GROUND POUNDER MY QUICK CAMP WITH SURPLUS GEAR

[@christopherquery]

Just goes to show that when something new comes out the old stuff doesn't stop working

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

very true

[@frogmorepipester7490]

Just like I used to do. Thanks. Now I go out on days trips . I walk, build a fire, cook, nap in the hammock, home by happy hour, and, a good night’s sleep. I am in the woods more than ever now. Fifty-six and happy to be approaching Silver Wolves Status.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Good stuff!

[@notesfromthemancave]

Yep, basically "been there, done that". 👍

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

got the sweat soaked t shirt to prove it

[@edwardknudsen4806]

That was my go to for a long time. Poncho liner with the bag cover made a decent sleep system. Can't beat the butt pack.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

they are great field gear

[@timmccarver4121]

I thought I was really somebody back in the 70's went I got to go shopping at a surplus store and get some of this holy grail gear. Spent many many days using this stuff and still have most of it to this day. Plus some. Thanks for a good series, Blackie.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Thanks for sharing!

[@woodrowbrimm2805]

I used the Suspenders and Pistol Belt with a Poncho Liner(never met anyone who called it a woobie back then) and Sterno was available at the PX when they were out of the Heat Tabs. All my Fatigues wore out years ago. I never saw a Camo Poncho until I re-enlisted in 1984. The Poncho they issued us in 1974 was Green right at the end of Viet Nam. Good use for the Sleeping Bag Cover ,I wish I still had some of the Gear from back in the 70's but mine was stolen out of my old 68 Chevy Caprice by the same person who took it out and Blew the Engine.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

yep my first poncho was od green and heavy the camo ones were lighter in weight

[@indycharlie]

Yep , had the OD ones in RVN . Never saw a camo poncho , liner .. yes !

[@timlacy2284]

Blackie, Yes Sir I do remember those days back in Boys Scouts and getting my Wildness Survival merit badge during the same time period. Thanks for sharing this information and bringing back memories.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

That's awesome

[@brandyhouston2105]

Love the old military gear. Just like you I've been using it for many years. Thanks for making the video.😎

[@baronedipiemonte3990]

To many of us, yours is a glorious night in the bush

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks

[@kenbarrett6466]

Absoultely love seeing the surplus gear in use .. brings back some memories from the 80s for me

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks for watching

[@Rocking_R_Bushcraft]

Blackie great video as always, I'm still using the same military gear I was issued back in the mid 70's today, It still is going strong now as back then. You can't beat tried and true gear.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

i agree

[@briarsmoke6046]

What you just showed was most of the camping we did in the oregon and idaho woods as young men. Once we graduated from supervised campouts in the boy scout pup tents and packs rattling with old cook kits we went light so we could move. We might have only been running around several hundred acres fishing up some crick or huntin deer away from everyone else, but the idea was less is more and just enough to get by was better than hauling all that junk around. As an old grey wolf I still love doing that, but it’s more hobo camping (not doing anything productive, lots of pipe smokin and whisky sipping) and I have to replace that hard ground with a hammock. Canteen kit, knife and a belt pack on a good leather belt, and a haversack or satchel with the rest of it.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

me as well a hammock its the way for me now

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks for watching more of these to come

[@floobious80866]

The real cool 2ww Austrian petrol lighter I got was made by "imco", xl tool on a camp!. Thanx Blaxie

[@dalemeyer8207]

I like that set up . I have all those things but have not Ran them like that....I think that set up will work fine for me. I like the strap to carry the butt bag instead of the pistol belt with suspenders. Thanks

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

i have done both and if we are going longer than a 3 day i did change over to the lbe to help haul it but i always dumped it in camp

[@outbackowl3040]

Hi Blackie, greeting from Australia 🇦🇺, thank you for your time to make these videos. Good old fashioned ex military equipment , you can't beat , .

[@smoothvern165]

That’s a real sweet system, right there! Really cool to see the gear that you carried, back in the day. And that rice and bbq pulled pork really is a tasty and very filling meal! Thanks for sharing that!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Right on

[@frankgray6014]

That is pretty much the gear I started out with in the late 60s and early 70s back when I was in the Boy Scouts, gifts from my Uncle Bud that did 6 tours in Nam with the Army. Then Uncle Sugar saw fit to issue me some of my very own "new" stuff in the mid to late 70s though most of it was basically USMC or SEABEE issue. Left the small boats and went to a brand spanking new Spruance Class Destroyer and they let me keep the gear. :-) Still have a couple of pieces though most of it went on to the boys or some of my scouts. The canteen system really came in handy right after Katrina!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks for your service

[@DaleStreble]

Really enjoying this series! Learning some new things and bringing back some memories.

[@hagman1077]

Hello Blackie- Nothing wrong with rolling old school. Thats the gear I was schooled with back in the days and it is made to last. Thanks Blackie for this video and be safe out there in the heat/humidity-

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

safe journeys to you

[@trynsurviven2440]

In today’s world that’s a 2.5 star camp however, back in the late 70’s (I turned 10 years old in 1978) that was a solid 4.5-5 star camp

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks

[@michaelmichael8406]

Castelbury still makes little cans of chili. Intended for hotdogs, but I like it by itself. Walmart carries them, by all the other canned chili. Love it!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

yes they do i eat that chill a lot in the fall

[@michaelmichael8406]

@blackoracle69 Definitely more of a fall kind of food!

[@oldminer5387]

Thank you for sharing Blackie. Reminded me of how much military surplus gear I used and continue to use.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

it will serve you for a life time

[@ScottCarlson-cz7wj]

This is one of my all time favorite Blackie videos, I can watch it and listen to it repeatedly. Speaking of the gas mask water tube tipped canteen cap, I recall South Korea in 1984. North Korea has more massed artillery than any place else in the world. We were often practicing chem drills in case of chem equipped shells were ever heading our way. 95 degrees in the summer, we would have to don our masks and then, try to continue our duties. Fogged up and drool filled masks. Good times.

[@simonh6371]

Great vid Blackie as always. Serving in the British Army late 80s/early 90s I was always a bit envious of the US ALICE buttpack compared to our webbing. Now I'm in civvy street I've acquired quite a bit of surplus gear, mostly more recent British kit (it got a lot better from the mid 90s, our issue kit back then had more in common with WW1 equipment than modern gear, I'm not joking), plus some Dutch, German, Swiss and Swedish gear. US kit is harder to come by here. A couple of years back in a moment of madness I bought a full German army webbing rig in Flecktarn, but maybe not such a bad idea as it was a great price and cheaper than buying a few of the pouches separately. I wouldn't go out into the woods here with that rig on as I would look at best like some kind of LARP/cosplayer, at worst some kind of paramilitary nutjob. But watching your vid here has given me food for thought on how I can use the ''Mehrzwecktasche'' from that - which is essentially a buttpack which has straps on top to which I could attach a poncho - and a couple of other pouches, perhaps the woodland camo Dutch Army ones, to make a haversack type setup like yours. The principle is the same as with military webbing, a lightweight setup containing enough gear to be self sufficient and be able to camp out overnight.

[@zippitydoodah5693]

Enjoyed htis!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thank you

[@jamesellsworth9673]

I'm more a Silver Lamb than a fox but...I camped in that era and, for sure, I saw a bunch of the same equipment you feature and owned and used some of it. I would still prefer the muslin bag you used to the unbreathable plastic 'contractors' bag. We hiked up and down terrain. The shoulder pack/butt pack was never comfortable for me, maybe because one limb was a little longer than the other. The straps always twisted on me. On two or three-day outings, I got by fine with the type of meals you remember. At the end of some days, I was too beat to feel like eating much. I still am satisfied that I did those things.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks for watching

[@JonDoe-gk3ej]

Thanks Lefty. I’m getting into silver wolf territory though I don’t like to admit it lol. All your videos are great 👍🏻

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Glad you like them!

[@jeffrichards5106]

Great video, Blackie. Thanks for not forgetting about us ground pounder's and continuing the series. Appreciate it! 👍👍

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

You bet

[@texasjoe3261]

As Always, Thank You For Sharing This Valuable Information Blackie !!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

My pleasure!

[@michaelmichael8406]

50 years ago and the shirt still fits. Good on ya!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks it was a good bit loose on me back then

[@ChristopherMiller-vy5of]

blackie. i've watched all your videos but this is my favorite, i've seen it 5 times and watched it while i was at work. The next one needs to be an overnighter !

[@FishTheJim]

Very cool and thanks for sharing Blackie.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

glad to do it

[@oxxnarrdflame8865]

Great kit. Back then I had a lot of meals based around minute rice and dried soups, Knorr and Lipton. For meat I’d add canned chicken. (Tuna size). Later I discovered couscous, which cooks quick and with Knorr tomato basil soup and some Italian spices I had a spaghetti dinner. 😊

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Good stuff!

[@thevirginiabushcrafter8833]

Thanks for Sharing b

[@MichaelR58]

Good video Blackie , thanks for sharing , God bless !

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks for watching

[@johnny30806]

Excellent info

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Glad it was helpful!

[@PaulDekleva]

I did this sort of camping back in the 80s and 90s. Went back to doing again in the early 2000s, after my tent perished and before I got another. I once read a sentence in a book and it said and I quote “don’t use military gear (surplus) because it’s heavy and just won’t last”. When I read that, I almost threw the book out the window. I have 40 year old surplus that is still going strong.

[@edwinklaver]

You can keep the 5 Star Hotel and meal. Like you I have some years on me, but that's living right there! With millions of stars over head.

[@outbackowl4026]

Hi Blackie, greeting from Australia, thank you for your time to make these videos, muchly appreciated.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

My pleasure!

[@LuoJun2]

Reminds me of the time I spent in the jungle warfare school in Panama. We slung a mesh hammock between two trees, then strung mosquito mesh and a poncho over top. The mesh wasn’t so much for mosquitos; we were more concerned with vampire bats.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

i still have my mess hammock from the 80's

[@williesauls7817]

I always enjoy your videos. Keep up the good work. 🎉

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Thanks so much!

[@michaelnasser8697]

Outstanding video, as usual. Love the old school gear and set up. Also, was good to see the Kukri again. Loved your old video’s on it. Maybe time for a new one? 😉

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

yep i need to revisit that video and do a new update on the field guide to the kukri

[@michaelnasser8697]

@@BLACKIETHOMAS that would be awesome, thank you!

[@awayinthewilderness4319]

Nice quick and easy setup. I'm not too familiar with surplus gear, but that definitely looks like a good setup. 👍

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thank you

[@Ozarkwonderer]

I love this stuff. I've used drum liner "leaf ticks" on solid rock and slept fine. They make great matrices

[@burgesst44]

Wow,. How the memories started rolling back in 😂... This brought back so many again. Good times!! I really need to come down sometime and do an overnight or 2 with you some time blackie. I believe it would be a blast.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Please do!

[@jimhale3879]

Thank you for the very cool video on the old but great gear used!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Glad you liked it!

[@jaffcat]

Brilliant skills and knowledge 👍

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Thanks 👍

[@kennethwilson8633]

Yep I was issued a lot of that gear…Barbecued pork and two flour tortillas is a decent meal and my favorite of the pouch meats… Have fun stay safe.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Right on

[@protectpersevere2030]

Great video Blackie always learn something from your videos

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Thanks 👍

[@NonyaDamnbusiness]

Back in the early 90s well into the 00s I was on tanks in El Paso, Texas as well as Germany and the Balkans wars and a wee bit of the sandbox times. Whenever we'd do week-long field exercises in White Sands Missile Range, one of the platoon's tank drivers would cook up a rattlesnake he'd always catch out there. Only a couple of us would eat it with him and it was a fairly decent change of pace from pogey bait and MREs. At night whenever the weather called for storms we'd spin the gun tube over the back deck and elevate it to use it as an "improvised ridgeline" and drape the tank tarp over it and tie it down to the back deck and sleep under it. Always stayed dry on the tank. Didn't need a fire since it took many, many hours for the tank's jet turbine engine and the back deck of the tank to cool down so we were always warm with just our sleeping mats/PT pads and old-school sleeping bags before we were issued sleep systems for the Balkans' deployments.

[@kennethgorum6519]

Great video, I have the same butt pack that you have, I took some paracord and weaved it through the holes that is on the top flap and tied a knot on each end so I'd basically have places to hang extra gear on the outside of the pack

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

good idea

[@ahabstar]

Now that was a memory, with the little cans of stew. I still buy the hot dog chili sauce. Which is made by Hanover Foods now. They say they have larger cans of stews, but haven’t looked for them.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

i think they quit making the little cans in the 90's

[@billrivenbark8983]

Love it.

[@benterwellen]

Good stuff blackie, I also did many of these same things back in the early 70’s, good times…

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Right on

[@FrankMuchnok]

Great stuff Blackie.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Thank you kindly

[@wolfdaddy5630]

I used the same GI gear as a kid in the sixties,then as a grunt medic in the seventies. You going to make me cry😂😂😂😂

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thank you for your service

[@Mr808islands]

i thrown in my kit 2nd usgi puncho rain jacket shelter. i like your idea that you revise made video tic puncho bed not to long ago. thanku blackie giving ideas

[@lundysden6781]

that was me in the 80's. I always let my fires burn themselves out though. Ive seen many come back to life after water was put on if not done 100% right. If they burn out there is NO more fuel supply. Use the water for the border thats it. Or pee around it!

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

true

[@tomritter493]

Oh man memories I carried 2 canteens but the Same surplus stuff it all rode on a lc1 harness butt pack and ammo pouches had it all lol

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks for watching

[@indycharlie]

Hmm .... I was in 68-71 with one TOD in RVN . I never saw anybody carry their patrol / fanny pack that way . Everybody used " web " gear . Though I rarely used one , I did use a poncho liner for a few weeks in RVN . Wish I would have thought of that sleeping bag cover idea ! Nobody carried the stove , used C4 and C ration stove . JP fuel in C rats can with dirt or sand at the Z or FSB . I don't remember having a camo poncho , but I used one every night while I.C. Interesting how things changed . Be safe out there brother .. doc Gubs

[@indycharlie]

Oh also . That " jacket " looks nothing like the ones we had in RVN . Whether O.D. or cammie !

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thank you for your service i was talking about how i as a teen was carrying this gear in the late 70;s camping in Alabama

[@grampabuckshot402]

grandad always carried corn meal and salt if we didnt catch fish or get any game it was corn dodgers or cornmeal mush......it was a great incentive to be on top of your fishing game.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

yep i ate that often when i did treking in living history

[@a.wilson1979]

I'd like to see this set up in the rain

[@mrkultra1655]

Thanks Blackie

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

my pleasure

[@bretjohnson6188]

I tried using my aluminum canteen cup with 2 cups of creek water over the canteen cup stove full of lit charred wood last week; in one hour, the water was warm but still cool enough that I could hold my finger in it for a few seconds.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

smothers it if you lock it on that only works with very hot hard wood coals set the cup on one side of the stove and build a small fire with small twigs it should boil in less than 10 min

[@bretjohnson6188]

@blackoracle69 Thank you. Yes, I have cooked many times with the cup cocked sideways (using the flame from small twigs). But this was the first time I tried it with charred wood (nature's charcoal) and the cup locked on. Sounds like my problem was using partially lit charcoal instead of glowing coals. I must add that I really appreciate you and what you give to all of us!

[@williamdroom5789]

Nice set-up, but I'm 6'1" and 280lbs. I tried one of those sleeping bag covers and it is like a straight jacket on me. I wish they made an extra large one.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

take a large bed sheet like a queen and make one fold in half sew half way around then add snaps rest of the way

[@savageater57]

I'm still using most of those things. If it ain't broke !😊

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

dont fix it lol

[@murphysoutfitters9649]

Great video! And very similar to what I did back in the day. Except I used the newer nylon buttpack and the outer 2 panels of 2 gores off a cargo parachute was my hot weather sleep sheet. Keep up the great work. Thanks.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Very cool!

[@michaelbrunner6654]

I've still got old surplus stuff. In boy scouts used it all the time

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

VERY COOL

[@floobious80866]

Camo poncho I gota see

#4Blackie

[@jasongarling20]

I love the You videos, tip, tricks, hacks, I call them skills! I'm curious about your necklace Blackie 🤔 any comments on it?

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

the small disks have a tribal raven and a large oak tree on the other my native name means raven and the tree was the symbol of my cherokee ancestors the hand sign for the cherokee was the tree with wide branches

[@jasongarling20]

@@BLACKIETHOMAS that's awesome! Thank you for the explanation!

[@anthonyjacobs6790]

When I did field training in the mid 1980s, all we had was a sleeping bag.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

yep they did have the green pad back then

[@168Diplomat]

Hey an idea on the forgotten knives series. How about the sod buster folder.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

those were good knives

[@Twistedstar0320]

Can you please make a Playlist of all of your different ways to tie rope and cordage??

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

i will do that soon

[@Twistedstar0320]

@@BLACKIETHOMAS looking forward to it! thank you.

[@blueridgebushcraft8294]

One of the worst nights I had was sleeping on the bare grass ground. No mat no padding. I could barely walk in the morning.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

i have had a few of those

[@vmperkins]

What is the name of the military surplus store and the city it’s in? You’ve talked about in precious videos. Thanks for the videos and information.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

kaufmans military surplus samson al. 334 898 1770 tell them i sent you they will hand select for ya

[@ostekuste3646]

Probably half my gear is still military surplus. Not the lightest or most glamorous but you can’t kill it. By the time I put on my boonie hat and old school raybans my hiking partners tell me I look like I belong in an old war movie. Don’t know how many times some piece of fancy new gear fails someone and they have to borrow something of mine though.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

i hear ya i saw so much ultra light stuff fail over the years and my old stuff still going

[@mk18895]

How much water do you take with you for a day trip? Where do you keep it? One canteen doesn’t seem enough

[@williamritter7054]

I was wondering, if you ever had any snakes to join you during your camping trip?

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

no i have woken up and one be in sight out on other side of camp but not with me down here we have all the snakes but what most people dont know is snakes are preyed upon by coons and opossums and so when the night animals come out to hunt the snakes got to hide or they will get eat so if you check your bed before getting into go to sleep it is a very small chance one with join you

[@JohnnyHildebrand1969]

Blackie, I have acquired an M42 gas mask bag and trying to figure out how to configure it as a haversack of sorts. Any ideas?

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

your going to need to shift the strap to both sides of the opening to make a top load bag

[@bushcraft79]

Ktoś ogląda corpooralcornes 😊😊

[@edgarburlyman738]

You're right those about those things sit best on your butt where they don't bounce up and down. The strap being diagonal turns out not to matter.

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

correct

[@edgarburlyman738]

@@BLACKIETHOMAS in the spring-fall you could just wear a cloak and carry an inflatable U-shaped travel pillow, sleep great against a leaned back tree

[@dougcfrary]

Thought everyone had to turn in all their gear?

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

every one had a clean set for inspections and a field set they really used they turned in the pretty set

[@billg7101]

,🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

thanks for watching

[@michaelmichael8406]

Have you ever had problems with snakes coming to cuddle up at night when sleeping like this?

[@christopherevans2547]

Ive really learned a lot from the groundpounder series. Glad to see you revisiting it. 👍

[@BLACKIETHOMAS]

Glad to hear it!