Bullet Boy on Shooting Sports

A few weeks back I made the decision to upgrade the XDM standard holster to a Blade Tech polymer holster. The included XD(m) gear holster worked fine but didn’t offer the security I was looking for.   After doing some looking and waiting at the local shops for holsters to come in stock for XDM’s I grew impatient.   After doing some talking and word of mouth I decided on Bladetech’s Sting Ray Belt Holster.

I also order Bladtech Magizine pouch to match. Apparently when shipping the order the Quality Assurance people mixed up pouch.   When I get the pouch in I will post more pictures.   Getting products from BladeTech can be tough.   Tough in the sense that everything is handmade when you place an order.   To get perfection   like Bladetech it takes time!!!   In truth everything I order was handmade specfic for me by workers here in the US.   I am happy with the product and supper glad I went for the extra cost and made the upgrade.   The perfect fit over an ejection molded pouch is far better than I expected.

If you are looking for a BladeTech SRB (Sting Ray Belt) holster you may have a hard time.   You can always look through the horrendous Bladetech website with hundreds of clicks and to no avail.   Just skip the website and call them (253)581-4347.   Tell them you read about in from “bullet boy” and they may give you a discount.   Also tell them it is time to tune up their website.

About the SRB from the holster website:

Now our most popular holster comes with our new (Sting Ray) belt Attachment. This attachment is wider than our standard belt attachment, thus providing a more stable platform, also being wider it tends to pull the gun in closer to the body, aiding in concealment. With the SR loop this holster can be adjusted from Straight Drop, to FBI cant to muzzle forward with just your standard screwdriver.This Belt holster is interchangeable with our paddle, Tek-Lok, Drop and Offset loops. This holster comes with our new adjustable belt loop that has a shim that can be adjusted from 1 1/4 to 2 1/4 inch belts. IDPA Approved.

A while back I was contacted to do a product review.   When I read about Plugs HatTail Headwear’s Plugs hat I was a bit skeptical.   In fact when I read about it I chuckled a little.   As always open minded and willing to try anything once I obliged. It took a couple read of Tom Duffy’s e-mail to decide weather it was spam or not.
You can see if you read it too:

Hello,

I came across your blog today by way of google. I am really impressed. There aren’t many good shooting blogs for sport shooters out there! Anyways, my name is Tom Duffy and I am involved with a company called HatTail Headwear. www.hattail.com

HatTail Headwear has a product called Plugs. Plugs offer a unique feature built into the hat specifically for shooting. The feature is a built in ear plug for each ear. The ear plugs are rated specifically for shooting (-27db) and when retracted they hide nicely inside the hat to maintain some sense of
fashion.

The reason that I’m contacting you is to see if you would like a sample hat to review on your blog. If you would like one, just email me at tom@techremedy.net and I will send you one. The main thing that differentiates this from a normal request for a product review is that I’m not asking for a GREAT REVIEW! I’m asking for an honest review. This product is new and not very well known yet. We have so much confidence in the product that we know when it becomes more well known, people will like it.

Please let me know if you are interested in a sample. Either way, I was so impressed with shootingsportsblog.com that I will be a continued reader and will definitely share the site with my other shooting buddies.

Thanks for the great blog!

Tom Duffy

As a disclaimer I was in no way paid for this review and to keep my integrity this is 100% honest.

My first few thoughts about the hat before ever seeing it 1) Where is made 2) What about replacement ear plugs 3) What about hygiene

I found out the hat is made in China and custom work is done in Stockton, California.   Replacements are readily available and most any brand can be used.   The verdict is still out on hygiene.   Being directly attached to the sweat band of the hat bacteria and germs could build up and cause ear infections – problem with any ear plug.

In truth I am a bit of a connoisseur of hats. I give the hat a tolerable comfort level, on my head. The bill of the hat needs a little work as it seems to be a bit flimsy. The material of the crown or bucket part was of good quality in a 5 panel style. It is a one size fits all adjustable hook-n-loop closure. I like the concept in fact I love it. But some changes need to be made for me.

I would like to see the same concept held into a an unstructured under armor type of hat. s-m-l-xl stretch fit. Also gives more options to embroider on too. A newer more stylish hat.

All in all I think the has great potential and would like to do a more detailed review and propose the next line of plugs hat. But for the time being the product I reviewed is a good. For a day at the range in style the plugs hat meets the need. What would be really cool is get these hats and give them out in the goody bag at the matches along with the t-shirts.They will also let you design your own hat for a personalized cap.

In attempt to put together a video with my new video equipment I made an attempt at making a video demonstrating the plugs.   What do you think?

If you have been following me you know about my Springfield Armory XDM.   Well today I tested my first upgrade.

I bought Don’s Guide Rod from the XD Guys.

In the picture above the factory guide rod is on the right.   If you notice Don’s rod is solid.   The solid guide rod adds a few ounces on the muzzel end of the pistol which lowers the recoil and muzzel flip.   Lowering the recoil helps control the front of the handgun for more accurate double taps.

Don’s Guide Rod fit like a glove in the ol’ XDm Factor. I droped the upgraded rod in with the factory recoil spring at 18lbs.   I wanted to put a new spring in with it but couldn’t find one and will probably wait for other people to do the testing for me.

In addition to the XDm I also ordered Don’s Guide Rod for my pop’s XD40.   When I was doing the ordering I didn’t think to check and see if the factory springs would fit on the 303 stainless steel rod.   It doesn’t.   So I order a 20lb wolf spring to replace the 18lb factory spring from Pistol Gear.   You may be able to find an upgraded recoil spring at your local gun store.   Just make sure that you use Wolff 422xx for 18lbs, for springs 18 lbs and over(heavier loads)  use Wolff 493xx.   The packaging says 1911 but it fits in the XD.   Wolf springs are the best springs for the price on the market that are compatable with the upgrades. Midway has a selcetion of wolff springs   but appear to be the most expensive on the internet.   Shop around and if you find a good price on Wolf Springs Let me know so I can get a couple for myself.

My next upgrade may be a trigger job with the XD Guys or a spring upgrade setup.   More on that later.