Hydration | Military Times GearScout

Hydro Flask’s no-sweat bottle

By: Sara Davidson

03-02-2012

So I’ve made no attempt to hide my excitement about this bottle. The boys at Hydro Flask gave me this 18-ounce, narrow-mouth bottle at Outdoor Retailers last month, and I’ve carried it around like a Precious ever since.

I love it so much (don’t roll your eyes) that I feel it deserves some kind of cornball haiku:

Oh so cold, you’re hot//Double-wall and stainless steel//Theft by cube-mate, RAWR

No one has actually taken mine yet, mostly because they’d have to pry it from my not-so-cold-because-the-bottle-is-so-well-insulated hands.

Camelbak MilSpec Antidote chosen as new USMC hydration reservior

By: Rob Curtis

27-09-2011

Contracts

All sorts of news is dropping as the pieces of the USMC’s new pack fall into place. We’ve just learned unofficially, but fairly certainly (see photo) that the Corps will be using a version of Camelbak’s new Antidote reservoir. This is a service specific version that is shaped to fit the ~~FILBE~~ Marine Corps Pack System hydration carrier. Camelbak will introduce the commercial MilSpec Antidote reservoir that will have features that the Corps felt it didn’t need for the FILBE fielding.

CamelBaks in space (almost)

By: Rob Curtis

08-03-2011

video

I had no idea CamelBak’s bite valve is used in NASA’s space suits. Well, CamelBak is proud if their tech gets out into space and wanted to make sure we all knew about it, too. So they somehow backdoored their way into the Johnson Space Center to see how NASA uses their gear. (I bet the real story was more like some CamelBak employees were all hopped up on Orange Alert Elixir and jumped the fence during a road trip to Mardi Gras … ) Well, there are some probing questions and some cool footage of the space suits getting assembled and fitted. So give it a watch and learn something that may come in handy during the next awkward conversational pause between you and your barber.

1st Wave Hydrapak Hydration Reservoir

By: Rob Curtis

21-01-2011

Product Announcement

Hydrapak beefed up their bladder with the new 1st Wave. It’s twice as thick as the civillian market version, has an updated slider top that will take a little more abuse, and a new PVC-free Hydrafusion tube that’s stronger and better insulated and cheaper than using a neoprene cover. The 1st Wave keeps the Hydrapak’s ability to turn inside-out for quick cleaning. Options include 70 oz. or 100 oz. sizes and your choice of self-sealing quick-release tube or valveless friction-fit connection.

We put 8 hydration systems through the Grinder

By: Rob Curtis

13-01-2011

Roundup

Camelbak launched the hands-free hydration revolution years ago when it made the first-back mounted hydration system. Now, hands-free hydration is on the backs of hikers, bikers, service members and other outdoor types all over the world. The choices are plentiful, and while they all might look similar, there are vast differences between competing brands.

Most, if not all, manufacturers sell hydration packs with the reservoir systems included as an accessory. That’s right — the basis of the whole system, billed as an accessory. Seems strange, eh? Well, let’s use this to our advantage and look at the reservoirs themselves and how well each works so you can buy the bladder that works best for you and your pack configuration.

Read reviews of all the hydration systems here.

US Army approves Camelbak CBR X for use in the worst environments

By: Rob Curtis

16-11-2010

Business News, Product Announcement

“GAS, GAS, GAS!!!” Who doesn’t hate those three words? Whether out on the range at the National Training Center or back at Camp New York during OIF 1, those words mean the same thing; time to sweat it out. Out in the desert in MOPP 4, you can go through 1 quart canteens like jello shots on prom night.

While the chem/bio CamelBak was first available back in 2000, they weren’t well known or really even approved for use by Big Army. Well, the Army just got around to testing and approving 3 liter hydration systems for use in a chemical, biological, radioactive or nuclear threat environment. The first one we’ve heard about is the CamelBak CBR X. It was just approved for use by the Army’s office of the Product Manager-Soldier Clothing and Individual Equipment (PM-SPIE) and the Army’s Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC) this morning.

The Army doesn’t endorse products but they do test them for use in combat. And they put the reservoirs through the ringer. Part of the testing they did was to subject the reservoirs, fittings and tubes to chemical nerve agents after 30 days of field use. After 6 hours, the water inside the system was tested and the approved systems were clean enough to drink without consequence.

UPDATE 1: We just heard from Source Hydration that they’re CBR system was also approved by the Army. We’re waiting on them to offer up some details on their system.

UPDATE 2: I was remiss in pointing out that the new M50/M53 Avon masks have the same hydration fitting as legacy gas masks. So, the standard type A gas mask hydration adapter will work with the new M50.

Arc’teryx Aerios 14 hydration pack

By: Rob Curtis

12-06-2010

Product Announcement, Review

It was last fall when the Aerios 14 joined the GearScout long-term test fleet.

At 854 cubic inches of cargo room, the 14 is the largest of three packs in the new Aerios trail running line.

It weighs in at a svelte 1 pound, 3 ounces. The fabric is feather light and stands up to typical trail abuse. Its AeroForm back panel breathes well and a framesheet adds needed structure. It’s built to hold a 70-ounce water bladder, but you can fit a 100-ounce water bladder while still leaving enough room for snacks, a lightweight jacket, gloves and a stocking cap.

And yet it sat in the gear locker; on many days it was neglected in favor of the other packs we’re abusing on the trails. With all those great features, what gives?

CamelBak’s Octane XCT hydration pack

By: Sara Davidson

05-06-2010

Product Announcement, Review

She said …

CamelBak’s 70-ounce Octane XCT pack is a lightweight, ultra-efficient pack for endurance athletes.

This super-slim pack weighs about 10 ounces empty and about 5 pounds with the full 2 liters of water. Store gloves, keys or packable layers in the medium-sized back pocket, and use the two smaller side pockets for quick, easy access to energy bars or other snacks.

Stanley’s new flasks are not for the fancy at heart

By: Matthew Cox

13-11-2009

Product Announcement, Review

I love hip flasks, but they’re usually too fancy for practical use. I’ve owned a handsome little stainless steel flask for years. It’s very slim but too heavy. And I always worry about losing the cap. It’s now in the gadget drawer gathering dust.

I don’t have a flask fetish or anything; I just like my gin — even if I’m on the road. Is that so wrong?

Anyway, Stanley is coming out with three new styles of flasks in its NINETEEN13 line. I recently had the chance to try one of them out. Its flat, leaf green color blends well in any camp, field or ballgame setting. The screw-off cap stays attached to the flask by a black rubber arm that’s sturdier than it looks. It prevents the cap from being dropped in the dirt, and it helps the flask stand up when it’s turned upside down to dry.

It holds 8 ounces of your favorite poison and doesn’t appear to taint the taste. The Beefeater gin I kept in it for four days tasted like I poured it out of the glass bottle. The stainless steel body weighs just 4.75 ounces, that’s about half the weight many traditional flasks. It’s made in China, but most things are these days.

In addition to the green, the new flasks also come in black with a cool scull and dark gray with “UNBREAKABLE” written on it. The green model features the standard, nineteen13 star logo. Stanley’s new flasks will be available sometime this fall at www.stanley-pmi.com for about $20 bucks.

CapCAP Makes Nalgene Face-Friendly

By: Rob Curtis

17-02-2009

Product Announcement

Stepping around the tired water-bottles-cause-cancer meme, Nalgene and other wide-mouth bottles are a necessity in the cold, high altitudes of A’stan. Disagree? Try breaking up the ice in your canteen with a knife in the freezing cold and you’ll come around.

A downside of the decades-old design means you’re either jamming your horker on the rim or you’re wishing you had a set of nose plugs to deal with the imminent nasal flash-flood.

The CapCAP from Humangear delivers a comfortable drinking experience while keeping the wide-mouth setup on your bottles. They fit any Nalgene threaded bottle including Camelbak, Cylclone, Stansport bottles. They are about $6 and weigh 1.4 oz.

Hydro Flask’s no-sweat bottle

Camelbak MilSpec Antidote chosen as new USMC hydration reservior

CamelBaks in space (almost)

1st Wave Hydrapak Hydration Reservoir

We put 8 hydration systems through the Grinder

US Army approves Camelbak CBR X for use in the worst environments

Arc’teryx Aerios 14 hydration pack

CamelBak’s Octane XCT hydration pack

Stanley’s new flasks are not for the fancy at heart

CapCAP Makes Nalgene Face-Friendly

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