FirstSpear

SORD USA – It’s On

April 7th, 2011

The US subsidiary of the Australian gear company SORD (Special Operations Research & Development) has been around for awhile but it was more of a distributor. Now, all of that has changed with the launching of a production facility in Kentucky. SORD was originally founded by Australian Special Forces veterans and SORD USA is no different. In fact, you may have noticed some of the clothing and equipment being used by Jason of RedbackOne Training. It was manufactured by SORD and together they provide a single solution for both tactical equipment and training.

At the official opening of the 15,000 sq. ft. facility in Frankfort, Kentucky on March 16, Kentucky Governor, Steve Beshear, remarked that, “I’m pleased to welcome SORD KY to the Commonwealth as Frankfort’s newest corporate citizen.” “This new manufacturing, warehousing and distribution facility, the company’s first in the U.S., will have a positive economic impact. We’re pleased to partner with SORD in this effort to help bring dozens of new jobs to Frankfort.”

There is a lot of good that can come of this. Aside from the creation of new jobs, SORD has already shown that they are an international player in the Soldier Systems market with their win in the Canadian Modular Fighting Rig. Having a US facility will allow them to compete for US contracts with Berry compliant products. Additionally, they will be able to work more closely with US units to produce specialized kit in much the same manner that the support the Australian military.

Products will initially be available in SORD Base Color (SBC), Black, Multicamâ„¢ and A-TACSâ„¢.

www.SORDUSA.com

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Posted in Industry | 3 Comments »

Italian Future Soldier System to Feature TenCate Defender-M Fabric

April 6th, 2011

TenCate Protective Fabrics EMEA has announced that it has an initial order from the Italian manufacturer Aero Sekur S.p.A (Aprilia, Italy) for the delivery of enough of their Defender-M fabric to produce 600 uniforms for use in the Italian ‘Soldier of the Future’ program called Forza NEC (Network Enabled Capability). Aero Sekur is responsible for the clothing and NBC components of Forza NEC. Each kit includes two combat suits, one over-garment, three types of boots, one sniper poncho, one NBC protective suit, and an NBC mask and filter. This photo shows the NBC ensemble.

TenCate Protective Fabrics EMEA Marketing & Sales Director Ramon Overdijk commented to Reuters, “Fire-resistant TenCate Defender(TM) M proved to be the decisive factor during the wide-ranging selection by the Italian Ministry of Defence of a fabric that is both fire-resistant and comfortable, so lightweight. TenCate is able to provide the fabric in a variety of camouflage patterns or supply it in several solid colours. This makes the fabric versatile in its use for the protection of several branches of the armed forces, such as the army, special units, air force and navy.”

TenCate’s Defender-M is used in the US Army’s FR ACU as well as the USMC’s FROG ensemble.

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Posted in Clothing, FR | Comments Off on Italian Future Soldier System to Feature TenCate Defender-M Fabric

Rocky Boot Giveaway Winner Chosen

April 6th, 2011

Thanks to Tactical Distributors for providing a pair of Rocky C4 Trainers as a giveaway to a lucky SSD reader. Lied, the winner was chosen at 1600 GMT today by random drawing and contacted via email. We want to thank everyone who entered. Some of you guys have got some big feet!

The C4 Trainer was released at SHOT Show and is currently in a very limited release. Tactical Distributors is one of the only places you can get them.

www.tacticaldistributors.com

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Posted in Boots, Contest | 2 Comments »

Magpul Heavy

April 6th, 2011

What do you get when you combine a kickass team of small arms design and manufacturing specialists with a love of motorcycles? You get Magpul Heavy, home of the the Ronin motorcycle. We wrote about the Ronin during SHOT Show 2010. The Ronin started life as a Buell 1125R sport bike (no longer in production) and then received the “Magpul” treatment.

While Ronin is an experiment, so to speak, we would certainly like to see Magpul continue to carry on with similar projects. Go see for yourself what we are talking about and let them know if you’d like one.

www.MagpulHeavy.com or on Facebook

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Posted in Off-Duty | 9 Comments »

Flash Lite FR Baselayer Series from 782 Gear

April 6th, 2011

782 Gear has released their new FR Baselayer series called Flash Lite. The designs feature their CMF (Comfort Map Fit) with off-shoulder seaming, Polartec® Power Dry® FR fabrics with anti-microbial protection, and cover-stitched hems and sleeves. What’s more, they look good.

The line includes several styles:

• FR Balaclava
• FR Skid Lid
• Short and Long Sleeve Crew
• Hybrid 1/4 Zip Long Sleeve
• BAC (Body Armor Compatible) 1/4 Zip

Polartec® Power Dry ®FR fabric meets the following standards:
• NFPA 70E HRC 1 and HRC 2
• ASTM 1506
• ANSI 107-2004
• ASTM D6413
• ISO 14116 (EN533)
• ISO 11612 (EN531)

Stop by www.782gear.com to learn more.

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Posted in Clothing, FR | 1 Comment »

P2 Systems Armor

April 5th, 2011

Defense Review’s David Crane caught up with Personal Protective Systems at SHOT Show. Their stuff has sure come a long way since I first met them a few years ago. Dave has been raving about their latest armor and looking at his photos, I can see why. They are definitely taking their kit to the next level. I don’t want to steal any of his thunder so please, read his review here.

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XM25 Video

April 5th, 2011

PEO Soldier released a video the other day of the XM25 Counter Defilade Target Engagement System.

XM25 from PEO Soldier on Vimeo.

Much ado has been made about the blast pattern of the 25mm round but ultimately, you have to remember that this is a smart weapon. The round is designed to deliver the minimum effective munition to detonate right on target in order to generate as little collateral damage as possible. Perhaps the intent is that the weapon will do it all for the Grenadier so that all he has to do is point at the target, pull the trigger and the target will be destroyed. But, much like the current M203 and M320 40mm grenade launchers, you can hand it to a guy and he will make some noise or you can train the guy up and he can put a round into a second story window from a block away. It all comes down to training and experience. So if the blast pattern has some idiosyncrasies, a good gunner can use those to his advantage. Time will tell.

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Esther Gear – Concealed Carry for the Ladies

April 5th, 2011

A lady might carry a gun but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t want to carry it in a good looking bag. Esther Gear builds bags that can’t quite be described as traditional purses but are definitely outdoor chic meaning, you wouldn’t wear them for a night on the town, but make great EDC bags paired with a Gore-tex jacket.

Their Haddasah purse features ample storage. It conceals a handgun in its own separate pocket and holster and also includes a secure zip pocket for important items such as a check book and wallet. There is also an outside pocket that closes with a magnetic closure and buckle. Finally, two hung pockets are located between the main zipper compartment and outside pocket for phone and keys.

Check them out at esthergear.com.

Note: The ladies we spoke with informed us that the bright colors looked less conspicuous than the black models.

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Posted in For the Ladies, Packs, weapons | 1 Comment »

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