Great Gun Stuff Blog

Body armor is changing for the better, thanks to new performance standards set by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ). The NIJ is the research, development and evaluation agency of the U.S. Department of Justice and is dedicated to researching crime-control and justice issues. The new NIJ Standard-0101.06, as it’s officially called, specifies revised minimum-performance requirements that body armor must meet to satisfy the needs of criminal-justice agencies. It also establishes the methods that are used to test this performance. The updated standard and testing procedures ensure that officers will be getting the best body armor and the most comprehensive protection available.

The NIJ’s testing procedures are extremely rigorous and account for numerous factors that could affect the performance of body armor. The most significant changes in the new standard include:

• Increase performance velocities ensure that officers are protected against current and emerging threats. Including a velocity increase and round change for the IIIA threat type, from the 9mm to the .357 Sig.
• More diverse shot placement provides increased area of reliable coverage regarding edge shots. Edge shot performance also reduces the number of officer injuries and fatalities due to shots impacting close to the edge. The standard now requires the testing of five fixed template sizes to provide equal threat performance across a range of sizes.
• More rigorous environmental conditioning of armor prior to testing helps simulate real-world conditions, in which armor is subjected to heat, moisture and mechanical wear. Things can get pretty hot in the trunk of a patrol car, which is where a lot of body armor resides when not being worn. Under the previous standard, test vests were sprayed with a moderate mist for six minutes. Under the new standard, test vests are submerged for thirty minutes prior to testing.

In addition to the NIJ’s testing procedures, the NIJ will also have the authority to pull armor off a manufacturer’s floor for retesting to assure performance standards are upheld over time as part of their quality and audit process.

The new standard sets the bar high for manufacturers. Good ones, though, fully support it.

As a former Army officer assigned to an M1 tank battalion, I spent a lot of time around M2 (“Ma Deuce”) .50 Cal Heavy Barrel Machine Guns and became intimately familiar with their operation and capabilities. I shot them out to 2000 meters against both “soft” targets like trucks and “hard” targets like old armored vehicles. There’s nothing quite as exciting as seeing the splash of a .50 cal tracer round hitting an old half track in the middle of the night.

It must have made an impression on me – I still have an M2 headspace-and-timing gauge in my jewelry box twenty years later (this unique little tool means the difference between the gun spitting out bullets or just serving as a very large paperweight and currently sells for up to $100 on E-Bay).

So, where is this stroll down memory lane leading? I just received a great presentation (attached) from one of our Forensics Source salesmen, Dick Rogers, based out of Arizona. Dick had the unique opportunity to take one of the heavy-duty Bullet Catchers manufactured by our company to a range in Buckeye, AZ to test its integrity against a M2 machine gun!

According to Dick, most every ballistics expert on the range was convinced the .50 cal round would blow right through our Bullet Catcher and exit out the back. While that might not have been the worst thing to happen (thankfully, law enforcement agencies don’t have much need to shoot .50 cal machine guns for ballistic comparison), Dick took that challenge as a point of honor and assured all in attendance that our Bullet Catcher was up to the task.

Well, you will note from the presentation below (as we did with pride) that not only did the rounds fired into the Bullet Catcher not penetrate the back of the chamber, the projectiles themselves were well preserved by the chamber’s Kevlar® fibers and the equipment survived intact. The Bullet Catcher looks very little worse for the wear with only a few dents and some chipped paint. Pretty impressive considering that the bullet was moving at over 2800 feet per second and was fired from only a few meters away!

Now I know why the guys in the plant use a fork truck to move these things around – lots of steel. I’m thrilled that the equipment performed so well and that Dick got some great pictures to document the event, but I’ll probably never forgive him for not inviting me out to play with the machine gun.

There has been some concern within the Law Enforcement Community recently about drug traffickers cutting raw heroin with a variety of peroxide-based substances. While this sounds fairly innocuous, a basic understanding of the chemistry used in most LE drug test kits will tell you that mixing the acid-based chemical test reagents with peroxide-based compounds results in the release of sulfuric acid which is highly corrosive and can cause burns. We issued a Safety Alert to the community on November 14th advising officers to be cautious about field testing heroin from unknown sources due to the possibility of test pouches rupturing during the chemical reaction, potentially injuring the officer.

One of the most interesting aspects of this trend was the riddle surrounding the composition of the cutting agents. I personally called and spoke with an officer who had a test pouch rupture during the testing process. His lab confirmed that the cutting agent was brick dust, a peroxide-based compound used in cosmetics and other benign applications. There have also been a number of unconfirmed reports that TATP, an explosive and peroxide-based compound, has been used to cut heroin. Now, I’m no scientist or drug addict, but I wonder about the logic of cutting narcotics with an explosive compound. Sounds like a recipe for disaster.

Mr. Jake Bohi, of the Homeland Defense Bureau (Bomb Squad) recently published an article using research from the Phoenix PD where they conducted tests of manufactured TATP coming into contact with acids utilizing a variety of NIK and ODV narcotics test kits provided by Forensics Source. I won’t delve into the details of the testing protocols (the details have been published in the January/February edition of The Detonator, Volume 36, Number 1), but the results published by the Phoenix PD can be quickly summarized as follows:

1. Some kits were more sensitive than others, but if you follow the instructions and use the amount of material recommended by the manufacturer, you will be fine.

2. Kits that contained only weak acid solutions or water based solutions did not react with the organic peroxide at all.

3. Results emphasized that only small amounts of product are needed to field test drugs and using larger amounts than the manufacturers recommend may be dangerous.

4. Training law enforcement officers how to use drug test kits is crucial.

We still don’t know if anyone is really crazy enough to cut heroin with explosive TATP, but at least if they do, we have more confidence than ever that following proper training and protocols will keep officers safe. 

Veronicad1 is a disabled woman is living in a very precarious situation.

I’m a disabled woman buying my first hand gun on the advice of the local police. Really. I’ve a lot of guys showing up at my door trying to break in, had an attempted sexual assault and I live in the country! A friend told me to get a Ruger P97DC that the kick on it wasn’t that bad and it was a good grip for a woman, that I could have a couple of clips with different types of shot in them, etc. I do have some rather large snakes too and I’m not as fast with a machete as I used to be.

The point being after this morning’s latest crazy showed up on my door verbally assaulting me in my own home for G*d only knows what reason he imagined I needed it for and I set of the alarm, it took police 45 minutes to get here. So had my bluff not worked I wouldn’t be typing this right now. The officer (who is originally from Miami) told me to get a gun, shotgun, hand gun – what ever. That’s the second local police officer to tell me to get a gun in a week. The alarm only does so much. I’m crying as I type this because I can’t feel safe in my own home. Yet I’m not that good with a hard kick and all that is damaged in my body. IE – a hard kick being fired from a wheel chair – unless I take the extra 2 seconds to lock my brakes which could mean my life firing from a wheel chair could be comical but deadly for me. A 22 would just piss them off. I need something to defend my life with (and I hate saying that too). I live alone, I have no one here to help me save my old Doberman. I need something that is ‘lady friendly’ (Forgive me ladies who can handle a hogleg). Is this a good gun for that and is it just the continuation of the P97DC?

I have never thought about the effects of firing a gun from a wheel chair and the challenges it poses to someone who may need to use a gun in a situation where seconds can be the difference between life and death.

Veronicad1, my advice would be to visit the closest range and hire a variety of different guns. Go with a friend who can stand behind you holding your wheel chair. The two of you can then gauge what the effect of the recoil would be on an un-braked chair. This blog is not the place for legal advice and I suggest you get advice as to your state laws on self-defense with a gun and at what point a firearm can and cannot be used.

Anyone else able to offer advice?

We all know this is the time of the year we typically clean up and organize our homes, garages, yards and gardens to prepare for the busy summer months. It should also be the time for departments and agencies to look at their forensics supplies, equipment and facilities to ensure they are cleaned up and organized for the upcoming year.

While many of the products utilized in the investigation and processing of crime scenes are not perishable and store very well, you still need to routinely evaluate your existing stock-on-hand. Ask yourself the following questions when reviewing your inventory of forensics supplies:

1. Do you have sufficient fingerprint powders with the various developing properties ready to handle the expected caseload?
2. Are your magnetic and standard powders free of clumps and clinks or should they be sieved or replaced?
3. Are your powder applicators in good shape and not contaminated from on-scene processing?
4. Do you have separate Zephyr® Fiberglass brushes for the different types of fingerprint powders you utilize?
5. Do you have sufficient latent lifting devices (tape, rubber, gel, etc.) to recover latent prints developed on-site or on items of evidence?
6. Are your patrol officers properly equipped to collect and process evidence in the field?

This is just a minor listing of items and conditions that should be reviewed; specific check points should be customized for every user and agency as items will vary from department to department. Laboratory technicians, crime scene investigators and patrol officers have varying needs and requirements, but all forensics professionals should periodically conduct this type of detailed review.

An officer recently lamented to me that he was not developing latent prints with the replacement powder he was recently provided by his department. A check of the powder showed that he had been given black magnetic powder to replace his dwindling Bi-chromatic™ fingerprint powder, but was still using a Zephyr®-styled applicator instead of a magnetic applicator.  This powder/brush combination is not recommended and could seriously jeopardize the officer’s ability to successfully lift prints from a crime scene and gain an important conviction!

Spring cleaning should encompass all aspects of your forensic applications from crime scene activities to final disposition of the evidence.  It should become an annual project to ensure you are ready for the challenges in the upcoming year.

Colt Government model

tainless Steel Colt Government model with two mags and an Uncle Mikes waistband holster.
FTF $500 in Northern IL
All trades considered, but specifically looking for Glock 19 or 26 or Ruger stainless target model 10/22.

Colt, Series 80 blued 1911 - ruger p 89 than two boxes through this p85 ruger. Safe Queen waiting for a project.

mspasfeh017

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NPA hit squad to liquidate 12 Batangas cops
ABS-CBN - They were captured and found in possession of a caliber .357 Smith and Wesson revolver and a caliber .38 revolver and assorted ammunition. During the initial stage of their captivity, Awa and Espiritu received a text message telling them that their

Did you know?
Pensacola News Journal - After the robbery, she bought a .357-caliber Smith & Wesson for her personal protection. She does not carry the gun to work, but the memory of that day isn’t likely to fade. “The look in his eyes was blank, as if he almost wondered what he was doing

Southwestern To Drill Two In Cherokee
Tyler Morning Telegraph - Wesson G.U. Well No. 9 and No. 12 in a wildcat field to 11,600 feet. The No. 9 is 4.4 miles west of Henderson in the English Smith County The Ware Oil Unit Well No.1 will be drilled by Ensight III Energy Management to 8,200 feet. The well is 3.2

Trooper cleared of wrongdoing
Parkersburg News & Sentinel - Fisher had charged about 50 feet and was within 25 feet of the officer when Keefer fired five rounds from his semiautomatic pistol, a .45-caliber Smith & Wesson, Wolfe said. Fisher was hit once in the arm, once in the leg and twice in the chest

Public safety log for sep 8
Bucks County Courier Times - 100 block Front St., 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., Thu, back yard turfed, value unknown. Theft 140 block Forge Ln., time unknown, Thu, Smith and Wesson Model 60 stainless steel .38 caliber revolver from residence, $360 value. MIDDLETOWN Arrests/Citations