This week, Beth shares a tip to help you increase your trigger control. You can practice this almost anywhere and without a gun. This is good exercise for those of us who don’t make it to the range…

Parking lots can pose a challenge to people when considering good situational awareness and seeking out the safest spots. Just check it out the next time you park at a grocery store, mall or even the…

If you go in, have a plan to help you get out! It’s a simple rule many of us overlook. When you walk into a movie theater, pay special attention to how you will escape if you need to. Choosing a good…

It’s been in my service for years: a Fort Knox Original Pistol Box. In it resides a Smith & Wesson M&P Compact or other guns suited to home defense (more about house guns later). Today I’m going to…

Kubotan — The Kubotan is a genericized trademark for a self-defense weapon developed by Takayuki Kubota in the 1960s. The principal targets in self-defense include bony, fleshy and sensitive parts…

The great caliber debate continues. I really think people like to argue about this because there is so much information out there to review. Think about it: People have been compiling data for…

I constantly try to warn all gun owners that no matter how many wins we rack up, our rights will always be under attack by our opponents. And it isn’t just the federal and state legislatures that we…

Bill Botkin of Strategic Training & Consulting, Inc., a friend and a fellow instructor and training counselor, posted on Facebook the other day with a story and a message that grabbed my attention ……

The Drill: A lot of us carry a flashlight as part of our everyday carry loadout, and, if you don’t, you should. We talk about training the way you fight and practicing with the gear you carry. One…

The question has been asked: Is the 1911 an effective defensive platform? Well, yes it is. The pistol may not be the PERFECT defensive pistol, but it is a workable platform for those who choose to…

A couple weeks ago, I complained about the texture of the stocks on my Smith & Wesson Shield .45 Compact. While they provide really good grip-ability or purchase, they are rough. No, I mean rough.…

We in the gun community tend to use a lot of jargon. Do you know what EDC stands for? How about CQB? Have you ever fired a double tap? We also often buy things marketed as “tactical” when we really…

Back in 2013, I reviewed a new and rather unconventional pistol: the Boberg XR9. The Boberg XR9 was a compact, aluminum-framed 9mm semi-auto that featured a unique design in terms of its operational…

Two unconnected multiple-victim shootings last weekend vividly illustrate how violence can break out in very different settings. The first occurred at a New York hospital; the other in a Little Rock,…

WE GUN OWNERS BANDY ABOUT TERMS like fit, feel and ergonomics as if they’re critical factors in life-saving encounters. When you think about it, they are. If you talk to any precision rifle or pistol…

The Drill: The Walk-Back Drill is a simple drill that will help you evaluate your basic shooting fundamentals. Most of us train on the range with silhouette targets or something that resembles an…

When carrying a gun in a clipless inside-the-waistband holster, you can be relatively confident that it will stay in place, even during rough physical activity. As you can see from this video, the…

The recent politically motivated attack on a group of Republican Congressmen practicing at a baseball field reminded everyone of the harsh reality of escalating political violence. From the rioting…

One of the greatest technological advances in self-defense includes the near ubiquitousness of accessory lights and lasers for handguns — and not just for those guns equipped with rails meant to…

If you have been reading my columns for a while, you know I have a great deal of admiration for North American Arms firearms, both their Guardian line of semi-automatic pistols and the firearms they…