tactical vests

FinnishForce · November 25, 2000, 02:36 PM

What do you guys think of the Eagle Industries and Blackhawk tactical vests? I don't mean ballistic vests, but them loadbearing vests and stuff like the Urban Assault Vest (looks neat, but costs a ton). I dislike crossdraw vests, and Camel-Bak is nonessential for me, so I'm thinking about buying an Eagle Tac-V-Nu vest sometime in the future. Somebody got one? What do you think of it? Are there better brands out there (not too pricey thanks)?

And for the professionals (tactical officers and military personnel) on this board: what are your criteria for selecting a vest?

PJ11B3VF7 · November 25, 2000, 09:33 PM

Primarily because I spend a great deal of time with a ruck on my back and I can't seem to find a vest that I can comfortably adjust. Especially if I'm jumping. Having a canteen slam into my kidney upon landing is not my idea of fun.

I prefer my slightly modified LCE. I've cut off the padding for the harness so that all that's left is nylon, I find that that allows me to adjust my ruck straps much better, and if it rains, my straps dry out faster. On the belt I have an M16 and a SAW pouch on each side along with some other goodies.
Call me old fashioned, but it works for me and is a good all around solution. If I was tailoring my load for an urban scenario of some kind where carrying a ruck isn't an issue, I might opt for a vest, but then again for us simple infantry types, carrying a ruck is an issue.

Javahed · November 26, 2000, 04:59 AM

Tac vests,

I vote for 'em. Out here at 1st Group, we get some vest-like harnesses issued that are OK. A bunch of the guys use Blackhawk and Eagle vests. I was spending so much on Blackhawk kit that my wife started dealing it (see website below.)
I also hate having canteens slam into me, so I have a vest, Blackhawk EOD, with a Camelbak in the back. I've had no problems with a rucksack, and find the vest is a bunch more comfortable than my LBE. The left half of my vest is set up to carry 6 M-4 mags and 3 9mm mags. The right side has 3 large pouches and a few small ones for my med kit (I'm the team medic). I have a pistol belt on the bottom of the vest with more pouches to carry extra ammo or supplies. I can carry more weight, easier and with my kit easier to get to than with LBE. Vests come is many different configs and are available as modular systems also, so you should be able to find one to fit your specific needs.

Now, this is the part where I'd love to say rush right over to my wife's site and buy yourself a vest, but I'll not be biased here

. Check out as many as you can. Load 'em with weight and throw a pack on if you plan on carrying one. Get a feel for how they ride. Make sure to check the quality, equipment failure is never worth the couple of bucks you might have saved.
http://www.sabreindustries is a company out of England, they have some nice kit, also, E-bay has vests popping up, some are good deals but some just go through the roof. I'm not sure how re-selling on E-bay affects warrenties.

Hope this helped!

Dan,
and BTW, my wife offers a flat 20% discount to all active and prior military, police, EMS, S&R and firefighters

November 25, 2000, 09:33 PM	#2
PJ11B3VF7 Senior Member Join Date: February 5, 2000 Location: Iraq Posts: 394	Not a big fan of vests. Primarily because I spend a great deal of time with a ruck on my back and I can't seem to find a vest that I can comfortably adjust. Especially if I'm jumping. Having a canteen slam into my kidney upon landing is not my idea of fun. I prefer my slightly modified LCE. I've cut off the padding for the harness so that all that's left is nylon, I find that that allows me to adjust my ruck straps much better, and if it rains, my straps dry out faster. On the belt I have an M16 and a SAW pouch on each side along with some other goodies. Call me old fashioned, but it works for me and is a good all around solution. If I was tailoring my load for an urban scenario of some kind where carrying a ruck isn't an issue, I might opt for a vest, but then again for us simple infantry types, carrying a ruck is an issue.

November 26, 2000, 04:59 AM	#3
Javahed Member Join Date: November 5, 2000 Posts: 68	Tac vests, I vote for 'em. Out here at 1st Group, we get some vest-like harnesses issued that are OK. A bunch of the guys use Blackhawk and Eagle vests. I was spending so much on Blackhawk kit that my wife started dealing it (see website below.) I also hate having canteens slam into me, so I have a vest, Blackhawk EOD, with a Camelbak in the back. I've had no problems with a rucksack, and find the vest is a bunch more comfortable than my LBE. The left half of my vest is set up to carry 6 M-4 mags and 3 9mm mags. The right side has 3 large pouches and a few small ones for my med kit (I'm the team medic). I have a pistol belt on the bottom of the vest with more pouches to carry extra ammo or supplies. I can carry more weight, easier and with my kit easier to get to than with LBE. Vests come is many different configs and are available as modular systems also, so you should be able to find one to fit your specific needs. Now, this is the part where I'd love to say rush right over to my wife's site and buy yourself a vest, but I'll not be biased here . Check out as many as you can. Load 'em with weight and throw a pack on if you plan on carrying one. Get a feel for how they ride. Make sure to check the quality, equipment failure is never worth the couple of bucks you might have saved. http://www.sabreindustries is a company out of England, they have some nice kit, also, E-bay has vests popping up, some are good deals but some just go through the roof. I'm not sure how re-selling on E-bay affects warrenties. Hope this helped! Dan, and BTW, my wife offers a flat 20% discount to all active and prior military, police, EMS, S&R and firefighters __________________ Go Get em Gear

November 25, 2000, 02:36 PM	#1
FinnishForce Junior Member Join Date: May 11, 2000 Posts: 14	What do you guys think of the Eagle Industries and Blackhawk tactical vests? I don't mean ballistic vests, but them loadbearing vests and stuff like the Urban Assault Vest (looks neat, but costs a ton). I dislike crossdraw vests, and Camel-Bak is nonessential for me, so I'm thinking about buying an Eagle Tac-V-Nu vest sometime in the future. Somebody got one? What do you think of it? Are there better brands out there (not too pricey thanks)? And for the professionals (tactical officers and military personnel) on this board: what are your criteria for selecting a vest?