Gear

Sometimes a box is just a box. You put your junk in it and never think twice. Sometimes a box needs to be something more. Plano, the economical end of storage cases, is making a play at that next level of protection, but staying true to their customers’ expectations about pricing. On the high end [...]

You probably know Shoot-N-C. Most shooters do. Most varieties use a black paint over a yellow background. The adhesion of the black on the yellow is just strong enough to keep it from rubbing off easily. When a bullet strikes the target, the impact knocks a hole in the paper and knocks off a ring of the black paint surrounding that hole, exposing the yellow beneath it. This all may seem fairly obvious, but it is some high-tech material science we too often take completely for granted.

Shot timers aren’t the sexiest addition to your shooting gear. Most are bulky, a bit boxy even. If you’re not a serious competitor, using a timer might even seem a bit pretentious, like you think there is something that needs to be timed. Yet a timer is one piece of gear that marks you as a serious shooter. A good timer implies that you’re serious about competition and serious about improving your speed. And now, thanks to the Shotmaxx from Double-Alpha Academy (DAA), the shot timer has gotten more functional, more stylish and a whole lot smaller.

A few weeks back, I walked into my gunsmith’s shop to have him do some work on a rifle. I knew he was partial to his Springfield XDS, and I’ve never seen him without a gun on him, ever, but I didn’t expect to see the pistol just stuck in his waistband. In all fairness, his shop is in his basement, and he was practicing home carry, which we highly endorse, but the pistol tucked into his waistband—without a holster—that just seemed so…relaxed.

I’m a holster snob. I’ve got my favorite makers, favorite styles, preferred materials. I’ll try anything out, but when it comes down to concealed carry, I’m not going to do experiments on behalf of any product review. So know that I take this seriously. When I first saw a Sticky Holster, I wasn’t terribly enthusiastic. It seemed too relaxed for my taste. I’m not one to tuck a pistol in my waistband, even at home, and that’s what the Sticky Holster is—a holster you tuck into your waistband.

I am not a bench rest shooter. I don’t have the patience for that aspect of shooting sports. But I need a shooting bench from time to time, especially when reviewing guns and getting rifles ready for hunting season. Long story short, I needed a small portable bench, and I didn’t want to spend more [...]

The concept of “match ammo” surprises some people. Guns go bang and the bullet makes a hole in whatever the gun is pointed at, right? Yes, and while almost all ammo will function and do some damage downrange, there is a huge variation to how precisely the ammo is manufactured. You can set the automated ammo machines for 5 rounds a minute or 500 rounds per minute. But at 500 rounds per minute, the precision of the ammo sharply declines. It takes time to make sure that powder is measured precisely, that primers are seated corrected, and that bullets are inserted and secured evenly. Handloaders know this, because they do all of these steps one at a time, when making “match quality” ammo, but with the high price of ammo these days, it has become profitable for more and more new manufacturers to get into the game of match ammo and produce some really amazing results.

AR-15 Monopod https://armonopod.com/ This week I had the opportunity to test a really nifty product for an extremely small niche in the firearms accessory market. There is a specific type of rear sling loop made for the AR-15 A2 type buttstock. It is steel, and bolts on at a specific angle. And because the loop [...]

If you’ve ever done any traveling with guns, even if it is just to the local range, I’m sure you’ve had to deal with storing them. It isn’t always graceful. The deeper I get in the firearms world, the more I travel long distances with guns. And I’m way past the days of wrapping them in old t-shirts and stuffing them in a backpack. A good gun case will make all the difference, but many come with lousy interiors that do a mediocre job of protecting guns. Some cases come with sliced and diced foam that you can pick into an approximate shape, but they get ugly, fast. So where do you go for good, 100% customized foam? MyCaseBuilder.com.

Once you have decided on a handgun, the next real consideration has to be a holster. Many gun stores will carry some standards in leather, nylon and Kydex, but it can be hard to determine what will work for you, exactly the way you want. Most of the store bought models I’ve ever used were good enough, but not perfect. After a lot of trial and error, I’ve formed my opinions. I know exactly what I want, and exactly who makes it. Multi Holsters, my go to for daily carry holsters, offers a wide variety of options and the attention to detail that I expect from something this important.