Most people here would probably do it better, and the price raises an eyebrow but this isn't too bad (to have at work/car/home if not actually carry !)



http://www.rei.com/product/753288

I thought my question was clear. I mean a pocket size survival kit like Doug Ritter's Pocket Survival Pack, only specific to an urban environment.

Jeanette Isabelle

Sorry, I realized that and edited my answer.

As the post TeacherRO linked to, an urban EDC is probably a LED keychain flashlight, disposable rain poncho and a bus ticket.
Although in US cities less logically laid out than Manhattan a watchband compass is also useful.

Jeanette:

I'm strictly urban, and don't carry a wilderness PSK on me at all. The farthest off-road I go is the grass and paths in the parks. My "Survival" items are:

Cell Phone
Hidden cash cache
AMK Mini-FAK with extra bandaids
Hand Sanitizer and Antiseptic Wipes
Small Camp Mirror (for self-examination and signaling)
Lights (I could also use my cell phone or PDA if it really came down to it.)
Pocket Knife
Multitool
Space Blanket
Large Garbage Bag
Coghlan's combo Whistle/Thermometer/Compass/Magnifier
Duct Tape*, Orange Tape*, and Paracord
Bic Lighter and Spark-Lite & Tinder (I don't smoke)

*Make your own flat packs by folding it around a business card (lengthwise).


This is carried in my EDC shoulder bag. I also have a FAK, water, and a GHB in my car, with an AMK PSK, food, and more weather items, but if I were stranded outdoors overnight, even in one of the local canyons or gullies, I think I'd be okay with the above. Not happy, and maybe even not completely comfortable, but okay. My thinking is covered in more detail here.

For a U-PSK....

-A small spool of dental floss (I think you can sometimes find 50' rolls) or a sewing machine bobbin of GOOD thread (or 20# braided fishing line), a couple of buttons and a few needles with eyes big enough.
-Duct tape, 4-6'
-Whistle (and one on your keys)
-asprin
-immodium
-change, small bills
-button compass
-small flashlight (and one on your keys)
-3-4' of wire
-paper and pencil

That should fit in an altoids tin or a pouch like the AMK pocket kits come in.

Honestly, it wouldn't hard to take a PSP and pull out the fishing kit, mirror, sparklite and tinder, and swap in the cash, light, and meds. Keep the safety pins and sewing needle in their vial, maybe add a couple of screws for glasses if needed, along with the buttons.

Add that to a small SAK or a compact multi with scissors, good boots laced with paracord, a small fak (AMK's .3 or .5 would be perfect), and a contractor bag or two. That fits in the pockets of most jackets, or the bottom of a bag or day pack with ease. Carry a water bottle.

The pyro in me NEEDS to have a lighter or a ferro rod, but I live in a state that doesn't have any one city with more 20K people in it, so I'm always thinking of the woods.

Scaling up, add a full sized multi or a pair of pliers. Pocket knife. Map. More change and cash. Better flashlight or a small headlamp. Poncho and/or heatsheet/space blanket. More duct tape/wire/paracord. Small strobe. Pepper spray and/or a sidearm, or a stout walking stick or umbrella.

As Doug Ritter has said, "If it isn't with you, it can't save you." I have the Pocket Survival Pack. It's currently sitting on my desk next to the computer monitor. I don't carry it with me.

Since I have one, cost is clearly not the issue. I have a first aid kit that's larger than the Pocket Survival Pack so size is not the issue either. The issue is, I see it strictly as a wilderness kit. The fishing kit, the instructions. . . . With the exception of a few items, everything about it points to that this is strictly a wilderness kit. Furthermore, to quote a passage from the frequently asked questions, "Many of the survivors who will need to rely on these instructions will have limited or no experience with the skills necessary to survive an unexpected stay in the wilderness."

Either I don't need it or I don't think I need it. If Doug intended it to be an urban and wilderness kit, I think he missed it by not making it clear this is for all environments.

Jeanette Isabelle

A lot of the individual items people have listed are items I have listed in the Urban EDC thread. However your idea of converting a Pocket Survival Pack into an urban survival kit is something I've considered this week. Since the Pocket Survival Pack includes a needle and thread, a thimble would seem more useful than some of the other items.

Jeanette Isabelle

I would start with one of these I keep it in my laptop bag for trips. It's the same size as the PSK



(if the image doesn't show up it's the AMK pocket medic)

The tweezers are great for splinters (never had to use them ticks), and it used to come with decent folding scissors.

I added a scalpel blade (which so far TSA have missed) a LED light, button compass and whistle. Then wrapped it and an orange rain poncho with 15' orange paracord.
You can also use the vial the forceps come in for ibuprofen.

Urban survival requires sensible shoes that adhere to slippery surfaces, the ability to look both ways when crossing a road, having airbags in your vehicle, putting your seat belt on and keeping a smoke hood on your person if having to live or work in buildings more than 5 story's high etc.

This might be a worthwhile video to watch.

I went into a potential urban survival situation once. In addition to what I needed for the job, I added:

Cartridge respirator with HEPA cartridges
HD leather work gloves
Explosion proof flashlight
5W handheld ham radio
Extra batteries and charger
Boots
Hardhat
Extra socks
Small camping towel
Alcohol hand wipes
Long sleave button up shirt
Leatherman tool

What I missed that I didn't take was:

Toothbrush
Toothpaste
Comb