Carmex, The Stick that Clicks

 

Submitted by Eric Daniel

While out on AT recently I made an interesting discovery.  Carmex brand lip balm.  Ok, granted, it wasn’t an honest to God real discovery - I’ve known about Carmex lip balm for ages (I have a bazillion of those jars all over the place) and I know that Carmex comes in squeeze tubes now, as well as the traditional stick.  But for years, while in the field, I’ve almost exclusively relied on either ChapStick brand lip balm, or the GI issue stuff the medics hand out when we go to the field. 

Now, the one issue I’ve always had with my ChapStick is that it always seems to unscrew in my pocket.  As you may or may not know, the lip balm is in a tube with a little wheel crank at the bottom of the tube.  You turn the wheel, which drives a threaded rod in the center of the tube, which pushes the lip balm up out of the tube, so you can use it.  Well, rolling around in my pocket always seems to crank that wheel in the proper direction to push the stick out (I wonder if the fellers in Australia have this problem), which means that I have to crank it back in every time I want to use it.  This isn’t a deal breaker or a therapy requiring issue, it’s just annoying to have to “reset” your ChapStick every time you want to use it.

Well, apparently, the folk over at Carmex must have been having the same problem I was, since on their tubed lip balm, the wheel at the bottom of the tube has a friction lock on it.  This lock (and I’ve no clue how it operates, except to say that you can hear it “click” as you crank the wheel) provides sufficient friction on that central rod that it won’t accidentally advance the stick in your pocket, which, all things considered, I thought was a good bit of attention to detail.

Now, if only I could police up all those little jars and get them converted to sticks.

Check out Carmex products here.

The Stick

 
Submitted by Eric Daniel

It really does seem like camouflaging yourself and equipment has gone out of style.  It was one thing to get stared at while wearing my cabbage patch hat (CPH) but I was really shocked when I brought up the concept of personal camouflage at a squad level training session and got nothing but blank stares.

You mean to tell me none of you have ever applied camouflage to your skin?

No Sergeant.

But you guys are all infantrymen, yes?  What did you do in Basic? 

We did a lot of glass house stuff, and convoy operations.

Sigh…

Yes, call me old fashioned, but I still think that camouflaging your person still has a place in the infantryman’s repertoire.  No, you don’t need to cover yourself in shrubs if you’re going to be standing on a street corner or doing a mounted presence patrol on the MSR, but you should know the principles behind camouflage and know how to actually apply it.

That having been said, my personal favorite to this day is still the old issue two tone camo sticks.  Yes they are thick.  Yes they will clog your pores and make you break out.  Yes they are difficult to apply and a royal pain in the ass to get off, but, in terms of battlefield durability and effectiveness (and those are really the only criteria that matter) nothing, in my opinion, beats “The Stick.”

Through trial and error I have found that the easiest way to apply the camouflage is to heat the stick up (use a candle, a Zippo lighter (I carry one for just that reason) or put it in your pocket) and rub a goodly portion into the palm of your hand and then use your fingers to transfer it from your palm to your face (while you can apply it directly from the stick, I’ve found that if you push too much stick out of the tube, it snaps off, and if you don’t push it out far enough, you carve your face up with the metal edge of the tube.)  This method also makes it easy to do your ears, since you can just rub a paint covered palm over the ear to coat it.)  Removing the paint is best accomplished with baby wipes (if you have them) or soap and water over a period of days.

I know there are a lot of more modern products out there, that are significantly easier to apply and remove, but they just don’t have the durability of those old issue sticks.  With the old stuff you could low crawl through dirt, brush and salt water and it wouldn’t rub off, nor would it run with sweat like makeup does - that stuff was on for life.

Check out the GI camo sticks here.

The Cabbage Patch Hat

 

Submitted by Eric Daniel

A while back we were conducting some MOUT training out at the combat village at Camp Pendleton when I had an interesting conversation with an OCS candidate that went something like this...

SGT Daniel, what’s that on your head?

A helmet.

I know that, but what that on the helmet?

It’s a camouflage cover.

It looks like a bunch of old cut up BDUs.

That’s exactly what it is.

What’s it for?

Camouflage.

What do you need camouflage for?

I unno, hide from the enemy?

That doesn’t make sense. The insurgents in the building, so they wouldn’t see you anyway until you went inside, and at that range no amount of camouflage is going to help, so really, it doesn’t accomplish much other than make you stand out and look silly.

True, but what if we were fighting an enemy who wasn’t in a building? What if they were in the forest, or a jungle, or a botanical garden?   What if I were on an OP and I didn’t want the enemy to see me, or what if we were conducting a cross country road march and I wanted to break up my silhouette?

Why would we do that?

I unno, because we’re infantry and that’s what infantry does?

Actually, in the infantry we focus on conducting raids.  When would we ever do that in a forest, where there are no buildings?  All that camouflage stuff is irrelevant.  I mean, if you want to spray paint your M4, that’s cool, but that helmet thing is just stupid.

Okie dokie….

What caused this scholarly discourse on field craft was my modified helmet cover.  Referred to as the “cabbage patch hat” or CPH back in the day, they were the defining symbol of the light infantry.

While I could fault the candidate for his limited grasp of infantry operations, the reality is, for many folk, especially those newly come to military service by way of the National Guard, raids ARE the only thing they've done, and this is what all their training focuses on, to the detriment of all other battle drills and combat skills.  No one thinks about setting up patrol bases, OPs, or conducting legitimate recon missions.  For them, being infantry means getting on a conveyance (be it a chopper, humvee, LMTV, Stryker, Bradley, what have you), driving out to a location, dismounting, and running into a building.  Once the "mission" is over and the house is cleared, they mount up and go "home."

To this end, I have been trying to reintroduce field craft into what we do (by MTOE, my unit is a dismounted recon troop) and that includes camouflaging yourself and equipment.  Since bringing back the CPH, a number of joes have asked me how to make one, so I figured, if they were asking, I might as well throw this out to everyone out there and you fellers can take it or leave it as you will.

Now, before I tell you how I do it, let me preface this by saying I consider this a “cat skinning exercise”; as the saying goes, there are a thousand ways to skin a cat.  Well, this is how I make CPHs.  If you make yours differently, that’s great, I’m not saying mine is better or worse than yours, this is just how I do it.

First, identify the material you’re going to use to make the camouflage strips.  You can use any material that you want and that your chain of command will let you get away with.  Some have used burlap, which can be spray painted repeatedly, which allows you to change up the pattern as terrain requires, but I prefer to use old uniforms (BDU/DCU in this case) as they are more durable (burlap disintegrates easily and looses it’s weave.)

I cut the material into strips about 2” wide (this is not an exact science, just SWAG it) and 6” and 9” long (two different lengths.)  In the 6” strips I put one overhand not in the center of the strip, and in the 9” strips I put two overhand knots (one at the 3” mark, and one at the 6” mark.)  It’s these knots that will give the cover its “poofy” appearance, and prevent it from lying flat when wet.

Put a camouflage cover on your helmet (oh, if you’re going to put rank on, sew it on now because it’ll be a pain to do later.)  Take a black sharpie and draw a series of rings around the helmet, starting about 2” from the bottom edge.  Keep drawing rings, 1.5-2” apart, until you get to the top of the helmet, making sure the lines stay relatively parallel to one another (think of them as lines of latitude.)

Now, take the helmet cover off the helmet and start sewing strips on to the cover, following the sharpie lines as a guide.  Sew the strips on about 2” apart, and make sure you stagger (like bricks in a wall) the rows, so you don’t end up with gaps in the coverage.  My recommendation is you make that first row all 6” strips, and then alternate a six and a nine on all the remaining rows.

When sewing on the strips, I fold over the “top” half inch of material (to give the seam more strength) and sew the strip on upside down (with the strip oriented towards the top of the helmet) and reversed (with the inside portion of the fabric (in this case, the lighter side of the old BDUs) facing out.  By sewing them on like this, the strips have a little “bow” in them at the seam as they fall over, which not only helps break up the outline, but also promotes twisting in the strips.  If you were to just sew the strips on pointed down and with the camouflage pattern facing out, the strips would lay flat like shingles, especially when wet.  Once you get to the top of the helmet, just make a small circle or triangle out of the last ring so that you don’t end up with a “bald spot.”

Once you get all the strips sewn on, put the cover back on the helmet and try the helmet on for size.  My preference is to have the strips come down far enough to just touch my shoulders.  In the front, so that you don’t get mistaken for a fungus covered sheepdog, you can trim back, or cut out completely, strips to improve your visibility (don’t go overboard though; you’d be surprised how well you can see out with the strips hanging down, once you get used to them.)

At this point, you’re pretty much done.  The CPH is good to go, and will only improve with age and use (as the strips fray they will improve in their function.)

Though it’s possible to keep the CPH off and use it only “in case of war” (you can keep a regular helmet cover on for formations, inspections, uniformity if you have to and just slip on the CPH as needed) I like to keep it on all the time because in addition to functioning as battlefield camouflage, it also provides a good deal of shade when you’re out in the sun (your neck and face are completely shaded) and it provides insulation from the sun (if you dunk it in water, it’s downright cool.)

ARC Firefly2 Emergency Strobe Light

 

Submitted by Patrick

PLEASE: If you are in the military, let go of the SDU-5/E and get a Firefly Two (NSN 6230-01-448-8340 w/pouch; 6230-01-411-8535 w/o). Keeping the SDU-5/E going is creating a problem in acquiring the replacement BA-5374/U battery, which has no other use. The cost to DoD for acquiring this specialty battery is very high and will continue to rise.

ED – Patrick.  I agree, finding replacement batteries for the SDU-5/E is getting harder and more expensive, for both civilian and military alike.  If you’re going to continue using the 5/E my recommendation is you go to an outfit like PRC68 and get an adapter cap which will allow you to run the strobe with a pair of CR123 batteries.

Baring that, you ought to upgrade to a strobe that runs off of AAs or CR123, of which there are many on the market.  The ARC Firefly2 (I think I found the proper civilian reference) you suggest is a white light only strobe.  While this makes it a fine piece of kit for civilian search and rescue operations, it lacks a IR filter for use in tactical situations (which is why I’m a big fan of the ARC MS-2000(M).)  Do the Gov. issue ones you mention come with an IR filter?

Check out the ARC Firefly2 here.

Arc'Teryx Tango Pack

 

Submitted by Canis

The Arc’Teryx Tango looks a little like the Marine ILBE, but without the side pouches (great for canteens or a SMAW/LAW rocket.) Or for that matter the E-tool pouch on the front, that the civilian model doesn't have either. I put a link to the civy version on here.

ED – Canis, the Arc’Teryx Tango looks like a full up rucksack (The photo is a stand alone shot, rather than one of a Joe wearing it) which might make it even larger than the CHIEF, especially once you factor in the attachable assault pack.

Any idea on the volume of this ruck?  I know it’s based on the ILBE, which the Marines say can carry 120 pounds, and is configured for the internal transport of 60 and 81mm mortar rounds, but there’s no mention of it’s interior volume.

Finally, have you used the Marine ILBE?  How does it stack up against the large ALICE ruck?

Check out the Arc'Teryx Tango here.

Granite Gear CHIEF Patrol Pack

Submitted by Eric Daniel

The time has come for me to invest in a more efficient rucksack.  Currently I’m using the CFP-90, and while it has been a trooper, and is certainly capable of hauling everything and then some, I’m in the market for something more efficient.  I like the CFP’s large barrel design; it make it very easy to stuff things into.  However, at night, when you’re looking for something specific, it can be a bit difficult to find what your looking for because you have to search vertically for things - having the ability to lay the pack out on the ground and search horizontally would be a better option.  Another drawback to the CFP is the fact that its external pouches are fixed, in both size and location (not to mention the annoying fact that the cover flap fasteners are loop through designs rather than buckle down, so that there is no effective way to cinch down the flap over the pouch.)  Finally, the CFP is based on the old ALICE system of accessory attachment, which relies on the use of metal clip fasteners, which, I have discovered over the years, are prone to failure in high torque situations (and the fact that there are only a couple of ALICE “bands” on the CFP to place things.) 

At the end of the day, what I decided I was looking for was something of equal portage capacity (5,000 cu. in. range), with multiple access points to the main compartment, external compression straps to lash large items, like snivel gear, to the outside, and MOLLE compatibility so that I could customize the pack externally for my mission requirements.

One of the packs that caught my eye was the CHIEF (Composite Hybrid Interchangeable Ergonomic Framesheet) patrol pack by Granite Gear.  Granite invested a number of years in developing this pack for the SOF community (one test involved dropping a 100lb pack from a height of 35 feet to test for deformation or loss of pack integrity), eventually being awarded a contract to provide 45,000 of them.  While Granite describes the pack as a patrol pack (a different company was awarded the contract for the SOF rucksack) the CHIEF’s internal portage capacity is the same as the CFP-90’s.  In addition, the CHIEF has all those features I was looking for. To begin with, you can load the pack from the top, as a conventional pack, or unzip the front panel, exposing the entire pack (internal load compression straps take the load off the side zippers to prevent zipper blowouts.)  In addition, every exposed surface is covered in MOLLE straps, giving you the ability to attach essentially anything anywhere.  In addition to the main compartment, the CHIEF also features a pair of radio ports on the left and right side of the pack’s upper surface (allowing you to run multiple whip antennae through) as well as bottom mounted hydration ports.  I particularly like the bottom mounted hydration ports as these keep the lines under your arms, effectively “out of sight, out of mind” where they are less likely to snag on overhead  obstructions, like branches and brush.  This position also makes for easier drinking, as the drink valve is pointing directly up at you, eliminating the need to either go looking for the valve over your shoulder, or using some sort of right angle accessory to reposition the valve.

Some other things I didn’t know about the CHIEF; the heavy duty Cordura nylon fabric has been chemically treated to reduce the pack’s IR signature.  No, it won’t make you thermally invisible, but it will reduce your operability (I spoke with Jeff Knight, CEO of Granite Gear and pack designer and he said the treatment would last the lifetime of the fabric, so there was no need or requirement to re-treat the pack.)  All fasteners are plastic fastek-type, and the shoulder straps have a quick disconnect feature, which allow you to jettison the pack in a hurry if needed (again, I asked Jeff about the durability of these fasteners, and specifically about the reliability of the QR ones on the shoulder straps (on some of the older QR ALICE pack straps, the fastener would pull apart under a heavy load) and he said that they didn’t experience any issues with fastener failure during the testing of the pack, nor was there a load limit; if you wanted to haul your anvil collection to the top of the Khyber Pass, the CHIEF would do it.)  While the CHIEF features a stand alone framesheet, suspension system and support belt for customized pack fit and maximum range of motion, all this can be removed and the CHIEF can be used in conjunction with the standard ALICE rigid frame and straps (Please note: According to Jeff, the ALICE pack compatibility feature is only available on the “original” or gen. 1 CHIEF packs, which are the ones currently available to the public.  In order to meet SOF weight requirements, the ALICE frame support feature was eliminated from the gen. 2 packs which are currently in production for SOF and not publicly available.)  Finally, the pack is compatible with body armor, which is to say you can still put it on when you’re wearing your plates and what not (one of the SOF requirements was that the pack support 90 lbs of equipment and be body armor compatible.)

The only downside to the CHIEF is its price.  At $400 (there is an ACU patterned version available for $250, strangely enough), the CHIEF isn’t cheap, but you are most definitely getting what you pay for.  For me, this means I’m going to have to keep my eyes peeled for the introduction of the gen. 2 packs on the civilian market and see if the price doesn’t ever come down on the gen. 1 versions as retailers look to clear out old stock.  Damn if that wouldn’t be a nice pack to have though.

Check out the CHIEF Patrol Pack here.

Platypus Hydration Bladders

Submitted by Everett Mobley

Camelbak packs are high quality, but I hate their hydration bladder. It collapses flat and is difficult to clean and dry.

The Platypus bladders expand like an envelope, and they can be free-standing. They are easy to fill and to drain and dry. They have screw-on caps for use as water-bottles if you're not using the sipper tube.

ED -- Everett, which Platypus system do you use?  In looking over the selection, it seems that the best bladder to use would be the Big Zip SL, with its slid lock closure system located at the top of the bladder, which makes for easy filling.  The other bladder system, the Hoser, has a screw cap, and while the loop at the top makes a convenient hanging point for the bag, the small cap opening would appear to be a drawback (most modern Camelbak bladders have a large diameter opening which allows for you to add ice or what ever easily.)  Also, at 2L. (70 Oz.) the Big Zip is still 1L. shy of the biggest Camelbak bladders.

Check out the Platypus Line of Hydration Bladders here.

Supply Captain Hydration/ASIP Pouch

 

Submitted by Devilfox

There are couple other options I found.

One is on a website called Supply Captain, they have a 'DUAL HYDRATION SYSTEM/PRC 119F RADIO CARRYING POUCH' that can carry an ASIP. Price is tad steep however, $129 or so. But can carry few other things too.

Second option in on the website, Kifaru.net. They carry a 'Radio Pouch' that hangs internally for the older 119s. I am sure if you contact them and ask, they can adjust the width. Price is a lot more reasonable around $29. Only catch is, it’s an internal mount-on backpack. Which, honestly, in the course of things ain't too bad.

ED – Devil, I like the look of the SC dual hydration system, especially the fact that you can wear it as a stand alone pack or you can lace it in to something else (another pack, the back of your IBA, what ever is MOLLE compatable.)  I’d consider it for that feature alone, and just lace the thing to my IBA, but I haven’t ever served in a unit yet that let you take your IBA off (except when you were asleep) and packing a radio and ammo into the porta-john gets old, so all my kit is still on the RACK. On the down side, though, as you said, it is a little pricy, and for that amount of money I could get a full blown assault pack.  I would certainly consider this over the S.T.R.I.K.E. ASIP pouch though, even though it is more expensive.

As for the Kifaru radio pouch, as you said, the pouch they offer is basically an internal radio hanger for ruck sack sized packs.  I already have an assault pack that both the full sized radio, or a pair of ASIPs will fit into, and my ruck (a CFP-90) comes with a built in radio bag.  Again, of the two, even though the Kifaru is cheaper, I’d go with the Supply captain bag.

Over the Shoulder Radio Holder

 
Submitted by barber13f

The S.T.R.I.K.E. ASIP pouch sucks. It digs into your arms and doesn’t fit over PPE very well. They tear up very fast and while the MOLLE pouches are a great thing to be able to put on you end up with a monster that is a bitch to carry around by the time you get done throwing mission essential items on the thing.

Look into the Camelbak Transformer, it is a very comfortable pack and has room for extra batteries, hand mic's, and whips along with any other crap you put in there. My RTO was able to keep 2 batteries, a soft or hard whip, an IZLD and an extra hand mic. The outside pouch has enough room to shove in extra maps, 3x5 cards and map markers.

I would recommend this pack to anyone that has to carry an ASIP for an extended period of time. It's a little more expensive but it lasted my team 15 months of humping through the Euphrates River Valley.

ED – barber, I’m beginning to think that this is going to be my only real option.  Currently I’ve got the Camelback Motherlode, and as an assault pack it has done just fine.  There’s enough room in there for water, snacks, a poncho and liner, a radio or two, as well as NODs and batteries.  The pack even has a couple of openings for the radio.  On the plus side, it looks like the TransFormer is even cheaper than the Motherlode.  Does it come in any color other than black though?

Check out the Camelbak TransFormer here.

Taking a Load Off

 

Submitted by Eric Daniel

You never know how much you miss having someplace to sit until they take your tank away.  For the first part of my career I was in Armor, and our motto was “death before dismount.”  Sure, we’ll complete the mission, but on the tank.  Then I went to the Scouts and we had trucks.  Granted, they were draftier, the heater didn’t work as well, and they leaked (well, ok, so did the tank) but, at least, there was someplace to sit.  Now, I’m a hapless leg, and all I’ve got to keep my butt out of the mud, or snow, or wet, is my k-pot.

No more.  After a little bit of research and a little trial and error, I have found Nirvana.  The Walkstool Comfort 22. 

Manufactured in Sweden, the Walkstool line of lightweight chairs is really quite impressive.  Made from a trio of aluminum tubes topped by a heavy duty mesh seat, the walkstool has two settings; collapsed and fully extended.  The one I opted for was the 22” model, where 22 refers to the chair’s fully extended height.  The feet on the stool’s three legs are large diameter and made from textured rubber so they provide not only low ground pressure, but good traction on unstable surfaces.  The stool is black in color, though the leg extensions are silver (may get around to painting them so it’s more “tactical”) and in the case of this particular model, the weight rating is 495 pounds.  Now, I have to admit, when I was looking for a combat chair, most of the ones I say that even listed a weight rating, were all in the 175-250 range, so if ever I was going to use the thing, I was going to have to strip all my gear off, so when I saw the stool’s was rated to nearly 500 pounds, that pretty much closed the deal – I could take this thing anywhere and it was never going to break on me.  Naturally, Walkstool makes a number of “ultra light” models, with lower weight ratings, but given that this “monster” only weighs 33 ounces and collapses to the size of my Thermos, I concluded it was money, and weight, well spent.

Check out the Walkstool field chairs here.