All posts in Hunting Gear

Pocket guns with firepower

Kahr firearms has made some real grounds in the CCW world.  Whenever I talk to some of my shooting buddies about what type of gun I should consider carrying it always ends up being J-Frames, Kahr and then something else.   I never really jumped on the pocket semi-auto bandwagon, but I would have to say that many of my friends have had very good experieneces with Kahr firearms.   My only real interest in buying there products would be one of the M1 Carbines from Auto-Ordnance but I’m not sure if that really counts.    The Sig 239 has turned out to be my primary small semi-auto but I have to admit that even though it fits in a pocket, it is still too heavy to carry there.

Kahr firearms come in the popular .380 caliber, 9mm, 40 S&W and the potent 45acp.  I think the idea of a pocket 45acp is a good idea, but I highly suggest you do some reasearch into how often you will need to replace recoil springs.  Many small semi-autos need more lubrication and spring maintenance and this will play a major factory in gun magazine and recoil spring reliability.  The smaller the gun, the more you will have to be concerned about limp wristing, also.   Kahr magazines are in the $30 price range, but I would seriously consider keeping atleast 3 of them for each gun you own.

Top

Ruge 10/22 possible the most fun semi-auto

I’m sure there are plenty of guys out there, or ladies that have a lot of military experience and got to shoot some neat stuff.   Comparing the Ruger 10/22 to being  in fire control on an AC130 Spectre gun ship is comparing apples to oranges.  I will say that I have shot a lot of semi-auto military style weapons and although I have fun shooting them, bringing a wife or friend that lacks the experience or has a fear of recoil can limit the types of firearms you are using.   The first Ruger 10/22 I owned had a pretty long break in period.  I had a lot of issues getting it to reliable cycle, but I had  a lot of  friends that gave me advice on how to tweak these firearms and having a reliable break in period was normal.
A friend suggested that I just fire a lot of ammo through it and eventually it will break in.   Anothe friend said to use some hot ammo like 22lr stingers and it will speed up the process.   I tried both of these, but after about 500rds, I still was annoyed at how many jams I had, I thought it was the gun magazines, but we’ll soon find out.   My other friend suggested I take the gun appart and try to polish it with nylon pads, very similar to what you use to clean dishes.   I took  his advice and spent about 15 minutes polishing the gun, I used a little CLP inside and took it out for another range trip.    I tried shooting some cheap Remington 22LR ammo and the gun functioned almost 100% of the time.   I was probable getting a failure to fire less than every 300rds which for a 22LR rifle, that is not that bad.

Top

Beware of over cleaning

I admit that I have been called a perfectionist.  I have several years experience in working in the music industry and in that line of work, only the best work gets noticed.   When it comes to maintaining a car, you can waste a lot of time working on things that aren’t going to increase your mileage or prevent it from getting hit by another car.   Although many of us like to take our favorite firearms out of the safe from time to time, and wipe them down and look everything over, there can be a point where shoving a cleaning rod down a barrel too often will cause excessive wear and tear.

In a Carbine course, we got a good lecture on some of the BS that people are claiming about the amount of maintenance the AR15 direct impingement guns need.   The reality is that they sure as heck do need to be cleaned more than any other semi-auto military rifle, but not as much as  some people claim.  The reasons the military makes soldiers do this so often is to basically just keep them occupied.   Keeping the gun lubricated and putting a few drops where it’s needed is all we  had to do while running a Carbine course and not a single one of us had an issue.  Be careful about how much you use your gun cleaning supplies on your firearms, but also, make sure you have the right tools for the firearm.   There are some neat cleaning brushes and tools that you can get from Otis gun cleaning kits and they will help you get into the areas that are hard to reach.

Top

Short deployments and planning ahead

I prefer the Eotech optics for most fighting within 200yds.   I have yet to pick up one of the G23 FTS magnifiers because I am waiting to find out if there is going to be a 4x version coming out.  To me there is zero magnification and then there is 4x, and then I move up to 10x.   I really find there to be no real reason to do the 1-3x or anything between 5-8x.   The magnifer is an good idea for someone who already owns the Eotech and wishes they had an ACOG.   You may think that is a funny thing to say, but it’s true.   The Trijicon ACOG is a nice optic, but it does have it’s limitations in close up fighting and if you want to mount a red dot on top of the scope, you’ll be dealing with extremely high mounted optics for 30% more money.

 

I think there is a difference between what a SWAT Team should be planning to use as far as accessories and gear and what Military personal should expect.   I have had my fair share of experiences with combat Eotech rifle scopes optics and optics that I would just consider for hunting that were very durable.   I have never had a bad experience with an optic that cost me more than $200.   I’ve had some optics that have been on my hunting rifles  with 5000 or more rounds and I have never had a loss of zero.   Although we all know that there are differences in the types of optics, most of us won’t have issues if we mount them properly.  Most combat optics will come with a mount or already are a one piece unit like the Eotech rifle scopes.

 

Top

Getting a better grip on things

pistol gripsI must admit that I have my preferences when it comes to handguns and rifles, but I realize because I like something more than another, it doesn’t mean that they are functionally better.    I’m aware of dust tests on firearm where one beats out another, but for non-military endurance levels, most of what I normally handle is in the top tier.    Firearm maintenance is another area that people don’t like to venture into, because some people seem to think that just because it’s got a good reputation for being reliable means it’s always going to work for them.   Tools break, operators can abuse, and climate and enviroment can have an impact on your weapons, but when it comes to proficiency with the firearm, customization is something I strongly encourage.

I took a family member to the range to get them to try out 9 handguns.   Everything from 38 Special, 9mm, 40 S&W, 45acp and 357 Magnum.     Some of the 9mms I used were the same guns, but with different sights and different grips.    Novice shooters tend to not notice the slight differences in the guns and just think that because it has different pistol grips, it’s a different gun.    I had Factory grips on a Sig 226 and Hogue grips on another, and yet another one had the Hogue Grips with the finger grooves.   It turned out that this new shooter preferred the finger grooves on the Sig 226, but didn’t realize she was shooting basically the same firearm the whole time.   One had night sights which she didn’t care for because they didn’t work too well during the day.   I wonder which one she would have picked if we were shooting in low light?

Top

Soft gun cases are the way to go

I still think having a couple SKB gun cases that were configured for your favorite Carbine and handgun is cool, but I don’t have the money to spend to do that for all of the firearms I own.  The other issue is storing all of the bulk in your home.  For that $3000 rifle with the $1600 optic on it, then go ahead and get  a hard case, but I think after lifting your guns in and out of a vehicle, you’ll be more than happy with using a soft gun case.   Being able to fold up 5 or 6 assault rifle type cases and put it in a closet sure beats having to figure out how the heck to fit 1 hard case in any of my closets.   A soft gun case should be labeled in my opinion so you know which magazines or gear to store in it.   Staying organized and not getting confused and showing up at a range with the wrong magazines is something that is avoidable.

I admit I have gained  much of my experience through making mistakes, but showing up with an AK rifle after an hour of driving and pulling Mini 14 magazines out of one of the gun cases, was a learning experience.  Uncle Mikes assault rifle cases are what I mostly have and for the money I spent and how little wear the cases show, I really could not have justified spending money on anything more expensive.   I have looked into getting a Tac Force transport gun case for long road trips just because I think they stack a little more consistantly, this can be an issue if you are loading up more in a vehicle than just a daily range trip.

Top

Breaking down doors may mean it’s time to wear gloves

My favorite part of these competitions is see who packed there gear the best.   I remember all of the arguing about which gun was better and which calibers were better in a firefight, but in reality, the guy that can supress his enemy will eventually be able to overcome them.  There’s always the 6’5″ 220lb guy that shows up with a battle rifle and is able to pull off the task, but he’s rarely in the top scorers in the close quarters fights.  Nobody want to get hit with any caliber bullet and putting more bullets in a target is better than the mythological one shot stopper rounds.

Last weekend we attended a Zombie shoot here in New York State where competitors from around the Country showed up for this fun event.   I enjoy going to these events because not only do we get a more diverse crowd of people there, it’s basically a live fire gun show and I got to use my tactical gloves on the firing line.   You can witness just about any type of optic for long range shooting or close quarters combat and get to watch the competitors challenge there skills and weaponry. At some of the faster paced or group competitions, another issue arose. Every other guy had an issue with hot brass flying down his shirt or burned his hand on hot brass or a hot firearm.  Now we’re getting to another realty of why it’s a good idea to pack the right gear and inlude a good pair of tactical gloves.

 

Top

How much for a gun case?

As many of the choses we make when using firearms and the gear that we want to use with them, we have to ask ourselves “for what?” purpose are we using it.   If you are toting a Mini 14 around with a $180 Leupold rifle scope, you may not need a $1000 hard case with pistol magazine and handgun cutouts.   None of you are going to be deployed to Afghanistan with your gear or have it airdropped behind enemy lines, so there’s no need to worry about that level of violence occuring when moving your rifle around.   SKB gun cases are nice, but that may be for somebody else.

You really can’t go wrong with using Uncle Mike’s gun cases, or their holsters.   I wouldn’t say these are cheap products at all, some of them are priced very well and will hold up for most intended purposes.   The nylon holsters are very practical if used securely with a good gun belt and their gun cases are also very inexpensive for every day use.  They are outstanding to have for any semi-auto carbine because the magazine pouches will really help keep your Pmags or AK magazines organized.  I strongly recommend spending $25-$30 on a soft case for every gun that you won, and keep your sight in tools or magazines in the cases.

Top

Excessive magnification, or effective upgrade?

I have a Winchester Model 70 Pre 64 that I got off a family member for hunting when I was 17yrs old.   At the time, the 3-9 Redfield scope was good enough for me to average 2 inch groups at a 100yds.   As I grew older I slowly learned the tricks to cut my groups down and it wasn’t all about trigger control.   Stock work and trigger tuning got this 2 MOA gun to being able to put 9 rounds in a 2 inch circle at 200yds.   My Zeiss 6.5-20×50 gave me an edge for target shooting, but I realize it’s a little much for your average New York State white tails.

 

 

Just like many of the options we have when thinking about selecting a firearm, caliber, holster, sights, rifle scopes, we have to do a little thinking ahead.   We have to realize that there is such a thing as versatility with various rifle scopes , but nobody has a do it all scope yet.   I think there is going to be a day when we have a rifle scope that is zero magnification at one setting and 40x at another setting with bullet calibration and computerization built into the reticle, but right now, that would probable cost too much to field these kinds of rifle scopes to the average citizen.

 

Top

Woolrich Elite Parka Fall outterwear

I have to force myself to wear certain types of tactical clothing that is available and wear it for a few weeks before forming a solid opinion.    I’m always happy to find a company that puts out a good quality pant or shirt.   I have had some very well designed clothes only to find out that the next time I picked them up the pants didn’t fit the same and it wasn’t that I gained weight.   Woolrich has been in the clothing business for a very long time and although I know that there are several good companies out there that some of this just comes down to preference, but Woolrich knows their fabric and the quality is excellent.

Ever since I got into this business, I’ve been acquiring lots and lots of outerwear, but most of it sits in a closet for 3/4 of the year.   Up here in the Northeast, we get all 4 Seasons, but sometimes we go from Summer to Winter in just a few weeks.   I’ve had the Woolrich Elite Algerian Jacket, Barn Coat and half-zip sweatshirts, but I was really disappointed that the Barn Coat didn’t stay around because it was a nice cut and design.   The Woolrich Elite Series Parka is a waterproof 100% nylon ripstop that gives you a good outer layer that isn’t too heavy and isn’t too light that you can’t carry gear or backup magazines.   I’d have to say that this is very much a Fall weather jacket and I found it too be a little too warm to wear when it was about 78F and high humidity.  It kept me dry, but was a little too hot.

Top
1 … 21 22 23 24 25 … 35 Page 23 of 35