Home Front: Book Learning - homesteading

Taking a step back from all the boo-yah, of military style packs, pouches and things that go "stab" in the night, I thought it would be useful to do a quick review of some of the literature that I've read and plan to or have been utilising, both in preparedness, and also in recovery from a potential society-changing disaster. Not only that though, these are things that can improve your day-to-day life, if you're into that kind of thing. I have some other friends of similar ilk, Mr Not an Urban Hippie for one, who like to get into this kind of thing: growing, preparing and preserving ones own food, for fun, economy and satisfaction. The fact that he and I share common interests such as adventuring, Japanese martial arts, and raising families is encouraging, if for no other reason, that I know I'm not the only one.

I digress. The kinds of knowledge and skills that are called for to do this kind of thing, seem to be the kinds of things that many of us urbanites either ignore, have never considered, or assume that "someone else will do that for me". Take a visceral example: Meat. Where does meat come from? The story goes that a school kid asked that question innocently answers "the supermarket", and when pressed as to -where- the meat, the actual flesh comes from, answers, "umm, a cow? on a farm?" The same could be said for "bread" or "your shoes".

Well, I like to know how to do this kind of thing myself. Because it's fun to know how, to make things, and it might just be hands some day. I've previously talked about preserving (canning, mostly) and growing our own food items as well as training and practicing "survivalism" and "useful skills" which leads me to the main focus of this post: Where do you go to learn "homesteading"? I myself have turned to books! Four of the book I have used to teach myself how to do some things are pictured here; Guide, Canning, Freezing, Curing & Smoking for meat keeping, Tan Your Hide! for turning skins into leather, The Urban Homestead for its down-home DIY ideas and Toolbox for Sustainable City Living for more of the same.

Perhaps these are "too simple", "too hippy" or "too out there" for your needs, but I want to have an understanding of not only what I don't know, what I do know, but also to have tools at hand to educate those around me. Electricity is a tenuous resource, those of you who have visited third world nations can attest to that. Books, whilst delicate in their own way, are power-independent. I'll be sad, come the EMP, the power station/lines being out or apocalypse, if you are unable to read my blog, and that I won't be able to continue my postings, but having a stash of books with valuable knowledge at hand will be a comfort. Sitting back at home whilst everything is fine, reading up on "how things are made" or planning out my next urban homestead improvement, making delicious and lasting foods.

So, for those of you who didn't grow up on farms, or had parents, or grandparents who taught you all "the old tricks" but still want to be able to do all the "old timey" for when you can no longer just order a pizza delivery online, or duck to the 7-Eleven for that whatsit, I heartily recommend finding yourself a selection of "how-to" book, comparing, contrasting, and trialing out their techniques, suggestions and finding what works for you, and your situation, before there is no choice. It's fun, informative and very satisfying.

Review: SpiderFire Infrared X6V-IR

A while back I reviewed my Yukon NVMT 3x24 nightvision scope but didn't manage to take any pictures of it "in use" as I couldn't manage to work out how to get my iPhone to do a macro-enough capture of the display. However, Omega loaned me her Nikon d3100 and with two tripods and some jiggery-pokey, I managed to capture some images. Sure there is a camera adapter but all I wanted to do at this stage, was demonstrate the features of my new flashlight, the SpiderFire Infrared X6V-IR  which apparently is fitted with an IR 3W CREE LED.  I set the scope up in my hallway, and adjusted as best I could to do a "down the barrel" set of photos to demonstrate both the flashlight and the Yukon scope. Actual view of my long hallway is much clearer through the scope, its a camera focus issue.




The SpiderFire is a machined aluminium body, with 2 CR123 batteries. It features a press button on/off tailcap and a glossy paint coating. The reflector is pretty standard geometry and finish, and there are three LED emitters bundled into the lens housing. It comes in a hook-and-loop, and PALS/MOLLE compatible nylon pouch, with a retention lanyard.

The light is powered by two CR123 cells and when viewed from anything other than an acute angle, there appears to be no discernible visible glow. At acute angles the emitters are a strong deep red, and can generate a recognizable red flash when looking "down the barrel" to an observer downrange. This caused me some trouble, which I'll get to later.

So, some further testing: My hallway is around 10m long, to give you an idea of the scale here, and again, the poor-focus is my inability to photograph the internal screen of the Yukon, rather than the optics of the Yukon itself. Compare the top picture which is the passive view of the hallway, with this one, where the internal IR illuminator of the Yukon is on.  The beam is tight and bright, and when viewed directly puts a nice ~1m circle in the center of the field of view. As I previously reported though, both the scope and its internal illuminator have indicator lights which essentially shine directly into your off-scope eye and also drains the single CR123 battery in the process.



This photo is of the SpiderFire held just above the Yukon, and shone down the hallway. It really drives back the shadows, filling the doorway and the far end walls. I took it out into the night of my suburban street, and could see its light glinting off treetops in the next street, but a bit ineffectively, given the ambient lighting from streetlights and the city. It cast a useful beam at around 25m down a somewhat darkened laneway, which gives an idea of the range.

Last time I used my Yukon at Stargate Lasertag LRP, I had also wanted to have an additional source of IR illumination, not only to boost the range, spread and brightness of what my Yukon can discern but also to have a light I could set up AWAY from my position. As stated, when active, the IR lights cast no visible beam, but the actual emitter was visible and brought unwanted attention to my position. In future, where possible, I hope to set the SpiderFire up at a pinch point, and stand-off, gaining the benefit of a passive scope, with the added illumination in a dark place of my choosing.

IR is an interesting technology, night-vision is an all-around awesome concept, and I wish that more goodies were available for me to order to play with. The SpiderFire certainly makes a good start in this, and definitely adds to the ability and depth  of penetration into the murk in very low light and total darkness situations. When all the lights go out, I'll be glad for the ability to see into the Abyss, without the Abyss being able to look back at me.

Review: SAR Micro Elites

Here's a little something I've been sitting on for a while. When I put in my last order with Spencer Alan Reiter he was kind enough to throw in a couple of goodies. Very similar to the SAR Moon Glow signalling disks that I've reviewed before (and wear around my neck) are these examples of SAR Micro Elites 
These disks differ from the Moon Glow in that the glowing plastic disk that gives them the name has been replaced with a colourful disk of G-10 fiberglass, the same material often used for the scales of blades, and also circuit boards. These cheery disks have the same SOLAS reflective tape on one side as the Moon Glow, and mirror polished steel day-time reflector washers on the other side. You can see that the washers come in two times, a flat finish on the blue, and a beveled finish on the yellow. The difference being the ability to signal strongly in one targeted direction with the flat, or to scatter light in a wider angle with the bevel. Different designs for different users needs and abilities.

These are great little pieces, and I'm glad Spencer threw them into my last order for me to have a play with. I will be passing the goodness on, in that I am making birthday gifts of these two, and hopefully they will be enjoyed as much as I have in trying them out.

Review: LazerBrite Tactical Pouch

I realised that I had not gone back and done a review for something I showed you, way back at the end of last year. It is an item that I keep on my Platatac Young Guns belt for when I am adventuring in one way or another. This is the LazerBrite Tactical Pouch which is produced by LazerBrite Tactical Solutions, who also make one of my favorite lights, the MultiLux LED light-sticks, which I reviewed a while back.The pouch is a means to secure the LazerBrite to your belt, vest or pack, and integrate it with your loadout, whilst keeping it safe and secure.


The pouch is constructed of a medium weight Cordura type material, with good stitching finishes throughout. The "coyote brown" option matches up with my khaki kit nicely. Roughly the same size as a flare pouch, the pouch features a main compartment that fits the LazerBrite, including the "glow-dome"-head, and a "loop" end under a hook-and-loop closure flap. Two additional compartments beside the main one house respectively individually sealed replacement batteries in a strip of OD plastic foil, and the very clever Iris accessory which allows the central tube of the LazerBrite to be "choked down" uni-directionally, from about a third, down to a pin-prick of light. This is a great feature.

This allows the user to focus the light of the tube to provide some light-discipline or just not blinding yourself when doing some work in the dark.When the iris is in use, the main "clear" tube can be popped into the same compartment, and nothing gets lost or left behind. The pouch is PALS/MOLLE compatible, with two sewn-in tabs and three rows of webbing to interlock it to your kit. One thing I noted was that whilst the webbing was securely sewn into the pouch, at the edges, the middle is not sewn in to make distinct channels. This doesn't seem to have any deleterious effect on the attachment, but I suppose it does effect the overall toughness of the connection.
However, I'm not intending to rappel off my light-pouch... Press studs affix it as per most PALS/MOLLE pouches I've seen. Here it is on my Young Guns belt, which seems as good a place as any to wear mine. One thing to note, if anyone is looking to get one, the "bundled" kit includes LazerBrite's "single mode" light, which is to say it comes in the same colour ranges, but only an "on/off" setting, rather than the "high/low/blink/off" of the "Multi-Lux.

Anyway, it's a totally fit-for-purpose pouch, that lets me keep one of these very versatile and rugged lights on my person, and blended in with the rest of my kit. I will probably stitch those middle webbing gaps to the body, forming more regular PALS/MOLLE channels.

Review: Maxpedition - SITKA-S Gearslinger Pack

A friend of mine recently "downsized" his regular daypack, and tells me he's very happy with the choice he made, so I wanted to have a look at the pack, and share his feelings and my own observations. This is the Maxpedition SITKA-s Gearslinger. The "S" is for "sinister", as this is the "lefthander" version of the pack. The regular version is exactly the same, just mirrored for ease of use for righties. That was a really nice touch right off the bat, and i was impressed that they offered this version as standard. It may need to be ordered in, but the fact the manufacturer offers it is a big tick in my books. The good folks at LE Gear got this one in for my friend.

The idea of this particular pack is that it will carry all your needfuls, without bulking up or weighing you down. It is jam packed with attachment points, pockets and pouches, but most importantly, it compresses and packs your gear down to reduce bulk. Very important if you have a lot of traveling to do, which is one of the reasons my friend got it, for a long trip OS.
Right from the get -go you can see that the pack has a lot of features, and I'm going to try to cover them as best I can. It is made from the same 1000d Cordura, triple polyurethane coated for water resistance that features in a lot of the gear that I have reviewed. I love this stuff, its hard wearing, and when coated with Du Pont Teflon® fabric protector, sheds rain and crud and takes a beating. Its single-sling layout puts the strap crossing your body, and it sits nicely. When tightened there was no feeling of it slipping around when walking about, but for additional security, there is a "third-leg" strap tucked away in the bottom to make an inverted "Y" of strapping should you feel the need.

The padding at the back is really nice, and the top handle is also padded.



Behind the padded backing is a pocket with ports for a 3L / 100oz hydration bladder, with all the fittings, including retention cords and loops on the main shoulder strap for the tube. There is also a 1L / 32oz Nalgene bottle pouch off to the shoulder-side edge. It looks like it would also fit my 1L SIGG bottle too. (Although the dimensions are different).

As well as the hydration bladder pocket, there are three main equipment pockets: The large compartment is 15"x 8" x 3" and features a variety of internal storage, including a Fastex stule compression strap, a zippered pouch and a wide  loop-field panel for presumably attaching a concealed-carry holster, or your collection of patches, in my case... A small laptop might fit, my iPad certainly would.

The top-front pouch is 7.5” x 4”  x 2”  and features internal organization in the form of wide elastic loops, and a pocket, as well as externally, with  a wide belt of hook-and-loop loop-field running the width of the pocket, over which is stretched a loop of shock-cord. This pocket sits up high and is good for a lot of smaller items, as you can see, my friend left his iPhone earbuds in one of the loops, to give you an idea of scale.

The "Y" shaped compression strap has its arms crossing this top pouch, with a Fastex style clip joining the leg between the two front pockets.

All the zipper pulls feature a paracord toggle, rather than a metal tab, removing  the metal-on-metal noise generation these can otherwise give, a great addition I thought.

The bottom front pouch measures 8” x 7”  x 2”  as is also jam-packed with internal organization, pockets and pouches in the lid and the body of the pocket, as well as a retention lanyard give you a wide range of locations to stash your needfuls and keep them in place for when you need them.




Another great feature of the bottom front pocket is that it has a theft-deterrent  press-stud, which holds the zipper in place to reduce the success of a "yank-and-grab" thief.

The bottom front pocket also features a four row, 2" wide tow-channel band of  PALS/MOLLE loops, as well as running the compression strap through to the base of the pack.

Ther is also a channel of the same 2" wide PALS/MOLLE loops along the "off-shoulder" side which, as well as two at the base of the shoulder strap, giving a wide variety of accessory attachment points.





One of the outstanding features of this pack though, is its ability to be accessed whilst still being worn. Being a single-shoulder pack, it can be slid around the body, much in the same was as my Crumpler Messenger bag, allowing access to all the pockets and pouches, one-handed, to get at your needfuls, (or those sneaky CCW panels) without dropping your load, or having to unsling anything you might have loaded up over your other shoulder.

My friend is really happy with his pack, and I was impressed too, it was really well put together, with all the internal finishings well-sealed and stitched, I expect it will last him a long time. Apparently it makes a good pillow too, there is something to be said for a daypack that you can rest your head on when the opportunity arises. As the man said "Somebody wake up Hicks"

Review: Hibben style throwing knives

Normally I am a firm believer in the "don't throw your weapon away" school of thought, but there is a great truth in the words of Drill Sergeant Zim "the enemy can not press a button, if you disable his hand". So, I've dabbled in the throwing of knives for some time now. I've had a few over the years, but these ones, and ones like them caught my eye after seeing Under Siege (at (8:56) yes, it's in Spanish) and they turned out to be a "real' product. These are knock-offs of the UC-454 Hibben Throwing Knives.

I acquired the big one from a disposal store, and the smaller is one of a pair, presented to me by a friend on my 21st birthday. They used to be diamond sharp and mirror edged, but I lent them to someone, who seemed to have practiced somewhere stony or something; the edges are pitted and dinged. I have not had the heart to take them to a grinder and get them smoothed out again, but I will in time. Still pointy, still fit for purpose, just ... dinged.

So, these are made of what I presume is 420 J2 stainless steel, like the originals, and are one piece in construction. 420 J2 is considered a "low end" of stainless steels. It is very stain and corrosion resistant, and tough due to being very soft. However, it is also very weak, and not very wear resistant. In a throwing knife, which is essentially a disposable piece of kit, by its very nature, this isn't such a big concern, as long as you bear that in mind. No matter what Steven Seagal may make you believe, these do not make good kitchen knives. Passable letter openers, to be sure, and nicely balanced throwers to boot. The hollow grind of both the real and false edges gives them a very clean look, and they fit the curve of the hand nicely. The simple blade geometry lends itself to keeping as good an edge as you can hope to with 420 J2 steel, which is to say, chopping sharp, but not slicing sharp. If you want a kitchen knife, get one. These are for "thunking" into targets, not sushi.

You can see that I have bound the larger of the two with a cord-wrap (badly), which gives it a little bit of a nicer grip in the hand. This adds a little mass to the back of the blade, but my knife throwing skills are such that it really doesn't matter what I do to the blade, nothing really increases or decreases my ability, which is to say, I could either do with some more time at the range, or leave it in my hand. Inexpensive at easy to come by at the time, (although less common in disposal shops around where I live these days due to the Weapons Control Act) I'm glad I have these, and wish I had somewhere wide, open and soft-floored to practice with them again.

Review: Platatac Half Med Pack

I popped in to Platatac a while ago and the guys said they had something new for me, which always perks my ears and puts some extra fluff in my tail. This was no exception. As you might have noticed, I'm quite a collector of pouches, as indicated by my FUP's, SR25's, the 60rnd pouch, modular radio pouch, an iPhone pouch, a wrist mounted map pouch, a camera pouch and a utility pouch, the two twin 40mm pouches, the butt-pack and the 3x30 M16 pouch all of which I have reviewed. I'm quite the pouch enthusiast. The Platatac guys know this well. So, when I came in getting advice on one of my new day-pack options, they introduced me to the Half Med Slot pouch, in Multicam. This is my first piece of Multicam kit, and I must say, it is a nice pattern, looking at it up close. A drier, arid version of "woodland", with more depth of colour than DPCU AUSCAM, whilst keeping the "flowing oilslick" pattern rather than "hearts and bunnies" of AUSCAM, or the static blur of the Digi-cams.

I like it, quite a lot. Perhaps that's a topic for another post, what say you?

So, on with the Half Med Slot pouch. Firstly, the pouch is fronted with a nice broad loop field for putting indicator patches on, like I've done here. The long, broad grip-tab at the front gives a good purchase, without being a snag-risk. The pouch hasn't popped open whilst I've been slinging it around. The top sides of the pouch are held snug with a wide elastic strip. The grip-tab is more than just the opening tab for the pouch, however, it is integral to the internals. A swift yank of the tab tears free the hook-and-loop, and out pops this neat bundle.

There in your hand is a long strip of nylon, bundled in elastic tape, that is jam packed with loops for stowing all manner of small medical aid gear. There is a second loop-field, along with a metal grommet, presumably to act as a means of hooking the kit up once it's "drawn". There are also two looped tabs, one on each side of the bottom, also for post-pull attachment. I've put a roll of z-folded compression bandage on the medium elastic loop, and the large loop holds the bundle together in this picture. However, its in what is underneath that is really the key here.

Here is what options these loops provide, according to Platatac:

1x Large Elastic Loop for FAD or Equivalent

1x Medium Elastic Loop for CAT (tourniquet)

3x Small/Medium Elastic Loops for smaller items such as bandages

6x Small Elastic Loops for other items such as scissors, cyalume or similar items

1x Hidden Pocket for gloves, iodine or similar items

I've put a couple of cyalume sticks in mine, along side a couple of rolls of 5cmx3m bandage, as well as a supply of band-aids, sterile would dressings, a sterile eye-patch and a pair of forceps. Four safety-pins through one of the loops of elastic give me something to keep bandages on. The hidden pocket is a great addition, for longer items that need to be stowed away, like gloves. The main body of the pouch has a couple of interesting features, namely another metal eyelet and two winglets which seem to be for closing off the pouch keeping rain and incidental ingress of crud.

This is a really cool pouch, and I think I will be taking some time to modify this pouches layout and contents, but I will be certainly keeping it on my day-pack as an ongoing trial of a very useful piece of kit.