Substitute Your Government Issue Nick-nacks
Government Issue equipment would obviously be an instant giveaway that a soldier was in the area if lost on a covert mission. Some examples are weapon magazine, ID card, dog tags, gloves, pace beads, earplug case, weapon cleaning kit, chemlights, maps, protractors, etc. There is no way to avoid carrying these items, but here are some items that can be substituted for more covert items. 

Leaving common place items that are US Army issue emblazoned with the “US Government” can be a sure giveaway to the presence of US soldiers. Some such items are watches, multi-tools, notebooks, and Skilcraft pens. You can substitute these items for their civilian counterpart.

Some items that may not say US Government may still be a giveaway. Such as 5200 series keys and locks, all weather notebooks, blousing straps, 550 cord, subdued carabineers, L-shaped flashlight, and BCG or Wiley-X glasses. These items can be substituted for their civilian counterpart, if there is one. If there is not, you will have to improvise.

Civilians can protect themselves in their campsite by using 2 pound test and some cans with rocks, or some small bells. Run the string around trees about a foot and a half off the ground. In the night man or beast would be fooled by this cheap alarm.

Tie knots in the ends of your laces to keep them from coming out of the grommets when you take your boots off.

Are your brand-new boots tight around the instep? If so, just don't cross the laces between the 4th and the 5th grommet from the bottom. Run the laces straight up from the 4th to the 5th grommet and then continue lacing your boots normally. It won't be dramatically different, but you'll really feel an improvement when walking up hill. Don't believe us? Try it on one boot and lace the other normally, and wear them in the field for a week. Once you break your boots in, lace them normally since this method of lacing doesn't stop your foot from sliding forward when walking downhill.

Halfway up the row of eyelets, twist the laces around each other a few times and tighten, creating a stopper, then continue lacing. The technique is called double-hitching, and it leaves the toebox roomy without compromising ankle support.

• Water in the cans will freeze. To prevent damage, fill cans to within no more than 3 inches of the top.
• Never apply heat to a frozen can. The plastic will melt.
• Keep the cans off the ground. Set them on cribbing or, even better, place them in insulating cases.

When not in use, empty the water cans as well as possible. Store them on their front side with the cap unscrewed. Keep a strip of cloth tied to the handle and place the cloth in the can to wick out any moisture.

• Stow it in the carrier with the eye-lenses facing away from the body.
• Do not fold your gas mask. The old M17 mask was foldable, but the new M40 and M42 masks are not.
• Do not store anything in the face-piece. Some soldiers stow an extra canister in the face cavity of the mask, which is a no-go.

Also, too much lube attracts dirt and carbon, which may cause a malfunction. To lube properly, you must first understand two terms:

• Light - a film barely visible to the eye.
• Generous - just enough to be spread with the finger.

The following parts should receive a light lube:

• Inside the upper receiver, bore, and chamber.
• Outside of the barrel, the front sight, and under the handguards.
• Front sight detent (depress and put two drops of CLP on the detent).
• Charging handle.
• Inside and outside of the bolt carrier.
• Inside of the lower receiver.
• Moving parts inside the lower receiver and their pins.
• Buffer and action spring.

The following parts should receive a generous lube:

• Outside of the bolt body, the cam pin area, and the bolt rings (but just a light coat on the extractor and cam pin).
• Takedown and pivot pins and detents.

But in the desert, don't lube like this. Sand, not corrosion, is the problem there. Sand mixes with lube and becomes a scouring powder that eats up your rifle. Before you go the field, wipe all lube off the outside of your rifle or carbine. Lube internal parts normally, but clean them after firing to get rid of sand.

Don't use your firing pin or cotton swab to clean small arms. The firing pin's job is to strike the cartridge primer hard enough to ignite the powder that propels the bullet. And that's it - it has no other job. If you use the pin to ream the bolt or bolt carrier, the pin will become blunted, burred, cracked, or bent. Use a warn bore brush, pipe cleaners, and some CLP instead. If you use a cotton swab, cotton will come off the swab and mix with lube and carbon. That mixture hardens and does an excellent job of plugging the carrier key. Your rifle or carbine will fire once and stop. But your unit uses cotton swabs all the time and your weapons work fine, right? Wrong. It's not going to happen all the time, but you should do what you can to increase your firing systems reliability.

If the clip on the back of the handset breaks off, it can be a real hassle. You can no longer hook the handset to your Kevlar chin strap, which causes you to hold your handset instead of your rifle. Break the handle off an MRE spoon and secure it in place of the handset clip. You'll be back on the airwaves in one mic. When we first heard about this great tip, we gave it a loud WILCO.

1. People leave the rear sight up. According to FM 21-26, (CH) 9-3 (P) d., "If traveling with the compass unfolded, make sure the rear sight is fully folded down onto the bezel ring. This will lock the floating dial and prevent vibration, as well as protect the crystal and rear sight from damage."
    
2. People will get lazy and leave their compass attached when shooting an azimuth. The only two accurate and authorized sighting techniques are the "Centerhold Technique" and the "Compass-to-Cheek Technique" (The C2C Technique is more accurate).

Place the metal ring from the lower portion of the shoulder harness over the metal ring of the padded shoulder harness. Reroute the buttoned strap through the metal ring of the padded shoulder harness. Next, slip the side-release clip under the buttoned strap and through the same metal ring. Finally, take the buttoned strap and button it to the lower portion of the shoulder harness. It only sounds complicated but trust – this will eliminate the possibility of looking like an “ate-up retard” after all your shit falls off your back during a field exercise.