Tactical Life January/February 2023

In the early American Frontier days, Rendezvous (Rondy for short) was the annual event no mountain man would dare miss. Here’s how famed frontiersman Jim Beckwourth described Rondy: “Mirth, songs, dancing, shouting, trading, running, jumping, singing, racing, target-shooting, yarns, frolic, with all sorts of extravagances…” Grunge.com adds a bit more Rendezvous color: “Everyone was invited to the emergent wilderness shindig: traders, trappers, freelancers, preachers, ‘white men and Indians’, families, mules, and of course, big name companies. As soon as trading enterprises like the Northwest Company, the Rocky Mountain Fur Company, Hudson’s Bay Company, and the American Fur Company caught wind of the antics, they helped buoy the event’s popularity while liaising with each other and sending caravans of goods (including copious amounts of alcohol) to exchange for furs. The annual…

In its sixth year of bringing together the Athlon Outdoors editorial team and content creators with some of the best manufacturers in the shooting industry, the latest Rendezvous once again took to the harvested potato fields in the rolling hills of eastern Idaho. With the Grand Tetons on the horizon, the AO team of editors and content creators once again got a look at some of the latest gear to hit the market or, if lucky enough, a sneak peek of yet-to-be-announced firearms and accessories from more than 30 top-tier manufacturers. Mum’s the word on that gear for now, but we will be bringing those future products to the pages of various Athlon Outdoors print magazines and websites soon. But this amazing event wouldn’t have been possible without several key…

Shooting suppressed is one of the most enjoyable shooting experiences any shooter could have. In fact, it is so enjoyable that once you experience a suppressed range day, it may be hard to go back to anything else. No one understands this better than SilencerCo. SilencerCo has become a leading industry giant among suppressor manufacturers. This is quite an accomplishment from a company whose humble beginnings originated from working out of a garage. Now, positioned as one of the largest and most innovative manufacturing facilities in the nation, SilencerCo is leading the way with cutting-edge technology manufacturing some of the most sought-after suppressors on the market today. Their relentless passion for the shooting sports industry has enabled their company to zero in on the exact needs of shooters everywhere providing…

There are certain terms in the firearms industry that people just take as acceptable. Many of these terms have become part of the culture and are rarely if ever questioned. One such term is “mil-spec.” Milspec is a term that stands for “military specification.” For a firearm or part to be mil-spec, it must meet criteria defined by the military. These criteria include dimensions, materials and testing of parts. If we get into the weeds on this, though, civilian triggers aren’t truly mil-spec because they are designed for semi-automatic use. Regardless of the term confusion, the “mil-spec” trigger is a common part of most off-the-shelf AR-15s. These triggers usually have a pull weight in the range of 5.5 to 8.5 pounds. While there are always exceptions to the rule, most…

The laws of physics are incontrovertible. Given known variables and parameters it is possible to calculate results in a predictable manner. For instance, two guns of different weights with identical barrel lengths, firing the same cartridge will produce different felt recoil. The heavier of the two guns will generate less felt recoil and allow the shooter to get back on target faster and fire more quickly. Last year Canik introduced their polymer-framed SFx Rival, a striker-fired 9mm semi-auto designed for competition use. Its economical price and proof in performance seized the attention of competitive action pistol shooters! Building on this gun’s popularity Canik recently unveiled to Tactical Life at the recent Athlon Outdoors editorial Rendezvous a new Rival pistol sporting a steel frame with more recoil-absorbing weight. I did get…

The Zev OZ9 is a different sort of gun. Initially inspired by Gaston Glock’s eponymous polymer heater, the OZ9 takes the basic striker-fired autoloading service pistol and simply perfects it. Sporting a unique stainless steel chassis, mission-driven ergonomics and optimized everything, the OZ9 is at the top of the heap when it comes to polymer-framed combat handguns. Now that’s a pretty lofty claim. After all, there are a lot of Glock-oid guns circulating out there. It turns out, however, that this is not just my opinion. Some pretty high-speed operators drew a similar conclusion. What’s the most important tactical mission on the planet? For me, that would be any threat to my wife or children. If we are speaking geopolitically, however, the most critical mission in the world would have…