I’ve been hoping someone would offer a water resistant, reversible Orange to Coyote pack cover and RE Factor Tactical came through. Their Reversible Rain Fly is specifically designed to fit on their ASO Bag as well as other 3-day assult pack sized bags. On top of the Coyote side is one 2 x 3″ and one 2 x 7″ loop platform for a name tape, marking IR patch for location at night or regular patch. On the opposite, high-vis Orange side is one 2 x 3″ loop panel for attachment of an IR patch or beacon light for easy marking. It stays in place via toggles designed for the ASO bag as well as a bungie cord.
There is also an integrated stuff sack for storage. Currently only available in a base color of Coyote. Hopefully, they’ll get some more MultiCam versions in stock. 6.2 ounces.
Tomorrow, March 11th, SSD will be participating in an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on r/Military, Reddit’s lead Military board. The AMA starts at 1300 EDT and will end at an undetermined time. An AMA, for those who don’t know, is essentially a Q&A session hosted on Reddit. We’re looking forward to seeing what questions the users come up with.
LBX Tactical’s popular 1015 Small Window Pouch and 1016 Medium Window Pouch are now back in stock.
Both pouches feature hook and loop backing for quick insert and removal, and work great with Grab and Go Insert or the Arc’Teryx KHARD series of packs. Clear windows on both pouches allow for easy item identification.
About an hour ago the BATFE issued the following statement on their Facebook page regarding their intent to ban the commercial sale of the M855 cartridge by removing its exemption as Armor Piercing Ammunition. If you haven’t commented, do it.
Notice to those Commenting on the Armor Piercing Ammunition Exemption Framework
Thank you for your interest in ATF’s proposed framework for determining whether certain projectiles are “primarily intended for sporting purposes” within the meaning of 18 U.S.C. 921(a)(17)(C). The informal comment period will close on Monday, March 16, 2015. ATF has already received more than 80,000 comments, which will be made publicly available as soon as practicable. Although ATF endeavored to create a proposal that reflected a good faith interpretation of the law and balanced the interests of law enforcement, industry, and sportsmen, the vast majority of the comments received to date are critical of the framework, and include issues that deserve further study. Accordingly, ATF will not at this time seek to issue a final framework. After the close of the comment period, ATF will process the comments received, further evaluate the issues raised therein, and provide additional open and transparent process (for example, through additional proposals and opportunities for comment) before proceeding with any framework.
Tactical Tailor has announced the release of an updated MALICE Clip which coincides with the new Fight Light line. The new MALICE clips are lighter, stronger, easier to weave, and have a slimmer standoff. The full release can be read below:
When we rolled out the new Fight Light line here at Tactical Tailor we concentrated our efforts on being lighter and slicker while maintaining the phenomenal durability that we’re known for.
Every aspect was scrutinized, and we deliberately studied and considered feedback from professional end-users. We removed extraneous weight and maximized utility wherever we could. Part of this process was reviewing some things that we’ve done the same way for more than a decade. We put pen to paper, constructed countless prototypes, and put them through rigorous testing for months before anything was rolled out.
If you’ve purchased any of the Tactical Tailor Fight Light line recently, you may have observed something: We changed the MALICE Clip.
Our MALICE Clip is the long-time, now ubiquitous industry standard: and the new MALICE Clip is even better. Everything you liked about the old MALICE is still present:
Same heavy duty construction. They won’t come unwoven even if accidentally unlocked. They work with a variety of attachment methods. They’re not affected by extreme temperature changes. They will never corrode.
Now, however, now they’re easier to weave due to the non-square edges, significantly lighter, 15% stronger, and have a slimmer standoff.
Pricing and lengths remain exactly the same. The new MALICE Clips are shipping with all Tactical Tailor Fight Light items, and soon will ship with everything we sell. Don’t worry OEMs, we’ll still provide you with the new MALICE Clips as well.
The new MALICE clips are shipping on new LBE and gear – watch for them to be available as a standalone purchase soon.
Tactical Revolution has recently released a video which functions as an overview of their AJAX Armor System.
The AJAX Armor System is intended to protect the gunner from enemy fire into his shoulder area which is more lightly armored than the chest. Consisting of a Picatinny rail mount and associated armored 46100 steel plates, AJAX weighs 1.46 lbs per mount and 3.6 lbs per plate. Naturally, this means it’s meant for use in fixed positions but it can quickly be mounted and dismounted from the weapon.
A common misconception is that all Special Operations guys are gun gurus: that they are students of caliber, ballistics, barrel length, gas systems, etc. The reality is quite different. As an 18 Bravo(US Army Special Forces Weapon Sergeant), of course I had to possess the skills to effectively employ my personal weapon systems (carbines, pistols and crew served) in combat as well as the ability to maintain and repair them.
But that is maybe, 5% of the job.
Just as important were the skills needed to lay mortars, be familiar with foreign weapon systems used by indigenous allied and enemy forces, conduct helicopter and airborne operations, perform tactical combat casualty care, use communications systems to call for medevac or close air support, plan actions on an objective, employ small unit tactics under fire, be proficient in hand-to-hand combat, speak a foreign language, maintain a high level of physical fitness and drive everything from cars and HMMWVs to off road vehicles, to name a few.
Over time, those who were personally interested in any of those topics had a great laboratory to work in. So when I look back at how I ran my kit, I see it was driven by considerations for many tasks, but above everything, my combat set-up was most influenced by my time as an athlete.
I spent a good part of my life playing football, from Pop Warner to high school and ultimately college ball. Everything from diet, to work outs to hobbies was driven by becoming bigger, stronger and faster than the day before. In the game, speed kills. If you can see the field and understand the game, you can put yourself in the right space, at the right time, with total control of your body, to deliver a devastating hit to your opponent.
I saw it no differently in combat.
Where the battlespace diverges from a playing field, is that the environment is not set. It can be an interior, where you are moving to a point of domination, or a killing field, where rapid maneuver allows you to destroy the enemy. This makes being quicker on the uptake in assessing the battlespace and finding those sweet spots vital because, in the end, it all comes down to fire superiority and flanking. When I set up my kit and my weapon systems, it was driven by what was going to make me as fast as possible at that fundamental principle of combat.
My unit was tasked with a Direct Action mission. The vast majority of our infils were conducted with vehicles. The targets were almost always compounds. That meant that our realistic threats were typically within a 100 meter radius. It also meant we were never more than 200 meters from our gun trucks with crew served weapons (.50 cals and MK19 grenade launchers).
We started with 14.5″ SOPMOD M4s. As issued, an M4 carbine is expected to deliver a sub three inch group at 100 yards with issued ammunition(62-grain Green Tip). It was a light, reliable and, at sub three minutes at 100 yards, delivered a reasonable degree of accuracy. Was it possible to shoot these weapon systems and get sub one inch groups at 100 yards? Absolutely. But it is a combination of skill, ammunition and platform that delivers that capability.
Given that our mission set rarely required we engage with our M4’s out past a 150 meter radius, when we received MK18 upper receivers many, including myself, switched to the more compact and maneuverable platform. With the issued ammunition and our skills, it matched the accuracy of the SOPMOD and was faster in the tight spaces we encountered on all of our missions.
Given that we ran a large number of missions at night, every carbine had a PEQ-15 on it allowing for accurate shooting out to 200 meters with our night vision goggles. I personally went with a rubberized Hogue AR pistol grip, because it was far more “grippy” especially when using gloves. I also used a Surefire M900A as it gave me a vertical grip, a pressure pad and a weapon light in one package. I ran a Arredondo Oversized Mag Well to give me a slight edge on speed reloads and finally, I topped it off with an EOTech 511 because not only was it the fastest combat proven weapon optic for our mission, but it was compact and allowed for more rail to mount the PEQ and rear iron sight.
That carbine was built around my mission. It performed it exactly how I needed it to. When I was putting together this article I had to look back through old emails to see what half of the items were even called, but each component either helped me go faster or made my task of shooting easier and was reliable enough to let me focus on the big picture.
In the end, that is the ultimate goal of any piece of kit.
