Category: Self-Defense

Letter Re: Para Ord Pistols and Serpa Holsters, by G.N.

I’m writing to contribute my first hand experience to the recent review of the Para USA P14.  After desiring one for 20 years, I became the very disappointed owner of a US-made model nine months ago. First,  P14s for the last few years have the Power Extractor (PXT), which is a non-standard 1911 extractor. This means you’re stuck with it. You can’t readily replace it with off the shelf 1911 extractors and you can’t tune it.  Mine broke at under 200 rounds.  Although Pat summarily dismisses this as mere ‘Internet lore’, where there is smoke, there’s fire – and there …


Product Review: Magpul Dynamics The Art of the Tactical Carbine DVD Set, by Mac D.

As many people who are presently watching local and global events I have a heightened concern with our general social situation on many levels. As part of my preparations I had identified some potential deficiencies with my actual ability to use firearms in a defensive manner if it were to be necessary.  Like many, having the time, funds and opportunity to attend formal instruction in utilizing a rifle in a tactical manner just was not coming together in a timely manner. To my advantage I have actually spent time in the Marine Corps (combat veteran) and Coast Guard (boarding team, …


Letter Re: Lessons Learned From a Recent California Power Outage

I have been a prepper most of my life.  Growing up in a foreign country is a relatively rural area everybody was a prepper by definition.   Limited services, almost no government, many subsistence farmers. I also spent a fair amount of time in the Navy doing bad things to bad people. Enough said.   When we lost power out here in San Diego County I was almost happy!  Finally I would get to put into use some the plans that many of us have been making. Maybe that sounds bad but after lugging my bug out/bug home bag for years I …


Jim’s Product Review: Bed Bunker Gun Vaults

One of my consulting clients recently bought several Bed Bunker gun vaults and I had the chance to examine them. This product is an unusual horizontal home gun vault design that replaces your bed’s box springs. These vaults have two major advantages: 1.) They don’t take up any more floor space than your current furniture, and 2.) They will probably be overlooked by most burglars that are in a hurry. (And statistics show that most burglars are in a hurry. Typically, they are in a house for less than five minutes. The bad guys can’t attack a safe if they …


Letter Re: SKS Rifles in Canada

Dear JWR: Fearing confiscations of the more “controversial” VZ-58 clones that have hit the Canadian market, I recently sold one and am actively trying to sell another.  Not wanting to sell the thousands of rounds of 7.62×39 Czech surplus ammunition I have for them, I have been giving very serious consideration to procuring one (or several) SKSs as a replacement. To be clear, I don’t think the SKS is the best choice for a primary rifle.  For me personally, that honour belongs to the AR-15 in .223 (even if, as required by Canadian law, mags must be pinned to 5 …


Letter Re: Making Your Range Time Real Time — Train as You’ll Fight!

Dear Sir, I’ve been a fan ever since I read your novel “Patriots” a couple of years ago.  I’d like to point out that with regard to the “Making Your Range Time Real Time – Train as You’ll Fight!” post, the ability to shoot and move and to shoot while moving should be included in your training.  Furthermore, the use of cover versus concealment should be included.   I bring this up because for years in federal law enforcement we qualified every three months, we did use silhouette targets, but all the shooting was done from a static position at varying …


Making Your Range Time Real Time — Train as You’ll Fight!, by H.R.

When you go to the range, whether it is in your or a friends backyard, at a local indoor or outdoor range how do you practice?  What do you practice?  Do you just put lead downrange as fast as you can in hopes that it hits the target because people are around and you want to sound like you know what you are doing (this is way more common than you might think)?  There are some things that I would like to put out to everyone that I hope can help you out in your range training. There are many …


Pat’s Product Review: The Para P14 Returns

Para Ordnance started the trend with hi-capacity 1911-style handguns back in the 1980s. People said it couldn’t be done – putting more than 7 or 8 big ol’ .45ACP rounds in a 1911 frame, and still have a gun you could wrap your fingers around. Para Ord proved everyone wrong! Para didn’t start out with a complete 1911, instead, they manufactured a frame only. And, people could simply fit the slide, barrel and other upper parts onto the Para frame. I still remember the first Para frame I saw – it wasn’t nicely finished, and it was a little bit …


Pat’s Product Reviews: Cold Steel Hold Out II

There’s a couple things I like about Lynn Thompson, over at Cold Steel knives. One is, and I’ve said this many times, is that I believe Cold Steel put the “sharp” in sharp knives. I’ve yet to run across a single Cold Steel knife that wasn’t scary sharp right out of the box. Lynn set the trend for super-sharp knives, and everyone else had to either jump on the band wagon or get run over. Second, I like that Thompson isn’t afraid to take classic knives and give them his own twist on things – and it always seems to …


Two Letters Re: Some Experience With 7.62mm NATO Battle Rifles

Mr. Rawles, I was wondering if you or your staff had any experience or opinion on the PTR-91 GI rifle, also known as the PTR-91 “special edition”.  These seem very competitively priced; $899 at both Atlantic Firearms and CDNN Sports (listed on page 28 of their online catalog).  Apparently the changes made to this rifle allow it to accept the military surplus ammunition, which previously jammed the rifle.  However, the “tolerances” are looser, according to the web site, so it is possible that accuracy suffered. As this is a great price to enter the .308 / 7.62 NATO market, I …


Letter Re: Some Experience With 7.62mm NATO Battle Rifles

If one is planning to stock .308 Winchester or 7.62 mm NATO for SHTF, old West German 7.62 NATO ball ammo is the stuff to look for as warshot.  During the adoption phase of the M16 in Vietnam, West Germany and Sweden complained that the [55 grain] M193 round that shattered at the cannelure was inhumane and a violation of the Hague Conventions.  The US Army’s Natick Research Center did tests with Swede and German .308 to prove that it did the same thing.  Of course they stopped complaining. US 7.62 mm NATO Ball is much tougher built and simply …


Letter Re: Following Counsel–Some Experience With 7.62mm NATO Battle Rifles

James, First, thank-you for the tip about the alloy G3 (HK91-compatible) magazines that CheaperThanDirt sells for just 97 cents apiece.  I placed an order for one hundred of them and shortly three big boxes arrived.  I’ve checked them out and surprisingly, many of them are still new in the wrappers, and the rest are in really decent shape.  I’ve never bought a rifle backwards (buying magazines first, then buying the rifle to match), but since I like the .308 Winchester round and have a few other rifles in that caliber this seemed like an interesting preparedness exercise.  I started looking …


Mike Williamson’s Product Review: Next Generation Arms X7 Rifle

Note: This post was updated on Oct. 18, 2011 to reflect ongoing tests.  I was furnished a loaner weapon and 500 rounds of ammo.  This is a neutral review, with no compensation discussed or received. The Next Generation Arms X7 Rifle is billed as extremely accurate, durable and low maintenance. To test this, the first thing I did was degrease it with brake cleaner. Upon examining this rifle, one realizes a lot of effort went into ergonomics. The VLTOR stock has Quick Detach (QD) swivel mounts on both sides, the receiver end plate has one and there’s one on each …


Letter Re: If You Cannot Evacuate

Dear Editor: Re: If You Cannot Evacuate, by B.A.F. Regarding this bit of mis-information… “If someone trying to get into your home is high on Methamphetamines or PCP, he won’t even feel a 9mm and a .40 Smith will only enrage him. The bare minimum I would have is a .38 +P or a .357 Magnum. Jacketed Hollow Points are the order of the day here! A .357 SIG in my opinion is also inadequate in these circumstances. Bottom line: Buy either a .357 Magnum for anyone or a .45 ACP such as a 1911 type semi-auto.” I understand that the …


If You Cannot Evacuate, by B.A.F.

Most of us do not have the funds to purchase and maintain a survival retreat, however there are effective things the ordinary citizen can do to help themselves and their families get through the troubled times ahead. I could write reams on this subject, but for the purposes of this article I will concentrate on a few basics to help your family get started on the path to survival. I have been watching in horror for months as the U.S. government races towards the abyss. The British press truly nailed it when, after the debt ceiling vote was announced, the …