Monthly Archives: April 2019

Weapons

BlasTech E-11

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The E-11 Blaster Rifle is one of the most famous rifles throughout several galaxies, as it’s been the standard issue for the Empire for several decades. But the real question is, just how good is it?

As we all know, MilSpec certainly isn’t a guarantee for quality, but simply as the establishment of minimum standards. And with the E-11 being in production under license on less than a dozen worlds even Imperial MilSpec is a floating goal. We’ve seen some problems with power-pack compatibility in some cases. But that doesn’t mean there’s a problem with the design because of that. That’s more of a quality control issue. Most of the time though, what we see from the E-11 series, is that they are extremely robust weapons with reliability like a solar cycle. You pull the trigger with a charged power-pack, and the E-11 will fire. Sometimes, even when the safety was on. This was a known defect, Safety Malfunctions have been all too common and usually blamed as a Training Issue, which I agree due to most Stormtroopers lack of weapons training due to budget cuts for Death Star projects, and new Troopers lack familiarity with the use of the weapons while in their Hard Armor uniforms.

The standard short power-pack, or “Shorty Pack” as the Stormtroopers are prone to call them, offers 200 full power shots on the Lethal setting, and 300 on the Stun setting, and about 600 on the Sting setting. The bigger “Bully Pack” ups that capacity for 500 full power Lethal shots. This is enough to keep you in the fight with any Rebel Scum you come across. And honestly, if you are having to reload, your tactics suck.

The Rifle is most often carried with the stock folded for ease of handling, transportation, and storage. But the stock can unfold for greater stability and accuracy if desired. The E-11 has been taken to task about accuracy concerns, but this is once again a training issue instead of a firearm issue. Stormtroopers, who use the E-11 the most, just about never extend the stock or even make use of the electro-optical gunsight, which offers IR/UV/Thermal targeting features. But other Imperial forces do, and they have no problem bullseyeing their targets out to the 500 meter max effective range.

Max Effective Range differs depending on the operational atmospheric environment. Extreme cold or humidity can shorten the max effective range to 300 meters. Other versions of the E-11 can extend the range out to 1200 meters, but they use a completely different powerpack that’s not compatible with standard issue rifles.

Really, the E-11 is a fantastic Blaster, and certainly fitting for all of our Imperial forces needing a rugged weapon. But like any weapon, it’s only as good as the Troops that use it. It’s our suggestion that improved training standards should be the priority over any weapon upgrade program.

Weapons

HK’s HK45 Tactical

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One thing I like about the HK HK45, is that it’s actually a .45 Auto caliber handgun. Unlike Glock’s G45, which is a 9mm. Small details, but with the HK, the small details add up. Outside of 1911’s, the HK45 is one of the very best looking .45 caliber handguns on the planet. And one of the best feeling handguns in the hand. As I said before, it’s in the small details.

The newer HK45 Tacticals are coming with tall suppressor sights. But I like these lower profile night sights that have a nice hook to help with one handed slide manipulations. It’s Ambi-Friendly as you can see with the wrong side slide release lever and the magazine release lever. It has, of course, the expected frame rail and the extended, threaded barrel.

The full sized grip frame allows for a full 10 round magazine capacity. The but it also gives you some very elegant contouring for an amazing feel in the hand. And to make sure it’s good in more than the average hands, the back strap is changeable. The muzzle end has some nice lines to it as well. Gone is the monolithic flat faced of the USP series. The beveling doesn’t just look nice, but it also helps reholstering. I like the fatter magazine floor plates that help in a fast reload in making sure the mag is slapped all the way in and locks properly.

At 31.2 ounces, the HK45 isn’t the lightest of handguns, but it’s not a heavy one either. It balances well in the hand, and with a 1911-like grip angle, it points naturally. The trigger is smooth, and the break is crisp. I do appreciate the DA/SA trigger system. You can carry it cocked & locked, or you can decock it into DA mode, where it’s nice and safe and you won’t have anyone tapping your shoulder, “You’re Hammer is cocked.” I hate that. The 5.2″ Barrel is long enough to give you a good long sight radius. These little details add up to a comfortable handgun that is very accurate and comfortable to shoot. The recoil is cushy.

Weapons

ESEE AvISPA

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Many of you are well familiar with the Ontario RAT 1 & RAT 2 knives. Great hard working value grade folders, designed by Randall’s Adventure Training… hence the name. I’ve reviewed the RAT 1 before. And it’s a great knife for the money. But now there’s another sister knife. The Avispa. ESEE isn’t working with Ontario anymore, which is fine. They are busy making their own knives. ESEE is also busy building a huge following for their hard working, get it done blades.

There’s some distinct differences between the RATs and the Avispas. First and foremost is that the Avispas are Frame Locks and not Liner Locks. The other is that the blade shape is more of a drop point rather than the RAT’s more clip point’ish style blade. Other than that, you can see and feel the same DNA in the designs.

The blade steel is “D2”, which is great. It’s certainly not the end all be all of blade steels, but it’s a very tough material that holds up well and takes a good edge without requiring diamonds to sharpen. The frame lock system is solid and smooth. You can easily flick the blade open, and it locks open with a snap.

The best thing about these knives are the price. They are cheap enough you can buy a couple and keep them in convenient locations. Or just put one in your EDC rotation. I think these are the better knives than the RAT’s but I do like the RAT’s blade profile better due to the sharper point at the tip. But I think overall the Avispa is the better knife. And right now, you can get these on Amazon for less than 35 bucks. $35 Bucks! That’s a lot of knife for the money. Enough to make one reconsider the actual practical value of knives costing 4 times as much as not as fond of hard work.

Weapons

Kriss Vector pistol

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One of the more strange arms out there on the market is the Vector series of firearms by an outfit called Kriss USA. The claim to fame is the unique action which does not reciprocate laterally like normal. No, the Vector does things different. The bolt cycles down at a curving angle with the idea that it reduces the felt recoil. Originally available in .45 Auto and now with the option of 9mm. As odd as it is, I have to admit, it does seem to work. Shooting the .45 auto version is a riot. The recoil is light. And the gun is rather accurate.

You can get the Vector as a Pistol, as shown. Or as a Carbine with a 16″ Barrel and a stock. Then if you like, there is the SBR versions you can also get if you have the jingle.

The Vector has a distinctive look to it. What I like best about it, is that it uses common Glock magazines. I love that fact. What I don’t like about it though… Is the company Kriss USA themselves. See, let me explain why. When I was the Retail Manager for Blackstone Shooting Sports, I had a few of these Vectors in inventory. One of them was Folding Stock version, and the other was a Fixed Stock version. The problem lies in the fact that they look very very similar. So when a Customer picked up the Fixed stock version and tried to fold it. Oh, it folded. But it wouldn’t lock in the unfolded position again. Because the stock was now broken. Kriss offered no help in fixing this problem and I had to pay $80 for the part to fix it. This was highly irritating to me. See, I watched the customer do this. He didn’t put any effort into folding it. The busted part just snapped like over-crisp bacon. This shouldn’t have happened. The part was faulty to begin with.

I like the fact that you can put whatever sights and optics on top. And the fact that the gun seems to function with just about everything that says “.45Auto” on the ammo box. And with a gun like this, coming with a threaded barrel is nice too. You can go with a Suppressor or other Muzzle Device as you see fit.

From the above photo, you can see that the ejection port is big enough you can eject soda cans out of it. That’s a plus for reliability.

The downside to it is that the Vector is one overly complicated piece of hardware. Inside the external housing, everything ties into a thin sub-frame that seems a bit too delicate, and there are far too many little pins that connect everything. The bolt mechanism is also complicated. Very complicated. And it doesn’t benefit from normal bolt momentum as the action is designed to reduce that inertial energy. The other downside is the price. The above pistol was about $1500 USD. Now they come with Arm Braces, which is an improvement but raises the price by at least 100 bucks.

So being Overly Priced and Overly Complicated… I’m not a fan of the Vector. Honestly, I’d rather buy a Ruger Police Carbine, and save that $1000 price difference on ammo, optics, magazines, or a suppressor for that.

Weapons

FN Five-seveN

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FN’s Five-seveN pistol is one strange handgun. The exterior of the pistol is all polymer, including the slide. The gun is very light with a balance that makes it feel like some sort of toy. The safety strange too, like an AR-15’s safety, but reversed. The 5.7x28mm cartridge it fires is also odd, like a little bottle-necked rifle cartridge.

But as strange as it is, the gun works very well. It’s accurate and reliable. And it hits like a .22 Magnum from a rifle. Which is impressive from a handgun. And with a full 20 rounds in the magazine, that’s a good amount of firepower on tap. And with the proper ammo selection, it’s armor piercing.

The gun is odd feeling in the hand. The long narrow profile of the grip frame is different. It’s 1911 Government Model in size, so it points well, and handles the recoil quite well too. What recoil there is. It’s low. And the trigger is different too. But it’s not bad. Not bad at all. But the oddities all mix together into something unique and pretty damn cool. Making hits with the Five-seveN is easy.

If there is any downside to the Five-seveN, its that it’s $1,435.00 MSRP makes it an expensive novelty with a proprietary cartridge that needs to be chambered in a small light bolt action rifle that would then equal a .22 Hornet. Instead of a nice little bolty, the option is the FN P90 series of carbines which is even stranger than this pistol. Which is pretty dang good. The options for holsters and ammo is limited, but they’re out there. Overall, I like these weird little pistols and shooting them is a blast.

Weapons

Ruger’s LCRX

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Some years ago, Ruger took a risk and did something very different. They made a Revolver out of Plastic. This was a bold move, and a big risk. Revolvers tend to be something for Traditionalists, and plastic guns and Traditionalists don’t really go together. When I first saw the little snub-nosed LCR, I was more than skeptical. Never took much interest in them. For one, the LCR is Hammerless and I just don’t really dig that. And at the time I wasn’t all that keen on Ruger either. And then Ruger did something that caused me to raise an eyebrow. They put a hammer on it, and took the barrel out to 3″. They called it the LCRx.

Now the gun has been on the market for a few years, and they still sell fairly well… So I thought I’d take another look at the LCRX and see how it’s held up. The X Factor of the longer barrel and hammer was really all it needed for me. This pretty much makes the gun the same size as my SP101 .357 Magnum. The big difference though is the LCRx is like half the weight of the SP101. It’s only 15.7 Ounces. For a Revolver that’s chambered and rated for .38 Special +P, that’s a feather. That’s nothing. You can also get it in .357 Magnum, .22 Magnum, .327 Federal, .22LR, and 9mm. That’s some good variety.

At the Range I worked some time ago, we had an LCRx available to rent for those that wanted to try it out. I shot it on a few occasions and even considered buying one myself before deciding to get the SP101 because I liked the weight when firing hot loads. Not that the LCRx couldn’t handle it. It is a Ruger after all. That means it’s built tough. It’s a clever design they have here. Being a polymer frame means they had to get a little creative in the architecture to make it work. And it works very well. It’s more than accurate enough for most anyone looking for a defensive gun. That said, and 25, I could cover my shot group with my hand. Even though it’s light in heft, the gun handles recoil surprisingly well. But better yet, you have an easier time packing it all day long if you chose to make it your EDC gun.

The action is certainly smooth enough to function well, as expected. But what’s not expected is just how easy this gun is to live with. Being as light as it is, and familiar in function to other Ruger revolvers, there is nothing alien about the Plastic Revolver here. Even if it looks kinda different and not what we’re used to seeing. One thing that stands out is the Cylinder. It’s sculpted drastically to take as much weight out of it as possible. Not all of the gun is plastic of course. The frames are made from a highgrade aluminum and the magnum versions are steel. Really the firecontrol house is polymer, and we know this isn’t a problem at all considering the majority of new guns these days are all made of polymer. This is just a novel application of that technology into someplace you don’t expect to see it.

Overall, I think the LCRx is a cool little gun. It might not be on your radar, and it might be something you’ve overlooked. But it’s well worth your time to give it some consideration. It would make for a great Concealed EDC Gun for someone wanting something different, or for someone having a tougher time with automatics.

You know, I’d actually love to see Ruger take the SP101 and use a Cylinder like this one it and make something kind of a hybrid. An SP101X.