Combative (??!!) Firearms

[JohnKSa]

I've noticed that the word "combative" is beginning to be used to describe firearms & firearm accessories.

combative: k&m-'ba-tiv adjective : marked by eagerness to fight or contend

Seems very odd if not outright incorrect to refer to an inanimate object as being "marked by eagerness" to do anything.

I'll say this, if I had any "combative firearms" I wouldn't put them in the safe with the rest of my guns for fear they'd pick a fight...

 

[HammerBite]

Maybe a combative firearm would be something like the S&W .500, which kicks the crap out of the guy holding it.

 

[Samurai]

It's due to the negative connotation that most serious shooters place on the word "tactical." "Combative" is a replacement for the word, "tactical," and it allows the manufacturers to have some descriptive adjectives for use in advertising their product, hopefully without alienating their demographic.

Clearly, it isn't working...

 

[JohnKSa]

Just finished reading an article on "Combative Pistol Sights". I guess you'd be in real trouble if you tried to scope a pistol that had "combative sights".

"Combative" is a replacement for the word, "tactical," and it allows the manufacturers to have some descriptive adjectives for use in advertising their product, hopefully without alienating their demographic.

Holy moley...

What a vote of non-confidence on the intelligence level of the average gun-owner.

So the choices are misusing one word or over-using another. Are there any pistols that aren't combat pistols, aren't "combative", aren't "tactical" but are merely designed to be optimal for self-defense? Too passive, I guess.

 

[MD_Willington]

My Taurus was combative until I figured out how to get the slide back off and reassemble it properly, boy did it fight me.. but I prevailed in the end.

 

[gcfennell]

wikipedia

FWIW

Combatives is a term popularized by the US Army for hand-to-hand combat training. It now encompasses various hybrid martial arts, which incorporate techniques from several different martial arts and combat sports. Unlike combat sports, such systems usually have limited sport application and often focus on simple techniques for use in self-defense or combat.

Clearly, this is a misued term in the gun industry.

Best,
George

 

[T. O'Heir]

The word combative means to be 'ready or inclined to fight'. Sights are neither. It seems the marketing types are trying to invent new meanings for old words. The word tactical means 'of or pertaining to tactics'. Of course, it has nothing to do with firearms, flashlights, telescopic sights, slings, stocks, socks or pajamas. Or anything else the marketing types use it for to convince you to part with your money.

 

[44 AMP]

None of my guns are "combative"...

Although some of them can be obstinate! The only thing I get from "buzzwords" is irritated. Maybe that comes with advancing age, but I no longer suffer fools gladly, and marketing fools less than others.

Call it what you want for marketing, but if you display your deliberate ignorance of the English language, how can I take seriously your claim of expertise about firearms?

For me, this tends to bias me against purchasing your product. No sale.

 

[FirstFreedom]

When my pistols start sassin me, I lock them up for a few months in "the hole" (safe) - they know full the punishment for being combative. I run a pretty tight ship, so mutinys are rare.

 

[oldbillthundercheif]

Combative weapons:

It will be a while before they are worth a damn outside of a lab.