Ode to the Shotgun

First, on this Memorial Day weekend, I would like to say: "Thank You" to the men and women who serve and have served.

I wanted to do a piece on weapon selection under various limited budgets, but under a certain point, I kept coming back to a shotgun of some form.  I have always maintained that pound for pound, dollar for dollar, a good 12ga shotgun offers the most versatility to its end user.  And it surprises me how often the 12ga is overlooked by SHTFers considering its ability to take a wide variety of game as well as function as a defensive weapon (given proper ammo selection and effective range consideration).  A good, simple shotgun should be a pillar and any respectable shooter's arsenal. 

For nearly 20 years now, I have been using a Remington Express Magnum as my "workhorse" shotgun.  While the furniture and magazine capacity has changed over time, I have always favored the 20" barrel with rifle sights and Improved Cylinder choke.  I have dispatched countless varmints and pests about the family farm in my earlier years.  And while the "scattergun" is often derided for it's excessive power and wide patterns, I was often able to clip troublesome gophers around the edges of buildings by skip-firing birdshot or using indirect fire into gravel. All the while, this same setup can put a 1oz slug in centermass at 100 yards.  This is the very same shotgun that is close at hand for when things go "bump" in the night in and about my residence. 

I don't harbor much bias toward any particular brand (especially in the tireless 870 vs 500 debate).  I find the disassembly of the 870 to be much easier than the Mossberg 500/590.  Yet, I believe the safety and controls on the Mossbergs are better for the tactical role.  I also have used Winchesters and Benelli M's 1, 3 and 4 with much success.

In the fighting role, one of the drawbacks of the system is ammunition capacity.  Because of this, weapon handling, ammunition availability and efficient reloading are critical.  This is the only system where I encourage tactical reloads when possible (cover/break in the action) to keep the gun at full capacity.  While the Speed-feed stocks allow for ammunition to be stored on the gun, they hardly lend themselves to quicker reloads.  I regard receiver-mounted side-saddles somewhere along the same line as a Redi-Mag in that they can be effective for faster reloads, but the cost is increase in bulk and weight.  In cases like the Benelli M1 or M2 where the weapon is dependent on inertia, a significant increase in weight can cause cycling issues.

In recent years, many law enforcement agencies have (hastily?) transitioned away from the 12ga to AR15 carbines.  If the 12ga is still present it is likely painted or marked for less-lethal use only.  If forum posts about AR15's for home defense are any indication, this trend has now filtered down to civilians as well.  Thankfully (sarcasm) those that can't afford an AR can make their shotguns look like one. Shotgun over-accessorizing is second only to that of the AR15 itself.  Try to resist the urge to turn a good, simple shotgun into a big, cumbersome tactical pig.

Oink!

Social Survival: At the Line

Originally, my working title for this piece was to be: "How to Not Look Like a Douchebag at the Range," but better taste prevailed.  Also, the content has little to do with your appearance and more to do with insight on unmentioned range etiquette, and said etiquette extends beyond the public range to formal training, organized competition, and beyond.


First, let's talk about how to not LOOK like an idiot; specifically, your attire.  First, leave the costumes (Team jerseys, "Infidel" & "Zombie Hunter" apparel and BDUs) at home.   Likewise, the overly stern guy wearing 5.11 clothing from head to toe isn't fooling me either.  Conversely, the fella wearing flipflops isn't serious enough.  Why does it matter?...it doesn't I suppose.  However, I see no benefit of being the butt of jokes and ridicule.


Resist the urge to give unrequested advice to strangers.  Unless you are 100% sure you can help on the given matter and their obvious frustration is a cry for help, keep your mouth shut.  An appropriate example would be: "Excuse me sir, I couldn't help but notice you are using the sideways, 'gangsta' style grip method.  Have you considered a traditional two-handed method as it may affect your groupings and point of impact?"  Of course, any and all advice is null and void if said knowledge is from the internet and not based on first-hand experience.  There is no quicker way to be thought of as a fool than starting a statement with: "I read on (insert fourm) that...."  Remember while in public, gun forums are like internet porn sites: everyone has been on one, but no one likes to admit to it.

Never criticize another man's gear...even if it really is shit.  Nobody likes to make a bad purchase; much less hear about what they "should have bought" from you.  And regarding your shit, realize that if someone wants to know what you are shooting/using, they will ask; otherwise, assume no one cares.

Now let's switch gears here and discuss what is expected of you for organized events like training classes where you are working under an instructor.  Having a positive attitude is critical.  Egos should be checked at the door...or permanently.  Guys, I will say it loud and clear.  When it comes teaching someone with no formal firearm experience, women have the advantage in grasping basic marksmanship concepts.  Why?  They are less likely (but not immune) to have the ultra-macho stubbornness that is dismissive to basic level instruction.  Every guy is his own action hero, and it's a blow to our ego if we can't shoot (among many other things).  Most women don't give a fuck and will admit to not knowing and be open to outside input.  Guys who have experience prior to formal training are also likely to form bad habits.  If we are lucky, those habits are few and not deeply ingrained.  If they are many and repeated in excess, the shooter must now be reconditioned which is twice as hard as teaching the beginner. 

Don't celebrate just yet, ladies.  Noticed how I underlined "marksmanship" above.  Weapon handling/manipulation and tactics are a whole other matter.  Muzzle awareness and discipline are big issues with several of the female recruits i've seen.  And just so no one feels superior, enjoy these pieces of media:

 

 

FAILURE DOESN'T DISCRIMINATE

This leaves me with my final and most important point.  The quickest way to alienate yourself as well as get your ass kicked (or possibly shot) is to violate the 4 safety commandments.  Learn them.  Know them.  Live them.

1. Treat all firearms as though they are always loaded.
2. Never allow the muzzle to cover (point at) anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger and out of the trigger guard until your sights are on target and you are ready to fire.
4. Be sure you have an acceptable target, know its surroundings, and what is beyond.

Social Survival: Internet Forums

Considering the fact that shooting has penetrated popular culture in a variety of ways and the internet being considered the paramount source of "information," gun/shooting related forums will continue to be marginally relevant.  Unfortunately, your typical forum is filled to the brim with bullshit.  There is a famous saying: "Believe only half of what you see and none of what you hear."  I would love to give credit to the author, but when I "Googled" it, the first 5 search results suggest it was either Ben Franklin, Edgar Allan Poe, or Jesus.  Nice work, internet.

Obviously, I don't believe finding good information is hopeless.  And apparently I've spent enough time on forums given the content of my cartoons.  In all actuality, I equate it to panning for gold.  You have to know what you're doing, and you have to sift through a ton of shit to find anything of any value.  Along the way, I have picked up a few tricks that have helped me to sort out the bullshit more efficiently.


First, post count equates to exactly jack shit.  If anything, too many posts in a relatively short span can signal someone is spending too much time on the computer.  Rather, look into the content one puts into his (or her) posts.  If someone is quick to make suggestions but can't give you any reasoning behind a suggestion, disregard immediately.  It isn't your job to validate someone else's purchases because they feel "I bought 'x', everyone else should too."  It's on you to question what you see, hear and read.  Way too many people are blindly following the suggestion of the misinformed masses.

The forum user/member is not without his/her responsibilities.  Don't be in a hurry to start flinging out questions immediately after registration.  Take some time, learn the rules and get a feel for the atmosphere.  Some places like to keep things professional.  Other places are about as professional as a pre-Swayze Double Deuce and can chew up and spit out a new member in no time.  Make a good first impression and show that you are worthy of assistance, but don't make a fool of yourself trying to be impressive.  Show the initiative and do some research (google/search button at the very least) before asking a question that has been posed a thousand times.  This will help you to formulate more intelligent questions and hopefully a better understanding so that later on YOU may provide information in the future. 

Again, these are just some suggestions for harvesting good information from internet forums.  Later this month we will continue with "Social Survial" for the range.

Police: Then, Now, and "Predator 2"

I'll explain...I promise.  It should be no secret by now that I enjoy movies.  I had the privilege of living my more impressionable years during what I would call the "Golden Age of Action Movies" with the beginning marked by the first Terminator film (1984) and ending with the second Terminator Film (1991).  During that time, we saw the initial entries of the Die Hard and Lethal Weapon franchises, Predator, Aliens, Robocop, the second Rambo film, in addition to the aforementioned Terminator films (perhaps it should be the "Golden Age of James Cameron").  And while I do have great interest in films, my actions and teachings are still solidly based in reality.  However, some of my earlier purchases as a firearm collector are a different story entirely.

Now that I have sufficiently dated myself, it should go without saying that I have only been involved in law enforcement of the current era.  Most of my instructor colleagues are considerably older and like to reminisce about the "good ol' days" when disrespecting a police officer was an open invitation to an ass-kicking...or so their stories go.  It's interesting to hear how the aspects of policing have evolved (or devolved) between generations and it's not always easy to tell which way things will go.  It is at this point, I would like to point our attention to:
"Predator 2"

For those not familiar, the film (made in 1990) depicts Los Angeles in the then near future of 1997.  Got that?...1997 in LA; that might come up again later.  A Predator is drawn by the conflict between rival gangs and the police.  I would have to imagine that filming a movie set in the "future" can not be easy.  Consider the assumptions made in "Back to the Future Part II," depicting 2015 in 1989.  Whether it's hover boards, flying cars, cold fusion, or the Cubs winning the World Series; not one of these things will happen any time soon much less the next 3 years (NOTE: I can say that, i'm a Cub "fan" by accident of birth).   But oddly enough, the Predator 2 writers made some curiously accurate predictions.  Consider the following:

Gang Violence
In the film, rival drug gangs (Colombians and Jamaicans) are causing major problems for the police.

In reality, gangs and gang violence have continued to spread beyond major cities and are becoming a major problem for police across the country...in places you wouldn't consider to have gangs.  Wouldn't think there would be MS13 in Alaska, would ya?

At the time, the levels of force displayed by the Colombian gang against police in the scene depicted above didn't seem realistic; well, not until eerily similar scene of the North Hollywood shootout which occurred in 1997.  1997 in LA...what are the odds?  Granted, that was not gang-related.  But reality is also catching up in regards to gang members; remember the gang banger w/ military training involved in a police shootout?  If not:

As the video describes, this isn't a rare occurrence.  Ask anyone you know with street smarts that's been deployed overseas if they've seen gang tags (graffiti) in Iraq or Afghanistan.  Their answer may surprise you.



Pistol-mounted Lights and Lasers

Surefire did not technically exist in 1990...as we know it (then Laser Products Corporation).  Despite the rather impractical laser setups being sported for futuristic appearance, the weaponlight setups seem rather functional:

At the time, these were not common accessories for the standard police officer...maybe LAPD SWAT or special forces, but certainly not plain-clothes officers.  Today, weapon mounted lights are fairly common for all officers and civilians alike...as they should be.  Folks are even getting away from the stigma they can't be useful during daylight hours as some learn too late that buildings without windows get pretty dark even in daytime hours.


Military Gear and Tactics for Police

Toward the end of the film, Glover's character (Harrigan) suits up with a tactical ballistic vest, and extra armor plate, a CAR15 rifle with M203 launcher, and his cut-down Benelli (not Remington as IMFDB suggests).  It would seem a little excessive for a Lieutenant to have such hardware in his unmarked car, wouldn't it?

Protecting and Serving like a motherfucker

 This isn't just exclusive to Glover's character; notice all of the tactical-looking officers (not SWAT) in the beginning shootout scene.  How do we know they aren't SWAT?  Upon his arrival, Glover asks: "Where's SWAT?" and he is told they are tied up with the Jamaicans.  Thus, those officers around him aren't even SWAT; just officers I guess, but they look badass:

Again these were the days when in addition to his sidearm, an officer might have a 12ga shotgun if he's lucky, and SWAT might have MP5's.  Again it wasn't until 1997 and the North Hollywood Shootout that people got the message about using patrol rifles.  With active shooter situations on the rise in recent years, many non-tactical officers are getting supplemental vests/armor to have just in case.  Today, AR15's or similar assault rifles in a standard patrol car are very common place.  As for the appearance of our tactical officers, navy jumpsuits of the 90's have been replaced with:

 Yep, those are cops; Maine State Police SWAT if my memory serves. 
As for the standard patrol officer, external vests are becoming more popular.  They also lend themselves to the more tactical look like the movie Sgt pictured in the screenshot above.

So what does all this mean?  Fuck if I know.  It proves nothing more than the fact that I have been really bored the last 2 nights.  It's also apparent i've been reading more Cracked articles; at least I beat them to the punch on this one.

I forgot to mention.  Predator 2 also takes a stance politically:

Concealed Carry can be effective

Gear 101

As per one reader's request, I decided to put something in writing in regards to rigs/vests/carriers (loadout). Unfortunately, I don't have much to offer in terms of specifics. But considering a lot of the loadouts I see on the internet are ill-advised, impractical or based solely off a fictitious video game character, something must be said.

I can't say I have ever seen two operators configure their kit in the EXACT same fashion...ever. This should be our first clue that kit should be specifically tailored to the individual. This means that repeated trial and error will dictate our personal preferences. Ultimately, our mission determines our gear.

First, let's talk about plates and plate carriers. It is my indication that too many people equate a rifle plate as being like one of these characters. I can't say i've taken a 7.62 round while wearing a plate, but i'm willing to bet it would be enough to put most of the blow-hard wannabe's out there out of the fight in a hurry. Plates make perfect sense for entry teams, those facing a constant threat of rifle fire, those in remote areas (or countries) without immediate medical support, and those who must respond to active, hostile threats in a timely manner (ex: LE and active shooters). And for most of the above, the plate is supplementary to a heavy vest (possibly with additional neck, shoulder, and groin protection) and a ballistic helmet. I simply don't see much use for some of the new, minimalist plate carriers for anything short of non-tactical LE's for who have to buy their own body armor. Plates and plate carriers certainly have their places. For the civilian running competitions or acting on the spontaneous defensive role where speed and movement are critical, two bulky, rigid plates seem less than ideal.

As for setting up your holster rigs and chest/vest/lbv rigs, here are a few universal concepts to help get you started:

1) Treat your gear as individual fighting kits. What I mean by this is don't get caught up thinking you have to dawn every single piece of your tactical kit to be effective. Odds are you aren't going to have time to change into your Multicam skivvies. What if you have only time to grab just your long gun? Or just your vest or gun belt? Layer your defenses. I run a Redi-Mod (lightened Redi-Mag) so I have 2 mags at the ready with my rifle alone. I also have a CAT tourniquet strapped to my stock in the event i'm not wearing a heavy vest w/med kit. I also have rifle and pistol ammo on both my vest and gun belt in the event I am without one or the other. Consider your kit a layered defense: What's on your person, what's within reach, what can be applied quickly, and everything else.

2) Pouch and mag placement is a matter of personal preference. Obviously, reaching ammo is one of our highest priorities so it should be within reach. On a belt, put mags to where they are most convenient for the off/weak/reloading hand to get to. However, you should be able to reach mags with your strong hand in the event of an injury. The one place I will tell you NOT to put mags is on your holster or thigh rig. If you have one of these holsters with the pouch on the front, put a multi-tool or flashlight in it.

One trend I see that bugs me is putting medical kits on one's back. Keeping myself from bleeding out is a high priority to me, so why am I going to put my supplies in a place that is difficult for me to reach?

3) Not everything need it's own pouch. A small admin pouch can hold a lot of small, random gear (550 cord, tape, batteries, pens/sharpie, chem stick, etc). With the exception of those currently deployed, it isn't overly critical to have EVERY peace of feasible kit on your person. Some things can be left to an auxiliary pack/bag.

4) Keep it light, simple, neat and slim. Like accessorizing a rifle, it's easy to get carried away. Start with what you need and work from there. It also takes little effort to double your girth with extra pouches, and now you are operating with a profile 2x that of your normal self.

5) Carry the weight according to your preferences. Some people don't like shit on their legs, so they don't run thigh rigs. I have a narrow waist so I don't want a lot of weight on my belt. Consider your body style when deciding where to carry things.

Short of that, anything else I have to offer is personal preference.