When it comes to hunting with an AR rifle perhaps many shooters prefer a lever action or bolt gun. That’s fine there is nothing so serious or life threatening about a wrong choice in game shooting that I need to counsel you. Handle the rifle safely and respect your game and you will prosper in the field. Perhaps you don’t need an AR for hunting. But some of us have come to strongly appreciate the handling durability and easy accuracy of the type. My favorite four rifles are all AR types. A .22, a 6.8 SPC, a .223 Remington and the .308 covered in these pages. For deer hunting to 200 yards- perhaps a bit more if I change the optics- hog hunting and even predators the Ruger SFAR .308 is a fine rifle. The rifle is functional well fitted and finished and reliable. It is more accurate than expected light enough and may be customized at the user’s whim.
Ruger’s Small Frame AR is a credible design that shoots well.With the Vortex red dot sight the Ruger .308 proved an accurate rifle.The Ruger gas system is easily adjusted if needed.
The SFAR is a different type of .308. This isn’t an AR 10 type but an AR 15 or .223 size rifle. Weight with an empty magazine is 6.8 pounds. Metallurgy engineering and design combine to make the SFAR a tremendous rifle. This is a mature design but also one with enough bling and innovation to make it a sure seller. At an asking price of just shy of one thousand dollars the Ruger isn’t a compromise but a very good rifle. I have seen scalpers asked as much as twelve hundred for the rifle. Be patient and look around they are in production and hitting the shelves on a regular basis. The rifle features a nicely contoured adjustable stock, an aluminum M Lok forend, the Ruger 452 custom grade trigger, and an adjustable gas block. Leave the block set on 3 for factory ammunition. Study it more for suppressor or heavy load use. The rifle features a 16.1 inch barrel. A 20 inch barrel isn’t on the shelves in my area- the first half dozen I saw were all 16.1 inch versions- but should be available soon. The rifle uses the readily available SR25 type magazine from MagPul. The rifle features a well designed muzzle brake. It seems efficient as recoil was not a problem at all. Objectively not quite as heavy as a bolt action .308 of similar weight. More in the .30-30 WCF class. The trigger on my example breaks clean at 4.0 pounds. Specified weight is 4.5 pounds. Clean the trigger of shipping grease and give it a modest break in and you will be pleased. Lock time is excellent.
Ruger enjoys an excellent reputation for durability and customer service. Ruger firearms are among the least trouble prone of firearms. As I looked over my personal SFAR I considered which optic I should use. I have a well set up AR rifle for personal defense. While there is much crossover in competition hunting and personal defense in these versatile rifles I don’t need a combat light in the deer stand and I don’t need a 9 power scope on the home defense rifle. The Ruger SFAR .308 was set up with a Vortex StrikefireII red dot. The size of the dot means a lot in hunting and personal defense and this optic limits the shooter to accurate fire at a range far short of the rifle’s capability but it is ideal for my personal use. Hunting from a stand, taking hogs, and even dusting off coyote is easily accomplished with set up. The Vortex was on hand and proven. Adding about a pound to the rifle didn’t affect handling. The SFAR is well balanced even when fully loaded.
Accuracy is good to excellent.
The bolt is a unique design that allows shoe horning the .308 Winchester cartridge into such a light platform. The bolt is relatively compact but robust. A tapered bolt head is a unique feature. Twin vent holes are a unique safety feature. The bolt release and safety are one hundred per cent AR for rapid handling. The muzzle brake doesn’t add ear splitting DCBs or muzzle blast. It is subdued in my estimation. Recoil remained manageable to comfortable with all loads. As for the .308 Winchester cartridge this is the ideal mix of power accuracy and readily available affordable ammunition. I ran the rifle through a number of drills, beginning with affordable handloads. Affordable when put up but now priceless since powder and primers remain difficult to come by.
I think the rifle has much merit in area defense against the odds. Rapid follow up shots are important, although exfiltration would also be a consideration if faced with a gang. But that isn’t the primary role for this rifle. Hunting within 200 yards is the role of my rifle. I sighted for 100 yards and then ran the piece through its paces. There were no failures to feed, chamber, fire or eject with loads using bullets from 150 to 178 grains. Accuracy is good with three shot groups under two inches at 100 yards. I found a spent case not fully ejected laying in the ejection port during the first 100 cartridges, this did not repeat during the test. Recoil is less than the heavier AR 10 rifles I have fired. This is because of efficient gas operation stock design and the muzzle brake. I took stock of the rifle and carefully headed toward the denouement portion of the report. Having been hit in the head with fists, sticks, and rocks I am not always certain where I stand cerebrally but I do know how a rifle should shoot. I like the Ruger SFAR very much. It does the work of a good bolt action rifle and also the 6.8 SPC I really really like! It is a versatile rifle with much to recommend. The SFAR will have a bright future.
Fit and finish are good.
Specifications
Caliber: .308 Winchester/7.62 NATO
Barrel Length: 16.1 inch, 1 in 10 inch right hand twist
No, I haven’t lost my marbles and gone in on bans as the “proper”common sense” non-solution to the unsolvable conundrum of human free will. But with Washington becoming the 10th state to pass an ‘Assault Weapon’ ban, this one being particularly egregious by preventing manufacturer of weapons within the state for sale out of state (except for the government of course), I want to take a look at how these laws are being defended in the courtroom.
Illinois recently had their ban enjoined into inefficacy until the case is progressed, that should give you some indication… they aren’t well defended. For further exploration of the defenses we are going to step away from the Washington law, which has been sued appropriately by state and national actors looking to preserve American rights to effective firearms and to put away this nonsense of ban efficacy on actual safety. We are instead going to look at the source of the nonsense itself.
I am, of course, speaking of California.
CPRA vs. California is one of the challenges to the state’s long standing assault weapon ban. Since the ban is being challenged, it needs defense. Attorney General Bonta, those of you who read here regularly know I hold Bonta in highest contempt as an imbecile, picked his expert witness to convey the sheer ferocity and devastating power of the semi-automatic rifle. This expert testimony is to support the state assertion of the absolute necessity of AR’s and their ilk to remain prohibited weapons. He chose retired United States Marine Colonel Craig Tucker.
Tucker’s professed expertise is qualified with his service record… and whatever this means,
I have fired the Colt AR-15 5.56 rifle and the Smith and Wesson 5.56 AR rifle. Both are advertised as the civilian version of the M16 combat rifle. In addition to my automatic rifle experience, I have extensive experience with the AK-47, having been on the receiving end of hundreds of 7.62 rounds; an experience best typified during the Battle of Hit when a single individual with one rifle and apparently inexhaustible supply of 7.62 ammo and magazines kept nine Marines pinned down for 15 minutes until a LAV-25 20mm chain gun solved the problem. I have extensive experience with the Colt 1911 .45 caliber semi-automatic and the Berretta .9m semi-automatic pistol and used both weapons in Iraq. –Pg. 3
This reads like the professional equivalent of, “I grew up around guns.” A statement that makes firearm trainers and experts everywhere cast the side eye to one another because it does not convey any of the proficiency the words themselves might otherwise imply. It is usually a herald of a problematic student filled with poor, sometimes dangerously so, habits, attitudes, and behavior.
The designation error about the Beretta at the end of the last sentence (perhaps a typo) aside, which is a 9mm NATO or 9x19mm semi-automatic pistol and not a .9m, his qualifications listed really are no deeper than any veteran who has gone to any rental range. The anecdote about the Battle of Hit only serves the purpose of exaggeration, as 9 Marines (presumably with the standard issue 5.56x45mm or 7.62x51mm weapons of their own) were in a position of disadvantage compared to one of advantage by the insurgent. The “20mm” shot was effective, safe, and available to the Marines, but it wasn’t necessary to stop the insurgent. A couple well placed rounds back at the insurgent would have ended the fight just as well as the “20mm” did, and the nine Marines each had one. But that would have been a risk to the Marines that they didn’t need to take, the safest method of stopping the insurgent who was suppressing the Marines was assuredly the armored vehicle with the cannon and not exposing one or more of the Marines to gunfire from their position of disadvantage. The anecdote is tactically sound, it does not demonstrate any particular superiority of an ‘assault weapon’ alone because both sides had assault weapons. One side also had a cannon. That side won. Armed with a bolt action rifle, like the very common Mosin, a shooter could pin 9 Marines from a strong position and make the use of the LAV-25 still the preferred option to avoid Marine casualties (Reference University of Texas, 1966).
Now I was just a lowly Corporal of Marines, and in the MIANG I was but a humble weapons tech, but the Colonel made another error that causes me to question his credentials as he states them here,
No, they are designed to support the infantry Marine, not a rifle. The infantry Marine is the closest decision maker to wherever any weapon the Marines have at hand might be used. He or she is best placed to contribute information to make those decisions about which weapons or movements will win fights and accomplish the mission.
My primary purpose in the latter stages of my career was coordinating, and teaching others to coordinate, air and ground weapon systems to support the rifleman and his automatic rifle.
Now let’s address the error in Tucker’s “extensive knowledge”, the M242 Bushmaster cannon in the LAV-25 is a 25mm. That now makes two errors, both in caliber, in this ‘expert’ testimony that Tucker was paid $200/hr for. The remainder of his professed qualifications could be met, as stated in brief here at least, in an hour by any service member who rented a Smith and Wesson AR-15 at a gun range. They too have ‘automatic rifle’ experience through their basic training and annual qualification, but I can attest that even those who “qualified expert” on those qualifications rarely hold any deeper understanding of the function of their service weapon. Most were just able to pantomime the proper motions of a fairly simple drill and achieve a score that we label “expert“. This title is mostly for feel good reasons and to promote a competitiveness in the qualification.
I’ve trained officers. I’ve trained enlisted. I’ve trained them to the military standards the range or drill and time allowed. Those standards can best be described as learning to complete a long form drill for a score, and not as any sort of expertise or understanding of the rifle and its capabilities. They are training to qualify, not understand. That understanding was always extra, always above the norm, and almost always came from enthusiasts for these systems and not those in a professional role alone. The higher the rank, usually, resulted in greater disregard for understanding the individual weapon system, it was beneath them and they had ‘better things to do’ to administer their unit’s function than something so base as annual ‘qualification’.
One of the worst examples of this I saw was a 1st Sergeant who had jammed up their rifle badly by continuously trying to ‘tap rack’, instead of knowing what was actually wrong with the rifle (double feed, that became a triple feed and a round over BCG, caused originally by slapping the bottom of the magazine while loading the rifle with the bolt open which is known to cause this problem) who then just stormed off the range. Just rage quit and penciled in their qual score instead of owning up to the fact that they failed.
If I sampled 100 service members right now on a service rifle or service pistol, I would count myself lucky to find one with the technical knowledge and practical experience to qualify as competent, to say nothing of expertise. Military ranges consist of a tremendous amount of hand holding, step-by-step dependency on range commands, and looking to the few who know just enough more to be considered the ‘experts’ in a unit to get through the day.
Taking those 100 random service members, of any rank, and placing them alone on a range with an AR, magazine, and some ammunition and then giving them the simple direction of “Shoot the target.” and we would see most service members struggle, second guess what they’re doing, recite a verbal reminder of the steps they think are correct, and do things incorrectly or in a very inefficient manner. It would be, in a compound word the USMC favors, a clusterfuck. A few, maybe even more than half, would likely manage… eventually… but the odds of getting one service member to properly load a magazine, load and check the the rifle, and then fire an acceptable group of rounds on a target at a reasonable distance in a reasonable time are long odds indeed.
So how does our $200/hr Colonel (I’m only $150/hr Bonta, hit me up) describe the AR?
I am familiar with the features, accessories, and capabilities of rifles regulated by Penal Code § 30515(a).
Okay.
The AR-15, like the M4, is an offensive combat weapon system.
Subjective to context.
Tucker has used the M4/M16 offensively because he is a Marine. He has also used the full assets of a MAGTF, of which the individual rifles are but a small component (see the earlier referencing of an LAV-25). The AR-15 is used defensively constantly by law enforcement, civilians, and by military personnel defending bases and positions. It is an offensive weapon when troops are in the offense. The personnel evacuating Afghanistan and protecting the airport were not using their weapons offensively, they were used defensively. Small arms in particular are offensive or defensive based on their user’s current intent. They are not strictly offensive or defensive.
The only difference is the AR-15 cannot fire on full-auto (continual shots fired in succession so long as the trigger is pulled) or burst (several shots fired in succession with a single pull of the trigger)—a picayune difference that cannot serve to support a non-combat role for the AR-15.
True, but we’re not talking about the near identical nature of the two rifles function, we are talking about the role. We’re not talking about non-combat roles. Defensive combat is combat. Combat is not limited to the military. The 2nd Amendment is about combat, the absolute right and ability to defend oneself, family, and community as those needs arise. Just because a civilian self defense shooting is likely to be brief and against a limited number of opponents does not change the fact that is combat. An individual encounter between troops in conflict can be equally brief and resolved with very few shots.
In my experience, soldiers are trained to set select-fire weapons to semi-auto mode, so that a single round is fired with each pull of the trigger.
True.
An M4 or M16 on full-automatic is an area fire weapon: the auto rate of fire makes the weapon too difficult to control on a point target.
Subjective and circumstantial.
Rifle fire on full automatic is not aimed fire,
Completely incorrect. Automatic fire in indirect fire are both aimed, they are just aimed somewhat differently than direct fire.
uses an excessive amount of ammunition and will damage the weapon if used too often.
Subjective and circumstantial.
In fact, in my 14 months of combat, I did not once see an M4 or M16 fired on full auto.
So? Are we merely trying to say the M4 and M16 are AR-15’s? Because that is true.
Semi-auto function is used almost exclusively in combat.
True. It is also almost exclusively used here in self-defense firearms.
When operated in semi-auto mode, the AR-15 and M4 share the same rates of fire, the same maximum effective range, the same maximum range, use the same magazines designed for combat and the same ammunition.
True-ish. But again, so? With the exception of M855A1 ammunition. The magazines weren’t ‘designed for combat’ either. They were designed to feed ammunition into the rifle at the speed it needs to in order to keep the rifle cycling properly. The magazine does not care if it is in combat, on a competition field, in a rifle loaded with only a few rounds to be zeroed or to hunt, the magazine does not care. The magazine’s job in all situations is to properly feed ammunition, that does not make it ‘designed for combat’ except in abstract.
The desirable qualities of the M4/AR and its peer group as ‘combat’ weapons are exactly why the 2nd Amendment protects it, it is the ideal individual tool for a life threatening fight. That fight, here in the states and under the rule of law, will always be of a defensive nature, but that defensive nature does not lower the efficacy threshold of the tool you are entitled to defend yourself with. We are not limited to inferior firearms merely because our threat is not a nation state or organized paramilitary enemy. The police aren’t, and their daily potential threats are also our daily potential threats.
The AR-15 and M4 are both designed to fire a .223 round that tumbles upon hitting flesh and rips thru the human body.
As opposed to a bolt action 30.06 which fires… a round that tumbles and expands upon hitting flesh and rips through bodies, severely damages internal organs… or a .22lr which when fired into the center mass of a body will tear through flesh and cause significant potentially lethal damage to internal organs. Poking extra holes into people and letting the red stuff out, especially in the heart and lung region, is bad for continued health of the body and all firearm ammunition is capable of it.
A single round is capable of severing the upper body from the lower body, or decapitation.
…
And here we are folks… here is the EXPERT testimony being used to deny the legitimacy of the AR-15 as a civilian rifle unless it has goofy annoying features added to it or useful features removed from it. This is the airtight defense, paid for and submitted by AG Bonta, to keep their Assault Weapon Ban, and by extension other states and potentially a national ban, in place. These absolutely ludicrous assertions from a retired Colonel who merely existed near AR’s professionally and who seemingly cannot be bothered to do anything more than bloviate about how the 5.56 is somehow the ultimate weapon of war. Yet… NINE of his Marines armed with them were not able to severe one insurgents upper and lower body with a single shot. They had to use the 25mm cannon instead.
The round is designed to kill, not wound,
All conventional firearm ammunition is lethal. ALL. OF. IT. There is no safe way to poke the internal organs and make someone lose blood. Does 5.56 cause more damage than .22 or 9mm? Yes. 30.06 and 12 gauge arguably cause still more. But here we are using hyperbole to justify the physically ludicrous ban on a decidedly middle power ammunition when all conventional ammunition surpasses the lethality threshold.
and both the AR-15 and M4 contain barrel rifling to make the round tumble upon impact and cause more severe injury.
That isn’t what rifling is for. That isn’t how external or terminal ballistics work. That isn’t how any of this works.
The combination of automatic rifle and .223 round is a very efficient killing system. The same can be said of the AR-15.
The same can be said of any firearm designed in roughly the last century. Does it feed metallic cartridge ammunition? Yes? Than it can be used as a ‘very efficient killing system’ if someone wants. Does it hold five rounds of ammunition or capable of loading reasonably quickly five single rounds of ammunition? Yes? Than it is capable of causing what is commonly termed as a ‘mass shooting’, one with four or greater casualties.
If a doctor were to give such testimony about a surgery or medicine, or an engineer were to defend a bridge or road design with this level of inaccuracy I would expect their peers to immediately remove them from their fields. This is dangerously incompetent. This is the appeal to expertise fallacy writ official and devoid of actual credibility.
I almost wonder if the good Colonel made up this nonsense on purpose and then took Bonta’s money laughing to the bank. It is that dismally inept. Tucker then goes onto these non-examples, feature by feature,
Detachable magazines: In order for a rifle to qualify as an assault weapon under California Penal Code § 30515(a), the rifle must have the capability of accepting a detachable ammunition magazine (by not having a fixed magazine). Detachable magazines improve the killing efficiency of automatic rifles, allowing the combat rifleman to efficiently carry a combat load of 120 rounds in four 30- round magazines, to rapidly change magazines in combat, and to increase killing efficiency by significantly reducing reload time. Changing magazines during intense combat is the most important individual skill taught to Marines. During intense combat, the detachable magazine provides a rifleman the capability to fire 120 rounds on semi-automatic in three minutes at a high-sustained rate of 45 rounds per minute.
I can confirm the opposite actually, I had to fight with with higher ups during a training evolution because how they wanted Marines to change magazines was resulting in 30-45 second reloads. They were far more worried about the magazine ending up in the dump pouch than getting rounds into the rifle.
In a civilian self-defense context, by contrast, an individual would not have a need for such a high rate of fire.
Highly subjective bordering on outright falsehood. They probably need a higher rate of fire, but fewer rounds. Probably. You and I don’t get to set the parameters of their fight, Tucker.
This is, again, cherry picking contexts with no evidentiary basis. Additionally the detachable magazine does more than just provide for an efficient reload, which Tucker cannot argue would be unnecessary in a civilian context (merely unlikely to be necessary which is very different), but also to facilitate fixing a firearm that malfunctions. Repeating firearms with a fixed or low capacity magazine are more complex and much harder to fix if they stop working than those with normal detachable magazines, especially if the firearm was designed with a detachable magazine in the first place.
Changing magazines isn’t the only skill taught to Marines, arguably clearing a stoppage is more important and I can confirm a great deal of emphasis was put on that. You were basically just expected to figure out a reload. But don’t take my word for it, ask Paul Gardner aka Wheelchair_technical (IG) on what skills the Marines were really teaching and emphasizing during that time frame Tucker is talking about. He’ll tell you. It isn’t a good answer.
What’s next, Colonel?
Pistol grip protruding beneath the action of a rifle: I am a 15th Award Expert on the M16 and M4. I carried an M4 every day for 14 months during my time in command of RCT-7 in Iraq. I used an M4 in combat, and I killed with it. The pistol grip beneath the action of an automatic rifle serves only two purposes. First, the pistol grip allows the rifleman to pull the rifle into her shoulder with each shot, an action which increases stock weld, reduces semi-automatic/automatic recoil, and reduces barrel rise. Stock weld or cheek weld refers to the firmness of the contact between the rifle stock, the shooter’s cheek, and the shooter’s shoulder. A firm stock weld is required for effective semi-automatic and automatic rapid fire. Absent any pistol grip, a semi-automatic rifle would be difficult to operate when fired rapidly, as the rifle barrel would seesaw up and down with each shot fired in succession. Second, the pistol grip functions as a hand rest to reduce hand/finger fatigue during long combat engagements. Both actions increase the killing efficiency of automatic rifles and are necessities in sustained combat operations of weeks or months when firing a rifle rapidly. – Pg. 6
This reads like Tucker had a word count he had to reach to justify his check, so he just made up stuff about each rifle feature like a high schooler with a report due needing at least 10 pages. Pistol grips are for gripping grippily in the grippiest of gripping manners. Get a grip, seriously.
I love his assertion that semi-automatic and automatic rifles without pistol grips like the M1 Garand, M1 Carbine, Mini14, or M1A/M14, SKS, or BAR are somehow so much harder to shoot. It couldn’t be that the pistol grip, while arguably more comfortable and ergonomic, is far more the product of ease of assembly as we got away from single piece carved wood stocks, could it? This akin to arguing that heated seats in a car improve its drunk driving lethality.
Forward pistol grip: The forward pistol grip provides leverage to tighten a stock weld on short barrel automatic weapons and reduces recoil and barrel rise on short barrel automatic rifles. Forward pistol grips were added to the M4 to increase M4 killing efficiency.
That’s… not how any of this works… unless you are a particularly obtuse and motivated DA trying to save your gun ban because its an asinine piece of performance idiocy that hasn’t objectively saved a single Californian life.
Folding stock: A folding stock causes weapon instability. For that reason, folding stock automatic rifles are designed for military personnel, whose primary weapon is vehicle or air-mounted (tank, Bradly, Apache), who may be required to escape from a mangled vehicle, or who may need to abandon a destroyed weapon system and need a substitute weapon for offensive combat. Outside of the military context, folding stocks that are not properly locked in place can cause significant safety risks to the shooter due to recoil.
Is that why most of the rifles designed for general issuance since the AR-18 was designed in 1963 have folding stocks? The inherent instability? The AR is a notable exception to that because of its recoil buffer design and not anything to do with stability. Vehicle and air mounted troops only? G36? SCAR? MCX? ACR? Several AK variants. The new NGSW M7? Did they pick that and it’s folding stock for the instability?
Is that why the GAU 5, a carbine made expressly for the purpose you are describing above, by the USAF, doesn’t use a folding stock?
GAU 5 notably missing the folding stock Tucker so confidently says makes guns unstable and for vehicle crews only
Oh, and let’s not pass up that last gem. “folding stocks that are not properly locked in place can cause significant safety risks to the shooter due to recoil.”
So that’s why we got rid of braces and made those guns all cause significant safety risks to the shooter due to recoil.? I know braces is a different case, it is just fun to look at the circular non-logic used to defend an AWB while it inherently undermines the case for removing braces from AR type pistols and makes the case that SBRs are safer. All while the ATFs own data shows that SBRs and the pistols that the ATF has declared to be SBRs are a far cry from the most common crime firearm recovered in crimes despite the NFA’s assertion that such firearms are only suitable for nefarious purposes.
Grenade or flare launcher: A Marine Corps fireteam consists of a fireteam leader, a rifleman, an assault gunner, and a grenadier. The grenadier is armed with a grenade launcher. The grenadier uses the grenade launcher to suppress or kill human beings so the rest of the fireteam can maneuver into position to kill those humans with automatic rifle fire. The launcher is a separate weapon system attached to as few rifles as possible dependent on the combat mission. In my experience, grenade launchers attached to rifles are cumbersome, difficult to aim, difficult to carry, and are not as effective as a standalone grenade launcher. They have no legitimate use in self-defense.
That isn’t the grenade launcher being talked about, at all, in the California law that Tucker is allegedly familiar with. They are talking about rifle grenade launchers, which are a special muzzle attachment that older rifles used to launch those older style grenades. They fell out of favor by Vietnam. They went out of style in most militaries in favor of the low velocity 40mm that he is referring to here, M203/M320. The grenades themselves would be regulated even if the muzzle devices are not. Tucker is either hilariously wrong or lying on purpose about the law, I’m actually leaning toward the former due to the current level of accuracy in this “expert” testimony.
Flash suppressor/flash hider: The purpose of the flash suppressor is to reduce combat signature by cooling and dispersing burning gases. This makes it more difficult for the enemy to pinpoint a rifleman’s location, especially in low light conditions. The flash suppressor facilitates night combat operations by reducing muzzle flash and mitigating muzzle flash impact on night vision goggles. This accessory serves specific combat-oriented purposes and is not needed for self- defense.
This is the closest Tucker has come thus far to having a point. It isn’t a point, but it is the closest.
However contrary to Tucker’s assertion, muzzle flash and noise are things to consider for self defense, as self defense at home and at night is one of the most likely times protection would be needed and that a rifle would make the most sense to use at home. A flash hider, and even more effectively a silencer/suppressor, is a high value addition to a home defense firearm as it lowers the disorienting effects of firing a firearm indoors. This is less likely to disorient you as you protect yourself and less likely to disorient people you are protecting who are also inside and subject to the noise.
Stating that reducing the effects of firing a shot upon the defensive shooter has no self defense purpose is false. But his explanation of some of the flash hiders function is at least without hyperbole like the assertion a 5.56 round can rip a person in two.
Fixed magazine with the capacity to accept more than 10 rounds: Automatic rifles are offensive combat weapons systems designed to kill efficiently and effectively. Any increase to magazine capacity increases the killing efficiency of the automatic rifle. A 30-round fixed magazine can fire more rounds in a given amount of time than three 10-round detachable magazines, which would need to be reloaded to fire the same number of rounds, slowing down the rate of fire. Similarly, a 100-round drum magazine can fire more rounds in a given period of time than ten 10-round detachable magazines. As noted above in connection with detachable magazines, an individual using a rifle in self-defense would not need such a high, continuous rate of fire.
I have already addressed why detachable magazines, even if you only have one magazine, are the safer option. But the Marine Corps itself has directly contradicted Tucker’s point here. Their adoption of the M27, a detachable magazine fed rifle, in place of the M249 light machine gun, a belt-fed and functionally analogous ‘fixed’ feed system, the Marine Corps cited that the ability of Marines to keep the fire rate sustained was better with lower capacity detachable magazines than the M249 belts. So the detachable 10 round magazines will produce a better sustained rate of fire the moment they go beyond whatever the capacity that the fixed magazine held. Tuckers assertion is false, proven by the very military branch he served with. In addition, magazine capacity (specifically its limitation) has never once conclusively been shown to have limited casualties.
The AR-15 is an offensive combat weapon no different in function or purpose than an M4. In my opinion, both weapons are designed to kill as many people as possible, as efficiently as possible, and serve no legitimate sporting or self-defense purpose.
So Tucker’s opinion is just that, an opinion and not causatively based upon the evidence as the AR-15 is extensively used for both sporting and self-defense. Tucker continually ignores or fails to consider perspectives that would undermine his opinion and states outright physically impossible falsehoods as factual.
Self-defense and military combat are different. The weapons and accessories needed in one may not be needed or appropriate in the other.
Why do police carry AR-15’s then? They are not in military combat, they face domestic citizen level threats. Why do the police need detachable magazines and 5.56 ammunition? Why has the M4/AR-15 and other 5.56 carbines been overwhelmingly selected as the personal defense weapon of choice for law enforcement?
For instance, when I was serving in the military, I carried my M4 for offensive combat and a handgun for self-defense.
So you didn’t understand their combined use, the purpose of a sidearm and primary firearm together. Did use your pistol exclusively if attacked and the rifle only when you were attacking? Did your Marines also receive these same commands? That their M16’s were only for attacking and that they must use the closest officer or other personnel with an M9, that they can probably not operate, if they were attacked and needed to defend themselves?
Defensive combat is generally up close and very personal.
True.
At that range, it is very difficult to use a rifle as a defensive weapon, except as a blunt force instrument.
False. Marines actually receive training on fighting with the rifle at contact distance. CQB with a rifle is taught extensively to those military and law enforcement personnel expected to need to fight, with a rifle, inside a building and at close distances.
My 9mm pistol was the self-defense weapon of choice, and we were trained to expend only 1-2 rounds per adversary in pistol combat.
So Tucker, you were trained wrong. On purpose? As a joke? This attitude is the product of the institutional inbreeding that stops questioning why something is done or how it can be done better and safer. This is what comes of the ‘qualification’ training attitude that pervades military and law enforcement, you train to pass a qualifier and not for realistic and variant effects on targets. It is the ‘we’ve always done it this way’ stupidity that keeps having troops, cops, and civilians, go throw old motions that are not properly understood and then calling it proficiency.
The features identified in California Penal Code § 30515(a) enhance the lethality of both semiautomatic and automatic rifles and are most appropriate for combat applications when used in conjunction with those types of weapons systems.
I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct. Executed on January 6, 2023 at Sandia Park, New Mexico – Col. (Ret.) Craig Tucker
Wow…
Tucker, through his efforts here, should be ashamed to try and wear the rank and title, Colonel of Marines. He put keyboard to work on 16 pages of hyperbole and subjective half reasoned nonsense and just used his resume to try and make it stick. He was paid $200 an hour to write it though and I cannot entirely fault making off with Bonta’s money.
This is great news
Seriously. It is.
Why?
Because this constitutes their best efforts. This inaccurate, subjective, half-baked FuddMil “expert” sworn testimony is the best they have to defend the banning of ‘assault weapons’ as particularly dangerous in comparison to other firearms or methods of injury. Everything in this sworn statement is either false, hyperbole, or the subjective opinion of an unimaginative politically driven retired military officer. It would be hard to make this pass as an accurate middle school report on the California AWB law, and it is the expert commentary in its defense.
Who are any of the 10 states with bans in place going to find to try and be a better ‘expert’ than Tucker? Who can they produce as a more well read and articulate witness who can use the factual data of the actual risks of semi-autos in comparison to the risks at large?
Thanks to Goldeneye on Nintendo 64, everyone in my generation knows what the .vZ 61 Skorpion is, although it’s better known as the Klobb. The Skorpion certainly carries with it a unique appearance, and it’s one of the few machine pistols that were ever successful. It’s commonly known the Skorpion was used by the crews of armored vehicles, paratroopers, and police forces. I also theorize that the Skorpion was intended to be used by numerous communist forces, including spies, infiltrators, and communist revolutionaries.
The Root of the Skorpion Theory
CZ USA is one of my sources. They have an eight-page short magazine or pamphlet on the history of the VZ 61. I’ve read it a few times due to my interest in Czech weapons, and if I had to guess, it was a translation from Czech. It certainly seems translated, but it’s still easy enough to read and understand.
This eight-page pamphlet details the weapon’s creation from the very beginning up into the modern Scoprion we have now. They quote normal military use and constantly say, “special security activities,” and the quotations are CZ’s. They never define what those activities are, but they are mentioned several times.
It’s worth noting that it wasn’t the Army or a specific police force that asked for the weapon. The Ministry of Interior originally requested the weapon. One of the more interesting features of the weapon was the fact it used .32 ACP. That’s an oddball cartridge for an SMG design, but admittedly the Czech military and police forces already had several .32 ACP handguns in service.
It’s mentioned the .32 ACP has a ‘wide range of qualities ideal for special security activities.’ We know that the .32 ACP is very easy to suppress and would create a weapon that was very easy to control in full auto fire from the very small weapon.
It’s also mentioned that the “7.65 cartridge is routinely produced in both socialist and capitalist countries and can be bought in any shop carrying sports and hunting guns” That alludes to me that the gun would be used by infiltrators or communist sympathizers in enemy countries.
The Gun In Action
One of the many engineers working on the project reportedly impressed his superiors with the small size and concealability of the weapon. He wore it to meet his superiors under a coat in a custom shoulder holster. The weapon’s ability to remain concealed so easily made quite an impression on the engineer’s superiors.
The Skorpion lends itself well to portable firepower. It’s not much bigger than a handgun and offers selective fire capability. It’s light but packs a stock for accurate shooting and enhanced controls. The weapon is reportedly fairly easy to use in full auto without the stock, at least compared to other machine pistols.
The Skorpion also featured numerous features designed to make it appropriate for discretionary use. Notably, the two little cocking lugs were designed to be small and rounded to avoid catching as the weapon fired. This consideration was made so the gun could be fired when tucked close to the body, especially if fired from under a coat. They also wanted the gun to be capable of being fired from inside luggage.
Finally, the initial order wasn’t for police forces, paratroopers, or armor troops. It was by the intelligence service.
More Than a Theory
I don’t have definite proof, but there were a few interesting incidents during the so-called Cold War. First, the Italian Red Brigades and the IRA utilized the weapon. While the IRA gets romanticized, it’s worth noting several portions of the IRA were socialist. They had ties to the Soviet Union. The Red Brigades killed the police escort of an Italian politician using the Skorpion pistol.
While it was a bit later, and likely a local copy, the North Koreans used the weapon. A team of infiltrators caught by South Korean forces was carrying multiple Skorpions sans stocks. Maybe The Czechs never intended the weapon to be used by spies, infiltrators, or revolutionaries, but it most certainly was.
9-Hole Reviews takes on the flagship AR-15. The AR by which all others are measured as acceptable or as wanting. The Colt (or FN) M4A1 is the current standard issue rifle for US ground forces. The Marines and Army both consider the standard. The Marines also use the M27 and consider the M27 superior in many respects, but that simply makes it an exceeds expectation platform. The same can be said of the M4A1 Block II and Block III/URG-I rifles. They exceed the standard set by the M4A1 Block I/ M4A1 service rifle.
The original M4, even the railed versions, and M16A4 actually had a fairly dramatic performance gap. The Marines did not switch to the M4, despite the mobility advantages, until much later in the PIP phase than the Army did. The reliability gap especially for stoppage rates was not what the USMC wanted to see. Through some upgrades to the gas system, magazines, ammunition powder burn rates, and recoil system, the M4A1 closed the reliability gap with the M16 until the primary difference between the too was muzzle velocity. The M16A4 still throws a faster and therefore further 5.56 round, but the odds of that round going off and properly cycling are finally on par.
The author’s concept of an M16A5. Look for it in an Aero article too.
Josh and Henry do the voodoo that they do and see what the rifle, as issued with an ACOG, can do in practical accuracy.
EAGLEVILLE, PA, May 2, 2023 – Streamlight®, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance lighting, launched the Waypoint® 400, an updated model of the Waypoint® 300. The new version of the rechargeable pistol-grip spotlight offers up to 1,400 lumens of ultra-bright white light with 400,000 candela and a beam distance of 1,265 meters for enhanced down-range lighting capability. The portable light can be used as either a handheld mobile searchlight, or, with its integrated stand, as a hands-free scene light to illuminate an area.
“The new Waypoint 400 not only features extreme brightness, but also includes a far-reaching beam for extreme distance lighting,” said Michael F. Dineen, Streamlight’s Chief Revenue Officer. “It features a waterproof design, and will float if dropped in water, making it the ideal spotlight for boating and other outdoor pursuits. Industrial workers, police and fire professionals and other first responders also will appreciate its weight-balanced design that virtually eliminates hand fatigue.”
The Waypoint 400 uses power LED technology and a deep-dish parabolic reflector for long-range targeting with optimum peripheral illumination. On the high setting, it features 400,000 candela, a 1,265-meter beam distance, and 1,400 lumens. On medium, it provides 600 lumens and an 812-meter beam distance; on low it offers 38 lumens and a beam distance of 200 meters. The new light runs for 3.25 to 84 hours on high and low, respectively.
The Waypoint 400 uses a rechargeable lithium-ion battery that fully charges in four hours. A convenient LED charging indicator provides charging status.
The rugged Waypoint 400 features an unbreakable polycarbonate lens and is O-ring sealed. With a trigger-style switch for momentary or “constant-on” operation, the light boasts a cushioned grip handle that eliminates user hand fatigue. The light includes an adjustable, high-strength wrist lanyard, and features an integrated stand for hands-free lighting.
The lightweight Waypoint 400 weighs 1.52 pounds and measures 6.75 inches long by 7.14 inches high. It features an IPX8-rated design for waterproof operation to two meters, and is impact-resistant to one meter.
The Waypoint 400 is available in black and yellow and has an MSRP of $240.67. It comes with Streamlight’s Limited Lifetime Warranty.
About Streamlight
Based in Eagleville, PA, Streamlight, Inc. is marking 50 years of manufacturing high-quality, durable flashlights designed to serve the specialized needs of professionals and consumers alike. Since 1973, the company has designed, manufactured and marketed high-performance flashlights, and today offers a broad array of lights, lanterns, weapon light/laser sighting devices, and scene lighting solutions for professional law enforcement, military, firefighting, industrial, automotive, and outdoor applications. Streamlight is an ISO 9001:2015 certified company. For additional information, please call 800-523-7488, visit streamlight.com or connect with us on facebook.com/streamlight; twitter.com/Streamlight; instagram.com/streamlightinc; linkedin.com/company/streamlight-inc./; and youtube.com/streamlighttv.
Before we go too deep into this, let’s go over some quick definitions when it comes to seating primers.
Primer: The entire primer assembly.
Primer Pocket: This is the part of the case that the primer seats into. Sometimes these pockets can have crimpings which keep the primer in after they were seated. Crimpings can cause issues when seating the next primer as the crimp may not be removed enough to create a wide enough hole for the next primer to fully seat.
Primer Cup: The small metal cup that the propellant and anvil are placed into.
Anvil: The anvil is the part of the primer that you will see when the primer cup is flipped upside down and ready to be seated. The anvil almost looks like a cross. This presses into the primer mixture which then detonates the primer.
Seating a Primer: Using a tool to place the primer into the primer pocket of the casing with pressure.
Primer Tray or Primer Tube: This is how the primers are fed towards the shellholder to be seated. Some tools use a tray in which you can see every individual primer side by side and it feeds down at an angle. Some use a tube and feeds primers directly down with each primer directly on top of one another.
Flash hole: The smaller hole above the primer pocket in which the detonation flows through to detonate the powder.
When primers are being fed you should always see the anvil facing up. If you don’t see the anvil, the primer is upside down and will be dangerous to seat. Photo: Smith and Wesson Forum
What is the risk when it comes to seating primers?
Seating primers can actually be pretty dangerous. Ever remember seeing the “wear eye protection” warnings on priming tools? That has merit. A personal friend has actually had an entire tray of primers go off in his hand causing damage to his hand. If he was looking straight at the case when the primer was being seated even his face may be damaged. The story is as follows..
“Imagine two primers facing each other. The top primer gets shoved into the primer pocket misaligned. Bottom primer keeps getting pressed together with more force. The primer anvils get crushed together and almost touch. Then suddenly the primers are ripped apart and a spark or some force detonates the two primers and then chain reaction detonates the other 130 primers”. -Anonymous
What causes this to happen?
There are a couple things that cause catrostophic issues like primers blowing up.
Your primer pocket can be either gunked up, or the crimp isn’t removed enough to allow a primer to seat. Thus instead of seating the primer, your actually putting pressure on the primer as it is trying to seat but has no where to go.
Primers are not laying flat when ready to be seated, causing the tool to seat a primer on it’s side. Now imagine that and another primer feeding in behind it pushing on the anvil. That is exactly what happened to the person earlier mentioned.
A primer get’s half seated and stuck inside of the shellholder. When this happens it is hard to remove the case from the tool because that primer is now catching the case and the shell holder together. Most will try to rip the case out of the tool and off of the shell holder without taking the time to figure out what is going on first or remove the case properly.
These are examples of crimped primer pockets. A crimped primer pocket may make seating another primer more difficult and not allow it to fully seat. It is important to ensure that the entire crimp is removed from the case before seating another primer.
How do we mitigate this risk?
Pay attention. If using a hand primer ensure that each primer coming out of the tool is flat and not upside down/anvil facing up. This is especially important for handheld primers as these are easy to tip.
If using a priming tube make sure primers are stacked/seated properly.
If a primer feels half seated and the case is stuck inside the shell holder don’t panic, but don’t just rip it out. Simply observe what is going on. You may have to remove the entire case holder from the tool gently. You could have a primer pocket issue. The big thing here is to ensure that another primer has not fed down under that half seated primer. If you give the half seated primer another press, you may actually be pressing two primers together. If you see no issues with the primer pocket go back and gently try to reseat that primer without any other primers loaded into the tray.
Be gentle and follow instructions when seating. Many primer seating tools only need a small amount of pressure but want you to ensure that you are pressing all the way through. Going fast and short will often cause issues. Two hands should never be used on a handprimer.
Don’t look down into the case as you’re seating the primer. There is still a flash hole in that case, if the primer ignites that goes up the case and into your face, or ignites all of the primers in the tray..
Don’t have anything flammable nearby. If one goes off, it’s best to try to make this an isolated incident.
Primer Tool Type and Example
Handheld Priming Tool
This is simply a primer tool that you hold in your hand and squeeze. They are often the most inexpensive. The risk associated with these is that due to holding it in your hand, the tool can be shaken or tilted more allowing for primers to be seated back to back or flipped. Squeezes can also be inconsistent and primers may be half loaded more often. Remember, never use two hands to squeeze a handheld primer. Too much force is not a good thing.
On the left is the Hornady hand primer that needs to be squeezed to seat the primer. On the right is the Lee Auto Priming tool. Mounting the primer on something stationary allows for safer priming.
With a lot of presses that you may use to seat bullets or resize brass there is also an option to attach an assembly to seat primers. This type of assembly will usually be proprietary to the type of press you are using.
Extra lining in your jackets: This is primarily for the hip-carry crowd. If you’re using a jacket as a cover garment, you’ll want to have an extra panel of material sewn into the coat where it rides over the gun. Doing it this way will allow you to only have to repair the panel instead of having the entire jacket re-lined after it gets shredded by the rear sights and/or cocking serrations on your carry gun.
Breakaway buttons: Generally, when a man is standing he should have his jacket buttoned. Well if he now has to access a pistol under that jacket, he has to either tear it open, unbutton it, or try to pull it high enough to clear the holster. There are some companies now that are doing breakaway buttons. Essentially, it’s a normal functioning button & buttonhole, but instead of the button being sewn directly to the jacket, it’s sewn to a snap so that it can perform normally, then in an emergency it can be pulled open without damaging the garment. I’m actually talking to my tailor now about doing this to all my suits & sport coats.
Weight in the hem of your coat: The old bodyguard trick was to keep a spare magazine in the strong side coat pocket. That way, when you went to clear the cover garment, there was enough inertia and hang-time that it would keep the jacket from floating back into the path of the draw. Personally I find a magazine in the pocket too conspicuous. I have heard of guys having weight sewn directly into the hem of the jacket under the liner to the same effect.
Beware of neckties! The fabrics that they use for ties have a pretty high tensile strength. Especially when you consider that good ties are 5 or 7 fold material. That’s a lot of fabric wrapped around your neck. If you’re not careful it can easily turn into a leash or a noose. That’s why all of the uniform neckties I’ve ever seen have been clip-on. It’s super difficult to strangle somebody with a clip-on tie…………..allegedly. I’m not suggesting you replace your Hermes ties with clip-ons, just making sure it’s something you’re aware of. Look at it critically, and ask yourself if there are any modifications you can come up with to make your neckties “safer”.
Today Caleb’s joined by 3 gun shooter and firearms industry insider Kenzie Fitzpatrick also known as @3GunKenzie as she talks about some of the brands she represents and why 3 gun is the best shooting sport. It’s not, but whatever. – Caleb
3 gun is awesome and so is outlaw 2 gun, Caleb can stop his hateful hatery – Keith
I like the one where we rob the drug dealer! – Jack
The proceeding commentary is parody – Jack’s Lawyer
Fast handling and reliable this is a great all around rifle.
I chase down numerous firearms qualifications shot by the military and police forces around the world. I love seeing how the blue and green sides train and what their expectations are. With that in mind, many of these police and military forces use a specific target with a specific scoring system. That requires a very specific target. With that in mind, I’ve looked at a wide variety of targets, and I’ve assembled some of my favorite military and police targets.
I’ve chosen these for a few reasons. Most are versatile targets that force proper shot placement and go behind just hitting a target and calling it a win. These military and police targets help create realistic training demands for defensive shooting skills. With that in mind, let’s dive in and look at some of the best targets on the market.
The Classic FBI Q Target
The FBI doesn’t adopt a realistic target in terms of how it looks. The Q, often known as the Coke bottle target, does create a real challenge for shot placement. The Q is vaguely person-shaped but greatly reduced to represent the vitals of a human threat. The target doesn’t post hands or arms to make the target wider. Modern versions of the Q have a chest and head target, and others have reduced the Coke bottle to just the chest and head.
The Q is easy to see and easy to score. There are no ‘did it break the line’ arguments that decide if the shot scores four or five points. It’s simple and works well for observing accuracy as well as doing things like patterning a shotgun. The Q provides a simple but useful target for all your training needs.
BT-5-EL Dorado DA
The BT-5 target series is fairly popular and consists of a vague silhouette of the chest, shoulders, and head of a threat. Inside sits several rings with various numeric characters for scoring. It’s good, but the El Dorado DA version is better. The numbers are gone. Instead, we have three colors, black, grey, and red.
Black is the majority of the target. Grey is a large portion of the chest and spine to the head. The heart area and brain area are red. It’s a visual signifier that tells you where the shots are supposed to go. Red means dead, and there isn’t a numerical score that matters if the threat isn’t down.
New Mexico Dept. of Public Safety Police Target
The New Mexico Dept. of Public Safety Police Target isn’t just one target but a series of targets. While the external difference varies, what is on the inside counts. These targets feature different prints of various people, men, and women, some obvious threats with the gun pointed at you and others less obvious with their guns pointed downward.
Inside each of these prints is a thin line that marks the various hit zones of the threat. The zones of these police targets get smaller as they get closer to the vital parts of the human body. This trains you to recognize and identify threats and helps you put rounds where it matters.
Department of Energy Target
The Department of Energy’s security forces is very well trained with everything from handguns to light machine guns. When they train, they use a specific target that I’ve grown fond of. It’s a simple green silhouette vaguely representing the outline of a person. For their training, it makes sense to learn to identify the silhouette of a threat because no one should be snooping and pooping near nukes by mistake.
Additionally, inside the silhouette sits two squares, one inside the other and one smaller than the other. In the head is a small circle. Your shots often don’t count if they don’t land inside these smaller internal targets. It’s another target that really wants you to ensure you know proper shot placement.
Wisconsin Dept of Justice Target
I love this target…not just because it’s a good target. It’s the model. He’s the most Wisconsin man I could have ever pictured. He perfectly represents the state. Beyond the mustachioed cheese head sits a very well-designed target. Most of the target is rather plain, but the chest and head feature an internal outline. Beside the guy’s beautiful mustache is a scoring key.
The outline highlights the vitals and provides a sharp accuracy standard. While visible for scoring, it’s not super visible on the range. This makes you think and relate to a real target while having to use a little vital anatomy knowledge to make successful hits. This is probably my favorite police target.
Bonus – 2013 Coast Guard Transitional Target
Finally, it’s not that I think this target is very handy for most of us, but I love it, so it’s a bonus target. Admittedly not everyone will find it handy, but as a Floridian and Miami Vice fan, I might be able to sue it. What makes it great? Well, look at it.
It’s a boat engine! Wooo, and guess what? The target even uses ovals descending in size to ensure you have proper shot placement on the target. This is a great target just because it’s so weird.
Military and Police Targets
Do you need a specific target to train? Not really. A B-8 works well for most tasks. However, using man-sized targets does help you mentally prepare to engage a man-sized target. Using properly designed silhouettes can help establish a mental game plan for engagements. When it comes to patterning shotguns, these man-sized targets really help you visualize the threat and how your gun engages that threat. I do like these military and police targets are starting to focus on proper shot placement rather than just hitting a target. It’s always nice to see the armed professionals move towards better and more efficient training.
In a 29 page update filed today, the Protect Illinois Communities Act (PICA) was halted by District Judge McGlynn,
Plaintiffs have satisfied their burden for a preliminary injunction. They have shown irreparable harm with no adequate remedy at law, a reasonable likelihood of success on the merits, that the public interest is in favor of the relief, and the balance of harm weighs in their favor. Therefore, the Plaintiffs’ motions for preliminary injunction are GRANTED. Defendants are ENJOINED from enforcing Illinois statutes 720 ILCS 5/24-1.9(b) and (c), and 720 ILCS 5/24-1.10, along with the PICA amended provisions set forth in 735 ILCS 5/24-1(a), including subparagraphs (11), (14), (15), and (16), statewide during the pendency of this litigation until the Court can address the merits.
A choice piece from the injunction should put each and every state with an assault weapon ban on notice too.
It is also uncontroverted that many of the banned modifiers, including but not limited to pistol grips, protruding grips, flash suppressors, and shrouds, have legitimate purposes that assist law-abiding citizens in their ability to defend themselves. The other side is less clear – there is no evidence as to how PICA will actually help Illinois Communities. It is also not lost on this Court that the Illinois Sheriff’s Association and some Illinois States Attorneys believe PICA unconstitutional and cannot, in good conscience, enforce the law as written and honor their sworn oath to uphold the Constitution.
In no way does this Court minimize the damage caused when a firearm is used for an unlawful purpose; however, this Court must be mindful of the rights guaranteed by the Constitution. While PICA was purportedly enacted in response to the Highland Park shooting, it does not appear that the legislature considered an individual’s right under the Second Amendment nor Supreme Court precedent. Moreover, PICA did not just regulate the rights of the people to defend themselves; it restricted that right, and in some cases, completely obliterated that right by criminalizing the purchase and the sale of more than 190 “arms.” Furthermore, on January 1, 2024, the right to mere possession of these items will be further limited and restricted. See 735 ILCS 5/24-1.9(c). Accordingly, the balance of harms favors the Plaintiffs. –Pg. 27 & 28
No longer are courts allowing the burden to be shifted around and treat the 2nd Amendment like a 2nd class right of the people, subject to the alleged whims and greater good of anti-gun politicians. Regulators wishing to ban firearms are having to put up evidence or shut up, and they don’t have the evidence.
The ole 5.7x28mm gets a lot of flack. Some of it was valid, some not. Yet, it seems to only be growing in popularity. PSA, Ruger, FN, and now S&W make some form of 5.7x28mm handgun, and Diamondback, FN, CMMG, and Ruger also make carbines for the caliber. It’s certainly one of the more interesting rounds on the market and falls into that odd category of not really a pistol round and not really a rifle round.
While some may claim it’s just an expensive .22 Magnum, I think we are all capable of firing up the Google machine and seeing that that’s not true. At the same time, those folks are right about ammo price. That crap is expensive. In a realm where the 5.56 and 9mm rule, it can be easy to toss 5.7x28mm aside due to the price alone. What’s the purpose of such a caliber in the civilian world?
Everything has a niche, right? The 5.7x28mm turns out to be a great gun for urban areas and specifically for property defense. Most 5.7 handguns are fairly large because they need a good bit of barrel to make the round worthwhile. They tend to be tough to conceal, but for business and home defense, they can be just right.
The great debate between rifles, shotguns, and handguns for home defense has no winners, just educated users. It’s easy to see why the handgun wins sometimes. It’s lighter and smaller, well suited for close-range fights. It’s easiest to use with one hand, and that might be a serious consideration. If you are considering a handgun for home defense, then you’ve discovered a niche that the 5.7x28mm handgun fits well.
Where the 5.7x28mm Fits
Plenty of rifles and carbines exist in 5.7x28mm. These guns are great for home defense, but unless you suffer from a disability that makes an AR in 5.56 too heavy, you’d likely be best suited with an AR in 5.56. With handguns, the main weapon of choice is likely a double stack 9mm. That’s a great choice, but for some, the 5.7x28mm might be a better choice.
I’m not trying to say 5.7x28mm from a handgun is better than 9mm on a ballistic front. Both calibers can reach the proper depth of penetration to matter. The 9mm does offer substantial expansion, but the 5.7’s advantage comes from overpenetration, or the lack thereof.
One of the big reasons we like 5.56 for home defense is that the light but fast projectile tends to lose a lot of speed when it hits a wall, even drywall. This limits the round’s potential to over-penetrate. 5.7x28mm uses the same fast-moving, lightweight projectile, and when it strikes drywall, it also loses energy rapidly and tumbles.
This makes it a great option if you choose to use a handgun for home or even business defense in a densely populated area. If you live in the suburbs, or an urban apartment or condo, then the 5.7x28mm is a great choice to prevent overpenetration. The same goes for your work environment. We are often crowded in these environments, and if you can tote a big 5.7x28mm pistol, it might be worth the stress.
Additional Benefits of the 5.7x28mm Handgun
The 5.7x28mm’s benefits do not end at a reduced penetration through walls. There are numerous benefits to the round. One of the more important benefits is a higher overall capacity. The little rounds are rather small, and 20-round magazines are standard, with slightly extended magazines offering substantially more ammo than most handguns of a similar size.
While the round is quite loud from a handgun, the recoil is minimal. It’s a very smooth shooting system. The S&W M&P’s gas-operated variant is the smoothest of the three I’ve fired and likely the smoothest overall due to smart design.
Finally, most of these guns are also really easy to rack. If you have reduced hand strength, these might be a great solution for you.
This is a niche use case, and it’s not like that’s the only reason to have a 5.7x28mm handgun. They are certainly solid little guns that are flat shooting and very fun to shoot. If ammo prices were to drop, I bet we’d see a substantial increase in ownership of these handguns. Don’t disregard the 5.7 as an expensive .22 Magnum. It’s quite capable and has its own advantages.
Pant rise is important: For those unfamiliar, “rise” is the distance from the waistband to the crotch of a pair of pants. “Wait, you mean to tell me they’re not all the same?!?!?”. Well no, in fact they’re not, nor is one type universally effective. Depending on your build and the length of your torso, standard (high) or mid-rise pants might be more appropriate for you. The most common mistake that most guys make (again, especially those with the “successful lifestyle body”) is that they wear their pants too low. This can negatively impact your concealment by causing the gun to ride too low and/or create hot spots and discomfort. Your natural waist is typically at the level of your belly button, possibly down an inch or two. Most guys wear their pants on their pelvis, which is too low. The other issue is that wearing pants with the wrong rise too low can impede movement. The crotch of the pant is now lower than it should be, which means your legs are joined further down than they are naturally.
Shoe selection matters! Dressier shoes tend to have leather soles. Leather soles tend not to have the best traction. Traction is kind of important if you’re having to physically manage another person. You’re probably thinking “Well that’s an easy fix. I’ll just wear nothing but rubber soled shoes then!”. While that will work, I’ve yet to see a rubber soled shoe that actually looked like it belongs with a suit or dress pants. Thankfully there are some hybrid options out there, where rubber studs or sections are built into a leather sole, giving you better traction without looking like you’re wearing orthotic shoes or a uniform duty oxford.
Get friendly with your tailor: Most clothing off the rack doesn’t really fit anyone all that well, it just fits a lot of people okay enough that they’ll buy it. A good tailor can help tweak and adjust any garment to serve a specific purpose for you, and make sure your clothing is working for you instead of against you. And, speaking of tailors, there are a few specialty adjustments you can have your tailor make to your wardrobe:
Reinforcing your waistbands: Most of us carry guns and other support gear on the belt line. Other than work wear and denim, most slacks and suit pants are more delicate and not well suited to supporting weight. Having your tailor reinforce the waists of your pants will help to prevent sagging, and have the added benefit of more material that will keep your holster clips and other gear from wearing holes in your pants.
Extra belt loops: Alongthe same line as a reinforced waist, you may find it beneficial to have extra belt loops added to your trousers. This helps more evenly distribute weight across your belt, and prevent the waistline of your pants from sagging. Very important for any tools carried along the mid-line or in the pockets.
I liked my Tavor SAR, I miss that rifle. I know Administrative Results enjoys his also, he says as much.
What people confuse though when the look at the SAR and call it dated is when the rifle was developed compared to when it came to the US market. The rifle’s development starts in 1995 and production in 2001. Our views on service rifles has changed a great deal since 1995. They’ve changed since 2007 when I first picked up an M16A4. The SAR came here in 2013. So to say that the features on the SAR are a bit dated makes sense, they are. Over a decade of war time experience made for changes.
But dated platforms still do work. The FAL, the AK, a 20″ AR-15 with fixed stock, and yes the SAR can all be efficiently run and serve their intended purposes. But they are going to fall short on some efficiencies that later platforms capitalize on. When I started service, an “ambi” gun was considered unnecessary. Today ambi is standard. For 1995 the SAR was very forward thinking, as were the ACR and SCAR developed near that time period, but by 2015 our wants on rifles had changed. While the SAR joining the market was a great thing the desirable performance envelope had moved on.
Thus the X95 quickly joined the market offerings with several improvements. The US market has several preferences that differ from the international market and the aftermarket pushed the SAR and X95 along too. The X95 has had several in unit production upgrades and if you have an older rifle, the parts will be different than on newer models.
We have two distinct versions of the Tavor that grew out of updated needs. We saw several iterative improvements to both of them. At a certain point in time it becomes time to shelve a design. SIG has shelved two MCX versions already and that rifle started in 2015.
Do we see the Tavor continue to evolve?
Yes. We still are in the aftermarket currently with places like Manticore and BLK LBL continuing to add options and aesthetic.
The SIG 556 was one of SIGs early post-AWB attempts at entering the exploding 5.56 STANAG rifle market. M4’s were in. M4’s were hot. But the market was and is still fairly hungry for non-M4’s. We here in the US love variety, we love choice. We like a wide variety of foods, booze, entertainment, so naturally firearms too.
The 556 also swung at the desire to reinvigorate the 55X series of rifles which had a popular following and small batch of owned models here in the states from the very limited import. They were considered sophisticated and premium, despite their performance envelope being on par with other rifles of the era, including the M16.
What we got instead was… not what we had hoped for and SIG eventually shelved the line in favor of their M400 and M516 AR’s and developed the MCX line as a forward looking venture. The MCX met with far greater success than the 556 or the 2nd attempt at the 556, the 556xi. That one didn’t go anywhere either and was very quickly shelved too. The MCX was their gun and they’ve had three variants in its 8 year history.
But, we do like our retro looks these days. Here’s 9-Hole reviews talking SIG 556. Give it a watch an avoid work for 35 minutes.
I’m the type to fully embrace the future or whatever amalgamation of it presents itself. This includes the field of firearms. I love tech and how it can be implemented into the firearms training world. With that in mind, this morning, I discovered an app called The Range buddy. You can find it on the Google Play store, and there are a few apps using the phrase Range Buddy. Look for the one developed by Atriarch Targets.
The premise is simple. The app is free to use and free to download. You can choose to subscribe to donate a thing or two to the developer. The plans are 99 cents a month, 2.99 a month, or 8.99 a year. I went with the 8.99-a-year program because I’m not a cheapskate and like supporting our community. If you choose not to donate, you can use the entire app for free, but you’ll get the pop-up every time you start up the app.
A small price to pay, in my opinion. If you have Netflix or Hulu, or whatever, you can afford to support this app if you choose to use it.
What’s the Range Buddy
I’ll get off my high horse now. The Range Buddy is an app that catalogs various shooting drills and programs from a wide variety of sources. The drills are quite varied and range from classics like Jeff Cooper’s El Pres and Mozambique to more modern drills like the Herron Bill Drill. There are a ton of drills in the system, and the app creator is promising to add more.
There are even several police quals, and I might reach out to the developer to send more. I have an entire Google Doc I’ve used to catalog dozens of police quals from Fed, State, and municipal police forces. I even have some security guard quals if they want them. The app catalogs these drills in various ways.
The most obvious is that it divides the drills up by target offer IDPA, USPSA, Homemade, steel targets, and more. Select the target you have or are using, and it will give you several drills and how the target is used for those drills. Obviously, most of these drills can be modified to use whatever target you have, so if you’re new here, don’t feel stuck to one type of target.
Speaking of being new, you can also look at drills in accordance with their difficulty level. You can search for beginner, intermediate, and advanced drills, as well as drills that require movement to achieve. You can also just use the search function to find the drill you are looking for.
Using the Range Buddy
Once you find the drill you want to shoot, you give it a click to get a detailed summary of the drill. A small preview will give you the range and rounds required. A click gets you deeper information. The in-depth overview gives you the basics, the target type, and a small explanation of the purpose of the drill.
From there, it dives into how to setup up the stage, and the requirements, alongside the course of fire. Finally, we have scoring and related drills if you want to do something similar to the drill you fired. You can use the next page to keep track of your shooting. You can enter time, accuracy, gun type, and notes and even upload a video and picture.
There is even a leaderboard to drive competitive shooters to keep trying and getting faster and faster. The video verification will certainly help regulate some of the more obvious crazy claims that will surely pop up.
The Range Buddy is a super neat app that has a lot of promise. There are a few bugs that are being ironed out, but it’s just got released. By the time this is published, they might be gone. I hope to see it supported and to see more development. While plenty of websites list tons of drills, the Range Buddy provides a range-friendly option to quickly look up drills and to spend more time shooting and less time reading.
