Category: Review

Rock River Arms LAR-15 Carbine, by Pat Cascio

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This may come as news to some readers, but not all AR-15-style firearms are equal. Don’t kid yourself into thinking that, the brand-new Gee-Whiz AR you just bought, brand-new in the box, for $500 is the equal to the Wow AR that was next to it for $1,200. It just ain’t true – and I don’t care what the guy standing behind the gun counter might tell you. Don’t be taken in by their sales pitch. I actually own a couple of lower-end (in price) ARs and they are good performers, and would probably last for the the rest of …


Buck Knives 841 Sprint Pro Folder, by Pat Cascio

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Buck Knives is one of America’s oldest knife companies, and with good reason. Buck senses the pulse of the knife buying public, and they have produced some of the most rock-solid knife designs over the years, that are still in production. A knife executive of a major knife company once told me that, a “good” knife design has a three year shelf-life. That means that after about three years, that design no longer holds an interest to the knife buying public. But take a look at many of the Buck designs – like their classic Model 110 that have been …


EMP Shield, by Pat Cascio

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First off, let me state that I’m no expert in anything, just a serious student, who is always learning. I’ve spent a lot of time researching the effects of an EMP attack on our electrical grid. One thing that I’ve learned is that there doesn’t seem to be any one source that agrees with others on just what exactly will happen when there is an EMP strike. No one seems to know how long there will be an electrical outage — will it be weeks, months, years, or longer? Some people in this field state that it might be a …


Springfield Armory 9mm 911, by Pat Cascio

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Nope, that’s not a typo, I’m sure many believe I meant to type “1911” – such is not the case…this is Springfield Armory’s new 9mm sub-compact handgun, that looks much like a Model 1911. Albeit one that was washed and tossed in the dryer, and it shrunk down to a tiny size. Last year, Springfield came out with the 911 in .380 ACP, and it was an instant hit with concealed carriers all over the country. So, the folks at Springfield did some re-engineering, and produced a version in 9mm, and it is only ever-so-slightly-bigger than the .380 ACP version. …


Taurus Spectrum .380 ACP, by Pat Cascio

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While the .380 Automatic Colt Pistol (ACP) round  might have been a good choice for the fictional James Bond in some of his earlier movies, it still isn’t the first choice for me, or most other shooters. In later movies, Bond was shown carrying some 9mm handguns, which was a smart move. However, for my use, anything chambered in .380 ACP isn’t my first choice in a concealed carry handgun. Now, that’s not to say that in the past I didn’t actually did carry some .380 ACP handguns. I can only say I was young and naive. Keep in mind …


LA Police Gear: LNT Pack and Core Boots, by Pat Cascio

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Introductory Disclaimer: Los Angeles Police Gear (LAPG), is a fairly new advertiser to SurvivalBlog.com – however, I am an independent contractor, I do not work for ether LAPG or SurvivalBlog.com – I have no vested interest in either of these companies. LAPG contacted me and asked if they could send me some samples of their products to test. What you will read are my independent findings, and mine alone. — Unknown to LAPG is the fact that I have been a customer of theirs for many years. This dates from when I did police work, and had my own private …


Kimber Ultra Carry II Two-Tone 9mm by Pat Cascio

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Today, we’re taking a close look at the Kimber Ultra Carry II Two-Tone 1911, chambered in 9mm. I’ve always felt that, the 1911 was made for the .45 ACP, so you’ll have to excuse my bias on this – buy I’m learning, so be patient with me. More often than not, I can be “caught” packing a handgun in 9mm these days, so like I said, I’m learning. I think! I get this question all the time, and there really isn’t any pat answer I can give to folks, but we’ll try once again! “What is your favorite gun?” And, …


Zero Tolerance ZT 0452CF, by Pat Cascio

“Proudly Overbuilt In The USA!” That’s what is written on every Zero Tolerance product box that leaves their factory. A longtime friend, and fellow gun writer, once told me that, you have to catch the reader’s attention in your first couple of sentences or first paragraph of an article, or the readers won’t read any further. I certainly hope I caught your attention. I know a lot of our readers are like me, they love Zero Tolerance (ZT) knives, for several reasons, one is that they are built in the USA, right here in my home state of Oregon. Secondly, …


Kel-Tec RDB-17, by Pat Cascio

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I’ve never been a huge fan of Bullpup rifle designs – I’ve shot a few over the years, but they just didn’t ring my chimes for some reason. That has all changed, since I bought a Kel-Tec RDB-17 – my local gun shop is always getting in something that catches my attention, and the RDB-17 really opened-up my eyes for some reason. I’ve played around with the civilian version of the IWI Tavor that is being used in Israel with great success, but it didn’t do anything for me – especially the price tag – it didn’t offer anything to …


Cold Steel Code 4 Folder, by Pat Cascio

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I’ve never been let down by any products from Cold Steel. I waited a good long time to get their Code 4 folder in my hands. It is a very popular folder, and they are quite often out of stock. But I found that it was worth the wait. Lynn Thompson, who owns Cold Steel, started the trend with his version of the ancient Japanese Tanto style of blade – his first knife was a fixed blade version – and I couldn’t tell you how many companies attempted to copy it – all to no avail. You see, there is …


Springfield Armory XD-S Mod.2, by Pat Cascio

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Compact and sub-compact handguns are all the rage the past couple of years, and we have them in 9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP these days. In a sub-compact, I believe it is best to stick with one in 9mm, because you get one or two more rounds in some of the magazines, and it is controllable – more so than the .40 S&W and the .45 ACP. If you can’t control your firearm for follow-up shots, what good is it? I received my Springfield Armory XD-S Mod.2 several months, before they were released to the public, and have enjoyed …


Kershaw Flythrough, by Pat Cascio

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Once again, Kershaw Knives is on a roll, with yet another innovation in a folder. There appears to be no end to new knife designs these days. Some are mere gimmicks. However some have some real down to earth applications. I’m a sucker for folding knives – there are so many different designs these days, its hard to pick one for the next purchase a person is going to make. Today I’m reviewing the “Flythrough” by Kershaw, and it’s a bit different, in that, you can see how it operates, without taking it apart. Speaking of taking knives apart, I …


S&W Model 6906, by Pat Cascio

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Many readers probably aren’t aware that, the US Navy SEALs packed the Smith & Wesson Model 59 in Vietnam back in the 1960s. This wasn’t the only handgun they used, but it was their preferred handgun to use a suppressor on.  And it held 15+1 rounds of 9mm ammo. The S&W Model 39 came along long before the Model 59. However, the Model 39 only held 8+1 rounds of ammo — still, it was a great handgun, I carried one for several years doing PI work. It was fairly “compact” all things considered, and it was light-weight, due to the …


SIG 556 Classic, by Pat Cascio

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Anyone who knows even a little bit about real battle rifles, knows that the Swiss military has issued the SIG Sauer STGW90 for years, and that it is still being used. The original STGW90 was the envy of gun owners – who, of course, couldn’t own them. First of all, they couldn’t be imported into the USA. Secondly, they were select-fire – a big “no-no” in our once free country. The Swiss also developed a semi-auto only version, known as the PE 90 or SIG 550/551. Still, American gun owners lusted for one of these rifles. Only a few hundred SIG …


CRKT Seismic Folder, by Pat Cascio

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I believe that CRKT (Columbia River Knife & Tool) set the trend going, in collaborating with custom knife makers. Many of the designs that they are producing, are the result of collaborations. And, without those wonderful collaborations, the knife buying public wouldn’t have access to some fantastic knife designs, at  reasonable prices. We all can’t afford to purchase every custom knife we see – they are expensive, and oftentimes, there is a waiting lists. In some cases those waiting lists are several years long, with some makers. After all, they can only produce so many knives per year. So, we …