Those are some good ideas...seems like my next purchase should be a belt kit...any suggestions on where to get one...
Remember though that this pack holds guns for both me and my wife...she wont be able to lug rifles and kids but if we have the opp, then she will be using the rifle and i the shotty...if i dont carry it for her then it will get left at home.. So techinically its a rig for two people, each with a primary gun (rifle=wife, and shotty=me). I can def switch my 44 magnum holster to my belt and use my Tank Buster as my belt knife, but i cant imagine with a back pack like that, i would have enough belt room for a gas mask and all. The hip support belt on the backpack would seem like it would get in the way
The belt kit webbing is available from military surplus stores ... I am in the UK so the stuff I use would need to be sent internationally ... however I have been to a number of your Military bases ... Fort Bragg has loads of shops selling what you need. Google is your friend.
In your situation I would get belt kit and keep the pouches to the rear and sides only so you can go prone. Avoid like the plague vests which have all the gear on the front. You cannot lie down properly as you are like the Mitchelin Man lying on gear and cannot shoot.
Then given your children and wife ... I would ditch the back packs and find Papooses for both kids. You take the elder she the younger. You need to be able to carry them and move and live off belt kit and what ever small stuff you can fit in the Papooses. Otherwise in a catastrophic situation you will not be able to rely on the children being able to move ... and you will need to move fast.
Personally I would consider a couple of cheap Mountain Bikes or Trail Bikes to get you out of the city and into the hills faster than walking and able to avoid roads and "people jams". They need to be able to be ditched and both of you still able to move and have enough to live off what you carry.
The first few hours are critical and then the next few days. Then re- supply and live off the land or what is to hand. Gas masks for children may well be hard to find but better to find them as when you need them and have'nt got them ... death is the resulting consequence.
Trying to bug out with a wife and children will be no easy task. You both will need to be very fit. Carrying the kids may seem a daft solution but you will both move a lot quicker initially by doing so and will not feel the anguish of losing them.
I was in Rawanda and saw couples move like this and it worked. Those with "pull carts" and loads of junk were struggling and then were "prey" for those who wanted what they had. Fast and light works best.
He who gets to the high ground first usually will get to keep it ... your wife should have a shotgun and you a rifle. The rifle will give you a "perimeter" for safety once out of the trouble. People killing one another does'nt happen when the first priority is getting out of somewhere. That happens, if Africa is any judgement to go by, when the brief provisions thrown together start to run out.
Each to their own but if you are serious about developing a "bug out" ability you and your wife need to share a skill base to live off belt kit and be fit enough to carry your kids ... IMO ... otherwise you might as well decide to stay put and take your chances by preparing a "citidel" which is battoned down and able to be defended.
Editted to add on the hip belt question ... get a Papoose system with wide shoulder straps ... you need to carry the weight on your shoulders for the kids and no hip belt so you can drop them off quickly if in a contact situation and you are right when you say there is not room for both a webbing belt and a Papoose hip belt. However, if your belt kit has a "mesh" back and set of shoulder straps which most modern webbing has ... the back pouches when full create a natural "shelf" whereby the Papoose or Rucksack for that matter can rest on and to that extent performs some of the function of the belt stap which comes with the larger ruck sacks. Get a "hippo pad" or "kidney pad" as they might be called in the US which spreads the weight around the hips for your webbing belt set up ... it avoids sores and blisters from narrow "contact" on the hips when carrying a fair bit of weight. The same idea as a wide hip belt on your rucksack.
In our S/F when doing selection we use a "bungee" with hook fastners and run this through the Bergan frame and tie it off around our waste. It kept the Bergan from bouncing on your lower back when running. The same idea could work OK with a Papoose. Being narrow it did'nt get in the way like two belts would. Experiment with your set up and it all should drop into place.
or no backpack with just a gun? let me ask you what gear you think i shouldnt be carrying? Maybe one gun less and not the AK? I can understand that. But then i would be a guy with a backpack and a shotgun still...
