All posts in Shooting Supplies

Otis Gun Cleaning kits and the options that are available

Otis Gun Cleaning KitsI’ve had an Otis kit that pretty much covers all of my semi-auto rifle gun cleaning, but I think the best thing about these kits are that they are so easy to store.   Dealing with private security and military contractors that are traveling around the Country, this is a very coming thing is to pickup an Otis AR15 gun cleaning kit.   Some of the kits can be stowed in the storage  in your buttstock or in the grip storage if you have a grip that will take it.   From my experience I didn’t have any rattling which I thought it might at first but wasn’t much of an issue.   Things are very different when you are outside and dealing with climate changes and wind and dust.  Just recently we had a State Trooper in our store that told us that someone on his motorcycle actually had a gun rust shut because all of the weather got to it over the course of several months and they had to take a hammer to it.  Things like dust covers on an AR15 don’t  mean so much if you are going to the range and coming home and putting it back in a gun safe but out in the field, it’s the difference between a clean bolt carrier group and a non-functioning one.

There are other things to consider with the Otis kits and there are some kits that come  with lense cleaners which do a good job of getting dirt out of the hard to get to spots, like parts between the objective tube and the lense.   Even though I use boresnakes a lot the AR15 cleaning kit is in my range backpack all the time.    We see a lot of Otis Gun Cleaning Kits in Border Protection and Private Security personnel as well as Hunters going on Safari.   There are multi caliber cleaning kit options and one of the other major selling points is you don’t need to carry a cleaning rod with you because the wire, if used properly should accommodate your cleaning needs, Handgun cleaning kits, rifle cleaning kits and shotgun cleaning kits.

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No disgrace in being a bench rest shooter

gun restsI remember some punk years ago that went off on me when I was shooting  my Mini 14 off a bench rest and how my gun was a piece of crap and that I had to learn how to properly use a sling.   Well, back then I took it because I always had the “student” mindset and not a “know it all” like some people in this Industry.   One of the best things taught to me was when someone told me that the best way to win a fight in combat is to be in a “good firing position”.    There are plenty of War stories where one guy had the upper hand, just because he was in the best position to lay down accurate gun fire.   Sure we need to train to shoot under stress and sometimes that means kneeling, standing or being prone, but using your backpack, bipod or anything else is no disgrace.

Reloading is a great way to learn ballistics and fine tune rounds to your firearm, you can see key holing and limits in what your barrel twist rate, and sometimes at different ranges.   The differences between penetration, fragmentation,  accuracy at different ranges all with the same firearm.   Shooting off the bench is more challenging but when you are trying to get accuracy, why make it more difficult.   You can always make your own bench rest from sandbags or pick up gun rests that are adjustable in elevation that make a differences as well as other options that can adjust to the stock size so you have virtually zero movement and only have to worry about properly squeezing the trigger.   Patience, not heating up the barrel, and watching the wind are sometimes as much fun as shooting an MP5 at water jugs.

 

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Time to get rid of foam earplugs? What hearing protection should you consider

Hearing Protection I guess the idea of talking about this issue was after reading the dumb ass reporter in Missouri that thought that a set of ear plugs were rubber bullets.   I haven’t used foam ear plugs in years because after all of the range time I’ve put in, my ears starting asking for something else because they can be uncomfortable to wear for long periods of time and sometimes your ear can become sore.   There is a time and place for larger ear protection, I’d recommend a lot of Peltor products but when you get into using hats and helmets, forget about it.  You can really come home with some issues if you wear ball caps and not shooters caps on the range.   The ear protection we have recently been pushing are the Ear Pro EP3 and EP4.   It’s another one of those products like, boots and gloves that you kind of need to try out to know what sizes or style suits you but they really are my favorite choice.

The EP3 Ear Pro is distributed by Surefire Inc. and really aren’t that expensive (around $13) if you take care of your stuff and put them back in your range bag.  They come with a wire so you keep them together and once they are actually inside your ear properly, you will know what I am talking about.  There are little flip caps so you can flip them open while they are inserted into your ear, if you need to talk during cease fires unlike foam ear plug hearing protection.   Check out the sizing guide and then walk up to a mirror in your home  with a ruler or measuring tape, it’s really not that difficult to determine.   People with deeper ear canals should look the EP4 which should accommodate them.  If  you keep your packaging there is a little clam shell that you should hold on to that will help prevent losing them.

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Firearm Modifications, going to far or is it the right direction?

Wilson Combat PartsThere are always trade offs, pros and cons of every firearm and accessory that  you attach.   I like to compare firearms to golf clubs when people start asking me about which gun is better and various caliber debates.   Not everyone goes up to bat in a Major League Baseball Game with the same bat length and weight so why would you expect people to be proficient with the exact same firearm?   There is a reason the military is looking towards SBR’s and PS90 FN 5.7 firearms because the reality is that most people aren’t combat efficient with handguns.   There are several things to consider if you feel that your firearm isn’t up to what you are capable of doing with it.   First start at the length of pull and make sure the gun fits in your shoulder right, then find out what your trigger pull weight is.   There’s nothing wrong with knocking down the trigger weight of your gun but personally I would never go below 4.5 LBs for a defense weapon, competition shooting is another thing.

There are little things you can lean that can eventually help win a fight, speeding up reloading by keeping your magazines in the correct order,  add on a Wilson Combat Well so help in aiding on not having a hold up because you had to watch the magazine go into the handgun and you didn’t don’t want to have to keep your eyes off the threat.  The Wilson Combat Extended Slide stop,  not only help you release the slide easier,  extended thumb safety gives you a place to keep your thumb while firing.  At first it may seem like your hands are going to get cut but if you rest them in the correct nature, it’s a none issue.   Just think of the time you crossed your thumbs while shooting a revolver and when you switched to shooting a semi-auto, it’s a one time mistake and you knew not to put your hands there.   Hang out at a range and ask questions and it’s always a good idea to know a good gunsmith that can tell  you “from their experience” what was a gimmick and what is a good improvement.   Wilson Combat Parts are the first place I point people to if they are looking to modify their 1911 handguns.

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Turtleskin Gloves vs. a Baseball Glove

Turtleskin glovesSounds like it might be a joke blog post today, but it’s not.   After spending years reading and interactive on several firearm forums, there’s always somebody that comes up with information that is so basic, it’s extremely useful.   In our business there are all kinds of bells and whistles to put on a firearm or dress up in, but so many of the times, the guys that actually have to use the stuff end up stripping gear down the more they are in the field.   I’ve seen plenty of Special Ops guys that don’t wear helmets and limit armor because it restricts mobility and a slow moving person is a much easier target than a fast moving one.   It’s always a good idea to have gloves available to you even if it’s something lightweight and is basically for heat protection.  I have seen plenty of Operators using something as simple as a baseball glove in the field.   We are often asked about the dexterity of a glove but just like footwear, the customer has to try it on and see how it works for them, finger lengths between digits and hand sizes are as diverse as inseams are on pants so it’s yet another one of those things you have to slip over your hand to see how you can move and feel in them.

One thing to consider in this day and age is to make sure you have a cell phone that has a “glove mode” or that you have your text size large enough, and that you can type with them on.   Even our Turtleskin gloves like the Alpha Gloves and the Bravo Gloves have little circles on the index fingers and palm of the hand so that you can type with them.   Although cell phones aren’t as reliable as radios, knowing you can keep your gloves on and still call 911 or type on a computer without going back and forth between putting the gloves on and taking them off is not an easy task.   You are always going to trade safety for comfort in varying degrees and preference and customization can’t be ruled  out.   There are plenty of people that have taken $80 gloves and cut the trigger finger off just because they don’t need any protection for possible their most important finger.

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Get onboard and you might not need gun cleaning patches anymore, Rifle and Pistol Boresnakes

BoresnakesI’ve been to a lot of trade shows in Firearm Industry, from Police and Security Expos to NRA Trade Shows and there are always people at these shows with something new, but sometimes when  you still have plenty of the old stuff, there’s no need to toss anything away.   As my firearm collection grew, I ended up needing more and more cleaning devices, different cleaning rods, different brushes, different cleaning patches.   At one point a friend of mine showed me his range cleaning kit and had a Hoppes 22 Caliber Boresnake for his AR15.    The beauty of this was that it also would work in my 22LR rifles.   Its probable about this time I realized the differences between each type of rifle wasn’t really that much, a .224 diameter bullet was still a 22 Caliber and getting new cleaning brushes wasn’t an issue anymore.

I rarely used the boresnakes on handguns because I already have a small pistol cleaning brush brush but once I’m out of all of the cleaning patches I have left, I’ll probable start switching over to to the 38/357/9mm pistol Boresnakes.   That pretty much covers cleaning a Smith & Wesson Model 19  39 Special/357 Magnum and any 9mm Handgun I own.    The one issue I have had with cleaning handguns is whenever I have shot lead.   Reloading saves you money, but reloading lead bullets is a mess to clean up in the chamber and barrels and I have actually stopped doing that in Semi-Auto Handguns because of how much of a liability it is to constantly worry if I “got it all”  revolvers are a little bit easier to find all of the carbon and  lead, but if you have mostly 22 Caliber or 30 Caliber rifles, you’ll probable get away with only needing a 22 Caliber Boresnake and 30 Caliber Boresnake.

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Adverse environments and having fun at the range with a good shooting mat, The Elite Survival Epsilon Shooting Mat

Elite Survival Epsilon Shooting MatMany people are use to going to their gun club or shooting range and being behind a table, many times they are also standing, but for those that want to get off the bench, there are several different formats and designs of shooting mats.   One of the first things you will know as soon as you deploy this shooting mat is how large it is.   If you are on a mat that is too small for  your body type, you’ll get scuffed or cut elbows and your feet will get wet.   Some shooting mat systems look great when laying on the ground, but many of them will curl up on you right after you deploy it and there are many built it modular features that you can adapt magazines, binoculars, or Security or Law Enforcement patches to.   I’ve personally used this product on concrete and in 3 feet of snow and it worked very well, the mat is thick enough that it deploys under you almost like a thin piece of plywood and is not only a great competition shooter mat, but very good for Law Enforcement for laying down on rooftops.

You can attach any type of molle pouches to this system and it is properly re-enforced for elbows and arm placements.   I remember shooting an M1 Garand on the ground without a shooting mat under me and even though at first it didn’t seem to hurt, I noticed latter on that I had several pieces of gravel dug into my elbows just from laying on the grass.   Getting into a good firing position is and firing from a stable platform is something you have to adjust to depending on your environment, but for long term deployments (hours) or for comfort, definitely check out the Elite Survival Epsilon Shooting Mat.   We always keep some of these on display in our store just because it’s one of those things you’ll want to see before you buy so stop in and check it out.

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Snap Caps, what’s the whole purpose ? Dry Firing? Clearing Malfunctions?

Snap CapsWell, I’ll tell you I don’t see too many directions on the packages and people ask us all the time about them, but I personally find them to be an excellent tool for doing malfunction drills.   Sometimes you can just take an empty shell and put it  in the chamber so it looks like a stove pipe, but I find it to be better training to actually allow your firearm to close on a dead round, recognize the gun won’t fire by hearing a click, and then just run through the “tap, rack, fire.”  It’s an excellent way to teach people to clear malfunctions.  I have never allowed someone I taught, to carry a firearm until they learned to clear malfunctions.   My reasoning is this, I have often seen less experiences shooters to be prone to limp wristing and because they probable have not trained under stress, they are more likely to see a malfunction which could mean having their gun taken from them or not being able to defend themselves.   Also, it’s very common for people to not load their firearms properly in the first place.

Snap caps are available from 17HMR to 22 Caliber and all of the major handgun calibers from .380 snap caps, 38 Special Snap caps, 9mm-45acp Snap caps.   I’ve found the 38 Special and revolver calibers to be excellent training accessories for practicing with speed loaders.  If you are taking a shotgun course, you can safely practice all of the loading and unloading skills.   I would personally recommend Snap Caps over some of the cheap plastic dummy rounds because these aluminum bullets won’t fall apart and put plastic shards in the mechanical parts of your firearm, one of the major reasons I stopped reloading lead bullets was even though they were cheap, I had to practically use a tooth pick to get all of it out, and that one little piece of plastic from a cheaper dummy round could end up in a trigger mechanism or in the action and cause a malfunction.

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Shoot N-C Targets, are they worth it?

Shoot N C TargetsIt depends on what you are doing with your firearm but I know plenty of people that don’t spend a dime on targets and just print stuff off their computers.   It’s not hard to take a piece of paper and a ruler and just make a 1 inch square or trace a quarter to get a circle, but once you get out at longer ranges, trying to tell if you got a hit or a miss is very difficult.    It’s kind of funny how everything seems to be trending toward green lasers and green sights and reticles, but Shoot N C targets have been around for a long time and when you get a hit, you know you got a hit because that greenish yellow outline really helps you identify your point of impact.   Sure you can bore sight your rifle but you have to know how to bore sight something properly and if you’re scope is not mounted correctly, zeroing in your scope isn’t going to help you when you change distances.

Shoot N C targets come in several shapes and sizes and it’s probable best you start out with the larger ones and make use of those smaller black stickers to cover the holes so you get the most use out of them.   This week we’ll be doing some promos with 6″ shoot n c targets but you really will have more fun and probable not need a spotting scope if you are shooting at 100yds or less at one of these.   It’s probable a good idea to always bring a back stop with you that you can attach these stickers to, although I’ve had mostly good experiences with them sticking to rifle range back stops, sometimes the back stops were dirty and stickers didn’t stick so well.  Avoid the situation where you get back behind the firing line and watch one of your targets peel off and end up having to wait for the next cease fire to fix it.

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What you need to know when you need Ballistic Eyewear

Ballistic EyewearThere are plenty of brands out there to choose from, WileyX, ESS Eyewear, and Revision Eyewear, Smith Optics jumped into the fold with the Smith Elite Military and Law Enforcement products but just like clothing, shirts, vests, pants and footwear, everyone is different and it’s so hard to know to get unless you can walk into a store and try them on.    If you are not on a SWAT Team and do  not have to wear full coverage googles, the Smith Elite Sunglasses are worth checking out.   If you notice in many of the Iraq and Afghanistan photos of our soldiers, many of them are wearing eyewear and the smart ones are wearing ballistic sunglasses.  The standard you want to check on any eyewear for ballistic protection is Ansi Z87 ratings, according to Smith Optics their sunglasses exceed that rating.   There are plenty of horror stories of IED’s going off and people losing an eye 100yds away due to fragmentation.  If you have ever been to a firing range and had to sight in a rifle and hit below a target, you would see fragments of dirt and rock and possible a bullet key-holing, so you can see how much material that can cause damage just from one bullet.

Goggles are somewhat of an annoying thing to me and I’d avoid using them in most situations because the protection they give is higher than sunglasses but they tend to fog up under stressful situations and trying to keep that much of the glass scratch free and smudge free so that  your vision is not inhibited is a hard thing to do.  One major selling point I’d made with the Smith Elite ballistic eyewear is that it it is hands down the easiest to clean compared to other eyewear.   I’ve had some of the Edge Eyewear in my rotation and although they have some cool flexibility and anti-fog abilities,  whenever I got a smudge on them they were not easy to wipe off at the firing range when all of my Smith Optics Elite eyewear wiped perfectly clean with the Smudge Buster rag that Smith Elite sells.

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