Review: Gerber - Crisis Hook knife

Here is another new addition to my collection that comes out of my need to replace items lost when my car was broken into.

I had been keeping a Benchmade 8med Rescue-hook in the sun-visor MOLLE keeper from Zulu Nylon Gear in case of in-car emergencies, which in turn was an addition along with the Benchmade Figure 5 after I lost my original rescue hook, the Gerber Strap Cutter.

So, now I've come full circle with the Gerber Crisis Hook.

I really like this kind of tool. I go to events where fixed blade knives are restricted, but having a blade that can be used to get myself, or others out of trouble without being a big bad pig-sticker.

The Crisis Hook is fitted out with an even bigger handle than any of the previous cutter's which is covered with a textured, skeletonised  rubberized coating. This is shaped with finger groves on the inside, and crenelations for gripping both back and front. The steel that runs through the entirety of the tool is 420HC stainless steel.

The cutting edge is a single bevel housed within a blunt hook as you would expect from this kind of cutter. The entire tool, with its long handle, it a considerable improvement over the three previous rescue tools I've had.

Fitted with an oxygen wrench and a glass breaker point on the pommel with a loop hole for a dummy-cord, this is a robust and hefty tool, and it comes with an appropriately sturdy
friction locking clip sheath, made from the same 499 ballistic molded plastic as the handle.

The sheath is fitted out with a buckle strap, and can take either the included MALICE clip or, as seen here, a single PALS/MOLLE gripping clasp. It held secure to both my chest and on my hip for a weekends camping adventure recently, but was simple enough to shift in the field, even on the go without all the fiddling needed with the MALICE clips. It cuts like a treat, going through seat belt webbing, heavy strapping, 550 paracord and with a little more effort, thick cable-ties with single solid pulls.

I have no doubt that I could cut someone from belt to boot in a few simple, quick cuts if needs be with this. The over-sized handle affords a really solid grip, even with gloves on, and even when wet. It's not a subtle tool, but then again, its not meant to be. This is for getting you and your buddies, or loved ones, out of a jam. So far, it's done nothing but winning.

Sneak Peek: Fishbones - Gravity Hook

The guys who brought us the Fishbones and Piranha gear ties now have these awesome Gravity hooks in progress on Kickstarter. Part Mechanical Claw, part Grappling Hook and sent me sent me these two prototypes, one in steel, the other Derlin ... all awesome. Check out all the details on Kickstarter for now, review to follow here too!

Tactical Baby: "Those are Batman's..."

Omega: "No darling, they're Daddy's.."

Tactical Baby: nods grimly...

Go back them ... be Batman!

Review: Platatac WUP

I've been collecting pouches for quite some time now, because I've found that there is always room for more pockets.

I've covered all manner of pouches in the past, from the very large, almost a bag in itself, to a variety of smaller utility pouches, down to the very small indeed. There are times though when a pouch needs to be a bit bigger, for large or bulky items, without wanting to add a whole other bag to your loadout, or better yet, having that item out of your existing pack. Thats where something like the Platatac Water Utility Pack, their WUP, comes into its own.

Large enough to fit a Platatac 1 litre Flask or a 1L Hydrapak Bladder,

or in my case, a 1L Nalgene bottle. The WUP fills a niche not unlike that of the Tactical Tailor Hydration Joey pouch, but in keeping with the Platatac range it is fitted out like a bigger version of one of their smaller pouches.


With both a chunky Fastex clip and a broad swathe of hook-and-loop the WUP doesn't lack for closure options, and security. Inside there is an internal loop with elastic shock-cord, to cinch in the lip of the pouch, giving even better retention.

I really liked that the Fastex clip strapping loops back through a loop on the lid of the pouch in a solid V shape, not only does this support the lid, but keeps the straps from flopping about and getting in the way.

A drainage grommet in the bottom of the pouch is a really good addition, something that you really appreciate if you've ever taken a dunk with a bunch of kit on. Especially if you then need to haul yourself up and out, and keep on running.

This is a pretty big pouch, with at least a 1L capacity, and it is held secure to you and your gear with a 2 channel, 3 row set of PALS/MOLLE on the back, ant its set up to be able to attach using 5 rows on the host side, giving a really secure fit for those heavy loads.

There are also three rows of two-channel loops on each side of the pouch, for attaching accessories to your accessories.

I took a couple of these on an adventuring weekend recently, one with an old style canteen on a Platatac Bongo battle belt, and the other on the side of a plate carrier covered in other pouches. Neither were ungainly, overly bulky and anything other than functional. Offered in both Multicam and traditional khaki, the two I picked up are in MC, see how I venture into the modern era!

Home Front: Australian Hazards

I thought I might have a go at giving an insight as to the horrific and terrifying conditions that all Australians contend with from the cradle to the grave. First up, we need to discuss some myths: Drop Bears only ever attack tourists who are not anointed with sufficient Vegemite. The Australian Hoop Snake is NOT larger than its North American cousin, but it is purported to be more deadly. Australia is home to a variety of dangerous creatures, and conditions, and yet, even though its a matter of pop-culture, and they are even fictionalized in Pratchett's "XXXX", what are the facts behind it all?

However, Australia really DOES play host to a number of very dangerous plants and animals, as well as some rather extreme weather. The animals are nicely summarized by the Scared Weird Little Guys

Depending on what survey you look at, from the Top 30 Deadliest Australian Animals which runs from Box Jellyfish through to Giant Centipede (with the regular honey bee being #2, incidentally). Or take the more condensed listed but still exaggerated Top 10 Most Dangerous Animals list. There are some pretty scary animals on those lists right?

Who wouldn't be freaked out by the 7m long Saltwater Crocodile, Funnelweb Spider or the Inland Taipan? Well, as it turns out, including dumb-assed tourists and drunk local lads who ignore signs, the very scary flora of this Great Southern Land kill about 5 people a year, plus or minus.

We have a significant bushfire risk, usually at the tail end of the summer time, and I've covered these before, and sometimes we even get heatwaves that set new records for both duration and intensity.

In fact, while 173 people died in the 2009 Black Saturday fires, , 374 people died from heat stress around that time. The CFA upgraded their alert signs (many of which are now remotely controlled)which now go up to beyond EXTREME. Catastrophic is the new rating. It's rare to these signs below High, which tells you something about how we deal with these concerns. By not being concerned.

The same goes with the dangerous animals (and occasional plants) we have here. We're generally unconcerned.
I gave all of these facts and fictions some more thought, and hit up the Australian Bureau of Statistics 2012 Causes of Death, Australia records and did some analysis myself. Note: some of the numbers in the charts don;t add up, as there were some categories I didn't include because they were fiddly tiny numbers.

In 2012, there were 147,098 reported deaths. of these 93.7% were disease related. Of all those disease related deaths, only 1.7% accounted for ALL infectious diseases. Cholera, plague, HIV, TB, necrotising fasciitis, all the 'Flu strains, all of them. I'll just leave this here...

The scary thing there is the other 98.3% of disease deaths; cancers, heart and circulatory system, gastrointestinal and all the other things that can go wrong with our bodies accounted for  the overwhelming VAST majority of deaths in Australia in 2012.

Of all the deaths, that were NOT disease related, the "External Causes" that 6.3% of deaths in Australia, some 9275 or so people, I wanted to look into what caused that.

Suicide or other forms of "intentional self-harm" accounted for around a quarter, with our road-toll being around 15%. Both of these things are rather awful, and in my mind, preventable in some capacity, agencies like the TAC  and  the various suicide prevention agencies that exist, do great work. I don't have any firm stats on Australian Veterans suicide rates, but its reported as triple those lost in combat in Afghanistan.

I didn't look any deeper into the medical complications stats, but any surgery or intervention is risky. The nearly 50% "accidents" category was interesting. Falls, account for nearly half of these, with "poisoning" and various exposures for the majority of others. Thankfully, our "home is girt by sea" water awareness keeps drownings at low levels, interestingly as of 30 June 2001 more than 8 in 10 Australians (85%) lived within 50 km (30Mi) of the coastline of Australia.
What is really interesting is that "Forces of Nature" (which I presume is floods, storms, rock-falls and the like), account for 34 deaths and venomous animals (and plants) only account for 5. In 2012 there were 12 people killed by land-animals that were not dogs or rats (moooooooo!!!) and 2 by marine animals (think sharks). These fell under "animate mechanical forces" along with combine harvesters and hydraulic presses.

Hardly the Island of Death that people make Australia out to be, if you look at the numbers ....

Then there is the Most Dangerous Animal. Assaults in Australia in 2012 accounted for 273 deaths. 40 to firearms, which are heavily restricted, 97 to sharp objects the likes of which you'd find in any kitchen, workshop or woodheap, and 24 from blunt objects (like the chair you're likely sitting on). You can do the math. Humans are about 20 times more likely to kill you than all other animals on (or swimming around) the continent.  

So, when you're planning your next trip, before you cross Australia off your list for being to damn scary, over-run by killer giant spiders, sharks and Mad Max castaways, consider the true killers ... 

Review: Voodoo Tactical - Open Top Single Magazine Pouch

When I backed the MS Clean Kickstarter project, which I covered recently, they also threw in, as a bonus stretch item,a PALS/MOLLE pouch to house the system in. Originally suggested to be one of the HSG Tactical Taco pouches, to keep costs down they settled on the simpler Voodoo Tactical Open Top pouches which are no slouch either.

I've covered a couple of open-top shingle style pouches before; the ones built into the Platatac SCAR mini-chest rig and also the Platatac Modular Radio Pouch. Generally, I prefer my pouches ti have a lid, or cover of some kind, because I am generally not using them as originally intended. So, that in mind, here's what I can tell you about the Voodoo Tactical open top shingles.

These single-magazine pouches have a good solid finish, with 1000d Cordura as the base material, shock-cord and webbing loops, throughout. They feature a press-stud closing pair of PALS/MOLLE tabs in the lack to feed and mount on whatever platform you choose, and the tabs are reinforced with plastic internally to add some stiffness, aiding in both feeding, and sturdy attachment. The shock-cord is fitted with a looped webbing pull-tab, and it comes adjusted to fit nicely over the MS Clean case, so presumably they fit over a 30 round STANAG or MagPul P-Mag magazine as well.

The fact that it is a single case might seem a bit limiting when it comes to loadout, given that pouches like the Platatac FUP but because it is fitted out with PALS/MOLLE loops on the front (and side) it is possible to stack them quite easily. This may well add more bulk and weight to a double stacked set than would a dedicated double mag-pouch, but each pouch independently carries the magazine, so no worry of them rattling about. Again, remember, I'm not a shooter, get proper training and advice of experts, but it makes sense to me.

They are also a slimmer option for those who aren't planning to be as heavily equipped. Especially useful in those times where every gram makes a difference. These are a good basic pouch, and I could find no fault with them, they certainly are a good match for the MS Clean kits, and work as advertised.

Review: MS Clean kit

This is one of those items that I really picked up for the show-factor alone, rather than for any real practical need. I saw it come up on my Kickstarter feed, as well as on Soldier Systems, where I find a number of cool pieces of tech and tools. So, first up, my admissions: I don't own any fire-arms, but I do a variety of costume and Live-action roleplay events, which is where my "for show only" interest lies.

This is the MS Clean kit.

Whilst I don't own or operate any myself, I appreciate the need to maintain and clean both firearms, and all the tools of the trade, so to speak. I also have a LOT of pouches, and have on occasion had small needfuls drop out and get lost as a result of being adventurous with them in a pouch designed to hold magazines.

I've regularly used my Platatac FUP and other mag pouches to carry my gear, and I saw the utility of a case that married with my existing pouches. The guys from MS Clean offer the cleaning kit to fill the gap they felt existed with the current issued cleaning kits in the US military, and wanted to take advantage of the prevalence of magazine pouches.

The case is curved like a 30 round STANAG or MagPul P-Mag and initial designs looked a little like the P-Mag, with surface ribbing for grip and structure. Made of an injection molded polymer, crush-proof cases prevents spillage of lubricant and bending of rods that they say current issued kits don't. The cases are long enough to old 3x sectioned steel rods, required to remove barrel obstructions like mud, stuck cases or squib rounds. They also include a couple of brush heads, and eyelet head, and a T- handle to drive the lot of it.

The production models include bore brushes for 5.56 as well as 7.62 and 9mm, as well as a dental pick, for all that carbon scoring. The polymer is chemical resistant so the case can be used as a miniature solvent tank, as well as acting as a container to place small parts of a firearm while cleaning.

They also offer them in a couple of different colours, black, tan, green and red. The internal dimensions are 1.8cm (0.72") x 5.3cm  (2.10") x 19.3cm (7.62") and externally 2.4cm (0.95") x
6.7cm (2.65")x  20.3cm (8").

I will be setting mine up as snack and tool carriers, perhaps using the red one as a dedicated boo-boo set, with alcohol wipes and small dressings, maybe even one of the Z-Medica quick clots. I can't comment on the quality of the cleaning tools myself, but I asked out one of my trooper friends to trial it out for me.

"The cleaning kit was a great bit of gear. First i would like to say that the case it comes in is a fantastic piece of gear. It fits in a spare mag pouch nicely and is easily accessible. The frogman lube is a great and does a good job. I found the wire brushes a bit too harsh though and the pull through rods rusted up very quickly. I was impressed with the extra brushes it came with. Its definitely a cleaning kit I carry in my webbing now." - K Taylor WA


The folks at MS Clean copped a lot of flack over the shape and design of the cases, being so close to "real" magazines. Here's what they had to say:

MS CLEAN may be mistaken for an actual magazine 
MS Clean is designed to utilize standard magazine pouches; however, these pouches are modular in nature and as such, the pouch selected to store MS Clean should be mounted in an area where it is not easily confused with an actual magazine.

What happens if I am in the dark and I go to change my magazine and try to put my cleaning kit in my rifle and get myself killed?
You won’t. You are a professional soldier or law enforcement officer, you have undergone months, if not years of training and you would never be so daft as to put your cleaning kit among your actual magazines. You would put it in somewhere else on your gear that wasn't on the front of your vest.

They are pretty prefect for my applications, and I look forward to kitting out my adventure gear (not to mention my kooky-costuming) with them.


To add to the mix, they now have a second Kickstarter underway for the DOUBLE sized kits. Twice the storage, twice the options, including a dedicated medic options, a trauma kit and super-deluxe cleaning options.

Home Front: Bunnings as a bug out location

Following on from my recent article on Ikea as a bug-out location,  which I talked about using the big Swedish household-building company's warehouse stores as a place to refit and inhabit following a society crumbling disaster event (short to medium term). The principle being that Me and mine need somewhere to go and shelter for however long, and there is no appreciable government relief on the way. Pretty unlikely in a stable first world nation right? Well, the folks of New Orleans might disagree. 

My like-minded friends and I have also discussed the various merits of other sites, such as a self-storage facility, in a basement bunker (if you have one) or even in your long term off-grid, eco-village. But one place that most of us agree would be a good site to hold up in and recover, would be a big-box hardware store, like Bunnings.           As far as disaster, apocalypse survival and reconstruction goes, it's hard to imagine a better equipped storehouse for raw materials than a facility like these. Aisle after aisle of tools, fittings, construction and fortification materials fill the cavernous warehouse. 

Anyone with a DIY bent that I know find it hard to walk around without getting itchy fingers at all the stock. Whilst they may not have -everything- you need to rebuild, or in the quantities required, they certainly have enough for any small-scale reconstruction you'd need. The facility itself is none too shabby either. Whilst open and well lit, they are often hot in summer, and cold in winter, but well enclosed and sheltered from the environment. If whatever disaster befell your area didn't damage the superstructure, it would make a good place to shelter. 

With simple layout, large roller-door as well as fire-door access, there isn't much to do in the way of barricading. The outside areas are high-fenced, to ward off present-day looters, and will offer the same protection in a disaster area. Of course, this could be improved with the addition of more barricades and area-denial tools like barbed-wire (Aisle 12, people ...) as could the main entrances. You could easily build up bigger and better walls around the inside of the existing  walls, and maintain a low-key presence, or turn it into a fortified looking castle. 

The key thing to note is that the large range of raw-materials and hand-tools. A facility like this is a treasure trove of pre-fabricated parts and construction materials, supplies and if push comes to shove, weapons.

It also features quite a wide array of potted plants and seedlings. Very little of it is immediately edible, certainly not sustainable, but if set up as a garden, you could make quite a bit of food from it. It would take time however. Food is not something that is a ready resource at a place like this.

Another aspect of this is that Bunnings have a really good rainwater catchment system. Those big roofs catch a lot of water, and that is a valuable resource. It will water any crops planted, and also provide drinking water.

All in all, there are many valuable resources and commodities to be found at a Bunnings, its a reasonably
secure environment, but it has the drawback of not being set up to be habitable, and it is a well known treasure trove. This will make it a very appealing target for other survivors.