Product Review: 5.11 TACTEC TACTICAL CHEST RIG

The 5.11 TACTEC Tactical Chest Rig has been in our inventory since 2013. It was a new release at the time when 5.11 was becoming a recognized brand. Nutnfancy, Instructor Zero, and various channels gave good early impressions.

Like all zombie hunters, I needed a way to carry equipment on me at a moment's notice.  It was inexpensive but had enough features to suit a variety of mission profiles.

Here is how the chest rig evolved over the years.

2013-2014 - "Do it All"
The setup was built around the Kel-Tec SU22. Around this time I maxed out the magazine capacity and even added an additional double AR mag pouch to the front right side. With 8 magazines I could throw more than 200 rounds of suppressed .22lr at the hordes of undead.

Also MOLLE'd to the front is a Maxpedition admin panel, a 5.11 vertical trauma kit and a radio pouch that holds a Versa Alerto dual band ham radio that has the same capabilities as the popular Baofeng UV5R.

I connected a big rectangular pouch to the back strap of the chest rig to hold additional medical supplies. If you look at the upper right photo, my medical supplies at the time were rudimentary and came from the local equivalent of your CVS or Walgreens.

This era of chest rigs could be described pretty well by the following links.

25 lb Tactical / Survival Loadout + 72 Hour Bug Out Survival Kit - Best Budget Tactical Chest Rig?

Drug Smuggler Interdiction Lightweight Loadout

2015-2016 "Maximum Ammo"

I switched to feeding our AR15. I didn't have a plate carrier then but the AR500 plate slid easily into the mesh pouch makeshift-style.

I again carried as much ammunition as I could. That was 8 mags plus one in the rifle. No battle belt meant everything was on the rig and it held up!  Observe the three 19-round .40 pistol magazines. The good news is nothing fell out even if I ran up and down the range in IPSC-style courses of fire.

2016-2018 

I already had a proper plate carrier by this time so we didn't need to throw everything on it plus the kitchen sink.

Enter the light weight configuration. Gone are most of the accessory pouches and this is how the manufacturers intended it to be used.

Magazine count is down to five so the rightmost side carries a bleeder kit and compass. The Vortex Ranger 1000 was a favorite toy. Back when the .22lr was our primary zombie blaster having a rangefinder was an absolute must because I needed each shot to land between the eyes up to 200 yards.

2019-present

Its my daughter's chest rig now. 

Using her "logic", all of my stuff is now her stuff. Fine then. >:3 (she typed that squiggle face, deal with it. YEET)

This mission profile is for long range zombie hunting with her suppressed long guns. Her sidearm is a MetroArms Mac 1911 Classic 9mm. Its got a match grade bull barrel and all EGW upgraded internals and hammer. 

Her favorite item is her knife the Schrade SCHF13.

I only had to tighten a few straps at the back harness to fit her 11 year old-frame. She used it a few times at the range and she also gave it a positive score!

More on this whole big igloo kit later.

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7-Year Evaluation

Good: 

• Elastic mag holders good as new after 7 years!
• Affordable
• Soft but durable fabric
• Stitching has held up. Even the mesh pouch compartment is still good. 
• Lightweight, easy to stuff into a backpack. 
• Dries quickly if left in the sun. Doesn't smell. 
• Carries all kinds of AR magazines.

Instructor Zero also uses this chest rig for extensive training programs around the world if you needed me to mention a noteworthy internet celebrity zombie slayer.

Bad:

• TacTec sounds like "tic tac". aaaaaargh I can't get over it
• Every two pouches are not separated by a wall. What actually holds the magazines are an elastic loop that's about 3 inches wide. Its adequately secure but because there is no divider for the two "pouches", they can slide around if you only use the top flap to secure each magazine. You could use a sewing kit and 10 minutes if you can't stand it. 
• For a long while this particular feature bugged the heck out of me and a lot of users to this day. I eventually got over it.

Ugly:

You might be tempted to get carried away accessorizing it like I did. That's the magic of MOLLE. It can hold up to whatever suits your fancy as I happily found out.

Score: 8/10


Summary: 

If you need a versatile, sturdy, and well-made LBE, the 5.11 TacTec will get it done. There are more popular choices out there today but this was one of the not-so mainstream options in 2013 and it still holds up. As stated before, the weird mag pouch thing is a minor thing if you can just get over it.

Our chest rig has endured seven years of service and will continue to do so in these interesting times.

Stay vigilant!

Philippine Pandemic Lockdown: Day 14

You know those naughty people in every single zombie flick who do nothing but make things worse?

Our politicians display those traits, sure as sure.



Stay vigilant!

World Health Organization Declares Global Pandemic

Full article here

This is our generation's Vietnam.

• Our local authorities are already discussing lockdown, screening, and containment procedures. 
• Scientists at the University of the
  
  Philippines have developed a COVID-19 testing kit that is nearly a sixth of the cost of imported ones. 
• Japan has declared success in containing the spread of the virus. 

• South Korea has also been successful in preventing infections without widespread lockdown. 

• America's president halts all visits from Europe. 

• Italy is under full lockdown. 

• Panick buying in my city has been going on for the past 3 days but not at American meme levels.  

• We are bracing for even more infections. 

Fight the panic. Treat all social media news as suspect. Stay healthy, avoid public gatherings, help other people by not hoarding. Dump your outside clothes as soon as you get home!

Tip your grocery bagger higher than normal. Be good to others. 

Stay vigilant! 

WHO Officially Declares Corona Virus a Global Epidemic

full article here

Buckle up, this isn't a drill.

This started out pretty slow when it was cooking in china since early December, and it quickly spread from one country to another. The past two months has been quite interesting.

• Nearly half of the people I see out there are wearing masks now. Its the new normal.

• It was absolutely nuts in china. Their government is doing everything possible to cover it up.

• Hospitals/concentration camps were constructed, crematoriums working round the clock, breakdown of civil society, people trying to infect others, anger and actual defiance against their tyrannical government, and so much more.

• And then the virus started showing up in Japan and Korea, in record time their infections skyrocketed to over nine thousand.

• Iran and Italy has hundreds of cases, and the numbers are rising. 

• Several cities in the USA has declared a state of emergency but their president is strangely unfazed. The left has also politicized the emergency. This is the same group who wants to open borders and give free healthcare to illegal immigrants. They might be the real zombies...

• Americans have been hoarding TP. Beavis is not pleased. 

• China Uncensored hit a million subscribers last month despite YouTube's demonitization of their videos critical of the chinese government. Chris Chappell: Drinks are on me if you're in town. 
• The virus has also made it to Greenland. If you've been playing Plague Inc. for as long as I have...

**********

My own country has declared a sub level 1 Code Red meaning the first case of person to person infection has happened locally. We have 20 confirmed cases and more than twice that being monitored by the government. I trust the skills of our medical professionals, its the policy governing them that I am doubtful of.

With nearly a million illegal chinese workers staying here I find it highly improbable that official numbers are not higher.

And just 15 minutes ago I read that the World Health Organization has finally declares the Corona Virus a Global Epidemic.

School have been canceled for the time being. That's good, better to overreact than to regret it later.

Panic buying has started right about yesterday. Isopropyl alcohol at the Mercury Drugstores I visited were mostly depleted. There were people at the groceries throughout most of the day as well. You could tell that people are getting spooked. Lazada has been out of N95 masks for weeks now. I was able to get some prior to this mess right after Taal Volcano blew its top, and now stocks are gone.

Our supplies at home are still good. More than two months of food and drinking water are on standby and we're quietly getting more.

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That's the vibe right now. Its 3:37 AM. I hope you're safe and healthy. Try to minimize being around large crowds if you could help it. Wash your hands and don't touch your face. Boost your immune system and don't fall for scare tactics because to paraphrase Frank Herbert: fear is the brain-killer!




Stay vigilant!