I'll be completely honest, this older equipment is perfectly functional even in today's standards. I used this rig when I was in and I prefer it. They are very well made and pretty cheap compaired to newer gear. Additionally, it allows pretty good access to all of your equipped gear.
@@Codus_D I think the SHTF bros bullied them into it, rightfully so. Notice the shift away from what worked for GWOT vets and in the civilian world as we get closer to 2024, in favor of sustainment gear that will work in the grittiest of situations.
I was issued this stuff when i enlisted into the army in 2004. Hands down this is excellent setup if you want to get a fighting kit together and you're on a budget. Don't let anyone tell you this stuff doesn't hold up today. It's beyond practical, functional, and durable. And best of all its cheap. The LBV with belt and pouches can be had for under 100 bucks and you'll be able to carry more than you'll ever need. Quick access to your mags and gear and its very comfortable especially if you get the enhanced mesh vest. With "retro" rifles and kit becoming more popular, i wouldn't be surprised to see kits like this popping up more and more.
@@6string42 If you hang a pair of ALICE M16 mag pouches on the belt, you'll have a total of 360 rounds of rifle ammo and 6 grenades. Talk about loaded for bear!
We were issued this in the 75th Ranger RGT. I put SAW mag pouches on mine to carry more ammo as a SAW gunner. I even added 4 of those pouches on my ruck as well.
My entire set up is based off the soldiers in the movie 'clear and present danger' . It might be old kit, but it's still good, and functional. Often times you can find these vests new. I have 1 from 94, and 00' . Both brand new, both were $20.00. Plus you gotta love woodland!
My unit at Ft Lewis was a test unit for this. At the time, we had the old dune buggys, as a TOW unit (anti armor infantry). My first few months, we had the older ALICE rig, and that got caught up getting into and out of those buggys. This was a huge improvement for us.
I was at Ft. Lewis in the 80's. 9th ID. Beautiful country away from the cities. I'm sure that you are familiar with Yakima. The coldest I've ever been was there.
@@watsonlitchfield2306 VERY familiar with Yakima! Twilight Zone, squaw tit, the NSA radio array...the dust from the eruption a few years prior....the smell of diesel, dust, and sage is forever burned in my memory there. When were you there when it was the coldest?? We did a rotation through there in, maybe 89, and it got so cold the fuel froze. We were lighting fires inside the HMMWVs to keep warm lol.
I too was a 11Bravo stationed at Ft. Lewis in the early 80s. My unit was 9th Div 2/1 Inf. C co. We too tested the dune buggies and other equipment at the Yacuma firing center in 1983.😌
I was in the Army. I joined in 1985 and we wore the LBE or as you call it the Alice gear. That was all that I used in the Army for 13 years. When I was in REFORGER 91 I saw a Lieutenant from 10th Mountain Division with what I referred to as a TAC Vest. He didn't like it he said it was hot. I have one in my field gear collection and do use it; it does have mesh lining. I can't say that it is any more comfortable than the LBE which I NEVER had it dig into my sides, and I wore small regular BDU's. I also did a lot of foot patrolling when I was a Cavalry Scout and never had any issues with my gear.
I still have LBE and an LBV. I was in during transitions from Jeep to CUCV to Hummer, Pickle Suit to BDU, M16A1 to A2, and M1911A1 to M9. A lot of transition going on. I was issued this at Fort Bragg in a Combat Engineer unit. Then went to Alaska and we used to older LBE. Personally, I much preferred the LBE. But, I may go back and fiddle with the LBV and see how I can set it up to suit. I seem to have accumulated the gear from when I was in up to the FLC and a few other bits of gear. I do like the FLC and TAP. However, I still appreciate the old LBE. Yeah, the LBV is my least favorite of the bunch. Appreciate you taking the time to show this though.
LOL. Yeah, those good idea fairies. I was stationed in Fort Wainwright, AK, and generally loved it. The proper way to carry the insulated Arctic canteen in the far north per TM was in an M60 bandoleer bag under your parka to keep it from freezing. Dear General Ebbison decided we needed to carry it on our LBE worn outside of the parka. Naturally, when worn this way in sub-zero weather the water still froze. He was full of those great ideas. I volunteered to stand in his outgoing change of command ceremony. I wanted to make sure that SOB was leaving! LOL
I've often seen pictures of soldiers and Marines wearing this setup with a pair of ALICE rifle mag pouches hung on the pistol belt, and what's crazy is just those 2 extra pouches gives you 6 more rifle mags and 4 more grenades for a total of 360 rounds of rifle ammo and 6 grenades.
These were SO MUCH BETTER than the ALICE gear, I used to get a pain dead center middle of my back wearing the ALICE gear. The LBV distributed the weight so much better, that I could open the belt/unbotton the vest and it was fine, but w/ALICE gear if I unbuckled the belt, ALL THE WEIGHT JUST FELL ON MY SHOULDERS/BACK.
I have 3 of each from different manufacturers and contracts, immaculate, used and "turned in" conditions (for parts etc.) , and they have slight differences in colors and materials. 10 years later I still discover new ways of connections, like using the velcro button flaps on the vest replacing Alice clips and/or pseudo MOLLE-straps :)
@@camoman132 Yes and no ... I mean, not the issued vests that are mainly woodland camouflage and the rare ITLBV in 3-color DCU pattern. I believe there were experimental vests along with the Lowe Pro alpine Ranger ruck in olive green
Really good video on the infamous LBV-88! I was in 10 years earlier (Reagan's 'Ready Force') - ALICE only but we were hearing about this 'new' gear. I prefer to wear an ALICE H-harness with ALICE belt but have slipped on the wider MOLLE padded 'over-belt' (don't know official name) so I can run MOLLE pouches. This overview of the LBV-88 has turned on a lightbulb! I realize things have changed with body armor chest rigs and TAP rigs but I really like the FLC (Fighting Load Carrier) system with the open back design and have always wanted to incorporate it with H-harness and Alice belt to wear pistol and additional gear. Basically I'm going to 'retro' the FLC with the ALICE LBE and create a MOLLE LBV-88! Seems clear the military gear designers were heading in that direction.....then they abandoned the combat belt all together. I HATE thigh holsters!
I actually have a modular version of this vest. It was called a M.O.L.L.E. MEDIC vest. It's pretty good and if you need to carry a hydration carrier, you can use a couple A.L.I.C.E. to M.O.L.L.E. adaptors and clips to make it work.
Then you're lucky :) That's one of the rare variations of the TLBV along with the one with the slant Alice webbing, and the 3-desert pattern AFSOC vest which I have in my collection.
Cool vid brother. I replaced my Alice keepers with Zip ties and sometimes paracord, I always preferred the old school push tabs to snaps, I've acually had the snaps rip off twice on my canteen covers and im my case I preferred the 56' H-harness. Thank you sir.
Something you might be able to do to improve the belt comfort and keep those metal alice clips from digging into you, pick up some Qore Performance IceVents pads, they just velcro in place. They have different kits for different applications, although they are all the same item, they are just placed in more affordable bundles if all you need is a belt kit set of 3 pads. Those pads made a world of difference on my place carrier to almost completely remove sweating and increased comfort 10 fold.
Im not military, but i like a.l.i.c.e. and load bearing over molle gear today. I used the bianchi belt in private security and i used my belt in the a.l.i.c.e. fashion as a security guard for years.
The thing I both loved and hated about these is the shoulder padding. When just wearing the LBV it was great, when wearing a pack they sucked. Either the pack straps slid off of them and tried to make your shoulder blades meet behind your spine, or you ran the shoulder straps of the pack through the retainer straps on the LBV, and had two more snaps to undo before you could drop the ruck
pro tip take a sleeping mat cut a strip to run along the belt between 2 and 5 inches (I did 3 but have not loaded it down yet), I have not tested a lot, but you zip tie it through the eyelets in the belt and you get a decent pad
Two things that I think should be mentioned is that the belt doesn’t need to be a new one. Any of the webbing belts going all the way back to the Korean War will work with this. I’ve also found that if you want more room on the belt that using all of the vest buttons aren’t necessary to keep the belt from falling off. I’ve pretty much always ran with only half of the belt buckles clipped together and never had an issue with them popping off.
I just found one of these at a show for 20 bucks...not sure what to do with it until watching this video. All the equipment we used during my enlistment was Vietnam stuff. Looking forward to playing in thins rig. Thanks for the video! Well done and very informative!
Just ordered one. I’m thinking I may use a molle style belt with it if I can get it to work for running more modern gear on the belt. Seems like a good way to carry gear while still leaving room on the back for a sustainment bag.
The woodland buttpack was designed for the LBV-88. They didn't come with Alice clips since they weren't meant to be used with regular Alice gear. Yeah, it will work with a normal Alice set up. But the buttpack will hang low/sag.
I came in a little later than you did, and I was an Army guy. We were issued the solid panel ones when I was at Ft. Campbell in '98. I think I got one with the mesh in Korea. Either way, I was never a big fan of the LBV. I preferred the standard ALICE suspenders and pistol belt with the various pouches attached. My attitude changed with the introduction of the MOLLE gear. I liked the FLC, and the modularity of the system. Anyway, great video. Even today, this old gear can still be useful.
On the shoulders the straps are for the cfp90 patrol pack. The belt pad you can make from your sleep mat, also if the Alice clips bug you, replace with 550 cord. BTW dummy cord canteens compass add a d ring to your belt add 550cord loops to mags when mags are empty simply attache mags to d rig via 550 cord loop.
Great video. A lot of good info on this vest. I recently came into a LBV88 with the same NSN number but the mag pouches are oriented completely vertically instead of slanted. Do you know anything about this design?
That's the original LBV-88 that had issues with breathability and the magazine pouches are vertical. The Enhanced LBV-88 is the one shown in the video.
I didn't like it. The vest was too hot/bulky, and was a PITA to work with a parachute harness. The only advantage was that mag reloads could go faster. What some of us did was disassemble the vest and remove the mag pannels sections on the front, then take off the front straps of the old suspenders, and mate those straps to the back end of the vest. This way you could have the nice padded suspenders without the heat/bulk of the front mag pannels, and we would just use the old mag pouches on the belt. We also for a while got issued pouches that would clip on the belt that held 1 magazine, that we would put the the non-firing side so that we had that 1 magazine for a very quick reload. I think those pouches were made by the riggers.
Awesome review, I didn't know about the pussy pad for the belt. I have mine setup about the same as yours but with the M12 holster and the old alice mag pouch instead of the bayonet and large med pack. You are so right, the snaps can make it a pain to setup for sure. Those Bianchi belts are a lot stiffer than the old Alice ones, which I think is an upgrade. It is a good little cheap go-to setup that you can just toss on real quick. I haven't done any serious work in it like you have but setup right it seems to be pretty comfortable and disperses the load on hips and shoulders surprisingly well. I've never served with this gear but I find it funny that I strapped the buttpack the same way through the rings on the back like you did, this old gear is so damn intuitive.
I believe the issue belt pad was made by Blackhawk like the Alice shoulder pad wideners, but also other contractors like Eagle and London Bridge which made different H-harness versions as well. The Bianchi M12 holster extender converts to drop leg carry while freeing up space for an issue 9mm pag pouch or a Bianchi for 2 mags
These are nice I was in the army from 81 to 94 so when we got these in the summer they were super hot and didn't breath well so I used my y harness in the summers
I hated my ALICE gear- terrible for noise discipline, made it difficult to go prone, and the shoulder straps were uncomfortable with canteens, full mag pouches, etc. The LBVE is light years better for all the above reasons - Especially when used with M81 MOLLE mag pouches on the belt
The thing I find with my lbv is the grenade pouches should be higher up to accommodate more pouches on the belt also the butt pack attachment points should be the same as suspenders as the pack is just loose and just doesn’t sit right with the d rings unless a poncho or shelter half is rolled up too many attachment points as well limiting where your pouches go designed that way? Still think this vest is great especially in the prone position or low crawl even compared to chest rigs and carriers where it feels like your shits falling out or snagging on stuff rock on
The woodland buttpack, was that actually issued to frontline troops or was that just for training? I’ve seen pictures of Marines and Army troops with the old OD pack as recent as 2003~4. Every time I see one on eBay, it specifically says it was a training item.
I remember all the marines marching into Desert storm in 1990 had their olive buttpacks on their Alice and/or M56/M67 gear - all 3 versions actually, with the first aid kits attached to the carry handle on top of the flap. I think I saw the woodland IIFS buttpack used by NATO forces on TV during the Yugoslavian civil war. All types were used along with the MOLLE waist pack in the second Iraqi war and in Afghanistan, so it's not strictly for training.
Can confirm, i was issued an IIFS buttpack for use in Iraq in 08. It was even still in woodland. I already had a Spec Ops brand buttpack so i left the IIFS in Baumholder, but used the SOB in Iraq. There was a regular field pack, 3 day training field pack, training field pack and MOLLE Buttpack over the years with the exact same design. They are all identical, just different years.
OK good video, I was not a infantry guy I was below the water line. Now what is the difference of butt packs from the training to say London bridge. ? Also what about a inner belt to keep the meat hooks off your skin ? I have seen butt packs packed so full of NEEDED gear that you can't sit down. Where did you find the mk.9 knife ? If your mission is observation then is a change made to the load. Do you load it with mission gear only or general patrol load.?
Rothco / G.I. plus and Mil-tec have olive green versions of both the LBVs, but I won't guarantee for the quality, as they use polyester instead of nylon
I have one and no matter how I adjust it, it presses on the back of my neck. Maybe I need something on the back to weigh it down? Do you have any suggestions? Nice review. Thank you sir.
@@3riverblades oh!! Man!! Big fan for a long time!! Outstanding!! I will get it out as soon as I can brother Thank you for all the videos you do there awesome!!
Navy SEALS were given the original LBV-88 to test which had different pouch arrangement sewn on a solid cloth (nylon?) material. Their recommendations were incorporated into the 'E'nhanced version of the LBV-88. Assault vests were in the prototype phase during Vietnam war mainly worn and tested by SEALs. See Wikipedia for what it's worth.
If you can afford it you can get like a roll up foam mat a cheap one cut it up and connect it to the belt with zip ties in the holes on the cartridge belt it doesnt snap onto the belt it zip ties into the holes so its doesnt take up any real-estate on the belt
