Archives for February 2015

RUKO Tactical Survival Knife

New RUKO Tactical Survival Knife

RUKO has been making knives and tools for over five decades, and at SHOT Show this year the showed off their new Tactical Survival Knife (Model RUKO161B). This knife really stood out to me. The lines are simplistic, but still portray very nice ergonomics and purpose. The rubberized grip is slip-resistant, with curves that are designed to fit the natural grip of the hand. The blade has a drop point with razor’s edge, and the added benefit of serrations on the top of the blade for more heavy cutting.

[Read more…]

Walker’s Alpha Ear Muffs SSL

By Aaron Leave a Comment

Last year I was looking to upgrade a standard pair of passive hearing protection muffs, to an electronic design that would protect against the sharp crack of gunfire while magnifying sound to allow normal conversations. My hope was to avoid spending over $100, but still get a decent set of ear protection. I happened to be at a large box store when I came across a pair of Walker’s Alpha Muffs SSL.

Walker’s Alpha SSL ear muffs with a grey carbon fiber finish.

[Read more…]

Rock Island Arms Baby Rock .380 1911

By Aaron 4 Comments

Holding the Rock Island Armory Baby Rock.

Rock Island Arms (RIA) has been making a lot of noise and headway in the coveted 1911 arena, and for good show. The RIA 1911’s have proven to be reliable and well-built firearms, at an entry-level price. This year at SHOT Show RIA introduced the Baby Rock, a 1911 in .380 ACP.

[Read more…]

MagStorage AR-15 Mag Holder

By Aaron Leave a Comment

The MagStorage AR-15 Mag Holder housing (6) Magpul Pmags.

Off of the beaten path of the SHOT Show Industry Day at the Range was a small booth exhibiting a handy series of unique AR-15 magazine holders. MagStorage Solutions is a relatively new company, but I was really intrigued by their product for organizing and storing AR-15 magazines. The MagStorage MagHolder presents a lot of possibilities for Armories, Bearcats, Gun cabinets or lockers, or Gun safes.

[Read more…]

Barnes Precision Match Ammunition for LE?

By Aaron 2 Comments

Barnes is one of the most respected bullet designers and manufacturers in the world. For years they have produced not only outstanding bullets, but the complete cartridge packages as well. While Barnes has provided some of their precision rounds to elite military forces over the last few years, it is their hunting lines that have made Barnes famous. In fact, they are relative newcomers to the law enforcement side of ammunition production.

This year at the 2015 SHOT Show Barnes announced the addition of several new options with their Precision Match line of ammunition designed for military and law enforcement applications. The Precision Match bullets are engineered to maintain precise trajectories even out to extremely long distances, with a motto of “SEND IT WITH CONFIDENCE” every time.

[Read more…]

Roll Call: A BSD Challenge Video!

By Aaron 2 Comments

The Passenger Side Approach is a critical component of officer safety during traffic stops.

A little over a week ago I started the Quarterly Challenge on BlueSheepDog. The intent of the challenge was to keep officers sharp on some of the most critical skills necessary to survive the streets. I haven’t receive very many responses or comments so I have no idea how well the Q1 Challenge was received. There were four challenges included in the first quarter (Q1) challenge:

2015 BSD Q1 Challenge

Perform (10) perfect handgun draws in a row before each shift (Safety Check!)
Review at least (1) officer involved shooting (OIS) video per week for lessons learned
Accept the 100% off-duty firearm carry challenge
Plan at least (1) special family event each week.

Roll Call Video below!

[Read more…]

U.S. v. Reid, Evidence from an Arrestee’s Home

By Aaron Leave a Comment

United States v. Reid (2014)

On October 20, 2014, the case of United States v. Reid was decided by the 8th United States Circuit Court of Appeals. Under review was the reasonableness of evidence located and used against a second person when officers entered the residence at the request of a person they had just placed under arrest for a Federal Probation Violation warrant.

The Constitution of the United States. Courtesy of the Library of Congress.

The 4th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution is the most influential and important Federal guideline to America’s law enforcement officers, because it deals directly with the search and seizure of citizens and their property. As a free nation the protections established in the 4th Amendment are sacred to the foundations of our liberty. The standard of a search or seizure that is Constitutionally acceptable is whether the action was reasonable under the law.

[Read more…]

HK Axis Benchmade Knives

By Aaron Leave a Comment

Heckler & Koch (HK) is a very well-known name in the firearms industry, producing some of the finest firearms available on the market. Their iconic MP-5 sub-machine gun has been a weapon of choice for many SWAT and military special operations teams for decades, and was a true joy to use while our SWAT team had them. The HK416 is considered by many to be in the top-tier of AR-15 rifles available, and the new HK VP9 has received raving reviews for its ergonomics, smooth trigger, and accuracy.

The Benchmade HK Axis knife with serrated blade.

Another side of the HK business is a line of branded knives made by famed knife maker Benchmark. These knives are designed around the same demanding standards that has led HK in its firearms designs for the professional shooter, and follow the HK motto, “No compromise”. The particular model that caught my eye at the SHOT Show floor this year was the HK Axis.

[Read more…]

Vortex Strike Eagle 1-6x Scope

By Aaron 1 Comment

The new Vortex Strike Eagle 1-6x24mm AR-15 scope.

Vortex Optics is not new to the optic business by any means, and the company continues to etch their way into a larger share of the market by making some really outstanding glass. This year at SHOT Show, Vortex revealed their new Strike Eagle 1-6x24mm reflex and magnification scope. Though targeted for the AR-15 market, the Strike Eagle has a wide open range of possibilities from bolt-action to lever rifles as well.

In fact, a 1-6x magnification scope was probably the most popular product to enter the AR-15 market at this year’s SHOT Show. It seemed that nearly every major player in the optics world was coming out with their own version of a 1-6x scope, and the Vortex Strike Eagle made a strong offering.

[Read more…]

Meprolight Tru-Dot RDS

By Aaron Leave a Comment

Meprolight of Israel is distributed through the Mako Group in America, and have been producing high quality accessories and optics for military, law enforcement, and civilian markets for many years. Meprolight products have proven themselves in battle during use by several units of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF). The optics sold in America are designed to meet Mil-Spec requirements.

Late last year Meprolight introduced their new Tru-Dot RDS (Red Dot Sight). The Tru-Dot RDS came from research and design that generated the Meprolight M5 light for the IDF. The IDF required several additional features that increased the price per unit. Recognizing the market potential Meprolight made the changes for the military version, but kept the Tru-Dot RDS as a U.S. civilian market offering. The Tru-Dot RDS keeps several of the M5 upgrades, while dropping some of the expensive military options.

Here’s a decent YouTube video showing the Meprolight Tru-Dot RDS in comparison to several popular competitor red dot sights:

[Read more…]