TheWombat

Focus guys! This is not Grand Design... :-) TheWombat

A quick visit to RTSP today to try some HollowPoints (Speer Gold Dot) and check recheck holster etc means I'm now > 850 rounds through the PPS and liking it more and more. The Speer Gold Dots (124gr +P) have noticeably more kick than the Speer Lawman 124gr. While I shot over 600 rounds last Sunday at the GFH class without any discomfort to my hand (thanks to the LimbSaver) I definitely would not want to shoot 600 Gold Dot +Ps in a single day. Some extra photos of the holster and how it fits. I find even with just jeans and a somewhat fitted t-shirt the PPS remains easy to conceal for me. The blood on the back of the holster is from my injury at last week's GFH class I very much like how the slide lock is protected from accidental use, there is a slight extension to the shape of the frame beneath the slide lock. TheWombat

It is usable, see below for photos with my Viridian C5L and X5L gen 2 (note I didn't bother to change the brackets on the X5L hence the overhang of the brackets). Viridian light/lasers are quite pricey (~$300) however they have just launched the CTL tactical light (without a laser) which is the same size as the C5L and half the price (~$150). http://www.viridiang...-tactical-light Even the C5L adds a noticeable amount of weight to the front of the PPS, and also some width. I typically wouldn't carry the PPS in an IWB holster with a light however I expect it wouldn't actually cause any problems. PPS with Viridian C5L PPS with Viridian X5L gen 2 hth TheWombat

MrsWombat's EMP has now been converted to a single sided safety (Ed Brown tactical). TheWombat

9mm

My understanding of the times when firearms have been needed is that typically few shots are fired. I recall something like 6 being the average but could be wrong. If you have a spare extended Mag then you'll have 12-16 with a Shield or PPS which should be sufficient in anything but a real extreme situation. While I have holster etc to carry the PPQ which is 15+1 and spare mag, the Shield/PPS is much more convenient to carry and unless there is a high chance of a crisis/situation should be sufficient for my needs. TheWombat

Theis Holster - http://theisholsters.com/ I have one for my Walther PPQ and Walther PPS - great holsters and service in my view. Similar to the Crossbreed SuperTuck etc. TheWombat

I suggest getting both, in addition to the comments above they have different expiry dates which means that when one is getting renewed you still have coverage of the other one. They are both pretty straight forward to get and not expensive hence to me it's a no-brainer. Reciprocity is subject to change - e.g. the recent New Mexico changes - so who knows whether Utah or Florida will or will not have the same coverage in the future. I applied for both Utah and Florida through GFH and it was straightforward. TheWombat

Even if you have a weapon mounted light then I'd recommend carrying a separate flashlight e.g. SureFire Fury which is very very bright but comes in a small package. It resolves the issue of always having to point your muzzle at where you are trying to illuminate, but allows you to have a good two handed grip for those times when you really need it. My personal view as stated earlier is lasers are of limited benefit on weapons whereas lights are very useful. I believe there are far more SWAT/Police with flashlights only rather than flashlights/lasers but could be completely wrong on this. Why not try a Low Light/No Light class and see what works for you? TheWombat

Any specific reason you're looking at the Kimber Solo rather than some other pocket size/sub-compact that doesn't have active safeties? Unless you train a lot with the 1911 style platform then my experience is that under stress you may find yourself not working the safety correctly to the detriment of your health. While not necessarily the final verdict, in pretty much all the GunForHire Urban Pistol classes the 1911s have had issues whether it is failures (eject/feed etc) or user error on the safeties. From chatting to Joe (instructor) in the classes he has run he could only recall one 1911 that has performed without user and/or mechanical issue. While the Solo is not a 1911, there are mixed verdicts regarding reliability, particularly on the earlier ones so if you go that route I'd highly recommend shooting several hundred rounds through it including the hollow points you plan to carry (assuming you are planning to use HPs). I'm not saying it is not a good firearm, just that it needs to work when you need it.. TheWombat

I've not shot one however the reviews I've read state it is picky on ammunition. TheWombat

If you typically shoot firearms with the traditional style button magazine release then the XDs may be a better option? I find when I transition between my PPQ/PPS/HK45 to my Sig/Ed Brown I keep trying to use a paddle magazine release instead of the button. If you're looking to carry the PPS/XDs then better to go with the magazine release you are more used to in case you need to use it in a hurry. The PPS is very nice though... You're welcome to meet me at RTSP some time and give it a go with the LimbSaver. TheWombat

Straight from the GFH class today after shooting 616 rounds, so hasn't been cleaned yet. With the sun setting I don't have the best light for photos in the house. Let me know if you want others and I'll take some tomorrow in the day light. TheWombat

Rather than start a new thread I'll include the review here. OldGlockGuy feel free to add anything I missed :-) So today I attended the GFH Urban Pistol 3 class. This was held at their Area 51 outdoor range which they have just started to use. The class description states: The Gun For Hire Level 3 Tactical Pistol Course is for shooters wishing to push their shooting and weapon manipulation skills to the next level. Equipment needed: Handgun. 500 Rounds factory ammo. 3 Magazines, magazine holders. , eye and ear protection. Handgun, 3 magazines, magazine holders. Knee pads, water bottle or some type of hydration system. Clothing for that time of season, baseball hat and rain jacket (we shoot rain or shine). I decided to try my Walther PPS (note that I wasn't using the PPQ for once!) since this is likely to be the firearm I carry when out of NJ during the Spring/Summer. I had a Theis IWB holster, Wilderness Instructor belt, 5 x 8 rnd magazines and 2 double magazine carriers. The Walther PPS ran like a champ with no failures and was surprisingly accurate even at the end when we were shooting IDPA size targets at 50 and 60 yards. My equipment worked well and I've become a convert to the Wilderness Instructor belt. There were 9 students, predominantly with Glocks. There was a CZ, Kimber 3" 1911, Springfield XD, my PPS in addition to the Glocks. The majority of students were shooting .45 ACP. There was one .40, and two of us I believe shooting 9mm. All firearms other than the Kimber 1911 were reliable. The Kimber was having a lot of issues, some of which may have been due to a bad batch of Speer Lawman ammunition although I can't confirm. The Walther PPS had a disadvantage compared to most of the other semi-autos (other than the Kimber) due to the 8 round magazines compared to everyone else's 10-15 round magazines. I carried 2 dual magazine carriers and had plenty of opportunity to practice my reloading. The PPS felt like it was constantly needing to be fed new magazines :-) In total I shot 616 rounds although I am sure a few students shot more. The first few minutes started with a few dot drills as warm up. It didn't take long before we were moving into a lot of moving while shooting, running then stopping and shooting, shooting two handed strong and weak side, one handed strong and weak side, shooting prone, on your back, on your side, shooting through many obstacles. For those of you who have shot in GFH classes with the barricades, we were using ALL of the slots on the barricades including those at 45 degree angles and down at the bottom. Many of the exercises were timed or undertaken alongside other students which increased the stress/speed and quickly showed where the fundamentals were not being followed. There was a lot of exercises that included moving in and around other people, to ensure you became comfortable with this. The exercises at all times were well supervised and kept safe. We also had the opportunity to practice live fire scenarios in and around vehicles which helps with training for the event of being a victim of a carjacking. My main take away from the class is the need to keep practicing the core fundamentals as they are just as important at the more advanced classes. The training was a BIG step up from Urban Pistol 2 and was a real opportunity to practice the fundamentals in completely different scenarios. The day was 8 hours of almost constant moving and shooting and switching from two handed to one handed and strong side to weak side. Joe had a chance to demonstrate his battlefield medical skills with a couple of us being bitten by our slides. My injury occurred when transitioning from 2 handed strong side to 2 handed weak side. The slide was nice enough to bite me due to not having my thumbs correctly settled into position when I was taking the shot. Almost all the exercises are ones that couldn't be practiced at a normal range, some were similar to what you'd encounter in an IDPA match. The day ended with a chance to shoot at 50 and 60 yards where the PPS, even with such a short sight radius was able to hit steel 40%-50% of the time. The instructors were Joe, Chuck, Max and Pilar and a big thank you to them for a fun and enjoyable day. Gun For Hire only runs the Urban Pistol lvl 3 a couple of times a year and I can highly recommend it. TheWombat

I clean after every range trip, usually keep the cleaning to a quick 20 minutes. Every 1000 rounds it get's a bit more of a clean. Every 4000-5000 a deeper clean. I find it relaxing to have the music on and just clean the gun. TheWombat

I had the Comp-Tac belt and thought it was good, however I then purchased a Wilderness Original Instructor Belt 5 STITCH and now I am a convert to the Wilderness belts. The only time I'll use my Comp-Tac belt is when going CCW out of state and being dressed smartish casual. note: I also bought the competition pro set, if I was to do it again I wouldn't buy it. I prefer the Kaluban Cloak/Raven holsters for OWB and a Theis for IWB. TheWombat

With 150 rounds shot last weekend and the LimbSaver, Theis holster and spare magazines arriving during this week I decided to take the Walther PPS to the Urban Pistol level 3 class at Gun For Hire Area 51 outdoor range. I shot 616 rounds of Speer Lawman 124gr/115gr without any failures at all. This was shooting two handed strong side and weak side, one handed strong side and weak side, lying prone, lying on my back, gun canted over to shoot through barricades, shooting while moving etc etc. Other than a few drops of oil on the slide rails at 300 rounds during the lunch break the Walther was used throughout the day with no cleaning or maintenance. The LimbSaver worked very well. I maintained a good grip throughout even with the warm sunny weather and have no pain/tenderness in my palm. The end of the class was a chance to shoot at IDPA sized steel targets from 50 and 60 yards. Even with the short sight radius of the Walther PPS I was still hitting the steel 40%-50% of the time. Picture of the Walther PPS with the LimbSaver fitted over the grip tape I'm very impressed with the little Walther. TheWombat

Naturally I will be there with the PPQ :-) (I'll probably also bring my PPS although no holster for it yet) Urban Pistol 3 is listed on the GFH Calendar and on the emails they've been sending out. It will be the first time I've been to their Area 51 outdoor range so looking forward to it. TheWombat

I can say first hand how using credit-score for insurance is not always sensible. I have driven hundreds of thousands of miles (if not more) in my life time and never been the cause of an accident. When I relocated to the USA I had no credit history even though I brought a reasonable amount of funds with me and had a senior role in a large global organization and had excellent credit history in the UK and Australia. This meant that due to no credit history in the USA my car insurance for the first year was an absurd amount. Luckily after 12 months of living in the US my credit score had increased to make my insurance more reasonable. I believe that we are seeing a greater number of professionals moving between countries and there needs to be a better way to manage this. In all the countries I have lived in I have never come across credit scores being a basis for car insurance, and while I am sure there is some correlation to risk, I still think it is not suitable in all cases. TheWombat

Installed the premium version, looks like another useful aid to training and more than happy to spend < $5 to support a forum sponsor. thanks TheWombat

I've just purchased 2 limbsavers, one for the Walther PPS and another for the Walther PPQ. On the Walther forum a number of PPS owners recommended the limbsaver as it helps reduce felt recoil and makes the slim grip a little more comfortable. Limbsaver also sell products for ARs and shotguns. The 'Pro Handgun Grip' pistol products are generic sizes rather than for specific make/models. There are 3 sizes: Full frame semi-auto Full frame compact Full frame sub-compact While I've not found any significant issues with felt recoil from the PPS, having shot 150 rounds in 30 minutes, I decided to give them a try for the price of $10-$12. I am also trying them to see if they help improve grip when shooting in warmer conditions and hands become sweaty. Fitting the LimbSaver takes all of 5 seconds, they stretch over the existing grip. If you have replaceable backstraps you may or may not wish to try moving to the size smaller backstrap. The LimbSaver feels like soft rubber with a slight tackiness/stickyness. I've not had a chance to try them at the range yet, I'll be posting a report after this weekend, however photos are below. Walther PPS (with 7 rnd extended magazine) note: I have also fitted grip-tape beneath the limb saver which provides a much better grip. LimbSaver = Full frame sub-compact Walther PPQ Limbsaver = Full frame compact Review to follow after the weekend @RayRay - PM me and we can figure out when/where to meet if you want to try the PPS + limbsaver. TheWombat

I had some issues in the last few days with Google Chrome not connecting to the site, i.e. NJGunForum seemed to have disappeared. It wasn't a DNS issue, so no idea what was happening. TheWOmbat

Hickok45 reviews the M&P Shield TheWombat

Some things I've found from my Barska. After scanning your finger to open the safe it is best to slide your finger downwards as you remove it from the scanner. This will smudge any residue finger prints. I have actually had the safe unlock twice without placing my finger on the scanner (but pressing the button) based on a 'residue fingerprint'. Very odd, it rarely happens and may be dependent upon how naturally greasy your fingers are. I've fitted grip tape to my Walther PPS on Saturday, and in so doing scratched up the skin on about 6 of my finger tips as I was rubbing the sand paper surface of the grip tape to get it to adhere to the PPS properly. I then went to open the safe and the 6 fingers did not successfully open the safe. Even today (Monday) those fingers are still not opening the safe due to 'scratching damage' to my finger tips. I'm not going to try it with blood, however I believe it would interfere to some degree, this is one of the reasons I went for a Biometric safe that can store > 20 prints. I have scanned all my fingers and toes just in case. TheWombat

Why go through the hassle and time to send it to H&K when it took me no more than 10 minutes to resolve myself? Doesn't make sense to me, particularly with the need to find a UPS drop off point etc. TheWombat