Fifty Shades of FDE

If you’ve been following this blog, you’ll know that I’ve been updating my weapon systems and this is probably the last update that I’ve been waiting for. I’ve been moving away from DA/SA pistols and going for Striker-Fired pistols for simplicity of use.
I sold my Sig Sauer P229R a few months ago and finally picked up it’s replacement: the P320C FDE chambered in 9mm.

I got a chance to shoot a friend’s full sized P320 and a P320C (courtesy of Sig Sauer) last year and I’ve wanted one since then.

It comes in a big black pistol case and inside, you have the pistol in a paddle holster (made for the P250, the hammer fired predecessor of the P320); two 15 round magazines, manuals, cable lock and Lucas Oil gun oil.

The P320C is a high quality product that you’d expect from Sig Sauer. My particular model is the FDE (Flat Dark Earth) version, which both the slide and grip module are FDE. You noticed I said grip module and not frame; that’s because the registered firearm is only the chassis that lives inside the grip. Although I don’t plan on doing any caliber conversion with my P320C, I could if I wanted to.

The slide is actually, to me a Burnt Bronze color and the grip module is close to a Magpul FDE. If you know me, I like all of the different shades of FDE. Inside the slide, you can see a lot of internal slide cuts to lessen the weight. It is very easy to take down and will not disassemble with the magazine in place and does not require the trigger to be pulled. The chassis comes out easily after you push through the take down lever. This makes cleaning ridiculously easy. Almost forgot that I also got the model with night sights, which are SigLite and they work well in both day and night time/low light conditions.

So how does it shoot? It shoots very well and accurately out of the box. The trigger has been said to be the best stock, striker fired trigger on the market. I would have to agree with that. It’s very close to my VP9’s trigger, if not better in some ways. The pull weight feels like 6 pounds (I don’t weigh my triggers with a trigger scale) there’s very little take up, then a clean crisp break. The reset is very short and positive, I want to say it’s better than the Short Reset Trigger that was on my P229R.

Between my friend and I, we shot a little over a hundred rounds and we both shot well, he shot much better than me. I’m never afraid to admit that I’m not the best pistol shooter out there. I always am working to improve my skills. Still, almost all of my rounds hit the black rings at 22 feet. My friend’s were mainly in the 9 and 10 rings. There was a little muzzle flip due to the higher bore axis, but nothing I’m not already used to with the P229R so it didn’t bother me. The only minor issue I had while firing was having fun my thumb on the slide release lever, keeping the slide from locking to there rear when empty. I understand that you can order smaller, swept forward slide release levers and also a smaller take-down lever from Sig, but it’s a minor training issue for me and I may or may not order those parts in the future.
I will be running it with a weapon mounted light, the Surefire X300U in Tan (FDE). I contacted Safariland and they are currently making me a level 3 holster for my setup with an X300U and per my request in FDE finish. Once I receive it, it should be available to order in the future. I will keep you updated on that.

Overall the P320C and the P320 series of pistols is a great weapon system that will fill the role of defensive, duty and even competition fields. If you’re already a Sig owner, this is a good one to add.

Some of you follow my Instagram Account @fiftyshadesofFDE so you know a lot about this. I started it last year after I got my SCAR 17s in Flat Dark Earth. It’s my public account where I post pictures and videos of my guns and gear. I also repost content that interest me.

With the EoTech and WarComp

My SCAR 17s has been my favorite rifle that I own and I’ve customized it to serve my needs. For me, it serves as a short to medium range battle rifle. I get a lot of questions about it so I’ll go over all of the after market accessories that make up my Fifty Shades of FDE SCAR 17s.
The easiest way for me to do this is to go from muzzle to buttstock.

I did make a YouTube video going over the accessories.
https://youtu.be/umsflRq9YAY
At the muzzle, I replaced the PWS FSC30 brake with a Surefire MB762 Muzzlebrake. Initially I had a Surefire WarComp 7.62 on but the felt recoil was something close to a 12 gauge slug. The WarComp works as advertised, it eliminates all flash and keeps the muzzle flat. It wasn’t for me and the Muzzlebrake is what I went with. Muzzlebrakes are great with eliminating recoil but they are simply obnoxious to shoot around bystanders, at the range or indoors. For that issue, I have a Surefire Warden, which attaches to the MB762 with ease. The Warden is not a suppressor but it gets real hot real fast. I asked Jr, over at Burn Proof Gear to make me a cover for the Warden.

He quickly sent me a prototype and a few months later, I received the final product. (I haven’t had a chance to range test it yet) but I can say that it is well built and solid fit. I will write a review as soon  as I take it out to the range. It is now called the Blast Shield Cover and you can order one here: https://www.burnproofgear.com/product/blast-shield-cover/
Next item is probably the most important in my opinion: the KDG MREX (MLOK) 6.5″ FDE rail extension. You can read my review on that here: http://wp.me/p5LV2Z-3f
Attached to my MREX, I have a Steiner DBal-i2 with Green Laser (this is on loan from a friend and not mine) at the top rail. At the 3 o’clock rail I have a Surefire Mini Scout M300C with a SR07 constant/momentary switch attached to the top rail behind my folded front sight. On the bottom rail, I can attach/detach my Harris Bipod via ARMS throw lever mount. Also at the bottom, I have a Magpul MLOK Vertical Grip.

On the lower receiver, I have a Battery Control Device (BCD) by Parker Mountain Machine. It works exactly like a Magpul BAD lever, except it was designed ground up for the SCAR system. I replaced the stock charging handle to the GG&G angled charging handle. My safety selectors are AXTS/KDG Talon SCAR, given to me from Recoil Magazine for letting them borrow my SCAR for an article for that products’ debut. My pistol grip is a Magpul MOE grip modified by PMM. Standard AR pistol grips need modifications to fit correctly and PMM does that for you!
On top of my receiver, I currently run an Aimpoint PRO with a GG&G cantilever mount that holds a spare battery. I also have a Millett DMS-1 1-4X optic on standby in case I need magnification.
At the very end, I finally got a KDG SAS Stock. KDG takes Magpul ACR stocks and adds a metal adaptor to slide onto the SCAR. It is lighter and stronger than the good ole Ugg Boot but I’m keeping the Ugg Boot because the cheek riser does get higher than the SAS stock for when shooting magnified optics.

And finally the sling: I run a Blueforce Gear Vickers Sling with QD mounts in Multicam Arid.
There you have it! This is my current setup and I don’t plan on changing much in the future but you never know, I’m always open to new ideas and methods. This system is highly modular and it is always adaptable to fit whatever mission I need it to.

I got a rare chance to take a bunch of Surefire Flashlights for a so-called test drive. My friend Steven Schwier over at Surefire’s headquarters found out about my blog and my fascination with everything FDE so he thought I’d like to borrow some of their lights for me to take pictures of and review.
For the first review of the bunch, I’d like to go with the biggest, baddest and brightest: the UDR Dominator. Simply put, it’s by far, the most powerful handheld flashlight I’ve ever experienced. Technically, it’s a spotlight that on Max Blast, outputs a 2400 Lumen beam with a high performance LED.

So how can I tell you in writing, how bright that is? Think about the spotlights on Law Enforcement helicopters on those high-speed pursuits you see on TV. The UDR Dominator probably isn’t as bright or as powerful as the Night Sun spotlights on a helicopter, but it definitely reminds of one, but is portable and handheld.
The UDR Dominator, like everything else made by Surefire, is well thought out, engineered and made to be nearly indestructible. The one I got to review came with a wall charger and a sling. The battery was pretty much drained when I got it, which was good because I could see how long it took to fully charge it. It took a little over an hour to an hour and a half to fully charge. Runtime on high (2400 lumens) is rated at 2.25 hours and on low (14 lumens), it’s 22.75 hours. It has a fuel gauge that displays red , yellow or green based on it’s current level, the gauge light is on when it is in operation. When it’s fully charged, it blinks green. That’s an impressive amount of runtime for a spotlight as bright as this one is.

The ergonomics make it very user friendly to operate. Other than picking it up in the showroom, I have no other experience with the Dominator. It didn’t take me long to figure it out. It has a selector ring with 11 positions staring with an off kill switch, Minimum to Maximum and at the other end, a strobe mode (which is on Max Output). Below the selector rings are three buttons that are labeled left to right: Constant, Momentary, Max Blast. Constant will give you a constant beam at the level where the current position of the selector ring is set. Momentary does the same as the previous, except that it only stays on as long as the button is pushed, hence it’s label. Lastly, you have the Max Blast button, kind of like the rest of the functions, it is self explanatory. Pushing this button gives you all 2400 lumens on a constant On position, no matter where the selector ring is at.

Since the Dominator I am reviewing is the main demo model, I am only able to have it for a short period of time. The only way for me to test it is at night, when took my dog for a walk. I had to be very careful not to piss off my neighbors when running it on Max Blast, so I made sure I wasn’t blasting their homes with it otherwise they might think that there’s a silent police helicopter with a spotlight on their home. The next neighborhood over is in an unincorporated area, which means a lot less street lights and more opportunities for me to hit the Max Blast button. I left the selector ring on a few positions from the Minimum for a short range beam, which was gave me a useful amount of light without destroying my night vision. When I turned the corner into the next neighborhood, the end of the cul-de-sac was about 100 yards or more away and pitch black. There’s no house there to I activated the Max Blast and it lit up the entire wall that is there and I was able to see about a 50 foot area very clearly. I was pretty impressed with the amount of power I had with a handheld device. I made the mistake of using the Max Blast when crossing the street, it was so bright, looking at the white beam pointed at the black asphalt with my peripheral vision was enough to obliterate any night vision I had. If you look at the head of the flashlight, you’ll see that it has fins to help dissipate heat that it generates. If you put your hand in front of the beam on Max Blast, you can feel the heat coming off of it.
For me, I probably don’t need a light this powerful for my everyday usage either in my on and off-duty activities. The UDR Dominator fills a special niche and it does it extremely well. From my life experience of being a Peace Officer and a gun enthusiast, I can see the Dominator used for Search and Rescue teams, Sentry positions like static security etc, anyone who goes out doors often or simply everyone who needs a durable, reliable, powerful spotlight. I say that is a niche item because although it is handheld, it isn’t small and wouldn’t fit in your pocket. It’s a super heavy duty illumination device that won’t let you down if you need it to identify objects, people, threats in the dark of the night. The MSRP according to Surefire’s website is at $1,370.00
I understand a lot of you will say that’s expensive. I agree with you that is pricey but the going trend on my blog is that you get what you pay for. With Surefire, everything is designed, manufactured in the US of A and it, along with all of Surefire’s products, comes with their No-Hassle Guarantee- For Life!
For more information and where to get one:
http://www.surefire.com/illumination/flashlights/udr-dominator.html

This would be my first knife review on this blog and I’m starting it off with a very nice one!
If you are familiar with Surefire products, you’ll remember that they used to have an Edge Weapons Division that Steve Ryan headed. That division is no longer in existence at Surefire but Steve is still making blades on his own and he has been doing so for many years.

During a visit at Surefire’s office, I was asked if I could write up a blog and take pictures of Ryan’s Push Dagger. Of course I agreed to do it! Full disclosure: the Dagger is on loan to me for the week, I am not getting paid to do any of this.

I will be honest, I’m not a knife expert or fighter. I’m more of an Indiana Jones type of guy when it comes to knife fights. I do however, have years of experience carrying various edged weapons and I know the difference between low and high quality knives.

The Steve Ryan Push Dagger I received was in brown (another shade of FDE to me) it came in a black, injection molded TekLok sheath. It feels solid as soon as you pick it up. The retention from the sheath is stiff and drawing from it is easy once you get a good grip on the handle.

The blade is made of stainless steel and is razor sharp; I didn’t test that feature out because only bad things could occur. It is attached to the handle/hilt via three small screws. The handle has a frag pattern that resembles a pineapple grenade. Every piece of this dagger, including the sheath looks and feels like quality with a high degree of attention to detail. It fits in my hand well and us easily controllable once drawn. If you’re looking for a high-end push dagger, look no further!
They retail for $149 and you can find them here:
http://www.monkeyedge.com/Steve-Ryan-Punch-Dagger-Monkey-Edge-FRAG-Pattern-p/srk0125.htm

Trijicon is best known for their Bright and Tough Night Sights on pistols. A few years ago they came out with a new line of night sights: the HD Night Sights. They solve the problem that night sights have: daytime shooting. Night sights are sometimes hard to pick up during daylight conditions.

The HD Night Sights differ from standard night sights by having a a big dot for the front sight. The tritium vial is surrounded by Yellow or Orange fiber optic ring. The rear sights have a raised shelf to assist with racking the slide for one handed operations. The rear face of the rear sights are serrated to deflect light and have two small vials of tritium on either side of the U notch center. I find the U notched rear sights very effective in helping with the sight picture. The whole system helps the user focus on getting a perfect sight picture with the main focus on the bright front sight without the rear sight being too much of a distraction. In bright lighting conditions, the fiber optic ring just jumps out at you, making your target acquisition that much faster.
My Heckler and Koch VP9 came with the stock factory sights that were luminescent night sights that require a lighting source (a flashlight) to charge the Luminova paint on the metal sights. They were extremely bright when you shined your flashlight on them for a quick burst. They were also extremely bright during daylight conditions. They would work for most people but not for me. My VP9 lives in my duty holster for the majority of its time. With the front sight always in the dark, the Luminova never gets a charge so if I had to draw my weapon to deal with a threat in a low light situation, I wouldn’t be able to see the front sight at all. The rear sights would be glowing but that didn’t help me at all. Luckily I always run a Weapon Mounted Light on my duty weapon and if you do as well, you’d know that any weapon light would make your sights shadows. Why do you need night sights if you have a WML? The answer is, you don’t run your light the entire time because you’re a bright target if you do that. When your light is off, you will still need to see your sights to make that shot.

Front Sight focus

Rear Sight focus

I got my HD Night Sights off of Instagram, new from someone who went away from the VP9 platform for $100. They retail for much more than that. The one’s I got were with the Yellow front sight. I wanted the Orange but a deal’s a deal and I’m still happy with them.
Installation was something I learned that I couldn’t do myself. I had my MGW USP sight pusher, which didn’t work because the VP9 has a pair of plastic slide assist tabs at the rear of the slide. This prevented the slide from entering the sight pusher. Luckily for me, my department armorers have a MGW universal sight pusher system and all I had to do was buy a VP9 shoe for $15 from Brownell’s and they took care of the installation for me.
The HD Night Sights are easily the best night sights I’ve ever shot with on a pistol in any light. I’ve seen videos and read other reviews and haven’t seen or heard anyone complain about them.
The sights are taller than standard sights and I was worried that they wouldn’t fit in my Safariland Duty holster and luckily for me, they barely fit. I was very relieved that it reholstered after the install because these sights are too good not to have on my VP9.

There are more accessories available for the FN SCAR platform out today than ever. Thanks to many different companies including Kinetic Development Group. KDG makes the MREX rail for SCARs and now ARs, the ACR stock assembly for SCARs, and many other cool gadgets that are all well thought out, designed and manufactured. All made in the US of A. AXTS is well known for their Raptor AR charging handles and Talon Safety Selectors for the AR platform. Now the two companies collaborated to come up with a Talon selector for the SCAR platforms.
I had a minor role and got involved with the KDG/AXTS Talon SCAR selector by being in the right place at the right time. Owning a SCAR helped out. David Reeder from Recoil Magazine contacted me through a mutual friend and asked if Recoil could borrow my SCAR 17s for a quick photo shoot. Of course I said yes!
After sitting in traffic for a ridiculous amount time for the few miles I needed to travel (something that David got to experience in his time in SoCal) I met with the guys at Recoil headquarters. They’re all down to earth and extremely friendly, they even gave me some frozen Caribou that Iain Harrison had shot months before for an article on hunting. They took my SCAR and returned it a few days later with the SCAR Talon selector installed and a bunch of Recoil magazines and shooting targets. The set I got had the regular sized selector on the left side and a short sized selector on the right. Both had the black finish.
Immediately I started to function test it and found it extremely easy to manipulate with my thumb and best of all, my trigger finger. In my experience with the different selectors I’ve had on my SCAR, these are hands down the best. I didn’t really care for the stock selectors so I replaced those with Parker Mountain Machine metal selectors which were an improvement and well made. I have small and short fingers so I still found it a bit difficult to use my trigger finger to manipulate the selector on that side. Unlike the stock and the PMM selectors, which just replace the switches, the Talon Selector replaces the entire drum and holds the switches via detent springs. This makes it easy to switch out without any allen wrenches or tools. Another feature is that they can go 90° like a standard AR for those who prefer it that way. I kept mine at 45°.

There’s my SCAR in the latest issue of Recoil Magazine!

A few weeks later I got in some range time and shot my SCAR with the new Talons, manipulating them with every possible way and it was easily done. Here’s a video of my range testing: https://youtu.be/mmQzEckeLpw
In my opinion, the KDG/AXTS SCAR Talon selectors are the best aftermarket selectors available for this platform and will work on both 16’s and 17’s. I now want a set for my M6A2! They come in FDE or Black and should be available at www.kineticdg.com for $79-$89. I don’t know when they’ll be in stock but I believe it’ll be soon.

This post is to help all of the new shooters decide which handgun would be perfect for them to purchase for self-defense purposes. Let’s start with the Four Rules of Gun safety:

1.All guns are always loaded. (Treat them like they are)
2. Never point the gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target (and you have made the decision to shoot).
4. Be sure of your target and what is beyond it.

I have been asked a lot from friends and family members recently for this particular type of advice. This comes after the Paris and San Bernardino Terrorist Attacks. Those that were on the fence about gun ownership have decided that now is the time to obtain the right tool for the job: a firearm.
First I would like to recommend the caliber: 9mm. There’s a lot of reasons behind this:
It is easy to control recoil, making easier and fun to shoot and therefore you’ll shoot it more often. The ammunition is inexpensive compared to the bigger calibers. With the minimal recoil, there is less wear and tear on the weapon, making it more durable. For an actual self-defense role, it should be loaded with defensive ammunition and it will do it’s job well at stopping the threat.
Next would be the handgun size. It’s much easier to control a full size or compact handgun than a subcompact. The subcompact handguns recoil much more because of it’s shorter barrel and light weight. It’s just physics. The only reason to have a subcompact is for the purpose of carrying concealed. I still would suggest that you start with at least a compact sized handgun.
Lastly I highly recommend that you start with a striker fired pistol. The trigger pull is the same every time and you won’t have to learn different triggers. These pistols have less parts and are as simple as they can be: draw it, aim, and press the trigger. Under stress you don’t want to worry about whether your safety selector is on or off. This doesn’t make the pistols less safe. They have multiple safeties in place that will not fire unless the trigger is pressed. If you really want a manual safety there is a few models available for you.
Onto the make and models:

Glock is the most popular striker fired pistol and for good reason. They have great value and have the least amounts of parts and have a reputation for reliability and accuracy. As long as you practice and follow the gun safety rules, these guns are very safe. I mention the rules because you have to pull the trigger in order to disassemble the pistol.
The two Glocks I recommend are:
Glock 17 (Full Size)
Glock 19 (Compact)

The following pistols don’t require you to pull the trigger to field strip.

Smith & Wesson Military and Police series pistols are a newer version of reliable striker fired pistols that are a little more ergonomic than Glocks. They come with different sized back straps that you can interchange to fit your hand size. Some models have an optional frame safety.
The S&W models I recommend:
M&P9 (Full Size)
M&P9C (Compact)

Springfield Armory XD’s are also nice striker fired pistols.
XD9 (Full Size)
XD9 Compact

The following are for those who are Full-time Peace Officers or non-California residents.

Heckler and Koch VP9 is currently my favorite pistol and happens to be my duty weapon. I wrote a review on it a few months ago and you can read it here:

Sig Sauer P320 (Full Size) & P320C (Compact) these pistols are fairly new and have a lot of features and a very nice trigger. I’m in the process of selling my P229 to buy a P320C.
As you can see, I am simplifying my weapons systems to striker fired pistols. Although I’m used to the DA/SA trigger pulls, it’s just so much easier to have the same trigger pull and never have to worry about decocking the hammer.

I hope this helps you make your decision on your first handgun/ pistol purchase. Do NOT think for a second that just because you have a firearm that you are safe from someone threatening your life! Firearms often give people a false sense of security. You must train and practice often to be able to operate it, let alone in a high stress environment (which will definitely be the case if your gun is out and drawn). I cannot stress enough that you seek professional training and practice dry firing and put in some range time as often as you can. Please be safe and if you have any questions at all, please leave a comment!

I get a lot of questions regarding body armor. I used to have those questions myself and it took a lot of research on my own to get the answers. There are many types and levels of body armor; each designed to counter a specific threat. The best body armor for you will be determined by what you are going to use it for. There’s a lot of information out there and I will do my best to explain it all in the simplest way I can. I am going to describe the different levels of body armor by what the threats they were made to defend against. Hopefully this will help you make an informed decision in what body will work for you. Please don’t rely solely on what I have to say, do some research on your own because you can’t have too much information on something that your life depends upon. Also, I’m not the know-all expert in this area, I’m just the end user who uses multiple levels of armor everyday and have done so for over a decade. All of these levels come from NIJ (National Institute of Justice) they are the ones that come up with each rating that is required at each level. You yourself have to decide on the mobility vs. protection level each has to offer; it is an issue that you have to figure out for yourself.

Sharp Threats (Knives)
Level I. (Soft Armor)
This level of body armor is not well known because you would only see it in jails and in prisons. It is used by jail deputies and Department Of Corrections officers and usually the higher risk response teams in these facilities. In jail or in prison, there isn’t a firearm threat, but the likelihood of a knife or shank is very high. This body armor is light and usually thin (half as thick as ballistic body armor) but it will stop a sharp object from penetrating. That’s where the protection ends, it will not stop any ballistic threat. When I say ballistic I mean bullets and threats from firearms.

Handgun Threats (pistol caliber)
Level II (Soft Armor)
This is the first level of protection to defeat a ballistic threat coming from handguns. Most Peace Officers are issued this type of body armor. This includes .22lr 9mm to .45 ACP. Level is limited to certain velocities coming from different calibers that usually include magnum rounds. Magnum rounds are more powerful than standard rounds by being heavier bullets with a lot more gun powder behind them meaning they go a lot faster. These rounds may defeat this level of body armor.
Level IIIA (Soft Armor)
This level covers almost all handgun threats where Level II protection ends. This is the highest level of protection that comes from soft body armor. It is more resistant to ballistic threats coming from handguns by have more layers of Kevlar or Spectra etc. This level will stop everything level II and beyond to include .44 magnum to 12 gauge slugs (although it’ll stop a slug, it doesn’t mean that you’ll survive the trauma). This is the level of protection that I’m issued at work and I wear it every second I’m 10-8. Levels II and IIIA will not stop a sharp threat like Level I. This is why a knife threat to most Peace Officers is a deadly threat. So far all the levels above are soft armor and don’t offer much protection from blunt force trauma. They’re designed to keep a round or knife from penetrating it’s panels but expect some bruising or broken bones if you’re shot in your armor. To give yourself some better blunt force protection, you can get a hard trauma plate. I have a hard plate in my vest that will actually stop handgun rounds by itself and do a lot more to keep the blunt force trauma at a minimum.

Photo Credit: Muzzle Flash Media

Level IIIA (Hard Armor)
This comes in the form of ballistic helmets. It is the highest level of protection that is available today with the technology of body armor where it is. The military is working on a Level IV helmet but they are trying to get it light enough to be worn. Even though it wasn’t designed to stop rifle rounds, there have been a few cases where soldiers have been very lucky with a helmet stopping an 7.62×39 round. The technology has gone a long way by making the helmets lighter.
None of the levels above are rated for rifle threats. Rifle rounds  are usually pointed and have higher velocities that double or even triple that of pistol rounds.

Rifle Threats.
Level III (Hard Armor)
Yes this gets a little confusing for some. This is III, not IIIA and is the basic rifle protection that is the most prevalent type and level to face this threat. They come in the form of hard plates that are inserted into plate carriers. There are a lot of manufacturers that make these plates and each have their own capabilities. Level III is rated to stop most rifle caliber up to .308 or 7.62×51 excluding AP (Armor Piercing) rounds. There are three main types of Level III Hard Plate armor: Steel, Ceramic and Dyneema. Each has it’s own pro’s and con’s:
1. Steel:
Pro’s: the most affordable option. Will stop most threat without a lot of deformation, giving more blunt force protection. It is capable of stopping multiple hits.
Con’s: it’s heavy with most plates weighing in at 7+ pounds per plate! Depending on the type of cover, Steel plates are known to spall or deflect rounds. Some companies have taken care of this problem by applying special coatings on their plates that take care of this issue.
2. Ceramic:
Pro’s: it does a good job at keeping blunt force trauma by breaking in the process of getting hit. It’s also affordable, although not as inexpensive as steel plates. Sometimes lighter than steel.
Con’s: some are as heavy as steel plates. Most Ceramic plates won’t stop multiple hits because it breaks when hit. Since it is brittle in nature, its is very fragile and can crack if dropped.
3. Dyneema:
Pro’s: it’s light weight, with some plates weighing less than 4 pounds! It will stop multiple rounds. It is durable and not prone to cracking.
Con’s: these plates are usually the most expensive per plate because of it being light weight. They might be degraded by high temperatures, I have seen some research that states this but it is more prevalent to level II soft dyneema armor failing at point blank distances. I haven’t seen or read anywhere where a level III dyneema hard plate failed due to heat.
Some of these plates will exceed the Level III rating but for AP threats, we move onto the highest level.

Armor Piercing Rifle Threats.
Level IV (Hard Armor)
This is the highest level of protection from any type of armor available today with technology where it is at. This comes in two types, but mainly it is in the form of Ceramic plates. Like I said earlier, some level III Steel plates will stop these AP threats even though they aren’t rated for them. The Ceramic plates are heavy at this level but it is to my knowledge the only option available for this threat.

My armor. I have a lot of body armor that I personally own. I have a retired level IIIA vest that stays in my trunk. In addition, I have two plate carriers: a Level III (dyneema) that is at work with me; a Level IV (ceramic) that lives in my trunk. I have three surplus ballistic helmets: an old PASGT Kevlar helmet (from desert storm), two ACH’s (Advanced Combat Helmets) the current ballistic helmets that are available today. I have one at work and one in my trunk. I will do a separate post later on helmets.
All of these armor systems have a service life, (most 5 years) but I can’t afford to keep replacing my plates and armor so I keep them in use. They should still function regardless of their expiration dates.
Beware of where you buy your armor. I personally do not buy any armor that isn’t made in the USA nowadays. There’s a lot of Chinese made knock offs that have poor quality control and I wouldn’t trust my life with those products. Again you get what you pay for, how much is your life worth?

I hope everyone had a safe and Happy New Year! Welcome to 2016!
My last post of 2015 focused on being very efficient with the weapons that you own. This post is about your personal knowledge of the many different weapon systems that are out there and why you should have that knowledge.

Weapons have been around since the beginning of time and they have improved drastically over time. This is especially true with firearms. Firearms technology has advanced quite a bit; starting out with single shot pistols and muskets that had a rate of fire at 7 shots per minute if the shooter was good to miniguns that fire 4,000 per minute.

Me shooting with my first AR15 many years ago.

Firearms today, in my opinion, is advancing on at a similar rate with computer technologies. It’s hard to keep up sometimes but it’s a hobby and a huge area of interest for me.
Firearms are as diverse as there are people because people are their creators. You can see that in each modern firearm, there are traces of lineage of you will, of features that go way back in time.
With this, there are many different weapons systems in existence. Most gun owners may own just one firearm and know only how to operate that one. There’s nothing wrong with that. If they know how to use it and it works for them, perfect. That’s not me however. I have several different types of weapon systems because each of them was designed for a specific purpose. I don’t own firearms just for the fun of it, although they are fun to have; they are tools that I will use to defend my family, myself and others from anyone who wants to harm them whether it be a criminal, terrorists it doesn’t matter.
It is widely known that members of our special forces units train with as many different weapon systems as they can and usually fire thousands of rounds through each system in order to familiarize themselves with weapons that they might come across in the battlefield. This is important knowledge for them because they’re usually deep inside enemy territory without backup or resupply and may have to pick up a enemy weapon to continue the mission.
This knowledge isn’t just useful for special operations units; it’s also very critical for Law Enforcement Officers as well as civilians whether they have CCW or not. Think about it. Although it’s more prevalent today than ever that LEO’s are issued patrol rifles, most LEO’s still only carry a pistol on their person and their long guns are either in a rack or the trunk of their unit. An off-duty officer and citizens who carry concealed only have a single pistol on their person, most likely a compact/subcompact pistol or revolver and hopefully with a few spare mags. If you’re one of the above or even a unarmed civilian, you really don’t have a lot of firepower or any at all.

Firing a friend’a AR15 with an ACOG

Firing an AK47 type rifle a few weeks ago.

Now put yourself in a critical scenario that is all too common unfortunately: an active shooter/terrorist attack. These mass murderers or terrorists usually are armed with a long gun of some sort, usually an AR15/AK47 semi automatic rifle. The pistol that you’re carrying is obviously no match against these weapon systems so your best chance at survival is to get out of the “X” or the target zone. If you’re law enforcement, you don’t have a choice but to move in. If you can’t get away, you’re going to have no choice but to fight or die taking it in lying down. You already know what I’ll do. I’m going to fight or die fighting. Hopefully I won’t lose my life but I’m never going down without a fight. If you’re able to take out of the shooters with your pistol, you’re probably running low or are out of ammunition. Now it’s time to even up the odds a bit by picking up the dead shooters weapons and magazines and move to take out the remaining shooters. Now isn’t a great time to figure out how that weapon system works; its time to reload that mag and go to work. I was taught in the academy to never use a suspect’s weapon because you may not know what condition it is in. If the shooter was shooting and killing innocent people with this weapon, I’m pretty sure I know it works so throw that stupid SOP out the window and go get the job you signed up for done!
Now what’s the best way to get familiar with different weapons systems without spending a fortune buying all of them? The answer isn’t playing Call of Duty or anyone of those first person shooter games, I will say that they do show with some degree of accuracy how to reload the weapons. I’d say to start, you could watch training videos, there’s a ton of videos on YouTube that are useful, I like to watch Vickers Tactical and hickock45 for my research. Nothing compares to having the real weapon in your hands so you can fully manipulate it and it’d be even better to shoot with it so you can see how the sights work and how the weapon recoils. Many gun ranges have rentals that you can try out. If you have friends who shoot, chances are they will have different weapons than the ones you own and vice versa, have a range day and shoot each other’s weapons and share the knowledge. If you at least know how to load, fire and reload a certain weapon system, you’re much better off than not knowing. It’s some more knowledge to throw in your tactical tool box. I’m not going to go into each and every system out there, that’s your job. What I suggest would be to familiarize yourself with these types of weapons: semiautomatic pistols, pump action shotguns, semiautomatic rifles AR15’s and AK types. These are the most commonly used weapons by these cowards who attack innocent civilians, let’s turn it around on them and take them out before they can do more harm.