Wish-Lust: ZyntonyRa light Strips

Ok, I was contacted by the people from Zyntony, who had launched a bad-assed light Kickstarter, and not had it make its threshold,  but they are back with a brand new product, that has already surpassed it's threshold, by 287% at time of writing, but I wanted to give them some more bandwidth with the info from their press-release.

Their new offering, the Zyntony Ra is a game-changing light for outdoor adventure enthusiasts that is designed to light up the entire area around you instead of just a spot in front of you.

At full power, Ra puts out 800 lumens of warm natural light. A pair of Ra attached to the shoulder straps of a backpack boast a staggering 1,600 lumens of light creating a “zone of daylight” around the wearer. “This is brighter than ten good headlamps”, one of the founders exclaimed in their release. He continued: “We named the light Ra after the Egyptian god who carries the sun across the sky because carrying one of these lights is like carrying a piece of the sun with you.”

I've covered similar strip lighting projects before, in the PackLight but the Ra is a step beyond.

Multiple mounting options enable Ra to be attached almost anywhere. The user can fix it to any ferrous object using the built-in rare-earth magnets. Ra can be attached to nearly any article of clothing using the accompanying magnetic backer strip, just by slipping the backer-strip under the outer-layer of clothing, and the Ra snaps into place magnetically. Using the D-ring strap and simple hook and loop ties, Ra can be fastened to virtually any piece of gear.

Each of the emitters can put out well over 500 lumens each. So in theory, the light could put out over 2,500 lumens. However, they are only running them at slightly over 1/4 power. Zyntony state they do this for several reasons:

First, is that the emitters are way more efficient - (in that they have a much higher lumens-per-watt output) at lower power. This means that you get a brighter light and longer battery life compared to a light that only has one or two emitters.

Second, by running them at lower power, their life is significantly extended to the point that they will virtually last forever (immortal buyers beware...).

Third, multiple emitters allow for each one to have a separate light dispersion pattern. This allows a less complex and more cost-effective way to balance light spread vs. throw, especially good given its area-effect design principle.

And fourth, by having multiple emitters running at lower power, you can spread out your heat dissipation, also especially useful if you're wearing it.


Ra is powered via a micro-USB input. Zyntony makes four different sizes of battery packs allowing the flexibility to carry just the power you need or as much as you want.

The Ra is designed to be lightweight to facilitate attaching it wherever you want so there is no internal power. It must be powered via USB. By connecting to a power pack via the USB, Ra has the flexibility where you can select a small BatPak for just the power you need or a larger one for as much power as you want. And you can connect up to three Ra's to BatPak II, BatPak III and BatPak IV. That flexibility supports a lot of different mounting options.

Zyntony are planning to certify the Ra to IPX7 which means it is submersible to 1 meter. It will certainly withstand the rain. The USB ports are the biggest challenge they are facing in this but by planning to use rubber boots/escutcheons on both Ra and the BatPaks, it should be waterproof as long as you use the Zyntony USB cable and power pack.

I'm really looking forwards to seeing what they can do when I get a set in-hand, but for mow, their on my wish-lust list!


https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/zyntony/ra-worlds-first-strap-light/description

Review: Mininch - Mini tool Pen and Tool Pen

Seen first on Breach Bang & Clear, here:

I am all for small, modular and resilient tools, and there comes a time when you just need to have a handy stealthy tool ready to go.

This is the Mininch - Mini tool Pen and Tool Pen set which I picked up via Kickstarter.

I opted for the full bells and whistles set, which included all the extra hex bits and both the new mini-tool pen, and the original tool pen.

They are for sale, live, here:

The mini-tool pen is milled from 6061 aluminum, sand-blasted finish. The tool itself measures 133.5 mm  / and is 12.8 mm in diameter  and weighs 46 g (with 5 bits inside).

•  The bits are S2 tool steel and measure  35.6mm  long and 7.1mm in diameter. They weigh a mere 4.5 g apiece. The tool Pen mini comes with 18 bits: 
• Slotted Bits (Flat): SL1.5, SL2, SL2.5, SL3
• Phillips Bits: PH00, PH0, PH1
• Hexagon Bits (Hex): H0.9, H1.3, H1.5, H2 
• Torx Bits (Star): T5, T6, T7
• Torx Security Bits: TR8, TR9, TR10
• Square Bits: S1
• SIM Eject Tool: 0.8
• Pentalobe Bits: P2, P5, P6

The classic Tool Pen is made of the same 6061 aluminum, sand-blasted finish as the Tool Pen mini. It does however weigh 93g (with 6 bits inside) and measure up a hefty 150mm in length and 17.5mm in diameter.
 
Both tools are offered in Snow Silver, Gunmetal and Champagne Gold anodization finishes. I chose gunmetal because of reasons, ha!

The bits for the classic tool pen are 36mm long and 9mm in diameter   and weigh 7g each. The bits are not cross compatible between the tools, but given the ranges of the two, thats not really a problem.
 The classic tool comes with:

• Slotted Bits (Flat): SL3, SL4, SL4.5
• Phillips Bits: PH1, PH2
• Hexagon Bits (Hex): H2, H2.5, H3, H4 
• Star Bits: T10, T15, T20, T25
• Imperial Hex Bits: H5/64, H3/32, H1/8, H5/32
  
• Robertson / Square Bits: S1, S2, S3
  
• Pozidrive Bits (Pozi): PZ1, PZ2
  

Both the Tool Pen classic and the Tool Pen Mini feature magnetically closing caps, and a really interesting tool seating and shifting system.

Inspired by “Pop-A-Point” rainbow pen & mechanical pencil,  the bits all sit within the tool, in hex-shaped lanes, each nesting into the base of the one above it, and held in place, top and bottom, but a steel ring, much like a press-stud is. You shift the bits by feeding another bit up from the back end, and along they go.  Each bit has the sheer support of the hex-shaped tool to support it internally, so they are really effective. You do need a full pen's worth of bits to make them effective, however.

Cut-out windows in one face of the tool allow you to see the contents and order of the bits stored within, using a very clear icon engraved on the side of the bit. The magnets in the caps don't interfere with the bits, although they don't really effectively allow you to store the caps when using the tools.

Between the range of bits offered, and the ease in which they all store, either internally for your most-often used sets, or in the solid, flip-top bit cassettes you can get a pretty wide range of tools in a very dense package with either of these tools, doubly so with both.

This is super useful when traveling, especially overseas, when you might find yourself needing to get into something, fix, repair or open some technology that you can't reliably ask someone else to do so, and having a fully decked out specialty screw-driver set is simply brilliant.

Review: S10 Respirator Haversack

I wanted to go a little old-school for a bit, and cover some canvas era type pouches.


A while ago I covered an Australian issue butt-pack, that I had picked up a number of years ago, and this is along those lines. I managed to score a bulk load of retired stock in the way of pouches and bags, and these respirator haversacks were one of these.

These are British Respirator Haversacks which is NSN listed as 4240 99 800 9601.  They are designed to carry the S10 respirator. I don't have a S10, but do have a full-face 3M 6000 series mask that fits nicely. Whilst I say canvas-era, these are actually a Codrura type nylon, for all the hard-wearing, non mildew and water-shedding goodness modern materials offer.

The bag measures 29 x 26 x11 cms (11" x 10" x 4.5" ) and weighs 475grams. Lacking more modern PALS/MOLLE fittings, the haversack has a couple of different attachment and carry options. A twin-stud openable belt-loop, which also features a wire hanger, from the old ALICE style fittings.

A long nylon strap with a Fastex style buckle allows for a quick waist or shoulder slung carry as well, and there is even a secondary shoestring type cold to further secure the pouch around the waist if shoulder-carried, or around the thigh id hip-carried. The cold can be secured out of the way if not in use, or removed entirely.

One side of the pouch features a hook-and-look pocket, a good size for a survival tin, a GPS unit or other small items you might need in a hurry.

The inside of the haversack is quite spacious, fitting one each of the 1L and 2L Pathopak containers with plenty of room to move. The internal dimension really give you a lot of carry capacity, and the haversack itself it very sturdily put together.

Inside the haversack, as well as the main spacious compartment are several other interesting features.

One hook-and-loop closing front pocket, and two webbing and hook-and-loop holders. These just took the 1L Pathopak's and I expect they are designed to fit additional filter canisters for the S10 respirator.

They would certainly work to fasten and store a number of smallish items, and when not in use, being made up a webbing, will simple squash out 0f the way.

The front pocket has a small hook-and-loop fixture, and features broad pockets sewn in, to fit  NBC combo-pens, morphine syrettes, first aid kit, gloves and the like. They are made of the same material as the rest of the haversack, and whilst if they had been elasticized it would have been good, they probably work just fine in conjunction with the flap.


Even the top of the haversack's lid has some features, as well as the press-stud and hook-and-loop lined lip, there are twin bands of elasticized webbing, to allow you to affix a number of small items like more gloves, a first aid kit or the like.

These may not be flashy and new like a lot of other high-speed gear thats coming put, but they are rough, rugged, dependable and spacious.

If you have some bulky gear you want to have at hand, and in your ruck is just too far away, or perhaps you want to be able sling it to a buddy, stash it under a fuel depot or just need to fit your respirator ... the S10 haversack might well suit your needs.

I've got quite a few of them, and will be listing them on www.tacticalcoyote.com soon.

Review: Scrubba washbag

I was lucky enough to be given a new piece of camping and travel gear for my birthday and I've finally gotten around to writing it up. I took it with me to Bali on a recent holiday, although it didn't get a very thorough workout there. This is the Scrubba washbag

The Scrubba is essentially a dry-bag which has been fitted with an internal washboard surface, a viewing window and an air vent, in addition to the watertight bag and roll-top closure

As a modern and convenient take on the old fashioned washboard, the Scrubba wash bag enables you to achieve a machine quality wash in just minutes. I wanted to give it a fairly good test, so I found a couple of t-shirts with some pretty suspicious and gross stains, and a couple of pairs of socks to give a good indicator of what it is capable of, and a standard travel-load of washing.

The Scrubba is pitched as perfect for holidaymakers, business travellers, backpackers or even for washing gym and cycling gear. The bag weighs less than 145g and folds to pocket-size, as with any dry-bag, making it small enough to take anywhere. I used it as a wet-clothes pack when on the last legs of our Bali trip, to stow Tactical Baby and Triceratops Girl's beach clothes before we headed off for the airport.

Here's how you use the Scrubba for its designed purposes:

1. Fill: It takes about 2L of water, on top of clothes, to do a full wash. Add water, cleaning liquid and clothes to the Scrubba. I used dishwashing soap, just a quick squirt, on top of my load, and the wash bag was at about 20-40% capacity. I used the printed-on guidelines, and with my two-shirts, two pair of socks load, I felt I had a good sized volume

2. Roll & Clip: I removed the excess air from the bag by scrunching it down, then rolled down the top around 4-5 times to get a good tight seal, and then clipped the ends shut, as you would with any dry-bag.


3. Deflate: By opening the nipple cap and squeezing the valve, as you would on any set of arm floaties, inflatable sheep or camping mattress, you need to expel all remaining air from the Srubba wash bag. This gives you a good working volume with which to scrub your clothes. Too much air leaves the bag inflated like a bag balloon and makes it hard to work the clothes. Too much water can have a similar effect, but less noticeably.

4. Rub: By pressing down and rubbing clothes against the Scrubba’s unique internal flexible washboard, which is a moulded-in set of nipples set into the back wall of the bag. Rubbing for 30 seconds gives you a quick traveller's wash and going for around 3 minutes should do for almost a machine quality wash. I wondered how my fairly scungy shirts and socks would fare, and was not surprised to see the water darken and grey-up. There was surprisingly little froth, probably due to the lack of air in the well vented bag.


5. Rinse: Uncliping and unrolling the Scrubba’s seal is as easy as it is to roll up. Removing dirty water from the Scrubba is as simple as carefully up-ending it to mouth it from the wide-mouth opening. I took care to retain my freshly washed clothes, and not dropping it in the dirt again. I wrung out my clothes to remove as much of the grey-water, and then tossed them all back in. I rinsed the clothes with another couple of Liters of water in the Scrubba and gave it a good shake, with the roll-top closed but not evacuated of air, and again poured it off, and wrung out my clothes. You could just as easily rinse them under a running tap or shower, but I wanted an all-in-the-bag method.



I hung my freshly scrubbed clothes out, and left them on the line overnight. In the morning, I was pleased to find not only did my shirts and socks look much cleaner, but they also smelled much better. The Scrubba bag had certainly worked well enough for a travel, camping or survival setting. I might not want to do my next job-interview in a Scrubba-washed suit, but if I were traveling and spilled cooled monkey brains down the front of my dress-short, I might certainly look to pull the Scrubba out to set me fresh for my next engagement.



Well worth looking into if you're either traveling off-grid, or frequently grot yourself up. I'm thinking it would make my next Tough Mudder trip home a lot cleaner!

Sneak Peek: Propper - Range Bag

Here's a First Impression post I did for Breach Bang & Clear: 

So, we're going to try to give our first impressions before launching into full reviews now. The good folks at Propper sent me their new Range Bag, along with a couple of their very slick snag-free Polos. For the time being, I'll focus on the bag.

 Almost twice the width of their Multipurpose Bags (cheers Mad Duo!), the Range Bag is a beefed up and expanded version of it. Padded on all sides for increased protection and rigidity, it holds it shape even empty.

Two stiffened internal dividers can be  adjusted or discarded, as fits your use or mission, and the whole of the internal cavity is lined in hi-contrast orange, to help you find your OD tool in its OD sheath in your bottom of your OD bag.














One side panel is fitted with a mesh pocket, and a fold-out mat to do your weapon maintenance or lay out a picnic. The Range Bag also comes with a removable hook-field backed accessory panel.

 The exterior of the mat-side pocket has two deep pockets also lined with the contrast-orange nylon. The main compartment has a lockable zipper, good enough to keep little prying hands away from dangerous things.

The off-side panel is covered in a mixture of loop-filed at the top, and two rows of seven channel MOLLE, and inside has another mesh-lined pocket, along with six pistol magazine sized pouches. The front side panel is also fitted out with more MOLLE channels, and the rear features another deep pocket.






All in all this looks like a very serviceable bag with both a lot of features, but also a significant capacity upgrade over the already-good Multipurpose Bag.
I'll use it for a while here down under and report back on how it holds up.

Interview - I'm Spartacus : Custom Packs and Bags

 I was put on to Scott Fraser and I'm Spartacus custom made backpacks, hunting, tactical and outdoor gear from my friend Shane Marks of Rhino Ropeworks (now renamed MIG Custom Tool Makers) who had a pack custom made by him. I wanted to reach out and get some exposure to a small Australian maker, because it's always good to help out the little guy. Scott seems like a bang up fella, so have a read of what he has to say about his business "I'm Spartacus".

Firstly I am a rock climber, I started climbing in scouts back in the late 70s and went on to be a queen scout. I went through scouts with the infamous Gerard Baden clay, but don't hold that against me.

I started making gear with a sewing awl because good gear just wasn't available in Toowoomba, the regional town I grew up in. I hand sewed an internal frame pack, which took about 8 months, but it was strong, and I still have it somewhere. Sewing by hand is laborious.

Some of my friends saw my gear, liked it and asked me to make them gear. So I bought small singer machine, and taught myself to use a sewing machine.

In 1984 I was going through teachers college, and I worked a summer job on a production line for "aeronautique equipment" which had a military contract for field packs and parachutes.

Stuart pack

 The owner was a somewhat eccentric ex French paratrooper, who knowing what I know now, probably had PTSD, from the Algerian War. He used to scream at you while you were sewing like a drill sergeant. He favourite saying was "your sewing machine is your bread and butter", he sounded like the French knight in the holy grail. I named a one of my machines after him, it's Le pain et la buerre (bread and butter in French).

I made rock climbing gear, and other equipment, I even had a large contract to sew wheel chair upholstery for a  friend who had broken his back in a climbing accident. I also was the only company who repaired bush walking gear in Brisbane for years.  Repairing gear is, in my opinion, the best entree into gear design, it teaches you what works and what doesn't, it teaches you about Material properties and how to make gear bomb proof.

Panzer Jäger

I was a big fan of Macpac gear when it was still owned by Bruce Macintyre, and it was still made in Christchurch. He ran his company on ethical and environmentally sound principles. He also held out getting his gear made in Asian factories. To be competitive against gear made in low labor cost countries, he simplified his designs to their bare essentials, but was still able to manufacture, tough, practical functional gear. His designs were elegant in their simplicity, like a good Japanese haiku. I even visited his factory once. This design philosophy has been something I try to aspire to. I worked at a Macpac retail shop after production went offshore. It is hard to keep the simplicity when the public want complex, busy designs, and Asian factories can manufacture complex designs cheaply.

merkava mkII

The other thing I took from Macpac was the way the pack would work with its user,   To be comfortable, and energy saving while it was being used. I currently make each pack to fit its owner like a good tailor made suit. I have the experience and knowledge to make designs which can be adjusted between users, but I prefer to tailor it for its intended owner, I believe this is a unique niche, which isn't offered by other companies. And all my designs are customisable to suit the owners needs.

I took a hiatus from making packs in 2004 and only started up again at the beginning of this year. I still climb, but I also bow hunt, and I thought my new market would be for quality customised packs for hunters and military. Ironically I am making slow inroads with this market. Having said that, word among the QLD climbing community has spread fast that I am making gear again, and that is where I am getting the bulk of my orders from.

Merkava mkII

I was recently given a contract to supply a quantity of gear to a university climbing club, they are still using gear I made them 17 years ago, and had been used hard. I love the idea that my gear lasts and is tough. When I make gear I over build it, and put a lot of hidden seems into the packs so that it will last.

I currently have four packs aimed, no pun, for the hunting/military market;
All of the, are named after tanks,
Going from smallest to largest they are:
Stuart M3, 20 liters, it is a small tear drop day pack using tough materials, Mollie, sr25 buckles etc

Sherman firefly, is a 3 day assault pack, it is short and deep, designed to be used with military webbing and pouches, it is 30 liters

Panzer jäger, (Shane's pack) it has an organiser front pocket which is floating using stretch panels, and has a pass through option for a bow or a rifle. It is 35 liters my and has a HDPE sheet and alloy frame stave, and lastly the 

prototype Merkava

Merkava, which is 40 liters, it has a continuous zip which allows it different access options and can be zipped flat. It has an internal frame and loads of internal organisers.

The next models will be a smaller version on the merkava and a 60 l top opening internal frame pack, it will have mole and combine features of military, climbing and bush walking packs.

I use a just in time manufacturing system, which means I have small quantities of different camp patterns, rather than big rolls of one or two camouflage patterns, this allows a high degree of customisation. I currently have 16 camouflage patterns, including some quite exotic ones. I also offer some hi tech materials such as stretch Cordura, PTFE cloth, water resistant zips, xPac etc. I also have laser cut hyperlon components, and sheet hyperlon etc.

prototype Merkava

I'm having great fun and enjoying designing, testing and making gear again. I love the challenge of making gear to customers needs and enjoy new challenges, it's a huge learning curve. I make all the gear from go to woe in Brisbane and give the customer pics as I am making their gear and interact with the customer and can make adjustments to the design on the go.

Thanks again for the opportunity to review my company, which is called "I am Spartacus", I choose this name because it reflects, strength, integrity and courage, values I espouse, and Spartacus was a slave, who revolted against the system and threw off his chains, other great values.

Scott Fraser

So, there are some good looking packs being made, and Scott is more than happy to build one just for you, to suit your needs.

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.

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.