Ultralight Tac Nylon

[Diz]

I think it's safe to say it cuts both ways. Too light can be just as bad as too heavy. But I know for myself that "design creep" has definately increased the weight of my gear and I think it's a good idea to work harder to lighten up what I'm making without overly compromising durability.

After I made that light weight chest rig, I picked up a PALS grid chest rig with add on pouches, and couldn't believe the difference. It was huge.

I used to question why these civilian ultralight enthusiasts were so concerned about ounces but now I have come to understand that they add up to pounds, so it is significant.

Funny the ALICE ruck should be mentioned. I did my best make a better ruck, out of 1,000d cordura no less. And yet looking back, about the only way those things wore out was for the material coating to dry rot!

[Stephen_H]

After I made that light weight chest rig, I picked up a PALS grid chest rig with add on pouches, and couldn't believe the difference. It was huge.

I know what you mean and that's the reason I designed our Low Profile Chest Harness the way I did. It drops a noticeable amount of weight not having MOLLE webbing and the associated attachment system.

Stephen

[rob_s]

Definitely food for thought. I know that for my own purposes the chest rigs that I run (one from Diz for the AK, one from Eagle for the AR) could dispense with virtually all of the MOLLE. In fact, having all that real estate on my Eagle rig led to my loading the hell out of it before I checked myself and got back to the basics.

I got smart and went from this to this. Obviously I only need the MOLLE on the shoulder and a little on the left side panel for the single pistol mag. Running the rest a bit "slicker" might certainly be advantageous in terms of weight and snagging.

As others have posted though, I think that the need for ultra-light gear is somewhat limited whether in the SOF fighting arena or in the long-term hiking arena. There just aren't that many guys out there that are doing things so intense that the kind of weight difference we're talking about will matter.

[Diz]

Again RobS cuts right to the heart of the matter.

[eggroll]

Some of my thoughts considerations to make

1) Lighter materials will require modifications to construction techniques.
2) How can existing materials be brought into the fold?
3) Existing designs be modified to use lighter materials
4) What is the breakdown of failures in the field? What can these breakdowns be attributed to?
5) Further understanding of customer segment requirements?
6) Realization that this does not represent an revolutionary development, but rather exploitation of existing technology to meet end-user segment requirements.
7) How can this be suited to civilian side?
8) How do you address the "perception" vs "reality" of lighter weight material application to prospective consumers?

[Diz]

Some good points to ponder. To start at the bottom, I think you might have some problems initially if you try to convince people that ultralight is the way to go. I have seen it around in the civilian community for years and I never fully embraced it. I say just throw it out there as an option and let people do what they will.

Civie sales? Hard to tell. Two different animals. Similar but different requirements. If it becomes popular SOF-wide then I think you'll see a lot of me-too sales.

Failure rates of ultralight gear. Nothing formally developed yet but if you look at some for the backpacking sites and popular books/magazines you see a lot of anecdotal evidence. The heavy-hitters seem to be over-loading and abrasion, stressing out the seams/ materials. And the consensus seems to be you will be buying new stuff each season. So yes, for lack of better term there is some "built-in obsolesence" involved. Is the weight-savings worth it? That's up to you.

As designers, will we have to modify our designs, materials and construction techniques? Not so much. If anything I think this makes it easier for the liitle custom gear guy to make things, because the lighter designs are much easier/simpler to make.

[militarymoron]

it doesn't have to be ultralight construction - 'midweight' might be the balance between the two, using 725 or 500D. when i hear 'ultralight', i'm thinking the really light stuff like sil-nylon etc.
SOTECH has been making lightweight 500D pouches for a few years now (their BLoCS line).

[Diz]

Good point, MM. In the civvie realm, ultralight means 15 lb packs, fully loaded! You know we ain't never gonna get that light. But it does nudge the scales back a bit, and that's a good trend. Perhaps we should define it as light weight initiatives.