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Supply Captain IR ID Devices

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008

Supply Captain is run by a Veteran US Army Quartermaster officer Mark Ciaglia. Frustration in finding Soldier Systems items inspired Mark to open his own business with his wife Melinda. They specialize in products such as 550 cord, custom pouches, as well IR Infrared patches and badges. They are manufacturers of an entire gamut of IR Combat ID devices including squares, flags, MP, unit patches, blood tapes, and unit ID’s. That’s right, unit patches, and what’s more, they will do custom items. All of their IR products have been tested and approved by Natick Labs for use by US Army, Marines, Air Force and Navy units. One important issue is that these devices are covered by ITAR and you must be a registered Military or LE user with Supply Captain in order to purchase their IR products.

For more information contact .

Tags: Combat ID
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Solio Chargers

Sunday, July 20th, 2008

Keeping your electronic gadgets charged, especially when deployed can be a serious challenge. While you can be out of practically everything else, one thing is in abundance; sunlight. Consequently, solar chargers are a great option but many require large, unwieldy, and expensive panels. Then came Solio chargers and in particular the Magnesium Edition.

New this season, the Magnesium Edition is lightweight, durable and takes up little space. Capable of accepting a charge from its internal solar panels or from shore power via a standard plug (international adapters available), the rechargeable ME stores its internal charge up to one year (80% of charge at one year). When used as a solar collector the device stores the power and when in use as a battery regulates its output as though coming from shore power. A full Solio ME will charge a typical mobile phone more than twice or give over 20 hours of MP3 music – just 1 hour of sunshine = 20 minutes talk time or 50 minutes of MP3 music.

Technical Specs:

* Nominal DC Output: 3V 3A
* Maximum Wattage: 9 Watts
* Battery: Rechargeable Lithium Ion 3.7V 1.8A cell
* DC Input: 5-6V 0.4Ah
* Dimensions (LxHxW): 4.72 x 1.34 x 2.56 in (120 x 34 x 63.5 mm)
* Weight: 6.38 oz. (179g)
* Temperature Range: -4F to 131F (-20C to 55C)

What’s more, the ME charger now comes with iGo adapters. Anyone familiar with the iGo system knows that they have an adapter for virtually anything. Solio offers a wide range of iGo adapters but click here if you need more information on iGo.

Included in each charger:

o Charging Cable for iGoÂ® tip system
o Female USB Cable (powers iPhone, iPod, MP3s)
o iGo Motorola Razor tip
o iGo LG Chocolate tip
o iGo Nokia tip
o iGo Samsung tip
o iGo Blackberry tip
o Pencil
o Solio Draw String Hemp Pouch*
o Universal Wall Adapter

* We recommend DoD users dump the Hemp Pouch.

The Magnesium edition is the top of the Solio range, so be sure to check out all of their offerings. While Solio is a UK-based company, we have found the best place to get them Stateside is TAD Gear. TADGear really supports the troops and often has products on special discounts.

Photos property of Solio.

Tags: Solio, TAD Gear
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Ghetto FastMag

Saturday, July 19th, 2008

The guys at ITW Nexus told me about this…

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Strider Knives Exclusive

Friday, July 18th, 2008

The special operations medical community recently approached Strider Knives to produce an edged tool to perform cricothyrotomies. Apparently, the current issue item just doesn’t stand up to the rigors of field use. In true Strider fashion they came up with something that doesn’t just accomplish the mission, it does it with style. To give you an idea of scale, the scalpel is just over three inches long.

Available soon from Strider Knives.

Tags: Strider
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Omega Aquatics Amphibian Fins

Friday, July 11th, 2008

While this isn’t the type of thing one would normally expect to see on Soldier Systems Blog, equipment for Maritime Operations is pretty important for our Warriors who spend lots of time in the water. Anyone who has ever worn fins knows what a pain they are. They do exactly what they are designed for in the water but on land or transitioning through the surf zone they are mobility killers. Required for water jumps, fins normally must be taped to the leg and put on once in the water. However, the new Amphibian fin may be the answer to some of these problems. Omega’s Aqua-Hinge mechanism allows the fin blade to be folded up for moving in and out of the surf and snaps back into position with the first kick.

As for the fins themselves, I will just let this diagram explain all about them.

Interested parties contact Omega Aquatics.

All photos property of Omega Aquatics.

Tags: Omega Aquatics
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Cejay Engineering Combat ID Markers

Tuesday, July 8th, 2008

If you have been around the US military for awhile you are probably familiar with the issue strobe light. Originally designed for use by downed Airmen and other isolated personnel, it is bulky and early versions were more suited to Civil Search and Rescue than Combat Search and Rescue. However, it does the job; marking friendly troops. In 1984 the Phoenix light came along, a no frills IR beacon that attached directly to a common 9-volt battery and a flash rate intentionally designed to avoid confusion with small arms fire. Weighing in at 1 ounce, the Phoenix light has seen duty marking personnel, perimeters, drop zones, and vehicles. Due to its low cost and simplicity, the Phoenix Jr is still the most widely used electronic combat ID marker in the world.

Later, a certain user community required a beacon with multiple pre-programmed flash patterns including an option to program unique patterns in the field. The Pegasus 2 was born. The form factor hasn’t changed much, but the capability has. The Pegasus 2 has three user-selectable six second flash patterns; the first code pattern is a fixed flash rate code identical to the Phoenix Jr., the second code pattern is a International Morse Code signal (S â€“ O â€“ S) and the third is installed as needed by the user in the field. Note the pins along the top of the beacon. By shorting across these pins the user can select pre-programmed patterns or input new ones.

So what’s next in the world of beacons? Cejay has just released a new beacon for working dogs, the K-9 Pegasus Warrior beacon. Designed to be worn on the dog’s collar, it is intended to help track working dogs while they are off-leash. In many situations, it is a major relief to know who the friendly K-9s are.

There are three models: Red, NVG Green, and IR.

You’ll be seeing a lot more of Cejay Engineering’s products in future articles here at Soldier Systems Blog.

For more information on the Phoenix Light as well as other products visit Cejay Engineering.

All photos are courtesy of Cejay Engineering. Note: Export Notification: Infrared Variants of the described products are regulated by the U.S. State Department in accordance with the guidelines of the International Traffic in Arms Regulation [ITAR] per title 22 code of federal regulations parts 120 – 130. Some Cejay products are available only to military and Law Enforcement personnel.

Tags: Beacon, Cejay Engineering, Combat ID
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Wilcox Industries Mission Helmet Record System

Monday, July 7th, 2008

“Modular by Design” is Wilcox Industries’ motto and none of the products in their impressive line has exemplified this trait more than the new Mission Helmet Record System. Designed for units that need to record vital mission data, such as information collected on a Sensitive Site Exploitation raid, the MHRS integrates both day and night cameras to record up to 8 hours of video.

Best illustrated in the pic below, the MHRS consists of the following components:
– NVG Mount
– Mini Daytime camera with 3 LED Light System
– Recording Module w/ 8 Gb Compact Flash Drive
– Modular Power Track
– Power Supply Module
– NVG Lanyard System
– AN/PVS-15/17 Eyecup Interface with Prism and Mini Night-time Camera
– Microphone

The system may be configured with all of the components or a combination best suited to the mission and will fit any standard helmet including the SOF and Gunfighter cuts. The entire camera and light package fits behind the night vision mount and the onboard LED light allows the wearer to choose from IR, blue, and white light. The Modular Power Track accepts a variety of accessories including IFF devices as well as extra Power Supply Modules.

The Power Supply Modules come in standard size accommodating two A123 batteries and extended mission which holds four A123s. They utilize the same plug as the AN/PRC-148 battery pack which can come in very handy.

Wilcox has recently made a concerted effort to expand their network of distributors in order to reach out to a larger audience.

For more info contact Wilcox Industries.

Tags: Wilcox Industries
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Offduty Part 3 – The Nerf Gun

Sunday, July 6th, 2008

Three words: Tactical Accessory Rail. Those three words make the new line of Nerf N-Strike guns the coolest toys ever. And what can be more fun than shooting “harmless” foam darts at one another? We realize they are intended for kids, but the ability to tailor the Nerf gun, reconfiguring it into different configurations with accessories make it almost as much fun as using a real carbine. In fact, there is a growing community of folks who modify their N-Strikes.

Base guns all feature the 1913-esque rail mount and Nerf produces several accessories like the weapon light and extra magazines. The editor purchased the Longshot CS-6 for his four year old last Christmas and his teenagers have yet to forgive him. Can you say intimidation?

And joining the lineup soon, a tripod mounted, box-fed machine gun; the N-STRIKE VULCAN EBF-25. Available this fall and retailing for $59.99, the belt-fed EBF-25 fires 25 rounds of screaming fury. That’s right, the mini darts make noise when fired in order to psych your opponents out. Spare belts will also be available.