Treehopr
03-15-11, 10:36
LMS Defense No Light Skill Builder taught by John Chapman and John Ray (TN2)
Alliance PD Range
Alliance, OH
March 12-13, 2011
This is a mix of class notes and AAR jumbled in to one long post, hopefully others who were in attendance will chime in and fill in any gaps I may have left. I didn't take any notes or pictures during the class so this is reconstructed from memory and any errors or omissions are mine alone.
Class was designed to give students an understanding of how to use NV specific equipment on a square range. It was an opportunity not just to use the equipment but also how to integrate it in to the overall matrix of how to fight with it.
Students were a mix of LE and civilians with a heavy Lightfighter contingent. Class size was capped at 8 as this was the first time this class was run for civilians.
My background: My limited experience with night vision was over 10 years ago while running around in the woods as OPFOR at JRTC. We had PVS-7B’s which we usually just wore over our necks and brought up to look through with our hands. Since we wore boonies in the field we didn’t have helmets to mount it to and the issued head mount sucked. As far as targeting, some guys might tape a red laser pointer from Staples to the hand guards or to the carrying handle but since we were using MILES we could just use that to “walk” the laser in to the target. I previously took a 3 day class out in AZ for a night fighting course and that was my first exposure to using IR lasers.
Since I have the equipment I figured I might as well develop the capability to properly use it.
My equipment:
LMT 14.5” upper with perm attached DNTC comp and Knight’s MRE rail: upper worked well and it was nice to get through a class without any gun issues.
Aimpoint M2 in a Larue mount
Surefire 6P with Malkoff bulb and M1 IR Illuminator in Larue double stack mount: the 200+ lumen on the Surefire/Malkoff combo worked well and I had no problems seeing anything at 50 yards. Didn’t get to use the illuminator much but I didn’t have any problems with it.
Insight MUM monocular: I got this in a trade a few years ago and only recently started using it, it worked well for the class and I had no issues with it.
MICH with USGI mounting plate and swing arm: Picked up the MICH off eBay from a seller located outside a large army base in Texas ;) Standard chin strap harness and only downside was that I got a medium which fits my head fine but does not allow an easy fit with ear pro. In hindsight, should’ve gotten a large so I can wear my Sordins. With the medium I end up having to use Peltor 6S which is still a pain to get fitted (almost) comfortably.
Laser Devices Class 1 OTAL laser:
I bought this over the internet with no hands-on prior to the purchase and understanding that a Class 1 laser is not as powerful as a mil-spec laser there were a few instances where it was underwhelming. When I first received it I took it outside the house for an informal evaluation and due to the winter fog I could not penetrate through the mist. Using a friend’s PAQ4 it easily went right through. The only times I had any real issues with it on the range was on TN2 we began shooting right at dusk and there was enough ambient light to wash out the laser. Once it got darker I had no issues. Note: when working with a partner with a PEQ2a, the “splash” on his laser was bright enough to overpower mine when engaging the same target. It fills a niche and I’m grateful that Laser Devices has made this available to the public but I think I would still want a more powerful mil-spec laser if it were available.
LCW Lower with Entry stock and single point sling: One of the things I learned at a previous class was that a 2 point sling does clutter up the workspace so I wanted to use a single point. Based on this class, running a single point made it much easier for me for weapons manipulations such as reloads and malfunction clearances.
VTAC Brokos Belt with 215 Gear Cobra Belt, ITW Fast Mags x 3, EAG Dump Pouch, Eagle Industries double pistol mag pouch and HK USP with UTL in Safariland ALS holster.
Round count was about 800 rounds of Wolf 55 gr HP with Zero malfunctions and about 20 rounds of Privi Partisan 9mm which I did have problems with.
Both weapons were lubed with Slip EWL
Confirm Zero with optics
Zero IR lasers:
If unit has a visible laser then co-witness that with RDS, if it has dual laser then IR laser is normally slaved to a visible laser.
If only running IR laser:
1. Shooter gets in to a stable shooting position with NOD over non-firing eye and alternates looking through RDS with firing eye and then closing the firing eye to look through the NOD to see where the IR laser is splashing. Continue to alternate until red dot and IR laser are coincident.
2. Or….mount the monocular behind the RDS and line them up that way.
IR laser placement:
If concerned about IR laser illuminating anything on the gun, e.g., flashlights, FSB, etc. then mount it as far forward toward the muzzle as possible. If not then mount as far away from the muzzle so that the laser is as parallel to barrel as possible. The farther back the laser, the less deviation.
Switches:
Military laser units have a push-button activation on the unit as well as plug in for tape switches. Switch placement will be dependent on gear, ergonomics and TTP’s. Depending on how you transition your carbine, meaning when the gun lays against your body after you release it to go to your pistol, you want the white light switching away from the body to avoid a white light ND and the IR switching to be against the body so that if there is an ND for the IR it won’t be visible to the naked eye.
I ran my IR tape switch on the 9 o’clock rail in a Tango Down panel with tape switch cut out, Surefire light at 11 o’clock and Surefire IR Illuminator at 9 o’clock because that’s how Pat Rogers does it so why reinvent the wheel? :slap: It worked well and I did not have any issues with this except when switching shoulders I had to take an overhand grip to activate the switch (shooting from the left side of vehicle in reverse kneeling).
http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb184/treehopr/Internet%20posts/LeftSideLightsLasers.jpg
Drills:
“Up” drills with IR lasers from various distances out to 50 yards
Shooting from different positions including standing, kneeling, sitting and SBU prone.
Using visible laser as back up sighting device in case of RDS failure
Using RDS as a ghost ring in case of RDS failure
Pivots and turns: look, turn and engage
High/Low: High takes a stance over Low so that Low can’t get up without bumping in to High. Low doesn’t get up until High picks Low up :)
Movement drills: Walking up range or down range come up and engage target (turning if necessary)
Partner drills: with 360 degree coverage, 1 shooter faces down range and 2nd shooter faces up
range or both shooters facing same direction of travel.
Bounding overwatch going downrange and uprange. Verbals: Moving, Move, Set
Bounding overwatch going range left, add physical tap when passing partner
Shoot from around vehicle using different positions with partner
Weapons manipulations:
Reloads: Emergency, Speed and Tactical
Key point is to be able to do it without looking at weapon, breaking carbine down in to workspace with buttstock under firing side armpit- do it consistently to build neuro-muscular memory.
Tactical reload: try not to have 2 things in the same hand, stow the old magazine before bringing up new magazine.
Malfunction clearances: Simple, Complex, Catastrophic
We worked on simple and complex which covers Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3.
Simple: push-pull, rack.
Complex: drop the magazine, lock the bolt to rear, finger sweep with fingers toward ejection port, drop the bolt, insert magazine, push-pull, rack.
Working with NV, or more specifically working in no/low light is a holistic system.
NOD’s are just a piece of the puzzle, along with the aiming device (IR laser), the NVG interface (e.g., helmet, mounting plates) as well as the weapon system. Chappy used a great analogy for Submariner which was that NV is very similar to undersea warfare, you have passive and active detection system as well as passive and active targeting.
Separate observation from aiming: in daylight your eyes are the primary observer with ambient light and your RDS/irons/vis laser are your primary targeting. In low light your white light will take over some of the observer duties and your RDS/irons/vis laser will still be used for targeting. With NVG’s they become the observer and your IR laser becomes the targeting system. Each has pros and cons and NV has its own limitations and advantages.
Shooting with NV also forces you to make adjustments as well. Whereas you normally get 4 points of contact with the carbine (support hand grip, firing grip, stock weld and cheek weld) you may only get 3 out of 4, or you end up having to get a “chin weld” similar to shooting with a pro mask. Shooting from a classic prone position is almost out of the question due to the extreme angle you’d have to look up to get the NV tube parallel to the ground.
What it reinforced for me is that you need to have your fundamentals down, meaning if you’re a bad shooter without NV, the NV won’t make up for that. If anything, it will only make it worse. Having a consistent firing platform and subconscious weapons handling skills without NV will minimize the adjustments needed when you add the NV capability.
Chappy finished the class with a lecture on night vision and laser equipment which was informative and a big help when deciding what to buy and from where. He covered the differences between Class 1 and Class 3 lasers and some of the FDA regulations that govern them. Along those lines, as a civilian the aftermarket support can be almost non-existent for Class 3 lasers, something to consider when deciding what to purchase.
He also briefly discussed white lights (recommended minimum is 120 lumens IIRC)
Other random notes:
For LE, the most likely use for NV is for surveillance or stealth approaches.
Not much use for IR specific lights such as the Surefire M1 but IR Nav lights have a place.
Buy the best NV you can afford, Gen 3 tubes from reputable dealers. For a PVS-14 you should expect to pay about $3400, anything less and the quality may be questionable.
Various Gen 3 tubes abound, Chappy laid out the specs for a mil-spec tube. Quality less than that would be considered commercial grade which may be fine depending on your mission/requirements.
If working in a team environment, it would be beneficial for team members to have an SOP for where switches are located. Doesn’t have to be super specific but at least have general idea of where switch would be, e.g. 12 o’clock rail.
Be able to operate your weapon and other equipment without looking, including changing settings on the MFAL lasers as well as radios.
In low light, noise is also a target indicator- exercise noise discipline just as you would light discipline to include taping or tying down gear.
Transition range for pistol is dependent on shooter’s skill level.
Chappy is a great instructor, throughout the class he was constantly checking up on students to see where they were at mentally. Partially due to the cold weather and partially due to the late hours where most of us were out of cycle as far as sleep. Despite the lack of light he was still able to observe students and pick up things for students to improve on. My only previous experience with him was at the EAG Shoot House class here at the same facility last year and at one point during one of the runs when he felt like I was over running my head lights he told me to stop and breath and think about what I was doing.. My initial reaction was "WTF? I'm fine" but fortunately I kept my mouth shut, stopped, took some deep breaths and continued mission. It was a good lesson learned for me and reinforces the value of having a professional instructor observe you and provide constructive feedback.
Thanks to Chappy and John Ray for coming out to teach the class, to the Alliance PD folks for being great hosts as usual and providing civilians with the opportunity to do training that is otherwise unavailable. It was great to meet so many people in person that I’ve only seen on the internet over the years. I look forward to making the LMS Defense No Light Operations class in May.
Alliance PD Range
Alliance, OH
March 12-13, 2011
This is a mix of class notes and AAR jumbled in to one long post, hopefully others who were in attendance will chime in and fill in any gaps I may have left. I didn't take any notes or pictures during the class so this is reconstructed from memory and any errors or omissions are mine alone.
Class was designed to give students an understanding of how to use NV specific equipment on a square range. It was an opportunity not just to use the equipment but also how to integrate it in to the overall matrix of how to fight with it.
Students were a mix of LE and civilians with a heavy Lightfighter contingent. Class size was capped at 8 as this was the first time this class was run for civilians.
My background: My limited experience with night vision was over 10 years ago while running around in the woods as OPFOR at JRTC. We had PVS-7B’s which we usually just wore over our necks and brought up to look through with our hands. Since we wore boonies in the field we didn’t have helmets to mount it to and the issued head mount sucked. As far as targeting, some guys might tape a red laser pointer from Staples to the hand guards or to the carrying handle but since we were using MILES we could just use that to “walk” the laser in to the target. I previously took a 3 day class out in AZ for a night fighting course and that was my first exposure to using IR lasers.
Since I have the equipment I figured I might as well develop the capability to properly use it.
My equipment:
LMT 14.5” upper with perm attached DNTC comp and Knight’s MRE rail: upper worked well and it was nice to get through a class without any gun issues.
Aimpoint M2 in a Larue mount
Surefire 6P with Malkoff bulb and M1 IR Illuminator in Larue double stack mount: the 200+ lumen on the Surefire/Malkoff combo worked well and I had no problems seeing anything at 50 yards. Didn’t get to use the illuminator much but I didn’t have any problems with it.
Insight MUM monocular: I got this in a trade a few years ago and only recently started using it, it worked well for the class and I had no issues with it.
MICH with USGI mounting plate and swing arm: Picked up the MICH off eBay from a seller located outside a large army base in Texas ;) Standard chin strap harness and only downside was that I got a medium which fits my head fine but does not allow an easy fit with ear pro. In hindsight, should’ve gotten a large so I can wear my Sordins. With the medium I end up having to use Peltor 6S which is still a pain to get fitted (almost) comfortably.
Laser Devices Class 1 OTAL laser:
I bought this over the internet with no hands-on prior to the purchase and understanding that a Class 1 laser is not as powerful as a mil-spec laser there were a few instances where it was underwhelming. When I first received it I took it outside the house for an informal evaluation and due to the winter fog I could not penetrate through the mist. Using a friend’s PAQ4 it easily went right through. The only times I had any real issues with it on the range was on TN2 we began shooting right at dusk and there was enough ambient light to wash out the laser. Once it got darker I had no issues. Note: when working with a partner with a PEQ2a, the “splash” on his laser was bright enough to overpower mine when engaging the same target. It fills a niche and I’m grateful that Laser Devices has made this available to the public but I think I would still want a more powerful mil-spec laser if it were available.
LCW Lower with Entry stock and single point sling: One of the things I learned at a previous class was that a 2 point sling does clutter up the workspace so I wanted to use a single point. Based on this class, running a single point made it much easier for me for weapons manipulations such as reloads and malfunction clearances.
VTAC Brokos Belt with 215 Gear Cobra Belt, ITW Fast Mags x 3, EAG Dump Pouch, Eagle Industries double pistol mag pouch and HK USP with UTL in Safariland ALS holster.
Round count was about 800 rounds of Wolf 55 gr HP with Zero malfunctions and about 20 rounds of Privi Partisan 9mm which I did have problems with.
Both weapons were lubed with Slip EWL
Confirm Zero with optics
Zero IR lasers:
If unit has a visible laser then co-witness that with RDS, if it has dual laser then IR laser is normally slaved to a visible laser.
If only running IR laser:
1. Shooter gets in to a stable shooting position with NOD over non-firing eye and alternates looking through RDS with firing eye and then closing the firing eye to look through the NOD to see where the IR laser is splashing. Continue to alternate until red dot and IR laser are coincident.
2. Or….mount the monocular behind the RDS and line them up that way.
IR laser placement:
If concerned about IR laser illuminating anything on the gun, e.g., flashlights, FSB, etc. then mount it as far forward toward the muzzle as possible. If not then mount as far away from the muzzle so that the laser is as parallel to barrel as possible. The farther back the laser, the less deviation.
Switches:
Military laser units have a push-button activation on the unit as well as plug in for tape switches. Switch placement will be dependent on gear, ergonomics and TTP’s. Depending on how you transition your carbine, meaning when the gun lays against your body after you release it to go to your pistol, you want the white light switching away from the body to avoid a white light ND and the IR switching to be against the body so that if there is an ND for the IR it won’t be visible to the naked eye.
I ran my IR tape switch on the 9 o’clock rail in a Tango Down panel with tape switch cut out, Surefire light at 11 o’clock and Surefire IR Illuminator at 9 o’clock because that’s how Pat Rogers does it so why reinvent the wheel? :slap: It worked well and I did not have any issues with this except when switching shoulders I had to take an overhand grip to activate the switch (shooting from the left side of vehicle in reverse kneeling).
http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb184/treehopr/Internet%20posts/LeftSideLightsLasers.jpg
Drills:
“Up” drills with IR lasers from various distances out to 50 yards
Shooting from different positions including standing, kneeling, sitting and SBU prone.
Using visible laser as back up sighting device in case of RDS failure
Using RDS as a ghost ring in case of RDS failure
Pivots and turns: look, turn and engage
High/Low: High takes a stance over Low so that Low can’t get up without bumping in to High. Low doesn’t get up until High picks Low up :)
Movement drills: Walking up range or down range come up and engage target (turning if necessary)
Partner drills: with 360 degree coverage, 1 shooter faces down range and 2nd shooter faces up
range or both shooters facing same direction of travel.
Bounding overwatch going downrange and uprange. Verbals: Moving, Move, Set
Bounding overwatch going range left, add physical tap when passing partner
Shoot from around vehicle using different positions with partner
Weapons manipulations:
Reloads: Emergency, Speed and Tactical
Key point is to be able to do it without looking at weapon, breaking carbine down in to workspace with buttstock under firing side armpit- do it consistently to build neuro-muscular memory.
Tactical reload: try not to have 2 things in the same hand, stow the old magazine before bringing up new magazine.
Malfunction clearances: Simple, Complex, Catastrophic
We worked on simple and complex which covers Type 1, Type 2 and Type 3.
Simple: push-pull, rack.
Complex: drop the magazine, lock the bolt to rear, finger sweep with fingers toward ejection port, drop the bolt, insert magazine, push-pull, rack.
Working with NV, or more specifically working in no/low light is a holistic system.
NOD’s are just a piece of the puzzle, along with the aiming device (IR laser), the NVG interface (e.g., helmet, mounting plates) as well as the weapon system. Chappy used a great analogy for Submariner which was that NV is very similar to undersea warfare, you have passive and active detection system as well as passive and active targeting.
Separate observation from aiming: in daylight your eyes are the primary observer with ambient light and your RDS/irons/vis laser are your primary targeting. In low light your white light will take over some of the observer duties and your RDS/irons/vis laser will still be used for targeting. With NVG’s they become the observer and your IR laser becomes the targeting system. Each has pros and cons and NV has its own limitations and advantages.
Shooting with NV also forces you to make adjustments as well. Whereas you normally get 4 points of contact with the carbine (support hand grip, firing grip, stock weld and cheek weld) you may only get 3 out of 4, or you end up having to get a “chin weld” similar to shooting with a pro mask. Shooting from a classic prone position is almost out of the question due to the extreme angle you’d have to look up to get the NV tube parallel to the ground.
What it reinforced for me is that you need to have your fundamentals down, meaning if you’re a bad shooter without NV, the NV won’t make up for that. If anything, it will only make it worse. Having a consistent firing platform and subconscious weapons handling skills without NV will minimize the adjustments needed when you add the NV capability.
Chappy finished the class with a lecture on night vision and laser equipment which was informative and a big help when deciding what to buy and from where. He covered the differences between Class 1 and Class 3 lasers and some of the FDA regulations that govern them. Along those lines, as a civilian the aftermarket support can be almost non-existent for Class 3 lasers, something to consider when deciding what to purchase.
He also briefly discussed white lights (recommended minimum is 120 lumens IIRC)
Other random notes:
For LE, the most likely use for NV is for surveillance or stealth approaches.
Not much use for IR specific lights such as the Surefire M1 but IR Nav lights have a place.
Buy the best NV you can afford, Gen 3 tubes from reputable dealers. For a PVS-14 you should expect to pay about $3400, anything less and the quality may be questionable.
Various Gen 3 tubes abound, Chappy laid out the specs for a mil-spec tube. Quality less than that would be considered commercial grade which may be fine depending on your mission/requirements.
If working in a team environment, it would be beneficial for team members to have an SOP for where switches are located. Doesn’t have to be super specific but at least have general idea of where switch would be, e.g. 12 o’clock rail.
Be able to operate your weapon and other equipment without looking, including changing settings on the MFAL lasers as well as radios.
In low light, noise is also a target indicator- exercise noise discipline just as you would light discipline to include taping or tying down gear.
Transition range for pistol is dependent on shooter’s skill level.
Chappy is a great instructor, throughout the class he was constantly checking up on students to see where they were at mentally. Partially due to the cold weather and partially due to the late hours where most of us were out of cycle as far as sleep. Despite the lack of light he was still able to observe students and pick up things for students to improve on. My only previous experience with him was at the EAG Shoot House class here at the same facility last year and at one point during one of the runs when he felt like I was over running my head lights he told me to stop and breath and think about what I was doing.. My initial reaction was "WTF? I'm fine" but fortunately I kept my mouth shut, stopped, took some deep breaths and continued mission. It was a good lesson learned for me and reinforces the value of having a professional instructor observe you and provide constructive feedback.
Thanks to Chappy and John Ray for coming out to teach the class, to the Alliance PD folks for being great hosts as usual and providing civilians with the opportunity to do training that is otherwise unavailable. It was great to meet so many people in person that I’ve only seen on the internet over the years. I look forward to making the LMS Defense No Light Operations class in May.