In an announcement on the MagPod Facebook page, it was revealed that they will delay the release of the product at least until October as they still need to finalize material selection and also plan on at least one more round of refinements to the design along with associated product testing.
Infidel Caps has introduced a new version of their popular signature cap. The front features embroidered 2″ x 3.5″ Loop Velcro which allows you to affix your favorite patch. The crown integrates a standard 1″ x 1″ Hook Velcro top for Glint Tape attachment. Finally, they have embroidered their popular “Click-Click Bang” saying over the back closure and a smaller “Infidel” embroidered on the closure strap itself.
Currently in preproduction, they will be 100% US Made with US materials. The first run will include Multicam, Khaki and OD. The first run will fit up to size 7-3/4 and the next run will include XL sized caps.
The TYR Tactical Travelers Bag we mentioned last week is already available on their website. Manufactured from PV, it features a large interior main compartment with organizational mesh pockets on either side as well as two end interior pouches to carry a mesh toiletry bag (included). Additionally, there are exterior side pouches featuring 3 interior dividers.
Available in Coyote, Ranger Green, Black, and MultiCam.
SSD would like to salute US military personnel past and present on this Armed Forces day.
Day 5 of the Blackheart International Foreign Weapons Course is test and graduation day. There are no photos of this final phase of instruction simply because it is an evaluation. However, here is what happens on a macro level. Day 5 is the culmination of everything we have learned. Ammunition ID is critical. All of those pile tests we accomplished at the end of each day come in very handy, and maintenance and manual of arms for each weapon is crucial to success. If you attend this course, your skills will be tested. Some would say that the training staff “fire hoses” the students over the course of the week, but there is enough practical application and hands-on reinforcement over the course of the week to make sure the material sinks in.
We reported to the range at 0730 and went right to work. Prior to testing (and after), all of the weapons were available for practice (take down and reassembly) as well as live fire on the main KD range. There was also a dueling tree set which led to some interesting competitions. How about a Sten gun versus a GLOCK?
One at a time, the students face the final evaluation on a separate range which cannot be observed by the other students. I am told by the instructors that no two students ever negotiate the course the same way and that strengths and weaknesses become glaringly apparent as the evaluation progresses.
In my case, it was most certainly true. I reduced all of the threats but fixated on placing a weapon into action that had been challenging to me during the week. Instead of using other resources to progress through the course of fire, I decided that it wasn’t going to “beat” me and I was going to make it work. I wasted time doing so and in a real-world situation could have exposed myself to danger. I already had plenty of resources for success but allowed myself to become myopic and really ramped up the stress in doing so. Once I felt my mouth go dry, I noticed the fine motor skills start to erode. I was placing a lot of stress on myself to succeed. Ultimately, I stopped what I was doing and used the other tools at my disposal to finish the evaluation. I learned a valuable lesson during that evaluation, and in speaking with my fellow students about their experience, I would say that they did too.
The facilities are great. I’ve talked about Sugar Creek Lodge with its weight room, wi-fi service and large eat-in kitchen and Wednesday night home cooked meal. When the course director told me via email, “Just bring your clothes and tooth brush,” he wasn’t far off. Over the week’s coverage, I’ve also mentioned in passing Blackheart’s 300 acre range facility with KD and unknown distance ranges. Lastly, the Headquarters and Training building houses the class room as well as a well stocked retail store. Everything is clean and well maintained.
The access to working weapons that you can actually fire is unparalleled. These includes the everything from the Makarov on the small end up to and including the DShKM in the heavy category. While in the service, several of my units had foreign weapons in the arms room but we never had any ammunition. At a minimum each student fires:
12.7 x 108 10 rds
7.62 x 54R 150 rds linked
7.62 x 54R 20 rds
7.62 x 51 50 rds
7.62 x 25 144 rds
7.62 x 39 440 rds
5.45 x 39 300 rds
9 x 18 50 rds
9 x 19 250 rds
I have a newfound respect for Soviet-era weapons after this experience, particularly the Makarov due to its implicitly and the PKM due to its reliability. Additionally, I found that the AK family of weapons can be effectively employed if you understand them and apply the fundamentals of marksmanship. The unknown distance range really helped me understand how to use the AK sighting system. I wish I would have taken this course 25 years ago.
This was a great course and I highly recommend it to anyone who requires knowledge of the identification, employment, and maintenance of foreign small arms. Blackheart often tailors this course to the specific requirements of users so don’t hesitate to ask if they can support your requirement.
Thank you to Blackheart International and their entire staff for inviting me to this course and your support throughout the week.
It’s been a long process in finding a new soft armor insert solution for SOCOM’s SPEAR BALCS program. Originally, SOCOM issued the Sources Sought Notice in December of 2010. Finally, on May 16th of this year a contract was awarded to Protective Products Enterprises, Inc with a ceiling of $49,000,000.
As we understand it, criteria for selection was weight, performance (stand alone as well as while in issue carriers) and finally cost/ value to the Government, in that order.
This award is only for the soft armor inserts and not for any carriers which are competed under different contracts.
Deceptex, Hyperstealth’s bold new direction in commercial camouflage production now has revealed its 225th camouflage pattern. The naming convention for the original sets of patterns was based on the NATO phonetic alphabet. This newest bunch has adopted the World War 2-era alphabet. With thousands upon thousands of potential patterns in Hyperstealth’s vault it will be interesting to see what else they release and how they name it.
Whiskey-5 is a recurring SSD feature that asks “Who, What, Where, When, & Why” of industry leaders. It is intended to give you a more in-depth look at the individuals and firms that make our industry unique. We have found that these basic 5 questions are the most basic keys to understanding. Past Whiskey-5s have included such industry heavyweights as Kryptek, Wild Things Tactical, ADS Ventures, First Spear, HyperStealth and many others. Today, we tell you a little more about the sometimes misunderstood Tactical Fanboy, which is associated with this site.
Who Tactical Fanboy. The Lighter Side of Tactical. An unabashed Look at Tacticool.
It’s a part of the SolSys Group serving much the same readership as Soldier Systems Daily—though more during non-duty hours. Tactical Fanboy is written by a cadre of writers and gamers, including current and former military personnel, battle-hardened FPS game veterans and at least one homeless guy in an alley behind an internet cafe. The team is commanded by the ineffable Tactical Fanboy himself, spawn of the Editor at Soldier Systems Daily.
What
The elite (pronounced eeee-light) fighting blogger team at Tactical Fanboy writes about a wide array of things. From weapon and gear news to life skills, movie reviews and television previews, first person shooter game updates to op-ed pieces on everything that our demographic enjoys. To wit, guns, boobs, gear and intel. Information that lets you get your dork on, sneak peaks at kit used operationally in the AOR and on indoor and outdoor MilSim ‘battlefields’ and WARNORDs of approaching game and movie releases. Appropriately curved, scantily clad, sometimes tattooed women (with guns, boobs and gear). Informational articles, weird stuff, op-ed pieces and general interest blog posts come from many different perspectives.
Tactical Fanboy Actual on the job.
In addition to Tactical Fanboy Actual, the team includes (among others) such distinguished individuals as TANSTAAFL, TFB Knuckledragger, Richard “Swingin’ Dick” Kilgore and Jake “Slim” Call (the Mad Duo), Parker, Longbaugh, an Elvis impersonator who has taken every Costa, Hailey, Vickers and Pincus class there is, Packy, Botasky, Darnell Fury (Dalton’s hillbilly cousin), Tarl Cabot and that Asian terrorist who was eating candy bars in Die Hard. We frequently consult other SMEs as needed.
Where
Headquartered in Virginia (and hidden there from the minions of Ninja Force 17), TFB has combat- and nerd- correspondents (frequently irreverent, often horny) all across the country. You will see TFB operatives at SHOT, E3, the NTOA Conference, SOFIC, the Milbloggies, the Consumer Electronics Show…you name it. The goal is to hit you with everything the discerning and rather less than uptight shooter and/gamer might enjoy. Especially guns, gear, boobs and intel.
When
Tactical Fanboy went live in January of 2011, we it’s less than a year and a half old. The very first few posts were presented for the edification and entertainment of its readers on 18 JAN 11. It has been going strong ever since (and in fact last month published its 1,000TH article).
Why
Tactical Fanboy was established when a few industry professionals began to worry that the “lighter” posts on Soldier Systems, which often included ribald or sardonic humor, were detracting from the serious material. In order to maintain one largely SFW, industry-specific daily (SSD), TFB was established. TFB is on the web at www.tacticalfanboy.com and https://www.facebook.com/Tacticalfanboy
