Tactical...Tevas?

If you shower in common showers or in unfamiliar environments, you should protect your feet.  Sharps and chemicals can injure or even kill you, and even just avoiding fungus is worth taking precautions for.  These might seem obvious, but there are some other hazards that good footwear can protect against.

I took a pair of Teva sports sandals when I deployed to Afghanistan.  The review is here. 

Gloves: PPE for Your Hands

I'm a big believer in personal protective gear, partially because of numerous scars and injuries received when I was younger.  When it comes to manipulating weapons, there is a trade-off.  Wearing gloves while shooting can protect your hands from being burned, cut, or crushed, but if the gloves don't allow good control of your firearm, your hands could be safe, but you might have failed to return accurate and timely fire...and still die.  Gloves that can be worn while hunting or deployed in cold environments are another concern. 

I used Mechanix gloves daily for several months while finishing my tour in Afghanistan, and they protected my hands from sharps and hot metal in what is a really bad place to suffer even minor cuts.  I had a chance to talk to Mechanix while at the SHOT show, and was sent a pair of their M-Pact Women's Glove.  It turns out women's hands are shaped differently than men's- in any case, my tester certainly had very definite views about the M-Pact.

If you shoot, or anticipate shooting, anywhere but an indoor range, you may find these reviews useful.





 

On the Boston Maniacs

Her: It would really be great if Muslims stopped screwing each other over.

Me: It doesn't really matter. People are always going to find a reason to kill each other.

Her: Yeah, that's true.
If it wasn't Islam, it'd be hats.

Custom EDC Blades for Sale

I have two smal fixed blades for sale.  Both knives are based on traditional Japanese knives, with modern materials and design enhancements.  Both were designed by Sam Owens and I, and made by Sam.  Heat treat is by Bos.  Neither have been used or sharpened.

The first is my little Super Daily Kiri.  This is an extremely useful small knife based on the kiridashi.  Unlike most kiridashis, this is not "chisel ground", so the blade won't tend to cut unevenly.  I wanted the Daily Kiri to be a great task knife, and it is, but one of the first recipients is a woman who says it is also an ideal small defensive knife...and that it doesn't set off the metal detectors at her work.  The shape of the blade and the choil combine to make this knife very safe to use.  This one is in 440C.  "440" has gotten a bad reputation because of 440A and B, but  440C is a great compromise between rust resistance, strength, and edge holding.

Model:     Super Daily Kiri
Steel:        440C
Handle:     Pale jade G10
Length:     1.5" cutting edge
Weight:     1.6 oz
Sheath:      Kydex dangler/pocket
SOLD

L-R: Perrin pen for scale, Daily Kiri, Samto

The second knife is the first defensive-size prototype of what I call the "Samto".  I've been encouraging my buddy Sam Owens to make a tanto-shaped blade for a while.  This one has a real tanto blade shape, but with the additional security and control of a choil.  This is one of the first knives Sam has made in super-premium S35VN.  The handle is a beautiful black G10 with green streaks.  The very secure Kydex sheath is fitted wtih a Mini Tek-Lok appropriate for dress belts.  It is currently configured for left-side hande-up OWB carry, but can be changed in two minutes to right side, and horizontal or inverted wear.  I'm not a big fan of horizontal carry, but on a slim knife like this it could be carried on the belt line very unobtrusively.

Model:     Samto 33
Steel:       S35VN
Handle:    Black and green G10
Length:    3.3" cutting edge
Weight:    2.6 oz
Sheath:     Kydex with small Tek-Lok
SOLD

Money order or personal check are preferred.

Musical Interlude

What do I stand for?

A persistent earworm for the past few months has been Fun's "Some Nights", from their album of the same name, so after technical difficulties, I finally managed to download it yesterday. The lead singer has some spastic dancing- it reminds me of me- but there are still some touching moments in the video.

I find myself deeply concerned about recent political events, more so than I have been in many years. There are some other, very troubling issues- a runaway Federal bureaucracy, a national president perfectly willing to execute US citizens with no apparent limits on such conduct- but firearms have been an enormous issue for the past five months. I was thinking about it today, and the ultimate issue is not actually guns at all. Firearms are just a symbol and tool for what some of us will not willingly lose, and what others will not let us keep, something that frightens them: our freedom.

If I believed in a deity, I would be praying that some power-hungry politicians would come to their senses. But I have no faith anymore, just hope, and after witnessing how so many of my countrymen behave, I have precious little of that left on this issue.

I could use some friends for a change...

PT, PT!

Good for you, good for me! Operation "Improve PT Score" has been a resounding success, with me dropping two minutes off my run time, and scoring a respectable 267 just 17 days after my last test. Yeah, I'm happy.