Kifaru ZXR compression strap modification

A few days ago I was struck with a flash of inspiration, why not put buckles on the compression straps of my ZXR instead of the ladderlocs? Quicker to decompress the pack with the bonus of lashing things to the pack quickly.

I got my hands on a bunch of split side release buckles from Supply Captain and performed the mod.

First you need to unthread one of the compression straps from the ladderloc and add the male SRB part.

The next part is somewhat tricky. You need to cut off the ladderloc while leaving the nylon loop undamaged. I carefully cut it away with a set of some sort of clippers I had lying around.

Put the female portion of the SRB on the loop then clip the two portions together. Repeat for the other 3 straps.

Replacing each ladderloc only takes a couple of minutes and due to the female buckles having the slot, zero sewing is required.

I think the ZXR is better with the improved functionality. Attaching items to the side of the pack is much quicker and simpler.

A similar thing can be done to the XTL to provide a quick release from the main pack should you need to bail in a hurry, or just to be tacticool.

Sleeping bag comparison

Today I got my grubby hands on a Kifaru 20 degree Fahrenheit Slick sleeping bag. Initial review is very positive.

Massive toebox. I can move my feet to a very comfortable width in the slick bag. My British Army bag is very restrictive in this regard, far too narrow at the foot end. I hate to think how restrictive it would be with boots on.

In terms of size, there is no contest. The Slick bag wins in almost every area.

When it comes to weight, again there is no contest whatsoever. The army bag is significantly heavier than the Slick. Its like comparing a desktop computer to a netbook. Slick bag is so light. Definitely replaces the army bag, no question about it.

I have the power!

A few weeks ago I purchased a cheap solar panel for charging my tech while out and about. My original plan was to get 2 of them and attach them to my XTL. When it arrived it was much much smaller than I anticipated.  I can fit 5 across the PALS webbing on my XTL.

The panel is a simple affair. Has an internal lithium battery that can be charged via USB to give a full charge before going outdoors and also has a pop out secondary panel for faster charging. Comes with a bunch of adapters for various devices.

Attaching it to my XTL is pretty simple. I glued 2 Maxpedition Tacties which I had modified to give improved functionality (in my opinion) to the back of the panel. I was origially going to film it but my audience is not dumb, gluing 2 things together hardly qualifies as video material.

Malice clips could be used as an alternative to the tacties. I would prefer to use them but I can’t find any retailers in the UK that stock them and I am not paying £20 to ship 4 bits of plastic from America.

The proof of concept works well I think. Sags a little but that’s due to a lack of interweaving that would normally happen on PALS. I attempted to glue in a loop of webbing on each tactie but that failed.

Gubbinz Pouch

This originally came out of a need to put bits ‘n bobs someplace so they don’t clutter up my room or get lost. At some point, I decided to just take it with me in case it proved useful. Depending on how I’m feeling, it either rides in the front pocket of my Maxpedition Sabercat or in my Kifaru XTL.

The pouch itself is a Kifaru standard chamber pocket which came with the XTL. 425 denier nylon, plenty strong for small things.

Contents:

• Paracord and hair bands
• 2 boot bands
• Tissues
• Urban self aid kit
• Grimloc carabiner
• Clipper lighter
• Electrical lighter with torch

The 2 lighters serve different purposes. The clipper has a removable flint sparker so even without gas it is still useful. The electrical one has a small LED torch built into it, not the best thing in the world but when its the only thing you have you will be glad of it. The holster was made for me by V, features a belt loop and a clip to put on keys or what have you.

Paratarp

A good while ago I ordered Kifaru’s paratarp along with the annex and the peg and pole kit. Unfortunatly due to some error, the peg and pole kit arrived this morning. As any person with new kit does, I tried it out (not for real, that will happen soon).

The nylon bag the kit came in seems pretty substantial. Enough room for the whole system to fit in with a bit of room to spare (more considering the tarp can squash up pretty small). The resulting package is a lot smaller and – more importantly – a lot lighter.

The pegs I find to be pretty naff to be honest. They are made of nylon which is a lot less…flexible than my aluminium pegs but they lack the sharp point to penetrate the earth. A lot of earth accumumates between the ridges which I find undesirable, however they do keep the tarp in place very well and take quite a bit of effort to remove which is a good thing.

The poles is a nice idea. I feel that they could be improved somewhat but I can’t say how. Something is lacking. I may go down the route of using hiking poles (for those that don’t know, the tarp has measurments on it for optimum pole length so you can use whatever you find in the field so long as it is the right length).

The tarp itself I am unsure of. It is ridiculously light (311 grams, 11 oz) which is a major plus but I’m not sure if it is worth the cost. It also feels very thin and I am scared of ripping it (especially due to the cost). Hopefully extensive field testing will eliminate my fears and doubts.