[Zen21Tao]

Another thread got be wondering, what is too tacticool? I know people have different opinions as to what is considered overly tactical. Is simply wearing all camo at the range tacticool? Avid hunters might not think so. Is being dressed in a pro-gun t-shirt, black BDUs and army boots too tactical? What do you guys think, where is the line between tactical and mall ninja?

[DoubleTapDrew]

The simplest way I think of it is using way more gear than your mission (or your trip to the store) requires.
Tossing flashbangs and having your wife laying down suppressive fire while you roll out to the curb to drop off your recycling would qualify methinks :D

[choochboost]

The simplest way I think of it is using way more gear than your mission (or your trip to the store) requires.
That's a pretty good definition I think. I would add that there is a mental attitude that goes along with all the gear that makes them the focus of my scorn.

[Snowdog]

In my opinion, it's when someone tries to be "tactical" in order to seem tactical (which is always pathetic). I nearly vomit every time I see a young fellow at the range that tries so darn hard to look like the Hollywood stereotypical tactical hero with the clothing, sunglasses (at an indoor range, nonetheless) gloves and "tactical" firearm that can hardly hit his target past 10 yards. :rolleyes:

If someone's trying to look tactical to others, they've gone too far, IMHO.

[DevLcL]

I've been known, from time to time, to be a little excessive with the 'tactical' gear. I don't really see the problem if someone wants to have a little fun, especially the young guys. I mean, kids will be kids (me included). What would be really bad is if a 40 or 50 something year old was at the range in full on tactical gear. At least you would think that they know better.

-Dev

[Soybomb]

When I go shooting it seems like the fattest man in the building is always the one wearing camo. it makes me laugh a little.

[Lebben-B]

For me, it's a little different. I mainly shoot at Bragg's Personally Owned Weapon (POW) range. When I see a guy my age or younger show up with IBA, FLSC/Rack system, thigh rig, etc, it tells me that he/she might be doing some extracurricular training. (The cardinal rule of training is..."Train as you fight.") I usually reserve my scorn for the older shooters who come to the range looking so tactical they should be banned in California. There aren't very many that do that here, but the ones that do are VERY noticable.

Mike

[jlseagull]

Tactikewl? That would be a mousegun with a rail on it.

*cough* Kel-Tec PF-9 *cough*

[duckjihad]

Not sure about too tacticool, but saw a joke several years ago that said us military types knew we were too tactical (hooah, actually was the word) if our wives had the children kneel and face out left and right alternatingly when they were in a commissary checkout line more than 2 customers long for security purposes. Wish I could remember the rest. There were about a dozen and they were funny.

[Bartholomew Roberts]

The word tacticool is too tacticool.

[Seraph]

At Coal Creek Armory, we get all types, of all ages. It's a real menagerie of tacticool and urban stylz. We get an awful lot of these guys who come in from the boondocks dressed out like Dog the Bountyhunter or some kind of GSG-9 castoff, perhaps wearing two Ruger P95's in a nylon double shoulder rig, or a .50 Desert Eagle in a thigh holster. It's hard not to laugh right in their faces sometimes. However, it's the urban stylz posse that really takes the cake. These are the hip-hop boyz, of whatever race, who come in, reeking of green apple flavored blunts, wearing their flannel pajama pants, flip-flops, baseball hat cocked jauntilly to one side, and Mercedes hood ornaments dangling from gold plated tow chains, to ask me about the availability of "clips" for their Hi-Point fohty-fahv. For real, yo - I'd rather share oxygen with the mallninjas and bountyhunter wannabes than with these assclowns. But let's not leave out the ladies... I've never seen a female mallninja, but we do get a few ladies in the store who are equally impressive. My favorite type is the bleach bottle blonde, with the Tina Turner hairstyle, stooping from the burden of 50lbs of aftermarket bewbs spilling over the top her tube top, which reads, "It's better topless." She often completes the look with a set of 4" spike heels, and a pair of painted-on sparkly jeans, with the obligatory pink thong peeking out in back, saying, "Hi, I'm hard to get." As I said, we get all types, but, in the broad spectrum of this menagerie, I'd honestly have to say the tacticool brigade are some of the least egregious.

>edited for spelling

[Spiphel Rike]

Having a tracer as the second last round in your magazine.

[jamz]

nd a pair of painted-on sparkly jeans, with the obligatory pink thong peeking out in back, saying, "Hi, I'm hard to get."

http://www.4jamz.com/lol.gif

[DigitalWarrior]

Maybe it was gunfire that made you misunderstand. That thong says "I'm NOT hard to get".

[Legionnaire]

Hey, since when is camouflage "tacticool" and not "redneck?" Where I am, middle-aged guys in camo are definitely the latter!

I think DoubleTapDrew and Snowdog jointly hit it ... "more gear than required for the mission, for the purpose of projecting an image."

I've worn Royal Robbins 5.11s since way before they were "cool." I find them way more comfortable than jeans. But then, I used to wear stuff from the old hand-drawn Banana Republic catalog before they got bought out by the Gap. Since then, I've turned to Cabela's to find safari shirts. Why? Because they're comfortable, and fit my lifestyle (when I'm not in a suit).

"Lookin' cool" has nothing to do with my personal decision. My camo is reserved for hunting and camping.

[Seraph]

Maybe it was gunfire that made you misunderstand. That thong says "I'm NOT hard to get".
Heh, actually, I was being sarcastic.

[AJAX22]

I went that route for all of one shooting trip one time, that junk gets in the way.

to stay upwind from the squirls we belly crawled over a ridge and the nylon strapping got wedged in uncomfortable places, the tactical gear got covered in dirt, and all the little velcro things picked up stickers. all the silly little accessories just wound up being an inconvenience or breaking.

to sum it up, the .32 auto in the shoulder rig incase the squirls charged us at close range is tacticool.

I can't believe I ever was that rediculous.

[Just_a_dude_with_a_gun]

If you're not military or law enforcement, most of the tac gear is
ridiculous.

Generally my opinion is that everyday guys who spend money on
Thigh-strap tactical drop holsters, tac vests, bdu's, helmets, etc,
are probably wanna-be's, wish-I-hads, or mall ninjas awaiting the
racial uprising/WWIII.

[swacje41]

If you're not military or law enforcement, most of the tac gear is
ridiculous.
I believe that is about the best summary of it.

[Harry Paget Flashman]

If you are older than 55, it's all about comfortable shoes.

[FXR]

I agree with Cooper on this one...anyone who would hide his face deserves to be considered one of the bad guys. Good guys are willing to show their face.

Note, this only applies to those of us in the civilian world; you military folks get a free pass.:D
K

[Low-Sci]

I think I have a good line on this one.

Tacticool was my friend dressing up for a woodsball game in a ghillie suit. Not a turkey hunting suit with breakup camo, I mean the whole burlap-rag tie-on suit.

Or it was me zip-tying a red-dot sight onto my paintball gun, which I've done on a number of occasions.

I think it would also include me bringing along a spring-operated airsoft pistol to one paintball game as a sidearm. I actually did tag someone out with it, but nonetheless.

Or another buddy's reference to a Camelbak as a "tactical straw."

Or the paintball shot shells that I made out of wax paper and 6mm airsoft paintballs. Those were less than effective.

Or another buddy of mine buying a paintball gun suppressor made out of PVC. Don't worry, it didn't work, so no need to call the ATF.

And the buddy with the ghillie suit hand-porting his paintball barrel with a drill press after cutting it short with a hacksaw.

There are lots more, and I admit that I'm personally guilty of most of them.

[chopinbloc]

"style over substance; image is everything."

few people even know what the reason for a drop holster is anymore. hint: it is not to put the gun close to your hand, gunslinger style. it is intended to keep the sidearm off your body armor, load bearing vest/suspenders, rifle sling and other gear. as such, even a thigh holster should ride as high as possible without interfering with your equipment.

i've got a few toys that are uneccesary in civilian life and would probably never be needed even if evil robot alien zombies invaded but they're still fun. let's face it - one ar15 could be used for home defense or even neighborhood defense in the event of a large disaster but anyone who has more than one probably only has them as toys and not for some practical purpose. i'm not saying there's anything wrong with that - i have five - but they really are just toys - really expensive toys. as long as a person actually KNOWS that he own tools as toys, it's fine. when people start to think that they really ARE some kind of "operator" then there may be a problem.

a more significant problem, in my opinion, arises when members of the shooting community ridicule and alienate people who don't fit into the mold of what these shooters expect instead of gently educating and encouraging them. i admit that sometimes these people make me snicker but if you make them feel uncomfortable, you might as well vote for hillary in the next election because you sure as heck aren't personally doing anything to protect our RKBA.

[ABTOMAT]

I recall someone (either here or on another board) seeing some tactical freak go to the range in a full-on ghillie suit. I'd pay good money to see that.

[Bridger]

Anyone who has one more piece of gear than YOU think is necessary is "too tacticool". I probably am considered too tacticool by many at my range, but then all they do is shoot off the bench and think that all shooting revolves around hunting.

Most don't have an AR-15 either, so if I remember to bring along mag pouches or the vest instead of sticking mags in my pockets, then I probably get a lot of looks.

And then there is the hot summer days where I combine that tacticool gear with an extremely old and abused pair of loafers, old garden pants and a raggedy t-shirt. Spent all my money on the AR, can't afford clothes :p

[tenbase]

I recall someone (either here or on another board) seeing some tactical freak go to the range in a full-on ghillie suit. I'd pay good money to see that.

Especially if they drove to/from the range wearing the aforementioned garb.

[AJ Dual]

When your accessory rails have rails on them...

[Andrew Rothman]

There's no such thing as being too tacticool. If you're lucky, you'll be just tacticool enough.

:)

Seriously, though, I've found that the guys at the range with small, ragged holes in the centers of their targets tend to dress in... street clothes.

[.41Dave]

I suspect anyone carrying/shooting a handgun that stores it's ammo in a metal tube stuck up it's butt insead of a handgun with it's ammo kept decently stowed in a cylinder might have "tacticool" issues. :D

[AFhack]

.41Dave - yeah, but sometimes those cylinder heads get way too cowboycool ;)

[dawgtraxx]

This maybe ?

[Nail Shooter]

by:
AJ Dual
Senior Member
*
"When your accessory rails have rails on them..."

Yup, and when AR's have the quad rail thing, forward vert grip, and 4 or 5 other things hangin' off it.
:rolleyes:

NS

[nswtex]

There are a lot of people out there that think us owning guns at all is tacticool and should be reserved for the police and military. I dont listen to that and this seems very similar with a few changes in the items being reffered to. I dont think I need all the gear but more power to those of you who do. So vive la mallninja.

Proud supporter of

RKBT

Right to Keep and Bear Tacticoolness

[Seraph]

I think we need to hit the reset button, becasue it seems that some sensitive backsides may have been bruised here. Can't we please have some more of the funnier type posts, such as... well, such as mine?:D

[torpid]

Hey, since when is camouflage "tacticool" and not "redneck?"

When it is "urban" or "digital".

:)

[sm]

-Bayonet lugs on a Coleman Lantern ...
-Light Rails on a $3 Made in WhoKnowsWhereStan Machete...
-Carbon Fiber breath mints...
-Optical sights on a toliet paper holder...
-Cheeseboards with a hollow out for a cleaning kit...

Q. How come the guys in street clothes shoot one ragged holes?

1) They know how to shoot.
2) Tacticools miss targets on purpose to re-use them. This way money for ammo, and targets do not cut into Tacticool Budget.

Pick one.

:)

[Seraph]

Yeah, that's what we want. Thank you, boys.

Dress to impress in all-new Digital Urban Camo - it's the new black!

[Stormin n]

Tacticool knifes:what:

http://www.darkopsknives.com/cgistore/store.cgi?page=/new/product.html&setup=1&ida=11&idp=3&his=0|3&cart_id=3854064.2832

Description

The 911 designation isn’t for the emergency call, it’s to remind its user of the enemy we face, the war we fight, and the heroes who fight it! With the subdued 9/11 Tribute limited edition nomenclature on it’s blade, the operator carries with him a visible reminder of the Americans lost and the heroic efforts of those who take arms in defense of liberty. Blade design offers a combination spear/tanto point with the best attributes of both. CTV2 steel, an intimidating blade length in excess of eight inches, hollow grind and v-chisel sharpened edge make the Interceptor 911 an incredibly effective fighting tool. The Interceptor 911 E&E offers further enhancements for real-time escape and evasion activities. It includes a patent pending Splitter Hilt™ which provides for cutting away harnesses and overhead cables. Backsaw is optimized for cutting through plexiglass aircraft canopies or helo windows. The choil-notch doubles as both a bottle opener and peacemaker-its’ deployment and use is a great bar fight deterrent in exotic third world locales. Extended serrations aid underwater cutting efforts. Hilt ports provide additional attachment points for paracord in survival situations. Window-breaker in pommel. Notch design allows prybar style mechanical advantage for entry through aluminum vehicle rooftops. Expander tip provides expanded entry-wound channel. Like all Dark Ops blades, the CTV2 steel will last for decades! The most advanced fixed blade fighter in service today. 100% made in America! Black Titanium CarboNitride (TiCN) vacuum deposited finish.

DORK OPS KNIVES: Perfect for concealed carry down the front of your pants at the mall!

[ABTOMAT]

Stormin' nailed it. Look up "tacticool" in the dictionary and it says "see: Dark Ops." What a load of garbage.

[Twycross]

You have become too tacticool when you:

- Have doubled the loaded weight of your firearm with accessories.

- Are dressed entirely in digital or woodland camo, or in a ghillie suite, or are wearing a helmet.

- Are openly carrying more than two sidearms.

- Have more than one light per firearm.

[Stiletto Null]

Tactical becomes tacticool when there are unnecessary gadgets for the context.

Tacticool becomes TUBAR when the gadgets start to make the weapon more awkward instead of more "high speed low drag".

TUBAR becomes tacticlol when the "operator" is so ineffective that all the crap on there doesn't actually make a difference.

[sm]

When Twinkies are used to prevent Bat Belt chaffing...

[2TransAms]

The 911 designation isn’t for the emergency call, it’s to remind its user of the enemy we face, the war we fight, and the heroes who fight it! With the subdued 9/11 Tribute limited edition nomenclature on it’s blade, the operator carries with him a visible reminder of the Americans lost and the heroic efforts of those who take arms in defense of liberty. Blade design offers a combination spear/tanto point with the best attributes of both. CTV2 steel, an intimidating blade length in excess of eight inches, hollow grind and v-chisel sharpened edge make the Interceptor 911 an incredibly effective fighting tool. The Interceptor 911 E&E offers further enhancements for real-time escape and evasion activities. It includes a patent pending Splitter Hilt™ which provides for cutting away harnesses and overhead cables. Backsaw is optimized for cutting through plexiglass aircraft canopies or helo windows. The choil-notch doubles as both a bottle opener and peacemaker-its’ deployment and use is a great bar fight deterrent in exotic third world locales. Extended serrations aid underwater cutting efforts. Hilt ports provide additional attachment points for paracord in survival situations. Window-breaker in pommel. Notch design allows prybar style mechanical advantage for entry through aluminum vehicle rooftops. Expander tip provides expanded entry-wound channel. Like all Dark Ops blades, the CTV2 steel will last for decades! The most advanced fixed blade fighter in service today. 100% made in America! Black Titanium CarboNitride (TiCN) vacuum deposited finish.
Man I swear there's a guy at all the gun shows that sells those for like eight bucks,along with twenty dollar ninja swords. Everybody wants the Rambo knife.

Tacticool is when your Aimpoint's backup sight is an Eotech.

[Stiletto Null]

Heh...what happens when you co-witness reflex sights? :uhoh:

[Diamondback6]

Uhhh... guys? I'd like to offer up an alternate take on ghillies and airsoft pistols for paintball.

I'm not exactly "run&gun"-friendly of build, so my way has to be by stealth, let the other guy get close without knowing I'm there then pop 'im in the back.

RE shades, I wear mine at the range, actually everywhere, because I have to. My eyes are so light-sensitive, I have to have tinted lenses to filter things down to tolerable levels, or I get a migraine inside of 1/2 hour. OTOH, I dress VERY conservatively...

That said, to me too tacticool is duct-taping an Aimpoint or EoTech to your 1911. Sideways sights on your Block (er... I mean Glock... oops, Freudian slip, lol)=too tacticool. IPSC Open gun for PDW=too tacticool. Full BDU dress and carry yourself like an 11B or 0311 without being one=too tacticool. (Wearin' 'em 'cause you just like all the extra pockets is OK, though. But that's why some of us have two chest pockets with buttons on our shirts, WWII uniform style...) Pieing every corner you gotta go around=too tacticool. (And that's what those little round mirrors near the ceiling are for anyway, LOL--learn to use your environment to your advantage...) And more later as I think of 'em, maybe...

[proud2deviate]

Didn't one of the Dark Ops knives have a "blood groove" specifically designed to "redirect spray during covert deanimation activities"?:rolleyes:


Too tacticool is when the uber-fantastic-plastic ninja gear actually gets in the way of what you want to do. Up until then, I think tacticool is pretty harmless, so long as it doesn't go to the operator's head.

[Lebben-B]

Not sure about too tacticool, but saw a joke several years ago that said us military types knew we were too tactical (hooah, actually was the word) if our wives had the children kneel and face out left and right alternatingly when they were in a commissary checkout line more than 2 customers long for security purposes. Wish I could remember the rest. There were about a dozen and they were funny.

You Know You're Too Hooah When:

- Your wife's favorite shades of lipstick are light green and loam
- You refer to your in-laws as "Slice Elements"
- Your wife takes a knee while waiting in line at the commisary
- Your son volunteers to pull air guard on the school bus
- All your kids are on meal card except for the oldest, who gets separate rats
- Your older kids call the youngest one "Cherry"
- Your kids refer to their sandbox as NTC
- Instead of fine china you have mermites
- There's a sector scetch posted by every window and door
- When your kids have an over-night with their friends you make them sign out on pass
- There are pull-up bars mounted outside the kitchen
- When your wife divorced you, you held a change of command ceremony
- Changing out the sandbags on the floor of your POV is part of your annual tune-up
- Your child's first words were, "All okay, Jumpmaster!"
- Your son fails third grade, but calls himself a "Phase 3 recycle."
- Your kids refer to summer vacation as "Block Leave"

Mike

[1911JMB]

There is this range in Michigan known as the pit. The AR15 forum guys come dressed to the extreme in that stupid tacticool crap with accessories on their rifles to match. The worst part is they seem to think that tacticool garbage makes them better shooters.

[thewheelsonthebus]

i am in houston. my idea is three pieces on you and a hawaiian shirt three sizes to big. look out!

[10-Ring]

I think once you've ID'd someone as being 'tacticool' is far enough...if it's obviously all show & nothing more, you've gone too far
IMO, tacticool is getting all dolled up in tactical gear to hit the range...or worse yet, your kid's little league game and then making a total ass out of yourself in the way you behave :scrutiny:

[Darth Muffin]

The simplest way I think of it is using way more gear than your mission (or your trip to the store) requires.

This is a good definition. My definition would be close to that, but especially when wearing any tactical gear for the sake of fashion, not for practical purposes.

[badman400]

What's a ghillie suit? :confused:

Guess that means I'n not very tacticool, huh?

[Twycross]

A ghillie suite is 3D camo clothing, like this one:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/content/Item/93/26/50/i932650sn01.jpg

[2TransAms]

It's for snipers...eXtreme snipers!!!

[panzermk2]

There is no way any of you guys who posted here have not been TACTICOOL AT LEAST ONCE. by chioce or by accident
whats worse going to the range with
A tiger stripe boonie (always for melon protection)
B woodland BDU shirt open
C real tree T-shirt
D green old type BDU pants
Looking for all world like mother nature BARFED and having your range buddy piont that out.

OR
at least having matching camo patterns mall ninja style?

[Diomed]

Well if those are the qualifications for being tacticool, then I guess I have been. Last time was when I was about thirteen. The matching woodland BDUs are great for playing in the woods!:p

[Low-Sci]

I fully admit to being tacticool on a vast number of occasions.

On the paintball field my friend's ghillie suit might have worked if he didn't keep moving around. So by that token, maybe tacticool is using equipment poorly suited to your situation or habits. If he's gonna be running around bunkering people, the ghillie just slows him down.

Another incident of tacticool: I put an M-4 style collapsing buttstock on a paintball gun once. This had the effect of interfering drastically with 2.5x shotgun scope that I had been using (successfully). The stock was in such a position that I couldn't get my eye down to the sights no matter what I did. I left it like that for quite a while, all the time thinking I would somehow make it work out. Never happened. So by that token, its also selecting equipment for cool points and not for actual purpose.

[trashpickinman]

I try to be the reverse of tacticool. Jeans, boots, tucked in t-shirt with belt. Looking relaxed but not street thug relaxed. Although I do wear Level II body armor underneath my shirt, but that is for purely safety related reasons. Looking at the divider panels between the booths, seeing holes does not fill me with confidence.

I'd probably just chuckle silently at any weekend warriors decked out looking like they were prepared to jump out the side of a helicopter.

[mcosman]

what is the difference between tacticool and practical. The reason I ask is that I have always maintained that if all you have is a revolver and a cardboard box of ammo tucked under one arm, how are you supposed to be a Minuteman or any help at all if the SHTF.

I tell people you better get a holster, sling and a ammo pouch to hang from a belt as a minimum. That was kinda what Minutemen had anyways.

Anyways, modern tactical gear fits the bill pretty good considering that basic hunting gear is sometimes a good deal more $ and the local army navy is a cheap.

Granted walking around the range in full swat gear is ridiculous, but I find a leg holster to be superior and gets in the way less when I am camping, easier draw as well (Long arms.)

[GEM]

When you go out to dinner in a very fancy restaurant and you carry:

1. A Glock 19 in a Milt Sparks IWB, two extra mags in a Galco
2. Two Delicas
3. A Fox OC
4. Surefire E2L with a photon light as Backup
5. SW 432 in a DeSantis pocket holster
6. NAA 22 Mag mini in your jacket pocket
7. Cell phone


Oh - wait - never mind - it's the nuts in Gillie suits with camel baks who are tacticool - not me.

Let's not talk about being a touch overweight and I only have a Surefire and Night sights on my AR. Can I take that to dinner? :confused:

[Deathrider1579]

I am not sure what the problem with being "tacticool" is, when I got to the range I got to relax and have fun. People who are around just to get mad at me when I dump a mag from my AR or AK while they are shooting off the bench I have no patience with people who think they are a better shooter because they can hit a dime at 600 yards with a $3000 gun off a bench. That’s great and all but whoopdedoo you know.

Depending on my mood I might go head to toe cammo with a boonie-hat and bandanna around my neck looking for all the world like a over weight spec ops guy with bad taste. Or in bubba style ripped jeans and t-shirt. If you don't like that I have a aim point and front grip on my AR and my AK I don't care just don't yell at me about "machine guns ruining my group". Range Nazis bug my no end, I tend to not even get out of my car when the old guys at my range are around they just run young guys who are there for the fun of it off.

You guys do remember shooting for fun and enjoying the sound and the visual of punching a bunch of holes into a target with rapid sequence don't you? And granted you can have fun target shooting working on the smallest group possible that’s how I got started was shooting competition in 4-H but I enjoy the whole range of the shooting world (except for that part that runs people off)

I don't see the problem with people being TUBAR or any of that stuff, if that’s how they get their jollies that’s fine with me I do it too sometimes.

Yall just need to take it down a notch on the serious-o-meeter there.

-DR

[Snake Eyes]

bleach bottle blonde, with the Tina Turner hairstyle, stooping from the burden of 50lbs of aftermarket bewbs spilling over the top her tube top, which reads, "It's better topless." She often completes the look with a set of 4" spike heels, and a pair of painted-on sparkly jeans, with the obligatory pink thong peeking out in back, saying, "Hi, I'm hard to get."

I see you've met my wife.

some sensitive backsides may have been bruised here. Can't we please have some more of the funnier type posts, such as... well, such as mine?

So you admit you were making fun of my wife?

I think 2Tacticool is taking your username from a character in a cheesy sequel.....

:neener:

[Still 2 Many Choices!?]

Bushmaster M4gery w/AK muzzle brake
Surefire M73 quad rail
Panorama Red dot(forward mounted to top rail and co-witnessed to irons)
Scorpion Flashlight(mounted to bottom rail)
3-9X40mm BSA scope mounted to carry handle(co-witnessed to Red Dot)

The fun I had shooting snap and precision shots at soda cans between 50yds(red dot) to 150 yds(scope), Pricelsess:evil: !

[Nematocyst]

These are the hip-hop boyz, of whatever race, who come in, reeking of green apple flavored blunts, wearing their flannel pajama pants, flip-flops, baseball hat cocked jauntilly to one side, and Mercedes hood ornaments dangling from gold plated tow chains, to ask me about the availability of "clips" for their Hi-Point fohty-fahv... the bleach bottle blonde, with the Tina Turner hairstyle, stooping from the burden of 50lbs of aftermarket bewbs spilling over the top her tube top, which reads, "It's better topless." She often completes the look with a set of 4" spike heels, and a pair of painted-on sparkly jeans, with the obligatory pink thong peeking out in back, saying, "Hi, I'm hard to get."That's simultaneously funny and sad. That some people exhibit such behavior and that so many of us (outside of middle Nebraska & deepest back country TX) can relate to it from direct experience speaks volumes about the state of comtemporary western culture.

I'm generally very tolerant of self-expression. I value diversity among people, both in terms of race, ethnicity and style. (This is NOT a comment on race or ethnicity, because as Seraph wrote in that original post, this is common among people (mostly kids) of all races.)

But in the cases described above, it's too often the stereotypical, overly-cool attitude that goes along with the style that makes me cringe, including the seemingly eager attempt to just appear less than fully intelligent because it's not "cool" (tacticool or otherwise) to appear intelligent. (Although in some cases, I'm sure there is no need to "attempt to appear less than intelligent", which is what draws people like that together in the first place, I suspect.)

Yo.

[Hoppy590]

only "tacti-cool" im guilty of is looking at a bayonet to put on my 590. ( hey, mossberg put the mount there. not me )

some one should dredge up the "your moma's so tactical" threads

[larry_minn]

There is this range in Michigan known as the pit. The AR15 forum guys come dressed to the extreme in that stupid tacticool crap with accessories on their rifles to match. The worst part is they seem to think that tacticool garbage makes them better shooters
Guess someone is jealous. :)
OK I went to tactical carbine class in blue jeans/shirt/work boots with spare mags stuck in back pocket and Glock in fobus/spare mags. Everyone else in OD or black. Some were former/current LEO/Mil. Next day I wore cammo.
It was good to find out what works/dosen't. For next class I picked up a vest (used/cheap) It is fine if temps under 75. Otherwise I overheat fairly quickly. (does not breath) I keep it loaded as it holds mags/handgun/mags/light. I can grab it/put on/grab rifle and all I need is cell phone.

It is one of those things you know when you see. (BTDT but learned something) As one said its when gear HURTS your ability to function rather then helps. (you have to think long term on this. I.E. body armor.) It makes you uncomfortable/less flexible/overheat/wears you out quicker/etc BUT if you ever get shot (with caliber vest will stop) its worth its weight in gold.

[Matt King]

What is too tacticool?


When you do something for looks, not function.

[Yanus]

My definition of TACTICOOL..........

Seeing an older man like myself, (I'm pushing 50), walk in wearing blue jeans, a tired Stetson hat and lay a well worn leather gun belt, probably 30 years old, on the table. In this holster is a 1911 that is as old or older than the holster and has been as lovingly cared for as the leather. The gentleman proceeds to calmly remove the 1911 from its home and proceed to cut a ragged hole in the target!

I can watch that scenerio all day........... ! :D

Yanus

[redneckdan]

I use a ghillie suit for animal photography and varmit hunting. They really do work if you plan on sitting tight. I've also used drop leg holsters, they are about the only option for carrying while back packing. I used to be one of the guys in middle and high school who wore BDUs, OD t-shirt, and combats to school but it wasn't to be tacticool, it was for plain old comfort. The fact that everyone left me well enough alone was a bonus. Now is jeans and an OD t-shirt, still wear the boots but don't blouse them when wearing jeans.

[Daemon688]

I don't own a single item of camo. I don't have a gun with a million gadgets hanging off it. In fact, the most tactical item I have is a surefire flashlight. When I head to the range, I just show up in my every day casual wear. Khaki pants, brown leather shoes, and a polo t-shirt.

Tacticool is the guy at the gun range (there are many of them) decked out like they're from the military, only in no shape to run even half a mile. Tacticool is the guy with a million gadgets hanging off his gun.

[Cesiumsponge]

Its all relative. You'll laugh at the tacticool guy next to you has on more MOLLE gear, velcro, and rail attachments on the AR15 than an entire regiment. Then the guy on the other side of you is laughing at your tacticool CC vest and matte blued 1911 since he has flanel and an old wheelgun.

I admittedly have some tacticool widgets for an AR15 but all the rail stuff stays in the case when I go to the range. There is no real good reason to hang a light or IR gear off a firearm at the range unless you're shooting at night with nightvision...in such case would be seen as excessive from my point-of-view.

I don't dress up in camo and I've chuckled at the guys that put on the full gear with grease paint, but I'm pretty sure I've gotten some sneers from more conservative shooters as well. Some guys are into revolvers, or autos...miltiary-style rifles, hunting rifles, blackpowder, etc. I don't take it seriously and see it as entertaining diversity, as long as they aren't showing a complete lack of understanding as far as gun safety is concerned. It's a hobby afterall, meant to be enjoyed (with practical benefits).

[Stiletto Null]

I could see having lights and stuff on the end of a rifle if you intend to have them on there for other duties, just for the sake of muscle memory. A half-pound flashlight at the end of a two-foot lever arm makes a difference in handling behavior.

[k_semler]

When the accessories bolted to the weapon outweigh the weapon's OEM weight, you might be too tacticool.

[Barbara]

Molle webbing on your ducky jammies might be.

[carebear]

When I go shooting it seems like the fattest man in the building is always the one wearing camo. it makes me laugh a little.

When you're too big to run, you have to be able to hide. :evil:

Had a kid show up at a Toys for Tots event (I was in tactical Dress Blues) packing a Glock 21 and -I kid you not- 10 mags. The guy couldn't have weighed more than a buck fifty wet and he doubled his OWN OEM weight with all that ammo. Had a 20-odd inch waist and every inch of it was supporting a magazine.

Kept wanting to talk about shooting techniques and in the process freaked out the radio DJ's who were doing the marathon with us and made some of the strippers uncomfortable enough to leave.

We put him out the door posthaste. Anybody who can make a professional stripper uncomfortable is no one I want around. Plus, they were "friendly" strippers. :evil:

[sm]

Recently...

Retired LEO is shooting at 50 yards with his Model 19, dumps cylinder, speed loads repeats this thrice...draws J frame weak side and one ragged hole at 7 yds on a playing card.

Tack-Tickle shooter with some kind of something mounted under the optics...well I have seen better groups from shotgun patterns.

This was before slamming his gonads with the Octopus Sling.

LEO granddaughter's just had to comment "that kind of stuff don't happen to me"
<squeaky voice> "you are a girl".

"That is true, but I still know how to shoot. "

I still get grins watching a lady shuck and shoot a bone stock pump gun with slugs taking head shots , then transitions to 50 yards like her granddaddy did with a Model 19. Then repeats the J frame weak handed.

She cannot wait to be a Jr in HS come fall...
"Just two more years of Private School then College!" :p


Me? I was busy. Someone has to watch the Pickle Jar making Sun Tea.

I mean the Erronet says you cannot hit steels at 40 yards with Keltec P-11...
Tack-Tickle darn near busted his carbingers seeing me doing that...

My job is to watch the Sun Tea being made....honest. ;)

[Wes Janson]

Those who doubt the purpose of a good ghillie suit have never seen them in action.

A few years back I was at my local paintball field when a guy showed up, apparantly an EMT out on his day off (never did find out if he spent time in the military). Dude comes out with nothing but a ghillie suit, and rents a set of low-end gear. Think the accuracy of a .40 S&W fired from a .45 ACP chamber, and then mix that with the reliability of a Lorcin. For the good fortune of my own hide, he wound up on the same team as I.

Even now, I get that warm tingly feeling thinking about those hapless enemy players, who thought they were doing great as they moved up the field, dove for cover, popped up to return fire, and were shot by the bush they were hiding behind. Remember: cover may be better than concealment, but anything is better than finding out the hard way that your "cover" has a gun.

[Mike_in_OC]

Too tacticool is when someone has way more toys and money than skill.

[Travis McGee]

Great thread! I love it all, and I can't wait to move to NE Florida in 2 weeks, so I can finally pick up a CCW and start wearing my 5.11 pants and vest everywhere! (Just kidding. Sort of.)

Seriously, there is room at the range and in the gravel pit for all of us, from jeans and a t-shirt to ghillie suits.....as long as you practice gun safety. I don't care how tacticool you are, just don't sweep me with that muzzle!

[Nematocyst]

i frequently wear a camo kilt
around the studio
(hey, it's hot here)
and i do own a pair of camo bdu's.

occasionally, i strap the 9mm
to which ever of those i'm wearing.
(but only in the studio).

that 870 is hanging just m from here...

at "the" range,
(we've got several here),
i'm wearing jeans or carhartts,
with a baseball cap and some sunglasses.
nothing too conspicuous,
let alone tact i cool.

yet, strangely,
i refuse to wear
a pair of those 4" spikes,
even if I'm "hard to get".

(But not for my gf... :neener: :evil: )

Happy 4th.

[GW]

Well tacticool is anyone or thing I decide is over the top.
Seriously, though I can see a very good reason to wear a ghillie to the range and that is if you're going on a hunt where you might want to use it, wouldn't it be better to give it a live-fire drill at the range and dicover the bugs & kinks there rather than discover it binds up your left arm ( or whatever) as that buck comes out of the brush. I have worn all sorts of junk at the range before hunts or backpacking trips
I have shot with a loaded backpack on my back at the range and that simply is because I'd rather make my mistakes there than when it really matters. Yes, there are plenty of posers at the range, but before you make the determination that the guy is an idiot, it might be worth your time to ask him why he is wearing that ( fill in the blank) that you find so ridiculous.

[smince]

Someone on here recently posted a pic of a muzzle-loader with Aimpoint, vertical grip, CAR stock, and a Surefire. I'd have to say that is too Tacti-cool.:D

[Thrash1982]

Hmm, could it be getting dressed in this getup and loaded for zombie to sit around the apartment and watch tv?
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b122/Thrash1982/Tactifool005copy.jpg

[Boom-stick]

Tacticool (combat/camo etc..) is banned at both of the clubs I belong to.
Everyone's told that from the get-go, so,
If you're a member and you turn up like that, they'll ask you to go home and change, if you're a newbie.... you'll kindly be asked not to return......EVER.

Tacticool should be the sole reserve of the individual who dresses up, looks in the mirror, smiles and then takes it all off again, praying to be asked to a fancy dress party, so they can put it on for 'real':D

[Harold Mayo]

The tactical baclava.

I MUST make a correction here. I think that you mean "balaclava" here.

"Baclava" is a delicious Middle Eastern or Mediterranean dessert made of pastry and nuts and honey whereas a "balaclava" is a covering for the head and face.

While I wouldn't put it past some company to market a "tactical" dessert, I don't think that anyone is covering their head with baclava at this time...;)

[Phantom Warrior]

You have become too tacticool when you:

- Have doubled the loaded weight of your firearm with accessories.


*whiney voice*
It's not my faaaaault.

Seriously, you don't argue with a SGM when you tells you that you WILL have an ACOG, PAQ-4, tac light, 203, and PSQ-18A on your M-16. You just go "Roger, Sargeant Major." The ACOG is pretty cool though.



Full BDU dress and carry yourself like an 11B or 0311 without being one=too tacticool. (Wearin' 'em 'cause you just like all the extra pockets is OK, though. But that's why some of us have two chest pockets with buttons on our shirts, WWII uniform style...)


Yeah, all the 11Bs I know are stripping out of uniform as fast as they can at the end of the day. So seeing someone in full BDUs (unless they are wearing a beret w/ a unit crest) is probably a give away.

The pockets are nice though. I hacked down a pair of BDU pants to make some cargo shorts and they're comfortable as all get out too.




That post "You Know You're Too Hooah When" is HILARIOUS. Anyone who has ever been in the military (esp the Army) can appreciate that.



I could see having lights and stuff on the end of a rifle if you intend to have them on there for other duties, just for the sake of muscle memory. A half-pound flashlight at the end of a two-foot lever arm makes a difference in handling behavior.


I absolutely agree with that. I mentioned about what my M-16 looks like. All that stuff makes a huge difference. It's a pain, but if I'm going to get stuck with it, I train with it. Including stuff like ready ups (CQM) which wears you OUT after a while. Though I'll confess to leaving my PSQ-18 behind whenever I can get away with it.

[Leanwolf]

HAROLD MAYO - ""Baclava" is a delicious Middle Eastern or Mediterranean dessert made of pastry and nuts and honey whereas a "balaclava" is a covering for the head and face."



Everyone knows that "Tactical Baclava," has a large scoop of Baskin Robbins French Vanilla ice cream, and a half cup of chocolate syrup poured over it. Every Special Forces and SEAL operator I've known, eats that with their tactical spoons.

L.W.

[Nematocyst]

"Baclava" is a delicious Middle Eastern or Mediterranean dessert...As long as we're correcting here...:)

It's baklava (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baklava). ;)
While I wouldn't put it past some company to market a "tactical" dessert, I don't think that anyone is covering their head with baclava at this time... Actually, although I don't think he's marketing it as tactical dessert, our host Oleg Volk does do some photography of desserts. You'll find a few on these pages (http://volkstudio.com/Default.aspx).

Maybe he can come up with an image of tactical baklava. :rolleyes:

Nem

[Stiletto Null]

I've seen it spelled "baclava" before. Proper Greek spelling is "baklava", of course.

[GW]

Baklava?
Thats a halvah thing to say.:neener:

[Don't Tread On Me]

I agree with one of the first posts...

Tacticool is when you're adding things to a weapon that have no practical real-world use. When you add something because it "looks cool" or you just like it, not that you actually use it.

People add all sorts of junk to their AR-15 rifles that they will never use, or they add them for aesthetical purposes. That is basically tacticool.

I'm the opposite. I want the rifle as simple as possible and as light as possible. I only want that which I will use on the rifle. Anything more is waste, extra weight, extra bulk, extra potential for failure or problems.

[Lebben-B]

One of the funniest bits of tacticool kit is the sling. Watching someone wallow around with a poorly fitted or improperly mounted 3-point sling is endlessly amusing. I use a one-point sling on my personal AR. A guy showed up at my new local range here in OK with a single point on his AR and he was carrying it over one shoulder like luggage...to each his own I suppose.

[quazi]

Everyone knows that "Tactical Baclava," has a large scoop of Baskin Robbins French Vanilla ice cream, and a half cup of chocolate syrup poured over it. Every Special Forces and SEAL operator I've known, eats that with their tactical spoons.
You're behind the times. Titanium sporks are a dozen times more tactical than spoons. :D

[Deathrider1579]

Seriously, there is room at the range and in the gravel pit for all of us, from jeans and a t-shirt to ghillie suits.....as long as you practice gun safety. I don't care how tacticool you are, just don't sweep me with that muzzle

Now thats the kind of attitude we need to see more often!

Tacticool (combat/camo etc..) is banned at both of the clubs I belong to.
Everyone's told that from the get-go, so,
If you're a member and you turn up like that, they'll ask you to go home and change, if you're a newbie.... you'll kindly be asked not to return......EVER.


I find that sad, I wouldn't want to belong to those clubs any way, turning people away is wrong all shooters who are safe should be accepted as fellow RKBA supporters, that is what we all want isn't it MORE shooters?
I think I would not get along with those people at your clubs and would have to find other places to shoot.

You know some of those "Tacticool" guys are some of the nicest people you will meet! Sure they might be a little full of them selves but they usualy don't disparage others for being too "boreing" or "un- tactical" well at least not the ones I know.


-DR

[Fairlane63]

http://www.extremeshockusa.com/

This one has been mentioned on THR before-- always makes me laugh. Even if the ammo is good-- which I tend to doubt-- that over-the-top website would probably not appeal to many non-Mall Ninjas. They even have tactical muzzle loading bullets!

[Travis McGee]

Deathrider: Seriously, what kind of gun club enforces a no-cammie "dress code?" Not my kind of place!

I don't care if folks show up dressed as "reenactors," of any war they like. Gun safety is what counts, not how a shooter dresses.

[1911_CQB]

So I cant show up in uniform....:confused:

[CleverName]

Speaking of Extreme Shock(TM) - Box O' Truth recently did a test on their ammo.

[Deathrider1579]

Travis McGee said:

I don't care if folks show up dressed as "reenactors," of any war they like. Gun safety is what counts, not how a shooter dresses.

Exactly the kind of person I would enjoy a good range trip with. I don't care if they look like uber ninjas or bubba, as long as you don't clear anyone with your muzzle or do anything unsafe (and stay off my back while I do the same) I would enjoy range time with you!


-DR

[Stiletto Null]

Imagine, if you will:

Tall Indian guy in British 18th century garb (Red coat, tights, bandoliers, the works) firing off a tricked-up/-out AR.

Jarring, huh?

[Deathrider1579]

Interesting, amuseing perhaps but not "Jarring" so he wants to dress up in funny clothes and shoot a tricked out gun. Nothin wrong with that.

Now picture in your mind a guy in faded torn blue jeans and a ripped t-shirt, he hasn't shaved for what looks like 6 weeks and has ever so greasy hair and hes shooting a Remington 700 off the bench.

Jarring?

lol

-DR

[Stiletto Null]

Sounds like what I see all the time at a range in Belmont. Old, somewhat run-down-looking men shooting rifles from benchrests.

[Deathrider1579]

Yeah dito I see it all the time too, the point is that it doesn't matter how people dress or what they do to their fire arm (as long as its safe). The important thing is that they are shooting!

-DR

[Navy joe]

I try, I really try not to be judgemental of shooters. The tacticool types often get me down because they show up looking like the gun rag editors dressed them, a regular Peter J. Kokalis sideshow they are. So they spent their money and it made them happy. All too often though you will get cornered and they will tell you everything they know. The thought they know nothing never occurs to them. My most common interaction is to correct safety problems, little stuff like loading up behind the firing line, a sure fire way to improve my humor. Can't tell them anything about gun handling, they are all knowing!

Here is a great tacticool interaction story, courtesy of some actual tactical types. A nearby USPSA match often used to draw a few Delta guys from southern NC. They brought their Ranger buddies with them at one point, some of whom were rusty with the pistol. I was RO'ing shooters in my squad and that rustiness led me to politely ask one to refrain from pointing his pistol at his stomach the next time he cleared a malfunction. That wasn't tacticool though, but the next stage was, 40 some round field course and they are going forward of the shooter and scoring/taping targets while the shooter is still finishing up 10 yards away. I asked them to refrain from that, which they did, with the comment that they were just back from afghanistan and were used to 360 deg fire in close confines to each other. I had to comment that we frowned on 360 deg fire in our current setting. Good group of guys, last saw them at a match in early 2003, sporting a satellite phone and full beards, answered the phone and left mid-match, hope they are still okay and doing their thing.

Now an example of tacticool that makes me puke :barf: I live in an area with 80,000 military and a pretty large spec-ops community. I have shot with SEALs, talked with them, bought and sold guns with them. (Be very afraid when one comments that the #1.5 single stage trigger on the Rem 700 you are selling him is "a little heavy :D ) I know people that work for Blackhawk, got a tour of the place. I try to shoot a lot and be knowledgeable.

Through a fair amount of casual interaction of this sort I still show no desire to act like or pass myself off as a SEAL. Unfortunately, many others do. One fellow is a nice guy, works in a Tactical gear store, goes to gun schools and such. He came to a three gun match at one point with his shorty AR, 18 rails of fury, 3-point sling, tac vest and C-mag. We smoked him.
So, I see him late last year and he is rolling with tricked up Glocks(no harm no foul, I work on my Glocks too) Maximum rooney AR (EOTech, AN/PEQ designator, Surefire Foregrip, etc....) That didn't bother me, after all I have an A2 configuration AR with an ACOG and dressed up in Bowflage warpaint. What got me was the peltor electronic muffs with boom mike and ICS cord, the drop thigh holster, the drop thigh AR mag pouch, the latest load bearing gear with the belt line covered up with mag pouches, dump bags, gi-normous Strider knife sticking out of all of it, it went on and on. I gave him the benefit of the doubt, later asked someone who would know if he had gotten hired on with Blackwater and was getting sent out. Nope, just this guy being this guy, nice guy, okay shooter, but a huge gear queer wannabe.

Now this bothers me why? Few persons that go to that level of dress-up have the integrity to say they just like buying gear when questioned about their affiliations. Their existence is an affront to people who really do wear that gear when doing their job. Furthermore, being in an area with so many real deal people the dress-ups must know that others at least assume they are super secret dreaded deadly demons of darkness. In a word, I find it dishonest.



Now me, am I too tacticool? I like my Blackwater hat. I like it because someone I respect gave it to me for helping run shooting matches. People ask if I work there (nope) or train there(not yet), I am quick to point out I just shoot pistol matches there and it was my home club while I had time to compete. Hopefully again soon. Now chances are if I am wearing a Dillon shirt and Blackwater hat I am not carrying or at a shooting event because I know this says gun to some people. See me in a race car t-shirt and greasy race car hat? Hmmmm. I wear a riggers belt. Why? 4 years old, holds up lots of gun, pants too, very tough. I have exactly too people ask me what I did for a living based on it. Quickly, "just an airplane mechanic". Never bothered to tell the last one I was carrying two guns as he led me on a little guided tour of some land a mile into the woods, he was a probation officer sporting a Glock, I figured I might as well have mine too. My wife sometimes questions why I carry, I asked her how she would have felt going into the woods far from home with this fella had she not known what was inside my leather coat. (Coronado Leather, now there is tactical, not Tacticool, nobody ever sees that as a gun carrier flag). Other than that it is jeans and a T-shirt. My "tactical" pants came from Bass Pro because the zip-off legs rock! I am sure some would consider me a little too tactical, probably the same old revolver guy that thinks an 8 shot revolver is an assault weapon. But, what I do is quite low key and it is me. So, to me tacticool is:

Trying to be someone you are not.

[Skunkabilly]

Tacticool is over-analyzing what other people have on their guns, how they dress and fretting about it on the Internet.

[Punkermonkey]

Yeah, Skunky's (http://www.skunkabilly.com/videos/gointactical.wmv) not tacticool.

[mec360]

Tacticool is over-analyzing what other people have on their guns, how they dress and fretting about it on the Internet.

Yup. If you are safe, you are OK to shoot with me whether you wear jeans, 5.11's, a business suit or camo. As long as you wear pants of SOME kind... :D

[ABTOMAT]

I admit to being tacticool when I was an early teenager. For a year or two I wore full woodland BDU's until they fell apart, and then realized how strange I looked.

HOWEVER, I think there's a difference between being "tacticool" (which I define as getting stuff just because it's tactical, or how it looks) and wearing gear for legitimate reasons. I currently:

Wear a woodland boonie I've had since the above-mentioned BDU phase on sunny days (walking, sailing, shopping, etc). It's a great sun hat and now faded as hell.

Wear Hi-Tec Magnum boots when I need a really comfy shoe.

Wear a web belt with a 1qt. canteen outside on hot days. Got some strange looks whist sightseeing in the city a while back.

Wear '70s Mickey Mouse boots in deep winter. Again, a comfy and warm boot.

Have a Realtree camo Zippo. Hindsight being 20/20 that was now a bad choice since it's impossible to find if you drop it in the woods.

I also carry two knifes (Swiss Army and a short locking folder) and usually a flashlight.

Do these things make me tacticool? I hope not. I usually just wear clean long jeans or khaki shorts, with a dark tee shirt, and either sneakers or Teva-type sandals. Don't own any fancy optics or anything with a rail.

[Sgt Stevo]

At the last THR shoot in Northern ca. Some guy showed up wearing an ammo belt, black goves and combat boots. It was like 85 degrees. Funny. Then he takes my AK traininer and shoots it sideways. I was nice though. he was with one of us. But he was the butt of jokes from my buddys for some time.

he also told me any Glock, not in 9mm was dangerous. And lots and lots of tactical advice. this guy had hair longer than my wife and had never Been in ant related field. But I was nice. The VA anger management classes must be working.

[Scorpiusdeus]

I'm obviously not tacticool enough. I don't even know what some of this gear is that you guys speak of.

My biggest Mod is a P239 with rubber grips and my shooting uniform is a pair of shorts and a tee shirt with some sneakers or even flipflops.

I will be sporting the boonie hat from time to time, but just to keep the sun from burning my bald head. They are cheap and available everywhere.

Of course, as dressed down as I am, is it too much using the camo face paint? ;)

[Josh Aston]

http://i62.photobucket.com/albums/h99/astonj45/100_0076.jpg

I need to get a tri-rail so I can put a flashlight and laser on it. Maybe a scope mount and a nice red dot too. And then a silencer . :)

Almost forgot the single point sling.

[Logan5]

"Tacticool" is...

1) When you've got 40,000 rounds of .223 in the basement and $4k sunk into your AR in case of TEOTEWAKI, but you won't take Basic First Aid or CPR, or even carry a band aid in your pocket, because "blood is icky!" and you don't have so much as an extra can of lima beans in the pantry in case of a power outage.
2) You try to fit one of those German surplus flack overvests that isn't even remotely bullet resistant that you got from Sportsman's Guide for $50 under your everyday clothes, particularly dress shirts.
3) The clerk at your regular range sees you come in, and charges your credit card in advance for every florescent bulb in the entire building, to be refunded if you fail to shoot them out by accident via riccochets off your target carrier.
4) You wear a 17 inch survival knife and/or bayonet on your belt to the range, so that at target change, if you've failed to hit the target in a "vital area", you can "finish it off".
5) You've devoted 1800 hours over the past year to refining your bug out strategy for TEOTEWAKI on various internet message boards, and it still starts: "Jack bug out vehicle off blocks, remove any large shrubs/small trees growing in/on same..."
6) Said bug out vehicle is your late Grandmother's 1990 Mercury Topaz.
7) You put on your tac vest/LBE when full of loaded magazines, etc, and immediately experience a double hernia.
8) You show up at your range, and the Range Officers are former Marine Corps DI's who can't stop laughing at your attire and/or performance. You shift the 6 foot sword slung across your back to a more comfortable position and continue shooting your .460 Weatherby Mag without ear protection untill you can no longer hear the snickers.

[Harold Mayo]

You're behind the times. Titanium sporks are a dozen times more tactical than spoons.

OK...I'll admit this on an open forum...I actually bought a titanium spork.

I have this love of titanium stuff and happened across a titanium spork and just had to get it. I travel a lot so I carry it with me in my laptop bag.

I might even get to eat baklava with it some time.

[nitesite]

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y141/nitesite9/tacticoolAR15.jpg


:D :D :D :D :D

[Stiletto Null]

I've seen that.

That crosses the line from "tacticool", or even "tacticlol", to "stupid".

You can't stick a red dot in front of a scope like that!

[smince]

You can't stick a red dot in front of a scope like that!

Maybe it's IR:rolleyes:

[nitesite]

5) You've devoted 1800 hours over the past year to refining your bug out strategy for TEOTEWAKI on various internet message boards, and it still starts: "Jack bug out vehicle off blocks, remove any large shrubs/small trees growing in/on same..."
6) Said bug out vehicle is your late Grandmother's 1990 Mercury Topaz.

1990?

I've got my 'TEOTWAWKI vehicle' tactically positioned right outside the front door, ready to escape and evade (well, almost). Right now it mainly serves as our tornado shelter because it is glued down pretty damn good. :eek: It should withstand an F4, being so round and aerodynamic and all. :D

I really need to free it up long enough to re-position it for a more rapid escape if the zombies attack... :p I read on the internet that the tire whitewalls confuse a Zombie's un-dead vision as they rotate. That is the tactical edge I'm betting my life on.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y141/nitesite9/Pacerinyardweb.jpg

[nitesite]

BTW, I actually took that pic myself in NE AL last summer. When I saw it I just had to throw on the brakes and back up. Ah just knowed that some day it would be worth posting somewhere. :p

[Chris Rhines]

Tacticool is knowing everything there is to know about shooting, but being unwilling to come to a match and demonstrate your prowess. Double tacticool points for saying any variation of, "Competition will get you killed out on the street!"

- Chris

[nitesite]

I am so Tacticool that I shoot wasp-waisted bullets thru my SKS. Not many can claim that feat. :what:

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y141/nitesite9/hourglassbullet5web.jpg

Emmersome scary-looking things, ain't they? :rolleyes:

[Logan5]

O.K, clearly I need to raise the bar here...
"Tacticool" is when you own anything with a vernier tang sight and you replace it with with a compact ACOG. It's "Double Decret Tacticool" if the weapon was manufactured before 1930.

Now, for one I've done... If you've worn one of the IMI/Action Arms micro UZI's in that shoulder rig, (where the UZI snaps on to the stud through the rear of the grip frame) that was "Retro Tacticool". It only counts if you did it before 1998, and you watched at least two Miami Vice reruns while wearing it. Triple bonus score if you lived at home with your mother when you did it. Double your triple bonus score if you drove a 1993 or earlier Camaro at the time. God, this should be a boardgame, THR could fund itself selling it, and it'd be a blast at parties. ;)

[Low-Sci]

I'll see your tacticool, and raise you one single-shot, break action shotgun with a surefire flashlight mounted on the underside of the barrel with a pair of old scope riser rings. This weapon is currently my go-to choice for home defense.

[ShackleMeNot]

How many of you in this thread spend more money on guns and gagets every year than you do on professional training?

[farscott]

... sunglasses (at an indoor range, nonetheless) ....I am guilty of this as I find it a very effective way to practice in low light while protecting my eyes. My shooting glasses are a pair of Rudy Project Ekonyx frames with swappable outer polycarbonate lenses and the ability to use Rx inserts. While I usually use the clear lenses, I sometimes use the dark lenses with my Rx inserts at a local indoor range. I can also practice for both day and night just by swapping the outer lenses. I also have two Rx inserts, one optimized for pistols and one for shotguns.

[Sgt Stevo]

I do shacklemenot. And you just made me think about it. Weird, I harrass people who buys our trained dogs and dont keep up training. And yet. I have only gone to one class, since I left the Army last year. And it sucked.

Its not a money or time thing with me. Its a I am not motivated thing. Good call dude.

I think I will go buy strider knife with laser on it. Just to make myself feel better.

[GEM]

ShacklemeNot - after buying the 1911 and taking a Givens class, I will be buying new drapes. Yes, dear!

Will she let me buy them in Kevlar and Camo? I don't think so. :D

[History Prof]

When I go shooting it seems like the fattest man in the building is always the one wearing camo.

Hey, I resemble that remark! I can't speak for other big guys, but I wear BDUs because they're the most friggin comfortable pants in the world. If I'm shooting bench or standing, I just wear my work slacks. But if I'm going out in the sticks or shooting prone, I need durable comfortable clothes, hence the BDUs. Why not blue jeans? Well, the way they make fat-guy blue jeans, they weigh about 10 pounds, and they always come sliding down. That's why you always see fat-guy butt crack when they're wearing jeans (which is why I don't wear them). Usually, I try to stick with one color BDUs, but when you find digital woodland in 3XL on sale at the surplus store, and they're the only pair in 3X, you gotta take what you can get. Any other big fellas here? You all know what I'm talking about.....

[smince]

I actually took that pic myself in NE AL last summer
I know where this house is!!!!!!

Maybe I shouldn't mention this, but I only live a few miles from there. I don't have a Pacer growing in my yard, though.:D

[Lonestar.45]

IMHO, anything that reeks of overkill is tacticool. For instance, 5 rails, an ACOG, BUIS, a Surefire, a bipod, and a Laser on your AR is tacticool unless you are in Delta and about to embark. Sorry, but the 250 lb desk jockey at the indoor range shooting at 25 yds from a bench with something like this reeks of tacticoolness. You all know who you are. :D

[ShackleMeNot]

ShacklemeNot - after buying the 1911 and taking a Givens class, I will be buying new drapes. Yes, dear!

I hear ya. ;)

Tom's classes are well worth the money.

I'm just happy when a gun owner stops stuffing their safe full of new guns they won't shoot that will sit next to their old guns they don't shoot. Stop buying new guns and gadgets and put your time and money toward realistic training. Sell some of those guns (tacticool or not) and learn to fight with the guns you keep.

[Mountaineer]

I just bought a bunch of krylon at wallyworld so I can have an uber tactical Ar.:neener:

[Detritus]

Usually, I try to stick with one color BDUs, but when you find digital woodland in 3XL on sale at the surplus store, and they're the only pair in 3X, you gotta take what you can get. Any other big fellas here? You all know what I'm talking about.....

been there done that, planning to buy a few pair of 4x in green, black and that tan/khaki very soon. (yes i have a 52" waist, trying to lose some of it but due to bad feet the going is SLOOOOWW)

as for my personal veiw of "too tacticool" If you have the gear but are unable/unaware of how to use it properly and it's sole purpose to you is to "exist on your firearm/ in your kit" that is too tacticool.

with the exception of a few minor asthetic items (more on this in a minute) i can't bring myself to fork over the money for most of the toys/mods so many of these wannabe-HSLD types tout. if i can't see a benefit (ie increase in utility) for me, in getting a doodad it gets passed over. heck if not for wanting to build a GUU-5A/B clone, because sometimes i just like the weird looking one's (note above asthetic item exception), i'd never consider an M-4 profile barrel. and even then i may decide to build an XM-177E2 look alike instead.

[Vairochana]

Bring on the Zombies.
'nuf said :neener:

[smince]

This is WAAAY past Tactic-cool:

[Eightball]

ROTFLMAO!!!!!!:D :D :D

If they "dress" tacticool, then that's too tacticool IMO. Or, what's up with these strange emo-dressed individuals at firing ranges nowadays? Nothing scares the crap outta me as much as an anemicly thin white dude wearing makeup, hugely flared jeans, and studded belts, with their iPod under their earmuffs, using a Glock at the range.

Though, the "where's the gun under that?" AR's are right up there, as well. I would say "tactical" is being able to use your training, even if you're stuck with *gasp* justa SAA, and get the job done. "tacticool"=black/camoed everything, with EVERY CONCEIVABLE ACCESSORY hanging off your gun that possibly can. And only the newest stuff, too, because a 2 year old surefire isn't as "tacticool" as a 6-minute old "Mother of ***-bright light" hanging off of anything.

But if you have ninja claws, you're instantly a nerd, no matter how you cut the cake, or what guns you own.
Or, "if you own ninja claws", you win. I give up.

[Phantom Warrior]

For instance, 5 rails, an ACOG, BUIS, a Surefire, a bipod, and a Laser on your AR is tacticool unless you are in Delta and about to embark.


5 rails: Check
ACOG: Check (And hell ya. Those things rock.)
BUIS: Check (SGM gets PISSED if we don't have one.)
Surefire: Check
Laser: Check (PAQ-4 infrared laser)

No bipod. With the 203 and PSQ-18A I don't have room for one. *sigh* :rolleyes:

[GEM]

Well, we didn't buy new drapes - we bought a new kitchen floor. Guess I won't be cleaning the gun on the kitchen table.

I cleaned the AR on the porch Saturday. Then the match was cancelled. I've been having bad luck with classes outside of Givens.

I was going to do an AR class and got sick as a dog. I was going to do a shotgun class and we got iced out (now it is 100 deg for weeks).

Wah, wah!!

[Phantom Warrior]

I just realized I posted twice in this thread thinking it was two seperate threads. I'm dumb...

[carebear]

I just realized I posted twice in this thread thinking it was two seperate threads. I'm dumb...

Don't worry, practical intelligence has no bearing on tacticoolity. :evil:

[madmike]

:eek: :uhoh:

I've been making and using knives for 23 years, and that's INSANE.

You'd hurt yourself faster than the other guy, and never get it back after it stuck.

That said, my wife and I both go to the range with M4s, Eotechs, LBVs with 6 mags, kevlar, IBA, canteens and camelbaks, sprint to change targets, do speed drills and drag along shotguns and sidearms, too.

Of course, she's a combat photographer and I'm an engineer in a Support Bn:neener:

[SiG Lady]

"...after-market boobs..."Bwahahahaha!!!

Meanwhile, on tacticoolness: When I first began shooting at the indoor range, I'd go there in full business suit gear, and maybe even high heels. You just never knew when you might have to draw your weapon in the office. I've since graduated to athletic shoes, lacy tank-tops and denim clothing, but usually wear hiking boots and woodland camo BDFs to the outdoor academic range (north of here) (when I'm on photo assignment) for sheer year-round comfort. Often wear thatlacy little tank-top or something on top, just to balance the ensemble. It suitably distracts the student shooters, forcing them to re-focus on their targets--if they can.

[glock+ipod]

Once when wearing mag pouches, a belt knife, and gloves at the range I overheard the following exchange from the lane to my left:

A: "Isn't he just a little too tactical?"
B: "Maybe, but he's shooting a lot better than me."

[ar10]

Tacticool is when 5~6 gangbangers show up at a range with enough guns to open a gunstore, then get escorted back out the front door by 3 open carry employees. Now that's cool.

[romma]

I must admit, when I see nice equipment on an AR,,, I am more envious than anything. I can't wait to get an Eotech.

Right now I have $50 red dot. Fun to plink with, but I want the good stuff.

[General Geoff]

"Tacticool" is when you rely on your equipment, not your training.

[carnaby]

You're too tacticool if you are highly tactical and think that it makes you cool. You can be as tactical as you like if you don't take yourself and your hightend tac too seriously, IMO.

[Wheeler44]

If it ain't practical it ain't tactical.
If it ain't tactical it's ........ ummmm.... silly

[Shadow Shock]

At an airsoft game, I saw a guy with a load bearing vest, and belt mag pouches totaling 16 magazines for his M16. I consider that too "tacticool", especially sinve I shot him within the first 10 seconds of the game.

Also I remember this one guy, he had a pump shotgun in his hands, and a Desert Eagle, a Smith & Wesson model 4506, 2 SIG P230's, a Barretta 92fs, and multiple mags for each stuffed in hiss pockets, holsters, and other gear. A little extreme.

However once I was guilty of carrying an M4 with a laser sight, and a Walther P99 in my holster, with a mini-eletric AK47 slung around my shoulders. The funnything is, in the huge 80-person game, I actually scored "kills" with all three guns

[MrPeter]

At Coal Creek Armory, we get all types, of all ages. It's a real menagerie of tacticool and urban stylz. We get an awful lot of these guys who come in from the boondocks dressed out like Dog the Bountyhunter or some kind of GSG-9 castoff, perhaps wearing two Ruger P95's in a nylon double shoulder rig, or a .50 Desert Eagle in a thigh holster. It's hard not to laugh right in their faces sometimes. However, it's the urban stylz posse that really takes the cake. These are the hip-hop boyz, of whatever race, who come in, reeking of green apple flavored blunts, wearing their flannel pajama pants, flip-flops, baseball hat cocked jauntilly to one side, and Mercedes hood ornaments dangling from gold plated tow chains, to ask me about the availability of "clips" for their Hi-Point fohty-fahv. For real, yo - I'd rather share oxygen with the mallninjas and bountyhunter wannabes than with these assclowns. But let's not leave out the ladies... I've never seen a female mallninja, but we do get a few ladies in the store who are equally impressive. My favorite type is the bleach bottle blonde, with the Tina Turner hairstyle, stooping from the burden of 50lbs of aftermarket bewbs spilling over the top her tube top, which reads, "It's better topless." She often completes the look with a set of 4" spike heels, and a pair of painted-on sparkly jeans, with the obligatory pink thong peeking out in back, saying, "Hi, I'm hard to get." As I said, we get all types, but, in the broad spectrum of this menagerie, I'd honestly have to say the tacticool brigade are some of the least egregious.
I laughed so hard I almost cried. Then I tried to imagine where the 'lady' could hide her piece if her clothes were painted on and then I did cry.

[whited]

The word tacticool is a bit strange to me. I don't even know how pieces of
inanimate clothing and weaponry can be tactical. These items can be
useful or practical, but never tactical. Using all of this stuff is not cool.
Its kind of stupid.

People at the range wearing all of this crap bewilder me. What are they
getting prepared for? That thigh rig is not going to help you shoot any
better, nor is wearing mag belts and vests going to improve anything.

Its all about image. I think people use this kind of equipment as a crutch.

In my observations, the best shooters are casually dressed folks shooting
normal (not military style or race guns) firearms.

[tank mechanic]

hey nitesite,

All that rifle in post 114 needs is a electrical plug coming out of it :D

[308win]

All that rifle in post 114 needs is a electrical plug coming out of it

Well, if it did have an electrical plug . . . it would be rigged for a three-phase circuit. When plugged in it would brown-out the east coast.

Anti-tacticool is the gun shopper in his baggy jeans shorts, boxers showing for 6-9 inches above his jeans shorts, 15 or so pounds of gold jewerly, teeth, etc. eating out of a family sized bag of barbeque chips waiting for his number to come up on the board so he could look at the Glock fohty.

[Im283]

judgemental lot here sometimes :neener:

+1 to wearing BDU's because they are comfortable.

[Donut]

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y131/guttedhatch/tactical-scissors.jpg

[SaMx]

I don't know if it's been posted yet but,

Tacticool is when a person has or wears clothing and gear not because they need it or it benefits them, but because they think it makes them look cool or feel cool. Wearing bdu pants because they are comfortable is normal. wearing bdu pants because you look badass in camo is tacticool. Putting a light or laser on an HD pistol so you can see/aim at night if you are nervous is fine. Potting a laser on you pistol so you can go to the range and hold it sideways is tacticool. It's twice as tacticool if you haven't sighted in the laser, or don't know how to sight in the laser and don't care if it's sighted in or not.

[Shadow Shock]

Tacticool is hunting for Easter eggs in BDU's with a loadbearing vest and an AR

[madmike]

If you can use it and it's portable, it's tactical. If it's useless or you can't, it's tacticool.

[madmike]

http://olegvolk.net/gallery/d/17503-2/pink6005.jpg

http://olegvolk.net/gallery/d/17216-2/rifle0657.jpg

[The Deer Hunter]

I beleive its fine do dress how you want to the range. We are allowed to here, and the more power to the people who do. Tactical accesorise becomse tacticool when the gear doesn't improve the shooter's ability(which is usually poor with mall ninjas) and gets in the way.

I find it uncanny that mall ninjas are practically all bad shots. We have one young guy that shoots trap time to time, probably around 25. He has the sunglasses, black BBall cap, the "tactical" hearing muffs, and a "tactical" shooting vest which is studded with extra shotgun shells. Strangely, he shoots a nice U/O with a wood stock. (I woulda figured he would have a Benelli M4) He is a poor shot. He also has one of the worst personalities at the club. I'm not sure if this is common among them, but his head is on wrong.

[biggiesmalls]

putting skateboard tape on your grips. and then realizing that it chaffs so you need to shoot with gloves. that's overkill to me:P

[230RN]

At 22 years over the (legal) limit for being a member of the militia, and thirty pounds over the fighting trim I had when I was at that legal limit, and with 38,000 fewer hairs than then, about as close to tacticool as I get is carrying an extra mag for my 1911 in my back pocket.

And occasionally, just 'cause I can, I also carry a BUG in an ankle holster.

So I'm in a sub shop one day and the two guys in front of me are all decked out, what with empty thigh holsters, camo up the ying-yang, whatnot. So I'm wondering what's cooking, since open carry is legal in Colorado and there was nothing in their holsters.

And I could see the other patrons looking them over and sometimes frowning, and they're yakking something about pinning someone else down, and I order my sub, and they're at the cash register and finally I catch a glimpse of one of their hats.

An airsoft team.

So since I had the .45 under my jacket, and a BUG, and nobody noticed chubby little bald 67 year old me, I guess I was the one who was actually tacticool.

Hm. Interesting.

[Mannix]

Tacticool is tactical solely for the sake of aesthetics. Something tactical actually has a use for whatever situation you're going into beyond weighing you down.

I laugh at the "serious" paintball players, I used to go in an "army green" t-shirt and some blue jeans packing nothing but my $80 marker. Granted, I still sucked, but I didn't suck because I was weighed down :D.

[Aaryq]

Folks, I guess I'm tacticool. At least a little. In addition to the LBV that the Marine Corps issued me, I bought my own one for personal use. I'm also eyeballing a MOLLE style LBV, Drop Holster, some old-style BDU's complete with a boonie hat, and some kind of AR15/M4gery. Until then, I use the weapons I have availible and the gear the Corps has issued me. But don't hate me. I've trained using all of the tacticool gear so it won't hinder my performance. And as an Air Winger, we don't do any kind of combat training so I have to have my own extra-curriculars every now and then just in case I end up doing more than sitting on an air station.

[30 cal slob]

-wearing 5.11 tdu's to church (regular service, wedding/reception, or a funeral/wake).

-sharpening your pencil at the office with a case neck tool

[CZ.22]

putting a scope on your beautiful CZ452 with its awesome iron sights:eek:
duck-taping accesories to your airsoft gun (the rails are there for a reason)

[islandphish]

What about the guy who spends 2,000 dollars on a super slick "combat" 1911 and then mocks the guy who bought a Glock 21, light, night sights and a drop leg holster for under a grand. All the while bragging about how he now has 8 round mags which are "more than enough" for anything he will ever encounter, since he ain't no self-deluding mall ninja....

[308win]

Well, it only took 166 posts to fire up the 1911 vs Glock wars; this post is done.:D

[madmike]

Carrying an auto instead of a revolver is tacticool.;):p

[Zach S]

These are the hip-hop boyz, of whatever race, who come in, reeking of green apple flavored blunts, wearing their flannel pajama pants, flip-flops, baseball hat cocked jauntilly to one side, and Mercedes hood ornaments dangling from gold plated tow chains, to ask me about the availability of "clips" for their Hi-Point fohty-fahv...
Whats even better is when they're role-playing with the target.

"YOU WANT MY RIDE MOTHER ****ER?!?!" (followed by 6 shots - 1 hit)
"TAKE THAT!!!"

You ever tried shooting while fighting a hysterical laugh?

[scurtis_34471]

Sometimes its hard to find the line between adequately equipped and "batman syndrome." For example, a magazine pouch, a SureFire flashlight, a folding knife and pepper spray are all reasonable things to carry, but carrying them all at once seems kind of over the top.

[madmike]

Good point. Ditch the pepper spray.

[1911 guy]

Tactical, when applied to items, means a specific implement used to achieve a specific outcome requiring specific use of said object. A rifle is not tactical. A rifle in the hands of an extraordinary rifleman provides tactical advantage. A supply line directly to tip of the spear troops is tactical.

Practical is things commonly used and not requiring uber-training to use adequately. Matches, bandaids and automobiles are practical. Yes, even BDU pants because they are comfy.

Tacticool is acquiring the HSLD stuff and assuming everyone else will assume you know how to use it. "hey, look at my new toy" isn't tacticool, it's having enough money to blow on toys. "look at me, I'm tactical" is tacticool. And tacky.

[XD Fan]

I can't beleive that this thread got ressurected.

[BobTheTomato]

Unless it inhibits your ability to provide for your family who really cares if you wanna be tactikule or wear your vest with mag pouches to hold juice boxes for your kids. I could care less if someone wants to look like Dog the Brownie Hunter or wear a Special Forces tee shirt (though I have always wanted one that says Special Forces Buffet Eating Team.) People come in all kinds and if nothing else all of the mass production from these accessories means that if we need one it will be cheaper.

[Noxx]

It's a miracle if I wear socks to the range. Guess I lose :P

[6_gunner]

The simplest way I think of it is using way more gear than your mission (or your trip to the store) requires.

I think this is a pretty good definition, but I also think it's practical to be as prepared as you can be without over-encumbering yourself. I open carry a .38 and a hunting knife on a police duty belt when I'm out in the boonies. Some people might consider that overly tactical, but I find it to be the most comfortable way to carry my revolver. Like other people have said, it's probably too tactical if you're trying to look tactical.

[Bluegrasser]

I guess I don't see the problem with being tacticool. If people can't dress or buy things to bring them closer to their favorite hobby then what's the purpose of having a hobby?

I've seen folks in cowboy boots, big buckles, and cowboy hats that have never ridden a horse or even touched a cow.

Around these parts I've seen people on $20,000 Harleys wearing $1000 worth of Harley clothing that have never ridden farther than the local yuppie "biker bar".

I've seen pilots that have never flown anything bigger than a Cessna 150 wearing full flightsuits, A-2 leather flight jackets, and aviator sunglasses.

And this one is about me and I'm not ashamed to admit it...I've got thousands of dollars worth of musical equipment and I've never once played in a band.

The only thing that makes someone a jerk is that they are a jerk. If they happen to be dressed and geared like a SEAL while being a jerk, well, that just makes them a jerk dressed and geared like a SEAL.

[Skunkabilly]

Bluegrasser--well said.

While we're at it, Gibson vs Deering?

[Bluegrasser]

Skunk,

That's easy. Stelling!

[nutnless220]

Am I tacticool ? Or not ?

My everyday wear is a pair of tan or OD 5.11 pants and a 5.11 or Columbia button up shirt with a black riggers belt. With a pair of black danners.
I've been wearing this for the past 6 years or so.

I'm retired military and now I own a tree service and wear the above because it's functional and presents a neat appearance. But You guys have me worried.

What would you think if I showed up at your house for an estimate?

[madmike]

NutNless: sounds fine to me. Now, if my banker wore that, I'd be a little concerned. OTOH, this IS Indiana...

[rbernie]

Just say 'NO' to thread necromacy for purely conversational purposes.