TOD: THREADS AND TREADS

THREADS AND TREADS

IN THIS MONTH’S INSTALMENT OF HIS ONGOING SERIES IN RELATION TO NOT ONLY SURVIVING THE GAME DAY ENVIRONMENT, BUT ACTUALLY THRIVING IN IT, JON TAKES A STEP BACK IN TIME TO LOOK AT THE DEVELOPMENT OF CLOTHING SYSTEMS, AND BRINGS IT BANG UP TO DATE TO HOW YOU CAN PREPARE YOURSELF TO EXCEL EVEN IN THE HARSHEST CONDITIONS YOU MAY ENCOUNTER!

Last month I looked at why failing to prepare is potentially preparing to fail. We spoke about preparation from booking a game day, preparing your weapon systems, and clothing. In this issue I would like to take you all on a journey into understanding the importance of and some of the technology and development involved in the clothing we wear. I’ll try to avoid going to “James May” on the subject but you’ll have to humour me as it’s quite important and the science works.

So, what are we wearing and I guess more importantly, why are we wearing it?

It looks “Ally”, right? Well sure it does and that is cool but there’s a whole lot more to it. Our modern clothing, specifically the Military and Law Enforcement, has had billions of dollars of research and development poured into it. It’s lightweight, strong, warm, waterproof and in some cases can stop bullets. This clothing is practical. This clothing is incredible but it hasn’t always been like that.

Military, Law Enforcement and Outdoor clothing has come a long way in the last 100 years!

In WW1 a British Soldiers webbing (1908 pattern) alone could weigh up to 70 lbs or 32 kg, that’s before you add the weight of the heavy woollen uniforms, leather, boots and their weapons. The uniform around the turn of the century and through two World Wars was heavy, cumbersome and by today’s standards, ineffective. A soldier would have been slow, easily fatigued and although the British Army were one of the

first military forces to adopt drab or coloured to the environment clothing, a soldier was easy to spot in the open. Add the weight of a good downpour and the mud that would have stuck to these woollen pieces, it must have been hellish for them.

“IN WW1 A BRITISH SOLDIERS WEBBING (1908 PATTERN) ALONE COULD WEIGH UP TO 70 LBS OR 32 KG, THAT’S BEFORE YOU ADD THE WEIGHT OF THE HEAVY WOOLLEN UNIFORMS, LEATHER, BOOTS AND THEIR WEAPONS. THE UNIFORM AROUND THE TURN OF THE CENTURY AND THROUGH TWO WORLD WARS WAS HEAVY, CUMBERSOME AND BY TODAY’S STANDARDS, INEFFECTIVE”

As time passed, warfare changed and so did the clothing and systems used. With the invention of new materials to meet new styles of warfighting and new, challenging environments, fresh possibilities could be realised and advances made; materials evolved from wool to tech fibres, designs changed in the style of the clothing allowing for better fit, greater comfort, and higher levels of performance. Skip forward to the present day, think about the kit you may have today and compare it to the soldier of yesteryear. Quite the difference isn’t it? My question to you, dear reader, is this. Do you know how to correctly dress yourself?

I don’t mean whether you put your socks on before or after your trousers, nor do I mean can you match camo patterns correctly. No, what I am keen to know is if you are prepared and can dress according to the situation and react to a change in environment. As children we are taught to wrap up snuggly, warm during cold weather and wear little when it’s hot out but is it quite so simple?

Well, yes and no.

When cold we want to wrap up warm, that much is correct but thick woolly jumpers and heavy wax jackets, scarves and hats aren’t the solution. Today’s current thinking is based on layers, thin layers. I say current thinking,

it was suggested as far back as 1912 by Charlotte Gibbs in her book titled Household Textiles that “...several layers of lightweight material are better than one thick layer…”.

ENTER THE M-43

This thinking was taken further in the 1940’s when the Quartermaster Corps of the US Army introduced the M-43 Uniform. This uniform included a woollen vest (mmmm, scratchy), a long sleeve flannel shirt and a sweater. It was also issued with the M-43 Jacket. It’s the iconic tightly woven cotton jacket with large chest and hip pockets in Olive Drab, that we associate with US Soldiers from WW2 and into the Vietnam era. Each piece of the M-43 was designed to work in conjunction with each separate item of clothing. If it were freezing you would wear the vest, flannel shirt, sweater and jacket together, if it were hot you would just wear the jacket. Field testing had proven that the system worked so the Quartermaster Corps decided to develop the system with a research and development program. Gorges Doroit, a Harvard Business School Professor took over the Harvard Fatigue Lab and began testing the effectiveness of the M-43 system. In 1946, he addressed congress and told them that “The greatest enemy, besides what we normally call the enemy, is nature”. He was obviously referring to the elements and inclement weather conditions soldiers faced in the theatre of war. With this knowledge in hand, the US Military and Doroit build various 16’ x 32’ chambers with a two person treadmill. One had a snow machine, another heating elements and another had heat and humidity. Each mimicked a theatre of war and soldiers performed tasks, with sensors of their skin that measured and recorded their temperatures.

This research proved that the M-43 system kept soldiers warm down to temperatures as low as 0 degrees Fahrenheit or -17 degrees Celsius. It also proved that the tight weave stopped icy wind blasts from penetrating the jacket and helped to prevent rain

from getting in. In 1958 the US Military developed the Layering Education Curriculum which taught soldiers how to use and adjust the layering system in relation to the conditions.

Today modern military labs still use updated versions of Doroits’ chambers for their research and the M-43 system has been somewhat updated with modern materials and designs. It is now known as the Extended Climate Warfighter Clothing System or G3 ECWCS. The G3 ECWCS system comprises seven levels (layers) with each level being its own component part of the system.

1. Levels 1 and 2 are light and medium base layers, designed to be worn in direct contact with the skin to wick moisture and in conjunction with other levels. 2. Level 3 is a High Loft Fleece Jacket that is the primary layer of insulation. 3. Level 4 is a Wind Jacket and is the first “Shell

Layer”. This jacket provides protection from winds and sand. It is also designed to be worn under body armour. 4. Level 5 is the second of the shell layers and

comprises Soft Shell Jacket and Trousers. 5. Level 6 is the Extreme Cold Weather Jacket and trousers, designed to be worn over other layers to provide a waterproof barrier. 6. Level 7 is the Extreme Cold Parka and Trousers.

These are highly insulated soft shell garments meant for static operations.

IT’S ALL ABOUT LAYERS!

Even ECWCS technology has moved on now with developments by Army Ranger Captain Rick Elder, who created the Protective Combat Uniform that can go from completely soaking wet in sub-zero temperatures, to completely dry in under 30 minutes using only a soldier’s body heat generated by exercise.

The pattern here is obvious, it’s layers, but what does that mean to you and what are the real world examples that you may have already or can easily get hold of? 1. Level 1 and 2 - Base layers are everywhere and you probably have some thermal Long Johns or gym gear such as Under Armour tops short or

“ECWCS TECHNOLOGY HAS MOVED ON NOW WITH DEVELOPMENTS BY ARMY RANGER CAPTAIN RICK ELDER, WHO CREATED THE PROTECTIVE COMBAT UNIFORM THAT CAN GO FROM COMPLETELY SOAKING WET IN SUB-ZERO TEMPERATURES, TO COMPLETELY DRY IN UNDER 30 MINUTES USING ONLY A SOLDIER’S BODY HEAT GENERATED BY EXERCISE”

long sleeved and leggings (yes, leggings for you fellas too). Not only does this offer up a layer of insulation it also quickly wicks sweat away from the body, which keeps body temperature up. 2. Level 3 - A Fleece, simple as that. Viper Tactical,

Pentagon, Clawgear and most outdoor performance brands all do excellent fleeces at varying price points. 3. Level 4 - A windbreaker Jacket, Helikon-Tex makes a fantastic windbreaker called the

Windrunner. I have one, it is epic, it stops the wind blowing through you and taking the heat away, the only downside is that it offers next to no water repellency. 4. Level 5 - Soft shell jacket and trousers - Most of you own a soft shell, imagine putting a t-shirt, a fleece and a soft shell jacket on. You would be getting fairly toasty, right? Viper Tactical,

Helikon-Tex, Pentagon, Clawgear, Carinthia and many, many more brands make outstanding

Softshell gear. 5. Level 6 - The real hardcore waterproof layer - I have a super simple answer for you - surplus

Gore Tex. MilTec offers a waterproof suit in a choice of camo patterns as do 5.11, all available at Military 1st. If you have the money, and have

a use for this level of gear on a reular basis then you can also look at UF PRO, Tasmanian Tiger and Carinthia 6. Level 7 - Fleeced Trousers and Fleeced Softshell Jacket for dry but cold situations. Snugpak and Carinthia would be your go to manufacturers here.

As you can seem these layers are fairly self- explanatory and you work your way up and down the scale depending on the conditions. In good old Blighty we are very unlikely to face -20 celsius so Level 7 is unlikely to be required but we definitely use Level 6 on a regular basis.

You gotta keep your feet warm and dry too. A good pair of boots are essential, and oh boy there are opinions on boots. Gore Tex or Leather, Patrol or Sneaker, Full or Half, Zipped or not, it goes on and on… Do you want a summer pair and a winter pair or are you and all seasons kinda person?

With that in mind I’m going to offer some advice and not point you at brands...

Try the boots on. Walk around in them. What is super comfortable to me, might be hell for you. When trying them on, wear your thickest socks or those that you would be wearing on a gameday. Wear the boots around the house for a few weeks to break them in, blisters mid-game (especially in a multi-day MilSim) are NOT fun.

I mentioned socks there and as far as I’m concerned there is only one option, Merino Wool Socks. If you’ve been looking after your boots, they won’t be letting water in and you’ll have toasty warm and dry feet. (Don’t forget to carry a dry set or two in your daysack).

HEADWEAR

In a recent issue of Airsoft Actions’ “The Cage” we answered the question of headwear, I wear a cap, any old cap will do me, I’ve had brain buckets with nods on and other fanciness, I’ve had brain buckets bare, I just don’t like them. Obviously, it’s a sensible option to wear something that offers your head protection so we’d recommend a bump helmet from a safety standpoint. There are plenty of manufacturers out there, Nuprol, Viper, Emerson Gear all the way up to OpsCore and Team Wendy.

So to recap todays musings, wear layers that you can add and remove, wear decent footwear, a helmet is a good idea and always use sunscreen! AA