Chances are, you've probably seen a TV or movie where a Jack Bauer-type character, on the run from big bad evil, uses cheap throw away phones to communicate unnoticed.
Commonly known as a burner phone, a backup, essentially disposable phone isn't only useful for secret agents and criminals. There are a long list of reasons why having a spare phone with a different phone number might come in handy -- lose/break your primary cell phone, selling something via Craig's List, traveling and don't want to risk your $900 smart phone, and so on.
Commo is your lifeline, so you want to do what you can to protect it.
So--how to set up a burner phone? It's actually very easy and 100% legitimate and legal.
Disclaimer: For lawful and responsible uses only While you can get a bit of anonymity and privacy with a 'burner' phone like this, don't do anything dumb, offensive or illegal.
This is a pretty slick little pack/back panel to integrate into the D3CR.
It is pretty small - 1 liter hydro capacity, 700 cubic inches when fully expanded - but is sized well to fit onto the back of a plate carrier. Tactical Tailor/Grey Ghost Gear and others have launched backpacks designed to integrate into the back of an armor carrier, but they mostly seem to end up a bit big, bulky and unwieldy.
A compressed FlatPack looks about as slick as you can hope to get for a hydration carrier, yet it gives you the ability to expand out and carrier more gear if needed.
This isn't for carrying a multi-day load for sure, but enough space to support a day at the range, a long hike or a short range patrol activity.
I have a D3CR, and the chest rig harness is a bit on the lame side. That makes the FlatPack all the more appealing to me, given that it's is intended to replace the harness and integrate in with the chest rig.
The price may be a bit rich for a small, fairly basic pack ($130), but it's got a unique set of capabilities that don't exist elsewhere.
Max dropped some truth bombs in a post today over at the MVT blog - check it out.
A few quotes, but the whole write up is worth a read:
You have to figure out what you think it is sensible to carry, and what you can carry, and how it applies to your task. I tell people to pack smart. You need what you need, but you should try and cut down. Prepper mindset can lead you to try and pack a whole bunch of stuff, ‘just in case.’ Well, unless it is absolutely essential, like your weapon, then don’t take it! Be smart about it. Concentrate on ammo, water and food, shelter (as applicable) with items to support that WITHIN REASON.
You have to get away from the idea that you can operate in some sort of self contained way indefinitely. So you pack a weeks’ worth of rations and all your camping gear. Now you can hardly move, and are no longer alert on patrolling. After a week you run out of rations. Perhaps pack 2 weeks? NO. You need a base and you need logistics. If you are operating out there for an extended period, you need a team and a logistics plan. You cannot operate on your own indefinitely. How about someone resupplies a cache by some means? ATV, vehicle, whatever? Use your brain to figure it out so you can move lighter and smarter. If you are planning on some sort of extended forward patrol base operation, see what means you can use to get supplies in there without having to hump them, or at least cache them close? If you are conducting security patrolling, you may be patrolling light at relatively close range to your base, in your standard loadout, like my light battle belt/ CUTT chest rig configuration as an example. Ballistic plates or not, pick your poison. I recommend a light hydration pack so you have water and the ability to carry a small amount of other gear, such as night vision, some food , extra mags etc. Camelbak MULE type item. That loadout will probably have at least 8 or 9 x 5.56 magazines on it (including your rifle). If you are going on an extended patrol and need to take the patrol pack, then you need that ‘second line ammo scale’ on the patrol pack, which would be another 8 mags. See how this is never going to be light anyway, so you need to cut it down where you can.
I will carry the least amount of gear that I can get away with, but there are basics that will always be present. Here are some examples, not an ultimate list, just what pops to mind mentally going through gear: First Line: Light Battle belt / CUTT Chest Rig / hydration pack:
Rifle
Rifle magazines (9)
Handgun
Handgun magazines (3)
Small IFAK
2 x TQ
Radio – if using.
Leatherman Tool
Knife
FLIR Scout
PVS-14 / Crye Nightcap
Map/Compass
Basic rations – energy bars
Water bladder
Water purification tablets / straw
Lighters
Smoke
Batteries for all above.
(Ballistic Plate carrier – if applicable)
Add Patrol Pack:
Magazines (8)
Water (either stow the hydration pack as a mini ‘grab bag’ or carry a separate bladder in the patrol pack)
Rations (3 days stripped down)
Light jungle sleeping bag / blanket (upgraded for winter)
I've been writing about keeping bug out bag/patrol packs/go to hell bags (I prefer the latter term personally, but whatevs) as light as possible for a while. That doesn't mean ditching the essentials, it means packing what you need and trimming weight where you can. Your pack might not be an ultralight one, especially if you're conducting some variety of post apocalyptic patrol/operation, but it shouldn't be heavier than it needs to be.
Example - you don't need a stove, but you might want to have one for convenience/comfort. But if you are going to pack one around on foot, it'd better be pretty lightweight.
My personal pack lists is fairly similar to what Max details above -- certainly some nuances; I don't have a stove or a bivvy bag, have 5 mags versus 8, I do have a weapons cleaning kit, that kind of thing. Max didn't intend his lists to be exhaustive and all encompassing, just a starting point for a total collapse, armed citizen's patrol pack.
Last week, MVT posted up a video talking through his current fighting gear / load bearing equipment, which includes a new chest rig made to his specs. It also includes a pretty cool first person run through a shooting scenario - worth paying attention here to pick up on some of the tactics/techniques that Max teaches.
The set up that Max shows here - a light battle belt and midweight chest rig is interesting in that it is a pretty significant shift from the heavy British Para-webbing style battle belt that he used to be a big advocate for--here's the most recent example that I can find:
10-12ish mags, handgun, 4x canteen pouches on the back and a couple handgun pouches to round it out. We'll call it a "British-style" battle belt for lack of a better name.
I toyed around with a British battle belt, similar to Max Velocity's, through part of last year. Went cheap on the belt - got a Condor knock off and their harness, bought a few surplus USGI canteen pouches and used pouches that I had lying around to cobble one together.
Found a lot to like about it - way better load carrying ability and generally more comfortable / better mobility than a comparable weight of chest rig. Gives you the ability to carry a decent amount of food, a canteen, survival gear and a big IFAK, which can be a challenge using other load carrying gear. Good place to put your sidearm and good access to it. Easily adjusts to different weights of clothing, too.
After a bit of T&E, I ended up giving up on a British-style battle belt for my purposes, at least for the time being. Why?
The big deal breaker is operations in/around vehicles, and to a
lesser extent moving through structures/room clearing. Canteen/utility
pouches on the back and triple-thick mag pouches on the hips extends
your width pretty significantly and you start having to turn sideways to
get through doors, can't sit in a normal car comfortably, etc.
There's also no lighter/low threat profile to choose from with just the
heavy belt. A lighter battle gives you the option of operating with
just the lighter, more comfortable, lower profile belt on. Options and
flexibility are good.
Of course, this isn't exactly a revelation--Max's heavier weight battle belts were a bit of an outlier in the tactical gear world. Folks have been running lighter battle belts in conjunction with a lighter chest rig or plate carrier mounted pouches for a while.
It looks like Max has arrived at a similar conclusion and ditched his big ol' battle belt, at least for general use. In his recent write-up on the new chest rig featured in the video above, Max says:
I have most recently been settling on using a light battlebelt, which is
comfortable enough to wear most of the time, augmented by a chest rig. I
feel that this is the most practical application across operational
environments; it works well for both dismounted operations, vehicle
operations, and with or without armor.
This matches my own personal assessment after running a variety of gear - plate carriers with pouches directly attached, stand alone chest rigs of a variety of sizes, 'British' battle belt, etc.
I'm currently mid-process of re-building my kit to incorporate three
different layers - light battle belt, chest rig and slick plate carrier. In conjunction with concealed carry/daily carry gear, these standalone pieces give you the flexibility of different profiles to address different situations. Slick plate carrier and CCW if anticipating potential trouble but need to maintain low profile. Light battle belt for running drills on the range or hunting. Throw it all together if the Nazi Zombies are at the front gates.
Chest rig and carrier are sorted out - HSP D3CR and a Velocity Lightweight Plate Carrier. I may down the line drop some coin on a custom rig from Extreme Gear Labs, designers of the D3CR, but generally the stock D3CR does what I need it to do. Looking forward to a couple of the enhancements HSP has in the works this year. The ability to directly attach the D3CR to the carrier, or run it as a standalone rig is money.
Battle belt is a work in progress - ideally want pistol, pistol mags x2, 2-3 rifle mags, dump pouch, IFAK, H2O of some variety, flashlight and multi-tool. Maybe comms, too. Not sure if I can manage all of that with the given real estate, but we'll see.
Follow up posts/reviews are incoming.
In my experience, most people are continually tinkering with/adjusting their gear. Trying new things, incorporating new ideas or revisiting old ones. Travis Haley makes a big emphasis on preaching the importance of staying dynamic and adaptive...and at worst, adjusting and evaluating what you're doing exposes you to different ideas and keeps you on your toes.
Interested to hear from the tribe - are you tinkering with your battle rattle? What gear ideas have you tried out recently and left by the wayside?
via Soldier Systems - HSP announced four new products today: The D3 Sling, D3 FlatPack, Incog Shadow and MP2 Rifle Mag Inserts. The announcement was also accompanied with a slick catalog, great photography and much fanfare.
I've had several lousy experiences with companies in the past year or so, but I wanted a good experience for a change.
I purchased a Velocity Systems plate carrier from OP Tactical during their Black Friday sales. First time purchase from OP, first Velocity product that I've purchased as well.
Sizing information on the Velocity plate carriers was/is a bit sparse across the interwebs, so I went with what looked to be the right choice based on a chart that I dug up on another website.
Received the carrier really quickly and determined that I'd ordered the wrong size on the cummerbund/cumberbund.
Contacted OP Tactical and offered to send in for an exchange or refund with shipping on my dime.
OP Tactical responded quickly, saying they'd get in touch with Velocity Systems to see if they could coordinate an exchange.
The Velocity rep reached out within about twenty minutes, saying they'd send out the size that I needed and include a return shipping label in the package.
That is how you do it!
In situations like this, I've had other companies say "Sorry, that's your problem, not ours." Or even just refuse to answer the e-mails.
OP Tactical was on the ball quickly, despite the hectic time of year, and took ownership of helping me out. Velocity System swooped in like a jet pack wearing bald eagle and took steps to fix my problem, on their dime.
Yep, it took OP Tactical a bit of time and Velocity is out a few dollars of margin in shipping costs. But, they've both exceeded my expectations, won me over as a fan and future customer, and led me to share the goodness with others.
That's how you do business and how you treat your customers. There are many out there who could take a page from their playbook!
I was going to do a poll for this, but figured we'd get a more robust discussion with a straight up question:
Do you have your load carrying equipment figured out?
With "load carrying equipment" being the catch-all for nylon kit to carrying magazines and support gear out on a patrol, to stand guard or fight an engagement. Usually, this is spoken about in terms of 3 tiers - first line being on person/belt kit, 2nd line being a chest rig/plate carrier/lbv, and 3rd line being a backpack of support gear - but those tiers don't always have to be the hard/fast case. So...
Do you have guns but not much in the way of support gear - spare magazines go in pockets?
Are you working on putting together your first 'kit' - a battle belt, chest rig or plate carrier?
Do you have a couple different lines, but are working on integrating them all together?
Fighting gear but no pack?
Have the gear but haven't been able to test it?
Or been there done that, tested and refined everything and happy with the results?
Is it not a priority at all for you and you're instead focusing on other areas?
I'm interested to hear where everyone is, what you are figuring out and what barriers might stand in your way.
It seems like there are a lot of folks out there that have guns, but nothing to really support any kind of activity with 'em outside of informal plinking and target practice.
I'm always tinkering with this stuff and working on my own gear, and am not a certified expert by any means, but want to get a good gauge of where people generally are.
Image via SoldierSystems.
Clockwise from top left: Arid (desert), Tropic (jungle),
Black (urban) and Alpine (snow)
Everyone has been curious about the environment specific Multicam variants that Crye won the big Army camo trials with. Multicam Black hit a bit early, and the rest hit the interwebs today. Good ol' Multicam/aka OCP will be the primary uniform pattern, with the environmental specific stuff issued on a limited basis, and Black being for SWAT team usage.
We are fortunate that we have gobs and gobs of patterns and colors to choose from these days, versus the old days where it was UCP (barf) or Multicam. These patterns join the myriad of stuff that's recently hit the market, namely the Kryptek, A-TACS, Pencott families, in addition to all of the solids, hunting, legacy and foreign patterns out there. The new Multicam stuff adds one more choice to drop down list, but I don't see these new patterns offering any kind of superior performance to the many choices already out there.
Here's my take on a pattern-by-pattern basis:
Arid: A bit browner/less green than traditional Multicam. In the very dry parts of the Southwest, this could perform marginally better than regular ol' Multicam, but certainly not enough to make a compelling case to switch over your patterns. I don't see this performing any better than the other current-gen stuff, or most legacy desert stuff for that matter.
Tropic: In the Southeastern U.S. and some parts of the North East, this greener version could work okay, though the colors are a bit off for woodlands - the dark color is more of a grey/green than a brown, for example. Pencott Greenzone has the colors about perfect, if you ask me.
Alpine: Unless you live in polar bear country, this is a specialty pattern; at most, you'd have a set of over whites. Better than a solid white jumpsuit, but nothing to differentiate it from the other 'snow' patterns out there. The white and grey shades are similar to what you'd find with Kryptek Yeti; Pencott Snowdrift mixes in some dead-brown, which helps to blend in more with natural surroundings.
Black: This is a fairly useless pattern - meant to stand out and provide an imposing presence for SWAT teams and such. We aren't on SWAT teams, so not a whole lot of use here. If you want a black color because it black is cool, Kryptek Typhon looks slicker (IMO). If you want an urban camo, you want more greys and (maybe) browns...if you just want to blend in, wear normal clothes. Why our police departments and other LEOs feel the need to have an imposing, Darth Vader-Esque appearance is another conversation entirely.
The chart below (also from Soldier Systems), shows how they think jack-of-all-trades nature of traditional Multicam compares with the new stuff.
Overall, the the environmental patterns seem fairly middle-of-the road. From a responsible armed citizen, prepper, survivalist, standpoint, there's not a whole lot to get excited about here. Neither Arid or Tropic look to be more effective than current environment-specifc patterns available.
These patterns will, I'm pretty sure, pair nicely with traditional Multicam stuff - if you've got a lot of Multicam stuff, but need to better match a desert or woodlands environment AND look good on the range with complimenting patterns from the same family, there might be something here for you.
There's also the fact that the Army is (supposedly) transitioning to this stuff. Using the same patterns as the Army has good and bad to it. Good: There will almost certainly be gobs of gear in these patterns available within the next three or four months and onwards, where other patterns like Kryptek, A-TACS and Pencott will likely remain (comparative) specialty items. (Potential) Bad: You look like a U.S. soldier.
Usually, I scour the interwebs and post up a bunch of deals for Black Friday. This year, it looks like Soldier Systems has done some of the hard work for me, with a list of deals from tactical websites.
Of note, Grey Ghost Gear is having a 35% off sale - site wide - through tomorrow. Their stuff is already very affordable...35% off is a killer deal. If you're looking for a pack or nylon gear, check 'em out. LA Police Gear is having a pre-Black Friday sale with 11% off. Last year, they had some killer countdown deals that I'm still kicking myself for not jumping all over.
Palmetto State Armory is having some "Pre-Black Friday" sales and will certainly have some good deals on BF itself. They've currently got a couple nice AR uppers for $400, BCG and free float rails included...hard to beat that kind of price.
Dave Canterbury's Pathfinder School Store is offering free shipping when you spend over $75. Through Cyber Monday.
Tactical Tailor just announced they are running an awesome 30% off through 12/6. They've also recently added Pencott Badlands and Greenzone to their lineup, if you're interested in getting in on some of that goodness.
I'll update as I see stuff come through, and feel free to point out deals as you see 'em.
Had a few people asking for the 'best' body armor out there today, so here's my take on it. There's probably some ultra-cool voodoo magic thing out there, but this is a pretty wicked setup if you've got the cash to play. I don't.
Velocity System's Ultra Low Vis (ULV) plates are standalone, multi-hit level III rated plates - that measure 1/5 of an inch thin. That's ridiculously thin - you can get over an inch plus very easily with most normal plates, plus backers and a bulky plate carrier, which ends up being like wearing around a life vest.
This allows 'em to be reasonably concealed under light clothing, which is a huge asset to someone trying to maintain a low-profile (like a civilian or, more commonly, a special ops type).
Weight is still not insignificant - you're at 11-ish pounds with front and back plates - but certainly on the low end. The cut is also a heck of a lot more ergonomic, leading to a better fit and longer comfort.
The cost? $1500-ish...a bit less if you shop around, but well over a $1k for sure.
The Devil's Advocateseries seeks to explore ideas that run against the mainstream, accepted wisdom. We're not necessarily recommending a particular course of action, but instead exploring alternatives.
Body armor has become a hugely important tool in increasing the modern soldier's survivability. It's saved countless lives. If you're expecting a high likelihood of getting shot in the chest, there's no better idea than donning a set of good rifle plates.
Of course, body armor undeniably weighs a lot - 15 pounds of
additional weight is a decent average. It also restricts movement to
some degree and is fairly uncomfortable to wear. At the end of the day, those add up to reduced speed and reduced endurance, especially if you're not in excellent physical shape to begin with.
The weight may also mean tradeoffs between other critical gear--if 60 pounds is the most you can realistically operate with, that 15 pounds of armor probably means less food, water or other survival gear. What if it's 45 pounds? Or 30?
I know of at least a few occasions where Tier 1 SF guys, facing a long hike over difficult terrain have ditched their armor in favor of the lighter load, speed, mobility and added stamina that choice afforded them. And these guys were facing certain combat at the end of their journey, versus a citizen survivor who would be avoiding trouble whenever possible.
What do you think - is the body armor tradeoff always worth it? How do you run your gear - plate carrier or no plate carrier? When would you leave your rifle plates behind - if ever?
The Inforce WML has been out for a while now and been getting some pretty good coverage in the gun blog-o-world. It's half the price of a Surefire x300, uses 1 CR123A battery instead of two, weighs only a few ounces and still manages to kick off a good amount of light. So, theoretically, it's a got a pretty compelling value proposition behind it.
Figured I'd give one a whirl, intending it for Project 590A1.
Unfortunately, a poorly designed pressure switch kills the good stuff that the light has going for it, at least in this version, from Haley Strategic Partners.
The reveal - big red arrow should help. 3rdman spotted it first.
Tactical Tailor just announced they're making pouches in Greenzone - the forest/jungle/green places pattern - and Badlands - the transitional, rocky, less green places pattern.
So, I've been in a holding pattern with gear purchases for the past few months. A variety of reasons behind it, but essentially I haven't bought a whole lot beyond the Camelbak Hawg I reviewed a couple months back (great bag!).
If you've been wondering why we've been lighter on reviews 'round here, well, that's why.
This past month, I gave in and spent some cash. Ordered a few things that I'd been eye-balling...a little bit of impulse, a little bit of "I'm sick of window shopping and just need to pull the trigger."
Of those purchases, I've been let down by the several. I need to put them to honest use and trial before dropping any names, but initial assessment is not so rosy.
I hate when that happens -- often, returns are outta the question, so it's selling it off, finding some other use for it or chalking it up to a loss and educational experience.
I'm sure my string of bad luck is not unique. You've probably had some lousy, incredibly disappointing purchases of your own. I want to hear about 'em! What has been the gear purchase that disappointed you the most? The item that you lusted after but were let down within a minute or two after purchase? Let us know in the comments.
The Costa Leg Rig is one of my favorite, most functional pieces of nylon gear. It is how a leg rig should function. The two belt hangers versus one, high ride and single leg strap...unlike most leg rigs, it actually works.
So, I would expect similar functionality from the Costa Leg Panel. It gives you a blank canvas of 6 rows and 3 columns of MOLLE/PALS webbing to do as you will with it. TACOs for a variety of mags, Esstac Kywi pouches for a dedicated AR rig, med pouches, etc. You're limited only by your imagination and what you can fit on the rig/carry comfortably on your leg.
$55 is an awesome price for one of these.Unlike a lot of gear out there, I'm pretty confident it'll actually live up to the hype--the Costa Leg Rig sure has. A very well thought out, well-built platform.
Here's a first-world gear junkie problem that I'm sure some of you have dealt with...
So you've read done research, read the reviews and figured out a piece of gear to meet your needs...maybe a bag, chest rig, whatever. That's the easy part.
Then comes the hard part...picking the color. Paralysis by analysis ensues.
This ain't just choosing from black, brown or green...let's look at some of the options out there these days...
MultiCam
ATACS AU
ATACS FG
UCP
Kryptek Highlander
Kryptek Mandrake
Kryptek Nomad
Kryptek Typhon
MARPAT
Coyote Brown
Foliage Green
OD Green
Ranger Green
Black
Wolf Grey
Pencott Badlands
Pencott Greenzone
Pencott Sandstorm
Good ol' Woodland
And then there are a bunch more...we can obviously keep going and going. And they all have their benefits, too. Some are more civvy/urban friendly, others more environment specific, others are multi-taskers. Some are more exotic and others tend to only be available in older surplus gear.
And then as you start buying gear, you start thinking about color matching. Like "Does this shade of green match my plate carrier?" and "Will my black holster clash with my new ATACS BDUs?" It's the tactical equivalent of a wardrobe crisis.
Decisions, decisions.
Really, the incremental difference between the various patterns don't often matter much. If it matches up with your environment, you're usually good to go. The Colors of My Gear: I've got MultiCam, Black, Coyote Brown and a couple pieces in Foliage Green.
Black is good for low profile, EDC stuff, concealment and generally blending into a crowd. Not so good for blending into wild environments, though it's better in forest than it is in desert or other barren turf.
Coyote Brown is a fairly good all arounder...being the color of dirt, it does fairly well anywhere you find the stuff. Fairly civvy friendly and also "goes with" most camo patterns as well--most involve some shade of brown.
MultiCam is, well, MultiCam. The most common camo pattern these days, very popular, and a fairly good all-arounder. More environment specific camo patterns will win out in their specific environments - so Kryptek Mandrake or Pencott Greenzone will perform better in woodlands - but MultiCam will do well in a wider variety of environments.
And foliage green gear I just kind of ended up with. It works ok in urban and wild environments - a grey/green combo.
What colors/patterns do you prefer? Do you have one that you stick to, or multiples that you switch between?Not care at all? Let us know!
