Archive | July, 2017

Review: TacPack July 2017

The July 2017 TacPack has arrived at JTT HQ. I’m just going to say this up front. This is the best one yet. It is full from top to bottom and front to back with stuff I will use. Let’s look inside.

Hopefully you are familiar with the concept of TacPack by now. If not, you can read the reviews of the previous TacPacks for some background on this subscription box.

BreakThrough Clean Kit – I don’t really spend a lot of time cleaning guns but everyone has to grudgingly clean once in a while (I’ll never understand you weirdos who like cleaning guns). If you have a gun, you can use this. It comes with solvent, oil, 2 packets of grease, a doubled ended nylon AP brush, and a microfiber towel (which will change your life if you haven’t used one before). I’ve generally been happy with BreakThrough clean products and I especially like that they are pretty much odorless. This is a useful addition.

EZ Accuracy Gas Block Dimple Tool – Most AR-15 manufacturers offer low profile gas blocks as an option but the majority of them still don’t dimple the barrel as a reference for gas block alignment. This product solves that problem. You back out one screw in your gas block and replace it with the special hollow screw provided in this kit which allows you to center punch the spot to be dimpled with the included punch. The hollow screw then acts as a guide for a 1/8″ drill bit so you can quickly and easily dimple your barrel to ensure that the gas block goes back on in the exact same place should you ever need to remove it. You won’t use this every day but you’ll be glad you have it.

Fusion Climbing Runner/Sling and Locking Carabiner – The hits keep coming with this box! I don’t climb but everyone knows you can use a carabiner in about a million ways. I use them all the time in rigging for all the wood cutting I do. The included steel screw gate carabiner will be put to use right away. If you don’t climb, you may be less familiar with runners (or some people call them slings). They are basically really strong loops used for all kinds of things in climbing. I use them to girth hitch things like snatch blocks/pulleys to trees for redirecting pulls with the come-along winch I use when wood cutting. You can find all kinds of uses for items like these from tying into your tree stand to hanging a bear bag on your next overnighter.

5.11 Tactical Wharn Knife – The 5.11 Tactical value knives are actually solid little knives for the price. Knife nerds won’t get off on the AUS 8 blade steel but knife users know it as a fine grained steel that takes a refined edge easily. The ergonomics on this Mike Vellkamp design will take you by surprise. The blade moves VERY smoothly and it locks up well. This is probably the best knife to find its way into a TacPack yet.

MOAB Patch – And you thought MOAB stood for Mother of All Bombs… Nah. It’s Mother of All Bottlerockets!

I rate these boxes on the basis of whether or not I will actually use the included items. With that in mind, this is easily the best box to date. Everyone reading this right now needs gun cleaning items. Even if you don’t know it yet, carabiners and runners/slings are really handy. You can easily find room in a kit for a knife like this and I never would have known about the EZ Accuracy GBDT if it weren’t for TacPack. It is boxes like these that keep me talking about TacPack.

If you want to try TacPack, you can check them out at TacPack.com. TacPack hints that the August box will contain some Mission First Tactical gear.


Disclosure: I receive this subscription box from TacPack, free of charge, for review.

Now Shipping: PMAG 30 AR 300 B GEN M3 for .300 Blackout

Magpul is now shipping the PMAG 30 AR 300 B Gen M3 for .300 Blackout. You may be wondering why such a magazine even needs to exist but Magpul already read your mind…

Why a Dedicated 300 BLK Mag?

While some .300 Blackout® ammo runs consistently in 5.56 magazines for some users, others have found it to be problematic. At the request of some demanding professional users, we have designed an ultra-reliable magazine dedicated to handling the challenges of various 300 BLK ammunition types.

Optimizes Round Stack

300 BLK rounds come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and some don’t interface correctly with the contact areas in a 5.56 mag. This can ultimately cause stoppages. By designing a PMAG specifically for .300 Blackout, we were able to optimize the round stack for the increasing variety of 300 BLK projectiles.

Minimizes Side Pressure and Friction

Dust or suppressor fouling magnify the problem—especially with certain subsonic rounds. This creates side pressure within the mag, adding friction and slowing the stack movement upwards. This is a geometry issue that our PMAG 30 AR 300 B is engineered to solve.

Avoids Caliber Misidentification

The dedicated PMAG for 300 BLK includes tactile and visual cues that differentiate it from 5.56 PMAGs for those who need to switch types of ammunition rapidly. This helps to avoid dangerous misidentifications and cross loading.

Maintains PMAG Reliability

Like all PMAGs, the PMAG 30 AR 300 B GEN M3 magazine features a long-life USGI-spec stainless steel spring, four-way anti-tilt follower and constant-curve internal geometry for reliable feeding.

See the PMAG 30 AR 300 B Gen M3 for .300 Blackout at Magpul.com

Sneak Peek: Triggersafe for Shotguns

Triggersafe is working to bring a shotgun version of their clip on trigger cover to market. The image below shows a meeting with their USA based injection molder with the shotgun version of the Triggersafe clearly shown on the screen. Given the LE focus of Triggersafe’s products and marketing, the shotgun version makes good sense but there could also be demand among hunters.

Keep an eye on Triggersafe.us for more details.

Snake Eater Tactical Tourniquet Optimized Burro

The Snake Eater Tactical (SET) Pistol Burro Magazine Pouches will carry a wide variety of items including tourniquets. However, tourniquets can be a bit of a tight squeeze so now SET has introduced a new tourniquet specific version of the Burro – The Tourniquet Pouch Burro.

The Tourniquet Pouch Burro is constructed the same way as the other Burro pouches – heavy duty elastic outer, an articulated stiffening insert, and a HANK/Hypalon liner to grip the contents – but it is slightly wider to accommodate the width of tourniquets like the CAT and SOF-T. It also has a small loop material square sewn on the front that can be used to display a medical marker.

Tourniquet Pouch Burro at SnakeEaterTactical.com

The EDC Tool Roll: Engineer DR-07 Twin Wrench Driver

The EDC Tool Roll is a feature on Jerking the Trigger in which we profile various every day carry worthy tools. The tools shown aren’t multi-tools but rather real tools, that by virtue of their compact size, light weight, usefulness, or unique functionality, can find a place in any range kit, emergency kit, or every day carry bag.

Feel free to comment on the tools that you carry so we can all learn! The discussion on these posts has been very valuable so far.


The Engineer DR-07 Twin Wrench Driver is my favorite screw driver solution for a compact tool kit. I’ve had it for some time now and purposely held off on mentioning it here until I could test the Tekton 14-in-1 Offset Driver as a potential lower cost alternative. While the Tekton is functional, everything about the Engineer DR-07 is a step above.

The Engineer DR-07 Twin Wrench Driver is a Japanese manufactured replaceable bit screw driver that accepts bits at either end of its “L” shaped handle. The 10 included bits and bit carrier are of excellent quality and well marked both on the bit carrier and the bits themselves. The included bits are very much like standard 1/4″ shank bits but slightly longer. However, the DR-07 will accept standard bits though they sit slightly deeper in the bit holders.

The bits are retained via a detent and spring steel collar. This set up applies solid tension even on bits that aren’t notched. The spring steel collar is thicker and provides better tension than the one found on the Tekton version. The bit holders are also magnetized which is a nice touch.

The Tekton version of this tool has a hard plastic cover on the handle but the Engineer DR-07 features a very resilient rubber handle that feels great in the hand. The rubber is molded over an entirely steel structure beneath for strength. The DR-07 also has finer knurling on the bit holders that allows good grip and fine control when turning a screw.

The beauty of this driver is the offset design. This “L” shape keeps the tool very compact but allows the user good reach and the ability to apply a lot of torque when necessary. This one is what you will find in my EDC Tool Roll more often than not. It is one of the few compact drivers that can actually reach screws like an AR-15 grip screw and still provide enough tool to hold onto when loosening or tightening the screw.

I should note that, like the previously profiled Tekton driver, this tool does NOT ratchet. For some reason, almost everyone who puts hands on this thing thinks it is going to ratchet but it does not.

Everything about this tool screams quality. The chromed finish is smooth and seemingly very durable. The bit holders have great tension and use robust parts to retain the bits. The grip is very comfortable in the hand. The included bits and bit holder are some of the nicest I’ve seen included with a tool like this. I own a handful of tools from Engineer and this is what I have come to expect from them.

Where to Buy: I’ve never seen this tool anywhere but online. I purchased mine from Amazon for around $26 shipped. It shipped from Japan which took about 3 weeks to arrive but it was worth the wait given that it is easily my favorite compact screw driver. As of the time of this writing, the price has dropped significantly to around $17 shipped on Amazon: Engineer DR-07 Twin Wrench Driver

You may also be able to find a deal on auction sites. Be advised, these will ship from Japan most of the time so expect to wait.

Alternatives: We’ve reviewed a number of other compact screw drivers in previous installments of The EDC Tool Roll (click the links below to read the reviews):

Tekton 14-in-1 Offset Screwdriver (2945) (This is nearly identical to the DR-07 but with lower, though still acceptable, quality)

Replaceable Edition Fix It Sticks

Doc Allen’s VersaTool

Wera Kraftform Kompact 25


Do you have a compact driver that you prefer or any other tool you want to recommend? Tell us about it below.

Powered by WordPress. Designed by Woo Themes