GEMTECH, one of the largest and oldest suppressor manufacturers in the United States, is running a holiday promotion for subscribers to their blog or facebook fans. There will be daily give-aways of their new SILENCER SUBSONIC ammunition line, as well as suppressors(!), shirts, and GEMTECH accessories. Details at www.gem-tech.com and www.facebook.com/gemtech.
Facebook members who like to shoot guns and sport awesome facial hair take heart. There is finally a group for you. The Tactical Beard Owners Club is an invite only group but it is THE place to be if you a rocking a beard. Although many members are German, most communications are in English. They’ve even developed their first run of commemorative patches with different versions for different beard colors.
From the group:
“The “Tactical Beard”: No matter if it is “Face Kevlar” or a “Combat Beard”, a beard seperates boys from men: the more testosterone the more beard will grow and the more he puts up in a fight. True men let grow their beard to let the dust from foreign countries settle in it. A man with beard will be respected by his battle buddies and will be feared by his enemies.“
I’ve had a Vertx Smock prototype for well over a year. It’s served me well and I’ve worn it in a variety of environments. But, for me, there were two issues with the prototype. The first is that the pockets were closed with snaps and the fabric is 50/50 NYCO. Nothing wrong with the NYCO but when combined with the innovative design of the Vertx Smock, it just didn’t seem up to the task. A garment like this needs a softshell fabric and Vertx came through. They have combined the same fabric used on their Gunfighter Storm shirt (anti-microbial 40D face fabric treated with Scholler Nanosphere) and paired it with fleece in the hood and lower cargo pockets which are well suited to warming cold hands.
Almost every other smock I’ve seen on the market follows the traditional styling found on the original British smocks; fixed hood, big chest and hip cargo pockets along with a single FFD pocket on the sleeve. Vertx took an entirely different approach.
Their smock features a removable hood, pit zips (with a mesh liner to keep the nasties out), and pockets. Pockets unlike anything you’ve ever seen. The poacher’s pocket is divided in two and the opening is angled so you can get into it be reaching around behind. On both sides of the hips between the poacher’s pocket and the front hip pockets there are pockets for a single 5.56 magazine, kept at the ready. I am sure users will come up with a myriad of other uses for this pocket as well. The chest and hip pockets are of the patch cargo variety but feature rounded edges so that items won’t get caught in the corner of a pocket and the pleats keep the pockets nice and flat when empty but expand with ample room for your gear. The napoleon style chest pockets also feature integrated magazine pockets.
The bicep pockets aren’t exactly inset but their expansive design is very low profile with a vertical zipper closure. Both bicep pockets feature Velcro fields for ID or other insignia. Also, the elbows are reinforced.
The fit is designed to fit over armor so it’s got plenty of room for additional layers. Additionally, all of the buttons are of the slotted Canadian style so there is little to no chance they will fail. In fact, I’d say the base fabric will give way first.
Battleware caught up with the smock’s creator, Dave Walsh and shot this video of Dave talking about this “wearable go bag’s” various features.
If you’re looking for a combat oriented softshell then this is the one for you. The pocket configuration is unlike anything else you will find out there and this in turn, offers a unique look not found with other garments. Remember, it’s a softshell and priced accordingly. But it’s quality and innovation you are buying.
At this point I haven’t had any wear time with the production version. They just simply aren’t available. But…one lucky SSD reader is going to get a chance to win the very first smock. That’s right, Vertx is sponsoring a contest to give away the first smock out the door.
To enter for your chance to win, visit https://apps.facebook.com/webpromotions/vertxsmock. You’ll need to “like” both Vertx and Soldier Systems Daily. The contest ends on 16 December so go sign up! Visit here for full rules.
BattleComp, a new and very popular compensator on the rifle market, has once again sold out of their BC 2.0 and has also announced they are working on a 24×1.5 AKBC for the near future. The 1.5s are now back in stock and they’re working diligently to restock the others.
Chances are you’ve seen BCs before, even if you weren’t aware that was what you were seeing (they’ve been to Haley, Costa, Rogers, Vickers and other classes, often appearing on instructor rifles). The BattleComp is exactly what the name implies, a “Battle Compensatorâ€. It is not intended to be the best muzzle brake or best flash hider on the market and doesn’t claim to be. However, they do claim to be the best combination of the two, and the most well rounded. Most reports we’ve found seem to support this assertion. (There are two common “schools of thought†when it comes to modifying a rifle barrel—either flash hider or a muzzle brake…BC’s designers basically said, “Why can’t we combine the two?”)
“You can run a dual port break in a shoot house or a target structure,†says Alan Normandy of BattleComp, “but the fireball and the concussion will make people not want to be standing right next to you. You need something to tame the concussion and mitigate the flash. Muzzle brakes as previously designed did nothing about the flash…given the choice between the two, a lot of cops go with flash hiders because they’re cheaper and because they can train to accommodate the recoil management…you can’t train to accommodate flash. We figured, there’s gotta be a way to do both…we should be able to have something acceptable in each category…â€
That led to the development of the BattleComp. Note: the 1.0 is a standard BattleComp. The 1.5 has an extended hood on it so it would meet the 16†barrel length required for people running a 14.5†barrel (surprisingly, this is one of their most popular models). The 2.0, which came out back in January, is starting to outsell the 1.0. It is configured for the addition of a silencer on the end. Most BCs you see will be on AR15s, but they’ve appeared on long guns, FALs, AK74s, 6.8 SPC rifles, the .300 Blackout and other weapons (and is the standard compensator on most War Sport and Legion Firearms rifles).
For more information, check out the BattleComp web page or find them on FaceBook.
-DR
Author and Special Operations veteran Dalton Fury is releasing his latest book; “Black Site: A Delta Force Novel†in late January. To celebrate he is giving away one hell of a prize pack.
Consisting of some of the kit used by Black Site’s hero, Kolt “Racer†Raynor, it contains some of the best-of-the-best gear on the market. The prize includes a Suunto Core All Black Military watch, pair of Salomon XA Pro 3D Mid Assault Boots, and an Arc’teryx Combat Jacket from Ãœber Group. Additionally there are 14 custom tees, two hats, and sticker pack from Black Palm Syndicate. Not to mention a SureFire Pen Glass Breaker, a set of custom Hibben throwing knives, and much more. To enter, pre-order Black Site from Amazon or Barnes & Noble and post the date of order and vendor on Fury’s Facebook event page by Thanksgiving afternoon.
I’ve already entered. Why haven’t you?
782 Gear is increasing their presence on Facebook with product giveaways every week. Available exclusively for their Facebook fans, 782 Gear will be offering their most popular products including their ultra-cool, ultra-warm Grid Lids, Skid Lids, and even the Velocity jackets and heavy-duty Firebase Duffels.
To participate in these drawings, you’ve got to be a fan! Visit their Facebook page and “Like†them. It’s that simple.
Kolbeson Leatherworks is a one-man custom leather and Kydex operation in the great stat of Texas. He makes hand-stitched, hand-crafted carry gear for demanding users one piece at a time, literally in his garage. Some SSD readers may have already heard of him and a few discriminating shooters might already be using his kit. This is one of his most recent pieces, a quad mag pouch (he describes it as the “ever elusive single stack 4-pack). It’s adjustable for a .5â€, .75†or 1†front or rear offset and it has a separate front and rear tension adjustment. It also features an extra set of loops so it can be separated and used as two separate double mag carriers if you’d prefer that.
You can check out Josh Kolbeson’s custom work at www.kolbesonleatherworks.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kolbesonleatherworks.
Make sure you mention SSD, and tell him if you’re military or LE.
OP Tactical is now on Facebook. Be sure to stop by their page and given a “Like.”
www.facebook.com/pages/O-P-Tactical-Inc
