Here’s the new addition to what I carry on my pocket. An Emerson Micro Commander Emerson knives are among the toughest knives out there. He makes tactical knives used by SOF units the world over and were tested in the field. The Commander series was recommended to me by a friend, a former NSW guy. After hearing him and several other people talk about Emerson knives I decided to get one. I was looking for something I can carry every day and use it as a tool. That’s why I went for the Micro Commander and not the Mini or the full size. I’m impressed. It’s going to replace the Benchmade Mini Barrage.

The current loadout

My loadout changes according to the needs of a project or operation, however I have base loadout that is quite fix. The gear listed below is my current base, it might change in the future but for the most part this is what I carry to work most of the time.

I carry everything inside my GORUCK Echo. The Echo is a tough little ruck that can handle most everything you throw at it and I’ve put it throw some hard stuff in the past few months. It is still as good as new. Great quality, like all GORUCK products.

Inside the main compartment I carry a GORUCK Radio Ruck Field Pocket with all my basic gear (described below) and a Tactical Tailor pouch with my mini trauma / medical kit. Tactical Tailor gear is also top of the line and built to last.

On the top inside pocket of the Echo I carry a Field Notes notebook, a SureFire Pen II, a Saddleback Leather Classic Business Wallet with my calling cards, a bluetooth piece, a Photon Freedom Micro LED keychain flashlight and a bunch of USB thumbdrives with the tools I need for the red team operations. The Field Notes book is a simple and resilient notebook and it’s always useful to have around. The same going to the SureFire pen. It can be used as a glass breaker too.

On the slant pocket of the Echo I carry my earphones (the standard Apple iPhone ones) and a Hideaway Knife. That little knife is a tough mother. It can cut through anything and it’s an excellent last resource defensive tool.

Here’s all the gear out the Echo.

On the Radio Ruck Field Pocket I carry a SureFire 6PX Pro, a Leatherman Fuse, a custom Zero Tolerance 0350 knife with the Green Beret Foundation and GORUCK logos (part of the proceedings went to a donation to the Green Beret Foundation) and a couple of Go Tubes with gear (check this post to know what’s inside). I usually use the little LED photon as my light, but sometimes you need a powerful, full fledged light to do the job, that’s when the SureFire light come in handy. The knife and the Leatherman multitool get used A LOT, those are the first items out of the ruck. And the SERE picks inside the Go Tubes are very useful tools too.

The mini trauma / medical kit has the bare minimum needed to stop bleeding and other traumatic injuries. It’s by no means a full blowout kit (check the fantastic ITS Tactical ETA Kit for that), but it has me covered for the essentials. As a side note, I used this kit once a couple of years ago to save the life of a biker that crashed into a car. I managed to stop the bleeding until the ambulance came.
The contents are here.

And finally what I carry with me all the time. My Trusty GORUCK GR Tac, a Metolius mini biner with keys (as a plus side this is a full loading biner so I can use to also to rappel, climb, etc), a gen 1 RESCO Patriot watch, a Saddleback Leather Simple Wallet, a Benchmade Mini Barrage and a pair of Oakley Bottle Rocket Sunglasses.

That’s it. That’s what I carry.

Pocket dump.

I don’t carry a pen with me usually. The pen is one of those things you need but it’s not critical. I carry the SureFire Pen II on my backpack. It’s a tough pen, durable and feels great on my hand.

I’ve been carrying my gear on the new GORUCK GR Echo for some time. I used to carry it on the original Echo, but the new one fits my current needs better. The Echo is small and discreet with a low profile. It is ideal for everyday gear, including carrying a 13” MacBook or an iPad and as a second carry-on bag to house the things you’ll need in a hurry inside the main pack.

In certain cases, when I go really light and minimal I carry a Photon Freedom Micro LED keychain flashlight with a red LED. This model has a dim function so you can go from full lumens to a super minimum, it also has an emergency mode with SOS and other modes. It comes with a handy clip so you can click it to your hat or vest. Really useful.

In a previous post I mentioned that my Surefire 6PX Tactical suffered a nasty dead. Well, I have a new one. This time is a SureFire 6PX Pro. The only difference is that the Pro is a dual mode flashlight: It has a 45 lumen low output mode and a 200 lumens high output mode. It helps save battery. This flashlight lives inside my backpack, instead of the Maratac AAA.

I’m a fan of Saddleback Leather. Their wallets are just fantastic and one I carry every day. So when I needed a case to carry my calling cards I went straight to their site. I found the Classic Wallet Business and I bought one. It’s a great and simple way to carry the calling cards, which by the way were made by Evan Calkins at Hoban Press. Evan hand crafted cards are simply great. This is usually located inside my backpack.

One of the things I started carrying on my ruck is the SureFire Minimus Headlamp. This one was given to me by a friend when my SureFire flashlight was ran over by a vehicle (don’t ask) and it stayed with me. I used to carry a Petzl Headlamp. They are really good but it has been relegated to alpine climbing. For what I need right now this one fits better. Surefire lights are tough, durable, bright and made in the USA.

This is a new addition to my kit. A Hideaway Knife. The website states: The concept behind this knife: Something ultra-concealable, highly retainable in a struggle, and accessible quickly and easily. It is every word of it. Love it. This knife is usually on me. However depending of the activity I might stash it on my backpack.