aye go on dude! like I, said I keep mine like a light weight 'handy stuff' kit in my work bagits interesting to see what other people keep handy...
descriptions added matey.
Whats In Your Survival Tin
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descriptions added matey.
They don't exist, fact. if you found yourself in a "SURVIVAL" situation, you wouldn't have a tin off things, as if you did you would be just extreme light weight camping. it's the same with "SURVIVAL" knives, they don't exist, any knife labelled as such would be sat on the shelf as a conversation piece while you were off extreme light weight camping, Because if you had a knife with you you would no longer be in a survival situation, you would be Bushcrafting, by that I mean with a knife you can make you life very comfy indeed.
Having said that, "SURVIVAL" tins are fun to build and look at, even if it's from a "look what I can fit in this" point of view. so here's one of mine, not for a specific environment( remember you need to tailor you kit to the environment you will be in) just a box of fun.
pelicase from Ultimate "SURVIVAL" it is a kit in itself, I have added to a taken some of the bits out.
Left side: one handed blast match(sprung loaded ferro rod, designed to be still usable if one handed), very load twin tone whistle, mini kit(expanded later), Pencil, sharpening stone(very rough to quickly repair edge, can use a pebble for fine edge) heliograph(it's also a mirror for bite/parasite checking).
Right side: small stainless fine edged lock knife( easy to use and repair( though will replace with a small fixed blade when i find one that fits)), hand chain saw(cuts through 10cm hard woods in under two mins, not going to cut anything much larger than that). both sides lined with rubber non slip mat, hold the bits in place as well as catches fire from a spark and burns like inner tube.
Under the non slip rubber.
Left: 1 litre poly bag, ten puri tabs.
Right: Morse code crib sheet, international help signs, red cross help sheet, accident report form for clear casualty info recording to pass to rescue services.
Mini Kit and three snares.
Mini kit: : Four Medium stainless hooks, swivels, four shot weights, length of high pound fishing line for trace, dyneema line for main fishing line and snare trace, button compass for rough direction( not bother about exact bearings) small ferro rod, tampon for tinder, small poly bag.
All packed away, with snares held by elastic strap. whole kit weighs 500 grams.
I will ad descriptions if peeps want?
EDIT: descriptions added at 1319.
Southey,
That's a nice kit you put together, I do like the us air crew kit in the link I posted.
dude that second link is broken, it takes you to some kind of spam site asking for your email addy?
What is the point of these now? As a kid I was told they were something to carry around in case a disaster happens. Kind of something to carry on a plane in case it crashed and you had to survive until rescued. Not allowed to carry anything sharp on planes and who is going to have space for a largish tin on them about their normal lives. Also in the UK what survival gear is needed beyond a means to attract attention if unable to move (some places a mobile is enough, a whistle or torch if not) and the ability to walk in any direction for a few hours at most before you reach someplace where help can be raised.
Sorry if I'm being cynical but When out and about I carry the gear I need for that trip. Another trip I might have different gear. I have some things in the car when about my normal day like torch, hi-viz jacket, foot pump, small knife and a camera (for collecting evidence for any accident claim). Do you really need half a dozen fish hooks and a near useless button compass in a tin? I prefer to kit up for the activity you are doing. I have my backpacking kit which has some clear plastic ziplock bags with certain items in. Those are practical items I actually use on a trip. Plasters, paper tissues, lighters, LMF steel, stormproof matches, aquamira, etc. I also have my phone (and work phone as back-up as my smartphone for personal use can run out of batteries a lot quicker). If I'm going to be fishing in a survival situation in the UK I'm going to be near enough to a source of help that I could get to before I even caught any fish to eat I reckon. If you want to hobo fish on your trip then take it but its not survival kit but kit that is part of your trip kit.
Having said that if you are wondering what to go in one then go to any outdoors shops that stock them and read what the shop bought kits have. Reckon they'd be cheaper than kitting one out from scratch anyway. Try Lakeland Bushcraft for example. http://lakelandbushcraft.co.uk/cgi-...Emergency_Survival.html#a1_21BC014#a1_21BC014
There are a few on there with full lists of stuff in stock kits.
Sorry if I'm being cynical but When out and about I carry the gear I need for that trip. Another trip I might have different gear. I have some things in the car when about my normal day like torch, hi-viz jacket, foot pump, small knife and a camera (for collecting evidence for any accident claim). Do you really need half a dozen fish hooks and a near useless button compass in a tin? I prefer to kit up for the activity you are doing. I have my backpacking kit which has some clear plastic ziplock bags with certain items in. Those are practical items I actually use on a trip. Plasters, paper tissues, lighters, LMF steel, stormproof matches, aquamira, etc. I also have my phone (and work phone as back-up as my smartphone for personal use can run out of batteries a lot quicker). If I'm going to be fishing in a survival situation in the UK I'm going to be near enough to a source of help that I could get to before I even caught any fish to eat I reckon. If you want to hobo fish on your trip then take it but its not survival kit but kit that is part of your trip kit.
Having said that if you are wondering what to go in one then go to any outdoors shops that stock them and read what the shop bought kits have. Reckon they'd be cheaper than kitting one out from scratch anyway. Try Lakeland Bushcraft for example. http://lakelandbushcraft.co.uk/cgi-...Emergency_Survival.html#a1_21BC014#a1_21BC014
There are a few on there with full lists of stuff in stock kits.
Just for fun I guess dude, why not imagine your life was more exciting than the drudgery of every the day grind, and build a fun kit, like an air-fix model!
Its a bit of fun putting kits together in a old tobacco tin/Altoids tin. Altoids sell and are carried and whoever carries a tobacco tin shows the tin can normally be carried easily. My tin is not a survival tin but it has a small knife, sharpening stone, firesteel, whistle, torch, purification tablets and basic first aid- only used for walks when no kit is taken or left in the car.
If you breakdown- yes you can walk to a residential area, but if you crash then who knows the next time when a car will drive past if on a quiet road.
Tins are fun and can be helpful, mine has helped me many times when im out for a walk and cant open a can or get a little cut or even take a stove and forget the lighter- sounds stupid but it has happened to me
yeah, have a look at recent history cases of survival and only a few will note the use of even a Swiss army knife most are either no kit,fell down a mountain feats of endurance, or full kit lost in the Amazon for months on end making there way out. you will find though the bug out bag cases like the guy in a life raft( sorry to use a Ray episode) bag of little extras to make life liveable, but you have to be putting your self in the situation that might require a small grabbable kit that might save your life, I have been lucky enough to be in places such the Amazon rain forest In Guyana for a few months but even there the emphasis is on learning the skill to make your self comfy same as in Norway, you NEED to have more kit in that environment else you won't survive, the deserts of Iraq/Oman/Kuwait require completely different tolls than the jungle, so you must also tailor your tools to where you think you might need them, so if you think of most peoples idea of having a survival kit in the hold of a plane just in case, they survive a crash, can find there bag then your kit unless your doing a short hop is going to have to cover the full range of environmental problems, let alone your going to need the skills to exploit the resources you find your self in.
That's why I think survival kits are fun, but learning the skills to be able to do away with the physical kit is the way forward. !BUT! if making up the kit gets you interested in learning the skills why should we as people who"played with these when i was a kid" dissuade any one from building kits?
Play is how we learn Dudes!
That's why I think survival kits are fun, but learning the skills to be able to do away with the physical kit is the way forward. !BUT! if making up the kit gets you interested in learning the skills why should we as people who"played with these when i was a kid" dissuade any one from building kits?
Play is how we learn Dudes!
My thoughts in this old thread.
I have a few bits and pieces in my pockets but that is about all now.
I have a few bits and pieces in my pockets but that is about all now.
Morse code crib sheet is a new one on me and utterly pointless, you try writing down what you see or hear if you don't already know morse, chocolate tea pot springs to mind
Seriously, if you enjoy them then go for it.
Seriously, if you enjoy them then go for it.
hahaha thanks for your constructive comments as always Richard, ever heard of tap codes? as always have fun chap.
Not everyone limits their bushcrafting (or camping if you like Rik) and some get to realy quite challenging locations where it is not only possible to get separated from most of their kit in an accident (ie canoeing the Orange River on the Namibian border) but also find it rather difficult to walk out, get phone reception, use a credit card or use a £50 for anything more than fire lighting.
A waterproof tin full of goodies stached in your buoyancy aid could well be the difference between getting out in good condition or getting out in a vultures gut!
There are loads of olaces that the adventurous can get to even in Europe where a liitle inexpensive "insurance" kit is well worth its weight to carry.
John,
A very sensible statement and well put.
Oh, and has anyone tried ordering a pizza at ten in the night in the middle of the Cambrian mountains or a taxi
John, I'm talking about the UK, not some remote middle of nowhere. If I was of on some 'exped' like you do all the time then I'd look at suitable kit. In the meantime and UK orientated they are just a bit of fun in my opinion
I can use Morse code, can you Southey?
Mine has a £20 note (I'm cheap, me), some plasters, a small Opinel, a sewing kit, 10 Tramadol (painkillers) 10 co-codamol (more painkillers), 10 cetirizine (antihistamines), 10 Nexium (proton pump inhibitors) 2 x 100mg (sildenafil), 2 x condoms (I live in central London and have in the dim and distant past got lucky) and my usual assortment of spare anti-depressants in case I get an attack of woe. So it's more of an urban survival kit in my case.
Southey - I have a blast match, too. I had never saw one until I was taking a Survival training course for Hunter Ed instructors. The chief instructor had one and demonstrated its function. I purchased one later and have practiced with it often. In my opinion, it is a pretty solid piece of gear. I like your kit. How do you like the "chain saw chain" style saw?
With the 15 or less and 5 or less challenges, maybe we should have a "Survival Kit" only challenge. It would be beneficial to the owner in finding out what works in one's kit and what doesn't work / breaks. It would also serve as a way to get folks thinking about different ways to use the kit items for an outing and then trying it out.
Gordy
With the 15 or less and 5 or less challenges, maybe we should have a "Survival Kit" only challenge.
It would be beneficial to the owner in finding out what works in one's kit and what doesn't work / breaks. It would also serve as a way to get folks thinking about different ways to use the kit items for an outing and then trying it out. Gordy
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No, but it's fun learning, it was obsolete when I went through aviation comms training( which the HF I learnt is now too
), but I like to try a learn primitive techniques, like bow drill and flint and steel.
Cheers Gordy, the chain saw is pretty good, it's not a fine cut tool, it rips the wood away, you can sharpen the teeth with any sharpening tool that has a flat side, it is a proper "limited only by you mind" type cutting tool,
Well I'm not knocking doing anything for fun but realistically in this country they are not needed. However a lot of the kits sold here are sold as UK survival kits. Take the link I put up for example. That is not needed and where is the fun in having it all made up for you? All I say is carry the kit you need to carry for the place you are and the realistic situations you could get into. Mobile phone, cash with a card and whistle and/or light in the UK.
Another thing people are talking of being stripped of their kit like Fenna's example whilst canoeing the Orange River. Well I guess a kit is useful then IF you have the skills and are able to use them. Surely it is often a better idea to spend your time getting out as much as trying to live off the land with fishing kit and the like? Also you really need that kit to be on your person in some container or carrying system that can not be ripped off but doesn't impede your movement. People say altoid tins. For me I'd find that too big and bulky so IF I was going to create a survival kit I'd rather have smaller containers and preferably softer ones that I'd actually be happy to carry. If I got a tin based on I reckon it would sit in my sack which has gone in many scenarios mentioned. Pointless again.
It is fun to think about situations and work out what is needed. And if you read various survival books you get the impression it is more about psychology and skills than kit. I just got the collins gem Lofty book and that is kind of the impression I got of that in that it takes prominance from its early place in the book IMHO. Also the various US army and USMC survival apps you can get for android phones (based on the actual books AFAIK). A lot more is made of skills and mindset over tools. The obvious exception is a good knife. Unfortunately on the previously mentioned plane crash its in your luggage which possibly scattered or lost certainly not on your belt unless you want a visit to a little room and some questions asked of you I reckon.
Anyway, I have no idea what would be in mine. All I know I'd not bother with a button compass but get one of those smaller baseplate compasses such as silva 4nl or better are the smaller and less technical orienteering compasses you can get but are small and light. I do wonder about fishing kit as I am hopeless at fishing. I like the idea of useful stuff for day to day use. The old idea of a kid with a bit of string, some marbles and other stuff in their pocket. However in the UK I have my card, typically about £30 cash in notes and coins and a mobile phone (or two). I have this idea that I'd like to be able to get home from anywhere I get dropped in the UK. You don't need that much for that IMHO. Just a mobile phone for when you get reception, cash to buy your way to a cash machine and/or train/bus station, from then on your card will pay the way home. I also carry ID. I reckon that is best everywhere. I mean if your dead body is found it would be nice to be able to be identified and hopefully repatriated or at least the family have peace from knowing what happened to me. Apart from the cards (most likely to be stolen if your body is found) I carry a blood donor card and numerous associations and club cards which could work as ID in the UK. I'd also have my drivers licence if I ever get a photocard one (might not happen as they charge you now).
Another thing people are talking of being stripped of their kit like Fenna's example whilst canoeing the Orange River. Well I guess a kit is useful then IF you have the skills and are able to use them. Surely it is often a better idea to spend your time getting out as much as trying to live off the land with fishing kit and the like? Also you really need that kit to be on your person in some container or carrying system that can not be ripped off but doesn't impede your movement. People say altoid tins. For me I'd find that too big and bulky so IF I was going to create a survival kit I'd rather have smaller containers and preferably softer ones that I'd actually be happy to carry. If I got a tin based on I reckon it would sit in my sack which has gone in many scenarios mentioned. Pointless again.
It is fun to think about situations and work out what is needed. And if you read various survival books you get the impression it is more about psychology and skills than kit. I just got the collins gem Lofty book and that is kind of the impression I got of that in that it takes prominance from its early place in the book IMHO. Also the various US army and USMC survival apps you can get for android phones (based on the actual books AFAIK). A lot more is made of skills and mindset over tools. The obvious exception is a good knife. Unfortunately on the previously mentioned plane crash its in your luggage which possibly scattered or lost certainly not on your belt unless you want a visit to a little room and some questions asked of you I reckon.
Anyway, I have no idea what would be in mine. All I know I'd not bother with a button compass but get one of those smaller baseplate compasses such as silva 4nl or better are the smaller and less technical orienteering compasses you can get but are small and light. I do wonder about fishing kit as I am hopeless at fishing. I like the idea of useful stuff for day to day use. The old idea of a kid with a bit of string, some marbles and other stuff in their pocket. However in the UK I have my card, typically about £30 cash in notes and coins and a mobile phone (or two). I have this idea that I'd like to be able to get home from anywhere I get dropped in the UK. You don't need that much for that IMHO. Just a mobile phone for when you get reception, cash to buy your way to a cash machine and/or train/bus station, from then on your card will pay the way home. I also carry ID. I reckon that is best everywhere. I mean if your dead body is found it would be nice to be able to be identified and hopefully repatriated or at least the family have peace from knowing what happened to me. Apart from the cards (most likely to be stolen if your body is found) I carry a blood donor card and numerous associations and club cards which could work as ID in the UK. I'd also have my drivers licence if I ever get a photocard one (might not happen as they charge you now).
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