What gear do you carry everyday and everywhere? Is there ever a minimum that you feel secure with? How do you carry it? I'm never really satisfied with my set up. It changes almost everyday. I wish I could figure out what the basics should be and then stick with it.

Swiss army champ carried in leatherman sheath.(less ofensive to the uneducated) Ken Onion Scallion in pocket. Spydercard in wallet. Put it in there months ago, never used it but it's there. On key chain: swiss-tech utili-key, white Photon II. If I'm going to traval for the day or go to work I carry a little ditty bag containing: Blackie collins buddy knife, leatherman micra, letherman wave, Small amount of par-cord, 10 feet of duat tape, bandanna, Princeton Tec Blast, small pack of aniseptic, bandaids,dog tag style neck lanyard, 3' of black leather thong, small bobbin of fish line and dental floss, Half a magnisium fire starter, mini bic, swiss army mini tool chest, photon I red covert (long battery life) 3 safty pins, small button compass ( From a Dakota watch, very dependable). 3" hack-saw blade, mini dyad. Suprisingly it all fits into a 7"x5" ditty bag. also a little extra cash and a cell phone. I may be to the extreme, but i don't care, It takes no energy to carry.

I think that greatly depends on what you do "everyday". If you're a farmer you have quite a bit more leaway(sp) conserning your daily carry than say a broker on Wall St. who would have more freedom than someone who takes comercial airlines on a regular basis.<br><br>Basic guidelines for me include a knife, Photon III flashlight, cell phone, paper, pen, and spare calling card, cash, and MTA card (for subway) when in the city. When away with the military I also ad a Leatherman Wave, first aid kit, and PSK (similar to many outlined here)

I like to compare being 'prepared' to the "when disaster strikes" documentaries. It usually takes a combination of small human errors coupled with minor equipment failures to combine into one big problem. IE. the O rings on the Space Shuttle would only fail in certain temperatures, and Human error pushed the envelope. Our equipment may indeed have ommissions, but what we do have may "soldier thrue". Id rather have a premium sleeping bag in the arctic over a knife to fight off Polar bears, and a photonll over compass in a darkened building. I always have a knife, twin pocket tins ( general and first aid) on my person ( even got them concealed in a tuxedo!) and a supply of water at hand.

Gatekeeper,<br><br>You said:<br>"I'm never really satisfied with my set up. It changes almost everyday. I wish I could figure out what the basics should be and then stick with it."<br><br>I think you're way ahead of the game as it is. I don't feel that you or anyone should ever stop examining alternatives to their gear, whether daily carry or otherwise. I know I haven't. Even Doug updated his mini tin recently. Keep changing what you carry, and you'll keep improving what you carry. Stop, and you'll stop. :-)<br><br>Also, to me, "Daily Carry" includes my vehicle and the two places I spend most of my daily time... home & office. I keep bigger, heavier and more gear in those places than I can carry on my person, and I'll still have access to at least one of those caches most of the time as I go through my days & my regular life.<br><br>As for what I carry... too much. :p I don't suggest anyone carry as much crap as I do. I'm just eccentric. I've already delineated my regular stuff in a number of other threads and feel silly reciting it all again. If you care, you can check here, here and here. Is there a minimum I feel secure with? Yeah. Like I say, it takes quite a bit for me to feel happy, actually. And every time I use any of it, I feel all warm and fuzzy all over again, and reaffirm that it's all worth it. How do I carry it? All over. I consider my clothing part of my equipment. The "gear" part of my gear I mostly just carry in my pants pockets. I've found ways to load my pockets so the stuff I carry is comfortable and stays where I put it, though it does create bulges. When I go swimming or jogging, I put it in a fanny pack. I don't mind. I love having my gear with me when I need it!

What makes me feel comfortably prepared is much less than the airlines will let us carry now. But that's another rant.<br><br>Weekdays:<br><br>LF pocket: Leatherman PST, bottle of prescription headache meds, money wallet.<br>RF pocket: Mini Fox 40 whistle attached to a white Photon II, Princeton Tec Blast, Suunto Comet compass/thermometer, ID wallet.<br>LR pocket: Comb, Swiss-Tech MicroPlus, Spyderco Cricket.<br>RR pocket: Mini MagLite (2 AAA batteries), red and turquoise Photon IIs, chrome bullet-style space pen, lip balm.<br>Belt: Victorinox CyberTool 34 in a nylon sheath.<br>Jacket: Wireless phone, 550 paracord, 2x3-inch StarFlash signal mirror, Princeton Tec 20, mini-first aid kit, keys with Swiss-Tech Utili-Key.<br><br>Weekends:<br><br>Vic CyberTool goes into LF pocket, replacing Leatherman PST. Leatherman Wave or Vic SwissTool R/S goes on belt.<br><br>Now you know why my pants are always trying to fall down. Grin.<br>

Well, it seems to be a ritual that everyone tell what drags thier pants down at least once, so why not....<br><br><br>-left pocket: Good luck charm, small bottle of tylenol<br>-Left hip, in horizontal sheath: Leatherman Supertool, Minimaglight, EMT shears, 2 spare AA batteries<br>-left rear pocket: wallet with assorted ID, some cash, a few band-aids, 2"x2" heavy duty aluminum foil square<br>-right right pocket: pocket notebook with a pencil stub in the spiral<br>-right front pocket: pencils, pens, a small tube of strike anywhere matches dipped in laquer and a cut down sparkler, pocket change<br>-watch pocket: Leatherman Micra<br>-clipped to belt loop: keyring with modified mini-Fox 40 whistle, CPR shield w/ nitrile gloves<br>-dog tags w/ red allegy tags, small aluminum tube with more matches, striker from a magnesium firestarter<br><br>I usually wear a heavy-duty leather belt and work boots, with a small boot knife carried in the right boot most of the time.<br><br>In my coats I carry a pocket kit (one in each, so I can't forget) and a pair of light leather gloves. If I'm going to be in the woods, a 5" .357 and 2 speedloaders go on my right hip, along with a Ka-Bar. If I'm not around the house at night, depending in the level of discomfort I'm feeling, either a KelTEc P-32 or a Browning Hi-Power goes inside my waistband.<br><br>That is the bare minimum, to the point that when I go to bed at night, the stuff from my pants goes into my bath robe (got locked out of my college dorm room once after a fire drill becuase I forgot my keys). <br>

>>What gear do you carry everyday and everywhere?<<<br><br>Jeez, the question is too broad. I don’t carry anything to bed or into the shower (there are a few items in and behind the nightstand), or, most of the time, inside the house. When I go running in the mornings, I carry a 4 oz. titanium folder, a 4.5 oz. cell phone, and a door key, and that’s already too much weight. If I’m going out, I have a few items in my pockets- folder, lighter, flat items in wallet, couple of things on the key chain, cell phone, Palm. Commuting, long trips with or short trips without my own vehicle, I grab a shoulder pouch that mostly has current reading, notebooks and miscellanious electronics, but also my “urban escape” kit and other items that vary somewhat with season. Day hiking, still another kit, boating, still another kit. There’s a kit and odds and ends in my vehicle, so I generally don’t grab the pouch to drive to the bank, grocery store, or restaurant, though again, I have my usual pocket litter...<br><br>The problem I have is that the restrictions and demands vary too much. What I want on the water is not what I want on a day hike, and fish hooks, snares and signal mirrors are not much use downtown. Even just downtown, if I’m going into government buildings, I can’t carry a knife, metal tin, or anything remotely suspicious, but if I’m going downtown and NOT into a government building, I certainly want my full urban escape kit. Downtown, I can’t carry a knife over 3 inches, but outside of the city I often do. I haven’t flown since 9/11, but even then it was a pain, reconfiguring the carry items- now it must be a nightmare. If I had unlimited resources, I could probably use 20 different kits, not just 3 or 4. As it is, I’m afraid to seal even one.<br><br>>>Is there ever a minimum that you feel secure with?<<<br><br>Are you kidding? These days, there isn’t even a MAXIMUM I feel secure with. :-)

>>Is there ever a minimum that you feel secure with?<<<br><br>Are you kidding? These days, there isn’t even a MAXIMUM I feel secure with. :-)<br><br>LOL!

EXCELLENT! Keep it coming. Thanks A BUNCH! Once I take another inventory, I'll let you people see what I carry and ask you to pick it apart.