Gerber makes some excellent folding knives. Many of these are used by military personnel as well as law enforcement officers all around the world. These are some of the best selling and most popular folding knives manufactured by Gerber. They also have an excellent survival knife in the fixed blade Gerber LMF II you may want to check out.
Voyager Leatherworks Sheaths and Satchels
Voyager Leather Works is owned and operated by Adam Cantrell, a second generation leather worker and avid outdoors man. Adam has been working with leather for 26 years now and was taught the craft of leather-working by his father when he has 17 years old. After Adams first project A leather satchel he knew he would do it for the rest of his life.
Adams uncle saw his love for the craft and taught him how to turn his passion into A business and the rest is history. With the support of his loving family he has been making beautiful rugged leather works of art ever since.
All of Adams projects he gives 100% no matter how big or small.
Every products is made with vegetable tanned leather and are hand crafted so that they can be handed down to the next generation.
Voyager Leather Works sheaths and satchels can be seen in Columbia, England, Afghanistan, Iraq, and of course the USA.
We at Black Arrow Survival look forward to working on many more projects with Adam to bring the rest of the world these great products.
If you haven’t already checked out http://voyagerleatherworks.com
The New Black Arrow Master Rig
For over A month now Voyager Leatherworks and Black Arrow Survival have been working on A beautiful and functional piece of gear. That is not only perfect for the outdoorsmen, hunter, and bushcraft enthusiast but was functional enough to be used in A tactical environment. The Black Arrow Master Rig.
With over A month of R&D this beautiful rig took over 20 hours of hand stitching and assembling. It is made of 8-10 oz vegetable tanned leather and is oil dyed chocolate brown and has white stitching.
This Black Arrow Master rig has 16 plus configurations and multiple attachment and attachment points all secured by stainless steel hardware.Just like all of Voyager Leaytherworks products this rig comes with A life time guarantee if the leather is properly cared for.
Knowing Your Environment – A Parking Garage
Today we’ll talk about knowing your environment. More specifically, a parking garage. In a crowded urban setting, like that of a downtown city, parking garages are utilized enormously. Yet with all things that are practical in our society, come many aspects that are more a risk aversion than a helpful solution.
Part of “knowing your environment” is knowing its weaknesses. Be assured that those that wish to do harm, will do so by exploiting these weaknesses.
So what are the risks of a parking garage. Well, for one they are hard to maneuver in. Larger vehicles will have it’s maneuvering capabilities extremely limited due to the tight space. So getting into and out of a parking structure can be difficult, especially if you are having to egress in a hurry. Secondly, they are not as secure as one might think.
Limitations of Movement. Most parking structures have an entrance and exit that is easily accessible on foot. Meaning, someone who wishes to do harm doesn’t need a vehicle to access said parking structure. Regardless of whether of the not the gate is manned by security or building personnel (as most are not nowadays), a person on duty are usually there to process payment for the garage and will not question much less stop someone from entering the structure on foot. This is because many parking structures offer access to adjacent buildings, via elevator or stair access. This is limited as most of them are one way access doors for either maintenance of employee use. If you happen to be in a vehicle, most exits are right next to the entrance. If someone wished to trap someone in a parking structure, all they would have to do is take out the entrance/exit and bingo, you have trapped vehicles and people. This creates a highly limited capability of movement.
Visibility
Visibility is very limited in parking structures. Tight corners and driving lanes diminish vision as it does movement. Lighting is placed and positioned for driving and not security. If a person is on foot, they can utilize the bad lighting to their advantage. Because of the lighting, even if a parking garage has security cameras, unless they are equipped with night vision, they will be limited in their surveillance ability. Also, because of the tight spaces and corners, a cameras view will be limited by blind spots and darker areas.
In retrospect, parking structures are in place for convenience and dealing with the problem of overcrowded parking lots. Looking at them from a security stand point, they are not very secure nor practical.
A Look at Cross Knives
Pete Winkler is an upcoming knife maker and blacksmith. He has made knives now for going on 5 years. Before he started making knives he worked in construction and eventually carpentry and masonry. You can see his latest work on his Facebook page. (click here)
He has even made a complete kitchen cutlery set for a newlywed couple that took nearly a year to complete because of his attention to detail.
Pete made his first knife when he was just 11 years old, out of barstock he acquired, in his fathers barn. He clamped it into a vice and filled it by hand for 3 days. Unfortunately his brother lost it shortly after throwing it at a tree.
It wouldn’t be til years later that Pete would decide to make knives for a living. In 1977, with his back against the wall and hitting rock bottom, he had an encounter with God that gave him the push to get back on his feet. So in respect to that moment in his life, “Cross Knives” was born.
When Pete first started out he was buying per-manufactured blades and designing his own scales to put on them. Realizing that he wasn’t truly making knives he immediately purchased a band saw, heat treater, a commercial grinder, and 100lbs of A2 steel and has been operating like that ever since.
He attends 30-35 knife shows and annually travels 6-7k miles a year. Pete is one of the few knife makers that do everything “in house”, to include sanding or heat treatment. He prefers it this way because it affords him 100% control of everything that happens and that goes into an individual product. He works with a wide range of steels including, A2, CPM02, 1095, 1084, 5160, Cru-forge, V steel, and CPM-3V to name a few.
His favorite knives to create out of all his designs are his custom bowie knives and practical hunting knives. A few other knives he offers are The Boys Hunter, Little White Tail, All-Around Hunter, Little Trapper, The U.P. Skinner and even kitchen knives.
His goal is to make every customer happy and create something they truly want, that is both beautiful and practical. His most exotic knife to date is a custom Kukri knife for a customer in Ohio.
He usually finishes custom work and gets it to his customers within 8-12 weeks, depending on the season. His work ethic is the strongest and starts his projects early in the morning after a cup of coffee and continues on til late in the evening. His dedication to his trade-craft is unparalleled.
Pete says the future of Cross Knives is simple. He will pass his trade down to his two sons and continue to create custom knives this the day he is in the grave.
The following is a fully custom knife from Cross Knives. The forming of the blade, its thickness and length, to the handle materials and pins, 30 hours from start to finish. A truly beautiful custom knife from the hands of Pete.
Just Dancin’ in the Rain
In this day and age being prepared is something everyone should be. We all see the aftermath of natural disasters on T.V. everyday be it a major hurricane like Katrina in Louisiana or a F5 tornado in Moore Oklahoma. We could go through a list of just natural reasons for preparedness all day but with growing tensions around the world we need to add acts of terrorism and civil unrest to our list.
The purpose of this article is not to scare anyone but more so to maybe open more eyes to these life truths and let you know that preparedness is not just for paranoid conspiracy theorist like popular shows on cable might have you think but more so something more common place.
Throughout history as far back as some of the earliest writings of man you can find tales of preparedness but in those days it didn’t have a name attached to it like preparedness it was just a way of life. I personally recall from my childhood my grandmother and great grandmother canning everything from sweet preserves to vegetables and my grandfather gardening or collecting eggs, and yes, the chickens for dinner. I believe that everyone should still practice this level of independence so that we are not so dependent on others for our necessities of life.
Let’s face it when the drive thru at McDonalds shuts down and the grocery store shelves are empty from something as simple as a major storm making the roads impassible for trucks to bring supplies there will be a lot of us in trouble.
So ask yourself and be honest with what I have in my home now how long can my family make it with out some sort of out side help?
Then ask yourself what could I do to extend that time?
You might be surprised at what you already have.
We are asked all the time where do I start? I tell everyone the same thing in my many years in the preparedness business. I have found that water is the most overlooked and that’s a good place to start. Average water consumption per person per day in the U.S. of 50-100 gallons life would be a lot harder with out it. There are plenty of great resources of information on preparedness out there and I will leave you with a few of my favorites at the end. It’s important to remember that when we talk about preparedness there are many facets to cover whether it be food, water, medical, or security and mindset the list goes on and on.
Just remember don’t be overwhelmed it doesn’t have to be all doom and gloom it can just be a part of your life and your path to independence. Take it one thing at a time set small goals, learn new skills, and accomplish them then set another and so on. It’s easy to pick up that extra can of vegetables or beans during your grocery store adventures. All theses little things add up and before you know it your 3 days of preparedness will turn into 3 months.
Never forget to Live, Learn, and Love
We prepare for the storm so we can dance in the rain.
Thanks for your time,
Lee Smiley
Here is a list of some great Facebook pages and website resources we like to frequent. But this list is not the end all there are a lot of excellent websites out there.
- The Survival Mom (Her book is great and my wife’s favorite)
- Renaissance Homestead (Great Facebook Page)
- Living Off The Grid (Great Facebook Page)
- Graham Combat (Great Facebook Page And Website)
- Willow Haven Outdoors(Great Facebook Page And Website)
- The Pathfinder School (Great Facebook Page And Website)
- Redteams.net (Great Website)
- Grey Wolf Survival (Great Facebook Page And Website)
Body Armor basics
TRAIN AS YOU FIGHT
Body Armor Basics.
In a combat situation knowing your gear and knowing how to utilize that gear to its max potential can mean the difference between life and death.
Basics of Body Armor
Knowing the limits – body armor comes in a plethora of ratings, but the N.I.J. (National Institute of Justice) test body armor and place it on a rating scale that ranges from II, IIIA, III and IV. this is the industry standard and is also used in England. Both the English and American institutes that test body armor are considered “ideal” and so the rating system is used throughout the world.
Soft Armor – Kevlar level II- this will protect you from 9mm 124 grain FMJ all the way through .357 magnum 158 grain SJSP level IIIA- this will protect you from 9mm 124 grain FMJ- .44Mag 240 grain SWC GC
Hard Armor – Steel or Ceramic level III- this will protect you from 148 grain 7.62x51mm NATO Ball level IV-this will protect you from 166 grain .30-06 M2 AP (Armor Piercing)
In knowing the limits of your body armor you must know that it is not a catch all. most plates are typically 10 inches by 12 inches, that leaves a whole lot you “you” exposed to enemy fire. Always remember that gear is not to make up for lack of training but to supplement the training you already have.
Using Body Armor: Body armor is heavy, bulky, hot and cumbersome, as many of my L.E. and Military friends already know. The time to start using it is not the day of needing it, when it comes down to it you need this to be a second skin, you need to be able to run, jump crawl and climb in it. Doing any of this normally will gas most of us right now. Most people I know that have body armor, have it in a plate carrier, stored in the closet. They haven’t touched it in the last few months but to show off to a few friends. While I’m glad they have it if the need arises (and I do believe it will), when push comes to shove, I hope they are up to the physical demands that it takes to save there own life if the situation comes a knocking.
All I’m trying to stress is after you make the investment of purchasing the body armor, also make the investment in your health by being physically fit and capable of wearing said armor. REMEMBER, it’s maximum potential is based on YOUR maximum potential!
What armor is right for you?
What type of body armor is right for you? I’ve been asked this quite a bit in the last few years and my answer is always the same, “how much weight are you willing to carry?”. I myself am more partial to the steel plates by Infidel Body Armor. Yes they are heavier than ceramic plates, but they are also thinner and allow you a much more natural bio mechanic movement when walking, crawling- and running. This is because the weight is closer to your center mass, it gives you a slimmer profile, which makes it easier to drive with a full combat load out.
In conclusion, it is my belief that body armor should never be sacrificed unless in the most dire of circumstances. Where mobility and maneuverability are absolutely imperative to you keeping you alive whilst on mission.