Well, have you?

Today was dreary, cool (58) and drizzly all day. The perfect fall day! By comparison, yesterday was 80 and sunny.

So, with dusk falling, I decided to go try some firemaking under wet conditions. I was inspired while watching Coast Guard: Alaska on TV ... weird, I know.

Anyway, I realized after 10 minutes that I didn't have a firesteel to be found! I know one's in my PSK, pretty sure one's in my BOB and my wife's BOB, one in my car, one in her car. I didn't want to pull any of those apart.

I'd somehow been caught without TRAINING tools, due to my desire to get things packed and supplied appropriately.

Oops.

Time for some online shopping, I guess!

PS: Decided to throw a Mora into my truck. Somebody remind me in 2 years when I complain about not finding them

Hahaha! Better to slip up while training than when you really needed it. You probably won't make that mistake again.

LOL

Happens to me all the time. Not only prep items but others too.

I work in my home-workshop time to time and almost every time I miss something. Tools are there but maybe hiding in this kit or that kit, or in the other desk dedicated for computer repair ( I have a desk in a corner for minor jobs, and a room for bigger jobs)

Lately, I canceled the minor repair desk thing and shifted all the contents ( tools, supplies) to that workshop. Now it is properly equipped without buying anything extra.

Too many kits result in you having NO tools when you need them, especially when kits become too holy to be opened and used. In my case it has become ridiculous as I have a tool kit in the garden (with general items plus garden specific stuff), another for the ground floor(general/electrical) , another for the attic(general/mechanical), another for when I go to Mom's house ... etc. It was logical and understandable when I made them but after some time it has become apparent that multiple kits is not always a good idea.

On the other hand, using one of your kits in situation like tjat can be good practice too. Where's the kit? Where's the fire kit? If you do it that way, though, you need to remember to lewve the kit stocked and not shorted. No biggie for a fire stee - just remember to put it back. I'd replace any tinder used though.

Here is another point of view. If you don't break into those kits and use some of it, how do you know if it isn't expired/broken/missing/etc... Or that the version you put in wasn't recalled or superseded by something or a manufacturers defect. I wrestle with this all the time and finally have gotten to the point of being able to USE those kits, not just store them.

Regards,
Bill

Exactly, you're a victim of the kit mentality that tends to lock us into this sort of artificial constraint. The kit is "only for emergencies" to the point that people often hesitate to break into it when it is first needed because its not an emergency yet. Pretty soon it is an emergency which might have been averted.

The corollary is the multi-day hiker who gets lost, panics and fails to use his backpack full of food, shelter, stove, etc. because he's "surviving".

I don't like to carry things that are just for emergencies, with the possible exception of a PLB.

Kind of a general reply since it's in a few replies ...

Definitely agree that you can over-think yourself, over isolate things, etc. Mainly I didn't want to go into my PSK b/c it's sealed w/ electrical tape. My car was on the other side of the house and I'm lazy - though ultimately I did break it out. As for my wife's kit, I keep an eye on that and occasionally rotate out supplies (food, batteries, etc). But I really hate pulling things apart if I can avoid it.

Maybe I'll just have to adjust my thinking that the car kit is the practice kit. It's easy to repack and relatively redundant (I work in a suburban environment, so not critically important if I lose it).

When I buy smaller gear items, like flashlights, fire starters, whistles, knives, ect. I always buy at least two. One to use the heck out of and one to put away (possibly in my BOB, car kit, ect).

If it's something I really like, sometimes I'll go back and buy more, just to have some extras. If it's something that I end up not really liking (but is still a good piece of gear), I'll either sell it or store it.

By doing this, I've built up a surplus of extra gear over the years. Some of it heavily used, some lightly used, and some brand new. It means I rarely have to raid my kits for a piece of gear. It also means, when a family member or friends needs something, I can often just give it to them outright as a gift (which I actually prefer to loaning stuff out most of the time).

Of course, my method won't work for everyone, but I figure, I've got the money and the storage space, so why not?

LOL yes!
Ive reached the first pleatu of prepping; one bag for each family member, edc, ghb, and one in each car.

So now that Ive gotten away from my ALICE pack, I've been using my new Jansport big bear 82 BOB as my hiking bag. Trouble is that its got so much BOB stuff in it its not for a daily 6 mile hike.

So it seems Ive got to gear up a light weight alice pack somehow to use a weekend HIKING BAG.

One thing for sure, if the SHTF we will have so many bags and provosions to take care of ourselves and others. if strangers have enough money or wish to trade hard working children I will barder

Pooly

I use my car stuff all the time. It is not in a sealed "kit" but spread around in pockets, various compartments and containers. Lots of redundancy in regard to fire-making, which is so important. Knives, too.

Esbit fuel tablets that I keep in a seat pocket came in very handy last week starting a campfire on a rainy day in the mountains. Impressed my friends when I grabbed a couple of those tablets and - viola! - the fire took off.

The extra jackets, gloves, hats, etc. that I keep in the car inevitably are useful for me and friends this time of year when the weather is changing.

I have a bag that goes in the car whenever I drive across the river - I went through that today to reacquaint myself with what's where. I frequently use the flashlights and headlamps so it is important to keep up on the battery supply.

One of the emergency items I keep in multiple places is cash. That will surely come in handy and not just for disaster situations.

Good to use some of this stuff on occasion - practice and replenish.

CASH!?

A lot harder once you get married

The trick for me has been to immediately note what I've used so that I can replenish the kit before I need whatever-it-was next time.

pssst ... she's the wife!

Oh, Dagney, how do you get the Esbit tablets to start? I always have a tough time with them.

Usually I have a couple of spares of items for practice, but I guess the spares got packed.

Glad I'm not the only one with that problem.

As my grandfather said:

To get married, all it cost was $5 for the marriage license, plus all the money I made the rest of my life.

Stick a 3x5 file card in each kit. It will be titled "TO BE REPLENISHED" and anything in that kit that gets used gets noted.

Got taught a lesson last night. I had removed my car bag cause my car was getting serviced. long story short, I got locked out of the house with just the clothes I had on.

Makes sense to partition out a car kit now. At least a coat gloves and a pocket knife. Ended up killing time at the dollar store where I bought a key chain flash light...now Im ready for SHTF

Some of the most critical items in a crisis take up very little room in the car and aren't a big financial hit if Mr. Goodwrench steals it at the shop. Such as:

Bic lighter
Matches
firestarters (cotton balls and petroleum jelly)
stainless cup
bottled water
garbage bags (serves as poncho, tarp, pack cover, etc)
old knife
aspirin, bandaids, First Aid kit, cotton bandannas....

I have these things in seat pockets, door pockets and other nooks and crannies.

I've done a lot of camping, including sleeping in the car (Honda Element), and based on those experiences I keep in the car at all times (even when at the Honda dealer), fleece sleeping bag liner, Smartwool socks, long underwear, Marmot Dri-Clime, waterproof parka, fleece hat/neck gaiter/gloves and an old pair of Gore-Tex hiking poots.

In the winter I add an old pair of down booties.

If I lived in NH I'd have some warm stuff in the car all the time. I do in DC most of the year.

I've been camping and collecting gear for twenty years so have plenty of old stuff which would not cause me to lose sleep if it were stolen and would allow me to get some sleep, and survive, if stranded.

For the winter I also have an old JetBoil stove in the car and I keep several packets of Lipton's Cup 'o Soup in there as well as cocoa and a few other food items which would be lovely if were stranded for more than a couple hours on a cold day.

Seriously imagine being stuck in your car without a heater for a couple hours in January....

I did not have a problem - used a Bic lighter I keep in the glove box. Used the ones that came with this kit I bought earlier this year:

http://www.amazon.com/Esbit-Ultralight-F...;keywords=esbit