Gun Nuts Media

But not everything is beneficial. Take a look at this image, presented with no context whatsoever and tell me what immediately jumps to mind.

If you’re like me, you looked at that image and immediately thought of the Totenkopf, which is most commonly associated with the Nazi SS and/or the 3rd Panzer division during WW2. However, if you’re an employee of Smith Enterprises in Arizona, you thought “sweet skull bro, let’s put that on merch.” This brings us around to the title of the post. Smith Enterprises is absolutely free to put whatever logos they want on their merch. It’s their company after all. But that freedom doesn’t mean that what they’re doing is smart, or beneficial for the community at large.

The vast majority of people who see that logo will see a Nazi skull. They just will. Smith has responded to those criticisms with varying levels of butthurt and indignation, with their rebuttal summed up roughly as “nuh-uh!” That just reinforces the readily available negative stereotypes of gun owners all being closet racists, because if you’re putting a totenkopf on things and then defending it, you just look like a clown.

Smith Enterprises: they make some really cool products for M14 rifles. But in putting an obvious Nazi symbol on their merch and then responding to criticism by putting their hands over their ears and yelling “nyah nyah I can’t hear you” they’ve acted in a pretty foolish manner. I’m not calling for a boycott or anything silly like that, I just want to take this opportunity to point out bad behavior. We’re not the PC police, but at the same time there’s a certain amount of common sense that should go into stuff like that.

What do you guys think on this? Am I way off base here, or do you agree? Let me know in the comments, I’d like your feedback on this one.

In this week’s 90 Second Gun Review, I tear a few strips out of the Kel-Tec PF9. The gun is cheaply made with indifferent quality control, but at the same time it’s not like they’re asking HK prices for the gun. The price point of certain things is why you won’t see me hating too much on Hi-Points these days. Yes, it’s a terrible design and yes it’s not a very good pistol, but it’s still right around $100. Price has a quality all its own, and if you absolutely must have a pistol to defend your life with right now, a Hi-Point is better than a sharp stick.

That got me thinking about other kinds of gear though – optics, holsters, slings, belts – things other than guns. We’re forever saying “buy the right gear first” which is why I recommend quality holsters from Blade-Tech or Galco, good belts, etc. I’ll stick to that message, but the longer I do this for a living, the more I realize that if you’re not buying guns for serious self-defense, then maybe you don’t need to buy the $400 Aimpoint to mount on your Working Class Scout Rifle. Actually, we’ll use optics as a starting example.

On my serious guns, the ones that I would shoot for blood or money, I use quality optics from reputable brands. But on fun guns? Guns I’m not planning on shooting at things with teeth and claws or shooting for trophies? I’ll happily buy a Primary Arms MicroDot. Because it’s $80.00, and for eighty bucks I don’t care if I can’t drop it during a HALO jump and expect it to survive. In fact, if I was building a back-up carbine that I wanted as a mirror to a working/competition gun that had an Aimpoint on it? I’d probably buy the PA dot just because it’s a little bit cheaper for a back-up optic.

I will say that one area I’ve never gone cheap on is slings. That’s because a good sling turns a heavy rifle into a light burden, but a cheap sling makes carrying the lightest rifle an exercise in misery. Just because dogs can use your sling as a chew toy doesn’t make it good – tell me how it feels after an 8 hour carbine class. But again, if you’re not going to be taking a carbine class, maybe you don’t need to spend the money on quality gear.

Ultimately it comes down to this: serious guns for serious purposes should have quality kit. Your carry gun, your home defense rifle, your hunting and competition guns should all be surrounded by the best quality gear you can lay your hands on. But fun guns? Guns to take to the range and play with? Get whatever makes you happy…or makes your spouse the least likely to kill you for spending all your money on optics and holsters.