by David Crane david@defensereview.com Military.com has a feature on their site that I recently discovered while I was searching the web for links I could include with my recent article on the Nikonov AN-94 "Abakan" assault rifle, titled "Nikonov AN-94 ‘Abakan’ Assault Rifle: Advanced Russian Small Arms Tech". The feature I discovered is called "SoldierTech: Military Gear and Gadgets". It …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com The Crye Precision website is now active. The industrial design firm, Crye Associates, launched the Crye Precision website to promote their new MultiCam multi-environment camouflage pattern. MultiCam, according to the Crye Precision website, "is a Multi-Environment Camouflage™ system, which was developed by Crye Precision in co-operation with the U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research Center {a.k.a. U.S. …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com The Compact Police Carbine (CPC) Model 556, by Arms Tech LTD is one cool little semi-auto 5.56mm carbine. Designed specifically for police 1st Responders (First Responders) (specifically patrol officers and motorcycle officers) the Arms Tech Compact Police Carbine (CPC) will provide patrol officers, including motorcycle officers with a handy 5.56x45mm subcarbine for 1) dealing with threats …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com June 10, 2004 The following article contains a link to the DREAD Weapon System Video. This is the first time this video has ever been shown to the public. The DREAD depicted in the video is a functional prototype that operates on a less-than-lethal mode. This prototype was dismantled for security purposes to protect the technology, …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com The Wilson Combat UT-15 Urban Tactical Rifle/Carbine (with free-float, ventilated Quad Rail aluminum handguard) just received a rave review by Rich Grassi in the September 2004 issue of Guns & Weapons for Law Enforcement (GWLE). Mr. Grassi had some help in reviewing the Wilson UT-15 Urban Tactical carbine from Rob Child (SWAT operator, armorer, and firearms …

by David Crane david@defensereview.com Advanced body armor is going to be increasingly important for 21st Century infantry combat. However, just as important, or perhaps even more important, will be to have effective camouflage, so your enemy doesn’t see you in the first place. It’s simple logic, "what you can’t see, you can’t hit." Effective disruptive camouflage is thus going to …

by Noah Shachtman Ever since they tangled with the Red Coats, American generals have been giving their grunts more and more and more gear to lug — from rations to radios, body armor to batteries. Now, for the first time, the Army has decided to junk the old uniforms and start from scratch. "We’re stripping the soldier down to his …

by Noah Shactman The U.S. Army is betting $92 billion that the wars of the future should be fought with smaller, lighter, more manueverable vehicles. But some military officials and defense contractor executives are saying that that these technology-laden Future Combat Systems (FCS) are too weak to withstand urban conflicts, like the one currently playing out in Iraq. Like the …

by Adam Morris adam@midwesttactical.com While attending one of Defensive Edge’s two-day carbine course Sully gave me one of his stocks to test out. The Sully Stock is a conventionally-designed AR-15/M16 fixed stock, but with a shorter length of pull designed for use with body armor, or anyone that prefers a shorter stock. It is approximately 8” long, compared to 10” …

The following is an Associated Press (AP) article: "The Bush administration’s argument for shunning a global treaty on land mines rests largely on the U.S. military’s use of "smart," self-destructing mines that don’t linger after wars end to kill and maim civilians. But it has a quiet subtext: the expectation that future generations of mines will be so smart that …