USCCA Firearms & Self-Defense Blog
Guns & Gear
Read no-holds-barred reviews of both personal- and home-defense firearms and stay up-to-date on the latest concealed carry gear offerings on the market. Discover everything you need to know to select the best, tried-and-true self-defense gear — from holsters, knives and ammunition to flashlights, first-aid kits and alternate weapons.
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Smith & Wesson M&P .45 ACP Shield
Back in July of 2016, I reviewed the Smith & Wesson Performance Center M&P 9mm Shield pistol. Compact, reliable, easy to shoot, priced right and chambered for the 9mm Luger cartridge, the M&P Shield…
Continue Reading →El Paso Sky Six Concealment Holster: Classic Construction, Versatile Design
Although you might be getting tired of me writing about it by now, the Bond Arms Bullpup 9 has given me an opportunity to work with holster designs that I don’t necessarily seek out for more commonly…
Continue Reading →Eyes and Ears — in One!
I like products that can do double duty. You know: Range bags with integrated brass catchers. Outerwear with built-in concealed carry pockets. Multi-tools. Add the Browning Sound Shield — safety…
Continue Reading →Galco: Planners for Defense
Holsters are always a hot topic, especially when it comes to off-body carry. And I’ll admit that when I have the choice between off-body and on-body, I tend to choose both. That’s right: both. I have…
Continue Reading →Guns That Should Never Go Away
Some guns — such as this Taurus 650 — should never go away. It should always be available and everybody ought to have one in their collection. It’s just too practical and useful not to have. I’ll bet…
Continue Reading →Self-Defense Is Not Just About Gear
If you think you can strap a gun on your hip and consider yourself protected, you might be in for a rude awakening. Self-defense is not about your gun, your holster, your tactical knife, your LED…
Continue Reading →Be Prepared Anytime With the Food Insurance Survival Backpack
Something unbelievable — at least for me — occurred in 2017. I hit the big 6-0. I say this not as a way of soliciting birthday wishes or “old folks” jokes but rather as a foundation for the rest of…
Continue Reading →The Failure-to-Fire Drill (Simulation Featuring BarrelBlok)
This week’s video is a little different than our normal Tactical Tuesday training segment. Instead of focusing on a specific set of skills, we look at a new dry-fire training tool, the BarrelBlok. We…
Continue Reading →Swab-its Star Chamber Cleaning Foam Swabs
I have really taken to Swab-its Cleaning Foam Swabs since I evaluated them in October 2016. At that time, I worked with their Bore-Sticks, Bore-Tips and Gun-Tips swabs. These remarkable cleaning aids…
Continue Reading →Why I Love the Colt Defender
Every now and then I tire of plastic, single-stack nines and go for this aluminum alloy-framed Colt Defender. It’s 1911 thin — always has been — and weighs only 24 ounces unloaded. Loading it with…
Continue Reading →Gear We Love — July 2017
{1} Adco Super Thumb MSRP: $10.95 Regardless of age or strength, no one’s thumb is tougher than a 1,000-round pistol course. Just the right angles and high-quality construction make for an excellent addition to any range bag, and eight different models accommodate almost all semi-automatic pistols and even some rifles.
Continue Reading →Is Your Barrel Blocked?
We here at the USCCA continue to promote dry-fire training and we always stress safety when training without ammo. It takes just a second for an unloaded gun to become a loaded gun and that’s when…
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