Gun & Prepping News (#2)

 Just some articles that caught my attention for one reason or another:

• Since I didn't mention it this past weekend, I'll include it here: Greg Ellifritz's Weekend Knowledge Dump for October 11, 2024. If you read nothing else in Greg's collection, read the "Drop It" and "The Bell-Curve: Shooting Practice by the Odds" links.
• In the same vein as the Bell-Curve link in Greg's collection, "High Probability Self-Defense Techniques" by Nick Hughes, Warriors Krav Maga. The author notes that many martial arts and self-defense instructors allocate little training or give a low priority to defending against common attacks (based on the author's work as a bouncer). For men, he notes that the most common method of attack is a head lock where the attacker immobilizing his victim's head with one arm, and then generally pummels the head and face with the other hand. For women, it is a hair grab. Unfortunately, the article fails to describe how to deal with each of these attacks, but I'm sure there are YouTube videos or classes that will go over that.
  
• "Guest Shots: What to Practice" (Part 1) (Part 2) by Dave Spaulding at theTactical Wire. Part 1 breaks down what skills you can practice using dry fire, and what skills will also require actually shooting the gun at a range. Part 2 goes over a few drills to use at the range.
• "What Grips Should You Put On Your Defensive Revolver? [2024]" and "Setting Up Your Revolver EDC [2024]" by Daniel Reedy at Primer Peak. Both of these articles deal with setting up a revolver for defensive use. The first, as the title suggests, goes over certain features to consider in a grip for your revolver(s) including (i) filling the sinus (the space between the grip frame and the back of the trigger guard), (ii) grip size, (iii) texture (i.e., how grippy is the grip), and (iv) certain personal preferences. The second article, which Greg included in his list as well, is primarily for revolvers for everyday carry--whether a duty-size revolver or concealed carry--discussing a few brands/models of holsters, and several different methods of carrying extra ammo (including comments about specific brands of speed loaders). 
• "Going Old School With the AR-15"--The Mag Life. Discussing the fairly recent and continuing interest in retro-clone styles of rifles and a review of PSA's M-16A4 clone (like the A2 but with a removable rear sight/carry handle in order to allow the mounting of optics). 
• "Who Really NEEDS an AR-15 Anyway?" by Will Dabbs, Guns America. He begins with the cultural divide between those that enjoy shooting and crazy cat ladies. He then discusses a couple home invasion case studies: one where an AR15 was used to protect the inhabitants of the home, and the other were the victim apparently did not have any weapons.
  
• "Three Rifles You Need" by Dave Anderson at Guns Magazine. Although the author admits to having 10 different rifles just for deer hunting, he acknowledges that when it comes down to it, most people don't need the specialization offered by owning dozens of weapons in widely differing calibers for different specific roles. This is a topic I've discussed before in my "Thoughts On A Battery Of Survival Arms" and "Top 5 Firearm Myths Among Preppers": that a prepper doesn't need a dozen or more firearms per person. In both of my posts, I referenced a comment by Lloyd Bare in his book, High Country Hunting, where the author admitted to only owning four hunting arms: a rifle in .300 Win. Mag. (for big game hunting), a varmint rifle, a .22 rifle, and a shotgun. Dave Anderson comes down to a similar selection of rifles (he doesn't discuss shotguns) although he bases caliber selection on price and availability. He suggests a rifle in .308 for big game hunting; a rifle in .223/5.56 for vermin, pests, and small game; and a .22 rimfire (presumably for smaller vermin, smaller pests, and really small game and all around plinking fun). Anderson doesn't suggest any specific models or types of rifles, except for the .223 where he mentioned the usefulness of having a semi-auto and the article includes a photo of a couple of Mini-14s.
  
• "31 Pinto Beans Recipes for Survival"--Modern Survival Online. Dried pinto beans are great for food storage, having a decent shelf life; but it always makes sense to eat what you store, which requires you know how to prepare meals using those items. The author here has collected a list of recipes for pinto beans. The article doesn't actually set out the recipes. Rather, it links to the respective web sites from which she found the recipes. But she does briefly describe each dish. And she groups the recipes: stew-type recipes, slow cooker recipes, pressure cooker recipes, casseroles, skillet recipes, soups, salads, dips, and even desserts. 
• "Preppers Are Not Safe from SHTF and Tragedy"--Modern Survival Online. Being prepared can aid us in surviving a disaster, whether personal, regional or national, but it doesn't guarantee that we won't be touched by a disaster up to and including death.