Mo Molle, Mo Problems

They are airsoft guys which I don't get and is not my thing but the video is hilarious and makes a good point. Just because you can attach a pouch does not mean you should. Every piece of MOLLE webbing does not need to be filled with a pouch.

You need ammo, some basic survival stuff like a knife, fire starter and whatnot, water to last until you get back to camp/ your ruck and that is about it. Figure out what fits your situation and put it all together then use the thing. Shoot and move in the kit you plan to fight with. You may find out that it gets heavy fast which means you should cut out some unnecessary stuff and or do more PT.

Anyway I hope you enjoyed the video.

Warbelt Fun

As I set up the personal gear I want the topic of pistol belt/ war belt's has come up. Got to love the name these things got. Probably some marketing genuis, the old give it a cool CDI Rambo sounding name so folks will buy one plan. Basically the war belt is a padded, molle type belt or belt sleeve one which stuff like a holster, mag pouches, etc can be mounted. Anyway the ability to mount all manner of MOLLE stuff onto a belt easily would be nice.

Thanks to the joy of the internet I got to look at a lot of other people's setups. One of the more comprehensive and interesting threads is the Ultimate Battle/Scout Belt Thread; formerly Sigboy Scout Belt  over at Zombie Squad. Folks seem to go in two directions. Some basically do a modern version of the old school LBE. These folks are running 4+ rifle mags, 2+ pistol mags, a holster, a knife, some admin pouches, maybe a canteen or two. These folks definitely run suspenders, often big padded H type ones we remember from the LBE era. Other folks use it more as a beefed up pistol belt with some mags, a holster, etc. Depending on their body type and how many mags they are running these folks may go with a thin set of suspenders or not. These folks will typically use a chest rig or run additional pouches on a plate carrier if needed.


So I have been thinking this could be a good way to go. I am definitely going to fall into the second group. I will rock the gear but I am not so sure about the big ole MOLLE belt. I have seen setups like this on a normal rigger belt. Just a pistol, 1-2 spare mags each rifle and pistol and maybe a knife. To me the idea of having what basically amounts to a pistol belt set up for the range, home defense and times where I want a gun but don't need a full load out is appealing. Also something that would work as part of my overall setup instead of a whole nother rig appeals to my cheap side. 

I still have to do some thinking on the matter but this is my plan. An ATS or HSGI war belt, two double taco mag pouches (though the cheaper condor rig I just bought may fill the role in the short term due to cost), a holster probably from Safariland, a knife, maybe a small admin pouch to hold a compass, etc to fill out the level 1 kit, and possibly a minimalist trauma kit.

Are you running a warbelt? If so what type and how do you like it over just a pistol/ duty belt?

I Can Haz Plate Carrier

On the advice of a reader I ended up looking into then getting a TAG Banshee plate carrier. The reviews were favorable and it looks like a lot of kit for the money (including when compared to the Condor equivalent). I also ordered a chest rig to go with it. Plates will be ordered shortly after we go back to the states. I am uncomfortable ordering then without having my hands on the carrier they will go in AND being able to personally take delivery of them. If I order a package and something is wrong getting on the phone the next day is a lot more likely to lead to a positive end then if it is months down the road.

My vision is to keep the plate carrier set up in a sort of home defense load out. Probably 3 rifle mags, 2-3 pistol mags, an IFAK and a holster. I generally do not like holsters on body armor but for a throw on at 3am setup it seems to be the way to go. Toss on plate carrier, stuff handgun in holster, grab long gun and go. Doesn't get much simpler. I will have a chest rig (got a couple options here with another on the way) in case there is the need to rapidly reconfigure for a different purpose. Taking off some MOLLE stuff only takes a few minutes. It would obviously be set up how I want it and loaded mags could be kept in there if the situation called for it.

Up to now most of what I've got in terms of tactical type gear is stuff that has been picked up for work. I am pretty psyched about getting a start on the setup of personal gear that I want to have. Once I get some plates this will be a solid start. Likely I will pick up the few various pouches I will need and a warbelt of some sort in the next couple months.

Have you been looking at your gear situation and filling the gaps?

Packing a Ruck

Dear TOR:

 

I picked up a military surplus MOLLE II backpack (rucksack?) that has three good sized compartments on it. I think the lower one is designed for bedrolls or whatever. Obviously, one can put anything anywhere, but I was wondering if there is a specific layout that the military uses for these backpacks, because, presumably, that would be the most efficient and effective, accessible, etc.

 

If you have time, would you please tell me what you carry in those backpacks and where it goes? I probably won't need all of what you guys use, but it would be helpful to have a "blueprint" for when I'm packing my stuff. It would also help to make sure that I dont overlook anything important.

 

Thanks.

 

Saddle Tramp

 

 TOR here:

First to get onto the same page. The term rucksack (which I shorten to ruck) is synonymous with backpack, at least in its larger hiking/ backpacking variety. Unit's often have standard operating procedures for all kinds of things including how to properly pack your ruck. [This brings us to two questions. First why do units have SOP's. We have them because we have some really stupid people and we are obsessive compulsive. Also we have them so we can at least in theory find essential pieces of equipment in another individuals stuff. Stuff like first aid kits, radios, etc needs to be able to be found by anyone. Secondly should your group/ family have SOP's. I would say that you should probably have some. It doesn't matter if everyone keeps their spare underoos or hygiene kits in a standard location. However essential stuff like first aid kits, maybe spare ammo for your common weapons (you do carry the same stuff, right?), the group emergency radio, etc is probably good for anyone of you to be able to find in another's stuff.] You don't necessarily carry the same kit or have the same needs as X battalion X regiment Infantry so I'm not going to tell you how they pack their rucks. However I will try to give some ideas to help you out. 

I think about two main things when it comes to packing a ruck. First I look at any excessively heavy items I may have. A big radio, a huge cast iron frying pan you are carrying up to the cabin, a spare case of ammo, etc would all apply. This stuff has to go as close to your body and as high as possible. You want it basically centered over the upper part of your back so it carries as well as it possibly can. If it is to one side or the left it is really unpleasant to carry. Having this stuff toward the bottom or outside pulls the bag back and down which is hard. 

Next I pack based upon what I will likely need access to. You don't want to have to dig all the way to the bottom of your bag for your water bottle or granola bars. For example your rain gear should be very accessible. The little pouches on the sides of your bag are a great place for rain gear as well as your flashlight, first aid kit, snacks and food you will eat through the day, etc. Your cooking stuff and dinner chow might go toward the top of the main pouch because after you get to camp the first thing you will do is making dinner. After that is your sleeping bag with bivy so you can get that set up. In the bottom might be your spare clothes because you don't plan to change anything except maybe new socks in the morning.

My packing usually goes like this:

Side pouches are filled with my rain coat and poncho as well as a bunch of snack foods and a small first aid kit. Weather depending I might have a bit of cold weather stuff like a silk weight top and a fleece cap in there also. In the main compartment the bottom is my extra clothes in a waterproof bag. Next I toss in the food I am carrying but do not plan to eat throughout the day. On top is my sleeping bag because in the Army I usually open the main compartment when it is time for me to go to bed so I want it on top. Depending on the conditions I might have my fleece jacket up top also. My foam sleeping pad is strapped on top. I stick my camelback under the flap for the main pouch to keep it off my back. If I was carrying ammo that wasn't in my chest rig/ LBE/ whatever you want to call it I would have it in the upper part of the main pouch because it is heavy. If I didn't have a chest rig/ LBE/ whatever you want to call it I would keep extra ammo in a side pouch so I could get to it fast. Considering I carry 7+ mags whatever bandoleers or extra loaded mags I had would be more for follow on missions in a situation where we planned multiple operations without resupply. 

I hope this helps.

My Kit

I wrote about chest rigs awhile back. That post got me thinking and then acting on something I had been wanting to do for some time. I use a standard issue MOLLE FLC. Money isn't an object I just like these a lot as a platform. I don't like conventional chest rigs for a couple reasons. The first reason is that unlike a conventional chest rig (they are generally a 6 inch or so panel with 2-3 rows of the modular strapping stuff) with these you can attach stuff basically anywhere on the front of your torso. Secondly in my experience chest rigs have all kinds of straps all over the place and getting them comfortable is pretty hard. Makes adjusting a shoulder holster seem easy. Also I like that the load is evenly distributed widely over your shoulders instead of on a 1 1/4 inch area.

However the FLC as issued has a serious flaw. In the back there is this big stupid strap in the back. You can rotate the biog dumb belt thing all the way around so there are just straps in the back. However doing that has the cost of not being able to open the FLC in the front. That wouldn't be a big issue except for the fact that we wear body armor. It is awful darn convenient to be able to put your FLC on and off with the IBA instead of having an extra step of pulling it over your head every single time. The picture below shows what I am talking about. (Yeah by the looks it is some Marine guys stuff but it's the first good picture which clearly shows what I was looking to show.)

Seriously the FLC is like we had a great idea and then somebody said it had to have a huge stupid thing going around the back. I think it was some old guy who just couldn't deal with the kit not being based around a big belt thing. I have tried the FLC as a rack/ chest rig with the big stupid pad rotated to the front and in its conventional way and found both setups to be wanting. Basically I prefer the FLC over a chest rig but I want it to not have the big stupid belt thing in the back and also be able to open in the front. Yeah I like to have my cake and eat it too.

So I had an idea. My idea was to replace the big stupid belt thing. You need to secure the back so it doesn't go flopping all over the place when you lean over or whatever so just having it open isn't an option. I considered a piece of 550 cord but decided against it because the Army is really anal about this stuff so it needs to look legit. Another consideration on my options was that if God forbid I am seriously injured and somebody grabs that strap to drag me I need the darn thing to hold. In full kit I probably weigh 230lbs and if you factor in momentum and someone pulling on a single point that requires a strong strap. I settled on simple 1 1/4 inch webbing with a buckle in the middle. There are hooks for webbing on the FLC right by the middle of the front (where the zipper is) so you hook it through them and it is attached. The webbing on the FLC's stupid belt thing is the same size so it is too easy. I then sat on the idea for some time.

The day I wrote the blog I decided to just do it and put my kit into the configuration I wanted. Since we are in Germany I ended up having to scavenge the webbing. I had a Tactical Tailor chest rig I never really got comfortable with sitting around and decided to scavenge from it. Unfortunately that meant  cutting straps but I left enough on the side I had to cut from (it went to a clip on the other side) that I can later just get some more webbing and hook it together with a buckle. Anyway I got it done and though I haven't used it much yet am quite happy with the results. 

As worn.

Left side has 4 double mag pouches. They can hold 8 M4 (or I guess others of comparable size) mags or 6 mags and a pistol or NVG monocle or whatever. Figure another in the rifle and possible on the butt stock and I am able to carry 270-300 rounds. Can't see carrying more on my kit though if need be I would bring a bandoleer or something.

Right side from center; medical pouch, radio pouch, 1 quart canteen pouch to hold night vision goggles with the Rino mount and J arm, on the top is a compass. The only addition I intend to make is a small random pouch to hold little stuff. Most likely my compass will move down between the radio pouch and the NVG pouch and said small random pouch will go where the compass pouch is. I carry water in a camelback and sometimes stuff a couple granola bars or whatever in a random pocket. This setup is sufficient for operations of at least several hours. If I was going out dismounted for longer it would require more water, more than a couple chewy bars and probably some sort of sleeping gear. In that case an assault pack with a 2 quart canteen or two would come along.

Well that is what I carry.

What Did You Do To Prepare This Week?

It was a pretty good week here. Somehow I seem to have a cycle where I save then buy. This is kind of a buy week. I ordered some more ingredients so I can do a couple more batches of beer. This time it is going to be a good strong Belgian beer. I will be able to stop spending bunches of money on Chimay and be able to enjoy great beer more often. Not that there is anything wrong with a generic American light beer but I want to be able to drink good beer more often.

I also ordered some one ounce silver bars. I think silver is still sanely priced. Plan to keep buying it for at least the rest of the year. One nice thing about silver is that you get a far more gratifying amount of stuff than with gold. Spend a couple hundred bucks on silver and you get a nice handful of coins. Spend a couple hundred bucks on gold and you get a little coin.

I ordered a cold steel push knife. Those things are just nasty. I have done some thinking on it and any real use I would have for a fighting knife is going to be up close and very physical. These things are really intuitive which helps a lot.

I am sticking with the weight room which is good. It is a nice transition between work and home. Also I just feel better when I life.

Lastly I am finally happy with where my MOLLE chest rig is. I feel like I finally got that piece of gear to how it really should be. I will probably write specifically about what I did at some point. However to do that I will need to take pictures and such so it will be awhile. I replaced a pair of triple mag panels with 3 two mag pouches. The panels do not flex and just felt like a big thick board on my off side. The 3 two mag pouches hold the same ammo in the same place but since they aren't connected have a lot more flex and give. I can toss another one on down the road which I would want for Afghanistan but don't need for here. Also I replaced a random pouch that was holding my MBTR radio with a legit radio pouch. At some point I can use a random little pouch to hold stuff but that is a back burner priority.

What did you do to prepare this week?

Molle Rucksacks

Our friend Commander Zero asked my opinion on the relatively new Molle Rucksacks. Well here it is. As a bit of background I have spent a good amount of time carrying an old typical framed pack, various commercial internal frame packs, the ALICE Pack and most recently the MOLLE. That gives me a decent frame of reference for this.

First I will talk about my ruck/ backpack preferences then I will get to the MOLLE. The best packs I have ever carried were commercial production modern internal frame style packs. I have an internal frame REI bag and it is pretty darn nice. Other such bags are equitable. For the worst bags I have carried it is an even split between the old very traditional external frame models and the ALICE. The MOLLE lies somewhere in the middle.

The biggest benefit of the MOLLE is that it is super modular. More so than any other pack I have used it is super adaptable. Commercial internal frame ones can be adjusted for height but there is little that can be done about adding different pouches and such to the outside. The MOLLE is basically covered with the rows of straps which let you mount anything (within said system) onto it.

There are some complaints about the MOLLE floating around both the Army and the various forums and such. There is a real traditionalist streak in the Army. Whatever people came up on is the best and all the new stuff sucks. I would wager that back in the day there were some soldiers standing around waiting to do some mundane task complaining about the switch to rifles which shoot those new fangled cased cartridges. Someone could invent a new ruck that is just as reliable and rugged as the last one but magically levitates and thus effectively weighs nothing on your back and soldiers would complain about it. I have heard people talk about how MOLLE rucks just break but personally I have used and abused them without issue. I have tossed rucks weighing 80-100 pounds out of the back of a large truck and had them land on cement at an awkward angle without issue. I know early on some field testing went pretty bad with them. I also know a particular fellow who was part of a group that was doing such testing, they (in typical soldier fashion) did not like these new things, so they intentionally broke them in order to sabotage the tests.

The MOLLE is hands down better than the ALICE for numerous reasons. It is big enough to carry all the stuff we need (unlike a newbie on a 1 mile overnight hike guys who carry rucks a lot don't just fill up bags willy nilly) without junk tied all over it. The modularity is a big plus but also the side "sustainment pouches" are actually big enough to be useful, unlike the midgety ones on the ALICE. Also I am not sure why the people who made ALICE packs thought the human back has a roughly 4 inch tall and 4 inch deep slit in their lower back (the not at all padded 'waist belt' sticks out and grinds on your back) but the MOLLE folks are smarter than that. The MOLLE is bigger and more comfortable to carry (at all or with a heavy load) than the ALICE hands down. I am not trying to give the ALICE a bad rap or anything. They are a rugged, common and very affordable earth tone rucksack.

As a service member I am required to use what they issue me and thus am glad they went to the MOLLE. However as a survivalist they do nothing for me. I know for some folks it is a big deal to have the newest and coolest military issue gear. I guess that is cool, its your money so do whatever makes you happy. MOLLE packs are solidly decent but not for their price. Personally if I was on a tight budget and wanted a pack I would get an ALICE pack due to sheer value. (Edited later to include: With MOLLE available for $50 there is no reason to go with the inferior ALICE) If money wasn't really a big concern I would get an internal frame pack from a decent brand  (REI, Kelty, etc). You really do want an earth tone but worst case if a good deal presents itself and you don't care about appearance a rattle can will fix that. If price was no object at all the folks at Kirafu seem to make a real nice bag.