Survival Tins - Updates

[hogstable]

Instead of the old school tobacco tun why not two altoid tins?

Have one for fire for example, the other one for other stuff. Penkife and maybe a parasilk Mors Kochanski scarf or a sil nylon small basha.


I have an altoid tin with a cigarette lighter, waxed cardboard like from the Ray Mears shop and a Stanley knife blade.
And why can't we have cheap backline in the UK?

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[Minotaur]

And why can't we have cheap backline in the UK?

Yeah that is weird. I wonder if it called something else or why we do not seem to use it and so import it at expense?
I use jute/hemp garden twine and Aldi nylon cord as my disposable string. I am moving away from man-materials as much as possible. As I grow older the cost vs strength ratio makes less sense. I struggle to think of a task that garden twine cannot do that would require dynema for?

 

[Erbswurst]

The best ropes are 2,5 mm ropes from the mountaineering or Yacht shop. You just have to make nearly all knots in the quick release version.

Edelrid Multicord 2,5 mm is orange, incredible strong, made in Germany and relatively cheap. But every good boat shop sells similar cordage.

 

[forrestdweller]

Kevlar Cordage and Magnesium shavings I can see the point of. .

Personally ( even although I practice lock picking for fun and landlord duties ) I couldn't see the point for Lock picks / Hand cuff keys but then again I'm not a PTC trooper.

maybe not that necessary in the UK but could save your rear end if travelling/ working in some other parts of the world... some small amount of emergency money hidden in your clothes could come in handy, too (as i found out last year when loosing my phone, tools and money during an armed robbery in nicaragua...)
i'm (currently) not carrying a PSK as such anymore, but don't go anywhere without my shoulder bag which contains a (traditional) firemaking kit and other useful items + have a whistle and small signal mirror on my dogtag (== the mirror is the result of my own experience with a sea survival situation near Restoration Island in 2007 "" thanks "" to the idiot who lived there at the time of my visit...)
if i'd build a dedicated PSK i'd use a waterproof metal container large enough to boil water for a cup of tea and would include a larger signal mirror, a flat diamond stone, replace monofilament fishing line with braided line/ kevlar line (no memory) and add some wire leaders with swivels...
some artificial fishing bait would come in handy, too (as natural bait isn't always available)

 

[Minotaur]

I have not looked however I think carrying lock picks in the UK would be going equiped. I also think you cannot carry a handcuff key or it might be handcuffs?
I do agree that you want a metal container in your survival kit. I the SAS survival handbook has the tin however it in a pouch with a mess tin.

 

[forrestdweller]

i've never been to the U.K. so i can't claim to be familiar with local laws there ....
IF i would carry "escape items" i would use materials which can't be detected by metal scanners and hide them directly on my person as i'd be very likely been "relieved" of my psk if the poo hits the fan...

it's been a few years since i read the book referred to by the op (2007 On coromandel peninsula/ NZ to be exactly), but iirc the larger tin was supposed to be stored in the backpack which you may not have available in an emergency (loss/ theft etc.)?!

 

[Minotaur]

IF i would carry "escape items" i would use materials which can't be detected by metal scanners and hide them directly on my person as i'd be very likely been "relieved" of my psk if the poo hits the fan...

If you look for the military EE stuff a lot of it was concealed in other items so it could pass.

Do you carry items or do you have the knowledge to use found items? Houdini used picks however he also trained his body as well. He could tense his forearms so when he relaxed it was easier to slip handcuffs etc.

it's been a few years since i read the book referred to by the op (2007 On coromandel peninsula/ NZ to be exactly), but iirc the larger tin was supposed to be stored in the backpack which you may not have available in an emergency (loss/ theft etc.)?!

In the SAS handbook it is in a belt pouch, a 58 webbing ammo pouch I think.

 

[forrestdweller]

carrying the items in a belt pouch (and attaching the pouch to your belt when going away from the backpack) makes sense...

i'm (currently) not carrying escape items as i (hopefully) don't need them around here but should i "go walkabout" again i'll likely add some gear...
while i was in Japan i found handcuffs without key in an old house we (with permission) went for salvaging before it got torn down. i practised picking them BUT only with them on the table and not with my hands cuffed behind me...(i doubt i'm flexible enough to move my hands to my front of somebody ties them behind my back :-( )

 

[Minotaur]

i practised picking them BUT only with them on the table and not with my hands cuffed behind me...(i doubt i'm flexible enough to move my hands to my front of somebody ties them behind my back :-( )

I think if you have the knowledge and the picks they are surprising easy to pick even sightless. It like any skill you need to practice it.
I have not looked to see if anyone on Youtube is picking British Handcuffs the way they are used in the real world however that would take some doing I would have thought.
Todd Sampson's Redesign My Brain Season 1 Episode 3 has locking picking as a real brain training activity. His series are really worth a look if you can find them.
On a survival tin note, it the time of year were I check my kits and change all of the drugs etc. Basically anything with a sell by date gets replaced.
In ongoing adaption, I have found another tin to use as an EDC tin (Aldi Hogwarts Playing Cards tin) so going to try that as my everyday EDC kit. Of course it slightly thinker and the short side is the length of the long side of my current tin so got more space to play with...

 

[neoaliphant]

As an aside I was lucky enough to find the exact same signal launcher and all the flares as featured in the SAS book at a car boot sale for £2.......

extra kit updated by 35 years....

SAS survival guide colins gem

On The Road M3 pro torch- would fit in a tin but this is more a pouch item, 1000 lumens, aboyt £25, tiny

those small drinks bags you smuggle booze in, look like baby food pouches. ( thse are marvelous in the summer, make up jelly with 50% extra water and keep chilled)

buck smidgen knife, flat and tiny

amazfit trex watch - comapss and GPS only £99

i dont have but would recommend ticwris max, watch using full android, 2.8" screen, can run locus etc, 640x480, gps but no sd card slot

wd40 pen

hotglue sticks

credit card lockpick set, yep i have used them in earnest

everyday else has mentioned zipties, im constantly raiding my kit for them

titaner micro grappling hook....because..grappling hook!....ok this means I have 4 grappling hooks now of different sizes

As for containers, another modern thing is aliexpress, you can get so many containers, in my case small molle pouches, for £1.50, so i organise everything in small pouches for classification, which can then on belt, grouped together inside a viper tacpac, or attached to molle of a larger pack.

a lot of the wazoo survival kit stuff is modern and tiny, like the kevlar string, the FAT packets ( cotton tinder plus accelerant that functions as first aid as well) i got the cache belt, huge temptation to overfill it

 

[Minotaur]

SAS survival guide colins gem

Used to carry a few of them must remember to add them back.

those small drinks bags you smuggle booze in, look like baby food pouches. ( thse are marvelous in the summer, make up jelly with 50% extra water and keep chilled)

I carry a few of the heavy duty plastic drink bottles as back ups. Well look into those.

buck smidgen knife, flat and tiny

I have the CRKT RSK which I really like however I am thinking of making a knife and some other things.

hotglue sticks

I need to add them.

credit card lockpick set, yep i have used them in earnest

Like the idea behind those. Thinking of making some of my own that are arrow and spear heads. Plus a knife.

everyday else has mentioned zipties, im constantly raiding my kit for them

I carry these everywhere as they so useful.

titaner micro grappling hook....because..grappling hook!....ok this means I have 4 grappling hooks now of different sizes

LOL What do you use them for?

As for containers, another modern thing is aliexpress, you can get so many containers, in my case small molle pouches, for £1.50, so i organise everything in small pouches for classification, which can then on belt, grouped together inside a viper tacpac, or attached to molle of a larger pack.

Somewhere I am going to spend to much time by looks of it.
I started to go back to webbing at the start of last year and need to finish it so can start testing it.

 

[neoaliphant]

Credit card tools are very usefull, the best looking ones ive see are the surival tips one with magnetic backing. but there are loads of differenet options, some have arrowheads and speartips.

Re grappling hook, im not sure yet but they are so very cool.
8m or paracord and thehook fit in to a tiny molle pouch

Aliexpress can be a great place for cheap kit, especially pouches, hammocks and the like, have a good look around as huge variety of prices from the different sellers, and they have discount days near 11th november

the small molle pouches are great for making mini webbing, or just to subdivide kit for putting in to other packs.

 

[Erbswurst]

Did you ever think about, what happens, if such a cheap hammock breaks?

I don't say a hammock should be expensive.
But I wouldn't use such a no name product.

 

[neoaliphant]

China is after all a major manufacturing hub of the world, especially in textiles, a lot of items sold in UK are simply the same items on ali express with huge markups, i know a lot of people say spend the most you can afford, and buy once cry once, but there is a point when for occasional use, its not worth cost to buy a hammock that can cost more than some tents. my current hammock cost me £7 and ive had for 12 years.....one of my water bottles has been going strong for over 37 years and it was cheap and made by fisher price and i think came from argos...
As for naming, a lot of chinese manufacturers do a service where they will simply put someone elses brand name and logo etc on an item at the factory, and so when these items are sold in the UK, the name doesnt really mean much.
Now when an item is something like DD, or anything swedish, then yes I can appreciate the quality of manufacture, but cheap doesnt always mean poor. I saw somewhere the lidl brand of camping gear, Crivit i think, only recently came to Lidl in america, and people were amazed at the quality, as they had only had expensive american made ( and theerfore high production cost) or cheap junk imports.
Take Bosch power tools and the lidl parkside brand, ive had loads of bosch tools die just outside their warranty, and have had loads of parkside tools go string for years...
One thing i only ever go for branded is headovers, ive got several buffs, and they are great. and have had several cheap tkmax/lidl ones and they are no way near as good. But the question is is it worth it to spend 6x the price for a piece of cloth for your head?

 

[Toddy]

Sorry to hijack the thread a bit, but I've been looking at these....

Multi Survival Card Purpose Pocket Tools Stainless Steel Survival Multi Tools For Survival/Camping/Hiking/ Fishing/Hunting Wilderness | Wish

Buy Multi Survival Card Purpose Pocket Tools Stainless Steel Survival Multi Tools For Survival/Camping/Hiking/ Fishing/Hunting Wilderness at Wish - Shopping Made Fun

www.wish.com

All four of them for £6 + £1 postage.

Thing is though, they're all full of fish hooks, and I will never, ever use a fish hook (I'm allergic to fish, and I'm vegetarian).

Does anyone know of one that has the needles, the knife, saw, etc., that doesn't come loaded up with unnecessary wee jaggy hooks too ?

 

[neoaliphant]

Does anyone know of one that has the needles, the knife, saw, etc., that doesn't come loaded up with unnecessary wee jaggy hooks too ?

Yes but if if you tie 3 fishing hooks together you get a tiny...
GRAPPLING HOOK!!!!

who wouldn't want another grappling hook.


in all seriousness, good spot on those cards, looks good price for 4
I would get some slightly magnetic backing to attach them too.

 

[Jared]

Have seen a few sewing cards. Needles and some buttons.

Emergency Titanium Sewing Kit Card

The Survival Titanium Sewing Card is both compact and versatile for all EDC needs in the field or at while camping. The kit is laser cut from a single sheet of Grade 4 Titanium with amazing .001mm precision for ultra smooth corners and clean design. The kit has an adhesive backing which can be...

countycomm.com

Sewing Needle Card : Survival Sewing Kit

Survival Sewing Kit: Turn Your Wallet into a Survival Sewing Kit with Grim Sewing Cards Have you ever bent down to pick something up and had that horrible moment when you feel a cool breeze across your backside? Well don’t worry Grim’s got your butt covered with its credit card sized sewing...

grimworkshop.com

They maybe the most practical looking of those types of cards, but that pricing i'll stick a few needles to an old credit card.

 

[Toddy]

I think me too. It's rust that does in decent needles, but I find that if I stick them into a bit of wool flannel they don't rust anywhere near as easily as they do if I use a bit of cotton fabric.
So, bit of wool, good rub with beeswax/lanolin or similar, and they'll last fine for years.

What a price those cards are though when compared to the four for £7 delivered.

 

[neoaliphant]

Yep, for that price you could get several credit card sewing kits with thread, buttons, scissors, needles etc

thats a lot for just a few buttons and big needles

 

[TeeDee]

Grims Workshop do a varied range.

All Card Tools– Grimworkshop