How much of a Flashlight do you need to carry?

I  have asked myself that question for several years now and have actually enjoyed learning about all of the options that are available.  One of my primary rules for carrying a flashlight is it can’t be too small or I’ll end up losing it.  There are plenty of very powerful flashlights that cost close to $200 and can fit in your pocket, but to me that is a one heck of an expensive thing to loose.   Flashlights should be small if you are carrying them all the time, but there is such a thing as too small.   If it is really small you might as well put it on a keychain.

Even though I’ve been impressed with the Streamlight Nanolights and how powerful they are, I don’t like the idea of putting them on a keychain.  I carry a  lot of keys already and having another thing hanging in the ignition like the Streamlight Flashlights that are on a keychain makes keys kind of clunky.    I find the Streamlight Polytac to be a very nice light for all around purposes because it fits my hand very well, but it’s too big to keep on a belt or in a pocket all the time.   I’ve been carrying a Streamlight PT-2  or ProTac-2.  There is a smaller version called  the PT-2 but that is a little too small for me.   The PT-2 is in the Warranty office right now because I dropped it and cracked the lense, but the flashlight still worked.

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Less Lethal Pepper Spray options may save you more money than you realize

I know that most people don’t need to carry two firearms unless they really have a dangerous lifestyle, but there is a time and place for everything.  For Combat soldiers, carrying a sidearm is important because in close up fighting weapons can jam or go down and having a sidearm gives you time to get your primary weapon back up and running.   For those in Law Enforcement, you have your training, batons, mace and tasers to use before your firearm but many CCW holders think carrying a firearm means not needing pepper spray.

It doesn’t always have to be a gun nor should it have to be.   If you consider using something from the Sabre Defense Pepper Sprays or the Kimber Pepper Blaster II your chances of being a lawsuit are far less of a reality than if you pull a firearm.   People forget that dealing with minors with a sidearm and dealing with dogs or other animals and using a less lethal weapon is going to save you lawyers fees in the end.   Many discussions about what type of firearm is best to deal with a bear in the wild, but any Game Commission employee will tell you pepper spray and mace do the job.

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Illuminated reticles and night sights

There is much to debate when it comes to low light fighting because as all debates, one change in the situation can alter the entire argument.   Recently I did some not so technical comparisons between some of the Trijicon ACOGS we had in the store and tested them out late at night.  I went from being in a well lit room to walking out into the night and see how the reticles looked.   One thing I did not like about the Trijicon ACOGS at first was going from bright sunny, well light reticle illumination to a dark room with a TA26SG-10.   I was not happy about the 90% change in illumination and for an instant I could not see the reticle when entering a room.

That is one argument I still use when boasting about my Eotech selection of combat sights.  The changes in illumination from the Trijicon Rifle Scopes that are meant for combat is something that you need to train for.   I also tested out the Trijicon TA01NSN to see how that worked in low light.   Once again I went from a well lit room with those nice dark black reticles to nighttime and the center most reticles began to glow.   What I did not like about this optic and reticle configuration was that even in low light, there is still light and the glowing reticle was not easy to see against street lights.   Another issue for reticles that have varying contrasts in different lighting.   If there was a way to regulate the changes in lighting that might make the Trijicon ACOG an even better optic.   Consistent lighting from an optic can mean something.  I am starting to like the Trijicon TA31F-G.

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Not just about weight but also about balance

There are many things you can do to mess up the balance of your M4 Carbine.   Most people I know that own an AR15 rifle now are toting an M4 Carbine variant and it is rarely an A2 version.   Just about everyone know has  a fore grip on their guns, but in all honesty most of those never seem to feel right.   I have always been use to the traditional AR15 rifle and never felt the need to put a vertical grip on them but I have recently become a fan of the Mapgul Angled Foregrips.   Sometimes it take a good training course to really test your gear out and many times it means adjusting the stock you have or moving the foregrips forward or back.

I have seen numerous times that guys ended up with failed gear or ended up taking some gear off of their Carbines by mid-day.   Some of best training I have done was by a teacher that told us that we could not drop gear or take it back to our car, we had to leave all of are accessories and even magpul pmags with us or in a bag.   It was an important lesson about not over packing and thinking about what you really need to use.   There is no reason to load up 13 pmags when you probable won’t need that even if you’re going to shoot that many rounds, 6-8 magazines is a lot and speed loaders and boxed ammo is an easier way to pack.

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Finding a place to try thing out

We  have heard people say for years now that they wish they knew a place where people could go to try on various tactical pants or concealment holsters and not have to deal with ordering things online.   I’ve had enough experience shopping for clothing online for women to know that images and color swatches don’t always tell you what a product is because there are still many variances that can cause you to see a color wrong.  Not everyone sets their computer monitors to the same standards and the differences between a light green and a lime color may be an issue on your side of the screen and not the other.

When it comes to gun accessories and gear, sometimes its the time of the year and the way you hold a firearm that determines your comfort.  Sometimes people pick up magpul accessories and start complaining about how something feels and people forget that at one time your first 22LR probable didn’t fit your shoulder either.  Sometimes you have to grow into a firearm and others you have to adjust to.   There are different ways to hold a Carbine in a fighting position and some shooting positions are not comfortable for very long.   Start off simple and add on as you need to.  If you have too much of an issue with accessorizing your firearm, get another gun.

 

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Waiting for the News from SHOT Show

This is the time of year where we have to think about what we intend to bring into our inventory and as the years have added up, we’ve been scrutinizing the clothing that we have come in more and more.  If a company doesn’t stand behind their product or we get too many customer complaints, we will drop a product line.   Having a product line that holds it’s own even if it costs more is worth more to us than selling tons of gun accessories that break and fall apart and dealing with the headaches of exchanges and returns.   Most people know these days that gun stocks and accessories can get broken if mounted improperly and bull shitting your way into excuses isn’t going to work.

Every company has put out a dud product and I’d say about 15% of the new products that come out won’t be around in 9 months and will be on somebodies closeout or discontinued rack.   We’ve been selling Woolrich Elite pants for years now and we’ve been hearing rumors there are new tactical pants coming out in 2012 at SHOT Show.   Hopefully this  year will give us some stability in the tactical clothing market and somebody will put something out that is well designed, doesn’t tear in the crotch and doesn’t cost $80 a pair.

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Red Dots on ACOGS

I am really liking the RMR sights not because they look nice mounted on the top of a TA01 optic or a TA31, but because you can put them on just about anything.   The notion of putting a red dot on handguns is a much better idea than laser sights in my opinion because I do not think people will take as long to track a target with this sighting system.   Handguns are hard enough to shoot in tight groups a better sighting system than irons gives you something easy to see with old eyes and low light environments.   It will take less training to teach a novice to use a firearm with a sighting system like this.

If you really want to dress your M4 Carbine down and have a light and fast optic, the RMR system by itself might be good enough for you.  The RM01-33 can be mounted on a Picatinny rail system and the RM01-34 can be mounted on a Weaver system.  There are plenty  Trijicon rifle scopes  out there but don’t over look the simplicity of  a small and compact optic system that doesn’t add too much weight to your weapon.  The trend is towards lighter and faster firearms and optics are moving in that direction too.

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Your lasers shoot straight but your bullets never will

Lasers have been around for a long time and there are plenty of stories out there with credibility that involved Law Enforcement using them on firearms and then removing them because they were a liability.  With each accessory you put on a firearm, there is always a chance that it will fail or snag on something or change your perception of  the way you are engaging a target.  Although laser grips can have their advantages, you have to train to use  them properly. If you are looking for that dot to exactly where you want it to be you are wasting time and giving your opponent an opportunity to get his sights on you.  I have done enough testing and evaluations with new students to know that the majority of individuals act a certain way when given laser grips, they slow down when engaging targets.

For those of us that have taken Carbine Courses, we know that the AR15 his a very  high sighting picture and in a home defense or hostage situation, you better know your point of impact or something catastrophic can occur.  Crimson Trace Laser Grips have really picked up for the concealed carry market and they fly out of the door for those carrying pocket guns.  The reality about most pocket guns is the sights are never used.  Some guns like the Rohrbaugh R9 come with and without sights, why… because at certain ranges and certain calibers you train not to use them.  If you using laser grips for carry purposes, you are better off training to use it as a highlighter for low light threats but you must always be aware that your point of impact changes over distances.

 

 

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Know the color of your target and background

Recently I got into bow hunting and some of the bows they have out now are setup just like rifles are.   The optics are as fancy as the stuff that Trijicon has out and I got a good crash course on green vs red reticles.   Illumination is something that can bother me.   I still have pretty good eyesight for my age and I really don’t like it when I have reticles that obscure my target or cause fuzz and  haze.   Many of the red dot optics just piss me off if I have to use them past 100yds.  I do like my Eotech optics but am still looking for those skinny reticles.
The Trijicon TA01NSN is my favorite Trijicon ACOG and it is because it has nice skinny black lines and backup iron sights.   The TA01 is the even simpliar version of the ACOG.   These Trijicon Rifle Scopes have illumination when it is dark out but the bad thing about them is those nice thin black lines get lost on black clothing targets.   How many bad guys wear black over in Iraq and Afghanistan?  The vast majority of them.  Not only can a red dot obscure your target your black lines will fade on a target too.   A little bit of color contrast is a good thing for hunting and defense.

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Eotech feedback

There are always pros and cons of using optics but Eotech gun sights are the number one selling optic for Law Enforcement.   The Eotech sights are designed for close range engagements but there are limitations due to the reticle and lack of magnification once engaging a target.  The Eotech Magnifiers can give you more range at the flip of a switch and can always be flipped back to their original position in no time.There has been a understanding in the Law Enforcement and Military world that putting a scope or glass on a firearm doesn’t mean it’s a fragile thing.

Sure we know that Eotech gun sights and accessories can break and come loose, but much about mounting optics and reliability is about the manufacturer and the operator that mounted it. From what our customers tell us,  Eotech sights are the fastest close quarters fighting optics and the Eotech magnifiers gives you medium range capabilities. When you are looking for speed and not for target shooting or hunting, and you want a fast close quarters gun fighting weapon without compromising your ability to engage targets at medium ranges, the Eotech magnifier is the way to go. The Eotech gun sights are the fast target acquisition optics and the 3x magnifier will give you a clearer view of targets in low light and medium ranges that normally would be obscured by red dots or illuminated reticles. For medium range engagements the Eotech Magnifier helps id targets at longer ranges.

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