(March 2003 Quips)
3 Mar 03 1911s We just completed a defensive pistol class in Oklahoma City, OK. OKC is “cocked-and-locked country,” as is much of Oklahoma and Texas. Most students had Kimbers, and all worked well. Two had Glocks. What didn’t work well was the eight-round magazines used by many of the 1911 shooters. There were several […]
(February 2003 Quips)
1 Feb 03 I’ll be flying to Capetown, South Africa on Monday, 3 Feb 03. I’ll be returning on 23 Feb 03. While there, I’ll be teaching and hunting, but I’ll be unreachable by phone, cell phone, or e-mail. Full report when I return. I’ll catch up with all messages then. Vicki is looking after […]
(January 2003 Quips)
6 Jan 03 The Age of Kings winds down: The War of Spanish Succession, 1701-1713 Louis XIV claims the longest reign of any sovereign in Western Europe, before or since. He was King of France for sixty-two years, from 1653 to1715. Like most kings of the time, Louis was conceited and vane, but he was […]
(December 2002 Quips)
10 Dec 02 “D” Ring My colleague Jeff Chudwin, brought the “D” Ring to the attention of all of us earlier this year. I have now, belatedly, joined him in his endorsement of this product. All military rifles have issues, and the AR-15 is no exception. One real weak point of the AR-15 system has […]
(November 2002 Quips)
4 Nov 02 Rifle information from a friend in the Philippines: “Over here, the M16 series continues to enjoy respect. Government units equipped with the M16s still have the old variant with the slow twist rate. All use the M193 ball round. Contact distances remain well under 200 meters, with the vast majority of encounters […]
(October 2002 Quips)
1 Oct 02 Update from a friend with the LAPD: “Many of our officers who left the department in disgust under the Parks regime are now returning. Quite a few went to the federal Air Martial Program and left there is disgust too! It’s run be a tight group of Secret Service types who won’t […]
(September 2002 Quips)
6 Sept 02 This is the latest from Sough Africa. How much longer will it be before we start hearing the same comments here? “Most South African gun owners should be disarmed, because they are irresponsible” So said the chairperson of our National Assembly’s Safety and Security Committee, Mluleki George, on Wednesday. /John 8 […]
(August 2002 Quips)
2 Aug 02 Fatal shooting last week by one of our LEO students in TX. This is a patrol officer who attended our Advanced Defensive Handgun Course earlier this year. He came to us as a competent shooter. I trust what he learned from us was helpful in this incident: “I was coming to the […]
(July 2002 Quips)
1 July 02 By contrast, sales information from friends in South Africa: “We rarely see S&W pistols here at all. The P-99 made a brief appearance but did not do well. Among other things, the rear sights all wobble in their dovetail slots. SA 1911s are hardier than Kimbers, as you noted, but the 1911 […]
(June 2002 Quips)
1 June 02 Lessons from NTI 2002: We had a good collection of gunmen at this year’s event. At the “DTI Dance” stage, 93% of rounds launched struck bad-guy targets. Many lessons were learned. Here are the most important: DECISIVENESS. Decisiveness is probably the most important of all tactical skills. If you’re going to exit, […]
(May 2002 Quips)
6 May 02 At a defensive handgun course in Michigan last weekend, a G22 (40S&W) used by one of my students ruptured its barrel just forward of the chamber, sending high-pressure gas into the frame and the shooter’s hands. As a result, the magazine blew out. The magazine-release plunger broke in half, and the right […]
(April 2002 Quips)
4 Apr 02 Rifle information from a friend in the South African military: “Our SADF (South African Defense Forces) used R1’s in 7.62X51 (308) until the mid-seventies, and a few units still used them into the early eighties. The R1 is a locally made copy of the FAL. They were wonderful rifles and loved by […]
(March 2002 Quips)
3 Mar 02 Update on Africa from my friends there: “West Africa is bad news. Angola’s Dr Savimbi was just murdered by Israeli and Portuguese mercenaries. US oil companies operate in Angola, and Savimbi did not want to deal with them anymore, a fatal mistake as it turns out. The CIA dropped him a few […]
(February 2002 Quips)
1 Feb 02 “The state that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards, and its fighting by fools.” Thucydides 4 Feb 02 I visited a friend this afternoon who owns a large, retail gun store and indoor range in the Midwest. The hottest sellers are still Glocks-in all […]
(January 2002 Quips)
1 Jan 02 Warm greetings from a friend and trainer in South Africa: “All the best from your far-flung and ever-striving cadre of instructors over here. Our history is being written in blood, the blood of innocents and the blood of our untrained and poorly equipped police officers, who, nonetheless, go forward and try to […]
(December 2001 Quips)
4 Dec 01 I just completed a Rifle/Shotgun Course in Atlanta, GA last weekend. One of my students was using a Robinson Arms RA-96. Despite my recommendation against it, he had a large quantify of Wolf 223 ammunition he wanted to use. As his rifle got hot during a high-volume exercise, a case stuck in […]
(November 2001 Quips)
1 Nov 01 From a friend at Glock: “Of all new law enforcement orders: 85% are for pistols chambered for 40S&W 1% are for pistols chambered for 357SIG. High ammunition prices are retarding this round’s popularity- both in and out of law enforcement. 9mm and 45 ACP split the last 15%. 9mm is becoming less […]
Nice police work in South Africa
28 Sept 01 Nice police work by one of my instructors in South Africa: “Monday, were driving a beat car through one of our local industrial areas. I noticed a suspect being pursued on foot and then tackled by a unformed, private security officer. I stopped my vehicle and exited. My partner also exited and […]
Gun sales in California
28 Sept 01 From a friend with the LAPD: “In the last two weeks the state of California has had a 42% increase in gun sales, especially in the sales of shotguns and rifles.” Not surprising! /John
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24 Sept 01 This is from a friend who is a civilian employee of DOD. He is scheduled to deploy overseas with his military unit, as he is an integral part: “I pointed out to my military superiors that civilians (like me) are not covered by SGLI (or any other kind of life insurance for […]
Gun industry legends Dave Spaulding, Massad Ayoob, Mike Boyle, and John Farnam join Fernando Coelho to dive deep into the history of the gun industry, shedding light on how firearms and firearms training have transformed over the decades. They discuss the dramatic shift from traditional print reviews to the digital age of internet forums, social media influencers, and YouTube personalities of the industry.
