Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend.
5 Firearms instructor red flags
“If your instructor commits one of the 5 Firearms Instructor Red Flags, I would be concerned, especially if it’s the medical one. If they break 2 of them, I wouldn’t take another class from that person and wouldn’t recommend them to a friend. Three or more? There’s a 50% chance I’d leave the class period. Life’s too short to waste on bad training.”
The Definitive IFAK Article
A very good article covering items you should include in a trauma first aid kit. I would argue that if you don’t already know this information, you probably need to prioritize getting more training over getting more gear.
Raising The Bar: Visible Medical For All Instructors
John shares another important idea with regard to IFAKs. While I give a clear medical briefing in my classes, have a large trauma medical kit on the range, and have med supplies on my body, those on body supplies are not always visible. I plan on rectifying that fact.
AR 15 Mods: 12 AR 15 upgrades you can do yourself
Simple and ingenious AR-15 modifications. I especially like the paracord rear sling attachment point.
Rethinking “Show Me Your Hands!”
There are better verbal commands than “Show me your hands.”
BUILDING A BETTER MOUSETRAP | Handgun Sitting Positions
Unconventional handgun shooting positions.
Best Shotgun Lights for Home Defense [2020]
Shotgun light options.
Street Survivalism : A Practical Training Guide To Life In The City
What I’m reading…
This guy spent some time homeless and living on the streets in Brazil where there isn’t much government assistance available for the needy. Learning how to survive in an urban environment with minimal gear seems like a topic worthy of additional study.
A Revolver for Concealed Carry?
“There are plenty of reasons to choose a revolver for concealed carry. All the ones previously mentioned are valid, but there’s one more. You like them. Sure, you should probably carry a 17 round striker fired 9mm instead, but if you’re more likely to practice and train with your wheelgun because you like it…carry that instead. Ultimately what you carry is up to you, and if you like wheelguns, carry one. We’ve shown that revolvers have valid use cases even in modern times, but at the end of the day, what you carry is a deeply personal choice. Make the one that’s most likely to result in you being proficient with your carry gun.”
What’s the Fastest Way to Reload Your Revolver?
Here’s some more revolver content for you. For what it’s worth, I prefer what he calls the “strong hand reload.” I find it more robust in general and less prone to failure under stressful situations of when working with less than perfect speedloader varieties. One other thing. Look at the photo above. Suboptimal. The muzzle should be pointed as close to the ground as possible while the butt of the gun is tucked into the midsection. Let gravity help you get those rounds loaded.
10 Advanced Handgun-Training Terms You Should Know
A terminology lesson for you new readers.
My Top 5 Most Popular Functional Fitness Programs: Muscle Building, Metcons, and More
For those of you looking for some new years fitness inspiration.
7.62x39mm Gel Test – 7 Loads Put to the Test
Very good accuracy, velocity, and gelatin penetration data on a variety of 7.62 x 39mm cartridges.
Rituals of Death (Before the Death, Not After)
I’ve written a lot about pre-assault indicators, but this is the first list of pre-execution/murder indicators.
The Fine Art of Bribery
Excellent information, especially for those of you who travel to other countries.
IN EXTREMIS COMMUNICATION, PART 1
One of the biggest problems I have with my students is training them in the VERBAL aspects of self protection. This article provides phenomenal information from my friend Larry Lindenman on the topic. Pay special attention to the difference between “alpha” and “beta” commands. When you have finished this piece, read Part Two and Part Three as well.
Collectible Weapons: How to Protect Your Wealth – and Your Family – With Valuable Guns
As my friend Darryl Bolke says: “Museum guns are the last ones to get banned.” Thanks to Practical Eschatology for digging up this link and sharing it.
Evolution of the Wharncliffe – With Michael Janich
An intriguing look at the history of the wharncliffe blade design and why it slashes deeper than any other blade shape. There might be a reason I designed the Ka-Bar LDK with a wharncliffe blade.
My Feet Are KILLING Me (NO MORE PLANTAR FASCIITIS)
For all my friends with foot pain.
The Quality of a Free Man
“I’m beginning the freedom quest here for a simple reason: Freedom comes from free individuals, not the other way around. Seek Libertopia without first seeking within and the horse stumbles over the cart in her path and breaks her leg. Every time.”
Developing a Training Plan, Part Two
Solid advice about structuring your practice plan from the Mountain Guerrilla.
“The single most important shot you can fire in a gunfight is the first shot you fire. It’s going to determine the course of the rest of the fight. You can either make it hit, on time, or you’re going to spend the rest of your life trying to catch up and fix your mistakes…
Spending a significant portion of your training cycle doing nothing but working snap shooting and first shot breaks from the concealed carry drawstroke will go a very, very long way towards ensuring that your first shot does what you need it to do.”
His advice about target selection being unimportant is right on as well. The target I use most often? An 8.5 x 11″ blank piece of copy paper. It closely duplicates the “vital zone” in the chest of an adult male target. If I want to get a little more precise, I fold the paper in half. If I need a head shot box, I fold the paper twice (making it quarter size).
To sling or not to sling, that is the question…
I agree with Brian’s thoughts about slings on a long gun. Your defensive rifle or shotgun should have a sling. In addition to the sling product Brian recommends in the video, you should also know that Blue Force Gear makes a “sling sleeve” to reduce the bulk of the sling when not actually using it. I find sling sleeves to be amazingly useful devices and carried one on my police duty rifle for years.
LPVO Basics Part 3 – Mark Smith on the Zeroing Process
Advice about zeroing the LPVO.
Colt’s 1903 Hammerless
I have an inexplicable attraction to these elegant pistols. If it was drop safe and had a larger safety lever, I would carry my 1908 .380 today. If you want more information about .32 caliber weapons, read What Is The Best .32-Caliber Cartridge Of All-Time?
Survival Skills for Kids
We all know that your kid is a whiz on his iPhone, but can he do any of these things?
Defending Against Mob Violence – Critical Mas(s) Ep. 04 with Massad Ayoob
Massad describes the factors that make today’s mob violence different from mob violence in the past. It’s a compelling argument. If you ever anticipate the need to defend yourself from a mob, you owe it to yourself to watch this episode.
Ivermectin for COVID-19?
I’ve been following this treatment protocol for the last couple months. In addition to the studies mentioned in the article, there are about half a dozen additional Ivermectin research trials that have been published in other countries. All of those studies showed significant improvements in the Ivermectin group as compared to the control group.
It seems promising enough that I’ll be bolstering my small stockpile of this drug on an upcoming vacation to a South American country where it’s available without a prescription. I’ve taken it in the past after some third world digestion issues. It didn’t cause any side effects for me. I’m not a doctor and this isn’t medical advice. This post is just to alert you that there may be other successful Covid-19 treatment modalities you should consider.
What If You Don’t Have a Tourniquet or Trauma Kit? Pt 3: Sucking Chest Wounds
How to manage sucking chest wounds and prevent a tension pneumothorax. This is good advice although my understanding of the military guidelines for an improvised version of a chest seal no longer recommend the “three sided dressing” idea. Current best practice in the combative environment is to close all four sides of the seal.
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