Review: Heavy Cover canteen and mug set

 As well as lights and blades I seem to collect bottles. I like to have my own reusable and reliable hydration source to hand. In my EDC bag, my desk at work, in my car and so forth. My usual go to bottles are my wide mouth Nalgene bottles and my venerable SIGG bottle.

Each have their benefits and drawbacks. Nalgene bottles are made from the sturdy Tritan plastic. Light and shatterproof, with a high capacity and easy-fill wide-mouth. They aren't fireproof so cant be used to boil water or cook in. The SIGG bottles are aluminium with an internal plastic coating and a finely threaded cap I've found to be delicate and prone to thread stripping. The Aluminium bottles are sturdy but ding and damage easily. They also do not support cooking or boiling due to the lining.


A solution I found is the Heavy Cover US GI Style Titanium Canteen Mess Kit. Over the last  hundred years or so  the US GI style canteen mess kit has served millions of military service members as well as millions of outdoor enthusiasts. Originally made from tin, aluminium or stainless steel or plastic, the Heavy Cover model replaces this with titanium. The kit is comprised of a 37oz (1.1L) canteen with Tritan Plastic and Titanium Canteen Cap options and a nested Canteen Cup 23.7 oz (0.7L) and lid, also titanium.


Combining time tested design with the high-strength to weight ratio material results in a light weight yet durable mess–kit. Perfect for those counting grams on the trail and people who break gear, like me. Both Canteen and cup can be heated and used to boil water or cook food.

Made from 0.5 mm thick titanium,  the Canteen with Tritan Cap weighs a slight 6 ounces (172 grams) and the titanium Cup Lid weighs a mere 4.8 ounces (132 grams). As well as being exceptionally  light, titanium has the advantage of being biocompatible (BPA Free, nontoxic to the human body) provides a non-porous, non-stick material for easy clean up when cooking. being thin walled and a rapid heat conductor , less gas/fuel is needed and you get a  faster boil time than with steel or other pot materials. It is anti-corrosive and will not rust. The mug has folding wire handles to assist in cooking and handling when hot.

The titanium cap of the canteen features a wide, thick thread to ensure ease of opening and removal as well as maintaining  a tight seal and resistance to incidental damage.  The lid itself features a titanium D-loop for clipping to a belt or pack, dummy-cording or perhaps even suspending over fire to boil water (beware steam and pressure build ups!) The canteen neck and mouth are quite wide which make for easy filling and drinking. The titanium cap sits quite high above the lip of the opening, I don't know why. It is hollow and floats, unlike the tritan lid which sinks like a rock. The titanium lid has a flat-folding wire lid loop for retention or for use as a float.

The canteen has a jutting rib around its mid-line which corresponds to the lip of the cup, to seat it. when nesting the cup lid is obviously left out, but I found that any pouch i could fit the canteen and cup in will also fit the lid in the bottom, ready to deploy to be a lid your cup for bean or noodle cooking. I don't know wat purpose that rib serves, except to possibly prevent rattle between mug and canteen on maneuvers.

I found the canteen had an off-flavor from manufacturing so I needed to give it a good wash and rinse out. Kraken rum worked nicely. The mug didn't have any such problem and cooked several meals without issue, and relatively non-stick and was easily cleaned.

Over-all I am really happy with this set, they're light, rugged as all get up, cook well and not bulky at all. I really like the traditional form factor and compact design for considerable volume capacity.

Find one on Amazon here:

Review: Cinch'n'Clinch gear hangers

This was a Kickstarter that was a really simple idea, that was really just polishing up and producing a marketable product. The concept is simple enough, ad looped cord, with two slipping barrel knots forming a loop that tightens to bind in tightly around whatever piece of gear you want to hang. The creators of this Kickstarter just took a pretty common way of lashing items, and added a little flare, with shrink-wrapping around the knots and at the "handle" end of the over loop.

The idea with this is that you can drop the slipping loop over whatever you want to carry, and tighten both sides of the knots to bind it tight and give you a secure grab around your bottle.






We are currently using Type III mil spec 550 parachute cord. This is an inexpensive, lightweight, tough, and durable Kernmantle rope with truly extraordinary breaking strength, especially relative to its small diameter. We continue to research the best materials for the Cinch-N-Clinch, but our four most important factors in our decision will never change: durability, resistance to abrasion, UV resistance, and environmental footprint.

Review: Pace lid

Here's an item that I had covered as a wish-lust item back in January when I backed the Kickstarter for the PACE lid.

PACE stands for Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency. It is a cache that replaces the lid of a wide-mouthed bottle such as a Nalgene. I've got several, both Nalgene and Kathmandu and the idea of them doing double duty was just too good. 

When planning for events in life you have to expect that unforeseen things may happen and knowing this and being able to prepare is empowering. Also, keeping your gear handy and secure is a good thing.

The PACE lid container has a capacity of 300mL (10oz), it's deep enough for an ID or credit card as well as a variety of other gear, with a recessed lip to fit a bent ID or credit card. 

The container is 7.6cm (3") in diameter and 5.7cm (2.25") inches deep. There's a small recessed lip around the perimeter that can secure items vertically and in place if they are bent, like cards, matches, other gear items.


I found that I could load at least 8m of paracord, along with my favorite gear tie, the Fishbone Piranha.


I found that I could stash a variety of items, from a roll of tape, keys, pocket-tools and a watch, as well as my ID. The idea I had was that I would have a waterproof and unobtrusive cache that I could leave on the beach, or toss into a daypack. 


The one downside is, that it is a pretty bulky addition to a Nalgene. 
 

You can see that it adds a fair length to the bottle, and that won't go un-noticed. Something to bear in mind.


The seal on the Nalgene bottle was solid, and the threading was well machined, so I didn't have any problems with leaks. 

One thing that occurred to me that I could store in it was a powdered sports drink, so I could keep my electrolytes up on the trot, my thought was that I could fill it up the 10oz capacity, enough to make several liters.
 
To give you another idea of how much capacity the PACE lid offers, I filled it with 70 Mentos. You could of course fill it with your own snacks or confection of choice, enough fishing line, lures and hooks to have a fishing trip set and ready to go. 

Survival Kit:The folks behind the PACE lids also offer a fully kitted out survival option, developed to fit specifically into a PACE lid.

Their kit includes:

(1) Adventurer Button Compass (NATO/U.S. Military Issue)
(10) All Weather Survival Matches (NATO/U.S. Military Issue)
(1) Derma Safe Razor Knife (U.S. Military Approved)
(1) Sewing Kit w/6 Safety Pins (Assembled in USA)
(6) MP1 Water Purification Tablets (U.S. Military Issue)
(1) Adventurer Survival Whistle (SOLAS/NATO Approved)
(1) Mini Survival Fishing Kit (Assembled in USA)
(1) Type 1A Utility Cord (U.S. Military Approved)
(1) Brass Snare Wire (Trapping and Equipment Repair)
(1) Emergency Signal Mirror (Daytime Emergency Signaling)
(1) Compact Flint Fire Starter w/Striker
(6) Adventurer Tinder Quik Fire Tabs
(1) Adventurer Fresnel Lens Fire Starter
(1) Water Bag 

(1) Compact First Aid Kit
--Sting Relief (2 packets)
--Butterfly Bandages (2)
--Band Aids (6)
--Moleskin (3" x 4")
--Triple Antibiotic Ointment (2)
--Zip Lock Bag
(2 packets) Hand Sanitizer
(2) Deet Bug Repellent Wipes 

(1) Silica Gel Desiccant (Moisture Absorbent)

The PACElid adds storage capacity to a wide mouth water bottles, compatible with Nalgene, Klean Kanteen, Kathmandu and Hydroflask bottles. I'm going to keep trying out new loads to carry around with me.

Review: Kathmandu Wide Mouthed drink bottle

Every now and then a piece of gear comes my way through .... unconventional means.

One time an IR strobe mysteriously appeared in the post, another time the same thing happened with a set of lockpicks. Other times I have found gear discarded and added it to my collection (some would say hoard).

This time it truly was a case of "gear adrift is gear a gift", in that in the flotsam and jestam of my local beach, I spotted a water-filled bottle, and fished it out.

It turned out to be a very serviceable Kathmandu wide-mouth drink bottle.

It was full of fresh water, and had obviously snapped loose, fallen overboard or been washed away, as the lid-to-bottle retention strap had been snapped away, and only a stub remained on the lid.

I am all for reusable drink bottles, and the clear-plastic, wide mouthed Nalgene's that I have been using for years have served me well.


That link is for a slightly different design, as the one that washed up appears to be no longer available but here is the Dead link anyway.

Apart from the obvious aspect of having a reusable and sealable water bottle, that holds a liter of water for hydration purposes, this kind of bottle also has the capacity for storage for any number of small needfuls to set it up as a survival cache or just as a waterproof storage system for those of you with phones or still use paper money still ...

As a reusable drink bottle, it is only 155g (5.5oz) Eastman Tritan co-polyester, which makes it both odour and shatter resistant,  freezer safe as well as withstand temperatures up to 100 degrees for washing in a dishwasher. They aren't recommend for hot beverages as the plastic will become too hot to touch but make for a great hot-water bottle if you wrap a t-shirt around it once it's sealed up tight.
Even after being lost at sea, and losing its retention strap, and being sandblasted rather thoroughly, its held up really well. The volume increments are still visible, which is good for measuring cordial or tracking how much I've drunk and how quickly, but that's not nearly as useful as the addition of moulded finger grip points on both sides of the bottle.

When you've just filled the bottle, or washed it, or worse, filled it AND washed it they get slippery. so having a textured gripping surface really adds value to the bottle.
I dummy-corded a new retention string to my bottle, so I don't loose my lid, and have something to tie MY bottle down with, so I don't loose it overboard.

Certainly a good addition to my bottle collection, and the price was right, that's for sure.

Always be on the lookout for gear adrift, it's gear a gift. I'm still enjoying a number of items I salvaged off the Tough Mudder courses I've run.

Wish-Lust: Kickstarter - PACE lid

 I love modular and multi-purpose kit, and if I can get and everyday piece of equipment like a drink bottle to do double duty adds a significant thumbs-up from me.

This Kickstarter project, from GoRuck badass, and innovating outdoorsman, Chris Way.



This is the PACE lid, and it's Kickstarter is underway.

PACE stands for Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency. When planning for events in life you have to expect that unforeseen things may happen and knowing this is empowering.

The container in the PACE lid is 300mL (10oz), it's deep enough for an ID or credit card as well as a variety of other gear.

The container is 7.6cm (3") in diameter and 5.7cm (2.25") inches deep. There's a small well around the perimeter that can secure items vertically and in place if they are bent, like cards, matches, other gear items. It's a feature Chris designed in and finds very useful in certain loading particular items in.

So far Chris and his team have tested the PACE lid and found it forms a water tight seal on wide mouth Nalgene, Klean Kanteen, Hydroflask, and MSR bottles.   I have a couple of Nalgene's so their perfect for me.

The prototypes seen here are apparently 3D printed, but the production models will be tooled plastics.

As well as the lids themselves, Chris is offering a pre-filled First Aid PACE, stocked with products from MedTraining Group, who specialize in non-permissive First Response fitting and training. 

If you're super keen, high-end backers can also get training and adventure time with the PACE team, so there are all kinds of benefits to backing this project, big or small.

For me though, it's all about the lids, and stowing my gear, wherever I go.

Be sure to check it out and hopefully, we can get it over the line.