Good Tips, the knowledge thread

[ZULU]

Get fit before you go on extended excercise!

[apod]

Good tip about the cyalume and tent pegs Docman.But i am sorry i cant agree with your other points.The poncho is never used as a waterproof by us fulltimers except in Liberia where the waterproofs are too hot.Bashas have been used since 1998 in the PDF cos they are LIGHTER than the poncho and also they dont have an annoying hood to tie off that can possibly let in water.Paracord weighs less than bungies and it is easier to roll up a basha with paracord attached than with bungies.If you tie off the basha cords at the correct tension it will NOT sag(trust me)also it is just as easy to lower the basha during daylight hours by opening the quick release knots and loosening the cord.Not that bashas should be left up at all during daylight.
Sometime i will show you how to set up a basha like this Docman and i am sure you will be pleasently surprised.

On the brewing up thing,another trick is to place a boil in the bag meal inside your preheated unbreakable steal flask and fill with boiling water before you go on patrol/leave camp.The meal slowly cooks as you are on the move so that when you get to your destination you pour out the water into a thermal mug for a brew and the cooked meal can than be removed.
:biggrin
p.s when i said bin it people i meant leave it at home,not actually bin it!!!!!!!!!!! i.e dont **** out the taxpayers property!

[Docman]

But im sorry i cant agree with your other points.The poncho is never used as a waterproof by us fulltimers except in Liberia where the waterproofs are too hot.Bashas have been used since 1998 in the pdf cos they are LIGHTER than the poncho !

Ok, the big difference here may be the fact that I used the US Army Poncho which when folded takes up less space than my fist and weighs nothing. I don't have an issued Poncho so can't compare

[apod]

Ok,fair point. I also omitted to mention that the method of making an Apex basha as described is the one i have personally used for years and not once has it sagged and let in water.And to finally put this to bed when i first joined up i used to use the bungie method and it takes much longer to erect and take down than what i do now.
Each to their own though
Other helpfull hints ?Lets see ?Oh yeah .Keep a handfull of the handy wipes outta the ration packs in a small ziploc bag in the upper left sleeve pocket of the smock for when nature calls.No rummaging in bergans for packets etc.
Dont wear the issue dpm shirt under your smock when on the ground.It is made of cotton poplin and is slow to dry.Leave it in the bergan and just wear a driflo (long sleeve or short weather dependant)under the smock.When you get into your basecamp .if you are going nowhere for a while.Remove your sweat soaked smock and driflo and replace with another driflo and dpm shirt(sleeves down!).Now you are dry ,and still in "dpm outer",
and your smock/driflo have a chance to dry out.Before you go back out on patrol etc ,change back.

[HavocIRL]

Never drink out of your own water bottle. When someone starts to drink out of one of theirs pass it out among the rest of the section until its empty. Means theres either full or empty canteens in the section and therefore no sloshing noises when patrolling.

[MOD: IMO does not promote the sharing of waterbottles, it spreads diseases very rapidly]

[MOB87]

a platypus/camelbak type item with all the air sucked out will also be silent & wont pass on coldsores (herpes virus) to the entire section

[DeV]

Havoc - that has potential to spread various disease around the entire section and instead of one person being down to the trots you have a whole section. Any medic will tell you that.

[HavocIRL]

Well then don't share your waterbottle with people with veneral diseases. I've done it for 3 years and never got as much as a sniffle from it.

[The Joker]

Havoc - that has potential to spread various disease around the entire section and instead of one person being down to the trots you have a whole section. Any medic will tell you that.

Aye.

[greyfox]

if you cant heat up your rations put them inside your smock better then eating them cold.,
learn how to tie some different types of knots (also handy for S&M at base camp),
a secatuers on your webbing is an invaluable piece of equipment ,
if it is likely to be lost tie it to yourself using those handy knots you have just learned

[spider pig]

Keep all your spair clothing in zip lock bags to stop them getting wet

[Jimmy C]

Ditch the hexi.

[Barry]

If you're rich, get one of these: http://www.jetboil.com/Products/Cook.../Personal-(PCS)

Great Outdoors in Dublin do them. Very much worth it. Get the stand (goes onto the bottom of the cylinder to stop it falling over) and pot support (lets you use a metal mug/mess tin instead of the jetboil cup) too.

[spider pig]

i dont know barry about that one.From the pics it looks fairly big.Maybe you can give measurements??

[ZULU]

You could always use the gas cylinder as an improvised incendry booby trap if it was ever needed!!! LOL - as if

[X-RayOne]

"i dont know barry about that one.From the pics it looks fairly big.Maybe you can give measurements??"

its tall when all set up, if you use the mug that comes with it. but not too bad with a metal 58 pattern style mug.

when its all dis-assembled and stored together you will fit it into a PLCE utility/waterbottle pouch no problem and will also have space in the pouch for your rations meal and some of the other bits and pieces from the ration pack that aren't in your combat jacket i.e. sweets, chocolate.

essentially you will get your cooker, cup, eating utensils and 24 hr rations into one pouch and one jacket pocket!

and it is very fast at brewing up the rations. in a nice sheltered spot you will have a boil in the bag meal and water for a brew after done in less than two minutes from putting it on the flame.

takes regular butane screw on gas cylinders so buy a couple of them and you wont run out.

[Barry]

and it is very fast at brewing up the rations. in a nice sheltered spot you will have a boil in the bag meal and water for a brew after done in less than two minutes from putting it on the flame.

While the jetboil is very fast at boiling water, it takes a while for the water to heat the bag. What I do is I put the bag in the jetboil cup, half fill it with water, put the lid on and heat it until it boils. Then turn it off and leave it for 5 minutes or so (sort out some other piece of personal admin while you're waiting). Then turn it back on, bring the water to the boil again (should take less than 30 seconds, since the cup is so well insulated), turn off, take out boil in the bag, and make yourself a cup of tea. Saves you wasting fuel by keeping the water boiling.

As far as fuel goes, I recently took an old fuel canister (100 grams) that was less than half full, and decided to burn it off. I was 40 minutes standing in my back garden watching it burn. You'll easily get 80 minutes out of a 100 g canister, and it boils half a litre of water in 4 minutes max, so a canister lasts a long time.....

EDIT: Oh, and prepare to become the brew bitch if you're ever staying static for any length of time. Especially if there are officers around.

[DeV]

When you are going to be active (patrolling, section attack, route march) dress down - T-Shirt / Dryflo top of what ever and smock / shirt (depending on the dress).

When you stop (say back at base camp after stand to) - change any damp clothes (if not planning to go back out for a while) and dress up (add warm clothing).

[apod]

When you are going to be active (patrolling, section attack, route march) dress down - T-Shirt / Dryflo top of what ever and smock / shirt (depending on the dress).

When you stop (say back at base camp after stand to) - change any damp clothes (if not planning to go back out for a while) and dress up (add warm clothing).

Thought i already said that?No harm reiterating the point though
One thing though.Dont use the issue cotton t-shirts (or any cotton t-shirt )on the ground.All they do is soak up sweat and they take hours to dry out.Dri-flo or similar is the way to go.Keep the cotton t-shirts for bk wear.
Another helpfull hint is what to do if your boots(esp goretex ones) get soaked.If you can afford them goretex socks or boot liners are a great idea.Simply change into dry socks,after powdering your feet,and then put on the boot liners .Put the wet boots back on.The heat from the liners will eventually dry the boots out.If you have to go out on patrol though,take off the liners as they will **** your feet up if you march in them!
Also if you have to sleep in your boots,a sandbag over each will keep the inside of your doss bag some bit clean.

[ODIN]

Get a large waterproof bag for the inside of your bergen, and in it use mesh bags to keep your stuff in order, ie cloths is one bag, food in another. Another simple one is to use a bungy cord to hold you utility pouches together, it keeps them from bouncing while you run

[apod]

How to tie down your CEFO. Part 1
1/ Replace respirator haversack with one or two utility pouches.

2/ Turn CEFO on its back so inside of belt is visible.Starting at the left hand ammo pouch,run one of the issue utility straps thru the small loops on the lower back of all the pouches.When you get to the right hand ammo pouch anchor it off,and then loop the strap back thru all the previous tie points.When you get back to the left ammn pouch thread the free end thru the ladderlock buckle.Now pull tight the free end.The cefo ammo pouches should start to curl in towards each other making a "horseshoe " shape.Now try on the cefo and adjust the utility strap until the pouches hug your hips.The ammo pouches should be just behind your hip bones and NOT at your front or rear.

3/When this is done tape off the free end of the utility strap,now if you have one add your hippo pad.

4/Next step is to fill the pouches with exactly the load(minus ammoaof course) that you intend to carry.Then starting at the tie loop on the back left of the right hand ammo pouch take a Long thin OG bungee with the hook cut off and weave it around the pouches from right to left,threading the bungee under the part of the plce pouch buckle that is attached to the main body of each pouch(use a pencil to open up a tunnel behind each clip and then feed bungee thru).

[apod]

part 2---

5/ Keep weaving the bungee around until you get to the tie down loop at the rear right of the left hand ammo pouch.Now pull the bungee tight,and tie it off securely.Tape loose end down if you need too.Finally tape up all loose straps with black(not red or blue or any other colour that shouts look at me!) electrical tape.Your cefo is now ready to wear.

Points to note.
Make sure to pack out the pouches BEFORE tightening the bungee otherwise the pouches collapse and it is near impossible to replace items in the pouches once removed ie.waterbottle.

DONT bring the bungee across the front of the ammo pouches.For the same reason as above.It slows down your mag changing drills.

Keep your CEFO as light as possible.You are NOT a ranger and you DONT need all the gucci crap.Ammo/water/steel mug/rifle cleaning kit and first aid items are all you need.Everything else goes in the smock or daysack.

Only double lock your utility poches.NOT the waterbottle pouch ,and NEVER the ammo pouches.You need to be able to get to these quickly!
Your CEFO should something like this when finished.
Photo courtesy of mil photos.net

[GoneToTheCanner]

Hi there
How about some tips on personal field hygiene and carriage and disposal of personal hygiene kit? As someone said,memorably, on this website, it doesn't take long for people out on exercise to end up looking and smelling like homeless persons.
regards
GttC

[HavocIRL]

Anyone else get the wet dog smell off their smock whenever it gets wet?

No matter how many times I wash it even a light drizzle will bring it out.

[Truck Driver]

Anyone else get the wet dog smell off their smock whenever it gets wet?

No matter how many times I wash it even a light drizzle will bring it out.

No. I don't tend to go around hugging "wet dogs" in uniform myself