molonlabetn

Well... If I was faced with the choice of living under tyranny, or death as a free man, I would much rather do everything within my power to remain free... At least, for those who I love to remain free. Too many people in this society see ultimate sacrifice in order to retain liberty or principle as extraordinary... When, in reality, every liberating social acheivement throughout the history of America, even the entire history of humanity, was accomplished at the cost of countless lives... many who gave theirs up knowing exactly what they were doing, and why. When this notion is lost, so is liberty. None of us will live forever, in this world, regardless of what we do... So, what more significant purpose could any of us have than to leave it better than we found it? I am more or less resolved not to die of natural causes. Perhaps I should have bought a house in Sparta?

The only pistol which I had un-intentional mag-release problems with was a Taurus PT145... That gun is a bad memory in SO many ways... Since then, I prefer a stiff mag-release button which is protected in some manner, on all of my carry guns... (hence my preference for the XD).

I used to live very near there... it is not a good area to be defenseless in.

Perhaps I am painting with too broad of a brush, but my experience with the Beretta CX-4 Storm was not positive, and would not recommend one. I had a 9mm version for about a year, purchased in Nov '04 and traded off in Dec '05 for an AR. I had several thousand rounds through it. From the get-go, mine was un-reliable and required endless tweaking in order to get it to run reliably. I tried all kinds of ammo, and many new magazines... but the bolt would fill up with crud very quickly during a shooting session (due to its blow-back design, no doubt) and would invariably revert to acting as a partially-ejecting single-shot action after less than 100rd. The problem was a weak extractor (clamped to the bolt, free-floating with no pivot point), and too short of an ejector (the ejector was buffered as part of the bolt, and so does not impart sufficient force to the empty case for proper ejection). It would stove-pipe and double-feed 2 out of 3 rounds once warmed up. When it ran, it was very accurate and fun... but IMHO could never be reliable enough to be used in a 'serious' situation. I would hate to see how quickly one of these guns would choke under adverse or dirty conditions. I was happy to offload mine onto a dealer at a gun-show. Beretta was no help at any time. My recommendation. Get a 9mm AR upper!

.357 Magnum is a very effective round, when its impact intersects with vital structures. Therein lies the rub... a short-barreled, light firearm which contains and directs that much power is more difficult for the user to control, and is thus more dependent upon the proficiency of the shooter to utilize the full potential of the cartridge. Coupled with the fewer number of shots, such a firearm is less desirable for sustained action, and more desirable for very short-duration, close-proximity combat. Accepting those limitations, a .357 snubby is an excellent choice for the purposes of concealed carry and last-ditch backup.

That's a good point. Nothing will make your CCW more useless than a partially ejected magazine at the wrong moment! I have always seen extended controls as more of a benefit during competition than anything else. Let us know how this works out for you.

I've seen those conversions... Never fired one, but their construction seems to be more based on the 'simplistic' theory of relibility than a low-quality manufacturer trying to make a quick buck on a crappy product. They have been around for a while...

That looks like a Federal EFMJ or Cor-Bon Pow'rBall, just with the polymer ball behind the lead, instead of in front of it...

Those are some freaking EXPENSIVE practice sessions, using Extreme Shock!!!

I have made arrangements to take my exam at another time. I will be there.

Sadly, most BGs don't think this way... As unlikely they are, even in this state, to come across an armed victim; overwhelmingly most would-be assailants likely assume that if their prey is not visibly armed, then they probably aren't. Most likely, few even consider lethal resistance a remote possibility. Alternatly, if everyone of mature age and non-criminal background carried a weapon, visibly, the deterrence factor would be astronomical!

Sure thing!

Sinterfire is a far more legitimate company than RBCD or Extreme Shock. Their bullets are loaded by several of the major ammunition companies as 'lead free' practice ammo... But, they are not over-hyped as super-duper defense loads... simply frangible to prevent ricochets and lead exposure. A projectile generally cannot be an effective stopper unless it can resist deformation, fragmentation or destabilization in soft tissue for long enough to penetrate sufficiently deep to destroy vital organs. This is why controlled expansion is so-far the most predictable way to decelerate a bullet in a given medium, at a desired rate. Not fool-proof, but truly less dependent on, or sensitive to, external ballistic variables such as fragmentation and projectile tumbling.

Good Point... The only defensible intention when using a firearm, per my understanding, is to STOP the attacker... not to respond with maximum lethality... Even though it would be, in fact, lethal force either way. Obviously a poor choice of words by the ammo company's advertising dept. That's about a ridiculous as if they advertised: "Extreme Shock is so powerful, that, every time a cartridge is discharged a rift is created in the space-time continuum whereby the bullet simultaneously kills the same criminal in an infinite number of parallel universes. Also, the shock-wave created by the bullet causes dozens of unborn islamic-terrorists to be aborted!"

Count me in.

Welcome!

THP carries .357sig Glock 31s & 33s chambered for .357sig. Their reasons for switching to this cartridge are the same as dozens of other agencies across the US: Strong ballistic resemblance to the .357 magnum, meaning increased barrier penetration, and above-average terminal performance. Hey, if it's good enough for the Texas Rangers....

At present, I carry .357 Sig exclusively. Pros: -Higher KE than .40 S&W (and most .45) -Flatter trajectory than 9mm -Less muzzle-flip than larger bores -Nearly identical ballistics to the traditionally viewed 'best' stopper, 125gr .357 magnum -Bottle-neck case feeds very reliably -Subjectively (in my experience, and the experience of many others) is potentially more accurate than other calibers (most notably .40 S&W, when the barrel is interchanged even in the same pistol) Cons -Lower availability on practice ammo -Higher price on practice ammo -Fewer selections of premium JHP ammo -Limited number of handguns chambered in this caliber I plan to keep this caliber in the arsenal... and eventually reload it, to eliminate some of the noted Cons.

It's not that complicated. - There is a bill which would specifically define the limits of authority which the Governor has over the general population, to bear arms. - Opposition to this bill is an indication of the administration's will to retain authority, in order to undermine the right of the general population to bear arms during perscribed circumstances. - OR, it is a matter of ego, to resist ANY infringement on the Governor's authority. There is no other reason to not provide the people of TN with the assurance that jack-booted thugs won't be busting down doors to disarm them during a catastrophe. Plain and simple. We'll see what happens... I don't doubt that there is a good deal of hype surrounding the intentions of all involved. So, I'll give my $.02 where it belongs, and reserve further judgment until their positions are clear.

Based on the responses so far... It appears that the general preference is weighted towards fairly heavy, large bore, trans-sonic projectiles. +180gr +.400" 1000-1200fps That would seem to describe cartridges such as: .44 Special .45 ACP (std pressure) .45 GAP .45 Long Colt

As I understand it, Rossi revolvers are made in conjunction with Taurus on old S&W tooling which they bought from S&W 10-15 years ago. The guns are basically of S&W design, but use different metallurgy and an arguably lesser degree of tuning and fewer options. My few experiences with Taurus and Rossie revolvers were all positive. Though, I would honestly prefer a real S&W, Colt, Ruger, etc...

Appearance is not an indication of effectiveness or proficiency, unless the sole purpose is merely to have a certain appearance.

I don't think any of them did either... That was the under-lying point. I am aware that specific training, in general, is quite relevant to promoting mature and rational responses. Touché But to address the purpose for your statement head-on, which apparently comes from an assumption that Tactical Response is being singled out and summarily dismissed as providing incompetent training. Not so. For me, personally, I know that I would very much enjoy and benefit from further professional instruction... who wouldn't? However, there are 2 separate issues, in my mind. One, is the overwhelming disparity between the opinions of those who believe that any and all training is worth any cost to obtain, across the board... as opposed to those who are skeptical of any but the most proven and experienced instructors who teach only relevant skills to students with mature motivations. In reality, both sides have valid view-points. To be quite honest, I lean more towards the latter... but that does not mean that I summarily dismiss anyone who thinks otherwise, and wishes to state their case, for discussion. This is where the second issue enters my mind... Since early on in the discussions here, the representatives of Tactical Response have instigated the troubling trend of disparaging the ideas, practices, and opinions of others whom you obviously consider to be un-skilled or un-worthy, as it were. This attitude may have been entirely un-intentional, but it did make an impression on me to not desire any relationship with Tactical Response. So, don't take my opinion to mean that I assume your training is worthless... or even that I think either of you are bad people. We simply don't/can't see eye to eye. I can live with that, and certainly do not intend to provoke animosity by any opinions that I state. This is the internet, it's not personal.

Great post RN! My sentiments exactly... The immigration issue needs to be dealt with, seriously. It will only escalate if the borders are not closed, and the criminals who came here are not deported.

Shay... If indeed any of the women who took this course DID leave with the assumption that they were equivalent to "3rd Special Ops"... Do you think that they would be correct in such confidence? It has nothing to do with the validity of the training, don't you see? Over-confidence is just as much an issue as lack of training.