Books are expected to ship August 25th-29th.

The South African Border war went on for over 23 years involving everything from local policing all the up to armored engagements and almost everything else in between. Given our robust history importing South African Defense Force Surplus, we figured it was high time to add some more depth to the interesting history of the South Africans strategy for conducting war. 

The Cold War was not cold for South Africa. While most of Europe was playing an elaborate game of ‘who-has-the-most-nukes’, the South African Defense Force (SADF) was hard at work fighting the counter insurgency battles of the future. In the process, they developed and refined much of the tactics, weapons, and equipment used today.

In the 1960s and 1970s South Africans were involved in three major counterinsurgency wars in Sub Saharan Africa: The Congo Crisis (‘60-65), the Rhodesian Bush War (‘64-79), and the Border War (‘66-90). Each of these conflicts were a unique combination of policing action, counterinsurgency and full-scale warfare. The South African Border war was known for its daring cross border raids by its elite counterinsurgency units such as the infamous “Recces”, its particularly brutal and effective policing unit called “Koevoet” and the success of its armored Ratel IFV against T-55s tanks.

The Republic of South Africa developed a rather robust and informative series of military pamphlets regarding how to effectively fight these conflicts. Which means it’s the perfect vetting tool, simply place it on your coffee table and see if the new ‘based’ friend you invited over truly lives up to his claims. Published by the Chief of the Army Headquarters Defense Headquarters in September 1972 this formerly restricted publication is an excellent read for the burgeoning insurgent and counterinsurgent alike (see disclaimers).

Part 1: Doctrine and Legal Aspects

Primarily focuses on the correct application of doctrine by defining what terrorists are along with how to interact with both terrorists, terrorist sympathizers and civilians. Included are examples of appropriate use of force and balancing providing security and safety for the populace while also avoiding infringing on their civil liberties.

Part 2: Unconventional Warfare in Urban Areas

Focuses on applying the correct level of force regarding different scales of civil disturbances and how best to approach them from a police perspective and a military perspective. Additionally, there are detailed maps and schematics of how to effectively set up an urban checkpoint or electrify the exterior of your armored vehicle to prevent unwanted passengers.

Part 3: Unconventional Warfare in Rural Areas

Concerns the more typical guerilla warfare scenarios in a rural environment. From reacting to ambushes, planning ambushes and effective use of artillery, tanks and other supporting assets. It also includes sections devoted to bush survival techniques and proper kit to carry on your person.

Involving everything from how to successfully win hearts and minds by guaranteeing citizens safety and civil liberties to appropriate use of force when confronted with rioters all the way up to how to successfully evade and conduct an ambush. It is both equally applicable in modern insurgencies and counterinsurgencies today.  A perfect addition to your living room coffee table and your “Live, Laugh, Long live Rhodesia” decoration on your wall. 

Specs

• Reprint of Genuine SADF "Restricted" Books
• 6" x 8" x 1.25-1.75 " per volume
• Uses high quality scans to preserve the type-writer style font and crisp clarity. 
• All pages have been updated by hand to have a uniform font weight and formatting for easier reading.
• Covers made using restored art of the real books
• 500+ total pages of content divided into 3 volumes (see above)
• Hardcover for military archive feel™

Safety, Legal, and Political Disclaimers

These books are intended for academic study only.

KommandoStore does not assume any responsibility or liability for the use or misuse of the contents of this book.

KommandoStore does not condone or support any political ideology that uses violence or intimidation to achieve their goals.

If a product is marked as a "Pre Sale", it means that inventory is already in production, and you're reserving the item ahead of time.

"Pre Sales" also mean there is limited inventory available to reserve. If it's sold out, it's sold out, and you'll have to wait for the next restock or backorder to begin.

At any point in time before we ship it to you, the item is 100% refundable. After it ships to you, you're covered by our 30-day return policy.

A Cult Hit, Reimagined

Michael Mann's HEAT (1995) immediately gained a cult following on release. Its unique gritty and grounded approach bucked a decades-long trend of formulaic action films, exposing audiences to realistic military and police tactics. A combination of great direction, talented actors, and qualified technical advisors (ex-SAS) made the film's climactic bank heist one of the most memorable scenes of the 90s.

This nearly 15-minute-long sequence made HEAT a cinematic legend. Shot in downtown LA, an easy score quickly escalates into a claustrophobic mess of a shootout. Expert gun-handling, booming on-location audio, and a huge cast of supporting firearms all help to make an unforgettable impression. This short sequence would inspire popular culture and media for generations to come.

The Vest

One of the things that helped HEAT feel authentic were the props. The ex-SAS advisors employed by the production had quite literally been there and done that, and this prowess was reflected in the improvised equipment and tactics featured on screen.

This includes the single most iconic prop of the film, the 'Heat' rig; an improvised vest capable of hiding 8 STANAG magazines underneath a suit jacket. Being inconspicuous was important to the characters in HEAT — to pull off their plan, they needed to waltz into a busy, guarded bank with hundreds of rounds of ammunition and rifles without anyone batting an eye.

The vests were cool and certainly believable, but there's a big problem. You never quite see them get used as much as they're shown off. The Heat rigs magically pop on and off of the characters as convenient, the magazines are perfectly retained since they're stitched on, and many of the shots portray other glaring issues.

We can't blame them; every production has to make some concessions. But in a market ravenous for a working clone of the Heat rig, many copies of this prop fell flat. We wanted to fix that.

 The Heat Rig

Make no mistake - our rig is an homage to the movie HEAT. It's not meant to compete with other "bank robber" chest rigs on the market. What we set out to do was to make the vest from the movie real and useable. 

Magazine Compatibility  

Now for the first question most people are going to ask — what kind of magazines fit in the rig?

The movie depicts standard USGI STANAG magazines for the AR-15 platform, and we built our elastic retention system around that. Nearly all standard capacity AR-15 magazines should fit without issue, including popular polymer mags from leading brands.

However, we can't guarantee fit of magazines from other platforms. You're welcome to try of course, but we can't provide any guidance there.

Each mag cell features two thick straps of elastic for retention and nylon straps on either end to ensure magazines stay in place. On one end of each mag cell, there's a small hook & loop fastener to access magazines. Simply twist the magazine and pull out, and you're ready to reload.

Sizing & Fit 

Our heat rig uses a simple & effective adjustment system.

Large straps with hook and loop fields make it easy to adjust the vest to fit perfectly.

Our rig fits bodies big & small, and our sizing system is simple — either go with your US shirt size or measure your abdomen, that's it (for more specifics, see our sizing chart or feel free to email us at help@kommandostore.com and we'll get you fitted).

It may take some trial and error to refine your fit. If you have difficulties, we suggest different jackets & raising/lowering the rig. We cover this topic in our overview video, which we highly recommend watching for troubleshooting your rig.

Note: our overview video is outdated, from when we made the rig in the USA. it is now made in Vietnam, which we cover in the next section.

Quality

The last big issue we wanted to address with the rig was quality, especially now that we've moved manufacturing overseas to Vietnam.

Manufacturing in Vietnam has allowed us to obtain the proper mesh, keep the same excellent overall manufacturing quality, and make the rig much more affordable for you all at once.

We've seen the examples of both one-off 'bank robber rigs' and other HEAT-inspired equipment on the market. All are plagued by cheap hardware, even cheaper materials, or inconsistent quality resulting in a disappointing Chinese-made Halloween costume feel. All the specs, quality, and functionality that makes the HEAT rig great are there at just over half the price of our original. 

Specs:

• Custom, semi-stiff resin finished polyester mesh fabric
• Milspec elastic, webbing, and hook and loop
• Locking YKK Zipper
  
• Tear-away magazine action
• Elastic cummerbund with hook & loop attachment for wide range of adjustment 

We've got your back

By ordering the 'Heat' rig, you're placing a 100% refundable deposit on our incoming inventory. If you change your mind before it ships, just reach out to us and we'll cancel your order. And of course, once your rig is delivered it's covered by our standard 30 day return policy.