[MRCA] SCR-284 PE-103

[mkdorney at aol.com]

Didn't see a lot of velcro on our stuff.  I did see it on some Air Force uniforms, and some guys who actually used fart sacks replaced the zippers on the bags with it ( eliminated a problem getting out if the zipper got stuck ).  I rarely carried a fart sack, or a GP Tiny ( pup tent), or anything that didn't have multiple uses.  Anything I carried had to be light weight and have more than one purpose, so a lot of the krap they issue me was left in my "B" and "C" bag, since it was rarely used.  Most of the time in the field, I could carry everything I needed ( other than ammo, and some food) in a butt pack (my "A" bag), a couple of GP bags, and an old school map bag ( the new map bags were only good for carrying maps - I carried an extra MRE in with the maps in my old school bag).  I never liked the ammo pouches we carried - I put the requisite 3 mags in each, but I like to carry a whole bunch in a couple of GP bags, since they were easier to get the mags out of in a hurry. I hated that ammo vest thing the Army  replaced the LBE with.  They were hot, uncomfortable, and were simply not as practical as the LBE.  I got out just after the Army started issuing that krap, so I didn't have a lot of experience with it, but the experience I did have with it wasn't good.  My pockets were normally filled with krap like MRE's, or maybe an extra battery for the PRC-77, or other krap....it's been a while so I don't remember all the stuff I put in the pockets.  
 
    We didn't do a lot of wire tapping on the rare occasion we found field wire.  But it would let us know somebody was in the area, and it gave us a general idea in which direction the bad guys were.  We didn't like to actually follow the wire to it's source because that was also a good way to find yourself in an ambush.
 
    I'm glad none of our stuff used dynamotors or hand cranked generators, although I understand the newer hand cranked generators are a lot quieter.  Also, the batteries for our PRC-77 radios were half the length of the Vietnam issued type, so we could fit a spare in the battery box on the radio itself.  Batteries are getting better, smaller and lighter, which also eases problems quite a bit.  Something I also notice is that the Army is getting smarter with a lot of the little gadgets they issue now, and use standard AA batteries for a lot more stuff now.  More rechargeable batteries are also becoming available for use on equipment that uses standard civie batteries.
 
73
Mark
WW2RDO
 
 
 
 
In a message dated 10/5/2017 7:07:39 AM Eastern Standard Time, krtdowns at myfairpoint.net writes:

 
I'll bet there there is a *special* place in your heart for the idiots who put all that Velcro on our
 uniforms and LBE. At least in VN our jungle fatigues had only buttons, and LBE was Korean-war
 style. Nice and quiet if you were careful.
 As for field wire - the bad guys used it in some of their rear areas. We found out the hard way that
 wire tapping was a great way to get either ambushed or hit by booby-traps.
   Ken, W1KRT
 VN/Cambodian border region, '69-'71


On Wed, 4 Oct 2017 10:12:21 -0400, WW2RDO via MRCA wrote:
  
...There would be no speaking in that situation, since any man made sound could give away our position...
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