Gift ideas for military family

[JTK1791]

My cousin recently moved to Alabama for SERE and flight school. His birthday is coming up and I want to get him something that'll make his life a little easier. What are some items that I could get him that also won't break the bank?

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[Nosferatu]

Condoms and penicillin.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

A good field knife is always useful.
Something simple and basic is best...in the 5 - 7 1/2 inch blade length range.
Think along the lines of a K-BAR or the like.....
Below is mine...while I didn't have it at SERE school when I went....the story behind that is worth a different thread...
I did carry it all through my time in the Army..as well as 4 combat deployments.
It is a Blackjack Model 5
Andy

DSC06038.jpg

• Andy54Hawken
• Jul 15, 2021

 

[Tinman357]

Andy,

I'll bet that blade has a few stories to tell as well.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Andy,

I'll bet that blade has a few stories to tell as well.

It does indeed...

I bought when I was home on leave right after Basic and Airborne School...and fixin' to head off to Ranger School.
We went to my dad's favorite gun shop...and I told the owner that I was looking for a Randall Model 1 knife...
Well after being told about wait times and whatnot...
The owner asked what I wanted it for...

I explained that I was in the Army home on leave fresh from Basic and Airborne etc...
And I wanted a field knife... that eventually I wanted to be assigned to a LRRP /LRSD unit
( Which I was..... )
Turns out the owner was a LRRP in Vietnam...attached to the 173rd Airborne Brigade....
He sold me the knife at cost....

I carried it during my time in the Army..and through 4 combat deployments
( Panama , Desert Shield / Desert Storm , Bosnia and Somalia )
It worked very well as a field and combat knife...one that does indeed hold many memories....
As well as making more...since I still use it today as a hunting and camp knife.

To the OP...
Sorry for the "War Story"...
In any event...I stand by my statement that a good , stout , basic field knife is worth it's weight in gold to someone in the Army.
Andy

 

[JTK1791]

It does indeed...

I bought when I was home on leave right after Basic and Airborne School...and fixin' to head off to Ranger School.
We went to my dad's favorite gun shop...and I told the owner that I was looking for a Randall Model 1 knife...
Well after being told about wait times and whatnot...
The owner asked what I wanted it for...

I explained that I was in the Army home on leave fresh from Basic and Airborne etc...
And I wanted a field knife... that eventually I wanted to be assigned to a LRRP /LRSD unit
( Which I was..... )
Turns out the owner was a LRRP in Vietnam...attached to the 173rd Airborne Brigade....
He sold me the knife at cost....

I carried it during my time in the Army..and through 4 combat deployments
( Panama , Desert Shield / Desert Storm , Bosnia and Somalia )
It worked very well as a field and combat knife...one that does indeed hold many memories....
As well as making more...since I still use it today as a hunting and camp knife.

To the OP...
Sorry for the "War Story"...
In any event...I stand by my statement that a good , stout , basic field knife is worth it's weight in gold to someone in the Army.
Andy

No need to apologize I enjoy the stories!

 

[Andy54Hawken]

No need to apologize I enjoy the stories!

Well then ....

Know what the difference is between a War Story and a fairy tale ....?
A War Story starts off with :
No sh!t , there I was.....
A fairy tale starts off with :
Once upon a time.....
Andy

 

[JTK1791]

Well then ....

Know what the difference is between a War Story and a fairy tale ....?
A War Story starts off with :
No sh!t , there I was.....
A fairy tale starts off with :
Once upon a time.....
Andy

Not the good German fairy tails lol

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Not a fairy tale...but my favorite German proverb :

All skill is in vain when an angel pees in the touch hole of your musket .

Leave it to the Germans to have a proverb with a Angel...Pee...and a gun...not to forget "touch hole"...

Sorry for the thread drift.
Andy

 

[JTK1791]

Not a fairy tale...but my favorite German proverb :

All skill is in vain when an angel pees in the touch hole of your musket .

Leave it to the Germans to have a proverb with a Angel...Pee...and a gun...not to forget "touch hole"...

Sorry for the thread drift.
Andy

Holy bubblegum lol I hadn't heard that one before

 

[MTpockets]

I always like to gift a compass. It is a useful item (even if outdated by modern tech), and it is symbolic in that it can help you find your way back home.

Oh geez...that sounds so gushy
__