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.

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.