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DBC – Variable Carry Platform Constructed with Curv and shock cord, the Variable Carry Platform flexes and expands to securely fit everything from slim handhelds to larger radios. The rear panel features thick foam padding to eliminate pressure points during extended wear. A separate, reversible hook-and-loop mounting panel allows the VCP to be installed on either the left or right side. dirtybastardscollective.com/variable-carry-platform This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 30th, 2025 at 23:00 and is filed under Comms, Load Carrying. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and…

Chuck out Grandpa’s Army cot — there’s no reason to suffer anymore, backcountry cadet. The built-in suspension and cushion of the REI Co-op Wonderland Comfort Cot add all the comfort and support you’ll need for a supremely elevated camp sleep. While I’m typically more of a camp mattress dweller, I can be convinced into bringing along a camping cot for the added snooze comfort (certainly so when the truck is doing most of the heavy lifting). This past summer, I folded the Wonderland Comfort Cot into my camping excursions across Washington State to see what I’ve been missing out on. …

I have worked in the outdoor industry for almost 14 years now. For those in the industry, you know that means I haven’t paid for a hat in well over a decade. Brands give ’em out like the old lady at your childhood church dished out hard candies. My hat collection has grown to be ridiculously large, and hardly any see the light of day. That isn’t because I don’t wear ball caps. I wear one almost every single day. But I’m picky, have my favorites, and wear them religiously. I’m a creature of habit and stick with the ol’…

Form over fashion is my stance on sunglasses. As an angler, hunter, and outdoorsman, I want something that performs in the field above all else. Appearance and general coolness are the last things I take into account when selecting my next set of shades. Almost all of my sunglasses have a full wrap, which certainly isn’t cool. Some are passable in the looks department, and others are outright dorky. I did, however, marry a bit of a social butterfly. Weddings and business casual dinners are a thing. For some reason, I’m supposed to care about how I look. Thanks to…

ZeroTech Optics has just expanded its 3-12x, second-focal-plane riflescope product line, with new reticle options that include the following new reticles: ZeroTech R3 ZeroTech’s R3 reticle is built all around using MOA as its angular units. The R3 reticle provides a clean sight picture with precise references. There are 1-MOA subtensions, hash marks every 4 MOA, and a floating center dot that easily draws the eye. The ZeroTech R3 reticle teams perfectly with the Vengeance’s compact design, delivering confident wind holds in real-world conditions. ZeroTech PHR 4 The PHR 4 reticle uses a classic approach to a second-focal-plane hunting riflescope.…

The car is racing across the high Utah desert, your foot pressed to the gas, but someone else is steering and you’re blindfolded — like a high-speed trust exercise with an Abu Ghraib aesthetic.  As the hood is pulled from your head, you grab the wheel, scant feet and split seconds for quick decisions as the car speeds toward an obstacle course and makeshift checkpoint. One wrong move and you’ll spin out or end up in the scrub; in the real world, it would be a crash or worse.  It’s a drill meant to press your reaction time and test…

Sleeping Indian Wool – Estela Signature Survival Vest Developed by Sleeping Indian Wool in collaboration with Survival instructor Kevin Estela, this OD colored vest features eight front pockets to provide large carrying capacity for survival equipment as well as a dual zippered rear pouch for flat items like maps, VS-17 Signal Panel, or flat folded survival blanket/tarp. Features: 2 Front Chest Zipper Pockets 4 Front Button Pockets 2 Front Lower Hand Pockets 2 Inner Chest Zipper Pockets with Padding 2 Rear Back Zippers for Storage Lined with Supplex Wind Proofing American Made Wool Brandless Outer Made in Troy, MT sleepingindianshop.com/products/estela-signature-survival-vest…

Harbor Freight is one of my favorite hardware stores, and I spend a considerable amount of time browsing its aisles. For a person who loves both hardware and scavenger hunts, Harbor Freight combines the two in a way Home Depot, Lowe’s, Northern Tool, and Ace Hardware could never. Tools at Harbor Freight fall into three buckets, almost in equal measure: steals of the century, outright junk, and fair only for its modest price. The Gordon 20-in-1 Multi-Tool ($40) lands firmly in the latter with a clunk, although not quite as heavy a clunk as I’d like. I’ve had too many…

Modern bullets like the Hammer (left) and the ELD-X (right) are much better than the old Core-Lokt bullet (center) for modern, fast-twisted rifle cartridges that are so popular today.A closer look at some of the latest developments in ammunition technology.I know folks snort and complain every time a new bullet or cartridge is invented and offered for sale. Thank goodness this was not the trend in 1926 with the .270 Winchester, in 1948 when John Nosler created the Nosler Partition … or in the mid-1980s when Walt Berger pioneered the VLD bullet. All the new cartridges and bullets we’ve seen…

By Massad Ayoob Posted in #History Being a Boomer, I grew up at a time when damn near every able-bodied dad in the neighborhood had served in World War II, and a lot of the younger ones had just come back from the Korean conflict. Souvenirs abounded. Japanese flags, German helmets, assorted edged weapons … and guns, guns, guns. It turns out that it wasn’t just our side that appreciated those souvenirs, either. In 1984, Pantheon Books published “The Good War: An Oral History of World War Two” by Studs Terkel, based on interviews with soldiers, Marines,…