The Firearms Blog published what may be the only pictures floating around of HK’s 416 Sub-Compact Carbine. It was not displayed at this week’s AUSA annual meeting and rumor has it that was developed specifically for a British requirement. This is why it was only shown at DSEi and to little fanfare. Furthermore, it is entirely a developmental project and only a few are being hand fitted for the customer.
Mark Edward Campos, a third year architecture student developed a great graphic on a method to defeat a Rotary Dial Master Lock. Of course the intent of all of this was to find out how a Master Lock works and not necessarily how to defeat it. Essentially, you determine the first number by pulling up on the latch while the dial is rotated. Next, a table of all possible first and second number combinations has been calculated for you. Then you tough it out and attempt the one hundred combinations or so left.
Hack A Day had previously published an article on this method but suggested that using a shim made from an aluminum can is preferable. It is a lot faster. I thought our readers might be interested from a security perspective in this video of the shim method.
Tactical Assault Gear is holding a 50%-sale from now until Midnight Pacific Coast Time on Tuesday 13 October, 2009. Everything is on sale and the discounted price is calculated in the shopping cart.
Arc’teryx needs no introduction to the readers of Soldier Systems Daily. Their LEAF line has set the standard for technical military wear. Now, they have brought their expertise to a new area; performance menswear. The much anticipated Veilance collection offers a new level of urban camouflage for the armed professional. Finally, the pinnacle of performance is being engineered into garments that will fit in as well on a battlefield as a shopping center. A very limited offering of Arc’teryx Veilance was unveiled in select stores beginning October 1.
Veilance started with the question of why the philosophy of ‘form follows function’ was not a mainstay in clothing worn in the urban environment. Spurred by developments in garment technology, as well as by wide reaching technology based shifts in society and culture at large, the potential for an entirely new type of apparel has evolved. Arc’teryx has applied its expertise in performance design, basing Veilance on aesthetic style, superior quality and extraordinary performance for the urban arena. Technical textiles provide full weather protection and personal comfort. 3D anatomic patterning augments fit and drape and creates a distinguished look. Innovative features and premium components highlight the extraordinary finishing detail. Performing well under a myriad of activities and conditions, social settings, modes of transit, physical exertion levels, interior and exterior climates, the Veilance collection creates protection that is always comfortable and projects an aesthetic of quiet confidence.
Designer Conroy Nachtigall, a graduate of Central St. Martens in London, has reinterpreted menswear classics and combined them with state of the art manufacturing techniques and technical materials usually found in outdoor garments, creating this radically innovative menswear collection. The Veilance collection includes a GORE-TEX long coat and field jacket, WINDSTOPPER blazers and pants, fine Merino sweaters, and ingeniously designed dress shirts and tees. Continuing the trajectory established in outdoor and military sectors, the Veilance collection is the company’s entry into inspired clothing for day-to-day urban use. The Veilance collection will be manufactured in Canada in Arc’teryx’s own Vancouver factory and available in a limited offering this October from select premium men’s clothing stores: 290 Square Meters, Amsterdam; The Tannery, Boston; The Glade Firmament, Berlin; International Gallery Beams and Beams House, Tokyo; The Hideout, London, as well as direct from Arc’teryx.
For any of you who still aren’t convinced, check out this great article from Code magazine.
For those of you ready to experience Veilance visit veilance.arcteryx.com
*Note that existing LEAF and Pro customers will not be eligible for discounts.
-Eric Graves
Editor
Like the little engine that could, KDH wins yet another armor contract. This time for 57,000 plate carriers. So this makes IOTV, IMTV/PC, and now the Army’s Plate Carrier all at the same time. Not bad for a small business. I wonder how they are getting it all done. They have opened a new factory in Eden, North Carolina that is according to recent visitors, only at half capacity. Unfortunately, the real issue with capacity these days isn’t floor space or number of machines but rather human capital. Finding qualified, experienced sewers and other textile workers even in areas where plants have closed in the past is extremely difficult.
Lots of conjecture on the web about how KDH continues to win contracts but quite honestly, it probably has a lot to do with price. Estimates indicate that KDH probably offered the plate carriers to the Army at just over $300 a pop with soft armor based on the number of vests and the amount of the award. That is about half what other companies were seeking.
Interestingly, the Army handled this procurement through GSA and this is the first time that they have used GSA to purchase armor due to concerns over ballistic ratings. Additionally, the GSA solicitation was open for a fairly short window and in spite of a requirement during Soldier Protection Demonstration VII that the carriers be releasable, the GSA solicitation dropped it altogether yet they retained the 9 lbs weight threshold associated with a heavier cut-away system. Of course, neither SOCOM nor the Marines have a cut-away plate carrier system. But these oddball requirements meant that companies that did not meet the requirements for inclusion in SPD VII were able to bid on the plate carriers through GSA.
KDH lists their Soldier Plate Carrier with Quick Release System on their GSA website for $439.29 so we are unsure if they bid that at a discount via GSA or a non-releasable system. According to the description of their vest it “Includes OTV/IOTV Specification(FQ/PD 07-05 Latest Rev. CO/PD 00-02 Latest Rev.) Lvl IIIA Equivalent Soft Ballistc Inserts and Integrated Side Plate Pouches. Also available with NIJ Specifica”.
PEO-Soldier recently unveiled a new look. Their new web presence is streamlined and simplifies navigation. It even features a blog.
Check it out at peosoldier.army.mil.
According to an article published today on Strike Hold!, it looks as though the Kazakh’s may have come to a similar conclusion as the US Army that UCP needs a little browning down to be more effective in the high desert of Central Asia.
Photo: Chris Fletcher
Thanks to recent photographs taken of Exercise Steppe Eagle, a two-week Partnership for Peace exercise, involving British Territorial Army (reserves) soldiers from 7th Battalion The Rifles (7 RIFLES) and Kazakh airborne troops we get some close ups of the pattern. Also, note the Woodland PASGT vest on the paratrooper on the right.
Team Wendy teased us at both Modern Day Marine and AUSA with their new EPIC technology. They have been keeping it under wraps because it is not yet approved for use by the military. However, Soldier Systems Daily was fortunate enough to be given a sneak peek at the new pad system.
Designed in response to an RFI for enhanced impact protection for the Enhanced Combat Helmet. The current ZAP pad system utilizes 7 pads but the new EPIC system offers 22 pads including a Impact Liner that cradles your noggin and is intended to be permanently attached to the inside of the helmet for enhanced performance. Additionally, there are sizing pads and four oval shaped Ultra Grip TM anti-slip pads to ensure a perfect fit. The comfort pads are provided in four shapes and two thicknesses: 3/16-inch “thin” and 3/8-inch “thick as well as two Sweat Bands (3/16-inch and 3/8-inch thick). The impact liner alone offers the 10 feet per second impact protection required. Testing indicates that the additional fitting pads only enhance the protection afforded to the wearer, up to 40% in hot conditions.
I had the opportunity to try it in an ACH and it definitely offers a great deal of adjustment. When I mounted the Ultra Grip TM pads it was going nowhere on my head. As with the current ZAP pad system, the pads feature wicking and anti-microbial treated fabric.
Team Wendy prepared this video to give you an idea of how the system works.
EPIC is available for sale to Law Enforcement customers but will not be offered to the military until it has been officially tested and approved for use. The ZAP system remains the sole approved helmet pad for use by the US military. We encourage the acquisition to take a serious look at such enhanced technologies as EPIC especially in light of the increased ballistic protection afforded by the developmental Enhanced Combat Helmet.
For more info visit Team Wendy.
