Chris Fry 14
2013 NEShooters Summit
Once again, NYFirearms will be sponsoring the NEShooters Summit training event held at Pelham Fish & Game Club, Pelham, NH. This is the 6th annual Summit Meeting and it will be held on April 26, 27, and 28th of this year. The focus this year will be on solutions for dealing with difficult situations. The summit will last for two and a half days and will allow the participants to meet with and learn from the training industry’s leading experts. This is absolutely one of the best values for training this year.
This year’s scheduled instructors include Craig Douglas aka SouthNarc, Rob Pincus of I.C.E. Training, Cecil Burch, Chris Fry of MDTS Training, Dave Harrington, Wes Doss of Khyber Training, Kelly Venden, Bill Lewitt, and our own Mike Centola.
Additionally, there will be a Man-on-Man shoot-off with prize money and a raffle.
The cost to attend the summit is only $300, however, members of NYFirearms.com will be able to attend for just $275! Advance sign-up is required by all.
Home Defense Preparation
Multipurpose Home Defense Gear
As many who have attended MDTS courses know, I am not a big fan of tactical gear for the average citizen who is primarily interested in protecting themselves or their family. Often I get questions from students about why I do not advocate or utilize some type of “Chest Rig” or LBV during carbine training courses and classes. Frankly, I never saw a realistic utility in them for me since, as a citizen, I will rarely, if ever, utilize the carbine or shotgun outside of my home. This is of course my opinion and don’t misunderstand me, I love gear as much as the next guy. I simply believe resources and time are better spent on skills training and practice, not gear. However, proper gear selection and set up is an essential part of being prepared and ready for whatever situation may face you. Recently, I have been investigating, testing and utilizing a more generalized gear set up for home defense/protection.
Goals/Requirements:
- Fast to access, put on or grab and carry (previously I utilized a simple go bag)
- Multi-purpose: something that provides access to ammunition for ANY of my personal firearms since I may not get to choose which one I grab or I may need multiple ammunition types on body in order to use one firearm to fight to another OR more than one family member may be armed with various firearms
- Protection from possible gunfire from threats in my home or immediately outside
- Carry and immediate access to support gear – medical, edged tool, illumination
- It must be cost efficient as possible.
Considerations:
My primary concern is some type of home invasion or burglary while myself or family is home. Rapid response time is critical in a situation like this and many people select guns and gear, have a gun near their bed but never consider how fast something like this occurs. See this article for some info on Home Invasion Burglaries: How a Burglar Robs Your Home in 8 min
I also spent some time this year investigating crime in my immediate area in order to justify this project. It is no real news that crime is going up in many communities in response to the declining economy and job losses. Here are just two recent incidents that influenced my decisions: Burglary/Home Invasion, Syracuse NY, 2012, Burglary/Home Invasion, New Hartford NY, 2012.
Gear Selection:
Having witnessed the PFC testing on the new Victory Tactical Gear Special Pistol Threat hard plates I was sold on their lightweight yet extremely effective ballistic protection. VTG SPT Test Vid
SPT Testing all rounds shot at same point on plate:
.45 ACP 230 GR. FMJ
.45 Speer Gold Dot JHP
9mm 125 GR. FMJ
12 GA 00 Buck Shot
12 GA Tactical Slug
Victory Tactical Gear – Special Pistol Threat Plates : $180
Brian Hartman of PFCTraining recommended plate carrier, pouches and accessories from Specter Gear.
Specter PriMAC Mag Pouch : $36
Specter/PFC TQ Tri-Fold :$20
Specter Universal Pistol Mag Pouch : $20
Specter Modular Plate Carrier :$160
Raven Concealment ModuLoader Shotgun Shell Carrier and Panel : $35
Total=$450
Lightweight, compact with essential home/property defense support gear
Side buckle left undone so carrier can be rapidly thrown over head
Integration:
I integrated this new set up into my home readiness plan: Safe At Home
The Specter carrier and VTG plate are extremely lightweight and due to the side buckles I can literally grab this carrier and throw it over my head not even bothering to buckle the final buckle, grab a firearm and GO. With this single piece of kit I have essential gear to include:
- Ballistic protection up to rifle rounds
- Rapid access to ammunition for pistol, carbine or shotgun
- Illumination tool
- Tourniquet
- An edged tool/weapon set up in congruently with my EDC carry
- All items can be accessed with either hand
Conclusion:
Overall I am quite happy with this piece of kit. Under timed drills I can be out of my bed, corrective lenses on, gun in hand and have this carrier over my head in less than a minute on average. $450 may seem steep to some and granted, its not cheap however I believe when considering the current state of things that this isn’t a bad investment in ones home protection planning and preparedness.
About the Author
Chris Fry is the owner and director of training and curriculum development for Modern Defensive Training Systems in Utica, NY where he conducts courses in reality driven practical combatives skills, extreme close quarters physical defense, tactical folding knife and edged weapon combatives and combative pistol, carbine and shotgun skills. Chris has been an active instructor with Progressive F.O.R.C.E. Concepts in Nevada since 2003, servicing law enforcement, military and select government agencies. Chris is a certified AR15/M4/M16 and Glock armorer, contributor to various online firearms resource websites and a frequent presenter at national and international personal protection and small arms training conferences for both citizens and law enforcement.
The MDTS Rx :: Ready or Not
You want to be ready to protect yourself, your family or perhaps someone else? How do you go about becoming ready to do this? Do you just take a class? Does it take a lifetime of martial arts or do you simply read the latest gun magazine or buy a DVD? A lot of people want to learn how to protect themselves but don’t know how or where to begin. At MDTS we have a prescription (the MDTS Rx) that prepares you to protect yourself and others:Roblox HackBigo Live Beans HackYUGIOH DUEL LINKS HACKPokemon Duel HackRoblox HackPixel Gun 3d HackGrowtopia HackClash Royale Hackmy cafe recipes stories hackMobile Legends HackMobile Strike Hack
1) Harden Up
Fighting, even under controlled conditions, is not easy. The chances of getting bruised, scraped, cut or worse are extremely high. So, the first step is to harden up and I don’t just mean physically. Are you a good boxer who can’t shoot, a shooter who can’t box or the guy who shoots great but cannot run a mile? The point is to challenge yourself, do something you hate to do and then do it again, do this every day. Do things you aren’t good at before you train or practice the things you are good at. This will test your will power and will power is an underdeveloped mental attribute. Will power often separates those who can and will from those who can’t and won’t.
2) Training
Training is where you learn a set of skills or gain knowledge about a particular subject. There are a number of personal protection training courses available to include firearms, physical defense, edged tools, impact tools, less lethal, awareness, verbal & physical boundary setting, the list goes on. What ‘s important is to realize that we learn a skill, especially physical skills, by doing not just seeing. It is also important to realize that training is not the same as practice. Going to a handgun class one time may mean you have been “trained” however physical skills are extremely perishable. To achieve and maintain proficiency you must practice.
3) Practice
Now that you have attended training it’s up to you to practice those skills perfectly and frequently in an effort to gain proficiency. Practice is like homework, nobody wants to do homework but its a good idea if you want to pass the class or a test. In terms of personal protection that test may mean your life or someone else’s. Practicing a skill can be as little as five minutes a day of dry fire pistol work or jab-cross combinations. For the highly dedicated it could be several hours a week. Regardless of which practice method fits you practice should become a priority as much as your lifestyle allows.
4) Pressure Test
Once you have learned and practiced a skill to the point where you have developed good safety, mechanics, consistency and aggression its time to pressure test. Pressure testing is performance of a skill or skills under certain training modifiers such as physical stress, cognitive mental stress, time pressure, increased accuracy standards, reduced light etc. How you pressure test depends on the skill being tested. For a physical skill pressure testing may include some type of force-on-force like sparring or working against a padded assailant. For shooting skills it may involve competition using a timer to measure speed and challenging targets to measure accuracy or force-on-force with air soft, UTM’s or simmunitions. Finally, some standards should be adopted as an on demand test of current skill level in that subject matter. Standards provide you with a means to evaluate the skills you spent time learning and practicing in order to maintain proficiency thus freeing up time to work on other necessary personal protection skills.
Considerations
This prescription is a developmental road map for any physical hard skill or mental soft skill. Consider it and consider how you have approached your personal protection development up to this point. Now, consider the current and common criminal problem you may have to face: close quarters, multiple assailants with weapons. Right now, today, are you ready or not?
About the Author
Chris Fry is the owner and director of training and curriculum development for Modern Defensive Training Systems in Utica, NY where he conducts courses in reality driven practical combatives skills, extreme close quarters physical defense, tactical folding knife and edged weapon combatives and combative pistol, carbine and shotgun skills. Chris has been an active instructor with Progressive F.O.R.C.E. Concepts in Nevada since 2003, servicing law enforcement, military and select government agencies. Chris is a certified AR15/M4/M16 and Glock armorer, contributor to various online firearms resource websites and a frequent presenter at national and international personal protection and small arms training conferences for both citizens and law enforcement.
Editor’s Note
Each month, Chris will be providing our great website with one of these editorials, called The MDTS Rx. Keep checking the site for great informative articles by Chris and others! (M. Centola)
MDTS Vertical Displacement Guide
Article By Chris Fry / MDTS Training
We possess a number of ways to move in a combative environment and it is well documented that movement is a life saving tactic. Movement almost always helps us except maybe when attempting to engage a target with accurate gun fire. This guide will focus on the varied methods of vertical displacement taught in the MDTS level 1&2 course work. Vertical displacement in this context is movement along the vertical line or up and down through varied shooting positions. Vertical movement can aid us by making us a hard target when in a location where horizontal, forward or backward movement is inhibited, such as in a hallway. Vertical movement also aids us when attempting to establish a desired angle of fire or achieve maximum cover and/or concealment behind an object such as a vehicle, postal box or concrete Wal-Mart lamp piling in a parking lot.
Please note: This is meant to be a quick study guide not a treatise on positional shooting so adapt what is useful and discard what is not.
The following are (5) shooting positions along the vertical plane of movement:
REVIEW: MDTS Carbine Retention & Combatives DVD
While I’m down here on vacation, I’ve been watching various firearms DVD’s so expect more of these reviews from me! Anyways, I watched this latest one from Personal Defense Network. PDN is one of the premier websites to find personal defense video and training. They offer many DVD installations of various training installments and more. PDN’s managing editor, Rob Pincus, owner of I.C.E. Training, is very well-known in the industry as a professional firearms instructor, author and consultant. PDN has some very talented and nationally known contributors such as Cecil Burch, Mike Janich, Claude Werner, and our own Chris Fry of MDTS.
On this 2011 PDN DVD, we explore Carbine Retention and Combatives as taught by Chris Fry of MDTS Training. Chris is one of our contributors right here on NY Firearms, and nationally know for much of his combatives training content. The content on this DVD is taken directly from his Combative Carbine Skills 3&4 where you get hands-on training of this exact material.
The information on this DVD is great and I recommend it for anyone who train’s fairly often with a carbine platform. It is important, especially for people who are utilizing a carbine platform as their primary home defense firearm. One great benefit of Chris’ approach to training is the focus on defensive tactics from a civilian or citizen standpoint. Another overall comment I can make is that the information is very concise, yet complete, and there are great recaps of information after each chapter.
Additionally, Chris goes over some great information about gear choices and it’s relation to carbine retention and combatives. I think there’s so much focus on picking equipment and arguing on the internet over whats better than what, and it’s refreshing to see suggestions for gear based on a very real situation. As I said above, I would absolutely recommend this DVD to anyone who is into firearms, defense, and carbine practical usage as a whole. I was very impressed with the quality of the video, and I look forward to watching the Combat Focus Shooting one from PDN next!
DVD Topics of Instruction
1. Introduction
2. Gear
3. C.O.R.R.
4. C.O.R.R. Drills
5. Additions to C.O.R.R.
6. Direct Action Combatives
7. Direct Action Combatives Drills
8. Retention Drills
9. Alternative Strikes and Fending
10. Integrating Response with a Handgun
11. Retention of a Secondary Tool
12. Closing
Additionally, Jim Emmick of Firearms Training of Western NY, who is one of our sponsors and regular contributors, has written a review of the DVD as well. You can view that here: Thread: Personal Defense Network DVD titled “Carbine Combatives and Retention”
Wounded Warrior Fundraiser Shoot This Weekend!
REGISTRATION NOW OPEN:
WOUNDED WARRIOR FUNDRAISER SHOOT!
Sunday, May 29th
Oneida Rifle Club, Oneida NY
- (6-8) outdoor steel stages requiring at least 200 rounds, bring more shoot more!
- Indoor pistol only stage requiring a flashlight and at least (3) magazines
- Raffles, vendors and food will be on site
PLEASE NOTE: This is a pistol/shotgun ONLY event, NO carbines/rifles and this IS NOT a competition
ONLY 20 shooters allowed in each time slot, no exceptions. Get your spot now, once a time slot is filled it will be closed out.
Register for the 2 hr time slot you want to shoot in:
GROUP 1: 9am to 11am, shooters must arrive by 8:45am for safety brief and sign in
GROUP 2: 11am- 1pm, shooters must arrive by 10:45am for safety brief and sign in
GROUP 3: 1:30-3:30pm, shooters must arrive by 1:15pm for safety brief and sign in
GROUP 4: 3:30-5:30pm, shooters must arrive by 3:15pm for safety brief and sign in
REGISTER NOW!
CAN’T MAKE IT TO THE SHOOT ON MAY 29th? You can still donate to the WWP Fundraising effort online at the WWP MDTS Donation page below and/or join the team and spread the word to friends and family about this great cause. Myself and other MDTS staff member have already made donations so join us in supporting this cause!
WWP MDTS ONLINE DONATION PAGE- DONATE NOW!
TEAM PAGE- JOIN THE TEAM AND RAISE FUNDS FOR WWP!
I look forward to supporting this great cause with you,
Chris
Home & Family Defense Skills with MDTS
We all like to get out and train, whether it be fitness, firearms and especially “tactical” training. However, very few people ever train to defend their home and family, let alone train with their family members. Enter Modern Defensive Training Systems’ Home and Family Defense Skills training class. According to the description by MDTS, the Home & Family Defense Skills course provides the home defender with immediately accessible knowledge, skills, and information to properly prepare an effective home defense. Even better, I had my wonderful wife, Erica, to take the class with me.
One of the most important aspects of this class was understanding that a proper mindset is needed to overcome any potential assailants that may try to cause harm to you or your family. In fact, one may argue that mindset is one of the most important components to making a successful attempt in defending yourself. The class includes force-on-force training with airsoft training handguns, working from cover, and low-light techniques to provide students with realistic feedback and validation of the skills taught in the class.
Some of the initial topics were discussion the mindset of home invaders and the difference between them and burglars. In addition the importance of your mindset was presented in a way that makes you think twice about how you go about your daily activities.
Then we discussed various modifications to your house and lifestyle to mitigate and deter any possible attacks. Everything from security systems and door locks to windows, garage doors and more. In addition, being aware of your surroundings was a pretty common topic throughout the discussion.
We also discussed response planning and team (aka your family) tactics, and communication both with your family as well as with emergency services. Without much training for some of the participants, including my wife, we went right into some force-on-force to illustrate several important points. These included use of flashlights to disorient your attacker, use of barricades and cover/concealment, as well as moving to saferooms with your family.
Not only was the force-on-force training an excellent way to learn and practice training, there was some great bonding between my wife and I as we worked together to solve some very real problems of defense in the home.
The final block of the day included learning to escape restraints and then it followed into a final team exercise where we had to work as a team to escape restraints, move as a team to the “safe room” and then contact authorities. It was a great exercise and really solidified all of the previous training throughout the day.
It is very hard to convey the type of emotion involved in attending a training course like this. I know that when we left the class, we spent the entire ride home talking about various changes to our house, more things we need to pay attention to, and everything else we felt we should work on to better our mindset and preparedness. This course is highly recommended, especially for people with families and a big desire to protect themselves. This is probably one of the best classes I have taken, and had the most useful knowledge over many of my other training classes. I cannot speak for my wife, but I believe she enjoyed it, because she cannot stop talking about everything we learned there!
Course Topics
Home Defense Mindset & Family Preparation
Mindset of Home Invaders vs. Burglar
Layering Security Measures for Home Protection
Common Home & Apartment Vulnerabilities- Security Systems, Locks, Doors & Windows
Response Planning, Individual & Team Tactics (Spouse, Children)
Communicating with Family + Contacting Authorities
Firearm & Support Equipment Selection and Ready Access
Safe Rooms, Cover, Concealment & Zones of Fire
Structure Cornering, Clearing, Holding & Barricading Tactics
Challenging & Controlling Unknown Subjects
Low/No Light Considerations and Tactics
Force-On-Force Drills & Scenarios
Contacting Modern Defensive Training Sytems
MDTS Training
315-404-1923
www.mdtstraining.com
General Physical Preparedness
I have learned over the years that the one solid, steady state tool I have at my disposal 24/7 is me. It doesn’t matter if I carry a gun or a knife; the fact is that I cannot be armed all the time. Because of this fact the one personal protection and “Life” tool I have invested the majority of my training time in over the last 10+years is my general physical preparedness (GPP) level. Everyone has an excuse for not wanting to get into better physical condition: I’m hurt, I don’t have time, work is too busy right now, I don’t have money for a gym membership… the list goes on, I know because at one time or another I have used them all and frankly they are all BS.
Attaining a basic level of GPP should be the first and foremost concern of any serious student of personal protection, martial arts and/or combat athlete. Having the physical ability to “weather the storm” and outlast an opponent is very often what wins fights after the initial 30 second onslaught or attack has ensued. If you can survive the first 30 seconds of an attack without outright being killed, maimed or knocked out you have a good chance of winning and surviving IF your mind and body can support it. Notice I mentioned MIND first since mindset drives everything we do however, without a basic level of physical preparedness our mind may be telling us what to do, to NEVER give up but the body simply cannot meet those demands.
Some GPP considerations:
- It is more likely you will die from a heart attack than a mugging, robbery or home invasion
- GPP provides me with the ability to perform most everyday tasks better, expending less energy w/ less risk of injury
- A healthy body supports a healthy mind
- My fitness level may affect others such as my family and children
- Your enemies are fit: it is well documented that criminals & terrorists consider fitness a key survival skill
- Fitness correlates to health, resistance to injury/illness, versatility, operational readiness, and ultimately, credibility
- Strong people are generally more useful and harder to kill – Mark Rippetoe
These inmates use whatever they can find to workout because fitness has a direct correlation to survival in and OUT of prison.
Getting Started:
You don’t have to join agym to get on the road to better fitness. Depending upon your current physical state, you may or may not be able to lift weights and it’s probably best to start off with a simple body weight program. If that is even too much, start off walking every day on the treadmill or outside with the dog. However you choose to start, begin small and build your way up slowly. Ego pushes more people, especially men away from working out than anything else other than sheer laziness. What I could do at 20 is different than what I could do at 30 and now at 40 I have realized I just have to get over that baggage and do the best I currently can do within my current physical abilities. It doesn’t matter what you do, walk, run, lift weights, swim and bike, just do something a minimum of twice a week for a month and then assess how you feel. For a basic program to start off check out the personal defense network article HERE.
Motivation:
We are all responsible for our actions and or inaction. Find something, anything that motivates you to get into better physical condition and use it. Some motivators may be:
- You want to be around longer for your family, kids or grandkids
- You just want to look or feel better, lose weight, get stronger or rehabilitate an injury
- You have a family history of heart disease or some other ailment and want to take preventative measures
- Your job or mission profile requires a certain level of fitness
- You study personal protection and acknowledge the importance general physical preparedness plays in that endeavor
- You want to beat your co-worker, brother, wife or yourself at something!
Ultimately it doesn’t matter WHAT motivates you as long as SOMETHING motivates you, find it and use it to the fullest.
Coming Soon to NYFirearms.com!
This month we will be making some major changes to the site! In this post I’m going to outline some of these changes so you all know what to expect.
First, as you all have probably noticed we are growing like crazy! We’re about to tip the scales at almost 50,000+ visits per month. We are also averaging 40-50 online users at a time. Some users who are online regularly have noticed some performance issues as of late so we’re going to try to resolve this issue by moving the site to a virtual private server. This should help with any issues and give us a major boost in performance.
Next up, we’ve listened to everyones recommendations and we’re going to update the theme of the site to something fresh and hopefully easier on the eyes for everyone. With this we are also going to be updating the forum software to VB4. This should give us some more enhancements to the forums and hopefully fix any issues that we aren’t aware of.
Last, but certainly not least, we will be adding a huge amount of reviews to the site. From our trip to SHOT we were able to make some great contacts and we will be able to review products that might be otherwise unavailable. If you are a manufacturer or a trainer and would like us to review something for you, please feel free to contact us at [email protected].
Some of the products and services we will be reviewing are:
- 4Sevens Flashlights
- Allstar Tactical Enhanced Heavy Buffer
- Allstar Tactical .22LR Conversion Kit
- Cammo Brothers Mag Loader
- Chamber Check Safety Devices
- CMMG Takedown Upper
- Inforce Flashlights
- LaserLyte Laser Rear site
- LaserLyte Laser Training System
- LaserMax Uni-Max Micro
- LaserMax Genesis
- LaserMax Guide Rod laser
- Loksak Element Proof Storage Bags
- MDTS Combative Pistol 1&2 Training
- NovaTac Flashlights
- Progressive F.O.R.C.E. Concepts PSOC Training
- RPD Utah Permit Class
- SOG Knives
- Strikemark Reactive Targets
We’re also going to revive project AR-15! If you have any other ideas for us whether products to review or site suggestions, contact us or post in the forums!
NEShooters 2011 Summit for an Armed Society
The Summit 2011 will focus on solutions for dealing with difficult sitautions. The Summit will last for two days and will allow the participants to meet with and learn from the training industry’s leading experts to include:
- Southnarc
- Michael Janich
- Wes Doss
- Rob Pincus
- Bill Lewitt
- Chris Fry
- William Aprill
- Claude Werner
- Andy Langlois
- A FATS Simulator
We will be working with the instructors to ensure that this Summit will have the best mix of subject matter ever. You can be assured that there will be shooting sessions, hands onsessions and classroomsessions. We can guarantee you that you will not be bored and you will be challenged. Additionally, there will be another man-on-man shoot off with great prize money and a raffle.
UPDATE! USE THE REGISTRATION LINK BELOW AND GET THE SUMMIT FOR ONLY $260. JUST FOR NYFIREARMS.COM MEMBERS!!!!!
Review: Combative Carbine Skills 1 & 2 with MDTS
I’ve had the opportunity to attend Combative Carbine Skills 1&2 twice now, so I feel I can accurately review this class. First off, Modern Defensive Training Systems (MDTS) is run by Chris Fry, a well-versed training instructor as well as a great contributor to our forums, here at NY Firearms.Chris does not claim to be some crazy military, special forces, and he is especially not a ninja. With this said, he has had many years and several thousands of hours training, which can easily be seen in the way he carries himself and speaks to the class. He is always more than willing to help students throughout the class and is very knowledgeable in what he teaches.
To quote the course description from MDTS, Combative Carbine Skills series “emphasizes three critical elements of defensive shooting: Mindset, Skill-At-Arms, and Tactics.” CCS 1&2 begins the series with the fundamentals needed to operate the carbine in a combative and defensive manner. What I love, personally, is the focus on the class from a citizen perspective, which 90% of us who take these classes will be using the training for.
The first hour of the day was classroom-based training, which went over firearms safety, range safety, some carbine history and zeroing, accessories and rifle modifications, as well as some initial administrative firearms handling and platforms. Once the initial classroom training was complete, we moved out to the range and jumped right into zeroing our rifles.
Once all of the rifles were zeroed, training began. Without divulging too much of the course, there was a great deal of information thrown at the attendees. Personally, I enjoy “drinking from the firehose” as they say, but I can see how some people may not like that approach. However, most everyone rose to the occasion and stepped up their game to learn.
I also noticed that there were several people attending the class who had just bought their AR-15 or similar carbine, and by the end of the class they were engaging targets out to 75 yards, and clearing complicated “triple feed” malfunctions. Considering how some of the newer shooters were picking up the information, I have to say that speaks louder than I can about Chris’ proficiency as a trainer.
As I said above, this is the second time I have had the chance to take this class from MDTS, which has joined my resume of several other carbine training classes, and I have to say that I would highly recommend anyone with carbine rifles to give this class a shot (no pun intended). From the basic fundamentals to some advanced weapon malfunction clearing, the class provides a great deal of valuable information to the average shooter.
MDTS is holding another Combative Carbine Skills 1&2 class on August 28th in the Rochester, NY area. Visit their website, mdtstraining.com, and check out their schedule to sign up!
Combative Carbine Skills 1&2 Course Details
The MDTS Combative Carbine Skills curriculm is designed for the new rifle owner, individuals who have owned a rifle but never attended formal training as well as the seasoned operator. A solid grounding in safety and fundamentals of gun handling is presented with a heavy emphasis on the students ability to manipulate the carbine platform while mult-tasking or under stress. This is a fast paced, challenging course. Course content will include but is not limited to:
CCS1
Firearm Safety/Range Safety
History & Zero
Modifications & Sling Options
Personal Equipment Selection & Placement
Administrative Gun-Handling
Carry & Carbine Ready Positions
Fundamental Marksmanship
Combative Marksmanship
Shooting Response Theory
Combative Gun-Handling/Malfunctions
CCS2
After Action Assessment Concept
Bilateral Weapon Operation
Transition to Handgun
Combative Shooting Positions
Vertical and Lateral Displacement
Multiple Target Engagement
Proactive Movement
Fundamental Use of Cover & Concealment and more…
Equipment List:
A serviceable carbine to include M4, AR15, AK47 or pistol caliber rifle, a minimum of 3 magazines, 500+ rounds rifle – NO GREEN TIP OR AP AMMUNITION, 50 rounds pistol, eye and ear protection, pistol and minimum of 2 magazines (if you own a pistol), appropriate clothing for weather, water, hat with brim, optional equipment- sling, gloves & knee pads.
*A pistol is not required to attend this course
Additional Equipment Considerations:
Weapon mounted illumination tool, knee & elbow protection, note taking materials, lunch for full day class
AR15/M4/M16 Generalized Maintenance, Cleaning and Lubrication
Common build up point on bolt, NEVER stretch out or compress gas rings
I have noticed several questions on the forum recently focused on lubrication and maintenance of the carbine. So, I thought I’d post some generalized guidelines for maintenance, cleaning and lubrication. If followed, these guidelines will keep your carbine functioning optimally with minimum time expenditure.
The AR15/M4/M16 family of firearms has gotten a poor reputation due to the bad experiences and poor information provided to operators in the past. This weapon platform is highly reliable when maintained properly. Some general guidelines to follow to insure reliable function and life time service from your firearm:
1. Attempt to field strip and quick clean your carbine after each shooting session. Even if this only means you have time to de-grease the bolt carrier, bolt face and clean out the chamber and bore. This will go a long way toward maintaining reliability.
Clean extractor claw trench of any debris and visually inspect for cracks or chips
2. Soak small parts such as the charging handle, bolt carrier, bolt and its small parts in a Tupperware container of Hoppe’s #9 overnight. This will make cleaning these small, hard to reach surfaces much easier and save you time and trouble in the long run.
3. Attempt to fully field strip, inspect and thoroughly clean your firearm after every 3000 rounds. Note “witness marks” or where metal has rubbed on metal wearing away finish. These are important lubrications points. Look closely at the gas key on top of bolt carrier and make sure it is still tight.
4. Keep a close eye on components that are critical to the proper operation of your carbine such as the extractor and spring, ejector and spring, gas rings, firing pin and buffer spring. It is a good idea to have back ups for all of these essential parts in a range bag or kept at home.
Bolt carrier lubrication points, DO NOT lubricate bolt-face
5. Inspect the extractor claw making sure there are no cracks where the metal is thin or chips and that the claw is not filled with carbon or debris.
6. When lubricating remember that “less is more”. Your bolt and carrier do not have to be soaking wet. Extra lubricant will attract dust, dirt and debris when firing your carbine. A light coat or sheen is all that is needed.
7. Make sure the charging handle is not bent. Lateral stress is put on the charging handle during aggressive cycling and over time they will bend and the finish will wear on one side creating witness marks.
Charging handle lubrication points- common “witness marks” or silver areas
8. Utilize a q-tip, tooth pick or dental pick to clean carbon or chunks of debris out from around the trigger group. Visually verify the legs of the trigger spring are the same length and not broken.
Make sure a small amount of grease or lubricant is placed on rear of hammer where the trigger sear makes contact
9. During dedicated field stripping remove the action spring/buffer spring from the receiver extension and inspect. Remove the buffer from the spring and degrease along with spring. Lightly lubricate the spring before replacing buffer and spring into receiver extension.
10. Learn and understand the “Cycle of Operation” for your carbine: Feeding, Locking, Firing, Unlocking, Extracting, Ejecting, Cocking, Chambering. Understanding this cycle will aid in recognizing and diagnosing any malfunctions or problems experienced while firing your carbine.
Recommended Cleaning Tools, Solvents & Lubricants
Listed in the order I use them. No fancy cleaning tools are necessary to maintain a carbine. Field expeidient items found at any small mini-mart or box store can be utilized for 99% of carbine maintenance. However, good cleaning kits such as those manufactured by Otis are a good investment and can make the job easier. http://www.otisgun.com/
There are numerous degreasers and lubricants available on the market today ranging in price. Over the years I have tested/used pretty much all of them. The best degreaser I have found is Mil-Comms MC25. http://www.mil-comm.com/. For lubricants I now use and recommend Mobile One motor oil found at any box store, if these motor oils work in high performance vehicles and motorcycles they will certainly work in my carbine. A single container of Mobile One ($2.oo) will last several years. Use sparingly, apply a very small amount to the tip of a finger and then apply to common lubrication points.
- Paper towels
- Tooth picks
- Q-Tips
- Green Scouring Pad
- Small screw driver
- Dental pick
- Brass & nylon brush
- Pipe cleaners
- Bore Snake
- Chamber brush & rod
- Mobile One 30W
- MC25 Cleaner/Degreaser (Milcom)
- Hoppe’s Elite (spray bottle)
- Hoppe’s #9 bore cleaner (for soaking parts overnight)
- Lubriplate (or other white lithium grease, see boating department)
- TW25b or Tetragrease (grease with Teflon suspensions from Milcom)
About Chris Fry
Chris is the owner and director of training and curriculum development for Modern Defensive Training Systems in Utica, NY where he conducts courses in reality driven practical combatives skills, extreme close quarters physical defense, tactical folding knife and edged weapon combatives and combative pistol, carbine and shotgun skills. Chris has been an active instructor with Progressive F.O.R.C.E. Concepts in Nevada since 2003, servicing law enforcement, military and select government agencies. Chris is a certified AR15/M4/M16 and Glock armorer, contributor to various online firearms resource websites and a frequent presenter at national and international personal protection and small arms training conferences for both citizens and law enforcement.
For more information or to locate carbine, shotgun or pistol training in your area see: http://www.mdtstraining.com
Emerson La Griffe neck knife review by Chris Fry of MDTS Training
Last fall I was admiring knives at the Rochester gun show when I ran across this small knife. I passed on it so I could do a little research on the internet having never owned an Emerson knife before. It got a lot of praise so I decided to pick it up the next day. The next weekend I was at the Syracuse gun show and got to see how Chris Fry has his La Griffe set up for carry. Chris got rid of the neck chain and rigged his kydex sheath up for belt carry, a much more accessible location. I wanted to write a review of the knife but knowing that my defensive knife knowledge is limited I sought out someone who could write an intelligent review of it. Chris Fry of MDTS Training was kind enough to do just that. You can read the review on Chris’ website here.
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