Giena Tactics

At PMCI we’re always scouring the market for new and innovative clothing and equipment and shows are a great place to meet new companies and check out what they have to bring to market. At IWA earlier this year Bill got a chance to speak to the team from Russian manufacturer Giena Tactics and came away impressed with what he saw.

Although we must all keep a weather eye on what the politicians are up to as it has a very real impact on our world, when it comes right down to it I’m sure that you’ll be in agreement with me when I say that I don’t rightly care WHERE good equipment originates as longs as it’s well made and does the job!

In my earlier years, when “7.62mm” was king I’d have no problem swapping gear with colleagues from “across the pond” as some of their gear was WAY better than what was available at home; in terms of both tactical and outdoor performance gear the US market was usually at the forefront of new design and technology (just look at how Gore-Tex has come to dominate the marketplace!), and certain bits of American kit were much sought after.

Not so much with “Eastern Bloc” gear though as quality was perceived as poor and let’s face it, getting hold of it was pretty much a 100% “no, no” until relatively recently. I remember looking at pictures of Russian conscripts during the “Cold War” days and thinking “bloody hell, poor guys” as although their kit appeared workmanlike it also looked like it wouldn’t survive a firefight, let alone a war! How things change though! Fast forward to the present day and the quality and innovation in design coming from Eastern Europe is right up there with the best of them! I do follow Konstantin Lazarev online for his excellent images and coverage of Russian units and what strikes me is their adoption of pretty much the same gear that we use ourselves; check out the images and you’ll see CRYE, OpsCore, WAS, and many other “western” brands in use, along with Multicam and other camouflage patterns developed in the USA and the UK (or copies thereof!).