Two things that fit great.  

1. Can of skoal.
2. Surefire spare battery and lamp carrier.

Thats all I've ever carried in my "grenade" pouches,.

yea in iraq we mainly used em for spare batteries, smokes or a can of skol. (due to roe we almost never carried frags)



 

Here's my progress so far on getting my rig set up,
un issued tan FLC and 2 used surplus mag shingles both dyed seperately but with same formula and amount of time. you can see the used shingles picked up a darker color than the un used flc
used the OP Wolfcri's dye method and am very pleased with the result
made an extension for the snap to carry the glock 23 and made up 6 extensions to use with pmags, the blued steel mag on the right is a junk 30 rounder that i have put in just to test fitment, these are a little longer than a usgi spec mag and they will not fit easily in the shingles

The frag pouches are PERFECT for carrying two Garand clips! They are held fairly tight and so don't rattle but not so tight that you can't get them out. It's a much better system than the old canvas belts! A good way to create a modern load out for the old rifles.

Has anyone figured out how to put some padding under the shoulder part of the FLC? I ran around with a full load and it chafed my shoulders hard.

How about some foam padding and duct tape??? Crude but I bet it would work.

i'm seeing these vests for sale at maine militeary & gov liquidation already loaded up w/ stuff for like $60.  

Can't find just the vest for cheap.

If anyone could let me know where that can be had that would be great.  :)

That would be the holy grail.  
I came up w/ that ideal myself when trying  to figure out how I could do exactly what is described above, later to discover that they had worked on it already.  The closest thing I could find was Kifaru packs, & one or two models from some other companies, that have detachable kidney belts w/ pals loops, but htey are not QD.  You have to drop the whole pack & pull on this velcro flap, then put the belt back on.  Not an IA drill for if you are ambushed.  I hope someone can get that concept worked out.

EBAY

How did you mount your camelbak to the FLC?  Thanks.

I dig the idea of your 'field expedient holster.'

Pigaloo has used woodland FLCs for sale in the old EE gear section for $9 each.

Sweet!  I sent him an email.  Hopefully I can get a few more. Thanks.  I'd rather buy off the EE than Ebay.

I was playing around w/ my FLC las night & I just entirely removed the waste belt.  I  didn't need to mount anything back there & the padded belt is sort of hot & thick & I would rather it not be there if I am wearing a pack or whatever.  I just took an old nylon rifle sling & threaded it in there through the waste buckle things in the front.

I just rand the strap from rear of the vest right up to the the metal buckles on the back of the shoulder straps.  I think this might sort of change the angles of the shoulder straps though, so maybe I have to put the belt back in.  We'll see.

hell yeah !! I been wanting and looking for a wodland one forever!! i got a ton of MOLLE II pouches in woodland but could never find a cheap vest

thanks man, I just used some leftover straping from a sling i made for my brother and some brass snaps I have left over from my leather holstermaking experiments, plan to get a purpose built holster but this will work in a pinch until I can get one, best thing is I used snaps on both sides of the strap so it is removable and does not permanantly mod the pouches

Amazing, this thread is 14 months old and still producing great information.

gorilla glue and an old sleeping mat still crude but atleast it looks pretty





 

Those neoprene or gell keyboard wrist pads also... Not hard to sew up a cover for it. I made a cheek riser for my AK using a cut up wrist pad made of neoprene. Sewed a cover and velcro'd it on. Works great.  The neoprene is dense but still offers alot of padding.



 

yea theres all kinds of ways to do it, i just picked the 1st stuff i had lyin around to use as an example

That's why I like the older, MOLLE type LBVs - the padded shoulders. I would think a cheap, surplus LBV could be sacrificed simply for the padded shoulder sections and attached in some way. Maybe I'll pull the FLC and a LBV out today and look at ti - although in my case, the Dutch Molle LBV is my choice for carrying a full-load. The FLC is for a 'travel' load, such as I would carry while driving a car in SHTF - just a few mags, an FAK and maybe a pistol. I tried my SIG in the shingle awhile back, and liked it, although I was carrying it on left side, strong hand draw, but the inability to secure it bugged me. Great tip! I'm going to have to get some of those snaps and the tool and make some extensions. I love this thread!

Well, I checked the mag shingle/SIG clearance again, and you're right - I'd scrape the snot out of my P225 trying to access the middle pouch, which leaves only one mag - so a no go, at least for me. I will definitely check out the SDS holster - been looking at buying two, because I want to set the FLC up for a 9mm carbine, similiar to the basic German Fallschirmjager setup of WWII with the pistol on the left and three mags for MP40 on the right, which allows weak hand access to carbine mags and strong hand access to the handgun. I am in the process of building an RO635 clone, so this should work well. Since I have multiple Dutch LBVs, I can set one up the same way for the Mk18ish build but with a 5.56 mag shingle on the RH side, although I may just go with two mag shingles for a better loadout and carry the pistol on a separate belt or drop leg rig, which appeals to me somewhat as it separates 1st line and 2nd line gear a little more. The FLC 9mm setup will be more of a 'toss it on in a hurry HD/car rig' where with a simple upper change and different vest I could be 5.56 capable and ready to hike.

The other reason I like the LBV is the padded shoudlers, which is an important consideration, as you said, with shoulder pad stacking. As my favorite BOB is a simple, old-school M1941 frame pack with nothing but a sternum strap added (very easy to get in and out of - no 'waist belt') it rides very well over the LBV while the LBV provides shoulder padding so the web straps of the pack don't need padding. The Dutch LBV has female fastex fasteners sewn onto each shoulder, and I wondered if they were for a CFP90 patrol pack. I have an Italian version around here somewhere - I need to try it. I wish they were higher on the shoulder, as they seem to be right where a buttstock hits, so I may end up cutting them off, maybe resewing some back on, further back, maybe as sort of a QD buttpack.

My needs, like most civilians, are different than a grunt's - I need something relatively light, that can be thrown on easily and removed quickly, while maintaining my 1st line / 2nd line gear loadout at hand, but also be comfortable in a vehicle, but be able to carry water if necessary. There is no one 'perfect' setup, since everyone is different sizes and has different gear and weapons, which is where these cheap vests really shine IMO. I really like the FLC, and the 9mm setup should disappear pretty well under a coat, with an SBR fitting into a pack easily. raf - you had mentioned the strap extensions before, and I am definitely going to look into making some. In Vietnam the SOG guys and others used canteen covers for mag carriers - they could carry 5 or 6 in one of them. I'm thinking a current MOLLE canteen/GP pouch, maybe with a simple fastex buckle extension might be a good way to carry an extended load.

ETA: BTW, raf, thanks for the link! I am already drooling over the Tactical Tailor 'detachable Operator's pack' on the first page. I think such a pack could be adapted to my M1941 setup with very little work. Thanks!

I run the waistbelt of the M1941 pretty much straight across, so it acts as a suspension, cantilevering the pack against the back. The sternum strap pulls everything tight, and the Dutch LBV gives padding in the waist area as well as the shoulders. Yes, a conventional pack may be able to carry more weight, but I can carry 50 pounds comfortably this way, and bigger packs beg the question of tactical effectiveness. FWIW I setup an Italian CFP-90 pack on an M1941 frame this way and it is huge - the waistbelt is padded, similiar to ALICE. I have also messed around with attaching a MOLLE LB waistbelt and straps to the M1941 frame, but am not entirely happy with it.

I haven't tested heavy loads over distance extensively, but will be doing that with the Italian Mt pack on M1941 frame this summer. I need to buy a new camera, but will take pics when I do. The reason I like the standard M1941 so much is it rides very well, is narrow (I can walk through doorways with it on), it carries what I need it to carry, is quickly dropped, (would be even better with fastex buckles on main straps) and it provides a huge tunnel at the small of the back which really makes cooling nice. You're right - too heavy a load w/o a good waistbelt would suck, but for 50# or less, it seems to work well. I just wish it were padded more like the M1952 (same pack with a few differences.)

The only issue I had on 10 mile hikes with weight (overnights) was a little chafing on the shoulders and neck, which more padding and the sternum strap would cure. If it had PALS webbing, it would be tits, although the frame is heavy by today's standards. I can't help it - I like them, and have 5 or 6 of them, as well as spare parts. What can I say? They work for me, and hiking with that amount of weight, but none against your back, or wrapped around your waist, was a real epiphany for me, as it was in the 90's. AZ gets hot, so anything you can do to not have a waistbelt or the pack directly against your back is good - a real difference you can feel. It would not work for long-range mission oriented stuff, as the weight those guys carry is often unbelievable. For that I would have to add a waistbelt and a larger pack body such as the Italian CFP90 I have setup. I am looking forward to seeing how the 'modernized' version works on a several day trip - again, with no real belt being used, just padding at waist level in a suspension mode. I've spent a lot of time with various packs on, and everyone tells me this won't work, but it does. It works so well, I haven't used my North Face internal frame pack in years. I hope to get out with a friend this summer a few times and really give some info on this setup.

Basically I replaced the original plastic frame on the Italian pack, with a spare M1941 frame. The new MOLLE airborne frame might be a better choice though, as the pocket that the frame fits into is wide, like the ALICE frame (which would likely work as well).

here's a pic of an M1941 I use a lot. On this pack the waisbelt is further back than I usually use it, but a common position when these packs were issued. Basically I run it straight across so it acts like a web suspension. I need a new camera, but when I get that issue fixed, I'll post new pics. FWIW, what I like about the frame is the arch - it provides a LOT of airflow behind the back. I can stick my entire forearm behind me between my back and the frame with the pack on, which is why I like it. The M1952 was a favorite with SF troops early on in Vietnam as the ltwt jungle pack frame is SO uncomfortable and the M1952 can carry a decent amount of gear. My usual loadout would include 2qt canteens and a bladder, as well as a sternum strap which this particular pack doesn't have. Sorry, but these are the only pics of an M1941 I have right now. If you google it you'll find an interesting page covering the variants.

ETA: From what I understand, CFP-90 was actually a NATO standard, and variants were created by many different countries. The Aussies, for example shared a similiar design with the Dutch - not sure which came first. It called for a large pack with dismountable 'Patrol pack' of a certain size.

You're right - the two packs have the same nomenclature - I totally forgot about that. I had one M1941 USMC 'haversack' which I gave away. This is the more common variant, although I do have a couple rarer ones, including the 1st pattern which had the wire frame and snaps rather than straps on the closures. It also had very well padded shoulder pads and is pretty comfy to carry. I know a lot of guys may laugh at the 'old school' approach, but I'm trying to mix the best of two worlds here. Not everything that is newer is necessarily better. I really love the frame geometry of the Mountain pack. A sternum strap makes a big difference. Oh, and apologies if I got OT. Let's see some more FLC setups!

hey Morg308, i'm from AZ as well ..i like your mountian ruck and your dog ! i also have and use a old school AR-15 which i put together a few years back ,i'm really not a fan of the A-2....by the way what type of web gear do you use with your ruck and weapon?... vince g. 11b inf..

Hey neighbor! I've sold the 604 in the pics, (sans furniture) to a friend who is a VN vet, but still have several ARs - I usually hang out in the retro forum. I've pretty much settled on the Dutch MOLLE LBV since it gives some padding at shoulders and waist but takes MOLLE mag shingles just fine. I also have an FLC and want a couple more, and I am setting the FLC up for a 9mm carbine and pistol. As I said, the main problem with the mountain ruck is the lack of padding, but with an LBV it's not an issue. I also add a sternum strap, which makes a big difference. I'm in Northern AZ - where you at?

Morg308 i'm in north glendale the better part yea my retro AR-15 is kind of a franken AR it has the early upper with no forwardasist and a latter lower but all correct furniture as well...vince g. 11b inf

The GI 1 Quart canteen.

Same here.

maybe my pouches are a little out of spec or something, but the pmag aint going in without a fight, if I ever need the rig for something other than at the range I dont want to be fighting to get the mag in(although probably only getting the mag out would be important, probably would not be worried about getting them back in in that type of situation)

maybe has to do with the way I position my mags in the pouch, mine are facing opposite way as most other I have seen on the thread(ran that way cuz I shoot a rifle lefty, shoot a handgun righty though, screwed up I know)

I have some pouches that won't snap closed, but some of the woodland surplus mag pouches have been more accommodating.

Great info her. Now I better get my FLC out of mothballs and apply some of the lessons learened here

My  all Woodland  FLC put together from arfcom E&E

Did you buy some of the canteen MOLLE pouches recently?  I need a few of those for my rigs.

I ordered from them tonight (thanks to this thread), and noticed they charged me PA sale tax. State tax is only applied when buying/shipping an item in state. I'm guessing mine is in PA, and will be here later this week.

Mine came from Ohio.


What a nightmare.  

A dozen calls to the "customer service" here in AZ, and they didn't help one bit. "Oh wait three days and call us back if it doesn't show."  Yep, only to be told the same thing many times.  They "can't look up items purchased from govsurplusstore", even though their number is listed in the contact area. One lady got ballsy and refused to put her manager on the phone for some reason, until I told her she should look at her caller ID for my number and that I can be down there to chat with them in person within ten minutes if she'd prefer that.  


I washed my hands of it after three weeks and had my girlfriend hound them(she's good at it).  It was the 29th day after I paid when she finally talked to someone who knew what the hell they were doing. I guess there's a "talk live" function on the website that she used and the guy was very apologetic and shipped the thing to me next day air.  

So, whoever is in Ohio, they're cool.  But fuck the people here in AZ, they're worthless if you ordered from the govsurplusstore.com website.


I do like the FLC though, and my Pmags fit fine.

no  I had the canteen pouch for over a year

What model is the mag pouch you're putting your XD in? I tried to read the tag in the last picture, but couldn't quite make it out.

Has anyone set up a FLC for pistol and shotgun?  I am thinking my two Paracletes strong side, three pistol mags support side and the rest of the space for dump pouch, canteen, and sustainment pouch.  I will mock up and post a pic ASAP.  If anyone has done this, please post a pic or at least a write up of pros and cons....
Thank you.

Here is a close up of the pouch tag, I've been selling these in the EE.