Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.
Federal’s #1 Buck Is Back
When this load was originally introduced, it produced a much tighter pattern. It will still likely be a great home defense load.
Thunderstick Summit After Action Report
Speaking of shotguns, read Daniel’s review of the Thunderstick Summit. He was a most excellent AI for the weekend and helped keep our classes safe and running smoothly. Next year’s summit will be held in Provo, Utah. I will post a notice on my site when registration opens.
Auto Pistol And Continuity Of Fire
Clint Smith’s thoughts about reloads.
Best Drills For An Armed Citizen – FAST drill
Have you shot the FAST drill?
I realize that almost all of the drills I post in these articles are handgun drills. What if you want to improve your rifle shooting abilities? Here is a modified “El Presidente” drill designed to be shot with a lever action rifle.
Why Children Need Risk, Fear, and Excitement in Play
For my readers who are parents.
Revolver Malfunction Saves Young Man’s Life
Sometimes it’s just your time. And yes, revolvers sometimes malfunction. I cover how to handle situations like this in my extreme close quarters gunfighting classes.
THE DECISION TO DEFEND ONESELF
“Having a defensive mindset is a life choice. Defending oneself, their families, etc. starts with the decision to be mentally, emotionally, and physically prepared and proficient to the threats that we can be faced with at a moment’s notice.”
Gun Curious: A Liberal Professor’s Surprising Journey Inside America’s Gun Culture
What I’m reading…
Dr. Yamane graciously sent me a pre-release copy of his book. If you are interested in the topic, please sign up for a pre-order. Pr-orders drive a lot of placement on Amazon and signal to the publisher how many books to initially print.
Editor’s Notebook: Courage
“I think a lot of us have that “better self” and don’t always recognize it. As the discussion went on, the issue of post violent event trauma or PTSD, along with the observation that it seems to dwell in those suddenly dropped into a life-threatening situation. For those who voluntarily walk into danger, Murray noted, it appears less common.”
How to Practice Your Drawstroke
A good practice plan for improving your drawstroke. You might also like Lucky Gunner’s most recent video/article Is 5.7x28mm Just Overpriced .22 Magnum? [Part 2].
MARCH NEWSLETTER
You should read and subscribe to the monthly Rangemaster newsletter.
How To Spot A Fake: Tourniquets
Very important information.
Facts Don’t Change People’s Minds. Here’s What Does
If you read one thing today, make it this article.
Facts play a very small role in an emotional argument. The sooner we realize this curious state of affairs, the more likely we will be to affect legitimate change. Criticizing the “other side” isn’t the answer. Neither is being stuck in our own echo chamber.
“The moment you belittle the mind for believing in something, you’ve lost the battle. At that point, the mind will dig in rather than give in. Once you’ve equated someone’s beliefs with idiocracy, changing that person’s mind will require nothing short of an admission that they are unintelligent. And that’s an admission that most minds aren’t willing to make.”
On the same topic, you might also like The “Other Side” Is Not Dumb.
“A dare for the next time you’re in discussion with someone you disagree with: Don’t try to “win.” Don’t try to “convince” anyone of your viewpoint. Don’t score points by mocking them to your peers. Instead try to “lose.” Hear them out. Ask them to convince you and mean it.”
IN DEFENSE OF THE BRIEF POST-INCIDENT STATEMENT
“It’s sad that people want simple answers to complicated questions. That never seems to work out well. It’s becoming a TL/DR world: “too long, didn’t read.” It results in people parroting bumper sticker advice that simply doesn’t work well in complicated, high stakes situations.”
“Next Generation of J-Frames”
I’m happy to say that I have both the .32 and the .38 on order. I haven’t been this excited about a new gun in a long while. For more info on these revolvers, check out Michael Bane’s podcast this week.
While you are pondering J-frame carry, read DB’s The “Why” of Pocket Carry and subscribe to American Fighting Revolver.
The Average Civilian Pistol Permit Holder Is Better With Their Weapons Than Most Cops.
I’d have to disagree with this one. I’ve been vocally critical of the lack of police training for more than two decades. With that said, the “average” cop is a significantly better shooter than the “average” CCW carrier.
The problem is that most of you reading this article would not be considered “average,” no matter if you are a cop or a CCW carrier. All in all, an active recreational shooter who shoots a couple hundred rounds a month and occasionally attends a shooting class is probably more skilled than the average cop who is not a gun enthusiast.
The real issue is that the “average” CCW carrier has little to no formal firearms training. Some states don’t have a training requirement for a CCW license. I believe some of the most restrictive states in the country only require a mazimum of eight hours of training to get a CCW permit.
According to research from Karl Rehn, fewer than 1% of CCW carriers ever take a gun training class beyond their CCW cert. So the “average” CCW carrier might have a grand total of fewer than eight hours of formal firearms instruction.
Depending on the state, police academy firearms training requirements for cops tend to be somewhere between 60 and 100 hours of initial training. That’s far in excess of what most CCW carriers will ever do.
There are a lot of cops who can’t shoot well. But as a whole, I’d bet on the guy with 80 hours of gun training over the guy with only eight hours of gun training.
Read more of my thoughts on the topic at Are Cops Good Shooters? You may also like Police Marksmanship: How do you stack up?
More anti-gun groups fabricating mass-shooting data
Why there are lots of different answers to the question of how many mass shootings happen each year in the United States. For even more confusion, read What Crime Stats Fail to Show.
Adapting Self Defense to Wheelchair Use
I took a laser sighted pistol instructor course from Clyde Caceres more than 20 years ago. Clyde suffered a stroke last July and is confined to a wheelchair. In this ACLDN interview, Clyde discusses the impact being in a chair has made on his self defense choices. It’s an amazing interview. I hope to be as resilient as Clyde if I am struck with a similar malady.
Gila Hayes interviewed me on the subject of travel safety yesterday morning. Look for my interview to be in the ACLDN newsletter next month.
Check Your Reality
“Never stop questioning, never stop thinking, never stop applying common sense. Never stop looking for the little things that don’t look right. Set aside the “me first” attitude and hubris that is so prevalent in Western culture today and think bigger picture. And if you don’t have common sense, try to find some. Your life will be a lot better for it.”
Modifying A TDI Knife with Tek Lok
The Ka-Bar TDI knife is a very affordable option for a small centerline-carried fixed blade. It’s the fixed blade knife that I use in all my classes and carry myself. Occasionally, I see complaints about the sheath’s belt clip. Here’s how to retrofit a Tek-Lok onto the sheath to make it more secure. You can also use this method if you would prefer to carry the knife horizontally instead of vertically.
The knife is unbeatable for less than $50 on Amazon.
Lessons Learned, Forgotten, And Ignored
“We get so overwhelmed handling day-to-day tasks that we don’t take the time to learn important lessons and make changes. Is your agency well-prepared for an active shooter in a school? Sadly, there’s an abundance of lessons to be learned from agencies who thought they were ready but weren’t. Will you join that club or benefit from their example?”
Pay No Attention to Internet Caliber Wars and ‘Stopping Power’ Debates
Dave Spaulding talks “handgun stopping power.”
Police Release Multiple Videos From Lakewood
Speaking of active killers, I finally watched the surveillance and body camera footage of the Feb 11 Lakewood church shooting. I would encourage all my cop and church security friends to do so as well.
Media reports that off duty uniformed cops working security there quickly neutralized the shooter. Reality looks a bit different.
Horrible crossfire and downrange problem issues, poor cornering, nervous fiddling with a gun, one cop hiding in a doorway unsure what to do, and officers approaching a downed suspect who said she had a bomb are all evident. We need to do better.
Some of the above links (from Amazon.com) are affiliate links. If you purchase these items, I get a small percentage of the sale at no extra cost to you.
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