Fire Clean Update 8/25/14

So, I have treated my Glock 19 as well as a couple AR15's with Fire Clean and I have to say it does work wonders on carbon.  I still use a bore cleaner (I like MPro-7 or Otis brand), though.  I went shooting today and shot quite a bit.  Speer Lawman 124gr 9mm.  Here are some photos:

Just disassembled the weapon and yes that is a bit of carbon.

I see carbon.  Also, I can see where the bullet nose hits the feed ramp on chambering

This is after wiping with a paper towel.  No brushes yet.  You can see it did a good job just with wiping.  I did later use a brush and Q-tips to clean the deeper nooks.

Again, lots of carbon.

And, again, just wiping it off with a paper towel.

Now, this is not to say that all you need to do is wipe it down and you're good.  I still needed to use Q-tips and a nylon brush to clean the slide and frame, but it took 1/4 of the time to do so since the carbon just wiped away.

Supposedly it treats the surfaces making subsequent cleanings easier.  Time will tell.

Train hard and train often.

Grip Force Adapter Gen 4

So, I installed a Grip Force Adapter Gen 4 on my Glock 19.  Here's 10 rounds at 25 yards. You can see the three rounds it took to warm up. More practice! I had to file the grip pin to contour with the frame. I like it. It's definitely different from the OEM Glock medium beaver tail.

Slight Break

Sorry for the delay in current posts. Taking a slight break to mourn with family during a recent loss. 

Regular programming will resume shortly. 

Thank-you. 

Sunday Thought 8/10/14

Just a quick thought today as I already pushed out a decent review of the Griffon Industries HMMS.

Speaking of gear and equipment, particularly with the AR15 platform and variants and then handguns my piece of advice would be this:

Don't be in a rush to add the latest tacti-COOL piece of hardware or upgrade to your weapon.  The fundamentals never change.

I am firm advocate of training to use your AR15 with iron sights before learning how to shoot with an optic.  If you can fight effectively with just irons, then when you "upgrade" to a red dot or holosight, that's just icing on the cake to take your mastered fundamentals to the next level.

Same with handgun upgrades.  Unless you bought a brick like a Hi-Point, there really isn't anything you should be gunning to upgrade at once except for sights on a handgun, especially the Glock.  Stock sights on a Glock should be upgraded at the time your buy your Glock.  That's about the only caveat to gear.

Triggers, optics, barrels (for handguns) should only be explored after you have a firm grasp of the fundamentals and make a stock gun run.  After that the upgrades become enhancements and not crutches.

Train Hard, Train Often.

Griffon Industries HMMS: A Brief Review

I have been shooting a suppressed SBR for some time now.  I like using a SureFire SOCOM MINI-556 on a 10.3" SBR 556 AR15 variant.

If you've shot with or have experience shooting with suppressors you already know one thing about them that is universal: they get extremely HOT!  As in, burn the skin right off of you, hot after long strings of fire.

For recreational shooters at a square range, this really isn't much of a hazard outside of remembering to let the suppressor cool before trying to bag a gun or remove a quick attach suppressor.

For anyone who might have to use a suppressor and then transition or go hands-on in close quarters that skin-searing suppressor suddenly becomes a concern.

A few companies exist out there, and since this is a specific review, I'll talk about one I decided to try out for the suppressor on my SBR:  the Griffon Industries HMMS.

HMMS stands for Heat & Mirage Mitigation System and can be found at their webpage. It retails for around $129.95 USD and comes in a variety of colors.  Since my weapon is subject to certain restrictions I chose Black in the Mini length.

According to their webpage:

This System was designed and created by a former special forces operator to help avoid contact burns in CQB environments as well as mitigate mirage for Sniper/DMR applications. The system has been tested extensively by different organizations in both military and law enforcement. Their reactions have been overwhelmingly positive, as this is the first product of its type to be able to handle both Rapid Semi-Auto fire and sustained Full Auto fire. We are offering four lengths that should cover the majority of suppressors on the market today. 
*To prevent the HMMS from sliding forward during rapid-fire, simply tighten the shock cord & tie a new knot.
Features and uses: Safety device for urban and vehicle operationsInner Core rated and tested at 3000 deg/F Can be used to remove suppressors after sustained use - Hand Safe External Heat Fire Retardant thread MSDS Compliant Reduce mirage & dissipates heat NON-ASBESTOS *Full Auto Rated - Tested to 9 mags full auto continuous by members of NSW
Available Lengths:Mini – 5” (ex. Surefire Mini, AAC Mini-4)
SOCOM – 6” (ex. KAC QDSS-NT4, GemTech Halo)
Middy – 7.5” (ex. AAC 762-SDN-6)
DMR – 9” (Surefire FA762K)

Upon opening the box are I discovered a neat PVC Griffon Industries patch, which has found its way onto my plate carrier.  Also, the HMMS.

My first impressions were that the item is nicely crafted and that the interior material is some sort of heat resistant material.  It uses a nylon bungie cord to adjust for diameter fit on the suppressor which can be tightened as needed (more on this later).

I mounted it to my suppressor and off to the indoor range I went.  I posted a video of the HMMS on my YouTube account.

You can see in the video that I needed to adjust the tightness of the HMMS.  It shot loose and actually I I burnt the interior of the insulating material. That's my fault, not any fault of the HMMS.

I didn't film all my shooting with the HMMS, but I put quite a few rounds through it.  It performed quite well, actually.  After a short string of fire, or even a magazine, the HMMS would not be hot enough to burn.  Even after several strings of fire the HMMS got hot, too hot to comfortably handle, but not hot enough to burn skin on contact, which would be perfect for close quarters, vehicle, or hands-on applications.

Here are some photos of the HMMS taken after the above posted video.

I recommend this piece of gear.  However, $130 is no small chunk of change for such a specialized piece of gear (not really knowing to what market and specialization it's intended for), but for the average shooter this is not a cheap piece of gear, but worth every penny.

I will be picking one up for my AAC Cyclone perhaps in one of the Kryptek offerings.  And that will be going on a bolt-gun (which I eventually do a write up on).

Train hard. Train often.

Sunday Thought

Sitting here, winding the day down after a good, home-cooked meal, thinking as I listen to some music.  I'm thinking a regular Sunday Thoughts might be a good addition to the blog.  We'll see it how it goes.

I've been benched with some injuries preventing me from getting out and shooting some videos, photos, and reviews or training ideas.

So, a thought crosses my mind as I'm reading on the internet (generally a bad idea as the current modern culture seems to have elevated the amateur to the rank of expert with nothing more than a YouTube account, but that's for another day).

Maybe we get too hung up the latest buzz word, dynamic, critical incident, disruptive, tactical or what have you.  While these are all good descriptors, does it matter?

When the metal meets the meat are you dynamic?  Do you find yourself in a critical incident evolving in a disruptive tactical environment?  Does the thought even cross your mind?  Or, do you do as your body tells you and either fight or run?

I'm a big, perhaps the biggest, unknown proponent of training.  I think anyone who carries a gun should train, should get training, and continue to train.  There's no excuse. (This is not a rights discussion.  It's a right, that's a given.  I'm talking about something else here).

But, as I look around and take training, get trained, watch training, read training what I'm finding is a mass opaque lens clouding the vision of many.

Maybe I'm not clear with this.  It is just mostly, rambling thoughts on a Sunday evening.  Here's what I'm getting at:

A gun is a gun.  A bullet is a bullet.  When it breaks flesh it doesn't matter what you call it.  Bullets obey the laws of physics.  A gun can't do anything the laws of nature don't allow.  Cool names are a cold comfort six feet under the earth.  My trigger finger mechanically pulls a trigger causing the gun to mechanical in a variety of ways to strike a primer igniting the gun powder sending a ball of metal towards the target.

You've heard it said: the only things that matter are trigger control and sight alignment.  Two mechanics that are 100% mental when the stress is on.  When the wheels fly off during a stressful situation it's because the driver lost his mind.

Mindset matters perhaps above all else.  Yes, you have to know your gun and how to shoot it, but that is all useless when the metal meets the meat.

I agree there are better ways to do things, this isn't a tactics discussion.  But, if you obtain the superior tactical position, yet freak out and dump rounds no where near the bad guy, while he just stands there calm as a breeze and smokes you, what good did it do?

We, those who live by the gun, need to be physically fit, we need training and to rehearse the training often. But, we cannot neglect the mind.  How do we do this?

I don't know, I'm not a psychologist.  But, I think we do it by training under stress as a start.  Even perhaps as equally important is talking with and hanging out with other warriors who carry the same traits as we do.  Group discussion, group debrief, group hanging out.

Like our ancestors before, gathering around the fire at night and sharing war stories.  Talking shit to each other.  Listening to those who have experience.  Learning from each others mistakes.

We each have to win our own battles and stand on our own when our mettle is tested, but we shouldn't exist outside the culture of warriors.

So, I guess my thoughts are rambling, but that's ok.  One of the perks of this being my blog.  Seek out good training, but don't get caught up on buzzwords.  Buzzwords don't put bullets on target. Focus does.  Discipline does.  Hard work does.  The latest brand touted by X, Y, or Z won't make you the next Elvis of gunfighting.

Gear supports need, but never dictates it.  I don't become a better shooter by shortcut.

Owning a gun does not make you a gunfighter, any more than owning a guitar makes you a rockstar.

Train hard. Train often.