The Loadout Room
Professional Gear Reviews
Written by Brandie Meisner (wife of author Erik Meisner) The Women’s Cirrus Pant by 5.11 Tactical claims a “a flattering fit and great flexibility for everyday wear”. But women’s pants can be tricky. Can 5.11 pull off the delicate balance of fit & function? Sometimes, my husband Erik thinks I’m crazy. I think it’s normal. […]
The true beginning of 5.11 Tactical began in 1992 when the FBI adopted the original 5.11 Pant for the FBI training academy. Ever since then 5.11 Tactical has been giving us quality products from head to toe. The 5.11 Dart Pack is yet another quality product from 5.11 Tactical. This low visibility pack is perfect for an EDC […]
When working in non-permissive environments you expect a lot from your helmet. It needs to be light, have the highest fragmentation protection possible, and be able to stop type IIIA handgun threats. Most ballistic helmets do the latter. Fewer do frag and IIIA threats. And it gets narrowed down to a couple when it comes […]
“Its hands down the greatest plate carrier ever conceived!” – (a very salty senior Ranger NCO) It is perhaps the most renowned plate carrier in existence. It is simple, durable and well thought out. So much in fact, that many of the Rangers I have worked with (including myself), have purchased one out-of-pocket. I am […]
Day 1 This is the first year that I tried hunting Elk with a bow. I was surprised at just how different it was to deer hunting. Elk are always on the move, eventually they may circle back to an area they use, but you need to be much more active to find them. So […]
First I just wanted to take a minute to thank the crew at the Loadout Room for allowing me to take a few months off writing while I attended Fire Academy. Recently I decided I wanted to start volunteering in my community and the academics, and academy really took about all the free time I […]
Vorn Equipment of Stavanger, Norway has quietly been releasing some fantantiske rifle packs. When I received their Lynx hunting pack a few months ago, I had positive initial impressions. Now, I’ve had the Lynx for long enough to really test it out and get a feel for how it performs. Vorn’s Lynx is a 12 to 20 liter […]
I never thought a tool we traditionally use in the kitchen would be something that would excite me so damn much. Getting a grip on the ESEE Cleaver sends waves of excitement through me. Why? I have no idea. Maybe it’s the aggressive hand filling grip. Maybe it’s the massive cleaver blade that makes it heavy and […]
The Kershaw Barstow is a fine-looking knife. It’s not exactly old-school hunting knife or super modern tactical fighting knife. It’s more like it steeped out of the 1930s and is wearing a fedora and smoking a Lucky Strike. It really has a classy look to it. The spear point blade only has a single edge, but […]
The Woodsman shirt by Prometheus Design Werx (under their Danger Ranger Bear line) is billed as being “like your grandfathers favorite outdoor shirt he wore to the cabin”. True to form, trying this on was very reminiscent of borrowing my father’s, or grandfathers, wool shirts for hunting in the Alaskan wilderness when I’d grown big […]
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