A Force Reconnaissance Marine with Maritime Raid Force, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, loads an M1911 .45 caliber pistol in Guam, January 29, 2018, during Visit Board Search and Seizure training. VBSS teaches Marines how to take over ships for searches and counter-piracy operations. As the Marine Corps’ only continuously forward-deployed MEU, the 31st MEU provides […]
Special Forces
T3 Medical Backpack: Designed to the exacting standards of Special Forces medics
In any aspect of life, disorganization breeds chaos. Having to scramble to find something under austere circumstances only augments that time-honored adage. The T3 Medical Backpack tries to intuitively lay out the medic’s equipment in hopes that they or their teammates can effectively access and employ life-saving materials without wasting time looking for items. The […]
The Heckler & Koch MP7: Compact and lightweight Personal Defense Weapon
The MP7 is extremely compact, lightweight, can be used in very confined spaces, and is practically recoil-free. It can be carried continuously, making it the ideal personal weapon for the soldier of today. Those who carry it will be suitably armed for the broadest range of operations. – Heckler & Koch In 1989, NATO published […]
Toe Poppers And MiniFrags: The Little Known Toys Of U.S. Special Forces In Vietnam
This article will speak about two vital weapons that served U.S. Special Forces during their service in the Vietnam War. They were the M-14 Anti-Personnel mine, more commonly known as the “Toe Popper,” and the V40 Mini-Fragmentation Grenade. Over the course of the conflict, these miniature terrors drew much blood against the North Vietnamese Army […]
What quality training looks like: A lesson from the Special Forces Urban Combat Course
Up until the last 4 years of my stint in the Army, every school I attended was either planning oriented or some form of infiltration to the battlefield, which always revolved around some form of student attrition. I constantly found myself in courses where the instructors were particularly prideful in their ability to weed out […]
Randall Made Knives Model 15 Airman
Back in the day when you wanted a hardcore knife for field use there was only one place to look, Randall Made Knives. Founded by Bo Randall who made his first knife in 1937 and founded the company in 1938 in Orlando Florida, Randall knives have been the go-to knife or soldiers, sailors, Marines, huntsman, […]
Photo of the day: A special operations watch reborn
When I first saw the Paradive MKII Gen 3, to be honest, I didn’t think much of it. It was clean no doubt, but it failed to show any type of sophistication that I frequently see. So when I started seeing some of my close friends sporting the piece, I hopped on the web and headed […]
Two key lessons I learned from Special Air Service selection
It’s fair to say that service with Special Forces changes a person and that the process of profound change commences on the selection course. Reflecting on the selection course that I underwent more than a decade ago, I can see that it was a pivotal point in my life both personally and professionally. I entered the Australian […]
Improved Pelican Case Special Forces Survival Kit
During the course of my career as a Green Beret, I was issued many things, some I was made to turn back in to the Army and others I was allowed to keep. My Pelican 1020 Survival kit was one of the items I was allowed to keep: originally intended to keep a soldier alive […]
Photo of the day: My Custom Ed Brown Special Forces 1911
My custom 1911 that I bought off Gunbroker one night in Dubai on my way back stateside. It was an Ed Brown Special Forces model. Since then, me and my colleagues have made it into MY 1911. Had a contractor buddy mill the slide for front serrations and to remove the engravings, I like a […]