So I call this "vintage" as it's several years old and no longer made. There was another thread where this was discussed but it quickly devolved into a shitstorm.
It's a Diamondback Tactical BattleLab Commanders Arm Board. When they were in production they were $125 retail. It seems they were made in fairly small numbers and designed for a specific group of people, primarily AFSOC FAC/TACP/CC types. I purchased mine used on th'Bay for a more reasonable price.
What makes this specific arm board rather unique is that it is backlit with an EL panel. The EL panel is made by Krill Light Technology. It is driven by a single CR123 battery wired to a small circuit board. It's not very well assembled, although the individual components are each well made. The EL panel leads are soldered directly to the circuit board, the switch wired the same, and all just sort of stuffed into the little battery pocket on the back. The switch is pushed through a grommet and secured with a threaded ring, although the wires are the only thing connecting the switch to the battery holder. I had to resolder the leads once, but since that first repair it's been very reliable. I'm not sure if this is a function of purchasing used or what. It's easy to repair the electronics, and it's fairly well protected in the pocket, but I can see how it would easily be rendered inoperative by an overzealous GI swapping out the battery. It would have been nice if it were in some sort of purpose-designed housing/switch that were a little more durable. Depending on the components this could easily be waterproofed for dive ops as well.
The arm board is fairly typical of the others that are on the market. It has straps with hook and loop and a friction panel on the underside to keep it from moving. There is hook and loop for a name tape or other info on the outside of the board just beneath the rather small pen pocket. It fits an issue red grease pencil but not much more. You could fit a Staedler Lumucolor for writing on the clear vinyl window, but choose your color wisely as again you can only fit one in the pocket. The top flap opens up but it doesn't have storage space. I might see about pulling the stitching out and adding a vinyl window to the top. There's also a tear out vinyl panel that's clear on both sides. This feature is nice, and easy to make if you'd want to augment with more. This is similar to the Tyr Tactical design (Tyr was formed by the former owner of Diamondback). One of the shortcomings of the current Tyr is that they don't offer extra panels for sale, although they're not difficult to make even with the most elementary sewing abilities.
It's somewhat larger than others on the market, and stiffer. It forms around your forearm well, although it would be nice if it was more roundly formed in the same manner as the Tyr. It is beefier than the BDS, Sunrise, or similar arm boards. Overall it's a cool little piece of gear. If the current iteration of the Tyr arm board could be made with an EL backlight, preferably with a better power system, waterproofed if possible, it would easily be the best on the market hands down. However, there's really nothing about this that makes it a MUST HAVE unless you have the specific need to backlight information for recall at night where a flashlight is impractical. I use it for work and it's certainly helpful, but I couldn't imagine anyone justifying the original price unless it was a unit purchase.
Hope you enjoy the pics of this seemingly pretty rare piece of gear. The fins and mask are for size reference. Those familiar with combat dive ops/EOD/etc. should easily be able to tell scale. The Suunto Core All Black is illuminated to show an illumination comparison. With a piece of paper backlit it is very easy to read. This would be GREAT for a drop card or similar that needed to be accessed at night. This won't replace my Tyr or my IDB sniper wrist cards, but for nighttime coyote hunting and the like this is a welcome augmentation.
It's a Diamondback Tactical BattleLab Commanders Arm Board. When they were in production they were $125 retail. It seems they were made in fairly small numbers and designed for a specific group of people, primarily AFSOC FAC/TACP/CC types. I purchased mine used on th'Bay for a more reasonable price.
What makes this specific arm board rather unique is that it is backlit with an EL panel. The EL panel is made by Krill Light Technology. It is driven by a single CR123 battery wired to a small circuit board. It's not very well assembled, although the individual components are each well made. The EL panel leads are soldered directly to the circuit board, the switch wired the same, and all just sort of stuffed into the little battery pocket on the back. The switch is pushed through a grommet and secured with a threaded ring, although the wires are the only thing connecting the switch to the battery holder. I had to resolder the leads once, but since that first repair it's been very reliable. I'm not sure if this is a function of purchasing used or what. It's easy to repair the electronics, and it's fairly well protected in the pocket, but I can see how it would easily be rendered inoperative by an overzealous GI swapping out the battery. It would have been nice if it were in some sort of purpose-designed housing/switch that were a little more durable. Depending on the components this could easily be waterproofed for dive ops as well.
The arm board is fairly typical of the others that are on the market. It has straps with hook and loop and a friction panel on the underside to keep it from moving. There is hook and loop for a name tape or other info on the outside of the board just beneath the rather small pen pocket. It fits an issue red grease pencil but not much more. You could fit a Staedler Lumucolor for writing on the clear vinyl window, but choose your color wisely as again you can only fit one in the pocket. The top flap opens up but it doesn't have storage space. I might see about pulling the stitching out and adding a vinyl window to the top. There's also a tear out vinyl panel that's clear on both sides. This feature is nice, and easy to make if you'd want to augment with more. This is similar to the Tyr Tactical design (Tyr was formed by the former owner of Diamondback). One of the shortcomings of the current Tyr is that they don't offer extra panels for sale, although they're not difficult to make even with the most elementary sewing abilities.
It's somewhat larger than others on the market, and stiffer. It forms around your forearm well, although it would be nice if it was more roundly formed in the same manner as the Tyr. It is beefier than the BDS, Sunrise, or similar arm boards. Overall it's a cool little piece of gear. If the current iteration of the Tyr arm board could be made with an EL backlight, preferably with a better power system, waterproofed if possible, it would easily be the best on the market hands down. However, there's really nothing about this that makes it a MUST HAVE unless you have the specific need to backlight information for recall at night where a flashlight is impractical. I use it for work and it's certainly helpful, but I couldn't imagine anyone justifying the original price unless it was a unit purchase.
Hope you enjoy the pics of this seemingly pretty rare piece of gear. The fins and mask are for size reference. Those familiar with combat dive ops/EOD/etc. should easily be able to tell scale. The Suunto Core All Black is illuminated to show an illumination comparison. With a piece of paper backlit it is very easy to read. This would be GREAT for a drop card or similar that needed to be accessed at night. This won't replace my Tyr or my IDB sniper wrist cards, but for nighttime coyote hunting and the like this is a welcome augmentation.
