theHossUSMC

Does a Minuteman Need Armor?

Posted on June 17, 2013 by TheHoss

Ever since the first knuckle draggin cave man sharpened a stick on a rock and shoved it another man who stole his woman, men have thought about armor. The purpose of armor is to defeat an attack on your person. You can’t use armor to kill someone unless you pull out your plate and beat someone to death with it. So being that armor is a defensive tool, how often is a minute man in a defensive role? The first minute men were farmers, shop keepers, and just regular guys. Their job was to assemble quickly and move fast. Advanced Body Armor Video

Now because we are talking about a light infantry that can move fast then we would normally avoid anything heavy. A bunch of guys with rifles and basic chest rig load out can move pretty fast, but they are limited in the scope of the mission they can complete. But in today’s world of never ending wars, we have quite a few companies cropping up making innovations in body armor. Much of the body armor we see today is cheaper, lighter, and tougher than the past. Having body armor is also become much more main stream. And going home with a few broken ribs is a lot better than a hole the size of Rhode Island in your chest. All that being said, body armor is still going to slow you down somewhat and limit your range of motion. Plus body armor doesn’t always mean you are going to walk away from a high velocity bullet strike. You may very well have your heart dripping out your anus if you take a fast moving large caliber round to the chest. Innovative Body Armor Video Lightweight Kit Video

Personally I run body armor in most of my kits for any situation. I may be a little chunky around the middle, but even a fat kid like me can still hump the hills in full kit. Bitching about weight is for little girls, not men. That being said it would behoove you to lighten your kit as much as possible while maintaining your high level of capability. The bottom line is, you need to get fit and stay fit as a minute man if you wear body armor or not. Physical fitness is paramount when you are talking about moving to contact or out maneuvering an enemy unit. My Old Personal Body Armor Video

So do you need body armor as a minute man? Of course you don’t, but as I stated there are many good options in armor that you may want to consider if you thinking you can handle the weight.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged armor, body armor, minute man, plate carrier, plates, thehossusmc | Comments Off

Magpul AK Mag and 40 Round Pmag

Posted on June 17, 2013 by TheHoss

With the new Magpul Pmag 30 AKM for the AK47 type rifle and the Pmag 40, a 40 round Pmag in 5.56×45, Magpul is still finally branching out their quality products into what people have been begging for for quite some time now. I gotta say I have always been impressed by simple, innovative, reliable, and useful designs from Magpul.

The Magpul Pmag 30 AK/AKM

Finally we have a contender to the US Palm and the Bulgarian Circle 10 polymer AK Mags. With the high price of the two mags mentioned i really hope that Magpul brings their low price and their legendary quality to this new mag of theirs. I may finally be able to stock up on quality polymer AK mags without breaking the bank. Magpul says they will be shipping later this year, 2013.

The Magpul Pmag 40

Excellent to see a product like this finally come to market. These are available now. The Magpul Pmag 40 comes with their new Generation 3 advances. I can see lots of uses for this mag, primarily a support role or a high cap back up mag. Honestly though I would probably roll with the 40 round mags in almost any situation even with the extra weight.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged 40 round, ak, mag, magazine, magpul, pmag, polymer, thehossusmc | Comments Off

Painting Your Firearms

Posted on June 12, 2013 by TheHoss

People always ask me how I paint my firearms, and what paint do I use. Personally I have only used Krylon brand Camo line paints. These paints are relatively cheap, provide a thin protective layer, and the camo pattern can be changed for very little cost. Painting My Buddies Firearm Video

The paint can be easily applied by just spraying it on, by a sponge, by taping the firearm and spraying on a pattern, or by using local vegetation to provide your patterns. I suggest you use very light coats so that you do not have heavy build ups that can trap water and eventually cause rust. Less is really more in this aspect of applying the paint. The time in between coats should be at least thirty seconds to one minute to give the first color a chance to solidify so that you don’t have heavy build ups. You can re-apply the paint at any time with little or no peeling or chipping. Some people suggest stripping the weapon of oil first, but I have never done that with fair to good results. All my firearms are treated with frog lube over the paint. I had a personal friend put clear dura coat over some krylon with a pretty cool effect. Dura Coat over Krylon Video

You can supplement your paint with things like colored furniture and Camo-Form tape from McNett. I paint the majority of my long guns, and none of my pistols. I would probably not paint a home defense gun solely because I wouldn’t want them holding a painted tacticool gun up in court and having the jurors collectively sucking the air out of the room when they gasp at how bad ass it is or by how shocked they are because they are ignorant sheep. There really is no reason to paint your home defense firearm anyway unless your painting it grey or something non nondescript. Whatever firearm you do choose to paint DO NOT paint the bolt or any type of operating arms or parts.

In the long run it is up to you how and why you paint your firearms, but I prefer not to be carrying around a big black boom stick in the desert that screams “Look at me! I have a gun!”

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged dura coat, firearms, krylon, painting, thehossusmc | Comments Off

Insource M3 Tactical Light

Posted on June 12, 2013 by TheHoss

I originally wrote this article last year and I wanted to update my review on this light.

“This weapon light from Insight is a great little light that I have used for over 3 years on various firearms. From 12g shotguns to Glock 19s I have been very pleased with this light. I like that it easily mounts, and locks, on any 1913 picatinny rail and has an adjustable bezel to change the light throw. It uses two 123 batteries, one hour continuous run time, has a standard 6v bulb, and comes with an extra 6v bulb.

The only real downside of the light is that it puts out a marginal brightness, 90 lumens, and does not have a strobe mode. But it does have momentary and constant options. For the price it is a great cheaper weapon light.” – TheHossUSMC 2012

The update that I wanted to share was that after four years the light seems to be starting to break down. I replaced the bulb because it was starting to dim even with new batteries. I also noticed that the when I throw the switch to the momentary on position on one side it doesn’t turn on anymore. The weird thing is that the paddle switch works on the other side. When I just click the paddle switch into the full on position it works fine. I still think this is a good mid level light that is fairly cheap. If you are looking for something to get you by until you can save up for a better light this one seems to still fill that role pretty well.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged flashlight, insource, light, tactical, thehossusmc, weapon light | Comments Off

Minuteman Extended Fight Bag

Posted on June 11, 2013 by TheHoss

In the Marine Corps we had “assault packs” or smaller bags with the essentials to bring the fight to the enemy and sustain us in an extend battle. A minuteman needs a similar extended fight bag (EFB) to bring the fight to the enemy near, or in his area of operations (AO). The contents of the EFB should be the essentials that can ensure you stay in the fight. My old EFB video

FIRST AID

Most, or all, minutemen should already have an IFAK or blowout kit already on their person at all time regardless of the fight they are in. It is imperative that you have it on you should you get injured. On top of you IFAK your EFB should have supplemental medical equipment like pole-less litters maybe, extra trauma bandages, emergency blankets, possibly IVs, cravats, band aids, etc. These items bring more capability to provide care for wounds that are not as life threatening or can aid you in rendering first aid to a comrade. Not everyone has to have a full medical kit, but it would behoove you to have everyone trained in basic field aid and have some medical tools on board to provide that care. Extended IFAK video

Survival Gear

If you are kept in a place for a long period of time it may require you to start a fire, build a shelter, create cover from objects/ dirt/ debris, etc. It is a good idea to have a basic survival kit to make yourself comfortable if you have to dig in for a short period of time. Survival Kit Ideas

Extra Gear

There is nothing worse that having to sit in ambush for hours and hours while you are cold, hungry, tired, etc. Having some basic cold weather gear, rain gear, extra food, energy gels/ sugary stuff, caffeine pills/ freeze dried coffee, ritilan (keeps adults awake), chewing tobacco, para cord, etc is a good start. Extra socks is a big one as well. Having a cleaning kit is imperative and could even be stored on you personal kit it’s so important. Baby powder and wet wipes are also awesome hygiene gear to keep you comfortable. Also having mechanical devices might aid you as well like door wedges, padlocks, bolt cutters, etc. Cheap gear video

Water

I put water in it’s own category because it’s so important that you have safe clean water to drink. Throughout history many armies have failed or died from diseases, and clean water can avert much of this. Having multiple ways to clean and store water is very important. Water Purification Ideas 1 2 3

Ammo/ Weapons

Your rifle is no more than an expensive club if you run out of ammo having extra mags and ammo is very important so you can sustain a longer battle or provide covering fire for maneuvering elements. I recommend that you carry the same amount of ammo as you have in your personal kit again in you bag at the very least maybe more. This means between 300 to 600 extra rounds for someone with a semi-auto rifle. I also recommend that you carry a large fixed lade knife or machete. Not only can you use it to help you dig, build, cut things, it can also double as a last resort weapon. I also recommend that you carry at least a side arm or some type of secondary weapon in your bag if you don’t carry one on your person. It would behoove you to have at least one shotgun and at least one precision rifle in your fire team/ squad. Magazine video

At the end of the day you are trying to complete your mission. While not everything in your bag may be critical, it may ensure victory with less casualties, loss in time, loss in assets, etc. This can mean the difference in prolonging your units overall survival in the war as a whole or at least make it suck less. I, for one, have multiple bags prepared at all times.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged efb, extended fighting bag, minuteman, thehossusmc | Comments Off

I Just Shot An Attacker, Do I Give First Aid?

Posted on June 11, 2013 by TheHoss

As I mentioned in my previous blog, about Recoil Magazine, I mentioned the “in crowd”. I think we all know who those guys are. But there is also what I like to call the “ol boys club” as well. One of the things the “ol boys” always like to say, along with .45 has the best stopping power but only out of a Colt, is that you should render aid to an attacker that has just attacked you that you shot because it will looked good in court. Well I have news for you folks. The “ol boys” are just are wrong.

First of all if you had to employ your firearm to put a guy down, if he isn’t dead, he is still a threat to you. Whatever he was doing was such a threat to you that you just had to shoot the guy, do you really think that he likes you more now that you have ventilated his body? The only way I would possibly even consider doing this is if a partner was covering me with weapon drawn. Even then I probably would let the guy bleed out. Plus you have no duty to render aid in any jurisdiction.

Secondly most of use don’t carry personal protective equipment. No mask, no gloves, no eye pro, are you really gonna give aid without all that to a meth head that just tried to cut you with a dirty aids infested knife? Even if you do have a full IFAK on you why would you use your precious resources when his meth head buddies might be around the corner or maybe other victims are on scene that are much more worthy of your medical kit than him. You are taking yourself out of the fight by turning your attention to the attacker’s wounds.

Thirdly What you should be doing is securing the scene, taking mental note of the evidence and witnesses, reloading and holstering, and calling 911. At no point in that process do you have time to render aid to a bad dude. If you are worried about court then talk to a good defense lawyer before you have a self defense shooting, yes that means now. There are also great organisations that you can join where you can take a class and get a certificate where an expert witness will fly out and speak in your defense witch is far more valuable than rendering aid. Check out Massad Ayoob.

What counts is you walking away with no holes in your body, no Hep C from rendering aid to a dirty meth head, and keeping your ass out of jail by having quality training and a plan in place.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged defensive shooting, first aid, lawyer, legal, self defense, thehossusmc | Comments Off

Open Carry, Just Because You Can…

Posted on June 10, 2013 by TheHoss

Recently David Reeder at Recoil Magazine Web blog wrote an obviously bias article, it’s in the title Dave, on open carry. He sought out quite a few well respected, well most of them, trainers in firearms and manipulations, and asked them their thoughts on open carry. Mr. Reeder failed to include anyone that actually open carries and what their opinion might be. Even though he stated that he had seen some of the open carry videos on Youtube he failed to contact even one of them.( CORRECTION- Mr. Reeder did NOT say that he sought out youtube videos, I misquoted someone he quoted. Mr. Reeder solely sought the opinions of people that he knew for the article- CORRECTION). At the very least he failed to contact me, who has the most popular open carry video on the internet.

That doesn’t mean I am the expert in open carry or tactics, but it certainly means Mr. Reeder was dishonest in choosing who he interviewed. This is to be expected from a rag like Recoil Magazine, which has a track record of putting more emphasis on telling you how to exercise your rights, than to actually create articles that are accurate or informational.

The only picture that he included of someone open carrying was a young man who was obviously not practicing the best situational awareness, and Mr. Reeder also included an example of an overweight man who was dressed sloppily. I didn’t know it was Recoil Magazine’s job to ridicule and embarrass people who clearly could use a kind word of advice more than disdain. Like it or not there is certainly an “in club” in the firearms world, and most of you and probably me, don’t rate to be included. The hypocrisy of these so called 2nd amendment champions really chaps my ass. If you are not a tier 1 operator then you don’t rate to carry a firearm in the opinion of many of these “in club” boys opinions.

I guarantee that Thomas Jefferson didn’t have tactical manipulation training when he went on his afternoon walks in which he encouraged his friends to have their constant companion, their sidearm, with them. The fact of the matter is that we live in a free society and men should do with their property as they please. Is it wise to have good situational awareness? Of course it is. As firearms enthusiasts and rights supporters we should encourage responsibility, but responsibility is not a requirement for rights. This is where Mr. Reeder joins his colleague Mr. Tsai in his opinion that some people just don’t have the responsibility to have some rights when he said “carrying a gun is as much a responsibility as it is a right”. Really Mr. Reeder? Where was the editorial staff on this article? Recoil Rag can again, kiss my ass. (CORRECTION- Mr. Reeder has written pieces in the past denouncing Mr Tsai’s opinions in those previous articles -CORRECTION)

As far as this “tactical advantage” that is touted so often, I still have yet to see really much evidence that there has ever been an open carrier targeted because he was carrying. The so called “tactical advantage” is so situationaly dependent that I could take any potential situation and run it to the advantage of either side of the debate. Yet it’s stated as fact somehow that if you open carry you will be randomly gunned down in public for doing it. Personally I can think of maybe once or twice where I wished I would have been conceal carrying, yes I do that sometimes too. On the flip side I can think of hundreds of times that I have been approached by people and taught them valuable lessons about rights. I even had a chance to talk to my federal representative and teach him a lesson on firearms rights when I was open carrying and ran into him.

This notion that somehow when you enter a city it’s all of a sudden rude to exercise your rights is ridiculous. So it’s ok to open carry in the wilderness, but if you offend some dip shit anti-rights person in a city you are wrong? To his credit, Mr. Reeder encouraged everyone to get training and just carry, open or concealed. I couldn’t agree more with encouraging people to be responsible. But again the “in club” has decided that if you carry a firearm that you somehow represent the firearms community or are some kind of ambassador. I represent no one but myself, and I will not be intimidated or shamed into towing your “in club” party line. Shame on anyone who would be such a dick as to ridicule you for exercising your rights. At the end of the day it’s nobodies damn business how you decide to exercise your rights. Stay tuned for this being ignored or another half assed, Jerry Tsai, style apology. (CORRECTION- Link to Mr. Reeder’s response, when available -CORRECTION)

Oh and Mr. Reeder here is a picture of Steve Fisher open carrying in Tucson. Yes he is wearing my t-shirt.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged ccw, open carry, recoil magazine, thehossusmc | Comments Off

Four Popular Tourniquets

Posted on June 9, 2013 by TheHoss

Recently I published several videos on my Youtube site talking about Tourniquets. I wanted to do a write up on the four most popular, or at least the four I recommend most, to have a more in depth view of them.

SOFT Tourniquet

This Tourniquet is by far one of the most stout in construction. It also has an extra option not available on other tourniquets. It boasts an aluminium windlass that has a very tactile surface, which is great when you are dealing with slippery blood all over the place. Flanking either side of the windlass are two triangle buckles so that you can secure the windlass on either side. The quick release buckle is either brilliant or stupid, I haven’t decided yet. The nice part of course is that you can quickly release the SOFT if you need to for some reason. The downfall of course is that you must screw it down after applying the SOFT if you don’t want it to suddenly fly off accidentally losing precious blood that you need inside you, and not squirting out all over the road. Personally the SOFT is my favorite tourniquet. The price tag comes in at 26.78 (from tacmedsolutions.com), 35.18 with a case. There is also a “wide SOFT option that comes in at 29.93, 42.53 with a case (from tacmedsolutions.com as well). The SOFT comes in black, blue for training, and orange for rescue. The cases come in Coyote, Black, and OD green.

CAT Tourniquet

I like the CAT and it would always be my second choice, after the SOFT. It offers similar but different capabilities to the SOFT. The biggest difference obviously being the bright white tag, you can write the time on and the red tip of the strap. The securing method for the windlass (both plastic) is a kind of C that has the white time tag that stretches over the top with hook and loop. Hook and loop is also on the tourniquet itself in place of the buckle style of securing the strap on the limb like the SOFT. The windlass is works perfectly fine but could use a stipling job in my opinion. I mean we are talking about massive amounts of blood squirting out all over the place, I’d like something that I know my fingers won’t be slipping off when my life is quickly draining out of me. CATs are also available in black, orange, and blue. The come in at 29.99 (narescue.com), you may be able to find them cheaper elsewhere, but be warned, THERE ARE FORGERIES. You don’t want inferior Chinese plastic giving out on you when you or your buddy really need your gear to come through for you.

TK-4L Touniquet

The TK-4L is a serious savings from the two tourniquets mentioned above. The TK-4L is exactly the same as the TK-4 but has a little bit different securing hook on one end. Personally the TK-4L is worth the few bucks more than the tk-4 in my opinion. Once again we are talking about a piece of gear that could mean life or death. This piece of kit operates very different than the SOFTT or the CAT. This doesn’t mean it won’t work, but it does mean it will be more difficult to employ on yourself or one handed. This can be overcome by training with the gear, but most people use the TK-4L as a back up or extra tourniquet, and it serves that purpose well. Coming in at 10.00 bucks (from warrior woundcare.com) it’s a deal. If you want to save a few bucks, you can pick up the TK-4 for 6.00 (also from warriorwoundcare.com)

SWAT Tourniquet

The SWAT-T (Stretch Wrap And Tuck Tourniquet) is a very versatile piece of kit. Basically a bike tire materiel, with obviously improved rubber, this thing has as many uses as you can think of. Personally I carry a few SWATs around with my other kit just for the fact that is has so many other uses. With the absence of any buckles or hooks this is a piece of kit can be used as part of a splint, part of a sling, the sling itself, a pressure bandage, the top of a pressure bandage, etc. Again, like the TK-4L it needs training to be used as a tourniquet. One handed or using on yourself is difficult and not recommended as your primary tourniquet. Bottom line it’s a must have piece of kit. Coming in at 9.68 (from Chinookmed.com) you can’t beat the price for this versitile piece of kit.

Once again, when you see your hopes and dreams squirting out of your multicam pants, that you just had to have, you are going to wish you have a good tourniquet if you don’t have one. Some gear you can skimp on and just have an uncomfortable night, but not your medical gear. Trust me when I say your ol lady would rather have you back missing a leg than not have you back at all.

Stay tuned to TheHossUSMC.com for more and check out our Youtube page for a wealth of video blogs on various subjects.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged field medicine, first aid, ifak, medical, thehossusmc, tourniquet, tourniquets | Comments Off

The Blog SITREP

Posted on June 9, 2013 by TheHoss

Recently Youtube has become less of something that is going to work for me. I have put a lot of effort into producing quality content every single day there with diminishing reward for my efforts. I will currently be trying to transform my content over to this blog to try to make this a more sustainable medium to continue to provide content for free to you, my viewers/readers. I hope that you will join me here and spread the word to your friends/ family so that I can continue on this path I have chosen. Thanks for all of your support so far. This does not mean that Youtube content will go away completely but as I reach 1000 videos I will try to move more content over to this Blog. The best way to contact me will probably be facebook or my e-mail.

Facebook► https://www.facebook.com/pages/TheHossUSMC/107385756065898?fref=ts
E-mail► thehossusmc@gmail.com

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Home Made Firearms

Posted on May 17, 2013 by TheHoss

In the Age of 3-D printers we seem to have forgotten that firearms have been being made in people’s garages for decades and maybe longer. 3-D Printed guns are exciting, and produce exciting new possibilities, but a drill press and other common tools are shadowed in the lime-light of 3-D printers.
This particular Glock copy is something that makes me want to cry when I think about Glock pistols, but makes my heart swell with pride when I think of the ingenuity of patriots. I wanted to show this to you to prove something. No matter how many firearms are banned, confiscated, or made unavailable highly motivated people will find a way to get them.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged 3-d printer, firearm, glock, gun, homemade, thehossusmc | Comments Off