I have seen a victim of a burn who was wearing a pair of nylon compression shorts. A very nasty mess. It was a civilian accident but the burns were complicated by having liquified, now hardened, plastic throughout the burn. I think the ban is a very wise move.

http://www.burnsurgery.org/Modules/i...mgmt/sec_1.htm

The above link is an incredible source for professionals about burns.

Originally Posted by Marinerhodes

My Sgt is in supply and has never seen combat or come under fire or been near explosions when they have gone off. He apparently does not think about what all is involved when an explosion happens. (Shrapnel, Heat, Sound, Blast Wave, etc) I guess he thinks that if an IED goes off and you are out of the "kill zone" that you won't be harmed.

You can add flash fires into that. Burns and shrapnel are the most common injuries due to IED attacks. Have a SSgt smack him upside the head.


100% cotton is your best option. We made due with it for years, and I'll still wear it sometimes. The shirts I posted a link to aren't much more expensive than UA and work great.

All of my balaclavas, gloves, etc are nomex (you get about 8 seconds) or proban (around 3 or 4).

This is some excellent information bro. Thanks for the help. Maybe those that I pass this on to will be able to see what I mean.

My Dad had been electrocuted way back when. He was up on a power pole doing whatever he was doing, he touched the wrong line and got blown off it. Spent months in the hospital, skin grafts etc. He wears a permanent necklace, watchband and ring of scar tissue fro the jewelry he was wearing at the time. I guess the voltage that went trhough his body melted it into his skin.

He is still alive so something saved his butt. The doctors at the time were amazed that he even survived it.

The good Lord saved him, that's what happened.

But isn't the upper layer of the uniform of fire resistant materials. Or has the materials been altered to stand the sweltering heat of Iraq? The Dutch parka's can stand a blast and even open fire for a while... then again, I don't know what materials they use for desert uniforms. Do you guys know?
And it has got to be the most ironic thing in the world that you don your vests because of fire hazerd and then you receive a round to the chest. I am so glad I don't have to make decisions like that... I wouldn't know in which hole to crawl of someone died because of my errors of judgement!

Originally Posted by Ted

But isn't the upper layer of the uniform of fire resistant materials. Or has the materials been altered to stand the sweltering heat of Iraq? The Dutch parka's can stand a blast and even open fire for a while... then again, I don't know what materials they use for desert uniforms. Do you guys know?
And it has got to be the most ironic thing in the world that you don your vests because of fire hazerd and then you receive a round to the chest. I am so glad I don't have to make decisions like that... I wouldn't know in which hole to crawl of someone died because of my errors of judgement!

I currently have issued, along with BDUs/DCUs, MARPAT and ACUs. Both the MARPAT and ACUs contain polyester. Most gear is flammable, as well. The difference being, the gear is not directly against your skin.

This directive isn't about body armor or flak vests, it is about undershirts (tee-shirts) many wear under their blouse and armor system. A lot of the synthetic wicking shirts are flammable because of the materials they are made from. This is the layer that is closest to your skin, so it does the most damage.

Also the DCU, ACU and MARPAT is supposed to burn to ash and not make a melted gooey mess.

Originally Posted by Marinerhodes

Also the DCU, ACU and MARPAT is supposed to burn to ash and not make a melted gooey mess.

ACUs will melt some as they're 50% polyester. I believe MARPAT is 30%, but don't quote me. Haven't seen MARPAT melt, but I have seen the ACU melt (usually in blotches) to portions of skin on the arms and legs.

Thanks for the correction. I was going off of an article I had read in the Marine Times. I assumed that the ACU and DCU would be made from the same materials as MARPAT.

Originally Posted by Marinerhodes

Yes, the Nomex material is more burn resistant. It has a higher flash tolerance. This means it takes a longer time for certain amount of heat to be applied (up to 800F for several seconds I think) before it will melt/burn.

Below are some links to nomex gloves. The USMC also had some nomex hoods made because the current cold weather hoods we have are made from synthetics as well.

Military.com Shopping

DuPont Website

which is why Nomex is a standard piece of equipment in many special operations balaclavas, gloves, etc.