Remington 870 tactical

     No gun collection is complete without a scattergun.  In the world of tactical shooting, the shotgun has taken a backseat to AR's as the long gun of choice.  Normally when I leave for a day of shooting I have a policy of "No guns left behind," but admittedly I have have a habit of leaving the shotgun at home.  I think the problem is that shooting a shotgun at static targets does not pose that much of a challenge.  Everyone enjoys the satisfaction of breaking a fast moving clay target on the skeet range, but for me it does not translate well to the tactical range.  It is not that watching nine holes appear in the target at once is not fun, or seeing a slug lay down a steel target like it was hit with the fist of an angry god doesn't make my inner gun geek happy.  It is almost too easy to the point I never feel like it is a perishable skill. 

Running drills with clay targets on steel posts

     Over the years Remington has made at least 10 million of these, and with that many out there, the number of aftermarket accessories to chose from is huge.  Because of this one can modify an 870 to fit any need one might have. 

Both pictures show short barrel 870's used by the FBI.  

     Mine is a 2001 model that started with a 26 inch barrel with interchangeable choke tubes.  Since I needed it to fill more of a home defense role, I bought a 18 inch smooth barrel with a fixed 'improved cylinder' bore and rifle sights.  I prefer these sights to most of the 'off the shelf' tactical barrels for the 870 that just use a gray bead sight.

An 870 tactical as it comes from most big box stores.

     Notch and post rifle sights are as fast as a bead, with the added benefit of being able to accurately place slugs on target out to 100 yards.  Since this is a smooth bore, rifled slugs are needed to achieve that accuracy, but there are many varieties available in 12 gauge.  In this video, I demonstrate both the ability to make four aimed shots in one second as well as the accuracy of this shotgun at ranges out to 100 yards.   

Remington 870 tactical video

     Some would say ghost ring sights are the best option for tactical shotgun work, and claim nothing is faster.  With a ghost ring the eye will naturally center the front sight post, which is great, but why block more of the sight picture and light coming to ones eye than necessary?  There are other options such as a red dot optic, but at home defense ranges, normal rifle sights are the best in my opinion. 
     Like most shooters I have a box of gun parts that did not work.  I do what I can to avoid this, but modifications for the 870 take up much of that land of misfit parts.  To save the reader time and money, the modifications that have proven to work are a Magpul MOE forend, an oversized dome safety, hook and loop attached side shell carriers, and a Duracoat finish to give it all weather durability. 

     In the past I had a plus 3 magazine extension but removed it for two reasons.  Between the extension and the added shells, it made the gun front heavy.  Removing that makes the gun lighter and faster to handle.  Secondly, the FBI keeps stats on gunfights and found that in any encounter where a shotgun is involved, the average number of rounds fired is one.  A shotguns effectiveness comes not only from making holes in flesh one could toss a softball through,  but also the sound has become coded in human DNA to induce the kind of fear that causes actual pain in ones groin.  I do not advocate racking a shotgun to scare an intruder away from a tactical standpoint, but few people I know keep a shotgun with a round in the chamber. 

Slugs are deliver over 3000 ft lbs of energy with a .73 caliber, 437 grain projectile moving at 1800 fps.

     In the 20 years I have owned this shotgun, only twice have I experienced a malfunction, and both were with low brass field loads.  These cheaper rounds sometimes use steel instead of brass on the case head that can stick in the chamber after being fired.  The good thing about a pump action is that it can be 'made to work' by hitting the butt into the ground while holding the forend.  This is not recommended as this can do serious damage to the action bars, but in the case of a threat situation it would be an option if time allowed.

     While a new Beretta A400 xtreme plus is high on my list of guns to own, this shotgun with the ability to swap between 18 and 26 inch barrels in seconds, is just at home securing the homeland as it is busting clays.
     In future posts I will go into tactical shotgun drills, women and shotguns, the best loads for home defense, and my take on the current pistol grip short barrel shotgun craze. 

Pistol drill #2

     The last drill focused on identifying several problems at once concerning flinch, trigger control grip and stance with and empty pistol.  This drill builds on that concept by alternating a live round and dry fire.  The first time I saw this was from an instructor at the Sig Academy, and I Incorporated it soon after in my own teaching. 
     This drill starts with an empty gun, ten rounds in a magazine, and a paper target placed at 7 yards with a defined point of aim marked in the high chest area.  Load the magazine, rack a round into the chamber, remove the magazine, and place it in a pocket or mag carrier.  The first shot is made and without a magazine to activate the slide lock, the slide closes on an empty chamber.  The second shot is a dry fire.  Again most students see the second shot as pointless and rarely take it seriously, but the front sight and any movement speaks volumes.  While doing this drill if shots fall low, it is likely that anticipation of recoil is to blame.  Shots to the left or right can usually be corrected with better finger placement on the trigger and attempting to pull the trigger directly back to the dominant eye.   
     Over years of me showing students how to do this, I have found that usually I need to talk through the steps as they already have a lot they are trying to remember at this point, and the sensory overload from the shots tend to distract them.  Occasionally one will notice type 2 malfunctions, or "stovepipe" jams.  I believe this comes from the spent case not having the next bullet or the magazine follower to help keep it aligned on its way out of the chamber.  This can be distressing for a new shooter, but like the saying goes, "It is not a glitch, it is a feature", and gives one the opportunity to solve the problem. 
     The benefits of this pistol drill go beyond watching the front sight in dry fire right after feeling the snap of recoil.  It allows new shooters to get several repetitions of loading the gun, and beginning to feel and hear the different sound the gun makes when actually stripping a round from the magazine as opposed to an empty chamber.  For experienced shooters, this drill works well as a warm-up or as a way to check ones pistol fundamentals.   

The full sized pistol

 
     Previously we discussed the merits of a rimfire rifle.  Moving on in the gun world, a full sized semi auto pistol should be a priority.  It is important because a pistol is both the hardest to master and the most likely to be in arms reach should you need a firearm for defense.
     About 10 years ago I sold all my pistols and wanted to start over.  My idea was to buy two pistols that shared the same ammo.  I decided on 9mm, which will invariably be another post, for several reasons.
     My idea behind just buying two guns is a theme that will play out for the rest of this series on building a gun collection that makes sense.  For each category of firearm, buy one large and one small.  In the world of semi automatic handguns, I wanted one pistol for concealed carry and one that covered everything else that one would need a pistol for.
     The subject of this article deals with the latter.  I attempted to remove all bias and research what would be the one pistol I would want for home defense, competition, fun at the range, and to survive an all out zombie armageddon.
     I wanted reliability, accuracy, a threaded barrel, ability to take high capacity magazines, availability of aftermarket upgrades, and a pistol suitable for IPSC, IDPA, and 3 gun would be a plus.  After much debate I settled on the Glock 34 gen 4.
     Starting at the front, I changed the barrel to a threaded Lone Wolf for suppressor use.  The front and rear sights were swapped for the Warren tactical Sevigny series with the front being a red fiber optic rod.  The rear notch is matte black with a wide notch to allow the shooter faster acquisition of the front post.  I wrapped the grip in skateboard tape from talon grips.  Using a dremel I created a larger undercut where the trigger guard meets the grip.  This gives me a slightly higher grip improving recoil control.
     As I mentioned before, I am a bit of a trigger snob and this lead to a lot of problems.  I thought I could change every spring and the entire trigger mechanism and everything would be ok.  $300 something dollars later I had a full compliment of Zev trigger parts and a gun that would not eject cases, had light primer strikes, and the trigger would randomly not reset.  Solving each of those problems to the point that I trusted the gun to work flawlessly with its short 3.5 lb trigger pull took years.  The trigger does feel nice compared to stock, but is it by no means worth what I went through to get there.  Any future Glock I own will get a $13 connector and nothing else will be touched internally.
     With the rail under the barrel I can attach a Streamlight 800 lumen flashlight, and I purchased a 33 round "fun stick" magazine just because I could.
     This model is great for everything I would need a pistol for short of concealed carry.  It has roughly the same demensions as a 1911 while weighing a pound less.  With its low bore axis, a relatively long 5.3 inch barrel, and the sandpapered grip which is smaller grip compared to its gen 3 brethren, this pistol is extremely easy to keep on target even when pouring lead into your target.
     Another benefit is that it accepts inexpensive and readily available Glock 17 magazines.  This compatibility extends to most open ended Glock 17 holsters as well. 
     My only regret, aside from the trigger, is that the MOS version was not available when I bought mine.  The debate on the viability of dot optics on a pistol will be for another post, but just having the option is worth the small difference in price.
     In conclusion, some gun enthusiasts enjoy acquiring dozens of pistols in every caliber, but there is something to be said for buying one gun that covers all bases.  I feel that one is better served spending money on ammo, training, and repetition on one trigger, than chasing the next best handgun.
     

The case against reloading ammo

     When I was 18 I asked my rifle coach if I should get into reloading.  His response was, "You have to."  The shooting discipline was high power service rifle.  At the time everyone was transitioning from the long trusted M1-A to the "little black gun" (AR).  Heavy bullets were coming out for the .223 making the tiny pills able to buck the wind at 600 yards.  Most people shot the 69 grain bullets at 200 and 300 yards and 80's at 600.  The reason my coach said it was not optional was because no ammo manufacturer loaded heavy match bullets.  I built the ultimate  service rifle using the best components then set out gathering all the gear one needs to reload.  I bought a nice Dillon RL550B, a scale, calipers, a case tumbler, case trimmers, a bullet puller, case lube, caliber change kits, dies, a powder funnel, powder tricklers, the best cases, powder, primers, match bullets, a bench, and spare parts.
     Lets set aside the cost of all this and mention the good parts of reloading.  One can make unusual ammo such as subsonics or super deadly ballistic tip rounds.  Making match ammo that is perfectly tuned to your chamber and hits right at the sweet spot of your match grade barrels harmonics is very rewarding.  People in the gun world have respect for someone who knows how to "Roll their own."  When one puts hours into making perfect ammo that shoots tight groups it feels good.  There is also the subject of saving money.  If one uses all the bullets, powder, and primers bought, and do not make any mistakes loading, buy in bulk, get all your brass free by picking it up one by one at the range, and have endless time to kill, yes there is a slight savings over factory loads.
     Now for the bad.  Shooting is already an expensive hobby and the start up costs to get into reloading is substantial, and just when one thinks they have all that is needed, a company will invent another upgrade that must be bought in order to save you time or make one of the many steps easier.  All of this gear takes up a lot of room and it tends to spread across whatever surface one previously used to call a workshop, desk, garage, office, or shed that is now a dedicated reloading space.
     Next one will find that setting up and adjusting each part of your new bullet assembly line will result in only being able to speak and think in four letter words.  During this process one will realize that it is easy to get cases stuck in sizing dies without completely coating them in layers of lubricant.  Getting them unstuck requires the purchase of yet more gear.  It is also easy to spill powder all over this new press necessitating it being taken apart and cleaned off lest all that powder find its way into the moving parts.  No step in this long frustrating process of getting everything where it will function smoothly is fun.  Even when it is all adjusted problems come up such as a spent primer that will not come out or another new one that will not seat in an out of spec case.
     This is all after one has spent untold hours crawling around on the ground looking for brass, sorting it, cleaning, measuring, trimming, and deburring it.
     Most people live where it is a fairly long drive to get to an outdoor range.  For me this looks like I am moving out of the house.  Being an Eagle Scout, preparedness and contingency planning are a way of life.  And leaving guns behind is like choosing between children.  Now it is time to test out these new reloads.  This is where one finds out that the handy bullet recipe found online did not have enough powder to cycle an AR-15, or that your pistol bullets have too much and you wonder if your Glock may detonate in your hand.  Cases get stuck in chambers from being out of spec just slightly so you have to keep a hammer and cleaning rod with you to knock them out.  You forgot one of those?  Your day of testing this ammo is now done.  You may find that the neck tension on your brass is not right, and your bullet is seated too far.  This will fill your chamber and action with powder and leave a bullet stuck in the barrel.  One may find that a primer was forgotten and powder slowly leaked out all over every other bullet (they are covered in that grease from sizing remember) in ones ammo can.  Or it is easy to forget the powder in one especially if you are loading on a progressive and cant check every case, and the primer bumps the bullet into the barrel.  Again, hope that you catch that before the next round goes in.
     It does not matter how good of a reloader one thinks they are or will be, mistakes are going to happen, and they go from being annoying and causing malfunctions, to completely ruining ones day.       Some people say that reloading is good for when there are shortages of ammo or in the case of SHTF.  Know this; during good times it is hard to find the exact primer, powder, and bullet combination one wants.  At worst ones favorite powder will go from $60 per 8 pound keg at the local gun store to only being able to find it on an auction site for $480 with another $60 for haz-mat and handling fees.  Also, in the event of SHTF, I want a stockpile of factory loaded ammo, not a mismatched box of brass that may or may not function in a gun I am depending on to save my life.
     Ask any shooting school their opinion on reloads and they will tell you not to bring it because malfunctions cause endless distractions to the class.
     Shooting a bolt gun or revolver from a bench is one thing, but shooting and moving with a semi auto sends bullets flying over a huge area.  Again, crawling around on the ground for brass is not fun at any age, and if it is grass, this job just got four times harder.
     Even with all of these reasons not to reload, the cost savings are sometimes breaking even with components alone verses the cost of factory ammo.  And how much exactly is ones time worth? 
     The solution to all of this headache is to go on ammoseek.com, purchase a bulk quantity of one kind of quality ammo, and enjoy shooting.  I guarantee you will be a happier human being.

Pistol Drill # 1

   
     In my time as a firearms instructor I found that, far and away, the most common problem I dealt with teaching handgun shooting was anticipating the recoil.  I could sympathize with them as I too struggled with this problem.  In fact, I remember being 15 and knowing nothing about pistol marksmanship.  I was shooting a .40 cal Glock, and could not hit an ample sized target at close range.  At the time I had never shot a pistol larger than a .22 mag in a heavy revolver.  My flinch was so pronounced that I was kicking up dirt three feet below the target.  Having no access to any training my solution was to aim high and hope for the best.  Even with that poor solution to my problem my groups were hideous. 
     When deciding what to teach my shooting students first, I knew that helping them overcome their flinch was crucial. 
     This drill is best done with a partner, and it starts with an empty gun.  The student aims at the target as normal, and pulls the trigger.  As soon as the trigger is pulled, the partner racks the slide quickly.  Doing this reveals several problems at once.  Usually one finds that their grip is too weak to manage the recoil, their stance is too upright or at worst leaning back, and that they slap the hell out of the trigger causing the barrel to dip down.  Many people do not like this drill because they are ready to start slinging bullets down range, and see dry firing as tedious.  Being able to sort out the first several fundamental problems with ones pistol shooting without wasting ammo is a smart way to begin with new shooters.  They will go into that first shot knowing what it will feel like, and help to lessen the sensory overload that comes from shooting. 
     The flinch is something that comes from ones brain stem, and I know of no one that is completely immune to it.  Teaching students to take up the first four pounds of their trigger, (assuming a five pound pull) then slowly add pressure an ounce at a time resulting in a 'surprise break' is a way to bypass the bodies natural reaction to anticipate the snap of recoil. 
     At times students would swear to me that the sights on their pistol were off and that their gun is shooting low.  While this is possible, 99% of the time flinch is to blame.  Demonstrating its accuracy is one way to eliminate this variable, but the author preferred another method.  Have the shooter point at the target with a round in the chamber with their finger placed along the frame away from the ejection port.  Pull the trigger for them in such a way that they have no idea when the round will be fired, and slowly enough that the sights are not pulled off target.  It is important to note that wearing eye protection and looking away is essential as brass will be flying.  Having them aim at a small steel target that they previously could not hit is the best way to drive home the point as they usually hear the satisfying 'ding'. 
     The other fun way to demonstrate this is to tell the student that you are loading it with a very powerful defense round and have them shoot it while you video from the side.  The gun is actually empty and being able to show them just how far the barrel dips from flinching will make the shooter more aware of what is going on.  Another way to do this that may be the most effective is to use snap caps mixed in with live rounds randomly in a magazine.  This is something one can do alone, and again teaches the shooter to concentrate on the fundamentals of trigger control. 
       

The .22 LR

     Starting off a gun collection with a .22LR is a smart idea for many reasons.  I bought my first firearm, a Marlin model 60 with the help of my parents from walmart for $89 30 years ago.  The main selling point for me was the 15 shot tube fed magazine, as even at 10 years old I was interested in delivering the most firepower on target as possible.  I used the next birthday and Christmas to get a speed loader and a scope.  My father seemed to think the speed loader was a little much, and even commented, "So you will need this if you are ever in a fire fight with a few dozen attackers?"
     It took this gun out after not shooting it in a very long time.  The benchmark for rimfire accuracy is 50 yards.  Using this very cheap rifle with the most budget ammo available (Remington Thunderbolts) I was only able to manage at 1.7 inch group at that distance.  In the time since I last shot it, I went on to enjoy competing in Olympic style shooting with finely tuned Anschutz and Feinwerkbau rifles for several years.  As fun as it was to play with again, the lack of accuracy and the nine pound trigger was more than I could bear, and I set out to find a suitable replacement.
     I wanted to find a semi auto .22 LR that could stack bullets.  I found myself searching rimfirecentral.com, the internet home of rimfire experts and a wealth of knowledge on the topic.  One name that kept coming up was KIDD.  Tony Kidd builds a high end copy of the ruger 10/22, improving on every single aspect of the rifle.  To my knowledge, the only parts shared with a standard 10/22 are the safety and magazine.  Tony will custom build one to your exact specifications.  I chose and Ansuchutz style stock, a threaded 18 inch match grade Lothar/Walther barrel, and a two stage trigger set to 6 oz.  The detail and tight tolerances he puts into his rifle builds make it among the most accurate semi auto .22's money can buy.  I added a 6.5-20x Vortex scope and fed it Lapua Midas + ammo.

     The results were stunning.  Not only could I now shoot .3 inch groups at 50 yards, I could make consistent hits out to 250 yards.  With the light trigger, I was able to fire five bullets at 175 yards before the first one hit the steel target.  All of this is made even more fun with the addition of a suppressor making hearing protection unnecessary.
     The cost of this rifle is substantial, but shooting an extremely accurate .22 is something you do not grow out of or get tired of doing.  Everyone I have let shoot it will go straight through the 25 round magazine and start looking for another one like a heroin addict the moment it goes click instead of bang.
     The .22 has a wide variety of ammo available from CCI Quiets at 710 fps to CCI Velocitors going 1435 fps.  Below is a test I did of each showing differences in sound.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4tyUy2tlWM

     Personally I have settled on CCI SV as my go to ammo as it offers the best balance of cost and accuracy.  It also runs just subsonic at 1080 fps for suppressor use.
     Starting a firearms collection with a .22 rifle gives you a tool that works as a low cost trainer, a lightweight rifle to hike with, a gun that could be pressed into a defensive roll, a survival rifle capable of quietly dispatching small to medium game, and a fun plinking rifle.
     The .22's fatal flaw is that they shoot very dirty.  I have found with most semi autos, cleaning every 200 rounds is needed for reliable function.  A ring of carbon develops just forward of the chamber and a simple bore snake will only get one part of the way to keeping it clean.  Lubrication is another paradox of the rimfire world.  No lube results in poor function, while over lubing causes powder fouling to pile up everywhere in the action.  I have the best luck spraying the internals with RemOil, then wiping away any excess.
     In the future I plan on doing a video comparison between the Marlin and KIDD, as well as a showdown between a Ruger Single Six, and a Volquartsen Scorpion.  Testing each with cheap as well as top of the line ammo should make for a fun experiment.