I just bought a copy. Is it good or is it not worth it? Anything I should look out for in there? <img src="images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

I don't know if we are talking about same thing but I got as a gift 4 volumes of SAS survival books (Desert, Mountain/Arctic, Regular and Jungle). I did find them informative but each volume repeated it self. Introduction and basic skills were just copied over (major portion) and just further portions of the book accomodated given topic. I found some decent advices there and acctually tried a few.

Really good book that I picked up on sale is Air Force Survival Manual. It's a thick book but covers everything you need to know about survival.

Matt

Your 4 volume set was once called the SAS Encyclopedia of Survival and all those volumes were in that one. I guess they could make more money selling differant manuals for differant situations.

Yeah I tought that I will have a separate manual for different scenarios and it kind of worked out that way. I think they are trying to target two groups of people with these separate volumes. First group is those who really only do stuff in one specific region aka Jungle and Artic survival is really not that important for them. Second group are people who belive that four volumes is better than one. So instead of buying one SAS guide they will buy all four hoping for more in depth info. I fell into the second category when I hinted I wanted these books as a gift.

Again they are informative volumes.Iit's just that when you own all four, first half of the book is identical in all of them.

Matt

The Air Force Survival Manual is definitely a good read!

I keep the small sized book in all of my kits. I find the information would help me more in a longterm situation rather than a short term. I would say a situation that lasted more than three days would be where I pulled out the book.

I would use the book more for ideas that I hadn't tried before. For instance in a survival situation I might be inclined to make snares to catch food. If it came to that then that would mean I had all the time in the world to research different traps that I never tried before.

In the short term most of the skills I would use are skills I have practised over and over again to memory. However if I am trapped on a deserted island for the rest of my life, then the book is well worth the weight and that is why I carry one in each kit. That and for the fact that for my personal motivation I find reading to helpo me cope with stress. So the book is more of a personal religous item for me than anything else.

Knowledge wise I think your better off with the Air Force survival manual, but its too heavy and bulky for a survival kit you carry all the time.

If it's the GEM Pocket Edition (i.e. the one that actually fits in a pocket) then it's definitely a good buy. Pretty much everyone on this forum has at least one copy - I have two, that I know of <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

The only thing I can think of that you may want to watch out for is the author's "taste tests" to determine if plants are poisonous. Other survival books I've read have stated that such tests should never be relied on - there are some poisonous plants (e.g. in the deadly nightshade family, I think) where even a small taste could prove deadly. Of course, if it's a choice between starving to death and poisoning yourself, you may have to pay your money and take your choice, so a "taste test" might prove useful as a last resort.

IIRC, the first aid advice (which I find is usually the weak point in survival manuals) is quite up-to-date and reasonable.

There are other, much larger versions of the SAS Survival book - the names are all so similar that I can't keep them straight - which doubtless contain much more useful information, but which don't fit in my shirt pocket; therefore, I wouldn't be likely to have them on me as I fled from the burning wreck. <img src="images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

The small size of the SAS Gem version ensures that I can have it on me at all times; the newer versions have end-flaps that you could use to hold some (flat) useful items, such as a Fresnel lens or a plastic bag with gin-soaked cotton wool <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> (j/k - vaseline would be better, but much less tasty <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> )

You all refer to the Air Force survival manual, is it a proper military manual or just a marketing ploy to lure consumers. If it is a proper USAF publication where can I acquire one down here in Australia. ANY IDEAS

It is a proper military manual. There is nothing in the survival manual that has to be classified so it is an exact reprint. Because it is reprinted by private contractor outside US Army it can be shipped anywhere.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/det...mp;amp;n=507846

It's not by any chance a pocket book. About 3 inches thick and A4 format. I think Amazon will have no problem shipping you the item.

Matt

Those are by Barry Davies