You’ve heard rumors of it and now here it is. This is the first photo of Mayflower Research and Consulting LLC’s Assaulter Panel. Designed around a 50 oz water bladder, it is designed to carry necessary short duration mission essential items; NODs, medical kit, and water. Look for it in two to three months.
That’s right. The folks at Rip Shears want to give away set of Rip Shears (black ripper on shears) and a Firefly Ripper (ripper only) with an instructional DVD, brochure and stickers to three lucky SSD readers. In order to enter just tell us (in the comments sections below) how you’d use Rip Shears, at work, play, or wherever. Let your imagination run wild! Bullets are fine for those who are slow typists. The important thing is to enter…and to tell your friends.
We will randomly pick three winners on Monday, 4 April, 2011 at 1200 GMT. Offer void where prohibited. Must be 18 to enter.
Rip Shears are a new attachment for standard EMT shears that transforms them into a tool that combines the shears with a safety knife and reflex hammer. Designed to attach directly to the handle of most 7-1/4″ shears, it provides a quick means of cutting through loose material and gear in order to access wounds.
Designed by Naval Special Warfare Corpsmen, Rip Shears are Made in the USA and crafted from fiberglass-reinforced nylon that can be autoclaved up to 270 deg F. Additionally, the blades are 440A stainless steel and are treated with a special DLC tungsten coating for increased lubricity. In fact, the coating will extend the life of the blades 4-5 times normal stainless steel. The design is simple and safe to clean with your fingers as well as replace blades. In fact, when you finally do need to change the blades, they are designed in such a manner that they are impossible to install incorrectly.
Rip Shears are offered in three models. The RS-1 is the Ripper unit by itself for installation on your current EMT shears. The RS-2 model combines the Ripper with EMT shears and the RS-3 or “Firefly” version is a Ripper featuring a glow in the dark material for civilian EMTs and flight medics.
A lot of folks are carrying hook knives to cut through webbing but they can be ineffective if the material is slack. With Rip Shears the cutting stroke is a pulling motion, offering a great deal of strength and control which can help to avoid further injuries. Rip Shears have been used on boots, leather jackets, and rigger belts. In fact, this video will give you a great idea of how well it works.
In fact, I had the chance to try them out myself and I am duly impressed. To get yours visit their distributor page www.ripshears.com and be sure to look around while you are there.
Available for the past 30 years, there are uncounted Skedco litters out there. Many users have asked for a quicker way to configure the litters and Skedco listened. They recently released a Cobra Buckle retrofit kit. The actual litters themselves are extremely durable but over time straps abrade or are damaged and buckles break. This kit includes both Cobra buckles as well as new straps so it’s a great way to breathe some new life into an older litter as well as increase its utility. Manufactured by Austrialpin, Cobra buckles are rated at a 3000 lbs break strength. They work just like standard side release buckles but are machined from aluminum and will not open under load.
For more information visit www.skedco.com. For unit and agency order contact www.adsinc.com/skedco
Revision is showing us more and more that they have transcended beyond just an eyewear company and are reaching out into many additional areas of Soldier protection. Earlier this week, they announced a deal with B-Temia to fund development of their first dermoskeleton, aimed at helping soldiers suffering from musculoskeletal injuries.
Since the term “dermoskeleton” is foreign to most of us, we thought it would be best to explain exactly what it is that they are talking about. From the B-Temia website, “A dermoskeleton mechanism is an automated orthopaedic supporting brace fully integrated onto a given joint-segment structure of a user’s body without any interaction with the environment such as ground contacts using, for example, instrumented insoles.”
“Based in Canada and the United States as well as with a significant presence in Europe, Revision has proven to be a major player in the field of soldier protection and survivability. We are very proud to team up with a formidable industry player like Revision,” stated Stéphane Bédard, President and CEO of B-Temia.
Additionally, B-Temia Military, a subsidiary of B-Temia, has signed an international licensing agreement with Revision Military for the commercialization of its dermoskeletons. “We see musculoskeletal injuries and the associated non-deployment rates of soldiers caused by heavy load carriage as a costly and painful concern that military organizations around the world must address. The market potential for B-Temia’s dermoskeleton is tremendous. We are excited to add this innovative technology to our portfolio of purpose-built soldier equipment,” said Jonathan Blanshay, CEO of Revision.
ATS Tactical doesn’t build a lot of gear but rather concentrates on special products not widely available. Recently, they have been offering a very specialized piece of kit developed for a small group of assaulters and breachers. Called the Special Forces Plate Carrier Back Panel, it integrates several features into one design that attaches directly to the back of an armor vest. The long pocket down the right side is for carrying charges, and has an elastic tensioning strap. You will notice a D ring which can be used to secure items like gloves. Next to the charge pocket is a small 3 channel by 3 channel PALS webbing field to add pouches for functional equipment. Below this is a carrier for the ATS Small Medical Pouch built right into the panel. Along the left edge are loops to secure entry tools. Finally, the panel features a pocket for a hydration reservoir.
It is manufactured from 500D Cordura in order to help save weight and available in Coyote Brown, Ranger Green and MultiCam. ATS Tactical products are Berry compliant and come with a lifetime guarantee. It is not listed for sale on their site. You will need to contact them to order. www.atstacticalgear.com
This week is shaping up to be a ‘best of’ fest and the MET from TQS is in good company. In our opinion, this is the best tourniquet on the market. This article was first published in April of this year.
Tier-One Quality Solutions recently unveiled a new version of their popular Military Emergency Tourniquet, integrating improvements based on feedback from operational use. For example slight material changes have been made to ensure the tourniquet doesn’t loosen after application. The windlass has also been redesigned and is machined from aluminum.
Additionally, the MET is now available in MultiCam as well as AOR1 by special order to authorized customers. They also offer a couple of different color-matched, PALS-compatible sheathing options so it is best to discuss your particular needs with a representative.
This is an indispensable piece of kit when you consider 60% of all preventable deaths encountered on the battlefield are the result of uncontrolled life threatening hemorrhaging at the point of wounding. The swift application of a tourniquet is a critical life-saving measure.
The MET has been awarded NSN 6515-01-537-9259. To order the MET as well as any of their other products, visit www.tqsresponse.com. The MET is also available from Rally Point Tactical.
