Lighten Your BOB: Pack The Alpha Tent

Reblogged from Survival Sherpa:

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I spotted this while visiting Paratus Familia Blog. Here's Enola Gay's full post on their experiment with the Alpha Tent.

The Awesome Alpha Tent

When we posted our adventures with the Survival Net, one of our readers sent a link that he thought Sir Knight might enjoy.  The link was for the Alpha tent, fashioned from nothing more than a USGI Military Issue Poncho, tent poles and 4 wire nuts.  

Read more… 552 more words

this is an excellent use of an USGI poncho and defunct tent poles; and would lighten ones load by quite a bit by ditching a normal tent for this...

Updating….redid bike bag set ups and did a grocery store run with bike!

So…I redid my bicycle bag set up; and got it to the point where I feel confident in its capacity as well as my own capacity….. anyways; on to the pics!

bike bags as is;

bike bags loaded with food! Left Side

rear view of bike bags loaded

all that food that were in the bags; not shown, the 1 qt canteen and stove and cup, and blanket, gloves, first aid kit, bandanna, hand towel, lock, two 2 qt canteens, and small tools.

and on a short trip today with my overnight stuff in bags;

such a nice day….

off the side of the road in the nice day outside…note how well the spokes blended in the background; the wheels are painted now; with the exception of the brake tracks and chain cogs;

slight update; working on the bicycle pack system and painting

So it is a beautiful Spring day out here…been doing lots of job applications and trying to refine my bicycle rig for more grocery capacity/hunting/camping…and doing a bit of  art painting…. bike so far has the following items lashed/rigged onto it;

two packed Medium ALICE packs on ALICE frames (frames are “flipped” so that smooth side is against the bike rack)

one USGI 9 strap compression sack loaded with tent, sleep bag, sleep pad, rope, stakes, poles

gun scabbard (Vism Shooting gear?) holding a hunting rifle and a medic pouch on outside

small “ALICE” styled bag up front, two medic pockets behind, and two 2-qt canteens in USMC pouches;

medium packs and gun scabbard on w first aid kit

angled view

back view showing just how wide it gets to be…

and my paintings so far;

painting of a nude woman; acrylics

work in progress painting of woman in red

update; new black pouch, gun shows report and bikepacking rig so far;

OK been a while since I posted here…..been busy with selling surplus equipment and uniforms at the local Gun Shows in Albany; they went rather well; made a bit of money in January and made a little less in February, did not have a vendor’s table at the Rickreall Show at the beginning of March; due to it being a little too last minute for me. Anyways…I’ve completed the first of a run of 8 black pouches in 1000D Cordura with vinyl backing; they are a little shorter than the woodland pouches, and wider than them, meant for 12 gauge shotgun shell boxes, medical first aid plastic inserts, or 12 SKS clips;

black pouch next to standard woodland pouch

back of black pouch showing dual method of attaching to belt; LC clips and belt loop in center

12 SKS stripper clips fits it

USGI Medical Kit Plastic Insert

12 gauge shotgun shell box, 2 3/4″ size, with room to spare

and my current bikepacking rig; with a repainted frame, camo front bag, two camo small pouches behind handlebar, 2x 2 quart canteens in USMC first aid kit pouches on frame, and two MOLLE sustainment pouches on rack with the large black compression sack holding my tent, poles, sleep pad, and sleeping bag. ; some photos shows it with no rear rack or bags;

current bikepacking rig

earlier pic without rear rack/bags, in the environment it’s meant to be in

yes that is an airsoft “army” helmet, will be replaced by a Giro helmet; showing the riverfront environment

 

some things… gun show and bike project

OK post gun show report; sold a few things on Sunday, after having zero sales on Saturday; and got a few contacts for custom gear.  I am now in the progress of building up a bicycle with military gear and bags, so far I am using surplus gear, but I am having some ideas for custom gear tailored to cyclists and bike-packers that is compatible with current military equipment! I also have 8 Woodland pouches for sale; and am making DCU pouches this week!

here is the bike as it sits now

the panniers are MOLLE Sustainment Pouches; here’s how they are attached;

another shot of the rack and pannier with cargo straps

the heavier duty “camping rig”, with seat and without seat (earlier photos)

handlebar rig; a 3 day pack with 2x 2 quart  on front and 2 Medic pockets and a 1 1-qt canteen in middle on back

I’m not sure if I like the green bags orientation, I might flip it around for ease of removing items from the bag… or cut the two smaller pouches on the side to make room for webbing to attach pouches or bags for lashing…

 

getting ready for the Gun Show this weekend!

I am making 20 pouches for the gun show this weekend; 10 in Woodland and 10 in Army Combat Uniform’s Universal Camouflage Pattern (also known as ACU) and will be making Olive green pouches, Desert Camo pouches, and possibly black! Also, I will be having uniforms and equipment for sale at the Rickreall Gun Show in Rickreall, Oregon off of Highway 99W south of Highway 22;

they will also hold 25 rounds of 12 gauge 2 3/4″ shells loosely, as in no cardboard box, and they are excellent for first aid kits, small survival kits, hiking kits, gloves, hats, loose items for those who want a do-all type of belt pouch;

UPDATED INFO; SKS 100 rd pouch is in fact compatible with 4x AR15 20 round magazines!

I was looking at a M1967 AR15 20 round magazine pouch, and decided to load it with my SKS stripper clip ammo; it holds 10 clips a little snugly, so for those who have AR15 20 round magazines but are tired of having to fish them out of regular pouches, or having to add foam blocks to the bottom of your 30rd magazine pouches; my pouch is in fact an excellent replacement! I have them in ACU with MOLLE, Woodland with both LC and MOLLE webbing, and will be offering 3 color or dark khaki for those who like Flat Dark Earth…