All posts in Shooting Supplies

Lasers and Flashlights the key is to know when to turn them off

I did a demonstration with one of my friends how using night vision and IR was really easy to pick up from a counter sniper situation if you were projecting it from the same location.   For instance, if you have night owl night vision which is pretty good for the money, the IR is located right above the objective lense.   If you had something like that mounted on a rifle scope and someone who had the same nightvision, but didn’t turn there IR on, they could find you as easily as you would have if you turned on a flashlight in the night.   The best way to aid a sniper in combat is to project IR from above and not directly from a rifle.  The point of this is just because you can do something with an accessory on a firearm doesn’t mean it’s really going to give you the edge.  You have to know how to deploy it.

I never thought just slapping a laser on my AR15 would be fun, I always thought it was kind of pointless because a laser is virtually a perfect beam of light, but a bullets trajectory changes very fast and the laser is about as good as a red dot or rifle scopes in all practicality.   Flashlights are a good thing to have around or on your firearm in your home, but if you are going to use it offensively and not defensively, you have to deploy  tactics that hide movement and don’t give your direction of movement away.   If you are in  your house and hiding in your bedroom ect.  In 99% of situations, yelling down the stairs that you have a gun and you are going to blow their head off if they come up will stop a threat being able to identify something in a corner like a burglar in hiding is what your flashlight it for.

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Does a small semi-auto CCW gun mean more fragile?

It sure use to mean that, but pocket guns have come a long way.   Defensive ammo has gone a long way in recent years and the 38 special ammo your grandfather used in Law Enforcement is not the 38 Special you have today.    I did some chrono tests with a Smith & Wesson Model 19 and the  feet per second velocity between that and j-frame Model 637 was dramatic.   I was breaking 1000ft per second with the j-frame and it really literally blew me away.   I always thought that having a 4 inch barrel on a gun meant that it was shooting a load faster, but not the case with these two guns.

A friend of mine told me that everything he thought he knew about ballistics was thrown out the door when he got his first Chronograph and I agree.   I also though that because a gun fit in my pocket that it had to be weaker.  I am still trying to unlearn what I had learned with pocket guns, but another buddy of mine did some ballistic tests where he proved that his 32acp penetrated ballistic gelatin as well as a 38 special.   While there is definitely some variations in results from firearms, the ammo you put in your Kahr PM9 and the 6rd or 7rd Kahr magazines that you are using, may be far more potent than you realize.   The Kahr firearms are probable one of the most durable small guns out there and they have had several improvements over the years that put them above their competitors.

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Tactical gear and taking to a paint ball game

I’ll admit this up front, some of the best combat training I have ever had was the number of years I played paintball with friends.  Not only did I learn communication skills and human behavior, but I learned about what kind of clothing I prefer to wear if I am going to be running around.  Things like car keys and cell phones can get in the way when you are laying down or swing you hands around.   Certain types of jackets can really restrict the amount of movement  you are needing and simple things like raising a gun up and trying to hold it in mid air can be stressful if you have lots of heavy clothing on.

The Eotac style 101 vests are very good tactical vests, but I realize the type of gear that swat teams and military may be putting on a vest may not be suitable for anything like this.   These vests are on the soft side and may be a little too long for those getting in and out of vehicles that may want handguns or gear to sit up higher on the chest line, but for playing paintball, these tactical vests is probable the best configuration for you.  The large rifle magazine pockets will hold paintball tubes and they are very deep that this will give you added security.   The soft flexibility is also useful and this vest will easily sit on top of whatever type of clothing you are wearing.  It makes a very good outerwear piece of clothing.   It is also easily washable although I do suggest you make sure you take everything that shouldn’t be washed out of the pockets, there are so many of them that it’s easy to get lost in them.

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Spicing up your gun collection with handgun displays

Long before I moved to where I am presently living, I was able to turn a closet in my home  into a gun safe.   I think there needs to be some serious thought put into how safe it is to keep your guns in a closet, but depending on the location in  your home and how strong and secure the door is, the only bad thing other than any a break in would be fire.   If you have a good fire alarm system in your home, the notion that your house is going to burn to the ground shouldn’t really be much of a reality, although it is possible.   There are ways to fire proof areas of your  house especially around closets that can help you avoid having to bring a 500lb safe down your basement steps.   I strongly recommend keeping any kind of firearms safe out of visibility because I have learned that a good $2000 gun safe will only slow a thief down, but not necessarily stop them.

If you have the time to build a small fire proof room  in your home for your firearms, you can avoid all of the clunking and banging around that can happen in other safes.   There are good pistol display racks like the Versatile rack that can organize and spice up the look of your collection.   Springfield Armory also has fun looking GI 1911 gun cases that are a wooden box that looks like you just received it from an airdrop in Europe.  Gun cases can help you keep your guns and stuff organized and protected, but it’s no fun to have to store your guns in a gun safe that is cluttered.  Build yourself a gun closet.

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Ruger 10/22 range day and scope options

I’m brainstorming with this blog post so give me some of your advice if you have any on what to put on my Ruger 10/22 rifle.   This is a standard 10/22 and not a tricked out barrel or trigger.   I purchased all of my 22lr for new shooters to learn on and didn’t want to get too fancy with optics in the beginning.   After picking up a Marlin Model 980 bolt action and having the rear sight replaced with an adjustable elevation like the standard 10/22,  I haven’t had the urge to buy another optic for this gun.   Many bolt actions are capable of shooting quarter size groups at 100yds with the right kind of ammo, but even though my bolt action has that capability, I still wanted it for novice introduction to firearms.

My ruger 10/22 was a training gun, but after recently doing some aggressive testing between the two, there was no comparison in accuracy.   The bolt action was shooting dime size groups at 50ft and the Ruger was shooting 2 inch groups with the same ammo.   I’m thinking about picking up a rifle scope for this gun that is either a fixed power or a red dot.   I have a Butler Creek 25 round magazine that I have yet to test out, but it could be a good close quarters combat training tool for wiping out soda cans and other carbonated reactive targets.   I had an Eotech 552 on a Ruger Mini 14 and had fun with it, but went back to a 3-9x40mm scope because it just seemed more practical.

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5.11 tactical jeans review pt 1

I finally did my rounds and checked out a few local 5.11 dealers to see what they had in stock.    Something I always find annoying about stopping in these places is how much of a mess the clothing usually is.   I always have to dig around for my sizes and rarely do any of these gun shops or police and security stores keep there crap together.   The other thing that I find annoying is that so many of them clear out certain styles of clothing during the year like there is a non-season for polos and jeans.   Some of these tactical clothing manufacturers are running huge shortages and various products are out of stock for 6-9 months at a time.   I actually noticed many of the gun shops in my neck of the woods stopped selling 5.11 tactical pants because it was too much of a headache for them to deal with.

It was time to restock my tactical pants inventory and I’m not prone to sticking to only one manufacturer.   I have worn 5.11 tactical pants, Eotac, Woolrich Elite and even SigTac.   Each tactical clothing company and tactical gear manufacturer has it’s pros and cons,  but I’d give Eotac and Woolrich Elite the edge on quality control.     I am comparing the Eotac 205 concealed carry jeans to the 5.11 jeans and there is no comparison.   I feel a difference in the movement of each jean, but I really don’t think I feel restricted in any way.   They are both well made, but there are huge differences in the designs.   The Eotac jeans are very similar to the Woolrich Elite Discreet MKII pants, but they are definitely not the same.   The 5.11 jeans are what I’d call more for deep concealment.   There are internal pockets that can hold a j-frame revolver or a small semi-auto and a few spare magazines.   I find the pockets to be a  little too deep and don’t really like the fact the guns are practically inside the pants.   I tried putting a Sig 239 in the pockets with spare magazines and it was extremely uncomfortable when sitting down, so I would have to say you need something smaller than that.

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The Mini 14’s real purpose and being realistic

I have been and always will be a Mini 14 enthusiast, I guess I won too many merit badges in gun forum arguments with the AR15 blowhards, and I’ve done plenty of 500yd shooting with my guns to know that they are still viable defensive and target shooting  guns even though there is an obvious limit to how many rounds can be accurately fired.   The M4 is an excellent firearm, but eleminating a few pounds of weight during a trek is going to matter.  I was never a fan of making an AR15 or M4 Carbine too light because in my opinion, the gun needs to handle a firefight and not melt on me and I don’t think this will happen with a Coyote sighting.   Still though, I’ve seen what a Mini 14 with 20rd and 30rd magazines is capable of doing and although it’s not a combat gun but it’s a very good SHTF weapon.

I see all kind of tactical stocks showing  up from Tapco and other companies and I’m not on that level of converting a Mini 14 into, but I still prefer the folding stock standard carbine for self defensive and the Mini 14 Ranch rifle with a 3-9×40 scope.  I’ve had Sightron and Leupolds on mine and have thousands of rounds through them and still get MOA with three shot bursts.  Another issue that I find common amongst many of the tactical shooters is sighting in and shooting off of tables, it’s not that much of a headache if you have a good rest, but it becomes easier if you have gun magazines that is 5rd or 10rds.   The standard Mini 14 magazines are extremely reliable and if you are using it as a traditional ranch gun, this is one of the most balanced semi-autos in existance.

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Concealed carry advice, how many magazines?

What caliber are you comfortable with?  What kind of gun do you want to carry,  a Smith & Wesson 38 Special airweight or do you want to carry a full size Beretta 92 Brigadier.   I always tell my students that when they are choosing a firearm, they really should be realistic about what kind of threats they anticipate.   If you are carrying for your business and carrying gold or lots of cash, you may want to wear a bullet proof vest and carry a full size auto.  If you are a civillian that is just wanting to have the ability to carry and defend yourself, a 5 shot revolver may be more confortable to carry.

When I get my students to the range, I always start off with 38 Special revolvers.  I show the difference in recoil between airweight revolvers and something like a Smith & Wesson Model 19.    Just because the gun is smaller doesn’t mean that it’s easier to control, as we work our way up the chain of firearms, the next we use is a Kahr PM9.   I think it’s extremely reasonable to carry atleast 1 handgun magazine and Kahr magazines are meant for Kahr firearms.   If you are driving in a vehicle, I also suggest you keep atleast one loaded magazine in the vehicle.

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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.

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Ruger LCP 238 experiences

Today I got to fire a Ruger LCP along with the LCR revolver.  There seems to be a lot of breha when it comes to getting a .380 pistol these days.  I don’t think I really ever felt the urge to go that small when it comes to calibers, but since CCW is actually more popular now than it was 10yrs ago, and people are finding that small compact semi-autos are far more reliable than previously, people will take the light weight over a larger caliber.   The Ruger LCP can take laser grips from Crimson trace, and I highly suggest that you consider that.  I was never a big fan of putting lasers on handguns until I started thinking about very small and compact firearms that had terrible small sights.   The laser grips will help improve your hits and give confidence.

I have several Ruger factory gun magazines for my LCP, but I decided to pick up a few Promag magazines.   Promag had a good reputation in the 1990s for magazines that weren’t as pricey as factory magazines, but were still considered reliable.   I have several magazines for my Beretta 92FS, and although I did have a jam on one hollow point round, it has never jammed on ball ammo.   I would consider these to be excellent range magazines, but I would do a lot of testing to make sure you are sure the gun feeds reliable with an defensive ammo.   Some magazines may need to be tweaked a little and if you have problems be sure to call a factory rep.   Most gun magazine manufacturers will replace a magazine if it does not work properly.

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