Frisk gloves, are their any new options?

Turtleskin glovesWe started out selling tactical apparel and tactical gear about 9yrs ago and much has changed since we first started.  Their were XENON bulbs in just about all of  our Streamlight Flashlights and now there are LED lights everywhere and XENON is a thing of the past.  The technology has so dramatically improved in the flashlight industry but now body armor and protective clothing has also.   Turtleskin gloves are made by a company called Warwick mills, they have a long history working for the Space Program and making Astronaut suits, so dealing with protective clothing and puncture resistant materials.  They make all sorts of gloves and not all of them are big and clunky like lab gloves or things that Apollo 11 had on.

Many working in the EMS world are very much aware of Hepatitis C and HIV, and sadly there have been a lot of Police and Ambulance personnel that have lost their lives or had life altering things happen when contracting these.    There are 2 styles of Turtleskin gloves that we are selling and they have quickly outsold the Hatch gloves that we were selling a few years ago.  The Alpha and Bravo gloves do feel very different and they are almost a 2 type of season glove.   We realize nobody is going to wear these all  year long but it’s nice to know that the Bravo Turtleskin gloves have a much more comfortable feel in hot weather and Alpha is better suited for colder weather.  See our online store for sale, discounts and promos on these items.

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Backpacks, range bags, and customizing.

5.11 bagsI have so many brand names of nylon gear in my house it’s not funny.   I don’t even know some of the manufacturers names because they weren’t tagged very well.  It seems with the number of sales calls I get every year, there are about as many nylon makers as there are custom kydex holster makers.  There are certain things that we just push off to other companies because it’s too time consuming.   People are very particular about the type of bag they want and they will know it when they see it, but the problem is they want to hold it in their hands.    There are different points of placing molle straps and sometimes a bag has too much and sometimes too little.   There are is an endless supply of so called “tactical” backpacks, but unless you have the time to travel, good luck trying to find a store that  has evertything.

One of the main reasons we opened up a tactical store was so that our local customers could check stuff out before they purchased it.   5.11 tactical is a monster of a company and they have so many cool products that many of our Police and EMS personnel prefer the 5.11 bags primarly the Rush products.  The Rush messenger and Rush 24 and 72 are extremely popular with paramedics and ambulance companies.  Some military guys have been buying just about everything that we sell in multicam which makes the 5.11 Rush 72 backpack very popular.   We normally stock all of these items in our Broomall, Retail store so stop in and check them out.

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People with bad feet might want to look into wearing these Original Swat Boots

original swat bootsI’ve had bad feet for several years, including years of treatments and then 2 surgeries on the same foot.   The year after the last surgery I had my sales rep walk in and show me the Original Swat footwear companies tactical footwear line.   Several Employees and I got free stuff and instantly love the feel of the boots.  I was instantly won over with the style 1232 boots that had a bubble on the bottom that gave extra shock support.   Many Police Officers and even school security like the Style 1261 boots because they are a lower cut boot with the same foot support.   These boots are very light and the biggest shock was how well priced they are.   We have a  lot of Police Officers come in here on their clothing allowances and are always pinching pennies trying to squeeze as much of their duty or tactical gear into that budget.

These boots are polishable and there are composite toe and waterproof boots.  Along with the extra foot support are the 1234 Original Swat boots that are almost identical to the 1232 but are waterproof.  I usually get about 9 months out of them before I feel the support start to go but these boots are worn 7 days a week because I needed the support to get through a work week.   I’ve had customers tell me they’ve gotten 2yrs out of them.  This year there will  be a lower 5 inch waterproof boot which is something many of our customers have been asking us for. We also have some really good blowout sales on the Original Swat footwear line from styles that were discontinued after newly improved designs came out.

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Accessorizing your AR15 and the issues you will have with your gun cases!

Elite Survival gun casesYou live and learn in this industry but you can make fewer mistakes in life if you take your time and observe the mistakes of others.   Recently we had several SWAT Teams arrive in our store looking for gun cases that held more than 1 rifle and they didn’t want a hard case.  SKB makes some rock solid rifle cases and there are some pretty cool configurations you can do that can give you the customization that you want.  Not everyone is packing the same sidearms and being able to cutout your case in the configuration that your gun is a must.  Firearms like the LWRC M6A2 with a 10.5 inch barrel is going to be very particular because you don’t want a soft gun case that is over-sized.  Your better with a gun case that fits properly because too tight is bad and too loose is also not good.

My LWRC M6A2 rifles are probable worth about $3500 with all of the Eotech Magnifier, Eotech 512, LWRC rear sights and front sight.  I don’t want my guns getting banged around so I went with the Elite Survival gun cases like the Covert Operations case.  This rifle case has tie downs that can go over the optics and the firearm at 4 different points.  I also like to carry extra pistol magazines in this gun case, but that cost a few bucks extra.  There is also a triple magazine pouch that comes with each of these carbine gun cases and you can get them for firearms like the MP5 or even AK magazine pouches.   There are several different sizes for the Covert Operation case but you most likely will be using a 33 or 36 if you are running the average AR15 or M4 carbine.

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Trijicon SRS sights for sale!

Trijicon SRS sights for saleLet’s start off talking about close quarter combat optics and why they are meant for close quarters.   First of all, you are going to want a zero magnification optic with the widest field of view or probable not more than 2x even though the majority are rarely more than 1.5x.   Everyone has different eyes and not everyone picks up colors the same so these opinions are mine and not something to be taken as a rule, but understanding the reasons why low or zero powered optics are good for close up fighting is important because fancy accurate optics don’t mean anything at 50yds and under in determining who gets a hit and who doesn’t.   You can probable blind fold someone and let them hip shoot at those ranges and they might be able get more hits on paper in a faster time period than someone actually aiming.

Quick detach mounts is probable the way to go for any optic especially one being used for self defense.   A broken optic is something you don’t want in the heat of a fight and the Trijicon SRS sights for sale like the SRS02 is the best configuration.   Some  people want laser sights on their guns and others just want a red dot.  4 MOA red dots seem to be very common but a dot that sizes is 12inches at 300yds and that is not going to be a practical optic for any medium range engagements.  The Trijicon SRS quick detach SRS02 as well as the SRS01 have a 1.75 inch red dot which makes medium range and more precision shooting.  With 1 AA battery this solar powered AR15 combat optic might give you up to 5yrs depending on how much you use it in available light.   This very precise red dot has a shorter housing than any of the Aimpoint optics

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Crosshairs and reticles, precision or speed?

Trijicon TA01NSN for saleSometimes you can have almost all of that in one package but you’ll probable end  up dropping about $2000  or more on an optic.  If I could afford it I would  have an ACOG with the RMR mounted on top but that is too expensive of a package for me when I’m running it on a $600 gun.   For combat and if you are in the military, that is a great weapon, but there are still pros and cons  of using a mounting system like this.  One of the most common things I’ve seen with ACOGS in Iraq is that many of them actually got shot.  Considering that this optic is something that mounts so high on a carry handle or the RMR configuration on a flat top, you will have to think about getting a cheek riser of  you want to be proficient with this system.

The RMR is a really nice red dot that isn’t b ig and bulky like an Aimpoint or Trijicon SRS sight.  IF you get a sighting system like that, it’s a full blown optic, but Trijicon TA01NSN for sale are probable the next step down but with basically the same benefits.   I always have iron sights on my guns because I  have know all too well that optics can break, shatter or get shot and if you want to get it off you better have a backup sighting system.   I’ve shot guns that didn’t have rear sights and it is very difficult to hit anything.   If you want speed a red dot optic is good but if you want precision, a Chevron or crosshair reticle, especially a thin crosshair one like the TA01.

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New 5.11 Covert Khaki compared to Woolrich Elite Chinos?

tactical pantsI really don’t know why all of these tactical companies left standing only deal with the Poly Cotton variations of clothing and never deal with the 100% cotton ripstop material.  Tru-Spec has a cotton canvas pant as well as the well known 5.11 tactical clothing company but there is a nich part of this industry that is having a really hard time finding a good quality tactical pant that is really comfortable doesn’t feel stiff when worn.   Plenty of our contractors and even electricians are not allowed to wear the polycotton materials because of the possibility of flashing or exposure to high heat.  Ask anyone in an emergency room what happens during fires and what the best type of clothing is to have on in those situations.   Many of our tactical shirts have nylon in them instead of polyester for this reason.

When it comes to having a true CCW pant, there really isn’t much out there.   They are either very cargo looking tactical pants or they have so many zippers or funky cuts to the clothing that you already know they are tactical pants because your suit pants aren’t going to look like that.   Now that Woolrich Elite Chinos are  not being made anymore, the new 5.11 covert khaki 2.0 is an improvement over the previous covert khaki pants and when I had a customer come in here and ask me if we carried them, I was surprised to find out they were 5.11 pants in the first place.   These pants do have the side zippers but they are hidden very well and the tabs are very small.  They do have a sheen to them which makes them look more like suit pants and they have permanent creases that give them that professional look.

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Most versatile rain jacket?

Truspec softshell jacketsWe’ve sold a lot of outwear over the years and the Woolrich Elite Concealed Carry Chino and the SigTac jackets are going to be missed because they were all very well made items but somehow those companies just couldn’t compete in the tactical apparel world.   I’ve not seen a SigTac jacket in years but people still and ask us what happened to them.   There are a few links out there that direct people to us from gun forums but they are badly outdated.   The Woolrich Elite Series tactical barn coat that is another item that was well liked but fell off the production line very early.   5.11 tactical has some nice stuff but they have gotten expensive and plenty of people have fallen off the 5.11 wagon just based on price increase.

When it comes to concealed carry jackets, well, there aren’t too many companies that are going to mass product something like that because there are so many firearms that designing a jacket around that isn’t really cost effective.   If you want a very useful tactical jacket, the TruSpec softshell jackets are a very big hit and we have been selling them with the American Flag patch  which gives them a cool yet patriotic look.   These softshell jackets are going to be tight against your body but they have access points so  you can still get in to your gear or guns.   We’ve had several customers come in our store that said it’s the most versatile jacket they own because it’s something you can wear in the Fall or Winter or even a mild summer day that will help keep you dry.

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Shopping online or Shopping in a brick and mortar store

philadelphia Law Enforcement suppiesThere are a lot of things we learned in the last year about the Law Enforcement Community and sometimes its the small things that people want in your store and not the fancy stuff.   There are plenty of times we go to places like Youtube.com to watch the products that we sell to try and learn how to use them or to market them.   You can only read so much about a product but if you don’t know how something is used, certain terminology about a backpack might just confuse you.   There are so many differences between all of the bags we sell and sizes are something people have a hard time explaining.   The differences between the Rush 24 and Rush 72 5.11 bags is significant and sometimes people don’t know which one they want until they hold it in their hands.

Police Officers loose handcuffs and handcuff keys all the time and sometimes that 20yrd old holster needs to be retired.    We know have a Law Enforcement inventory and we are doing everything from Blackington badges and whatever else Philadelphia Law Enforcement Supplies like Safariland holsters, Blackhawk Serpa holsters and all of the pepper spray and batons that are used.   We have a pickup on location option on our website and stock a good bit of AR15 upper receivers and Magpul accessories.   Our Smith Optics Elite ballistic eyewear was used in the US Open here in Merrion and we are looking forward to bringing on even more products this Summer and Fall.

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Getting good traction and comfort with Original Swat Footwear

original swat boots for saleWe have seen several changes in this industry and the best thing is its all for the benefit of the customer.  There are lighter boots out there that are 9 inches in height and just like car tires, they are designed for better traction on concrete, blacktop and all the things that can cause you to slip.   You really feel the difference between  most sneakers and boots like the 1232 9″ side zip boot.   They use to call this the Metro traction but I’m not sure if that is still in use.  A good tactical boot should give you the support your legs, feet and ankles need but in this line of work, Law Enforcement and Military need footwear that can perform in environments and manors that they need.  There are plenty of options out there for Cops, Men and Women but it is also about pricing and not just quality.

We know there are better body armors and more accurate guns out there but not everyone is going to sink tons of money into something that is more than practical.   Just based on my personal reviews of the Original Swat Footwear for sale I get more than 9-12 months out of my boots as far as support goes and I have never had a boot tear or fall apart on me in the 4yrs I’ve been wearing them.    The 1232 boot gives me the support I need and the metro traction gives me the foothold I need to have so I can move around in environments like parking lots ect where slip and falls during pursuit can occur and oil stains and water can cause sliding.

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