I'm Back

Mostly I've been lazy, but also I haven't had a whole lot of new equipment to talk about. I am still in Iraq, with a MTT Team, and find myself with more time so I can stop neglecting this project.

As has been noticed, I'm sure, I really like North American Rescue Products. It's good quality stuff, and packaged well to make them easy to use, and a lifesaver when speed is essential. Plus, they have a lot of NSN's making it east to order them. One company we overlook, though, is SKEDCO. We all hate the SKED. Yeah it works and it's versatile, but carrying it is a bitch. Recently, I've started visiting the site though and looking at their other gear. So hopefully, in the next few days, I can provide some product reviews.

Also, I've worked out a good dismount rig for a medic. I posted a few months ago about the awesomeness of the M9 Aid Aid Bag. Unfortunately, it's not an easy piece of equipment to get ahold of. Then it hit me one day: an IFAK has everything I need to treat one casualty. So how do I get a few of those on me, with all the ammo and other stuff.

I acquired a drop leg panel, usually used for more ammo or a dump pouch. I attached 2 IFAKs to it and modified those a bit. The normal IFAK doesn't come with a 14g needle for Needle Decompression. I added that and replaced the compressed gauze with QuikClot's Combat Gauze, and added a Hyfin Chest Dressing. So that's two on my body (not including mine) and then I threw 2 more in my MULE Camelbak and there you go. A lightweight way to carry enough gear to treat 4 casualties on the ground.