Tactical Burn-Out

[Mainsail]

I've been wondering lately why so many people have this need to be super tactical. People are buying up tons of gear that might see the range once or twice, but will likely just sit in a box in the garage until they come to their senses and sell it at a loss to some other delusional soldier wanna-be. I want to buy a new pack, but somehow I'm weird because I don't need MOLLE loops all over it. I want a holster and I'm supposed to buy a kydex wonder holster that has holes so it can be laced into my boot.

Some of the forums are worse than others. Discuss training and everyone is on your side; after all, training is good. Point out the silliness of tactical squad style training or training involving defense against a dozen organized and determined attackers and you'll get shouted down, or even kicked from the forum.

I found a SWAT magazine here at work and thumbed through it. Wow, pretty eye opening. I think a steady diet of that **** will have you dumping a ton of money into courses, gear, clothing, and a 65-pound AR with every inch of rail space occupied- that you will never need to get to the grocery store and back safely. Bodyguard? Cop? Security guard? Sure, learn to shoot with your strong-side arm disabled, the lower portion of your leg caught in a beartrap, while lying across the hood of a car; it may well save your life. Shoot, pirouette around looking for additional threats, do-see-do around your partner if you need to; but if you're just a regular guy is there really much value added?

Whatever happened to regular folks who carry a gun for self defense, are we all supposed to be training for war? How is it that little old ladies with little or no training seem to easily prevail with a double barrel shotgun, but if I don't spend three hours a week at the range shooting and running, jumping and jabbing, I'm in mortal danger?

OK, rant off. I'll just continue to be a regular guy and look with amusement at the pretend soldiers.

 

[zzzippper]

I understand what you're saying but I don't get your angst over how other people spend their money.

 

[semperfi71]

I have a lot of "mirth" over the "tactical" stuff.

You can't get much more "tactical" than a standard M1911 or M1911A1 with issue parts and fixed sights that are adjusted to point of aim at 25 yards for your chosen load.

I am lucky, all 13 of my M1911's (one), M1911A1's and Commanders...[of which some of these are "clones"]...shoot to point of aim at 25 yards and inside of 3 inches for 10 shots with my handloads.

None of them have aftermarket safeties, slide releases, or sights. All are fixed front sights and dove-tailed rear, fixed sights.

On my Ruger Commander I removed the extended safety and replaced it with a standard one. The extended safety would release on entrance into a holster.

 

[USAF385]

I get what you're saying, but disagree with your complaint about how people choose to train.

You may call me tacticool, but yeah, I actually do sprint and use my weak hand. Besides the obvious practical aspect, it's actually fun to push yourself in different ways and test your abilities.

Shooting weak handed at swinging targets while your hearts going 170 bpm..... Necessary? Who knows. Challenging? Yes.

 

[BB57]

The tacti-cool folks are fun to watch and even funner to annoy.

I started shooting tactical rifle matches one weekend in the late 1980s when a match was scheduled the same day as a service rifle match on an adjacent range, with one in the morning and the other in the afternoon. It was a two gun match with a "battle rifle" class for 7.62x51, etc, and a light rifle class for rifles shooting intermediate cartridges like the 7.62x39, 5.56x45, etc. I heard about it on Friday afternoon and bought a nice surplus M1 carbine at the LGS along with all the ammo he had - one 50 round box of Lake City 110 gr ball.

I showed, up shot in the service rifle division, zeroed the M1 Carbine using 5 rounds during a short break in between, and the loaded the other 45 rounds into three 15 round magazines. Then I walked to the other side of the range and to the tactical rifle match to put it to work.

Now...we were not yet into full tactic-cool mode in the late 1980s, but people were really big into modifying their AR-15s with really stupid things like compensators, heavy barrels, and various optics - all of which did then, as they still do now, just slow down an otherwise light, handy carbine. I got a lot of derogatory comments because I was shooting an old fashioned M1 Carbine, rather a customized 16" AR-15 and no one figured I was in the running at all. I got less grief over the M1A, as some folks had even more outmoded M1 Garands, but the FAL and HK-91 crowd figured they all had the edge.

I ended up winning the battle rifle class, and placed second in the light rifle class, losing to the LGS owner and his HK-93, rather than an AR-15. Knowing that me and my M1 Carbine beat every AR-15 in the field didn't make the crow taste any better for those folks who had told me what a poor choice I'd made in equipment.

I continued shooting tactical rifle matches until transferring to the east coast in 2007, although I still have that M1 Carbine, I eventually switched to an XM177E1 clone for light rifle competition, alternating it at times with an M16A1 clone when longer ranges were anticipated. I really enjoyed demonstrating the advantages of a short, lightweight, fast handling iron sighted rifle or carbine in close quarter combat matches. Still, even with the obvious in front of them, most of the competition never figured out than hanging 3 or 4 pounds of tactical **** on their 7 pound M4gery just turned into a slow and heavy 10 or 11 pound carbine.

But hey, they looked cool.

----

The problem for many of the tactic-cool folks is that they have their priorities in the wrong order. How you shoot matters a lot more than what you shoot, and all that time wasted agonizing over what firearm to get, in what caliber, with what tactical **** attached and shooting what load is totally wasted when they don't put in the time learning the basics of how to shoot accurately and re-load efficiently before working on increasing speed, adding in movement, etc.

 

[sigp220.45]

I was on a Violent Crime/Fugitive Task Force in New Orleans during the glory days of 435+ murders a year.

The NOPD guys on the Task Force had all killed somebody - a couple of them had killed multiple somebodies - in straight up gunfights.

They were indifferent shots at best. They carried the issued Beretta, and didn't have long guns. It was tough to get them to the range to qualify.

I would rather have any one of them with me than the star graduate of any or all of the "booger hook/bang switch" academies. They knew when to shoot people, and when to not shoot people.

The tactical stuff amused them.

 

[Arik]

On the other hand I quit going to an outdoor range a mile from my house. No I'd rather drive an hour and a half, pay tolls and use a state game land with no RO because I can't deal anymore with the Fudds. I get evil looks and they mumble under their breath because my rifle is mag fed semi auto, not a ww2 rifle, I don't take 5 min between each shot and I'm not concerned with moa.

I prefer to practice realistically. Not that bench nonsense trying for sub moa.

 

[Edmo]

I've been wondering lately why so many people have this need to be super tactical...

That's because we're all a bunch of mall ninja operators, operating with our gear, on operational missions, while operating...


Edmo

 

[MrJT]

I get what you're saying, but disagree with your complaint about how people choose to train.

You may call me tacticool, but yeah, I actually do sprint and use my weak hand.

If you're doing it with that sweet P938, then I'd agree with you and say it's not tacticool.

But if you're doing it with an AR wearing two lasers, a flashlight, a bayonet, pistol grip converting to bipod etc. etc.... then maybe you're pushing tacticool.

Honestly, I'm jealous of the fact you have your own setup and can do this sort of training. Being limited to a public range most of the time, I'm stuck with pretty boring practice.

 

[snubbyfan]

 

[PatriotX]

I appreciate anyone who wants to continue the tradition of shooting sports.

I appreciate the tacticool crowd even more, as they are less likely to buy that beautiful blued or stainless Smith revolver before I get a chance at it.

 

[RSanch111]

I've been wondering lately why so many people have this need to be super tactical.

Why do people buy cars or motorcycles that can go 180mph when they only need to go 70 or 80?

 

[LostintheOzone]

I think it's mostly the young guys that buy that tactical carp. My tac rifle is an M1 carbine. Imagine that, a rifle without a rail. If I wanted a light on it I would have to use duck tape. My tac pistol is a single stack Sig P 220. How last century is that? It does have a rail though but I don't have a light so I'm still living in the dark ages.

How many of these operators have ammo? I mean enough for a year or so of people trying to take your stuff. More than likely they are hoping Cabela's wont run out before they get there. Gear doesn't mean much when you run out of ammo.

 

[Donn]

1) I'm convinced shooters are getting like golfers. They'll glom onto any gimmick that comes out in the hope it might work. And, 2) Is it a rule that in order to go full tacti-cool, you have to weigh in excess of 300 pounds? Sure seems that way.

 

[venomballistics]

1) I'm convinced shooters are getting like golfers. They'll glom onto any gimmick that comes out in the hope it might work. And, 2) Is it a rule that in order to go full tacti-cool, you have to weigh in excess of 300 pounds? Sure seems that way.

All for a game no sane man wants to play.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

I have an AR-15 flat top. I have a small light scope for it a bigger heavier scope for it and a red dot for. I can only use one at a time so I only mount one at a time. I have a Harris bi-pod adapter for ,but removed it because it interfered with my hand placement. No laser, no flashlight, no vertical fore grip, no rear mono-pod, I could list all the things I don't have , but I do have practice at shooting running coyotes at 300-500 yards. That AR and the boonie hat,are as tacticool as I get. I don't go to the mall, so I don't train for the mall. Ivan

 

[Mainsail]

Hey, I have nothing against the AR, I have one with an Acog on it (20% off coupon through AAFES, no shipping or sales tax).

I watched a so-called training video where the trainer demanded that everyone turn left, left, left, and left again- I guess to check for threats. Of course, it's training and people fall back on the training, so if the additional threat comes from the right, it's a long way around going left.

 

[Ματθιας]

I like the tactical/cool stuff. When my buds get the latest/greatest, I get to see stuff I don't want to buy.

This is a tacti-cool as I get: reflex sight and a 3pt sling.

 

[M&P340]

My favorite tactical pistol.

 

[shouldazagged]

That's because we're all a bunch of mall ninja operators, operating with our gear, on operational missions, while operating...


Edmo

And we all order gear for our covert missions from the Bud K catalog.

Can't be too prepared. I had to neutralize three enemy sentries on my last operation alone.

I believe I was ten at the time.

I'm not deriding realistic training, just the Wally World Commandos. I'm also not besmirching the AR or AK. I don't own either, but to each his own.

I guess I'm just too old for much of a fantasy life. Not that kind of fantasy, anyway.