Let’s say I want to take a carbine class
What kinda gear do I need?
Remember, I do this to entertain me, not you.
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September 13th, 2010 at 4:56 pm
1) A carbine
September 13th, 2010 at 4:59 pm
Couldn’t resist.
Check here:
http://tacticalyellowvisor.net/8343/56227.html
September 13th, 2010 at 5:17 pm
Just about any carbine will do. I finally took a carbine class last month and used a bone-stock A2 clone. Did well. Better than some with tricked out rail monsters.
September 13th, 2010 at 5:21 pm
In no particular order:
A reliable rifle
Several reliable mags
Sling
Light system (many courses have low light sessions)
Mag carrier(s)
Dump pouch for magazines
Reliable pistol (in most carbine classes, you do some transition work)
Reliable pistol mags
Quality holster
pistol mag carrier
Rain/Cold weather gear
High SPF sunscreen
Quality ear/eye protection
Extra batteries for everything that takes a battery
Comfortable clothing (Cargo pockets are nice but not mandatory) and comfortable footgear
Water/snacks
September 13th, 2010 at 5:24 pm
Bottle of bourbon for teh afters
some sort of meetup for the area before (you won’t want to after)
September 13th, 2010 at 5:27 pm
An open mind.
September 13th, 2010 at 5:27 pm
Advil
September 13th, 2010 at 5:30 pm
A course I attended also required a baseball cap and a sports jacket (although a coat worked).
Mike V has almost everything else covered. I’d add: LOTS of ammo for carbine and pistol; backup guns in case of breakage; tools to clean fix problems.
September 13th, 2010 at 5:31 pm
In addition, for any tactical firearms class, a good pair of knee pads will come in very handy; pardon the pun, but a gunfight that lasts more than three seconds usually is not a stand-up fight.
September 13th, 2010 at 5:49 pm
All the junk that gets listed by the folks teaching the class (of which Mike V’s list is representative).
I keep taking spare parts, and have only ever seen one person need them. And there is usually some guy with the parts necessary to rebuild every rifle on the line. I’d maybe just take the obvious parts, or whatever you’ve got already, and then enough cash to buy a bolt off of armory guy. You could also use that money for lunch when they all decide to go somewhere that doesn’t take plastic.
Unless you particularly enjoy (or care to practice) loading magazines under time pressure, have enough mags that you can load up (simultaneously) half the rounds you expect to fire in a day. Plus a lula loader. Bring a second lula if you want to make friends.
Ear protection should be electronic, and cover the ears well. 20 AR’s touching off at the same time is not something you want to expose your ear drums to even a little bit of.
Dump pouch… about 1/3rd of the way through I want one, and then by 2/3rd of the way through I don’t care anymore. Got one, bring it, otherwise, probably don’t sweat it, especially if you can put mags back into the mag carrier quickly, and your pants have real pockets.
Knee/elbow pads, yes. Try to avoid the ones with velcro, the stuff always pokes around the edge and does its best to tear you open.
September 13th, 2010 at 6:29 pm
“Dump pouch for magazines”
I see more references to dump pouches for training, but shouldn’t we be worried that this is building another ‘bucket fail’ (see http://hellinahandbasket.net/?p=4544)
September 13th, 2010 at 6:44 pm
Tom:
The argument can be made that if civilians are going through enough rounds in a firefight to change mags, it’s probably not your run of the mill home invasion. You’ll probably want to keep your mags for reloading later.
September 13th, 2010 at 6:59 pm
Don’t forget the NINJA suit!
September 13th, 2010 at 7:06 pm
Whatever gear the course says to bring…plus a good hat, cold weather/rain gear, knee pads, elbow pads, good hearing pro, eye pro, sufficient water (camelbak and refills?), ammo, lots of mags (at least 2x whatever you carry, and all verified to work in your rifle, with your ammo), your lube of choice (I use Mobil-1), whatever optics, backup sights, maybe an extra optical, batteries for everything, a boo-boo kit, comfortable clothes (loose, painters pants, maybe with suspenders too), and well broken-in boots. Suitable spares for your gun too – spare springs, pins, maybe a complete buffer assembly, extractor etc.
As far as web gear or whatever, be realistic: Dont get a superhypertactikewl vest and plate rig unless thats what you plan on using at 3AM.
September 13th, 2010 at 7:10 pm
Gonna throw this out there… a video camera (if allowed) and a can of Off.
Maybe a supressor 😉
September 13th, 2010 at 7:31 pm
Don’t get sucked in to all the fancy chest rig /vest stuff if you don’t do this stuff all the time.
Get two MOLLE double AR mag pouches such as
http://www.511tactical.com/browse/Home/Law-Enforcement/Tactical-Vests/Accessories/Double-Mag-Pouch-w-Cover/D/30100/P/1:100:10000:10500:10501/I/58708
and put them on your belt on your support hand side.
For spare parts, if you can swing it, the most common problems are with the extractor, extractor spring, bolt, or ejector. So just getting a spare bolt assembly and swapping it out if you have problems would cover most issues. Also maybe a firing pin and firing pin retaining pin.
Bring a cleaning rod in case you need to knock out a stuck case.
September 13th, 2010 at 9:30 pm
A spare rifle. Failing that, a spare bolt.
A note pad and writing implement. Jot down notes between loading mags and drinking water.
Bring your lunch to the range. Most of the class takes off to get fast food for lunch, but I always stick around to talk to the instructors.
Sunscreen, bug spray and a couple of hats.
Minimalist, “train like you fight” gear is good, but you don’t want to hold the class up, either. I ran with a chest rig with 6 magazines and I thought that was a good compromise. Make sure your magazine carrier allows you to draw and reholster your pistol safely.
September 13th, 2010 at 10:11 pm
hidration bladder, knee n elbow pads, good boots, something to write on and with, lots of mags, lots of ammo, something to carry them in and a dump pouch. Sunglasses/saftey glasses, hearing protection, and a hat and depending on if you train with weenies or not, you might need rain gear. The people I shoot with shoot rain, snow etc. hell or high water! Extra batteries and a back up weapon might not be a bad idea either.
September 14th, 2010 at 12:13 am
I’d add some knee and elbow pads.
September 14th, 2010 at 2:23 am
H&K 416, anything else is just crap, ignore the fact that i went through a great carbine course with a Olympia Arms PCR(cheap m-4 type rifle(single shot only :())
Really bring spares for everything that can break,
and replacement batteries for everything
put all your gear together the night before, don’t be at the class holding them up trying to fit your mag pouch to your belt,
double check your magazines for fit/function,
clean and function test your rifle before the event,
pre load your mags if possible,
my class was based on a 4 mag load out, one in the rifle 3 in pouch, i went with 25 pre-loaded mags and 5 empty mags and 250 more rounds then class spec, left most mags in a ammo box and just swapped them out between shooting session. I was so glad i pre-loaded it work out great for me, and even let a few other students shoot my ammo/mags.
September 14th, 2010 at 3:00 am
Hawaiian shirt or PJs. Your choice…
http://www.deathvalleymag.com/2010/08/04/tactical-training-train-like-you-would-fight-%E2%80%93-not-how-you-would-fight-zombies/
September 14th, 2010 at 7:57 am
I always keep extra pants and a shirt handy. I’ve ripped them during carbine classes and duct tape on your groin just looks silly.
September 14th, 2010 at 11:18 am
One more thing, a good, positive attitude.
September 14th, 2010 at 4:29 pm
Awesome shades. Goatee. Head tats. Black T-shirt.
September 15th, 2010 at 6:28 pm
Toilet paper. I’ve been places where no toilet was close by. Hey, coffee, scrambled eggs, bacon. It’s not some glamorous suggestion, but you’ll thank me if you live the recommendation.
I will add, armies have used stripper clips for the last 100 years for a reason.
I’d go with the knee pads, preferably in 511 pants with the sewn-in pocket, even if you don’t wear knee pads around the house or to work. Your floors aren’t covered with crusher-run sized gravel either but some training ranges are.
Definite second on electronic hearing protection: You need to be able to hear the instructor’s commands. Otherwise, everybody else will and you’ll be the guy who didn’t get the word.