GunsAmerica Blog Product Reviews – Accessories and Gun Related items

With a noise-reduction rating of 24 dB, 50 dB of power to amplify range commands up to nine times their original level and compression circuitry, at $300 the Walker’s Game Ear Elite Power Muffs Digital Quads seem to have everything it takes to be the last hearing protection you’ll ever purchase. But will its polymer frames hold up rugged use?

When GunsAmerica ran a review of the readily available (but discontinued) Blackhawk Xiphos NT Night-Ops weaponlight, the company sent an e-mail indicating an all-new version was going to be available soon, and offered to provide one of the first for testing. The earlier model works extremely well, but several retailers carrying it still claim the rail-mounted light is waterproof to 10 meters, despite the fact it quit working after 60 minutes in a glass of water during our testing. The new Xiphos NTX Night-Ops, however, survived the same “water torture” test when it arrived, despite its billing as only water resistant to 10 meters.

The nightstand has always been the default position for an after-hours home-defense handgun, but it can be less than ideal. Parents may be concerned that a young child will wake up in the night, wander into the room undetected and discover it. And in the case of a home invasion, a sleeping spouse or adjacent rooms make it a real challenge to keep the gun pointed in a safe direction as you bring it into play.

Even if you’re only driving to a nearby destination, there’s no reason to risk your long-term investments on a bargain-basement rifle case. There are some great deals out there, but if you value your firearms and gear, a good case for travel is the least expensive “insurance” you can buy. Pick the right one and it will pay dividends for years.

If you think the only advantages to a gun-mounted laser aiming system are the confidence it inspires and intimidation factor when you paint the perp, then you’re sorely in need of a free copy of Crimson Trace’s “The Laser’s Edge” DVD. Sit down for 40 minutes and you’ll see how any laser’s instant feedback can be used to improve trigger control, maximize your safety if detaining a criminal until authorities arrive, and much more.

Yes, the company’s products are showcased, and you’ll also receive a Crimson Trace catalog with the DVD, but this is anything but pure marketing hype. A panel of six of the nation’s foremost firearms experts was assembled to discuss and, better yet, show viewers exactly how to use handgun-mounted laser systems to improve their self-defense skills.

If you’re a gun enthusiast, odds are good you’ve either used or are using Hoppe’s No. 9 Solvent, but did you know it’s considered a “hazmat” material? You can’t send it airmail, probably one of the reasons Hoppe’s No. 9 Synthetic Blend was introduced in January, billed by the company as a non-flammable, polymer-friendly and biodegradable version.

The tactical flashlight market is fiercely competitive, and although I haven’t inquired as to why the Xiphos NT Night-Ops is no longer listed on its website, I do know Blackhawk has a policy of producing the very best, or the SKU goes away. I surmise with the huge number of companies now offering chip-driven tactical flashlights, this may have been a strategic withdrawal.

Scope alignment is something that most of us take for granted. If you don’t plan to shoot a rifle at more than 100 yards or so, it’s not such a big deal, but at long distances it can make a big difference to make sure that your scope reticle is perfectly aligned with gravity. Gravity pulls straight down for the most part (Coriolis effect is far outside our purview of this article), and your drop calculations are only going to work straight down from the bore axis if your scope reticle is perfectly straight up and down and perpendicular to your bore axis. At 300 plus yards, if your reticle isn’t perfectly aligned, your shots are going to hook somewhat, like a golfball, from where you think they are going to go. That is the purpose of this “Professional Reticle Leveling System” from Wheeler Engineering. It gives you two levels that reference each other to your bore axis and gravity, so you can make sure that your scope is aligned to the exact same shooting plane as your bore. If you have invested a lot into an extremely precision made and accurate rifle, this MSRP $54.99 kit is a cheap insurance policy to make sure that your scope is lined up properly for long range and extreme long range shooting.

Case trimming isn’t as complicated as most people make it out to be. The problem is that simple, beginner trimmers are difficult to use, and they give trimming a bad name. If you reload necked rifle cases or plan to reload necked rifle cases, the Hornady Lock-N-Load Case Prep Center, MSRP $531, street price considerably less, makes trimming your cases a lot easier. The Case Prep Center addresses all of the issues that you find when trying to produce ammo in bulk while using a bench mounted, hand crank trimmer. It also includes everything you really need for case prep all in one motorized package, in addition to the actual trimmer. If you aren’t yet a handloader/reloader, check out our introduction to handloading by Scott Meyer. It explains the basics of handloading/reloading, including the dynamics of why you have to trim your cases. If you load only straight wall pistol cases you don’t have to worry about trimming, but if you load, or plan to load, necked rifle cases, trimming is almost always required at some point.