4 above, to the right of Zone 0. These and the other zones correspond to the teams developing suitable responses for each; all are based on research by Guy Nordenson and others for Palisades Bay, the New York/New Jersey Upper Bay area. All the responses run counter the traditional, muscular ways of dealing with this sort of infrastructure, i.e. the levees of New Orleans. Holding back the rising currents is not the name of the game. Instead learning from nature's processes and utilizing "soft" infrastructure are the means of exploration for the different contexts.

So how does public space, especially that alongside the city's waterways, change as we move forward? A post at the MoMA exhibition blog by NYC Parks & Rec Commissioner Adrian Benepe starts to address this issue:

"the proposals represent some innovative ways to create new realms of public space, places that are not traditional parks, but rather are flexible zones of water and land and plants and animals. We currently tend to look at parks as distinct from other urban forms, with fences, walls, planted buffers— different vocabularies of building materials. While each team has proposed concepts very different from the others, they all redefine the interaction of streets, parks, seawalls, canals, piers, and even the harbor itself."

So Brooklyn Bridge Park's interaction with the East River would then be the logical place for addressing a rise in the water level. The hard edge of Pier 1 may give way to a soft zone that allows the rising waters to be dealt with in some manner besides holding it back. If one thing is clear from the exhibition, New York City's solutions to rising sea levels will be a combination of approaches implemented in a multitude of areas. There is no single fix for one area; and even if there were, the ignorance of other shorelines and the interdependence of them all is irresponsible. We'll see if the exhibition shapes Brooklyn Bridge and other NYC park projects as talk about rising sea levels moves from conviction that it is a problem to practical solutions for the future.

Welcome Noah!

We are all so excited to welcome Noah into the blogging clan, and can't wait to meet him! Congrats to Amanda, Christian, and big brother Ethan!

Today's archidose #403

casa em santa teresa, arq. angelo bucci, rio de janeiro, 2008, originally uploaded by m correia campos.

Casa em Santa Teresa in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil by Angelo Bucci (spbr), 2008

To contribute your Flickr images for consideration, just:

:: Join and add photos to the archidose pool, and/or
:: Tag your photos archidose

Formique #2

Formique is an ongoing series that comments on contemporary architecture that ignores some of the basic human, environmental and other concerns that architecture should address, all in the name of formal invention.


[166 Perry Street by Asymptote Architecture | image source]

A story in NY Daily News on Asymptote Architecture's first ground-up building in Manhattan at 166 Perry Street in the West Village is aptly titled Reflect On This! One thing the faceted glass curtain wall reflects is the sky, which makes me want to quote Eartheasy's post on a side effect of such a thing: "Birds often strike windows because they see a reflection of clouds, sky or trees which gives the mistaken impression that they are flying into open air." The prevalence of all-glass exterior facades is mind-boggling when one takes into consideration the avoidable harm to our fine-feathered friends. Very few architects actually address this concern (Studio Gang comes to mind), and in the case of 166 Perry Street the privacy of the residents trumps the lives of birds.

All Nouvel, All the Time

Jean Nouvel is the architect of the moment, with news on three major projects blanketing the digital airwaves: the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London, the National Museum of Qatar, and 100 Eleventh Avenue in New York City.


[Serpentine Gallery Pavilion | © Ateliers Jean Nouvel]

The breaking news is Nouvel's selection for the Serpentine Gallery, an annual temporary structure in Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park. Past commissions have gone to SANAA, Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas, Toyo Ito, and Daniel Libeskind, many with Arup for engineering, including Nouvel's design. It's a who's-who list of starchitects, given free reign (not so free in the case of MVRDV's unrealized "mountain") to build a no-budget pavilion with few programmatic requirements. Experimentation is the name of the game here.


[Serpentine Gallery Pavilion | © Ateliers Jean Nouvel]

The bright red pavilion immediately recalls Bernard Tschumi's folies for Parc de la Villette in Paris, realized nearly 20 years ago. Of course he was inspired by Russian Constructivist art and architecture, so the lineage of inspiration extends far beyond the immediate past. It also recalls another Nouvel design, the Brembo Research Office in Italy, another bright red building integrating a highway noise barrier. The Serpentine Gallery Pavilion--whose red "reflects the iconic British images of traditional telephone boxes, post boxes and London buses"--consists of "bold geometric forms, large retractable awnings and a freestanding wall that climbs 12m above the lawn, sloping at a gravity defying angle." It's fun with a capital F!


[National Museum of Qatar | image source]

The other big news is the unveiling of Nouvel's design for the Naitonal Museum of Qatar, covered by Nicolai Ouroussoff, who drools over it as the "French architect’s most overtly poetic act of cultural synthesis yet." Last week the New York Times critic praised 100 Eleventh Avenue's "mix of grit and glamour," as the building nears completion in Chelsea, visible from the High Line.


[100 Eleventh Avenue | photo by archidose]

These last two designs and their treatment by Ourousoff spur me to link to Alexandra Lange's recent analysis of the critic's writings at the Times. I tend to agree with Lange's position that the architecture critic at the nation's newspaper of record should be much better, but the comments show that opinion is hardly unanimous. I think what's missing from discussions of celebrity architecture and fashionable, eye-catching designs is how these designs come about, the role of the client and the cultural context. Architects do not design these sorts of buildings in a vacuum and then happen to have them built; it is a two-way street of a desire for what Nouvel and his comrades are very good at doing: creating unprecedented architecture that receives the widest attention, this blog included.

HK416 standard rifle

HK416 standard rifle (not IAR)

The H&K entry was a modified version of their HK416 piston-operated AR-15 rifle. Unlike the Colt and FN entries, it is said to fire only from a closed bolt. Given the lack of an open-bolt fire mode I had presumed it was the least likely choice for an automatic rifle.

Presumably it is fitted with a heavy barrel, like H&K's previous, and commercially unsuccessful, attempt at the automatic rifle: the MG36. The Marine Corps has been reporting the weight of the 16.5" barreled H&K IAR as being 7.9 lbs. This is not possible as a standard 16.5" barreled Hk416 weights in at 7.84 lbs. I also think that the photo of the H&K IAR shown by the Military Times is that of a standard HK416.

I have contacted H&K to see if they are willing to publicly acknowledge if they have won. If they do, I will endeavor to get the specs of the new weapon.

Umarex MP5 A5 and MP5SD

MP5 A5

MP5SD

Umarex is also manufacturing .22 LR carbines patterned on the famous MP5 and MP5SD. These carbines features ...

• Metal revievers
•  Compensators
• NAVY style pistol grip.
• Retractable stocks.
• H&K style diopter iron sights. Adjustable for elevation or windage.
  

The A5 model features a standard MP5 forend and a faux suppressor. The MP5SD foreend is modeled on the original SD forend although the suppressor is also just for the look and is non-funcationing. Standard fixed stocks will be able for purchase.

TDI KRISS Vector

The TDI KRISS Vector is now available in a pistol configuration. This allows civilians to purchase a short barreled configuration where previously they were limited to the 16" carbines. The military and law enforcement the select-fire pistol version makes for a compact and controllable PDW.

TDI KRISS in 40 S&W

The entire TDI KRISS line is going to be available in .40 S&W later this year. Additionally, lower receivers will be sold so that a .45 model can be converted to .40 S&W. Like the .45 version, it also uses Glock magazines.

The photo below of the prototype .40 S&W submachine gun model. I had to promise them I would make is clear it is a prototype and that the finish on the lower is rough and not what will be seen on the production version.

H&K MP7

Posted because everybody love the MP7. My first impression was that it is much bigger in real life than in photos. While it is a sexy gun, the .17 cal (4.6x30mm) cartridge does not inspire me with confidence.

SIG P226 Carbine and SP 2022 Carbine

SIG has done what Glock should have done many years ago: partner with a firm like CAA and produce official branded carbine versions of their pistol line. The SIG P226 Carbine and SP 2022 Carbine as simply their respective pistol converted to a carbine with a CAA Pistol Carbine Kit.

SIG SP 2022 Carbine

Each carbine feature a side folding stock and plenty of picatinny rails.

SIG P226

These are almost certainly going to be limited to the European market.

On a side note, I have used a Glock in a CAA Carbine Kit and it was a joy to shoot. I will blog about it soon.

The Hybrid

The Innogun Hybrid lower receiver is a magazine fed pump action. The lower can be chambered in 7×64mm, .308 Win, .30-06, 8x57mm IS or 9.3×62mm. Magazines will have the capacity of 1,3 or 5 rounds1. Its barrel is 23.6" in length.

The single shot upper receiver can be chambered in .22 Hornet, .222 Rem, .243 Win, .30-06, 8x57mm IS, 9.3×62mm or 12 Gauge. To load the upper the action opens just like a under/over shotgun or rifle. The barrel is 19.6" in length.

Our European friends never seem to stop trying to find new approaches to classic weapon systems that the rest of the world has given up experimenting with and I love them for it! Case in point is the Innogun which merges a single shot rifle and a pump action rifle with a double rifle.

The Hybrid

The Pulse

It weights in at between 7.7 lbs and 8.3 lbs, depending on the upper/lower combination.

By now you are asking yourself "Why?". I don't have a good answer for that question! I suppose it is useful when you want a combination gun but also want a repeater. Still, I love it.

The company is also making a lightweight version of the Hybrid called the Pulse. It is pump action only and weights in at 6 lbs.

The Army’s M24

I have read through solicitation request for the Army's M24 Sniper Weapon System upgrade. I am struggling to see how it can be considered an upgrade. The original M24 is going to have little in common with an upgraded version. As I read the solicitation request only the original receiver must remain after the upgrade. Maybe some of the bolt's internal components will be used, but that is about it. Barrel, bolt face, stock, optics, sights, suppressor, flash hider, iron sights, rail system, magazine, bipod and trigger group are all likely to be replaced.

It looks like the Army is trying to get a new rifle in a roundabout way, much like how the USMC is procuring a new rifle under the guise of a machine gun.

Here are a few interesting specifications for the new M24 ...

• Trigger pull must be between 3 - 5 lbs. Operators must not be able to adjust the trigger.
• Magazine must have a minimum capacity of 5 rounds. It must not touch the ground when the bipod legs are at their shortest setting.
• The rifle, with minimum length of pull set and with suppressor attached, cannot be longer than 48".
• It cannot weigh more than 17 lbs with magazine full and with day optic and suppressor attached.
• MRBS (Mean rounds between stoppage) must be at least 1200. The MRBEFF (The mean round between essential function failure) must be at least 2300.
• The minimum accuracy must be 1 MOA (at 100m), although they are hoping for at least 0.8 MOA. These days 0.8 should be easily achieved.
• The rifle and optics must survive a 5 foot drop test.
• Iron sights that mound on the rail system must be included.
• The day scope must have variable magnification. The minimum magnification must be from 3.5-6.5x. The maximum magnification must be from 14-25x.
  

New Blaser R8

Merkel's answer to the new Blaser R8 is the Merkel RX.Helix. This takedown rifle makes use of a straight pull bolt action.

Its name is derived from the bolt's rotation system. The bolt is rotated in a helical motion at a 2:1 ratio (of forward motion to rotational motion). Apparently this allows for a smooth and fast bolt operation. This video shows the rifle being shot at 1 round per second. Pretty impressive!

The gun will be available chambered in 222 Rem., .223 Rem., .243 Win., 6.5x55mm SE, .270 Win., 7x64mm, .308 Win., .30-06, .308 Win., .30-06, 8x57 IS and 9.3x62. The magazine capacity is 3+1 rounds. The rifle weighs 6.4 lbs.