Category Archives: Gear

Grayman Sub-Saharan

The Sub-Saharan from Grayman knives is made for killing. I searched far and wide but was unable to find a Nazi, communist, or terrorist to sink this blade into. I killed the s**t out of a downed tree for you though to give you an idea of the kind of damage this knife can deal out. The picture above shows the tree after maybe five or six chops on each side. The Sub-Saharan has more in common with a Roman short sword than the type of fixed blade knives that most of us are familiar with.  Deckard makes short work of some cartel trash in Target Deck.  It is also the knife depicted on the cover of the book.

Carl Gustav

Admittedly, the M3 Carl Gustaf isn’t the sexiest of weapons among the 75th Ranger Regiment’s rather extensive arsenal.  This is especially true when you have to pack this giant metal tube into an AT4 jump pack with cardboard honeycomb and exit a C-17 during a Mass-Tactical airborne jump at night.  Getting hung up in a MH-60 with the Goose slung over your back while fast roping and dangling 50ft in the air ain’t sexy either.  Don’t ask me how I know that…  I’ve written about being Tank Sniper and elaborated on the training and tactical issues surrounding the Gustaf in the past, so take a look!

HK 417

The HK 417 is the 7.62 big brother of the 5.56 HK 416 developed at the request of a certain Special Mission Unit and now used in various SOF units.  Chambered for the larger 7.62 round, Nikita makes good use of the 417 as a sniper rifle in Target Deck.  You will also get a lesson in the intricacies of making a high angle shot.

Hooligan tool

Basically the Hooligan tool, or Hoolie, is a high speed pry bar for mechanical breaches.  Useful for making a quiet entry…

MK48

The most memorable remark about the Mk48 that I ever heard was, “That is the lightest heavy machine gun I’ve ever seen!” As a Corporal, I was a Gun Team Leader in Ranger Battalion where my team made great use of the Mk48 in training as well as combat. The Mk48 is the size of a SAW but packs the 7.62 punch of a M240B. It’s small size makes it perfect for immediate support by fire in dismounted, urban environments.

Chromacamo

Chromacamo is a name I invented for the next generation of camouflage uniforms, those that actually change their color to mimic their surrounds.  The idea for it is based on SMARTCAMO developed by Hypersteath which I have written about previously on this blog.

Improvised breaching charge

Ever wonder what you can do with a flashbang and an IV bag?  Some MacGuyver shit, that’s what.

AK-103

Pencil

Alone and un-armed, Deckard has to improvise a solution when trapped in a room with a very dangerous Lebanese money launderer and his bodyguard.  A pencil laying on his desk makes a handy weapon, especially when jabbed into the soft tissue of the body guard’s neck.

MK-19

On my last deployment, we were no longer permitted to use the MK19 inside the cities, so these were left to collect dust in my weapons shed until myself or my Junior Weapons Sergeant gave them a cleaning every so often. While fun to shoot, I always found the 40mm rounds to be under powered, not providing sufficient explosive impact. Then again, I never had the chance to use the MK19 against dismounted infantry. I did have a friend who was a MK19 gunner in Afghanistan when his convoy was ambushed. He rotated his turret and let it rip on the enemy positions to devastating effect. One point to remember with the MK19 is that you have to charge it twice, that is to say, rack the charging handles, drop the bolt, and then repeat the procedure once more to seat the first round all the way down onto the bolt face. Not knowing how to do this properly can result in an accidental discharge, or worse yet, leave you firing on an empty chamber during a firefight!

Improvised tank

Yeah, this bad boy makes an appearance in the book as well…

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