Do you know someone getting started in the shooting sports? Or perhaps you know shotgun or rifle shooters who want to improve their handgun skills because they have obtained CCW pistol permits? Then here is a good resource for those shooters-in-training. Smith & Wesson GUNSMARTS is a new video series that covers the key points of firearm ownership, from purchasing a pistol, to shooting techniques, gun safety, and storage. While this 38-part series does include some rifle-centric videos, it is mostly focused on handgun training, as you might expect from Smith & Wesson.
The GUNSMARTS series has 38 different videos covering gun safety, gun operation, marksmanship, maintenance, and secure storage. There are both general videos about gun handling and very specific videos about topics such as sight alignment, magazine loading, optics and more. Here are six of the best videos in the series. You will find 32 more on the Smith & Wesson Gunsmarts Playlist Page.
10 Tips for Your First Visit to the Range
Shooting Fundamentals — Sight Picture and Sight Alignment
Handgun Skills — Grip Pressure
Concealed Carry Positions and Holster/Belt Options
Considerations When Purchasing Your First Firearm
Share the post "Learn Shooting Fundamentals with “Gun Smarts” Video Series"
Do you know someone getting started in the shooting sports? Or perhaps you know shotgun or rifle shooters who want to improve their handgun skills because they have obtained CCW pistol permits? Then here is a good resource for those shooters-in-training. Smith & Wesson GUNSMARTS is a new video series that covers the key points of firearm ownership, from purchasing a pistol, to shooting techniques, gun safety, and storage. While this 38-part series does include some rifle-centric videos, it is mostly focused on handgun training, as you might expect from Smith & Wesson.
The GUNSMARTS series has 38 different videos covering gun safety, gun operation, marksmanship, maintenance, and secure storage. There are both general videos about gun handling and very specific videos about topics such as sight alignment, magazine loading, optics and more. Here are six of the best videos in the series. You will find 32 more on the Smith & Wesson Gunsmarts Playlist Page.
10 Tips for Your First Visit to the Range
Shooting Fundamentals — Sight Picture and Sight Alignment
Handgun Skills — Grip Pressure
Concealed Carry Positions and Holster/Belt Options
Considerations When Purchasing Your First Firearm
Share the post "Gunsmarts Video Series from S&W — Safety and Gun Handling"
If you have a match, hunting, or tactical rifle that needs a little more “stiction” in the grip or fore-arm areas, particularly in wet or humid conditions, consider adding a non-slip coating to the stock. This is easily done with inexpensive materials. R+D Precision has a simple do-it-yourself procedure for adding texture to your stock. Be forewarned — this is basically a permanent addition to your stock, so you might want to practice first. Also the application of the bedding compound will change the color of the stock, so you may want to re-finish the stock.
Marking the Area to Texture with Steel-Bed or Similar Material
Tape off the area you want to put the texture. Spread a very thin coat of the Steel-Bed on the stock, just enough to cover the area. This can be done using Marine-Tex or Steel-Bed. Other products could be used but Steel-Bed is proven, and it’s what R+D prefers for the job.
Best Method for Applying Texture
Here is the secret to adding texture: Using the tongue depressor that is in the kit or something similar, BOUNCE the flat part of the stick on the still-wet bedding to get the textured effect. Once the bedding has dried for about an hour, and still kind of tacky, remove the tape, pulling at a sharp angle to leave a nice sharp edge. If the bedding has a sharp raised area where the tape was, wet your finger and rub along the edge and it will knock off the edge but still give that nice sharp transition.
Ed’s Public Safety, a gunshop in Georgia, has published photos of the New “Gen 4″ Glock handguns. The much-ballyhooed design changes for the Gen 4 Glocks are interesting, but hardly revolutionary. As expected, the new Glocks will have interchangeable backstraps. That’s probably a good thing.
Other noteworthy changes in the Gen 4 Glocks are a dual recoil spring, and an interchangeable magazine release that can be moved from right to left. The dual spring is a more modern design that may reduce perceived recoil somewhat. The mag release change is smart and makes the gun more user-friendly for southpaws. Glock is making new magazines for the Gen 4 Glocks that work with the interchangeable mag release. Older magazines can still be used with the new Gen 4 Glocks, but only when the mag release button is positioned on the left.
Design Change — Too Little, Too Late?
Unfortunately, with either of the two provided backstraps, Glock’s Gen 4 grip is still fat and blocky compared to many other pistols. Also the Gen 4 Glocks retain the prominent “backstrap bulge” or flare in the bottom 1/3 of the grip’s back edge. For many shooters this “Glock bulge” causes the gun to point poorly, and for this Editor, that bulge also causes the gun to twist more on recoil (since it pushes against one side of the base of the shooting hand). The first thing done by companies that modify Glock grips is to reduce the flare or bulge in the bottom of the grip. That makes the grip much more user-friendly for smaller hands. In this Editor’s opinion the bottom rear section of the Glock grip was an ergonomic mistake when it came out in 1982 and the Gen 4 redesign really does nothing to correct the flaw. The interchangeable backstraps are just a poor “band-aid fix” when a more fundamental redesign was needed.
Overall, we think that most of the Gen 4 design changes are positive, or at worst “neutral”, but this may be a case of “too little, too late”. We doubt if the redesigned Glock is sufficiently improved to grab much market share back from the Smith & Wesson M&P series and other handguns whose sales have cut into Glock’s lucrative police contracts and civilian sales. The Gen 4 Glocks offer a modest ergonomic improvement over previous models, but they still not as well-designed ergonomically as Smith’s M&P. We doubt that police agencies which have switched to M&Ps will find reason to go back to Glocks anytime soon — unless, of course, Glock radically drops its prices, which is unlikely.
Share the post "Photos of Gen 4 Glocks Reveal Notable Changes"
Glock has announced that it will introduce a new “Fourth Generation” Glock handgun with an interchangeable grip back-straps and improved ergonomics. The new “GEN-4″ Glock will probably be unveiled at the January 2010 SHOT Show in Las Vegas, though Glock hasn’t commited to a SHOT Show release. According to the Guns, Holsters & Gear Blog, “[GEN-4] Glocks are rumored to have a textured finish that is not nearly as aggressive as the RTF2 introduced at the 2009 SHOT Show. The new finish is said to be rougher than the prior generations, but easier on the hands and clothes than the RTF2.”
Glock has been hugely successful selling polymer-framed handguns to the law enforcement, military, and civilian markets. While Glocks enjoy an enviable reputation for durability and reliability, for many handgunners, Glock ergonomics are second rate. This editor has personally trained novice shooters with both a Glock 17 and Sig p226 9mm. More often than not, when the novices switch from the Glock to the Sig, their 10-yard groups shrink from basketball size to softball size — primarily because of the superior Sig grip size and shape. That’s not to say that Glocks are not accurate — they can be very accurate — it’s just that the Glock grip is far from ideal for many shooters.
For decades Glock has stubbornly refused to redesign or improve the grip on Glock handguns (other than adding finger grooves of questionable utility). Meanwhile, Beretta, Smith & Wesson, and Walther have offered polymer-framed handguns with more comfortable, ergonomic grips fitted with interchangeable grip back-straps. These “swappable” back-straps come in different sizes to provide a better, more custom fit for the shooter. Women with small hands, in particular, benefit from a thinner back-strap.
The success of Smith & Wesson in securing large police contracts for its adjustable-gripped, S&W M&P pistol has finally prompted Glock to come up with a major grip redesign. Glock has been losing market share as police departments nationwide have traded in their Glocks in favor of the more ergonomic Smith M&Ps.
Share the post "Redesigned "Gen-4" Glocks Slated for 2010 Release"
Glock has announced that it will introduce a new “Fourth Generation” Glock handgun with an interchangeable grip back-straps and improved ergonomics. The new “GEN-4″ Glock will probably be unveiled at the January 2010 SHOT Show in Las Vegas, though Glock hasn’t commited to a SHOT Show release. According to the 
For decades Glock has stubbornly refused to redesign or improve the grip on Glock handguns (other than adding finger grooves of questionable utility). Meanwhile, Beretta, Smith & Wesson, and Walther have offered polymer-framed handguns with more comfortable, ergonomic grips fitted with interchangeable grip back-straps. These “swappable” back-straps come in different sizes to provide a better, more custom fit for the shooter. Women with small hands, in particular, benefit from a thinner back-strap.
