The new Cobra from Cinch Tourniquet is based on the same premise as flex cuffs regularly used by our troops. Just like flex cuffs it can be weaved into the PALS webbing found on armor carriers. Additionally, it has standardized space to write application data.
It is quickly applied with a single, steady pull once aligned into place. The locking mechanism is recessed and can be released with a flat object such as a screw driver head.
Tags: Modern Day Marine
So, is it a big custom colored zip-tie? What makes it different from, say, a cable tie used for wire management? Just trying to understand.
Its a ziptie.
So wheres the windless on this supposed torniquet?
This is crap. It’s going to be too stiff and difficult to apply, and would likely have to be cut off to be removed. Which means unless the medics have a screwdriver handy (which shouldn’t be a requirement for any tourniquet) they have to get a sharp object into and under heavy plastic which will be digging into the sking. Yes I mean actual field medics, who at rare times have to remove improperly applied tourniquets. This is a waste. I agree that it’s not a tourniquet without a windlass, it’s a zap strap.
Uh…bad idea.
TQs need a way to relieve the pressure (be loosened) every so often, for the safety and care of the patient.
How the hell are you supposed to do that with a glorified wide ziptie?
BAD JUJU.
Let me rephrase that… how are you to do that safely and easily?
Im not carrying a flat head screwdriver.
Do you want me loosening your TQ with my knife? One slip or patient jerk, and you need another ziptie.
Maybe thats their growth strategy in the market…
Thanks for the interest. This tourniquet is designed to meet the spirit and intent of TCCC – stop massive hemorrhaging and get out of the line of fire. The problem with the traditional windlass style tourniquets is that they take forever to apply, and depend on an individual’s ability to use fine motor skills to manipulate a number of small loops, clasps, and hooks at one the most stressful times in someone’s life: their buddy is down in front of them screaming, and they are getting shot at.
This tourniquet slides right into your MOLLE webbing, and stays there with a tension lock created by a bend in the tourniquet near the head. The oversized head is easy to grab, even with gloves and shaking hands, and the stiff nature of the material allows the tourniquet to be slid under a mutilated limb of a prone patient without picking up the leg to move it around. The Nylon 6/6 also doesn’t fold in on itself like straps do, keeping the same width and pressure distribution throughout. This helps prevent additional tissue damage and lessens the overall pressure required to stop a serious bleed.
The nature of the material also makes it easier to self apply, the strap always sticks out when you pinch it down with what you have left of a limb instead of reaching for a hanging strap somewhere, and that makes it easy to grab and control.
To loosen the tourniquet you can use a flat screw driver, as most carry around to adjust their ACOGs, or you can use a key, knife, or even a rock (shaped right) – we’ve tested them all to make sure anyone can loosen or remove as necessary. Also, once you are out of the line of fire, and the bleeding is controlled, you can loosen the tourniquet a small click at a time vs a windlass design where you are forced to do a 180 degree turn, no matter what the pressure differential is, increasing the chance of bleeding to re-start.
We are at MDM in Quantico this week (booth 21) and would happy to discuss if you are in the area. Also, our website is going up this week and we’ll post some great example videos for everyone to see.
“The problem with the traditional windlass style tourniquets is that they take forever to apply, and depend on an individual’s ability to use fine motor skills to manipulate a number of small loops, clasps, and hooks at one the most stressful times in someone’s life: their buddy is down in front of them screaming, and they are getting shot at.”
This is an unsupported statement. I have never heard of this being an issue. If you are IN a firefight you aren’t putting on a tourniquet, it goes on once you have a second to find cover. The CAT and SOFT-T don’t require “fine” motor skills if they have been pre-set properly. I see where you are going with the product, but I don’t think it is the correct solution for combat applications. In fact, your statement about stress argues against your statement about tourniquets taking too long to apply- if you are really fired up, then a torniquet gets cinched down and windlassed quite quickly- I’ve never heard of one being ineffective if it was placed in the correct location relative to a hemmorhage.
September,
Thanks again for the interest and the question. The feedback we have received from the field and our testing has pretty clearly shown that stress and a lack of fine motor skills do matter in putting on a tourniquet. Even with just the adrenaline generated in simple tourniquet races, guys have lost control of the windlass, missed securing or lost control of a tie down, and had problems threading thin nylon straps through clasps. Run a few mano e mano tourniquet application races in your unit, esp after a PT session, and you will see exactly what I am talking about.
In firefights, you do put apply tourniquets, though generally that’s the only medical treatment you provide at that point. That is the current recommendation of the TCCC council as well. Yes, seek cover and don’t do it out in the open, but the short time needed to bleed out requires immediate action, not waiting until the fight is over.
I agree, once a tourniquet is on, and properly tightened, in the correct location relative to a hemorrhage it is nearly always effective for it’s intended use. However, some problems have come up post application with windlasses coming unsecured and bleeding re-starting during pressure relief prior to transport. We want to take on those issues as well.
This is definately a new method, and we welcome fair and rigiourious testing to back up our own. Like many new solutions to problems, the general comfort level with a different way of doing business may take a while, but we are confident in our product.
Is this intended for self-application? If it is carried as described, slid into MOLLE webbing, it will be laid out flat. It seems like it would be quite difficult to get a flat piece of plastic, that probably wants to stay flat, wrapped around your upper arm and threaded into the head piece with just one hand.
I see the one in the photo that is pre-looped, which would help this, but not sure how that would easily be carried.
Mike,
Thanks for asking. Yes it is intended for self placation as well. In fact the stiffer nature of the material helps contol the “running end” or tail, instead of hunting for it while it is hanging down somewhere. Self use on the leg is pretty straight forward, but use on the strong side arm is the most challenging. To accomplish this pinch the tourniquet under your upper arm, then use the stiffness of the material to provide resistance against your armpit/armor as you begin to tighten. As zoo as you have enough to grab, ratchet down. Sounds complex, but much easier in practice than dealing with a loose strap. I’ll put some video up on our site when I get back from MDM next weeK.
hAlso when you pinch the