ltwguns.com

Ned,
I will give you a call today and we can figure out how and who is going to get some of these items. Good stuff. Thanks Capt.
Steve

_________________
Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

"If everyone is thinking alike, someone isn't thinking."
- General George Patton Jr

Just got off the phone with Afghanistan. Yeah, happens all the time, sometimes it's even a wrong number, guess my number is like just one digit different from Mahamoud's Pushtun Pan Pizza. Sometimes I get these silly calls where some smart ass asks in Farsi if my refrigerator is running. Like a dufus I always say "ahreh" before I realize what's happening...... but this time the caller was our Captain Tighe.

He's pretty excited about the helping Eli thing. Keeps apologizing for giving so much advice but Jim, that's exactly what we need, and thanks a mil for your concern and help!

Wow guys! I'm honored and humbled to be associated with this fine group of individuals.

These type of post really put me in awe of the great folks we have here on LTW. Ned I hope you dont mind if I borrow the list that the good Captain prepared, my son is leaving the end of the year for the sand box. Once you get everything ironed out Steve let those of us that are the lirkers know what is needed and I'll help out. Once again the people here amaze me...

_________________
And this eternal resting place Is known as Fiddlers' Green.

You kiddin'? Spread it around as much as possible. I'm really impressed how much the current guys want to help the new guys scramble up the learning curve. We have some awesome people out there!

Spoke to another guy today who is recently back, and from the area Eli's going to. He's gonna help any which way he can.

Had a call from an LTWer today who's sending some of the things on the list (rigger's belt, water filter, and another item or two). He's recently retired from a SWAT team and insisted on sending them as gifts.

As this thing evolves I'll be listing what we have acquired, how, and from where/whom (as they allow).

Also-- lest I get any undeserved credit-- this was Bailey's idea. I was gonna just get Eli through the shooting class, and, "have a nice trip". Great idea, Steve!

Ned,

Like I told you, theres quite a few recent vets on here...probbly a lot more than you'll ever know.

These are guys that are a lot more familiar with the OIF Area, climate and mission than I....

Im sure they'll be a lot more help than me on the ins and outs...what works and what doesnt...

Most of all, theyre back and their insights into training will be invaluable...probably best not to post but Im sure they can drop an email to you and Depmur (or anyone else that might be out bound or that has someone outbound), with advice on what to keep an eye out for and the general flow. That will help on the personal security end...I would be willing to bet they'ld be happy to help out...Gentlemen by all means if any of you see things on the list that you know not to be functional there or if theres something better or has been left out...speak up....

_________________
"Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Benjamin Franklin , 1759

Most of what im seeing is right on. I will give the list some serious thought. A lot of the gear choices are individual. I like a drop leg holster, others mounted them on their vests. I think the best choice is to give Eli options. I have tons of gear laying around, most of which I won't need again. Once we get an APO I can send it all over to Eli. I have about 70 guys in the company right now, (D/3-7 IN) and Im sure we can cover a lot of his needs.

So my initial thoughts:

No under armor, I have seen up close the results of a vehicle fire and it is very bad. A new shirt is availible that both wicks moisture and is fire resistant. I will get the brand for you.

Good gloves, at least 3 pair. You tear them up fast. They need to be either nomex or kevlar.

A minimum of 15 pair of socks, again some sort of wicking material.
at least 1 extra pair of boots, 2 would be best. I loke the new Bellville hot weather boots with the Wellco ToughCusion sole. It is an RFI item so Eli will get at least one pair issued.

If he is wearing ACUs, he needs at least 3 more sets. They are not as tough as the DCUs. If he has DCUs then get me his size and I can get him all he needs.

Tactical Eye wear, Wiley-X or Oakley with replacement lenses. I have lots of replacement lenses for the Oakley, clear, amber, and tinted. I need to verify which frame they fit. ESS goggles are great, he will be issued a pair. They are difficult to wear with NVGs but provide much better eye protection than the "sun glasses" style of eye wear.

That is a great looking knife, and Im sure Eli would be sad to loose or break it. I would put that in the safe and take something a little less costly. Granted I carried a Strider over in Iraq, we rarely follow our own advice.

A good medium assault pack. A cheap digital watch, (G-Shock), a Garnmin GPS, a multi tool, a lensatic compass (tritium inserts), and a plastic surefire are essential.

Water bottles, purification tabs, etc... Not needed. KBR supplies more bottled water than most people have ever seen in one place. Eli will have a water point on his FOB that will have hundreds of 20' MILVANS full of bottled water. Individual packs of powdered Gator-Aid are great though.

I will put more thought into this Ned. These are just my initial thoughts.

Matt

(Ned) -The new Ducati made it home today but it's stranded in the back of my truck as it rains. .

Thanks a bunch Matt.

Guys, this thing kinda went from seed to towering oak in a matter of days. Thanks a mil for your concern and support. I am seeing a few things that I feel I should clarify though, that maybe we didn't thinkof fast enough, being as how it happened so fast....

Money from the knife auction is intended to purchase these things for Eli. Publishing the lists of what might be needed or useful was not meant as a list of things we were hoping to have donated, although that has already happened on a few things and we certainly won't decline that after offering to purchase the stuff. The purpose of the list is to let y'all know that if you have some of the items that you don't need and would sell, or have some kind of "in" to get the stuff at a discount, let us know. Apart from the stuff that's a straight gift, we would compile a list of what's been offered, prioritize as best we can based on the kind advice of guys like Jim and Matt, see how the list stacks up against the funds, and start buying.

Some of the goods we will no doubt be able to send with Eli. Others will have to be mailed after we know what his APO is.

I won't be surprised if we wind up with some overages and duplicates. The first thing to do in that case would of course be to offer it back to the original owner. After that, well, Eli isn't the only guy going over there, if you know what I mean.

Just heard today there's a going away party for him Sunday which I'm going to make every effort to make, and at that time I would finally tell our boy what we've been plotting behind his back

Just got back into town and want to thank everyone who either participated or gave advice on what Eli will need or could use. You guys are the best.


Huge thanks again to Keith, you are the best man.

_________________
Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

"If everyone is thinking alike, someone isn't thinking."
- General George Patton Jr

$$ goes out to the shop tomorrow, it won't be made out to Jason.

Hi you guys, im Eli. I heard about all this just today at my going away party that Ned C. came to. I wanted to thank you all so much not just for what you are doing for me but because after reading all your posts I feel proud to go to war for such great people. People that would do SO much to help someone they dont know and havent met. Just saying thank you doesnt come close to expressing my gratitude for what you are all doing but i wanted you all to know that it means a lot to me and to my family.

Kieth- You are a noble man, thank you so much from my family and from me.

Ned- You're one of the greatest people i know, i am glad to be your friend

_________________
Hate war, love the soldier.

Lots to say about the going away party today and not much time right now but I'll round it out in a few days. Anyway-- I got a chance to tell all friends and family present about how Eli did at the class (gee, I forgot to tell them how he beat me badly on the FATS System, now how did that happen). And to explain to them about LTW and how LTW wanted to help, and the things we're looking at getting for him. Eli was very grateful and so was the whole bunch, there was even a bit of eye-dabbing going on.

Getting around his family a bit I can see how he came to be the kind of guy he is.

More in a few days.

Just back from three days away from the puter. Hey Eli, welcome! Oh, you probably won't be reading this for a while . You're probably doing pushups or something for the next two months!

Where to start.

Got a package from an LTW supporter who preferred not to be named. I will refer to him as G4. It includes:
-Tactical Tailor 3 day plus pack
-Katadyne water filter w/ spare filter
-Eagle Instructor belt
-Camo Zippo
-SOE CQB subload AR mag thigh pouch.

This is all new stuff, thanks a mil G4.

Just had a call from Eli's uncle. I believe he was a major influence on Eli growing up and has been the source of most of Eli's firearms experience. Uncle is also a veteran of the Brownwater Navy in the Mekong Delta where he spent a lot of time behind machineguns. He's very proud of his nephew.

Let us remember guys, some of the things we get here will possibly, in the end, either not apply to Eli's final location and occupation, or he may be prohibited their use, or any number of things. In those cases, we will do what we can to get them to another serviceperson who can use them. Last resort, we will trade/sell, whatever to turn them into something Eli or one of his comrades can use. And as to how Eli uses some of the things-- that's up to him. We're not rushing into buying certain things until we have a better idea as to what will be useful and allowed.... certain other things like the lights, glasses, etc., should be no problem.

Uncle has a Beta C-mag for Eli when the time comes.....
https://betaco.com/img/_m16m4.jpg
What an uncle,eh!? Uncle, hope it was not a faux pas calling itthe Brownwater Navy. Just going by what I've read. Here's a link to an association of Brownwater Navy vets: http://brownwater-navy.com/

I am simply amazed at what can be accomplished in this world when good people come together.

To Eli, your sendoff will be remembered and hopefully allow you and more to stay safe and return home. What friends you have made!

Good luck.

_________________
"No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave."
Calvin Coolidge

OK, minor quick update here.

Oakleys: By chance, right here in my little hometown, we have a huge distributor of safety equipment, I know the owner, he's former Army, and they carry Oakleys (and are one of the country's largest distributors for Wiley X). Once I have a solid determination of what's needed and/or what's compatible with anything sent by Matt Williams, my friend will cut us a deal. I will probably pick up several other items from him, for example, he showed me some new earplugs while I was there that are supposed to block gunfire but not low-level sounds. They are not electronic. If they work as advertised they could be really useful. http://www.combatarmsearplugs.com/comba ... rplug.com/

My friend's company that has all this stuff and is going to help out:
http://safetyglassesusa.com/

A Marine recently back who I've had the pleasure of hanging with on the range a bit lately made some good suggestions too with regard to some additional equipment. I think I won't go into detail on the net but to keep things transparent and above-board I'll be happy to discuss it with LTWers who call.

Got a hell of a package from Matt Williams yesterday. I'll give a detailed list later, but suffice it to say lots of nice stuff, gloves, MOLLE pouches, and another TT daypack. Thanks a bunch Matt!

This is going better than expected....thanks to everyone.

_________________
Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

"If everyone is thinking alike, someone isn't thinking."
- General George Patton Jr

We heard from Eli's girlfriend over the week end and it appears he may
be home for a few days before he deploys. ( Early
Sept. time frame)

I shot 500 rds thru the Beta-C 100 rd mag. Two M 16 style guns were used. No problems of any kind. I would say the Mag is ready to go.

Also heard his base over there has a wireless network,

Once again, thanks for all you are doing for him.

_________________
Randy Peat

This does seem to be going well. It seems that the four months that are remaining untill my son deploys are flying by. He has talked to me several times about it and seems to be in the right frame of mind. I know at this time he might not realize the seriousness of going over there, I just wished we could have finished it back in the 90's. As a parent that spends quite a bit of time with my son and his friends I believe the soldiers we have today, yes the majority are those kids we have talked about, are some of the best. My son even with is upcoming delpoyment has signed up for 4 classes this semester. His chain of command is real supportive of their soldiers and encourage education. During my time in the Army this would have been frowned upon by someone. Anyway my family is preparing for my son's deployment and return. We also are praying for all the soldiers that are currently deployed or just holding down the rear, you are all appreciated more than you will ever know. Thanks...

_________________
And this eternal resting place Is known as Fiddlers' Green.

Good things to hear, Depmur.

Depmur, go to http://www.speakalanguage.com and get him the Arabic cassette course..... if he's got time, sounds like he's pretty busy. It's only $30 and it's a system that works. I figure it this way:
-It might get him out of a pinch
-It will definitely make him more appreciated by the locals
-He might even make a friend-- hey, if there was a lot more of that this whole thing might change for the better
-After a year over there, especially ifhe's good in Arabic, he'll be in a good spot to go back privateer and make some money if he wants.

I've been out for three days, gonna work on getting an update on Eli.

I had a nice phone conversation with Eli a couple weeks ago and just got and Email from him. We've discussed some of the things we have for him and how they may jive with his needs, and, honestly, there still is not concrete info on certain other things. Guess there are certain things he just won't know until he gets there. But he did mention this:


"Another thing that is a little more personal is some software that I am actually usuing right now. A buddy of mine is letting me use his computer because he bought a card he plugs into the side of his laptop. What it basically is is a hub for a satellite connection to the intronet. I filled out some paper work for some online classes to take while I'm over there and I'm working with my dad and little bro to have a computer built
for me. Plus the internet will be my main form of communicating with everyone back home. so that piece of hardware would be great."

Anybody know what this is? Comms with Eli are kinda sporadic so I'm thinking one of you might recognize this as opposed to maybe having to wait a couple weeks for details from Eli.

That package from Matt Williams had:
Tactical Tailor daypack
Blackhawk double grenade pouch
Tadgear drybag
Four dialed-in 30-round mags with MagPul followers
Eight general-purpose pouched of various shapes and sized
Compact raingear
Three-mag pistol magpouch
Gloves from SafetySystemsCorp.com
Wiley-X glasses
Two SpecOps single mag pouches (rifle)
Two SpecOps three-mag magpouches (rifle)
One Pistol Leash lanyard
The above is all MOLLE gear in desert tan, all brand new or darn close.
Also:
One vertical fore grip
One SureFire light
One lens brush

Thanks again Matt!!

Ned,
I believe that is a wireless card. It is like a mini cell phone that is plugged in and gives you wireless internet access. I could be wrong but it makes sense.

_________________
Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

"If everyone is thinking alike, someone isn't thinking."
- General George Patton Jr

I agree with Steve, sounds like a Wi-Fi card. Some newer laptops are Wi-Fi capable without the card. I recently got a Toshiba Satellite laptop computer and it is WiFi capable and ready out of the box. It just needs a wireless network to connect to the internet.

I'm no computer expert but it makes sense. I would imagine that his buddy over there could help him with setting up to access whatever network he himself is accessing.

A couple days ago (Sept.3rd), Eli was home for a brief visit prior to finishing up mobilization training and heading over. There was a rather large party and I presented the two boxes of goods to him and with a bit of a crowd looking on he went through the items. It went well. I told Eli that he needn't feel obligated to take any of it, that whatever he didn't think he could use personally or share with a buddy, I would either send back or turn it into money or something he could use. He took it all and felt it would be easy to find homes for everything he didn'tuse, once he got back to base.

Eli and his family were very appreciative once again of the LTW involvement. I'd like to again thank the guys who sent the items, and of course Keith for his generous help buying the knife. We're about to start spending some of that money in earnest........ will keep y'all posted.

BTW guys-- here's another place where folks can help some of the people who are out there guarding the perimiter for us:
http://www.cckwf.org/
As always I want to take "full disclosure" seriously, so, be it known that one of the principals in this is a person who is providing a paid service to me. There's no more to it than that. I learned that his family lost a family member, a Marine, in the war, and thought it was a good thing they were looking to do. I suppose there are many such organizations around the country, this is one I know about. If anyone should do something to help CCKWF, I ask that you do not mention me.

Hello All, Mob. training has been going well and as Ned mentioned I brought back the 2 boxes of equipment that were sent to him to help us soldiers out. Just about ALL of it has found a home between my battle buddies, my Lt., and me. I just wanted to thank all the people that did this again and donated all the gear. Rest well knowing a soldier is using it in Iraq. My buddies also wanted to thank you all as well so im speaking for them to. Thanks a lot to everyone.

_________________
Hate war, love the soldier.

Eli,

The thank you is to you and the young men and women just like you.

My heartfelt thanks to you Eli and all those who do their part in keeping this great country safe, from without and within. I am reiminded of the Russian Special Forces motto, " IF NOT ME, THEN WHO"

I use that as my guiding principle in life also. Be safe sir, bring yourself and your buddies home!

_________________
"No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave."
Calvin Coolidge

As a update my son's departure has been moved up to the end of this month. Hopefully Eli is doing well and it does move me, the genorosity that is shown on this site. As far as gear for my son, I guess the only thing that we are still needing is a assault pack, if anyone has a line on a used one or can reccomend one I would appreciate it.

_________________
And this eternal resting place Is known as Fiddlers' Green.