Gear Pr0n: Coyote Ugly?

Plate Carrier, War Belt, Cool Guy hat, and M4 furniture in coyote tan. It sure looks beautiful to me! This guy is ready to go hunting.

Zombie Survival Kit Week: Video Review 1

Hmmm... This man has obviously placed a lot of thought into his zombie survival kit. Unfortunately, his kit has a high degree of Fail associated with it.

He does okay in his choice of firearms (the ever popular M4 and Glock) and knives (a Kukri and a RAT). He's pretty smart to include binoculars. And, of course, he has water.

But he's critically short of vital supplies such as ammo and water. Now, you could argue that he's only showing a representative selection, but it doesn't appear he has provision for carrying much more ammo and water.

What about food? Why does he waste space with a Rubik's Cube? And an iPod??? Seriously? Oh, yeah, I'll be sure to plug into earbuds and waste one of my most important senses for situational awareness.

Still, he has some nice equipment, and we can learn a lot from looking at shortcomings.

Gear Pr0n: A Fully Kitted Hunter

Most of my Gear Pr0n features have highlighted equipment rigs -- the basic load carrying equipment. But I've had a few questions about what a fully kitted-out zombie hunter looks like.

This is a pretty good example. Weapons include an M4 and a pistol, in this case a Beretta M9. The main load carrier is an Eagle CIRAS plate carrier with plenty of pouches for ammo and gizmos.

He wears a black combat suit; a Propper Tactical Response Uniform by the looks of it. He's personalized it with some morale patches and identity patches so his teammates know him. He wears a helmet with a hard point for NVGs and goggles strapped on. He also has knee pads which are helpful when you go banging around in the dark. He wears Mechanix gloves, which are excellent for shooting

Our hunter also carries water in a CamelBak carrier and uses a radio to communicate with his teammates. For some reason he has on a rappelling harness. I don't usually bother with this as it can restrict my running and is needless weight, but maybe his mission requires it. He also has flexi-cuffs. These are unnecessary when slaying bodies because the walking dead don't need handcuffs. But... Sometimes you run into real-live humans -- "quislings" we call them -- who misguidedly think they can help the zombies. Those folks you need to secure so they won't interfere with you.

Lastly, our hunter friend has a large pouch on his left leg. This may be a dump pouch for spare mags. If so, it is an old style, but one that offers plenty of room. From the way it sags, it appears to be a gas mask carrier. Gas masks are an item of controversy among professional zombie hunters. Many believe they can help protect against infection. However, there has never been a case -- regardless of the origin of the infestation -- in which a human was proven to be infected by airborne contagion. All cases appear to be by body fluid via an open wound. Our hunter is probably well protected already in his clothing against this possibility -- especially with his stylish skull-logo balaclava (I need to get one of these).

Gear Pr0n: What is Ready?

On the surface, this person appears to be "ready" for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. He's got the M4, pistols, a scoped rifle, a shotgun, and plenty of edged weapons. But his collection begs the question: just what is "ready?" How, for example, does he plan on carrying all this? Instead of buying a leveraction rifle, maybe he should invest in some pouches for his M4 magazines, or holsters for his pistols? Does he even have a backpack to carry loose ammunition? Something he could strap his swords to? This is haphazard. He has purchased without a plan. He's bought things that look cool. How many swords does he need? Something I learned early in this business is that you have to understand your Requirements, with a capital "R." What is your mission, what do you need to accomplish it safely and efficiently, and how can you wisely spend your resources to achieve those two functions? I recommend you start with three guns: carbine, pistol, and shotgun. Now, I like the M4, the Glock, and either the Mossberg or Remington 870 in tactical furniture. Next you need ammunition and something to carry it with you. After that you need to start thinking about a good melee weapon. Then take it from there. I don't just post Gear Pr0n features because the stuff looks pretty. You need to think about what you're seeing and adapting it for your needs. Today, my advice to you is to seriously consider what your needs will be for everyday zombie hunting, or Zombieggedon

Sometimes Less is More

Here's a little something unusual and elegant: an AR15 chambered in 9mm, tricked out with the usual MagPul furniture. But note the red dot sight for Close Quarters work, and the sound suppressor to keep the action quiet. But I love how it's been paired with a bare bones war belt featuring a set of HSGI TACO pouches for the spare magazines and a SureFire combat light. This is serious -- but minimalist -- kit for hunting a known threat in tight spaces.