So, I'm an American Army veteran, a lifelong military historian, and a reenactor in the American Civil War. My reenacting group is a very 'family friendly' hobby and a lot of kids are raised in it. This puts me in a position to give a lot of young men some good advice here and there about practical things that don't get talked about much. My personal soap box is the absolute necessity of taking care of one's feet, good socks and good boots. Because of all that, I LOVE practical videos like this! Keep it up!

This is great advice, which I use everyday to pack my bergen before I have a shovel recce and get on the train to my office job in the city.

Those 24 hour rat packs are amazing. In my time they were so expensive, much cheaper to set up a field cook house in the woods 55

I remember the good old days of tins, it seemed the only place to put them was your resperator case.

Absolutely love this channel, thank you so much for so much value in all videos

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA ... Crying with laughter here (mainly at the comments of my former para reg partner as we watch this together) He has too much knowledge and info on this subject for me to type it all here now, but for those young guys watching this and wanting to know, here's the big three:- 1. 24hrs munchies / survival ration bits (which you NEVER touch) in your smocks. 2. 24hr rat pack (which you NEVER touch) broken down in your belt order. 3. 48hrs worth of scoff in your bergan (NOT the issued shite, but good stuff you put together yourself). Plus as much brew kit and hexi fuel as can be crammed in around your operationally necessary items (optics, additional ammunition, comms/ medic gear, explosives, water bladder, clothing, basha etc). Live out of your bergan - you only eat in secured positions anyway and expect to jettison the bergan in contact, or have to leave it behind for many many operational reasons (use your imagination). E&E (only) justifies eating what's in your webbing. lf you have to break into your smock munchies, then you're usually really in the shit and will probably have to share it all with your mates anyway because they were too jack to have anything left to eat on them. Oh, and forget the rat pack spork, it's crap. Get a decent cut down metal/wooden spoon and duct tape it for cam. The half spoon, half a toothbrush, lighter, cam cream, signal mirror, utility knife, compass, should all be in your pockets attached with a couple of feet of thin para cord (from illum flare parachutes). One end sewn into the pocket and the other end tied and duct taped to each item. You may have to run / fight with one or more of these out of your pockets, because they're being used at the time and you wouldn't want to lose them if you have to move in a hurry!

Another smashing video. Would you consider doing a video on how you prepare your kit before you would go on exercise/how you like to pack your kit? I know it’s been done to death by other people but they often seem to have their own individual ways of doing things.

Farmer phil ,great video mate,straight to the point, no messing, keep it up,love your bergen and webbing

A veteran of 13 years who was stationed in Korea twice and was sent to Iraq, I have found foreign MRE's rather tasty compared to ours. The Brits 24 HR MRE rocks, I found 2 cases for sale. I also find it interesting how the Brits pack their stuff pretty interesting.

cant beat the old packs the 5 man compo packs we used to get in the RA where the dogs bollocks sausages mash cheese jam and bacon grill food of the gods and yes i have tried the new ones but the tins where superior

This is excellent: very concise and very informative.

As an ex Royal Signals LCpl - i left in '03 and i remember the crap we used to get in card board boxes. Lancashire hopot for breakfast ... mmm! The only time i saw tobasco and peanut butter was when i robbed it from some US guys we were stationed in Bosnia with.. made that hotpot bearable! My son is now in the RAF and he came back with some rations in the plaggy bag, again this must be what they must've ripped off from the Yanks and the menu's look pretty decent. We used to get primula cheese and something like meat paste in a tin that got pulled due to being rotten (can't remember what it was called)

Clear plastic bag is perfect to use for storing , keeping dry spare socks, skiddies and warm kit 👍

The best way to pack ANY ration is to take 3 days of Imodium all at once.

how times have changed, when i was doing cadet training at RAC luworh in 1967, we used to put the rations for the day in the back of the land- rover or 3 tonner Bedford RL, they used to be 4hr or 8hr rations,the food in the cook house was great in 1967 eat as much as you want.

A video on how to pack your Bergen would be a good helpful video 😁

The Tabasco comes in a mini bottle...that's rad, out here in Skippyland it's in a sachet which obviously is a once only thang 🍻🤙🍻🤙🍻🤙

I don't believe they dashed the boiled sweets. Trade all the green and yellow ones for the red ones. I guess they expect you to bring your own haribos nowadays

When you get given 5 days of rations and not 1 ounce of space in the bergen..

I don’t drink hot drinks or juice, and it’s a lot of liquid calories! But the meals and snacks look banging so I’m all in for food on exercise

Munchies in my pockets, 24 hrs worth of cut down rations in my webbing and extended days rations in my pack.

Left for life (brew kit and pudding) and right for rations

Hi. Some of that stuff I wouldnt touch with a barge pole. Read the ingredients in those powered drinks. They contain Aspartame. You really don’t want that in you. Give it to the enemy! Regards

Looking at that Stable Belt...Royal Signals? Asking from Canada...

Are you regular army or TA? The reason I ask is because your bergen and pouches seem to be DPM and not multicam. Other than that, top notch thinking.

I just take 40 Bennies and a four-pack of Carlsberg.

Thanks for video, a lot of tips I wish I knew before basic. Would you take a jetboil or similar? Where would you pack it? Some of the guys in my section had them, seemed to make life so much easier

Looked at that Tabasco sauce like wtf probs not had a ration pack since they changed

British bergens packs ARE best

In the 80s we had canned rations in Australia. Made things easy. Keep the can of fruit, tubes of jam, coffee tea and survibal biscuits. Back then Nestle made condensed milk with coffee in it. 3 tubes 2 days. Just drink it from the tube. Rations took bugger all room and weighed stuff all lol

😂 I would pack all of that. 😂 😂 I would not discard any of it.😂

How do you wear you wear your webbing when your Bergen waist belt gets in the way, and vis-à-vis

Great packing !!! Can tell you don't go in the field that much remf !

Only 2 tea bags in a brew kit now ? thats criminal !

I don't think I ever got to finish a rat pack , also don't forget the spare batteries, Mortor rounds , spare ammo , water ........ christ then if you was lucky some spare clothes , then comms kit

Hiya ! Back when I was "in" they issued us WWII era wood alcohol tins to heat our rations... wow, they were efficient... NOT !!! 🙂 First acquisition out of basic training was a Coleman "Peak One" Multifuel Stove ! I was wondering which type of stoves you currently are issued... and what you actually buy and use for a hot brew and /or meal ? ATB, Cheers, Rob

Personell in the rear with the gear...

Random question: how do you pass phase 1 and how do some people fail it? (i wanna be 100% prepared sorry)

I've been out for quite a while now but when did compo start coming in a plastic bag?

Cracking

Hi samual. Classic British name. As a U.S. Army veteran I have a question I’ve been curious about for 9 years now. Now that we Americans are independent from the British empire, (sorry for all that rebel war stuff by the way), my question is, is king George the third still an a$$hole towards his British subjects like he was to his once American colonies taking away guns and taxing us through the a$$

All those sugary drinks are easy intake calories, and you doo need it if you are working hard.

Just wondering what would you say is the best way to light the matches that you get in the ration pack. I've used them before and I tried on the strip of abrasive and on a normal match box and neither worked. Brilliant video and very useful 👍

dont use the waterproof matches for a cig unless you want to throw up🤣

Nice one yoz

Rubbish? Best save them to trade off for the good shit!

Dont just tear the bag open, as he just rips the bag apart with his teath ... maybe prep your demo and have a penknife at hand.. lost interest quite quickly

Leeeeeets get iiiiit

so don"t start ripping apart, as you just did!!!

No hate, but why tf is he using issued kit. Person as is so much better 😭😭😭

Uuuurgh a scaleyback.

WOW! That's a ton of plastic right there given every day to thousands of soldiers. What a waste:(

That is not properly, one persons right is another persons wrong, there is no properly. One packs Rations individually where it fits and how one can access the rations, and dont put it all in a Bergan. Drop the Bergan, Bravo 2 Zero, you have lost all, pack as per 1980's in webbing/kidney pouches, belt kit, no lost rations means you will eat and the kit is always wrapped around you.

Why would someone need to know this if they are not a soldier? Gaay