The MINIMUM survival kit - supplies

Re: The MINIMUM

Yeah the stuff listed deffinatly wouldnt have a person set up for a full out long term collapse, its purely the minimum and a starting point for folks who have been accustomed to not keeping more food in the house than they plan to consume that day and had not considered ANY preps before. Basicly a simple list to move from there to being prepaired for some of the more mundane and common things like bad weather, power outages and so on, simple stuff that will blow over in a few days to a couple weeks or at worst would have relief workers there to help them recover within a couple weeks.

Being preped to live without resupply for an indefinate long period of time is a whole diferent thing. While a list like this would still make a building block or foundation for it it dont come close to geting you to that point.

 

Re: The MINIMUM

Spot on Monkeyman

Most sheepple do not have any concept of what the world could be like postSHTF. It is hard for them to understand how dark the city will be when all of the lights go out. How cold it will be when there is no heat. How dangerous it will be when there is not longer any law enforcement. The concept that the day could come when they will no longer be able to buy food is beyond what they can fathom. The movie Threads is a big eye opener for sheepple. This can happen it has already happened twice and if it does again is this what you want your life to be like? Prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

I do not know if our {us Preppers} efforts will ever prove entirely useful. Do I need 24 backpacks, 12 full sets of web gear, all of the knives that I have, a hospital in a box, 10 camp stoves, 22 lamps and lanterns and so on and so on? No probably not, at least I hope not. If TEOTWAWKI never happens my preps are paid for and do not eat any thing, so keeping them tell the end of my days will not cost anything other then price that I paid for them.

Now to answer the question.

Variety is the key. I am not saying that you need one, two or ten of everything. Get what you can when you can, if you see a Coleman 2 burner camp stove for $1.50 buy it if you can spare the money, don’t just walk past it. They don’t take up that much room and you can stuff them full of all kinds of preps. If you have an opportunity to buy a prep related item for the right price and you can spare the scratch then do so for you never know when the next time one will come along at that price.

As for the minimum you will need to survive each will have to ask themselves a few questions.

What do I think I will need to prepare for?
For how long will the situation last?
Can I expect help and if so how long will I have to wait for it?

For the most part with the exception of NBC type emergences all of the SHTF events will require for the most part the same kind of preparations; food, water, shelter and protection. The amount of each item that will be needed is the only thing that will change.

If the SHTF event turns in to TEOTWAWKI you will have to be able to provide for your and your dependants future needs. This not only means the ability to produce or procure needed food and manufactured goods. It also means the ability to utilize skills that you or your group does not possess. You will need something to trade for what you do not produce or can do for yourselves.

Don’t set wait for help to come because when they do you may not want the kind of help that they are offering. If you want the powers that be on your side and to help you then your best bet is for them to see that you are willing to help yourselves. If they see everyone working together to restore your area to a state of normality they are likely to offer what assistance they can and move on. Your preps need to include something that will help with the reconstruction.


My rule of thumb is think of the worst catastrophe that you can imagine multiply that by ten and that is what is what you prepare for.

 

Re: The MINIMUM

It seems to me the minimum you need depends on the weather outside and whether you need to travel or stay put. I always assume the worst thing that will happen to me when I'm least prepared. Isn't that Murphy's Law of survival? That attitude has saved my a$$ numerous times in the field when what I planned turned all to hell and my fate rested on things that were previously viewed as clutter in the bottom of my pack.

What I carry with me 24/7 is miniscule. It starts with a wallet with contacts written down. Nobody knows anybody's phone numbers anymore because of the convenience of cell phones, but a simple dead battery can leave you out of touch with everyone. I have my GF's family's out of state contact numbers, too, just in case. I have a minimum of $100 cash. If ATMs go down, I want to be able to get home the best way possible and it's cheap insurance. A Photon II LED light so I'm never completely in the dark even in an elevator when the power goes out. A magnesium firestarter. This is a true throwback to my USFS days. Matches always get wet, lighters are notoriously unreliable, but with a little practice, a magnesium firestarted will get a fire going in the worst conditions (despirate for a fire in 40mph winds in a snow storm? Pull your pants pocket inside out, cut the bottom off, scrape a quarter-sized pile of magnesium into the pocket with all the lint you have in all your pockets and strike. You will have fire if you know how to build one from there (assuming you've spent the last half hour gathering tinder, kindling and fuel)). A good lockblade pocket knife (currently an H&K made by Benchmade). In my jacket pocket I have hard candy, nitryl gloves, and a qwik clot bandage (I'm still a first responder). That should get me to my car.

My car is the next link to my survival. If I can get to it, I'm set for a while, even in the worst of weather and 50 miles from home with no ignition (I always assume EMP as a possibility). First, the snow tires go on in October and don't come off until May. The chains never come out of the trunk. I have a portable jumpstarter in the trunk along with a can of fix-a-flat. 200 lumen LED flashlight in the glove with spare batteries, Epi-pen, cell phone charger, state map, at least 500 calories of food, a 5" fixed blade knife, and of course, gloves, in the glove box. In the trunk I have more than most 72 hour kits with winter clothing, MREs, water, water purification tablets, headlamp, duct tape, candles, space bag, old sleeping bag, and hiking boots. My goal of the kit is go be able to walk home from up to 60 miles from home without resupply.

When I mountain bike I assume the worst will happen, so I try to have everything I need to get through a night in moderate comfort. That means a solid first aid kit (w/ prescription pain killers, tweezers, triangular bandage, trauma dressing, surgi-strips, epi-pen), a space bag and space blanket (space bags have saved my a$$ on three occasions, so I'm loyal to them, but I keep a space blanket around to cut up. An adventure racing friend of mine says that they're perfect when you need to keep on the move and put on a layer but don't have anymore clothing. You can trim pieces off to cover your arms, legs and torso using electrical tape to hold them on. They do a great job of holding heat in for nearly zero weight. Just be aware, it's very noisy stuff and you won't be sneaking up on anybody weathing it), snare wire (military trip wire spools are great for this and can be found a most gun shows for about $1.50-2.00 each. It's also good for jerry-rigging repairs, although it takes a lot of it to get any strength), two light sources (both LED; one headlamp, one bar mounted, w/ spare batteries), tea light candle, compact towel, duct tape, cloth tape (2' medical tape for ankles, knees and wrists), emergency poncho, 550 cord, SAM splint, whistle, compass, safety pins, wind-proof matches, magnesium firestarter, local map, iodine tablets, multi-tool w/ plyers, bike multi-tool, spare tubes, patch kit, pump, sidewall patch, spare links, misc. allen screws, zip ties, 800-2400 calories in food, 2-3 liters of water, appropriate clothing for expected weather, and SPOT emergency transceiver. I don't bother with fishing tackle, as I assume the GPS eplrb will get help moving in my direction within 24-48 hours. So far it's worked in over 90% of the locations I've used it (for non-emergent messages), so my confidence in it is growing (I've only owned it since April).

A man's home should be his castle, where he can be ready for anything, but you've gotta get there first and I have 22 miles between me and home eight hours a day.

 

Re: The MINIMUM

I have just learned a valuable lesson this evening....
ALWAYS "test" ALL of your equipment!
You never know if it will work, or not, unless you do!
Case in point:
Tonight, I was making dinner, and discovered that our newest can opener just quit functioning.....Of course!
I mean, after all, it was made in China, what could I have been expecting?
So, I went to the boxes of kitchen items I have stored away for "Just-in-case" scenarios.....
Wellllllll......was I in for the shock of all times!
The first I pulled out was worthless as well....
Seems the cutting wheel did not reach the can lid to puncture through, and could not cut the lids at all.
So, not be deterred, I grabbed another one....
Things went rapidly downhill from there.....
Seems that the gears do not mesh, so they won't turn together.
It was locked up tight!
End result: I had to cut the cans open with a knife.
The 3 can openers were all brand new, 2 were still mounted on the cardboard
hangers !
1 was made in India, the other 2 were Chinese!
I will be returning to the stores and searching for an "ECKO" brand, as long as it is made in the USA!
Now, I did not go as far as to open my BOB's and get out the P-38's and P-51's...
But at least I do have those....
Now, I am going through all our items such as these, that are so easily overlooked....
You see, the recent "Coghlan's" items that were made in 'Canada', are now made in China as well, and guess where my p-38's and P-51's came from!???
Time to rethink a lot of this....and make those adjustments/replacements now.
Lately, all I have seen at Walgreens drug stores, Fry's grocery stores, the Dollar stores, and even Safeway's stores, all have the kitchen items made in China!
A recent disaster with a 'so-called' "pyrex" dish taught me to stay away from imports....Especially when they explode in your face!
"Caveat Emptor"/"Buyer Beware"!
Bill

 

Re: The MINIMUM

Sorry in advance as i may be reading this wrong.... but this is the bare minimum in a survival situation? Because last time i checked i didnt carry 21 one gallons of water, pots and a tent...but thats just me.
I can see three things that could all fit in a backpack...

 

Fire, shelter, food.
So a fire starting kit, three diferent methods.
Something to build a shelter, so cutting tools.
Some food to keep you going, before you start to rely on the bush tucker.

 

I would add to the comments the smart idea to (1) stock up on water purification tablets, (2) a few dozen "survival silver coins or bullion" of U.S.A. mintage that includes the silver content purity notice (i.e.: .9999 fine (pure) silver, .90 silver (1973 and older U S coins), etc. and always in English language...no European coins...American coins reported in ounces but other foreign coins deal with other types of measurements not commonly understood or known about by most Americans. Remember also (3) that foodstuffs, ammunition, water/water purification tablets, silver coins and technical skills serve nicely should one have to barter for food, ammunition, water, silver or assistance with repair to vehicles, generators, etc..

And don't forget: When the power is out, the banks are closed and the credit and debit card kiosks are inoperable...so checks, debit cards and credit cards will do you very little good. You'd better be ready to barter and have items or technical skills to barter with...or be prepared and expect simply to do without.

Just food for thought, don't you think?

Respectfully submitted,

Thomas Avery Blair, EA

 

Don't expect much help from any governmental entity in the event of an emergency, up to and including the failure of the fiat currency of nations currently on the expected monetary default lists (the USA is on that list!).

Have two friends that learned almost immediately and the hard way during the Katrina fiasco that unless you have currency, silver, food and/or bullets, or water purification tablets, batteries, etc. then you won't get petroleum products, food, potable water, medications, etc. that you and your loved ones need. They drove an RV over to New Orleans and then discovered that they could not get home (no gas stations, no banks, no credit or debit card kiosks operational) nor could they get eats without bartering what they had with those who had things to barter with.

One went over 400 miles on a motorcycle, bought a used truck and brought back fuels, fluids (oil, grease and power steerng fluid), generators, bottled water, medical supplies, food (canned goods mostly), hot ice (in freezer boxes), etc., in addition to weapons and ammunition.

Did not get the promised work because no building supplies, even nails, were any closer than 2 to 3 hours driving time and being sold a "premium-plus" (gouging) prices.

Learned from them what not to do...plan to survive without making the initial mistakes they did.

Respectfully submitted,

Thomas Avery Blair, EA

 

Hailing from South Louisiana, I may be biased, but, I would bet that anybody who grew up down here would be best prepared for a SHTF situation, as, we have to do it every year for hurricane season..

I always keep a 55gal drum full of fuel and a hand pump, theres been times where I was able to get fuel at gas stations with that and some cash.

Another thing I could add, if you need to travel to your BO location, stay off the main HWY's.. Interstates and freeways become parking lots (which many got to see on the news for hurricanes rita and katrina back in 05).. Take the old roads through the little towns and you will see that they are like a sunday evening drive.. No one in sight, except for locals who planned on staying anyway.

I've done this on numerous occasions through the years evacuating my grandparents from further south, assisting family in Port Aurther, TX, New Orleans, and around louisiana, getting in and out of "restricted" mandatory evac zones by taking the back roads and assuring the officers or natl guard that I was there to help and not loot. Which could plainly be seen by my prep supplies in the back of my truck.. It also helps to be courteous and level headed, the last thing they want to see is some frantic person "demanding" in or out of an area..

Just FYI..

 

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Hey Thomas, just wanted to point out 1973 was when the paper silver certificates were discontinued being redeemable a such. I believe you meant to say .90 silver (1964 and older U S coins). 1965 and later are not silver.

 

I agree with ghrit. The year before last in MA there was a bad ice storm that knocked out power to some communities for close to a month. Even with people from out of state trying to repair the power lines, it was difficult for those who had nothing in their homes. If this happend to us we could weather it out and be just fine. Even if the government or other agencies trying to help, sometimes it's just not possible.

I don't think prepping is that complicated, although there's always room for improvement and getting practical advice. That's why I'm here.

 

Nice, good thread here.

 

Your first-aid kit

It is a very practical and functional kit you have put together. I would throw in some quik clot for those crazy emergency...like a gun shot wound, stab wounds, ect.
Also I never boil water any longer than it takes to bring it to a rolling boil. Because all you really have to do is pasturize it. That can be accomplished at like 160 degrees for a few minutes.
Great job on the kit though!!

 

Tough to Digest, Let Alone Grapple With

When I think of a minimal list of survival equipment, I think of either carrying it on my back or in my car. As for the most part, I live in an area where it may make the most sense to just hunker down and ride a crisis out.

If I am in the "hunker down mode," I'm planning to have more resources available to me than a minimal assortment of tools and resources.

However, there is extreme value in this site because of the relentlessly sharp eyes of forum visitors who review tools and methods that are worthy of consideration for the rest of us. One of the enduring challenges of a post SHTF world is that our ability to survive and, perhaps thrive will rest upon just how good our choices have been.

While there is a Good Housekeeping Seal Of Approval, there is nothing similar for the survivalist community. It may be best to not settle on individual products of manufacturer's; it may be better to identify the characteristics or traits of superior products and/or services and perhaps identify a cluster of related products that share all or most of the desired traits.

I'm guilty of favoring one particular product over another one but I certainly respect an experienced opinion that gets me pointed in the right direction.

 

Hey everyone: In the spirit of 'backingup the backups', everyone agrees waters 1st. A friend pointed me to nifty Filter Unit being passed around in Africa, low cost, filters to .5 microns and is much more portable than my other unit. Have to share this: CAMP-352 - Ceramic Water Filtration System Monolithic Filter Ceramic Filter Filter Sock Spigot 0.5 Micron Efficiency
Take a peek and let me know your thoughts.

 

Memories of MA Ice Storms

I've been away from MA for a few decades now, but I'll never forget just how it freaked me out to have ice storms that toppled trees--knocking out power and then having to deal with FOG (at night) on top of it all. I do not miss that part of New England at all. We do still miss the spectacular fall foliage and the great seafood, though!

 

Naturally, water is the first, and most important thing...commercial filters are all good and dandy for short time SHTF, or untill they get saturated and need replacing. I haven't seen yet a filter that can be cleaned or in some way rejuvenated by user. If anyone knows about something like that, let me know.
In bad SHTF, situation of "end of civ time" type, no filter replacement cartridges will be available, and then what? You can't drink boiled water for more than 1-2 months because it would deplete your body from minerals, and cause havoc.
So, you should know how to make as good filter as possible with the stuff you'll have at hand or can be easily obtained...Knowledge is power...and survival...

 

Oh...and another thing...Google patent search is your friend!...

 

While they are certainly related, I view survival and preparedness differently. If you ask me the minimum, I would probably give you my EDC minimum.

I keep it all inside a pocket organizer by Spec-Ops. Mostly so i can pull it out of one bag and throw it in another quickly. It also has belt loops, so if I need to grab a minimum and run, I can strap it on later.

It contains this:
1 silva compass
1 ferro rod (LMF Army model)
550 cord
Petzl Headlamp with spare batteries
Space Pen and Write in the Rain pad
Lighter

I don't include a knife because I carry one in my pocket daily (or on my belt depending on the situation). Same with water. I live in the desert and never leave the house without any. I refill jugs with water and keep in the back of the truck as well.

Things that I would add depending on the situation-
Fishing kit- hooks and sinkers (when I'm back home where there are a lot of streams)
Food- if I am not carrying any for some reason, I will typically stuff a couple energy bars inside.
I also try to keep a pot around. A backpacking Ti pot. If I have fire starting ability and a pot, I am familiar enough with my area to find water and make it drinkable.

I need to add some iodine tabs............