From the Library

Tactical Firearms Training Secrets by David Morris

I came across this a few weeks ago, when my buddy Greg Ellifritz mentioned it in an article on his Active Response Training blog. Greg had some good things to say about it, so I checked it out. It’s been a couple weeks now, since I read it, and having had time to digest it, I’ve got to say I was underwhelmed.

There were a couple of basic drills in it that were okay, but they were the same general drills available in most references and classes. A lot of the material in the book however, relied on obsolete research data that has been refuted by more recent research. I haven’t, to the best of my knowledge, read any of Mr. Morris’ other work, but this one left me unimpressed. It’s probably legitimately a solid reference for new shooters, or those new to combative shooting, but there was a whole lot that I came across that was just wrong. I can’t recommend it.

(That having been said, keep in mind, I’ve written a book on combative pistol shooting and training, so I may be unreliably biased.)

Defensive Tactics by Loren Christensen

A reader sent me a copy of this, and asked me to venture an opinion on it. I’ve read a lot of Christensen’s books, over the last couple of decades. I was pretty impressed with most of what I read from him, at least until he partnered up with Grossman.

That having been said, there’s nothing inherently WRONG with the techniques and methods described in this book. As team defensive tactics, for controlling suspects, there’s a lot of validity to them, in my experience and observation. That having been said, the inherent problem with a lot of LE DT methods, is they tend to be predicated on the idea that a cop isn’t supposed to be getting into a wrasslin’ match with a suspect all by his lonesome. Like most DT, the ones taught here work best—most efficiently and effectively against someone who doesn’t really know what he’s doing, isn’t particularly motivated, and/or has his reflexes and physical attributes impaired. They also work best—most efficiently and effectively—when there are two or three dudes wrasslin’ one dude to the ground, to put him in cuffs.

Meh.

Combative Shotgun by Mike Boyle

I’ve long acknowledged that I’m not a shotgun guy, by choice. A few years ago, I took the time to do a deep-dive into the shotgun, and gained a moderate level of ability with it. I’ve spent more time since then, incorporating it into my ongoing practice regimen, in order to improve the skill I have, and to increase it.

The last book on the shotgun I read—and the only other one on my shelves currently—is Mas Ayoob’s Stressfire II. That having been said, as I explained in this week’s article for $5 Patreon subscribers, the shotgun is not a really complex weapon to operate. There’s not a lot of specialized knowledge in running one. The biggest issue is ammunition management and keeping the beast fed. Mr. Boyle’s book, as is to be expected (I don’t know him, but we have mutual friends), is a solid look at the current applications of the shotgun in the anti-personnel role. Recommended.