Weaponry

Mike Boyle One constant in any discussion among law enforcement firearms trainers is controversy.   Back when the Earth was flat, we engaged in heated debate as to whether pistols offered advantages over revolvers or the stopping potential of the 9mm versus the .45ACP. Some of these issues have played out, but others will persist until we can put our phasers on stun. One area where both practitioners and instructors would probably agree is that only hits count. The ability to…

Todd Fletcher When I got the chance to evaluate the P365 handgun, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on SIG’s newest offering. For more than a decade, I carried a department issued SIG SAUER® P226® as my duty handgun. In addition to being used on duty and during department firearms training, that well-worn P226 was used in a variety of competitive shooting events, firearms training classes and many afternoons practicing on my own. I put tens of thousands of…

Mike Boyle I’ll confess to being a bit of a light nerd. My personal inventory includes dozens of different specimens, ranging from full-size rechargeables through pen-size units you can drop in a pocket. When I find myself in a dark place, having an instantly available light source helps keep me safe. So, how did I come to have so many lights? I doubt if any other technology in the public safety field continues to evolve any faster than illumination tools….

Mike Boyle One of my favorite annual rituals is attending the SHOT Show. This event might be best described as the world’s largest firearms bazaar where manufacturers, large and small, display their wares and introduce new products. This year’s event was held January 23-26, 2018, in Las Vegas, Nevada. A couple of days of hard touring will put even the most jaded firearms enthusiast into sensory overload. It’s just impossible to take it all in! There are, of course, thousands…

Todd Fletcher When I started out as a young, wet behind the ears police officer, I never imagined many of the advancements in technology and training which are available today. Back in “the good old days,” in-car computers were a distant dream. Cell phones were bulky and expensive. Firearms training was nothing more than static shooting on stationary paper targets. Patrol rifles were unheard of outside of special teams and assignments, and the only optics anyone talked about were the…

Richard Nance The closer you stand to suspects, the closer your gun should be to your body. Pointing your gun from a fully extended arm position at a suspect who is close enough to touch is to risk a disarming. – Steve Albrecht, from the book, Surviving Street Patrol Shooting from the Hip? Hip shooting was used by generations of gunfighters. From Wild West lawmen and outlaws to WWII soldiers, hip shooting provided a faster way to get rounds on target against…

Mike Boyle  Like many things in life, carrying a handgun on your own time is a compromise. When carrying concealed, your goal should be to strike a balance between having the ability to protect yourself and others, while keeping the lowest possible profile. Comfort also weighs into what sort of gun we might carry when dressed in plainclothes. A full-size service pistol supported by a Sam Browne belt isn’t a big deal to carry over a long shift, but most…

  The 26th Annual Roundup Covering New Firearms of Most Interest to Law Enforcement The SHOT Show might be best described as the world’s largest gun fair where new offerings from manufacturers, large and small, are displayed. This year’s event was held on January 17 – 20, 2017, at the Sands Convention Center in Las Vegas and it drew over 60,000 attendees. With over 1600 vendors, it is impossible to see it all. As always, there were surprises and variations…

Confrontations in which officers do not recognize others as police occur more often than most realize. As if the stress, confusion and general chaos which will probably define the environment immediately after you either use your weapon to defend yourself or your family or intervene in a situation, there is a very real danger – very, very real – of you being mistaken for a perp yourself by the responding on duty officers – and shot as a result. Here’s…

When forced to switch from primary to secondary, speed is imperative. Some instructors will tell you to clear the malfunction on your rifle rather than automatically transitioning over to your handgun. Others will tell you to automatically transition over to your handgun and not worry about what’s going on with the rifle. They’re both right – depending on the circumstances. Quick Decision When considering making the switch from your primary weapon system (your rifle) to your secondary weapon system (your…