Author: Braxton Taylor

Steiner Optics has added a new second-focal-plane, illuminated-reticle option to its high-end Steiner H6Xi series of hunting scopes with the arrival of the new Steiner MHR RFP. The Modern Hunting Reticle, Rear Focal Plane incorporates an extremely “lightweight” Christmas tree reticle that’s centered over a duplex-style outer reticle. Done in a second-focal plane (or “rear-focal plane,” as Steiner calls it), the MHR RFP has a central, floating aimpoint. The bottom portion of the reticle has a slimmed-down bullet-drop compensating stadia lines as well. Because of its second-focal-plane design, the size of the MHR RFP remains consistent across all magnification levels,…

Derya Arms has just launched the new Derya DY9 Island pistol, a Turkish-manufactured polymer-frame pistol patterned after the 9mm Glock G19 Gen3 pistol. The pistol as a unique compensated “island barrel” into its slide and barrel assembly. In addition to offering Derya DY9 Island pistols, Derya Arms also sells complete top-end DY9 Island kits separately. The most significant part of Derya Arms DY9 Island is its slide. In addition to having a factory optics-ready slide that comes cut for the popular Trijicon RMR optics-footprint, it includes an island barrel assembly. Island barrels are typically associated with expensive, high-performance pistols like…

A group of senators says they have “profound alarm” and are demanding answers over the unprecedented decision by the government’s consumer watchdog to drop its case against Navy Federal Credit Union for charging its members — almost exclusively service members, veterans and their families — millions in illegal overdraft fees.”This decision appears to prioritize financial institutions over the very service members the bureau is charged with protecting,” the five Democratic senators wrote in a letter, provided exclusively to Military.com, to the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Russ Vought.In November, the CFPB announced that Navy Federal had “illegally harvested…

After hours of debate that culminated in a rebuke of the Trump administration’s efforts to restore Confederate names to military bases, the House Armed Services Committee voted late Tuesday to advance the annual must-pass defense policy bill that endorses a pay bump for service members.This year’s National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, which supports a 3.8% pay raise for troops starting in January, was approved by the committee in a bipartisan 55-2 vote, sending it to the full House for a vote in the coming weeks. Just Democratic Reps. Ro Khanna and Sara Jacobs, both of California, opposed the bill.The…

A shipbuilder and defense-focused AI company have joined forces to build ships faster, as China continues to outpace the U.S. in shipbuilding, Defense One’s Patrick Tucker reports. The new partnership will give shipbuilder BPMI Gecko Robotics’ drones and AI platforms to help reduce inspection times, speed up production, and relieve the shortage of highly-skilled workers, according to the companies. The news was announced Tuesday in Pittsburgh, where President Donald Trump was meeting with AI companies. Read more, here.Update: Lockheed Martin has finally cleared the backlog of F-35s that were in long-term parking, Defense One’s Audrey Decker reports. The Pentagon stopped accepting…

If there’s an individual accessory on “America’s rifle” that truly lets you have things your way, it’s the simple pistol grip. Between all the different major parts and components found on AR-15 pattern firearms, the pistol grip can often feel like an afterthought.  But, since this is one of the primary points of contact between the shooter and the firearm, it’s worth paying attention to. The A2-style grip has been the default grip for the AR-15, with the design so prevalent that even the FN SCAR series borrowed it. A2 grips are so pervasive that they’re virtually free. If you…

The General Services Administration announced Wednesday the award of a rideshare blanket purchase agreement to Uber that the agency expects will help reduce federal travel costs and modernize the experience.The agreement is the latest in a series made by GSA through its OneGov initiative, which uses the buying power of the entire federal government to drive down costs for goods and services. The rideshare agreement with Uber for Business has major implications for federal employees working domestically and abroad, as well as military personnel and select government contractors.”GSA’s agreement with Uber exemplifies our commitment to provide efficient and cost-effective solutions…

This month, a traditional hunting weapon was revealed to be much more traditional than previously thought.In 1985, a boomerang carved out of mammoth tusk was discovered in the Obłazowa Cave in southern Poland. This thing is big: more than two feet long, perfectly semi-circular, and extremely sleek for an ancient weapon. Although the mammoth ivory itself was too delicate to be sampled for carbon dating when it was found, the surrounding artifacts led scientists to place the boomerang at around 18,000 years old.But the cave was occupied for a much longer period, starting with the Neanderthals and continuing through the…

President Trump hasn’t been shy about wielding his pen and his phone to change public land policy, and last week was no different. On July 3rd, the president signed two orders he says are designed to “Make America Beautiful Again.”The first will establish the Make America Beautiful Again Commission. This Commission will be responsible for advising the president on a variety of priorities outlined in the executive order. These include promoting responsible stewardship of natural resources while driving economic growth; expanding access to public lands and waters for recreation; encouraging responsible, voluntary conservation efforts; cutting bureaucratic delays that hinder effective…

This week, Tony explains why it’s so hard to train dogs on our mental schedule, and how we should try to understand their ability to focus so we can wring the most out of each session. Connect with Tony, Cal, and MeatEater Cal on Instagram and Twitter MeatEater on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Youtube Clips MeatEater Podcast Network on YouTube Shop Cal’s Merch Read the full article here