Obama is so full of it, it would be hilarious if it wasn’t for the fact that he was our President.
His asinine remark about Horses and Bayonets reminded me of a few things. We still use Horses in the Army. A lot of them. Facebook is full of pictures of US Soldiers on Horses in the War Zone. Because nothing is better for rugged mountain patrols than horses.
The latest issue of Guns Magazine (December 2012) page 33, shows an advertisement for US PALM. In this ad it shows a rugged looking cowboy with three grunts behind him, all on horseback. The Cowboy is the senior trainer for the Arizona Cowboy College.
I had the chance to do a mounted patrol in Arizona, in the mountains above Fort Huachuca.
This patrol didn’t end well for me as the horse put me into a patch of cactus, but that’s beside the point. Horses are still a part of the military and will always be so as long as there are Horses.
My favorite part of Boot Camp was the Bayonet Training… after of course the Rifle Training. I loved the aggressiveness. I loved the Pugil Stick work. We all gathered around a circle, two fighters got in the ring and used pugil sticks to beat the piss out of each other. I was pretty good at it. I defeated a couple guys pretty easily, not because I was so awesome, but they just kinda sucked. Well the DS got this big grin on his face, took off his hat and shirt, and was handed a pugil stick. He told me to give him my best shot. A couple seconds later I had landed one on him. He stopped, took a step back and gave me this sickening smile that I will never forget and continues to haunt my nightmares. .. he then blasted me in an uppercut with the pugil stick so hard that it lifted me off my feet and landed me half out of the ring. I was knocked out for a few seconds.
The DS actually gave me a hand up, dusted me off, asked if I was okay. I said I was fine and that I wanted another round. DS patted me on my back, gave me a complement, and declined kicking my ass again. That night after chow the DS said to me that he was surprised I had actually landed a blow on him as no Recruit had ever done that before. It was barely a tap. He said that had it been a real bayonet, I’d have opened up his jugular and he he would have been dead. I said, yeah, but you would have died after my decapitated head stopped rolling around on the ground. He actually laughed.
In the field I only actually used my bayonet once. And that was to spear my rifle into the ground so I could relieve myself.
The US Marines though, those cats take the bayonet a lot more seriously. Their training is far more intensive.
I would not want the US Military to ever drop the bayonet as a weapon. It’s old school, sure, but can be very effective in the hands of a man that is trained and motivated.
Nice Purse.
Wife and I stopped at SMITH’s the other night. I noticed a guy wearing a “Tactical Bag”. Didn’t think much of it. I watched this guy walk around, purse over his shoulder. He’d talk on his phone, put it back in. Take out a widget, do something with it, then put it back in his purse, while pushing a shopping cart just like all the other women in the store.
This biker dude walks up to the ManPurse Packer and I just happened to be within earshot, as I was selecting bacon and the Purse Man was checking out the Sausages.
“Nice Purse.” The Biker said.
“It’s not a purse!” The Purse Guy said, indignantly. “It’s a Maximum Expedition Tactical Load bearing Assault Recon Bag!”
“Yeah? Well whatever the hell you call it, it’s still a fucking brown purse, bitch.” Then he walked away.
I was trying not to laugh as the Purse Guy just stood there stammering like his whole world was crushed. I picked up the bacon I wanted and walked past him heading out of the damage zone. He looked at me and saw that I was still trying not to laugh.
“It’s not a purse.” He said, defiantly.
I kept walking but said over my shoulder, “None of my business, pal. Whatever makes you feel butch.”
I saw the guy yesterday. He didn’t have the big with him.
Packing my Glock 22
Last couple days I have been packing my Glock 22. This is the $200 dollar Rescue Glock that I saved and rebuilt. I have to say that it’s becoming one of my favorite handguns. The chop-job I gave it, cutting it down to G23 size was a big help. The stippling job also helped. It fits remarkably well in my hand.
But I think what makes it carry so well though… is the holster.
Jason from Consealment Solutions put a rig together for me that I just love.
I was going to write up a review here… but it wouldn’t to it justice. I’m going to have to show you. Video Review is coming.
Your Gun Store Sucks.
Big Trouble in Little China
One of my favorite fun flicks.
For that reason, I found this video clip to be hilarious. If you’ve not seen BTILC, you are wrong. You have to get that fixed ASAP.
Rethinking the AR-15 for Home Defense.
I’ve totally sidelined all my “Combat Rifles” for Home Defense use. Specifically the 5.56mm guns. See, the AR-15 does great for Home Defense in many aspects. They are easy to use, have precision accuracy, and have a great capacity. They should be perfect for Home Defense, right?
Not really.
The AR-15 has one dramatic problem. They are hella loud. The High pressure, Supersonic Crack, of the AR-15’s Report is severely damaging to human ears. Even Ogre ears.
Last time I took one of my boys out shooting, I provided him with Ear Pro and Eye Pro. We were having fun shooting, and he’s a good Shooter. Well he loaded up an AR-15 and forgot to put his Ear Pro back in after taking them out for some unknown reason. (No, that’s his reason… “I don’t know”.) I wasn’t looking as I was loading a magazine and normally he is a cautious shooter and does it right. Well, he cracked off a shot. Now, we were outside, well away from structures that would reflect sound waves. But the rifle was still so loud that it hurt his ears pretty badly. 2 Weeks later, he still had signs that his hearing took some damage. Unfortunately with Hearing, there is nothing you can do. What’s done is done.
Imagine how this could have gone down if we were in an Indoor shooting range. He could have been made deaf from the AR’s blast.
Imagine in an emergency situation in the home… Bad Guy makes a threat. You suddenly grab your AR and let him have it. 5, 6, 12 rounds into the Goblin. Inside your house. Now you and your wife and all your kids are all completely deaf thanks to the AR-15 and thanks to the Pain In The Ass and Expensive Restrictions on Suppressors. Sure, the Goblin is no longer a threat… but now all of you are going to suffer from this the rest of your lives.
Sure, a Home Defense Shotgun is Loud – but it’s not that sharp, eardrum shattering crack of a 5.56mm Carbine. Hell, even my .45-70 Thumper isn’t that loud. Even pistol caliber carbines are a great option compared to the AR-15.
Another bad choice for HD duty is the .357 Magnum. An ungodly loud handgun that is unpleasant to fire with earpro in an indoor range… Devastating to your hearing when fired indoors unprotected.
The best weapon ever invented for Home Defense remains the Tactical Shotgun. Probably the most effective and least damaging to one’s hearing for weapons running Un-Suppressed. And you can get a good shotgun for a few hundred bucks. Or you could use that Thousand Dollar AR, with that 800 Dollar Can and that 200 Dollar Tax Stamp… Couple Hundred bucks vs A Couple Grand. You chose. But ask yourself this… Is that 2 Grand worth of rifle going to do a better job of home defense than the Shotgun?
Rethinking the Novak Sights.
Nov 30th 1999, I posted a thought on TheFiringLine.com that I titled “Rethinking the Novak Sights”.
You can check out that thread here. It’s an interesting read. And some of the ideas that were put out there are only starting to really catch on. But more on that in a moment.
Back then the Novaks were taking the gun community by storm and these things were being installed on everything. I even remember seeing a Remington 870 with a Novak Rear Sight installed. Much like today, I think it’s popularity was due to the fact that while it wasn’t actually any better, the Novaks looked new and cool and to show that you were Switched On, you had to have them. Such things are still going on in the firearms community today, but probably even more so as the Internet has become universal and pop culture spreads through it faster than the Zombie Virus.
The problem that I mentioned in the original post wasn’t ever really addressed for years. Novaks continued their Cool Guy swagger through the gun industry even still. The M&P Pistols, still essentially brand new, came out with Novak Style sights… or Ramp Sights as some call them. Some guys would cut a flat face on the Ramp portion to try to solve the problem… taking a more expensive sight and then cutting on it to try to help improve the poor design. Some guys went back to the normal flat faced sights made popular by Trijicon, as found on Glocks and other pistols. These are better than Ramp Sights by far, but are still less than Ideal.
Rob Pincus though… he’s actually done something that addresses the issue of One Hand Manipulation. After all these years – the problem has been solved.
The CLAW.
Outstanding. Problem solved. I like the wide notch rear sight, I like the fact that it can hook solid and lets you jack that slide with authority. BRAVO.
I am going to be ordering these sights as soon as I can free up some funds. I have 3 Glocks I want these on.
Back to the odd fixes… Skateboard Tape on your gun. Back at the time of that original posting, I had only heard of people using SBT on their guns, normally around the Grip. This guy that mentioned the tape actually on the slide. I have since seen it a few times… but more recently I am seeing it more and more on guns. The concept of adding grip has really taken off. I’ve seen SBT on the sides, top, and at the front of the slides on just about every sort of serious use pistol. I’ve even seen it on some less than serious guns… such as a Hi-Point. I’ve never put any on my guns, but I am considering trying it on my Glock 23.
I.C.E. & The Broadsword
Thanks Rob.
The gun Rob evaluated is our Broadsword rifle with an 18″ barrel. For details on how you can get one of your own, check out CRUSADERWEAPONRY.com. Contact Joe for a Quote on a built to your specifications.
Fluke Related?
Sandra Fluke, the 30 year old college slut that wants you to pay all of her birth control…
Is it just me, or does she look familiar?
The Book Signing
The book signing was fun. Talked to some interesting people, signed some books. According to Hastings Book Store, I am Famous and Renowned.
A couple things made this day special for me. One, was that my brother came up and hung out with me during the signing. The other was that my wife came out with me and shared this special day with me.
One of the things we discovered together… or Re-Discovered together, is the Back Way to Ogden. We drove Highway 40 to Heber, as usual. Then north to connect to I-80. Normally we would turn West and hit SLC. This time, we turned East and headed towards Wyoming… We hit the interchange of Highway 84 I think it was, and this took us pretty much straight up to Ogden, bypassing the Worst Traffic In The World, and shaving off about 45 Minutes.
What was neat about this route was that it is MADE FOR MOTORCYCLES and I am determined to RIDE this Route as soon as I can as it was spectacular. Lots of twists and curves and some gorgeous scenery… it has become one of my favorite roads.
As a bonus, it also passes through Morgan, UT. For those not familiar with Morgan, take a good close look at the barrel of your Browning Firearm.
I think we need to organize a Group Ride from Heber City to Morgan, so we can pay homage to Browning.