i have a SILVA CL15 compass i am willing to trade for a PSP or mostly complete PSP. the compass is in excellent condition and has a minor scratch on the mirror. also its missing the neck lanyard but, 2 feet of paracord and wa-lah! but i have never used the compass and cannot afford the PSP. it is a $50 compass! please consider! 777.

As I posted in the other thread on tins, I have a number of items that may help you in creating your own PSK, which I would recommend. Creating your own PSK gives you a personal stake in the contents and the evolution of a personalized kit will be much more gratifying. Just get permission from your parents to PM me your name and address.

Pete

Yeah, I'd do what Pete said and personalize your kit.

Second, I wouldn't give up that compass! Really. Half the things in the PSP you can get pretty easy around the house anyway (twine, duct tape, needles, thread, etc).



Random off topic here, but I wonder if there'd be any interest in a community "pool" of equipment? You know, as we upgrade our stuff, the left-over comes in, so newbies/minors can start their own kit.

I thought something along these lines earlier today as I've seen trade posts alot more recently that perhaps it would save time if there was a TRADE section. IE new section under the Portal Page just for trading.

Hi Sybert.
I agree with MDinana on this one.
Keep hold of the compass for now. You will learn to use it and Silva's Ranger15 series are pretty good.

I think with Pete's help you will have no trouble assembling a decent kit for yourself.
MDinana says that you can get a lot of the kit out of household supplies and he is right.
You will find a bit of careful shopping will get the rest at very low cost.

There is nothing magical about the individual items either and assembling the kit a bit at a time will let you consider your items more.
I mean you can think about what job the items do and carry things to do those jobs.
Keep in mind that Doug's kit was created for compactness and there are plenty of substitutions that work just as well, or even better, if being super compact is not the primary concern.
If you look through the topic threads here you will see that a lot of the members who started with Doug's PSP were soon adding and sometimes substituting their own items.

You can fit your kit to your needs better too.
Sometimes the items in a commercial kit are not what you are likely to need in the part of the world you live in. Sometimes the kits miss things you should have with you too.

I don't actually carry my kit as a kit, but I do carry everything that would be in a PSP.
Some people call it "distributed carry", "every day carry" or something like that.
Some of it is in my wallet, some in pockets and some is on zipper pulls or key rings. Some of it is part of my clothing.

I never liked wearing kit around my neck like a necklace. If you do that then make sure the necklace has a safety link that will break if it snags instead of choking you.