Tactical Gear

CSM New Drop Pouch

I recently found myself in the need for a high quality dump pouch for an upcoming work related assignment. Before I had one of those dump pouches that fold up into a dip can sized ball but after digging through my “war trunk” here in Iraq I realized I must have forgotten to pack it.

No great loss, I didn’t like that dump pouch anyway. The material was way too thin so when I ran, the weight of the empty mags would cause the pouch to annoyingly flop around. Also you had to have the skills of an origami master to fold it back up and latch it with one hand.

Anyway, I ran across CSM Tactical Gear on Facebook [I think one of my friends posted their link or something] – I had never heard of them before but they had a cool logo [a sure sign of good gear – lol] so I decided to check them out. After hitting their website I noticed that CSM has a pretty pimp looking Dump Pouch called the “New Drop Pouch” that looked like just what I needed.

The CSM New Drop Pouch is made of 1000D Cordura with 3 rows of PALS webbing on the front. It is additionally lined with 410D Pack Cloth that has a rim you can tighten with a bungee cinch drawstring closure. It also has a few drainage holes on the bottom, both on the exterior and liner. The pouch easily rolls up one-handed and is held closed by a Velcro arm.

But there are 3 features that make the CSM New Drop Pouch stand out from the Dump Pouch crowd:

Click Here to Keep Reading – TACTICAL GEAR: CSM New Drop Pouch >>>

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The Zulu RDK Carrier on James G uses on his Contractor BOB in Iraq

If you are like me you probably suffer from “CTMSS” or “Carry Too Much Shit Syndrome” when it comes to loading up your kit. One of the more extreme examples of CTMSS in my case is the amount of medical supplies I carry in my IFAK (Individual First Aid Kit).

Over the years it has become ridiculously packed with medical shit I have swapped, acquired or been issued. Its been getting to the point where I probably couldn’t even fit a thermometer into it, and even worse it looked like I had a backpack hooked to the side of my chest rig.

So when the boys over at Zulu Nylon Gear sent over one of their RDK Carriers I figured this was a good a time as any to lighten my load and move some of the stuff in my IFAK into a separate pouch.

The RDK Carrier was made to fit the contents of RSKTKR Medical’s [a tactical school run by an ex-security contractor] “RSKTKR Down Kit” [a kit similar to the Army’s IFAK but with better supplies].

The RDK Carrier is a straight-forward IFAK pouch that does exactly what it is supposed to do – give you quick one handed [via a red pull handle] access to your IFAK Contents.

Click Here to Keep Reading – TACTICAL GEAR: Zulu RDK Carrier – Field Tested >>

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tactical bags – great for carrying your shit and bastardising your favorite childhood tv show

TACTICAL GEAR: Bag Whores – Part 1
TACTICAL GEAR: Bag Whores – Part 2

I promised to wrap up my review of bags with another installment. Sorry it took me so long but I’ve been busy setting up and traveling on a long business trip in the USA.

There are several brands I did not mention so far; again just because they are not in part III, does not mean anything negative.

Keep in mind that I mostly review bags which I have owned and not just what I find on the Internet. I am also interested in keeping this series/thread open for some more reviews.

Click Here to Keep Reading – TACTICAL GEAR: I’m a Bag Whore – part 3 >>>

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Cotton Prices, Moving on up – but not to the west side

Lately I have been hearing some scuttlebutt within the tactical clothing industry about worldwide cotton shortages and large scale textile factory closings all over the world (as many as 1/3d of the textile factories in China have shut down due to this), this is causing production delays in cotton based tactical clothing manufacturing both in the domestic and international textile manufacturing market.

The current cotton shortages are a result of 3 straight years of poor cotton crop yields due to boll weevils (a beetle that eats cotton bulbs) and poor weather conditions in cotton growing regions (some foreign manufactures, notably in India, are also blaming import and trade restrictions). So we are now seeing cotton jumping from the low 30’s in February to well over 50$ now.

Because of the above some tactical clothing manufactures are seeing deliveries pushed back 3 to 6 months along with a substantial price increase. That means we (the consumer) will start to see a price increase and general shrinkage of supply around the 4th quarter of the year.

Tactical Clothing Industry insiders have told me we are looking at about a 25% increase in tactical clothing prices by the end of this year (40 dollar pants will end up costing around 50 bucks a pair).

And this does not just involve the tactical clothing industry, expect to see the price of everything manufactured with cotton go up. Jeans, winter jackets, socks, underwear, t-shirts, children’s clothing, patches and even magazines.

So – What does this mean to you, the consumer?

Click Here to keep Reading – TACTICAL GEAR: Expect to See a Rise in Prices and a Shortage of Tactical Clothing in the Near Future >>>

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Contrary to popular belief Tactical watches don’t have to be rubber, plastic or digital

Several weeks ago James asked me to write an article on tactical watches. I apologize for the delay but every time I sat down to write on it, I found an excuse to procrastinate: too much information, too many choices!

Part 1 of this series will cover: Rolex, Panerai, Bell & Ross, and Sinn. Part 2: 5.11, Luminox, G-Shock, and MTM. Part 3: will look into some interesting brands most of us haven’t even heard of. The jewelry market is too big to cover every brand so I will not discuss AP, Blancpain, Breitling, Citizen, JLC, Omega, Seiko, etc. I do not want to write a Wikipedia article here.

In addition it does not make sense to review the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Survivor, adding it to the list of tactical watches, as not many DVM readers might be able to afford one. It reminds me of a recent letter from a Cigar Aficionada reader complaining that reviewers only review gadgets way out of reach for the average cigar smoker. We at DVM don’t do that!

Now, be careful though: buying a cheap time-piece it may cost you over the years – you might want to invest into an “expensive” watch once in your life and keep it as long as possible… I made a lot of stupid investments with knives, thankfully less with flashlights, and basically none with my watches: don’t spend your money on too many cheap ones instead of getting a better one for the same amount!

Click Here to Keep Reading – TACTICAL GEAR: Watches for the International Operator >>>

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