I'll let you be the judge. First, I must give you my disclaimer. I have no affiliation with Uncharted Supply Co.

Let me begin with what I love about Doug Ritter's PSP. Doug spent, what, a year, maybe more, to engineer the PSP from the ground up to maximize space and weight. It is a product that can save a life, made with quality components. And he made it affordable so that every person in a family can have one on his person.

Why is the last reason so important? People get separated. It is a reality that sometimes has tragic results. It is necessary for every person in a family to have a PSP on his or her person in the event people get separated. Again, to do that, it has to be compact, light-weight and priced so that every person in the family can have one.

Until a few days ago, I have not found anything off-the-shelf that includes every attribute I listed. The Seventy2 Survival System has all that: It is engineered to maximize space and weight by going with multi-purpose items and outside the box thinking. While not top quality (that would take it beyond the price point needed) it has the quality needed to see a person through an emergency. It is designed to save a life. And they priced it so that every person in a family can have one.

This backpack is 18" x 12" x 6" and weighs 11.5 lb.

At $349.99 it is not cheap; I think it represents a good value, a good bang for the buck.

Without attempting to explain why I believe it is worth the price they are asking, I'll let them do it with a link to their product and a 20 Minute, 32 Second video:

https://unchartedsupplyco.com/collections/all/products/the-seventy2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wKQNQ7MmmY

The above links may not provide all the information you want or need; I hope I provided enough to pique your interest to do further research.

Just as it is with Doug's PSP, the Seventy2 Survival System lists recommended items to add which they don't add for shipping reasons such as water (why pay to ship water when a person can fill the included water battle at the sink) and a lighter.

The PSP offers something that the Seventy2 Survival System does not, unfortunately. If you use a PSP in a survival situation, you get a replacement unit for free. That is not so with the Seventy2 Survival System. C'est la vie.

For those who say, "I can build a better system with higher quality components," stay tuned because I have great news for you! They also sell the shell and insert so you can customize your system.

https://unchartedsupplyco.com/collections/all/products/waterproof-backpack
https://unchartedsupplyco.com/collections/all/products/the-seventy2-insert-only

If you want to save $25, you can buy the shell and insert together.

https://unchartedsupplyco.com/collections/all/products/the-seventy2-shell-and-insert-only

Sold separately; another product I like is their logo t-shirt which includes instructions on how to use a t-shirt in a survival situation. I love that multi-purpose thinking.

https://unchartedsupplyco.com/collections/all/products/t-shirt

Finally, if anyone knows of a survival kit that has all the features I listed (designed to make the best use of space and weight so that it would not be a burden, can save a life and is priced so that every family member can have one in case people are separated), let me know. That is the type of gear I want to research.

Jeanette Isabelle

I think there are a few deficiencies in this kit. It looks like the organization features add more bulk than I'd prefer. It should really have a whistle and a signal mirror. The firestarting tools should include tinder and a one-handed option. The shovel and multitool look pretty light-duty to me.

It looks like one could build a kit like this in a much less expensive bag and end up with higher quality components in some areas for the same price.

Speaking for Doug isn't in my job description, but the PSP's design philosophy is for something pocket sized, lightweight and much less expensive. I view the PSP as a component for a 72 hour kit, rather than being a 72 hour kit on its own.

There is a whistle integrated into the backpack, saving space and weight. What I like about that is you can't lose your whistle.

There is tender. Again, Uncharted Supply Co. saves space and weight by using items that have multiple purposes.

You are right about the signal mirror. That kit does not have one. What I would do is add a PSP to fill a few gaps in the Seventy2 Survival System with the only thing genuinely redundant is you now have two whistles, not a huge problem.


Though bigger (a backpack instead of a pocket kit) and at a higher price, I still think this fits Doug's philosophy of getting the best performance for space, weight and cost. Doug wanted his PSP to be small, lightweight and priced so that every person in a family can have one. I think the Seventy2 Survival System accomplishes the same thing for its category.

Jeanette Isabelle

Thanks for the corrections about the whistle and the tinder. For a pre-built backpack sized kit, I can't remember seeing a better one anywhere near this price point. The only backpack sized kit that I've seen of Doug's (http://www.dougritter.com/DR-aviator_survival_pak_index.htm) is way more expensive. And no, I don't own one .

I suppose it's not bad if you're simply unwilling for whatever reason to put together your own kit. Certainly it's larger and contains more stuff than most premade kits. I went through the contents and tallied up everything included, curious what it would cost to purchase everything individually. Some of their items are branded but an equivalent can be easily found (example, their Nalgene is branded but it's still an Nalgene). Assigning a price to each item and erring on the high side on each item to be fair to them I calculated I could buy everything within either locally or at Amazon for $187, not including the bag. So they're getting $350 for $212 worth of items for a markup of about 40%. That's not a horrible deal considering they have to advertise, hire staff, pay workers comp and taxes, etc.

Of course, predictably, I would make my own. I have two kits in that same general weight class (on a bit lighter one a bit heavier) that provide an awful lot more capability for less money.

My problem isn't even so much the value for money but the capability for the size of the pack. The pack appears to be at least 25 liters (maybe the size was listed and I missed it). Given a pack of that size there's no good reason not to include a real tarp. Even a Walmart treated nylon tarp for $10 will hold up better and longer than a space blanket tent. No knock on the tent! I have a couple of those but it's pretty charitable to call it a tent. Most of my kits include a Sil-nylon or treated polyester tarp along with a couple of space blankets, and the med/large ones include a large 0.7 mic drop cloth to facilitate construction of a "Super Shelter".

Still, I don't meant to pick nits, Jeanette! That's more compleat than most premade kits to be sure. I doubt I'd buy the bag since it appears to be the most overpriced part of the kit; they sell just the bag for $199! Yikes! You could buy a Mystery Ranch technical day/climbing pack for less money and almost undoubtedly get a vastly better bag. Or buy a dry bag pack that was either many times larger or vastly less expensive depending on your priorities. But for the person that wants a turnkey solution it would be bad, and there seems to be a bit of space to add a few items.

I would agree there are a few deficiencies. The omission of a signal mirror is obvious and sets the tone or the "survival' situations envisioned by its developers- evidently one of strife and violence - the kind envisioned by so many ShTF survivalist web sites. A grey pack?, ?Get serious!! If you want to be helped, you must be noticed, to be noticed bright colors are preferable, not dull mousy grey.

I just bought a new general purpose pack - its color is described as "molten red."

The flashlight - it uses "standard batteries". ?? What does that mean?Are the batteries compatible with any of the other electronics? Can any of the electronics function as a power bank?

A more fruitful approach would be to develop a pack that changes with the seasons and the local environment. You will want to initially stock and carry much more water in a hot desert than is available in this kit. What they stock is probably not too bad for a temperate forest in the spring.

A realistic kit needs to be personalized, integrated with an individual's EDC, training, aptitudes, and skills and tweaked for circumstances (like changing seasons and weather).

This kit is an ineffectual use of your money. Better to put your dough and time into a Wilderness first Aid course, among many other options.

Build your own kit, stocking it thoughtfully, and you will be much better served.

Thumbs down on this mess....

Not sure what the thing is targetting at? Wilderness? Urban disasters?

'48L inside the shell' and '50L of storage'

Let's say that pretty HUGE.

'Integrated flashlight mounts provide hands-free lighted operation at night'

What's wrong with a plain old headlight. Mounts on the backpack means you have to wear the pack.

'3-in-1 radio'

Personally not a fan, simply because these USB chargers don't provide enough power, nor constant power to charge anything these days. There are tiny FM/AM radio's that sip batteries. Carry a power bank to actually charge things.

'RZ M5 Air Filtration Mask' and 'Goggles'

So more urban I guess? But what's wrong with a plain N95/N99 mask, instead of a mask that doesn't show any certification and cost more.

'glow stick'

Personally; I don't get why they are so popular. Single-use, can be damaged in storage, limited storage life. An actual flashlight with Lithium batteries, stores longer, better light, can be smaller, has an on-off button.

'Convertible Shovel/Pickaxe'

So, when do you actually need one? Big, heavy, not really high on my list of priorities.

'Logo t-shirt'

Not exactly info I need to have printed on the shirt to figure out. Not sure how it's applied, but if it's an iron on the type, then it's just annoying on your skin. (silkscreen is less of an issue)

'Patent Pending.'

Not familiar with US patents, but can't really see patent-worthy things. Organizers and kits can be patented?

Certainly the addition of a headlamp would be nice. I do like glowsticks! They're not a necessity but they're very handy, pretty cheap and fairly light. I like them to mark things, usually my camp; set them up high on the tent or hang it from a tree to make your camp easy to find if you have to 'use the facilities' in the night, or if you're forced to gather wood after sundown. I agree the shovel/E-tool isn't likely to be worth the weight but if it 's good quality (if!) then it could be handy. A decent quality fixed blade knife or even a good folder would be very useful. The multitool included looks suspiciously like one I picked up at a local store, and it broke literally as I opened the package. A Gerber Dime would be a nice inclusion.

Even during a time in which it is nearly impossible to watch the national news without a disaster (forest fires, floods, hurricanes, tornados, blizzards) being one of the top stories, people still don't prep. Somehow we should expect them to build their own?

Even at my level, I think it is best to buy something off-the-shelf and modify it to one's needs.


This kit is designed for people who probably do not spend a lot of time outdoors. They wouldn't know what to do with a tarp even if they have one.

Jeanette Isabelle

They already explained it. In an urban environment, you need to be the grey man.


Even during a time in which it is nearly impossible to watch the national news without a disaster (forest fires, floods, hurricanes, tornados, blizzards) being one of the top stories, people still don't prep. Somehow we should expect them to take a wilderness first aid class?

Jeanette Isabelle