All posts in Tactical Gear

Ballistic eyewear and spitballs

I recently got off the phone with a local Law Enforcement Officer that mentioned that he was shopping for new eyewear.  It’s funny how often I hear the same thing from Law Enforcement because it’s not something that occurs on a firing line at all.   If you are a Law Enforcement officer you are dealing with the lowest elements of society and having one of those lower elements of society spit on you is repulsive.  Having on eyewear that keeps scum from getting into your eyes.

There are varying degrees of bullet proof vests you can wear, but the higher the protection the more weight and bulk you will be carrying around.   Ballistic eyewear or tactical eyewear may not stop a bullet, but when bullets fly you can still have debris from concrete, wood or metal fly up into your face.   A splinter of metal is enough to cause blindness and a $70 pair of ballistic lenses can stop a 650fps debris particle.  Worth it?  You bet.

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Preferences in tactical eyewear for work

I think it’s pretty obvious to people that go shooting with firearms that having eyewear or safety glass is important.  Those 22 caliber semi-autos are known for kicking out debris and all it takes is a little bad luck and your in the hospital with an injury.   The military found out in WWI that helmets could save lives and now our military has realized that ballistic eyewear, sunglasses or goggles can prevent injury.  There are a lot of things we know we can do to protect the human body, but being practical is what it’s all about.

The more gear you throw on you the more you are going to be weighed down, and one thing I have found out quickly is that many optics in tactical eyewear have blind spots for your visibility that I would not take them into combat with me.   The Smith Optics Elite Aegis Eye shield is probable your best range eyewear and fighting eyewear because it gives you the most visibility and the most coverage next to goggles.  Goggles will still give you limited visibility and the extra weight is not something you will want to have to carry around.

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Gun holsters and gun sights

One thing that I have heard more and more lately during defensive training courses that I have sat in, is a warning about changing sights  on  your guns and making changes to the holsters you already own.   The infamous spinning handgun is something that is going to occur on your favorite CCW gun if you haven’t paid any attention to the friction you have on your holster.   Even if the gun can clear the holster, a slight angle alteration and the front sight will catch on the holster and flip forward as you try and pull it out.

I’m definitely not against replacing your gun sights, I’m actually all for it, XS gun sights are great defensive gun sights and putting Crimson Trace Laser Grips on your pocket gun or your new Ruger LCP is something that is working quite well for others and sometimes it really good to just be observant to others when it comes to guns and gear.  A small cut or notch on your gun holster might be necessary if you change your gun sights.

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Do you have a favorite combat optic?

I think it’s safe to say that if it comes down to the wire, it’s between Trijicon, Aimpoint and Eotech.   I’m still amazed at how well Eotech holds their own even though we are on the verge of a technological shift with gun accessories.  The first combat optic that impressed me was the Leupold CQT because it gave you an optic that was meant for close up fighting that didn’t get dead on  you when the batteries died.   The CQT is a nice optic but nobody gives you the field of view that the Eotech gun sight gives you.   Field of view in a gun sight means faster target acquisition.  It only takes a 2 second test on a firing range.

Even at ranges under 100yds you still might be at a disadvantage with anything other than an Eotech.  There is one optic that I think is my favorite other than the Eotech.   The Trijicon TA01NSN  gives you the medium range gun fighting ability, but the trusty iron sights mounted on the top get you back to the basics.   If you learn to shoot properly with both eyes open your field of view is as good as your eyes and this is something that can get lost in the realm of combat optics.   Don’t forget to keep your iron sights on your M4 Carbine.  It might be tempting to just put a scope on it, but the what ifs do happen.

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New Polarized Smith Optics Elite in stock

I just got done going through all of the Smith Optics Elite Division tactical eyewear that has been out of stock for a long time now.   I’m not sure if it was a production issue or a demand, although I’ve heard a few rumors that there were some issues with the manufacturing them.   Polarized lenses that can take an impact are in high demand and especially for our private contractor clientele.   Smith Optics are one of the five authorized eyewear for military purpose and the designers of the eyewear already have experience working with some of the other competitors.

The Aegis eye shield is still  probable the best tactical eyewear for military use because it’s not as heavy as wearing goggles but it gives you full eye coverage with zero obstructions. Smith Elite eyewear is something you’ll want to try out in a stocking dealers shop.   Ordering sunglasses online is probable just as difficult as ordering clothing or apparel because the look and fit of them is very much about preference and style.  The lifestyles give you the street cool guy look, but not the best thing to wear at a shooting range or in a combat situation.   I personally prefer no frames when I’m working with my Carbine.

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Is pepper spray and mace a thing of the past?

I have been fortunate to have attended plenty of tactical conferences over the last year and it came up several times during training sessions that there is a move away from using mace like Sabre Defense products and towards  using tasers.   Tasers don’t have the blow back that mace has and of all of the times I have every trained with pepper spray or mace, my lips and eyes always got a little bit of it.   It’s still a very good thing to have on you if you want a less lethal and lower legal liability to use in a bad situation.   If I could name all of the times I have ever felt uneasy dealing with someone or was in a hostile situation, it was almost in or around a place serving alcohol.

Now that there is a lawyer  hiding under every rock, if you choose to carry a firearm for self defense you better be prepared to deal with the legal consequences of every action.   Streamlight flashlights are even being sold as defensive weapons for the strobe feature or the striking bezel.   Until tasers become smaller and more compact, I find them to be  a little too impractical to carry, but the time will come.  One of my favorites to this day is the Kimber Guardian II which looks and feels more like a gun but lasts much longer than bottles pepper sprays.   They are going to cost you more, but they are worth it.

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Looking for an axe to put in the car?

That may sound funny, but this is actually one of the biggest selling items we have in the tactical knives and edged weapons categories.   It’s funny to know that hundreds of years after people ran around fighting battles with battle axes ect, that people are still finding the need to keep an axe in the car.  There are plenty of times that LEO have to show up on the scene of an accident and break somebody out of a car or cut down trees or branches to search and rescue someone.     The SOG Fusion Tactical Tomahawk gives you something to chip with and on the flip side of it, you can use it to break glass.

I would highly recommend keeping something like this is your car because it’s a great thing to keep around for camping and for emergency situations.   There should always be something in your car for breaking open glass or cutting a seat belt.   SOG Knives has a broad spectrum of edged knives and weapons as well as utility knives that rival Swiss Army Knives.   Some of these are hard to shop for online, but stop in to the new Rogue Elite tactical store this fall and you will get an eye full of tactical knives for CCW, utility and Emergency applications.

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Putting flashlights on all of your firearms

Since we have been in the holster business, we’ve seen a lot of changes in the designs of holsters, many customers have unfortunately found out the hard way after buying a holster thinking it would work for their gun just because it says it is for a Sig 229.   Well there are many things that can change your holsters fit with a firearm, one of them is changing the sights, and the other is putting a light or laser on it.   There are plenty of good reasons to mount a flashlight on a firearms, but there are also reasons not to.    For Carbines and home defense weapons, yes, they can be helpful, but many people don’t realize that now that your firearm has a light, you better watch out that you are not violating an of the safety rules.

If you have to move through your home and you are using your gun mounted flashlight, you will be pointing the gun at everything your flashlight is.   Something like the Ultimate Retention Device from the now defunct Section 8 Tactical is a nice device and you can still get them from us.   These work very well with the Streamlight flashlights like the Streamlight Scorpion or Streamlight Polytac.   I’d give the edge to the Polytac or possible the Surefire G2 Flashlight.  The harder surfaces seem to grip the device a little better.

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A simple solution if you need a tactical holsters

We mostly deal with people that are private contractors or civilians taking defensive training courses.   Recently there has been a real up tick in the number of people calling us that have trained with Chris Fry at MDTS Training.  Chris has really gotten a lot of attention in recent months and the number of people that have trained with him is really starting to add up.   Personal Defense Network is putting  out a new DVD wtih Chris Fry.  We’re proud to see someone like Chris getting noticed.   Several of his students have started purchasing holsters from us for upcoming Carbine Courses and one of the bigger sellers are the Blackhawk Omega holsters.

One good thing about the Blackhawk Omega holsters is they are very versatile in the types of firearms they can hold.  If you have a Sig 228, Sig 229 or a Glock 17 or Glock 19 you can use the same Blackhawk holsters.    The other good thing about them is its another way to carry a spare magazine.  You can prepare for the nightmare situation where your M4 Carbine goes down and you need a backup gun, but if you need to carry around 6 or more spare gun magazines for  your secondary weapon you’re more than likely going to over load yourself.   The real purpose of a secondary firearms is to help give you time to get your primary backup and running or give you an opportunity to retreat.

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Gun cleaning brushes don’t last forever

I have several gun cleaning kits laying around my gun cleaning room and some of them are close to 20yrs old.   I still use various elements of them since not all of the kits are still intact.   Most of the non-one piece cleaning rods I have used in the past have become broken or bent and have been tossed, but I have some of the Hoppes gun cleaning solvent and a few cleaning brushes that have moved in with my gun cleaning kits.   The bore snakes that I have, have pretty much replaced the gun cleaning brushes but there have been a few times recently that I have gone back to using tradition cleaning kits.   I have been testing out many of the Otis gun cleaning kits to basically get use to the product line.

Otis gun cleaning kits aren’t going to clean your guns in some magical new way.   They really are just another mode of gun cleaning supplies, different type of cleaning and lubrication, different way of using a metal cord instead of a cleaning rod, but other than that, it’s just a compact way of keeping your gun cleaning kit something that can go in a range bag. The larger multi-caliber cleaning kits make a ton of sense if you own a lot of firearms, but if you don’t they will be a major over kill.   Gun cleaning patches are something we know we should throw away at certain point, but I see many using gun cleaning brushes for far longer than they should.   If you are noticing that you can’t get a barrel clean, try replacing the gun cleaning brushes you have.   Getting lead out or cleaning a gun that has not been cleaned all that well in the past is harder if you don’t have the right tools.

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