All posts in Magazines

Another Wilson Combat vs Chip McCormick debate

We have to be honest when customers call us  up and ask us a question about a product.  Many times we hear the question “which is better” and the truth of the matter is this is usually somewhat of a trap for us because as soon as we make a claim about something being better than something else, the customer will hold us accountable if we were wrong or if they disagree.  Not like it’s a big problem but if you call us up and ask us what shirt size or vest size, we’ll defer the question and tell you you’ll have to measure yourself.   When it comes to gun accessories, so much of that needs to be fitted to a persons body and much of it is cosmetic or preference.

The 1911 is still probable the in the Top 5 for gun accessories, gun holsters and gun magazine sales.  There are many out there that want us to tell them if their 1911 will run better with Chip McCormick magazines or with Wilson Combat or some other gun magazine.   The truth of the matter is the 1911 sold these days is not the 1911 sold 15yrs ago and there are so  many difference that its something  you’ll have to figure out on your own.   One thing we will tell you is the Chip McCormick magazines are price almost $8-$10 less than the Wilson Combat Magazines which might be a good thing for someone that wants to great magazine for less money.

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Fighting Carbines and knowing when you are running empty

I never really bothered with the pmags with the windows until I started taking Carbine courses.  I try to take at least 2 per year just to get use to the anxiety that is common with not being on the range very often but this is all part of my mental training.   As some of you know not everyone has gotten into owning firearms just for the fun of it or for some type of hobby.   Some of us have been on the receiving end of the bad elements of society and our eyes have become open.

When it comes to fighting under stress the notion of feeling recoil is null and probable several pounds of gun isn’t going to bother you, atleast for a little while.  There have been times I have known my magpul pmags were running low because I was not under stress and I could feel the difference in weight when I turned the gun, but under stress it’s best to just look at your magazines and know where you are at.  If you see less than 10rds or it’s 1/3 full you might want to do a tactical reload.   If not, you have assurance your gun won’t run empty.

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Firepower vs balance

There are many things that in theory are nice but in reality just don’t work.   I remember the first time I fired a Glock 45acp which was 13rds + 1 for a total of 14rds and the thing just seemed too heavy.  If I wore that in a leg holster or thigh rig it would be too much.  There are so many arguments in the handgun world that I just don’t engage in because the truth of the situation that usually ends the caliber debates is ” get a Carbine” and forget about  your 9mm vs 45acp  or .357 Sig debates.

For home defense I don’t know why anyone wouldn’t want a carbine or shotgun with a light on it vs a handgun.  Ballistics test show us time and time again that loading up your  magpul pmags with 30rds and frangible ammuntion is a better thing to use in a modern home than a 38 special or 9mm handgun.  A better thing would be the 20rd magpul pmags which give you a stronger magazine but better balance and easier maneuverability than a larger protruding magazine.   After all, what firearm has 20rds and has the balance of an M4 Carbine?

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Avoiding corosion on firearms?

During the Summer months, I’ve had bad experiences where some firearms go messed up on the finish because my  body swear just built up so much in the holsters that the guns literally sat in corrosive environments for so long that even the protective layer of CLP wore off and the guns finish was ruined.   There are many reasons the military has moved away from wood stocks on rifles to composite and sidearms are moving towards polymer for just about every gun.  The Springfield XD, Smith & Wesson M&P have all taken up some of the Glock market but even Sig Sauer has their foot in the door.

I am a big fan of 45acp pistols, but I am not a big fan of double stack 45acp guns.  The reason for this is the guns are just too darn heavy and a Glock 9mm with 17rd spare Glock Magazines is fine by my if I  have to carry one all day.   Not having to reload half as much with a larger capacity magazine means something in the Law Enforcement world and the Military.    We see more and more polymer sidearms being used by Soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan for the same reason.

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And the most popular concealed carry firearm

According to all of our holster requests are hands down Kahr firearms.  I don’t have a ton of experience with these firearms, but I will say that they are the smallest 9mm handgun that I would ever consider carrying.  I find them to be a little too harsh to shoot for that size, but depending on the on the circumstances I would not feel under gunned with one of these.   I actually first found out about the Kahr firearms from a retired Law Enforcement Official that work in the NYPD for 3 years.   He was the first person I ever met that actually carried two firearms, and  one was a Kahr PM9.

The .380 is a buzz, but every time I look at the ballistics of the firearm, I just cringe.   If I’m going to carry a gun, the 38 Special is the smallest caliber I will carry, but the Kahr PM9 and some spare Kahr Magazines fill my pockets.   I have several friends that pocket carry these firearms and 6 or 7 rounds of 9mm and a spare magazine is not minimal.  Maintenance on the firearms is not different than any other,  it is always wise to keep up with your recoil spring replacement and magazine rotation.

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1911 magazines the work and aren’t too pricey

I own several firearms but the ones I like tend to be the ones I actually shoot the least.  I love all of my 1911s but retired most of them from use because of one thing, I do not like manual safeties on firearms.  I find it kind of ironic that retention holsters are now so popular and basically put a manual safety on your gun, but the mindset is a little different.   Considering the number of Special Ops that have gone back to the 45acp says something but I am still  not a huge fan of the 1911 for concealed carry.   I think there is a difference between pulling a firearm from a duty holster and carrying a firearm that is concealment and then disengaging a manual safety.

The more steps and object you put in front of a process the more your margins of error are going to go up.  If you train you can always improve your ability to effectively deploy a firearm, but that’s not what I would spend time on and just carry a different firearm.   Chip McCormick magazines are about $10 less expensive than Wilson Combat Magazines and have more of a GI feel to them.  I personally prefer to use 8rd magazines and do not have issues with them.  I also prefer flush fitting magazines but I realize that not everyone just CCW the guns and might want a larger base pad for competition shooting.

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Not just about weight but also about balance

There are many things you can do to mess up the balance of your M4 Carbine.   Most people I know that own an AR15 rifle now are toting an M4 Carbine variant and it is rarely an A2 version.   Just about everyone know has  a fore grip on their guns, but in all honesty most of those never seem to feel right.   I have always been use to the traditional AR15 rifle and never felt the need to put a vertical grip on them but I have recently become a fan of the Mapgul Angled Foregrips.   Sometimes it take a good training course to really test your gear out and many times it means adjusting the stock you have or moving the foregrips forward or back.

I have seen numerous times that guys ended up with failed gear or ended up taking some gear off of their Carbines by mid-day.   Some of best training I have done was by a teacher that told us that we could not drop gear or take it back to our car, we had to leave all of are accessories and even magpul pmags with us or in a bag.   It was an important lesson about not over packing and thinking about what you really need to use.   There is no reason to load up 13 pmags when you probable won’t need that even if you’re going to shoot that many rounds, 6-8 magazines is a lot and speed loaders and boxed ammo is an easier way to pack.

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Sexy guns? Not my terminology

When we look at firearms, sometimes we immediately think about the movie we’ve seen them in or the actor.  Ever since I found out about the types of guns that were used in the Star Wars movies I no longer viewed them as the blaster weapons they were suppose to be.   The Beretta 92FS is in move movies than I can name and became extremely well known after the Matrix movies.   If you want to see plenty of technically incorrect firearms scenes the Matrix movies are a good test.  Wrong caliber brass comes from firearms ect.

Nothing catches more attention from people walking in the door when they see a Walther PPK.  The Walther magazines are still very hot sellers for .380 caliber CCW holders and the Walther PPK has a very long history to prove it’s reliability.   This gun is very well known for being a Spy gun and that is precisely what it’s good at being used for, hiding it on  your body.  The gun has a very slick look to it and in my personal opinion the 32acp is a better choice.

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Customizing an AR15? Invest in Magpul

One thing we really need around here that we don’t have is a ton of Loctite.   Too many people get caught up with the fact that their guns have better mounts than another when much of that has to do with “how” something is mounted.  I’ve seen guys put scopes on rifles that look like they had one shoe off when they mounted it or the scope rings made the optic look cock eye.   Spending $500 on a mount didn’t help them out at all.  You don’t always need some fancy leveling took either.   Just put the rifle on a flat surface and level the crosshairs to the gun.

When it comes to putting accessories on your AR15 or M4 Carbine variant.   Magpul Accessories gives you a very broad array of grips and stock options.  Every shooter might have a different role to fill for  his or her firearm and Magpul’s product line will get your gun in CQC or DMR roles in no time.  It always takes a little patience to get your gun customized because using Loctite and minor stock adjustments may be necessary.   There are difference in quality of firearms but I’ve had very good luck and little complaints from customers about Magpul products.

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Magpul accessories more fun than dressing up your date to the Prom

We’ve pruned some of gun magazines accessories down a little bit in 2011 based mostly on which products sold, and secondly on which products we got the least complaints about.  Breakage and fit issues is something we really don’t like dealing with because many of the times it was the customer breaking the part while trying to put it on the gun.  It seems to be better these days because quality control in machining has improved but its not a battle we want to deal with every week when people come back with the same products and tell us the part was broken when they got it, when we know that it wasn’t.

Magpul makes some really nice gun sights for the M4 Carbine and they are in the top 3 category with Troy sights.  There are differences in optics sights and having folding sights vs fixed sights is something that comes up fairly often.  Magpul pmags are in their own category and there is very little reason to think about using anything but these gun mags.   You can actually help camoflauge your firearm by picking certain color variations that help break up the look.  Foliage green, OD green an Flat dark earth as well as Black are available for all of the Pmags.

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