Jeff Cooper has been described as the “father of modern handgun shooting”. His influence pushed shooting forward, and his contributions to modern handgun handling deserve notation. Over time we may have evolved, and tactics, techniques, and firearms change, but the way we see shooting in 2021 was built on the blocks of Jeff Cooper’s contributions. Today we are going to look at three of his drills.
These are part of a larger martial art called Combat Pistol Shooting which got its start in the early 1900s. It combines works from Cooper’s Modern Technique as well as contributions from Captain William E. Fairbairn and Sergeant Eric A. Sykes and their time in Shanghai as well as Rex Applegate, Jack Weaver, and many more. These drills were based on actual events, and Jeff Cooper applied what someone could theoretically do should they be armed with a pistol.
Mozambique / Failure To Stop Drill
You might argue this isn’t technically one of Jeff Cooper’s drills, but I’d argue it is. A mercenary named Mike Rousseau was fighting in the Mozambique War of Independence. During a particularly harrowing fight at an airport, he turned a corner and came face to face with an enemy armed with an AK 47. Rousseau engaged with his Browning Hi-Power and fired two rounds into the guy’s chest.
The Mozambique drill only requires a chest and head target.
The man didn’t go down, and he continued to advance. As such, Mike fired a final shot to his head. He recounted this story to Jeff Cooper, and Cooper added the Mozambique drill to his drills folder. You surely recognize this as the classic two to the chest and one to the head.
It’s a very simple drill, and you’ve likely already figured the core of the drill out. Shooters face the target, and on the signal, they fire a double tap or hammer pair to the chest of the target. From here, they take a well-aimed shot at the head of the target. Headshots should be focused on the T zone of the target. This is the entire that ranges from eye to eye and down the bridge of the nose to the upper lip.
Two to the chest and one to the head wins hearts and minds.
The drill is modular and can be fired at nearly any range with either a rifle or pistol. Shooters can start holstered or in the low ready, and a timer can institute extra stress. It’s a great drill that allows shooters to continually increase the difficulty of the drill as their skills increase. The Marine Corps still uses this drill, and they label it the Failure to Stop Drill.
The El Presidente
Undoubtedly as far as Jeff Cooper drills go, this is the most famous. The El Presidente drill came from a 1970s issue of American Handgunner. While training a South American security force, Cooper designed the drill to test shooters and gauge their skills.
The drill is simple. You’ll need three man-sized targets spaced a yard apart from each other. Shooters will stand 10 yards from the target. From here, they will face away from the targets, with their hands in a surrender position with their firearm holstered.
The El Presidente Calls for three bad guys
You’ll need a firearm loaded with six rounds, and a magazine or speed loader also loaded with six rounds. A shot timer should also be present with a par time set to 10 seconds. On the beep, shooters turn, draw and engage each target with two rounds.
Once the gun is empty, they reload and fire two more rounds into each target. Shooters who score all shots on target in under 10 seconds have passed the drill. That’s a surprisingly generous par time, and this makes it rather easy. I’m surprised Jeff Cooper didn’t choose a tighter time.
Getting below seven seconds provides a more worthwhile goal. It’s more challenging and makes this page of Cooper’s drills more useful and practical.
An El Pres calls for a rapid reload on the fly.
I also fire the drill from concealment. Concealed carry wasn’t a hugely popular thing in Jeff Cooper’s time. As such, the drill doesn’t force you to hide your piece. Adding a concealed carry garment makes the training more practical for the vast majority of us.
Shooters desiring a good challenge and a good time should give the ole El Presidente a try.
The Dozier Drill
In 1981 five Italian Communists kidnapped Brigadier General James Lee Dozier from his apartment in Verona, Italy. The kidnappers posed as plumbers, which leads me to believe they all looked like Super Mario. Anyway, they kidnapped him, held him for 42 days, and eventually, he was freed.
Dozier recounted the kidnapping and how one man pulled out an SMG from his tool bag and loaded it as another read some filthy commie statement. Dozier was prohibited from carrying a firearm at the time. In this Jeff Copper drill, you play Dozier, but you’re armed.
Now you have to face five Italian plumbers.
You’re facing five targets five to seven yards away. Cooper dictated they be steel poppers that fall when struck. However, that’s an expensive proposition. I think the A-Zone of an IPSC target works, as do Sage Dynamics free printable targets. Each target should be one yard apart or so. Start with the handgun in the low ready, and engage the five targets as fast as possible.
Add a Partner
Now, if you really want to kick it up a notch, have a partner behind the firing line going through the motions of retrieving a weapon from a bag, loading it, and making it ready. To keep things fair, use a toolbox or tool bag that closes.
Your goal is to shoot all the targets before your partner has the gun ready. Your partner represents the armed terrorist retrieving his weapon. This method of measuring time is a part of the original Dozier drill, but it often gets ignored these days. It creates a moving par time that’s never the same thing twice.
Make it tougher by taking a seat and starting from this position.
A friend and fellow Marine and I do this drill on occasion, and it often becomes quite competitive. It’s also a lot of fun with a buddy and motivates me to do better when I gotta beat someone else. To further alter the difficulty level, start with the handgun holstered or placed on a table in front of you. You can shoot each target once or use double taps, whatever floats your boat.
Jeff Cooper Drills
These drills will make a plain ole range day a bit more interesting. Now the big question is, are they out of date? They are admittedly not very difficult and can be done by most average shooters. With a little practice, anyone can do an El Presidente, but how many can do a Sage Dynamics Eleanor drill?
They aren’t necessarily useless as they do train valuable, defensively-minded drills. However, Jeff Cooper’s drills are a lot like his contributions to modern pistol craft. They act as building blocks and give shooters new skills they can build upon. Check ’em out, and let us know what you think below.
In this episode of The Mag Life Podcast, Daniel visits with Ed Calderon, a former Mexican police agent with extensive experience and understanding of border control issues, drug cartels, and the complexities that exist between the US and Mexico.
Born in Tijuana, Mexico in the 80s, Ed decided to go into police work when he was 21. For over a decade he worked in counter-narcotics, investigation of organized crime, executive protection, and public safety along the northern border of Mexico. Later, he came to the US and is now recognized as one of the world’s most preeminent researchers and personal security trainers, offering security consulting, seminars, and private training in anti-abduction, escape and evasion, unarmed combat, unconventional edged-weapon work, and region-specific executive protection.
Together, Daniel and Ed discuss complex issues about the escalation of the Mexican Drug War, foreign gun-running, US intervention, issues of governance and firearms ownership in Mexico (and the parallels in the US), human trafficking, and more.
Ed Calderon is recognized as one of the world’s preeminent researchers and trainers in the field of personal security.
02:22 Imparting Valuable Skills to Others
Daniel inquiries about the life-saving skills Ed learned on the job while he was active in Latin America and Mexico. Ed’s extensive background in counter-narcotics work has covered escape and evasion—namely, how to:
• escape from handcuffs, • manufacture tools for survival, • be armed in non-permissive environments, • look for early warning signs of an ambush in an urban setting, and • understand the social norms in Mexico.
He has brought his in-depth, hands-on experience in the undercover narcotics world to other law enforcement agencies in the United States (FBI, Secret Service, among others) so that they may be better equipped for threats across the border.
06:05 What scares you?
Daniel asks Ed what genuinely scares him. Ed replies that his one fear is to not live without a purpose. Having faced a great many near-death experiences, Ed has become numb to the idea of physical danger. Rather, it is the concept of having gone through what he did and not being able to bring meaning to his experiences.
“You know, people think ‘Hey aren’t you afraid of the cartels coming after you and shit like that?’ If I was I wouldn’t have gone into this line of work when I was 21. So that specific thing doesn’t really… make me lose sleep. What does make me lose sleep is having gone through that whole experience and not making it worth it. Or not giving it some sort of purpose.”
Ed Calderon, counter custody expert.
07:22 What should scare the American public?
Daniel flips the question: “Based on everything you know… what should WE be scared about?”
Ed feels that American public scrutiny immensely neglects the sheer amount of Chinese government influence with Mexican drug cartels, and how their activities are increasingly becoming a threat to national security. He cites that the Chinese have a direct hand in fentanyl supply to cartels, a strong influence in major American industries. He further adds that this is occurring with full knowledge of the Communist Party in China.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación or CJNG) actually managed to grow in size and in influence during the COVID epidemic when all other organizations and institutions halted, due to being able to receive fentanyl shipments. They were able to do so because they had supreme control of the ports that faced the Pacific Ocean. Meanwhile, the Sinaloa Cartel has been smuggling fentanyl from the US, processing this into their product, then smuggling it to be sold into the US. In essence, there has been an ongoing drug proxy war across the US and Mexico.
Ed further emphasizes the sheer amount of influence the Chinese government and their companies have within US media and industry. Disney/Marvel and many entertainment conglomerates are basically barred from openly criticizing China. NBA players receive consequences for speaking out about China. Trade relations suffer if companies recognize Taiwan as a country. Daniel makes the same observation, adding that in his experience briefly being part of the film industry, he has noticed movie studios will continually push out sequels to old franchises because it simply caters to the one Chinese market. While perhaps only a few care about a repetitive franchise, this caters to billions in China. Ed concludes that “We are losing the culture war.”
11:45 China’s Actions and the Worsening State in the Mexican Drug War
Ed delves deeper into the issue of China’s actions in the Mexican drug war, specifically how they supply and finance cartels. Criminal enterprises have, in fact, used Chinese banking apps to launder this money. Profits made in the US can be transferred using the apps, then an overseas Chinese fixer sends the funds into their country’s banking apparatus. Later, the funds get sent to Mexico. Legally speaking, the US cannot do anything about it—further cementing that they are losing the economic war.
As a result, there are effectively two major cartel superpowers fighting for power in Mexico: the Sinaloa and the CJNG. Their capabilities and spheres of influence are staggering. Very recently the Sinaloa Cartel essentially defeated the Mexican military, with the ability to put up no-fly zones across the country. The largest lithium deposits in the world are found in northern Mexico, and they have become highly sought after by the cartels. A couple of years ago, headlines hit that Mexican-American Mormons were massacred by cartel enforcers, it was at this very location where the murders occurred. Ed also points out that a Canadian mining company that was operating in the lithium mines was later bought up by a Chinese company.
On the whole, the Chinese-Mexican cartel relations have already created noticeable shifts in the country. Strange rises of bogus pain medication and pills laced with fentanyl are hitting the Mexican pharmaceutical market. In addition, there is a large trend of Norinco firearms and drones from China in the hands of cartel soldiers. For those who have been monitoring the situation, the dynamics of the current drug war have been frightening.
17:46 Foreign Gun-Running in Mexico
Ed recalls personally finding countless foreign firearms in the stashed weapon caches of cartel members—recognizing a few from the now infamous Operation Fast and Furious. For those unaware, that operation was part of a “gun-walking” sting in which the ATF allowed firearms to be sold to illegal straw buyers in hopes of tracking the guns to Mexican criminal elements. In effect, it caused the deaths of many Mexican nationals as well as American federal agents, the most notable of which was US Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry.
Both Daniel and Ed agree that the operation was a disaster. Ed tells of an incident in which a law enforcement agent and his family were attacked while driving in Mexico. Sicarios ambushed the family and used FN Five-Seven pistols to murder the agent, his wife, and crippled the daughter. These very FN Five-Sevens were directly sold by US-based weapons dealers during Operation Fast and Furious.
“[Mexican federal agents] are the people that never get called or named, no cameras are ever placed on them, nobody’s telling their story… These are the guys fighting off people with AK47s and AR15s with a Colt M4 in semi auto that has two magazines to it and a soft second-chance body armor set up. You know? Cuz we were poor as ****, we were just [using] what we had.”
Ed explains that gun-running in Mexico today is no longer just coming from the US, but from all over the world. Countries in Africa, the Middle East, and South America have all had a part to play in smuggling firearms into the hands of cartel members. Ed asserts that Mexico has been the cradle of innovation since the inception of the drug war. Today, cartels are weaponizing civilian drones with explosive devices, using mobile mortar vans, and utilizing IEDs against law enforcement and military personnel.
Much of this creativity is the result of enduring poverty and lack of resources, making innovation a necessity. In addition, there is very little regulation being enforced in the majority of the country.
24:07 Should the US intervene in Mexico?
Daniel asks Ed what he anticipates will unfold in Mexico in the near future. Ed believes that within his lifetime, the US will force a military intervention as the drug war becomes more and more uncontrollable. And while this may be the most likely scenario, Ed does not necessarily believe it is the best course of action. Historically, the United States has had a terrible track record in producing positive outcomes from direct foreign intervention as made evident by the Vietnam War and the War on Terror in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Additionally, Ed raises the question for Americans, what would happen if, hypothetically, we were able to wholesale eliminate the flow of drugs between Mexico and the US? A healthcare crisis of monumental proportions would occur, one that would make the COVID epidemic pale in comparison. Ed also stresses that the cartel problem is not just a Mexican problem, it is actively a US problem. There are multiple cartel organizations that make a living within the US alone, with direct ties to our domestic drug trade. The drug war is multi-layered and interconnected, ensuring Mexico and the US must deal with the fallout of each other’s actions.
As far as what can be done immediately, Ed believes the US Border Patrol needs more personnel numbers and funding to directly combat the transfer of people and products across the border. Much controversy has surrounded former President Trump’s initiation of a border wall being built but according to experts like Ed, this will only barely slow down the cartel’s operations.
“There are ‘shock groups’… [They] are operational, 80 strong, even more sometimes… of just convoys of homemade armored vehicles, full auto rifles, 50 Cals, dudes kitted up head to toe with Wi-Fi cell phone disruptors… That is not happening across the ocean… that is happening a five minute walk from the border in places like Mexicali.”
Ed Calderon looking over the world’s busiest border crossing between San Diego and Tijuana. (Image source: Offgrid Web)
33:06 Are Islamic extremists coming over the border with cartel assistance?
Daniel dives deeper into the smuggling operations done by Mexican cartels, specifically if they have been playing an active part in transporting Islamic extremists into the US. Ed explains this has been occurring more recently due to the fact these extremists are able to simply hide in the mass of bodies being smuggled across the border within caravans. Traditionally, cartels have not and do not want to be associated with Islamic extremists due to the fact that it would bring much unwanted attention to themselves. However, the dynamic is changing. As a new younger generation of Mexicans takes up leadership roles within cartel groups, they do not share the same level of restraint as their predecessors.
35:11 Should Mexican drug cartels be labeled as terrorists?
Ed speaks about the concern and the repercussions of labeling cartels as terrorists. Even during the height of the Trump administration, they stayed clear from taking such action as it would have severe consequences of its own in relation to immigration.
But ultimately do they meet the definition of a terrorist organization?
Their actions would seem to meet that label. Cartels have Instagram live-streamed themselves executing political candidates of rival cartel organizations. The president of Mexico has shaken hands with El Chapo’s lawyer and even made a personal effort to visit the hometown of El Chapo in order to greet his mother. The cartels can even be considered as a transnational organization. Sinaloa Cartel members have been arrested in Australia, Indonesia, and some countries in Africa. Ed believes cartels to be more transnational than Al-Qaeda.
Cartels have also exhibited cult-like behavior. Some groups practice cannibalism as a show of strength, intimidation, and as part of their initiation process. They will film themselves eating still-beating hearts and post these videos online to spread fear. Certain leaders of cartels are considered to be holy deities and raise young men to believe as such. Much of what the American public commonly associates with Islamic terrorist organizations can also be widely attributed to Mexican drug cartels today.
It is apparent to both Daniel and Ed that the Chinese Communist Party’s involvement in the Mexican drug trade is very purposeful and done with full support. Some individuals believe the trade and financial support coming out of China is being conducted by rogue actors but according to Ed, nothing comes in or out of China without the CCP’s full knowledge. In some ways, China could be acting as a state sponsor for terrorist organizations.
As for the reason why the US does not recognize cartels as terrorists, it is simple: it would be an immigration nightmare. If there was an official designation of terrorist actors in Mexico, that would mean Mexicans could claim refugee status, fleeing from a terrorist organization into the US. The immigration problem is already immense. The last thing the US government wants is to exacerbate the issue.
45:04 Current State of Mexico’s Government and Law Enforcement
While Ed has been a strong advocate for increased funding and resources directed towards combating the drug cartels, more often than not, those are misappropriated. For years, the US has poured taxpayer dollars to fund and equip Mexican law enforcement agents, from 5.11 tactical clothing to H&K firearms. Unfortunately, hardly anything has changed. This sort of passive support is clearly not enough to turn the tide. The US government typically bets on having a strong military leadership in Mexico. However, absolutely no one in the government is safe from cartel influence. Mexican Marine Special Operations forces have recently been bribed into becoming bodyguards for drug lords and commanders have been seen staying in lavish houses owned by cartels.
Federal agents in Mexico are often offered bribes by criminal elements. Ed warns that the second anyone says yes to an offer, they are owned by the cartels. It becomes a trap and blackmail becomes the easiest tactic to force agents into their pocket. So prevalent is the corruption of law enforcement in Mexico that the second Ed tells anyone of his background, more often than not people automatically assume he was one of those corrupt agents. The few good men working within Mexico’s law enforcement system are almost never recognized for their efforts outside of American entertainment media and some major headlines.
“Mexico is a conquered nation. It’s a colony. It was a Mexican Empire and then it turned into a Catholic Empire. It’s gone through a bunch of changes as far identity goes. But the things that remain are memories of its violent past and very violent present. [Also] cultural elements of people being for themselves and not for each other… [This is due to] desperation and poverty. Mexico is a rich *** country, it’s just the distribution part of it is not [good].”
53:39 Parallels in the US
Ed and Daniel observe that Mexico’s current issue with the distrust of law enforcement has also been developing wildly within the US in the past few years alone. Daniel’s concern is that this distrust and propaganda will inadvertently turn away the good cops that stand for protecting individual rights, to be replaced by those who only follow orders no matter how unconstitutional the law may be.
Daniel believes this is a coordinated attempt to end self-reliance and make the population less able to defend themselves. Ed points out with the growing anti-cop sentiment; recruitment numbers are down. Some areas in the US do not even have a real police presence anymore. “Who wants to grow up and be a cop anymore?”, Ed asks.
Ed believes the attempt to take away individual freedoms such as firearm ownership is not something as one-dimensional as agents barging into your door and taking away your guns. It’s rather an attack on the entire concept of gun ownership, or a culture war against guns. The laws that are being pushed involve restricting not the act of owning a gun but the conditions that surround your ability to use them, such as caliber, magazine capacity, and areas of use restrictions for a firearm. The overall strategy is to make it so difficult to even own a firearm, the owners will be rendered incapable of using them effectively. It is a gradual process.
01:01:00 Firearm Ownership in Mexico
In stark contrast to the US, Ed discusses the severe firearms ownership laws in Mexico. Despite having a clear stance on allowing firearm ownership for self-defense in the constitution, the Mexican government today has a single blanket gun law in place that wholesale restricts how any legal citizen can acquire and trade a firearm. The legislation basically monopolized the legal trade and manufacturing of firearms to the military. At one point the Mexican people actually gave up the vast majority of their guns, willingly, to the government through gun drives and buyback programs. Since then, the act of purchasing a gun is a ridiculously arduous process.
“There is a single firearm store in Mexico. [It is] in Mexico City. So if you wanna buy a gun in Mexico, you have to be able to purchase a plane ticket to and from Mexico City from wherever you’re from, go there and buy this overpriced gun…
“Just imagine the most funny, piece of **** gun out there… that you wouldn’t want even as a toy…. [then] you do a bunch of paperwork for it and then you fly back home and store it in your house. And you can’t practice with it unless you’re part of a shooting club and that’s an expensive thing to be a part of.
“So basically, if you’re not upper-middle class, having a gun is not an option for you… The military can shoot a minigun into a city to try and take down a cartel [member] but you can’t own a 22 caliber revolver.”
In addition to all of these restrictions, the Mexican government is currently asking community defenders fighting off cartel members to disarm themselves, despite the immense danger they face. Within central Mexico, government forces are attempting to push into deep cartel territory and “clean up” the area. However, one must consider that much of how the cartels were even allowed to be as prevalent as they are is due to the government’s local offices being part of the problem. Simply put, on both a practical and legal level, all the cards are stacked against the average citizen in Mexico seeking to defend themselves.
At a Counter Custody Class, Ed Calderon explains the anatomy of an abduction.
It is because of these experiences that Ed Calderon is a strong 2nd amendment supporter. He wishes he could find the most staunch anti-gun liberal in the US, drive them 30 hours into Mexico to a marginalized community that has been assaulted by both the corrupt police and the cartel, and have them ask these people if they would like to be armed. “In a heartbeat,” Ed says, “All of them would say yes.” Daniel further adds that every single instance of major gun control legislation being passed has directly had a hand to play in mass murders and oppression, no matter the setting.
01:12:09 Sex Trade and Human Trafficking
Daniel asks Ed about his knowledge regarding the sex trade and human trafficking operations within Mexico. To no one’s surprise, Ed paints a dark picture of the grim realities that await young Mexican women as they attempt to cross the border. It is not uncommon for girls as young as 12 or 13 years of age to disappear. Women in their travels through the country are often raped and taken advantage of. Those who are deemed attractive enough are recruited into sex work in brothels.
This is further worsened by the fact Mexico on the whole has a terrible record of actually solving crimes, especially murders. According to Ed, 96% of all murders in Mexico go unsolved. So for serial killers, it’s is an ideal place to prey on the innocent. For example, only recently had authorities caught a man who had 40 bodies buried in his backyard in Mexico City—and he was only found out due to his own mistake.
Slavery is often thought of in the past tense, especially in America. Ed asserts that slavery is happening right now with migrant Mexican workers who have been reduced to becoming indentured servants. And it is not as uncommon as one might believe. The governor of California, Gavin Newsom, had workers who were paying of their debts working his winery during the height of the COVID epidemic.
“People need to kind of pay attention… to things that are happening right under our noses and stop thinking of it… as a ‘Mexico problem’… It’s a problem that is in your backyard now.”
01:18:50 What can we do? How can we pay more attention?
Speaking on behalf of the listeners, Daniel asks Ed how can Americans pay more attention occurring with the Mexican drug trade and what can we do to help. Ed encourages listeners to firstly keep up with the news and current events in Mexico much as they would here in the US. Secondly, he recommends that Americans contact their representatives and ask them to monitor and audit what taxpayer dollars are being used for in the drug war down south. American citizens should focus their attention and question their government officials on why millions of dollars have been spent on the drug war for no real difference to occur. Accountability must be enforced.
To sum it up, Ed states, “Last year was the most lethal year to be a Mexican in our history. Why aren’t Americans screaming for accountability from the government?” The situation is, again, extremely dire. There are over 82,000 missing people in Mexico with active practices of slavery and countless dead.
“Americans need to call what’s going on in Mexico what it is: it’s a Narco insurgency where the government is not to be trusted. [There are] multiple sides to it and there are foreign actors working within Mexico against US interests. That’s what that giant wasp’s nest of a country is and it’s right across your border. It’s not gonna be like pulling into Iraq, it’s not gonna be like Afghanistan. It’s gonna be its own thing.”
For a true military intervention to be truly done, the US must take into consideration the horrific economic effects this would take on the country as Mexico is one of the US’ largest trading partners as well as preparing for a guerrilla war, unlike anything they’ve ever seen. Ed says people ask him what the solution is, but it’s very complex. It should be a priority, just from the aspect of regional stability.
Dogs are used in some of the more advanced counter custody materials. (Image source: Recoil Web)
1:24:03 Priorities
Ed says Islamic terrorism is a threat but it’s not the biggest threat to the US right now. The regional de-civilization of the country right next to the US that is also the biggest trading partner should be big on the list of priorities. Islamic extremism is something to worry about, of course, but Ed says there are things eating away at American society, like Fentanyl-laced heroin, that are actually more of a threat than somebody trying to commit a terrorist act on US soil.
Daniel says he holds few things in higher esteem than the US flag. In fact, the only thing he holds in higher esteem is what the flag represents: individual liberty, freedom, independence.
He goes on to say that right now, our priorities are out of order. For instance, millions are dying of heart disease and obesity. But people are pushing body positivity instead of getting healthy. Or COVID—you’re going to die of heart disease before Covid gets you. Or even the push to ‘save the kids’ by getting rid of guns….there are a bazillion things that should be of higher priority than these things that are happening because there are a lot of things taking more people off the planet unjustly because of mistakes that we’ve made as a society.
Daniel points out misplaced priorities in the 2nd Amendment crowd too. He says he despises the idea of federal firearms reciprocity. He’s not a fan of the federal government having power. If they’re not doing something to protect the people, they shouldn’t be doing it.
1:30:33 Victims
There is an epidemic of professional victims causing a tremendous amount of problems and murdering common sense.
Ed says, “If you have a victim mentality, you have the privilege of saying that police should be the only ones with guns.”
Not everybody gets that. Ed discusses how many people think he is in the US because of the wrong things the US has done to Mexico. And, yes. The US has had some pretty bad foreign policy with Mexico. But also, Ed can walk around in places in the US and not get picked up by a van with a bunch of dudes carrying AK47s. Mexico has not been innocent about it’s own situation.
So people can go into the victim mindset, saying everybody’s at fault for what we don’t have, but what good does that do?
Or, we can spend that same energy trying to get things to work out better. Ed asks people, “What have you done for your community in the last five days?”
Ed also points out that people question why so many cops in Mexico switch sides to work for the cartels. It’s because there’s no support from the government or from the people. He says that he is earning his way in this country. Daniel follows up by saying even though he isn’t earning his way into the country in the same way, he believes we need to continue to earn what this country can be for our kids and grandkids. If we look at the news reports, it seems like we are failing. But, Daniel still believes in the quiet majority—the good guys who are censored at every turn. And, the longer the good guys are censored, the more impressionable young people are permanently swayed to the other side.
1:36:56 What about changes in immigration policy?
Ed points out that people who applaud change in immigration policy, (as far as border enforcement), are also applauding the fact that the cartels that control that border are making Bank. They’re applauding the fact that children disappear across the border. They’re applauding that children are tossed over the border, breaking their legs on the way down. Slavery. Indentured servitude. Rape. Murder.
Ed went through the immigration process. It wasn’t easy. It took a while. It was hard and stressful, and he says it isn’t fair for someone to circumvent the process — to have the benefit of being in the United States. He says that a lot of Americans need to understand that most Mexicans are conservative. They’ve just been through a period of being labeled as the ‘bad guys’.
Daniel says that he saw the same thing with the Cubans in Miami. He says, “They’ve seen the other side. They don’t want to go back.
Ed points out that some people like to say how beautiful Mexico is. And, of course it’s nice there! —Inside the fences and the gates with the armed security. He says, “Come with me to some of the places I’ve been to, where the people don’t move aside if you point a rifle at them, because they see them every day. Come to a place like that with me, and we’ll talk about reality. I wasn’t a tourist agent. I was a police agent. My main point of my activism is to bring light and voice to those people that don’t have them.”
1:39:20 Daniel says that he’s glad Ed is here and he really appreciates his service to this country.
Ed brings up that he’s done classes for border control. He’s seen the levels of humanity like guys just buying toothbrushes for the kids out of their own pocket. He’s also seen the bad side, he acknowledges that it’s not all good. But he encourages people to not generalize. The quiet people in that field should be a bit more loud. He gets to have conversations with people around the country in law enforcement and the military and he knows that they have a level of humanity that is completely color blind as far as what they are doing.
He points out that if it’s rare for people in the US to go into service, in places like Mexico, people like Ed who go into the service are like lepers. They get incredulous questions like, “Where are you going to work?” “How much are you going to earn?” “What are the risks?” He says that for the time he was in, it was rated the most dangerous job on the planet. And he didn’t get rich off it. All he got was a few concussions, a broken nose several times over, a few missing parts…and as Daniel points out, probably some serious mental trauma. Ed adds that he’s also got a few stories about donkey shows.
And he’s still out there. He isn’t working for the government anymore, but he’s working on the business side of it and a big part of what he does is activism. Through his platform, he takes up small causes and gives them a voice to expose some of the things that people don’t want to talk about.
Ed Calderon instructing self-defense with a medium blade knife. (Image source: Offgrid Web)
1:41:43 Where can you learn more about what Ed is up to, the causes he is after, and see how they can help and possibly train with him?
Find him at his website: Ed’s Manifesto. The site has a schedule, a blog, and a link to support very at-need agents that are working in Mexico, and some of the orphans that were left behind. For financial accountability, Ed documents every cent of donations and takes the money to the recipients personally. Ed also is raising money for the Sniper Foundation—he’s not one-sided in this. He is for this country, but he also looks back to the country that he came from. He’s trying to do things on both sides of the border.
Gunfire rattled and roared around the airport, as Rhodesian Mike Rousseau moved toward the next corner, his Browning Hi-Power in hand. He wasn’t expecting the enemy fighter who suddenly faced him from about ten paces away, AK-47 in hand.
The FN Hi-Power – The First Weapon Used in a Mozambique Drill
Rousseau reacted quickly, presenting his pistol and firing twice into the man’s chest as the guerrilla fighter advanced on him. It should have dropped the guerrilla—two 9mm rounds in the vitals should have torn through his heart and lungs—but he kept coming. Adrenaline can have that effect, keeping what is essentially a dead man moving long enough to do serious harm. And Mike knew he had to reassess and reengage.
Quickly lifting his point of aim, he fired again, aiming for the other man’s eye. But between the closure rate and his own adrenaline rush, he slapped the trigger and shot the guerrilla in the throat instead, severing his spine. The Mozambican fighter collapsed, and the engagement was over.
The Mozambique Drill, aka Failure to Stop Drill
Mike Rousseau was friends with Colonel Jeff Cooper, a legend in the firearms training world and the founder of Gunsite Academy. He told Cooper the story, and Cooper began to teach what he called the “Mozambique Drill” at Gunsite.
Col. Jeff Cooper – A shooting legend and the man who codified the drill.
Later on, some LAPD officers got permission from Cooper to teach the technique to the LAPD, renaming it the “Failure Drill” or “Failure to Stop Drill,” to avoid any political implications of the term “Mozambique Drill.” (Though that name has lived on to this day, as evidenced by the title of this article.) The latter name is actually more informative about its function, as it is intended to drop an attacker who not only isn’t deterred by an aimed weapon but keeps coming even with two or more bullets in their chest cavity. They failed to stop, so the Failure Drill is designed to put them down.
The drill is, on its face, pretty simple. Two shots to the chest, followed up by a single headshot. “Two to the chest, one to the head,” is the ditty many have used to remember it, while some Marines of this author’s acquaintance altered it slightly to, “Two to the heart, one to the mind.” There are some nuances, though, and the way it is trained has changed in certain circles over the years.
The two stages in the Mozambique drill.
From Rousseau’s anecdote, the drill started out of pure combat necessity. While it’s unclear why the enemy fighter charged him instead of shooting, obviously there was a close combat situation about to go down, and the instinctive pair to center mass didn’t do the trick. Rousseau had quickly evaluated what had happened, and went for a “circuitry kill” (destruction of the central nervous system, thereby immediately shutting down any impulse to attack or pull a trigger), since the “hydraulics kill” (destruction of the cardio-pulmonary system, denying the body blood and oxygen to keep functioning) hadn’t worked fast enough.
Cooper incorporated the drill as a similarly situational engagement. He taught a quick pair to the chest, followed by a pause to see if that had done anything, and if it hadn’t, then take the headshot. This is somewhat in keeping with minimum force requirements for legal reasons when teaching civilians. After all, most people who learn this drill are not going to be in an African civil war, with guerrillas and mercenaries on both sides.
However, given the reality of a close-in, deadly force encounter, in which the target might be amped up on adrenaline—like the guerrilla Rousseau shot—or otherwise “chemically enhanced,” over time that pause has been edited out of the training. The rationale there is reasonable enough. At pistol engagement distances—usually about 15 yards and in—you might not get that moment to reassess after the initial pair. Especially if your opponent is charging you. Remember the 21-foot rule: if a man with a knife is within 21 feet, you’re probably going to get stabbed before you can shoot him. These things happen fast.
So, the pause to reassess after the first pair got edited out, and the whole drill became simply, “Two to the chest, line up the headshot, one to the head.” To paraphrase Tuco, “If you have to shoot, shoot. Don’t wait around to see what happened.”
The drill hasn’t been limited to police and civilian concealed carriers, either. The military adopted it as well, and not only for pistol shooting. The author learned it on his first shooting package as a carbine drill.
A Mac-10 is not the ideal weapon for this drill, but if it’s a semi-auto, it will still work.
Further evolution has happened over the last decade or two. The original way the author learned the drill was a hammer pair to the chest—two shots as fast as humanly possible—followed by a slower headshot. Over time, however—and it’s uncertain how much of this was due to actual combat experience or competition experimentation—that’s changed to more of a “cadence drill,” where all three shots are more evenly spaced, though still extremely quick. Some of this has much to do with the shooter’s own proficiency. Hammer pairs are much more instinctive, and a headshot is more difficult to line up, as it’s a smaller target. Beginners to the drill will most likely best practice that hammer pair, line up, headshot, and then worry about smoothing things out. After all, in a deadly force encounter, it’s metal on target that matters a lot more than split times.
Is the drill any good?
This seems to be the question that gets asked about just about every drill out there, and it’s not an unreasonable question, given that if you dig deep enough, you start to find some pretty gonzo stuff for self-defense drills. <cough>Voda<cough>
Well, first of all, it was born in combat, and it worked. Furthermore, given the fact that its been taught for decades, and has presumably been used quite a few times in CQB downrange in Afghanistan, Iraq, and various other places, it is a proven technique.
Furthermore, if you look at it objectively, from a mechanical perspective, it is designed to immediately incapacitate a threat in the most effective way possible—the above-mentioned “hydraulic” and “circuitry” shots. The chest shots are the first step, as a center-mass shot is considerably easier than a headshot. The headshot is to ensure that the threat is stopped, and may or may not actually be necessary, but is trained because in the event that it is necessary, it’s going to become that way faster than most people can adjust without having already drilled it.
There are, however, some cons to it. Like everything else, the Mozambique/Failure Drill isn’t a magic bullet. Headshots are hard to take, and they’re even harder when the target is moving, rather than being a stationary IPSC target at ten yards. That is why some units have instead focused more on multiple shots to the chest, rather than just a pair and a headshot. In the words of Clint Smith, “And if I shoot him and he keeps coming, I should do what? … Shoot him again! And again, and again, and again, and repeat, as required, until what I want to happen, happens.” Again, some of this comes down to training and proficiency. Some of it is also situation-dependent.
No shooting drill is perfect, no drill is the magic pill that is guaranteed to save your life. But the Mozambique/Failure Drill is a good baseline for a close-in, deadly force encounter, especially in a situation where your opponent is either too riled up to feel his heart and lungs getting destroyed, or too chemically enhanced (which is just as likely to happen in the inner city as on some battlefield against a bunch of ISIS fanatics). The Failure to Stop Drill is a good one to have in your toolbox.
To be prepared in today’s unprecedented and challenging times you would be remiss in omitting either hard skills or soft skills from your proverbial tool kit.
Hard Skills vs Soft Skills
Soft skills afford you three layers of threat preparation which hard skills cannot.
Hard Skills
Hard skills are those skills that require your physicality such as firearms, hand-to-hand combat, edged weapons defense, defensive driving, and the like. Hard skills by their very nature introduce a scale of injury and mandatory physical training.
Scale of Injury
If you plan on going toe-to-toe with one or more adversaries in a gunfight, knife fight, or old school knock-down, teeth slammed into a street curb fisticuffs, then you immediately raise your scale of injury.
At the lower end of the scale, you walk away from the fight without so much as a scratch. Although possible, it is highly unlikely. Next up on the scale of injury is a minor injury such as the need for a band-aid or ice for a bruise. Again, you can live with this but it’s still going to hurt, and most likely accompanying bloodshed.
The next level up on this same scale is a recoverable injury such as a broken arm or leg. Yes, you can recover from this at some point, maybe weeks or months down the road, but at that very moment, you are rendered combat ineffective and become a detriment to yourself and to those you may be trying to protect.
Advancing up the scale, the next level is a permanent injury such as loss of limb or an eye that cannot be repaired. Lastly is dead right there — sorry but nobody comes back. There is no return from these last two levels. The objective is to keep yourself and those with you at the lowest end of the scare.
Physical Training
All hard skills require formal training. Most people with zero firearms training and background believe that if they buy a gun or a knife for self-defense that they are magically protected from all harm. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, without proper training on safety, storage, carry and maintenance, you could very well end up hurting yourself. Contrary to popular belief we are not born into this world instinctively knowing how to shoot, fight with a knife, and drive.
All hard skills are perishable. Even after receiving professional instruction, you then need to maintain those skills. If you plan on using those skills to preserve life and limb then you’re probably going to want a high level of competency which means a higher level of commitment to your training. Regularly practicing your newly learned skills is the only way to stop hard skills erosion.
Relying on your hard skills is relying on your physical training, your continued practicing of those skills, and your willingness to incur physical injury or even death in a violent physical altercation.
Soft Skills
Soft skills are set at the exact opposite end of the survival spectrum from hard skills. Soft skills are those skills that do not require your physicality such as good situational awareness, threat recognition, verbal judo, and other such de-escalation techniques.
When planning a strategy or preparing tactics it’s important to know the difference between the two. Strategy describes the destination and how you’re going to get there. Tactics describe the specific actions you’re going to take along the way.
Soft skills can be utilized both strategically and tactically whereas hard skills can only be used tactically. Soft skills afford you three layers of threat preparation which hard skills cannot. These are: frequency, proactive measures, and a tactical advantage.
Frequency
Think back to the number of times you’ve had to go to guns, knife somebody in the face, or take somebody to the ground in a bloody fistfight (hard skill). Now compare this to the number of times you used your situational awareness to observe an anomaly that caught your attention, say someone swerving on the road next to you (soft skill).
Now apply a percentage to your for-real prior hard skills usage and do the same for your for-real prior soft skills usage. In most cases, for most normal earth-walkers, it’s something along the lines of 98% soft skills and 2% hard skills. Can you anticipate those same percentages for the remainder of your time here on earth? Yes. They are unlikely to change.
Odds are in your favor that you will most likely apply your soft skills prior to or in lieu of your hard skills.
Proactive Measures
Soft skills are inherently proactive measures. As with any real-world threat the bad guy always has the initiative at the beginning of any altercation. They determine the when, the where, and who they will target, what weapons will be used, and the like. You, on the other hand, are placed woefully behind the action-reaction power curve. Utilizing your soft skills to hear it, see it, smell it coming proactively places you closer to the front of the curve.
Active measures can be applied during an emerging threat such as two hoodlums following behind you on foot. Using your proactive measures, you observe that you are being tracked. Only after this can you then take active measures such as to walk across the street, and/ or change your pace to create space and buy yourself time.
The only remaining option after active measures is reactive measures where you didn’t see it coming, failed to be proactive, failed to take active measures and have found yourself up against the wall with a muzzle in your face. Here you have no other choice but to switch gears to your hard skills which are purely reactive measures.
Tactical Advantage
In addition to the strategic application of threat avoidance, soft skills can also be used to gain a tactical advantage. Either you control the threat, or the threat controls you. Utilizing the granddaddy of all soft skills, situational awareness, you can gain control of your immediate environment visually, with audio using your senses and all with mental interaction. Relevant incoming information affords you educated decisions.
Situational awareness can be used to detect, deter or delay a real-world threat. Awareness is the currency that buys you time and opportunity to solve the tactical problem.
The advantages of soft skills over hard skills are numerous. Soft skills can be utilized both strategically and tactically whereas hard skills can only be used tactically. Soft skills are utilized more frequently and can therefore be practiced regularly without anyone around you knowing. Soft skills are proactive measures as opposed to reactive measures. The better your soft skills, the greater your odds in solving a problem by staying ahead of the action-reaction power curve and not raising your scale of injury.
This is GunMag Warehouse, and it’s always interesting to cover different things about magazines. Often, mags are an untouched topic in terms of historical analysis and coverage. So, combining my interest in magazines with my interest in weird stuff, I found a few weird magazine designs to cover here. I’m specifically going to talk about weird magazine designs that are removable because if we also cover fixed mags it might get a bit long.
Rotary — The Most Common Weird Magazine
The first rotary magazine was patented in 1856, and as far as weird magazine designs go, this is one of the most common. Well, one of the most commonly produced for a specific popular firearm. The famed Ruger 10/22 utilizes a rotary magazine. The Johnson rifle used a fixed rotary mag, and the Savage Model 1892 also used a rotary mag.
Ruger Magazines are the most common rotary magazines.
This weird magazine uses a cylindrical sprocket that’s moved by a torsion spring. Cartridges fit between the tooth bar of the sprocket, which sits on a spindle. Rounds are rotated into the feeding position automatically. These rotary magazines come in various capacities, and as the Ruger 10/22 has proven, they are quite reliable.
Helical
Helical magazines are real weird magazine designs that are also quite rare. The famed futuristic-looking Calico carbine system sported a 50 to 100 round magazine positioned above the gun. The Russian Bizon submachine gun also utilized an under-mounted helical magazine. The North Koreans apparently have a helical magazine for the AK 47 series, although no one knows if these things actually work.
The Bizon sports a Helical magazine.
Helical magazines are essentially drum magazines in which the round follows a spiral path around a specialized rotating follower. The drum tends to be more expansive horizontally than vertically and, as such, does not restrict shooters in the prone position. This weird magazine is complex and expensive and not always reliable. Outside of North Korea, no military force utilizes them.
Casket
Casket magazine sounds like something Hot Topic sells, but in reality, they are an expansive box magazine. Both modern box magazines are a double stack design. Casket magazines are a quad stack design. Thie weird magazine design has that unique casket shape, and that’s where it gains its name.
Surefire makes a modern Casket magazine.
Casket magazines can expand capacity without extending the length of the magazine excessively. A 60 round casket magazine will often only be the same length as a 40 round magazine. Casket magazines are not uncommon, and models from Surefire and ATI exist. The biggest downside is reliability. The streams can get crossed when the tip of one projectile covers the other. This often occurs when the magazine is dropped while partially loaded.
Pan
Pan magazine designs are rare and have fallen out of favor. We saw pan magazines most famously in the Degtyaryov light machine gun as well as the American-180 submachine gun. Pan magazines were essentially a top-loading drum that offered a low-profile source of firepower before belt-fed light machine guns became popular.
These weird magazines are mounted to the top of the gun, and they wouldn’t interfere in the prone position, and they could make prone reloads easier.
Pan magazines relied on gravity and either a ratchet and pawl mechanism or an unwinding circular spring. These magazines fell out of popularity because they are somewhat prone to failure and offer no advantages over a belt-fed design.
Horizontal
As far as I can tell, the only horizontal magazines out there are the P90 and HK G11 magazines. A number of firearms use the P90’s design making it the most popular horizontal magazine. This weird magazine design sits horizontally over the barrel, and the cartridges sit flat and horizontally. This requires the magazine to rotate each round into position before it can be fired.
Each round rotates into position before it can be fired in this weird magazine design.
Horizontal magazines allow for a relatively high-capacity magazine that sits flush with the firearm. This reduces parts and pieces hanging off the gun and limits its ability to get caught on environmental crap. The P90 magazine is quite reliable, but due to the relatively complicated design, they tend to be fairly pricey. They also don’t seem conducive to regular rifle rounds due to their length.
Tubular Magazine
Tubular magazines tend to be fixed. Shotguns and lever-action rifles famously used fixed tubular magazines. However, they aren’t always fixed. The Spencer rifle, for example, used a detachable tubular magazine that was inserted at the stock of the rifle. It’s a fairly simple tube design that was relatively easy to use.
The Spencer was such a cool rifle.
The Spencer holds seven rounds, and while the magazine was removable, it wasn’t intended for the user to carry multiple magazines. Why no one saw the potential in this is beyond me. A man with the unfortunate name of Erastus Blakeslee invented a cartridge box that held seven rounds that could rapidly charge the tubular magazine.
This weird magazine design didn’t go far but helped the repeating rifle enter the mainstream.
Cylinder
I’m not sure if most people count this as a magazine, but it fits the definition to me. A cylinder magazine is essentially a revolver’s cylinder. As you know, most are fixed and not made to be rapidly reloaded. However, the Remington model 1858 famously boasted a very easy means to remove the cylinder and allow for a reload with an additional cylinder.
Does this count as a magazine?
In the age of percussion revolvers, this was an extremely fast means to reload and keep fighting. Big Army didn’t see the point and never issued extra cylinders. However, this weird magazine design fits within our rules or being both weird and removable.
Rotating Tubular Magazine
Another oddball and weird magazine design comes courtesy of SRM Arms. Their 1216 shotgun uses a rotary tubular magazine, and each tube holds round rounds. Each magazine has four tubes, and the guns have a 16 round capacity. These magazines are removable, and the user can easily reload on the fly.
16 rounds of 12 gauge is universal for “Wrong House”
The system is essentially four shotgun tube magazines welded together, and the shotgun allows you to rotate the tubes at will to top off or reload your source of ammunition. The SRM 1216 is the only weapon I know that uses a rotating tubular magazine.
Weird Magazine Designs
Weird magazine designs vary a fair bit. Most throw themselves into the zeitgeist of firearms technology. Eventually, they either get lost in the technology of firearms or get spit out on the other side as successful. Rarely does a weird magazine make it through, but that doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate the general weirdness of magazine designs. At one point, the detachable box magazine was weird, and now it’s commonplace. I think I got all the weird magazine designs out there, but if I missed a notable example, let me know below.
The lever-action rifle is an iconic piece of Americana. Many of us feel a fierce and terrible lever gun love…everyone else is wrong. Whether you love lever-action rifles for their practicality, their history, or just because, we have a few examples to share with ya…and we’ll drop some ammo knowledge on ya too.
Running a lever gun PCC? Should you choose a .357 or .44?
The Practical Appeal of a Henry Lever Action PCC
David Higginbotham
Most Henry lever-action rifles fill a distinct niche. These are rock-solid working guns that pay an homage to their historical roots, but don’t shy away from modern configurations and set-ups. As such, hunters and sportsmen have a brand dedicated to functionality and reliability that can take the abuse that regular use can dish out without stripping away any historical value.
And these rifles tend to look better with a few battle scars. This .357 is getting a few of those scratches and dings. Back in May, Mag Life Editor David Reeder ran it through a Practical Rifle course taught by Rainier Arms. More on that to come.
The depth of the finish isn’t mesmerizing, but it still has a genuine beauty that gives the Henry character.
I’m not sure where the Big Boy concept comes from. Maybe this is the gun the Bob’s Big Boy mascot would carry when he was a way from the restaurant.
I’m hardly small, so this carbine feels a bit small in my hands—almost like a toy at first, but that wears off fast.
The Case Hardened part is easier. The steel frame of the gun has been color case hardened. This is a technique used on many older guns to add an element of aesthetic refinement to steel. It has the added benefit of adding a modest amount of protection, too, through the hardening of the surface layer of the steel.
The Henry runs better when you are wearing a cowboy hat, as TML Editor David Reeder demonstrates.
Most color case hardening is done on highly polished steel. When done right, the technique forms bands and clouds of color that look almost like smoke in clear water. It is mesmerizing.
The backside of the action. You can see some of the battle scars that we’ve put on this workhorse.
The Henry has the color case hardening done on an almost brushed finish. This is an odd new look for the technique. The colors are still there, as is the protection from the hardening, but the depth to the surface is absent. Light still plays off of the imperfections left by the grinding or brushing—whatever the final surface preparation is.
The loop on this lever is large, which may take some getting used to. But it is meant for use in all weather conditions, even those that require gloves.
The Walnut stock
That’s not to say that it isn’t still handsome. This is a good-looking gun, it is just different. And that difference doesn’t feel as precious or as delicate as the more traditional color case hardened finishes.
The parts that aren’t blued or color case hardened are equally attractive. The walnut stock is plain and not overly adorned. It is finished well and will pick up character as it takes a beating. Walnut is not a super-hard hardwood. Though durable and well suited for rifle stocks, walnut dings as easily as any wood.
Here’s an old-school speed-loading trick. Keep a few extra rounds handy, if you know you’ll need them.
Between your fingers, the extra rounds of .357 are close at hand.
As I’m not one to baby anything I might consider to be a tool, I don’t see this as a problem. Every scar tells a story. This is a gun that would rather be in a truck or on an ATV than in the safe.
Clearly, the look won’t be for everyone. If you are after a wall-hanger, or a nostalgic lever-gun to add to a working collection of functional history pieces, this isn’t it. If you want a rock-solid gun you won’t hesitate to drop behind the seat of the truck, this is it.
The practical side
Henry’s Big Boy Color Case Hardened Side Gate .357 is compact. The overall length is under 3 feet. That makes the gun maneuverable and easy to carry.
It also means that the Henry lever action can feel a bit small for larger shooters. While some Henry rifles in larger calibers offer more to hold on to, this one is more of a true carbine length.
And at more than seven pounds, it isn’t a featherweight either. There’s a substantial amount of steel in its octagonal barrel. While this adds weight, it is part of what makes the gun so easy to keep on target during rapid-fire shooting.
Side-gate
Henry has added more side-gate loaders to their line-up in the last few years. These allow you to thumb in a round easily, without having to remove a magazine tube from under a barrel.
There are no mag-changes with a .357 Henry Big Boy. Keep some rounds in your pocket.
You can still remove the tube to unload some rounds, as needed, though anything in the chamber would have to be freed with a throw of the lever.
There’s a trick to loading these. Push a round in about 2/3 of the way and then use the nose of the next round to seat it all the way in—and end at the 2/3 point with that round—rinse and repeat.
When loading a side-gate, leave one round partially out. Then use the nose of the next round to push it in.
This saves your thumbs and, maybe more likely, your thumb nails. I finger-pick guitar with the same hand I use to load a lever-action, so my loner-than-average nails tend to get in the way. Before I go to a class like this, or spend any serious time on the range, I’ll trim them back, but I’ve found that keeping my thumb out of the side gate helps immensely.
The .357
Most people think of the .357 as a revolver round. And for good reason. There are not many rifles chambered in the caliber anymore. But it is a damn-good round.
Some .357 rounds will top out at speeds over 1,500 FPS from a rifle this size. And there’s no loss of energy at the cylinder gap. That makes for an exceptionally effective round in close quarters scenarios.
For the Rainier Arms class, we were looking for speed and accuracy. At 200+, it helps to hold anything steady to blend the two.
The .357 is even a solid round for a brush gun. With solid shot placement, it has impressive terminal ballistic potential. And the recoil is almost nothing.
Wrap that sling tight around your arm to stabilize long-distance shots.
The Henry will also run .38s, so there’s an even better option for the recoil sensitive. Shooting .38s from the Big Boy produces about as much kick as you would get from a light .22 LR. Almost nothing to speak of.
If you are looking for a rapid-fire fun gun, the Big Boy running .38s shoots flat and fast. You can drive the lever like a mad man and keep the Big Boy humming along until that last click. The gun will hold 7 or 8—at least 7 and one in the chamber.
What’s the best way to top the Henry Big Boy?
The gun comes with Henry’s traditional iron sights. These work fine. I’ve reviewed a bunch of Henry’s rifles over the years and I’ve never once found reason to complain about the irons. The brass bead on the Big Boy is easy to pick up, and the semi-buckhorn rear sight has a diamond to help speed up target acquisition and fine-tune longer-range shot placement.
The Phoenix Weaponry red dot mount is an excellent addition. And without the red dot, it doesn’t obstruct the iron sights.
For this review, we set up the Henry with a Holosun Micro Red Dot (a 507c). This was a pretty radical choice for a lever gun, but one that was made incredibly easy by the mount that we got from Phoenix Weaponry.
It may be hard to pick up, but this version uses the Trijicon RMR two-screw, two-pin pattern.
This little thing is milled to match the drilled holes in the receiver. Phoenix makes them in a variety of optics patterns. When we began the review process, I went looking for options for optics. Phoenix had what I was looking for—but there was some confusion—mostly on my part—about fit with the various Henry models out there (as there are big-bore Big Boys, and PCC Big Boys and they’re not the same size). After a quick conversation with the team at Phoenix, I was set.
Having the Holosun 507c on top makes the lever-action a much faster platform and a viable contender for a self-defense gun.
And the mount provides the security to hold the Holosun steady. After shooting all day in the rifle class, there had been no shift in zero from the optic or the plate. And the plate added just the right amount of rise to the red dot—getting a solid cheek weld put my line of sight exactly where it needed to be on the gun.
With the Holosun dialed in, the accuracy was easy to achieve, even on the move. This was from 50.
Henry Lever Action Accuracy
As this isn’t a bench gun, I didn’t put it in the rest to zero the optic. During the rifle class, we were shooting on the move, from prone, standing, kneeling…. We were putting rounds on steel, so we zeroed the Holosun standing in front of a paper target until we were on.
Sighting in—working in the irons at close range before installing the Holosun.
And the emphasis of this gun is stability and speed. First-shot accuracy is dependable and second-shot accuracy is spot on. This rifle smoked the split times of the bolt-action guns that were running the same course of fire. From initial target acquisition to multiple target engagement, the Henry performed well.
Running a lever-gun from prone is easy enough, you just have to make room for the lever throw.
Where it suffered was at distance. At 200 yards, with a red dot, you can imagine the challenges. And as this was a high-round count class in the midst of the 2020 ammo shortages, we shot a lot of .38. With a shooter and a spotter, walking shots in off the impacts on the berm was easy enough, but it would have been more difficult alone or without the benefit of small dirt puffs 200 yards downrange.
With .357, connecting at 200 yards was more consistent. Either way, we were ringing steel at that distance.
In the end
I’ve got a deep respect for what Henry’s doing with their catalog. They keep bringing new twists to familiar favorites. And this gun is no different. The Henry lever action is, at least in this form, a testament to craftsmanship.
Shooting 200 yards with a red dot is a challenge, but the Henry .357 can connect reliably, once you have your hold-over set. .38 at 200 was less consistent.
The price, MSRP is $1,141.00, seems on point for what you get. Like most of the other Henry rifles I’ve run, this could easily be a rifle that is passed down to the next generation and the next.
Steampunk Marlin 336
An unusual lever gun indeed!
Jon Duty
Holy brass patina, Batman! Just take a moment and look over this Steampunk Marlin 336!
Go ahead…we’ll wait.
A gorgeous — and fully functional — Steampunk Marlin 336.
This thing looks like something James West & Artemus Gordon would’ve used to fight off that wily-ass Dr. Loveless in that Wild Wild West movie. You know, the reboot of the old show, with Kevin Kline and Will Smith?
This Marlin 336 would be perfect for that!
Indeed, it would’ve handled the Doc, shortened the storyline, and paved the way for more screen time for the real reason we all watched that movie…Salma Hayek.
At the very least, Agents West and Gordon wouldn’t have had to fight the giant mech-spider thingy at the end.
But I digress…
Speaking of Kevin Kline….this would have made Silverado Mal’s scenes a lot more interesting…though he preferred Henry Rifles.
Steampunk Marlin 336 Build
This Marlin came into David Wilson at Silverfox Coatings as a pawn shop find and got the full-send steampunk treatment. This thing is crazy in the details. I literally had to look at each picture a couple of times to catch them all.
David says this rifle had more than 100 hours put into it. The stock was reshaped, refinished, had custom hammered metal accents, and copper gears added, along with a working clock and a humidifier gauge. The lever got an extra finger ring welded in, and the handguards were replaced with a Midwest Industries MLOK set. The scope is actually an original working antique scope from the 1900s. It stayed as is because…well…it’s cooler than your ex’s heart just the way it was.
David hit this up with a custom mix cerakote on the barrel to round it all out and complete the look. He did the receiver in a copper/gold/silver patina cerakote finish.
All in all, this little Marlin got a complete makeover. Still, it’s not the first time Silverfox Coatings has stomped out a spot in the Cerakote applicator forest. So go and give them a follow on Instagram @silverfox_cerakote and see their other work for yourself. Or, if you’re in the Dallas, TX area, and need some Cerakote magic sprinkled on your roscoe, hit them up!
357 or 44 Magnum for that Lever Gun?
A look at two lever-action rifle cartridges
Kat Ainsworth
Lever-action rifles have been getting more attention, and we think that’s a great thing. Levers aren’t just the classic guns that won the West anymore; levers are versatile, useful, and fun. Of course, they also come chambered in quite a variety of calibers, so you might need some help deciding which one to add to your collection next (after all, you’re going to need more than one in the long run). In this video, Chris Baker of Lucky Gunner does a comparison of levers chambered in 357 Magnum and 44 Magnum.
Levers in 357 Magnum and 44 Magnum? Yes, please. (Photo credit: Lucky Gunner)
What Distance Can 357 and 44 Magnum Levers Shoot Accurately?
Although estimating effective range depends somewhat on your gun, ammo, and shooting skills, there is always a general accuracy range to consider. Chris Baker talked about the effective range of 357 and 44 Magnum levers:
“Best case scenario, a 357 or 44 Mag lever-action is probably about a 150-yard gun unless you’re just a real superstar in range estimation. Realistically, for most of us, for any practical purpose, it’s more like a 100 yard or 125-yard gun with maybe some wiggle room. If you use one of the flatter shooting loads and you played around with your zero, you could maybe stretch it out past 150 in a pinch. Personally, if I thought there was a decent chance I might need to shoot something that far away, I would just go with a true rifle caliber.”
How did Chris figure out effective range?
Well, he checked velocity and documented drop rate:
[Earlier] when I shot…groups, I also took velocity readings with our LabRadar. This device measures velocity at the muzzle just like a chronograph does but it can also tell you the velocity in various increments as the bullet moves down-range. I had it set to give readings at 50, 100, and 150 yards. I also tried 200, but it had trouble picking up the bullets that far away. There’s a lot of cool stuff we can do with these measurements.”
Check out the video for a closer look at the results of velocity testing and for other information about the 357 and 44 Magnum levers:
What can my lever-action rifle do?
Lever-action rifles and carbines have a lot of uses. Remember, there was a time when they were the hottest thing around in the gun world, and they were used for just about everything. Today you can use them for a lot, too, such as:
Hunting
Home defense
Self-defense
Brush gun
Truck gun
Cowboy action shooting
Range time
Lucky Gunner did quite a bit of testing to find out how 357 and 44 Magnum loads performed with lever-action rifles. (Photo credit: Lucky Gunner)
You should definitely consider getting a lever-action rifle or three in your gun safe. Not only can you use them for just about anything, but they’re also flat-out fun to run. If 357 Magnum and 44 Magnum aren’t your thing, they do come chambered in a lot of other calibers like 444 Marlin and 30-30 Win, among others.
Do you own a lever gun or several? What’s your favorite caliber? Drop a comment below to let us know.
Following the obvious evolution of CCW handguns, Smith & Wesson released the S&W M&P Shield Plus Optics Ready pistol in October 2021. It’s a 3.2 in. barreled EDC gun with the same trigger as its predecessors and some improvements to the grip and grip texture they advise were based on user feedback.
This iteration of the weapon line is, as the name implies, a Shield+ designed for use with red dot sights.
Smith & Wesson advises,
“Your new EDC is here. Allow us to introduce the new M&P9 Shield Plus Optics Ready. This new addition to the Shield Plus line comes standard with 3.1″ barrel, night sights, and optics cut.
With the 10+1 or 13+1 capacity, flat-face trigger, and enhanced grip texture, [the]…Optics Ready is engineered to give you the best performance in a micro-compact size.”
The M&P Plus is, as of this writing at least, S&W’s highest capacity micro-compact pistol. It has night sights, slide cuts to fit the usual suspects of preferred RDS types, and some additional features, including:
Shield Plus Optics Ready Capacity
I did that so I’d have a sub-heading that could be abbreviated SPORC.
10 + 1 9x19mm with a flush-fit magazine
13+1 in their extended magazine
ORSP+ Launch Video
Sure, the narrator is no Don LaFontaine, but really who is? He does a good job with the rundown and isn’t cringe-worthy melodramatic like some of the videos we’ve seen.
We’ve all seen reviews on optics after a few thousand rounds and they look awesome. But what happens to it after 10,000 rounds? Aaron Cowan over at SageDynamics took a longer look at the Holosun 509T optic and put it through its paces to see how it would hold up.
So, first, let’s do a quick background. The Holosun 509T is the Titanium enclosed reticle option with a staggering hour battery life. It has a 2MOA dot and a 32MOA circle in the sight. The optic comes with its proprietary mounting plate straight out of the box as well as a special tool for adjusting to get to zero.
Part of Aaron’s testing for the Holosun 509T was the shoulder height drop test. Over the course of his test he dropped the pistol and optic 20 times with no loss of performance.
For the testing Aaron had the following steps:
1. Drop testing from shoulder height onto a hard surface 2. Test in extreme heat 3. Test in extreme cold 4. Single handed manipulation
Aaron originally did a 2,000 round review of the Holosun 509T and liked it but wondered if it would last long term in duty use. The main component of the test was the drop test. He said this was important for the review in that it simulated the possible wear and tear or stress on the firearm during duty use. He went on to say that he’s still using the original optic that he received and didn’t need to get a replacement and that it still functioned properly. Long story short, it passed the test with flying colors.
After the testing, the only real damage was to the solar panel on top and some delamination on the unit. But it still held zero with no problem.
He went on to talk about the battery of the optic. It takes a 1632 battery and has side access for replacement, so you don’t have to take the whole thing off the pistol to change the battery out. Not only does it have a ridiculous battery life (up to 50,000 hour life), but it has a solar panel or a combination of solar and battery. He used it strictly on battery and has yet to replace the battery.
So how did he go about the testing? Well, the drop test was done after every 500 rounds. Yes, that’s 20 separate drops over the course of the testing. The only real damage was the delamination of the optic, but that’s purely aesthetics and no loss of zero. The single manipulation was to help simulate how many law enforcement folks are trained and show any loss of function for the optic. None occurred and it performed adequately.
This optic can be run on battery, solar energy, or both. With up to a 50,000-hour battery life, it seems unnecessary to have a solar option. But it looks cool.
During his testing, he only had two major complaints or recommendations. Firstly, the button for adjustment for the optic requires a special tool so you don’t want to lose it. He tried using coins, like you can use on other optics on the market, to no avail. The second complaint he had was that during the 20 drop tests he did, the back ledge of the optic got beat up and he would like to see Holosun actually enlarge it to help protect the rear lens better.
In closing, he said that this is the best-enclosed reticle for a duty gun. It’s well-made, durable, and accurate. Not only that, but it’s compatible with several holsters currently available and easily concealable.
The civilian use of body armor has exploded in the last few years. We are in a unique time where anyone can easily acquire a vast degree of armor. We’ve got rifle-resistant ceramic plates to modern high-tech polymer plates and everything in between. This also means soft armor. In the last few years, soft armor has exploded in popularity. This includes vests, as well as soft panels for packs, purses, and the like. Today we are looking at the latest piece of soft armor from Premier Armor, the Concealable Armor Vest.
Introducing the Concealable Armor Vest
I’ve never worked for Premier Armor, but at one point, I had an idea to mix a Premier Armor soft plate with a Tru-Spec armor shirt. This created a very low-profile concealable armor combo that inspired Premier Armor to combine the shirts and plates to make their own concealable armor. From there, they produced their latest Concealable Armor vest to act as a step between that shirt and a standard soft armor vest.
Who needs this? cops, first responders, tow truck drivers, cash couriers, etc.
The goal of the Concealable Armor Vest was to provide the protection of the standard soft armor vests worn by law enforcement with a concealable design. As you’d imagine, it’s bulkier than a soft panel in a shirt but also provides 360 degrees of protection and a lot more of it than just your vitals.
The Concealable Armor Vest packs an IIIA rating which means it will not stop most rifle rounds. In fact, it’s best used against handgun and shotgun rounds. An IIIA rating prevents penetration by most standard handgun rounds, including 9mm, 40 S&W, 45 ACP, and up into a 44 Magnum Semi-wadcutter design, moving at 1,400 feet per second. What’s important to understand is that the soft panels are NIJ Certified.
It’s a great vest and stands on its own merit.
Lots of armor companies build to NIJ standards, but certification means the company has sought independent testing for the NIJ. Simply put, the armor is legit. It’s also special-threat tested against 12 gauge slugs, Liberty Defense 9mm, and 5.7×28 SS197SR.
The carrier is pretty dang legit too. It’s machine washable and made from a moisture-wicking material. It’s lightweight and water repellent, and plenty adjustable. This is not a one-size-fits-all affair, and users should order the right size for their frames. Adjustments allow you to better tailor how the Concealable Armor Vest fits.
Who Needs This?
Who exactly needs a Concealable Armor vest? Well, obviously, the usual suspects can benefit from a high-quality vest. This includes police officers who might want something a little higher end under their uniform or plainclothes officers in general. Security personnel, VIP protection, and the like can also benefit from such a vest. Sadly, lots of EMS personnel are now wearing vests because scum takes potshots at them.
However, beyond those in armed and first responder professions, there are plenty of roles where a Concealable Armor Vest makes sense. I worked as both a repo man and a cash courier in my post-Marine Corps career.
The Concealable Armor Vest is easy to wear and easy to hide.
Neither job allowed you to be armed, and both jobs made you a tempting target.
I had to dress professionally but would’ve loved a concealable armor vest to feel a little bit safer. Especially since my employers didn’t seem to care much about security and safety. On top of other oddball professions, this is a great option for someone who’s just been met with credible threats. Maybe through no fault of your own, you’ve made an enemy, and the most you have is a restraining order, a firearm, and a vest to keep you safe.
Comfort and Fit
Tossing the Concealable Armor Vest on isn’t tough. Well, once you’ve got it adjusted just right. The short waistband keeps the rig nice and tight, and tight is good. Tight helps with concealment and comfort. You don’t want the vest bouncing around as you move throughout the day. That would decrease comfort and increase visibility. Also, don’t forget, a tight fit is a proper fit that helps ensure your vitals are covered when necessary.
Keep the flap tight and the vest tight for maximum coverage and concealment.
I do recommend wearing a shirt under your concealable armor vest. If not, I fear the chafing your nipples might receive. That being said, with a shirt in the way, the inside of the vest is super soft and incredibly comfortable. It’s not too heavy or overly bulky.
The internal material is quite soft and comfy.
The only problem you’re gonna have is heat—nothing you can really do about that. Adding armor is like adding a sweater. Things that stop bullets rarely breathe well and accommodate the breeze. It’s the nature of the beast so just make sure you double down on your hydration if you plan to be working outside a lot with the vest on.
The carrier with its armor is light, but it gets hot. Undershirt highly advised.
Also, make sure you remember you wash the external carrier cause it’s going to get gross if you don’t
How Does It Conceal?
I tested the Concealed Armor Vest with a standard white dress shirt, a Dixxon flannel, and a normal light jacket. I did this in August, and it’s blazing hot, so I hope you animals appreciate it. Under the shite dress shirt, the black carrier barely shows. It looks like a muscle shirt under my shirt. It adds a little bulk but so do all those pizza rolls I eat.
The armor vest fits perfectly under a dress shirt, even a white one.
However, the armor does its job of remaining concealed. You’d have to look close, and if I wore a suit jacket, you’d have to undress me like I was Don Draper to find the vest. Under the Dixxon Flannel and light jacket, it’s most certainly invisible. This thing won’t disappear under a plain t-shirt, but under a button-down, it’s invisible.
Under a tactical flannel is disappears with ease.
Make it a black or flannel button-down, and it’s really invisible then. If this particular model still seems too bulky for you, check out their Executive design. It’s a little smaller than the Concealable Armor Vest.
It adds hardly any bulk to the body.
However, for many of us, this vest will work perfectly. It hides easily and provides a brilliant degree of protection from common threats.
Staying Safe
I love combining safety with a low-profile protection system. In fact, the industry seems to be going heavily towards low-profile awesomeness, and I love it. It takes vests like this out of the realm of just armed professionals and offers it to the everyday Joe and Jane. The Concealable Armor Vest from Premier Armor combines NIJ-certified protection and a low-profile design for everyone who needs armor.
Rock Island Armory has expanded their handgun lineup with a striker-fired pistol: it’s the Rock Island Armory STK100. Chambered in 9mm, it’s a 17-round, aluminum-framed handgun with a grip angle similar to the 1911. And, like so many defensive handguns today (at least the ones that hope to stay relevant), it sports an optics-ready slide. Overall it seems to be a pretty interesting addition to the mid-sized 9mm pistol scene.
We’ve gathered some information, pictures, and videos from around the web so you can decide for yourself if it is something that you are interested in ogling!
Let’s just jump right into it.
What does the official product page have to say about the STK100?
“Striker-fired pistol fans, rejoice. The STK100 boasts an aluminum grip that adds just enough weight to reduce felt recoil while still being comfortable to carry all day. This 9MM 17-round gem has a textured grip angled like a 1911 grip to give you greater control. With a patent-pending frame designed for durability, It has all the advantages of metal for the price of a polymer.”
Armscor’s specification sheet expands on this a little bit more.
“[The SKT100] also has an optic-ready slide so you can add your favorite aftermarket accessories, and it boasts an extended beavertail for comfort… it’s perfect for recreational and self-defense users, as well as law enforcement.”
Here’s a close-up of the SKT100 so you can check out all of the details, groves, and crevasses that are present. Especially the “1911 styled” textured grip that Armscor is advertising as one of the primary features.
So, yes, it’s like a polymer-frame striker-fired pistol, but there’s no polymer.
Instead, it has a metal frame. We’re aware many gun owners like to have polymer as an option, the rigidity is often much more appealing. Armscor & Rock Island Armor President and CEO Martin Tuason had an interview with American Handgunner. He spoke on how and why they chose metal over polymer.
“I wanted Armscor to get into the striker-fired market, but not with a plastic gun. That’s been done. Dustin Jones, our CFO, knows the market and did the research. He came back, encouraging us to take the leap. We put our heads together and decided, let’s do it. And, since we’re famous for working with metal, it was only natural we decided to do what we do best. We’re the number one producer of metal 1911s in the world, so we know how to do it!”
A lot of the promotional material for the STK100 seems to be focused on the fact it is in fact metal over polymer. Here is some of their promotional material from their website.
Rock Island Armory also seems to be very focused on advertising this pistol as one that is for the masses, not just Military and LEOs. One of their primary videos advertising the pistol shows off what seems like a baker’s dozen with different shooters of all kinds.
Below, you can watch the advertisement mentioned above. The editing is pretty snazzy. Whoever Armscor/Rock Island Armory hired to do the editing does pretty awesome quick cuts. The number of environments and shooters they manage to fit in 30 seconds is nifty. (Sidebar here, whatever the process they did to make the colors vibrant is pretty neat. It may seem like a silly thing to focus on, but ‘color’ this author impressed.)
“We think shooters are going to be excited about the STK100”. “It really does give shooters all the advantages of metal for the price of polymer. It’s perfect for recreational shooting, self-defense, and even law enforcement, which makes it incredibly versatile.”
Here’s another close-up of the SKT100 from the other side so you can get the full perspective.
“We informally tested the new pistol with a selection of ammunition, including Federal Syntech, Hornady American Gunner, Speer Gold Dot, and Super Vel’s solid copper hollowpoints. It fed and fired all without a hitch. The trigger felt moderately heavy, but there was less mushiness at the break than is standard on many striker-fired pistols. Instead, there is a distinct snap when this one breaks.
Personal-protection carry guns are meant to be carried a lot and shot a little. As a result, many designs are (for want of a better term) “weighted” in favor of ease of carry. However, the extra weight of the STK100 gives it an advantage on the range. True, it doesn’t flex like polymer (which absorbs some of the felt recoil). However, it does counter the gun’s recoil impulse, resulting in less movement. In theory, aluminum’s greater rigidity may result in enhanced accuracy, too. What was most distinct in my brief shooting session, though, was the fact that the STK100 didn’t break down my grip during long strings.
Its empty weight is about the same as a Colt Lightweight Commander. However, its generous ammunition capacity makes it much heavier when loaded than the fully loaded Colt. It is also, of course, several ounces heavier than similar-size polymer pistols. Still, if you don’t mind the extra weight on your hip or only intend it as a range or home-defense gun, you’re getting a lot of pistol for $599.”
Reviews of the SKT100
We figured we might share a couple of written reviews that bring up a couple of decent points.
Field & Stream’s Review
Field & Stream got the chance to get their hands on the SKT100, and they had some pretty interesting things to say about the pistol. Even the title of their review was an alluring statement; “The RIA STK100 is An Affordable Feature-Rich Glock Clone” Here’s a little bit more to elaborate about what they really mean by that;
“Remember purchasing a polymer-framed striker-fired pistol only to spend even more to customize it to fit your needs? Yes, we all do. Add weight to the frame, lighten the slide, change the grip angle, add a beavertail, add optics capability—the list goes on and on. In the end, you could almost triple the pistol’s original cost.”
“The RIA STK100 is what I would call a 99-percent-Glock-compatible pistol. Its compatibility extends to almost all the internal parts, except for the rear sights, barrel locking block, magazine release, and pins. The STK100 has a list of features that put it in a class of its own. It has a clamshell aluminum alloy frame, textured 1911-style grip, extended beavertail, stainless steel guide rod, lightened slide with front cocking serrations, optics-ready slide, and Glock-style front sight.”
As previously mentioned in this article, American Handgunner also got a chance to talk to the CEO of Armscor and get hands the gun. One of the stand-out features that author Roy Huntington mentions several times is the handling of the firearm.
“The grip angle makes such a difference as to be immediately noticeable. General gun-handling seems a bit smoother for me, and bringing the gun up to shoot feels as if the sights settle right where they belong. I found it to be fast, secure and certain when pointing.”
He also said, “Shooting [the SKT100] was, in short, a delight.” and “The STK100 isn’t another clone of a clone of a clone — but pushes the envelope out even further.”
However, the most crucial takeaway from American Handgunner’s entire review comes from the last line of the article: “…remember — dogs can’t eat an STK100. Just sayin’.” You know those little furry monsters would too, given the chance.
More on the STK100
The SKT100 seems to be shaping up to be an interesting newcomer to the mid-sized pistol scene that we’re excited to see how it develops. Although they may not be necessarily advertising it as such, it is interesting to see another newcomer that is friendly to some of the “Glock eco-system.” Glock being one of the most common weapons systems on the market definitely helps the SKT100’s case. Using more budget-friendly using hardware that you already have isn’t a benefit to sneeze at.
As previously mentioned in the article, the MSRP retail price on the Rock Island Armory STK100 is $599. If you want more information about the pistol, visit Armscor’s website.
Here are some more pictures from Rock Island Armory’s promotions mixed in with some videos we found on the pistol from around the web!
