- Joined
- Sep 29, 2008
- Messages
- 10,394
First off, I'd like to say thanks again to the entire RAT team for sponsoring the recent E&E GAW. thumbup (can't put the smilie because I have too many images)
Got this Saturday in the mail, and have been unable to put it down since.
It's so small and compact I can almost fit it into my jean pocket. As is, I throw it in the glovebox of my car, or in my bag when I'm walking about. The kit is full of everything you might need, but nothing you wouldn't.
In the front pocket you have some caffeine gum, fishing kit, survival card, and some 100lbs test line. (I'm assuming it's 100lbs test because it's the same thickness and style as a spool of the stuff I have laying around.)
Fishing kit has some hooks, some sinkers (caution: Known to cause birth defects, cancer, memory loss, weight gain, vomiting, nausea, and tremors, in the state of California).
Inside the zippered pocket we have three things.
Large waterproof bag, you're survival stuff, and you're first aid stuff.
The first aid stuff is covers a wide range of ailments. You've got a couple of bandaids, some meds, sunscreen, bug repellent, basic stuff. But then you've also got some hemostatic gauze and sutures. Didn't open the sutures as curious as I was. Some paper is there, and a pencil is in the other kit.
What I would like to see added: Off the top of my head, some surgical tape, neosporin, and some super glue. I cannot describe how useful I find super glue. It's gotten to the point where I carry a small bottle around with me everywhere. Works wonders for small cuts, scrapes, etc. Little dab of neo, little dab of superglue. I think that in a jungle type situation you'd find that the super glue will keep the cut cleaner with less hassle. The key is some antibiotic first, otherwise you're sealing in all sorts of nasty bugs.
In the supplies we have some really thoughtful stuff. Pocket saw, folding saw, folding razor, water purification tablets, pencil, button compass, pry bar, can opener, whistle, utility wire, fire starters, signal mirror, and a sparker.
At first, I wondered why you'd put a standard ferro rod in there instead of the misch metal they used on the RAT Fire Kit. (Giant misch metal rod pictured below)
Well, after giving it a little dry run, I realized that the ferro works a lot better with the hacksaw blade then the misch one. The misch one really requires a very sharp edge to spark, where the ferro works very well with the serrated piece of hacksaw. Granted the ferro has colder sparks that don't fly as far, or last as long, but for compactness I would prefer it in this kit.
What I would like to see added: I think this kit would benefit from a small knife. Basically an Izula with a shorter blade. My Landi PSK would fit perfectly, maybe shorten the handle a bit. After the small knife, a couple of scalpel blades (in sterile packaging) would be great because emergency cutting of flesh may be required, and not having instant access to a clean and sterile blade might be a life or death situation. You can pick these up from a variety of medical suppliers for about $0.50 each. Pair of tweezers would be a welcome addition. A small, thin, LED light would be really nice. I can't imagine not getting lost without my Surefire, but I suppose stuff happens sometimes. A little light would be perfect. Lastly I would recommend a small diamond stone. Medium or fine grit in a 1"x3" size would be excellent. I can't imagine that folding razor lasting all that long, but the ability to resharpen it would greatly increase the amount of time you could use it.
I just wanted to make sure I got a shot of what I believe to be the most unique part of the kit. A small plastic handcuff key. My handcuffs got lost somewhere, but I assume it works.
Got this Saturday in the mail, and have been unable to put it down since.
It's so small and compact I can almost fit it into my jean pocket. As is, I throw it in the glovebox of my car, or in my bag when I'm walking about. The kit is full of everything you might need, but nothing you wouldn't.
In the front pocket you have some caffeine gum, fishing kit, survival card, and some 100lbs test line. (I'm assuming it's 100lbs test because it's the same thickness and style as a spool of the stuff I have laying around.)
Fishing kit has some hooks, some sinkers (caution: Known to cause birth defects, cancer, memory loss, weight gain, vomiting, nausea, and tremors, in the state of California).
Inside the zippered pocket we have three things.
Large waterproof bag, you're survival stuff, and you're first aid stuff.
The first aid stuff is covers a wide range of ailments. You've got a couple of bandaids, some meds, sunscreen, bug repellent, basic stuff. But then you've also got some hemostatic gauze and sutures. Didn't open the sutures as curious as I was. Some paper is there, and a pencil is in the other kit.
What I would like to see added: Off the top of my head, some surgical tape, neosporin, and some super glue. I cannot describe how useful I find super glue. It's gotten to the point where I carry a small bottle around with me everywhere. Works wonders for small cuts, scrapes, etc. Little dab of neo, little dab of superglue. I think that in a jungle type situation you'd find that the super glue will keep the cut cleaner with less hassle. The key is some antibiotic first, otherwise you're sealing in all sorts of nasty bugs.
In the supplies we have some really thoughtful stuff. Pocket saw, folding saw, folding razor, water purification tablets, pencil, button compass, pry bar, can opener, whistle, utility wire, fire starters, signal mirror, and a sparker.
At first, I wondered why you'd put a standard ferro rod in there instead of the misch metal they used on the RAT Fire Kit. (Giant misch metal rod pictured below)
Well, after giving it a little dry run, I realized that the ferro works a lot better with the hacksaw blade then the misch one. The misch one really requires a very sharp edge to spark, where the ferro works very well with the serrated piece of hacksaw. Granted the ferro has colder sparks that don't fly as far, or last as long, but for compactness I would prefer it in this kit.
What I would like to see added: I think this kit would benefit from a small knife. Basically an Izula with a shorter blade. My Landi PSK would fit perfectly, maybe shorten the handle a bit. After the small knife, a couple of scalpel blades (in sterile packaging) would be great because emergency cutting of flesh may be required, and not having instant access to a clean and sterile blade might be a life or death situation. You can pick these up from a variety of medical suppliers for about $0.50 each. Pair of tweezers would be a welcome addition. A small, thin, LED light would be really nice. I can't imagine not getting lost without my Surefire, but I suppose stuff happens sometimes. A little light would be perfect. Lastly I would recommend a small diamond stone. Medium or fine grit in a 1"x3" size would be excellent. I can't imagine that folding razor lasting all that long, but the ability to resharpen it would greatly increase the amount of time you could use it.
I just wanted to make sure I got a shot of what I believe to be the most unique part of the kit. A small plastic handcuff key. My handcuffs got lost somewhere, but I assume it works.
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:thumbup:
