Knowledge and size of kit

A new thread...<br>What has happened to the size of your "kit" (what ever that is) since participating in this forum, or just recently otherwise? Has it gotten bigger and heavier since learning about new gadgets, or has it gotten smaller by increasing knowledge or substituting more versitile things?<br><br>

My "kits"(note plural)have gotten BETTER.My two pocket tins push the envelope for minimum,but my old swedish rucksack has actually gotten lighter.Theres a point of diminishing returns with gear.If I have everything including the kitchen sink I might as well stay in the kitchen!A few items get exchanged for preplanned outings ie a Myerchin marine knife for whale watching,puukko and wirecutters for horseback riding (I've cut more than one rider free from ancient barbed wire and tangled tack.<br><br>

That's an interesting question because it gets at the two different philosophies of survivival equipment. More-is-better vs. smaller-is-better. <br><br>Personally, my kit grew at first as a result of reading Doug's site and became much more powerful. I then realized that it was getting too big to be convenient, so I trimmed it down a bit and got it back close to it's original size but far more useful than before. It was still just slightly too big for pocket carry (great for daypack or cargo pocket). Using the tips from this site, it was then possible for me to make a second, very useful kit that was also extremely small and fits easily in any pocket ("micro kit"). I now have and carry both at different times, depending on whether I have a pack of some kind and how remote I will be. I have also incorporated some layering of gear so the amount of equipment can be easily adjusted to the situation.<br><br>So I really went in both directions, more/bigger and less/smaller. In any case, I am much better equipped and prepared whether I'm carrying a little more or a little less.<br><br>By the way, I consider Doug's site a great source for info on survival equipment, but if you want a site that focuses more on survival techniques (the equivalent of an on-line survival manual, military-style), try:<br>http://www.aircav.com/survival/asurtoc.html<br>It's loaded with great info and displays an ad for Doug's site.<br><br>

I always ask the question before adding an item,"How many uses does this item have." My kit is probably equal to most any kit out there due to this philosophy. If the item only has one use, it is usually left out. This saves weight and bulk and money.<br><br>Ranger.<br>The older I get, The better I was.