Art Dorst

5.11 Tactical LV10 13 liter sling bag

The 5.11 LV10 13L is a sling bag with a low profile that will blend into a business office setting or amusement parks. The LV10 has no molle on the outside which gives it a smooth professional appearance. There are a number of pockets for carrying the day’s necessities with plenty of organization. In addition to the sling, there are carry handles on the top and side providing options to the sling carry. There are compression straps on the top and bottom that aid in keeping the bag tight when loaded up. I recently used the LV10 as my carry on for a business trip loaded up as follows.

Starting on the bottom side there is a sleeve pocket with two compression straps that is perfect for holding. A water bottle. The back panel has zipper opening compartment that has a Velcro wall in it. The Velcro wall can be used for any hook and loop compatible pouches/pockets or holsters. As I was carrying the bag onto a flight with me I used it for a tourniquet holder, some moral patches, and my Breath of life Mask. On the front of the bag is a padded zipper pocket which is great for items that you want to have quick access without searching through the bag for. I use this pocket for my phone charger, cables, and to stash my wallet in while passing through security at the airport. Above that pocket on the front panel is another fleece lined zipper pocket I use this pocket for storing my extra glasses and cell phone when.

The main pocket opens from the top so that you can swing the bag around to your front and access the interior. This pocket has a good amount of organizing options from slots that can hold anything from pens, a small flashlight, notebook, business cards, and anything else you can think of. There’s also an area behind the admin wall where you could store a mini tablet or similar device (I was able to carry my Apple IPad Pro 12”, in the main compartment but not in the sleeve area.). On the interior of the flap, there are two mesh zipper pockets that are convenient for storing small items that you may want to access quickly without searching for. I used them for extra batteries and my inflight snacks. Also in the main compartment is a Velcro wall for attaching hook and loop accessories. If I were using this bag as a weapons case I could definitely see attaching a hook and loop magazine holder to this wall. The strap has a quick release buckle that allows you to carry the bag snug and tight to your body but quickly release the strap to bring it around to the front.

The following dimensions and specifications are from the 5.11 website:

Main Compartment – 10.5”H x 16.25”W x 5.7”D
Total Capacity – 793 cubic inches / 13 liters
Weight – 2.1 lbs
Tuckable logos for low vis
Fleece lined top zipper pocket
Front zippered pocket
Side compression straps and additional grab handles
Bottom webbing straps with an expandable water bottle pocket
Quick access to internal lid dual mesh pockets
Internal loop faced laser-cut MOLLE, padded tablet sleeve and admin organization
Rear CCW compartment with “hot pull” system, loop panel, and webbing system for holster Flex cuff channel on back panel
Padded back panel and quick release single shoulder strap with removable sternum strap and CAM buckle
Water-resistant 840D Nylon

Having owned a number of sling bags over the years I have never been particularly impressed with any of them. The 5.11 LV10 is the best one I have ever used. It does not scream tactical, carry’s well, has just the right amount of organization and pockets, is the perfect size for a day bag or CCW platform, or carry on. I would definitely recommend this bag to my friends especially those working in the executive protection, security, or law enforcement fields who are looking for a low profile EDC bag.

Art Dorst is the owner of A. Dorst Consulting & Training Services and is a Senior Consultant for LaSorsa & Associates. He served in the U.S. Navy and Army National Guard, and is a retired municipal Police Officer, NRA Instructor, and is currently a security provider/trainer.

The new Napier Backroadz SUV Tent, Model 19100

I recently received the Napier Backroadz SUV tent for review. I was very excited about this project as I had donated my last tent to a local organization and have been looking at tents or campers that I could use I conjunction with my vehicle (Honda CRV, 2009). When the tent arrived I unpacked it and checked it out. The first thing that I liked is that it is a grey color; I prefer subdued colors for tents. One of the reasons I got rid of my last one was that it was a bright red color. The tent is dome style made in China and comes in its own bag containing the tent, rain fly, tent pins, and shock-corded fiberglass poles the standard setup for a dome style tent.

The setup instructions are stitched into the inside of the tent bag and are printed on what appears to be a waterproof material, ensuring that the instructions won’t get lost or destroyed, but makes it a little bit of a hassle to use for reference. Honestly, I’d have to say that once you had set the tent up once there should be little to no need to reference the instructions as it’s not overly complex or different from a regular dome tent.

Setup of the tent is pretty easy to run the shock poles through the sleeves into the set pins at the corners, line up the connection sleeve to the rear of the vehicle for ease of attachment or back the vehicle up to the connection sleeve. Once the tent and vehicle are lined up set the tent pins in place so that the tent does not move.

As my vehicle does not have a roof rack the top straps from the connection sleeve have to be hooked inside the engine compartment of the vehicle, once hooked in you can close the hood. The side straps hook into the rear wheel wells of the vehicle. The vehicle sleeve does not completely seal around the vehicle, thus leaving a gap that can potentially allow bugs or rainwater to enter the tent and vehicle. The exhaust does not enter the tent but does touch the material of the tent, this can probably be avoided if you add a bungee cord to move the excess material up and away from the exhaust.

The instructions say that it takes ten minutes to set up the tent, my first attempt to set it up with the help of my girlfriend took around an hour; the second try on my own took approximately thirty to forty minutes (No reflection on my girlfriend’s assistance). With practice and an additional set of hands, the time I’m sure could be reduced to fifteen to twenty minutes.

The toughest part of the setup, when done solo, is the rain fly it keeps sliding off until you can get two sides secure; having a second person eliminates this issue. There is a rain fly shock cord pole support brace that holds the rain fly open and supported by the entrance. All windows and entryways have both screen coverings and solid flaps to aid in either airflow or keeping rain, and cool air from entering. With regards to the gap at the top of the vehicle at the connection sleeve there are also screens and a solid flap at the connection point that can prevent bugs or rain from getting in, but then require the screen/flap to be opened every time you wish to make entry to the storage compartment of the vehicle. Take down and storage is simple and easy, taking no more than fifteen minutes to have the tent down, folded, and back in the storage bag. A little tip is to leave the solid flaps down and the screens up, this let the trapped air to exit quickly and easily otherwise it becomes a big balloon.

All in all, I think that the Napier Outdoors SUV Tent is a good quality tent and provides more than enough space for two people to be comfortable and to be able to utilize the things like cots/air mattresses, chairs, and camp furniture that will allow them to enjoy the outdoors. The height of the center of the tent is seven feet tall and will allow a majority of people to stand upright without touching their head. There is a strap with a clip on it at the center of the tent that allows a lantern to be hung there which is nice.

I’m not sure of what I think with regards to the tent/vehicle connection, it does allow you to access equipment stored in the back of the vehicle from inside the tent, in my experience, I never spent much time in the tent while camping for it to be an issue. Having it connected means having to go through a process to disconnect them if and when I need to move my vehicle slowing me down. Where I see this setup being of value is on a road trip where I was going to camp for the night and not be moving my vehicle until the morning when I was getting back on the road. If I’m camping and going to be using my vehicle for day trips, I would not use the vehicle connection sleeve, and use it as a standard dome tent. The Napier Backroadz SUV Tent gives you options that a standard tent doesn’t in a sturdy, spacious, easy to setup and take down package. I’m looking forward to giving it a test during the summer on a road trip.

GORUCK GR1: Brainchild of former Army Special Forces Sgt. Jason McCarthy

The GORUCK GR1 is the brainchild of former Army Special Forces Sgt. Jason McCarthy. After transitioning out of the military and going to college Jason fell back on an idea he had about a backpack that in his words “What lived on was the idea for a bag that you could use in Baghdad or New York City, that would be tough enough for Special Forces, but that I could use in NYC without looking like I was still in the military.”. Out of this concept was born the GORUCK GR1 and as they say, the rest is history.

I first heard about GORUCK and the GORUCK Challenge (The Challenge was developed to test the durability of the GR1) about eight years ago when I was looking for something to challenge me as everything had fallen into a routine with no direction. It was still early in the evolution of the Challenge and GORUCK as a company but I found a couple of videos of the Challenge and watched them over and over. Finally, I decided that what I needed to do was participate in a Challenge to break me out of my rut. I have to say that at 53 years old the GORUCK Challenge seemed pretty daunting but I committed myself and started training and got a GR1. As this article is about the GR1 I’ll jump ahead and say that despite some setbacks including a back surgery I did compete a GORUCK Light at age 55.

The first thing you notice about the GR1 when you open the box and check it out is the rock solid feeling. There’s nothing flimsy or weak feeling about it from the zippers, material, shoulder straps, it just feels tough. I still get out and ruck with it from time to time but its primary duty is as a travel/EDC pack.

Its simple design works well for air travel carry on where it fits either in the overhead or under the seat. The GR1 comes in both a 21 liter and 26-liter size; my GORUCK GR1 is the 26 Liter version. Specifications are as follows for the 26-liter version from the GORUCK website:

Weight: 3.2 lbs
Dimensions: 12”W x 20”H x 6.75”D
Laptops to 17”
External Slant Pocket: 11.5”W x 12.5”H
Internal Cordura Pocket: 11.5”W x 6”H
Internal Mesh Pocket: 11.5”W x 12.5”H
Internal Elastic Packet: 11.5”W x 11”H
Laptop Compartment: 11.5”W X 17”H
Material: 1000D Cordura
Lifetime SCARS guarantee
Made in the USA
Price: $395.00

I like to pack mine in the following manner for travel. In the exterior slash pocket I keep a fire hood and facemask, I like to keep the rest of the pocket empty whenever possible for a pocket dump when passing through security. The internal Cordura pocket is where I keep my extra glasses, Passport, a small flashlight, notebook/pen, and a small charger with cables for my phone. The mesh pocket will usually hold my dopp kit, some snacks, and other items I don’t want to have to search for. The main compartment will hold my clothes med. gear, and any other larger items. The elastic pocket is where I usually keep my I pad. In the laptop sleeve, I have a ballistic panel. The pack carries comfortably and I’ve added a sternum strap for stability when I’m running from terminal to terminal to catch a flight. Even though there is molle webbing on it I usually keep it slick with the exception of a carabineer. Keeping it slick makes it easier for when I have to stash it under the seat instead of the overhead.

The GR1 is one of my top three go-to packs, it has traveled with me from coast to coast as well as overseas. I’ve gifted them to friends and recommend them to people looking to only buy one pack. If you check the website there are some discounts available for military, first responder’s students, etc… If I could only keep one pack it would be my GORUCK GR1.

Why I chose the Glock 43 as my concealed carry pistol

I’ve been carrying a concealed pistol now for just about thirty years. I’ve gone through more than my share of different pistols and holsters during that time from a S. & W. Chiefs Special 5 shot revolver to Glocks. The Glock pistols have become my favorite over the years due to its lightweight, easily replaced parts, and reliability. I started out with a Gen 1 model 17 when they first came out and the anti-gun crowd was saying that they could pass through metal detectors and were a threat to national security. Over the years my main carry pistols have generally been either the Glock 19 or 26, although I dabbled with the .40 caliber models and even had a Glock 30 in .45 ACP for a while but have always returned to the 9mm models.

After I retired from law enforcement in 2001 my go to Glock for concealed carry was the model 26. I always appreciated the model 26’s smaller size and concealability but it still felt blocky and was hard to conceal in light summer clothing. Enter the Glock 43 single stack 9mm pistol introduced in 2015. I was able to get one pretty early on and it has been my primary carry pistol ever since. Specifications are as follows from the Glock website:

Length (Overall) 159 mm | 6.26 inch
Slide Length 154 mm | 6.06 inch
Width (Overall) 27 mm | 1.06 inch
Slide Width 22 mm | 0.87 inch
Height incl.Mag.108 mm | 4.25 inch
Line of Sight (Polymer) 133 mm | 5.24 inch
Trigger Distance 65 mm | 2.56 inch
Weight: without magazine 460 g | 16.23 oz
Weight: with loaded magazine 585 g | 20.64 oz
Magazine capacity: 6

The slim profile and light weight of the Glock 43 make it a pleasure to carry year round. It conceals easily and doesn’t feel like you have a brick on your side. My favorite holsters are as follows:

Comp Tac paddle holster and magazine pouch
Blade Tech Classic OWB
High Threat Concealment Vantage holster and mag pouch
DeSantis to include both their leather belt holsters and the pocket Nemesis to include the cargo pocket model. These holsters give me options for just about any time of year and attire.

The only modifications I’ve made to my 43 has been to change the sights, I run Ameriglo Hackathorn sights, aside from that I added a Hogue HandAll. I have fairly large hands and the HandAll gives me a better purchase on the grip while shooting. For carry, I stick to Glock manufactured magazines. I carry a flat bottom one in the pistol, my reason is that the idea of a small pistol is for concealment so why would I add an extension that reduces the concealability of it. The flat bottom magazine does leave your pinky hanging out in the air but after years of carrying and shooting a model 26 with flat bottom magazines, I don’t find this to be a hindrance to my grip, accuracy, or follow-up shots. I carry at least one extra magazine and often two they are factory magazines with a Pearce +1 extension this aids in reloading and provides an extra round in the magazine.

I also have a blue gun model Glock 43 and magazine for use in training. One of the often missing links in handgun training is pressure testing your ability to protect your weapon when under physical attack as well as drawing and employing it. Having a blue gun allows you to also safely practice drawing when indoors.

Shooting the 43 is as much a pleasure as carrying it body shots at 25 yards are no problem and at 7 yards it is quick and accurate. Recoil is more than acceptable with most loads but can be a little snappy with the higher pressure loads. The most important issue I believe in quickly deploying the pistol to get accurate shots on target is to get a good solid grip right from the start, so that you are not adjusting the pistol in your hand when you should be focusing on the sights and firing. Reloads can be challenging if you have large hands due to the short grip causing the palm of your hand to be pinched when inserting a fresh magazine, practice will alleviate this issue. I like this pistol for everyday concealing carry, I’ve carried a lot of different pistols over the years and the only thing that has come even close was my S. & W. single stack 3813 that I carried as my Off Duty pistol when I was still on the job. If you’re looking for a concealment pistol and are a Glock fan I highly recommend the model 43.

We the people Holsters: EDC Dump Tray

A few months back I was looking for something to hold my pocket stuff that I would unload when I got home. My usual MO is to just unload it onto the kitchen counter and leave it there until the next time I go out. That wasn’t being received as domestically acceptable anymore so I had to figure something out to keep the peace. I saw the dump trays from We the people Holsters and decided to order one in the flag design.

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The tray is made from Kydex and has one square compartment in the Star section of the flag and the stripes section has ridges representing the stripes. The star compartment is just about the perfect size to hold your wallet or keys and the stripes with the ridges are good for all the little roll around stuff that tends to be in pockets. The dimensions are as follows:

Exterior size: 13” X 11”
Interior size: 10” X 12” with the small compartment measuring 4” X 5”

I liked it so much I purchased a second tray. I keep one on the nightstand and one on a shelf by the door. This way I always have a place for my keys, wallet, Swiss Army pocket knife, 5.11 flashlight, and any other miscellaneous stuff I either want to dump off when I come in the house or have nearby at night. Price is $19.00 and they come in black, carbon fiber, tan as well as a couple of other designs.

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5.11 Mission Ready Document Bag

I recently received the 5.11 Mission Ready Document Bag (MRDB) for evaluation. Being a long time user of 5.11 gear and clothing I was really looking forward to the opportunity. When I opened the box I was surprised at what I saw. The first thought I had was is this piece of 5.11 gear or was I shipped the wrong item. As opposed to my previous pieces of molle covered, military/tactical gear this bag has a smooth and clean appearance that I felt would allow it to blend in a business environment. With the exception of the small 5.11 logo on the side, this bag has a clean look that does not attract any attention to it.

This model is a grey color listed on the 5.11 website as Coin (It’s also available in black) is made from Oxford canvas with genuine leather handles and accents along the bottom edges, there is also a shoulder strap attached by antique brass hardware; the zipper pulls are leather too. This gives the bag a very professional look. On the outside of the bag on one side are three slash packets which are good for storing small flat items you would want quick access to like notepads, passports, some over the counter medications, etc… I used them for storing a notebook, small first aid kit, and protective masks. The smaller flat pocket is perfect for storing your phone; I can see these pockets being very handy for storing travel documents, passports, wallet, and my phone while passing through security while traveling. The other side of the bag on the exterior is a zipper pocket with a compartment lined for the attachment of hook and loop accessories or holsters. There is also another flat pocket for storing items.

The interior has a sleeve that will fit up to a 15” laptop, tablets, books or similar items. On the interior side across from the laptop sleeve there three pockets, two have a Velcro closure flat and the other is an open top. I used these for storing cables, chargers, and other device related items. I used the open top pocket for storing my extra pair of glasses. There is still plenty of room in the interior for holding a padfolio, files, a bottle of water, headphones, etc…

Features and dimensions for the Mission Ready Document Bag are as follows from the 5.11 website:

Features:

15″ laptop compartment with closure strap
CCW compartment with loop panel for Tactec™ Holster
Multiple exterior pockets for accessories and gear
Interior admin panel
Removable adjustable shoulder strap
Luggage handle pass-through
Water-resistant polyester canvas oxford (main) Water-resistant 1680D Nylon (base)
Genuine leather handles and trims

Dimensions:

Main Compartment – 11.75” H x 15.75” L x 5” D
Total Capacity – 976 cubic inch / 16 liter

I recently carried the bag for a business meeting on a college campus where a tactical look can set off alarms with people, that didn’t happen carrying the Mission Ready Document Bag. I like this bag for carrying in places where the tactical look will raise eyebrows and trigger a lockdown. If you’re looking for a low profile bag for a business or professional setting this is a viable option.