Blackhawk knee pads have proved to be the most popular knee pads in recent years with their V2 Advanced Tactical Knee pad being their latest incarnation. Apart from all the standard features you would expect the Blackhawk knee pads contoured interior ledge prevents the knee pads from slipping down your leg, and when you combine it with the padded side extensions which not only improve positioning and comfort themselves but also allow the straps to be pulled even tighter without causing discomfort then the Blackhawk knee pads really offer one of the most securely positioned pads on the market.
There are also two other kinds of Blackhawk knee pads on the market, the Neoprene knee pads and the Neoprene slip in insert pads specifically designed to complement their Blackhawk performance pant but which are also compatible with the 5.11 Tactical Pants. The Neoprene Blackhawk knee pads are a fantastic option when you don't need or want the bulk of the Advanced Tactical Knee pads. Whilst they may not offer the same level of impact protection as the V2s the Neoprene version gives more than enough padding for comfort when in the kneeling position. One of the major advantages of the Blackhawk neoprene knee pads is they can be worn under a pair of jeans and still be very covert.
For the Ultra stealthy the Slip in Blackhawk Knee inserts are a low profile sheet of neoprene cut to fit the specially designed pockets in the front of the tactical trousers. The neoprene will make the knee slightly more rigid than a normal trouser but other than that will not bulge or distort the line of your trousers to give away the presence of the knee pad below. Obviously these offer the lease protection.
Similar to the range of Blackhawk knee pads they also offer a range of elbow pads based around the same principals. The V2 Advanced Elbow Pad is like the V2 Knee pad with the rigid outer polymer for maximum protection and the neoprene lower profile version for mid level protection and concealment with the extra element of mobility. Blackhawk even do a neoprene elbow insert, though I am not sure how popular this is as even most tactical shirts do not support elbow inserts!
Tuesday, 12 February 2013
Monday, 4 February 2013
Overt V Covert Earpieces
A lot of people user the acoustic style covert earpieces all the time simply because they look a bit more Ally, but are they really as comfortable and do they offer the same level of audio performance as there non covert alternatives?
Covert earpieces are normally a clear acoustic tube which loops over the ear and runs down the back of the neck to a hidden transducer. You can also get the wireless covert ear pieces which are a lot more expensive and consist of a small wireless receiver and speaker in a bud about the size of a baked bean which can we inserted into the ear canal. Wireless earpieces are more covert but will set you back at least £100, normally more like £250 inc a PTT switch and mic etc. The acoustic tube style is only going to set you back less than £20.
The covert tube style earpieces normally come in two styles, with or without PTT mic. Without the PTT & Mic (which should only cost about a tenner) you can plug it into a chest mic, now although this kind of defeats the "Covert" element of the earpiece I have seen a lot of operators do it based on the fact they prefer the light weight comfort and fit of the acoustic tube and in ear bud (or gel insert) over the overt G and D shape earpieces. The downside can be a loss of sound quality over the D and G Shape Earpieces, esp with the use of the in ear bud which fully blocks the ear canal, however I have found that by investing in a good quality product there is no loss of volume or clarity with a covert acoustic tube and a definite increase in comfort.
The third type of covert earpiece is an alternative approach, rather than trying to hide the earpiece, try and disguise it! These earpieces are designed to look like commercial headphones for MP3 players or Ipods. They might come in white, or another funky colour allowing the wearer to "hide in plain site".
Friday, 25 January 2013
Military Boots
When it comes to military boots I have already reviewed Lowa, Danner and Bates Military boots but there are a raft of army and military boot companies out there that have yet to get a mention and the different styles of military footwear they offer, and more excitingly the boots they are about to offer!
The biggest brands in traditional military boots are probably; Lowa, Altbergy, Danner, Meindl, Hanwag and Haix. As you can see it is a landscape predominately dominated German made boots! Not really a surprise there, the Alpine manufacturing heritage and a traditional German eye for quality has established the brands in the hearts and minds of military personnel the world over. The one notable exception exception is Danner which is a US brand (though only their upper tier models are actually hand made in the US).
Currently most military boots come in the traditional black leather, or black leather and nylon, or desert suede/desert suede and nylon combinations. Some manufacturers have experimented with different camouflage patterns, including Hi Tec Magnum who went all out with their full Crye Multicam boot which even had a multicam sole! The sole was made with different colour rubber blocks fused together, rather than just being panted on, meaning that the pattern would never wear off even as the sole wore down. Whilst this innovation was pretty neat this boot sadly proved ultimately unpopular with the military due to its high price and a few durability issues. The latest colour innovation in military boots is a new brown colour, designed to complement the Multi-Terrain Pattern used by the British military. The advantage of the brown boot over the old school black military boot is that it doesn't have the stark contrast line where the boot meets the trousers, and also the brown itself blends much more effectively with a wider range of backgrounds and terrains than black, desert or even Multicam making it much more versatile boot for military personnel. This new brown boot is going to be the official MOD issue boot going forward.
One of the up and coming players in the military boot markets is YDS a Turkish based company which has enjoyed a lot of success in the international tender business and is looking to make headway in the UK. A lesser known brand in the retail side of the military boot industry YDS are looking to grow their presence through a select number of retailers as they continue their approaches to the UK MOD boot tenders. Having spoken to YDS and inspected their products I am really quite impressed with what they are offering, direct injection sole units, full genuine Gore-Tex breathable waterproof bootie, high quality leather uppers and a price that compares more with a Magnum Police boot than a Lowa military boot.
The biggest brands in traditional military boots are probably; Lowa, Altbergy, Danner, Meindl, Hanwag and Haix. As you can see it is a landscape predominately dominated German made boots! Not really a surprise there, the Alpine manufacturing heritage and a traditional German eye for quality has established the brands in the hearts and minds of military personnel the world over. The one notable exception exception is Danner which is a US brand (though only their upper tier models are actually hand made in the US).
Currently most military boots come in the traditional black leather, or black leather and nylon, or desert suede/desert suede and nylon combinations. Some manufacturers have experimented with different camouflage patterns, including Hi Tec Magnum who went all out with their full Crye Multicam boot which even had a multicam sole! The sole was made with different colour rubber blocks fused together, rather than just being panted on, meaning that the pattern would never wear off even as the sole wore down. Whilst this innovation was pretty neat this boot sadly proved ultimately unpopular with the military due to its high price and a few durability issues. The latest colour innovation in military boots is a new brown colour, designed to complement the Multi-Terrain Pattern used by the British military. The advantage of the brown boot over the old school black military boot is that it doesn't have the stark contrast line where the boot meets the trousers, and also the brown itself blends much more effectively with a wider range of backgrounds and terrains than black, desert or even Multicam making it much more versatile boot for military personnel. This new brown boot is going to be the official MOD issue boot going forward.
One of the up and coming players in the military boot markets is YDS a Turkish based company which has enjoyed a lot of success in the international tender business and is looking to make headway in the UK. A lesser known brand in the retail side of the military boot industry YDS are looking to grow their presence through a select number of retailers as they continue their approaches to the UK MOD boot tenders. Having spoken to YDS and inspected their products I am really quite impressed with what they are offering, direct injection sole units, full genuine Gore-Tex breathable waterproof bootie, high quality leather uppers and a price that compares more with a Magnum Police boot than a Lowa military boot.
Thursday, 17 January 2013
Gerber Multiplier Reviews
Gerber seemed like the next logical progression in my blog since we looked at Leatherman last week. The full title of the company is "Gerber Legendary Blades Inc." but to most people they are just "Gerber" (weirdly pronounced "Jerber" by some!!)
Gerber have been around a lot longer than Leatherman, the company being established in 1939 when Joseph Gerber made sets of hand crafted kitchen knives for some of the customers of the then advertising business and the range was picked up by Abbercrombie and Fitch for distribution. The Gerber brand was purchased by Swedish company Friskars (who also produce the Friskars range of gardening tools; sheers, loppers, pruning blades etc.) in 1987 and Gerber is now the second biggest multiplier brand in the world. Recently Gerber have teamed up with former chief scout, SAS reservist and legendary outdoors-man Bear Grylls as a marketing tactic including launching a range of specialist Bear Grylls Knives designed for the outdoors, camping and survival enthusiast.
Currently Gerber hold the MOD contract for the issued mulitool to UK soldiers and marines with the Black Gerber Crucial with strap cutter being the chosen model. This is a particularly fantasitc bit of kit and if I didn't already own a Gerber Bear Grylls Ultimate Multitool and a Gerber Strap cutter with window break I would certainly invest in one of these! This model is based on the standard Gerber Crucial, but is finished in "Tactical Black" and they have replaced the carabiner/bottle opener with a strap cutter. Now I know a lot of people probably mourn the loss of the bottle opener more than they value the addition of the strap cutter...after all what's the point in living through a car accident if you can't enjoy a beer after right! But seriously, the strap cutter is a great addition and is indispensable for police, military, fire and rescue or ambulance and paramedics (and there are still plenty of tools on the crucial that you can use to pop a beer bottle top ;) )
Gerber also do the Diesel multitool in black which has more tools than the Crucial but doesn't have the "crucial" strap cutter if you will excuse the pun!
Along side the multpliers there is also a wide selection of knives, including the hinderer rescue series, available in red and yellow for the emergency services and as ever a matt black finish for the military.
Gerber have been around a lot longer than Leatherman, the company being established in 1939 when Joseph Gerber made sets of hand crafted kitchen knives for some of the customers of the then advertising business and the range was picked up by Abbercrombie and Fitch for distribution. The Gerber brand was purchased by Swedish company Friskars (who also produce the Friskars range of gardening tools; sheers, loppers, pruning blades etc.) in 1987 and Gerber is now the second biggest multiplier brand in the world. Recently Gerber have teamed up with former chief scout, SAS reservist and legendary outdoors-man Bear Grylls as a marketing tactic including launching a range of specialist Bear Grylls Knives designed for the outdoors, camping and survival enthusiast.
Currently Gerber hold the MOD contract for the issued mulitool to UK soldiers and marines with the Black Gerber Crucial with strap cutter being the chosen model. This is a particularly fantasitc bit of kit and if I didn't already own a Gerber Bear Grylls Ultimate Multitool and a Gerber Strap cutter with window break I would certainly invest in one of these! This model is based on the standard Gerber Crucial, but is finished in "Tactical Black" and they have replaced the carabiner/bottle opener with a strap cutter. Now I know a lot of people probably mourn the loss of the bottle opener more than they value the addition of the strap cutter...after all what's the point in living through a car accident if you can't enjoy a beer after right! But seriously, the strap cutter is a great addition and is indispensable for police, military, fire and rescue or ambulance and paramedics (and there are still plenty of tools on the crucial that you can use to pop a beer bottle top ;) )
Gerber also do the Diesel multitool in black which has more tools than the Crucial but doesn't have the "crucial" strap cutter if you will excuse the pun!
Along side the multpliers there is also a wide selection of knives, including the hinderer rescue series, available in red and yellow for the emergency services and as ever a matt black finish for the military.
Monday, 7 January 2013
Leatherman Multitools
The term Leatherman has become synonymous with all multitools, whether made by leatherman or not, much like the words Biro or Hoover are used to describe all ball point pens or vacuum cleaners.
Leatherman were the first company to pioneer what was originally termed the "Boy Scout Knife with Pliers" back in 1983 with the launch of what was marketed as the PST or Pocket Survival Tool by the Leatherman Tool Group. The novel idea surged in popularity selling tens of thousands of units in the first few years alone.
Today Leatherman offer a wide selection of hunting and survival knives alongside their traditional multitools but maintain a specialist range of police and military tools which enjoy an outstanding reputation.
There are a wide range of cheap imitation Leatherman multitools available on the market retailing at a fraction of the costs, often found near the checkout of outdoors shops or petrol stations. The old adadge of "You get what you pay for" however has never been truer though and you will probably be quite quickly disappointed with the build quality and longevity of the economy alternative. In fact you will most likely find it a false economy as the blade blunts and distorts and the screwdriver heads twist and shred. The extra investment in a high quality brand like Gerber or Leatherman is really worth it in the long run, especially if you use it a lot, or need to entrust your life, or the lives of others too your multi tool.
Leatherman do offer a range of tools to accommodate most budgets and needs, from key ring sized "Gift" type multi pliers to the everything you could need "Charge TTI" featuring 19 unique tools in one and the specialist MUT, MUT EOD and OHT military products...and they have even introduced their womens specific "Pink" range of light weight
Leatherman were the first company to pioneer what was originally termed the "Boy Scout Knife with Pliers" back in 1983 with the launch of what was marketed as the PST or Pocket Survival Tool by the Leatherman Tool Group. The novel idea surged in popularity selling tens of thousands of units in the first few years alone.
Today Leatherman offer a wide selection of hunting and survival knives alongside their traditional multitools but maintain a specialist range of police and military tools which enjoy an outstanding reputation.
There are a wide range of cheap imitation Leatherman multitools available on the market retailing at a fraction of the costs, often found near the checkout of outdoors shops or petrol stations. The old adadge of "You get what you pay for" however has never been truer though and you will probably be quite quickly disappointed with the build quality and longevity of the economy alternative. In fact you will most likely find it a false economy as the blade blunts and distorts and the screwdriver heads twist and shred. The extra investment in a high quality brand like Gerber or Leatherman is really worth it in the long run, especially if you use it a lot, or need to entrust your life, or the lives of others too your multi tool.
Leatherman do offer a range of tools to accommodate most budgets and needs, from key ring sized "Gift" type multi pliers to the everything you could need "Charge TTI" featuring 19 unique tools in one and the specialist MUT, MUT EOD and OHT military products...and they have even introduced their womens specific "Pink" range of light weight
Tuesday, 11 December 2012
Handcuffs
Police issue handcuffs vary dramatically from force to force and even by each new recruit intake. It was originally the company Hiatt that made the vast majority of the "Rigid" handcuffs that most police officers love, also known as the "Speedcuff". The old style Hiatt cuffs were designed with a solid central piece of ergonomically designed plastic between the two end "bracelets" which is designed to be gripped in one hand by the responsible officer for maximum control of the detainee.
As you can see from the image the central "grip" is curved to fit comfortably and securely in the hand.
This model of handcuff is hard to come by as Hiatt & Co have now gone out of business, and when they closed down they still held the patent on the specific style. For a long time there was nothing quite like it on the market, although the company TCH now make a very similar handcuff for which they must have found a solution to the original patent problem to produce.
In the interim it fell to US company ASP Inc. (Armament Systems and Procedures) to produce its range of semi-rigid handcuffs. Asp cuffs were hinged to fold in the middle which made them compact and convenient to wear on a belt and due to the bi-lateral only movement in the hinge allowed a fair degree of control of the detainee when gripping the centre of the handcuff. The hinge of course did reduce the control compared the the Hiatt Speedcuff design.
ASP also produce a range of chain link cuffs as well as plastic restraints or as they are more colloquially known - plasticuffs . Both the rigid and chain link handcuffs as well as the plasticuffs are available in tactical black as well as what seems like an odd choice - bright yellow! The bright yellow colouring however serves a purpose and these are know in the trade as "identifier cuffs" as it makes a detainee more visible. There are also in fact bright pink handcuffs which have been adopted by some prison services in an effort to reduce the "tough guy" image of a prisoner being detained in cuffs and make them embarrassed to be seen in the bright pink bracelets.
This model of handcuff is hard to come by as Hiatt & Co have now gone out of business, and when they closed down they still held the patent on the specific style. For a long time there was nothing quite like it on the market, although the company TCH now make a very similar handcuff for which they must have found a solution to the original patent problem to produce.
In the interim it fell to US company ASP Inc. (Armament Systems and Procedures) to produce its range of semi-rigid handcuffs. Asp cuffs were hinged to fold in the middle which made them compact and convenient to wear on a belt and due to the bi-lateral only movement in the hinge allowed a fair degree of control of the detainee when gripping the centre of the handcuff. The hinge of course did reduce the control compared the the Hiatt Speedcuff design.
ASP also produce a range of chain link cuffs as well as plastic restraints or as they are more colloquially known - plasticuffs . Both the rigid and chain link handcuffs as well as the plasticuffs are available in tactical black as well as what seems like an odd choice - bright yellow! The bright yellow colouring however serves a purpose and these are know in the trade as "identifier cuffs" as it makes a detainee more visible. There are also in fact bright pink handcuffs which have been adopted by some prison services in an effort to reduce the "tough guy" image of a prisoner being detained in cuffs and make them embarrassed to be seen in the bright pink bracelets.
Wednesday, 5 December 2012
Cadet Boots
When it comes to buying Cadet boots price has got to be a major consideration. Between the ages of 12 and 18 most peoples feet continue growing rapidly so investing a lot in a pair of boots that will only last 6-8 months before the cadet out grows them is really not necessary. Chances are the cadet will need larger pair of boots before the boots start to fail them in the field, especially if they are only parading once a or twice a week with the odd camp once or twice a year.
For most cadets, black "uniform" looking boots will be sufficient. A leather or "action leather" toe that can get a nice shine for parade and mainly leather side construction, at least below the line of bloused combats any way will be all that is needed. Sole wise something with a fairly chunky tread pattern for grip on mud, grass or gravel when on exercise is going to cover most needs. A highly slip resistant compound with SRA, B or C rating wont really be necessary for a cadets needs whether they are police or army, or any other branch (ACF, RAF, Marines etc.)
With that in mind a passable pair of light weight cadet boots would be something from the Grafters Range which are all under £50 and should last as long as the cadet still fits into them (but possibly not that much longer). For a few quid more you can splash out on a pair of Magnums or Bates boots, which are much more popular with the serving uniformed services and have a good reputation as cadet boots for their durability and suitability. Magnum and Bates tend to use more whole grain leather, or higher quality action leathers which do tend to polish up a lot better for parade and you can get a decent bull on the toe then as well.
Once cadets reach the age of 16 or a bit older their feet may have stopped growing and investing in a pair of Lowas might not seem so silly if a future career in the forces beckons or even if they for see an active outdoor lifestyle with hiking etc. being a regular activity in the future. Or if their parents are particularly minted a pair of Danner Acadia Boots would probably do down a treat with any cadet lucky enough to find them under the tree on Christmas morning.
For most cadets, black "uniform" looking boots will be sufficient. A leather or "action leather" toe that can get a nice shine for parade and mainly leather side construction, at least below the line of bloused combats any way will be all that is needed. Sole wise something with a fairly chunky tread pattern for grip on mud, grass or gravel when on exercise is going to cover most needs. A highly slip resistant compound with SRA, B or C rating wont really be necessary for a cadets needs whether they are police or army, or any other branch (ACF, RAF, Marines etc.)
With that in mind a passable pair of light weight cadet boots would be something from the Grafters Range which are all under £50 and should last as long as the cadet still fits into them (but possibly not that much longer). For a few quid more you can splash out on a pair of Magnums or Bates boots, which are much more popular with the serving uniformed services and have a good reputation as cadet boots for their durability and suitability. Magnum and Bates tend to use more whole grain leather, or higher quality action leathers which do tend to polish up a lot better for parade and you can get a decent bull on the toe then as well.
Once cadets reach the age of 16 or a bit older their feet may have stopped growing and investing in a pair of Lowas might not seem so silly if a future career in the forces beckons or even if they for see an active outdoor lifestyle with hiking etc. being a regular activity in the future. Or if their parents are particularly minted a pair of Danner Acadia Boots would probably do down a treat with any cadet lucky enough to find them under the tree on Christmas morning.
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