Light & Fast - Scout LB kit, Gen 1 thru 26

Discussion in 'Knives, Gear, Guns And Other Tools' started by Bushman5, Jan 7, 2018.

  1. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    inspired by @Reno Lewis 's light Scout Kit, I re-visited some old Load Bearing gear i had laying around.



    basic kit: canteen, gi cup, some food, FAK/TQ/IZZY, fixed blade knife (Esee 6), fire starting (SAM WILSON "B.L.A.S.E.R. fire steel , tinder cottons, compass, rain poncho (not shown, subbed in my waxed overcoat)


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    load bearing straps and belt are from Direct Action Tactical . Pouches are HSGI . Leather straps are from a swiss military pack.

    I might change a few things around, like consolidate the FAK/TQ/fire steel/tinder/compass into a SAW pouch.

    but its a nice light and fast rig.

    Ive been lugging a 60+ lb pack and 6 lb chest rig for so long, i forgot how nice it is to just hike light andfast.
     
    Last edited: Jan 8, 2018
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  2. STPNWLF

    STPNWLF Member

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  3. Black5

    Black5 Member

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    Nice. Similar set up to what we actually carried as cavalry scouts 35+ years ago. One difference though (aside from some obvious) is that we carried 2 canteen rigs, one at each hip, for extra water and balance. Poncho was centered at the back like yours, but we used boot blousers to secure it. Unit SOP prescribed knives be carried on the belt rather than the suspender strap. I never did see a scout use a "scout sheath" probably because it took up too much room.
    Times change. I still have a set of LBE in this configuration in my closet hanging up. Just in case....
     
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  4. Reno Lewis

    Reno Lewis Knot-A-Challenge Champion

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    Nice set up Bushy. Glad my kit served as some inspiration.
     
  5. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    I actually completely re-vamped it last night............
     
    Last edited: Mar 18, 2018
  6. Black5

    Black5 Member

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    I'm thinking about revamping mine too. But it will still look military...duh...and I don't want the locals wondering which militia group I belong to..
     
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  7. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    updated rig,took some things out, moved the pouches around a bit

    I call this setup L.R.R.P.R. ( Long Range Recreational Pacing Rig)

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    contents:

    -FAK/GSW/TQ
    - poncho
    - SYKCO CHOPHOUSE Chopper / Mashed Cat sheath
    - Fenix 900 lumen head lamp
    - SLADE HANK
    -Nalgene Tritan canteen/GI stainless cup/coffee/cocoa/tang powders, water purification pills
    - Military white/blue/infrared marker strobe
    - wool gloves
    - Sam Wilson B.L.A.S.E.R fire steel, filled with PJCB tinder
    - baseplate compass
    - waterproof match case with StormMatches
    - KinderEgg filled with waxed/PJCB tinders
    -Fox40 whistle
    - Sam Wilson matchcase, with 2 rubber washers and 2 Surefire CR123 lithium batteries
    - Cejay Engineering glo stick
    - Cejay Engineering silicone battery case with 6 watch batteries
    - tea candle
    - TP
    -wetfire tinder
    - sealed kevlar cordage spool
    - silicone rubber spool with 100 lb braid line
    -RITR notebook and HB pencil
    -Wipes
    - Signal Panel
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    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Jan 8, 2018
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  8. STPNWLF

    STPNWLF Member

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    I'm putting together something similar to this, more of a Scout hunters belt though.
     
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  9. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    Lost some weight today.......:D

    I have been re-organizing and getting rid of some gear out of the Scout Rig......It was turning into a 35 lb full on wilderness kit and kitchen sink rig, and getting away from a Fast & Light Scout Rig LB platform. This kit has been in a CONSTANT change of state..........every outing i make notes of what i used, what i did not use (that i could shed) and what gear frustrated me, be it complete lack of use, or where it was in the kit. .

    Took out the massive Silky saw (i'll probably regret that but i could downsize it to a much smaller saw......don;t really want to though). Lost about 1.3lbs there. Could always just sling over my shoulder.

    Removed the heavy thick polyethylene plastic ground sheet (about 1/2lb) - can always use tree boughs under me.

    Took out the two rolls of light tarred bankline......I have 100lb test braided fishing line on 2.5" diameter silicone spools......does the same job for 1.5 lbs less.

    Took out all the food pouches (rice, beans, chili, etc) , ramen paks, multiple cans of sardines, tuna, and herring, and 20 packets of hot chocolate and kept it simple.....1 Soldier Fuel bar, 1 dried fruit leather bar, 1 Granola bar, veg boullion cube x2 , 2 packets hot chocolate, 2 tea bags, Pristine water pure tabs , MRE Citrus powder 1 packet and 6 NUUN lemon/lime water tabs. A person can go without food for weeks but needs to hydrate. I can always throw in a can of herrings and some cheese and salami for a harder extended hike....but i had damn near 5 days of food in there...........Lost about 3 - 4 lb of weight there.

    Took out the 2nd FAK, threw some assorted waterproof band aids, small 4" dressings and tiny card of 1" Gorilla Tape into the GSW/SLASH/TQ kit. No sense in carrying a 1 LB booboo kit PLUS a GSW/Slash/Bleed kit. Lost about 3/4 of a LB there.

    took out the 2 pairs of spare socks and heavy leather/wool arctic mittens and left a single pair of light 100% wool gloves in. Switched out the heavy wool toque with a thin fleece beanie. Lost about 2 lbs here.

    moving over to the utility pouch on the right side......got rid of the massive fire kit pouch and 5000 ways of making fire and 5000 different tinders. Switched the massive Sam Wilson B.L.A.S.E.R. firesteel to a small Esee Firesteel kit , and got rid of all the tinders except for a single packaged Wet-Fire, a little tiny 2" x 3" ziploc baggie of PJCB, plus the wax and PJCB tinders in the Esee Kit. Took out the massive 12" x 10" freezer bag of my waxed granules firestarter , also the massive 12" x 10" freezer bag of fatwood shavings. I did leave a tiny 2" x 3" ziploc baggie of fatwood shavings. Kept the Exotac XL matchcase with storm-matches. Lost 3 lbs there.

    Took out the Thyrm spare 6 cells carrier with 6 CR123 primaries. Changed the 900 lumen headlamp battery to a massive 3500 mAH li-ion rechargeable. Kept the Nitecore tactical light....its very useful with a lot modes including moonlight and location beacon. Other gear i kept: small RITR notebook, a HB construction pencil, a small light spacepen, small baseplate compass, Cejay Engineering silicone 6 cell watch battery carrier, a couple of Cejay Engineering LED silicon glosticks (1 white, 1 red), 1 small signal panel, a half roll flattened TP, and some wet wipes. Lost about 1 &1/2 lbs there.

    Kept the SYKCO ChopHouse. Its light enough and is pretty brutal at downing small trees. Swapped the Esee 6 to the slightly smaller Ontario BlackBird SK5. (although i prefer the 6...) . Lost about 2 oz there

    took out the large rolls of flagging tape and large spools of braided fishing line. Lost about 1lb there.

    Took out the Black Willow Outdoors multicam tarp..........(I LOVE that tarp, but I already carry a poncho - its shelter.....and i can build shelters.............So in the summer and fall when its dry, i'll swap the poncho for the tarp. ) Lost about 1/2 pound or so there.

    so lost about 18 lbs or so.....its pretty noticeable and I don't really miss all the gear.....despite really liking all my gear. I can always throw on my small day pack over the rig for a extended hike where i want hot foods or am with lesser prepared friends.

    EDIT: also , despite my love for the Expat Cleaver and the Izzy2..........and possibly 2 other fixed blades I had stuffed in the Tyr Tactical butt bag.........don't need the weight. Lost about 4lbs there........perfectly happy with the chopper and the SK5, and the Avispa in my pocket.


    Re-organized the pouches a bit on the belt as well.

    PICS up in a bit!!!
     
    Last edited: Mar 18, 2018
  10. koolaidnd

    koolaidnd Member

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    Looking good but I think I’d probably keep one spare pair of socks. I like having warm dry feet at night. Might be something to think about at least for the winter/wet seasons.
     
  11. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    pics of the now lighter L.R.R.P.R. (Long Range Recreational Patrol Rig). Not shown is the poncho which gets stuffed into the butt bag


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  12. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    First Spear SSE drop pouch installed: This will be for food/tinder/pitch gathering or for quick stuffing of a jacket shell or gloves if need be. Or for gathering forest gnomes :D

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    64oz Kleen Kanteen for size reference
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  13. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    So after multiple rig setups and re-designs....., I cannot honestly call this a "scout kit" anymore........its approaching the weight of a full on back pack load..............

    so i'm going to call this much beloved rig a "L.R.R.P.R." (Long Range Recreational Pacing Rig)

    I do have a bit of kit incoming............and i intend to make it a true scout kit.....super light, equipped for a possible overnighter or two.....etc.

    stay tuned
     
  14. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    after about 1000 km's of walking, hiking, scrambling etc (multiple trips), and keeping data notes on gear load outs, position of gear and pouches in the rig, etc.....I have tweaked the L.R.R.P.R. (Long Range Recreational Pacing Rig) webbing even more. Recently got rid of a thick & heavy cordura SAW pouch, a water bottle holster and a Cordura organization pouch and replaced it with a single pouch (CenterLine Systems MCC)

    current TOTAL (webbing rig and contents, plus water ) load out weight = 15 lbs

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    L.R.R.P.R. webbing EMPTY weight (including the knife sheaths) = 2.2 lbs

    the webbing weight will decrease even more when my Raven Systems laser cut webbing belt and harness arrive soon < those two weigh 360 grams

    current load out: (might redo this pic with better lighting)

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    broken down into groups:

    tarp, wool mitts, GSW/FAK, Izzy dressing, TP, windbreaker, reflective blanket.
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    sil-nylon signal panel, 1000 lumen headlamp, GI signal strobe, chem light, Cejay Engineering SERE LED glowsticks (white/red), Nitecore led light, half roll of blaze orange flagging tape, micro signal mirror, Fox 40 whistle

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    Magnum can bear spray, SYKCO ChopHouse, Kevlar thread (in black pouch), tea candle, RITR notebook, RITR pen, HB pencil, compass, Mora knife, Exotac XL matchcase and Storm matches, Esee Advanced Fire Kit with Extension Tube,filled with 36 PJCB, and wrapped with 75' of 80' braid spectra and 25' thin bankline

    [​IMG]



    Gi cup and Nalgen Tritan canteen (plus water), Hidden WoodsMen black multicam pouch with Powerbar, fruit leather bar, granola bar, packets of cocoa, 3 bullion cubes, 6 tablets of Nuun electrolyte tabs, water pur tablets, Burts bees micro tin of lip balm, and a freezer bag with strong tea bags, hot chocolate and a bullion cube (< that sits behind the canteen, the rest go into the pouch and go into the Tyr Tactical Jungle Butt Bag)

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    lots of areas I could knock off 5lbs or so from the gear load out, but this is the load out i have used for some time now and I'm quite happy with it. All bases are covered.

    there may be some minor tweaking of gear load out soon, and some webbing swaps but for now this rig + load out is working great.
     
  15. Kaw-liga

    Kaw-liga Member

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    This is awesome. I especially appreciate the links to the vids. I watched pt. 1 and am gonna get still in a bit for the second. @Reno Lewis - man, you're a freaking encyclopedia! I am constantly wrestling with this very idea of how much to pack. Everytime I start a pack from scratch I think to myself, "how can I improve/what could I add to this pack?" Next thing you know, I look like I'm striking out for Mt. Everest. Here are my main packs, the shoulder bag was supposed to largely be an "on the go" bag, but it's almost become too cumbersome to lug around everywhere. Thanks for the food for thought fellas! IMG_20180511_203941215_LL.jpg
     
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  16. STPNWLF

    STPNWLF Member

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    More knowledge= less gear
    Course that also depends on what comfort/discomfort level you can deal witho_O Just saying:p
     
  17. Reno Lewis

    Reno Lewis Knot-A-Challenge Champion

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    Haha, thanks @Kaw-liga. Gear is fun to have and play with, but when it becomes a burden to carry with you, it tends to just get left behind. Doesn't do you much good in that case.

    There's a quote that I often remind myself of in many aspects of life, but especially in my own crafts and gear loadouts.

    "In anything at all, perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away, when a body has been stripped down to its nakedness." ~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
     
  18. Kaw-liga

    Kaw-liga Member

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    Indeed and agreed, fellas. I got to looking at the smaller of the two and quite a bit of its contents can be removed or at least minimized. Mostly it boils down to redundant bulk, for lack of a better term. But I've got my work cut out for me.
     
  19. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    I agree on more skills -= less gear, but I like gear to much to get rid of everything. And there is a common sense approach to gear......one goes prepared for the unexpected. A simple kit like mine would prevent 500 people a year here in BC from needing to be rescued, or worse, die.

    I could use a tiny ferro rod and a single cube of Wet-Fire instead of the huge Esee firesteel kit , that would knock off half a LB right there........but I like my Esee firesteel. and besides...i used to carry like 5000 different ways of making fire with me.......so for me to get down to a single firekit with back up matchcase....is huge. Yes i could carry none of that and go all bushcrafty and make a fire drill and bow and baseplate.....but do i want to do that in the pouring rain with wet wood when im cold wet and tired ? no. no i don't. And i still carry a bic and baggie of PJCB in the pants pocket on top of that.

    I could get rid of the SYKCO chopper and just use a little slipjoint, but I like my chopper knife and it reduces the effort required for gathering / processing firewood. Plus it has defense qualities.

    i could ditch all the food bars and tea and electrolyte tabs and save 3 lbs, don't need that....I'll just exert even more of my already depleted energy foraging for greens and berries in the dark. Nope......i'll keep those powerbars and tea and bullion cubes and electrolyte and glucose tabs thank you.

    do i need the gi strobe, the led glo sticks, the flagging tape, the flashlight? no. But we all owe people who may have to look for us someday the courtesy of being able to be spotted quickly.

    doi need the tarp or the space blanket? no i could build a shelter and a fire...but having the tarp and space blanket is just common sense. It allows me to get out of the rain or wind or snow in less than 5 minutes. Where do you draw the line.......? do you go prepared or you exert even more energy when your cold wet and tired doing bushcrafty skills. Exactly......

    on and on..........where do you draw the line? At some point you have to say, enough....i like my kit, i like my using my kit, its enjoyable to me.

    I have a very high dis-comfort level. I like sleeping on the ground, in the dirt or leaves, I like getting filthy dirty and sweaty and wet and pushing myself to walk for 24 hours solid. I like challenging myself by deliberately getting lost off trail and then simply exploring and starting a map.

    besides if we didn't like using gear, every company in the world that makes outdoors gear would go out of business.....and workers would be out of work ....etc........and ExPat and crew would not have money for tattos, call girls and snow.......LOL
     
    Last edited: May 11, 2018
  20. Bushman5

    Bushman5 Member

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    L.R.R.P.R. kit upgrade today - more consolidation/organization:

    Velocity Systems "HELIUM WHISPER" technology, reducing the weight of the battle rattle, by going to stronger, thinner laser cut fabric.

    this pouch by Mayflower (Velocity Systems) is a radio pouch for the PRC radios and spare battery. It is the size of a SAW pouch yet weighs 3/4 LESS than a traditional constructed molle pouch.

    I cannot wait for Velocity to make all their molle pouches 100% out this fabric. An entire load bearing system or vest could be reduced down to less than 3/4 of a single pound.

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    paper thin material, yet the failure point is over 1000lbs. There is simply no need anymore for overbuilt , bulky and heavy molle pouches. A prime example is HSGI. I have one of their SAW pouches. Its nice, built well. But i can have 4 pouches of the same size, in this Whisper material, with laser cut slots, and they would weight the same as ONE single pouch made with the heavy laminated cordura fabric plus all the webbing sewn on to it. Food for thought

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    this is why i wanted this pouch, not only for the weight reduction, but for the high organization of my kit. Where the spare radio normally goes, my magnum can of bear spray drops right in. And where the two spare batteries normally go, my Esee tin slips in perfectly, or my pouch of food bars and tea. One could put other gear as desired. Moving my food bag from the butt pack into this pouch, changed the overall balance and weight distribution to 100% perfect balance on the sides and rear,making for better comfort over long slogs.


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    with esee tin

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    nice clean organization on the webbing.

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    Last edited: May 11, 2018

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