Gun Nuts

This review is about the Safariland 5377-83 GLS OWB (Outside Waist Band) holster for Glock 17s (Glock 19s and 26s will fit as well).  There is a paddle variant of this holster, denoted as the Safariland 5378 and a clip model, the Model 5379.   This model is also known as the “GLS” or Grip Locking System.  The holster is classified as a Level I retention holster in that it can withstand active attempts to remove it for at least five seconds without the safety/retention device enabled.

As I prepare for the 2014 IDPA Nationals, a big part of that is reviewing previous stages from previous matches. Here’s stage 7 from last year’s Nationals:

That was actually a pretty good run for me, I finished 4th overall on the stage. This stage, like many in IDPA, puts a heavy premium on accuracy. With only 12 shots, a single down -1 hit can have a dramatic affect on your stage time. I shot the stage in a raw time of 16.64, but dropped three points for a final stage time of 18.14. The shooters who beat me on this stage dropped 1 point. I gave it away by not pushing for more accuracy on a stage where most of the shots were pretty easy.

As we continue our discussion of adding lights and lasers to your defensive firearms, the topic of revolvers is bound to come up. Regardless of the rise in popularity of semi-auto pistols, there are still approximately 1 jillion revolvers out there in holsters and nightstands. For HD/defensive handguns, the hierarchy of needs as I see is: 1) white light, 2) laser, 3) night sights in that order.

Turns out the ancient cartridge defeated the ancient smartphone in a walkover.

Hit the jump for more photos.

By far the most entertaining way I can think of to dispose of old electronics. And yes, I made sure to clean up the range after.

I’ll get right to the point. Battle: Los Angeles is a great movie. Not because it’s well written or well directed, but because it’s 100% honest about itself. It’s also a far better war movie than The Hurt Locker or Zero Dark Thirty. While we’re on that topic, can someone tell me why we keep letting Kathryn Bigelow direct war movies? The Hurt Locker sucked, and Zero Dark Thirty Sucked. Sure, Point Break was epic and amazing, but that was 23 years ago.

You can’t reason with a group like ISIS/ISIL. Regardless of the surface trappings, violent extremism like that can’t be stopped with humanitarian aid. History is a cruel teacher, but it’s shown us time and again that the only effective resistance for wanton cruelty and violence is the precise, targeted application of violence by a relatively just nation.

It’s like a rabid dog. You don’t kill it because you enjoy killing, you kill it dispassionately and professionally; by killing it you make the community safer.

Tl;dr – some folk just need killing.

In Ferguson, a white cop shoots a black teenager that was in the process of assaulting said cop. Media outrage, riots ensue.

A while back we built an AR15 pistol up using an Aero Precision lower, DPMS complete upper from our friends at Brownells, and of course the Sig SB15 brace. Unfortunately, there were some feed issues with the gun, as demonstrated below:

One of the interesting things about slow-motion video is how much it lies to the senses. At 480 FPS, the difference in muzzle flip between the aluminum Crimson Carry and the steel Desert Warrior looks considerable. But from behind the trigger in real time, I would have said there’s not much difference at all. Having a solid grip and good stance brought the guns back on target in about the same amount of time. I do have to say, after shooting it at M3GI Media Day, I really want one of these 5 inch aluminum guns in 9mm. That’d be the heat.

Time to get ready for the match that usually closes out the majority of my shooting season, IDPA Nationals. After IDPA Nats there’s the BUG Nationals, but the training for that mostly consists of shooting my J-frame a bunch. But IDPA Nationals is important to me; I’ve shot every Nationals since 2011, which seems like forever ago. In 2012 I started shooting SSR at IDPA Nationals, finishing 5th overall and 3rd Master. In 2013 against a deep field, I finished 8th overall and 4th Master. I shot the BUG Nationals that year as well, finishing 5th overall and 2nd Master. Then it was 2014 Indoor Nationals, where I finished 4th overall and 1st Master.

Yesterday, we talked about the importance of lights and lasers on defensive firearms. I wasn’t particularly surprised when both here and on Facebook comments showed up saying that lasers were bad. These comments all followed the exact same pattern:

If you follow me on Instagram (and you totally should if you booze, cars, guns, and pictures of my dog) you might have seen this photo and caption:

Does your home defense gun have a light on it? If it doesn’t, you’re doing it wrong. It should also probably have a laser on it as well, because being able to hit what you’re aiming at is kind of important.

Thought exercise: Should toy guns be subject to the four rules?

I’ve often used this space to take a dig at mainstream media types who report on gun issues and use of force related issues. I don’t make fun of them simply for sport. I think it is crucial that we take the time to document and catalogue the breathtaking ignorance that the media often displays on even the simplest matters related to firearms because it helps to show that they are not, in fact, smarter or more enlightened than everyone else. Media types often love to portray themselves as such and honestly believe it because they’re usually in a room with other people who went to all the “right” schools and hold all the “right opinions”. In these comfortable dens of groupthink they are rarely troubled by discordant information.

It recently came to the attention of some folks I was working with that I made a habit of keeping a first aid kit in the backpack I usually carry with me. They thought that this was a strange practice. One even went so far as to ask if it wasn’t a bit paranoid to carry a first aid kit wherever you go. I’d imagine a sizeable chunk of the population would agree with that sentiment seeing as how the vast majority of them get through the average day without needing a first aid kit. Not even ten minutes after someone questioned the level of paranoia necessary to keep a first aid kit handy another someone managed to slice themselves open. At the moment when the dismissive individuals were faced with someone bleeding and teetering on the edge of going unconscious due to being panicked at the sight of their own blood, they stared in (mostly) mute helplessness. It was left to the “paranoid” guy to open up the med kit no one else had the foresight to bring or apparently inclination to use, glove up, and apply some gauze to stop the bleeding.

Ready to light up the night! Troy Carbine, Mutt AR, and Mossberg 930. Starting our day with a 3-gun clinic taught by the Miculeks.

GunUp the Magazine will have an exclusive first look at the M&P22 Compact in the September issue, available August 20th on iPad, iPhone and Android. Visit the App Store to download and subscribe or Google Play for Android.

We shipped our ammo to M3GI. We’re sharing a shotgun. But we still have so much stuff that it’s ridiculous. There’s an entire suitcase that has nothing in it but our soft gun cases that we’ll be using on the range. Plus clothes for a week, all the guns, lights, and lasers.

The last of my M3GI guns:

• Troy Defense Lamb Carbine
• Burris Optics 332 Prismatic Scope
• Magpul 40 round Pmag (because reloading is stupid)

SHOOOOOT HEEEERRRRRR