I can't argue your experiences. It does surprise me that such equipment as this has failed since these are or should be considered mission critical equippment for our soldiers. Is this a one time experience indicating the law of averages has struck or is this a consistant experience with more than one item indicating a design / sourcing problem? My experience with the coleman commercial entrenching tool was equally bad and when I compared it with the mil-spec one I was mightly impressed with the mil-spec tool for durability and manufacture. Can't say for sure that I purchased USGI surplus or NATO surplus - the design is the same though the quality may differ.

In any case - it looks as if your experience with the black hawk product is good and I will look seriously into their product when I look for a LBV / LBH type of garment.