A Not So Good New Product from Crimson Trace

Crimson Trace's new Defender Series Laser

Lasermax Centerfire

There are times when you have to wonder if people designing and approving new products for a designated market really have a good grasp of what people want and, more importantly, what people need. In this case, I believe Crimson Trace has missed the boat. In fact, they've gone and built a completely different boat designed for people who haven't expressed much of an interest in where the boat will be going.

Crimson Trace is noted for, among other things, building handgun lasers that have their "instant on" feature. An actuation switch mounted on the grip so that it comes on with a firm shooting grip. Many people like this feature. Many people don't.
Laserguard makes a similar laser with the activation switch in front of the trigger guard so that it is easily actuated, or not, by the shooter whenever her or she wishes to turn it on. Many people like this. Many people don't. So, both companies have staked out their markets for this type of laser sight.

Now, Crimson Trace has introduced the Defender Series which is, except for the form factor, basically the same sight as the Laserguard Centerfire. The actuation switch is different in shape and color (it's red on the CT, which is nonsensical to me since the shooter won't be looking for the switch anyway), and the laser shape is different from the Centerfire and from CT's own Laserguard, which I think is a big mistake and a significant issue.

Why? First, and least important, it signals a weakness in their design and innovation concepts. Functionally, the Defender is the same as the Lasermax Centerfire, only it's newer and going up against an established competitor with a proven track record.

Second. Price competition I think. The Defender and the Centerfire are both priced about the same, but CT's Laserguard series is significantly more costly.

Third. And most important from the perspective of people who conceal carry pistols with laser sights, now you are going to have to buy yet another holster.

If you are going to introduce a significant improvement in handgun laser technology and adaptation to the handgun, why reintroduce the wheel that has already been invented by someone else? I think this is basically a move to get some of Lasermax's Centerfire business.

As I've said directly to representatives of Crimson Trace and Laserguard, do your yourselves and us a favor. Develop and provide a reasonably priced semi-automatic handgun laser that does not require the customer to invest even more money in another holster. If you carry concealed, holsters are a big deal. Good ones are expensive, so take that laser sight MSRP of $129 and add about $80 for another holster, or $160 for two. Now, you are spending $200 to $300 for a $100 laser.

At the least, CT could have kept essentially the same form factor as their Laserguard with the change in switch position so that for those who have Laserguards, another holster would not be mandatory. Notice, too, that the Defender's form factor is such that it won't fit a moulded holster made for the Centerfire. So, you can't even try one out in your existing Centerfire holster.

In my opinion, I don't see any reason to go with the Defender Series since Lasermax is already there, and has been for some time with their switch-activated, under-the-slide laser, the Centerfire.

The Companies Behind the Lasers

From Crimson Trace's "Contact Us" page

Lasermax Genesis

As I noted earlier, when I began this project, the companies that make and stand behind their products are probably more important than the products themselves. Of course it is important that the products do the jobs they are meant to do, and that is difficult enough. Being open to customer inquiry, criticism, ideas and complaints is just as important. If your product is showing some defect, or perhaps a design flaw experienced by some users, it is vital that the company listen to those people. Perhaps there is little to be done, or it turns out to be a personal matter not directly related to the design and manufacture of the product, but sometimes there are changes and improvements that need to be, and can be done.

Competing products also live by reputation, especially in the world of laser sights. People now communicate frequently and at awesome volumes, thanks to the internet, email, blogs, forums, and so forth. Rumor and fact are often not distinguished and both can go "viral" over the internet. It is very difficult for a company to reacquire a former customer once the customer gets a bad taste for the company or product, whether that is justified or not. In the large corporation I retired from, the rule of thumb was it is ten times harder to regain a customer than to get a new one. So, for a continuing business striving to compete and build a great rep, customer service is more than a buzzword.

So, the way in which the two companies that are the subject of my comparison review of laser sights work with and relate to their customers, and to their reviewers is an important part of their reputation in the gun world. (Recall that LaserLyte has disappeared from the scene after an assurance that they would participate. That, in itself, is not a good sign for me.)

As was true with Lasermax, there has been an organizational change with Crimson Trace. I've contacted the new person who coordinates review projects in order to inform him of what I have now, how I intend to proceed and if Crimson Trace wants to more fully participate.

According to Crimson Trace's Contact Us page, this is what they have to say about customer service:

At Crimson Trace, our goal is not to meet your needs.  Nor is it to exceed your expectations.  Our goal is to create a “Raving Fan” out of you.  To us, customer service isn’t simply answering your questions, tracking your shipment, or talking you through installation.  To us, customer service is making your experience with our brand shine so brightly that you’re amazed.  That you’ll tell others about your experience.  That you’re not just a customer.  You’re a Raving Fan!

From the Lasermax site, their Contact page:

Contact Us:

Have a question? There are lots of ways to reach out to LaserMax and we
would love to hear from you. Use any of the methods below and let us provide
the exemplary customer service you've grown to expect from LaserMax.

I'm looking forward to seeing how this works.

I learn something new, if not every day, frequently

Today I learned a laser tip from Bob Pincus. I was cruising YouTube looking at firearm and self defense related videos when I spotted a few on lasers and handguns from Pincus on the Personal Defense Network 'channel'. In one, he demonstrates the advantage of lasers on small handguns like the Ruger LCP. The sights on this gun are extremely small and difficult to see, even if you highlight them with paint, which I've done. On a non-contrasting background, on one that's moving, it is very difficult for an average shooter to accurately pickup and sight a target with the standard sights. A laser makes this task much more reasonable. This is something that most of us know and has been discussed many times on the gun forums. However, there is another, and probably much more common, situation in which a laser, especially on smaller guns, is very useful.

There is an intermediate distance between a person and a possible attacker that is somewhere between right up close and personal, where if you need to resort to your weapon, you can automatically get your gun on target without even looking at it. You are fending off an assailant with your left hand and arm, your gun goes tight against the side of your chest point at the assailant's torso (which is inches away from you) and you have an almost 100% opportunity to hit the target without looking. However, if the distance is about two arms length away, the intermediate zone, you can't draw and extend because that brings your weapon into the zone where your assailant can deflect or grab it easily. You need to keep your gun close to  your body, as with the up close example, and still be effective. You can't see the sights. The assailant is too far away to trust to blind pointing and shooting, but if you have a laser, you can light it up and see where the round is going without getting a sight picture.

I think this is a great argument for lasers on small to mid size self defense guns, and probably as valid for larger guns as well.

The next step in utilizing this information is to develop a dry fire routine that will train the muscles and reaction process in your brain to perform the intermediate draw, presentation and shoot.

Having a permit and carrying a handgun is much more than getting the right gun and holster, and practicing target shooting at the range. Learning basic handgun self defense tactics from some of the excellent videos available over the internet, or from respected programs on DVD is a fine way to learn and hone those skills. Most of us can't afford the personalized training classes which makes these videos valuable. One tip on practicing alone, in addition to SAFETY (Always use an unloaded weapon. In fact, make sure ammunition is not even in the vicinity or where you practice.) is to set up a video camera and watch yourself to pick up on where you need improvement. A cheap camera will do. Many computers have them built in, and most phones do too.

Laser sights and the holster dilemma. I propose a solution.

One of my favorite holsters - the pjholster OWB straight drop.

There is another less appreciated aspect to moving to laser sights for your handguns, especially if you primarily use them for concealed carry and self defense. Holsters.

Like most of you, I have somehow managed to acquire far too many holsters for my handguns. I'm not as holster rich as, say, Hickok45, but I have more than a few. Obviously, as we carry more and learn more and develop our own preferences for carry and weapons, our need and appreciation for different holsters grows. The one above, from pjholster.com is a quality example of the kydex holster maker's art. Light, rigid, thin, exact fit to the gun and a firm, foolproof clip integral to the holster which also provides tension adjustments. It's great. But, it won't fit my LC9 with a laser sight attached to it.

No big surprise there, but if I want to continue to use Paul's holster for concealed carry, I'll have to purchase another one from him. Obviously, you say. Yes, but I have more than one favorite holster per gun. Let's say I have one IWB and one OWB holster favorites for my guns. Say I have four pistols that I like to carry from time to time. That's eight new holsters I would have to buy in addition to the four sights, one per gun. This adds up in a hurry. Let's say a good holster costs in the range of $60 - $100. For one gun I'd be laying out say $100 (average) for the laser, plus $120 to $200 for two holsters. Worst case, that's $300. A big bite especially for a old guy on a tight budget.

But, there is really no way around this dilemma. And, it is a big issue for laser sight makers.

Now, I am fortunate in that I can try out a few laser sights to see if they are worth having, given my shooting style and preferences. If I like the idea, I will need to figure out the holster dilemma and maybe consign some of my favorite non-laser holsters to the obsolete pile, or put them up on eBay for cheap.

A call for a solution

I suspect it is possible, given a budget and some ingenuity, for a laser sight maker to come up with a workable design that would remove the requirement for us to purchase new holsters for our laser equipped guns. Guide rod lasers are one solution for larger semi-autos and bigger budgets. I personally like the idea of a laser that fits around the grips, with the sight itself positioned along the side of the pistol. Some makers have this model, but they are mainly for revolvers and larger frame semi-autos, but not all of them. For example, the Ruger SR9c and similar size guns are reliable, popular carry pieces, but you don't see grip lasers available for them that would eliminate the need to go out and buy yet another holster.

I've put the idea forward to different laser manufacturers, but so far I have had no response. I know that the electronics are now small enough to not impede such a design. I suspect that if a company were to develop and market a laser sight system that fit the grips of most popular semi-autos, one that is thin at the grip end and does not interfere with most existing holster designs, and sold at similar pricing as the current crop of clamp on the frame sights, they'd make a killing.

No one has taken me up on that.

Lasermax: Getting the laser on the gun and how it differs from Crimson Trace

Right side snapped in place

The necessary parts

How the right side grips the trigger guard

Left side in place

How the two sides mate up after installation

This part is so easy you honestly don't need instructions. Really. On my unit, the battery was already in place. Looking at the parts it is obvious what goes where. Once the right side is snapped onto the trigger guard, lock the left into it at the bottom of the trigger guard, press the sides together while you place the two self-tapping screws and tighten them down. Don't overdo it of course.

That's it.

As to sighting the laser, use the small Allen wrench provided. Line up a standard sight pattern with your iron sights, check where the red dot falls and tweak the adjustment screws a slight amount at a time until you bring the two together at the distance you want. For me, that is about 10-12 feet. I'm not toting a target gun here.

Done.

I've had the opportunity to test the red laser beam in the daylight and I'd say for normal self-defense distances, even out to twenty or thirty feet, it is plenty bright in sunlight for me to easily pick up. At low light, and at night, it pops - a bright wavering dot impossible to miss. (Wavering is because I can't hold a pistol rock steady. I thought I could, but the laser tells me differently.)

On the draw from the holster, assuming you do it correctly, your trigger finger (no, it's not the booger hook on the bang switch. I don't find that cute, but moronic. This isn't a plaything. It's a gun. Relate to it like one.)

Anyway, rant aside for now, your trigger finger should be extended alongside the pistol which puts it right over the Lasermax on/off switch. Your finger should remain there until you decide to shoot and by firmly sliding the fingertip along the Laser body, where your finger should be resting already. As you move your finger to the trigger it will easily actuate the laser. You can, of course, decide to actuate it without moving your finger to the trigger and this is easily done with a press of that finger. Turning it off while holding the gun in a two hand stance is easy. The switch also protrudes from the left side, so use your finger on the support hand to flick it off.

This is the main and significant feature that differentiates the Lasermax Centerfire sights from the Crimson Trace Laserguard sights. As you probably know, CT (Crimson Trace) sights are made with an 'instant on' feature. A button on the butt strap, which falls naturally under your finger while curled around the grip of the pistol, actuates the CT. Gripping the gun firmly will do this. On the LM (Lasermax) Centerfire sights, the laser stays off until you purposefully switch it on.

Using the CT you don't have to worry about, or remember to, actuate the laser. You grip the gun properly and the laser comes on. Using the LM, the laser is only on when you want it on. The positives and negatives are these:

Negative: with the CT setup, you might actuate the laser when it would be better not to do so because it can reveal your position and the fact that you are armed, when you might not want that knowledge to be shared with someone out to get you. With the LM setup, actuating your laser sight requires a decisive and definite action that is not part of gun handling without a laser. You don't show your laser until you decide to. But, this is an action you have to train for so your unconscious will remember it. In other words, you have to make the decision to energize your laser and perform a separate movement which might impede rapid response.

Positive: with the CT setup, one does not have to think about actuating the laser. Grip the gun. It's on. With the LM, it's the opposite. One does not have to think about being revealed, because it's not on until you turn it on.

So, which of these is best. Or are neither the "best", but different responses to different possible scenarios? I haven't decided which I prefer yet. That is a big reason why I want to spend time with each laser system. Practicing with them and shooting with them will tell me which is the best system for me. I suspect it will vary with the individual, but I won't know for sure until I get more time in with the sights.

Let there be Light and Innovative Mag Carriers

Centerfire

Tight, red beams of light. Last week I received a number of laser sights from Lasermax for my evaluation project. I have been fitting them to my various handguns, getting used to them, removing and replacing them to see how that operation goes, and fitting them to my Remora holsters. One of the main reasons I'm using Remora holsters for the laser equipped pistols is that with a little modification by me - removing a couple of strategic seams - they fit laser equipped guns perfectly. For those of us who have holsters for our non-laser guns, this is a good thing, especially as the will still readily accommodate the same pistol with or without laser sights.

I will be reporting on the Lasermax Centerfire laser sights for the LCP and the LC9 (which also fits the new LC380) pistols, and the Lasermax Micro for the rail equipped SR9c.

Micro

The Micro excepted, the initial differences between the Crimson Trace and Lasermax sights are form factor, mounting hardware and switch activation. Both are easy to install or remove, requiring no more than five minutes (if you are slow). Their form factors are very close, the CT having a slightly thinner footprint except for the extension of the sight frame to the grip strap, which the Lasermax does not need. As an indication of the form difference, the Uncle George back pocket holster I have for my LCP/CT combination will also accommodate the LCP/LM but it's a little tight for the LM. Some break in will be necessary to expand the Uncle George a small amount to more easily accommodate the LM. It is a nit, really, as the LM equipped LCP fits well enough to carry, and will loosen over time, or with Uncle George's hair dryer trick.

I will have more detailed comparison information as time goes on, and hopefully a few more holster choices for both sights.

I have learned one thing already - I feel that having a laser sight on a small self-defense handgun is a positive factor. There have been many discussions regarding the usefulness of lasers on handguns. Many opponents cite factors such as "something else to fail", "dependence on acquiring the 'red dot'", "usefulness in the daylight", and so on. I will be addressing these objections later, but I will say now that I'm thinking that it is not wise to discard a option that stacks the odds more in your favor. Especially since I believe it is incumbent on the person who takes the responsibility of carrying a weapon to be able to only hit what one shoots at. There is no excuse for putting innocent people in danger. To this end, a laser sight can pay big dividends under certain situations. Considering that the vast majority of handgun owners are mediocre to poor marksmen in the ordinary case, and many will become poor to downright dangerous when the adrenaline is surging, the heart pounding and you see the elephant, having a laser to guide your shots is a really important advantage.

More light on this subject a little later.

Kytex Mag Carriers

I have the opportunity to try out a couple of the nifty and innovative Kytex magazine carriers. These are truly the most interesting and innovative mag carriers going. Check out the video on their various models here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APLd4SopfP8

And their own website at: http://www.kytexgear.com

These are made from a single sheet of kydex, folded ingeniously to create the mag holder itself, with automatic tensioning that still releases the magazine with little effort but keeps it firmly in place, and folds around to create the belt clip. No brads, screws or seams. One piece. Light weight and easy to use. Additionally, the design ensures that the magazine is always carried in the correct orientation, specified by you. Bullets forward or back. Your choice.

I have tried to find some flaw with this design or its execution. I at first thought that the little tabs on the ends of the belt clip would make it difficult to put on. No. In fact, they act as a kind of guide to help move it initially over the belt, and handy places to put finger leverage when removing the carrier. And, most helpful, keep the carrier on your belt so it can't slip up and over. Very cool.

So, I can't find anything at all to complain about. Even the price is less than most kydex makers charge for their wares.

My recommendation - if you need, or just want, the best kydex mag carrier that I have tried, get a Kytex. Or two or three.

Ignorance - for people who carry concealed, it can be tragic

People who like guns and have a concealed carry permit most often focus on guns, caliber, holsters, concealment and other every day topics that keep us entertained and up to date. However, today, I saw and responded to a disturbing thread on a gun forum that dealt with none of these things.

The poster related an incident that could happen to anyone, but his attitude toward it and his responsibility as a gun owner - it's not a situation that is confined to concealed carry - was ill informed, based more on folklore than fact, and perhaps too common. In brief, the situation was this, and I'm paraphrasing and leaving out any identifying details.

The gun owner and his friends were sitting on his property enjoying their conversation when an adult male, riding a bicycle appeared and began riding around on the gun owner's property, and making stupid remarks. The bicycle guy was asked to leave repeatedly and finally rode off uttering generally threatening remarks and bad language. Then the bicycle guy returned. The gun owner sent his guests into the house and confronted Mr Bicycle Man, who at one point moved his hand toward his hoodie pocket at which time the gun owner drew his pistol so the bicycle man could see it, but didn't point it at him. Bicycle man rode away, mouthing threats.

Well, there are probably a few things the gun owner did wrong, or on the edge of wrong, but the most disturbing thing was the follow up posts. These were from the gun owner and a few other forum members, the essence of which is that the gun owner stated that he was within his legal rights to shoot someone who is trespassing on his property and refuses to "follow orders" to leave.

This is undoubtedly wrong, regardless of the state in which Mr. Gun Owner resides. It is wrong, both legally and ethically. I certainly am not familiar with every state statute on defensive shooting, but I will say that I believe there is a requirement on the part of the shooter to know, without a reasonable doubt, that he, or some innocent person at the scene, is threatened with severe bodily harm or death and the person threatening this has demonstrated the means to do so.

Carrying or having access to a firearm should make one more responsible and less willing to engage in confrontations for that very reason. If I have a legally sanctioned carry gun and some bozo wants to argue, insult and question my manhood, well, fine. I don't have to bite. I know that I have the means to defend myself if I am significantly threatened and frankly, I don't really care what other people on the scene may think. I know I am armed. The others don't. And I intend to keep it that way.

So, once again, people who have guns, especially those who carry legally, have a serious and constant burden to know the law and to know when deadly force, or the threat of it, is appropriate, legally and morally.

The scenario I proposed to Mr. Gun Owner who posted on the forum was this: suppose a twenty-something male, dirty, oddly dressed and mostly incoherent appeared on his property. Mr. Gun Owner argues with the man and orders him to leave his property. The man doesn't comply but continues to wander around raving incoherently, maybe walking toward the Gun Owner's house. The Gun Owner decides the other guy is freaking him out, doesn't know what he might do and besides, has not followed orders to leave the property, so he shoots the raving man. Afterward, Mr. Gun Owner is informed by the police that the raving man was an honorably discharged veteran who was undergoing treatment for PTSD, tended to get confused and babble when off his meds and had wandered away from home where he was being cared for by his elderly parents and was confused and looking for help.

The responsible gun owner cannot resort to deadly force unless there is no other viable alternative present at the time. Period.

I'm not a lawyer, or am I offering this as legal advice. I'm saying, know your legal and moral requirements if you carry or own a gun. From what I have seen on various gun forums, many people do not.

Myth Busting: Non-traditional Carry Positions

Cruising through some gun forums focused on defensive or self defense use of handguns, I saw a few posts that asked questions like, how do you carry? Now, as some of you know, I'm not locked into one particular position, but I do tend to favor cross draw and appendix carry because I'm not on my feet all day. I'm sitting, standing, sitting, walking, sitting. In the car. Out of the car. You know the drill. I find carrying in front of my body is more comfortable and provides both easy access when sitting and my gun is more protectable - less vulnerable from detection whether in a crowd or from someone at a social event from bumping into me, or from an attempted snatch.

I discovered a video by Rob Pincus that demonstrates very well the advantages, and, get ready for it, safety inherent in appendix carry. I would say this also applies to cross draw.

Take a look at the video and draw your own conclusions.

Rob Pincus demonstrates the advantages of appendix carry

Another View: Ruger Magazine Disconnect Safety and Holsters with Attached Mag Pouch

It is Sunday, so it is time to debunk a couple of myths. 

Myth one: there is no practical reason for Ruger, on most of their semi-auto pistols to include a magazine disconnect safety. (The LCP is an exception to this rule.)

While it is true that many people do not like this feature, that is not to say that it is without merit or was included solely to meet certain state requirements for sales. I thought this for a while, but some blogger (and I'm sorry I don't recall who or I would certainly give credit here) pointed out that a very good reason it is there is to provide a safety in the circumstance when the magazine is removed and there remains a round in the chamber.

In order to rack the slide to remove the loaded round, on a Ruger one must put the manual safety on FIRE. So, at that point, the gun is cocked, a round is in the chamber and it's off safe. Nudge the trigger, or perhaps drop it and it lands the wrong way, and bang! you have a negligent discharge, with possibly injury or worse. So, with the magazine disconnect in place and operational, even though the manual safety is off, and a round is loaded in the chamber, the gun won't fire. One can rack and remove the round with a safety still operative.

I think most people who remove the magazine disconnect safety mechanism from their guns do so because they envision a situation in which, for some reason or other, the magazine drops from their gun when they are about to fire a round in a desperate circumstance. I'm not sure why this would happen, although I'll bet there are many who can concoct scenarios in which it would. I think the odds are extremely slim and, personally, I'd rather have an extra margin of safety operative for the many times I will be removing a round from the chamber of my loaded Ruger and trust that my magazine will be in place when I need to fire the weapon.

Myth two: Using a holster that incorporates a built-in mag pouch is more of a liability than an asset. This reasoning is based on the notion that if one has the holster on the same side of the body as the shooting hand, reaching across the body with the other hand for the magazine is either impossible, awkward, slow or just plain wrong.

Obviously, if one wears such a rig and carries either cross-draw or appendix, this argument loses all force. It's no more difficult to reach for the mag in those positions with the non shooting hand than it is to reach behind your hip with the same hand for an extra mag. And, as I've noted here before, there are many good reasons (myth busters, too) for a concealed carry being in the cross draw position.

I have a Remora holster for my LCP with the built in mag carrier, provided kindly by Alan of Remora for me to test this theory. I've been wearing it strong side, at about the 3:30 to 4:00 position for the LCP. The magazine rides a little forward of this at 2:30 to 3:00 o'clock, depending. Now, I have found that it is absolutely no issue to reach the top of my right hip with my left hand and pluck the magazine from the holster. In fact, with a two hand grip on the gun, my weak (left) hand is equally distant from a magazine worn on either hip, and it is closer to the mag that sits on, or in front of my right hip. When I wear a mag holder on my left side, for comfort it's usually somewhat behind the left hip, putting it actually farther away from my left hand than the mag on the holster.

An actual advantage of having a holster with an attached mag holder is two fold. One, when you grab the gun and holster, you also automatically grab an extra magazine. Two, especially with the Remora holster, the holster/mag pouch combination is longer and "flatter" than the holster alone, providing more friction area to keep it in place, and more area to spread the load making it even more comfortable.

Well, that's it for myth busting today. I'll be looking for more myths to bust, or at least expose as time goes on.

Thanks for reading, and be safe.

Lasermax Update!

I can begin this post with the assurance that Murphy is alive and well. As you probably know, Murphy's Law states that if anything possibly can go wrong, it will.

After moderating many pro and con laser sight discussions on the old Elsie Pea Forum, and being pretty much on the fence myself, I concocted the idea that if I could get samples of the different, popular laser sights for a handgun, I could evaluate them, test out their usefulness for me and report on what I found. I got a Crimson Trace laserguard pretty quickly. The Laserlyte people promised a sample, but then didn't come through or respond to my subsequent emails. The Lasermax folks were cooperative and got me to the right person to set this up. Then, things fell between the cracks.

After a few emails, I discovered that the original person handling these situations was no longer with the company, and her replacement made contact with me. She liked the idea and we began to discuss how the evaluation and review would be handled. Then more delays. I was getting frustrated with the lack of progress and posted about this here. Then, I re-established contact and we both discovered that Murphy had been at work.

The order meant to send the evaluation items to me had entered their provisioning system, then got canceled. No one knows why as yet, but they are checking into it. They obviously don't want that happening in their ordering and provisioning systems. Then, my contact in Public Relations discovered that my later emails were being directed into her junk mail folder. I wasn't the only one, it turned out. Other important contacts' emails were also being mistakenly routed to the junk mail folder. Strangely, this exact thing had happened to me on a day before. Sometimes, software is too smart for its own good.

Anyway, I think we are back on track. As I see it, this was one of those things that sometimes happens in business, and life, where a few things get off track due really to no one's fault. I should have some review items from Lasermax soon, and I can get my comparison study underweigh.

I want to thank Lasermax for being responsive and tracking down the issues that we experienced. I think one big lesson in all this is to work with other parties to resolve issues instead of jumping to conclusions and slamming people or companies without justification. It resolves around assumptions. Almost every time I've made an assumption about an issue and acted on it, without asking questions and trying to understand all of the facts and circumstances involved, I've made a mistake.

So, a big thank you to Lasermax for hanging on to good customer service like a dog on a bone. It's good to find a company that understands their customers are what keeps them in business.