Omega

They are trying, but bringing their BS with them.

There is no rifle or handgun that I would not be pissed if it went missing so there is that.  But my thing is this; my, or someone else's, life may depend on that piece of equipment, so do I really want something cheap that I can afford to lose or something of decent quality?

None that I am aware of, the only training exception I know of is for CCW; a Memo signed by the Commander and he does not need the CCW course.

No law has ever stopped a mass shooting.

Possible, but I noticed they would react to snapped fingers.  I would of been fine with them if they would have amplified better then the Howard Leights but I was looking for hunting noise amplifiers and they just weren't as good.  I did notice at the last meet and shoot at MCSC that under the roof they were quite loud with the volume up and with the shooting glasses on they would not seal as well.

I had the same issue with the peltors, they were more sensitive than the HLs, and would cut out at the slightest elevated noise.  The HLs were a bit more sensitive to low noises microphone wise so amplified better so I kept them for hunting.

Yup, same with a water pump that went out on me in a very convenient place right next to a Checker Auto Parts in Denver.  Luckily they had the part in stock and cheap so for less than $50, and the mandatory skin off the knuckles,  I was on the road again.

Just put it un your gun safe when not in use.  Otherwise, zip tie it to your phone so it does not come separated when out in the field looking for wild pigs :up:

I have one of the laser ones from harbor freight, its just a temp reading.  I think there is one that hooks to an iphone and does what you are looking for, made by FLIR: http://www.flir.com/flirone/  

Some of the sequence has been mixed up I think, because in one of the screen grabs it sure looks like there is a body leaning into the drivers side door.  But the driver I believe jumped out and ended up across the road in a pool of blood, the rifle is later leaned up against the fence.  The way I think it may of went down is that he was probably hit as he exited, went down into the drivers side, then got back up and ran across the street where they finally put him down.  The female was in the back of the vehicle, and died there, they pulled her out later and put her beside the vehicle then moved her farther away.  I think there is one pic with her face down, wearing shorts of some kind and her shirt is half way up her torso, maybe got searched for a bomb vest.

+1, I knew someone would step up and lend a hand.  Not that mechanics don't deserve the work or anything, but some things are just too easy to do.  I am 50, and yes there are things that I don't much bother with anymore such as oil changes unless it coincides with some other repair I got going on.  Once my back gets worse, I am sure I'll be dropping my truck off more often, but until then I'll save me a buck or two and spend it on more gun stuff.

I did a coon tail once, all I did was to "peel" it down taking the bone/cartilage out leaving it inside out.  Then I scraped as much fat off of it I could and put a mess load of salt on it, once dry I finished taking most of the fat off then reversed it again.

Body armor comes in many flavors; we are trying to purchase some concealable level IIIA body armor and are having to research many variables right now.  One thing that all level IIIA body armor has in common is that they are rated for small arms only, when you shoot it with a .223 or other rifle (fast) round its not much help.  One other thing to consider is that while a level IIIA vest may stop the bullet, that energy has to go somewhere, and I can tell you one thing, you will feel it.  It feels like getting hit with a bat, and that is with the level 4 plates in it as well, can't describe what it would feel like with just the soft body armor.  That is one reason we practice the triple tap, while the two to the chest may not kill or disable someone, it will get their attention giving you the opportunity for the third shot. Many vests have many weaknesses that you can exploit, first of course is the headshot, but there are others such as has been discussed before the hip shot, and also the armpit, legs etc etc.  There are plenty of YouTube videos out there with ballistic body armor tests, check some out and see how badly the testing medium (usually clay) is deformed after a shot. But of course adrenaline and or drugs will allow one to work through that, so don't rely on that to save your life, keep firing until you are either out of ammo or the assailant stops moving.    The chances of anyone of us being involved in a situation like that are slim, very slim so I would not necessarily change what you are comfortable and proficient with.  But you probably need to assess your SD weapon of choice and its bullets to make sure they are the best overall for you.  And having a backup weapon in your vehicle which can penetrate level IIIA armor probably isn't a bad idea either.

Shoot, you can park in front of the Auto Zone, or just about any big auto parts store and do it right in the parking lot.  Many of these stores have loaner tools and many will have guys that will give you a hand doing it.  But I do know there are many out there that are very reluctant to even try, and those are the ones that keep the repair shops in business so not all bad.  As for the knuckles, yea  that happens way more than I want it to, and I have mechanic gloves but never wear them to actually do stuff like that for some reason; maybe the knuckle busting and cursing is part of the fun of repairing your own stuff.   OP, maybe someone close by can help you out for the price of lunch and a cold beer or hot coffee.

I can't say I can have any sympathy for these people, when you know what that stuff can do and you still do it, well then you reap what you sow.  I am not a big STP fan so can't say whether they can replace him or not, but I bet they try.  But I have heard many a cover band and I have to say, I enjoyed it even though none of the band members were actual band members. 

Practicing differing distances is not to advance on a target, its not to go all Hollywood on a terrorist.  It is designed to be able to engage someone that is actively trying to engage you.  You need to be familiar with the POA and POI of your chosen SD weapon at different ranges so you can get a high probability lethal hit on your adversary.    LEO training is another thing all together, but for most of us, and I include myself even though I am retired military, our responsibility is to engage the target if they are trying to engage us.  If they are in a different room, you are better off trying to exit stage left.  And as you said, be prepared to be confronted by LEO, or other CCW permit holders; there is no hard and set rule of how to act or how to distinguish between a shooter and a responder so my rule of thumb is to engage those that engage me.         For the most part I agree, if I don't have to be in the same battle space with an adversary that outguns me I wont be.  But being prepared is not a waste of time, nobody KNOWS how they will react under fire so having a bit of prior training goes a long way.  When I first deployed to a war zone, my only fear was not knowing how I would react under those circumstances, or how others would react that were supposed to be my backup.  With a few exceptions, everyone did their job and I am glad to say that when the time came, my reactions coincided with my training and I am still here due to that fact.  Now, I am a civilian and my number one priority is to protect my family, myself, or others if the situation dictates.  But I am not LEO, and I am not a military door kicker so I won't be actively seeking confrontation with any shooter unless I have no other choice.

Within 10 feet, someone with intent can not only reach you but do harm as well.  And to those that have not felt the effect of pepper spray, its not much of a deterrent.  Just look at how many YouTube pepper spray fail videos there are out there; people just can't believe that it works.  Don't get me wrong, it burns, and it will deter someone from things like rape, riots, theft, and other long time to accomplish actions.  But within certain distance, a criminal will make contact with you no matter if you have pepper spray or a gun.

15 minutes, a wrench, and a tire iron beats $80 or more an hour for a mechanic 

I was fine with military TTPs in Ferguson, if they would of tightened down a bit I bet there would of been less BS.

It's easier than you think, most have one of the pulleys that actually provide the tension. That pulley may have one or two bolts which need to be loosened, then replace the belt according to your corresponding diagram, using a tire iron or the like to put tension on the belt then tighten. When finished you should have about one inch of deflection when you press on the belt. Edit: it may be your alternator which provides the tension, look for a half circle bracket with a slot in it which has a bolt in the slot.

Well, sure but when some see LEO using military tactics they get all wrapped around the axle.  Personally I wish they would leave bullet riddled bodies anytime there is a mass shooting.  

They said that they got off almost 70 rounds, that would be 7 mag changes if compliant..very doubtful.

Haven't scanned the recap or recorded brief but I am almost certain it was in this brief. It was around when he was asked who shot first; he said she was firing from the backseat, and that he stepped out to fire from the street, apparently not getting too far. Either way though, good shoot, good outcome. While the amount of ammo in their home is not a whole lot, the amount they had in their vehicle is quite a bit, more than a soldier's basic load. With around 1400 rounds of .223 that would be 47 30 round mags or 140 California compliant ones.

You need to practice at differing ranges with your chosen caliber.  You must always be thinking that they have body armor, in a heated situation you may not get the opportunity to assess what they are wearing so practice like the pros (Military SOF) go with Body, Body, Head type shots.  Waiting for an opportune time to fire is really not a good tactic, while they may be willing to die; they will take cover if they are engaged.  That extra time may give others and LEO time to come and do cleanup. 

I thought they had said she was in the back shooting from the rear window?  He came out and fired from outside the vehicle, according to the sheriff in the briefing.