A Review of The Remington Model 700 EtronX

Background:
In standard rifles a firing pin is used to strike the primer on the bottom of a cartridge, when the trigger is pulled. The primer ignites the powder contained in the cartridge which projects the bullet out of the gun to its target. The firing pin uses a spring which is loaded when the firearms action is operated and discharges when the trigger is pulled. Firearms have used this method to fire since the Civil War.




EtronX:
The Remington Model 700 EtronX is a bolt-action rifle, which uses an advanced method to fire a projectile. Rather than the standard spring loaded firing pin, the EtronX replace the firing pin with an electrical contact. Along with special primers, the EtronX fires projectiles using a 9V battery. When the trigger is pulled the circuit is completed causing an electric charge to ignite the powder.

Advantages:
The EtronX has many advantages over it's standard counterpart.

• Less trigger pull because their is no spring to trip.
• According to Remington a round is ignited 2.7 millionths of a second after the trigger is pulled.
• Minimized effect of barrel movement after the trigger is pulled.
• An LED indicating the safety status and battery status.

Disadvantages:
The EtronX has one major disadvantage compared to a standard rifle.

• The rifle is useless when the 9V battery is dead.

The battery is easily replaced by removing two screws from the butt plate where  the battery is housed, minimizing the inconvenience of having a battery.

Looking at both the advantages and disadvantages, the EtronX is a technological improvement to a tried a true method of firing projectiles. I suggest anyone interested in firearms try this rifle for yourself.