Went down to the Deer Lodge gun show. It was held in the ancient prison there….25′ high sandstone walls, lotsa poured concrete, very bunkerish. Picked up a pair of German surplus military ponchos. I like these better than the US ones for a couple reasons. First, the material is a bit heavy-dutier thatn the lightweight nylon stuff on the US model. Yes, it translates into more weight to carry but I think its an acceptable tradeoff for actually staying dry when you use it as a groundsheet or overhead cover. The snaps that run along the ledges are such that both sides (‘heads’ and ‘tails’) can be mated to each other so you can come up with some interesting fabrications using multiple ponchos.Another very German touch is that there is a snap in the middle of the poncho that the top of the hood fastens to. This means that when you have the ponch set up as an overhead cover the headhole is closed up and the hood isnt flapping around. … clever. Anyway, they were $13 each and very worth it in my opinion. They’ll roll up into a roll the size of a 2-cell D flashlight so the space they take up wont be too bad. A good purchase. Without exhausting the list, in addition to keeping you out of the rain, they can also be used to create sleeping bag bivvy sacks, improvised stretchers, ford rivers by wrapping your pack in one, groundsheet on damp ground, etc, etc, etc. A very versatile piece of gear.
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Great news on the Preventing Starvation (And Bowel Activity) front. My contact in the WY NG is going to be coming up for a visit and wants to know if Im still willing to trade for late-production cases of MRE’s. Hell yes! 12 meals in an impervious cardboard box that I can throw in the back of a truck and vamoose? Sign me up!
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Local gunpimp has some new .223. Polymer case stuff. Picked up a case of 500 rounds and was taken with how light the ammo was. I absolutely do not trust it to work flawlessly but its fairly cheap ($75 retail/500) so I might use it for practice or something while saving the SS109 for that rainy decade.
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Still havent gotten around to making that Mountain House order yet. Need a time when Ive got a hundred bucks that isnt doing anything…and that aint very often.
Notes From The Bunker
The polymer .223 is loaded decidedly LIGHT. I did not have opportunity to chrono it, but the recoil and blast is so reduced, as compared to XM193, that I cannot help but deduce the charge to be quite small. I’d like to test some out and see how it chronos, plus how it groups at range, and how big a POI shift there is from that to something better, like the aforementioned XM193.
Also, much like you, I don’t trust it, especially in a hot dirty gun.
I am *speculating* but….. I cut a round apart and the case walls are very very thick. Since there is reduced case capacity ( and thusly a smaller combustion chamber) perhaps less powder is used and thats the reason it seems like a lighter load. Beats me. Have a few rounds here I’ll take out next time I go shooting.
money?
got to focus on what you spend on. you are obviously buying without priotizing your needs. yes it is a bargain, or sold cheap, but hey gotta restrain and stick to your basic budget plan so you can afford mountain house flavored cardboard, or whatever else.
Does the German poncho have a mating liner or is it compatible with the US poncho liner? Typical German camo coloring or OD? Sounds like a decent bit of kit. Know of any catalog warehouses that carry the same product so I know what I am looking for?
Surprised you didn’t chrono the poly. Is that the russian produced stuff?
I cant say, I need to drag my US one out of the bunker and see if theyre compatible. Im guessing they will be, but you never know. Since I picked this one up at a show, I have no idea about catalog availability..Im guessing the usual suspects (Majors, Sportsmans Guide HQ, etc, etc) would be a good place to start.
I didnt actually buy any. I took five rounds to take to the range and test for function. Next time my buddy is by with his chronograph I’ll see if I can get some data. As far as I can tell, not Russian. Headstamp is 223 REM PCA 04. Also, it is boxer primed but I bet reloading it would be a bad idea.
I saw some german made sleeping bag / ponchos the other day. Are those what you are referring to ? For $40USD it seemed like a pretty sweet deal.