Review: CamelBak HAWG

With thanks to CamelBak and as first seen on BreachBang&Clear.

I caught up with the reps from CamelBak at the SSAA SHOT expo, and they were kind enough to send me one the re-released Mil-Tac H.A.W.G. packs, to demo before they hit the shelves.

I am always on the lookout for a new pack, and as ever, want to set myself up with something that does double duty. Here's a link to the now discontinued pack, which if you can find it, it seems to be well though of in the pack communities.

I was really pleased to get this, and whilst I've not been able to take the pack out and give it a thorough field test, as it needs to go back to CamelBak after I've had my paws on it. That said I have had a good look over it and this is what I can tell you about it.

Unlike the older the 4 channel, 7 row PALS/MOLLE of the Mil-Tec H.A.W.G. the carriage grid on the new H.A.W.G. appears to have been replaced by a more sleek and unobtrusive 5 channel, 10 rows of the new 6/9 style platform, or something that looks very similar to it.

There is a broad panel of loop-field on the top front of the pack, for putting ID's and morale patches. The back of the pack has three raised areas of 5mm closed cell foam, making up the Air Director back panel for optimal load distribution and breathability. It has a really good feel on the back, even when the pack is loaded up. There are kidney flaps to guide the waist straps, with D-loops built in on top of them to give a good range of motion when wearing it.

The back of the pack opens up with a long asymmetrical zipper, which allows the fitting of a 3L hydration bladder, in this case the CamelBak Mil-Spec Antidote Reservoir Long with Quick Link. I liked the looks of the bladder too, but as it's a returner, I didn't try it out. However, it features a bite valve adapter which is very cool, manually opened adapters can be a pain. The tube clicks off for faster refilling with auto shut-off, so no leaking, and the new Fillport, is reported as the industry’s largest opening with air-light ¼ turn open/close for quick, secure seal and it also can’t be over-tightened.

The interior of the hydration section is also padded, giving you an insulated compartment, both from your pack and your back. Cold drinks stay that little bit colder, and you don't have a cold weight pressing on your back as you hump it around. Loops in the top of the bag take the hook on top of the hydration bladder.  

The older H.A.W.G. has a total capacity of 23 L in its 48cm (17") x 26.5cm (12") x 26cm (10") and weighs a surprisingly low 1.2kg (2.75lbs) which comes from it having a 500D Cordura on the outwards facing surfaces, with the back faces being 420D nylon on the shoulder harness back side and raised pod panels. The shoulder harnesses are filled with 10mm EVA foam, and all the internal surfaces are made of lightweight 210D nylon. The mixtures make for the reduced weight of the pack.

The top of the front of the pack features a stash pocket, with a dummy-cord and clip built in. Its also worth noting that all the zippers are fitted with string pulls to silence them, which is a feature I'm liking seeing on so many packs these days.

The 6/9 webbing will take all PALS/MOLLE pouches and accessories I've tried on it, so it's simple enough to hot-swap your existing pouches onto the new format built into the H.A.W.G.


Twin ports behind the shoulder straps give access to the hydration tube, and in an interesting addition, there are two access points tucked in behind the waist straps. these allow you to rout the cables up under the arms, rather than over the shoulders, where they could perhaps snag on weapon straps or the like.

You could also feed the waist straps back into the pack, to get them out of the way if you weren't intending to use them. Very tidy design.

Inside the main pack, there are in fact two zipperable sections.

The front section, which has dual zips and opens 3/4 of the way down, is lined in lightweight 210D nylon and on the back of the panel, has a set of pockets sewn in, a triple pen slot, two note-book sized pockets, and one the width of the pack. These would be good for the administrative type gear you might have on hand, but don't need to secure in any special way.

Maps, phone charger gear, a survival tin or even a IFAK like the ITS ETA kit could sit in one of these. Drainage grommets with mesh lining are found in the bottom of the section.  The front section was quite spacious, and would certainly do to stuff with a number of items, especially if they would lay flat easily. The 6/9 webbing is sewn right into the front of this section, so there isn't any padding between your pouches and the contents of the first section, something to be aware of if you are loading up the outside of the pack.

The inner section, which sits between the front "admin" section and the distinct hydration section, is even roomier. Again, it features a dual zip 3/4 opening, and the same drainage grommets in the bottom, but has the advantage of the internal padding on the hydration side, keeping condensation from forming and spreading through to your stored items.

Again, its pretty featureless, although it does have three wide webbing loops sewn in at 3, 9 and 12 o'clock, giving you attachment points for gear, or even to run shock-cord through to for some internal spiderweb structure to pack things down. I think that would be where I'd fit the McNett Gruntline, if I were keeping the H.A.W.G.  for myself.

I like a bit more internal structure to my bags, because I often have a lot of small needfuls kicking about, but for a small daypack like this, I suppose I would make do.
It was very comfortable to wear, and easy to don and doff, with the shoulder straps sitting nicely, and adjustable, with a pretty standard sternum strap to keep it locked down for long, arduous or exciting traverses.

The bases of the shoulder straps were set securely into the bottom corner of the pack, and looked like they'd take some abuse, and whilst I didn't get a chance to test it our under heavy loads, the waist band seemed to sit nicely on my hips, and keep everything where it needed to be.

The twin top and bottom compression straps were a nice touch, with hook-and-loop webbing keepers built in, they would allow bulky but soft gear like sleeping bags, outerwear and the like to be stuffed into the pack, and then buckled down tight to reduce bulk, nicely.

Twin rows of webbing sewn onto the base of the back would allow got you to set a sleeping roll, tent sustainment kit or other bulky but smallish items to the outside of the pack, without too much hassle.

I found the way it sat to be really comfortable, both directly against my back,but also in relation to my shoulder blades, neck and hips.  I had no feeling that it would interfere with the kinds of scrambling, crawling and other misadventure that I find myself doing. It also had a nice sturdy drag handle, for those times when I might want to be pulled out of any of those situations, or just to keep my hands on it whilst waiting for a plane to or from somewhere.

All in all, the new CamelBak H.A.W.G. is a very nice pack, simple design with some sophisticated elements. certainly a new look at an existing product, which is always good to see.

Review: Bounce food nuggets

I'm always on the lookout for not only snacks to eat on the go, as I often spend a long time behind the wheel, but also have a pretty demanding work schedule these days and occasionally have three or four back to back hours long meetings, so being able to grab a nutritious and energizing bite can make all the difference from keeping me flying into a hangry rage.

There are lots of energy bars on the market, and body-building type supplement bars, but sometimes you just want something smaller. We had three boxes of these locally produced snacks come our way, and I've loved them. Bounce was founded in 2004 by an Aussie couple, Paula and Andy Hannagan, who they are proud to admit, had the balls to pour their savings into bringing their idea for the Bounce balls to fruition.

Both Paula and Andy have backgrounds in health and fitness and this was their first foray into the nutrition supplement world. If the stories can be believed, in the early days, they used their garage as a warehouse and Andy would travel from retailer to retailer, offering to sell his balls! Puts a very Australian spin on the product, which is something I can really get behind. More products, made locally, means cheaper supplies which in turn means more supplies I can stockpile, an excellent preparedness technique!

There are seven flavors in the Bounce Ball range (they also do a line of protein powders) but I have tried three of them. Here's what I can tell you about them:

I'm not a big fan of coconut, I over-indulged on several S.E. Asian and Pacific islands (I'm a mean hand with a machete and spike) but I was pleasantly surprised by the Coconut & Macadamia Protein Bliss ball which is packed full of high-quality protein which is easily assimilated by the body. Made from a combination of coconut, macadamias, cashews and whey protein, it's also high in fiber, and its primary binding agent is agave syrup, which gives it a good texture, as well as a sweet boost. Texture is pretty important in this kind of thing, and even with my personal feelings about dehydrated coconut, it was quite pleasant, and I went back for more.

The Spirulina & Ginseng Defence Boost is designed to keep you on the bounce, alert and ready for action, it's also power-packed with vitamins and antioxidants for good health and bolstering immune responses, espeically important in high stress and challenging environments.

Again, it is an easily digestible blend and provides slow-releasing energy to help keep you fit and active, to perform the tasks you need to be doing. Unlike the Coconut and Macadamia balls, these are held together with a propriety binding agent, Fruitrim (grape juice, pear juice and brown rice starch), which has a caramel toffee like taste and feel. I found the mouthfeel much more enjoyable than the coconut one, and was trilled with the dark rich flavours the Spirulina added.

The last of the three balls I had to sample were the Almond Protein Hit flavour. These contains what Boost considers the optimum balance of high quality protein and carbohydrates. With a slow-releasing energy formula, this ball is pitched as the ideal food to help satisfy your hunger between meals or as a pre- or post-workout snack. Again it has the Fruitrim binding base, which is delicious. It has protein flakes and the nut elements add a delicious crunch to each sticky bite. This is even better than the Spirulina & Ginseng ball, and my favourite so far.

I think I will be stocking up on these as a back-up food supply, as they are a lot nicer than the Mainstay Emergency Food Rations they are quick, easy, simple to store and pack. You could do a lot worse than getting some of these and stocking up on high-density, high nutritional value foods.

Review: Kickstarter - Keystone2

I did a review a while back of a key holder project that was Kickstarted  by Abel Ang and I was impressed with its elegance then, so was very pleased to hear that he had a new and improved version on the cards. He sent me a prototype, and asked me to write up my impressions of it, for when the new Kickstarter which is about to go live.

I really hope that this new launch works well for Abel, and want to give you some honest options about the kit in time for you to go and pledge to get one of your very own, should the idea appeal.


The finish of the frames has been improved, with a brushed surface and is anodized rather than powder coated, which will mean a much longer lasting surface finish, keeping your key-keeper looking neater. The body is 5mm longer, to a total of 90mm allowing you to store longer keys.  The scew-heads have been slimmed down and are now offered in two sizes, to allow as few as two keys to be stored, for a very elegant system. The same extra spacer bars are included and allow you to for as many as 20 keys.

Another improvement is the bolt holes have been pared down from 4mm to 3mm such that the bolts fit very snugly, eliminating the rattle that the old version was a little prone to. That rattle allowed a slight wobble that continually loosened the screw-heads.  Tighter tolerances mean less noise.

The improvements all add up to a considerably better key-keeper, and I was only too pleased to pass the new prototype on my partner Omega, who happens to always loose loose keys, and has quite the penchant for red, so it was a perfect gift to pass on.

If you have keys, you should totally look into getting one of these.

Re-Blog: Self Reliance

I came across a very informative article recently, that I thought my be of interest to you my readers.

Dan West is the founder and CEO of Walden Labs, a certified permaculture designer (Geoff Lawton, 2013), and a seeker of truth. In 2014 he bought a 100+ year old, rundown, farm in the north of Sweden that he's transforming into a resilient homestead full of abundant natural production systems.

"When you are new to self-reliance, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. I wish I could tell you the "lost" feeling changes over time, but it doesn’t.
The truth is; while you expand your knowledge of taking care of yourself, your interests in new subjects and skills can spiral out of control.
That’s the thing with depending on yourself, it’s hard to just specialize on doing just one thing. Sure you can become a master of growing potatoes, but potatoes won’t keep you warm through the winter or quench your thirst.
And, when you think you have figured something out, you may realize that you have solved only a small piece of the puzzle."

Mr West has developed this infographic to outline and track a wide variety of elements to self reliance, untpder he major headings of food, water, shelter, energy and protection. It's well worth checking out, and you can download a high resolution PDF version of this document from his article.

Disaster Shopping Event: Kathmandu trip

I was wandering the streets recently, and passed one of the big-chain outdoors stores with a sale on, and thought I'd pop in to see what was what.  I thought I might do a new thing for a spot. I wandered around and found 6 items that I would want to grab and go with if a disaster was imminent. This wasn't a very well thought out thing, and I might do it differently next time, but the premise was: "if SHTF whilst out strolling, what would I grab and go with, right now". I had parked my car only a block away, I had my family with me (Omega, Lorin and Tactical Baby), so we already had a reasonable EDC and BOB capacity on-hand.

Dynamo Radio which gives you a portable and personally powered connection to the outside world, at least listening in. The Radio is recharged by turning the crank for 90 seconds (providing approximately 40 minutes of playback). It also features a torch, clock and alarm. It carries a IPX6 "Splashproof" rating, and even features an earphone jack (reducing your noise signature, and reducing power consumption).

 An internal rechargeable battery pack (2.4V/300mA) powers the radio two LR-44 button batteries run the clock, but it can It can run off AAA 1.5V batteries or be powered by an external DC3V adapter. It has a pretty standard frequency range (AM 540-1600KHz, FM 88-108 MHz). It weighs 200g and is pocket sized.

Phantom MTB v4 hydration pack caught my eye as a carry-it-all.
Lightweight & simple, with enough room for the essentials required for a short trip if we had to hump it. Its design encourages airflow & comfort, with airmesh harness and backing and and adjustable straps. It features a multi-tool organiser, waist strap for secure running or climbing, reflective come-rescue-me flashings, and is 2L hydration bladder compatible. It's construction is of some very lightweight materials, the main body being a P600D Oxford, the trim a N420D SC HD and the lining N210D Oxford, all materials are double polyurethane coated for waterproofing.  It weighs only 390g and this is telling, it's a pretty flimsy pack, compared to the usually mil-spec bags I'm used to, but it would have work well enough for what

With more storage and salvage in mind, as well as contamination reduction, I spied a
Dry Sac 3-pack, which would meet that need. Constructed of a light but tough 30D diamond patterned nylon ripstop with polyurethane coating. The three pack comes in three sizes: Large 48cm L x 33.5cm W, 8L capacity, medium 38cm L x 26.5cm W, 2L capacity and small 28.5cm L x 20cm W with 1L capacity. They are lightweight, durable, and water resistant with sealed seams. I really like dry-bags,  Its just a matter of stuffing them, rolling down the top a minimum of three times to cover the flap and folding back and clasping the Fastex buckles.

I also saw a pretty good little pocket sized Survival kit in a find-me Safety-Orange case the case's contents: Pencil, Waterproof paper, fire steel and striker, cotton wool (2pcs), button compass, whistle, survival mirror, Wire saw, a small multi-tool, snare wire, fishing kit, salt sachet (2pcs), safety pins (2pcs), duct tape, zip-lock polybag, braided nylon cord and a carabineer.

It's only 12cm x 10cm and weighs 186g, so would be a very quick way to bolster a survivors kit on short notice.


Power and light are key elements for even short term comfort in a disaster situation ,and can greatly improve morale which is where something like the LuminAid come into play
This is a solar powered, inflatable LED light, with a waterproof (IPX-7) solar cell, battery and LED lantern, which is housed in a PVC-free balloon, which makes it buoyant, and dissipates the light evenly, making it a lantern rather than a flashlight. The battery is fully charged after 7 hours of direct sunlight, and can retain its charge for up to three months, before needing a top up. 

It has two light settings, a 15 lumen glow, with 12 hours of illumination, and 30 lumens, with 6 hours of charge. The bladder is blown up by a valve, the same kind of valve seen on pool toys world wide. At 77g this is a simple innovation that would go a long way to driving back the chaos after a disaster, especially in a family situation. 

A second light also caught my eye, this time as a communal power source as well as light source. The Power source lantern has a Cree R5 LED 3W light with four lighting modes: high – 150 lumens; medium – 75 lumens; low – 13 lumens; flashing, with corresponding run times: high – 6 hours; medium – 12 hours; low – 94 hours. The lantern also features a USB output which can be used to connect and charge your digital devices as a power source. It features a rechargeable Li-ion 3300mAh battery offering DC 5V-1A Max output. 

The lantern can be placed on its base, hung by its built-in hook, or attached to metal via powerful built-in magnets. It also features a battery indicator and has a  IPX5 splash resistance rating. Being able to keep a phone charged can also be really useful and potentially life saving survival tool.

So, there is my quick summary of six items that caught my eye that I might grab, if I happened to be passing near a Kathmandu store in the outbreak of a sudden disaster. 

Review: Platatac SUP pouch

Here's a very useful pouch that has gone un-sung for a while, but I wear one every day. This is the Platatac SUP II Small Utility Pouch.

It was primarily designed as a pistol magazine pouch, which I got to model with one of the Glock style iCombat CO2 training magazines the SUP mk II can carry a range of items including pistol magazines, multitools or knives, flashlights of up to 1” diameter bezel, flexicuffs and even OC spray if that's your thing.

The pouch has a hook-and-loop removable lid can be adjusted to securely fit items varying in length. There is an internal hard plastic plating within the flap, for one handed operation during the reload or access to your needfuls. Internal elastic retention on the sides allows the SUP mk II to act as a shingle for CQB application. Might not be as tacticool as a TACO pouch but they fully work. I have my second-hand Gerber multitool in one of mine, which lives in the small of my back on one of my rigger belts, everywhere I go.

These low profile pouches are great for storage of quick access items and are small enough to be placed anywhere on your rig without hindrance to your freedom of movement.

The pouch is fitted with PALS/MOLLE attachment system, with a single channel of two rows, one after another (no gape) so you can loop it a couple of ways. Instead of a press-stud closure it has a fiddly hook-field sewn into the bottom webbing loop, and the stiff plastic reinforced tongue has a corresponding field-loop, and a tab of webbing to use as a draw pull. I found this really difficult to set up right, as it was on the opposite side of the tab than I would have expected. This means that to fasten it it has to be doubled over, which made me pretty nervous about how well it attaches.

It's never come loose, even when I have had it rigged for a belt loop, rather than fed through other PALS/MOLLE but I'm just hesitant.

The drainage grommet in the bottom of the pouch nicely frames the needle-nose Gerber pliers, and seats them nicely, and having a good pouch for my multitool has been a crucial part of my EDC. 

Review: VSSL Outdoor Utility cache

First seen on Breach Bang & Clear

I had missed the release of this particular product when it ran through its Kickstarter campaign, mostly for financial reasons, but my dear friend and Kickstarter aficionado Gareth Hodges had one and wanted to pass it on, so I snapped it up at a generous discount (thanks man!), so I have had one in my hot little hands, and pack for a while now.


This is the "utility" model of the VSSL which is to say, one of five models they offer, and this one is filled with s variety of useful and needful survival items.
The main body of the canister is a machined aluminium tube, with end caps that screw in to give a gasketed airtight seal. Each VSSL unit is 23cm (9") long by 5cm (2") diameter made from seamless extruded mil-spec anodized aluminium, and this model weighs 510g (18 oz). 

The unit is very sturdy, the two end caps are knurled, and the body has engraved details on it, as well as some knurling as well, giving a solid grip to open either end.


The real utility of the unit however is in its contents. As well as the two end caps, one of which has a dual mode (static high/low and SOS) LED ‘flood’ beam lantern light, illuminates a large area ( which runs on 3x N type or Energizer E90 batteries), and the tail cap holds a 4 hour burning pure Canadian beeswax candle and has an oil filled compass on its surface.

The seven little aluminium pill-boxes each with a small collection of survival needfulls, some in pairs, others singly. 


The contents are thus:

Razor blade

6 Aquatabs® water purification tablets

Wire saw (high tensile, 60lb working strength with handle straps)

Aluminium beadless emergency whistle

Waterproof matches

Tinder Quik® fire starters

Fishing Gear

Signalling Mirror

Marine grade rope (250lb breaking strength)

Reflective trail markers

P38 military GI Type can opener

First aid supplies 

VSSL priorities of survival and instructions

There's a good spread of items, and here they are itemized:The pill-boxes aren't hermetically sealed, but they don't really need to be, as they all live in the VSSL tube. The contents aren't meant to be for long term sustainment, rather to help out in the event of a short term emergency, or even to fill a gap in your EDC when out adventuring. It's solid construction and precision machining makes it a very well put together survival cache. 

The weight is a bit of a concern considering the overall size and scope of the contents, however, they are well packaged, so would be safe and ready to use when you need it, whether it's been sitting in your pack, in the back of your car or buried in your safe-drop spot. 

VSSL also produce several other versions of the flask: a Fist-Aid canister (full of boo-boo repair items), a Shelter canister (with a tarp, line and the like), an empty canister (build your own), a Flask (300mL of capacity and two collapsing shot cups) and their Zombie Spike version (for brain stabby goodness).