Review: PowerPractical - Luminoodle

As first seen on Breach Bang & Clear ...

It might sound like a silly name, but the Power Practical Luminoodle is a serious product. At its heart, it's pretty simple. Take a 5-foot length of flexible circuit, string it with 26 LED's, give it a dual sided USB power plug, and sheath it in a waterproof case. Unlike a hand held flashlight, or a dangling lantern, having a flexible string of LED's means you can put a band of light where you want it, just where you want it and keep it there. That's what the folks at Power Practical have done. More than that, they put a fair bit of thought into how you'd actually use the thing.

I have a couple of other innovative pieces of kit from Power Practical; their power generating thermoelectric cook pot, the Power Pot XL, and a USB power regulator, the Practical Meter.

It's quite a nifty piece ...

Read the rest of my review on Breach Bang & Clear, here:

Review: Tactical Keychains - TK-TUKK

I frequently get asked "so, Josh, do you have any more new weapons?" and I always like to be able to say yes, and whip out something.

The most recent addition to my armory, and toolbox is something small and sweet.

I have backed a number of things from Brad of Tactical Keychains, such as the with the classic WTF tool (and its variants) as well as the larger cousin, the Large WTF but also the very functional TiKeY key-keeper set, the very crafty TiPiK lockpicks and most recently the also magnet equipped TKMB pen
and the TiMag keychain accessories. 

His latest creation was the Titanium Utility Knife Keychain or TUKK. this slim and highly engineered tool is packed with features in its small form. At just slightly over 2" long, 1/2" wide, and 1/4" thick it is easily overlooked on a keychain, looking for all the world like a USB stick, or something as innocuous. It weighs just 15g, (1/2oz).

The blade is a #11 Hobby Blade. (typically not included for regulatory reasons, but you can source them easily enough). Brad suggests Amazon as a source for the exact right fit, as the inside of the TUKK is milled to precisely take the blade. that milling is essential to the magnetic retraction, and retention that the TUK offers.

The two halves are held in place with two T-6 screws which can be opened with the right tool for blade changes. The main case is Grade 5 titanium, while the button is brass. I found that the springiness of the scalpel blade added to the retention and deployment of the blade. As you'd imagine, it's razor sharp.

A couple of neat things about the TUKK's design are that the imbedded rate earth magnet not only hold the blad retracted, when not in use, but also acts to draw it back into the body, by just the weight of the blade alone, when upturned. This is a great safety feature, requiring the user to maintain hold of the button, with only finger pressure, to keep the blade deployed, and let the scalpel do the work.

Brad has also thought to include 1/8" and 1 cm markings along the sides as he did with the WTF tools, as well as some nice inlays on the back side of the blade for grip. The built in magnet also adds one additional feature, it makes one side of the tool magnetic, so you can pop it on the side of a tool-box, pipe, shelf or wherever you are working, and have it out of the way and ready to access at a moments notice.




Also stay tuned, as Brad has a new Kickstarter coming up, the Magnetic Quick Release, the logical next step from the TiMag keychain accessories.

Wish Lust: Devtac Ronin mask

I saw some really cool masks in my thread and I got in touch with the owners, and got the low down on their line.

DEVTAC co. inc. Japan started in 2010 and was a subsidiary of R&D Trading and consulting company. Devtac stands for developing tactics specialized in Business consulting and strategies. They have recently expanded their business to industrial designing concepts and manufacturing.
Their location is in Japan, Shizuoka ken Hamamatsu Shi Enshuhama Kenei jutaku 3 chome 2-22-204 if you wanted to visit a storefront, but otherwise they can only be reached online.

Their masks are not commercially made, but rather are individually crafted.  That have some very special capabilities. These are carefully handcrafted pieces customized to fit your needs.

Firstly, the masks are only ordered directly from them through Facebook, Youtube or email.

The main frame of the masks are fiberglass, with hardpoints for adding both bolt-on armour, and accessories. For those in need of Prescription glasses you can order one here. The offer several different versions, starting with the kevlar lined versions:

DEVTAC KEVLAR LEVEL 2A

Kevlar set is $1350USD ballistics tested up to level 2a(unofficial).

DEVTAC BALLISTICS KEVLAR PLATES MATERIAL TEST

DEVTAC TESTS 1 Super 38 1400fps 100gr NIJ Level 3a rating, 9mm on mp5 1200fps and 45acp 980fps

DEVTAC KEVLAR LEVEL 3A 

$1480USD Ronin mask Kevlar level 3a with 7mm plates. The Kevlar back plate to make a wrap-around helmet is $485USD and separately sold. 

DEVTAC RONIN KEVLAR LEVEL 3A TACTICAL BALLISTIC HELMET! BULLET PROOF

The main mask has an ultralight nylon fiber mesh that is reinforced with special resin and is very flexible, it can withstand strong impacts. The open cheeks are designed for easier aiming with scope or iron sights without putting undue strain on your neck. The cheek has 3 built in neodymium N52 magnets on each corner on both sides so it is absolutely hassle free when you want to put on or remove the cheek plates as quickly as possible.

DevTac masks come in the following sizes:

regular long- men 180-195cm tall 95 kg in weight

Regular short - men 158-175cm tall , 60-80kg in weight

Wide long- men 180-200cm tall 90-220kg 

Wide short- men 158-179cm 90kg-220kg

All the lens frames are ventilated by built in AA battery driven micro fan and a speed dial down by the cheek, and by some very clever design to both vent, and circulate air, they offer fog-free vision, with around a 120 degree arc of vision. The polycarbonate lenses fit into a removable frame and can be popped out to replace scratched or damaged units.

A cover is available for paintball users to stop paint getting blown into the mask from eye-hits.

For those of you who don't tend to face ballistic threats,  DEVTAC RONIN MASK(fiberglass) with  7mm fiberglass plates are $ 480USD comes with 2 pairs of lens, clear and amber or your choice. Without the plates is $350USD. including everything. 

BACK HELMET with extender and plates is $195USD and $145USD without  plates, (as an add on), as with the kevlar version, this offers fully-wrapping head cover, and an enclosed shell, held in place with straps and magnets.

Additional options are things like a built in NVG PLATE with shroud: ($75USD-Fiberglass $135USD-kevlar) and even a MOHAWK helmet decoration for $69USD.

N50 Neodymium magnets spaced around the back of the mask, and the front of the back plate to hold it in place. Each magnet has a 1.2kg pulling capacity, so are very sturdy. The cheek plates are also held in place by magnets, allowing the user to remove them in the field to give you a cheek-weld to a rifle stock or to improve venting. The crown, mouth and ear plates are bolted on, for stability, but have venting ports, with heavy mesh below that, to give venting access for when you need.

All parts are replaceable. The mask has 1 year warranty on electronics and 2 years on the frames.

Paint options depend on the availability of the paint for DecTac at the time. They also offer water transfer prints with Multicam and ATACS now available for $80USD per frame.


DevTac aims to provide Airsoft and Paintball PPE but their venture into kevlar lining might well make them a player in designing armour or use in more dangerous fields.

They offer the Ronin helmets in a variety of colours, with the flexible polymer base and nylon mesh inner, the plates and eye lenses, along with all the straps you need for a front-facing mask, or the magnet attaching options for the back-plate if you choose to go that route. One thing you'll need to keep in mind is that manufacturing is only done every 3-4 months or so, and slots are limited so DevTac ask that interested people make a reservation.

Payments are through wire transfer, and Western Union and pre-order needs a down payment of $200USD for airsoft version and $500USD for ballistic version. Shipping is 45.00$USD (kevlar version is 65$USD) Japan Post, EMS or SAL worldwide flat rate. Extra pair of lenses are $27USD.

--------------------------------

SAMURAI MENPO MASK 

Basic price is $115USD it includes magnets and garter straps and triglides with no metal bolts.

$145USD will include the metal bolts and holders and leather straps. 2 years warranty.

Shipping is $35USD, and is sent via EMS Japan Post and takes 4-7days

They ask for a downpayment of 50$USD for the menpo.

The DevTac masks are most excellent to look at, and if the field-footage is to be believed, they do the trick. I'd love to get my hands on one, for shear bad-assery, let alone armoring my head.

Review: Samurai Studio - FinShield

I was sent one of these by the good folks at Samurai Studio, who have just launched a Kickstarter (yes, I really do back a lot of things from there) and this is their current project. This is the FinShield, a wearable guard for fingers in the kitchen.

The design is very elegant, and simple. A classical heater-shield shape with a split finger ring, which can be stretched to adjust to fit a variety of finger sizes.

Samurai Studio say the FinShield's design motto is “Always be protected, never cut yourself again.” and it seems that the design is pretty spot on to that.  I've been cooking since I was about 6, and over the years, I've nicked myself many, many times. My off-hand is covered in little nicks and scars, I even picked up a couple more over the weekend whilst camping. A wearable guard like the FinShield is a lightweight and elegant means of protecting against this, especially when a lot of repetitive slicing or chopping is in order.

These few little cuts I has over the camping weekend weren't serious, but they did annoy me throughout the whole event, and in a time where first aid or even good personal hygiene is hard to come by, such as on long camping trips, or after a disaster, keeping safe from this kind of incidental injury could become quite a significant concern. Those little stinging cuts to finger tips, and knuckles and be both distracting and if left to get infected, a considerable safety issue.

The ring is spot welded to the shield, and is probably the greatest source of weakness for the system, especially if you are going to be adjusting the sizing, but once its set, I cant see it being overly at risk of breaking.

The steel is ferromagnetic, so you can simply stow it up on a magnetic knife rack (if you have one) or on a fridge magnet. Keeping it with your knives would be a good reminder to use it, especially if you're long in the habit of cooking and cutting without having had finger armour before.

I didn't find I had any issues with it dulling my knives, as the blade edge never came in contact with the shield, only the flat of the blade. the curved sides ensures that the blade stays off your hands, and into your food (or whatever it is you are cutting).

I also found it was useful when I was honing knives (which I do a lot of) so it serves double duty.
Check them out of you're forever nicking yourself, or just want to avoid it.

Review: Fenix CL20 camp lantern

Whilst I was looking for a replacement for my lost Fenix TK51, (finally settling on the most excellent LD60) I also saw the newly released CL20 camp lantern that Fenix have put out. Sean from G8 Distribution was kind enough to send one to me one to trial.

The CL20 Camp Lantern weighs in at 100g (3.6oz) excluding batteries, and 8cm (3.1") length x 4.5cm (1.8") width x 6cm (2.3") high, making it pocket sized,and its rounded shape makes it ideal for stuffing into a pack, or pocket, and not having to worry about sharp edges jabbing you or your gear. That rounded dome houses a multifaceted internal coating, which coupled with the neutral white Cree LED, gives a very gentle light, making it easy on the eye, even at the maximum settings.
As with all of the Fenix lights I've used, the output is digitally regulated, maintaining constant brightness levels regardless of battery life and includes reverse polarity protection to protect from improper battery installation. The CL20 will take either a pair of AA's, or a single CR123A, giving you a range of power options for better.

A push button control on the side steps up from the lowest setting, 8 lumen, then on to 50, 100 and finally the maximum of 165 lumen. At this setting, it casts a 10m glow, perfect for tents and work areas. a double-press of the button when off turns on a second LED, in red, and supplies a 1.5 lumen glow, enough for navigating around a dark enclosure, or finding your way along a path, but not so much as to dazzle you out of your night vision.

The most exciting features of the lantern apart from its great ergonomics are that the red LED also has a "SOS" style flashing mode, accessible by toggling the button again when on red-LED mode. The other great features are the attachment options.

A metal ring attached to the middle of the lanterns base gives you tent hook attachment, as well as acting as a latch to access the battery compartment. Beside the metal ring, on either side, are two rare-earth magnets which gives you ferromagnetic attachment options. I've now hung mine from a shower hook, stuck it to frame of my car, the wall of a shed and to the bolt holding up my Ikea Gorm shelves.

With an IPX-6 waterproofing rating (heavy rain and brief submersion) and a 1.5m drop rating, this little light is both rugged and useful. I can imagine it becoming a standard addition to my camping kit, but also to my car tool-kit, and also as part of my black-out recovery kit.

Full power white LED in a dark room

Red LED in a dark room

Review: TacticalKeychain - TiMaG Paracord system

Not only do I love titanium, and magnets, but also paracord, so when Brad Martin of Tactical Keychains put up a KickStarter project that combined all three, I jumped onboard. I have been collecting the Tactical Keychain range for a while now, with the classic WTF tool (and its variants) as well as the larger cousin, the Large WTF but also the very functional TiKeY key-keeper set, the very crafty TiPiK lockpicks and most recently the also magnet equipped TKMB pen.

The TiMaG project however has been one I haven't reported on for some time, even though I've had these little magnets on my person for quite some time (as astute readers may have noticed, as they sit on my pocket-keychain tool ring).

Billed as magnetic push-pins, and even as "the most overbuilt magnets in existence", these little milled Grade 5 titanium plugs, each with a 2.5kg (5.5lbs) draw neodymium-iron-boron magnet built into the plug. Three channels cut into the sides of the plugs allow you to grip, or or even fit them with o-rings (7/32" ID x 11/32"OD x 1/16"C) for even better grip.

As push pins, they work fantastically, fridge-doors, white-boards, car body. Metal surfaces are just the ticket.

 The standard TiMaGz have the magnet's polarity set in one direction so they repel each other, for ease of manufacture but the Paracord system TiMaG's are created with 50% N 50% S polarity, so they will stick together. (just like the unfortunately fictional MagHook) .

Where the TiMaG's come in handy in a survival situation might seem a little obscure, but with some lateral thinking, a myriad of options arise: Dead drops of keys, papers and the like, either held by the magnet, or attached through the drilled paracord channel.

 I have one threaded through the steel cable of my bundle of pocket keychain tools, meaning I can stick them to a surface and access them, or have my Jil Lite Constel lantern light up my space. I've used the paracord loop to allow me to dowse for dropped items, screws, bolts, knives, needles. 

All manner of ferromagnetic needfuls of a certain weight can be "harvested". The key thing is your imagination, and the contact area you can manage with the TiMaG. Even though the magnets are rated at 2.5kg, I found that the sides and even top of a 450g can of spaghetti needed some finesse to retain a positive lock.



For simple packages, like papers, a spare key, or even say a Oscar Delta - Deep Carry Tube these are an excellent system for anyone. More advanced uses, well, you take your chances, but they are a damn well made set of mini-tools, and I love the aesthetics.

Be sure to check out Mike's NEW Kickstarter, the all new, updated WTF2.0 and TiStiK combo, I'm already a backer, and looking forwards to seeing what they're like to use.

Review: Ti2 TechLiner pen

From the makers of the Ti2-PB9 parabiner pulley  the Ti2 Sentinel S4S cache and the most excellent Ti2 Sentinel X cache, comes this fine implement. This was also Kickstarted, but I had missed out, and luckily for me when the good folks at Ti2 sent me replacement Sentinel X's, they also included one of their new item, the Ti2 TechLiner pen.

Here it is lined up against one of my other titanium pens, the Tactical Keychain TKMB. One of the key differences between the two, and in fact, most pens I've encountered, is that the TechLiner was designed to have cap retention without threads.

The Cybernetic Research Labs tool pen is threaded, as is the hefty EDC Pen is also threaded. In fact, all my tactical pens are threaded, except this one. So, how do they do it?

Magnets! (how do they work?)
Using 3 rare earth magnets, built into the cap, the tail end and around the pen with a toroid magnet. The cap is pulled on tip or tail with approximately 900g (2 lbs) of force.  The unique custom ring magnet that fits around the tip of the Signo 207 refill series.Apart from anything else, this is a very nice pen tip to write with, good for precision work as well as note writing.

The three piece body opens up at the tail end and at the tip to let you for replacement ink cartridge. 

Each end is fitted with a machined grip, designed for a tactile grip surface which is comfortable for extended periods of writing.  The machined "grid" pattern offers a non-slip, secure grip without adding any snag points.

I've had this kicking around in my pocket for weeks, and the magnet in the tail has kept it attached to the other tools in my EDC ring. It doesn't have the "hammer through a brick wall" feel of the EDCPen, but it is a serious piece of hardware nonetheless. Dropped, run over, kicked along concrete and it's barely scratched.

One of the things I love about this is it's sleek lines and snag free design. Also, magnets!

Review: Tactical KeyChain - TKMB

Here is another addition to my EDC out of my pal Brad's workshop. I have a couple of other fancy pens in my collection, with the S&W Tactical Pen, and the Cybernetic Research Labs Tactical Pen. (I also have one of the very fine EDCPen's reviewed, pending release on another site .. .watch this space...). This is a great addition to my collection of titanium tools from Tactial KeyChains, such as the indespensible WTF tool, the very nifty TiPiK lockpicks and the eminently practical TiKey key holder.

This is the TKMB: Precision Machined, which is a small, comfortable, well-balanced, lightweight, strong milled titanium pen.

The TKMB is just 12.5cm (4.9") long and is milled from titanium rod. The tip is milled as well, and press-fitted into the barrel. I tried for ages to dislodge mine, and could not. Brad finally smacked me up-side-the-head and reminded me that the back-cap unscrews to gain access to the insides to refill the pen.
 
Empty, the pen weighs a slight 12g (2.14 US Quarters in weight), and with a refill a mere 17.5grams (3.12 US Quarters in weight).

The working end and tail are machined with threads to take a similarly highly engineered cap, (with or without a magnet, guess which I chose?).


Interestingly, Brad designed these pens to be as slim as possible (thanks to the tremendous machining available to us in the modern equipped world) and to be able to take the "Fineliner" and "Rollerball" refills perfectly, along with Parker, Fisher, Schmidt, Monteverde, Mont Blanc, Caran D'Ache, Cross. I bought and fitted a Parker "Space Pen" refill to mine,along with the included rubber tubing spacer, and the additional 8 mini-magnets.

What's with all the magnets, you might ask?

Between the magnet in the end cap, and the internal magnets, which can be placed in a couple of different configurations, you have the ability to both pick up ferrous materials (dropped screws anyone?) and also being able to place stow and store the pen. I also found that I could retain the clip on the side with the magnet.

Magnets are awesome, and I love it when I can add some to my kit. Another great element of these pens are the groves milled into the sides of both the working end and along the caps. Using the included o-rings, you can customise the grip and balance of the pen. Brilliant for those of us with big hands, and giving you a better fit, in case you are stowing yours in PALS/MOLLE like I do.

 

I have been really pleased with this as both an easily carryable pen, and also the added utility of the magnets, both for picking up items and as a means of placement.

As with all of Brad's work, its highly engineered, thoroughly tested and fir for purpose, and in this case, came with a killer custom anodizing job, (thanks for that!). I even got a second one to give to my partner, because having a reliable pen, is essential, and the titanium body, Parker Space Pen combination was too good not to share!

Review: LazerBrite magnetic tail cap

I was fortunate to win a Single-Mode LazerBrite recently, the MultiLux version of which I reviewed a while back, but shipping my booty over from the US wasn't especially economical, by itself that is. Not wanting to miss an opportunity to add to my collection of kit and exciting modularity, I threw one of their Micro-Magnet tail caps into my order. I already have the tail cap loops, for attaching lanyards to the LazerBrites, and reviewed one of their "Tactical Pouches" which included an iris tube accessory.


Each of the lights comes with one of the glow-dome caps, so adding a Micro-Magnet cap just added a level of versatility to my load-out. So, what makes up the Micro-Magnet tailcap?

A 17mm (10/16") diameter neodymium alloy magnet is glued into the base of a screw threaded tail-cap, which mates withe the base-plate of the LaserBrite head. The magnet is reported to have a holding power equivalent to 5 lbs when attached to 1/4" plate steel, but with all magnets, actual results may vary. I took mine and fitted it to just the head-and-dome and let it dangle off the steel frame of my desk, which is did happily, and firmly, and as a more stringent test, I placed a full LazerBrite horizontally, then seeing how rigidly it held, daisy-chained a second tube to the end, forming a light-baton. This also held up really well. I have used this to stick to the side of my car, as well as doors and wall-fittings whilst working in awkward spots, and figure it could also provide a means of dangling a light from inside a tent with the addition of a washer or the like.

This is a cool addition to my kit, and gives me additional attachment methods for my lights, which whilst not quite up to being a giant Throwie, could easily be used as a marker to track, trace or illuminate an unfriendly neighborhood killdozer