Jeff, what magazines do you regularly write for?

Cpl Punishment

Cpl Punishment

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Jan 28, 2006
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Jeff, what magazines do you regularly write for?

I've seen articles of yours and Reuben's in SWAT and Tactcal knives. I generally do not buy these magazines, so it's good to know to look in them in case something of interest comes up. Do you write for other magazines on a regular basis?
 
Regularly write for: Tactical Knives and SWAT

Occasionally write for: Blade (maybe one article a year) and SOF (about 3 to 4 articles a year)

Also write for these overseas magazine on occasion: ARMAS, Defensa, Elite Forces, Police and Security.
 
hey Jeff-what knives do you frequently carry? EDC, survival training, just curious? Sorry if you have been asked a million times
 
I am usually carrying something that I am reviewing for Tactical Knives magazine so it changes. With that said, I do my best to at least use/carry a knife for a month before writing about it, unless it's a survival trip or something similar where the knife is being used hard on a daily basis. Sadly, I hardly ever carry a RAT knife since I am always reviewing and testing other makers and manufacturers knives. We do have others putting RAT knives through the wringer though. I just emailed Steven Dick (TK editor) a note we got from an elite U.S. Special Operation group that are now using the RC-5 as their main knife when teaching SERE school to their SpecOps students. Wished I could say who it was and what they are doing but we can't make it public. Not trying to be all spooky about this but its just one of the downfalls of doing business with some of the Special Ops groups, they don't want anything mentioned about it in a public format, and rightfully so I guess.
 
I've been reading your stuff for about 12 years off and on in TK. I don't usually buy one unless I see something interesting in it...just like Black Belt or SOF.
 
Do you carry anything as a back-up just in case the one you are testing fails? Yeah the whole secret squirrel ninja community is kind of GAY with the whole I can't divulge that info crap. But from what I have seen and learned it's usually nothing all that special.
 
I don't call these guys secret squirrel ninjas. They are the real deal and get deployed to some of the worst places in the world.

I've always got extra tools ;)
 
Spenceds said:
Yeah the whole secret squirrel ninja community is kind of GAY with the whole I can't divulge that info crap.
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Bwahahaha! I feel the same way, it's not like any type of operational security is going to be compromised by divulging what fixed blade they have on their rig. :jerkit:

However, the names of most military special forces units have been so whored out over the years, they are probably...basically...done with hearing what they carry even if the information is correct. A casual search of E-bay will reveal all manner of total SHIT carried by various special forces units. :barf:
 
The problem comes not from some type of operational security, it's basically that these units have indeed been whored out so much in the past that they don't want it known what they carry simply because they don't/can't endorse gear. You will have the guys that tell you this is the "official so-and so knife" but if it's not government issued then that's bullshit. Some don't even use or have an "official" anything.

I had a guy tell me the other day that any piece of personal gear issued by the government is junk and that's why a lot of operators buy their own stuff.
 
R.A.T. said:
The problem comes not from some type of operational security, it's basically that these units have indeed been whored out so much in the past that they don't want it known what they carry simply because they don't/can't endorse gear. You will have the guys that tell you this is the "official so-and so knife" but if it's not government issued then that's bullshit. Some don't even use or have an "official" anything.

I had a guy tell me the other day that any piece of personal gear issued by the government is junk and that's why a lot of operators buy their own stuff.
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Yep that's pretty much how it goes, I spent thousands on my own equipment and what not. Issued gear sucks except 1 out of 10 times when it's just like, "Holy $hit" this thing works and didn't break after a week. Then the hording and stealing begins, ah the good ol' days!:thumbdn:(fart sound with mouth)
 
Jeff,

That's pretty much what I thought. :)

Not all issued gear is garbage, however. But when it is not garbage, it's apparently hard as hell to get!

When I heard about a "USMC Force Recon Survival Kit," I figured it was bullshit but then I found a document online and went ahead and purchased one of them to dissect for my website. It was a really, really excellent kit!

I think most guys in special forces units need to pick over the National Stock Numbers List & Descriptions and write down the numbers and then order the stuff in and they really can make some excellent survival kits, for example.
 
R.A.T. said:
I am usually carrying something that I am reviewing for Tactical Knives magazine so it changes. With that said, I do my best to at least use/carry a knife for a month before writing about it, unless it's a survival trip or something similar where the knife is being used hard on a daily basis. Sadly, I hardly ever carry a RAT knife since I am always reviewing and testing other makers and manufacturers knives. We do have others putting RAT knives through the wringer though. I just emailed Steven Dick (TK editor) a note we got from an elite U.S. Special Operation group that are now using the RC-5 as their main knife when teaching SERE school to their SpecOps students. Wished I could say who it was and what they are doing but we can't make it public. Not trying to be all spooky about this but its just one of the downfalls of doing business with some of the Special Ops groups, they don't want anything mentioned about it in a public format, and rightfully so I guess.
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I too have been reading Jeff's stuff as long as it has been coming out in print. Reading stories from guys you know have been there has way more impact.

Well said Amigo. It is important to get some real dirt time with new gear before writing about it. Besides we all know how you and Mike test the blades you are behind in a real world situation!

-RB
 
I've found that most issued gear is pretty good. The Spec Ops community is a little different and they have their own requirements as well as a bit more latitude and so end up with OTS stuff that works for them. Additionally there is a need to stay low-profile at times and here again OTS sometimes is more suitable.

But the issue stuff I've used has been pretty decent. My biggest complaint is that it tends to be one-size-fits-all and heavier than commercial equivalents--but I used an ALICE pack for quite a while because I was too cheap to spring for a commercial rig. It's a good pack. I still use a GI canteen and cup along with my fancy SIGG water bottles. I've got a 20 year-old pilot's survival knife that has seen a fair amount of field time and come through smiling (did replace the sheath though).

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Is an issue M-4 going to function like one put together by Les Baer? No. But it'll will get the job done.

I did a cold weather survival school up in Maine using nothing but issue gear and a SAK. Sub-zero temps for a week with no food and no shelter but that we made with a parachute. The gear worked well and everyone brought their fingers and toes home.

In the end, it's not about the gear, it's about the guy using it. My $0.02.

EDIT: I'll have to start looking at TK now.
 
I have spent some cold nights in the woods with less than I have available to me now so barring a broken leg or some other major injury if I get lost, etc., my goal is to make a "survival situation" sort of like crappy camping. You know what I mean? You have a crappy camping trip where it seems everything went wrong and the weather was nasty, etc., and you get back and you're OK. That's my hope for any type of "survival situation." Know enough and have enough to make it through as a camping trip that wasn't quite as comfortable as you wanted it to be.
 
Rotte said:

But the issue stuff I've used has been pretty decent. My biggest complaint is that it tends to be one-size-fits-all and heavier than commercial equivalents--but I used an ALICE pack for quite a while because I was too cheap to spring for a commercial rig. It's a good pack. I still use a GI canteen and cup along with my fancy SIGG water bottles. I've got a 20 year-old pilot's survival knife that has seen a fair amount of field time and come through smiling (did replace the sheath though).

Is an issue M-4 going to function like one put together by Les Baer? No. But it'll will get the job done.

I did a cold weather survival school up in Maine using nothing but issue gear and a SAK. Sub-zero temps with no food. The gear worked well and everyone brought their fingers and toes home.

In the end, it's not about the gear, it's about the guy using it. My $0.02.
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I agree on the "who is using it" theory. I saw plenty of soldiers with issued toys on their weapons that had no idea how to use them. And after spending a day with some I realized that compass skills are fading. Too many rely on GPS and their backup is extra batteries. I used to hate it when they would bring out new equipment we didn't need and say hey add this to your already heavy load. Most issue gear will get the job done, however, a lot of it is just about the quality and like you said "one-size-fits-all and heavier than commercial equivalents". I am only 5'7" and i am not proportional (32" inseam), so it was always a pain when gear was not adjustable to fit me and just draped over my ass. And a lot of gear just didn't have the durabilty. Being infantry stuff got torn and dirty and just abused, it was just rediculous how fragile some of the stuff was and that was when most stuff got replaced. Then you had the abortion gear that was designed by some lieutenant whose daddy was a general and got them a contract, and the equipment was just stupid. Namely the Molle packs, and some of the issued tactical vests.
 
Not all issued gear is junk, though a lot of it is. There is, however, better and LIGHTER stuff available OTS. I blame it on the Army wanting to make everything suck as much as possible. No other organization on earth is as good at turning something that should be fun, like camping and shooting machine guns, into a miserable experience.
 
Carolina River Rat said:
I blame it on the Army wanting to make everything suck as much as possible. No other organization on earth is as good at turning something that should be fun, like camping and shooting machine guns, into a miserable experience.
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LOL dude I am still laughing! That is so true, I got out of the Marines, friends wanted to go camping and stuff, and I turned them down everytime for like a year. I finally went with my brothers and dad a while later and it was like "oh yeah" no I remember why I thought it would be fun in the military. Now I hike, camp and rock climb as much as I can.

Sorry had to add the guns: never has anyone avoided shooting fully automatic weapons except in the military because you know how much of a bitch it's gonna be to clean that weapon after you put those thousand rounds of BLANKS through it. Anyone else bury ammo in training?
 
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I have a neighbor who is a former Marine and he absolutely refuses to go camping for that reason. He says I am practicing "being homeless" and he "had enough of that shit in the Marine Corps." :D
 
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