Legacy Sports has just unveiled the Citadel Taipan X, a new spring assisted pump-action centerfire carbine chambered in .223 Rem. This Taipan X is named after one of the most dangerous and venomous snakes found in Australia, the taipan. The rifle has the appearance a contemporary tactical style semi-automatic intermediate cartridge carbine, except instead of using a gas piston or direct impingement system, this carbine is manually operated, just like any other pump action firearm out there. While a pump action “tactical” carbine might seem odd at first, the Taipan X is designed and manufactured in Australia and is built to conform with Australian gun laws. As a result, it can also be owned in those places inside the U.S. which place heavy restrictions on semi-automatic rifles.

The Citadel Taipan X has a 16.5-inch barrel with a 1:8-inch rifling twist that uses the popular .223 Wylde chamber, known to wring out the most accuracy from both the standard .223 Rem. cartridge as well as 5.56 mm round. The 1:8-inch twist on the barrel is sufficient to stabilize a broad spectrum of .223-caliber bullets of various lengths and weights, and the barrel is threaded to easily add a muzzle device or silencer.

The Taipan X feeds from a standard AR-15 style box magazines and ships with one 10-round Magpul magazine. The hand guard acts as a combination fore-end and pump-action handle.  There are M-Lok slots and a full length upper Picatinny rail section at 12 o’clock to make mounting accessories easier. The rifle has a gray Cerakote finish and uses standard A2 compatible grips. While the primary method to cycle the Taipan X is via its pump handle, there is also an option to use the left hand side charging handle to cycle rounds through the gun.

To learn more about the new Taipan X, please visit legacysports.com.

Article by SHOOTING ILLUSTRATED STAFF