ModernServiceWeapons

I am a self professed, self styled Glock hater.  They are ugly.  They have no soul.

About seven years ago, I had a very good opportunity at work.  The down side was that it required me to give up the SIG P226 I was carrying, and forced me to a Glock.

I bought my first Glock 22 in around 1994, predating my entrance into law enforcement just a bit.  All the other cool guys were carrying them, and it was the “wave” of the future.  I shot it for a while, had some marksmanship problems with them, and quietly sold the G22 and went back to a P226.  Now, in fairness, that was probably about the start of my wanderlust of pistols.  I traded pistols at work every couple of years looking for the “One” that would make the bronze God of all things tactical.  I drifted between calibers, and manufacturers every so often.  As this offer came up at work, I made the switch to the G22, and eventually the G35.

The Glock 22 is arguably the most common issued pistol in American law enforcement

From L to R: 10-8 M&P, 10-8 modified VTAC frame with IGFS slide, Salient Arms Tier 2 package

Other than a bunch of alliteration, there really are a few cool and topical polymer pistol reviews forthcoming.  I recently received a T&E loaner slide from Innovative Gunfighter Solutions – a nickel boron coated slide with their full serration package, which includes their Radius Serrations on the radius of the slide.  That slide came with the factory sights and nothing else, so it sits atop the frame of my personal VTAC M&P which I’ve previously featured.  Lastly, after waiting not so patiently for some months, my Salient Arms Tier 2 M&P build came in.  I’ll be check

In my role as a designer of firearms accessories, I must frequently field inquiries about expanding the product line to cover a particular firearm.  Small companies such as mine need to be extremely careful with how fast and how greatly they expand, and foolish decisions in this area can easily cripple or bankrupt a company.  I wanted to share a few thoughts here that hopefully will serve to educate our readers and customers better, and perhaps be of assistance to those looking to enter the industry.

The most basic concept of economics is supply and demand.  Is there a demand for this product, and should you supply it?  If I had all the answers for this, I wouldn’t be sitting here pecking out missives for this blog, I’d be on my own private island sipping cool drinks while being fanned by Swedish supermodels.  However, I have figured a few things out the hard way.

Listening to feedback from customers and fans is often the first avenue into understan

This photo was sent to us by one of our more dedicated students after he discovered Next Level Training’s SIRT pistol. Though optimized for the laser training pistol and rifle bolt, this can be used with virtually any dry practice setup. An A-frame ladder can be utilized for virtually any conventional or unconventional braced position. With this setup, your training is truly only limited by your imagination. Single target and target to target transitions are just the beginning. So stop making excuses and start off the year right with some solid training.

My new Glock 17, which has been the topic of several recent posts, is worth a closer look for you gearheads out there.  It started life as a pile of parts that I had in the shop, with the frame and slide being separate components that had not previously met as a complete firearm.

The main attraction is the ATEi machined slide, which features their usual full top serrations, the 10-8 logo, and modified vertical serrations.  The modified vertical serrations, a special request of mine, interrupts the cuts to preserve the factory markings.  The top serrations provide additional options for one handed manipulations, and the enhanced vertical serrations vastly improve regular loading and press checks.  If you want this work, contact ATEi.  You can get everything you see here except the 10-8 logo.

Training Course Tuition- $600

Airfare-  $550

Ammunition-  $450

Customized SIG Sauer Pistol- $1800

Spending the entire class clearing malfunctions because you refused to buy new magazines springs-  Priceless

We have had some most excellent thoughts recently about preparing for a training class.  The above magazine is a common thing we see in classes, particularly in older P-Series pistols.  The magazine spring weakens, and causes problems for the student.  The student then generally becomes really frustrated and doesn’t absorb the most he can from the class.  It becomes a handicap to him.

Most of my “training magazines” are older magazines that have some age on them.  However, factory replacement springs, or aftermarket springs from excellent companies such as Wolff are a cheap insurance for a worry free training day.  I prefer the Wolff Extra Power line of replacement springs.

Actual stock pull weight on this Glock 17 build, with stock parts and “5.5 lb” factory connector.

The Glock trigger can be a tough nut for some folks, but assuming at least the baseline “5.5 pound” stock pull (I say that in quotes, as we know from my earlier articles that the advertised pull weight is just a recommendation) is totally workable if you put in some effort to learn it.  

You really need to consider trigger manipulation as 3 separate elements – the prep, break, and reset.  During trigger prep, you’ll need to press the trigger just short of breaking the shot.  This takes a lot of practice, and can really be the subject of a 2-3 day course (…such as the 

You all know “that guy”.  He is the Tactical Placekicker.  He is the guy that expounds all kinds of tactical advice based upon the “average”.  His entire being exists at “bad breath” distance with a bad guy inches away.  He tells of the “average” gunfight being 1-3 rounds, 1-3 feet, and over in 1-3 seconds.  He waxes poetic on all types of scenarios, and all of which fits neatly in the overhead bin of  the J frame in his pocket.  He often quotes “competition” can get you killed.  He also knocks any training as “unnecessary” that is beyond bad breath distance, involves malfunction clearing, or multiple targets.  He believes trigger control is overrated, and not really needed for the scenarios involving “Give me your wallet”!

He lurks out there.  He can’t run.  He can’t catch.  He can’t block.  He is the Tactical Placekicker.

Alright, that was tongue and cheek.  But, on a more serious note.  We all know the Placekicker.  Traini

Custom slide machining by ATEi.

After running the Pat McNamara TAPS carbine/handgun class with a Glock 17 (pictured above), I can really say that I am completely over any particular gripes I may have had with the Glocks in recent years.  With some dedication during trainup and increasing my understanding of their various mechanical issues, I can now say that I am functioning at 100% of my skill set with my Glocks.  That’s right, no performance deficit over a tricked out 1911, and no different from one of my customized M&Ps.

Reliability has always been the main attraction for the Glock family of pistols.  Design changes and quality control issues which started with the introduction of the Gen4 pistols and the concurrent production Gen3 guns really smeared the legendary record of Glock reliability.  Some guns had some profound

Happy New Year everyone!  Hope your holiday season was joyous and restful.  With each new year inevitably comes short lived resolutions for far reaching life changes, unused gym memberships, and unfulfilled promises.  I’ve got one for myself this year – train smarter!  With each lap around the sun, my body accumulates more hard miles, and I need to recognize that I need not only to train hard, but to train smart.  This will include a more focused PT plan that incorporates better recovery, and a lower round count shooting plan that emphasizes accuracy.

Our industry is driven more by widgets and the hoarding of them than the training to use them.  Whenever we post photos of new guns and gear, we get all kinds of responses.  When we post about training, it gets awful quiet.  This year, I challenge our readers to make a New Year’s resolution to TRAIN!!!  Pick a training objective and do it!  What will yours be?

Socks are an often overlooked but important piece of kit.  The importance of high quality and application specific socks cannot be overstated, whether you are military, LE, hiker, hunter, urban walker, runner/jogger, competition shooter, or stand protective post or at a workbench for extended periods.  I have been trying different socks for some 30 years.

The name THORLOs® is synonymous with good Made in The USA socks.  Made in Statesville, North Carolina, since, well, forever (and they “always will”).  They have a video history explained by the owner and founder.  I tried several other brands for daily and use-specific wear from time to time over the years, but I always came back to THORLOs®.  I find they last longer than no-name or store brand socks, have features which are activity specific, and some are designed for special needs (fatigue, military boots, neuropathy, diabetes, other painful foot c

Just prior to the Christmas holiday, I attended a 2 day TAPS (Tactical Application of Practical Shooting) class with Pat McNamara.  As with any class, I am certain that anyone planning on going has some preconceived notions of what to expect.

If you are going to the class expecting to see a former commando from our military’s top special operations unit, you will not be disappointed.  If you are going to the class to enjoy some of the wild man antics and outrageous motivational behavior from his Youtube videos, you will not be disappointed.  If you are going to the class to blast 1000 rounds a day through a negative target without accounting for your hits, you WILL be disappointed.  So now that we got that out of the way, what is the TAPS class experience?

Those who only know about Pat McNamara from his Youtube videos will probably be surprised to meet a deep thinker who is an avid student of human learning concepts.  Pat’s cla

All of us here at MSW would like to wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas!  We’ll be taking a little time off to enjoy the holidays, but will be back soon with our regularly scheduled programming.  We hope that your holiday season is full of joy and happiness!

Model: Ethereal Rose.
Photo by Shunichi Al Hayashi.

I was first introduced to the HK416 by Larry Vickers and Ken Hackathorn at SHOT Show about six or seven years ago. Back then, it was known as the “HK M4″ before Colt had the chance to call foul on the name. Since then, probably every fan of the M4 pattern carbine has heard of it, especially since the commercial version, dubbed MR556, has been released. Gun store gossip aside, do you really need one?

I’m not going to go into all the particulars as far as design differences; that has been covered pretty well over the last half decade by the gun rags and online media outlets. Suffice it to say, one of the issues that the DI guns have is a small operating window in its short barrel formats. For example, in a 10.5″ format, the gas port is necessarily very close to the end of the muzzle. The time which gas must be bled from the barrel, travel down the gas tube, and work the operating parts is extremely short, much more so than a 14.5″ or 16″ format. They can be made to work, but in extreme altitude or tem

If you are heading to a training class, it is pretty well established that you should shake out your gear, organize it, have spare parts/guns, sight in your weapons, and pull together mags and ammo.  However, what else should you be doing to get ready for the class?  After all, you are spending a bunch of hard earned money for the class tuition, travel, lodging, and time away from work and home.

Before I attend a training class, I will typically do a little research on the course and make sure I am boned up on the necessary skill sets.  For example, prior to the Viking Tactics Street Fighter class, I practiced some ambidextrous position shooting with my carbine as I knew the course would place emphasis on those skills.  Why would I do this?  Aren’t I going to be learning these skills already?  What if I practice it wrong and burn in bad habits?  These are fair questions.  Howev

A quick look on popular social media sites such as Facebook or Instagram will yield plenty of photos of highly modified modern pistols worked over by shops such as Boresight Solutions, Salient Arms, ATEi, and others. I don’t think it is debatable that the guns look damn sexy, but do these guns really need all that fancy, and expensive, work to be truly serviceable?

Take a look at the pistol above. This pistol started out as a Glock 17 RTF2 that had nothing more than aftermarket sights (10-8 Performance brass bead front and .140″ notch rear), a factory minus connector, Apex extractor, TangoDown mag catch, and a metric sh!tload of trigger presses. It was one of my favorite pistols to shoot because it was pretty accurate and extremely reliable. But when the opportunity to get some fancy machining done to it by ATEi, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.

So now the pistol’s been back a couple weeks and I’ve had the opportunity to shoot the h

I have been around every evolution of the SCAR®/CAR/MK17 (or whichever nomenclature you chose to use) since the beginning of the program. I have participated in numerous SOCOM tests, taught a block of training where we had over 70+ of them, as well as carried and employed the weapon system overseas giving me a decent amount of familiarity with the weapon. Designed to replace the EBR M1A and MK11/SR-25 weapon systems FN was chosen by NSW and SOCOM as the new 7.62 battle rifle. After over eight years of development, and numerous changes by FN driven by AAR’s from operators overseas, I believe the weapon itself is not where it needs to be… it has promise but isn’t quite there yet. One of my biggest complaints with the system is the lower. In my opinion, although while being lightweight because of the polymer material used, it isn’t durable enough for heavy use. Another one of the largest complaint from the civilian side was the accessibility and price of magazines from FN as the military contracts were soaking up the vast majority being produced.

Sometimes being serious all the time gets kinda dry. So here is a link to a video that made me laugh my pants off a few days ago. Found these guys on YouTube thanks to our friend Caleb at GunNuts.Net. Be sure to watch this one and check out the rest of the videos on the same channel. You’ll be glad you did.

Last week I shared a simple drill set for the carbine which helps to isolate and build some core skill sets.  Next up is to perform the same drill set on the support side.  Yes, mirror image of how it would normally be shot.  Why do this?  The amount of exposure from negotiating a right handed corner with the carbine on the right shoulder requires both painful contortion and significant exposure from cover.  Simply shouldering the carbine on the left side would correct all this, yet few shooters are typically able to do this with any level of skill.

The previously outlined core skill set drills are a good place to develop ambidexterity with the rifle.  Even if you do not want to start by shooting at steel at 60 yards, use a target at 7 yards and get comfortable.  Get the bulk of your reps in dry practice before hitting the range and you will make the most of your time and ammunition.

Happy to be back from overseas, I figured I really needed to catch up on some stuff I’ve been playing with. During deployment, my platoon decided to do a unit knife. Platoon knives have been something I have done in the past and have seen other units do that usually seem to go over well if there are no issues with the purchase. A little apprehensive on where to go, I was recommended Jack Stottlemire of Rustick Knives from a friend and decided to give him a call. Besides being a ex-marine (a gentle jab at Jack), Jack was awesome to do business with. Now for anyone looking to do a unit order, sometimes its just easier to make a executive decision. Just a gentle recommendation because getting twenty operators to make a decision on something is next to impossible. So after my best efforts of getting a agreement, and failing, I made a executive decision and placed an order.

Jack retired as a Sergeant Major in Special Operations after twenty six years in the US Army and Marine Corps. He is the man behind the knives and uses all his military experience