Survival Tins - Updates

[neoaliphant]

I think the general ethos is
Possibles pouch - stuff you use a lot every day, and if you lost backpack this is whats really important, and as you use this a lot, handy to have it all togethet

Survival tin - packed very densely so its easy to pickup and go or pack and forget, often if your main item fails the survival tin might have a backup item.

so there is a lot of crossover, in some ways edc picket items are possibles pouch , but they might be the equivalent of a survival tin spread over larger area,

I remember I was 6 when i started assembling my first survival tin, by time I was 10 had repacked and modified numerous times, but still in a tobacco tin with laregr backpack kit for when on holiday, as ive posted previous, some of these items are still going strong over 40 years later!

Lofts SAS survival handbook wasnt the first book to mention the tin kit, but definitely the most popular.

 

[Minotaur]

I think you are on the money Neoaliphant and it about being able to use the items as well.
I had an often repacked survival tin however found it a pain to use so Ray's possibles pouch idea was for me then. Over time the survival tin has come back into play for the pack and forget reason however I am only packing stuff that makes sense to me and that is what I use. What I mean is the things in my possibles pouch are what is in my survival kit so it is what I use.
I going to try and do a lot more with my EDC Rough Rider Canoe and SAK Huntsman from this point of view.

 

[Minotaur]

I think the guy from Real First Aid has some interesting and realistic thoughts on 'survival kits'. Here's his take on an urban kit: Urban survival kits.
(He's got plenty of other good articles in there as well; worth a browse I think.)

I am not going to search back in this thread because I think it was mentioned however in his pouch he has lock picks and says they are not illegal. I thought they were in the UK or if not that carrying them in this way would be classed as going equipped?

 

[Dark Horse Dave]

I am not going to search back in this thread because I think it was mentioned however in his pouch he has lock picks and says they are not illegal. I thought they were in the UK or if not that carrying them in this way would be classed as going equipped?

I wouldn't be surprised if that was true; they're certainly not something that I would consider carrying.

 

[neoaliphant]

I am not going to search back in this thread because I think it was mentioned however in his pouch he has lock picks and says they are not illegal. I thought they were in the UK or if not that carrying them in this way would be classed as going equipped?

I think they are illegal in the same way as lock/fixed knives, as in reason if the police discover them
Thing is tiny lockpicks are unlikely to be found unless you are being searched in conjunction with a crime.

ive used mine on several legitimate occasions and its also a fun hobby, in similar vein to doing a puzzle/crossword

 

[neoaliphant]

I think you are on the money Neoaliphant and it about being able to use the items as well.
I had an often repacked survival tin however found it a pain to use so Ray's possibles pouch idea was for me then. Over time the survival tin has come back into play for the pack and forget reason however I am only packing stuff that makes sense to me and that is what I use. What I mean is the things in my possibles pouch are what is in my survival kit so it is what I use.
I going to try and do a lot more with my EDC Rough Rider Canoe and SAK Huntsman from this point of view.

Ive changed my kit many times since my earlier posts... but i no longer have things so tightly packed as to be innacessible, but most things are for daily emergencies.

I think the most used item is the small packet of loveheart sweets.....have upgraded from palma violets..

and my leatherman surge, cant believe how much I use that, cant believe I waited so many years before getting one, people say its too large and heavy but its not. im going to upgraded my edc flashlight to a larger klarus G15 for same reason.

 

[Minotaur]

Ive changed my kit many times since my earlier posts... but i no longer have things so tightly packed as to be innacessible, but most things are for daily emergencies.

I really like the bag idea of something to dump the contents into.

I think the most used item is the small packet of loveheart sweets.....have upgraded from palma violets..

LOL I always have jelly babies on purpose not edc, might have to think about that.

and my leatherman surge, cant believe how much I use that, cant believe I waited so many years before getting one, people say its too large and heavy but its not. im going to upgraded my edc flashlight to a larger klarus G15 for same reason.

Leatherman rock so wish I could EDC my Charge.
Sure I saw it in a video from this thread however saw this in a Youtube video last year the person carried one of these torches:
OLight
I bought one of these:
Trend
It is a major game changer so useful and being able to just clip it into a pocket for storage or onto a shirt so you can go hands free.

 

[Minotaur]

I think they are illegal in the same way as lock/fixed knives, as in reason if the police discover them
Thing is tiny lockpicks are unlikely to be found unless you are being searched in conjunction with a crime.

Yeah however you do get searched and they found your in trouble.

ive used mine on several legitimate occasions and its also a fun hobby, in similar vein to doing a puzzle/crossword

It supposed to have really good Brain Training effects.

 

[neoaliphant]

I really like the bag idea of something to dump the contents into.

Prepared Pathfinder in earlier video had the good pull out bag, and the bottle kit in previous page had a pouch to dump kit in to, very usefull, I often have a small drybag somewhere for siilar use

The thing about the olights is they are expensive for what they are and also poor quality and after sales support, they do aggressive advertising and youtube sponsorship

sofirn are also a good brand but I dont want the anduril interface, they make some really good edc flashlights at great price.

 

[Minotaur]

Prepared Pathfinder in earlier video had the good pull out bag, and the bottle kit in previous page had a pouch to dump kit in to, very usefull, I often have a small drybag somewhere for siilar use

Yeah, this thread has been really good for ideas like that. I really like the emergency coloured bag that you slip your tin into which then you can dump your contents into. I liked a lot of the bottle ideas however not the bottle itself as it makes too big an item and it plastic.

The thing about the olights is they are expensive for what they are and also poor quality and after sales support, they do aggressive advertising and youtube sponsorship

That why I bought the Trend as same idea except fifth the price and the idea really works.

sofirn are also a good brand but I dont want the anduril interface, they make some really good edc flashlights at great price.

Interesting brand as it half the price for a start. Going to upgrade to the Nitecore Thumb I think. Nitecore seems to be the brand making sensible useful torches at the moment as there NU25 head torch seems to be the hiking favourite.

 

[neoaliphant]

Nitecore is a good brand, I was considering Nitecore E4K as its similar to klarus, klarus will fit one of my molle pouches perfectly.

there are some great high lumen torches avalable , but ove got 2 1000lumens already, and numerous tiny single led ones, there is a point where you can too many

 

[neoaliphant]

Yeah, this thread has been really good for ideas like that.

Just bingewatched Deadwood all 3 series, wwhile watching spent the time rearranging kit...again...for the umpteenth time this year.

various combination of main hiking pack, molle pack, response pack, trangia tin, large pouch, small molle pouches, various combinations of....

 

[Jared]

Trend
It is a major game changer so useful and being able to just clip it into a pocket for storage or onto a shirt so you can go hands free.

Nice find. Didn't know of any single cell AA angle lights cheaper than the Manker E03H or relatively new Sofirn HS05.

Sofirn HS05 1000lm Mini LH351D LED Headlamp, High CRI EDC Flashlight with Magnetic Tailcap

Features:1. Powerful: HS05 uses a LH351D LED featuring 90 CRI for better color rendering, output max 1000 lumens.2. Mini flashlight: 84 mm (length) 23.5mm (head diameter), weighing only 41g (without battery), which works well in your hands or clipped to a pocket.3. Dual-way clip: The HS05...

www.sofirnlight.com

 

[neoaliphant]

Nice find. Didn't know of any single cell AA angle lights cheaper than the Manker E03H or relatively new Sofirn HS05.

Sofirn HS05 1000lm Mini LH351D LED Headlamp, High CRI EDC Flashlight with Magnetic Tailcap

Features:1. Powerful: HS05 uses a LH351D LED featuring 90 CRI for better color rendering, output max 1000 lumens.2. Mini flashlight: 84 mm (length) 23.5mm (head diameter), weighing only 41g (without battery), which works well in your hands or clipped to a pocket.3. Dual-way clip: The HS05...

www.sofirnlight.com

Sofirns are a good brand, I was looking at HS05 myself a few years ago

 

[TeeDee]

I am not going to search back in this thread because I think it was mentioned however in his pouch he has lock picks and says they are not illegal. I thought they were in the UK or if not that carrying them in this way would be classed as going equipped?

Ref Lockpicks- Caveat- I'm not a copper or legal type.

Perfectly legal to possess and practice with lockpicks and other items WITHIN the location of your own home(s) or if invited to gain access to another Persons house if they are locked out.

The issue as you've mentioned is if stopped and searched outside of your own home for any reason you are found to possess them on your body - its considered as " Going Equipped " and would need a strong credible reason for doing so if stopped by the plod and searched whilst out walking about.

That being said , if you had Lockpicks in part of a TEOTWAWKI type kit and for some weird reason were searched I think you may just get a few wry smiles and allowed on your way.

Not sure if its worth risking it however.

 

[forrestdweller]

it may not exactly belong in this thread, but i didn't want to start a new one for this, so...
as already said a few times in the past: i'm not carrying a PSK as such anymore, but my shoulder bag covers most of the basics (together with water bottle + right clothing). i brought some stuff back yesterday from a friend's place (where it sat in storage for quite a while....)-- amongst it an emergency kit/ PSK which must be at least ten years old and was assembled in Oz and supposed to be carried in conjunction with my standard equipment when exploring new areas in the bush. it was carried in a pouch bought at the "NT General Store" in Darwin, most gear was stored inside a plastic box to keep it waterproof. the box got a crack at some point over the years which allowed humidity to get inside...
-- the surface of the plastic signal mirror started to crumble off -- mors kochanski stated in one of his youtube videos that glass mirrors have a much better resolution...
-- the diamond stone i bought in 2002 (and promptly dropped 4ft on a concrete floor - fortunately no damage from that )got rusty on the backside: some light pitting but still useable...
-- to my great surprise the wire saw (bought in 1996 from a shop selling gear of the disbanded NVA ) survived in perfect condition thanks to a generous cover with oil and storage in a ziploc bag
--the needles and some other small items had crumbled to dust, but most of the fishing books are still in very good condition...

shows that it pays to check gear regularly...

 

[Minotaur]

shows that it pays to check gear regularly...

I think that is one of the 2 big problems with the kit idea. The other being that when you need it you cannot use it.

 

[Erbswurst]

Depends also on the quality of the items.

I recently digged out a plastic mirror and sewing kit that were stored for more than 25 years in a humid garden shed and the stuff is fine.

It's obviously worth to pay a bit more and to buy your stuff from nations that are well known to deliver high quality products.

 

[neoaliphant]

i posted in this thread about some of my old kit thats going strong

Esbit stove, orange survival bag and folding etool, all cheap stuff from millets, bought when I was 7 so almost 40 years ago, still going strong

fisher price adventure kit canteen, it bright yellow, got when I was 5, so 42 years later has been a trusty belt canteen....

Most stuff nowadays is manufactured in china, I buy a lot from Aliexpress and a friend of mine works in chinese exports, so I know that a huge amount of UK stock is just chinese marked up.

my LMF ferro rod has got a lot of corrosion, but any ferro rod will do that after a long time if not protected, so thats not LMFs fault.
had loads of needless corrode on me in tin kits over the years

Worst cuprit for quality has always been maglite, also heard bad things about Olite, have changed to klarus now ( after using on the road for a while)

I wouldnt buy anything american made myself, always seems so expensive for marked up goods, might as well buy straight from china ( and bad experience of maglite!)

German metal work, like esbit stoves!!! and the jerry cans.
and of coarse we all love scandinavian bushcraft gear, always been happy with mora and lightmyfire , cheap and good quality and customer service.

talking of nations with high quality, I buy most of my chocolate and tools german made now as well, since kraft bought out cadburys and americanised teh chocolate, its awfull, discovered the milka brand in B&M, awesome.

 

[Jared]

Talking of signal mirrors, Doug Ritter recently posted that no one makes a good plastic signal mirrors anymore, and has gone to glass ones in his pilot survival kits.