EDC - a bag or a jacket

[Mike313]

Hi Folks,
The term EDC is a fairly new one on me, but in fact I have been carrying what amounts to EDC for years. I used to have an old style olive green ex-German army jacket and a very similar 'civilian' one - both with lots of pockets - which I tended to wear all the time. My EDC was carried in the pockets. I regularly carry the usual stuff - wallet, phone, keys, swiss army knife, leatherman micra, notebook and pen, digital camera, reading glasses and sunglasses, small torch, tiny first aid kit (a few plasters and half-a-dozen painkillers) and a spoon.
I currently tend to use a Flyye Accessories bag for this and I can even fit in a mini thermos flask (330ml) if I want to take a coffee along.
The bag is good but not quite as good as having the stuff on your person in my opinion.
I have recently heard about Scottevest jackets which are supposed to be designed as load-carriers and are supposed not to look bulky even when the pockets are full.
What do you think? Do you use a bag or a jacket/vest to carry the stuff you carry every day? And what about these (expensive) Scottevest jackets? Anyone got one?

 

[cranmere]

I strongly prefer a bag. For one thing different weather conditions or social situations require different clothing, however a bag can be quite discreet and carried pretty much anywhere. I actually dislike the fashion for using clothing and equipment that is clearly intended for military use because it draws attention in some situations.

 

[woof]

Military surplus has been around for a long long time, so I don't feel it draws undue attention, but my preference is for a bag, if only for the fact that if it gets warm you have some where to put your coat.

Rob

 

[sandbender]

"...Do you use a bag or a jacket/vest to carry the stuff you carry every day?..."

I think the key thing about your 'everyday carry' is that it should be something you are happy to carry every day, no matter where. A bag or multi pocket jacket will encourage you to carry lots of stuff in it and increase the likelihood that you'll leave it at home, in the car boot, in your office etc.

A well known US bushcraft personality once suggested that your EDC should be hung from a carabiner that you use as your keyring, because you will definitely have your keys with you when you leave home.

 

[cranmere]

I can't wear military stuff to visit clients, but I can still carry a bag that is both practical and discrete.

 

[Quixoticgeek]

I strongly prefer a bag. For one thing different weather conditions or social situations require different clothing, however a bag can be quite discreet and carried pretty much anywhere. I actually dislike the fashion for using clothing and equipment that is clearly intended for military use because it draws attention in some situations.

I am with you on the bag front. I don't have a lot in terms of my EDC, keys, phone, knife. My handbag contains extra stuff like a first aid kit, and I tend to carry that 90% of the time. But the remaining 10%, it's just keys, phone knife. These tend to slip into a pocket on my coat, or more often, into my bra...

On the military surplus stuff, I used to travel mostly in army surplus, with PLCE webbing round my waist and a Berghaus Vulcan on my back. I have moved away from this slowly ever since a guy stood to attention and saluted me at a station in Germany...

Julia

 

[Tristar777]

Damn it! No one has saluted me in 35 years. I obviously need much more military gear!

Just wear what you want! no one is as concerned about what you are wearing except yourself!

 

[cbr6fs]

I have to pass through several security checkpoints each working day, so i quickly got tired of emptying my pockets.

Went out and bought a bumbag to use for work, it's a LOT easier to unclip my bum bag put it through the Xray system then clip it back on.

Also found it handy as because i only have one working arm my left pockets are all pretty much useless, so my keys, phone etc all went in the same pocket, which meant my trousers pulled down one side and my phone got scratched.

So now i wear a bumbag most days.

Not really much of a fashion statement, but then i never bothered about nonsense like that.

I end to wear it so it's in front rather than hanging on my bum, with a coat or baggy jumper and dark trousers (bumbag is black) you can't even notice it.

Not for everyone, but i find it really handy.
Secure, comfortable, everything within easy access and your wallet doesn't get bent like when it's in your back pocket.

 

[santaman2000]

I carry my EDC on my person (the stuff which is truly EDC) either pockets or on my belt (my phone is in a belt carrier for example) That said, a jacket is very impractical simply because a jacket, in and of itself, is NOT EDC. Jackets are only worn in cool weather (or cold) and not when the temps are T-shirt & shorts weather.

 

[woof]

Just wear what you want! no one is as concerned about what you are wearing except yourself!

Well said that man.

Rob

 

[woof]

I can't wear military stuff to visit clients, but I can still carry a bag that is both practical and discrete.

I know what you mean, I can't wear a suit it would be very impractical for me, but I do carry a bag.

Rob

 

[cranmere]

Just wear what you want! no one is as concerned about what you are wearing except yourself!

Unfortunately some people are, and when I'm pitching for a contract it matters. I think too that military style gear is noticed more when worn by women, especially old wrinkly ones like me.

EDC is just that, the things you always carry, so it needs to be in a form that you can actually take anywhere. I don't carry much normally on the grounds that it's highly unlikely that the brown stuff will hit the fan without warning within the hour or two that I'm doing the shopping or whatever so I don't need an enormous bag.

 

[sandbender]

"...So now i wear a bumbag most days..."

+1 for a bumbag

But then we are both living in mainland Europe where they are more common.

If Carlsberg made bumbags...

The Maxpedition Octa.

 

[vizsla]

I carry my edc in a small shoulder bag but I always have a knife or 3 in my pockets!

 

[samobaggins]

I have started using a small camera case that can be put on my belt or hung around my neck as it has loops for a cord. Plus other bits in my pockets.

 

[Inky]

I carry a Gerber dime and a small torch on my keyring (attached to a small carabina) and a few plasters and antiseptic wipes in my wallet. It's all I need (in any realistic scenario) and that way I actually carry them every day.

 

[Angry Pirate]

I carry a Gerber dime and a small torch on my keyring (attached to a small carabina) and a few plasters and antiseptic wipes in my wallet. It's all I need (in any realistic scenario) and that way I actually carry them every day.

Snap. My edc is a tiny sak and the torch on my phone. I am rarely anywhere that requires more kit than that and if I do I'm either near my well-stocked car or I've packed a bag.

 

[MikeLA]

Mine is in a very small exped dry bag. Either throwing in a coat pocket or wrapped around my trouser belt.

 

[Tristar777]

Unfortunately some people are, and when I'm pitching for a contract it matters. I think too that military style gear is noticed more when worn by women, especially old wrinkly ones like me.

EDC is just that, the things you always carry, so it needs to be in a form that you can actually take anywhere. I don't carry much normally on the grounds that it's highly unlikely that the brown stuff will hit the fan without warning within the hour or two that I'm doing the shopping or whatever so I don't need an enormous bag.

Yes ,when working you wear what the job demands! That's obvious, but I still say that people are usually more self conscious and worry more about what they are wearing than the people around them are taking notice. JMHO

 

[MikeLA]

Totally agree wear what you want