All posts in Elite Survival Systems

Being prepared for the range and investing in Range Bags

Just this past weekend I had the opportunity to bring one of my kids to the range,  while somewhat prepared and organized we decided we were going to bring rifles.   With all of my experience I’ve learned to have things packed up and organized in specific bags because I’ve had plenty of past experiences of showing up at a range with the wrong ammo, wrong magazines, forgetting to bring magazines, and the worst, forgetting to bring the stapler for hanging targets.  One of my old ranges was notorious for not being maintained and I open showed up without being able to hang my targets on anything so I  had to bring a backup.   There are plenty of things you can do wrong if you are packing up multiple calibers and when it’s time to go home,  if you are disciplined in packing you are going to lose your magazines,  your stapler and your sight in tools.

Sometimes people get sticker shock when they see gun cases outside of Uncle Mike’s and Bulldog but buying there is a lack of logic when spending money on $2500 rifles and not wanting to spend $100 on a rifle case.  The same goes for people with a lot of firearms and not buying decent range bags means losing money and time.   This Elite Survival Range Bag is hands down the first thing we suggest when people don’t want cheap.  This bag comes in 3 different sizes and the medium is the most popular.  For people in competiti.on sports the Elite Survival Range Roller is a must and the newer Load Out Range Bag will get listed shortly.   Keep it organized and make your range trips more organized.

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Elite Survival Holsters worth checking out

Elite Survival Systems is one of a few companies we are a dealer for that I personally used their products before we actually carried them.  Just about all of their gun cases are in my personal inventory and many of their holsters.    Some people frown on leather holsters, but it all depends on what your needs are.   Nylon holsters hold up better in some climates much better than leather.  Have you ever seen a leather plate carrier? Nylon has more abilities to be modular and there recently have been some changes to the Elite Survival Holsters that are worth mentioning.

Number one, the Elite Survival Pocket Holsters have been remade with a slightly different finish, I used their previous design for several years and it held up well for only being $12.   There are some preferences that people have voiced about comparisons in pocket holsters, but we have gotten very little complaints about their designs.    The Elite Survival Holsters that we move a lot of, are the BCH or Belt Clip Holsters.   Recently, a removable belt clip strap has been added to this design and makes it a versatile, IWB, IWB with retention, or OWB, or OWB Retention holster.  The belt clips they use can be changed to make it a right handed or left handed holster.  The Elite Survival Ankle Holsters and Elite Survival Shoulder holsters have very comfortable designs and we have a 99% satisfaction rate while many other Ankle Holsters and Shoulder Holsters get returned.

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New addition to the Elite Survival Systems Covert Operations Gun Case, 762/308 Mag Pouch

Elite Survival Covert Operations caseAR15 Rifle CaseUzi Gun CasesM4 rifle casesGun Cases Made in the USAThe AR10 never really seemed to catch on and it’s been around for a very long time, but the barrels and accuracy and weight of .308 AR’s has so dramatically improved that it isn’t very hard to take the Match ammo or hunting ammo you used in your bolt action gun and start using it in a Ruger 716, Sig SR-762, DPMS SASS and RECON, and the LMT.   I was amazed with the LWRC Repr rifle and how little recoil it had and how it felt like an actual M4 in my hands.  .308 ammo is very common to those that reload on a Dillon 550 but there really wasn’t much out there before except M14s, FNFAL and G3 and Cetme rifles.  The AR platform is just so ergonomically designed that it’s become a multi-caliber firearm.

When it comes to finding gun cases that you don’t have to cut out foam or end up with too much bulk, and you don’t want something cheap to protect your $2000 Carbine and also stow magazines and accessories, the Elite Survival Covert Operations gun case is now being sold with 223 magazine pouches, 9mm or 30 cal stick mag pouches, 762×39 and .308 pouches.   These are easier to store in your home than hard cases and have a shoulder strap and low profile design, the mag pouches are all internal so it looks like a case, not a gun case.

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Elite Survival Ankle Holsters, there’s just something they did right

aahs_holsterWe’ve got enough history with certain holster companies that we can tell you what works just based on sales data.   It’s not just what sells and goes out the door, it’s also about what comes back in, whether its something that breaks or something people just don’t like.   Ankle holsters are a niche of our overall sales, but one of the most returned items until we started carrying the Elite Survival Ankle holsters.   We’ve had about a 75% return rate with other brands, Desantis, Galco and Uncle Mike’s.   I can’t blame it all on them being bad designs because there is a mentality that some people have that makes them think they want an ankle holster, but then they find out how uncomfortable and awkward it is to carry in this manner.

If you don’t have the right cut on the bottom of your pants, expect to have problems with your pant leg hanging up on the holster.  It’s not very practical for CCW and the vast majority of people actually buying them and using them properly are Police Detectives or people that do a lot of driving.   Ankle carry is very practical if you are driving a lot but other than that, you really need to consider pocket carry.  If we hear you complain too much about looking for a “comfortable holster” what you might not want to hear from us, is that you are carrying the wrong gun.   If you are seriously looking for an ankle holster, we have probable a 5% return rate on The Elite Survival Ankle holster.  The fit for the holster is very accommodating for various firearms and you can get the calf support strap for a few extra bucks if need be.

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Get a good gun belt, but should you get leather or nylon?

Elite Survival BeltsA lot of what goes on in this business is about looks, if your LEO, you know what it’s like to get written up for having the incorrect uniform and depending on your police Chief, you might have a bunch of odd looking finishes.   Just go look at tall of the options the average duty gear from Safariland comes in.    We’ve pretty much narrowed down leather CCW belts to Desantis, we may dabble a little bit with Galco leather this year but some of the leather gun belts we come across are a little too cowboy looking, that’s fine if that’s what you want, but most of our customers right now are not going to be wearing too much brown, mostly black.   There are thin dress belts that you might be able to use for CCW or Off duty, but in my humble opinion a 1.5 inch belt is probable the best support and for nylon it’s been for a very long time the difference between the Wilderness Instructor belt and a very close second, the Cobra Belt.

Elite Survival Systems has another Cobra Rigger’s belt that should be listed shortly, I forgot to bring this in stock until a customer walked in and asked if we had them.    The one thing  you have to be careful about when picking up any gun belt is to make sure that the pants you are wearing them have belt loops that are compatible.   We have had issues with the Tru-Spec 24/7 Series pants  not working to sell with the rear belt loop catching the Cobra belt buckle and thus, not a good combination.   I’ll have to bring this up with our Tru-Spec rep the next time I see him which is  on Tru-Spec and not Elite Survival belts.   Recently we had a walk in customer that told us that he had a foot chase where his nylon velcro belt started to come undone and wanted something with a latch, always good and bad points and yet another reason to go to a brick and mortar start and ask questions and try it on.

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Elite Survival Systems gun cases, travelling and profile

Elite Survival Gun CaseMany years ago there was a gun show in Pennsylvania where a whole bunch of firearms were stolen from a vendor that left the show, and stopped to get something to eat at a restaurant or diner and while he ate, all of his firearms were stolen from his vehicle.    In this situation it was a large number of firearms including Class III.   What a total nightmare, but anyone that parks a vehicle that has anything resembling a firearm where only a window is stopping them from grabbing it is asking for trouble.   Most people transport firearms in gun cases and a few times I’ve seen people transport them in a blanket because they didn’t have a gun case, but the best thing to do is get an appropriate gun case, gun sock, and for everyone sake, keep it out of visibility.  If you are a gun owner, whenever you look to buy a new car, make sure you get your windows tinted because that can make a big difference.

What are some options for carrying a low profile gun case? Sure tennis rackets and baseball gear gets stolen, computers lap tops, cell phone chargers ect, but if someone doesn’t know what you are transporting to and from your car, it’s just a bag.    Elite Survival Gun Cases are highly recommended by our staff and purchased by gun owners, both Law Enforcement and Private Citizens for similar reasons.    We had a customer walk  into our store about a year ago because his neighbors teenagers got caught selling drugs and he didn’t want anyone knowing what he was doing when he was going out on a Saturday afternoon to his gun club.   The same goes for pistol cases like the 4 Gun pistol pack that looks nothing more than a black back, but has room for 4 handguns, magazines and whatever else that floats your boat.

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Adverse environments and having fun at the range with a good shooting mat, The Elite Survival Epsilon Shooting Mat

Elite Survival Epsilon Shooting MatMany people are use to going to their gun club or shooting range and being behind a table, many times they are also standing, but for those that want to get off the bench, there are several different formats and designs of shooting mats.   One of the first things you will know as soon as you deploy this shooting mat is how large it is.   If you are on a mat that is too small for  your body type, you’ll get scuffed or cut elbows and your feet will get wet.   Some shooting mat systems look great when laying on the ground, but many of them will curl up on you right after you deploy it and there are many built it modular features that you can adapt magazines, binoculars, or Security or Law Enforcement patches to.   I’ve personally used this product on concrete and in 3 feet of snow and it worked very well, the mat is thick enough that it deploys under you almost like a thin piece of plywood and is not only a great competition shooter mat, but very good for Law Enforcement for laying down on rooftops.

You can attach any type of molle pouches to this system and it is properly re-enforced for elbows and arm placements.   I remember shooting an M1 Garand on the ground without a shooting mat under me and even though at first it didn’t seem to hurt, I noticed latter on that I had several pieces of gravel dug into my elbows just from laying on the grass.   Getting into a good firing position is and firing from a stable platform is something you have to adjust to depending on your environment, but for long term deployments (hours) or for comfort, definitely check out the Elite Survival Epsilon Shooting Mat.   We always keep some of these on display in our store just because it’s one of those things you’ll want to see before you buy so stop in and check it out.

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You need 2 Sleeping bags a Summer Bag and a Winter Bag so check out the Recon Sleeping Bags

Recon 2 Sleeping BagsRecon 3 Sleeping BagsRecon 4 Sleeping BagsRecon 5 Sleeping BagsWe have been expanding our EMS and Search and Rescue product lines in the last year from medical kits, Quick Clot sport and Combat Gauze as well as Timberline EMS Rescue Tools and Leatherman Multi-tools that are geared towards military, survival and Paramedics and EMTs.   There are always interesting products that Search and Rescue personnel buy from us that make you think they are going to be repelling off a cliff or going off on a jungle adventure.   One thing everyone knows in this industry is something many use to learn in Boy Scouts is “being prepared” is the best mindset you can have.  I don’t know the number of times I’ve been on friend or family trips and someone didn’t even think to bring rain gear or medical supplies.   There’s something to be said about survival of the fittest and when you are going in the outdoors for long periods of time, sometimes the possibility that something could go wrong and you might be out longer than expected is a real possibility.  Packing light is something that is much easier to do today and if you have old camping gear or outdated sleeping bags you might want to consider doing a clean out of your attic.

We picked up the Recon Sleeping bags via Elite Survival Systems and didn’t know much about them until they came in stock but we were really impressed with out light and compact these are.   There are always extreme temperatures that one can endure and not every sleeping bag is going to be good for -10 C and also be good for 95F temperatures.   Many in the Search and Rescue are aware that deployments might be a  lot longer and getting stuck over night in a not so great environment is a reality.   I’ve found that packing lighter gear especially camping and hiking gear is becoming easier and easier.   The lighter the sleeping bag the more food or gear you will be able to carry and even something like the Recon 2 Sleeping Bags or Recon 3 sleeping Bags and some type of emergency blanket that might only weigh a few ounces and cost less than $5 keeps your backpack light and gives you much more tolerance to cold temperatures.   The Recon Sleeping bags are very friendly to being geared up and ready to good since the bottom of the bag gives you the ability to move around with boots on without snagging or twist up.

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Shooting in undesirable environments

Elite Survival Systems Epsilon shooting matSure we know the positions, squatting, shooting prone, but not only will you become uncomfortable after a period of time, stress builds up and it will have an impact on your ability to stay focused.    I’ve seen a lot of shooting mats in the past and they can be made out of a rug, foam sleeping mat or anything you want to make out of it, but weight and portability can be an issue.   I have an older Elite Survival Systems Ultimate Snip drag bag that works well with my DSArms STG58 and also is large enough to open up and give me some ground support if need be, but I decided to add the Epsilon shooting mat to my personal inventory after I got to hold on in my hands last  year.

The 2 things that sold me  on this item are that being 6’3″  I need a large shooting mat that I could use that my legs weren’t hanging off it and second, the fact that this folded up like a briefcase and didn’t curl up when It was deployed on the ground.   The Elite Survival Systems Epsilon shooting mat goes for $159.99 with free shipping and also has enough molle attachments and support that makes this also capable of holding a lot of gear.   I store Binoculars, spare magazines for my AR15 as well as handgun magazines and a mosquito net.   If you’ve shot off the ground you know how knees and elbows get torn up when you’re down in the dirt, but that doesn’t happen to me anymore because I bring this to the range with me and use it when desired.

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Your rifle barrel length doesn’t tell us anything

Elite Survival Systems gun casesWe deal with a higher class clientele than most gun shops deal with.  The higher quality optics like Aimpoint, Trijicon and Eotech with the bring in a different crowd and we specifically target “Made in the USA” products.   It’s hard to get away from imported products, but if you actually monitor the manufacturing process, a great many of the products that say “Made in China” may only have been assembled there even those American Made parts are in  it.  We’ve found that people are willing to spend a bucks more because walking around in a Police Department with Made in China back packs or gun cases is somewhat disturbing.

The AR15 is the most common firearm in the Country right now and everyone from 18yrs old to 75yrs old are getting their first firearm.     When it comes to shopping for gun cases, it’s hard to justify putting a $1200 or $3500 firearm in a gun case that costs $35 and expect it to protect in transport.  Our chosen tactical nylon product line and gun cases are the Elite Survival Systems gun cases.   One needs to measure the entire overall length of the firearm when it is collapsed to be able to shop for a gun case.   Flash suppressors and buttstock extensions can add several inches to the factory OAL and it’ll be easier if you know this before you shop/

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