sub-survival kit design

[sam_acw]

I have recently been thinking about survival kit design, in no small part due to a book called Build the Perfect Survival Kit
I am trying to put together a pack of things small and flat enough to fit in a shirt/trouser/coat pocket and not interfere with daily life. It is all very well having a lot of wonderful items in a tobacco tin but I'll only have it with me when I'm put and about. The idea of this is that it is a kit with enough basics to be useful in a survival situation and also on a regular basis when more run of the mill things go wrong.
I was wondering if people had any suggestions as to suitable items.
The only rules I have so far are that it will fit into a flat(ish) space about 3-4 inches square so that it doesn't take up any more space than a wallet. Also, to ensure it is something which can just be carried in any situation there will be no blades in it.
Currently I am thinking of the following items on a sort of trial list:
Tin Foil
Tea Bag
Sugar Sachet
Asprin
Thread/Cord
Elastic Bands
Book of Matches
Plasters
Cotton Wool
Electricians Tape
Gaffer Tape
Safety/Nappy Pins
Wire
Paper
Pencil

Any advice or comment would be welcome and I'll try to mock up a trial version and post it here to help clarify what I'm trying to do. I'm also wondering about if I will have one and treat it like a wallet (i.e. it goes in trouser pocket first thing and stays there all day) or if I will build a few and put them in coat or bag pockets. Originally it was going to be non metallic to be aircraft friendly but that has gone out the window this week.

 

[Graham_S]

that looks similar to the ritter psk

 

[RovingArcher]

Everything pictured, except for the bottle of iodine pills, fits into an Altoids tin and I wrap duct tape around the seam where the tin closes to help keep water out.

Kit contents:

1gal. freezer grade ziploc bag
30' spiderwire 12# fishing line
ibuprofen and Benedryl capsules
Plaster
hand wipe
all weather tinder
strike anywhere matches
Victorinox SAK
BSA Hotspark
cheap LED light
Ink pen refill
Sewing needle
trick candles (wind proof)
15' 3# leader line
20' SS wire
safety pins
paperclip
fishing flies, hook and split shot weights
2' x 1' HD Aluminum foil (not shown)
Altoids tin (not shown) 3/4" x 3 3/4" x 2 1/4"
10' duct tape (not shown)

 

[JohnC]

The harrogate toffee tin is a decent size and pretty flat. (No 1, that is)

I carry a fishing lure box with a few compartments in it:
matches & striker
dressings (a length of fabric dressing that can be cut to size)
Anadin
Anti emetics
rennies
Needles thread, buttons, safety pin
ear plugs
button compass
craft knife blade
cotton wool with vaseline.

I reckon it'll get added to as time goes by.

 

[Ogri the trog]

Sam,
I think your idea is great, especially the "no blade" idea.
Its easy to come up with negative things to say so I'll try not to go on too long.
The tea bag and sugar satchet - they are single use items and once the are used, they're gone - though the sugar can argueably be used in resusitating a hypoglycemic patient ( may be hyper, I can never quite remember). If you need a drink that badly then water will always be your best option. Some method of water purification might help - could double as an antiseptic wash if needed.
Elastic bands can loose their elasticity, I'd go for more thread and learn some knots to keep things tight.
Electricians/ gaffer tape and plasters - save the room and carry one type of tape that will cover all three uses.
Cotton wool is bulky unless restrained, why not use a tampon, similar stuff and can be fluffed up when needed or kept tight and tidy when not.
Paper matches in my experience absorb moisture from the air quicker than wooden ones - I'd go for lifeboat matches and possibly a small candle - maybe a few of the comedy birthday candles that relight themselves after being blown out.

I'm going to follow this with a view to packing my possibles pouch - see the whats in your thread by JDLenton

ATB

Ogri the trog

 

[Martyn]

that looks similar to the ritter psk

Agreed, so much thought has gone into the Ritter kit, why not just capitalise on his R&D?

http://www.equipped.com/psp/index.htm

 

[kb31]

use a flu powder as your hot drink -no milk and a pain killer as well-ask anyone who smokes matchs are useless on a windy day get a lighter-tape some para cord round both ends and wrap fishing line inbetweed (clippers work best) and tape it up so you can still use/fill up the lighter best thing i can say about planes is have a whistle and fire steel on your keys file an old key so it will work the steel- any wire in a tin will look like a bomb!!in a x ray..karl

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

I was told the other day, that firesteels were on the 'Banned' list, for carrying onto a plane. This was before the new guidelines as well

 

[kb31]

I was told the other day, that firesteels were on the 'Banned' list, for carrying onto a plane. This was before the new guidelines as well

gess that's job f***ed for" lost" kind of crack then.my dads a wagon driver "if it's got a engine it can fail- boats float with out one planes don't "

 

[DZ-Y]

Nice set up.I think I would add a space blanket and probably replace the fishing line with a wire saw, after all you won't need food unless you need to survive for more than 2 weeks. Warmth, water and first aid are the main concerns.

I think the tea is a good idea as it will help you to sit down and organize your thoughts. In winter it might be suplemented/replaced by hot chocolate powder and in summer with a boullion cube or gatorade powder.

Harmen

 

[anthonyyy]

One thing, which I think is missing in a lot of survival kits, is a radio receiver. Imagine being stuck in the aftermath of a major natural or politician made disaster and not knowing what is going on.

Even if you are just a wee bit lost in the hills, knowing the weather forecast will help you decide whether or not you must find shelter for the night.

I was travelling a couple of days after 9/11 and thanks to my radio know what was going on. I kept meeting people who hadn’t a clue what the chaos in airports was about.

A medium wave radio is fine for domestic use (FM uses more battery power) For near Europe LW is good. Further afield SW.

 

[outdoorstevo]

One thing, which I think is missing in a lot of survival kits, is a radio receiver. Imagine being stuck in the aftermath of a major natural or politician made disaster and not knowing what is going on.

Even if you are just a wee bit lost in the hills, knowing the weather forecast will help you decide whether or not you must find shelter for the night.

I was travelling a couple of days after 9/11 and thanks to my radio know what was going on. I kept meeting people who hadn’t a clue what the chaos in airports was about.

A medium wave radio is fine for domestic use (FM uses more battery power) For near Europe LW is good. Further afield SW.

Interesting idea. These people have a wind-up AM/FM radio with torch
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Dynamo-Mini-E...ryZ39993QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

It says "waterproof coating", but god knows what that means. Certainly it would be a good thing if it's waterproof, but I imagine that's wishful thinking.

I haven't seen a wind-up radio with SW though.

 

[Spikey DaPikey]

Interesting idea. These people have a wind-up AM/FM radio with torch
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Dynamo-Mini-E...ryZ39993QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

It says "waterproof coating", but god knows what that means. Certainly it would be a good thing if it's waterproof, but I imagine that's wishful thinking.

I haven't seen a wind-up radio with SW though.

they do them, but they seem abit bulky !!

http://www.popcorn-uk.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=5933

 

[Mikey P]

- though the sugar can argueably be used in resusitating a hypoglycemic patient ( may be hyper, I can never quite remember).

Slightly off topic but I think that it doesn't matter what type of diabetes the patient has. If it's one sort, it'll make no difference; if it's the other siort it could save a life. So, in that case, it's always worth putting a small amount of sugar under the tongue of an unconscious patient.

I would really appreciate it if anyone with medical experience out there could verify this . If it's true, what with the increase in diabetes amongst the population, a small amount of sugar could be a really good idea for the sub-survival kit.

 

[woodwalker]

in terms of the radio, you can get credit card sized ones such as here I am not sure what they quality of this particular one is (as I don't own one) but it could be a thought for a slim survival kit.

woodwalker

 

[Shewie]

A medium sized plastic bag or binliner can be useful to keep your upper core dry and warm.

A bit extreme I suppose if you`re catching the bus to work everyday though !

 

[sam_acw]

The Diabetes angle was one reason why I was including the sugar whilst the tea bag was inspired by the brewing tea sticky on this forum.
I probably should reduce the tape/plasters etc. but a doctor friend of mine was always making a fuss about how unsterile lots of things are.
The bin liner will depend on how small I can fold it up and if the quality of one I can fit in my pocket would be high enough. I have memories of wearing binbag overcoats over a waterproof when watching racing as a kid! Also as I've got wool coats this would be a useful thing in a downpour.
I must say that the ritter kit is evidently a really good one but I'm designing something for the day I get lost in a new town or take the wrong short cut as much as anything. I really don't need food related items as i'm not going to starve before something like dehydration or hypothermia would become an issue.
I'm probably going to stick with paper matches as I keep them in sealed plastic bag anyway and don't want something bulky that I'm going to sit on accidently!
I'd like to add that this is literally the absolute basics that must be comfortable and light enough for carrying everywhere. When I'm out and about I've got a possibles bag which is a lot better equipped It's just not suitable for all occasions
Version 1 pictures will come soon!

 

[bambodoggy]

Interesting idea. These people have a wind-up AM/FM radio with torch
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Dynamo-Mini-E...ryZ39993QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

It says "waterproof coating", but god knows what that means. Certainly it would be a good thing if it's waterproof, but I imagine that's wishful thinking.

I haven't seen a wind-up radio with SW though.

I've got this exact radio....I only paid a tenner for it in a "gadget shop" in Uxbridge though! lol
Blinding bit of kit....bit heavy but then it's a torch too lol

It works really well, picks up signals easily and works well on the windup as well as the batteries. It lives in the door pocket of my truck.

I use it mainly when I go down to breacon to run round the hills with my hound and it's great for a little quiet tunes in the basha in the evening (it tends to just be me and the dog) although I got it to check weather forecasts for the next day which it does equally well at too lol.

As for it's waterproofness....I wouldn't want to take it swimming but I've had it outside my basha in breacon drizel for hours on end and it's still running strong.

Even at that double price on ebay it's still a smashing bit of kit albeit not really very bushcrafty!

Hope that's of interest to some of you,

Bam.

 

[Mikey P]

The tea bag and sugar satchet - they are single use items and once the are used, they're gone

Having re-read the thread and Stewart's article, I'm not sure that removing the teabag and sugar is a good idea. Isn't is totally missing the point of what Stewart was trying to say? This is, of course, assuming that you agree with Stewart's ideas.

I think I understand what you mean about dual-use of items, use-once-then-throw-away issues, etc. But sugar has a number of uses (as you said yourself) and - I scraping the barrel here - can't you use a teabag twice or even use it for treating sunburn? I think that tannin is good for burnt skin but I could be getting myself mixed up here. How about for filtering small amounts of liquid? If teabags are flammable, could you use it for tinder? Could you carry sugar and a small amount of iodine crystals (water purification, wound cleaning) for firelighting. Hmmm...or is that potassium permanganate I'm thinking of?

For the size and weight of a teabag and packet of sugar, it could even be worth keeping purely for the psychlogical effects - the great British brew!

What do you reckon?

 

[pteron]

Slightly off topic but I think that it doesn't matter what type of diabetes the patient has. If it's one sort, it'll make no difference; if it's the other siort it could save a life. So, in that case, it's always worth putting a small amount of sugar under the tongue of an unconscious patient.

I would really appreciate it if anyone with medical experience out there could verify this . If it's true, what with the increase in diabetes amongst the population, a small amount of sugar could be a really good idea for the sub-survival kit.

This is confirmed by my St John First Aid book and is what was taught on my First Aid at Work course.

Hyperglycaemia is too much sugar in the blood and "little harm" is done by giving sugar, hypoglycaemia is too little sugar in the blood and will be corrected by giving sugar.

One of the points that was raised on my course is that known diabetics often carry glucose tablets for this and so the presence of these can be an indicator for the discoverer.

It is important to stress though that no food or drink should be given to an unconcious casualty, the priority is to get them to hospital.