FirstSpear TV

Archive for November, 2013

Daniel Defense – Banned By The NFL

Saturday, November 30th, 2013

In case you haven’t heard, the NFL recently denied a commercial by Georgia-based firearms manufacturer Daniel Defense to be played during the 2014 Super Bowl XLVIII on FOX, on the grounds that it violates the firearms portion of the NFL’s Prohibited Advertising Categories:

“5. Firearms, ammunition or other weapons are prohibited; however, stores that sell firearms and ammunitions (e.g., outdoor stores and camping stores) will be permitted, provided they sell other products and the ads do not mention firearms, ammunition or other weapons.”

The commercial, which can be seen above, doesn’t technically violate the NFL’s policy, with (arguable) exception to the DDM4 silhouette logo at the end. Daniel Defense offered to replace the potentially offending logo with “…an American flag and/or the words “Shall not be infringed.””. The NFL countered the offer with an additional non-negotiable denial. Surprisingly, Daniel Defense had no trouble running a commercial in local Georgia markets during the 2012 Super Bowl XLVI on NBC.

danieldefense.com/

Gunfighter Moment – Larry Vickers

Saturday, November 30th, 2013

I’ve had some people ask me about dust covers or lack of them on assault rifles – with the AR15/M16/M4 family being the most notable example of a rifle that has a dust cover as standard issue. Recently there have been lower cost M4-style rifles hitting the market that have deleted the dust cover altogether. In my opinion this is done entirely as a cost cutting measure and not to enhance performance in any way.

My opinion is that on an AR, the dust cover is a plus with no real negatives – rarely does the dust cover spring break and cause malfunctions by bouncing back up to induce ejection stoppages during firing. It can certainly happen, but the likelihood of a stoppage due to debris entering the action from a lack of dust cover being in place is far higher.

The AR15 family of rifles was designed to have a Sturmgewehr inspired dust cover and all variants should in fact have one – if they don’t they fall into the category of guns for games and not guns for fighting.

-Larry Vickers
Vickers Tactical Inc.
Host of TacTV

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Larry Vickers of Vickers Tactical in a retired US Army 1st SFOD-Delta combat veteran with years of experience in the firearms industry as a combat marksmanship instructor and industry consultant. In recent years he has hosted tactical firearms related TV shows on the Sportsman Channel with the latest being TacTV of which Bravo Company is a presenting sponsor.Larry Vickers special operations background is one of the most unique in the industry today; he has been directly or indirectly involved in the some of the most significant special operations missions of the last quarter century. During Operation Just Cause he participated in Operation Acid Gambit – the rescue of Kurt Muse from Modelo Prison in Panama City, Panama. As a tactics and marksmanship instructor on active duty he helped train special operations personnel that later captured Saddam Hussein and eliminated his sons Uday and Qusay Hussein. In addition he was directly involved in the design and development of the HK416 for Tier One SOF use which was used by Naval Special Warfare personnel to kill Osama Bin Laden. Larry Vickers has developed various small arms accessories with the most notable being his signature sling manufactured by Blue Force Gear and Glock accessories made by Tangodown. In addition he has maintained strong relationships with premium companies within the tactical firearms industry such as BCM, Aimpoint, Black Hills Ammunition, Wilson Combat and Schmidt & Bender.

Larry Vickers travels the country conducting combat marksmanship classes for law abiding civilians, law enforcement and military and has partnered with Alias Training to coordinate classes to best meet the needs of the students attending the class.

www.VickersTactical.com

Gunfighter Moment is a weekly feature brought to you by Alias Training & Security Services. Each week Alias brings us a different Trainer and in turn they offer some words of wisdom.

Spectre Admin Mobility Panel from SOD Gear

Saturday, November 30th, 2013

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www.SODgear.com

Noveske BEER TAP Handle

Friday, November 29th, 2013

Noveske

Available from Shop Noveske is an extremely limited run of Noveske beer tap handles. The piece resembles a stainless 10.5″ Basic Noveske Upper, with an actual KX3 permanently fixed to the barrel. Each piece includes certificate of authenticity. A great addition to any tactical-inclined mancave or bar.

shopnoveske.com/collections/extras/products/noveske-beer-tap

Forces Focus – Le Groupement Commando Montagne

Friday, November 29th, 2013

We’ve mentioned the French 27e Bataillon de Chasseurs Alpins but this video showcases the capabilities of the entire Groupement Commando Montagne or Mountain Commando Group.

Merci Pierre

Polaris Ranger To Assist In The DARPA Robotics Challenge

Friday, November 29th, 2013

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Minneapolis MN, November 26, 2013 – Polaris® Industries Inc. (NYSE: PII), the leading manufacturer of off-road vehicles, today announced that Polaris RANGER® XP 900 EPS vehicles will be used as part of the DARPA Robotics Challenge to be held December 20-21, 2013, at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, in Homestead, Fla.

In the early stages of a number of recent disasters, it was clear there were limitations to what mitigation steps humans could take due to dangerous conditions. The DARPA Robotics Challenge was created to spur development of advanced robots that can help humans to better respond to future disasters. The Challenge includes eight tasks that simulate the duties a robot might have to perform in such a situation. DARPA will use the RANGER XP 900 EPS in one of the eight tasks to help demonstrate robots’ ability to operate vehicles, since they are among the tools commonly on hand in disaster zones. The Polaris RANGER XP 900 is the best-selling vehicle in its class and widely available across the U.S.

“We have found off-road vehicles are some of the most useful vehicles in disaster relief due to their ease of transport and ability to traverse challenging terrain,” said Patrick Weldon, product manager for Polaris Defense. “Our specialized vehicles are designed to the end user’s specifications. For the DARPA Robotics Challenge, the RANGERs were built to accommodate the robots and provide mobility at the mock disaster site.”

The RANGER XP 900 EPS was customized for the Challenge with a remote SafeStop Electronic Throttle Kill and Brake Actuation technology. A 1000-lb./453 kg. capacity bed provides space for the robot’s power supply, and inside the cab, the bench seat and tilt steering provide ample room for robots to operate the vehicle.
The driving task requires the robots to drive the RANGER XP 900 EPS through a 250-ft/76-m course with obstacles and varied widths, and exhibit the ability to turn the vehicle in a full circle.

In the future, the versatility of the RANGER platform would allow a robot to transport tools, equipment, supplies and power around a disaster site, while traversing the difficult terrain often found in disaster situations.

www.polaris.com/en-us/home

Gemtech – Going Hot In 2014

Friday, November 29th, 2013

www.gem-tech.com

DEFCON Presents – Chris Costa Running SAI

Friday, November 29th, 2013

DEFCON Group produced this video of Chris Costa running a Salient Arms International Benelli M4 and GLOCK Tier 2.