Category: Field Gear

Product Review: Triple Eight Professional S.O.L. Knife, by Michael Z. Williamson

This tiny knife is a very durable piece of hardware. Construction is of steel, with a hard phosphate or oxide finish. The pivot is adjustable with a spanner wrench, very smooth and has slick bushings. The lock is of the rotating handle design, with strong pins to hold the blade rigid when open. The handles swing easily open or closed, and remain in place in the hand without slipping. The finish survived being dropped on a tile floor unmarked. The handle did open a fraction—the detent is fairly light. As can be seen from the photos of the knife, it’s …


Thoughts on the Bug Out Bag, by Tugboat

When I think on the “Bug out Bag” I am not thinking of a basic survival kit. The survival kit is designed to be small, portable, and with you whenever you venture out into the woods. The bug out bag is a larger version of the same but designed for a totally different scenario. When you know you are going to be on your own for an undetermined amount of time. First off it will be larger than a survival kit; usually a small backpack or duffle will suffice to carry all you will need for an extended stay away …


Letter Re: 550 Cord–The Use of Arts and Crafts for Survival and Practical Tasks

Mr. Rawles and SurvivalBlog Readers, I am a newly dedicated reader and have had an interest in your contests since day one. I have a few skills I’ve learned in life (hunting, fishing, marksmanship, tracking and writing) but the newest one is macramé. This is the art of weaving knots to make beautiful and often decorative pieces and is just a craft some folks use to entertain themselves. I’ve combined both of these and applied one more purpose for the art: rope-making, belt-making and strap-making. All three of these have occupied my time overseas for almost a year now. I’ve …


Meet the Saiga Family, by Brett G.

Your needs when the SHTF will vary greatly, yet some needs rank higher than others. Of course there will be many considerations at any point on your journey, in every circumstance, regardless of the cause (earthquake, flood, volcano, terrorist attack, storm, riots, etc). In any situation the considerations will certainly include a need for food, water, shelter, body armor and helmets, vehicles, fuel, heating, medical supplies, land for security and for growing future food, and such. There is no intention to downgrade the importance of those items – yet it is my intention to get you to think about some …


Letter Re: A True TEOTWAWKI Flashlight

Hi Jim, I just heard about this, and although expensive it sounds like the perfect long term TEOTWAWKI light: The 5.11 Tactical ‘light for life’. It is a Capacitor/LED flashlight. Here are the basic specifications: 90 second recharge time 12 VDC recharging 2 hour run time (step down 90/60 lumen – 1 hour each) 270 lumen peak (90 normal) 135 year life span 100 yard throw Thanks, – Greg W.


Letter Re: Advice on Pistol Holsters

Jim, One more small tip on holsters, specifically the Blackhawk holsters with the single finger tension release. As an NRA Instructor who’s taught many handgun shooters, I’ve seen problems with the release when someone is under stress, as in a practical range exercise. One of my fellow instructors showed me a small addition to the holster, which I have retrofitted on all of mine. Simply take a small piece of stair tread tape, sometimes called skateboard tape (which is essentially sticky backed sandpaper), and attach it to the area of the release that needs to be depressed to release the …


Three Letters Re: Advice on Pistol Holsters

Jim, In response to the question on holsters: A couple of years ago, I read a series of articles by a man recalling his experiences in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. He lived in a parish outside of New Orleans, Louisiana. After evacuating his family and letting the storm pass, he returned to repair/protect his home. Upon return, he found a checkpoint had been set up at the entrance to his cul-de-sac by some neighbors that stayed through the storm. His house was one of the 15 or so homes on this closed street. The homes were without power, had …


Letter Re: Advice on Pistol Holsters

JWR, I have been perusing the articles on SurvivalBlog.com on assembling a set of web gear. The part I am stuck on is selecting a holster. I have an LC-2 web belt that I want to put the holster on, which requires a holster that can be strapped on to the belt since most holster loops won’t slip over the plastic buckle. I’ve looked at the [Bianchi] M12 holster that is issued by the US armed forces for the [Beretta] M9 [and M1911], which is designed to strap onto the LC-2 belt. I also read on your site that you …


Letter Re: Concealing Gender in a G.O.O.D. Situation?

James, As a wife and mother of a pre-teen daughter, how important is it to hide the fact that we are female in a G.O.O.D. scenario? In considering this idea I realize that in the “flee natural disaster” situation it would be less of a concern. Perhaps it only applies to a bad TEOTWAWKI evacuation. What are your thoughts, ideas on this? When would it be necessary, how far would we need to go to disguise our female appearance, etc? We have thought of everything from mildly sticking to athletic/hiking clothing that are form fitting but don’t show skin, to …


Four Letters Re: Building Your Kits for Survival

James, I read with great interest the piece by Jeff M. on building kits. I was kind of taken aback by his statement “I just won’t be one of those guys who carries a purse”. I guess in these days I need to understand what a purse is because I am a professional person who goes to meeting all over the state in a suit and tie and I always have what my family calls my purse with me. I carry an old trusted backpack that contains my laptop, but also carries all of my immediate survival needs (knife, first …


Building Your Kits for Survival, by Jeff M.

There are many different ways to go about preparing for tomorrow. One method that has really worked out well for me so far is kit building. Kits focus your attention on one specific area at a time, and bring into focus the strengths and weaknesses in your planning. There is something of a natural progression to it; you can start small and work up to bigger and better as you develop the means and know how. This is intended as an overview of the concept; details for specific kit building can be found all all over the web. EDC (Every …


Two Letters Re: The Palm Stick for Self-Defense

James Wesley: On the palm stick topic — I might add that a mountaineering carabiner — the genuine load bearing kind, not the cheap copies — would also work [as a self defense adjunct]. I routinely carry one — and, when asked, say “Oh, I found that it makes carrying all those [full] plastic bags from the grocery store much easier. They don’t bite into my hand.” People see this as clever and never consider it has some alternative purpose [serving as a brass knuckle or palm stick type device]. And BTW, it also does make a great all purpose …


Survival Slingshots, by Brian W.

When one thinks of a slingshot, the image of the forked stick and rubber band hanging out of the back pocket of Dennis the Menace is usually what comes to mind. Often overlooked in the survival community, the slingshot can be a valuable addition to any survival kit or day pack. For all intents and purposes, the best tool for taking small game that a survivalist can have, in my opinion, is a .22 pistol. Until very recently, though, it was illegal to carry them into state parks. To those who are not up to date on local and state …


Some Needful Things

I’m often asked by my consulting clients about my specific gear recommendations. I’ve noticed that I repeat mentioning a lot of these, so to save time in my subsequent consulting calls, I’m posting the following list (in no particular order): Gamma Seal Bucket Lids. We use these constantly with our bulk storage wheat. rice and beans. K & M Industries waterproof match cases. The best, made by a Mom & Pop business Gerber Omnivore LED Flashlights. These can use AAA, AA, or CR-123 batteries. Sadly, they’re made in Mainland China. Maxpedition gear bags. Incredibly tough and well-made. Dakota Alert infrared …


Make it Modular and Make it Out!, by Ranger Squirrel

One of the skills that has served me best in life is my tendency to make everything modular.  I think I learned it in the Army, but regardless of where I picked it up, it has saved my rear end at home, at work, in emergencies, and even in my hobbies.  Let’s pick on Average Joe for a second.  Average Joe is exactly that.  He likes a beer now and again, listens to classic rock and some country, and works in a job that just barely pays the bills.  He has a commute of about 50 miles round-trip every day …