Two Days at SHOT Show 2026
While a few attendees might still be stuck in Las Vegas because of Winter Storm Fern, SHOT Show 2026 is done and in the books. Last week’s article HERE looked at things that caught my eye during the Law Enforcement / Military range day. This event was hosted by the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s firearms training unit at its range complex. Blue Tactical Technology Solutions On the teaching side, I enjoy the ability [...]
Not So Heavy Metal – 3.6″ M&P Compact
While Smith’s Military & Police family has been around for a very long time, the semi-autos are only twenty years old. I began carrying them in 2010. Permanent use of that line began in 2012 for me. During the last few years, S&W has continued to develop and release metal [...]
Olight’s Rechargeable O-Sight
Normally, the focus of gear-related articles here is whether they are geared for duty use. I try to look at gear in that light – especially thinking back to when I started in the profession. However, back then, we were not inundated with the amount of technology and advertising you [...]
Aimpoint & GLOCK’s COA – Part 2
The first part of this article is posted HERE. So, more than four months have gone by since I bought a new G-19 with Aimpoint’s COA optic at their Blue Label pricing. What have I found? What about others? The Pistol It’s a Glock; they are boringly reliable. If you are [...]
Tripods – The Support You Need
When the word “tripod” entered my mind, it seemed to be in only one or two contexts. Someone needed to take a stable photo. Or something belt-fed and fully automatic had come into play. As a former infantryman, I typically thought of M-60s and M240Bs, general-purpose machine guns or larger [...]
Math On The Range
Fun and math are two words that rarely intersect in my world. However, you need to step out of your comfort zone and try something different. PRS Before I retired, one of my guys frequently talked about his PRS (Precision Rifle Shooting) hobby. While it was an interesting conversation over [...]
First Impressions – Aimpoint’s COA and Glock’s A-Cut
For as long as we've been mounting miniaturized optics on pistol slides, there have been debates over the mounting footprints. Several designs have come and gone, while a few have established themselves across multiple manufacturers. Many have voiced a hope that the firearms and optics industries would unite and standardize [...]
Dot In A Box — Trijicon’s RCR
When Trijicon released the RCR—Ruggedized Close Reflex—in '23, there was much discussion of the optic's form, especially of the mounting system. The RCR is an enclosed emitter optic, like the Aimpoint Acro, Steiner MPS, and others. What Does Enclosed Mean? Most of the optics on long guns – carbines, [...]
Pistol Mounted Optics — Revisited
Back in 2012 (I know, I know—that is like Prehistoric times), I started using a pistol-mounted optic on duty. Initially, that was going to be a one-year experiment to see what my old organization might want to know about implementing and using those things in an on-duty capacity. Several things [...]
Open Or Closed? Your Choice Of Emitters
Which style is better? Is an open-emitter optic design best? Or would a closed-emitter model work better for you? What are we talking about? An open emitter optic does not enclose the space between the emitter and the window the reticle's image is projected onto. Likewise, with a closed [...]
Program Development For Not-So-Big Agencies
Let me know if this sounds familiar. “Sir, I have a great idea. I think we should put optics on our pistols.” They are rugged and valuable pieces of equipment, and many places are going to them. Administrator response: I don’t know. If you want to do that, it is [...]