Best products from r/army

So people are always going to slip stuff into some boxes some where.

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Depending on your type of unit and how far away from home you guys are it might just be extra protein bars or it might be a ps4 and a tv.

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I ALWAYS recommend:

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Baby wipes

Literally all of your underwear, plus some you are about to go buy.

All your socks...plus some more that i think you should also go buy.

Pack of protein bars from GNC

Gum

Please bring a bunch of deoderant and tooth paste/tooth brush. Being in the field is not a free pass to just be nasty. Trust me you will get the rep for it and if you are working around people that aren't bumming it they will move you away fast.

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Bring a brand new razor because you are going to be expected to shave. Pouring water on your face from a canteen then shaving is already difficult....with an old razor its even worse.

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Stuff a bunch of plastic grocery bags into your ruck somewhere and you can use them to hold your dirty clothes.

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Chances are you will be able to bring a duffel bag and then ALSO your ruck. If you don't smoke or dip grab a pack of smokes or two plus some grizzly winter green and you can trade it away.

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Walmart 10mg melatonin chewables. Sleeping in a new place that sucks with a bunch of loud fuckers isn't the easiest. This should help as a sleep aid. I take four sometimes just to pass out. Bottle should be like $6 for 100 chewies.

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A Power strip of your own. These can be really helpful when everyone is already plugged in and there are no more sockets.

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A portable battery pack. Something off amazon is just fine. I recommend the solar powered one. Man that shit is a life saver. Something like this:

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https://www.amazon.com/25000mAh-Hiluckey-Compatible-Smartphones-Waterproof/dp/B07FMFGGNR/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=solar+power+battery+charger&qid=1562521215&s=gateway&sr=8-4

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Bring a book. Something fun. Maybe some sudoku. Find something you are interested in. That will make the time go faster. If you have a tablet buy a nice protective case and get it charged off that portable battery pack or find a way to make it happen.

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Also, plastic ziplock bags are your friend. Not that slide zipper shit and not those cheap ones either but the red and blue make purple things. If you bring one just big enough to put your phone in its water proof. You can use the keypad and everything through the bag easy. It saves from rain and dust and whatever else might happen.

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Bring a few sizes and a bunch of extras. You hand that shit out and people will think you're ass is merlin when its about to rain. People remember that stuff. I'm going to add this to the main post but I wanted to make sure you saw it.

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Two pairs of ear buds from target. Something super cheap that you don't mind losing or breaking. Probably 5 a pop on amazon or something. These are just to get you through.

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Bring extra power charging cords. You will also want to keep these in your sight at all times.

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A good multi tool is nice and it can bail you out / make you the hero.

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A small flash light that packs some power. You will be dumbfounded how dark it gets and you don't want to be walking into anything while your taking that midnight wiz.

https://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Bright-Flashlight-Wsiiroon-Water-Resistant-Batteries/dp/B07537C91H/ref=sr_1_13?crid=Z2D1DNX2LIX1&keywords=led+flashlight&qid=1562521670&s=gateway&sprefix=led+fla%2Caps%2C166&sr=8-13

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What is your MOS? It helps to determine what you are going to be doing. If you're in the TOC you can always charge your phone or your battery pack in there. If you are one of those high speeds who are out in the field....probably not.

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Travel pillow and a small air mattress. Man those things are nice. A small twin will run you maybe $30. Super worth it. People might laugh but its way better than one of those metal cots. Bring a travel blanket like that woobie. That thing can be light but can also hold in some heat.

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Find someone that you know has been in the unit for a while and ask them what they normally bring. Chances are they've been to an AT with the unit and know the shit that the command tries to pull. Like whats going to not be allowed and what is fair game. Maybe someone sneaking in an extra box that you can toss a few items in. People normally try to look out for others in the guard especially in their section. The last thing you want is some private with not shit, ill prepared, no resources and stinking in your section making you look bad. So your leadership should at least give you some type of leeway.

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If you can be a part of the team that goes to the gas station to refill the gas canteens (if thats a thing for your unit) that power the generators make sure you get involved with that somehow or find someone that is. This can bail you out hard in a pinch and then you can re up on supplies. Maybe bring some cash with you in case you have to slide someone some grease money.

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Duolingo is a great app to learn another language when you have well....not shit going on. Check it out. I don't know if you need an internet connection to use it or not. Mango language services is amazing as well and you get it free with an MWR online account.

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And private....Please remember to drink water.

Check out GOG.com for some good old games and good, new indie games. They're DRM-free and cheap. I'm a big fan of FTL and Roller Coaster Tycoon 3.

Order this guitar from Amazon and start teaching yourself to play. I got mine at Christmas for $80. There's a lot of great tutorials on YouTube.

Skype with friends and loved ones back home.

Read books. MWR probably has some. If you have a Kindle, even better. Did you know that you can get free Kindle library e-books through AKO? Log in, go to Self Service, click My Library, click "Read or Listen to a Book," then click the small text link to go to the Audio eBook Library. You can check out up to five books at a time for up to three weeks.

I think the important thing is to do something creative, whether it's building the perfect park in RCT3, learning a piece on guitar, or exercising your imagination with a good book. Hope this helps. Trust me, I've been there.

I think that's an even better 'bad marketing' example than mine. Product developers seriously need to think "how could this be abused" before deciding to create a product.

Case in Point: In my early 20s I purchased a breathalyzer like this that i kept in my car. It was a final protective measure of "am I safe to drive home?" before I decide to put keys into ignition.

Several times when i brought it to a house party to make sure people would make good decisions, it turned into a "who can get the high score" competition that caused MORE drinking to be done.

But, two times I got pulled over leaving bars. Both times the police asked if I had been drinking, I answered honestly that I had had two or three drinks in a 3 hour period, but waited an hour to walk to the car, and then checked my BAC with the device and blew a .05 or lower, which gave me a confidence buffer since I didn't know how accurate the device was. The first time, the cop was amazed and wanted to see the device as he had never heard of them available commercially like that. The second time the cop said 'have a good night and drive safely.'

Did it honestly prevent me from getting a drunk driving citation? probably not. I was most likely completely legal, but it got the police to lose interest rather quickly and go searching for easier targets stumbling out of the bar.

But it was fun at parties.

Recovery from a 12 mile ruck march can (technically) take an entire month. BUT you can easily do a 12 mile ruck every week for a month+ straight if you are smart about it. Now, I AM NOT A DIETICIAN OR NUTRITIONIST, so don't think this shit is the best science of recovery.

Before you do any long movements or rucks, make sure to stay well hydrated. This includes a mixture of water and an electrolyte source (i.e. Gatorade, Powerade, Pedialyte). Also eat plenty of food, including plenty of carbs.

BEFORE and DURING rucks (or any long movements), I would always have a 100 oz camelback full of half-water and half-gatorade (and/or pedialyte or something of the same likeness). The sodium and electrolytes always kept me well hydrated and I wouldn't have to deal with any cramping as a result of this. I would also have small snacks or gels that I would take every 45 minutes to an hour during rucks or long movements.

Once you are finished, KEEP HYDRATING with water and electrolyte sources. Also start chowing down on plenty of food as soon as possible. You're body just burned THOUSANDS of calories, so you NEED to replace those calories, plus some, as soon as possible. I would always have a regular stretch routine after rucks, stretching out my entire body from arms to legs. Investing in a Tiger Tail or muscle roller is a good idea as well. I would always roll out my muscles after my stretch routine.

Doing all of that, I NEVER had a single leg cramp during my 3.5 year stint as an Army Ranger. One time we did a 40km movement for a training mission, and the next day I ran 5 miles for the fun of it. I wasn't sore at all and was perfectly fine.

Don't be the idiot who doesn't eat or hydrate enough before a movement and ends up collapsing like a dead deer, then all your buddies will have to carry you and your shit to get evac-ed outta there.


EDIT: mispellings

If you have an Option 40 contract I'm assuming you have read Sua Sponte by Dick Couch. If not, pick up a digital version on Amazon for cheap $. http://www.amazon.com/Sua-Sponte-Forging-Modern-American/dp/0425253600

Or even better, sign up for an audible account for free, get a free credit to get this book, cancel before 30 days. https://mobile.audible.com/search.htm?type=search&cache=1&keywords=Sua+Sponte

How much time until you ship?

Regarding your ruck: a gallon of water weighs 8.3 lbs.

Start out lighter than 45 lbs and gradually build up and you are unlikely to get hurt. Same goes for speed. Long strides, pump your arms. At RASP I imagine they will pretty much have you running with rucks at some point, but if you start out doing that now you are definitely going to get hurt.

As a recruiter I had a very high success rate of 18x's getting selected at SFAS. One of the things I worried about for them was getting into incredible shape before basic and then losing some of that fitness during the 14 weeks of OSUT. It's important that during basic you really really push yourself. It's easy to sham out of a few push-ups because you know the Drill can't see you between bunks, or skip a few reps of flutter kicks, but that shamming will come back to bite you a few months later at RASP. Push yourself during every event in basic and use as much of your free time to keep working. Free time during basic is tough to find so I would recommend skipping letter writing time and instead get a quick hard workout in.

This. https://www.amazon.com/Basic-Training-Dummies-Rod-Powers/dp/0470881232

With this: https://www.amazon.com/Dimension-Lenticular-Featuring-Nimitz-Class-LBM037/dp/B00E9B0ITO/

Marking the chapter 'how to make your drill instructor like you'.

Sprinkle some of this in the pages: https://www.amazon.com/Sulyn-oz-Glitter-Jar-Petal/dp/B009CFUQV2/

Address to the soldier as SSG Good Friend

Write THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE on all the sides of the box and write PERSONAL AND PRIVATE!!! on the top.

Peltors/Liberators are absolutely top notch if you can snag an issued pair, but they are prohibitively expensive if you're to buy your own. Unless you need to interface with a radio just get a pair of Howard Leights off amazon (you can still use with a hand mic though), they are about $50 and fit under an ACH just fine. https://www.amazon.com/Howard-Leight-Amplification-Electronic-R-01526/dp/B001T7QJ9O/


Otherwise just run some cheapo foam earplugs, buy a 40 pack or whatever and change them out as needed.

I bought a SIFT study guide off Amazon when I was looking at flight school. I switched career paths but couldnt return it on Amazon because I took too long. PM me your info and I can save you like $30. I think it has practice tests if you want.

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it was this book:

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1628454318/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Gerber Strongarm.

$50, made in Oregon, thick study blade, full tang, comfortable grip, molle/belt/drop leg attachment options, excellent for opening MREs, cutting cord, fixing computers. Have used this to open 10 cans of beans for a cookout.

Alternatively, I like to use the Buck Vantage

Congratulations. I recommend reading a book called the "three meter zone Common Sense leadership for NCOs". Theres a lot of good advice in there. I used to give a copy to all of my joes who made E5.

http://www.amazon.com/Three-Meter-Zone-Common-Leadership-ebook/dp/B001OXCEOW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395843815&sr=8-1&keywords=3+meter+zone

I bought a Casio F105W ( http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000GB1RAU/ref=pe_385040_30332200_pe_309540_26725410_item ) a few weeks ago. I like it. I'm planning on taking it with me to BCT. It's cheap enough so I don't care if it breaks or not, but it's good enough to spend my money on (read some of the Amazon reviews, they praise it like it saved their lives).

It's a very basic watch. Time (does 12hr & 24 hr), Alarm, and Stop Watch. And light.

The Mission, the Men, and Me: Lessons from a Former Delta Force Commander by Pete Blaber

>As a commander of Delta Force-the most elite counter-terrorist organization in the world-Pete Blaber took part in some of the most dangerous, controversial, and significant military and political events of our time. Now he takes his intimate knowledge of warfare-and the heart, mind, and spirit it takes to win-and moves his focus from the combat zone to civilian life.

>As the smoke clears from exciting stories about neverbefore-revealed top-secret missions that were executed all over the globe, readers will emerge wiser, more capable, and more ready for life's personal victories than they ever thought possible.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0425236579/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=81L6TNMLAXFN&coliid=IBUHZCVGIWB98

Critical thinking, small unit leadership,

I have these for civilians shooting. http://www.amazon.com/Howard-Leight-Impact-Electric-Earmuff/dp/B001T7QJ9O


I brought them once to an m 16 qualification range and found it hard to get a good sight picture with these in the prone and prone supported. They did fit under my ACH, I just had to loosen then chin strap.

I did the vanlife thing for about a year after I ETS'd. I converted a 2001 Dodge Ram conversion van and traveled around out west. Was fun but can't imagine doing that while still active. Anyway here's some resources I used.

https://www.amazon.com/Live-RV-Debt-Travel-Freedom-ebook/dp/B008S129XY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538577349&sr=8-1&keywords=robert+wells+book

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freecampsites.net

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https://www.cheaprvliving.com/forums/index.php

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r/vandwellers

https://www.amazon.com/SUUNTO-SS004403001-Suunto-Wrist-Compass/dp/B001F8SBNO/ref=sr_1_11?crid=2Z7K3O1PB0TGO&dchild=1&keywords=suunto+compass&qid=1572567254&sprefix=suunto%2Caps%2C339&sr=8-11

Suunto compass watch. You can even use it to set an azimuth. I recommend illum tape glued to the underside so it lights up in the dark.

Also a tritium lensatic compass, https://www.amazon.com/Rothco-Cammenga-Military-Tritium-Lensatic/dp/B0006YXWN2/ref=sr_1_7?crid=2H3SJALR30LGE&dchild=1&keywords=tritium+lensatic+military+compass&qid=1572567310&sprefix=tritium+lensa%2Caps%2C-1&sr=8-7

Tritium doesn't require sunlight exposure to "light up" at night. It is a harmless radioactive isotope that is always glowing.

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Both of these are sold off-post at Commandos and troops (troops has the illum tape already cut out and included.) I recommend stopping by Troops and just buying them from them or ordering ahead of time.

I just hope I get something. Already sent my dude a [dicky chug] (https://www.amazon.com/Dicky-Chug-Sports-Bottle-Black/dp/B00CCEDZ6I) and something he actually wanted.

Well maybe he wanted both. He is a cav scout after all.

Get this book......

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https://www.amazon.com/Dealing-People-Stand-Revised-Expanded/dp/0071785728

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You don't even need to read it just make sure they see you holding it. When someone asks you a question say, "Wait a minute" and then page through the book before giving them an answer.

That's just based off of a highly regarded book I enjoyed:


The Mission, the Men, and Me: Lessons from a Former Delta Force Commander

Yes - https://www.ebay.com/itm/Russian-FSB-Mountain-Ration-Special-Force-MRE-2-3kg-5045-kcal-exp-03-2020/401753538739


And on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07RQ57PD3

>In a pinch, the landing cartwheel or landing somersault, may be used, though these maneuvers may cause you to take your eyes off the buccaneer enemy.

Source: https://www.amazon.com/U-S-Navy-Pirate-Combat-Skills/dp/0762770376

Edit for the slow: It's a /s book by the Department of the Navy because they have more fun than us. Sometimes, too much fun.

$13 Casio F105W-1A Illuminator

Found in the gravel in Kandahar in 2013; still goin' strong.

I feel like this question doesn't warrant a new thread, so does anyone have wristwatch suggestions? Right now I have this one but I'm thinking of getting a new one.

http://helicopterforum.verticalreference.com/topic/20154-just-took-the-sift/

https://www.amazon.com/SIFT-Study-Guide-Questions-Instrument/dp/1628454318/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1539567546&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=sift+study+guide&dpPl=1&dpID=51-iB8lVLJL&ref=plSrch

In addition to what /u/JustDoc said, buy this and read it. It is about the Rangers, their role, and their selection process.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/0425253600

The Mission, The Men, and Me -Pete Blaber