When the world turns upside down

My biggest  pet peeve when it comes to certain types of holster manufacturers is that I do not like to have anything covering my spare magazines while they are in a mag holder, but many of the mag holders I use to use did not fair very well for CCW or for real training.    My first experience with a magazine holder that failed was on a long road trip where I had to put the seat back to sleep and woke up with someone sitting behind me that was holding my spare mag.  I decided to ditch the magazine holder I was using and go with the Blackhawk double and single stack magazine holders.   They have a build in magazine retention design so even if you are hanging upside down, they won’t come loose, but have just enough retention to do this and easily come out if and when you need to reload.

 

 

Like many in the gun community, we’ve all got a starting point for training or experience.   One of those starting points usually involves make poor mistakes on the carrying methods or for choosing gun holsters or gear that awas inappropriate.   I have been happy with the holsters that I have been wearing in recent years, but I only rarely run into situations where I break a holster and there is a shortage and I have to find  alternative gun holsters or another firearm combination to carry.

 

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Speed and reliability of holsters

I have noticed a trend of CCW individuals that are all going out and picking up the Blackhawk Serpa style holsters for CCW.  Many of these are Glock owners.   I often ask some of these people what they thought about the 1911 pistols and recently busted on a friend that referred to them as relics because they had a manual safety,  I followed up on what he thought about putting a safety on his Glock and he smiled and said “what safety”.   I pointed to the gun holster he was wearing and said “you have a safety on your holster”, and his face dropped.

I started asking him about how many times he’s actually practiced drawing from the holster and if he thought he might have problems retrieving the gun if it was under cover.  These are my opinions, but I always like to challenge people when they are showing signs of going with “the newest thing” mentality and it happens all the time with gun holsters.   I would highly recommend the Blackhawk Serpa holster for OWB or duty carry, but highly argue against  using them for CCW.   If you practice enough you can overcome the thumbsnaps ect. that a gun holster may have on it, but are you more likely to fumble on a particular design when CCW under cover?  Just something to think about.

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Pistol caliber evolutions

Galco HolstersThere seems to have been a major evolution in concealed carry methods and calibers in recent years.   I remember all through the 1990’s there was a big shift away from the 45acp caliber in Police and Military style weapons.   Everyone and their dog was switching to higher capacity handguns.   I guess to the average citizen, packing more rounds in a handgun was comforting.   In the early part of the Millenium, many of the departments that originally went from the 45acp handguns to the 9mm, were slowly working their way from 40 S&W and up to .357 Sig.   The 45acp has now started showing up in more and more departments and I’d have to probable say that I’d credit the Smith & Wesson M&P pistol for doing that.

I have a few Sig Sauer pistols that in my opinion can rotate through my weekly carry rotation, but I still feel like I’m wearing the same gun.   My collection of Galco holsters for IWB Sig 239, Paddle holster Sig 226, ankle holsters for J-frame ect for street work all work very well.   I’ve worn a few out, but considering I never had to custom make them and their consistant fitting, I’d highly recommend adding them to your CCW or duty work.

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Firearm retention and concealment garment

The biggest issue I have personally run into when giving my opinions about various tactical shirts, tactical vests, tactical pants ect. is the designs of the pockets.   There are some regular clothing options that may work well for a certain firearm that you carry, but there can be some safety issues.   I have used shorts in the summer that had buttons on the pockets and I originally thought that it would kep retain the firearm in the pocket, but all it actually did was hold the handle of the pistol and it actually ended up working it’s way up above that pocket line.   Even though the pockets were deep, the buttons didn’t hold it in and the way the pockets stitched into the pant, there was room for the gun to actually slip up and almost out.   Eotac shorts are design so there pockets are not stitched directly up to the seams.

We get a lot of questions about the tactical clothing that we sell online and most of the questions turn to advice on how to conceal a firearm.   I still remember exactly who the person was that first told me that the best answer to that is “for what” because there isn’t a best for everyone and most of this is about comfort and not always concealment.   There are a lot of concealed carry vests out there that work very well for some  people, but to others they are too tactical or not CCW friendly.

 

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tactical shirts in a new camoflauge pattern

One of the fun things about riding the Eotac wave into the tactical apparel market is the innovation and originality of the product line.   We’re aware of many of the really neat things coming out in the next 2yrs and we’re waiting for the new pants and shirts that are coming out in the A-tacs pattern camo.   We’ve had the first samples for a few months and displayed them in Atlantic City, New Jersey Police and Security Expo and the recently at the NTOA in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.    They have been floating around since Show Shot, but the final production designs have only recently been finalized and we are expecting them to be available in the Spring of 2011.

The Style 407 is the tactical shirt that Eotac has chosen for the first run of the new A-tacs pattern camo.  This shirt is probable the most tactical looking along with it’s counterpart the style 408 short sleeve version.   The front pockets are bellowed to give a little bit more room compared to many of the 5.11, Woolrich Elite Series and Blackhawk shirts.   I’ve had a lot of comments about how the shirt pockets on many of the non-Eotac shirts were too small and ended up tearing eventually if people put too much in there.  The 3 way ventilated back will give you a lot of breathing room while wearing a durable and useful shirt.

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Concealment vests from an LEO perspective

I think the ultimate concealed carry vest that doesn’t make you look like you are carrying a firearm is more likely going to be something like a cloaking device seen in Star Trek.   Some of the conversations I’ve heard at conventions, gun shows and on the phone with people are somewhat comical.   I’ve seen under agents show up drug busts that I could spot ahead of time, just because they had nice cars and tinted windows.   The funny thing is the idiot drug dealers didn’t even see it coming. I think the proper mindset is don’t volunteer information, pay attention to your surroundings and be sneaky.

There are many levels of vests for the gun owner, some are going to be snapped on, locked down, and pulled tight.   Others go over your arms and just hang there.  The Eotac Styles 102 and Style 103 vests are go for street work because they don’t stand out as much like an assault vest, but they still have a lot of practical applications.   Both vests will hang below the belt line and will give you full coverage for carrying a paddle holster or OWB holster.  We still get more than a few phone calls every year asking if we have jackets or concealed carry vests for retaining firearms like a 1911.   While I strongly disagree with carrying primary firearms inside jackets and vests, it’s a personal choice and if it works for you then it’s good for your applications.

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Low-key tactical vest options

We’ve been selling the Eotac style 103 vests for less than 6 months, we got to display this at the NTOA conference and get feedback from Law Enforcement agents.   The Style 101 vest is a full tactical vest, it looks tactical and it is designed for an individual carrying an AR 15 or M16 style rifle.  If you are looking for a range bag, you should also seriously look into buying one of these tactical vests because you can fit just about everything a range bag could carry in one of these.

The Style 102 was something that we mostly sell to the IDPA competitor, defensive pistol student, or to someone that lives in an area where wearing a vest isn’t out of place.   Some of our security contractors like these because it is a dressed down look compared to the military style BDU look and a favorite for those working for Senators or Reps. traveling overseas.   They Style 103 Vest is something that is in between the tactical and concealed carry look.   It has pockets that can carry and secure flashlights, knives, phones and pistol magazines.   There are also napolean pockets for hiding primary or backup firearms.

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Handgun lights and lasers

We highly recommend Streamlight Flashlights for home or street defense.   LED technology has advanced so much in recent years that it truely is time to clear out your old flashlights and replace your home and travelling white lights.  The TLR-1 is one of biggest selling handgun tactical lights and is easy to mount and easy to use.  If you are looking for a light and laser combo, the TLR-2 tac-light is what you’re looking for.   The Streamlight Scorpion PolyTac is a good companion for travelling or for mounting on your M4 Carbine.   I highly recommend doing some training with weapon mounted flashlights and using a flashlight in your hand and firing a handgun.

When you are looking to mount a flashlight, I think it is worth considering if you are going to be CCW this weapon or just leaving it at home in a safe.   I suggest that CCW should be low key, and putting a light on a gun is going to mean using a specific holster for the gun which will add bulk and limit the ways you will be able to carry.   Carrying a Streamlight flashlight in your pocket or jacket is easy, especially if you are wearing a good CCW vest or jacket like Eotac wear securing spare magazine or knives and flashlights is easily done.

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A literal test run on Original Swat

I got to sit on another Carbine Course last weekend here in Ohio.   We wrapped it up at the NTOA Conference a few weeks ago in Pittsburgh and I was invited to sit in on a Counter Terrorism training session.   The students practice truck stopping and clearing a tractor trailor.   One of the things I noticed when the students were preparing for the class was that they were all complaining about how hot their clothing was and in late September, we were still having 90F weather.  The truth of the matter is you really have to prepare for that kind of discomfort and be prepared to be sweating it out in your gear.  When you gotta wear body armor, it’s going to be uncomfortable in hot weather.

Since we have started carrying the Original Swat boots in our inventory, I was keeping an eye on the students that were wearing our stuff.  I wanted to see how fast these individuals were moving and see if I could see any slippage.  One of the biggest complaints I got from students when asked about what they liked and didn’t like about boots was durability.   We’re still waiting to hear back from the students we sponsored  on the boots we supplied, but it’ll probable take about 12 months to get an accurate response.  I did hear a lot of positive things about the traction of the boots and how well students could move on roads without slipping  because the high humidity did give a slippery startup in the morning.

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Woolrich Elite Parka Fall outterwear

I have to force myself to wear certain types of tactical clothing that is available and wear it for a few weeks before forming a solid opinion.    I’m always happy to find a company that puts out a good quality pant or shirt.   I have had some very well designed clothes only to find out that the next time I picked them up the pants didn’t fit the same and it wasn’t that I gained weight.   Woolrich has been in the clothing business for a very long time and although I know that there are several good companies out there that some of this just comes down to preference, but Woolrich knows their fabric and the quality is excellent.

Ever since I got into this business, I’ve been acquiring lots and lots of outerwear, but most of it sits in a closet for 3/4 of the year.   Up here in the Northeast, we get all 4 Seasons, but sometimes we go from Summer to Winter in just a few weeks.   I’ve had the Woolrich Elite Algerian Jacket, Barn Coat and half-zip sweatshirts, but I was really disappointed that the Barn Coat didn’t stay around because it was a nice cut and design.   The Woolrich Elite Series Parka is a waterproof 100% nylon ripstop that gives you a good outer layer that isn’t too heavy and isn’t too light that you can’t carry gear or backup magazines.   I’d have to say that this is very much a Fall weather jacket and I found it too be a little too warm to wear when it was about 78F and high humidity.  It kept me dry, but was a little too hot.

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