Two More Firsts

I'm all out of clever post titles at this point, but Monday night was interesting. I got a call from Ronin for an arrest in Hollywood. This one was interesting because the fugitive was actually wanted in Vegas and had bonded out in Los Angeles on Saturday.


Ronin, Reaper, Chopper and I met up in Hollywood and followed the L.A. bondsman to where he was meeting Prince (real first name) for another payment. We dumped our gear and with pistols in waistbands and cuffs in pocket strolled down to Hollywood Boulevard. The bondsman met the guy at a strip club and got the payment, while 3EIFRU lounged on the sidewalk like typical Hollywood mopes (but much classier). They shook hands, and that was our cue. We let the bondsman get around the corner, then moved in on Prince. The bouncer could only step back and raise his hands in a "This is between y'all!" move as four guns came out of nowhere and our boy got his princely head shoved against the wall.


Then Reaper and I hit the road. I've always hated the L.A. to Vegas drive (except the part where I exit California), but it's all good: Reaper drove. We got to Vegas around midnight and met the bondsman, who took custody of our boy. Apparently he'd been seeking him for months, and had hit several girlfriends' places all over Nevada. Leaving the bondsman's office we rolled down the Strip. There's just something about being armed to the teeth in the middle of Sin City...



We grabbed a quick coffee with a local friend of mine and made the long trip back, arriving in the L.A. area just in time for rush-hour traffic.


About the time Reaper and I arrived in Vegas, Rookie was heading out for his first solo arrest. That was apparently uneventful, but marks a milestone in his experience.  So congratulations to Rookie.

Lil Rickie

This husky sumbitch rahchiah (sound it out, I know that's a new language for some of y'all) is Lil Rickie, charged with assault with a deadly weapon, possession with intent to distribute, and a couple other things I disremember right now. Another pretty easy grab yesterday for 3EIFRU. Most of the team went out to the high desert Sunday night and hit several likely hiding places, missing him by just 30 minutes at one of them. I was otherwise occupied, but ended up checking an indemnitor's address, and came up empty.

We hit the indemnitor's apartment Monday, scared the crap out of her (not really intentional, but still), and got a call from Lil Rickie not ten minutes later.

---redacted for OpSec reasons---

Then while I was talking to him Rebel, Diesel, Rookie, and Chopper came up behind and made the arrest. Turns out he'd been in L.A. anyway, so the drive was kind of a waste of time. But all's well that ends well. A relatively quick surrender later we were on the way home in L.A. traffic.

By the way, you meet the most interesting people in IRC...

Ballistic Testing

This video series is probably of interest to anyone who might happen across this blog.

Epic Molle Time

Some of y'all will get this, some won't:

Lift yer glasses!

From Tam, a blogger I follow:

How many gun designers in the history of the planet have had, say, five completely different, commercially successful weapons to their credit?

The answer is "one".

Go. Read it. Lift yer glasses.

Gear, Updated

A while back, I posted here for the curious about the gear we wear on the street. As anyone with a military background can tell you, gear changes. You realize something or another just isn't fulfilling its purpose well enough, or some brand-spanking new thing comes out that you just have to have, even though what it replaces was working just fine. The ALICE gear we had when I first went in the Corps gave way to LBV's, then MOLLE gear, then various iterations of MOLLE gear, and now I've been out for quite a while so I'm not even sure what they're using now except that it's still a PALS-based system.

Some people seem to think they have to have the latest and greatest, just 'cause they like it. These are the same people who get a new car every time their lease runs out, a new computer every year or two even though all they use it for is the Internet, and probably keep up-to date on the developments in the fashion world as well.

Then there are the people who try to use gear as a substitute for knowledge and training. You'll see them decked out in Multicam or ATACS at the range, trying in vain to hit a target 10 yards away with their H&K uber-pistols.

And also, there are those who see no need to ever update their gear. The old stuff is working, so they leave it at that, and refuse to see how some new gear could really enhance their abilities.

Most of us are somewhere between the two extremes. When something new comes out, I take a look and see if I thing it would actually work better for me than what I'm using, and if so I buy it. Likewise even without new gear, I constantly evaluate how my gear is working for me, the way I do things, and if something is sub-optimal I look for something better. New techniques and better training often obviate old gear.

All that said, here's my setup as it currently stands:

(1) is my blow-out kit. Standard contents; look up "blow-out kit" or "trauma kit" anywhere on the Net and you'll find lists galore.

(2) is a .308 AR magazine pouch, which happens to be a great iPhone carrier.

(3) is the same, but carries cuffs.

(4) are, of course, 1911 magazines.

(5) is a GP pouch carrying various necessities.

(6) is an admin pouch with a flashlight holder.

(7) are a couple of these beautiful things. They hold 8 12-gauge shells per side, though in the single AR magazine pouches they're in I can only fill one side. Dummy-corded in, they pull out and can just be dropped after removing the shells.

(8) holds 12 12-gauge rounds.

Also, behind (2) and (3) are two more single AR magazine pouches. One holds a multitool and one holds my radio.

The vest is an armor carrier from Condor Tactical.

Range Day

Today was a great day of training for the 3EIFRU crew. Coordinated by Chris Dunn from Covered Six, at a semi-local range, it was nothing ultra-high-speed, but some good re-familiarization for me. Some of it was new to the new guys, but all took to it like ducks to water and moved right along. Everyone needs a little polishing on something, of course.

Then, Sensei's bike conked out and we had to load it in the back of my pickup to get it back to L.A. Finished off the day with some training at the dojo, then back home for a well-deserved evening off.