I want to ask about the back-packs and duffle bags hanging from ths sides of vehicles.. like the M113 for example. I see a lot of models with stuff hanging on the side but with no apparent hooks or handles in sight. Aren't these back-packs supposed to be hanging by their straps which, in turn, should be hanging from a handle or a hook or something? I don't remember seeing any hooks or handles on the sides of the M113. (I only see the ones on the top). So, this back-pack that's glued half way down the side panel.. what is it supposed to be hanging from? I hope my question is clear...... and not too stupid!!

Current M113A3 APCs have a series of tie down loops on the hull side. But I've let others onto a big secret. We actually buy giant barrels of CA and superglue our backpacks to the sides!

oh and here I went to all the trouble to add some straps to the personal gear for my current project.....

Anyone got close up pics of these tie-downs so I can represent them. Are they like on line of tie-downs? I've never seen close up pics of the newer M113's. But I've seen this done on several models. A back-pack just hanging around with nothing to hang from!!! I know my question was kinda stupid, but I didn't want to make the same mistakes others make.

Back in the Gulf war we took big tie-down straps and used the big bolts in the side armor to hold them on. We just looped the straps on our duffel bags and rucksacks through the the tie-down straps and voila! More room for ammo, MRE's etc. on the inside. More importantly for us, room for people on the inside. A fully combat loaded Bradley is so cramped the dismount infantry in the back seem like an afterthought.

Here's a storage variant : a long piece of pipe is strapped to the APC tie-downs and then in turn the bags are strapped to this pipe :


Frenchy

It really isnt that big of a deal. The straps will be covered by the bag anways. There is really no need to have hooks unless your looking for 100% authenticity.

You can see more photos in my motor pool:

Thanks for the photo Rob. I well be saving this one for future refs.

I second Dave in thanking you Robin. Exactly what I was looking for.

Harrison.. I wasn't really talking about the straps themselves cause I know they'll not show. But if you have only a couple of duffle bags hanging in the middle of the M113 side armour, with no tiedowns to the left of them or to the right of them, then it'll look like you only have that one tiedown in the middle.. which doesn't make much sense.

Finally, Robin.. those tiedowns in the pic don't look like they're in a straight line. Were they made like that, or are these improvised out in the field?

Thank you again.

Draw a line through the bolt heads and you'll see they're pretty even.

Except in the desert hanging equipment from the sides of a vehicle is a fast way to lose it.

SB

I know on the M-60 tanks we stowed our duffle bags in the rack behind the turret. We kept c-rats and small shaving/kit type bags inside with us in a space next to the radios in the rear of the turret. We also had all these metal storage boxes fixed to the floor suppossed to be for machine gun ammunition storage, but we kept stuf in there too. On the 113's we generally tied stuff to the top of the track there were some handles and stuff like that for that purpose. Don't know much about Bradleys or Abrams as my experience with them was mainly orientation and shooting on the tank line with them