There have been several threads in the past; here is a chance to consolidate current concepts for the topic.

Ballistic rig on the left, scout rig on the right.  The plates are both bolted down to keep from changing position, with the top strap minimizing stress on that joint, as well as providing a very convenient place to ty-rap the Guardians.  

The MSA rig is balanced on a styrofoam mannequin head with the PVS both up and down; it is like that on a real head as well.  









Edited to add a couple shots with the CSM bracket:





Updated with the do rag replacement pic.



Latest mods...some paint and an M600C/KM2:

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Love the patch on the MoHawk.

“Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats.”

HL Mencken

Fast SF finally came in (4 month wait), got everything moved over from the maritime, so now my brother gets a late Christmas/early birthday present of the maritime. I tried to like the OCC dial, but ended up changing it out for an h-nape chinstrap. It just fits my noggin right, I guess.

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Made a few upgrades recently. Liking it so far.

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Haha appreciate the offer, but honestly, the fit band just doesn't feel comfortable to me. With the right sized pads (in my case, a mix of 1/2" and 3/4") the helmet fits snug as a bug. These days, I've got a beard, and I buckle the chinstrap under my chin instead of being over it, so I don't really feel it as much. Plus, I'm in Alaska, so I don't deal with heat and humidity very much.

I had to get on page 100!

https://flic.kr/p/2iPoU5h

Quick video, finally finished up my poor man NVG setup. Done for now till I can save for Binos like the the rest of you rich people

I’m new to the nvg world but here’s what I have so far.



L3 M914A-UL
Team Wendy Exfil Ltp bump w/ 3.0 rails
Wilcox G22 Mount and transfer arm
Phoenix jr 123 ir beacon
Tnvc Mohawk mk1 gen2
Unity Tactical Mark mounts with poverty Howard Leights


I plan on getting Peltors as soon as they are back in stock at my go to distributor.


I’ve also decided I really want a multicam helmet cover for no other reason than looks. Can I run one with the mohawk? Either a team Wendy or preferably Agilite?  I just don’t want to start stacking too much Velcro for no good reason but I like the TNVC Mohawk and don’t want to ditch it for the Agilite counterweight.  

Mine, a few up on this page, has both a cover and a Mohawk. Works fine.

Thanks!

Finally have what I think is a good first setup.I welcome any constructive criticism.
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Drop testing the new goggle and helmet at the same time? Lol

How’s it coming along?

Rattlecan the laser?


Otherwise, that looks super functional.

Lucky bastard.

Revision (now Galvion) Caiman Hybrid bump helmet + Ballistic Applique
Mix of 4D pads and OEM pads.
TNVC Sentinel (ball detent) L3 Filmless White Phosphor
AB Nightvision Storm Mount
Air Ground Warrior Battery Pack
Ops-Core AMP
Core Survival Helstar-6
Princeton Tec Charge Pro
OPT Spartan Village IR flags.
Agilite Bridge

DIY ACH baseball hat / most poors head rig ever!
$10 hat
$28 shroud
$13 ach chin strap
$17 velcro
$5 kydex

Love it 👍

Baller.

How do you like the AMP? I've been eyeballing them for a while. What PTT are you using?

@Evintos

Gorgeous setup 👍 How do you like the Caiman? I just ordered one today, like to hear what someone actually using one thinks of it.

Unfortunately with this lock down, I haven't been able to test them at the range. I've only been able to test it at home. I do find the experience a little weird. My voice sounds sorta robotic and distant yet any sound starting about 5' away from me sound very natural. Low amplitude noise (like that from my aquarium filter) is amplified in a more natural manner in relation to high amplitude noise (at least compared to Impact Sports). I'm more used to the audio from Howard Leights Impact Sports which just makes all the ambient noises (below 83dB) obnoxiously louder. My one complaint is pushing both volume buttons at the same time to turn off the AMP. I've found it to be a two hand affair. NFMI ear plugs have been really interesting and they definitely work but I've found some discomfort with them. I need to play around with the NFMI earplug positioning some more. I can't tell the difference in transmitted audio between the AMP + NFMI plugs or just AMP alone. I'm still learning about HAM and DMR radios, accessory impedance, etc. but I'm thinking of going with a Disco32 amplified PTT.

Side note: Much thanks to Clasky for the 20% off OpsCore code.


The Caiman is very comfortable with the oem pads both standalone or with ballistic applique. Once I started adding everything (NVG, amp, etc.) the pads became inadequate with the extra weight. They simply don't have enough support even with the included spacers to give a little extra standoff room. I purchased 4D pads and found that they created too tight of a fit (size large), so I switched to a combo of oem + 4D in order to try and eliminate various hot spots. If you plan on switching to all 4d pads, my recommendation is to go one helmet size up. Going with the 4D pads with the Hybrid bump will absolutely block some of the vent holes (but so does the ballistic applique).



The dial fit band, being fairly low profile, seems a bit flimsy but I haven't broken it. The included rubber liner for the fit band is soft but it does pop out in the area behind the ear sometimes when putting on and taking off the helmet. The small pieces of oval hook (hook and loop) inside the helmet came off fairly easily if you're constantly changing moving pads around. You will need some super glue.

The ballistic applique is absolutely a compromise. There are gaps in coverage that you simply do not have with a ballistic helmet. The panels add thickness/bulk that a dedicated ballistic helmet doesn't have (comparing it with my brother's MTEK Flux). Below are some pictures. The panels are a good buy only if you can live with the compromise, otherwise stick with the ballistic verison.







Hope this all helps.

Wow, thanks for all the info and for answering my question! 👍 Good to get some feedback on the AMP too -- I have one of those on order, should be here next month. Couldn't decide between the Caiman or an Ops Core, so in typical arf fashion I got both (carbon versions) Ops Core won't be here for about another 10 weeks though Plan on selling off whichever one I like least.

Was also cool to get a closer look at the applique. I don't plan on ever getting it; if I need a ballistic helmet, I'll just use my Revision mid cut. Still, I was curious how the whole thing interfaced and what the coverage looked like. Thanks again for all the info!

Oh snap, is that still valid? I'll order it tonight if it is

According to his (Clasky's) IG, yes. I used it last month when I ordered my AMP and OC Carbon. Just an fyi, quoted lead time I got on the AMP was about 8 weeks.

Do the perst and taps switch work together? Neat

Can you post or PM it? I don't have an IG account.

^^^this is amazing. I would probably buy one if in production.

Agreed! Great work!

Great solution. Even cheaper than a nightcap by a pretty fair margin.

The AMP is without a doubt the best headset I've used, and I previously owned both MSA Sordins and Peltor Comtac IIIs.  I've used the AMP on machine gun ranges and artillery firing points.

NFMI ear plugs seem weird just playing around but they are the absolute coolest thing when things get loud.  Wearing regular plugs under the Peltors was workable but sounded like wearing ear plugs on the range, nearby voices and radio calls were muffled.  With the NFMI plugs it sounds like you're listening to the world through ear buds even when there are loud things happening around you.

I soldered the perst connector to the taps crane connector wire.

details?

Code - CLASKY

(delete if not allowed)

I would imagine it's okay to share, it's publicly listed on his IG, one doesn't even need to have an account or be logged in to view it.....

Nice. I been thinking about doing something similar with a boonie hat.

Y'all (and jim beam) talked me into it.



20% off coupon still works

How much did that set you back?

I was going to place an order with Ops-Core last night but it appears the MT is no longer available and the SF was $1900. Even with the discount, it was more than what I has previously paid for MT helmets in the past.

$1144. Coupon saved $285.

I got my Fast SF for $1417 shipped from their website.

What was the lead time?

I know when I placed an order for an OC Carbon last month I was quoted a lead time of 16 weeks and informed that's the lead time for all helmets

Took 4 months. I already had a maritime at the time, the SF was mostly to make the maritime a hand-me-down to my brother, so the wait didn’t bother me at all. I just treated it like an NFA item - ie pay the price and forget about it until you get reminded by a shipping notification.

Interestingly, I ordered another ops core helmet for my wife also directly through Gentex, about 2-3 days later, and it showed up about a month or so before the SF.

I originally chopped my large ACH because ear muffs are uncomfortable. Recently got a surplus extra large ACH that fits much better with ear muffs. Decided to deck it out and make it my primary. Now I can pull a pod off my mod 3 and do nods stuff with a friend if I had friends!

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My budget system

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I ordered an AMP on April 8th, and it arrived this past weekend (the 18th). So far I really like it. I may add the Noisefighters gel ear cups, but the factory ear cups are pretty soft already.

Also placed an order for a Fast LE, and that was quoted at 16 weeks.

Very cool! I'm a little jealous, ordered my AMP on March 17th and it's still listed as awaiting fulfillment