On Training And Role Models

My feelings on training are no secret. I believe in hard, realistic and ongoing training. Train to win no matter the circumstances. In that vein it's important to choose your training role models carefully.

I am no fan of the current crop of "Tactical Ninja" type trainers. Putting people down range and shooting past them. Drills involving clubbing folks with perfectly functioning firearms. Courses of fire that bear no resemblance to anything real world. You've seen them all and they bear no comment other than "I'll pass, thanks."

Read this and think about who the author of the post is, what she's survived and what her training mindset is.  Then ask yourself who better to get your information and motivation from? The Mall Ninja or a Mom who's determined, motivated and realistic?

I know who I want on my team.

Six

Apparently Capital One Thinks An Image Of A Gun Is Socially Unacceptable Or Discriminatory

I was visiting with my buddy Bruce today, talking guns and prices. Bruce is the owner of OFS Tactical and he's been helping me out by selling a few of my no longer needed/wanted firearms. As we were discussing the latest batch I left him he dropped this nice little hoplophobic number on me.

He is in the process of obtaining a company credit card from Capital One. He sent in his information and the image he wanted displayed. It's his company logo. It's an M4 in black silhouette with his company name, OFS Tactical below. They sent this in response.

	Sorry, we were unable to approve  the image you submitted Sorry the image you submitted for your Capital One® Image CardSM has been rejected. We will not approve any images that contain the following: Socially unacceptable or discriminatory behavior, signs or statements (e.g. gangs, hatred, drugs/alcohol abuse, tobacco, graffiti, or illegal firearms use) If you believe that you have been declined in error, please call us at 1-866-381-0451. Please visit www.capitalone.com/imagecard to upload a new image.

Please note the reasons given for denial. Bruce sent this right back. (Note: As most of you know I am a Luddite so I'm re-typing this from the PDF Bruce sent to me instead of copying and pasting. I'm not leaving anything out except for some images and not adding anything in.)


This card image I selected is my logo for my company and been since April of 2009. I am a federally licensed dealer of firearms and sell to the UNITED STATES MILITARY, LAW ENFORCEMENT and 28 agencies of the Government.





My company advocates for the freedom of the Second Amendment and SAFE USE AND HANDLING of firearms. We are a family of veterans who have fought and died for your individual rights and FREEDOMS, please don't take ours away. The simple image of a firearm in no way, shape or form infringes on "Socially unacceptable or discriminatory behavior, signs or statements (e.g. gangs, hatred, drugs/alcohol abuse, tobacco, graffiti, or illegal firearms use) and if you feel so inclined to make that argument I would like you to explain Vikings running through a village, pillaging and wielding battle axes and swords. What's in your wallet?

(Here Bruce included two captured images from the Capital One ads showing the rampaging Vikings)


I like Capital One but the political correctness must stop and I implore you to reconsider your initial judgement. I am prepared to take this argument as far as needs be; NRA, FOX News, Blogs, Second Amendment rights activists, YouTube, etc. And I have a pretty good my military and law enforcement buddies nation wide will support me by boycotting your fine establishment.


Now Bruce and OFS Tactical are a classic small business, really it's just him, trying to make his mark and maybe enough money to pay the bills. But the size of the dog is irrelevant. What Capital One is in essence saying is that the very image of a gun (and thereby all guns themselves) is so offensive that they refuse to allow a company logo credit card to show one. The language they used left me indignant to the point of anger and perhaps the use of some bad language. Socially unacceptable behavior, signs or statements. Wow. Just Wow.

So here's my response to Capital One, which I will be sending after I've finished this post along with a link for their perusal. Please feel free to let them know how you feel in comments.

Dear Capital One:

I was recently made aware of your rejection of the image of a legal firearm on an Image Card credit card for OFS Tactical. Your stated reason was the following;

Socially unacceptable or discriminatory behavior, signs or statements (e.g. gangs, hatred, drugs/alcohol abuse, tobacco, graffiti, or illegal firearms use)

What I find offensive and discriminatory is your rejection of the image for no more reason than that you don't like it. The simple image of a legal firearm is no more socially unacceptable that a sword or a battle ax which I believe you are more than happy to show in your commercials. Even when in the hands of a child. A weapon is a weapon and is no more dangerous than the hand that wields it. If a company or individual are law abiding and the image is not one of violence and mayhem (that's a subtle hint right there. Did you get it?) then a shadow image of the weapon that has secured freedom for more people than any other in mankind's history is not unacceptable or discriminatory except in the close minded. I am not a Capital One customer at this time nor will I ever be if this is your stance. I am also a veteran and a retired police officer who runs a modest little blog and who is going to shout to the internet and anyone who will listen as to your actions. I urge you to reconsider and work with the owner of OFS tactical to resolve this issue. I have written about this incident. I am including a link to that post. We firearm owners are neither stupid nor non-discretionary. We have funds to spend and credit cards to use and we are very aware of who is actively opposing the lawful exercise of our rights and who is not. It's your company and you can certainly run it any way you see fit but it's our money and we can handle it the same way. And, somehow, I doubt very much that this is the first time such has occurred.

What's in your wallet indeed.

Sincerely
Six

Training Help For Those In Dire Need

DaddyBear over at DaddyBear's Den has a post up in his Thought For The Day. In it he ponders setting up a foundation to arm people who have a protective order against someone violent but cannot arm themselves. In the meantime he offers his expertise to train anyone who is armed but untrained and who is in similar dire circumstances. I echo his thoughts and make the same pledge.

If you're someone who is in fear of your life at the hands of another who is a violent sociopath and you have access to a legally owned firearm and in need of instruction in the southern Utah area give me a holler. Especially if you're female and there's a domestic violence restraining order/protective order against him. Sexist? Maybe but it's also reality. Women are horribly vulnerable in these circumstances and the ratio of male offenders to female is astronomical. I saw way too much of this when I was a cop and if I can help I will. I have a couple of nice little .22s that we can start with and then transition to your self defense gun. I'll provide the .22 ammo and cover any range fees and if you're in a real bind I can also part with a little duty ammo as long as it's in a caliber I have in stock. I am not a professional but I do hold firearms instructor certifications from the NRA, Sacramento County Sheriff and FBI as well as 15 years of a 24 year career spent teaching shooting to other cops.

I mentioned to DaddyBear that we should try and take this viral. We gunnies talk about about this stuff a lot, it's time for me and those who agree to take another step. If we can help we should.

Six

God, Gals, Guns, Grub On Carrying

Dann brings the big guns out and intelligently opines on a topic near and dear to my heart. What do you bring to the gunfight? I wrote about this in September, Carry as much gun as you can, but Dann does it better.

While you're at it head on over to Brigid's place and peruse her writings on this as well as many other firearms subjects. Tam might have written one or two posts that might possibly be on topic. How about Miguel or Fred or Murphy's Law or Borepatch or Frank or Michael or Keads or The Mad Ogre or Rourke or Mr. Completely or North or ASM826 or Say Uncle or Breda or Kevin or Oleg or WhenTheBalloonGoesUp or, well, you get the idea (and my apologies to anyone I missed, it was unintentional. I get easily distracted by shiny things).

My point is that there's a wealth of information out there just in my blogroll. People who are educated and experienced and who have nothing to sell and no hidden agenda beyond a desire to voluntarily give of the knowledge they've gained in lifetimes of effort and sometimes dangerous work. People we should all read, listen to and heed. And they're just the literal tip of the iceberg. A casual perusal of their writings and blogrolls yields a veritable wealth of folks who have been there and done that when it comes to firearms and self defense. And here's the funny thing. None of them, not a single one, will look you in the eye and tell you they are the be all/end all of shooting and bad guy defeating. It's the instructors responsibility to justify their teachings and advice and everyone who opines on these subjects is presenting themselves as teachers or subject matter experts and yes, that does include me and this very post. Don't be afraid to call BS when you see it. A good instructor welcomes hard questions.

For me the bottom line is this. Do your homework. Ask questions (and in that vein question everything you're told). Be a cautious consumer. Take everything with a large grain of salt. Ask yourself (and whatever source you're considering) what they're selling, especially if it's themselves. I've been to a lot of shooting/self defense classes and all instructors are not created equal. By the same token, someone I hate may be the bee's knees for you. Like instructors, students are as different as their needs and learning abilities. It's your money, spend it wisely.

I'll end this scribbling with something I've said many times and will continue to say. The 'experts' may be right or they may be wrong on any given subject but which they are depends on you; who you are, what you want, what you need and what you can afford. Knowing that is the beginning of wisdom in a field rife with gadgets, charlatans, tactical cool, fan boys, big boys and a disappointing tendency toward a herd mentality.

Carry. Carry what you can, what you believe in, what you can afford but carry. Train. Beg, borrow or steal the best instruction you can find and afford. This is an area which surprisingly does not follow the 'you get what you pay for' meme. There's an awful lot of very good free information out there if you dig a little. There's also an awful lot of high priced ignorance and stupidity. Figuring out which is which and who is who is the essence of becoming and staying an informed shooter. Discernment isn't just a fancy word, it's a requirement. And if someone calls you a fool because you don't carry what they recommend or train the same way they do then consider the source, learn what you can of value from them and move on. Self defense is a subject that is vitally important and it's far too easy to get discouraged by the ramblings of the self described elite. The mall ninja meme is funny right up to the point where you've paid for it and the price might be very dear indeed.

A big Thank You to all the gunnies on my list (and those I neglected to mention). I have learned something important from each and every one of you. And it didn't cost me a thing except a little time. Your efforts may go essentially unrewarded on the web but they don't go unappreciated. I hope you continue.

Six

Rebar Target Stand

Sarge had an idea a while ago that's been percolating around in the back of my mind. We've had a series of raggedy excuses for target stands that work kinda. As long as the wind is at zero and no one makes any sudden moves. Sarge suggested we make some out of PVC. A great idea, and one I had been cataloging in my mind. What was I going  to need to make them and how best to put it together and repair it when it inevitably takes some hits. The other night I thought about an alternative. Rebar. It's simple steel, comes in a variety of sizes, can be readily welded, is actually fairly tough and should be pretty easy to repair. Lets find out.

Lu and I went to Big Box Home Remodel Store today and I bought three 8 foot sections of 3/8's inch rebar. I chose 3/8's because it's light, should (there's that word again) be strong enough and is cheap. Less than ten bucks for all three.

Here's the plan.
-The target stand will be 2 feet wide and 6 feet tall with a cross piece 3 feet from the top. It will have 2 feet, each 2 foot long with another 2 foot cross brace between them. Think an H shaped footing.
-Take two of the 8 footers and cut 2 feet off each. Then cut two more 2 foot sections out of the last 8 foot rebar. This will give us four 2 foot sections and two 6 foot sections. We'll also need 2 uprights that have an inside diameter approximately equal to the outside diameter of the rebar. We'll need a mounting system, something to cut metal and a welder.

Ok. Here's two of the 2 footers with the two 6 footers.

Here's the footing already cut and welded. I found 2 pieces of pipe just laying around to use as the uprights receptacles. These will hold the 6 foot sections when the stand is assembled. They were too large inside diameter but I'll address that later in the build. You can see the H shape I was talking about. 2 feet long by 2 feet wide.

A this point I needed to take some measurements. My target cardboards are 40 inches tall by 30 wide.

That gave me my final measurements for the target opening. I'll weld the 2 footers on the inside of the 6 foot uprights for a final width of right at 25 inches. I decided that 36 inches from the top was good for my cross brace.

First, square up the corners. Then weld a 2 foot section to one end of the 6 footers. This is the top of the stand.

25 inches wide.

I then marked a spot on each upright at 36 inches from the top and welded in the cross brace.

Remember I said the 2 pipes I welded into the footing to hold the uprights were too big? When I fitted the upper stand into the foot it wobbled badly. Now keep in mind I was working with whatever I had in the shop so please be kind. I had a piece of copper pipe with the correct inside diameter and 2 large square nuts that were the exact size I needed. I cut the copper so it would fit in the pipe flush and welded the nuts to the top. When I do another one I'll actually go out and buy some pipe that fits without going through gyrations to make it work. I swear. Probably. Maybe. (I won't).

The uprights now fit into the pipe perfectly. The stand is solid with no wobbling. You can see how the uprights fit into the footing.

Here's the stand complete but for the mounting system. It's 6 foot tall and 2 foot wide. It sits on a stand that's 2 foot by 2 foot. It may be too small but if so I can easily bend the feet or add length to them. Sarge and I talked about even adding claws to the feet or plates that we can stake to the ground.

On to the mounting system. Remember, I'm working with what I have. Anyone know what these are?

If you said "those wirish doodads one uses to mount things to peg board" you're obviously a Redneck. You would also be absolutely correct. I cut off the little single 'tail', leaving me with the other 2 for welding. Yes, that is a hand hacksaw. Please don't tell anyone. I don't want to lose my powertool cred.

Mounted and ready for welding. I sharpened the tips to make it easier to poke them through the cardboard. There are 2 at the top and 2 on the crossbrace.

Here's the final product with a cardboard attached. Angus insisted on modeling. Something about everything being better with a Lab. The mounting spikes are at the top and mid brace giving me 4 points of contact. If any one fails it'll still work. It'll even work if 2 fail, so long as one's at the top and the other at the bottom.

I know, the width of the stand is such that it it behind the edges of the cardboard. I built it this way for a couple of reasons.
Most of my targets, including the silhouettes, are 24 inches wide so good hits won't be an issue. The top and mid brace were always going to be behind the cardboard no matter what. I wanted a solid mount for the cardboard instead of relying on bunji's or similar. I like having something solid behind the target for it to push against. No blowing the target through this stand. Because I made it out of steel it'll be both tougher and easier to repair than PVC. It's round to full on hits will be rare and those that do hit shouldn't come back on the shooter (remember that shooting into steel is always dangerous. Wear your safety gear). I wanted it to be as small and light as I could manage while still being large enough for full sized targets.

The final weight of the entire stand was 10 pounds. As weighed on the calibrated, super accurate scales here at the Evil6 Incorporated R&D laboratories of course. Total outlay (minus the stuff I had 'just laying around') was 10 dollars and a couple of hours of work by Sarge and me. A lot of which was talking and lying about how well we shoot.

Will it work? Will it fall over in a mild breeze and completely mortify me? Will it break the first time Sarge or I hit it with anything larger than a BB gun and stubbornly refuse to be repaired? You'll just have to tune in later to find out. Sarge and I have a date at the Super Secret Evil6 Range Facility later this week. We'll put it through it's paces, including shooting it on purpose, and file a report. Backyard engineering. I dunno.

Success or abject failure. We shall see.

Six

Business Practices

Murphy's Law at Lagniappe's Lair has a post up here about the Dealer Showroom out of Klamath, Oregon and it's owner, John Bush. Now I've never done business with these people but I trust Murphy's Law's judgement and after reading about his experiences with this company and owner I can safely say I'll never do business with them unless and until they radically change their customer service practices.

Lu and I have a rule. We'll pay a little extra for excellent service and refuse to give our hard earned money to any individual or company who treats customers as irritations or sources of one time only income.

Don't give money to anyone who hasn't earned it. Sounds like an indictment of the government now that I think on it.

Six

For Gun Owners

Go see Scott. He's got something he'd like you to do in reference to the ATF's proposal to register multiple sales of certain long guns. I don't usually do or promote things like this but this is important. Our voices need to be heard and if this is how it must be done then this is how it must be done. I have sent out the letter myself. Thanks for simplifying things Scott.

Six

Update: The gunnie awesomeness seems to be spreading today. TheRedneckEngineer has an awseome post up about NFA Trusts. RTWT.