Top Cop Pistol Championship

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The Top Cop Pistol Championship, April 19th, 2014.

What is the Top Cop Pistol Championship (www.topcop.org)?  The Broward Sheriff’s Advisory Council (an independent organization whose sole purpose is to raise money for the families of fallen officers and firefighters) thought there should be a pistol match where cops could shoot against each other regardless if they’ve competed in a sanctioned match (IPSC/USPSA, IDPA, GSSF, NRA, PPC, etc.)  They also felt the match would bolster inter-agency rivalries in a fun way and raise money with a Tribute Dinner to all who have fallen in Broward County, FL. Continue reading →

JRC Holsters

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Recently I have been using several holsters and magazine pouches from JRC Holsters.  As much as I am a big user of kydex and synthetic holsters for service and duty use, I am a huge leather snob and prefer leather for concealed carry.  I began seeing some of the holsters on an online pistol forum and I was intrigued enough to call and talk to the owner.  It turns out that I had actually known the owner, Jim Ryan, from the days when he was part of a well know suppressor and class 3 company.  I used to talk to Jim at the Soldier of Fortune Conventions “back in the day”. Continue reading →

Battle Tested Equipment:

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Battle Tested Equipment trigger installed in a Spikes lower with Badger Ordnance selector.

Walking around shot show this year I happened to stumble upon a company I hadn’t heard of before. Battle Tested Equipment offers AR accessories made in the USA and designed with function over form in mind. Their products aren’t shiny, gold, or polished and are built to last and be used hard. Which for me at least draws my attention much more then a new organic coating designed for the outside of the space shuttle, dipping something in multi cam, or having a guy with an amazing tactical beard tell me about it on Youtube. After playing with some of their accessories I ended up picking up their charging handle and single stage trigger to try out. Continue reading →

The Police Patrol Rifle-K.I.S.S

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At a recent LE patrol rifle qualification, I stood behind the line, and observed something I guess I’ve known for a while now.  The basic patrol officer hangs way too much crap on their patrol rifles, and most of the time, all this stuff they hang on it, doesn’t equate to better accuracy down range.

Hear what I am saying prior to sharpening those pitchforks, and lighting the torches.

Patrol is the backbone of policing in the United States.  They are the true first responders.  No call is the same, no situation is the same.  They have to be prepared for just about everything at any time.  I get that.   And things such as a good sling, a white light, and a QUALITY Red Dot sight are helpful. Continue reading →

Buying a Gun for Your Wife?

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Last night, one of my coworkers was looking at a back issue of GunUp Magazine and reading a roundup article including the new micro compact Glock 42. He told me he was considering something like that or a Smith and Wesson Bodyguard for his wife. He then asked me what I might recommend. The intended use was home defense (she wasn’t going to carry it concealed) with the caveat that she has no training or interest in obtaining any training. Sound familiar?

Continue reading →

Equipment vs. Skilll

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Too many people focus on reducing group size or speeding up their shooting by purchasing gadgets and less by training.

The firearms industry is driven by the aftermarket, not necessarily the weapon manufacturers themselves. Through advertising, aftermarket manufacturers convince the average shooter that they “need” every trinket and gizmo to make themselves a better shooter. This seems to be a never ending battle I have with people, convincing them which is more important, the software or hardware. Continue reading →

MADE IN THE USA : ELEVEN * 10

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Click on the image to see the Eleven 10 Gear home page.
   The company makes/sells tourniquet cases, medical pouches, kits, and related supplies.  LE agency, military unit (the backgrounds of the company’s founders), and related individual purchases account for almost all of their sales. From their website:

“When we started to develop the prototypes for our new product line, we had a decision to make … Overseas production or USA production. Even though we could of made more profit having everything manufactured overseas, we decided keeping everything here was more important. All of our products are manufactured in Cleveland, Ohio with US made materials. We keep hearing that manufacturing in the States is dead, we beg to differ. Designed, prototyped, tested and manufactured all locally. Even our packaging is printed in Cleveland!” Continue reading →

The FNH SCAR- 16

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In late 2004, FN Herstal won the contract from the United States Special Operations Command for a new, modular, and adaptable rifle system. The FNH entry was called the Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle (SCAR). The new rifle system offering was rumored to be slated for several different calibers, including 6.8 SPC. To date, the FNH SCAR is only available in factory form in 5.56x45mm and 7.62x51mm. The FNH SCAR saw service with the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) in the two variants, the SCAR MK16 (5.56), commonly referred to as the SCAR-L for Light, and the MK17 (7.62), commonly referred to as the SCAR-H for Heavy. In 2010, SOCOM announced that it was cancelling the MK16 program. The initial claim was that the MK16 did not do anything better than the current M4 offerings.  To my knowledge, a couple of units still field the 5.56 SCAR-L in the 10.5 inch CQC variant. The SCAR family of rifles operate off of a short stroke piston system. The SCAR family of rifles are also completely ambidextrous, a bonus for left handed shooters who often are at the whim of right hand designs. Continue reading →

Photo of the Day: The New 10-8 Performance Glock Base Pad

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Prototype 10-8 Performance Base Pad on a Glock FDE Gen 4 Model 19. Production versions will be black.

It probably comes at no surprise that I’ve been using 10-8 Performance Base Pads on my 1911 and M&P magazines for quite some time now, and have grown accustomed to the included features, including dimples for marking the magazines, scalloped sides and serrated or scooped front to aid in removing stuck magazines. All these features are built into the new Glock base pads while maintaining a low profile shape that conforms to the pistol grip. Installation is simple and uses the factory retainer plate. The new Glock base pads are molded and should come in at a very affordable price point of about $4 each. I’ve been running two prototypes for the better part of a year, and have been very happy with the design and durability of the pad. The pictured base pad above is molded OD green, but production versions will be black. Go to the 10-8performance.com website and sign up for the newsletter for updates as to availability.  Hilton advises that the current production updates put these about 2-3 weeks out.

The Modified Glock

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Glocks tend to run great out of the box.  They are reliable, and accurate.  I have a friend who shoots a lot of 3 gun and IDPA with a completely stock Glock 17 with the plastic sights, and does it well.  Some folks like to simply change out of the plastic “filler” sights that come stock, for aftermarket sights such as 10-8’s.

I like my Glocks a bit more modified.  Above is a brand new Gen4 G19 that is a recent acquisition.  The gun shot great out of the box, but there are changes that I like to make for my own benefit. Continue reading →

Wilson Combat to Host Ernest Langdon in TX

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Wilson Combat to host Ernest Langdon for Beretta 92 class in Texas. Image from Wilson Combat.

On the heels of the announcement of the collaboration between Wilson Combat and Beretta guru Ernest Langdon, Wilson Combat has just announced they will be hosting Ernest for a “How to Run a Beretta Handgun” Course at the Wilson Ranch in Cuthand, Texas. Die hard Beretta aficionados will immediately recognize Ernest as the industry’s most knowledgeable instructor on running and modifying the Beretta handgun. A prior member for the Beretta shooting team, Ernest’s competition career has earned him countless national IDPA and USPSA titles with a double action pistol. He also has extensive military experience as an end user and instructor.

Continue reading →

Shooting Without…Yourself.

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So, what the hell does that mean? We often go to the range, start shooting a drill or even bullseye practice, and begin to make judgements.  “Damn, my shots keeping going to the left.”  “I’m shooting too slow”.  “Why can’t my group look like his group?” or even, “I suck!”  This is your ego or more commonly known as the conscious mind.  It tells us what’s going on.  It’s that running monologue in your head.  This reminds of me of the scene in the iconic Tom Cruise movie, “The Last Samurai.”  In it, our hero has learned the art of the sword and is in a competition with one of the instructors.  As it goes on, he has a hard time connecting and summarily gets his butt kicked. Continue reading →

The Sig P226: The Unrecognized Workhorse

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The Sig P226 coated in Robar Guns’ NP3, an excellent finish for lubricity and corrosion resistance.

In keeping with our recent series, we’ve been looking at various commonly issued practical service weapons that don’t get a whole lot of love. The Sig P226 certainly falls into that category. Most of us who have been around for a while know this pistol very well, but it seems the new generation of shooters don’t give this pistol much love. Originally designed to compete with the Beretta 92 to replace the M1911A1 pistols, the P226 has been adopted by countless domestic law enforcement agencies and has also been in use by the US Navy SEAL Teams since the 1980s. The P226 also saw service in the FBI, DHS,  and served as an interim weapon to replace the Browning Hi Power. Many of the design features came from the P220 and P225. A double column magazine holds 15 rounds of 9mm ammunition. In its decades of service, P226 has developed a reputation of being a reliable and robust pistol.

Continue reading →

Beretta 92FS: The Forgotten Service Pistol

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A couple weeks ago, our friends over at the gunnuts.net blog wrote about The Underrated Beretta 92, which prompted me to look back at my own experiences with the platform. Where I work, officers can choose to carry a personal sidearm as long as they can qualify with the pistol and that the handgun itself meets some basic parameters. However, the default issue pistol is still the Beretta Model 92FS, and most of our sworn personnel carry it since it is provided by the agency. So we on the range staff have quite a bit of experience with the pistol; as a result, I’ve formed a few opinions on its attributes and performance characteristics. Continue reading →

MADE IN THE USA: SMITH & WESSON MODEL ?

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It is a factory nickel K-frame born 1981 (hat tip Roy Jinks, who was in when I called).  S&W logo was moved to the left side of the frame to facilitate engraving.  Blued, in various barrel lengths, used by U.S. military, various state and local police, FBI, IRS-CID, Hong Kong Police, and many more.  Mostly .38 special, but a small run was chambered in .357 magnum.  This one sports a pinned barrel, eliminated in 1982.  Gas ring changed from yoke to cylinder in this dash.

I received the revolver as a present in 2010.  On the first dry fire trigger pull, the tip of one of the prongs on the mainspring claw broke off and the wheel gun became nonfunctional.  I replaced it with a factory rated Wolff, also a new strain screw, and installed a slightly reduced weight rebound spring.  Cleaned and polished it with nickel-safe products and lubed her up.  I put on official S&W store checkered rosewood boot grips, available here.  Likely good to go for another 30+ years.

A J-frame in the pocket may be more comfortable, but a K-frame is more comforting. Much easier to shoot, and has that “extra” round.   Model 10-7, 2 inch.  A .38 caliber M&P of the 20th century:

Shown with K5 thin Kydex pocket holster made by FIST, see here.  Rides perfectly in the top pocket of several well-known brands of tactical/cargo pants and shorts. Ammo of choice is current loading of Federal Premium 125 grain NYCLAD® HP (P38MA).