I am a guy in Southern Ontario and I'm obsessed with preparedness, knives, fire, and bushcraft. This is my dedicated channel to bush crafting tests, gear reviews, and my quest to becoming an outdoorsman.
I color code the zippers. Use a red zip tie for the pocket with first aid in it. Orange for the pocket with fire starter kit in etc. easy for someone or yourself to get something out of your bag without digging through it.
As something of a flashlight nut, get rid of the Nano. There are many slightly larger LiIon ones with more lumens and a heck of a lot more runtime at equal power plus those can be recharged with a small solar powerbank stored elsewhere, whereas the Nano even with the extra batteries will be dead and useless quickly. I would also rather have 10X the length of bankline versus paracord in the same space. And you definitely need a better quality compass because you only get more lost than before with an unreliable one. You speak of the tin being for pocket carry but it's taking valuable space in your bag. Make or get a pouch to attach it on the outside with the Molle loops, and make a habit of transferring it to your pocket the moment you grab the bag. Having it inside the bag will tempt you to not pocket it which can bite you in the butt fatally. The sewing kit is tiny, but a sailmaker's needle with the bankline is a simpler more durable and more useful approach. The signalling mirror can go. Staying put by a smoky fire is better day and night at attracting attention from a distance, and it will be sought out if someone is searching for you. Replace its space with folded tinfoil and a diamond knife hone which will be much more useful. And add a couple foil-pouch Immodium tablets; nothing dehydrates and impairs you like a case of the runs and you're likely to get that using minimal water filtration. One other thing I pocket is a disposable rain poncho. They're not durable but will save your hide when wet equals dead and your clothing isn't waterproof. Some of this stuff can be your EDC and not in the kit like the knife, flashlight, lighter, and Gorilla tape which equals more space in the kit or a smaller tin as you prefer. Just my thoughts and you've done OK here except for the compass and where you store the kit. And above all, practice use of what you've got in the conditions you expect to use it in; that's the best way to assess what needs changing and what doesn't.
Great job on the video, excellent content. I’m in Sudbury, On. Hot tip on the blue jolly rancher - it will melt and cover everything in hot weather, and because the wrapper is ‘open’, it will leak. A better option might be a giant life saver (pkg is sealed) or something like that.
Just get a real compass dude. In the video you just showed us, the mini compass wasn’t adjusting as it rotated. A full compass with the ruler, the adjustable dial, little magnifying glass -all those things are meant to be used with the compass atop an actual map. If you’re needing a “rough bearing” to orient yourself, just use the sun or North Star. Compasses are for accurate orientation. They are also made of plastic and incredibly light. The weight you save using that tiny thing costs you too much functionality. Also just get a plastic bottle. The plastic bag? How many four hour katadyn water treatment processes do you think that will last? I understand that it’s in the section of the kit dedicated to “if I get separated from my gear” scenarios, but then you went and packed it with the rest of your gear. There are also bladders that are much more durable that can better serve this purpose for not much more weight. Save the ziplock bag for something like a fish fillet to carry back to your fire and cook. Also slings are cool, but everybody who went to public school is familiar with backpacks. You want people in your crew to be able to operate your gear with some familiarity, especially if they need to patch you up. Backpacks are the better survival tool, and they usually already come with a spot for two water bottles. Even an ozark trail bag from Walmart would make a solid emergency kit bag for $12-$15.
Excellent suggestions! I do have a real compass and a water bladder with a filter in the medium size tin. You’ll have to send me the link for the small bladder that can fit in a small tin. Also, you’re definitely right about backpacks being more comfortable. I’ve travelled quite a bit and it does feel cumbersome after a while. There is a stabilizer strap that helps to keep the pack from moving and makes it more comfortable than a regular sling, but overall a backpack might be a better option for some people. I will keep your critiques in mind to help inform viewers on my next video. Thank you for your comment! 🙂
