Archive for March, 2012

CCW flashlights and home lights

There is a difference between the two and it’s not just about brightness.   There are reasons to have small and compact flashlights and there are reason to have larger ones.   For instance, if you are looking to keep flashlights around the house, I larger body flashlight can be used as a weapon or be easier to find and hold onto in the dark especially at 4am.   Rechargeable flashlights are the way to go in your home and especially something that can turn on if the lights go out.  It’s funny how people that are always prepared for such things don’t have the drama as people that are unprepared.

One of the hottest selling ccw flashlights we sell wiht our Woolrich Elite product line are the PT-2L flashlights.  I had a customer buy one of these and asked when he walked up to the counter if “these streamlight flashlights are good everyday carry lights” and I reached into my pocket and pulled out mine.   When looking at the wall of Flashlights that we have those are the first ones that pop out to people about CCW lights.   If you are carrying a firearm you really need a light because identifying a threat in low light and determining how much a threat they are means avoiding or defusing a security issue.

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Might need to rethink your grip

When it comes time to mounting a flashlight on your M4 Carbine you might have to rethink the placement of your grips.  If you  have a tradition A2 it might not be so bad, I have for several years not used pressure switches on my M4 Carbines because I’ve seen them snag or fail so many times.  Putting one more switch or screwed on attachment on my carbine means one more thing that can fail on me.  Considering the number of failures I’ve witnessed with guns, I don’t want to have to worry about getting a light on at a crucial moment.

Depending on your level of vigilance, you may be in the same camp as I am, but really want to add on those lights and switches.   Always knowing  how to deal with a failure is important and many have changed their magpul accessories out on firearms only to realize they can’t move the same way.   There are some very nice light mounts being made that actually sit very far forward and close to the barrel of the firearm which in all reality, is the best place for a laser or a white light. The magpul angled foregrips are something that I really feel comfortable using, but it’s hard to turn a light switch on and off without a pressure switch in this position.

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LWRC M6A3 now a thing of the past

We just got word that the LWRC M6A3 is on the chopping block but right behind it is the new LWRC M6A5.  From the early info we have gathered so far, the M6A5 has a 2 position gas regulator and that is the only difference.  Not sure about any other changes but I think this was just a simplicity issue.   There is nothing wrong with simplifying a design because some gun parts and accessories can wear out or be hard to place or are just a wast of manufacturing time and energy because it is not necessary.   We have seen LWRC stop the M6 rifle because it was just so old and the demand for something more on a carbine was there.

I still have my original LWRC M6A1 carbine and I love it although it isn’t the same guy it was when I first purchased it.   The thing about the AR15 upper receivers that I have held and shot, is that there are so many configurations and variations out there that sometimes the guns are just flat out not the same.   The AR18 is also know where near the same as an LWRC gun nor is it like the Sig 556.   There are differences between rifle grips and some are mil spec and some are commercial

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Water Restistance and durability of tactical pants

We’ve been very happy to see new products in our warehouse like the Blackhawk Lightweight tactical pants.   These tactical pants are very different from the 5.11 tactical pants like the Taclite pro pants.    5.11 has a large product line of tactical pants but there is plenty of room for innovation and improvements.   Water resistance is very important if you are going to be in rainy environments.  People can die by sleeping in environments where they never dry out and cold weather can eventually lead to death.   We always have a large customer base of people that are Law Enforcement or Military but also go hunting, and sometimes there is very little difference between the product lines.

When the weather starts to warm up we see changes away from the cotton canvas tactical pants towards the lightweight material.  Just like cold weather and wet environments can be dangerous, hot weather can also be dangerous if you are not wearing the right clothing.   There are several styles of tactical pants to consider, but for wet environments the best lightweight tactical pants we sell are the Blackhawk lightweight tactical pants that are treated with a DWR, which means durable water resistance.  That’s a big deal for avoid uncomfortable deployments in damp environments.

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Great deals on tactical clothing

We’ve been clearing up our inventory and selling off products that are either discontinued or there have been production changes and we just want to get rid of them.  We have some of our Woolrich Elite lightweight pants, Eotac pants, 5.11 tactical pants and a few of the Blackhawk tactical pants being cleared out.   For $24.99 you can get a great pair of tactical pants for half of what you use to pay for them.  With so much turmoil in the ecconomy and in the tactical clothing industry, customers can really clean up on the left overs.

I have several of the 5.11 clearance pants, namely the cover carry jeans and the cover cargo pants.  I find the fit on the 5.11 tactical pants to be pretty good although the sizing is different compared to the rest of the tactical pants I own, we have Eotac pants on clearance and these are the best dealers you will be able to get.  These are some of the best thought out and designed tactical pants, but that wasn’t good enough to save Eotac from going out of business.   We still not sure what is going on with the company, but our customers will be the first to know if something new emerges.

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Frisk Gloves for winter vs summer

Turtleskin has a line of frisk gloves called the Alpha and Bravo gloves and the real difference is one is a medium weight glove and the others are summer weather.  The company behind Turtlskin have been making everything from Space suits to cell extraction gear.  It’s somewhat disturbing to know that there is slash gear and tactical stuff for dealing with the worth elements of society and it’s just a little reminder about what Law Enforcement have to deal with every day.  Most of us live in the safety of our neighborhoods and rarely run into criminals but for Law Enforcement dealing with criminals can be life altering.

Every time a Police officer makes a traffic stop, he or she doesn’t know if they are one stop away from a shootout or if they are dealing with a drug dealer or user with a hypodermic needle in their pocket. The newest product line we have brought in are the Turtleskin gloves for Law Enforcement for everyday Summer or Winter frisk protection.    Hepatitis C and HIV are a reality and a Cop is one frisk away from contracting something so awful just because his gloves failed or he or she was not wearing them.

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New Product line coming in soon

We just got in some more of the Elite Survival tactical messenger bags and we’ve very happy with what we are seeing.  Just holding up the quality of the Made in USA product line compared to the 5.11 and Bulldog nylon cases gives you some contrast.  Blackhawk and Bulldog make some nice stuff for the money, but if you want something to show off and brag about, check out the Elite Survival Systems product line.   I am going to have to admit that I have been an Elite Survival Systems fan for almost a decade and I found out about them while shopping for a gun case for my DSA FAL.

The Tactical Messenger bag is a bit larger than what I was expecting but the waterproof compartment is about the size I would think someone would want.   We’ve sold a few to guys running laptops and solar power systems and the Elite Survival Systems bags we are selling worked well for them. The Elite Survival Tactical Messenger bag is for law enforcement and military applications in the modern age.  Being able to stow tactical gear especially electronics and work in adverse environments is a hard thing to do.  If you are in the area stop by our Pennsylvania location and check out the gear yourself.

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Clarity vs. Magnification for combat optics

There has been a lot of changes in the way people mount optics on firearms, years ago it was rare to find a zero magnification on a combat optics because to some people it didn’t make sense to have a scope that didn’t magnify.  Now that we know that most combat ranges are well under 75yds, medium range optics like the Trijicon ACOGS actually slow you down.  They are a great optic but the Eotech gun sights really have a better reputation for close range fighting.  I’m still waiting for Eotech to come out with a holographic sight that is solar powers like the Trijicon optics but it’s not been built yet sadly.

The biggest selling optic we have going for us right now are the Trijicon TA26 scopes.  The first thing our customers said when they picked up this small lightweight Trijicon rifle scope, or should we call it optic, was that it was light and very clear.   The green reticles are far outselling the red ones but the definition between these optics and what you get from a blurry red dot optics are drastic.  Many people with good eyesight really don’t like red dots because they can obscure your target and sometimes not give you a fine point.

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Do you get a new gun or just modify what you have?

Do you get a new gun or modify the one you own?  That would really depend on what you are  intending to do with it.  I would not take a hobby gun to a serious carbine course unless you want to make a fool out of yourself.  The real trick is getting good parts and replacing second rate extractors and springs.  That really is something that can make a huge difference in keeping your firearm up and running.  I have never seen an AR15 go down because it was dirty, most of the ones I saw go down where due to magazines being inserted improperly or an operator error.   The rest of the time it was from parts sheering or breaking.

The things that people tend to one to do with firearms is hang crap all over them, now the trend is towards getting light weight uppers to keep your weight down.   The best product line for accessorizing your AR15 are the Magpul accessories.   We sell about a half a dozen lightweight upper receivers and they all have the new MOE stock accessories.  I  personally have not taken that ride yet but I do see some advantages in it.  Most of my AR15 rifle are close quarters rifles and I have very little use for lasers or large flashlights.  I moved on to the magpul angled fore grips after not having good luck with folding grips.

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Getting the most for your money

We’ve been selling the Original Swat footwear for almost 2yrs now and we have a good track  record on the product  line.  Nobody has  a perfect product line, but we have a very good customer satisfaction rate with this line of boots.   The best thing about selling the Original Swat footwear is that our customers are guaranteed to get at least a year out of their footwear for their money.   We have guys stopping in every day that ask us about various product lines and many times they never heard of Original Swat footwear.  The first thing we show people is how light the boots are, they look solid but are very light weight.

In the last month we’ve had 3 customers show up at our door driving Harley Davidson that found out about Original Swat footwear company from  some of their biker friends and it was all about comfort. We are a stocking dealer and have lots of Original Swat boots for sale at our retail location here in Pennsylvania and online.   Check out the new product line the Chase Series footwear for a better Athletic footwear.   Some of the new boots are actually replacements for the previous line namely the 1230 footwear.  We have a few of the SEK900G and SEK9000 boots left on clearance.

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