Folks.... i would like to bring up something I haven't seen here, shovels.

After trying and going thru all the latest, coolest, super modern-tactical-bending- whatever...

This is the best I have ever used. It packs well and has never failed.

http://www.coldsteel.com/spshovel.html#

What say you?

the Swiss surplus one at Fleet Farm would work out fine,with a cover for $20..maybe less..shovels are one of those tricky survival items..too small they are worthless and too big,well just not packable.the only one i would have is in my trunk for digging out my stuck car and that would be a full size spade.in a BOB?i would rather carry food--but--being able to dig a shelter or dig out something could be a life saver..it would be handy to beat down a door or pry it open..or jam it closed..this is the "problem" with this site..in the first sentence i was writing it off and by the third i'm wondering how i would carry one-----

A cheap folding metal shovel is my campfire tender so it's always on trips. A folding Gerber is always in the car. And an assortment of shovels at home.

I keep a military folding shovel in my Tacoma. It is useful for campfires and digging when you get stuck. I have a fellow Scouter that has a fake military folding shovel, it is junk! The military shovels are great! I used one to dig fox holes in the Army.

You have chosen wisely. The CS shovel is an excellent, durable, non-weapon-like, hardcore tool.

Actually, there have been at least a couple of reviews of the CS shovel on this site. I can't find them using Search, but they're in there somewhere. I know; one of them is mine.

I own three of these tough little shovels. One in each car, and one alternating between woodlot and garden. If I could snag a dozen more at U.S. discount prices (like $15), I'd hand them out for Christmas.

Granted, they're not a finesse tool. Not an ideal knife, not an ideal prybar, not an ideal hatchet, not an ideal shovel. But like a Leatherman multitool, they do a whole lot of things passably well. And it's the versatile tool at hand that gets you through the tough spots.

I'm told (by somebody at zombieforum?) that the official, branded Boy Scouts of America shovel is a CS shovel with a badge attached. Outstanding. Real tools for real jobs, with none of the hoo-hah surrounding cutting tools.

I include a small file, or carbide EasySharp, with each of my CSS's. That way, it goes from shovel to machete to onion-slicer to zombie-whomper with a few well-placed strokes. I also wrap the handle in hockey tape (cloth tape that gives a slightly sticky, secure grip).

P.S., I think if C.S. came up with a slightly slimmed-down, 16 ounce, "Backpacker" version, they would sell a million billion zillion of them. They're just a bit heavy to hump around in a daypack without a specific need.

(Standard Disclaimer: no affiliation with CS. Me no shill, just happy customer re this tool.)

For camping, man pack, use an all-steel USGI tri-fold or a good knock-off is pretty standard. The 1941 equivalent, a longer wooden handle with blade and pick that are locked into various positions with a large nut are about as good, a little less compact when folded.

A D-handle spade is bulkier but a lot easier to use. The compact military/camping shovels are pretty miserable, downright back breaking, if you dig deep or for very long.

The full length shovels, roughly 46", are far more efficient and ergonomic moving dirt. Digging large holes is pretty tiring with full-sized equipment. The only reason the military can get by with dinky shovels is that faced with death by gunfire, and a lack of other options, people get by with what they have. Used to be the GI steel pot helmet made a functional entrenching tool, and wash basin and cook pot and stake driving hammer, in a pinch but they got rid of them in favor of plastic units. Sigh.

If a lot of digging is part of your plan, perhaps a contingency for rescue after an avalanche or mudslide, full-sized shovels are much more of an advantage than the compact versions. Glass reinforced plastic handles are stronger and don't rot or get eaten by bugs in storage but they are often a bit heavier and almost always more expensive than the wooden handle version.

I have a tri-fold as part of an urban rescue kit. Along with a saw, hatchet, pry bar, wrench, gloves, goggles, flashlight (rated for explosive atmospheres), rope, and few smaller items. All in a duffel bag with a stout shoulder strap.

I have one of those. The handle was too short so I took it off.
I have the taper cut on a longer handle. If you put the shovel head on the long handle and give the end of the handle a bounce against a rock it seats the sovel tightly on the taper.
To get the shove head off you need to hammer it off or drag it back against a rock hard. You don't need the handle bolted to the shovel.
The handle I use doubles as a walking stick, just a bit over 5 feet long 1.25" ash.

In the 'Special Forces' series on the Discovery channel in the UK there is an episode on the Russian Spetznaz. It shows how 'when push comes to shovel' (their pun) this shovel is a deadly weapon.
Also other crazy stuff: a kalashnikov shotgun anyone?
And how they do press ups using the kalashnikov rifle as a stand. Now that's a magazine that's built to last!
The Sock

I don't pack a shovel in my BOB, but there is a nice full sized one in my truck - in the winter I add a full sized snow shovel, and a big push broom (great for cleaning off a truck - not too worried about scratches - there are dents etc all over the truck)

The Cold Steel shovel is great at what it does, very durable, good for digging and a decent improvised hatchet. Better made than the original, however heavier and not as well balanced. Either way, much better IMHO than any folding military shovel.

BTW: http://forums.equipped.org/ubbthreads.ph...true#Post130543