USCCA Announces Dates for Concealed Carry Expo 2021
The USCCA has announced the dates for the 2021 Concealed Carry & Home Defense Expo – a three day consumer show for those interested CCW, self defense, and home protection.
The event, scheduled (COVID restrictions permitting) to be held April 16-18, is headed back to Nashville and will be at the downtown Music City Center.
The Concealed Carry Expo gives attendees the opportunity to meet face-to-face with manufacturers of their favorite firearms and gear – something not possible at the industry-only SHOT Show held in January. There, they can ask questions and get hands on experience with the latest firearms and get some news about what’s coming next.
While general admission attendance costs $15-20, USCCA members get into the show for free. In addition to the exhibit hall, the expo also features a series of seminars covering topics including Women’s Introduction to Handguns, Intruder Awareness, Church Security, Close-Quarters Shooting, and Family Firearms Safety. At previous USCCA Expos that the GunLink Team has attended, the show floor even offered a live-fire shooting range to try out just-introduced handguns.
For more details, visit the official USCCA Concealed Carry and Home Defense Expo website at https://www.usccaexpo.com/
Concealed Carry Basics Part 3: CCW Belts
Don’t Underestimate this Important Piece of Carry Gear
This is the third installment in the Concealed Carry Basics series. In Part 1, we addressed the factors involved in choosing the right firearm for you to carry. In Part 2, we brought up a number of considerations in choosing one of the main pieces of carry equipment: the holster.
As mentioned in the holsters piece, one of the most common means of concealed or openly carrying a firearm is “on the hip” or, rather, somewhere on the waist. Wherever you decide to carry on your waist, it is important to have a good holster that is well fitting, comfortable, secure, and easy to access. Lots of CCW-ers put a lot of time, effort, and money into finding the right holster but overlook another piece of equipment that is equally (or more) important: the belt. Here, in Part 3 of the series, we will address that.
If you haven’t already, be sure to catch up on Part 1 and Part 2 of the series. If you are starting from scratch, head over to Firearms 101 for the basics on what firearms are, how they work, and commonly used acronyms.
So, do you really need a special belt to carry your firearm?
Like everything else, the answer is completely subjective and it will depend on what you are carrying, where you carrying it, and how you are carrying it. However, a good number of the issues that concealed carriers run into (which can sometimes convince them to stop carrying) can be easily solved with a belt upgrade, which is hard to believe until you have tried it. Continue reading
Springfield Armory’s 10,000 Round Hellcat Test
The Hellcat from Springfield Armory has proven its mettle in a grueling 10,000-round test, showing that the EDC innovator not only has the features to make it the best on the market, but also the durability to outlast all the competition.
With support from Federal Ammunition and Action Targets, Off the Reservation’s Clay Martin put the Hellcat through this challenging test over the span of two days. Martin brought a wealth of firearms expertise to bear during the test, from his background as a competitive shooter as well as his time in both the U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Army, retiring as a Special Forces Intelligence Sergeant from 3rd SFG (A).
From its release on 9/25/19, the Hellcat has quickly built a reputation for excellent quality and performance, and represents a new direction for Springfield Armory polymer pistols. Being the smallest high-capacity 9mm in the world, the +P-capable pistol packs in 11+1 rounds (13+1 with extended magazine) in a 3″-barreled micro pistol that weighs around 18 ounces empty. And with the OSP version, you gain the ability to direct mount micro-sized red dot optics.
“When we learned of Martin’s test, we were excited about seeing the Hellcat prove what it could do,” says Steve Kramer, Vice President of Marketing with Springfield Armory. “When a micro-sized pistol designed for concealed carry bests a test more appropriate for full-sized duty pistols, it allows the quality of the product speak for itself,” he continued. Continue reading
Constitutional Carry OK in Oklahoma
The National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) welcomes Oklahoma as the newest constitutional carry state. Constitutional carry, now the law in 16 states across the country, allows law-abiding citizens to carry concealed firearms without first getting government permission to do.
The NRA-backed law, which takes effect Friday, Nov. 1, fully recognizes the constitutional right of law-abiding gun owners to carry a firearm openly or concealed without a permit.
“Government exists for the people, not the other way around. This law honors the right of law-abiding Oklahomans to defend themselves and their loved ones without begging for the government’s permission beforehand,” said Jason Ouimet, executive director, NRA-ILA. “The NRA fights for law-abiding gun owners because we recognize that our freedoms are fundamental and natural, not government-given.”
For nearly 10 years, the NRA has worked closely with the Oklahoma Second Amendment Association to make constitutional carry a reality in Oklahoma.
“After 112 years, constitutional carry returns the fundamental right to self-defense to every law-abiding Oklahoman,” said Don Spencer, president, Oklahoma Second Amendment Association. “By eliminating financial barriers imposed by government permitting schemes, constitutional carry ensures that law-abiding, but economically disadvantaged Oklahomans can always protect themselves in times of crisis.” Continue reading
Sig Sauer Brings New Innovation to Concealed Carry with the P365 SAS
Sig Sauer has announced new innovation to the award-winning everyday carry, high capacity, P365 pistol with the P365 SAS (SIG Anti-Snag).
“When it comes to innovation in firearms, SIG SAUER is the leader in the marketplace. With the introduction of the P365 we took the market by storm to quickly become the top-selling concealed carry pistol. With the P365 SAS, we have remained true to our core mission of innovation by once again raising the bar, and setting the standard, for concealed carry,” said Tom Taylor, Chief Marketing Officer, and Executive Vice President, Commercial Sales, SIG SAUER, Inc. “Our proprietary SAS technology removes all the snag points from the pistol, by integrating the sights directly into the slide with a flush-mounted FT Bullseye sight that’s intuitive, and easy for the untrained eye to pick-up for fast target acquisition whenever the need arises. The P365 SAS has no sights raised above the slide, and the takedown lever and slide stop are flush fit for ultimate smoothness and no snag risk. Once you see this innovation, you simply will not look at handgun sighting systems the same.”
The SIG SAUER P365 SAS is a 9mm, polymer, striker-fired pistol with a Nitron finish. The pistol features the SIG Anti-Snag technology slide treatment with a flush-mounted FT bullseye fiber-tritium night sight, flat controls, a ported slide and barrel for less muzzle flip, a high-capacity, patented modified double-stack magazine for a 10+1 full-size capacity, and ships with (1) 10-round magazine, and (1) 10-round extended magazine (12-round and 15-round magazines available separately.)
P365 SAS Specs:
- Total length: 5.8”
- Barrel length: 3.1”
- Weight (incl. magazine): 17.8 oz.
- Height: 4.1”
- Width: 1”
- Sight Radius: n/a
The SIG SAUER P365 SAS is now shipping and available at retailers. To learn more about the P365 SAS, or watch the product video with Phil Strader, Pistol Product Manager, visit sigsauer.com.
Springfield Challenges Micro 9mm Carry Market with New Hellcat
Springfield Armory Announces Hellcat: Worlds Highest Capacity Micro 9mm
Seeking to challenge the market segment currently ruled by Sig’s amazingly small 10-round micro-9, the P365, Springfield has announced their latest concealed carry wunderkind, the Hellcat. Although not big fans of the company, this new pistol has us genuinely curious. Although essentially impossible to find locally in our neck of the woods, we’re looking forward to handling the diminutive, well-capacitied, optic-ready pistol at SHOT Show and getting the opportunity to run some rounds through it at Industry Day at the Range in a couple of months.
Springfield’s announcement:
After years of development, we are proud to introduce the Hellcat, the highest capacity micro compact 9mm in the world and the next generation of defensive pistol from Springfield Armory.
“This is the first step in a new direction for Springfield Armory polymer handguns and embodies our disciplined approach to modern firearms design. Every detail of the Hellcat has been shaped by a singular mission — to deliver the definitive concealed carry handgun,” says Dennis Reese, CEO of Springfield Armory.
The 3″ barreled micro compact pistol features a class leading capacity of 11+1 with its patented magazine — 13+1 with the included extended mag — and is the result of years of painstaking development and engineering in addition to intensive collaboration with top engineers, shooters and self defense experts. Continue reading
