A place for me to review the various rugged, nifty and needful kit that I've accumulated, for every-day preparedness in the event of accident, disaster or world-shifting end-times Apocalypse, be it zombies, triffids or Mayan divide-by-zero errors.
Here is a piece of disaster preparedness hardware that has been serving since the 1940's, and will likely continue to do so for the forseable future. This is the all-steel US Government Issue tri-fold entrenching tool. I picked mine up, as many would, in an army disposal store, and have never regretted it. This folds out to 56cm when fully extended, and collapses down to a mere 23cm when fully folded. This is not a thing of beauty, unless like me you find beauty in sheer utilitarian design. Lets start at the business end.
The heavy steel shovel head is edge-sharpened along all four dirt-hitting sides, with a broad and chunky blade-edge, not fine enough to be bothered by rocks and other dirt-dwelling blade-chippers, and yet bitey enough to cut roots and dig into hard or cloying soil. In fact, I have used the flat-side edge to chop trees, and split logs, and the tip to spike said logs for hauling and shifting one log out of a pile. The length of the unit lends itself to use when kneeling or crouching.
The rolled-back-end makes a good boot purchase point, but its not a full
length shovel, and that changes how it works. The other side of the shovel-head is saw-toothed, giving you a saw-option, for times when hacking at roots or cables isn't working out in whatever ditch you are digging.
I haven't had much use for the saw-side, but it's one of those things I'm glad it has, because I -might- need it some time. One thing I love about this particular model is that the shovel head can be adjusted to sit at 90 degrees, with the locking collar screwed down tightly, and converts a shovel into a hoe, which is a great option for those times when either there isn't much head-space in your trench, or scooping is more important than shoveling. I've found that for pulling cast-iron cookware out of fires, managing coals and flattening the bottom of trenches the hoe-configuration just can't be beaten.
Folded up the shovel packs into this press-stud closure case, which attaches with a pair of ALICE clips. I take this tool with me every time I go camping, and it rides on my belt when I am out doing Stargate lasertag LRP. The added weight of it on my hip is small consequence to the utility of having it on hand, and I would consider it an essential part of my preparedness gear list. I would love to compare its effectiveness with that of the GearUpCentral Crovel in a task-by-task lineup. My all-steel tri-foldup has never given me reason to doubt its efficacy, as a shovel, improv axe, pry bar, or impromptu hammer. Like most of what I carry and collect, its ruggedness, multi-function design and capability makes it a much loved and valued addition to my kit.
Here's some PPE that I wanted to share with you, but had all but forgotten, as it was sitting buried in my gear-bag. I have had a variety of knee-pads over the years, for rollerblading, Fantasy LRP events and costuming. One thing I've always had issues with is the fit, and having my pads slipping around to the side. I'm going to blame my boney knees and skinny calves for that. Whilst the pads I've used in past have never spectacularly failed me (especially in some bigish rollerblading crashes) they've rarely been comfortable, and and have either pinched and rubbed or slipped and slid. One thing that occurred to me that perhaps I was using the wrong equipment for the task I was performing. Running about the bush and up and down hills isn't the same as roller-hockey or speed skating. So I looked to tactical gear. Blackhawk! had these Advanced Tactical Knee Pads v2.0 to offer, and I wanted to tell you what I have found with them.
The body is made from sturdy 600D Cordura, which encloses the closed cell foam interior padding. Closed cell foam doesn't absorb sweat or incidental water, for both comfort and keeping the weight of the pads down. The kop of the knee pad is injection molded plastic, which is articulated below the kneecap, with a soft rubber join. This design allows the knee to be bent, without producing much in the way of either pinching of the padding, or gaps opening up in the pad. I was really impressed with this feature, and have found no troubles with the coverage it's offered me. The strapping also deserves some discussion too. As well as the sturdy plastic furniture on the "outside" edge, and the wide elastic strapping which is fitted with long and well placed strips of hook-and-loop, the straps are affixed to the body of the pad, featuring seamed and padded flaps that wrap the padding and strapping around the wearers knee.
Both the top and bottom straps are well placed and give a good solid attachment, without interfering with mobility overly. A very useful and well thought out additional element of this pad is that inside the kneepad there is a contoured interior ledge of the same closed cell-foam. This sits above the wearers knee-cap, and keeps the pad seated in the right position no matter what I've thrown at it, thus far. Blackhawk! offer this in Black, Coyote Tan, Foliage Green, and Olive Drab. I opted for Coyote in this case, and its worked out nicely for me thus far. I've been happy with the protection these have offered me both whilst out adventuring and my Stargate Lasertag LRP, but also out rollerblading. Rugged, functional and adjustable. A good choice.
I wanted to spread the word about a really cool product I saw online recently, (with thanks to Soldier Systems for the original link), that I haven't managed to put my hands on yet, but would dearly love to. I've yanked some pictures from their site, so you can see how cool these things are. These are the Kit Bags by Hill People Gear. Essentially what they offer is front-packs for runners and back-country trekers who want to have some needfuls high and tight on their fronts, and off their hips and backs. This is a brilliant idea, and I was really impressed. In their front-pack line, Hill People Gear offer three options in design; the Kit Bag, their biggest pouch, shown here in "coyote", the Runner Kit Bag, which is a slimmer version of the Kit Bag, for those running-about types who don't want a load of gear on them, and their Recon Kit Bag, which is essentially the Runner Kit Bag with 8 channels and 3 rows of PALS/MOLLE grid sewn to the front.
The packs are made of 500D Cordura for a tough but light finish, with hefty zippers with plastic nubbed pulls for ease of opening. The packs come with webbing straps and hefty furniture and Fastex buckles that connect at the back as a mesh backed H harness with a Grimlock based docking system that they say will connect with most packs as well as giving a natural hang without those uncomfortable twists than can sometimes occur when mounting different systems together. The Kit Bag measures 11.5 x 7 x 2", and the Runner/Recon version is 1" deep. All versions feature two sets of pockets, with the Kit Bag having 2 slot pockets and 2 matching dummy cord loops in each, and the Runner/Recon just featuring these in the front compartment. Both designs are set up to carry concealed pistols in the inner compartment, which whilst is a cool idea, isn't a selling pint for me in particular. However, I can see the value in it for a lot of people in unpleasant countries. The bottom of the pouches feature attachment points for stabilising loops which they also stock, but are extras, as well as spare "lifters" for ease of attachment your pouch to different packs. They are offered in "coyote", "foliage", "Ranger Green" and MultiCam. They have one stock photo of a pack in "khaki" which is my preferred colour, but I've asked them what they can do for me ...
All in all, the functionality, ruggedness and modularity were big selling points to me, and I would really love to get my paws on one, maybe run it through the Tough Mudder challenge... otherwise, its certainly on my Wish-Lust-list!
Here is a quick one today, of another piece of climbing kit that I recently added to my collection. After reading a thorough review by ITS's Jeff More I was inspired to seek some out for myself. There are the Omega Pacific Rappel Rings. These solid forged aluminium rings are really elegant, and fit in the hand very nicely. Apart from having great aesthetics (and a Particular name emblazoned on their sides), the functionality of these is belied by their subtle design. The rings are rated as having a 20kN minimum breaking strength (around 2000kg or 4400lbs).
The manufacturer goes to lengths to state they are not intended for repeated lowering, not to be used as a rappel or belay device (e.g. ATC, SBGII, Figure-8 or any other friction device). They state that it is intended solely as a hardware alternative to bail-out slings, webbing and cord, and that advice should be headed. That said, I see the utility of the device as a means to reducing rope-on-rope friction, as an ad-hoc pulley or cinching point. I have yet to use mine as Jeff from ITS has, but I'll be keeping a set in my bug-out-bag as well as a set with my regular climbing kit. Having a set of rings to feed rope through for hoisting and binding, through to use as a rappelling station appeals greatly to me. Now to acquire some tubular webbing and fashion a set of slings!
I also have a set I have been keeping in my pocket, if for no other reason that they chime nicely, and have served as a chew-toy for Tactical-Baby up untill this week, when she cut her first tooth. Still, I hope to find a number more uses for these simple, expendable tools.
Stepping off my previous post about "Where will you be when -it- happens" I thought I might take some time to discuss my thoughts on the places I find myself, and perhaps this might give you some insights and starting points to your own disaster preparedness regime. As I mentioned previously, I find myself in several different locations in the course of my everyday life; home, my commutes, work, the foothills where Triceratops Girl lives. Whenever I go somewhere, I tend to assess things like entrances and exits, pinch and bottleneck points. High ground, low ground and secured areas also seem to trickle into my subconscious assessments. So, here we go.
Home: I live in what we call "the shittiest house in the street", in what is easily one of Melbourne's top suburbs. Our house is a fairly dilapidated '50's design with brick walls, and a tiled roof. Wooden picket fencing around the front yard, standard (but decrepit) wooden fence along side and back corner and a brick wall along the other. A large metal rolling gate gives access to the backyard and a wooden gate at the front side runs to an outside corridor between front and back yards. We have a street-side window with wooden shutters off the side bedroom and shutterless sliding sash windows at the front two rooms. All in all I feel our house is really indefensible and disaster-vulnerable in its current state. We live in quite a low-lying suburb, close to the bay, often in a weather-front. We have good relations with our neighbors and I've certainly cased -their- properties for survival options. We have food, water and livestock, not to mention my own supply of kit, and enough steel and steel-competent people to make use of it, and ensure
it stays where we need it to.
There are several properties with high blue-stone walls and metal gates, several with solar power and hot water installed and most have water-tanks. One thing we have plenty of in our street is 4WD options, several may have even seen dirt.In the event of a local or widespread environmental disaster, I'm not sure how well our house would hold up, we could tape up the windows, board up the frames with planks from the fence, and the scrap timber I keep around, but it's certainly not ideal. Images of Japan's 2011 tsunami and the 2010-2011 Queensland Floods strike home the risks rising waters have to homes. I've lived in hurricane regions before, storm damage is something
I'm familiar with, if not experienced in.
Work: I've previously mentioned I work in a health care facility, with a large research capacity. Our facility is heavily regulated and as such is designed to reflect that. It does however suffer from something that many older hospitals do, in that over the years, it has subsumed neighboring buildings, so is a little piecemeal in organization. We have fail-over generators, full steam and compressed gasses facility. Full kitchens and sterilization facilities and fire-fighting, alarming and evacuation processes exist as well as many of the other perks of being a facility of our nature. Being close in to the city we are on the CBD power grid, which has during the peak of summer heatwaves lead to some issues, as has the rare electrical storm, protest and manhunt. The nature of our work also poses its own risks, with radiological treatment being offered, we have those agents to contend with. Our patient cohort are not acute, emergency care, so we are not a point-of-call for outbreak situations, but we do have a fair proportion of immuno-compromised individuals who are very susceptible to infection.We have an animal house for research purposes, and extensive research facilities. There are a lot of resources at hand in the event of catastrophic events, but at the same time, are in the line of fire if they occur. We also boarder with a large hotel, and large government facilities which each presents it own interesting complexity. One thing hospitals are good at though, are operational security. Few entrances, and somewhat regulated movement. Being operationally self-sufficient to some stage mean that in the event of local or regional emergency, they will continue to function at some level longer than most other forms of workplace.
Foothills: I've also previously mentioned the property where my little Triceratops Girl spends most of her time, which is situated in a somewhat mountainous, heavily forested region of the Dangenong ranges, on a dirt road, off a dirt road. Its is still fairly heavily populated, you can see all the neighbors houses, even being over an hour's drive or train from the city it is still very much suburban in nature, even embedded in the trees and mountains such as it is. Torrential rainfall in the wet months and steaming bushland in the dry, the area has its shortfalls, but is otherwise tranquil and doesn't get a lot of non-local traffic. The scenic vintage railway runs through the area, and features both a coal powered and diesel powered means of transport out further from the city, which is independent of local electrical power, which can be spotty in the weather-affected seasons.The risks of bushfires such as the 2009 Black Saturday Fires where there were 173 deaths and 2,030 houses destroyed are an ever-present specter in the hot months. During storms the area is susceptible
to flooding, roads being cut or washed out and the risk of the tall Eucalyptus trees falling, or dropping their large branches on houses, power-lines or roads. I lived up there for a number of years, and it is quite a relief to not be faced with those frequent worries, even though my daughter Triceratops Girl still lives up there, and I commute up to see or or collect her a couple of times a week.
Commute: I take a 30 minute train ride to and from work every weekday, with a change of train just outside the city and a subway ride to get to my destination. On nights when I do kendo, that's a slightly longer subway ride from a different station in the City Loop. I mostly walk around the city, with the occasional tram ride to speed things up. The trains run pretty well, but being an ex-IRA-bombing-era London resident, there is something disconcerting about being in a large metal tube jammed full of my fellow commuters underground. I know it's very very unlikely, but it's always on my mind. Not to mention my favourite scene in Predator 2, "Let's dance...". Again, for what it's worth, I always look to my exits, both on the trains and on their routes. Those pauses when your train is sitting waiting for clearance at the next station are great times to look out the window, and if you're lucky, you will see the network of connecting tunnels, emergency exits and the like that exist. The same goes for elevators and escalators. I'm always left wondering "which of you seemingly normal looking assheads are going to loose it and be part of the problem?" I'm not bothered by crowds on a psychological level, purely a survival and psycho-social one.
On my long weekly drives, I go under two railways, over another, cross a floodway bridge, and over two freeways. Lots of bridges that could conceivably fail and leave be stranded on the wrong side. I have a paper map book and compass in the event my phones GPS isn't up to finding me a way around for whatever reason and try to keep a mental map of refuge, refilling and regrouping points along my way. Traffic pinch points are another concern. Time spent stuck in traffic is time waisted getting where I'm needed, or away from whatever needs avoiding. Peak hour driving takes on an aspect of survival training with the right mindset. "how would this route cope with one less lane, two less? If obscured by smoke or rain?"
What does this all mean? Why is any of this important?
In the event of an emergency, where you are, where you need to be, and where you want to go are all key elements that may well change dramatically, without notice or announcement. What you have on you at the time may be the only resourcing you have at hand, but odds are, simply knowing your environment may well put many more resources at your disposal. Consider your situation, consider the options. Adapt, innovate, overcome.
I've covered a pocket-covered vest before, but also wanted to give some time to one of my favorite pieces of clothing. I've worn kilts since i was about 7 and my folks had one made for me when we lived in the UK, in our family tartan. When I "came of age" and they said I should get a formal suit made up, I instead chose to get my dad's kilt, and Prince Charlie vest and tail-coat made. Years passed, and I came across the wonder of the Utilikilt, and was in love! These hardy and ready to rumble kilts are made in Seattle and what they lack in traditional styling, they make up for in spades with utility! Five or six years ago for my birthday I was gifted one of their most option-laden models, so here it is, the Survival Utilikilt .
What is consists of is a heavy duty press-stud closure kilt, made of a pretty hefty 9 oz 100% cotton twill. The press-studs affix the two ends in a very secure 'V' in the front, giving ample security to the front, and even takes into account belt loops, which are doubled at the closure point, a great feature. Twin deep internal slanting pockets give a "pants-like" place to stuff your hands and gear. A pair of elastic-gusseted side-saddle cargo pockets. There are in fact two pockets, one shallow, the other deeper, (these are also detachable, and each comes with its own closure flap and belt loops.) The back of the kilt features two standard sew-on pockets, but are just as awesome. Pockets on a kilt, brilliant! A key clasp on the front gives an attachment point for keys and lanyards, which I use to sling a lanyard from my multitool .
One feature that really stands out and puts this back in the realm of survival-wear is the addition of a "modesty" closure system. A simple toggle and loop setup affixes the two front flaps at the middle, and keeps the two fold from opening under any weather circumstance. No risk of wind lifting up one side to flash the civilians. There is even a button hole on the back side of the kilt, so that in a pinch you can bind the front and back together to give a loose-shorts effect for those times you -really- don't want your undercarriage exposed, like assaulting a barricade, climbing over burnt-out cars or vaulting fences.
Utilikilts have several other awesome models, and the orange one above is one of them, this is the Workmans Utilikilt which is made from a beefier 12 oz. 100% cotton Duck cloth. This kilt was designed with construction workers in mind and as such features places for tape-measures to clip,and two riveted-on multi-chamber saddle pockets with pouches for kids of items. “The Grip” adjustable side hammer loop, which fixes with internal press-studs and provides a really good attachment point for hammers, tools, holsters and the like. My FUBAR fits really nicely on it. Again, this kilt features twin pockets at the back and also comes with a "modesty" closure system of a couple of internal press-studs to close up the pleats and make a set of quasi-shorts when the need arises.
Both these kilts are rough and ready, rugged and hard-wearing. The black Survival has faded slightly, but gets a lot of wear. The orange Workman is quite stiff, but that comes from being such a heavy fabric. I feel I can depend on them to take whatever I dish out to them, have worn them whilst camping and adventuring, and will wear one of them to the Tough Mudder at the end of this month.
Here's one last pic of me in my -other- Utilikilt, a more refined office-wear version, the Mocker Utilikilt in olive green,after a week in the office, going to see the Sisters of Mercy play, sporting my Zombie-Tools t-shirt.
Welcome back viewers, I've been having urban adventures and haven't had time till now to post something, but here we go, hot off the shelf and field tested Thursday night whilst on my Tough Mudder training run.Its been raining a lot here in Melbourne, and I wanted something to house my iPhone whilst I was trudging around the course so I could check my pace and time with the Trails App I use. Previously I've shown you the iPhone case I use which, combined with a screen guard, gives me some incidental rain protection, and has a carabiner to attach it to myself, but for running, I wanted something that would be strapped down, to avoid the flapping gear-effect. Its bad enough that I wear boots and cargo shorts, compared to my lycra and Nike wearing team-mates, without having tech swinging off me as well. So I of course, turned to my favourite Tactical gear supplier, who had a solution for me! This is the Platatac Recce Panel.
It consists of a 1000D Cordura pouch fastened with a hook-and-loop strap, that is mounted to the wrist by two wide elastic cuffs, which feed through loops in the heavy 25mm webbing sewn into the back of the pouch. The loops and pouch itself are ambidextrous, just a matter of swapping the sides and adjusting the elastic loops to fit. The elastic comes with heavy nylon buckle furniture and hook-and-loop fixtures. On my bare skinny wrists the hand-end loop was in fact too thin for the hook-and-loop to bite, so I need to loop the elastic back through the buckle, which worked just fine, all in all giving a very secure and stable platform for all my Predator Wrist Device needs. The spine of the pouch sports an elastic pen-pocket, which is a nice touch. I need to find myself a good sturdy pen to fit snugly in there, "for close encounters". The magic of this pouch however is within the cordura flap. There are
two heavy clear plastic pockets, one folded on top of the other, for storing
maps and documents.
The"top" pouch is double sided, and features an unsealed(but "internally" opening close to the middle seam, which comes as the first layer when the pouch is opened up. Closer to the wrist is a single-sided pocket, also clear plastic fronted, with a hook-and-loop seam on the one side. Wearing this on my left wrist, the hook-and-loop is on my arm-side. There is sufficient room in the inner pocket to fit my iPhone4S in its case, and seal the pouch up, and still have my headphones trailing out (to listen to music and the Zombies, Run! immersive running app I also use. However, in its case, the screen is difficult to access, and the capacitance is reduced. Out of its skin, everything worked just fine. I found this to be a great addition to my running kit, and whilst I wont be taking my phone on the Tough Mudder, I will certainly consider using this for both my regular camping and adventuring, and as part of my Stargate Lasertag LRP kit. Having maps and orienteering documentation on hand, as well as GPS data from my phone will be a very desirable. I was thinking I could mount one of my solar collectors to the back of the unit, to charge-on-the-go.
This was an occasion where the tool really does fit the need, and I am very glad to have added this to my collection and to my kit.
Here is a piece of disaster preparedness hardware that has been serving since the 1940's, and will likely continue to do so for the forseable future. This is the all-steel US Government Issue tri-fold entrenching tool. I picked mine up, as many would, in an army disposal store, and have never regretted it. This folds out to 56cm when fully extended, and collapses down to a mere 23cm when fully folded. This is not a thing of beauty, unless like me you find beauty in sheer utilitarian design. Lets start at the business end.
I haven't had much use for the saw-side, but it's one of those things I'm glad it has, because I -might- need it some time. One thing I love about this particular model is that the shovel head can be adjusted to sit at 90 degrees, with the locking collar screwed down tightly, and converts a shovel into a hoe, which is a great option for those times when either there isn't much head-space in your trench, or scooping is more important than shoveling. I've found that for pulling cast-iron cookware out of fires, managing coals and flattening the bottom of trenches the hoe-configuration just can't be beaten.
