Bainbridge, GA — September 28, 2023 — Taurus USA proudly announces the launch of the highly anticipated Taurus GX4 Carry, the latest addition to the award-winning GX4 series. Setting itself apart from its micro-compact sibling, the Taurus GX4 Carry boasts a larger, but compact frame, delivering the perfect balance of capacity and concealability for armed citizens.
Key Features of the Taurus GX4 Carry:
Industry Standard Iron Sights: The steel iron sights are easily replaced with readily available aftermarket sights, allowing the user to customize to their preference.
15+1 Capacity: The slim, compact frame holds 15 rounds of 9mm ammo.
Visual Loaded Chamber Indicator: Enhanced safety awareness with the visual loaded chamber indicator.
DLC-Coated Barrel: Durability and performance even in challenging environments.
Picatinny Rail MIL-STD-1913: Versatility for accessory customization.
Flat Face, Serrated Trigger: Improved comfort and control for every shot.
Easy Take Down Pin for Disassembly: Simplified maintenance with easy disassembly.
Teflon-Coated Operational Control Parts: Enhanced durability for rigorous use.
Reversible Magazine Release: Ambidextrous operation for user preference.
Magazine and Grip Cuts: Quick and reliable reloads with designed cuts.
Three Backstrap Options: Customizable grip for maximum comfort and security.
The Taurus GX4 Carry will be available for purchase starting September 28, 2023, at authorized Taurus dealers and online retailers. For more information about the Taurus GX4 Carry and other Taurus products, please visit www.taurususa.com.
About Taurus: Taurus Holdings, Inc. (“Taurus”) and its subsidiaries continues to evolve and produce revolutionary new products. In addition, new standards for quality and efficiency help deliver reliable and affordable guns to the market. Taurus is based in Bainbridge, Georgia. Taurus is owned by Taurus Armas, S.A. which is a publicly traded company based in Brazil. Taurus Armas S.A. manufactures a wide variety of consumer and industrial products that are distributed worldwide.
In 2016, a little film called War Dogs dropped. War Dogs chronicled the life of Efraim Diveroli and David Packouz, two twenty-somethings who jumped into the world of international arms dealing. Specifically, they fulfilled contracts for the DOD relating to the Global War on Terror. It’s a black comedy, and like many inspired by ‘a true story films,’ it’s greatly dramatized. One interesting character that is just barely in the film is played by Bradley Cooper. His character, Henry Girard, is an illicit arms dealer on a watch list. What many may not know is that Henry Girard is based on Heinrich ‘Henri’ Thomet.
Who is Henry Thomet?
In War Dogs, the big conflict is getting 100 million rounds of AK ammo for the Afghan Government. Girard acts as a middleman since he can’t do business with the United States directly.
In real life, it appears Thomet was also a middleman. Thomet’s official stance, according to the New York Times, was that he simply introduced Diveroli to the Albanian, who was willing to sell him Chinese ammo. According to several other people, a Swiss Individual was involved in the deal and manned a company called Evdin.
It’s admittedly a murky world where a company called Evdin that was seemingly created in Cyprus only to conduct this one deal. The ‘director’ is a man who lives above a nightclub and will create shell companies for a fee. Evdin is suspected of being a company to route money to corrupt officials in Albania.
Thomet might sound familiar—high-end firearm aficionados are likely familiar with B&T, or Brügger & Thomet. Same Thomet, but admittedly, Thomet left the company quite early and sold his shares to Brügger. Thomet is a bit of a man of mystery, and he’s certainly been in the gray area of international arms deals. He is not on a terrorist watch list, but he is on a watch list. Specifically the Defense Trade Controls watch list.
Beyond War Dogs
Beyond that one shady deal with the two young gun runners, Thomet has been accused by Amnesty International of supplying arms illegally to conflict zones. This includes places like the Congo with strict arms embargoes and regulations. He supposedly operates through a number of shell companies. These companies were constantly shifting around and changing names. This makes it difficult to track who is doing what and who is being paid.
Not only was he bringing weapons into war zones, but he was also accused of exporting weapons from Zimbabwe by Amnesty International. The US was also investigating him for shipping weapons from Serbia to Iraq.
This certainly rings true with the Afghan deal. It seems like it’s a fairly common way to hide illicit business dealings. Henri Thomet denies all accusations and alludes to it being a lie told by his competitors. It’s unlikely that we’ll ever know about his dealings, and he likely doesn’t ever necessarily break the law.
Thomet Today
Thomet purchased an arms factory in Montenegro in 2011 or so. It was an old state-run facility, and it’s the largest arms manufacturer in Montenegro. According to its website, it produces AR-type rifles and submachine guns as well as pistols. Some of those pistols made it to the United States in small numbers and are apparently crap. There are no photos of the man outside of a screenshot from a clip during a news report regarding the factory opening.
The US has even done business with Thomet. In 2017, he worked with the UK firm Chemring to provide munitions for the Syrian conflict. He seems to be doing a steady degree of business with major government forces. He’s certainly an interesting man who cloaks himself well to avoid scrutiny. Is he a criminal? Likely not, but he certainly skates and skirts international law.
Innovation, precision, and dedication to excellence have become paramount in today’s ever-evolving landscape of firearms and ammunition.
One company participating in this evolution is HOP Munitions. Founded by specialists with a keen interest in advancing the realm of shooting, they have embarked on endeavors to bring fresh perspectives to ammunition design and production.
HOP Munitions presents itself not just as a manufacturer but as a forward-thinking entity. Their approach centers on integrating advanced materials, innovative design principles, and comprehensive testing processes.
The company has taken notable steps towards social responsibility by offering stable employment opportunities to combat veterans. Such initiatives and their push for innovation have resonated with diverse sectors, including civilian enthusiasts and law enforcement entities.
Among the notable developments from HOP Munitions is the introduction of poly ammo. This transition from traditional metal casings to a newer material underscores their commitment to enhancing performance while also considering environmental concerns and potentially altering how shooting is experienced.
A Closer Look at HOP Munitions
Situated in Hayesville, Ohio, House of Payne Munitions, also known as HOP Munitions, has positioned itself in the ammunition market, focusing on producing quality bullets.
The company’s workforce includes several combat veterans, bringing a unique perspective and attention to detail to the manufacturing process. The production process at HOP Munitions is methodical: bullets are tumble polished for a smooth finish, followed by hand-gauging to verify dimensions and ensure functionality. Each round is then packaged with care, reflecting the company’s commitment to precision.
In response to the diverse demands of the shooting world, House of Payne Munitions has developed an assortment of calibers. Their range aims to cater to various shooting needs, from competitive environments and self-defense to hunting and other firearm activities.
HOP Munitions Mission
House of Payne Munitions, established in 2020, was conceived with dual intentions: to craft quality ammunition and offer stable employment opportunities to combat veterans within the community.
In its early days, HOP Munitions’ ethos was rooted in a desire to support and give back to both first responders and military veterans. Currently, veterans make up approximately 75% of their workforce. While there’s a clear emphasis on hiring veterans, the contribution of the non-veteran staff is also noteworthy. They provide complementary skills that enrich the work environment and indirectly aid the veteran staff.
For instance, one of the team members doubles as an auto mechanic. This in-house capability offers convenience and cost-saving opportunities for veterans who might need vehicle maintenance.
Shawn Payne, the proprietor of HOP Munitions, observes that offering combat veterans around two years of consistent employment equips them with a stable platform. It can serve as a launchpad should they decide to explore different career avenues in the future.
Beyond their conventional ammunition offerings, HOP Munitions has responded to emerging trends in the shooting industry with the introduction of a training round termed Poly Bullets.
These cost-effective rounds have seen a rise in interest, particularly among competition shooters and those involved in firearms training.
A Closer Look at HOP Munitions’ Poly Ammo
The Poly Ammo rounds introduced by HOP Munitions have garnered attention among competition shooters and firearms trainers, largely due to their cost-effectiveness.
Constructed with a lead core, these bullets are encased in a high-temperature polymer. Such a design offers potential benefits:
A potential reduction in barrel wear.
The possibility of less barrel fouling.
A claim of improved accuracy.
An emphasis on affordability.
While the rounds are marketed as optimized for competition shooting and training, they’re highlighted for their cost-effectiveness, especially for practice purposes. Additionally, their design is suggested to be safe for shooting at steel targets from a distance of more than 10ft, presenting a distinction from standard FMJ ammunition.
Discussing the Attributes of HOP Munitions’ Poly Bullets
HOP Munitions’ Poly Bullets are presented with a variety of attributes that potentially distinguish them from other ammunition types.
Environmental Considerations: Unlike traditional lead rounds, these bullets are suggested not to emit harmful gases, making them a potentially more environmentally-conscious choice. This attribute might particularly appeal to indoor shooters concerned about air quality.
Feeding Efficiency: The polymer coating on these bullets is said to ensure a smoother transition from the magazine to the chamber. This might reduce instances of feeding failures, especially when juxtaposed against standard FMJ or jacketed hollow points.
Barrel Health: A comparison between the residue left by lead round-nose bullets and polymer-coated rounds indicates a potential advantage for the latter. The reduced residue might not only maintain accuracy but could also have implications for the barrel’s lifespan.
Friction Reduction: The overarching intent behind the polymer coating is performance enhancement. By curbing friction, the bullets aim to offer a shooting experience that’s both smoother and potentially safer.
Their official website provides comprehensive details for a deeper exploration of HOP Munitions and the products they craft.
Walther’s P99 is a cult classic that never did well in the United States. It saw a good bit of success across numerous European police departments, but it never caught on with shooters in the United States. James Bond enthusiasts and Walther fans adored the gun, as did DA/SA nuts like myself. Still, the gun-buying public and American police forces weren’t buying these things by the case, so it’s odd that there are so many P99 clones on the market.
A striker-fired, DA/SA design isn’t exactly common, and it blended the old school world of the DA/SA hammer-fired pistol with the modern polymer frame, striker-fired design. If we take a step back to 1997, we can see why it didn’t appeal to traditional DA/SA fans, and I can see why the gun didn’t appeal to the fans of Glock pistols. The P99 was odd, and it’s even weirder how many people tried to make the design work with P99 clones.
Since Walther has recently announced they are discontinuing the P99 and releasing one final P99 Final Edition line, I figured let’s take a peek at all the clones of the Walther P99.
Attack of the P99 Clones
How many people tried to clone the P99? Well, Walther did; they teamed up with two major companies to release several models of the gun under the banner of different companies. Additionally, we have specific models produced under license and one rogue do it themselves firm from Germany. Let’s dig and examine the World of P99 Clones.
The Fabryka Broni Radom P99 RAD
I’m not trying to spell that over and over, so we’ll call it the P99 RAD. The P99 RAD was a licensed design from Poland. Radom wanted to enter Polish military trials, so they licensed the original 1997 design with some small changes. Noticeably, the slide is fairly different, and the rail is a picatinny design. We also see a much different grip texture. This P99 clone featured an ambidextrous slide lock and the ambidextrous magazine release.
The interesting thing is that Walther would later take some of these design differences and produce the PPQ. If you look at a P99 RAD and a PPQ, they clearly show some lineage to each other. It would seem Walther got more out of the contract than just a licensed copy.
The Smith and Wesson SW99
Let’s say you’re Smith and Wesson, and you just produced your first polymer frame pistol known as the Sigma. What came next? A slap from Glock with a lawsuit means they are capturing some of that polymer frame money from you. It’s clear the world is moving to the polymer frame, striker-fired pistol. What are you to do to keep up?
Well, you have a good relationship with Walther since you import some of their pistols. The P99 wasn’t a great seller in the States under the Walther banner, but maybe under the S&W banner, it could do better. Thus, the SW99 was born.
Smith and Wesson made the slide, and Walther made the frames. The design was a P99 with a slightly different appearance and slightly different frame design. The gun came in 9mm, 40 S&W, and 45 ACP. I’m pretty sure this is the only 45 ACP with the P99 treatment. The barrel is also a quarter inch longer on the full-sized model than the standard 9mm model of the P99.
While the P99C is fairly expensive and tough to find, the SW99C tends to be common, and I picked one up for 300 bucks, so it’s an easy route to get a compact P99ish weapon.
Magnum Research MR9 and MR40
Magnum Research, producers of the Desert Eagle, also teamed up with Walther to produce The MR9 and MR40 Eagle pistols. Like before, Walther produced the frame, and Magnum Research made the slide. The frame is fairly standard for the P99, but it does have a Picatinny rail instead of the proprietary rails we are used to seeing with P99s.
The Magnum Research MR9 and MR40 were fairly standard. What stood out to most people was the stainless slides, which do look nice. These pistols kept the P99 styling and design. The only thing notable was that the MR9 also came with a 4.5-inch barreled model with a slant frontend that gives it a desert eagle-like look.
Canik TP9 and TP9DA
Turkish manufacturer Canik is pretty famous these days for their polymer frame striker-fired pistols. I doubt a lot of people know they started life as a manufacturer of P99 clones. The TP9 and TP9DA were basically the Turkish take on the P99. This includes the original TP9 and the TP9DA. These guns feature the same DA/SA design as the original Walther, and the earliest models had the trigger guard magazine release.
Later models, including current models, feature a standard button release. A few different versions seemingly had both the button and trigger guard magazine release. There were plenty of models produced, but they didn’t do anything revolutionary with the P99 clone variants. They have since moved away from the DA/SA designs and embraced SAO models only.
Weird World of P99 Clones
As the P99 wraps up 26 years of service, it’s interesting to look back and see why so many were produced. The P99 has served a couple of dozen police forces, James Bond, and plenty of gun nerds like myself. Heck, I own a P99, an SW99C, and an MR9 because the design truly fascinates me. It seems to fascinate plenty of others as well.
Some handguns are versatile and perform many chores. Some are more specialized. A 9mm or .45 gets a lot done a .44 Magnum or a .22 is useful in a more narrow range of duty. A must have firearm for all of us is a .22 caliber pistol. For training in marksmanship the .22 works well and it is useful even in some forms of tactical training. You may test any number of concepts on the cheap with a good .22 caliber pistol. A .22 for plinking may be a minimal even cheap pistol. A firearm for target shooting must be capable of greater accuracy. A .22 for tactical training should ideally mimic a defensive center fire closely as possible. The FN 502 is a well made pistol and tactical trainer. It is clearly accurate enough for target work. I have taken small game with firearms much less accurate.
The pistol is similar to FN’s 9mm handguns in appearance. The pistol features a suppressor ready barrel and optics cut in the same manner as FN’s center fire handguns. Unlike many modern pistols the FN is hammer fired. It takes considerable force to reliably ignite rimfire priming compound. The hammer fired pistol seems a good idea. The 502 features a rowel hammer and ambidextrous safety levers. The grip is compact. Two magazines are supplied, a flush fit 10 round magazine and extended 14 round magazine.
Disassembly is simple enough. Unload the pistol and remove the magazine. Lock the slide to the rear and check the chamber. The takedown lever, located in front of the slide lock, is rotated to release the slide. While the pistol is a simple blowback action the barrel is not fixed and may be removed from the slide along with the recoil rod and spring. The pistol seems well made of good material. The utility of a .22 caliber handgun for practice is a valid modern concept. The pistol allows firing drills that would be more expensive with centerfire ammunition. While this is true it is also true that a good quality .22 opens the door to a world of shooting opportunity. Plinking and small game hunting are among these. The FN 502 is accurate enough for any of these pursuits. I originally purchased the FN 502 based on experience with other FN products. The pistol is a little pricey for a rimfire handgun but performance simply cannot be faulted. Reliability and accuracy are well above average. The forged steel barrel is 4.6 inch long. Lightweight material is used in the pistol’s construction. Heavy steel isn’t needed for a .22 pistol. The handle is similar to the FN 509 9mm compact. The grip treatment makes for an excellent gripping surface. The pistol features a threaded barrel with thread protector.
The author is impressed with the FN 502’s performance. Optics mounting is easy enough. FN’s rimfire magazines are well made and reliable.Accuracy even with the least expensive loads is excellent.
I have fired the FN 502 extensively without a single failure to feed chamber fire or eject. This is a record for a rimfire of any type as the rimfire’s priming and heel based bullets are not models of reliability. Due to the pistol’s tall suppressor ready sights the pistol fires high. There is no easy fix save changing out sights. I would recommend XS sights for fixed sight use. Magazines are easily loaded featuring a button that depresses the follower. Load the magazines one cartridge carefully making certain they are loaded properly. Don’t hold the follower down and dump ammunition into the magazine.
Since the pistol was reliable and quite accurate I felt it was worth mounting a red dot sight. I mounted the Meopta MeoSight IV red dot. Using one of the pistol’s supplied plates I mounted the Docter foot print MeoSight. After a minimal effort in sighting in I had much superior speed and accuracy compared to the fixed sights. Using the dimmest dot setting at 25 yards I was able to fire several groups of 1.5 inch for five shots. This is an excellent level of accuracy for the finest handgun and unexpected in a .22 rimfire. But then a fixed barrel good sights and trigger and a heavy pistol make for good accuracy. The pistol has proven accurate with a range of good quality ammunition. I have fired the least expensive bulk ammunition with good results and good quality loads such as the CCI Mini Mag with excellent results. This is a good handgun well worth its price.
Optics mounting is simple enough.This is a single action pistol with a manual safety.
MeoSight IV
Magnification – 1x
Objective Diameter (mm) – 24×17
Dot Size – 3 MOA
Battery – Cr1632 3V
Battery Lifetime (hours) – 30,000
Transmission – ≥ 80%
Impact per Click (in/100 yds) – 1.04
Impact per Click (MOA) – 1
Elevation Range (in/100 yds) – 126
Elevation Range (MOA) – 120
Windage Range (in/100 yds) – 126
Windage Range (MOA) – 120
Length (inches) – 1.89
Depth (inches) – 1.41
Width (inches) – 1.22
Weight (ounces) – 1.2
Anti-Reflective Coating – Yes
Anti-Scratch Coating – Yes
Hydrophobic Coating – Yes
FN 502 Specifications
CALIBER: .22 LR
OPERATION: Single Action Only
MAG CAPACITY: 10 or 15 Rd.
SIGHTS: suppressor/optics-height iron sights with optics-ready slide
President Joe Biden speaks as Rep. Maxwell Frost and Vice President Kamala Harris listen during a Rose Garden event on gun safety at the White House on September 22, 2023 in Washington, DC.
Image via CNN
I gave my two cents on the new White House Office Gun Violence Prevention last week. But I don’t think in a lifetime of of writing that I could be more scathing or dismissive of the White House’s latest pandering nothing burger of gun control than what Reuters said.
That has to sting. Getting called out in the headline of a very neutral and well regarded national report like Reuters on your oh so serious efforts, on this super duper serious topic, that you are totally taking seriously…
…seriously, ouch for Biden and Harris. Maybe the VP can tell us about the countries in Europe and their relative sizes or her attire’s color and her orientation at the table some.
Ceremonial – (of a position or role) involving only nominal authority or power.
CNN, typically an ally of Democrat White Houses and their policies, has full on abandoned Biden and is calling him out on his nonsense claims about mass shootings.
President Joe Biden falsely claimed Friday that he has been to the site of “every mass shooting,” the latest in a seriesoffalse claims about his travel record.
That is rough, Mr. President.
Facts First: Biden has not been to even close to “every” mass shooting site – even if he was referring only to mass shootings during his presidency. Minutes later in the Friday speech, he said “our country has experienced more than 500 mass shootings” so far in 2023 alone; Biden has made one trip this year in connection to a specific mass shooting. He made three such trips in 2021 and 2022 combined.
Reading CNN take the President to task while Reuters, a news source I consider strongly reputable, just completely dismisses the effort as meaningless has warmed my Monday immensly.
Oh, regular magazines are also likely to be back on the menu in California soon and that is cool too. Cry about it, Newsom. How’s that 28th Amendment going?
Tackle box guns are just one of those genres the firearms community kind of made up. As far as I know, no company has ever advertised their guns as tackle box guns, but amongst fishers, especially freshwater fishermen, they have long been a handy tool. Tackle box guns were much bigger in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s, especially in the southeastern United States. While they were popular in the day, my father-in-law still carries a tackle box gun, and so do a good many of the old-school fishers in our area.
Back in the day, the tackle box gun was typically a cheap revolver. In the post-war age, there was a big boom of gunmakers making cheap revolvers. These were guns from Iver Johnson and H&R famously. They were cheap and typically fired small caliber rounds. This includes the .22LR and the various .32 centerfire cartridges. They could be single or double-action. These revolvers occasionally had fixed cylinders, but swing-out and removable cylinders weren’t uncommon.
They were guns you could toss into your tackle box and not feel too bad about rusting or forgetting about. Hell, they were cheap enough that if they accidentally sunk to the bottom of a river, no one would care.
Why Did Tackle Box Guns Exist?
The most obvious answer is to deal with vicious fish. You never know when a fish will pull a knife and mug you on your bass. Stay strapped or get finned. We also have the Vermont fish hunting season I wrote about recently, which seems like a good reason to pack a piece of heat.
In reality, the guys I know who carry tackle box guns see them more as utilitarian tools. They are used to kill moccasins, which are aggressive, venomous snakes, and it’s often seen as community service to kill one when seen.
There is also the typical self-defense role. You never know who you might come across on the deep, dark rivers and swamps of Florida. It’s not like help is anywhere close in this situation. Having a weapon to defend yourself is a good idea. Be it from people, feral dogs, coyotes, rabid animals, or whatever else you may encounter.
These little guns often sat untouched in the bottom of tackle boxes for years at a time. It’s rarely used but always handy to have. The best defensive pistol is one that is rarely used.
The Modern Tackle Box Gun
So, what does the modern tackle box gun look like? H&R and Iver Johnson aren’t producing these guns anymore, so what do we have on the docket? I did a little thinking and a little research, and I’ve come up with three modern examples that fit the bill.
Heritage Barkeep
The Barkeep meets all the classic requirements. It’s a revolver, it has fixed sights, chambers the .22LR, and it’s cheap! Plus, the Barkeep is rather small with its 2-inch barrel. The gun isn’t fancy, but it has all the modern safety features a six-gun should have. It’s plenty light, and a .22 WMR cylinder can be dropped in for an oomph in power and velocity.
Altor Single Shot Pistol
The Altor Single Shot Pistol is an odd choice, but it also works well in this role. The gun comes in either 9mm or .380 ACP. It’s absurdly simple and works as what is basically a modern Liberator. This single-shot pistol only has a few parts and is made primarily from polymer and stainless steel. It’s affordable and rust-resistant. The 9mm loading allows you to shoot solid projectiles and big, hefty doses of rat shot. I carry this on my kayak.
KelTec P17
Tackle box guns used to be revolvers, but these days, automatics are cheaper than revolvers. The KelTec P17 is remarkably affordable and very simple. It won’t blow you away, but the 17 rounds of 22LR certainly pack a punch. The gun is remarkably small for its magazine capacity, and it’s also super light and fairly small all around. The P17 costs less than 250 bucks, making it a great option for a tackle box gun.
Let’s Go Fishing
Stay strapped or get finned, boys. In the modern era of concealed carry, the tackle box has pretty much faded away to the gun I’m already carrying every day anyway. That’s the real truth of the situation. However, it’s a fun piece of firearm history and an early example of concealed carry in the modern era.
In this episode, the boys do eventually talk about dumb gun control takes, but to get there we go through a valley of fighter jets and submachine guns first.
I’ve covered snub nosed revolvers and how they can still be useful in spite of their lower capacity and their basis on older handgun technology. Taurus’ 856 line of compact framed revolvers has been getting a lot of attention lately. Not only was Taurus the first company to sell optics-ready carry revolvers this year, but the 856 revolver family is proving itself as a solid value proposition. The industry has been responding in kind, whether its holster companies supporting 856 models with holster fits, spring upgrade kits, or aftermarket sights. Not too long ago, Fort Worth, Texas based XS Sights began offering a “big dot”, tritium-powered front sight aftermarket upgrade that fits both the Taurus 856 and 605 models. XS Sights has been known for their Big Dot sights for some time now, and people seem to either really like them or really hate them. In the context and use case of the snub nosed revolver, a bright and bold “big dot” front sight is ideal.
THE CASE FOR THE XS SIGHT
Even though this pieces is focused Taurus 856 revolver and the XS aftermarket front sight upgrade available for it, the reasoning below can easily apply to almost any snub nosed revolver, as these compact revolvers mostly come with smaller and low profile fixed sights. Typically, complaints against “big dot” style sights is that they are very “wide” or “coarse” and cost the handgun shooter a good deal of precision. And this can actually be true in certain instances…
However,
Snub nosed revolvers are primarily carried for close range personal protection. Their mission is to “break contact” or get an assailant off you.
Because these guns are smaller, they are harder to shoot. They have short barrels and even shorter sight radiuses.
Unless your gun is an expensive custom or semi custom model, chances are the rear sight will be cut into the top strap of the gun’s frame. This rudimentary “rear sight” will have a fairly narrow channel and isn’t the easiest to see.
Even with a 6th round (compared to other snub designs which only hold 5), a Taurus 856 is still a low capacity handgun.
Reloading this or any other small framed revolver is relatively slow. In other words, these guns are not built to keep providing carefully aimed sustained fire.
All that said, what the Taurus 856 or any other snub are optimized for is quick and immediate action. No one carries a small revolver expecting to get into an extended gunfight or to take only precise shots. And this is why a “big”, bright and bold front sight on a gun meant to the lengthwise distance of a parking space isn’t unreasonable. After all, if a concealed carrier needed to use his or her snub nosed revolver defensively, their eyes are ideally going to be focused on the threat and not those dinky little sights. So why not lean on the benefit eye-grabbing bright green or bright orange front sight? Also, while the Taurus 856 is a great value for the price, the factory sights do leave something to be desired. It’s easy to loose them in challenging light/ambient conditions. Moreover, sometimes light bounces off the rear sight in strange ways which also makes it difficult to get a good sight picture. This is why a bright glow-y, eye-grabbing dot for quick target focused shots makes a lot of sense.
XS 856 FRONT SIGHT OVERVIEW
The XS Sights Standard Dot Revolver Front Sight (as it is called on their catalog) comes with two standard color options—bright orange or bright green. These green or orange hues are photo-luminescent and are able to absorb ambient light to appear brighter in less than ideal conditions. Finally, for use in very low light or outright dark environments, the tritium vial found in the middle of the sight will give off a familiar green glow. A clear convex cap that seals off both the photo-luminescent material and the tritium vial also helps catch light by virtue of its shape. While not necessary when installing this specific sight to a Taurus 856, XS Sights also includes a small amount of Vibratite VC3 compound which is very nice of them. It should be conveniently set aside because it’s very useful for securing optics screws, red dot mounting plates and the like on firearms. XS Sights machines the metal for their sights on CNC mills in Texas and the fit and finish is very good. In fact I couldn’t help to notice that once the front sight was installed, the black finish was a perfect match to the black finish on my 856.
INSTALLATION
Removing the factory front sight and installing this XS upgrade turned out to be easier than I expected. Ill admit that I don’t have a gunsmithing bench or specialized tools at home. However, that didn’t stop me. I put the revolver behind a piece of 2×4 to support it, and then proceeded to use a finishing nail and a small hammer to drift out the roll pin, remove the factory front sight, replace it with the upgrade and drift the roll pin back into place. This actually a positive on the 856’s behalf, as all compatible sights for the 856 family are installed or removed this way.
Part 2 Of This Review Will Cover The Live Fire and Practical Aspects Of This XS Front Sight.
U.S. President Joe Biden holds up a ghost gun part while announcing new measures by his administration to fight ghost gun crime at the White House in Washington U.S., April 11, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
The White House making noises about an ‘Office of Gun Violence Prevention’ is perhaps the funniest thing I have read all week. The Biden White house making a special seat to take on ‘gun violence’ which is a vague term, instead of gun crime like his son is accused of, is a wonderful way to do nothing productive about a vague problem but get the credit anyway.
“But Keith, at least they’re trying…”
No! They aren’t trying, they are pandering. They are spending time jangling keys for irate public to clap about. There are threeFederalseats at the head of FederalAgencies already in direct charge of ‘gun violence’ prevention and response. The heads of the ATF, FBI, and the Attorney General. This team of wonder bureaucrats, in actual positions of defined authority, that are already delineated and connected to law enforcement nationally, are apparently not enough. We need a fourth nebulous wonder bureaucrat who doesn’t work for a Federal Bureau at all who needs to… to what precisely? To harumph at appropriate moments when the other three say things like, “Gun violence is a problem we need to keep trying to solve.”
No shit, Sherlock. Violent crimes of the organized type. Violent crimes of passion. Violent crimes of the transactional variety and so forth are a problem.
The NCVS for 2022 was released at it was pretty bad. Not awful, still better than the 90’s by orders of magnitude, but bad. However in that survey that concluded about 1.24% of Americans over the age of 12 was victimized by a violent crime only 10% involved a firearm. Only 42% were reported to the police. What does that stat say? Does the 0.124% of Americans who experienced a violent gun involved crime (and completely ignoring the percentage who were involved in one themselves prior to being a victim) really rate their own seat of ill defined authority to vaguely do something more than some things have been done in the past? Again, do what? Specifics.
“Tackling this epidemic will take a whole-of-government approach, and this new office would ensure the executive branch is focused and coordinated on proven solutions that will save lives.”
…okay. Biden and ‘Focused’ don’t exactly gel well in our minds these days.
Gun control, like gun violence, and even just plain old violence, disproportionately affects the lower income and minority communities. Fun fact, households who make under $25k a year are about three times as likely to be victimized as those in the $50K+ range. Is this office going to look at addressing things like skills and employment opportunities that make violence less profitable? Or are they just going to be a pocket “expert” for the White House they can point at that says things like “Assault Weapon Ban!” on command. Even as 77% of guns associated with crimes remain handguns. But let’s once again not talk about those pesky things.
Greg Jackson, the executive director of the Community Justice Action Fund, and Everytown for Gun Safety’s Rob Wilcox are expected to hold roles in the newly created office. And none of this feels like just giving your buddies jobs, right? Biden is claiming this office will save “thousands of lives” and repeating the spurious claim that gun violence is the number one killer of ‘children’ in the United States.
That’s an utterly false claim by the way, the number one mortality cause is still accidents in all three child age categories. But if we count young males in the 15-19 age range as ‘children’, despite being easily and often able to be charged as adults criminally, we can certainly pad that stat to look scarier and not like the start of the well documented two decade span of peak violence in males. A much smaller but still age relevant portion for females is there also.
But rest easy, dear readers. Finally we will have a gun violence czar to czar czarily with the three people whose job it actually is to investigate and prosecute crimes involving firearms and otherwise.
When we start talking about guns and the 1800s, the conversation lands primarily on revolvers. Revolvers from Colt, S&W, Remington, and the like are popularized as the guns of the West. They were most certainly the best guns of this era, but they are nowhere near as common as pop culture would have you believe. These guns might have been carried by gunmen, including lawmen and outlaws, but the average person likely wanted something smaller and more convenient. Guns like the oft-forgotten about British Bulldog.
Guns like the famed Colt Single Action Army were rather large. They had to be carried openly, and that wasn’t always a popular option. If you were a man about the town, you likely weren’t interested in carrying a great big revolver. Especially if you lived in the East. The average person didn’t need a great big hand cannon. Something carried in the pocket made more sense and would still be an option if accosted by ruffians. That’s where guns like the British Bulldog came into play.
The British Bulldog and Concealed Carry
It’s likely the British Bulldog was bought in far greater numbers than the Colt SAA by the average civilian. Leaving military contracts out of the conversation, the Bulldog reigned supreme. There are a lot of factors that lead to the weapon’s popularity. It’s not like the United States didn’t have small revolvers.
S&W had the Model 1, and Colt had the Hosue Gun. These were popular, but they weren’t as popular as the Bulldog for a number of reasons. One of the big reasons is the fact that American small revolvers were often chambered in very small calibers. The S&W Model 1 fired the .22 Short Blackpowder, and the Colt House Revolver fired the .41 Rimfire. Neither was potent.
The British Bulldog revolvers fired cartridges like the .442 Webley, which propelled 200-grain projectiles at 700 feet per second. For comparison, the .41 Rimfire fired a 130-grain projectile at 425 feet per second.
The British Bulldogs were also produced by a number of companies, which more or less flooded the market. They were also quite cheap. So, it’s easy to outsell a specific brand when you are an entire genre of firearms. That seems silly, and it’s why no one really cares about the British Bulldogs. They were fine guns, but they didn’t have the staying power of guns like the Colt SAA.
Inside the Bulldog
What’s neat about the British Bulldog revolvers is that they were fairly modern for the era. In 1872, they offered users a double-action revolver in a very small format. They often feature two to two-and-a-half-inch barrels. Most had swing-out cylinders as well. British Bulldogs proved to be very capable weapons and were easily carried.
While they were called British Bulldogs, everyone got in on the action. The Belgians were already importing a variety of affordable shotguns, and they dipped into the world of revolvers. American companies also copied the design with options from Iver Johnson, Harrington, and Richardson. They took on chamberings like .44 S&W American and the smaller .44 Bulldog.
These guns were everywhere. The most infamous is the gun used by Charles Guiteau to assassinate President Garfield. This particular model was a .442 Webley. There is a story of how he wanted one with Pearl Grips but couldn’t afford the extra dollar it cost.
George Armstrong Custer reportedly carried a pair at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. The Southern Pacific Railroad Company even issued guns to their employees in 1895. The British Bulldog and the revolvers they inspired were an interesting pit stop on the concealed carry road.
If you’re a gun guy or gal, you’re likely part of a few social media pages that are based around guns. This is could Instagram follows, meme groups on Facebook, subreddits, etc. I know I am. With that in mind, it seems like at least once a year. I see somebody post a screenshot from Miami SWAT or maybe a picture of an early GWOT soldier attempting to make fun of a rather odd optic setup. That setup is an EOTech with an ACOG behind it.
If you’ve never seen this in action or have any context, it certainly seems silly. It calls to mine an Xzibit meme talking about how you love optics so much that we put an optic behind your optic, Dawg. In reality, the setup was time period-specific and made a lot of sense in this era. As a grand old man of 33, I can’t help but feel old when I explain this to the folks lambasting images. Maybe, just maybe today, we can explain once and for all why so many people placed ACOGs behind their EOTechs.
The Original of the ACOG Enhanced EOTech
It was a dark time in the early days of flat-top upper receivers. They were a game changer, to be sure. Prior to that, people mounted optics on the carry handle in a number of somewhat odd ways. A flat top upper with a small section of Picatinny rail made it easy to attach a variety of optics. Keep in mind, in this era, we had EOTechs, Aimpoints, ACOGs, and numerous variable optics, but it was well before LPVOs were widely established.
Do you know what else we didn’t have? Magnifiers. In the 2003 to 2008 time frame it was a dark era if you wanted to rock a red dot with a little extra and, most importantly, optional magnification. EOTech didn’t introduce the G33 until 2012 for reference. EOTech optics were quite popular in the world of close-quarters optics.
To add a little extra magnification, an EOTech-wielding shooter could pop an ACOG behind the EOTech. This gave them a fixed 4X magnifier. The EOTech would be the zeroed optic, and the ACOG would just be attached.
How Did It Work?
Believe it or not, this combination works quite well. It provides a great magnifier from your EOTech with the -0 reticle. You might ask whether the sight picture looks crowded. Not at all. The BDC of the ACOG reticle and chevron weren’t a problem. The BDC fit between the DOT in the circle and the bottom ring of the EOTech reticle, and the chevron disappeared.
The point of a magnifier is to provide a little extra magnification when you want it. What do you do if you don’t want the magnification? Simple, you popped the ACOG off. The best versions of this setup used a QD mount on your ACOG. Just pop it off when it’s not needed. It’s not as handy as flipping to the side, but they didn’t have anything that flipped to the side. Plus, the ACOG is a tough-as-nails optic in the first place.
There were ways to do it wrong. Mounting the ACOG to the upper and the optic to the handguard was one example of the wrong way outside of monolithic uppers. There was plenty of room on a stock flat top upper for both optics.
This setup was used for quite some time but faded into obscurity when magnifiers hit the streets and proved tough enough to function. Thus, the use of the EOTech and ACOG has since faded into obscurity. Its only fate is to pop up on meme pages for less informed people to make fun of it.
Reptilia is proud to announce that we have been awarded a prestigious contract, in partnership with our UK distributor Edgar Brothers, to supply the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) with a range of specially designed, battle-proven weapon accessories for the new L403A1 Alternative Individual Weapon System.
Project Hunter demanded weapon accessories that not only met high standards of durability and functionality, but also pushed the boundaries of innovation, ergonomics, and weight savings. We are proud to have exceeded these requirements.
Steve Allen, CEO of Reptilia, spoke about the commitment to providing the absolute best products to our customers. “At Reptilia, we constantly strive to deliver excellence and enhance the capabilities of those who defend our freedom. Working closely with our UK Distributor, Edgar Brothers, our mission was to design and deliver innovative weapon accessory solutions that would further enhance the end user’s capabilities.”
Project Hunter involved extensive, rigorous, and competitive testing, driving innovation within our industry. We are honored that Reptilia weapon accessories are now part of the finest personal weapon system in the world today. Congratulations go out to our industry counterparts and Edgar Brothers who have also played a crucial role in securing this contract win.
This contract not only reinforces Reptilia’s position in the industry but also enables us to invest further in new employees and future innovation. We are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead.
What is it?
It is Knight’s (KAC) newest KS-1 rifle, a 13.7″ ambidextrous platform with a well optimized gas system, buffer, and suppressor for operation. It is topped with Reptilia’s AUS optic mount and the mount is housing a 1-10x Vortex that is currently not a commercial item. The mount also tops a red dot optic with the ACRO P-2 and Deltapoint Pro have been officially selected and they round out the L900A1 Optic Suite.
‘Project Hunter’ resulted in the Alternative Individual Weapon System, that is an interesting title with a multitude of possible implications. The USMC’s M27 comes to mind and the role creep that came from its adoption. The ‘Alternative’ in the title suggests it is going to be phased in and ordered as a supplement based upon the needs of various specialty services, units, and missions.
Could it replace the SA80?
Potentially, but that isn’t the defined role of the program by any stretch. Knight’s is best known for building their weapons in smaller more specialist batches. While the whole of the MoD certainly doesn’t need a service rifle replacement today and the A3 variant of the 80 is rolling out and working, the L403A1 updates and streamlines many of the AR variant weapons the MoD already employs and updates the rifles on the racks and ancillary suites to a modern standard. That alone will give British Army, Royal Marines, and Special Services whose smaller subset units may need the weapon in a ready to unbox configuration to zero, confirm, and go for a very wide mission set.
It’s further proof of my and others commentary about the ~13″ barrel emerging as the do it all carbine size, with rifles anywhere between 11.5″ to the 14.5″ classic M4 finding their way into inventories. The 13.7″, by the way, wasn’t in any way chosen for NFA compatibility or in deference to the US Market. It was the barrel length and rail combination that fit the MoD’s performance requirement and in support of their ancillary equipment. It is being reported as the most stringent and thorough MoD solicitation ever conducted.
Will we see it in the hands of the King’s Guard? Probably not. I think they’d look great, but what do I know?
In the coming months and with the normal ebb and flow of information, especially about Special Operations equipment, we will see where these start popping up and being fielded.
The kids are back in school so here is your reminder that September is National Fruit and Veggie Month. It goes hand-in-hand with September being Emergency Preparedness Month. There is truly no reason that you can’t torture your children with brightly colored plant foods ANY month of the year (and you should). That goes right along with emergency preparedness, because PRESERVING fruits and vegetables IS a form of preparedness. Didja like that segue? So here we go with multiple reasons why you should learn at least a couple ways of preserving food.
Food History
Humans have been preserving food for multiple millennia. Even before we stopped living hand-to-mouth as hunter gatherers, human beings have been working out ways to save excess food for later.
Without getting too pedantic, most foods last longer if we make them inhospitable for spoilage germs. Common ways to do that can be with salt, smoking, drying (or combos of those); increasing acidity through pickling or fermenting; or using large volumes of sugar to take up of all the water, thus not allowing bacteria to reproduce.
Like beef jerky for snacks? It’s not just junk food. Early humans in many cultures learned how to dry, smoke, and salt meat and fish as a way to keep it from spoiling for longer periods of time.
You might just enjoy eating pickles these days because you like the flavor, but the root motivation for sticking something in vinegar was originally preservation of that food for later consumption when fresh foods might not be available.
Dill pickled garden carrots – YUM!
The same goes for foods like sauerkraut or kimchi, whether you like them or you don’t. Packing cabbage or other vegetables with salt someplace cool results in a fermentation process which ultimately preserves the vegetables in a lactic acid solution, thus inhibiting the growth of other bacteria. This method used “good” bacteria to suppress “bad” bacteria – even before people knew what bacteria were.
Pickled purple cabbage
You may just enjoy jam on your toast because it is yummy, but your foremothers made jam as a way to save fair weather fruit for consumption long after the fruit would have otherwise rotted.
Food Preservation is for Everyone
These foods that we take for granted on the store shelf today were originally “survival foods”, though many people nowadays don’t realize it. If you look at it in that light, then food preservation is not such a foreign concept and there is no reason that you can’t try it for yourself.
You don’t need a ton of specialized equipment to get started preserving food. There are directions and videos all over the internet for how to freeze or dehydrate food. Canning needs to be a good bit more precise, so beware of where you get your information – not every method on the internet is safe. The National Center for Home Food Preservation is a solid place to start.
If you have a stove and a freezer you can blanch and freeze vegetables. If you have an oven you can learn to dehydrate. Basic electric dehydrators aren’t that expensive either. Fermentation doesn’t require much except some reading and maybe a burpable lid.
Food preservation and eating fruits and veggies isn’t only for people with huge gardens or grandmas or farmer-types either. Given the current price of groceries, almost everyone can grow some types of food – even in pots on the balcony – and preserve it in some way. Waste not, want not. Canning takes some reading-up, but dehydrating food is easy-peasy. You can do it in the oven, but low-end electric models are rather inexpensive.
Is that giant bag of spinach from the grocery store not disappearing fast enough to keep it from getting icky? BEFORE it get slimy, eat what you can and dehydrate the rest. You can then crumble it over dishes for color, or make greens powder to add to everything! The same goes for produce that is marked down at the grocery store because it is teetering on the edge. Buy it cheap and dehydrate or freeze it.
Dehydrated kale and spinach
Got that giant holiday fruit basket from a business associate that you will never eat before it goes bad? Dehydrate the fruit for snacks! Apple and Pear chips are amazing, but applesauce and pear sauce for the freezer are also delicious!
Applesauce sweetened with maple syrup – the flavor of fall!
Did a sneaky neighbor drop off a huge bag of zucchini on your porch? Make zucchini bread and freeze it for the holidays. Or slice and dehydrate it into chips for snacks!
Is there a huge public space blackberry bush along your bike path? Pick’em and make jam or freeze them for later! Free food!
Have only a tiny apartment freezer? Dehydrating is a great space-saver. I buy commercial freezer bags of hash brown potatoes and dehydrate them for the shelf. It’s a great way to maximize your food storage when there are sales.
Home dehydrated store -bought hash browns.
There are myriad ways to take advantage of sales and seasonal pricing on fresh and even frozen fruits and vegetables. Also don’t be afraid to ask your neighbors about the fruit trees in their front yard that gets left to rot. They may be happy to let you pick them. More free food!
Don’t think it is too late for you this year. Winter isn’t here yet and there are some produce varieties still to harvest. Pumpkins and winter squash even store well on their own and will keep for months. There is still plenty of time to preserve some food for yourself and stock your pantry for the winter. Food prices will likely continue to rise, so do something good for yourself – learn some food preservation methods. You won’t regret it.
Keeping up with an ever-increasing number of firearm releases can be difficult. There are lots of names, acronyms, and numbers designating new firearms. The commercial market will never have an official gun designation system we all agree to. However, some do it better than others. Some companies use a simple system to make it easier to tell which gun is which, and some companies are downright confusing. I got to thinking about who does it best and decided to rank several popular companies based on their gun designation systems.
This is in no way a judgment of the guns themselves, just a judgment of how they name their guns. It’s also not all-inclusive, but there are hundreds of gun companies. I decided to use the more popular options and reserve the right to update this article as new guns are released and gun designation systems are updated or changed.
S – Tier – King of Gun Designation System
IWI – IWI uses a very simple series of names to designate their various guns. For example, names like Jericho and Masada are easy to remember and tell apart. Tavor, Carmel, Uzi, and even TS-12 are all simple and easy to recognize. Their gun designation system makes it easy to tell which gun is which.
A – Tier
Ruger – Ruger creates numerous lines of firearms, and each also has a unique name that makes it easy to identify. From the American to the LCP series and back to the famed Mini-14. They tend to name their weapons well. Where they falter is making some names too dang long, like the Ruger American Ranch and New Model Super Blackhawk.
Walther – Walther is another one that has a small line of handguns that’s easy to remember, like PPQ, PPS, PPK, and PDP. Where they falter is inconsistency. Sometimes, it’s all letters. Other times, it’s numbers and letters like the PK380, Q4, and P99.
Magnum Research – Magnum research sticks to a theme, and that theme is Eagle. Outside of the BFR, they really seem to love naming their pistols Eagle to capitalize on the popularity of Desert Eagle. While consistent, it can get confusing which Eagle is which.
KelTec – They named their .380 pistol P3AT, and I’ll give them credit for originality. Most of their guns are named in consistently different ways, but it can get confusing when you have seven different variations of the SU-16.
B Tier
Mossberg – Mossberg’s shotguns are aptly named with an easy-to-follow system. 5XX designations mean pump guns and 9XX designation means semi-autos. Their non-shotgun designations are weak, and I couldn’t tell you their different pistols with a reference brochure.
Beretta – Beretta has recognizable handguns, the 92FS, the Storm, the Nano, the APX, and so on and so forth. Even their tactical shotguns and rifles are well-designed. Their sporting shotguns are where they fall apart with long names and a thousand configurations.
Springfield – Springfield’s gun designation system gets the award for being most improved. I could never tell you which Xd was which, but the Ehcelon, Hellcat, and Hellion all stand out. Their 1911 naming configuration also works quite well. Still, they are plagued by tons of Xd variants I can’t tell apart.
The Echelon is a well thought out 9mm handgun.
Taurus – Taurus has become much better at naming their revolvers and semi-autos. If you say G3, I know what you mean. If you say, Judge, I know what you mean. However, some of their revolver designations get long, like the Taurus 856 Defender TORO.
C Tier
CZ – CZ’s rifle and PCC names are great, but their various models of the CZ 75 with various gun designations can get confusing.
Colt – Colt kills it with their revolvers and M1911s, but their insistence on four-digit codes for their rifles tanks their score.
HK – HK’s naming designation is just okay. It works, but it is seemingly random. This is a USP, this is a P30, and this one is a P2000, why? Who knows.
FN – FN does keep things simple with their rifle designs, but the insistence on having FN in FNP, FNS, and FNX makes it easy to confuse these firearms.
D Tier
Glock – Glock likes to make things consecutive. They simply name the guns in number order, which isn’t terrible but tells you nothing about the gun itself. If you say you want a Glock 40, are you talking about the long slide 10mm or the 40 S&W? What about a Glock 45? Do you want the .45 ACP Glock or the 9mm G45?
S&W – S&W makes the M&P semi-autos easy to tell apart, but their revolvers require a decoder ring. Between the various numbers followed by dashes and more numbers, you have to be a revolver junkie to figure it out. Their AR 15s get a little nuts, too. Like the M&P Sport 2 Optics Ready, is it the only optics-ready model? No, all of their ARs are optics-ready, but it’s specifically designated that way because it lacks a front sight post.
F Tier
FEG – There really aren’t any companies that are truly terrible at designating their firearms. However, I need to have one F tier, and I’m giving it FEG because they once released Hi-Power clones with the gun designation PJK-9HP FP9. That’s way too long and a failure all around.
Gun Designations Could Be Better
I think simple, consistent names work best. Something that tells you what the gun is without getting too long or complicated. It also needs to stand out and be memorable. Your gun designations are very much part of your branding, and they should be well thought out and considered.
