David Lichtenstein was born in St. Louis, Missouri and moved to Pennsylvania in his early teens, moving back to Missouri after high school to work on his family's farm. He's worked in Oklahoma on oil drilling rigs and in Pennsylvania for the railroad. During college, he again ended up back in Missouri, working in factories and cleaning houses. He graduated from the University of Missouri with a Bachelor's degree in Journalism in 1991 and married his wife, Lesa, that same year.

Outside of firearms, David's hobbies are pets and motor vehicles. He and his wife have several dogs: Margo, Bocephus, Little Bit, Gracie and Lucky who are mixed breeds; Zoe and Gus who are Boston Terriers; Maggie, a Boxer; and Tanner, a German Shepherd. They also enjoy the company of various cats, Conures and an Amazon Parrot. David notes, "It does get loud in the house sometimes with all the birds making noise at once."

The pets are more than simply enjoyment for David and his wife. As he tells it, "We got our first dog, a Boston Terrier, because someone tried to break into an apartment we were living in at the time. It was early morning. I happened to be awake [and was able] to call the police. Had we been asleep, I believe the person would have been able to get in, so we decided we needed a barking alarm to listen when we were asleep. We've had dogs ever since."

David enjoys riding Harley-Davidson motorcycles and owns two of them, one for around town and one for long trips. He confesses, "Since I worked several years of constant overtime in the early 1980s to pay for my first Harley, I am both amazed and proud that we can now say we have two of the big bikes." The Lichtensteins attended the Sturgis rally together in South Dakota for several years, although not recently. "We just ran out of time and money to do that every year, but hope to get back there some summer," says David.

Not all of life is spent on two wheels. "Not long ago, I bought one of the new Thunderbirds," says David. "It's probably just a mid-life crisis toy, but I do like driving it to work. As a young guy, it always bothered me to see what I thought were 'old men' driving sports cars. Now I get to be one!"

Of his childhood, David relates that he has always been fascinated with guns. "I had Lone Ranger cap guns as a kid and read everything I could find about guns. I didn't know the name of a single baseball player (and still don't) but thought Elmer Keith was the greatest guy alive," he says. His family encouraged his interest in firearms, and his mother, who had been a police officer in Kansas City, MO, gave David his first .22 rifle when he was 12 years old. Two years later, at age 14, David convinced his mom to loan him the money for a centerfire handgun. He mowed lawns throughout his neighborhood for an entire summer to repay the loan. David says cheerfully, "I was the youngest person I knew who owned a Smith & Wesson Model 29." His mom wasn't the only family member who enjoyed firearms, David says. "It was common around our family farm to see a rifle in every pickup window. Several people regularly carried handguns as well."

Since that time, David has collected guns ranging from modern semi-automatics to black powder cartridge rifles. And he is a reloader. "I started reloading because it was expensive to shoot .44 Magnums and thought I would be saving money," he says. "I'm not sure of the money-saving outcome, since reloading becomes its own hobby and, I think, just allows a person to shoot more for the same money. And, I have the ability to make ammo that will do what I want."

Presently, David studies reloading, ballistics and firearms both for sporting uses and for self-defense applications.

Was there a specific incident that caused you to carry a gun?

No, nothing specific. It is probably due to the opposite of a particular incident and more due to how I look at life in general. I am much more afraid of being without a gun when I really need one than afraid of being in a dangerous situation. And, as I've gotten older, I tend more to think that if I am going somewhere that might be particularly dangerous, then I just don't go there. But, if I end up in such a situation, then I will do my best to resolve it so that I am not a victim.

I will not be a sheep and I feel very strongly about that. What I mean by "sheep" is best summed up by a quote from an article by Dave Grossman: "There are evil men in this world and they are capable of evil deeds. The moment you forget that or pretend it is not so, you become a sheep. There is no safety in denial."

Have you ever had to use your firearm in a defensive situation?

No. I have been in a few situations where I thought that they might escalate to firearms, but at least from what my wife tells me, I tend to be somewhat intimidating by nature and that may be why those situations resolved themselves.

What training methods do you employ? Do you have any recommendations?

I've taken the Missouri concealed carry class, as required by law. I've gone through a defensive handgun course at the Chapman Academy and several courses taught by a Pennsylvania State Police instructor who was also ex-Navy Specwar: shotguns, disarming techniques, weapon retention, close range shooting.

About a year ago, I started reading a lot of Gabe Suarez' books and articles, and then attended a Close Range Gunfighting class last October given by one of Gabe's instructors (Bruce Piffel). I have signed up for one of Gabe's rifle fighting classes in 2009, and may get in another pistol course as well.

I spent three years studying Shotokan Karate and Aikido (and I think the greatest thing I learned from that training was how to move out of the way in a hurry -- I am not in the shape to do much else!)

I shoot quite a bit to retain familiarity with various firearms and I also do a fair amount of bullet and load testing. I also read everything I can find regarding firearms and their use.

One can never have enough training -- I hope to get more in the future, specifically from Gabe Suarez. I think that his ideas really have merit. It is quite a bit different shooting one-handed at a target while running than standing in a Weaver stance and hitting the target twice. But, I think if you stand, you will get shot if the target is an adversary.

My recommendations would follow what I've done: Get all the professional training possible. Think about alternatives; try using other methods than what you've done in the past. Think. Weigh options. Always try to learn.

How long have you carried a concealed weapon?

Something like four years. My wife and I were part of the first group of people in central Missouri to apply for CCW licenses. Before CCW became legal here, I carried handguns not concealed for years, since I spent a lot of time working on my uncle's cattle ranch, and also carried a handgun at home all the time.

What weapons do you carry?

A Glock 19 is my primary, carried with two spare magazines. On weekends when I'm just staying home I sometimes carry a Ruger Vaquero 4 ¾ inch in .44 Magnum (working on a ranch, I carried a Super Blackhawk, so I got used to big single actions) or a Smith & Wesson N-frame .44 Magnum with a three inch barrel.

What type of ammunition do you carry?

Winchester 115 grain hollow points in the Glock. I am not a big believer that a hollow point somehow becomes a magic bullet, but the FMJ version tends to just zip through errant critters while the hollow point stays with them. If I were still carrying a .45 ACP, I'd probably stick with FMJs based on past experience with them.

My uncle's cattle ranch had a beef processing plant on it, and I'd go test ammunition there. Basically, I'd kill the cows. I found that many hollow points tended to not expand if fired through any kind of cloth, or their performance was erratic. FMJs in a .45 hit very hard with instant results. In my .44s, I use 240 grain lead bullets. They work fine for about anything.

Mostly, I've retired from the "caliber wars" and think that I will want more bullets rather than bigger ones, thus a 9mm Glock.

What concealment holsters do you use?

An "Ehud" appendix carry inside the waistband holster from Dale Fricke for the Glock 19. It took me some time to get used to this method of carry (and one does have to keep thinking "no, the gun will not fire by itself"), but it is by far the very fastest carry method I have ever experienced.

The S&W 44 has a Milt Sparks 200AW, and the Vaquero has my newest holster, a PS6 from Mernickle holsters. I ordered it really thinking it would be impossible to carry a single action concealed under a jacket, but this holster does it while allowing a staggeringly quick draw. All of these revolver holsters are outside the waistband.

I use 1 ¾ inch-wide double thickness belts. Many have said--and I agree--that the belt is every bit as important as the holster.

What do you do for a living?

I am the Legal and Regulatory Manager at MidwayUSA. I take care of tracking legislation regarding what we can legally ship where, and a group of other things depending on what needs to be done here. I absolutely love what I do, since I get to work with firearms, ammunition and accessories.

Do you have any advice for our readers?

Learn. Read. Think. Don't believe all experts are experts. Find what you are comfortable with and practice. There is no "best" of anything; there is just what is best for you.

If you like a Glock 19 carried in a Kydex holster, then that's your combination. If you can shoot that 9mm well, you'll do fine. A Sig P226 isn't better or worse than a 1911, it's just which one you can shoot. My background is using single action revolvers. So, I carried a single-action 1911 until I learned how to use a Glock. Doesn't mean a thing except to me.

Caliber? I'd say that a 12 gauge riot gun beats a .22, but first I have to hit the target. If you can really shoot a PPK in .380 ACP, and you like carrying it, then don't worry so much about all the press regarding what performs better after testing in ballistic gelatin. As someone said a few years back, you're not likely to be attacked by a block of gelatin.

Be aware of what's going on around you and your loved ones. You have a more important purpose on this earth than the predators who would try to attack you. Look like it. Act like it. predators look for those who look meek. They want easy prey. You are not meek, or you wouldn't be interested in self-defense and self-preservation. And, you won't be their prey if you are ready to defend yourself and have the means to do so.

I will close with this: if the predators are wolves, then be a wolf. Just be a tougher, meaner wolf than they are.

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