Don't mess with the Australian Army

[Grant Lamontagne]

If Paul Hogan can take on a bunch of drug lords and mercenaries single handedly then you probably don't want to mess with a whole regiment of trained Aussies!   



Seeing the tools these guys take into the field with them makes me respect them even more.  For example, meet FRED:



I think it stands for Field Ration Eating Device, although it seems to be more commonly referred to as the F___ing Ridiculous Eating Device.  I haven't tried it myself, but I think I'm going to have to remedy that sometime soon.



The extremely shallow bowl makes me wonder how effective it is, and it seems like it might be a challenge to eat a stew or soup, and given that an army marches on it's stomach, I can imagine most Aussie soldiers are in a perpetual bad mood!



They'd be dangerously impressive if that was all there was to it, but hold on to your dingoes because it gets better!  I don't know what kind of firepower the Aussies carry, but it's a good bet that field stripping equipment isn't a problem with this guy on their belts:



Here's a closeup of it's stock number, because I wasn't certain the above picture was going to come out! 



If you look closely at the next photo you'll see the 2005 head, which is a serious hunk of beef.  In fact, I don't think there's a more impressive looking plier head on the market.



Let's face it, if you need a solid plier head, this one is going to be a tough one to beat.  I can pretty well see an enemy aircraft trying to take off and failing to move because an Australian solder is on the runway holding the jet with these pliers!   



I love this thing- The SwissTool in general is a decent hunk of tool, and this monstrosity is just that much more fun because of it's military background!

Def

[Chako]

Mat was kind enough to send me a FRED. When I got it, I had a strong suspicion I had seen something like that in the past. Whilst digging in a few old boxes, I came across what I had vaguely remembered seeing. I had bought these back in the early 90s for a camping trip. At the time, I didn't think to use the one end as a spoon.

[Grant Lamontagne]

I suppose you could use it as a shoe horn, but I'd be sure to mark which one is which or your lunch may taste funny....   

Def

[MultiMat]

Imagine how pissed the Aussie soldiers are now , hungry & now without their Swisstools.
They now have to endure using the Chitrade Toughtool 




I think most get issued, used once & thrown out to be replaced with a privately purchased 'quality' MT  . The Taylor's Schrade ToughTool , a poo that folds open 

[Chako]

Thanks for reminding me that I will have to get one of those someday. From what you have stated, sounds like it won't be all that hard to get them. 

[MultiMat]

I have only seen one for sale on Oz ebay , I think if I was to go looking in dumpsters outside Aussie Army barracks I might have some luck 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Yeah, budget cuts strike again.  For years the Canadian military has been issued Grohmann belt knives, then two or three years ago the government felt it was too expensive to support a Canadian company and so started issuing cheap Chinese copies of Grohmann belt knives. How sad is that?

Def

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[sawman]

It reminds me of one of those ice cream stick/spoons.  I can't see how it could be very useful. 

[Grant Lamontagne]

It's slightly more concave than the wood ice cream sticks, so it would be slightly better than them.  It's probably fine for eating boil in the bag type foods or things like chili or Hamburger Helper type foods where they are pretty easy to pick up.  I don't know what Australian ration packs are like, but if they are anything like the Mountain House type freeze dried food packs then it should be adequate.

When I get the chance I'll do a shootout between FRED and CRKT's Eat'n Tool... and if that's not enough to draw in the masses, I'll toss in the French Army Knife which will probably be the winner since it seems to have actual, dedicated utensils.

Def

[AHB]

Someone said FRED..?? 


Got this from Mat, but I still need one of those stamped  Swisstools matey.. 

[Grant Lamontagne]

If Mat could get a decent stock of them I'll bet he could retire off the proceeds of FREDs and Australian SwissTools! 

Def

[sawman]

The FRED looks better built than the Coleman knock-off.

[Grant Lamontagne]

I doubt very much there would be any major differences between them.  They are probably cranked out by the ton from a factory in China and sold to thousands of suppliers worldwide.

Def

[Chako]

I have the FRED and the Coleman. They are hard to tell apart other than the finish, and the stamping on the FRED.

EDIT: Ok, there are many differences actually when I got to really looking at the two side by side.

Note that the FRED is on the right, the Coleman on the left.  The Coleman has a slightly longer can opener hinged blade with a more pronounced hook beak.


General shape and length are similar, but side by side, you can see many differences.
[

interestingly enough, the Coleman has a more pronounced deeper spoon end.  I would not have clued into using it as that, and to be honest, I didn't when I got these back in the mid 90s. I just assumed it was a longer more comfortable handle.


So there you have it.

[MultiMat]

I doubt very much there would be any major differences between them.  They are probably cranked out by the ton from a factory in China and sold to thousands of suppliers worldwide.

Def

I am fairly sure they are made in Oz  , they were meant to be phased out but there was a bit of a outcry  . I think the new ration-packs made the FRED redundant   
Not sure the CRKT's Eat'n Tool v FRED is a fair fight