High Exposure

Plenty of people I know carry a 1911 as a daily CCW gun in an IWB holster. With the right belt and holster combo, I have seen guys make the 1911 disappear in shorts and a t-shirt and still have quick acces and a smooth draw. I carry a G22 or G35 (a bit lighter but same size) on a regular basis with no printing issues using a DeSantis Scorpion or a Comp Tac Minotaur on a Ares Gear Ranger Belt.

It is about single point slings on ARs but it still applies: http://youtu.be/MZ3K-EcEJdQ Blue Force Brittany isn't so hard to look at either

They were edited out after there was question as to the legality of the rifle in our great state.

Sounds a lot like the "Dot Torture" drill I first saw over at PistolTraining.com: http://pistol-training.com/drills/dot-torture Link to printable target:http://pistol-training.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/dot-torture-target.pdf Print it on a standard sheet of 8.5"x11" paper. The directions of what to shoot at each dot are right on the target. The only scoring is Pass/Fail.

A2 flash hiders are definitely solid on the bottom. Keeps the dust/dirt/debris under the barrel from flying all around when you fire. It also acts as a mediocre recoil compensator by directing the expanding gasses up.

They are definitely on backwards. I have been seeing that a lot lately with new AR owners. I blame Call of Duty

I thought that too. Then I realized that the face hugger is made of a few pounds (at least) of shotgun rated steel. Designing it to fly at a shooter who has two hands already occupied by running a loaded shotgun would be probably not be the greatest idea.

So you are saying you have zero practical knowledge on the subject to make the statements you did. Why does this only apply to CCW? What about home defense? What about to the Cops on the board? Or those that are here from PA, or FL or those that do often carry in other places? Terminal ballistics is not philosophical. It is science with real world applications, recorded evidence, and provable and repeatable results. If the bad guy is high, suicidal or deranged, how does that effect our ability to prepare for a deadly force encounter and should the bad guys mental or physiological status dictate our response? Are you going to get a medical history before you fight back? Do we only shoot sane and sober people that want to live? No. We fight against anyone that wants to do us harm regardless of who they are, how they feel, or what they are tripping on because they are attacking us. The guy in that video may not have been deranged or high, he could have simply been determined. You think all the Jimmy Jihadi types or those two guys in Boston are deranged or high? Nope. They are committed. There are dozens of shootings every year where the bad guy sucks up 10-15 rounds and lives. This is a mindset issue. Both your mindset and that of the shooter. Remember, the bad guy gets a vote when the fight is over. He may be a genuine bad dude and simply not want to stop trying to kill you. So we shouldn't plan for a "worst case scenario" since we would likely fail anyway? If they guys gets out and starts shooting a rifle at you, you just throw your hands up and quit? You can win. The video shows that. I don't know about you but, I may not survive but I will win the fight. This does not exactly mesh with my experiences, but I will play along. How is the "caliber discussion moot" because you believe that criminals are cowards? What if you get one that is determined to do you harm? One that isn't a coward? How does hoping that the bad guy runs away justify a sub caliber handgun being adequate? What if he calls your bluff and now you have to shoot it out with this guy? Why would you carry a gun only for "best case" deadly force scenarios? Let me let you in on a secret. Some criminals are cowrds, yes, but many violent criminals are cunning. They ask themselves one question "can my violence defeat your violence?" if the answer is yes, it is on. They have had guns pointed at them before, usually by other criminals. They are not afraid of you or your gun and they have no respect for your lifestyle, your ethics or your morals. They just want your stuff and are willing to kill or injure you to get it. They won't run away with urine running down their legs when you whip out your pea shooter. They will snatch it from you and stick it up your a$$ right before they take your stuff. What are you shooting at $1.45 a round? With the proper training program you can get very good with 100 practice rounds a week and 1 class a year under the eye of a reputable firearms trainer. You don't have be be JM to be able to protect yourself. There is no concealability issue. The bad guys hide 1911s and Glawk Foteys with no problem. With the right holster and a little effort it is not hard. I regularly carry a G35/22/23 and a G27 or PM9 with no printing issues. I do it without appearing to dress baggy or sloppy and I am not a big guy. "Shootability"? Seriously? I know plenty of hard dudes that can shoot everything up to .44mag with one hand accurately and fast. I shoot my .40 Glocks way better one handed than I do my Ruger LCP. I shoot all of my pistols better two handed though, so why would I want to shoot one handed if I can help it. I don't understand your point. What does shooting one handed have to do with anything? Are you implying that you should base your firearm/caliber selection on your ability to shoot it one handed so you are good if you are injured or otherwise unable to get two hands on the gun? The female cop in the video above had less than a month on the job when that incident took place. She was shot in the left hand and she finished the fight, I assume one handed, with a service caliber pistol.

They shot and killed a guy that just showed zero regard for the lives of the 2 officers or the citizenry at large by starting a gunfight on a street in broad daylight. They stopped a threat to their community after being engaged with a superior weapon and prevailed. Those two cops are justified 110% in their actions and are studs in my book. (Yes, I know Ofc. Thomas is a female, but she did damn well for having only 1 month on the job at the time of the shooting). Field Training Officer (FTO Savage - Driver) and his new trainee (Ofc. Thomas - Passenger) were caught off guard by a foe with superior weapons that had no desire to survive the encounter, all on a public street. The shooter was aggressive and assaulted the Officers position with heavy fire and no regard for his own safety. The FTO (Savage) was trapped in his car. He couldn’t reverse out of the kill zone giving himself time and distance to react because Ofc. Thomas was using the rear of the patrol car as cover. If he would have backed up he would have either run over Ofc. Thomas or removed her only cover exposing her to rifle fire. The shooter attempted to flank the Officers using accurate suppressing fire (that is a hell of a group in a horizontal string where FTO Savage’s Head should have been) but was beaten back when both Officers returned fire (FTO Savage through the windshield until he could exit the squad car and move to better cover behind the car) hitting the gunmen multiple times. Anyone who thinks these two Officers should have stopped shooting when the bad guy slumps to his knees needs a reality check. They were both injured, Ofc. Thomas was shot in her left hand and FTO Savage was seriously wounded in the leg. The shooter continued to be a threat even after he was shot to the ground as shown in the video - even though he was hit, the gunman continued to point and fire his rifle at the Officers. He was dead, he just didn’t know it yet. Many victims of gunshots to the torso will collapse to the ground and appear to be out of the fight as their blood pressure drops due to the loss of blood. However, it is not an uncommon response to have the blood pressure begin to rise as they are horizontal and their own body weight applies pressure to the wounds slowing the blood flow. When this happens, quite a few shooters have been known to restart the fight and continue shooting even after appearing to be deceased from afar. Anyone who is a student of gunfighting knows this can happen and should be prepared for it. The bad guy has the final vote when the fight ends. He or she decides when it ends. As far as shooting from a vehicle is concerned, if you carry a gun for a living and work in and around cars you really should experience it. It rings your bell and windshield glass is a strange barrier to shoot through. I first did it at a VTAC class with Kyle Lamb. I learned so much from that experience that I occasionally am able to get a junked car on the range for my guys to shot into, out of, and around.

What research or evidence have you uncovered that convinced you that "it hardly matters" and brought you to the conclusion that "Most people will run or stop as soon as they're shot, even with a .22 short." Watch this video. Tell me what this guy does when shot with a service caliber weapon (Unsure of caliber). www.youtube.com/watch?v=ADHoBijaqNU There are hundreds of after action reports/debriefs out there where multiple shots from service caliber guns failed to stop a determined threat that pressed the attack. Yes, the caliber debate is interesting. Listening to a bunch of people arguing over esoteric points regarding "stopping power" and "diameter" "shot placement" can be enlightening and entertaining. I for one am a big proponent of the Shot Placement argument. I believe given a service caliber weapon - 9mm, .38/.357, .40 S&W, .357 Sig, .45 ACP (large revolver calibers as well such as .44 SPL and .44 Mag as well) - shot placement is more important than caliber (when caliber is chosen from within that range). I limit my position to these calibers because they all repeatedly proven that have the ability to penetrate barrier/clothing/tissue enough to cause the damage necessary to do the job. Sub-calibers such as .32 ACP, .380 ACP, .25 ACP, etc... simply don't typically have the ability to penetrate far enough to do the job. Yes, there have been self defence shootings and murders with these calibers, but they typically rely on extremely close range, multiple hits, a miracle or luck to be effective. Given a choice I will never rely on a sub caliber gun, including .380 ACP, to be a primary weapon.

Yup, it's the little .380 semi-auto. http://www.ruger.com/products/lcp/index.html?r=y I bought it used from a buddy with less than 50 rounds through it for $180. It has no sights to speak of and while I can qualify with it, it is a pain. It is not the gun to take a HR shot with, but that's not what it is for. Let me know of you are interested in a CT Laser for it at a good price. I took it off as it is out of policy for me and I will never use it.

I have an LCP. It serves a purpose and gets carried often. It is never a primary carry though.

Posted by Dr. Gary Roberts on other forums: http://www.tacticalforums.com/ubb/Forum78/HTML/000037.html This second quote deals with .380 and .38. (I left the whole quote intact because it is chick fi of good info, even though it veers slightly off the OPs topic) http://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=19914 Currently, the Speer Gold Dot 135 gr +P JHP, Winchester 130 gr bonded +P JHP (RA38B), and Barnes 110 gr XPB all copper JHP (for ex. in the Corbon DPX loading) offer the most reliable expansion we have seen from a .38 sp 2” BUG; Hornady 110 gr standard pressure and +P Critical Defense loads also offer good performance out of 2" barrel revolvers. Any of the Airweight J-frames are fine for BUG use. The steel J-frames are a bit too heavy for comfortable all day wear on the ankle, body armor, or in a pocket. My current J-frames are 342's and previously in my career I have used the 37, 38, 649, and 642. I like the 342 w/Lasergrips very much. Shooting is not too bad with standard pressure wadcutters and the 110 gr DPX, but not so comfortable with the Speer 135 gr JHP +P Gold Dots. Before the advent of the 110 gr Corbon DPX load, I used to carry standard pressure wadcutters in my J-frames with Gold Dot 135 gr +P JHP's in speed strips for re-loads, as the flat front wadcutters were hard to reload with under stress. There is no reason to go with .357 mag in a J-frame, as the significantly larger muzzle blast and flash, and harsher recoil of the .357 Magnum does not result in substantially improved terminal performance compared to the more controllable .38 Special bullets when fired from 2” barrels. For years, J-frames were considered "arm's reach" weapons, that is until CTC Lasergrips were added. With the mild recoil of target wadcutters, officers are actually practicing with their BUG's; when combined with Lasergrips, qualification scores with J-frames have dramatically increased. Now 5 shots rapid-fire in a 6" circle at 25 yds is not uncommon--kind of mind blowing watching officers who could not hit the target at 25 yds with a J-frame suddenly qualify with all shots in the black… 2" J-frames are great BUG's and marginally acceptable low threat carry guns because they are lightweight, reliable, and offer acceptable terminal performance at close range--downsides are difficulty in shooting well at longer ranges because of sight design and sight radius limitations, along with reduced capacity coupled with slower reloading. Nonetheless, with the addition of CTC Laser Grips and an enclosed or shrouded hammer, the 2" J-frame models without key locks (I personally will NEVER own firearm with an integral lock) may be the best BUG's and most reliable pocket handguns available. Another great BUG option if it can be comfortably carried, is a compact 3-3.5" barrel 9 mm pistol like the G26, S&W M&P9c, Walther PPS, HK P2000SK, Kahr PM9, S&W Shield, Sig P239, or S&W 3913, as these offer superior terminal performance compared to either .380 ACP or .38 Sp handguns. A subcompact BUG (like the G26) is particularly nice if it can use the same magazines as the primary full size pistol (like a G17/19). As always, don't get too wrapped in the nuances of ammunition terminal performance. Spend your time and money on developing a warrior mindset, training, practice, and more training. If you don't know who Dr. Roberts is look him up. He is arguable the #1 guy out there dealing in terminal ballistics.

About a year and a half ago. This was an issued optic to a NSW guy on a SCAR Heavy so I don't know how long the optic had been in service prior. He did say that all their Elcans has similar issues and he, and his team mates, did not like them. Hope that helps.

Not if these guys can help it: Happy Cinco de Mayo

I don't own either buy have shot with the Elcan. Did not like. It is big, heavy and expensive to do the same job as an Aimpoint and 3x mag in a FTS. It also had big time zeroing issues when changing magnification. Others that I know and trust have used the extensively and have warned to avoid at all costs if possible. I have heard good things about the Accupoint but haven't ever had a chance to play with one.

^^^^^ THIS If you intend to use a .380 for any social purposes (self defense/home defense/BUG) use FMJ.

Iggyort, The chart was fine. I like it and I use a similar one myself myself before going to any training classes to refresh my recollection of the min and max deviations at their respective ranges. It was the ballistic calculators and the "gunwebsites" link (that appeared to have a lot of errors in the info) that was delving into esoteric minutiae that was unnecessary at this stage for the OP's goal. Cheers! ETA: I am not a precision or NM competitor. When I said SPR I meant it as traning for as a working gun -LEO or .Mil sniper or DM, not competitive shooting. I know national match type competitions are much different then shooting DMRs or SPRs in a real world job or training evolution. My point was the the intricacies and nuances of your chosen zero will play a much larger role and have to be understood at a much deeper level with that "mission" than fighting with a RDS carbine at appropriate carbine distances.

Yes, over gassed is more common because lower tier guns generally have larger gas ports to get the guns to run properly on shitty ammo. It also helps when you don't build your BCGs to spec and lose gas around the carrier key because you cut corners and don't follow the TDP by shot peening, MPI, torquing and staking the carrier key bolts. The extra gas lets the gun "fake it" for a while and appear to run properly. They typical symptoms of an undergassed gun are: 1)It won't strip a new round from a mag 2) It won't lock back on an empty mag Every time I have seen these issues crop up (always in a Bushmaster or Rock River or Olympic Arms or Windham Weaponry etc...) it was a bad carrier/loose carrier key - except once, where it was a bad cam pin that was putting some drag on the bolt an slowing it down enough where the BCG couldn't strip the next round from the mag. A new cam pin solved the problem. That being said, the test for an undergassed system is: Load one round and insert empty mag. Fire and see if it locks back. If it doesn't = under gassed is first place to look. Check BCG first - replace worn rings and check carrier for loose carrier/gas key. (A loose carrier key is the most common reason for being under-gassed in guns using non-mil spec BCGs) Check gas tube next. Make sure that here are no leaks in the systemn no pinholes, the tube isn't bent where it meets the carrier key, and there is no seepage around the FSB or the receiver where has tube passes through. Next, make sure the FSB is straingt and tight and the taper pins are in place. If possible, check the gas port to make sure it is not obstructed with debris (part of a patch, dirt, carbon, etc...)

You shouldn't be lining up the dots at all. The outline of the front sight - crisp, clear, and centered in the notch of the rear sight - is what gives you hits. The FO is there to help you pick up the front sight in your visual plane as you bring the sights to eye level, not to line up with the rear dots. You are probably relying on the FO on the Glock. The Beretta doesn't have the FO so you are reverting to your fundamentals - proper sight picture using the outline of the front sight - and getting your hits. Try removing the FO rod or putting something over it like a small peice of electrical tape so you can't see the FO dot and shoot a few drills. Without the front dot, you will have to use something else for your aiming reference, most likely the front sight outline itself. See if that gets you back in the zone. Good luck!

The ballistic tables are good info but overkill for the OP's application for a bunch of reasons. The accuracy standard for a rack grade M4 is 3.5-4 MOA. That a 3.5"-4" group at 100 yards. An M4/AR15 is typically not accurate enough to make fractional point of aim corrections for every 10 yards of destance change - that's assuming the shooter can even accurately estimate range in 10 yard increments past 100 yards. With the 50/200 zero your vertical deviation is +/- 3" out to 215 yards. You are talking fractions of inches in vertical movement off your line of sight every 10 yards. As noted above, the gun is rarely capable of that kind of accuracy. Additionally, the ammo is rarely capable of that kind of consistancy, and a shooter is rarely that capable at range estimation to adjust point of aim accordingly, and that is only applicable if the shooter is typically a 1-2 MOA shooter anyway. If we were talking precision rifle, national match competition type stuff, different story. But, the OP is shooting Carbon AR with a red dot sight and looking for a "battle zero". A zero on a fighting AR with RDS needs to be simple. For that application all you need to know is your mechanical zero holdovers for inside 25 yards for high value/high percentage shots and what your max and min vertical deviations are and how to estimate the extent of your effective range with your chosen zero. In this application, everything else is just cluttering up the shooters headspace.

Not locking back on an empty mag is a symptom of an under gassed system, not over gassed.

Why are you using different lubes on different parts? Throw the Remoil away and just use the Slip. It may be the BAD lever, especially if your bolt catch is a little out of spec. A Windham Weaponry BCG? Yeah, definitely make sure you check the carrier key. See if it wiggles in place or you can tighten the hex bolts. My money is on this.