On August 5-6th, 2010 I had the good fortune to be able to attend Tiger Swan’s 2 day carbine class in Linden, NC. There were about 10 students in attendance, making the class small enough so that each individual received proper attention and feedback from the instructors.
The cadre for the class included J.D Potynsky, Paul and Kyle DeFoor. All of these individuals are well respected/established members of the Special Operations Community, and have extensive time downrange. Their insight, instruction and ability to challenge even the most experienced shooters are unrivalled in the industry.
The class consisted of several people that carry firearms for a living, including a former Recon Marine, U.S Marshal and an active duty SF NCO.
Day 1- Upon arriving at the range, introductions were made, paperwork completed and Kyle went over the nomenclature and function of the M-4 carbine.
We began by shooting “slick”, (sans kit) for our first shooting exercise- establishing a 100 yard zero from the prone position. For those that don’t know, Tiger swan places a heavy emphasis on accuracy, and the 10 shot groups of those individual that had a proverbial hiccup while behind the carbine showed when we went downrange to score our targets.
After zeros were confirmed, we shot from the sitting and kneeling positions. Depending on your body type, these are challenging positions to shoot from ,so your shooting fundamentals must be sound, or your accuracy will inevitably suffer. After we fired these positions once, Kyle added a time hack.
After lunch, we moved up to the 10 meter line, and began working on hitting the A-zones in IPSC targets doing an iteration of the EP drill (torso and head). Single shots & controlled pairs were the order of the day here, and with a tight time hack to boot. Those that tried to utilize double taps in lieu of controlled pairs were apparent, based on their shot groups.
Day 1 culminated with a standing to prone/kneeling contest on steel at 100 meters.
Day 2- Began with a cold bore shooting test at 100 yds from the standing, kneeling and prone position in kit. The instructors made it clear that all movements such as magazine changes, movement to cover, etc were expected to be done at full speed and correctly (reloading in workspace).
After that, we moved up to the 10 yd line and began shooting on the move while advancing, as well as lateral movement. At this point my primary carbine (KAC SR15E3) was deadlined due to an ammunition related malfunction (blown primer debris inside of the bolt, seizing up the firing pin and essentially locking the bolt in battery), and it was replaced with my standby Colt/MSTN Recce carbine.
Later in the afternoon, Kyle broke out the barricades and instructed us in shooting from behind cover and from unorthodox (yet effective) positions. This culminated with a conga line type contest, where shooters proceeded to shoot steel from 100 yds, score two hits, and move on to the next piece of cover. if the shooter in line behind you catches you, you were “out”.
Overall, this was an outstanding class and a valuable and rewarding training experience. My sincere thanks go out to the Tiger Swan team for working so hard to provide top quality training to qualified civilians. 
**** Upon my return home, I emailed Kevin B on Saturday AM regarding the status of the SR15, and he immediately offered to facilitate the return of the rifle for inspection / repair (if needed). The only thing better than owning a top shelf piece of kit like the SR15 is the knowledge that KAC will absolutely take care of you if anything goes wrong with it. My sincere thanks to Kevin B for taking the time out of his weekend to assist a customer. ****
My Gear:
Primary: KAC SR15E3 IWS
Alternate: Colt 6920 lower/ MSTN upper with NF 1-4x24 on LT SPR mount
Aimpoint T-1 Micro with LT Tall mount
Magpul AFG
VTAC 2 point sling
Eagle Industries MC chest rig
Ammunition:
RORG 89 5.56x45mm FMJ (culprit with blown primer)
Fiocci GFL 55 grain FMJ
Lessons learned by some of us regarding kit:
Have a spare gun ready to go
Have a cleaning rod on hand if you have to tap a recalcitrant case out of the chamber
Lube is your friend
