Life Span of Common Items

[Cdnwolf]

Just curious what the life span of some of the more common items used by soldiers are... items like boots, BDU, carrying gear?

I was thinking with all the destruction of plants manufacturing these items, a good pair of boots may make a more valuable reward then gold to some soldiers.

[dragoon500ly]

It really depends on the amount of use/abuse that the gear goes through.

Combat Boots are considered to be good for at least 6 months-1 year.
BDUs/ACUs are considered to be servicable for 18-months.
ALICE Gear was considered to be serviceable for up to 5-years.
ITLBV/MOLLE was considered to be servicable for up to 3-years.

Now these are the anticaptated replacement dates for the equipment, it does not include in any way shape or form any hint of reality.

[weswood]

This might come in handy for you non-smokers, but I've come to the conclusion a Bic lighter is good for abour 750- 1,000 flics. For characters who are lighting fires, of course. I would never condone smoking.

[pmulcahy11b]

Originally Posted by weswood

This might come in handy for you non-smokers, but I've come to the conclusion a Bic lighter is good for abour 750- 1,000 flics. For characters who are lighting fires, of course. I would never condone smoking.

I've never been a smoker, but I always had several Bic lighters when I was in the Army. Good for burning threads off your uniform, useful when shining boots and shoes, good for lighting heat tabs....and I hate to say, Wes, I think you're overestimating greatly the lifetime of the Bic lighter.

[pmulcahy11b]

And C-Rations are good for thousands of years, just ignore the color of the food and that rust on the cans...

[pmulcahy11b]

It also depends on where you are -- go for a training rotation in Panama, and your boots, socks, BDU pants, and shorts are pretty much ruined in short order. In the desert, your goggle lenses are cooked in about three months if you're lucky, cleaning weapons (and just about anything else mechanical) becomes exquisite, and even your teeth can have problems from sand in your food.

[weswood]

Originally Posted by pmulcahy11b

I've never been a smoker, but I always had several Bic lighters when I was in the Army. Good for burning threads off your uniform, useful when shining boots and shoes, good for lighting heat tabs....and I hate to say, Wes, I think you're overestimating greatly the lifetime of the Bic lighter.

A standard Bic normally lasts me between 7 & 10 cartons, a carton is 10 packs of 20 ciggarettes, 200 total. A few years ago they did something to the ciggarettes for safety, not sure what, but if you're not actively smoking it, it will go out. Like if you set it down for a few minutes then come back to it, odds are you'll have to relight it.

Of course, lighting a smoke is usually quicker than burning threads and melting shoe polish, but it ought to be damn close.

[Panther Al]

Same here on boots: I have the first pair of tankers I ever had still ( over 10 years ) and have worn them easily 5 days out of 7 over all those years with the exception of the year and a half in the desert. In fact over the past four years they have been worn daily. Nothing fixed, nothing changed. Granted the sole is worn smooth: if I saw anyone with soles as worn as mine while I was in it would have resulted in a truly epic ass chewing.

[Kilgs]

Originally Posted by weswood

A few years ago they did something to the ciggarettes for safety, not sure what, but if you're not actively smoking it, it will go out. Like if you set it down for a few minutes then come back to it, odds are you'll have to relight it.

As a fellow smoker, I must provide OT info.

Next time you're smoking, look at your cigarette closely. See those little lines up and down the paper? Those were powdered with gunpowder and magnesium(?) or some other flammable stuff. The legislature put a limit on it but it's still there.

Put your cigarette in an ashtray and watch it burn down to one of those lines, in American cigarettes you can still see a little flare as the powder is ignited and keeps the cigarette burning. The older versions were much more visible.

Based on the theory that if it kept burning, you would need to buy more sooner rather than later.