Home Front: Battle belt

There is a lot to be said for having a go-bag, get-home-bag or bug-out bag ready and kitted out for those dire-circumstances where you need bare-necessities to make it to a secondary location.  But sometimes, requirement for action is a little less dire, demanding light-weight gear in limited capacity, but needs to be ready to go.  

One such method is to have a battle-belt. In my case I have set out to build a camping/hiking belt that has all the things I might find needful whilst out on the trail or if I needed to blaze one of my own. 

I've been modifying its setup for some time adding things, moving things and testing it on every hike we go on. The current setup has been pretty stable, both physically but also dynamically. 

I've included, hydration, first aid, navigation, fire-lighting and shelter options as well as storage space for other pieces of kit.

I started off with my Heavy Cover 
Titanium canteen and nesting cup in a GGG tactical pouch that I found in my collection. I put this central at the back of the belt for weight distribution. This gives me 37oz (1.1L) of water ready to go as well as a cook-pot and water sterilization (by boiling) method, on my person. Left of the canteen pouch is an older Platatac radio pouch that I use to house a ferrocerium rod and striker combo, a bic lighter, a set of medical sheers and a folding saw. 

So I have fire-making options and fire-crafting options. to the left of the radio/fire pouch is a three-pocket admin pouch where I keep a Sharpie, a pencil, sharpener, crayons a small note-book and space for my phone, as well as space for additional items. Right of the canteen is a Blackhawk Stealth Weapon Catch which holds a Go! outfitters Landing Pad mini-tarp for some single person shelter. To the right of that i have a tear-open GGG IFAK, that i've filled with a variety of bandages, gloves and the like, along with a CAT tourniquet  for extreme bad-times recovery and a Gerber Crisis Hook to round out the rescue/aid pouch.

To the right of the IFAK is a large Kryptek Highlander pattern pouch that contains a 100 foot spool of Go! Outfitters reflective guy-line as well as my emergency IR helmet strobe. I also have a couple of bundled hanks of paracord, one half of a set of pocket binoculars, and an Extac Australia Pocket Shot along with the arrow brush fitting and a couple of bags worth of marbles and bb's as ammunition. 

Finishing up the items carried on the belt is a collapsible mesh sided platatac ld dump-pouch, for foraged or salvaged items, and a horizontally slung ZU Bladeworx Grunt fixed blade knife that sits at belt-buckle level. A very sturdy tool for cutting, battoning and all manner of blade-craft. 

After its first big outing I realized that I needed to add shoulder straps to assist with its bulk and weight, so I rigged up some harness straps with some recycled kiddy car-seat straps.  With a little adjustment, I've managed to distribute the weight of all the items and keep it stable for those long hikes, or short dashes.

The belt that forms the basis of this set up is a Propper 360 riggers belt that has a hook and loop and locking bar fixture as well placed attachment ring for attaching safety lines or other retention systems. This belt runs through an older Platatac 3s belt pad that has PALS/MOLLE loops throughout and suspender loops as well as a breathable mesh padding. 

I think I might upgrade this ad-hoc system to something purpose made, like the Platatac bk harness perhaps, but for now, this whole rig lives in my room on the back of my desk chair, ready to throw on at a moments notice before rushing out to confront whatever adventure or misfortune may come my way.

Anything i'm missing or should add or remove? 

Review: Sailors Compass - Oceanus Brass

I've covered compasses before, mostly as a generic " have a compass, navigation is important" tool and as part of a variety of multi-tool items or kits that include a compass but this one is a little different. I backed a kickstarter for a boutique compass with maritime style. Oceanus Brass specialize in nautically inspired items milled in brass. This is the Oceanus Brass - Sailors compass. Which I backed on Kickstarter. They're in full production now, so you can pick one up, or anything else in their range. Their latest Kickstarter is for a plastic bottle cord maker and looks great too. 

Brass is an excellent material for traditional nautical kit for several reasons: It is hard wearing to withstand long periods between resupply or repair options. Corrosion resistant to resist saltwater exposure. Non-sparking to keep powder and timbers safe and non ferro-magnetic so as not to throw off your compass needle. It also has a pleasing heft and a bright luster. 

The sailors compass comes as an un-embellished and unadorned puck, with a seam line running its circumference at the 2/3 of its height. The seam line is narrow when the lid is secured and both top and bottom edge of the puck are evenly beveled and smooth. The "lid" unscrews for two full rotations  along finely machined threads, with just index and fore finger and thumb vs palm needed to open it.

Inside the compass is a liquid filled needle chamber, with a well defined needle including a nicely pointed "head" featuring a glow in the dark "dot" for night-time navigation. The tail end flight is subtle and balances the needle both physically and aesthetically.

 

The bezel is gently notched for easy grip and rotates smoothly and features degree markings, in 20 degree major spacings, with minor marks for 10 degrees and 2 degrees. It's firm enough that it won't slide of its own accord but smooth enough that it will turn with a finger-tip's pressure. The backing of the bezel is a ring of glow in the dark material to provide a readable back lit bearing in the dark. A fixed red line serves as the index mark and a pair of embedded glow-dots in the base of the bezel chamber lines up with the North indicator. A central dot completes the after-dark navigation picture. 

The compass is moderately large for an EDC pocket compass, at 2" (55mm) in diameter, 5/8" (17mm) in height and 6.8 oz (194g) in weight, but its smooth and solid design makes it an easy carry. Whilst it would not take the place of a good lensatic compass for navigation. It certainly does the job for simple wayfinding navigation. 

 Solid brass construction provides sea-worthy durability. The Sailor's Compass can be dropped, frozen, banged, forgotten until it isn't. If i had to pick something I didn't like about the compass it would be that it's too smooth. The unadorned surface might lead to slick, fumbly fingers to drop a vital piece of kit and some knurling or a dummy-cord knob or thread-hole might go a long way to securing it. All told though, it makes for a very pleasant EDC pocket addition. 

hat-tricks!

Just the Tip: Hat Tricks

Hats. Pretty ubiquitous. Be it the classic Stetson of the cowboy, the sand, maroon or green beret of the bad-ass snake-eaters (colours depending on your nationality), the Akubra with corks and/or crocodile teeth of the Aussie bushman, or the perfectly curved and patch bedecked ball cap (or patrol cap) of the seasoned operator. These are often underutilized pieces of kit.








So, hats! They're not just head coverings and eye shields. Read all about it here on Breach Bang Clear

Review: Silva - Luminous Wrist compass

I picked up  couple of these little compasses from Platatac, when my step daughter asked for a compass to put in her bag "so I don't get lost". How could I refuse a request like that?

I have a little button compass as a part of my ITS Urban SERE kit, and there is a magnometer built into my phone, for times when my GPS wont give me a location and bearing. However, compass navigation is something that is really important for everyone, and it pays to have backups as well as a primary.
This is the Silva Luminous Wrist Compass.  It is a button sized luminous compass that is designed to fit directly on your watchband. This compass has 8 graduations for the cardinal and cross-quarter points (800 mils). North is marked out with a good solid red triangle. The other cardinal points are clearly marked, in orientation so that they are readable forwards regardless what your bearing is.

The compass fits directly onto your watch band with the built in flattened loop band, but only if your watch band is narrow enough. The band I put onto my Pebble is too wide, and though a baracord bracelet would be a perfect place to add it.


With its luminous face, the compass is visible in dark environments with only a brief exposure to light, say the residual charge from a days outdoor activity.


I have attached mine to the ITW Grimloc carabiner I have on my Hazard4 Loader RG holster harness.

In prime position for me to glance down and take a bearing.


Being a little compass, it is not super accurate, given that it only has eight points, and had a bit of variance when I compared it to my other compasses, but as an EDC, holdout compass, it is all but weightless and takes up no space.