ITS Pennant Flags, are a smaller alternative to our larger Battle Flags and can be displayed just about anywhere; including the summit on your next adventure.
Measuring 12″ wide x 18″ tall, these digitally printed flags feature grommets for hanging or even attaching to a flag pole. We haven’t skimped on quality with these flags, they’re hand made in the US by American workers.
Today we’re also adding some new colors and sizes of our ITS Microfiber Pack Towels, they’re now available in Sand, Coyote and OD Green. Coyote and OD Green are a new larger 30″ x 50″ size and the Sand is 20″ x 40″
I’ve always been a fan of flops and walked way too many miles in them. However, Combat Flip Flops‘ tag line speaks the truth. They’re bad for running and worse for fighting.
Started by two Army Rangers and a Bass player from Montana, Combat Flip Flops was born on a trip to Afghanistan in 2010 where a Afgan-owned boot factory worker was seen wearing a makeshift pair of flip flops using the sole of a combat boot.
Combat Flip Flops’ goal is to manufacture in Afghanistan with the belief that a strong economy will sustain the gains made over the last decade. As international forces withdraw in 2014, the mature Afghan National Army and Police are taking the lead. Footwear manufacturers in Kabul depend heavily on military contracts, so any decrease in volume has a huge impact on operations. Unfortunately, the decline came faster than expected and the plant where Combat Flip Flops were about to begin production, could not sustain operations on supplemental flip flop volume alone. [Read More…]
I’ll admit that before today, I hadn’t heard of K9 Veterans Day. In my research efforts to learn more about this, I discovered that Joe White, the founder of the movement to nationally adopt March 13th as K9 Veterans Day, is no longer with us.
Since 2009, Joe’s wife Sally has continued the effort to get nationwide recognition for this holiday and I’d like to help her spread the word here on ITS. It appears that in 2010 New Jersey officially recognized the date for K9 Veterans Day, but I couldn’t find that any other states had done the same.
I feel that the mission statement from k9veteransday.org best sums up why we need to have national recognition for K9 Veterans Day: [Read More…]
Rifle Dynamics is one of the most innovative rifle manufacturers in the in the industry; continuously pushing the boundaries of what’s capable with the AK platform and designing purpose built firearms that become highly valued for their craftsmanship, functionality and attention to detail on every level.
However, Rifle Dynamics is much more than the great firearms they produce. They’re a company that I highly respect for their passion, integrity and ingenuity in a platform of firearms that’s largely ignored when compared to the popularity of the AR-15.
There’s a certain level of mystery surrounding how to work on AKs, at least to me. Perhaps this is due to their extreme reliability in nearly every environmental condition and the low maintenance they require. I’ve owned an AK for over 10 years and put a few thousand rounds through it, but have never had to do much more than keep it well fed.
I feel this and the stigma of the AK being the “enemy’s weapon of choice,” has largely hindered its popularity. This mindset is changing and has been for the past few years. With our troops having faced this weapon in the battlefield and the recent resurgence of the platform, more people are starting to notice the once forgotten AK and appreciating it for its merits.
From my perspective, the resurgence is due to a few things. The first is with our military needing to understand the platform on the battlefield, including it’s capabilities, operation and pitfalls. Battlefield pick-ups are a reality and the need has never been greater for our military’s familiarization. The next reason for the growing popularity, in my opinion, is due to companies like Rifle Dynamics, who have be advocating the AK for it’s reliability and performance while uniting the industry with good information. Finally, I feel that ammunition costs and the availability of 7.62×39 and 5.45×39 (until recently) have helped the resurgence as well. [Read More…]
This recent news of the TSA allowing small knives onboard aircraft, has flooded the internet with misconceptions and question as to what constitutes a “small knife.” Today, with the help of a great email I received from KnifeRights.org, I’ll attempt to set the record straight.
John Pistole, a TSA administrator, recently announced the lift on their ban of small knives at an aviation conference in New York. He stated that these small knives would be limited to “retractable blades shorter than 6 centimeters (2.4 inches) and narrower than 1/2 inch at the widest point.” There would still, however, be a ban on “knives with locking blades or molded handles” and that “fixed blades are still prohibited.”
As you can see with the quotes above, this leaves a lot up to interpretation, so I was grateful when I received the recent email from Knife Rights that had images from the online TSA PDF, showing exactly what these new guidelines allow.
From the images, you can see that by “retractable,” Pistole means “folding.” If you’ve ever owned a Swiss Army Knife, you’ll know that the blades don’t lock in the open position, but are foldable. This can be dangerous when cutting, as the blade can fold back into your fingers if you’re not careful.
Obviously the TSA doesn’t believe these are just as capable of inflicting damage as a locking blade and are also still banning box cutters and razor blades. Pistole said ”there is just too much emotion involved with those.”
Knife Rights suggests that whatever knife you’re carrying through the airport, (after April 25th, 2013) be sure to measure the blade length from handle to tip, not just the sharp edge. They also mention that Leatherman “Squirt” or “Style” multi-tools are allowed.
The term “molded grip” has apparently been invented by the TSA and Knife Rights suggests that it means any handle that is ergonomic and excludes anything but slab-sided Swiss Army Knives or multi-tools.
Shortly after the announcement yesterday, one of my favorite knife companies, Emerson Knives, released an image on their Facebook page of the new “TSA Compliant” knife, the Hummingbird. As you can see from the photo below, it’s questionable whether the TSA is going to allow this to get through. There’s no production timeline posted on the Hummingbird yet, but I’ll be waiting with baited breath for feedback on whether someone gets one through.
Just remember that the final decision on these allowable knives rests with the TSA, however “rational” their decision appears to be in this situation. I am glad to see this get through though, hopefully our Knife Rights organizations like kniferights.org and the American Knife and Tool Institute can help at getting the TSA to further relax their guidelines. It’s important to support these organizations, so please head on over to their Websites for more information and do what you can.
I assume it’s going to take quite awhile after April 25th for everyone working for the TSA to be brought up to speed, so be prepared to lose a few Swiss Army Knives until they get the memo. Kelly used to travel with small scissors for her crochet projects and got through just fine at multiple TSA checkpoints, only to have them taken by a misinformed TSA agent in Albuquerque, NM. Please remember the changes don’t go into effect until April 25, 2013, so don’t try to bring your small knife on board until then!
What does everyone think of the new guidelines? Does the Emerson Hummingbird stand a chance?
I was really excited to have backed the IO Cover on Kickstarter and being a fellow entrepreneur, I love supporting projects on Kickstarter, especially ones geared towards this industry. The IO Cover was designed by Joseph Chen as a way to not only protect the body of the Aimpoint T-1, but to also provide lens covers that improved upon Aimpoint’s design.
As you can see in the photo below, the lens cover Aimpoint provides didn’t make it very long on my T-1. Before it was damaged, I’d also always worry about losing it. Most people I saw, would do what I’d done and simply pull the T-1 cover down around the mount, but the constant stretching of the cover is what I attribute the breaking to.
I will say this, the Aimpoint T-1 is a workhorse and one of the best optics out there for rifles. I’ve seen Pat Rogers personally take his off his gun at a course and chunk it across a rocky field without sustaining any damage. I’ve never had any issues running mine without lens caps or a protective cover over the body. That being said, it’s a $600+ red dot sight and I have worried about the glass lenses getting damaged, which is why I really wanted to back the IO Cover Kickstarter project and really liked what Joseph had come up with for protection and covers. [Read More…]
My name is Bryan and I have a problem. I’m addicted to organization and it’s starting to consume me. All kidding aside, I do like to keep things organized, including all my spare parts floating around for my AR builds.
I was inspired a few months back by a photo Stickman put up showing how he organized his parts and I’ve been looking for a way to store even more. I wanted something that literally had a spot for every part to keep an AR running. While it certainly doesn’t take all the parts shown here to do that, I like to be prepared and have enough to keep everyone’s guns around me running too. [Read More…]
A new online resource I’ve been following lately is GunBot, which helps you find in-stock ammo realtime through various online dealers. You can quickly sort by different calibers and find out the price per round, total cost and even whether it’s in-stock or backorderable (if that’s a word.)
While still in beta, I really like the quick return that GunBot provides and the easy to read break-down of cost per round, etc. If you’re looking for ammo, give GunBot a shot. They’re still in beta, but currently you can search for 2.23/5.56, 7.62×39, 22LR, 9mm, .308/7.62×51, .45 ACP, .300 AAC, Whisper, .40 S&W, 5.45×39, .380 Auto, 5.7×28, 10mm, 30-06 and 6.8 SPC.
Some of the upcoming features that GunBot will be integrating, are magazines, more calibers and even primers for reloading. Here’s the current list of the online retailers that are queried on each search: [Read More…]
Just as many States are experiencing across the US, our firearm rights are at stake. Colorado is the most recent to introduce several anti-freedom bills that could potentially affect great companies in our industry like Magpul and Impact Weapon Components, to name a few.
Magpul posted a request for help in contacting legislators regarding a ban on mags in CO, which would force them to stop making P-MAGS and move from Colorado to resume production. We’d like to request that you take a few minutes and read through Magpul’s statement below and do what you can to help.
While I was out this weekend teaching my son’s Boy Scout Troop how to shoot .22′s, I learned of the tragic February 2nd shooting of Chief Chris Kyle and his close friend and neighbor, Chad Littlefield. Eddie Ray Routh, a Marine veteran who had apparently been suffering from PTSD, has been arrested in the shooting.
Image via Paul Moseley/The Fort Worth Star-Telegram
From what I can gather, it appears Kyle and Littlefield were out doing what they believed in, which was helping Routh in his recovery by taking him out to shoot at Rough Creek Lodge, just west of Glen Rose, TX. Kyle was a true hero who served in the Teams for 10 years and founded a local Dallas company called Craft International, LLC upon leaving the service. Kyle also authored American Sniper and was involved in many charities, co-founding the FITCO Cares Foundation, which benefits wounded and disabled servicemen and women returning from combat.
First thing I did yesterday is to start learning how we could best help the Kyle family. When I visited the Website for FITCO Cares, I learned of America’s Mighty Warriors’ commitment to raise funds that will 100% benefit the Kyle family directly. While FITCO is still actively taking donations directly to help Veteran’s fight PTSD, they’re directing people over to America’s Mighty Warriors to donate directly to the Kyle family.
I was glad to see our favorite charity, America’s Might Warriors and Debbie Lee, were making this commitment. If you’re not familiar with our affiliation with America’s Mighty Warriors, please check out some of the articles linked below. I’m grateful to know Debbie and be able to do what I can to help support her non-profit organization. In turn, if you’re able to help the Kyle family, please visit America’s Mighty Warriors to do so.
Fair Winds and Following Seas Chief, your loss impacts us all and you’ll never be forgotten for what you’ve done for our country and its Veterans.
We have received considerable interest from friends, colleagues and members of the general public wishing to contribute to the families of Chris Kyle and Chad Littlefield, who were tragically killed on Saturday, February 2, 2013. We are extremely humbled by the outpouring of generosity and offers of support.
In response, trusts have been set up in both of their names for anyone who would like to make a financial donation to the families. These trusts will provide for the general welfare of the families as well as the education of their young children. One hundred percent (100%) of the donations will go to the respective families.
Please follow this link to make a donation to the Chris Kyle Memorial Trust and the Chad Littlefield Memorial Trust.
On behalf of everyone at Craft International, we thank you for all of your kind words, thoughts, prayers and assistance.
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