All posts in Tactical Gear

Regardless of all of those .380 pistols out there

And I’m sure many of you own the Ruger LCP and LCR guns by now, but the Kahr .380 pistols are still in the top 3 as far as parts, magazines and holsters for .380 firearms.   I  own a few Walther PPK handguns but mostly for the nostalgia.   I personally think there are a lot of firearms that people own just because they like them and not because they are all that great of a gun.   There are many firearms in that CCW market that are almost like sports cars, they sit in peoples driveways or garages and get worked on, but they never go out on the street and on occasion, get taken to the race track.

Everyone and their dog is making a .380 pistol now, but the ballistics have not really changed that much and from my real world experience, I won’t carry anything smaller than a 38 Special.   Kahr firearms and Kahr magazines are still the number one selling CCW gun and magazines we see moving.  Their 9mm are very reliable and the prices are pretty good considering what you get from them.   There are a few older models that you might want to avoid, but the stuff they have out now very good for the price.

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Magpul Stocks and Accessories

If you’re ready to do some Christmas shopping for your husband or boyfriend, ask them if they need anything for  their AR15 and I’m sure there will be something that they wish they could put on there gun.   Everyone with an AR15 has something that they want to try out or mount.   There are different accessories for different things and recently I got a phone call from a friend that was looking for an AR15 for varmint hunting.   Varmint hunting is something that comes up from time to time and its more about magazines and bullet styles than accessories, but sometimes that might mean rail covers on everything.

I tried the whole folding handguard thing but it didn’t work out too well when I found out that it was cracking.  The Magpul MOE accessories are probable the newest thing that is going to cause the AR15 world to go crazy over.   Everyone put a fore grip on their AR15 and some people never knew why they should do it, now people are realized how difficult it is to shoot with something like that and the Angled foregrips from Magpul give you the best middle of the road option.   The Magpul MOE also cuts out a good bit of weight for someone that cares about that.

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I’m an LWRC Piston guy, but……….

I’ve been on bandwagon with LWRC long before we sold their upper receivers and I really have a hard time spending money on anything but.  We’ve been involved with gun builds at various places in the Country and it’s been loads of fun doing it and see people build or assemble their first AR15.   The AR15 is still the next best training rifle after a 22LR bolt action for new shooters.   You can teach range adjustments and get people to learn how to manipulate a firearm that is basically the same thing that most of our standing military uses.

If you are looking to get your first AR15, I would not hesitate to tell you that you really don’t need to spend more than about $600.   I see nothing wrong with people buying something like Spikes Tactical Uppers and slapping it on a used upper receiver or a less expensive gun.   Spikes Tactical Uppers give you a very good starting point with quality parts and a good price point.   If you don’t think you’ll be put on the front line and be shooting 10,000rds a year through your barrel, don’t worry about spending the $2000 on an LWRC.

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The Importance of pocket holsters….

There have been many times where we have thought we could just wing it when it comes to using firearms and skip cleaning it or carry it in a pocket without any kind of a holster.  I have never been a big fan of carrying firearms in a coat or a jacket because there are just too many things that can go wrong.   Years ago, it may go down as our favorite crazy customer, was a time when a guy picked up a Woolrich Elite lightweight vest and after putting various firearms inside the vest pockets, called us up and told us that the gun still printed and we were a fraud company for sell a vest that was suppose to conceal a firearm.

That level of knowledge or lack there of, is pretty common in every area of society, but I wonder if that guy still gets made if his guns spin around or when he reaches for them they aren’t there.   With all of the gun holsters out there, something like the Desantis holsters, especially for the pocket holsters like the LCP guns, which seem to have become incredible common you still should have any pocket gun in a pocket holster. Lint, and other things can cause problems and reducing the chances of excessive movement is very important.  It will cost you $20 or less for the most part.

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More great stuff coming from Panteao Productions

We all know how well the Magpul Art of the Tactical Carbine and related DVDS have done and I have heard very little criticism about the training information that was put forward.  I do want to state that I have not fallen into the mindset of glorifying all of the firearms instructors with DVD’s just because they sold a lot.  There are plenty of Celebrity firearms instructors that I don’t too much credit into because I can find the information and competency in other venues.  I have to say that spending $50 on a DVD these days is kind of high, but considering that there is so much information that deducted from the price of traveling and training.

Travis Haley has parted with Magpul but from all accounts it was strictly business and I guess time to move on.   We have several sources tell us there will be much more coming from Travis Haley via Make Ready firearm instructional dvds give the working man or women a source for getting training and info from some of the best sources.  There is a lot to firearms  that has nothing to do with pulling the trigger and hitting the target.   Maintaining a firearm and diagnosing a problem quickly is something that all shooters need to know.   There are many different ways to do the same thing, but many times, the environments and positions change so you will have to have the mindset of adapting.

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Blackhawk Serpa holsters for the 1911?

I admit that I do like the Blackhawk Serpa holsters and it is mostly in comparison to the thumb snap holsters that use to hold so much of the holster market.  Most Police in this neck of the woods use Safariland locking holsters or some other Safariland holster.    The biggest pet peeve of mine with the traditional thumbreak holster is snapping it back on when hoslter.  I’ve had them wear out on me and end up not being worth relying on and ended up just cutting them off.   I’ve had guns fall out of holsters so I do know there is a time and a place to lock them in.

When it comes to 1911 handguns, I am not a big fan of retention holsters.   As a matter of fact, there is enough of a debate about putting manual safeties on firearms that having a manual firearm safety on a gun and Blackhawk Serpa Holsters for a firearm is 2 more things you need to do other than pull the trigger on a sidearm.   The 1911 is a great firearm, but one more mechanical device to disengage?   Some guns are meant for certain things, and I would not recommend that for anyone who is CCW a 1911.

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Gun Parts and AR15 accessorizing

Those statements can give some people a stroke, but once you’ve been there and done that, you hopefully have arrived at a happy medium.   Put me down as someone that was not a big fan of the AR15 design because I never understood why a gun was designed without worrying about how much maintenance it needed.   Don’t tell me that Eugene Stoner knew the gun was designed to do what it is doing today.  There was basically a disaster in place when the guns were first fielded and not until recently have the vast majority of AR15 owners realized that the direct impingement gun needs to be generously lubricated at all times to be functional.

There have been many improvements over the internal workings of the firearm from barrels, chamber chroming, gun magazines, improvements on ammunition and even changes to barrel twist have all gun us to where the M4 carbine is today.   The next major improvement with the M4 Carbine and M16 family of firearms is a lighter carbine like replacing your AR15 upper receivers without the compromises in durability.  That is something that has still been unproven with some of the newer lightweight uppers because of the time they have been out, but only time and testing will tell.

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Something new and different, will it work for you?

I remember a long time ago whenever I thought about an AR15, it was always the AR15 A2 model and always a 20inch barrel.   The Bushmaster XM15E2 was probable the most widely used AR15 in competition shoots at my gun club.   Most Cops had A2 M16 and then everything changed in the early part of the decade.   Now it’s hard to find anyone with a 20inch barrel on their gun because the M4 Carbine 14 inche barrels have gotten so well made and are so much more accurate than before, that you don’t sacrifice much of anything.

Stock accessories have gotten a bit out of control at times  and my eyes just buggout whenever somebody tells me about so new company or tricked out gadget that they found.   For me and most of my best shooting and LEO friends, the Magpul gun stock accessories and the new Magpul MOE are all we need.  The new angled fore grips are a better idea and don’t get in the way or protrude like many of the foregrips in the past.   Magpul does have a reputation have holding up to Military and LEO use so it’s worth the money.

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Promag Magzines for the M1 Carbine and Mini 14

I never got on the M1 carbine bandwagon even though I know that it’s a fine gun.   There are are lots of bull shit stories about the firearm, but the biggest drawbacks about it are that the gun is designed for ball ammunition.  I  know there are claims about hollow point ammunition working in them, but I would not use this firearm with defensive ammunition in a defensive situation.  Just like it’s much famed 1911 WWII family member, it was designed for a specific task and it did the job well.   Many 1911 firearms have problems with ammunition and it’s all about the throat on the guns.   There are newer 1911s that resolve this issue, but it does exist.

When all of those WWII surplus guns started drying up in the 1980s and 1990s it was getting harder and harder to find decent magazines.  We sell a very good amount of M1 Carbine Promag magazines for the M1 carbine and they are available in 15rd and 30rd capacities.  When you use the 15rd magazines you’ll probable get a better balanced firearms, kind of like 20rd magazines on an AR15.   The M1 Carbine can be a more effective firearm in some situations compared to a handgun, but be realistic about the ammunition that you are feeding them.  There are also good reports about the Promag magazines for the Mini 14 and Mini 30.

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Keeping a backup plan for bad weather while on the road

There is nothing worse than being stuck on the side of the road not being prepared.   Fix a flat is always your best friend but sometimes there is snow and rain involved.   One thing that many forget to put in a car is a flashlight or flares.   Even police officers are afraid of traffic and one of the most hazzardess situations is being  broken down on the side of a high traffic highway.   In the day and age of people talking on cell phones and texting people have the bad habit of over compensating when they see something and then swerve and loose control.   I’ve seen this happen.

Things change when you get older and have your own family and you get more concerned about their safety and avoiding bad situations.   Have a first aid kit, fix a flat, flashlights, cell phone charge, emergency battery jump starter and a good rain coat like the Woolrich Elite Waterproof  parka jacket really cut down on being in a bad situation.   First aid kits have gone a lot way and some of them are  better than what medics had back in Vietnam.   All of these items can be stored in a car and take up very little room

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