Perhaps you have heard that Colt has a new product out called the New Agent. It is part of the Defender line. Made to rival Kimber’s entry into no sight, micro pistol group, it looks good and is competitively priced. As a huge Colt fan you have to be pleased; almost. When will they ever realize that they can’t keep up by making rattle traps that are poorly put together? It would be a huge improvement if they would just add an up swept beavertail safety, but alas they leave things the same even on their latest gun. You have to wonder who does their marketing, and if they ever taken notice to see how the 1911 is radically different now from when it first came out in 1911. If you are like us, die hard Colt fans, you just keep holding on wondering, “When will they produce something worth their asking price?” Until then, I guess Colt fans are left to fight over used Colt’s at gunshows.
If you have a Glock, you know that there are tons of accessories for your gun. You can get everything from grips to lasers for them. We often outfit Glocks with many of these modifications, but I want to tell you there are two that you should definitely consider.
First are replacement sites. The Glock factory sights are plastic. Many times the front sight can be knocked out with repetitive draws from the holster. Not many things on your Glock are going to break, but if there is a weak link from the factory, it’s the sights. Glock makes a metal version that your gunsmith can install, or you can have him install one of many great after market sights available from XS (Big Dots), Trijicon, or Meprolight. Whatever your preference, go on and take the plunge.
The other thing to consider, especially if you are a competitive shooter, is a trigger job. These trigger jobs are inexpensive compared to 1911′s, and can really improve the squishy feel of the trigger.
If you do these two simple modifications, you will have a great fighting or competitive pistol on your hands.
Mossy Creek Custom has been a work in progress for many years. It started with my first job dealing with guns. I was fortunate enough to work for a great guy who was willing to take a chance on me. From that point until now I have been blessed to work with some incredible individuals, all of whom have contributed to make Mossy Creek Custom what it is today.
What separates MCC from other shops is that we are interested in your success as a shooter, competitor, hunter or COP. It’s not just about a sale. Many times we will talk a customer out of sale because we know it won’t be good for him/her in the long run. We want our clients to be well informed and comfortable with all of their purchases and completely satisfied with our gunsmithing.
Some of our services include, L/E contracts for web gear, guns and knives. We have a certified Glock armorer, an AR armorer, and a 1911 armorer ready to customize or repair your weapon. We also do general gun repair, and because we believe in good relationships, if you have a problem we can’t fix, we know someone who can.
Good relationships make all the difference in the world. We know most of our customers on a first name basis, and this helps tremendously when they have a problem. They know they are going to get solid service from someone who cares about their hobby or profession, not someone who is interested in making a sale. If you have any questions, shoot us an email; info@mossycreekcustom.com. We would love to get to know you.
If you haven’t paid much attention to the tactical market lately you may have missed some new names that are manufacturing AR’s. One of the most famous is Remington.
They now own Cobb, DPMS, and Olympic Arms. This makes them the largest manufacturing group of the AR platform, and this is their new R-15. Last year Dave Sams told me that anyone not doing something with AR’s was going to be left behind. I didn’t know what he meant at the time, but seeing the latest add by Remington for their new R-15 rifle may prove his point.
There may be several reasons that everyone from Remington to Charles Daly is now offering AR’s, but certainly one of them is that they are probably the hottest item in long guns right now. Our customers love them for their ability to be customized. It can be a fun process to get a rifle they way you want it, much like a 1911. I have never met two guys at the range the same AR. They all put their own unique style into their rifles.
It will be interesting to see if the latest entries into the AR market by these manufacturers offers anything new, or if they are simply copies. It is possible that this will be push the AR platform to new innovations. The next push before innovation may actually be a price break. It will be interesting to see who takes that route.
**Update** Check out this great valued AR from CMMG.
I am going to spend some more time with this thought later, but I want to ask the question, “How accurate do you need to be?” For some people this is the most important question they ask when they buy a new gun. If you are a competitive bullseye or benchrest shooter it is the difference between first and second place. For most of my readers, they say they want an accurate gun, but they really don’t know what they mean by that. I am always asked, “Is this gun accurate?” The answer is yes and no most of the time. How accurate do you think a Glock should be? Check out How Accurate Do You Need to Be? in the articles section.
The other day, my friend Bill showed me the Gerber EAB Pocket Knife (item # 5544) . It is a utility knife that uses a replaceable razor blade. I think he bought his for about $10 at one of the mart stores around Christmas. I was impressed by the slim design of the knife, and its utilitarian function. I am always looking for something like this around the shop. We receive a lot of packages every week and if you use your carry knife, you will soon find it dull from the cardboard and tape. The problem is, I can’t stand to carry a full size utility knife because they are so bulky and clunky. We have small utility knives that we keep in our shop aprons, but they don’t have the same size blade as the larger ones, making them a little more fragile. This seems like the perfect medium between the two. Check it out at gerbertools.com.
We normally don’t cover this type of issue because the site is not a political forum, but I think all of you should be aware of what you are supporting.
Citi Merchant Services and First Data Corporation have decided not to work with gun dealers, manufacturers and distributors with gun sales that are not face to face. As you well know this is not a violation of the law as Citi has claimed, but is legal by sending guns to licensed dealers who then preform background checks on those who wish to purchase. This decision was handed down from Citi to CDNN Sports.
Our company routinely deals with CDNN and they are great. If you don’t know about them, check them out at cdnninvestments.com. They offer some great gear, including some police trade ins that we routinely carry in our shop. You can also get obsolete mags and parts.
So why write about this? Because Citi is uninformed and making a corporate decision that could make it very hard for military , law enforcement and even you to buy a gun if you can’t use their services. If you have any relationship with this corporation you should consider whether they represent your interests well. Check out the email they sent at the National Shooting Sports Foundation site; www.nssf.org.
There are several questions that come up often enough to make it to the article’s section of the website. One of those that gets tossed around on the internet forums always concerns the best caliber available for a handgun. It is normally framed around the question of using a handgun for Concealed Carry. For Concealed Carry, we advocate using the cartridge that you are most comfortable shooting. However, if you are looking for your first large caliber (not 22lr) you should look at any of the major entries in 9mm. While it may or may not be the best caliber for every application, its cost and low recoil make it a perfect gun for newer shooters. Check out a more in depth description in Newbie Primer 2 under the articles section.
By this time you have probably heard about Sig Sauer’s latest entry into the handgun market. If you have not, it is a customizable weapon that can have the grip thickness changed to fit each hand, and it can also be transformed from 9mm, 357 sig, 40 S&W and 45 ACP. Sig’s promotion centers around the 250′s versatility. They speak of using the same gun on different missions, and the various ways that it will impact the concealed weapons crowd, but one has to wonder how practical these features really are.
In most shops this gun will probably sell for a little under $650. This price point is not unreasonable, but it is almost $100 higher than the Glocks that seem to be a little more popular at this time. The interesting thing is that the caliber conversions will sell over $400. I wonder how many of our Law Enforcement contracts that use Sig products would actually spend that kind of money for a caliber conversion? Most of the departments that we deal with are not going to spend that kind of money for a caliber conversion.
Where I believe this gun and others like it that have the interchangeable backstraps can be valuable is for the differing hand sizes that are in every department. It goes back to what we believe for competitive shooters. Never alter the shooter to the gun. Always alter the gun to fit the shooter. In this respect I think the Sig brings something to the table that can be very useful for a family of shooters or a Law Enforcement Department.
Mossy Creek Custom has always tried to serve the law enforcement and military communities well. This goes back to my days in a very limited law enforcement role. In return, we are offering a dealt this January for any full-time police officer or deputy. The first 4 that contact us by email can purchase a gun of their choice for $25 over cost of the gun and shipping. Check out our Law Enforcement page for more info.