Flectarn.co.uk
Review written
by Gator
(gatormercenary@hotmail.com)-
Saturday, November 16, 2002 9:57 PM
The review: Arnie asked me to write this review on this relatively new player in the Airsoft market. After your guns the next most important thing to your survival on the field of combat is your gear. Where your full mags are and how quickly you can get to them can make all the difference between surviving those crucial seconds in a firefight. When I started out in Airsoft I went for the USMC look. I bought a Special Forces webbing set with several extra pouches for shells,compass etc.
This was great if you were climbing about a lot but they were very difficult to close in a firefight, leading to a tendency for you not to close the pouch which, in one game, caused me to lose all 4 of my Uzi hicaps (I got them back or that could have been an expensive game). I had decided to get a Blackhawk Omega Crossdraw vest to solve my woes when my plans (as usual) took a little diversion. I first met Jo on Airsoftzone.com where she goes by the handle of Madame Speaker. We were chatting one day and she said that she was going to a night game at Elite Action Games and invited me to go along. I had just got my HK51 so I was ready to give it a solid work out. When she and Lenny came to pick me up both of them where wearing their flecktarn and looked fantastic. I have always liked the look of flecktarn, ever since I saw it in the Munster Panzer museum when I was in Germany and saw how well it blended into the scrubland. The pattern is a lot more broken up than many other types of camo which certainly helps make you "vanish" into the scenery. (I have lain in wait in ambushes, no joke, with 2 ferns covering me and that’s all. The first they know about it is when I let rip with the HK51!!) When we turned up to EAG and Jo and Lenny started to get themselves kitted up and I got really jealous! They just looked like something off a Nato battlefield. This was further heightened as during the night Jo and I got separated from the fight after we got lost when we respawned. We had to work our way up a field of saplings in the driving rain. Jo was in front of me and set against the field scene she looked like something out of a warzone. By the end of that evening I was convinced. I was going to go full flecktarn. All I need was the cash. I got it when Uni finished. I worked at the local post office and at the local bar and did several 20 hour days. (Am I dedicated to Airsoft or what???????? LOL!!!!) Before I could raise the full amount though, Jo and Lenny invited me to join them at the KM War and Peace show. We all went in full kit. Them in their Flecktarn and me in my USMC gear. We had a great day and it culminated in us introducing ourselves to the German contingent and blagging both a dinner (delicious authentic German sausages) and also a ride around the extensive camp in a German Army Iltis. The day was great and I had a wonderful time, I even got to hold a WA2000.
So that was good, but my being in USMC just looked so out of place. I HAD to get my flecktarn. Two
weeks later I had it. Jo and Lenny very kindly
managed to get the gear to me in time for Sopley. I was up till
nearly 3am trying out all the parts and just fiddling with the
bits. So what do I think of it? Part of what swayed me to get the German kit was that I have all the Weapons that are used by the Bundeswehr (G3, UZI and when I repair it an SD2) I'm a reenactor at heart and things do have to look right for me even if its going to cost me a fortune * Sobs quietly in to hands * So when I got the HK51 I decided I needed the uniform to go with the gun. Ok here is a list of what I bought and a small description of what I think of it.
Shirt: Strong heavier build than my US camo but certainly not a problem in summer. Will definitely keep you warm in winter.
Trousers: Ditto the above. T-shirt: This is standard issue and it goes under your Shirt. Can be wrung out (Lenny knows what I mean ;)
Flak Jacket: This for me is what make the uniform. In all honesty it isn't really a bullet proof vest jacket, it is an anti-fragmentation vest, bullet-proof it is not! It is a softweave type and is a lot more flexible than a vest with plates. It has a Velcro pocket on the front, useful for keeping spare shells or I prefer to stuff my gloves in it to prevent me from losing them.
Goretex suit: This will be worth a fortune in winter, especially at Chobham. It is fantastically good value for a full Goretex suit. It has plenty of pockets and is easy to get into standing in my living room. I haven't worn it in anger yet but it doesn't worry me. Ok, now all of the rest with a few exceptions can been seen on this exploded picture.
5 piece webbing: This consists of a belt which is central to the webbing setup. A set of braces, shovel pouch, German canteen pouch and a butt pack. The braces aren't padded like on the US gear and whilst when you are wearing the frag jacket you won't notice. The butt pouch
I don't wear on the field but leave in the safe area stuffed full of gear :p The spade pouch I wear just behind my right hip. I store my ammo in a BB bottle with a nozzle and also in V05 hairspray bottles (im a vain bugger I know ;). The pouch can carry a one V05 bottle and the BB bottle with no fuss. 2 G3 mag pouches: The G3 pouches are purpose built for the mags with dividers to stop them from "clacking". Now this is a bit off topic but I thought [I']d include it here. In the world of hicap design the designers got it right with the M16 mag. It has a sliding load gate, hex bolt in the base to keep the innards in and a well screwed together feel with no rough edges or parts that can be caught. It is how mags should be. By comparison the G3 mags feel as if they were designed by a guy, on a Friday, in 10 minutes, before he went home for a naughty weekend. The base has a load of edges that catch on pouches and the top loading flap has a tendency to open and empty its contents at the most inopportune moments. The best way to store the mags in the pouches is upside down. But here is a tip which results in several benefits: Get a piece of electrical tape and put a 4 inch piece across the top of the mag.
This will keep the loading flap closed when you store it and also makes it a lot easier if you have to reload in the field with gloves on because if you pull the tape up gently you can lift the flap as you pull the tape. Neat huh? The other benefit from storing your mags upside down is that you can wind them when they are in the pouch. This means that you can load your mags in the safe zone and wind them as you wander out to play. If you sling your rifle you can wind 4 at a time. 1 MP5 mag pouch: This is by far the swishest pouch that you can buy. It is 3 separate mag pouches in one frame. This means that only the mag you want is able to come out. So you won't open the flap and lose all your other mags. The pouch can hold a whole range of long type mags. Ones I know of are,UZI, MP5, and US Canteen pouch: This is simply a pouch to hold a US style canteen because the German canteen is a bitch to get to. The canteen is held in place by 2 velcro patches. German canteen pouch: This is a very good pouch. It takes the aluminum, German 3 piece canteen. It is of a good size and could certainly be used for other things than just the canteen. German Aluminum 3 Piece Canteen: This is a very useful bit of kit. The canteen keeps the liquid insulated to a point. The lid can be used as a cup for hot drinks and you can eat out of it. The only problem is that the canteen isn't always readily accessible if you want a drink so I would recommend getting a US canteen as well.
Radio Pouch: This is for a radio. I don't have a radio. I bought it to convince me to buy a radio. -=Edit=- I have now bought an Ericsson Multicomm and very nice it is to. So my plan worked. 2 Pistol mag pouches: I have practically given up with my thigh holster and needed a place to store my Tac Master mags. G36 Bayonet: This is to convince me to buy a G36C (as if I need any convincing) It is fixed onto my left shoulder. I do use it when I'm playing spotter to cut back vegetation to give my sniper a better field of view.
Headgear: I bought 2 pieces of head gear. One was the field cap and the other was the green beret. The badge for the beret I got from my German godfather. However if you ask Jo and Lenny nicely I'm sure they would try and scrounge you one. And last and by no means least 2 pairs of Flecktarn Boxers: You wear 'em....das it.
Yaaaaaay :D On the waiting list to buy is a Kevlar helmet that I can wear in conjunction with my Bolle tactical goggles, 2 basic P8 holsters and when I get the G36 a couple of G36 mag pouches. So what is so good about the German kit that I have gone from being a dedicated US Marine? Well part of it is the modifiable nature. The pouches on the kit attach by 2 sets of pegs and a fold over clasp locks the lower set of pegs.
They lock onto the belt in one of the 34 sets of holes.
On the shoulders there are 2 peg holes for more pouches. What this means is that all the pouches can be swapped from one place to another in a matter of minutes. Whereas with the US gear any changes took hours of trial fitting the Flecktarn gear can be done in seconds. I suppose that if you got really quick you could customize the gear between games. I certainly customize my loads for different environments. Sopley (CQB) puts the pistol mags up front with the MP5 mag pouch right behind. Then for woodland the pistol mags go round the left side and the G3 mags go either side of the belt buckle.
Conclusion: So all in all what do I think of my investment? I think it was probably the best decision I have made in airsoft so far. There have been several occasions, wearing the USMC gear, that I had been killed because of gear related incidents. Usually trying to get a fresh mag out of a pouch and ending up taking my eyes off the target to undo the clip of a mag pouch. The fleckie stops this happening. It looks fantastic and the full ensemble gives a very professional look. It scores marks in my book in that there aren't a lot of people who have a full uniform like I do. T2S wear a bit but no one I have seen (apart from Jo and Lenny) wears the full kit, and I won't deny that it is nice not to see yourself across the safezone. The other thing that was so nice about the whole experience is that the gear was bought from people who care. Jo and Lenny have been incredibly helpful and always willing to answer a query. They perfectly epitomize what an airsoft retailer should be. They play, they wear their own gear and treat the customer in ways that other retailers could do well to learn from. Their attitude alone will keep me going back to them to get the latest pouch for my new toy (G36C, G36C, G36C, G36C, G36C, G36C).I am 100% pleased with both my gear and the service I received, if I had to sum up all my thoughts of my dealings with flecktarn.co.uk in to one sentence it would be this. "This is how ALL airsoft shopping ought to be" Gator out...... External Links: flecktarn.co.uk Site links: TBA Comment on this review in the forums Last modified: Saturday, November 16, 2002 10:24 PM Copyright 2002ArniesAirsoft
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