Use What Works for You

This post shouldn't need to be written. What I write here should be filed under common sense. The normal response upon reading it should be, "No shit, Sherlock." But my experiences have convinced me it needs to be written. While I'm going to focus on firearms for my example, this post can be applied to most things. That's because I'm going to discuss trends and, more importantly, why you don't need to follow them.

Seemingly every month there's a new "controversy" in the firearms community. I put quotes around controversy because what's really happening is a popular gun channel on YouTube in a desperate ploy to get more clicks releases a video explaining why some gun or gun accessory is the best/worst thing ever and why you will die in a gun fight without/with it. I believe this must've happened with vertical foregrips as of late because I've seen a number of people writing about why they're awful/necessary and posting images of their guns to which they've recently added/removed a vertical foregrip.

Let me tell you a secret to saving a bunch of money: ignore online trends. That's it. Hundreds or even thousands of dollars go back into your pocket with that simple piece of financial advice. Are LPVOs all the rage this week? Do you have a lowly fixed magnification optic or, even worse, iron sights on your rifle? Or does your rifle have an LPVO and they're the worst things ever this week? In either case, if whatever is on your rifle works for you, keep using it. You might dismiss this advice because you worry that you won't get any MeowMeowBeenz when your post pictures of your rifle on social media. Worry not because I'm going to let you in on another secret, MeowMeowBeenz aren't worth anything. You can't exchange likes, up votes, or any social media acknowledgements for money.

The next question you're likely to ask is, how do I know what works? Obviously the guy who runs a gun channel on YouTube is an expert and not just content farming ragebait to get people to click their videos so YouTube will send them money, right? Not exactly. It turns out people lie on the Internet. I know that statement may come as a shock, but a lot of content farmers misrepresent their qualifications and credentials to make themselves appear more authoritative than they are. But fear not, there's still a way for you to figure out what works for you: shoot you damn guns. It really is that simple.

I've written about my test method for carry guns. To summarize, I have an initial test where I shoot at least 100 rounds through the gun with at least 50 of those rounds being the ammunition I intend to carry. After that, I do continuous testing mostly in the form of shooting the gun in USPSA and similar style matches. This gives me a lot of hands-on data. I learn what works and what doesn't. The popularity of slide-mounted handgun optics has exploded in recent years. Because of this, I've read and heard numerous comments about how iron sights are ineffective. My carry guns still only have iron sights and therefore I still shoot iron sights at matches. I haven't had any difficulties with sight acquisition, accuracy, or speed. I know iron sights work for me because I've tested them thoroughly. With that said, all of the handguns I buy now are optic ready. Just because I use iron sights at the moment doesn't mean I'm foolish enough to dismiss optics. I haven't test them on a handgun so how can I know whether they work for me or not? I will begin testing them at some point. Until then, I have no opinion on their effectiveness/ineffectiveness for me.

My testing methodology works for any gun. A couple of weeks ago I ran my Steyr AUG in a PCSL 1-Gun match. My AUG has a 2x prism optic and I left the vertical foregrip on even though I installed the (sadly no longer available) MK2 QD rail. That match provided me further data that a 2x prism optic and vertical foregrip both work for me. I had no issue engaging close or distant targets using the fixed optic. With the hand guard, I have the option of either using the vertical foregrip or using a c-clamp style grip. I naturally gravitate to the vertical foregrip. Therefore, I can say that a vertical foregrip works fine for me despite what anybody on YouTube might claim.

As I noted at the beginning of this post, this advice works for things besides firearms. I bought a set of Kettlebells USA Paradigm Pro Elite 35MM kettlebells at the beginning of this year. After six months of cleaning, pressing, jerking, swinging, snatching, carrying, and otherwise moving them, I can say they work very well for me. I've run Linux exclusively on my personal computers for many years now. It doesn't matter what any technology influencer claims about Linux not being viable as a desktop operating system. I know it works for me as one because I've used it for years without trouble.

Admittedly my advice isn't going to earn you MeowMeowBeenz on Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, or any other social media site. What my advice will do is save you money, which you can use to buy things.