Choosing a Blade for your Bug Out Bag

First, a little youtube video I made on the blades in my BOB.

I have since gotten a few more blades, and put all of those to some more use.

However, this post is really just about how to pick the blades for your bag. I will say, I have some biases, but no company has ever given me a blade, and no company pays for me to say nice things about them. Another thing, if something is illegal in your area, its best not to carry it. I don't know your laws.

First, I think every bug out bag needs a fixed blade knife. I have nothing against folding knives, but the only real advantage to a folder is ease of pocket carry. If you are going to be doing real work, and your life may be depending on your blade, it needs to be solid. That said, you don't have to spend that much. Mora knives cost around 10 to 15 dollars, and have been known to take a serious beating, and show up at your door razor sharp.


I like a two knife system. One big knife, and one little knife. I like for my big knife to have some heft to it, like an ESEE 5. Your large blade is what you will do most of your big work with. Batoning wood for fire, doing big cuts on larger game, and other things that require large motions and a large blade.

Your small knife should be the knife that probably gets the most work. I use an ESEE Izula, or a Swamp Rat Warden. Your smaller knife is going to be what you use to cut your food, cut traps, dress small game, cut cordage, and basically everything else you may need a knife for. A small blade gives you a lot of control over what you are doing.

I personally like my knives to be piggybacked. That means the little knife and big knife are attached by their sheaths. It adds a little bit of bulk, but it cuts down on the amount of stuff strapped to your belt. Another good option is carrying your small knife around your neck. When you are seated, it is a lot easier to deploy and resheath a kneck knife than one on your belt... especially if you have a little tactical calorie reserve around the middle.

I advise people against serrated blades for a few reasons. One, they are a pain to sharpen, especially in the field. Two, they make woodworking much more difficult. Serrations are usually right at the base of the blade, which is where you have the most control and leverage... that is where you do the majority of your whittling and such. Having serrations there means you have to do woodwork farther out on the blade, and that can be a bit more dangerous/less controlled. To each his own, but just ask yourself why you may need a serrated blade. You may have to stretch for a good reason.

You may want to think about a good multi tool for your Bug Out Bag. I use a Gerber, the same that is issued by the US Army right now. It gives you another small blade, which should pretty well stay sharp, as you may never really use it. It also adds a small saw to your kit, which is good for making notches into wood for traps. The main thing I use mine for is as a pot grabber. However, should you need to bug out, and end up in an urban environment, your multitool may be worth more than your big and little knife combined, with the pliers and screw drivers.

Keep these things in mind when you are choosing the blades that will be a part of your bug out kit. As always, questions and comments are welcome!

-Whiskey

Urban Survival Equipment

Ever since I started my newest job, I have been carrying a backpack to work. I generally carry a USGI 3 day Assault Pack, which is big enough to carry some drinks, chow, and my laptop. That is pretty normal for a lot of people going to work these days.

However, I also carry my Get Home Bag, which is also my Urban Survival Kit. The GHB is just another layer of my survival equipment. My every day carry pocket gear is supplemented by my GHB(which is actually also EDC). My GHB is supplemented by the "Battle Box" in the truck. That gear will hopefully get me home, and so on. Anyways, the mission of the GHB is just to help get me back to the house. Nowdays, I have a less than 15 mile straight line from work to home, which is far more ideal than before my move. If I had to walk, it would be mostly rural terrain, so I had to keep that in mind when putting the bag together.

Urban Survival Kit Considerations

My first consideration for an Urban Survival Kit or GHB is weight/size. It has to be something I could easily carry around at work, and not get any undue attention.

Second, the bag had to be something in a low profile color. I ended up with a Maxpedition Khaki/ coyote brownish color.




As far as the contents of the bag, which I will talk about later, I needed a mix of urban type tools, and wilderness survival equipment, first aid gear, and other things that come in handy for day to day living in an urban environment. 


 Solution- For Now...

 My solution is a Maxpedition sling bag. It is a lot more pocket based than all my other bags, but it is comfortable, and carries a water bottle on it easily, which always comes in handy. It also has enough room to toss a few diapers in when I am just out with the kids.

Contents of the Urban Survival Kit/ GHB

This bag is light, just over 5 pounds without ammo or water, and I intend to keep it that way. That means sacrifices have to be made. As always, the bag is part of a system, so I don't have a poncho, but if it looks like rain, I will have my Goretex. 


General Purpose
Gerber Military Issue Multi-tool- In an Urban Kit, some sort of multi tool seems very necessary to me. It can do a lot of things reasonably well, and has a sturdy set of pliers. 

ESEE Izula Fixed Blade- Small enough to be hidden on your person, but enough knife to do the job in most situations. I have used it to whittle primitive traps and process food in the kitchen. Most likely if I was on the move, it would come out of the bag and go around my neck.

Surefire Z2 Combat Light- For those times when you need "OMG bright!"

Dummy Cord Keychain Gear-All of this is clipped onto a Nite Ize key ring with mini S biners.
Streamlight Nano- Tiny light, cheap, and puts out enough light to navigate, or find stuff in a non-tactical situation.
Redi-Edge knife sharpener- Pull through type sharpener that puts a serviceable edge on a knife in a hurry.
P-38 can opener
Gerber Shard- Bought more on a whim than anything, but it will open up a beer in a hurry. Also has two different flat head drivers and a mostly useless Phillips, wire stripper, and is in the form of a tiny pry bar. Worth the seven bucks just for the fun of it.
Mini Bic with 550 cord retainer
Handcuff key

Duct tape wrapped around an old YMCA card

Spare can of OC
N-95 Mask

Mayday 1200 calorie bar.
1 Liter Nalgene water bottle.


First Aid Gear

I found a small Red Cross first aid kit that comes in a white plastic case. I added some more OTC meds, some derma-bond, and plenty of band-aids. Its a survival kit, not an aid bag.
Emergency Trauma Bandage
Muslin Bandage-used for a sling, head cover, improvised tourniquet.
Nitrile gloves
Tooth Brush and tooth paste- I may get stuck at work, brushing your teeth can make you feel like a brand new man.
Medical Tape
Purell Germ Grenade (hand sanitizer)

Wilderness Survival Gear
Altoid Tin PSK- Ill make an actual post about this later, but it has small fire, first aid, trapping and signaling pieces. If actually trying to "get home" this would go in my pocket, so if I were somehow separated from my bag, I would at least have this. 

Shelter, 550 cord and Adventure Medical Kits Heatsheet bivy.

Most of the contents of the bag could easily be used for Wilderness Survival, but in my situation, I am not intending to stick around in the woods long enough to need most of these items.

If the situation dictates I walk ( the only reason I could think of would be something that causes multiple roadblocks, or wost case, EMP) I would grab a few provisions from work and my truck. This would also include my Glock 19 and its SERPA holster, and two spare mags, which would go in the bag.

I would probably also change out of my bright white work shirt in the summer, during this time of year I would have a far more subdued jacket on.

As always, if you have questions or comments, feel free to post.

-Whiskey

The Need for Preparations

It is very easy to sound paranoid when talking about survival and preparedness. These days, most people do not feel the need to be prepared, especially if there is no immediate threat. That is evident in the amount of unprepared people who must rely on the government/aid organizations  when their coastal city is hit by a hurricane.

I consider prepping insurance for when insurance falls short. Many people buy into health, life, full coverage auto, and home owners insurance. But they don't think past that. In a serious natural disaster or economic crisis, even the most expensive insurance won't be worth the 1's and 0's they are written on. Your paper copies may be good for starting up a fire though.

I also understand that most people do not believe things can go that wrong. Those people probably do not believe they will get cancer either, but have health insurance.  Even if nothing in our lifetime goes so terribly wrong that you must rely on your emergency equipment and preparations, many of those things can be passed on to your children. Certainly the mindset you develop, and the values you instill on your kids will.

Don’t think that emergency preparations are only good for wide scale disaster, the end of the world as we know it type events. Ill go over some more of the smaller scale disasters and my personal threat assessment later, but even something like a relatively minor ice storm or power outage can be made much more bearable with some minor preps. Or, should you find yourself without a job due to injury or illness, your preps can be a buffer, providing for you when you cannot completely provide for yourself. In the end, it is you taking care of yourself down the road, like a retirement fund that at any time can keep you fed, warm, and relatively safe.

Winter is Approaching...

... and that means its time to switch gear around for the winter season. I will be switching the contents of my bug out bag over to its winter form soon. My summer bug out bag is the size of a military assault pack, but the winter bag is a small rucksack. The cold weather makes a sleeping bag necessary, as opposed to just a nice thing to have. More cold weather gear changes after the jump.

Blog Reboot.

My last try at this blog thing petered out quickly. Mostly because I was trying to use it as a journal of my Primal eating exercise, and writing about that bored the hell out of me most riki tik. So, Im starting over, and I am going to stick with the things that I enjoy. What you can look forward to seeing in my posts...


-Backpacking
-Survival Skills and Equipment
-Firearms and Tactical Gear
-Knives
-Bushcraft

If these things interest you, you may just enjoy reading this blog every once and a while. Ill use this page to document my success and my defeats, so as I learn, maybe you will too.

Check out the "About Me" page for a little background information on me.