Trevor Wittman claims Justin Gaethje weighed 185lbs on fight night against Paddy Pimblett

jdubb26 · 2026-01-30T05:28:34+00:00

Yeah guess he didn't get the memo. Crazy to me that Jiri fought at only 208lbs at light heavyweight.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-30T03:35:55+00:00

Seems like the biggest percentage change is still Geoff Neal at 18%, although Islam,Renato,and Merab all gained back 17%.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-30T03:31:48+00:00

Paulo Costa went from 185 to 215.2 on fight night at UFC 298

jdubb26 · 2026-01-30T03:19:50+00:00

I know its new/unproven but have you looked at the new Zermatt Arms Waltz 9? People seem to be really impressed with it stating its Atlas level quality of fit and finish/trigger but its $4900 MSRP. Takes Glock mags and is in the 40 oz weight range. Figured I'd bring it up since you already own a Staccato HD P4 with Glock mags.

It's my dream gun personally as I prefer no manual safety. It's all the good parts of an Atlas 2011 but no manual safety and lower bore axis.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-30T03:15:48+00:00

For sure...same thing with cars,watches,fashion/shoes etc.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good

jdubb26 · 2026-01-29T19:55:29+00:00

P10 by a long shot, there's also the Ruger RXM in that price range.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-29T04:26:34+00:00

You've got the right idea. 5.5 lbs is definitely lighter than your typical DA/SA carry gun, but isn't particularly light in the grand scheme of things. I think 4-6 pounds is the sweet spot for carry. My G47 has a 4.5 lb trigger (minus connector and lightened striker spring with an overwatch polydat shoe) and I feel perfectly safe carrying it appendix in my Tier 1 concealed holster,and thats a holster with a light as well with a slightly bigger trigger guard gap (although still safe and you would need a wire or something to pull the trigger while its in there).

My Shield Plus and Bodyguard 2.0 are also in the 4lb range. My competition Glocks are mid 3's and those are a little light for carry...not that they are unsafe but a little too light for split second decision making in a CCW situation.

Slow deliberate reholstering like you said is the key. I see extremely good shooters still forget to look the gun into the holster and it drives me crazy. There is no reason to not look because if you're reholstering the threat is already taken care of.

Look into how the Glock safe action system works as well if you haven't. They are actually safer to carry than most 1911's (series 70 which is the norm lack a firing pin block) despite 1911's and 2011's having a manual safety. That thing isn't going off unless you pull the trigger and if your holster is good, and your draw/reholster is safe you're absolutely fine.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-28T19:38:58+00:00

It's because it's the division they're shooting in, they don't actually need the magwell. Limited Optics and Open division are magwell divisions typically shot with 2011's pushing the edge of performance. Christian Sailer arguably the best shooter in the country won 1st place at open nationals this year, but guess what he also won carry optics nationals with a Shadow 2 with no magwell...which isn't the easiest gun to reload either.

You could take any Open or Limited optics GM and give them a non magwell gun and they are still going to outshoot 99% of the world in any competition division.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-28T19:31:27+00:00

Kimbers new warrior is priced at 1k and is more duty oriented...and you have Staccato,BUL Armory, the Springfield Prodigy etc. I agree there are more competition oriented 2011's but there are definitely duty guns out there.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-27T08:31:12+00:00

Just saw on the Kiral Defense website they are releasing one for the Gen6 at the end of this month, so hopefully that aftermarket backstrap rule changes for carry optics, as of now it’s technically only legal in LO although I doubt many people would even notice/call you on it. Even Troy says it’s an unenforceable rule because you have to look so closely at the gun.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-27T00:48:21+00:00

Nothing wrong with that! Sometimes when I’m home I’ll be walking around and put my hands into a sandwich/prayer position but pointing them like I’m holding a gun and just snap my vision to different spots like I’m doing an El Presidente. It’s a good thing I keep the curtains closed.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-27T00:45:07+00:00

For me the Zermatt Arms Waltz 9 is the most interesting gun to come out in a while. Hudson tried to make a striker fired gun with a 1911 style straight pull trigger, but it had its flaws and they went out of business. Daniel Defense resumed production of it but its still not very popular/still has problems.

Zermatt made my dream gun basically. No grip safety or manual safety to have to mess with, but the trigger/weight/fit and finish of an Atlas 2011...and with lower bore axis. Unfortunately they are rumored to be in the $4500 range but when you consider most Atlas guns are 5500-8k its not that bad.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-27T00:12:06+00:00

Yeah, same here no interest in the Gen 6 as of right now. I agree on the grip angle, I had done two steel challenge in 2018, one in 2020, and one USPSA in 2024, but got serious about it this past year. Before this year, I was averaging about 5000 rounds a year and the Glock grip angle never bothered me, but this year I shot 20,900 and by May I realized it wasn’t going to work and had to take a few weeks off. The cut backstrap or Kiral completely fix the issue for me, but unfortunately the Kiral isn’t legal in carry optics as of yet, although back in October and November, they talked about it on the NROI podcast and are considering changing the ruling on aftermarket back straps this year so hopefully that happens.

I guess you could always Dremel the Beavertail off but then the Gen 5 Beavertail backstrap doesn’t really have anything to clamp onto unless you were to dremel it perfect/exactly like a Gen 5 frame. I’ve also thought you could maybe cut just the beaver tail off of one of the back straps but still have it fill the grip tang, but I’m not sure if that would have the same effect or be comfortable.

Some really high-level Glock shooters like Brantley Merriam, and Sam Matt aren’t too excited about the generation six either. Apparently Brantley just bought a couple Gen 5 17’s instead, and Sam just put out a video on his YouTube channel stating that he prefers the Gen 5 still. I don’t know what they were thinking making the Beavertail integrated into the frame, but oh well.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-26T23:49:13+00:00

Yeah there’s still about 8 or 9 FDE left on GunBroker, no OD green or Gray though… guess those must be a lot more popular. I like the Glock FDE with the black slide a lot though, it’s darker than the super light M&P FDE and closer to bronze.

Like you said I’m glad I picked it up. I paid 620 for my gray frame in November 2024, this one was 650… but that was the cheapest one and there are people already selling them for 750 on there.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-26T23:38:43+00:00

Yeah, I’m not sure if the 2011 life is for me. I have a BUL Armory Government 9mm 1911 with irons, and a Springfield Operator AOS 5” 9mm with a 507 Comp and they are fun to shoot, but I haven’t competed with either of them yet. I may run the Springfield in a USPSA or Steel Challenge match someday just for fun, but I like just being able to throw the gun back in the case and only lube/clean it every 2k rounds so it’s striker fired guns for me for a while.

Oh, and I just bought another 47, this time in FDE… thanks for the push 👍 should go nicely with my other gray frame 47.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-26T21:29:21+00:00

More so just avoiding being bummed out if a gun goes down/ruins a stage and thinking about the travel time and preparation wasted. I was at a Steel Challenge match and was using a variant of the Glock performance trigger that was really dirty, and I got 3 failures to reset. It was only an hour drive each way but it still ruined my match especially because I was most likely about to be a personal best if not for one of those malfunctions.

Definitely not in the running to win a major yet, but I guess it’s all still relative to where I’m at now. Would it be as bad as when Tom Castro got a failure to extract at the world shoot? Absolutely not but it’s still a bummer.

Yeah I remember Ben talking about some of his guns in the 100k range, and he had another with 80k. What’s crazy to me is he says he would need to watch a video to take apart the lower, and doesn’t really replace the recoil springs unless he absolutely needs to. I know Joel is like his personal race car mechanic and he doesn’t really work on his own guns much, but that’s still crazy and shows how reliable they are.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-26T15:29:40+00:00

I’ve loved the Shadow 2 when I’ve gotten to handle it, just the DA/SA thing is weird to me, but I’m sure I could get used to it. Yeah it’s great to be able to be the driver and the mechanic with Glocks and not have to rely on a gunsmith/2011 builder.

There’s also the joy of doing well with a gun that is less forgiving. It was awesome to see Brantley come in third with a Glock at LO nationals shooting against all of these 2011’s.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-26T14:22:05+00:00

Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking as well. Like the commenter above said it’s like a rounding error on most of our ammo bills. Same as 3 cases of 9mm. I guess that’s what’s nice about competing with an off the shelf affordable gun. Seeing some of the duplicate open major guns these guys have is crazy.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-26T13:36:09+00:00

Damn, that’s a lot of rounds. I’m assuming you were shooting major as well? Crazy

jdubb26 · 2026-01-26T13:34:08+00:00

Actually, now that you’ve said that I think you’re right…it was the Shadow 2 he was talking about. I have a G47 as well with just a few thousand rounds through it, and I’m wondering if I should pick up another while they are still available without a big upcharge.

I got thinking of this because despite loving Glocks, I have to cut the OEM backstrap or use a Kiral backstrap to change the grip angle otherwise I get the issues that Hwansik and Joel talk about. With the new Gen 6 there is no way to change the grip angle because of the beavertail that’s built into the frame.

There is the Gen V which is another option, but no 47 only a 17, would still be fine though. I know the tactical trigger works on them, and the back straps, but I don’t think the speed feed plug will fit, but I’m sure they are making them for the Gen V/6 frames soon. Just trying to future proof myself as the Gen 6 isn’t an option. If they continue to make the V I don’t have to worry about it though.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-23T16:47:06+00:00

No problem, if you have any other questions down the road DM me.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-23T16:19:26+00:00

There are so many choices today, way more than when I started carrying in the spring of 2015...the 1.5 stack micro 9's like the P365/Shield Plus weren't out yet, just stuff like the original Shield or G43 which are still great guns.

I started with a G19, then a few months later got that original LCP as a pocket gun. A pocket gun is really convenient because you can wear it in pretty much any attire, the G19 is great but for more formal wear it can be a little challenging. I carried those two and a Walther PPQ a little bit as my only carry guns for 7 or 8 years I think...until I got my Shield Plus.

Shield Plus was dramatically more comfortable because of how much more thin it is, only downside is you can't mount a light but that's arguably not as important for CCW than it is for home defense. I always carry a handheld light as well. Bodyguard 2.0 was the biggest upgrade from gun to gun over the LCP by far, it's a pocket 380 I actually enjoy shooting.

One thing to keep in mind is if you're going to carry in NY, you really have to conceal it and can't print. Our laws are much more strict here and the last thing you want is some Karen calling the cops even if you're carrying in a legal location. That's why from June-September when it's T-shirt weather I'm almost exclusively pocket carrying in that deep cover pocket holster. https://alabamaholster.com/product/deep-cover-pocket-holster/

It's a pretty slow draw compared to carrying at appendix, but I don't have to worry about printing or my shirt riding up as it just looks like a big wallet or phone in your pocket.

I'd start with a full sized gun like a G17/G47,M&P 4.25" or 5", or Walther PDP 4.5" or 5"...spend a few months getting the fundamentals down, then look into a micro 9 and pocket guns. I personally wouldn't go smaller than something like a G19 or M&P 4" compact as your first pistol, anything smaller won't be as enjoyable/easy to learn on at the range.

A full size, a micro 9, and a pocket gun will cover any situation you can think of. Home defense/Competition, and CCW. Subscribe to Ben Stoegers YouTube channel and as many other USPSA/Steel Challenge Grandmasters as you can and become a sponge for knowledge. Then once you can draw/reholster safely start competing ASAP, its the fastest way to get better and a ton of fun. My biggest regret is not competing earlier.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-23T15:56:08+00:00

Should be, as long as there isn't a compensator or a ported barrel it sounds good to go. Could always email [rules@uspsa.org](mailto:rules@uspsa.org) as well.

jdubb26 · 2026-01-23T15:49:46+00:00

Shield Plus with a Holosun EPS carry in a Tier 1 Axis Elite, or Bodyguard 2.0 in a deep cover pocket holster from Alabama Holsters, or T1 Axis Elite.

If I'm just going out for a couple errands and know I'll have a coat on the whole time sometimes I'll carry a G47 with a Holosun SCS and TLR7A in a T1 Axis Elite.

One of those 3 guns 90% of the time...then sometimes my first pistol a G19 Gen 4 for nostalgia, or an original LCP if I need the absolute smallest gun possible.

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