Review: Exoskel shin guards

I love armour. I love scrambling and climbing. I love not bashing my body to pieces or exhausting myself.

So when I saw these awesome pieces on SoldierSystems I knew I had to see if I could get some too. Stephen Guiney of ExoSkel was kind enough to get back in touch with me and as it happened was traveling on my side of the planet, and hooked me up with a pair. I've worn a variety of shin-guards in the past, through both my LRP days, roller-blading and when I've been doing a variety of adventurous things I'd rather not crack a shin whilst doing. I've worn several different kinds of knee-pads in the past, but these are something entirely different.

These are the Exoskel X1's (X2 being the production model on sale now).

Constructed from an advanced polymer, with closed cell foam backing and heavy duty stirrup strap, buckles and webbing and Fastex-type calf straps, these are some very rugged and rigid shin pads, which come in at only 500g (1.1lbs) apiece. They come with Self Extinguishing Fire Resistance, which is UL94 VO rating.

The most striking aspect of the guards is of course the five rows of teeth that make up the face of the guards. These are sculpted directly into the face of the guard, each with a downwards facing slope and butted tip, these are designed to grab and hold any surface that you happen to be scrambling over.

Where in regular climbing situations the usual rule is "3 points of contact; feet and hands only" in practice, and in stressful situations this goes right out the window. When going through a window, up a ravine, over a wreck or refuse, knees, shins and elbows all come into play. That is when something like the Exoskel's come into their own.

The guards (teeth, buckle, stirrups) hold in excess of 450 kg (1000lbs) when vertically loaded, which is equivalent to a drop of 150kg (330lbs) from 50cm (19"). The good folks at Exoskel went as far as to explain these figures as the following: "The measured strength of the dynamically loaded Exoskel products tested was higher than the maximum dynamic load estimated for an assumed in-field loading scenario with a 330 lb (150 kg) user and a 19 in (50 cm) drop onto a hard object."

A 50cm drop is a long way to expect any wearable piece of retention gear to take when that laden. My 215Gear Retention Lanyard is 17" long and stretches to 26" meaning you are limited to a maximum of a 26" drop, and that is a dedicated safety line. These are not designed for that kind of thing.This is a climbing aid, not a safety tool.


In fact, Exoskel stress their product is to be used for stabilization assistance and lower limb protection only. It is not a climbing safety device or harness.

That said, I was quite happy with dangling myself off a packing crate with a shin on each rung, no problems. I have tried them on a variety of surfaces and materials now, and have been really pleased with both the bite and stability of those teeth. Where normally I've felt the need to kneel up onto a surface, committing that much of a lunge to my ascent, being able to go "half-way" with a shin gave me a lot more scope to choose how I ascend, and potentially limit my exposure in doing so.

I took this shot to show the tooth-marks the Exoskel's put into the hardwood packing crate I posed these pictures on. You can clearly see the three splintered spots where I moved up and down, and also the two divots in the corner where I dangled.

Very impressive, I must say.

Some of the excellent additional features they come with, such as the emergency stirrup replacement and calf-strap holes, which enable the user to use up to 12mm (½") rope / cord to tie the guards back on in the case of breakage. There are also guide-holes divoted into the perimeter of the guard to enable drilling and sewing of the guard directly to pants.


The channeled foam lining not only helped with the breathability issues often found with form-fitting guards, but the design, and thickness as well as the exterior shell itself added considerable impact protection. I'm no kick-boxer, nor did I take a sledge-hammer to my legs, but I kicked a few trees, and clubbed myself a few times to gauge the kinds of impacts I might expect to take and resist, and didn't come close to bothering myself. I'm pretty sure I'd have lost footing before the guard broke. You can even wear them over existing knee-guards, depending on the fits.

As a Close Quarter Battle tool, or restrain device, I can only imagine how unpleasant it would be to be on the receiving end of a kick with one of these, or to be knelt on, but I have little doubt as to their effectiveness as a compliance tool, if needed.

They were quick to fit and remove, whilst being comfortable and stable for day-to-day wear, and low profile enough that I didn't find myself snagging on anything. This is a really great innovation and I'll be adding them to my adventuring kit, for sure!

Review: Vesterguard - LifeStraw

I picked up a LifeStraw when I purchased a box of the Mainstay Emergency Food Rations,and for a long while, it stayed in the bottom of my bear box, untried, untested. Eventually I found it, dug it out and got ready to test it. Then the dog found it. Talk about Disaster Preparation! I heard the chewing sound and rushed into action, rescued the unit, and decided it was salvageable.

The LifeStraw is a plastic tube 31cm long and 3cm in diameter. It has a Sieve end, and a mouthpiece end, both originally with a cap. The straw, as you might imagine is operated by placing the sieve end in your water source, and through some rather strong and vigorous sucking is needed to get water flowing, but when it does, you get a steady flow of water.

The way the LifeStraw works is that water that is drawn up through the straw and passes through hollow fibers that fill the tube. This bundled mesh of fibers filter particulates down to 0.2µm across, using only physical filtration methods and no chemical components to either run out, or leach into the drinkable water. The entire process is powered by the suction of the operator, and is reported to be able to filter up to 1000L (264gal) of water safely before clogging up.

Initial models of the filter did not remove Giardia lamblia, but this model is purported to remove a minimum of 99.9% of waterborne protozoan parasites including giardia and cryptosporidium. It is also touted as Removes up to 99.99999% of waterborne bacteria. It as previously stated also reduces turbidity by filtering particles of approx 0.2 microns which significantly improves the quality of water,

You can see the sieve end here, which keeps macro-particles from entering the straw, and for better or worse, after some dog-chewing, this end cap had popped off, exposing the internal fibers in their mesh packing sleeve.

The LifeStraw
did take some practice and perseverance to get going, but when it did, I managed to get some interesting results. I didn't want to take too many risks with my dog-chewed example, (giardia infection will ruin your whole day) so I opted for a more pedestrian testing regime. I chose to filter my fruit-concentrate cordial instead. I found that whilst still coloured, and sweet, the water I drew off certainly did cut the pulp and particles that were suspended, and I managed to drink the whole glass, with some effort. I expect that from a free floating and particulate light source, like a free flowing stream, you'd get swifter hydration. You can de-crud the filter by blowing back through it, expelling the contained water, and self-washing to some extent.

To recover and reseal the unit post-dog gnawing, I wrapped it in a cris-cross of tape, to ensure the seals and tube are air-tight. I think i will try to secure myself a new one, (which due to their awesome business model, then benefits kids in impoverished places) just because having a fully-working one is better preparation than relying on my already weathered and dinged one.

Review: Platatac prototype hydration carrier

Here is the hydration pack that I have been using for the last few Tough Mudder events I've done. This is an old prototype from Platatac that I picked up on eBay, and combines elements of both their Bravo hydration carrier that I have, and the MEOP Medic Pack both of which I've covered in the past, and are great pieces.

I found that wearing an extra set of straps was redundant when I was wearing a vest anyway on my Tough Mudder and similar adventures, which is why I looked for an alternative to the Bravo, which has served me well in other situations, and on my first Tough Mudder. When I saw this piece come up on eBay, I was thrilled to give it a go. It follows the same kind of design philosophy I've come to expect from Platatac pieces, with a tough 1000d Cordura exterior, and ITW Nexus hardware. It if "faced" with 6 rows of 4 channel PALLS/MOLLE loops, and features a hook-and-loop secured drag handle. Running down the flanks are nylon D-rings, three to a side, allowing shock or paracord to be run through these, to provide attachment points, or compression.

The wide-mouth of the pouch perfectly fits the Source Storm 3L hydration bladders main cap.

The baffled sides of the carrier allow for quite significant volumes to be carrier, without restriction, or perhaps even storage for other items besides a hydration pack. However, this particular piece lack the zipper-access of the Bravo, which means that the only access into or out of the inside is through the main cap.

This actually posed a problem when trying to run my hydration hose through it, and I bit the bullet and melted a channel in the backside to feed it through.

I also had to melt a drainage hole in the bottom, following the previous Tough Mudder, last September.
I found that the carrier filled up with nasty pond water when I took my tumbles, which really added to the weight I was hauling. No such trouble with a small drain hole melted in this time around.

The back of the carrier offers a variety of attachment options; Zippers paired with the MEOP carrier (which allows me to sandwich these two pouches nicely). It also features female Fastex clip ends top and bottom, tri-glide loops for all your clipping and looping needs. Best yet, the back features two sets of three three channel PALS/MOLLE PLMRS (Platypus Light Modular Recovery System) strips. These gave both a rock solid attachment and also load spreading capacity. I barely felt the 3kg that the full bladder weighed,and certainly not the sloshing side-to-side I might have with a pack-type carrier.

This was just a prototype, bridging the gap between the Bravo and the MEOP, but if you want to see the new production version, check out the Platatac Utility Hydration Cover. Looks like the logical next step.

Sneak Peek: ExoSkel shin guards

Just a sneak peek .... holy crappola Batman, check out these shin-guards!

Review: Platatac Punisher 2014 CUS Shirt

Here is one of my favourite go-to shirts for when I have some serious adventuring to do. This is the Platatac Punisher Cool Under Shirts 2014 edition. I got mine in the 3-pack bundle, which means I can shirt-up and stay stink free for days at a time.

The shirts themselves are made from Drytech polyester and are designed to be worn under body armour, as a work-out shirt or whatever close fitting base layer you might need. Ive covered this kind of garment before in the Blackhawk! shirts and the Under Armour shirts. These kinds of materials wick moisture away from the body, helping keep you cool and also quick drying. I certainly gave this a test this year in both the Tough Mudder, and on my recent trip to Fiji.

There are even mesh panels under the arms to help with airflow, which really comes in handy if you are wearing a vest of some kind (be that a plate carrier, LBV or BCD/PFD) especially in a hot and or wet environment.


Decked out with Kryptek patterning printed onto the right sleeve, and fitted with a broad swatch of loop-field on the left, the tan material with subdued ANF for the platypus skull filler make this a cool-guy shirt that does its job. The back is printed with shout-outs to the major lines Platatac works with.

I've put this shirt through some pretty strenuous work; it's my running shirt, my Tough Mudder shirt, I wore it jetski-safariing and snorkeling. I've found it to be light, warm when needed, cool when needed and certainly quick drying.

I really liked having a loop-field to attach items from my ever-growing patch collection.

If you have need of a slick, comfortable and hard-wearing body-hugging shirt, you should totally give the CUS a try. Coyote adventure tested!

Home Front: getting ready for a Holiday!

It's how we roll. 

http://youtu.be/Vwn_UfG2spc

Review: Source - Storm WXP 3L hydration bladder

Here's a much loved but oft forgotten item in my survival, training and adventuring kit. This is the
Source Storm WXP 3L hydration bladder which has seen some pretty heavy use in the past, and I thought it was fully worth showing the light of day.

Ive covered some hydration systems in the past, such as the the Platypus PIB hydration pack and several hydration bladder carriers, such as the lustful Geigrrig Tactical Guardian (I'd love to get my paws on one of these) the 0.75L version that come in the Tactical Tailor Joey hydration pouch and the backpack style Platatac Bravo pack. This isn't my first Source 3L bladder, as I failed to follow the care-and-cleaning guideline of DO NO USE BOILING WATER ... they melt. Hot enough for your hands is hot enough. More on this later.

The bladder itself is constructed from a very special three layer, coextruded polyethylene construction with a very special low maintenance liner layer. Integrated Grunge-Guard™ antimicrobial surface. This  435 micron thick surface prevents bio-film build up, my being almost glass-smooth, (Source quotes it as being  2000% smoother than standard TPU films, with virtually no difference from glass itself. This reportedly improves the systems self-cleaning function.

The wide opening access at the top opens with a slide closure for easy filling, draining and cleaning. The fold and slide lock gives a strong, airtight seal. A retaining cord ensures clumsy finders don't drop it in the muck, or let it wash downstream. It also means that you can add ice, or powdered drink supplements.

I found all the seams, including those at the tube attachment point to be very strong and well placed to take any tension that the bladder is challenged with, so far.

The drinking tube attaches to be bladder with their propriety QMT™ Quick Mate Technology hose fitting, which offers push button convenience, no leakage, and click-in compatibility with USMC Miox filter system. Sometimes the clip can be a little stiff, but hardly much of an issue for me, as I rarely took these off, except to rinse. However, even at the tube tip the QMT is completely self sealing.

This means that even with a full reservoir you can change tubes, add valves or whatever, without worrying about drips or leaks. Great for fitting a full bladder into a pack that already has a hose run through it. Sometimes hydration tube ports can be a snug fit.

The drinking tube is 94cm (37") long, and contains its own valve built in. Again, no drips or leaks when changing the tip or feeding it through bags and gear. The tube cover both insulates and blocks UV-light.

This helps your water cool and bacteria free from first to last sip. I really noticed this when doing long stretches in the sun with this. the temperature gradient from tube-to reservoir was always delightfully small.

The very cool push/pull Storm Valve isn't a bite-valve, being a pull-open plug like on a sport bottle. It apparently delivers 25% higher flow than bite designs. The integrated valve has a twist-lock which will lock the valve in the "off" position, so you don't have to worry about inadvertent leakage. It is also set at 90 degrees from the tube, which apparently reduces the required tube length (for twisting it around to have kink-free drinking) by 25cm! It also rotates 360 degrees, allowing you to place the valve end on any side of your gear, and have access to it.

It comes with a dirt-shield cover, which is also dummy-corded on, and can be cinched with a dedicated slit, to stop it from dangling and rattling about when not used.



In addition to the Widepac wide opening access at the top, with its hanging slot,  the bladder also has a screw-top opening, which incorporates a carry-yoke. The yoke can be rotated to best suit your carry style, but allows even gloved hands to hold the bladder open for refilling without contaminating the reservoir.

The gasket screws down over the yoke to hold it in place, and is also dummy-corded to the wide-mouthed cap. I have had some troubles with the gasket winding loose, and this impacting on the seal the cap gets, but if its screwed down tight, all should work out well. 

Evacuating all the air from the bladder keeps it very quiet, no canteen-sloshing noise-disipline worries there, and the placement of the tube to the bladder means you pretty much get every drop emptying out, you can even set it to run continuously, using siphoning, to get regular irrigation, or when running detergent through it to clean it. The guys at Platatac recommended throwing it, washed but not dried into the freezer as a decontamination step, which is a far better idea than melting it with overly hot water, I have to say.

This particular bladder has seen me through camping, long haul drives, and three Tough Mudders, and it's going strong! I even inflated it and used it as a flotation aid when diving off one of the "Walk the Plank" high dives on Tough Mudder.

I'd love to try one of the Universal Tube Adapter  attachments, which lets you fill the pack from the drinking valve, from taps or bottles, without having to take it off your pack or out of a pack.