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SEPTEMBER 17, 2020

Team SIG Captain and pro shooter Max Michel has become the first-ever Carry-Optics Division competitor to take the Overall Championship title at the recent 2020 USPS Area 5 Championship.
Hornady congratulates team members Mark Cooper and Robert Brantley on their performance at the Federal Gold Medal PRS Match, September 11 in Carbon Hill, Alabama.
A Girl & A Gun Women’s Shooting League hosted twelve law enforcement officers for the 4th Annual ‘Back the Women in Blue’ Presented by SIG SAUER. The event took place Sept 9-11, 2020, in at the Round Rock Public Safety Training Center.

The largest-ever number of Second Amendment activists has pre-registered for this coming weekend’s 35th annual Gun Rights Policy Conference, which will be held entirely online Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 19-20, with more than 120 speakers, including several VIP guests.
Galco offers multiple holsters for handguns with red dot optical sights.These include the BlakGuard belt holster, the Ankle Guard, the Corvus belt/IWB holster and more.
Sellmark Corporation announced its participation in the GunBroker Charity Auction. This auction will benefit the Dallas Chapter of Brotherhood For the Fallen, an organization dedicated to supporting the families and departments of police officers that have been murdered in the line of duty across the United States.

RSR Group, Inc. welcomes Aero Precision, Inc. products to its offerings. Aero Precision manufactures mil-spec parts and accessories, AR-15 upper and lower receivers as well as VG6 Precision muzzle devices which are now available for purchase through RSR Group.
Primary Arms has announced the promotion of Wilson Calil from Senior Digital Marketing and Acquisition Manager to Director of Inbound Marketing. In this role, Wilson will be overseeing important inbound marketing initiatives and strategies.
The National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action announced a new donation match campaign with Kimber Manufacturing. The firearms maker has generously pledged to match up to $200,000 in donations made to NRA-ILA through Nov. 15.

Sellmark Corporation announced its participation in the GunBroker Charity Auction to benefit the Texas Game Warden Association. The TGWA is dedicated to wilderness conservation and introducing children to the value of land and wildlife.
Springfield Armory CEO Dennis Reese is proud to announce the hiring of Russell H. Datson IV as Vice President of Sales. Datson will be working closely in this new role with Peggy Hickenbottom, Vice President of Distribution & Customer Service.
Nightstick adds to the TSM Series of subcompact weapon lights with the TSM-13G (white light, green laser). Designed to mount to the front of the SIG P365, P365XL and P365 SAS pistols, the light features the MagMate USB charging cable.

Karl Rehn, of KR Training, partnered with national preparedness trainer and author Paul Martin to develop a series of videos aimed at helping citizens quickly and effectively better prepare themselves for a wide spectrum of perils.
The National Shooting Sports Foundation has issued Information on Hotel Cancellation Policies, regarding the reservations for SHOT Show 2021.
In steadfast support of the law enforcement community across America, FMG Publications is relaunching one of its signature brands, American COP, in an online-only format. Industry veteran Denny Hansen serves as editor of the revived title that first debuted in 2005.

NSSF announced that Smith & Wesson has agreed to sponsor a “+ONE Concealed Carry” Gearbox Giveaway in support of 2020’s National Shooting Sports Month and the #RangeChallenge Summer Shots Series.

SIGHTRON announced that they are partnering with On Target Magazine, Weatherby and Hornady for the “Fall Hunting Giveaway” promotion. SIGHTRON has donated a 30mm S-TAC 4-20x50mm duplex reticle premium riflescope, valued at over $700 for this prize package.
 

The AR pistol has come a long way, especially the handgun caliber platforms. While the first pistol designs did experience growing pains, at this time there are lots of viable options to examine. The CMMG “Banshee,” which a friend of mine recently bought, is a perfect example of the new breed of pistols.

Colt introduced the original AR “pistol” – the 9mm AR - SMG R0635 - in 1982. After discovering the gas impingement system in the M16/AR15, firing from an open bolt, didn’t work well they went with a blowback system, firing from a closed bolt, using a standard M16/AR15 lower receiver with an adapter to accept modified 9mm UZI magazines. Since then, and after a lot of other “experiments,” handgun caliber carbines and pistols have gained new traction, and a lot of reliability.

The Banshee I fired is the “300” series in .45 ACP. The five-inch barrel is threaded, and covered with a CMMG M-Lok handguard. The receivers are forged – with an integrated trigger guard on the lower, an ambi-safety, MOE grip, and single stage mil-spec trigger. Weight is 4lbs 9oz. with a total length of 19.2” when the CMMG “Micro/CQB RipBrace” is collapsed. A Cerakote finish tops everything off, and it’s available in a variety of colors. You feed it with Glock mags.

My shootin’ ‘n training buddy Ed brought the Banshee over to zero the red-dot. I wasn’t really expecting to like it; now I’m kinda' wishing I had one. The pistol is light, especially with standard capacity pistol mags. It was reliable, even with some very questionable old Israeli training ammo that had a weird truncated bullet. I had some nice carry ammo to test, but ran out of time.Even with I.M.I. ammo it was accurate enough to hit headshots at seventy-five yards. I have no doubt better ammo, and discovering what the Banshee likes best, would have improved accuracy.

Ed had installed an ALG Defense Advanced Combat Trigger, so getting a good clean break was no problem. The Aimpoint dot made it easy to obtain and hold a steady sight picture. Take your time, follow the fundamentals of accuracy – Aim, Hold, Press and Follow-Through – and you were rewarded with a hit every time. The light recoil made it easy to follow up with as many accurate shots as the mag held.

The more types and calibers of AR pistols I fire the more I like them. (I recently got the fire Ruger’s new PC Charger pistol in 9mm, and while not an AR platform I like it, too.). They’ve got some great application for self-defense, especially for home defense. Plus, you can’t deny the fun factor of shooting a great weapon, that’s reliable and accurate. Take a platform like this, add personal touches like light, lanyard/sling and maybe a suppressor – which really tames noise and recoil on a handgun caliber – and you’ve got a great package that fits a lot of needs. And someday, when the ammo shortage is a thing of the past, handgun rounds will still be cheaper than rifle ammo.

Tiger McKee is director of Shootrite Firearms Academy, which is celebrating its twenty-fifth anniversary. He is the author of The Book of Two Guns, AR-15 Skills and Drills, has a regular column in American Handgunner and makes some cool knives and custom revolvers. Visit Shootrite’s Facebook page for other details.

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