Durable over Decibel

By

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October 2, 2020

Alright GAT,

Let’s talk cans. Silencer, suppresser, gun muffler, the thing formerly known as “solvent trap”.

Those mysterious and yet very simple safety devices that can tame the thunder and flash of a gunshot to a more reasonable level.

I finally pulled the trigger on a personal one after many moons of borrowing the ones around me and I want to take you through the thought process.

Silencers are like Weapon Mounted Lights…

Yes. We played the exact same game with weapon lights that we have with silencers. The game of numbers.

More lumens better! More decibel reduction better!!

Except, just like lights, that is not the whole story. Is that decibel reduction “dry” or “wet”? Is it first shot or purged (the can is full of shot gases mostly, not air)? Does it shift point of impact? Is it high volume/full-auto rated or meant for single shot in the woods? Is it ‘flow through’? Can it be used after being submerged, if so how? Does it have barrel length requirements?

And that most important of questions that ties to everything you buy

What do you need it to do?

Remember, equipment like this is specialist. Pick its job, then go shopping. If your job is the quietest possible first shot, hunters, the silencer will be able to utilize certain constructions and materials and probably be a design not concerned with working on a gas system.

If its designed to tame muzzle blast on a machinegun or repeating rifle that’s a whole different set of physical requirements to deal with heat, pressure, gas systems, etc. Often these cans aren’t built for the best (meaning highest number under the tested conditions) Db reduction, they’re built for durable consistent Db reduction.

For anyone looking to suppress a fighting gun, this is you can type.

You’re looking at a possible rapid rate of fire through a probably gas operated action that you need to take the edge off of because you’re most likely in your house. Alternatively it is possible to be in or around a vehicle needing this. You might also just be kind to your neighbors on the firing line if you run a muzzle break. You might be running a shoot house/CQB/entry type course of training. There are a myriad applications for these that still boil down to, “make it a little less *boom*”

Pick a Durable ‘Do-It-All’ .30 Cal

Why .30? Because just like Franks Red Hot you can put it on everything.

You can lower the bore diameter (caliber) of what you’re shooting, because smaller objects go through larger holes, but you cannot do the opposite and shoot a 6mm, 6.5mm, 6.8mm, or 7.62mm through a 5.56mm.
You are not going to miss those theoretical notional decibels of the caliber specific can.

Remember that a listed Db reduction rating or NRR (Noise Reduction Rating) is under controlled circumstances, usually outdoors in moderately nice weather. It’s also measured at a certain distance and position and.. and.. and.. and, kind of like the listed velocity and “drop” printed for a round on a box of ammo, its just a guideline and any number of factors will change it.

Keep in mind that this silencer’s job is much more blunt than you’re giving it credit for. It needs to blunt the blast. Noise and flash need to be reduced to a level that doesn’t disrupt you and yours and the can needs to do it over and over again while not breaking down.

It’s a durable boom tube that needs to not be too heavy or awkward at the end of the barrel. Simple. So stop complicating it unless you need to.

When you need to complicate it

Specialty silencer selection for either a specific purpose (large bore bolt gun, rimfire, etc.) or permanent/dedicated attachment.

This post dedicated to getting people unglued from ‘Decibels’ just as with ‘Lumens’ on lights. There is more to it.

That said, if you guessed I grabbed a SOCOM762 Mini2 DE… correct. You get an internet cookie.

SIG AIR and Evike Manufacturing Group Announce Exclusive Collaboration Agreement

By

Keith Finch

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October 1, 2020

NEWINGTON, N.H., (October 1, 2020) – SIG SAUER, Inc. is pleased to announce that its SIG AIR Division has officially joined forces with Evike Manufacturing Group (EMG) for future product development, and continued product distribution of SIG AIR airgun and airsoft products in the U.S. through Evike.com.

“This exciting collaboration between SIG AIR and EMG is a result of the increasing popularity and demand we are seeing in the marketplace for SIG AIR airguns and airsoft products,” said Tom Taylor, Chief Marketing Officer and Executive Vice President, Commercial Sales, SIG SAUER, Inc. “This new partnership with EMG will allow us to increase our product development capabilities allowing us to bring more SIG AIR products to consumers worldwide.”

The SIG AIR product line includes a series of traditional CO2 pellet and BB rifles and pistols, that are designed to imitate the look, weight, balance, and handling characteristics of their traditional firearms counterparts. Additionally, SIG AIR offers a line of training products with the PROFORCE line of airsoft pistols, rifles, and accessories. Designed and developed from the ground up to deliver a realistic training experience that allows the user access to achieve a new level of performance potential.

“The team at Evike.com and EMG are excited for the opportunity to join forces with SIG AIR to create new products, expand the SIG AIR product line, and provide a new dealer experience for SIG AIR products,” added Evike Chang, CEO of Evike.com and President of EMG, Inc. “We are completely aligned with the SIG SAUER brand to bring the best-in-class airgun and airsoft experience to the SIG AIR product line.”

For more information about SIG AIR products visit sigsauer.com.

About SIG SAUER, Inc.
SIG SAUER, Inc. is a leading provider and manufacturer of firearms, electro-optics, ammunition, airguns, suppressors, and training. For over 250 years SIG SAUER, Inc. has evolved, and thrived, by blending American ingenuity, German engineering, and Swiss precision. Today, SIG SAUER is synonymous with industry-leading quality and innovation which has made it the brand of choice amongst the U.S. Military, the global defense community, law enforcement, competitive shooters, hunters, and responsible citizens. Additionally, SIG SAUER is the premier provider of elite firearms instruction and tactical training at the SIG SAUER Academy. Headquartered in Newington, New Hampshire, SIG SAUER has over 2,000 employees across eight locations. For more information about the company and product line visit: sigsauer.com.

Airsoft Training and Gaming

Airsoft makes training and events, that would otherwise be impossibly expensive, accessible while being able to gateway into live fire shooting sports and training. It is economical, safe, and translates well. For Force on Force it is arguably the best option on low budgets as simunitions run up the budget. Sure, you get more *bang* for your bucks (literally) but you get far fewer reps and we know that reps make the money.

It’s Force on Force DryFirePlus and I wish we could have run more of this in MOUT instead of Empty M16’s and shouting “bang”.

Rx for Firearms Freedom, GRPC 2020: Young on Firearms Research

By

DRGO

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October 1, 2020

[Ed: This is the second of the talks that the DRGO leadership team gave September 20 online for the Second Amendment Foundation’s 35th annual Gun Rights Policy Conference. In my talk below, I added a couple of things for which there was not enough time on video, as well as the pertinent references. See each of our talks on the DRGO YouTube channel or at 2:17:23 here. The entire schedule of talks is here, divided into 4 parts on the SAF channel.]

Hi. I’m Dr. Robert Young, Executive Editor for Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership.

Evaluating so-called “public health research” on guns is our primary task. Typical career anti-gun academics work from unstated prejudice that guns are bad and so reducing gun ownership is desirable. They pick and choose their data, emphasizing factors that tend their way rather than objectively examining changes over time. Their statistical analyses are skewed toward methods that support their preferred outcome, that guns are responsible for violence. As a result, they make a lot of mistakes but keep getting a pass for them.

For example:

https://drgo.us/and-the-beat-goes-on/ (CDC through Wintemute below)

In January, the CDC claimed that “school homicides” “skyrocketed from 2009 to 2018. They implied that these represent the “mass school shootings” we all fear, but they included any shooting death on or even near a school property. This exaggeration netted 21 events per year. But by the FBI’s standard “mass shooting” definition, there were just 30 episodes in schools with 90 total victims during all 10 years—3 per year, 3 victims each on average. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/68/wr/mm6803a1.htm?s_cid=mm6803a1_w
In February, Pediatrics asserted that increased handgun ownership over 3 decades caused increased child deaths by gunshot—“skyrocketing” during the 3^rd decade in 1 to 4 year-olds from .36 to .64 per 100,000. There were 80 such deaths in 2017; if this held, the baseline would be 46, but that difference is just too small in our population to infer a meaningful trend. The truth: they cherry-picked their study years—these deaths have been declining consistently for decades. https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/143/2/e20181171
Once in a blue moon, a well-designed study has unexpected results, such as work in February on California’s highly restrictive state background checks from 1991 through 2005. The authors had to acknowledge that these checks made NO difference in the incidence of gun-related homicide or suicide rates. https://www.sciencedirect.com/sc i ence/article/abs/pii/S1047279718306161

https://drgo.us/and-the-beat-goes-on-2/ (BUPH through Preventive Medicine below)

In March, Boston University School of Public Health published work showing that household gun ownership correlated with rates of firearm suicide by adolescents from 2005 through 2015. True, but it also correlated with ALL means of suicide by adolescents, and not with their rate of suicide attempts by any means—meaning that household gun ownership is irrelevant to suicidal behavior in adolescents. And correlation does not prove causation.

Also in March, another Boston University group claimed that more stringent gun laws reduced “mass shootings” from 1998 through 2015. Categorizing laws as simply restrictive versus permissive, as well as assuming they knew how many firearms people possess, mar this study. Even then they detected a difference of only .05 incidents per million people, or 1 event for every 20 million. Garbage in, garbage out. https://www.bmj.com/content/364/bmj.l542

April’s Preventive Medicine ran a study that came to the simplistic conclusion that access to guns correlates with “gun violence”. But “hostility” and “impulsivity” correlated even more strongly than mere “gun access” in presaging “violence”, which was defined as the mere thought of threatening someone, not doing anything. This was based on a one-time survey returned by 600-some high school students from 7 cities across the South—a tiny, self-reporting, unvalidated population.

In May, a study in the American Journal of Medicine compared lifetime death rates from “firearms, drug overdoses, and motor vehicle accidents.” And there’s the rub: firearms, unlike ODs and MVAs are not a cause of death. The results, respectively, .93%, 1.52% and .95%, showed that causes of death involving firearms are no more frequent than in accidents involving vehicles—so our focus should be on the ODs first. https://www.ammoland.com/2020/08/more-medical-propaganda-disguised-as-a-study-about-firearms-and-risk/

A criminology professor at Florida State University (Gary Kleck’s own school!) argued in July that household gun ownership and concealed carry laws increase rates of firearm homicide and mass shootings. But she too exaggerated what “mass shootings” are, and explained the careful planning of mass shooters as somehow related to the “impulsivity” she sees in all gun owners. Her data were faulty, with no objective controls or trend analysis. Her results really showed that there was no relationship between any of these.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07418825.2020.1789693 https://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/another-misleading-study-on-gun-ownership-and-violence-chases-its-own-questionable-tail/

www.ammoland.com/2020/08/nra-ila-contrived-data-at-odds-with-lived-reality

[DRGO’s responses rarely get published in journals. I am on review panels for two of them, so once in a while we have input.] But, we can win, though our letters to editors rarely see print. Members publish research and I’m on review panels for two journals.

Dr. Cailinn Langmann of McMasters University is a DRGO expert. In June, he compared changes in Canadian firearm laws versus suicide and homicide rates there from 1991 to 2016. He evaluated trends in death rates before and after legislation in 1991, ‘94 and 2001 that progressively restricted gun rights. He also chose meaningful comparisons: areas with high numbers for existing suicides, unemployment, poverty, and Native population density. Each of these correlated with higher rates of homicide and suicide—but not gun ownership.

https://drgo.us/believe-it-or-not-gun-laws-change-nothing/ (DRGO summary)

[Langmann’s study is remindful of one by Dr. Mark Hamill, also a DRGO reviewer, from January 2019. I was privileged to review it and recommend journal publication. He demonstrated that the relative stringency of state concealed-carry laws makes no difference in rates of homicide or violent crime. It was extremely well-designed, meticulously gathering, categorizing and analyzing data, then identifying changes in trends of violence, resulting in highly reliable conclusions.]

https://drgo.us/concealed-carry-does-not-increase-violent-crime/ (DRGO summary)

Science is supposed to be clear, logical and objective. Unfortunately, it is as messy and ego-driven as any other human endeavor. Even though these studies really show that neither civilian gun ownership nor gun laws have anything to do with rates of suicide, homicide, mass shootings or other violence, these researchers misstate their own results and cannot give up their bias against guns.. DRGO will continue to draw a line in the sand against bad science in gun research and will promote the good. We’re having some influence, and hope that will grow. Thank you.

.

— DRGO Editor Robert B. Young, MD is a psychiatrist practicing in Pittsford, NY, an associate clinical professor at the University of Rochester School of Medicine, and a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association.

All DRGO articles by Robert B. Young, MD

ThiccP5?

By

Keith Finch

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October 1, 2020

SuperShortBoi AR types were all the rage at one recent time juncture. It was a race to make them shorter and shorter while keeping them running (enough) to still be fun guns.

What everyone shortly discovered with these shorties was… well. They came up short in several aspects.

This didn’t negate their fun factor, just practicality.

Mike covers the HK53 in the video.

I’m going to discuss shorty 5.56’s in general down below.

Velocity is King. Size is about movement.

The two reasons to reduce the overall length of a weapon are ease of transport and ease of use in confined spaces. Both are important considerations.

Your “enemy defeat” capability in a Low Mass High Velocity (LMHV) Projectile comes from its speed first. Speed is arguably the most potent factor in generating a desired kinetic effect on target since kinetic energy is velocity squared multiplied by half the mass.

.5(Mass)(Velocity)^2

In simplest terms, increasing a bullet’s speed by 10% is more beneficial than increasing its mass by 10%. Taking a projectile that is 100gr and traveling at 1,000 feet per second and making it go 1,100 feet per second gives you the same effect at the muzzle as making the projectile 121 grains (mass increased 21%).

This is an oversimplification since terminal ballistics are a complicated science, but that is how the raw kinetic energy works out.

It also works the same in reverse. Every foot per second you lose has a substantial effect on what the round ends up at the target with the ability to do. Unless you are shooting paper or steel you aren’t hitting the target just to hit it, you are firing to disrupt it and might being needing an immediate effect to save your life or someone’s life.

Going from about 3,100/fps out of an M16 with it’s 20″ barrel to about 2,300/fps out of the HK53, or any number of other popular personal defense/personal security detail type firearms, drops your energy at the muzzle by 45%.

This is not going to make it ineffective inside 50 yards, 100 yards, maybe even 150 yards, but it will bring that drastic decrease in effective terminal ballistics ‘line’ much closer to you behind the trigger. The range at which the 5.56 or 5.45, the two most prominent LMHV types, lose enough velocity to stop doing all the extra tissue disruptive things that they can do gets brought in closer with every bit of lost speed.

This will also influence the effect on armor and cover. Your ability to tackle intermediate mediums is also challenged by slowing down the rounds. At 2,900/fps that little car might not be great cover. But at 2,300/fps it might be a lot better. An AR500 steel armor plate can stop 2,300/fps all day (sorry AK47). It’s a lot more challenging a stop at 3,250/fps (M16+M193=what plate?)

Blinded by the light…

Muzzle blast is a thing. It becomes a much more uproarious thing the less barrel you give powder to burn in, especially when you drop out of the optimum powder burn zone for a give round.

That optimum zone will give you very consistent velocity increases and decreases for every inch of barrel gained or lost. 5.56×45 is generally happiest in about 12-20 inches of steel and 5.45 seems to be as well. You see sharp decreases as you go shorter and anemic increases as you start going too much longer. This is often subject to the powder too, but we’re talking commercially available generalizations.

We are EZ mode covering a complex series of physics equations.

All that extra powder that wants to burn nicely in that optimal zone is still going to burn, it is just going to do so in the open air and give you that spicy Hollywood special effects muzzle flash…

It turns out that is very distracting behind the trigger… and downright brutal to teammates or other people in close proximity. Now put that inside the confined space of a vehicle or a hall and you have yourself a legendarily rung bell.

Okay… it isn’t that, bad in my opinion, but it is far from pleasant. The little PSD LWRC I have that mimics the size and capability of the HK53 is louder than my SCAR17.

So you’re saying we should…

Be aware of what you are buying and why. Your compact little HK53 pistol has a lot going in the portability and ease of movement categories, no doubt about it. But it gave up effective range of increased terminal effects (if you need it for this particular firearm) and got noisier and more disruptive to yourself and those around you, be they friend or foe.

Are we done talking practically?

Yes.

Short guns are fun. Period.

Big and Dangerous Game with Intermediate Cartridges

By

BullShooters

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September 30, 2020

Plenty of guys that perhaps have experience with firearms, but not hunting specifically, commonly ignore terminal ballistics. Terminal ballistics are what a bullet does, and does to its target, after it strikes it. Terminal ballistics is dictated by the cartridge’s bullet weight multiplied by its velocity to produce energy the raw kinetic energy and then factors the bullet’s construction in to dictate how the energy is delivered. I.E. if it penetrates well (into the vital body cavity) by holding together despite encountering tough mediums like bone.

In target shooting, terminal ballistics matters little. Paper or plastic are not that resilient and steel is just meant to be struck. In hunting, especially big game like tough wild boars, the cartridge and bullet chosen can spell the difference between dinner or a wounded animal (and possible injury to you).

In this video, Jeff Johnson tests several common cartridges and bullets (.300 Blackout subsonic & supersonic, .5.56, 9mm, and .243 Winchester) on a big wild boar to see what bullets would have killed the hog, and which would have wounded it. Although the autopsy may make you puke, the results may surprise you.

The 10 yard red dot zero

By

Caleb Giddings

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September 30, 2020

One of the downsides to the modern trend of adding optics to pistols is the need to zero those optics. It can be a long process of shooting a group, walking downrange, check the group, making adjustments, and starting again. But thanks to Modern Samurai Project, there is another way: the 10 yard red dot zero.

The 10 yard red dot zero is pretty simple, but it does require the shooter to be able to shoot 3 shots that all touch each other or almost touch each other at 10 yards. To zero your gun using this method, you’ll need a target with a small reference point, like a 2 inch circle or a 1 inch square. A 4 inch circle or a 3×5 card can work too, but are on the upper end of size you want to use.

One you get your target set for the 10 yard red dot zero, go to 10 yards and shoot a 3 shot group. Like we mentioned, the goal is to get all three shots to touch, or almost touch. I recommend shooting the group standing unsupported, because that’s how you’re actually going to use the pistol. Shooting off a rest can actually change your point of impact slightly. Once your group is dead center in the target area, you can move on to the next step.

The next step is confirmation. Opponents of the 10 yard red dot zero always bring up “but what about longer ranges” as if shooting at 25 yards wasn’t part of the process. It’s always part of the process. At 25 yards, shoot another 3 shot group unsupported, and your point of impact should be centered on the target. When I do this method these days, I’ll shoot my 10 yard groups at a 1 inch square, then my 25 yard group at a B8. This is easy if you have Langdon Tactical Targets which have all of those target areas on them.

When you’re at 25 yards, you shouldn’t need to adjust your sight further. If you got everything nailed at 10, you should be in business at 25 yards. If you want to make some minor tweaks and shoot one more group, this is the time to do it, but be careful. At 25 yards shooting unsupported your margin of error is a lot more, and it’s quite possible to start chasing your zero around. If your zero at 10 was good, and your hits at 25 are in the 10 ring on a B8, you’re good.

That’s it! The 10 yard red dot zero is a simple process that takes very few rounds and very little time. I just recently used it to zero the Modern Fighting Revolver, and I was able to get it duty ready in less than 10 rounds.

Ricky Bobby on the Trigger

By

Keith Finch

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September 29, 2020

MilSpecMojo broke the gunternet about a month ago when he and Mike (GarandThumb) posted a pistol video of him warping space time and making a magazine work in the wrong firearm.

But the topic today, among the other shenanigans, is Mojo is a crazy fast shooter. He’s sharing those “How to” secrets with the world!

The secret:

There is no secret.

It’s the same economy of motion stuff that most of us do not spend enough time on. Work the trigger and control the gun.

One of the biggest learning hurdles that shooters have to face is something I am starting to call “tiered unlearning”, where a technique that got you to your current level must now be disregarded to get to the next. For the RPG playing crowd, this is respecing your skills because you have more points to work with. Unfortunately “respecing” in real life requires as much practice as learning it originally did, not just hitting a reset button.

The trigger press, especially on a rifle, is a perfect example. We teach new shooters to pin the trigger rearward. This is helpful to them, it was helpful to me and still is, most of them are shooting slow fire strings and/or shooting at a challenging distance. We teach this to help them keep the rifle still, to pay attention to the shot and sight picture. We do this to limit the motion transfer and help them focus on the task(s) at hand. Single, well aimed, individual shots.

But when its time to unlock the inner Ricky Bobby, we have ingrained a speed bump. My pistol shooting especially is much slower because I am used to pinning the trigger and it is a hard habit to break. Recognizing and shoring up that I have the foundational control and fundamentals to keep the firearm still and where I want it to remain means that, where prior it had been a stability benefit, it is now doing nothing for me.

It is now interfering with the economy of motion. The unconscious pinning of the trigger until I get my next sight picture is wasting time, my trigger release and my flinch of years past are no longer moving the gun so my remedy of pinning the trigger no longer works in my favor.

And… we don’t do it when we try and shoot fast anyway. Nobody is pinning the trigger in a dirt flinging mag dump. The key is teaching ourselves to do so effectively and retain the accuracy and recoil controls. We can work our brains up to pay attention, but the key is working up the right habits.

Now lets go fast, Ricky Bobby!

Watch and learn.

Springfield Waypoint Unlocked for 2020

By

Keith Finch

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September 29, 2020

Well, these were unexpected. After the rather head scratching introduction of the “Delta 5” line from Daniel Defense I didn’t think another company would try their hand at bolt guns for a bit.

I was mistaken, and not unhappily so. The new Waypoints look… pretty good.

SEE THE WAY

Springfield Armory® is proud to introduce the Model 2020 family of bolt action hunting rifles. Precision manufactured in the USA, each Model 2020 is built to deliver the accuracy and performance expected from a custom grade rifle. The Model 2020 Waypoint features a premium carbon fiber stock and the option of a steel or carbon fiber barrel with an impressive .75 MOA accuracy guarantee. Learn more at springfield-armory.com

LESS TALK, MORE ACTION

Accuracy and performance begin with the all new Model 2020 action. Precision manufactured from premium materials, each Model 2020 action is the foundation for success and is designed to take advantage of today’s most advanced production techniques. Dual locking lugs on the fluted bolt run smoothly down EDM raceways for perfect, repeatable engagement while an optimized extraction cam provides robust, reliable extraction in any condition. Additionally, the bolt features dual cocking cams for ease of operation and toolless disassembly for maintenance.

CUSTOM FEATURES

Offering users a custom-grade firearm for thousands less than you would expect, the Model 2020’s receiver features top-tier features and refinements. Providing strength and repeatability is an integral machined recoil lug, and electrical discharge machining (EDM) of the bolt lug raceways ensures precision dimensions and smooth cycling. An enlarged ejection port, sliding extractor — for reliable operation in the most adverse conditions — and hybrid dual-plane feed ramp deliver reliable and repeatable performance.

All this is well and good but what Springfield Armory is doing is something Daniel Defense wasn’t able to energize on with their name and reputation, Springfield might pull it off.

The Delta 5 came off as a weird wannabe “sniper” rifle that confusingly contrasted with their DD5 line which was always trying for that M110 vibe. It was just far too close and no one could quiet figure out why DD had made this kinda pricey R700 thing… not the Remington was wowing anybody at the time.

Springfield seems to have taken a different path to a similar product and that makes all the difference sometimes

A. Springfield Armory doesn’t have a competing precision rifle, the legacy M1A series are a nostalgic category and that files differently. They aren’t pushing a premium tier SASS type rifle with the SAINT .308’s like the DD5 is against their Delta 5.

B. The 2020 Waypoint is clearly its own product. It is not trying to capitalize on how awesomely awesome the SAINT or EMP are and is instead just sliding into our DM’s like some kind of rugged mountain adventurer. And that works.

C. Camo is cool. Perhaps the most striking way Springfield has made this thing stand out is the least mechanically important, the ‘Evergreen’ and ‘Ridgeline’ camos. They feel like the look I want out of a bolt gun regardless of the mountain range. They feel custom, even if its just an assembly of well picked parts. The Delta 5 was black… yay.

D. The right balance of traditional aesthetic and modern features, QD sling points and AICS magazine compatibility, good. Traditional bolt action lines that forego the overt tactical “chassis” look and make us think of the M24/M40 as we knew it through GWOT and our capable deep nature hunting guns, also well done. Optics rail and carbon wrapped fluted stainless steel barrels, nice touch. The option to “opt out” of the superfluous features and save money, fantastic finish.

E. Nailing the “semi-custom” price range with a simple parts selection on their end. A few calibers, a pair of camos, a pair of stock types, a pair of barrel types. Logistically easy with a pick your rifle feel.

I’ll be honest, my gut reaction to this was WTF? Why!? Similar to the Delta 5. But having absorbed the 2020 Waypoint’s niche… I am in. And to give some credit back to Daniel Defense, I have that same cautious optimism for their revival of the Hudson H9.

Well done stepping into a new space, Springfield. Well done indeed. If they unbox and shoot as well as they look this will likely be a strong catalog addition.

“Tactical Trekking Pole”

By

Dr LateBloomer

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September 29, 2020

On one of my woods walks with my daughter this past month I realized that the way my knees are acting, maybe I should get a walking stick for stability. Not for standard strolls mind you, but for when going off-trail – navigating slopey stream banks, rocks, fallen logs, etc. I tore an ACL back in med school and never got it fixed. It’s been good for 20 years, but…

I didn’t want a heavy hickory quarter staff and I didn’t want to spend the coin on anything of wizard make. I just wanted a third point of contact on tricky terrain. When I did an Amazon search, I found this “Tactical Trekking Pole”.

Not only is this walking staff/trekking pole aluminum alloy and thus not heavy to tote around, it also unscrews into pieces for storage in its own case in my pack. The bonus is that it contains several “survival tools” inside the hollow pole sections. It’s not a Red Ryder but it does have a compass in the stock.

A compass in the stock but no “thing that tells time”.

The tools included were: a knife/saw/bottle opener, a whistle, a double-ended screwdriver, another bottle opener, another saw (or is it a fish scaler?), and an edged tool other than the knife. The included insert had slightly different tools pictured than this model. I’m not sure why. I noted that the tools are anchored with plastic not metal, so they may not stand up to heavy or repeated use, but we shall see. Also included were two different tips and a snow/mud break.

I’m not exactly sure what the pointy end piece is for.

A couple of the pole sections are empty – leading me to plan for what else I could stash in there – maybe some matches, maybe a few band-aids, some fishing line or duct tape – the possibilities are tantalizing.

The length of the pole as it arrived was a little short for me. This was a surprise, as I’m only 5’ 4” on a tall day. But I ordered an extension section which is about seven inches long, and that took care of it. Just be aware of that fact if you are a big guy and want one of these – you may want to order some extensions. Of course if you are THAT big a guy maybe the hickory staff is more your speed anyway.

Defense-wise, being aluminum, the pole is not much of a defensive weapon as is. It’s not a quarterstaff and I am not a Druid. But being lightweight does make it useful not only as a walking stick, but also as an anti-spider stick. This time of year when webs frequently cross narrow trails, having a lightweight tool to ward off the sticky traps can be inordinately handy. Last year I remember waving a branch around in front of me like a crazed orchestra conductor to fend off errant webs. No, this stick wouldn’t help me fight off Shelob, but I suppose you could put the knife tool on the end and use it as a spear in a pinch.

Apparently if you live in “other” countries though, instead of a knife attachment you get … a spork. On one hand a spork might be useful if I could figure out a way to jam a dehydrated meal down inside the pole, but from a weapons and survival perspective, I’d rather have the knife, thanks. I don’t think Shelob would be impressed by being threatened with a spork.

Granted, the knife isn’t the highest quality, but it did cut up an apple for me just fine. I usually carry a Buck folder in my pocket anyway, so the knife in the pole just makes number two for the whole “one is none” crowd.

Because in a survival situation you always need to be able to open your beer.

I couldn’t find where this was manufactured on Amazon when I ordered it, but in microscopic print on the box it says “Made in China”. *Sigh*. I’m trying harder to not buy stuff from Communist China these days, but sometimes it’s hard to tell until it arrives.

Nonetheless, after a couple test hikes and some tool trying, I’m pretty pleased overall with this purchase. It’s not the highest quality in the world, and yes, it’s gimmicky/cheesy, but if you only need to use the tools once and it gets you out of trouble – then it’s invaluable. For my purposes and the price, I am quite satisfied.

But remember – It’s a “Tactical Trekking Pole”, NOT an old lady cane, mkay? Just so we have that straight.

*Limps away with her beer, muttering about kids these days*

Firearm ‘Scaling’ is Complex

By

Keith Finch

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September 28, 2020

While there are examples where a specific firearm was scaled down or up to accommodate various calibers, what is often overlooked is just how complicated that process actually is.

Bloke on the Range takes on this topic in the video, specifically relating to the SA80/L85 development and the problems it faced compared to the EM-2 rifle which was selected and then dismissed by the MoD a few decades earlier. He takes on why they didn’t just “scale” the EM-2 down instead since the “EM-2 worked” is the common wisdom while “the SA80/L85 is junk” is the competing wisdom. In truth the current A2 and incoming A3 L85’s sound like they work well and probably far better than the EM-2 just as the current M4A1 is a superior firearm to the M1 and M14.

Short version… it is way more complicated than changing sizes because firearms are pressure sensitive machines. All the parts have to work at pressure and any given piece may not ‘scale’ and still do that. Changing calibers is, mechanically speaking, building a new firearm. This is why early “drop-in” solutions for so many systems worked like hot garbage. All the operating bits have to be made for the caliber, and that means differences. Springs, buffers, locking lugs, bolt face, extractors, ejectors, magazines, gas systems and/or delay locking mechanisms.

These things do not magically scale, they are purpose built. Mechanical concepts, like a short stroke piston or roller delay may still be viable, they may even work within dimensional limits without a change. But it must be considered from the basis of pressure and conceptually this makes ‘scaling’ less viable than building a “new firearm” with the desired features.

The SCOTUS 2A Question: Barrett

By

Keith Finch

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September 28, 2020

The Supreme Court of the United States has passed on major firearms cases, to the great disappointment of firearms owners and 2A advocates. Their lack of comment on the New York transportation restrictions, a flagrant violation of the right of their citizenry, showed a the court to be quiet literally ‘gun shy’. Since NY hurriedly changed the law the SCOTUS was given an easy out as to ‘not make waves’ in the space for firearms law.

We’ve seen hesitancy time and time again from the court to take up a case that could topple or cement major items of contention like magazine bans, assault weapon bans, and shall issue concealed carry.

So how would Barrett potentially change the mix? SCOTUS is nominally “conservative” at this time with a theoretical 5-4. However the Nine Justices are not monolithic thought blocks and have been known to vote ‘opposite’ depending upon the specific legal issue. Within the realm of the Second Amendment, only four Justices were reliably individualist (vs state) enough in their legal interpretations to make securing 2A rights back in locales that have taken them a possibility… and as you know it takes five.

From here I’ll let the MCRGO sum it up:

On Saturday, President Trump nominated Amy Coney Barrett to fill the seat on the United States Supreme Court vacated upon the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Barrett presently serves as a Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. With Barrett’s confirmation by the U.S. Senate likely in the near future, many responsible gun owners are wondering how this new justice will impact them.

Judge Barrett applies the methodology of the late eminent Justice Antonin Scalia, for whom she clerked after graduating first in her class from Notre Dame Law School. Consistent with the methodology employed by the late Scalia, her mentor, Barrett interprets the Constitution in strict accordance with its original meaning. Barrett is a firm Constitutional originalist and textualist and she has already demonstrated that in a Second Amendment case.

In Kanter v. Barr, Barrett dissented from the Seventh Circuit Court’s ruling upholding the law prohibiting convicted felons from possessing firearms. The plaintiffs had been convicted of mail fraud. The majority upheld the felony dispossession statutes as “substantially related to an important government interest in preventing gun violence.” In her dissent, Barrett argued that while the government has a legitimate interest in denying gun possession to felons convicted of violent crimes, there is no evidence that denying guns to non-violent felons promotes this interest, and argued that the law violated the Second Amendment.

The Supreme Court has now twice ruled, by narrow 5-4 majorities, that there is an individual right to self-defense. Democrats, however, steadfastly promise to overturn those decisions. They claim the Second Amendment only guarantees the government the right to own guns. The Supreme Court considered ten Second Amendment cases this year but ultimately declined to hear any of them. Four conservative justices support defending the individual right to self-defense but they likely feared that Chief Justice John Roberts would side with the liberal justices and declined to hear the cases. It has been a decade since the Supreme Court has heard any Second Amendment cases. During this period, lower courts controlled by liberals have approved even the most draconian state gun control regulations.

The Second Amendment is hanging in the balance. Even if Biden were to get elected on November 3 and enacts his promised restrictions on self-defense rights, Amy Coney Barrett’s expected Senate confirmation will create a solid court majority to rule them unconstitutional based on District of Columbia v. Heller an McDonald v. City of Chicago

In short, Amy Barrett looks good as a 2A Justice.

In truth, she looks like a solid Justice all around. Most of the attacks against her character seem to be shallow and personal in nature, or simply a way to attack the President, but this is a favored and easy political tactic. Criticism centers on her personal beliefs and seem to dismiss her actual job, being a judge. This has led to some surprising support from ideologically opposed individuals who recognize that a differing opinion does not make a bad Justice. In a time where nobody seems reasonable that is pleasant to see.

Obviously a Justice selection is a political statement. It is an obvious political weapon and it was one the President seems to have used intelligently, selecting a solid female judge (which deflects some of the typical liberal criticisms), but that plays very strongly to his base during a hostile, stressful, and atypical election season. Anyone Trump picked was going to be attacked by the opposition to try and help Biden’s odds. The two tactics are to either motivate their base to vote, because Trump = Bad and Trump’s Choices = Bad, or to try and bring swing voters into the Democrat camp by attacking the SCOTUS choice as a right-wing revolutionary extremist of some terrifying caliber.

It seems they’re trying both.

There may have been a time and place to not nominate a replacement for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, but in the current political climate Trump not doing so would have been of no benefit. It would have been a fruitless gesture to political groups who have already hoisted the ‘Orange Man Bad!’ banner.

The President is so vilified by the opposition that him giving the choice of Justice up would never be seen as a gracious enough move that brings moderate voters, the nation is too polarized and the parties are not amiable. Trump does not enjoy that relationship with the Democrats. He is generally portrayed as somewhere between Not-quite-SatanHitler and definitely-worse-than-MechaHitlerSatan.

Trump’s safest move was exactly what he did, bring forth a nomination that is foundationally sound for many moderates, and that plays to his base and does not betray their trust in him to bring the nomination. He was going to be criticized regardless so being criticized in the manner that makes his critics look the least credible, especially to political segments who matter for him, is the correct strategic decision.

Ruger Buys Marlin

By

Caleb Giddings

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September 28, 2020

Late Sunday night, Remington announced the winning bidders in their ongoing bankruptcy sale. This sale will allow the various brands Remington owned to be purchased by other companies, and included some good news: Ruger buys Marlin.

Remington entered bankruptcy for the second time in July 2020, and thereafter the court announced its assets will be sold. Earlier, I had reported that JJE Capital, the owners of Palmetto State Armory had entered a bid for the Remington Ammo business. There were also talks with the Navajo Nation to purchase Remington, which fell through. On September 27th the winning bidders were announced, and there some surprises.

Ruger Buys Marlin

The first of the two major pieces news is the purchase of the Marlin firearms business by Sturm, Ruger, & Co. As everyone reading this knows, Ruger is an industry leader in firearms production, and specializes in making guns people want at a price they can afford. While most people focus on Ruger’s line of handguns and rimfire rifles, they have made quality centerfire rifles for as long as they’ve been around, including the wonderful Ruger #1. It’s this attention to detail and quality we hope they bring to the Marlin lineup, and everyone in the industry is excited for the potential resurrection of Marlin as a quality, yet affordable brand. Ruger will acquire all Marlin related assets, including the brand name and the production assets.

Vista Outdoors buys Remington Ammo

Ruger buys Marlin is already excellent news, but the good news keeps coming. Vista Outdoors, the leading domestic producer of ammunition, and owner of Federal, CCI, Blazer, and Speer, will acquire the Remington ammunition business, and license the Remington brand name from Roundhill Capital. This positions Vista well ahead of its only domestic production rival at Winchester, and in control of a vast production empire of ammunition.

Roundhill Group LLC acquires Remington

Part of the sale that has left some people scratching their heads is the sale of the “core” Remington firearms business to Roundhill Group, LLC. Roundhill Group, LLC is an investment firm located in Virginia, and that’s almost all we know about them. We’ve seen what happened to Remington in the past when they were purchased by an investment firm, and it’s what lead us to this moment in time. However, if Roundhill Group is smart, they’ll put good management in place at Remington and keep the 870s coming. Roundhill has also retained the licenses to some brands, and will generate revenue from licensing those brand names out to other companies.

All the others

In addition to Ruger buys Marlin, there were more purchases. JJE Capital, owners of Palmetto State Armory, acquires the following brands: DPMS, H&R, Stormlake, AAC, and Parker. Franklin Armory buys Bushmaster, and Sierra Bullets won the bid for Barnes Ammunition. Oh, and lest we forget, Sportsman’s Warehouse bought the Tapco brand. Interestingly, in the sale documents, some of the trademarks on these brands are retained by Roundhill Group as part of the acquired intellectual property. They’ll likely sell those trademarks to the companies purchasing the asset, or license them for a fee.

In general, this appears to be good news for the firearms industry. Ruger buys Marlin is the best headline I’ve had the chance to write in the past 20 years, and I’m very excited to see how Vista handles the ammo business. It’s also going to be interested to see what the folks at Palmetto State do with the down-stream AR/tactical brands they’ve acquired. I’ll definitely buy the first Marlin that comes off the line once Ruger gets their QC processes installed.

Rx for Firearms Freedom, GRPC 2020: Przebinda on Gun Control’s Assault on Public Health

By

DRGO

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September 28, 2020

[Ed: Today we begin sharing the talks that members of the DRGO team gave September 20 online for the Second Amendment Foundation’s 35th annual Gun Rights Policy Conference. Dr. Przebinda, our Project Director, kicks it off. See each of our talks on the DRGO YouTube channel or at 2:17:23 here. The entire schedule of talks is here, divided into 4 parts on the SAF channel.]

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My name is Arthur Przebinda and I’m the Project Director for Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership.

I’m pleased to have the opportunity to speak to you in these strange and strained times. We are less than two months from the presidential election and tensions in our country are not easing.

The Biden campaign has indicated on its website that they plan to “…call for Congress to appropriate $50 million to accelerate … research [into the causes and prevention of gun violence] at the CDC and NIH”.

The Biden website itemizes a Christmas wish list of gun control.

It is clear that a Biden administration would use “public heath” as a line of attack on the Second Amendment.

DRGO’s primary focus is countering this historically demonstrated disingenuous advocacy research masquerading as a pursuit of public health and safety.

Today, Dr. Young will summarize this past year’s anti-gun research. Dr Petrocelli will focus in on the most insidious implementation of “public health” line of attack: red flag laws.

For my part, I want to address a more nebulous tactic used by opponents of the right to keep and bear arms.

For some time now, we’ve heard the argument that “there is no place for “weapons of war” on American streets”.

Aside of historical record to the contrary, the truth is that the Second Amendment protects “weapons of war”. Because the Second Amendment IS about war.

Its primary intent has nothing to do with putting meat on the table or rape prevention, although personal safety and food procurement are the most frequent benefits of the free exercise of the right to keep and bear.

The Second Amendment is the essence of and the safeguard of liberty.

A truly free country cannot exist unless the populace has the means to keep in check and counter the government’s ambitions. And the ultimate form of that check is a parity of force.

THAT is what 2A is about. It’s our ultimate “f—, no!”.

When one comes to that that realization, “gun control” is revealed not as the pursuit of public safety but as a usurpation of the ultimate political power of a free people.

The gun rights community ought not shy away from making this point. It appeals to both ends of the political spectrum.

At every opportunity, then, we should emphasize that the Second Amendment:

Provides as the ability to defend our country

Serves as an ultimate political check a people have over their government

And as such, it is a CIVIL AND POLITICAL right

ANY attempts to curtail or abridge the exercise of that right is not just a civil rights violation, but it is a strike at the fundamental balance of power upon which our country was founded.

I am not eager nor cavalier about using this very potent political power. Restraint should be the guiding principle. We speak of defensive gun use in the face of aggression as the only morally legitimate use of guns. Similarly, any armed opposition to government tyranny is a last resort – after the vote and the courts fail to restore freedom.

Nobody listening or watching this should misconstrue what I’m saying as a legitimization of or an exhortation to violence of any kind, for any cause.

I AM saying that depriving the people who elected you of their ability to reign in your ambitions is not governing. It’s subjugation.

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— Dr. Przebinda is an imaging specialist in Southern California. He advocates for the Second Amendment in his state and nationally and since 2017 serves as DRGO’s Project Director.

All DRGO articles by Arthur Z. Przebinda, MD

Criminal Mindset – Make Yourself Harder to Kill

By

Travis Pike

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September 25, 2020

It might be cheesy to open an article up with a quote from Sun Tzu’s Art of War, but it applies so well; if you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. Today we are going to talk about knowing yourself through the lens of your enemy. The enemy being criminals. Using the criminal mindset to critically analyze your daily life is an excellent way to spot weaknesses and make corrections.

Adopting the Criminal Mindset

Seeing things through the eyes of a criminal takes some practice. Most of us don’t sit around considering how exactly we are going to rob a little old lady walking through a parking lot. However, Mr. Mugger, he does. He’s also plotting how he can take advantage of you. Criminals are predators, and unlike that badass alien who hunts commandos, a predator is not a badass. They are, however, perfectly okay using a toolset that you aren’t though, violence.

Predators look for weaker prey; by definition, they are “a person or group that ruthlessly exploits others.” To use the criminal mindset, you have to explore a darker element of the human mind. Feeling disturbed by this is natural. When using the criminal lens, you should think about who you could exploit at that moment. Who is the easiest person for me to get something from? This is the toolset that they are comfortable using while you are not.

Bad guys aren’t typically looking for a fight; they are looking for a quick score. When you take the time to adopt the criminal mindset, you should do it to observe the world around you and to examine yourself, your family, and your home.

Examine Your Daily Behaviors

If you look at your habits using the criminal mindset, you need to ask yourself a question. How easy am I to exploit? If you had to target yourself, how would you do it? Start with that question in mind and examine it along the way.

If you wanted to take advantage of you for gain, could you? How easily?

I played this same theory game myself. I wake up and workout. Am I packing a gun? No, not always. Sometimes I get lazy. I often have my headphones blaring away. I kill my own situational awareness to listen to Joe Rogan’s chat with Post Malone. If I had to come after myself, it would be while I worked out. I’m tired, more likely unarmed, and limiting my senses. The realization of this gave me a problem to fix.

Take note of your habits, including where you park in public, how you drive, and how often your smartphone captures your attention.

Examine yourself with a criminal mindset throughout the day and see your vulnerabilities. Examine where you work, shop, and even where you get gas. Actively pay attention to your habits and try to correct them. Corrections are often just simple subtle shifts in behavior, however they must be consciously made to be effective.

How Hard are You To Kill

Give yourself a fair evaluation here. What’s your cardio like? Are you carrying a gun? What about a knife? Oh, and when was the last time you did any serious training? How often do you get wrapped into your phone and forget the outside world exists?

With a criminal mindset in mind, walk through a public place, and try to take everyone in. Target the person you think would be the easiest to exploit. Examine the reasons why you’d target that person and see which could apply to you.

The hardest people to target are often those who are paying attention. A lot can be said for proper situational awareness over physical attributes and equipment. Avoiding a fight because you detected a threat early is better than being a triathlete armed with a Microtech and a Glock 19.

What Information Do You Present to Others?

A good way to avoid ever interacting with the violent criminal elements of our country is avoiding it in the first place. The second best way is to have it avoid you. Using the criminal mindset to examine your personal behaviors is a must, but you should also examine the information you present to others, even unknowingly. From that Grunt Style Viking shirt to your obviously printing Glock 34.

Vehicles

The Richland Police Department out of Washington State produced a graphic that says it all. Your vehicle can be an open-source of information for criminals.

Walkthrough a parking lot and take a peek at various vehicles and see what information you can gather. Which cars are likely to have guns in them?

Social Media

How locked down is your social media? While some crimes are random, many are done by people you maybe tangentially associated with. How well do you know that old friend from high school who shares memes with you?

Maybe not that person, but their shady cousins might be perusing your page and see guns, gear, maybe fun toys like ATVs, or awesome zero-turn lawnmowers. Well, they want it and are planning to take it.

The best thing to do is not post stuff, but hey, it happens. The second best thing is to do is lock your social media down to where only friends and family can see what you post, or share, or like, etc. Then ensure your friend’s list is vetted. I nuked an old Facebook account just to start over because I barely knew a ton of people on my friend’s list.

Going Criminal

The Criminal Mindset is not a natural thing for normal people to adopt. However, on occasion, it should be donned in a critical thinking sense. Use the criminal mindset to examine your habits and the habits of others. Use the experience to make yourself harder to kill.

Apex Tactical ACRO revolver mount review

By

Caleb Giddings

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September 25, 2020

Today we’ve got a quick update on the Modern Fighting Revolver after running it through the Modern Samurai Project Black Belt standards. The first big hurdle on the gun test was getting the optic zeroed and seeing if the Apex Tactical ACRO revolver mount would stay solid.

Good news, the Apex Tactical ACRO revolver mount is rock solid and the Modern Fighting Revolver is at least good to go for initial shooting. In this range session, I ran the Modern Samurai Project Black Belt standards, which consist of the following drills:

1. 3×2 drill at 3 yards under 2 seconds 2. Single shot at 7 yards under 1 second 3. Bill Drill at 7 yards under 2 seconds 4. Single shot at 25 yards under 1.5 seconds

To earn the coveted Black Belt patch you have to hit all those standards under the par times with all A-zone hits. It’s an extremely difficult test that relies on a fast draw time and being able to see a sight picture fast enough to guarantee good hits.

Due to my still recovering shoulder injury, I ran the standards from the low ready. Using the Modern Fighting revolver I was able to beat the par times easily, and only dropped one hit out of the target zone, which was at 25 yards. One reason I was able to get fast hits is the Apex Tactical ACRO revolver mount. The mount entirely replaces the rear sight assembly of the 686+, and securely anchors with three screws in the top strap of the revolver.

Because the Apex Tactical ACRO revolver mount sits in the rear sight trough, the optic itself is positioned…fairly high on the revolver. While this might cause an issue with sight offset inside 5 yards, it creates an advantage because it rapidly presents the optic’s window into the shooter’s view. At close range on drills like the 3×2, you can get acceptable hits by simply looking at the target through the window of the optic and not really worrying about the dot. With the optic showing up quickly in your field of view, I was able to get a 1.65 on the 3×2 drill, which is 3 shots to the body and 2 to the head.

Of course, if a mount doesn’t hold zero it’s useless. I’m happy to say that the Apex Tactical ACRO revolver mount held zero through the entire MSP standards and an additional 250 rounds that day. This is more than can be said for some other mounts I’ve used while working the bugs out of this project. It my opinion, it’s the best option for mounting an optic to a modern revolver. Currently it’s only available for the Aimpoint ACRO, but the design could be adapted for other mounts…if there was a market out there for it.