The photo pictured above is a picture of a pre-production prototype of the forthcoming Leitner-Wise Manufacturing “ambidextrous fire controls” system. LWM is run by Paul Leitner-Wise, an English-born engineer and designer who may be the best thing to come out of England since Henry Nock. You may remember Paul from the storied institutions known as LWRC (Leitner Wise Rifle Company).
The new ambi selector is just the latest of many new projects coming from LWM. Machined from billet and then Nitrided, it will have a full lifetime warranty and are designed primarily for use with gloves. To that end the levers are short, so as to avoid interference with a trigger finger, and the edges deburred so they provide sufficient ‘grab’ without sharp edges. The Nitriding is done to provide lubricity to the operations. Color is the result of the manufacturer’s in-house heat treatment.
Agilite, a tactical gear company based in Rehovot (about a half an hour from Tel Aviv), is looking for “extreme climbers and adventurers” for their forthcoming Agilite Outdoor branch. They are looking for “professional adventurers and extreme climbers who are interested in taking part in the evaluation and R&D of our new static and dynamic rope lines for the upcoming Agilite Outdoor.”
Applicants should be able to provide a legitimate background justifying why AO would pick them – evaluators will be in the company of a tough group. As an example, one of the initial designer-evaluators (pictured to the right ascending a cave in the Negev Desert) was in the Israeli Defense Force’s 101st Paratrooper Brigade before being shot in the Al-Atatra neighborhood of the Gaza Strip during Operation Cast Lead five years ago. He was rescued by 669 (the IDF equivalent of PJs) and eventually returned to his unit and then went to work for Agilite when he left the military. T&E on the new rope line also being conducted by elements of Yamam (Israel’s top counter-terrorism unit) and the USAF PJ school in Albuquerque.
“People ask what our employment process involves and I usually joke that it starts with being shot and rescued,” said Agilite’s Elie Isaacson. “But we won’t make military service, being shot up or blown up a requirement for Agilite Outdoor evaluators!”
If you’re interested, apply to info@agilitegear.com.
The debate over mobility versus protection and complaints from the field is by no means new. However, the recent focus on “returning [the Corps] to its high-mobility, high-tempo expeditionary roots” make it seem to be the source of newly focused attention.
Marine Corps System Command, Marine Corps Capabilities Directorate and others are participating in the Marine Corps Load Effect Assessment Program and “Lighten the Load” initiative.
“A middleweight fighter can fight one weight class down or one weight class up,” said George Solhan, Director of Marine Corps Science and Technology, echoing the sentiment of Marine Commandant Gen. James Amos, who originally compared the Marine Corps to a middleweight boxer. [click to continue…]
There are a number of different types of training ammunition, from blank cartridges requiring a BFA to cycle the bolt, to marker cartridges for force on force training to ‘snap caps’. The latter are frequently a source of contention among those who argue the relative merit and risk of dry-firing and function-testing, both with and without a snap-cap. (This debate frequently devolves into more specific arguments about rimfire vs. centerfire and semi-auto vs. revolver.)
There are some incredible gunsmiths out there when it comes to the Kalash. Jim Fuller is one, obviously (someday I’ll get to take the Rifle Dynamics AK Builder Class). Owen Martin appears to be another (I’m still aggravated I couldn’t attend the Shoot Heard Around the World).
There are others of course, but I’ve never before seen or heard of anyone or anything quite like Jimmy DiResta working an AK this way.
I made a Claymore Mine out of popsicle sticks once.
Monday we ran a short article about the Tiny Monster that generated a lot of interest. If you have the time to invest, here is a pretty thorough video review by Patriot 36.
It is an annual tradition. In memory of founder Logan Coffey and in honor of his birthday, Tactical Tailor has a Founder’s Day Sale, from 1 through 7 May – during that sale everything manufactured by Tactical Tailor will be 35% off. You have access to everything on line of course, but if you happen to be in the area – such as JBLM – they would love for you to come by their brick-and-mortar store.
“This is an important sale for obvious reasons,” Tactical Tailor CEO Casey Ingels says. “We’re remembering Logan, and of course gear is never discounted like this except on Founders Day. We really want it to be circulated. Tell everyone, like the guys at Lewis McChord, to come by the retail store. 12715 Pacific Highway South, Lakewood.”
Tactical Tailor says, “Tactical Tailor may have started small, but Logan Coffey’s idea for a custom tactical gear company was anything but. Beginning in his barracks room in the Army, Logan worked hard to build Tactical Tailor into the industry leading company that it is today. Logan may not be with us today, but the dedicated employees of the company he created ensure that his dreams and ideas continue to thrive.”
(That’s 12715 Pacific Highway South, Lakewood WA 98499.)
