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Archive for April, 2009

Patagonia Ultra Shorts

Tuesday, April 14th, 2009

The Ultra Shorts are great if you are looking for a pair of shorts for deployment. They can serve as PT shorts as well as swim trunks and look fine with civilian shirts and flip flops. They are cut long (9″ inseam) and are made from 50D polyester ripstop with a wicking finish so they dry quickly. The Ultra Shorts feature two front pockets and two large back pockets; one with stitched compartments to keep energy gels secure. The shorts also have a zippered security pocket right below the waistband to hold a car key.

Patagonia Ultra Shorts

Patagonia Ultra Shorts

Available in Desert Clay, Black, Espresso, Wildwood (shown), and Feather Grey. To order, visit Patagonia.

Sahale Snacks

Monday, April 13th, 2009

Without a doubt our favorite travel snacks at Soldier Systems Daily come from Sahale Snacks. The only disagreement comes with which flavor is favorite. All are nut-based and the key is the mixture of natural ingredients to form new fusion flavors often combining both sweet and salty sensations. While they all are great, the Sing Buri is a classic example. Combining cashews with peanuts, pineapples, and sesame seeds all dusted with chili evokes a taste of Thailand. Highly recommended.

Sahale Snacks Sing Buri

Sahale Snacks Sing Buri

Recently the Editor picked up a couple of new flavors while visiting the REI flagship store in Seattle. They are from the Glazed Nut line and include Honey Almond, Almond PB&J, and Pomegranate Cashews. Once again, various types of nuts are glazed and combined with other ingredients to enhance the flavor of the mix. We tried the Honey Almond and Pomegranate Cashews and they taste great. One thing with the Honey Almond, it needs more cranberries.

Sahale Snacks Honey Almonds

Sahale Snacks Honey Almonds

For more information or a list of retailers visit Sahale Snacks on the web.

RFIG Has ECLiPSE in Stock for Unit Orders

Monday, April 13th, 2009

Rapid Fielding Initiative Gear has ample quantities of BAE’s ECLiPSE line in stock in all color schemes. RFIG is a new military outfitter formed as a partnership between apparel industry leaders, government acquisition specialists, and military veterans. RFIG is also certified female service disabled veteran owned small business (FSDVSB). Their intent is to support units directly with hard to find items and proprietary products such as ECLiPSE.

For more information on RFIG’s wide range of products or to order from the ECLiPSE line visit www.RFIGear.com.

TAG 50% Off Sale

Sunday, April 12th, 2009

It’s still not too late to save on the Tactical Assault Gear sale going on until Monday at Midnight.

The deals are available at www.tacticalassaultgearstore.com as well as www.tagmulticam.com.

Revel Jacket from Outdoor Research

Sunday, April 12th, 2009

As we have said in the past, for folks seeking quality technical outerwear at a good price point, then Outdoor Research is a great alternative. They combine cutting edge materials with innovative designs and usually have a tactical friendly color option. Case in point is the Revel Jacket in Sandstone/Peat. The light shell is great for warmer climes and features a stowable hood in addition to the fantastic TorsoFlo™ full-length side/pit zips. These two way zips run from elbow all the way to the waist hem. Additionally, teh Revel has two spacious zippered chest pockets as well as an internal chest pocket with media port which doubles as a stuff sack. The elastic cuffs also feature velcro tabs. Finally, the jacket is manufactured from waterproof/breathable 2.5-layer 40D Pertex® Shield DS stretch ripstop fabric. The Pertex brand has been around for some years and has been popular in the UK. Having come back from near financial ruin just a few years ago, Pertex has developed numerous new fabrics such as the Pertex® Shield DS used by OR.

Revel Jacket from Outdoor Research

Revel Jacket from Outdoor Research

The cut of the jacket is loose and allows for layering. In addition to Sandstone/Peat the Revel Jacket is available in Oxide/Espresso, Abyss/Eclipse, and Black. It is available from Outdoor Research.

Forcefield Upgrade Performance Armour

Sunday, April 12th, 2009

There are a variety of removable pads on the market and while originally developed for motorcycle clothing, one of the best available is the Upgrade Armour by Armourflex. They use a unique high-tech triangular shock absorbing material so that energy can be dispersed evenly over their surface. The pads are breathable, lightweight, flexible, and mold to your body shape. Using their patented Repeat Performance Technology, the pads protect against multi-strikes. Their performance more resembles external hard knee pads than the simple single layer offered by so many other insertable pads. In addition to knee protection, shoulder and elbow kits are also available.

FORCE-10 T-PRO 3L+ IMPACT KNEE PADS

FORCE-10 T-PRO 3L+ IMPACT KNEE PADS

A special version is sold in the US by TAD as the Force-10 T-PRO 3L+ Impact Knee Pads.

PowerFlares – An Alternative to Incendiary Flares

Saturday, April 11th, 2009

PowerFlare

Invented by a police officer, the PowerFlare PF-200 Electronic LED Safety Light is designed for use by police, firefighters, EMTs, rescue first responders, military, and members of emergency response teams. The applications are limited only by your imagination but work well for marking routes, drop and landing zones, and items of interest. It can also be used for IFF, Personnel Recovery, as well as illumination. In addition to a Morse Code SOS blinking feature the PowerFlare has 10 User-selectable blinking patterns.

beacon-amber-small

The advantages are obvious as PowerFlares overcome the myriad problems experienced with incendiary flares. Flares/fusees cause unintentional fires, in some cases spontaneous trunk fires, they often don’t light, leave toxic residue, and contaminate air and water. Additionally, flares are an expensive one time use item, not to mention that fusees burn out in in a mere 20 minutes.

On the other hand, PowerFlares can be used from 8 to 150 hours per battery (with a shelf life of up to 10 years) while the LED’s last for up to 100,000 hours. In addition, the systems are extremely impact resistant and can withstand the weight of a truck so they won’t need to be replaced.

PowerFlares are available in a variety of colors

PowerFlares are available in a variety of colors

Shells are available in Yellow, Orange, Blue, and OD. LEDs are offered in Amber, Blue, Green, Red, and White. Additionally, a special version of the PowerFlare is available with IR LEDs. The best value is the PF-200R 6-Pack Rechargeable System which comes with six of the PF-200R beacons packed in a recharging case. The recharger can be plugged into a vehicle hot point (12-30VDC) or wall outlet.

powerflare_6_pack_ir

They also offer storage bags in UCP as well as other colors that carry four PowerFlares.

bag4_all-small

To order visit PowerFlare Distribution Center, Inc.

Ever Seen a $700 Pair of Pants?

Friday, April 10th, 2009
Acronym Tec Pants

Acronym Tec Pants

Well you can say you have now. German firm Acronym produces high quality softgoods with obvious tactical influences. While they have a great eye for performance fabrics including Nextec’s Epic and Stotz Etaproof high-density Cotton, the lines of their clothing may be a bit uncoventional to some. Acronym can be difficult to find but an internet search turned their products up in a variety of specialty stores both here in the US as well as abroad.

Check out this video on the features of Acronym products.

As for the trousers, you have to get a kick out of their version of PALS which they call Tec Sys webbing. Notice the black bands above the cargo pockets. Acronym features Tec Sys on many of their products including clothing and bags. They also produce a variety of PALS compatible pouches.

Acronym can be found on the web at www.acronym.de. Their site includes archives of past collections.