DefRev Quick Hits: New Tactical Products

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by David Crane
defrev at gmail . com

1) Sigarms has just introduced a brand new pistol called the SIG P250. The P250 is a polymer-framed tactical/carry (including concealed carry) pistol that features an interesting stainless-steel "sub-assembly" that rides inside the polymer grip frame. This sub-assembly contains the trigger, hammer, ambidextrous slide release, ejector and four small slide rails, and is the actual frame/receiver, as it is the part that carries the serial pistol’s serial number. The P250 pistol also sports a spur-less, no-snag hammer. Trigger pull on the P250 is reportedly double-action only with a long initial stroke and short reset. Trigger pull is smooth, and weighs 6 lbs. Ammo capacity is 15+1. The July 2007 issue of Guns & Ammo magazine has a detailed article on the P250 pistol by Greg Rodriguez titled "One Serious SIG: The polymer-framed, ergonomically enhanced P250 is, at the risk of sounding trite, innovative." Mr. Rodgriguez writes in the piece that while he would prefer a shorter trigger pull, like that offered by SIG’s DAK trigger system, the P250’s trigger was "plenty smooth and easy to manage." He finished up by writing "SIG’s new P250 may not be perfect, but it’s pretty damn close. It’s a reliable, accurate and, yes, innovative pistol that can be easily mastered by right- and left-handed shooters of every size. I think SIGARMS has a winner on its hands."

That’s pretty high praise, but the SIG P250 pistol is going up against some pretty stiff competition, like the Glock 19/23, Springfield Armory XD Compact, HK45 Compact, etc. Currently, the SIG P250 pistol, similar in size to the Glock 19/23 (G19/23) is only available in 9mm, but a .40 S&W and .357 SIG version will most likely follow shortly.

2) And, speaking of polymer-framed semi-auto pistols,…

Heckler & Koch (HK) has a new pistol called the HK P30. Previously known as the HK P3000, the P30 has a finger-grooved grip frame and sports a Mil-Std-1913 "Picatinny" rail for mounting tactical white lights and lasers. The grip frame features an interchangeable backstrap, inserts, and lateral plates. Operating controls are ambidextrous.

3) Aimpoint has two cool new tactical weapon sights out: the Aimpoint CompM4 Red Dot sight and Aimpoint Micro T-1 red dot. The CompM4 is basically the latest-and-greatest evolution of the M68 CCO (Close-Combat Optic)/CompM2, and is already in the U.S. Army procurement system (163,000 units, so far). The CompM4 is optimized for all generations of night vision devices (NVDs)/night observation devices (NODs), but is "especially suited" for Gen III NV tech.

The Aimpoint Micro T-1 is designed to provide similar performance to sights like the CompM4 at significantly less size/weight.

DefenseReview got to view and handle both the CompM4 and Micro T-1 at the Aimpoint booth at the NDIA Small Arms Symposium, Exhibition, and Firing Demo, and the sights look good. We can’t wait to try both of them out at the range (or, even better, in a tactical shooting class). We’ll report back to our readers when we do. For the record, based on the CompM2 sight, we’re big fans of Aimpoint. The Aimpoint CompM2 and EOTech 552 are currently our two favorite tactical/combat optics for long guns (rifles, carbines, subcarbines/SBRs, etc.). It will be interesting to see how the Aimpoint CompM4 and EOTech 553 stack up against each other for CQB/CQC (Close Quarters Battle/Close Quarters Combat), especially during rapid multiple-target engagement.

4) PentagonLight has a cool little light called the MOLLE Light. The MOLLE Light is basically a miniaturized and modernized version of the old-style anglehead military flashlight thats designed specifically to attach to MOLLE web gear. It’s an LED flashlight, and generates up to 40 lumens of light output, and will operate up to 5,000 hours. Like the original (and much larger) anglehead military flashlight, the MOLLE Light comes with a red filter for low-profile light use. For a limited time, all MOLLE Lights are being shipped with the PentagonLight MOLLE Light Compass Tail-Cap, which features a miniature magnetic compass. The MOLLE Light comes in two versions: MOLLE Light Desert and MOLLE Light Black.

5) DefenseReview has been hearing some good things about the thermal/IR (Infrared) imagers and sights being offered by Insight Technology, Inc. We’ve noticed some significant interest in the Insight Technology Thermal Battle Sight (TBS), specifically. The TBS can detect man-sized targets at over 300 meters away, and features a 2x digital zoom with auto-colored reticle. Focus range is 1-meter to infinity. The Thermal Battle Sight will operate for 8 hours continuously on four 3-volt lithium batteries. It will mount to any Mil-Std-1913 rail and maintain boresight to 0.5 mrad. And, it’s waterproof to 66 feet (66′). Weight w/batteries is 22 oz.

Insight Technology is also offering a compact, lightweight handheld thermal imager/monocular called the Mini Thermal Monocular (MTM). Ergonomically designed for handheld operation, the MTM, like the TBS, will detect man-sized targets past 300 meters. However, the MTM also features an integrated visible marking laser, digital image capture, a video jack, and other features.

6) Pure Digital Technologies (PDT) out of San Francisco, CA has come out with a neat little compact, lightweight (and flat) micro-camcorder called, the FLIP Video camcorder (a.k.a. PDT camcorder). The Chicago Tribune calls the PDT FLIP Video device "ingenious", and they may be right. About the size of a a pack of cigarettes, the FLIP Video device utilizes internal flash memory for storing video footage, and you have two versions to pick from: 1 GB for 60 minutes of recording time or 512 MB for 30 minutes. Video format is MPEG-4, and you get full 30 fps video quality at VGA (640×480) resolution. The FLIP connects to your computer (PC or Mac) via a flip-out USB 2.0 arm.

DefRev Quick Hits: New Tactical Products by

About David Crane

David Crane started publishing online in 2001. Since that time, governments, military organizations, Special Operators (i.e. professional trigger pullers), agencies, and civilian tactical shooters the world over have come to depend on Defense Review as the authoritative source of news and information on "the latest and greatest" in the field of military defense and tactical technology and hardware, including tactical firearms, ammunition, equipment, gear, and training.

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