SO WHAT'S IN A BAG RATING?

All sleeping bags should have a usable temperature rating, giving you an idea about what temperature ranges the bag is suitable for.
Unfotunately, some ratings are exagerated, giving you an incorrect idea of just how good the bag is.

There are also other factors that affect the ability of the bag to keep you warm. These factors are:

  • Wind
  • Shelter (such as a bivy bag)
  • Your metabolisim and fitness
  • Additional clothing
  • Eating before sleeping
  • Insulation from the ground
  • Sleeping in a group

THE COMFORT TEMP MEANS...
This is the temperature at which you should have a warm nights sleep in your base-layer clothing, with little or no shelter. Remeber, the above factors will affect this rating.

THE EXTREME TEMP MEANS...
This is the lowest temperature that you can survive the night in the bag, with full shelter, a full tummy, insulation and wearing ALL but your outer extreme cold clothing layers, and packed in close with others. More than likely, it will still be an uncomfortable night, but you'll live.

Choose the comfort rating as the lowest temperature you expect to be in. That way, you'll have reserve warmth capacity if you need it.


Carinthia Combat Bivy and Tropen Bag

Care of Black Boots.

  • Dirt may be brushed off using a soft brush.
  • Black boots may have a light coat of quality polish applied to the leather. Buff to a uniform black appearance. Excessive polish may reduce boot breathability.
  • CORDURA nylon may be cleaned with a soft brush using warm water. Do Not Polish.
  • CAMBRELLE lining may be wiped out with a soft cloth and warm water.
  • Dry boots at room temperature. Do not expose boots to intense heat.

CAN I GET A PAIR OF BELLEVILLE'S PURCHASED BY DEFENCE?

There are two conditions on which defence will purchase MOTS (military-off-the-shelf) boots for you.

  1. Medical reasons as perscribed by a defence podiatrist. (You will be medicaly downgraded)
  2. Where you cannot be fitted within the issue boot size range (Not-in-catalog size. NIC)

If you meet condition one, you will usually need a boot with extra room to take inserts, or a custom made boot.

If you meet condition two and have no medical problems but just can't get terra's that fit, you need to be assesed by the unit medical officer first, in accordence with med instruction 256/257 and complete a form PM 101. Send the form to DMO combat clothing and they will advise you from there.

Can I wear Belleville's on SF Barrier Testing and SASR Selection courses?

The following information comes from the Special Forces Training Center at Singleton. On the barrier test for CDO and SASR, you must wear the issue Terra combat boot. Once past the barrier test, the issue boot must be worn on CDO selction and on the SASR cadre course, any Australian issue boot or US issue tropical boot in a tan colour may be worn. From my talks with people this seems to change from time to time so ask them first or watch this space.

 

Care of Desert Boots.

  • Dirt may be brushed off using a soft brush.
  • Desert leather may be cleaned with a soft brush. Do Not Polish.
  • CORDURA nylon may be cleaned with a soft brush using warm water. Do Not Polish.
  • CAMBRELLE lining may be wiped out with a soft cloth and warm water.
  • Dry boots at room temperature. Do not expose boots to intense heat.

CARING FOR YOUR SLEEPING BAG

Now you have a quality sleeping bag, you need to care for it properly, to keep it in good condition and get years of use from it.

Always use liner. All sleeping bags loose a little bit of their warmth every time thye are washed. Using a liner means you will rarely have to wash the sleeping bag, and it will keep it's warmth for many years.

When you store the bag, it's best to hang the bag un-compressed so it maintains it's loft. If you don't have the space, store you sleeping bag in a large cotton bag, not too compresed, and air it out on a regular basis.

Re-sole of Vibram Boots.

  • Vibram soles are replaceable.
  • Use a reputable shoe repairer.
  • Do not allow sole to wear into the polyurethane cushioning layer.
 

 
   
   
 
Belleville, Vanguard, TLS and POLYFLEX are registered trademarks of the Belleville Shoe Mfg. Co. Thinsulate is a registered trademark of 3M corporation. GORE-TEX, GORE-TEX BEST DEFENCE, GORE and designs are registered trademarks of W.L. Gore and Associates, Inc. CORDURA, NOMEX® and COOLMAX® are registered trademarks of the Dupont Company. X-Static® is a registered trademark of ACOR, USA. CAMBRELLE is a registered trademark of Camtex Fabrics, Ltd. VIBRAM is a registered trademark of Vibram Spa of Italy. Carinthia and G-Loft are registered trademarks of Gold-Eck-Mayer, GBMH, Austria. Pelican and the Pelican logo are registered trademarks of the Pelican Moulding Co, USA.
       
     

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