Load Carriage

I’m rounding out descriptions of my load bearing equipment configurations. We’ve covered the MInuteman Harness, the Rifleman Rig, and now the General Purpose Patrol Harness-otherwise known as the Run & Gun rig that I’ll be using for tactical biathlon competitions and other things.

The battle belt is a sort of modern iteration of the classic ALICE gear that served the US military from the 70s through late 90s. But there are some significant differences, particularly in the type and amount of load that the belt handles. In this post, we’re going through some basic guidelines and a suggested layout for developing your own minimalist fighting kit.

A while back, I did a primer on magazine pouches, and one of the topics I mentioned was managing your ammunition supply. This is the follow-up where I get into some specific advice for beginners about working through your equipment and positioning your magazines.

As part of revising my load bearing equipment, I’ve continued building on previous versions to create something I’ve dubbed the Rifleman Harness. It’s a heavier load bearing equipment configuration for longer duration away from home.

In this article, we’re diving in on the topic of magazine pouches. We’ll go over my classification system, the tradeoffs between them, what you should prioritize based on your uses, and some basic rules for configuring your ammunition load.

In Marksman Live session 004, I talked with Brent0331 all about various load carriage methods. Brent is a US Marine with a popular YouTube channel teaching basic infantry tactics, and the conversation wandered over a lot of topics. Enjoy!

This post continues our look at load carriage by focusing on more traditional load bearing equipment. Before we get into my personal setups, I want to talk a little bit about how load carrying gear evolved over time.

This post continues what I started in my introduction to load carriage. In that article, I talked about the ongoing battle between weight and capability. It turns out that up until very recently, the average weight carried by soldiers remained shockingly stable. When it comes time to fight, the recommendation is to stay less than 30% of your lean body mass or about 50 lbs for the average person.

It’s time to start talking about how we carry our stuff. This series of articles is not focused on competition or marksmanship. Instead, we’re going to talk about showing up for a fight.

Today we’re talking about the chest rig. Whether it’s standalone or a plate carrier, putting stuff on your torso has become the de-facto “cool guy” way to do things. So what do you need to know about doing it?

Today we continue our discussion of load carriage options by talking about the tactical belt. You might also know it as a duty belt, and it’s a great method for carrying gear when you do it right.