STEALTH

SPECIAL SUPPRESSORS • NIGHT VISION • THERMALS • FIREARMS

JAN./FEB. 2020

EDITION
TACTICAL LIFE

JAN./FEB. 2020

FORCE-ON-FORCE
NIGHT
MODERN FIREARMS™ PRESENTS • TACTICAL LIFE • ATHLON PUBLICATIONS

TRAINING
SUB-$400
HANDHELD
FREE NIGHT VISION
DECAL DOES IT WORK?
SHEET
INSIDE
DIY COVERT PISTOL
+ .22
CONVERSIONS
NV & THERMAL
BUYER’S HUSH PUPPY
GUIDE PROJECT
RETURNS

DOMINATE
DISPLAY UNTIL FEBRUARY 3, 2020
M O D E R N F I R E A R M Sª
$9.95 US $10.95 CAN
THE DARK
COMBAT-PROVEN
GEAR & TACTICS
Printed In U.S.A.

ATHLON PUBLICATIONS
AFTER DARK HUNTS WITH PULSAR & ATN
 TACTICAL LIFE
STEALTH
COLUMNS
30 COVERT OPS
Three secret spy pistols
from the past you never
knew existed
42 RIMFIRE CORNER
Retrofit, build your own
suppressed .22 or buy new?
We’ve got you covered
46 GUN RIGHTS
A case of Big Government
going too far in the Global
War on Terror
76 RELOAD ZONE
How to roll your own
300 Blackout rounds for
cheaper stealth shooting
80 BASIC TRAINING
Get the most from your
high-tech gear with this
Telluric Group training
106 ON TARGET
How to gain the edge at night
with today’s most popular
handgun sights
110 ROAD TRIP
Take your marksmanship to a
new level at Clint Smith’s
Urban Precision Rifle course
120 BUYER’S GUIDE
Night-vision and thermal
technology that every
warfighter can rely on
125 LOAD UP
The best new gear showcased
at Athlon Outdoors’ latest
event in Idaho
128 PARTING SHOTS
Affordable night vision is finally
here with the Aurora Sport
4 TACTICAL LIFE | 01 • 02 | 2020
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Nino Bosaz
VOLUME 13 ISSUE 7 EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Linas Cernauskas
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2020 EDITOR-AT-LARGE Jay Langston*
PRODUCTION EDITOR Greg Lickenbrock
ART DIRECTOR/COVER DESIGN Rory Slifkin
ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR James Allocca
PREMEDIA Franco Nguyen
DIGITAL MANAGER Matthew Hogan
EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Richard Ortega
CIRCULATION CONSULTANT Scott Hill/ProCirc
COVER PHOTO Sean Utley*
tactical-life.com • realworldsurvivor.com
personaldefenseworld.com • ballisticmag.com
EDITORIAL INQUIRIES editdesk@athlonoutdoors.com
athlonoutdoors.com
VP/GROUP PUBLISHER Nicholas S. Seifert
106 & CONTENT DIRECTOR
ADVERTISING SALES
National Office
42 212-478-1910; sales@athlonoutdoors.com
INDEPENDENT ACCOUNT REPRESENTATIVES
NORTHEAST REGION Scott Buchmayr; 978-462-6335
SOUTHEAST & UPPER MIDWEST Amos Crowley; 216-378-9811
WESTERN REGION Scott J. Cherek; 307-635-8899
MIDWEST/CENTRAL SOUTH Dan Flavin; 248-515-8654
DIRECT RESPONSE ADVERTISING Jim Coen; 212-478-1949
SENIOR DIRECTOR, Carrie Roeder
MARKETING & OPERATIONS
80 DIGITAL SALES DEVELOPMENT & Brock Norman
MARKETING DIRECTOR
MARKETING COORDINATOR/ Maureen Pichner
ADMINISTRATOR
ATHLON MEDIA GROUP
CORPORATE OFFICERS
PRESIDENT, CEO Chuck Allen
CFO/TREASURER Mary Lee Vanderkooi
CORPORATE ADDRESSES
NEW YORK:
60 E. 42nd St., Suite 820, NY, NY 10165; 212-478-1910
NASHVILLE:
106 2451 Atrium Way, Suite 320
Nashville, TN 37214; 800-284-5668
SUBSCRIPTIONS / SINGLE COPIES
800-284-5668; subscriptions@athlonmediagroup.com
ONLINE STORE
outdoorgroupstore.com
* Consultant
TO THE READERS: Be advised that there may be products
represented in this magazine as to which the sale,
possession or interstate transportation thereof may be
restricted, prohibited or subject to special licensing
requirements. Prospective purchasers should consult the
110 local law enforcement authorities in their area. All of the
information in this magazine is based upon the personal
experience of individuals who may be using specific tools,
products, equipment and components under particular
conditions and circumstances, some or all of which may not
be reported in the particular article and which this magazine
has not otherwise verified. Nothing herein is intended
to constitute a manual for the use of any product or the
carrying out of any procedure or process. This magazine
and its officers and employees accept no responsibility for
any liability, injuries or damages arising out of any person’s
attempt to rely upon any information contained herein.
TACTICAL LIFE is published seven times per year by Athlon
Sports Communications, Inc., 2451 Atrium Way, Suite 320,
128 Nashville, TN 37214. Single copy price: $9.95 U.S. and
$10.95 CAN. POSTMASTER: Send subscription requests
to: Athlon Media Group, PO Box 292167, Kettering, OH
45429. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Tactical
Life, PO Box 292167, Kettering, OH 45429. Submissions
of manuscripts, illustrations and/or photographs must be
accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. The
publisher assumes no responsibility for unsolicited material.
Copyright © 2019 by Athlon Sports Communications, Inc.
All rights reserved under international and Pan American
Copyright Conventions. Reproduction in whole or in part, via
electronic or any other means, without written permission of
the publisher is strictly prohibited. Printed in the U.S.A.
 PARTING SHOTS
THE SIONYX
SOLUTION
AFFORDABLE
NIGHT VISION
IS FINALLY
HERE WITH THE
AURORA SPORT
( BY ROBERT JORDAN)
I I first used night vision in
the late 1990s searching
for drugs and illegal aliens
on the U.S.-Mexico border. From 2004
to 2006, I used it in Afghanistan in
counter-drug operations. Today, I use
it to fight domestic drug traffickers and
hunt game predators. I have saved
and scrimped to buy some of the best
equipment I could afford. But I recently
learned that electronic night vision is
catching up and even passing my tradi-
tional analog night vision.
PVS-14s run on analog technology
that literally goes back to the Vietnam
War. There have been some improve-
ments, but the benchmark, Gen3
systems, first came out in the late
1980s. Apart from the introduction of
white phosphorus night vision (which
looks gray instead of green and doesn’t
cause bad headaches after hours
of use), there haven’t been a lot of
ground-shaking improvements. Camera
companies started looking at digital
night vision decades ago. It didn’t
work as well, but it was far cheaper to
manufacture, lighter and less prone to
damage from things like tube burnout
when exposed to bright light. They just
weren’t as good as traditional night
vision. But now that’s all changing.
The SiOnyx Aurora Sport is the latest
digital night-vision device. It’s about
128 TACTICAL LIFE | 01 • 02 | 2020
the size of a
PVS-14 but at
75 percent of the
weight. It’s also a camera and video
recorder and hooks up to Wi-Fi. And it
sees in color—all for just $399!
I got my test model last week. A
buddy stopped by to drop off some
ammo, spied it sitting on my desk and
nearly killed himself getting to it. We
spent the next 45 minutes testing it
against a PVS-14 in different lighting
conditions. Since then, I have taken
it for walks around the neighborhood
and to the office with fellow cops and
tested it with everyone I know with
night-vision experience.
The Aurora Sport doesn’t work as
well as the PVS-14 in extreme low
light. If you are deep in a cave, you’re
in trouble. However, it works better
than the PVS-14 when there is ambient
light because things are in color. You
can focus the Aurora Sport, and the
image looks crisp and clear. I think the
PVS-14 has a slightly crisper image,
but it takes a lot longer to achieve
it by adjusting both the
objective focus and the diopter
focus. The Aurora Sport only has only a
single focus ring that turns about 120
degrees and is quick to adjust. It also
has the edge in being able to record
pictures and video. Plus, you can hook
up to Wi-Fi and project a real-time
image to a nearby smartphone.
My PVS-14 has a built-in infrared
light for extreme no-light conditions.
The Aurora Sport doesn’t, but an IR illu-
minator was a game-changer. I walked
around my basement
in no-light areas and
couldn’t see anything
through the Aurora
Sport until I turned on
the PVS-14’s IR light,
and then both scopes
were almost equal. I
currently live in an old
neighborhood with
no streetlights. I can
see everything up and
down for hundreds
of yards. Here, the
PVS-14’s IR light
made no difference
except on objects that
were within about 10
feet. So I got out a PEQ-15 and turned
on the IR illuminator. It really reaches
out, and the Aurora Sport picked up the
beam just as well as the PVS-14.
The SiOnyx Aurora Sport is the
game-changer we have been waiting
for. Every person who tried it had some
prior experience with Gen3 night vision,
and they all asked to borrow it for
varmint hunting, surveillance or hide-
and-seek with their kids. I would pair it
with a good IR illuminator for extreme
low light, but that’s about it. For more
information, visit sionyx.com.
TACTICAL-LIFE.COM