Field Test (5.11 "Tactical LBE Vest") or Me Be a "MOLLE'Man"
Went to the city and to my favorite COP Shop (Northern Security) and walked out with about $300.00 worth of MOLLE stuff made by 5.11 and part of their "Tactical Series". I bought the RUSH24 bag & the LBE Vest, and all kinds of goodies to hang on them.
First a word of warning: the stiffened stays are very hard to work with, but worth it.
We did a killer Mountain Bike trip into Crescent Lake today, and there are generally bears on the trail. So I figured this will be a chance to road test the LBE Vest for comfort, and degree of restriction of movement.
One of the nice things about the vest is you can add or MOVE components. Pressed for time I decided I needed to carry a spare 29" inter-tube, and some bike tools and food, so I quickly installed a extra first aid bag on the back.
I took my Glock 22 and two extra magazines (They were already packed in a pouch) The real first aid kit, fire stuff etc. I was concerned about being able to dance over the rocky trail with the vest.
Well, I crashed twice (Not Bad, but I was thrown off the bike) The Glock never moved, the Vest was comfortable all day, over a very rough trail. The vest is a mesh so it breathes freely, but offers no warmth, and it was 28* above when we left the trail head.
I feel the vest worked perfectly today. It take a long time to get accessories where they work, I had the first aid kit too tight above the double magazine pouch and could not extract the magazines. So it takes time to move things around so they do not restrict arm movement. Helps too keep the heavy stuff low.
The quality of workmanship is very good. The material use is durable.
Warning: Do not order the vest without trying one on for size. There are three sizes Regular-XX Large-XXXX Large. I normally wear XL but the Regular fit me perfectly. There are three colors, Black, OD Green, Flat Dark Earth (Brown). I went for the brown. I also bought the Tactical Bag "RUSH24 but have not used it as yet. The basic Vest is $79.99 and components run $14.ist to $24.ish
http://www.511tactical.com/browse/Ho...:10500/I/58631
http://www.511tactical.com/browse/Ho...00:10500:10501
http://www.511tactical.com/browse/Ho...10905/I/58601#
