I've been spending some time lately browsing these pages trying to determine how best to go about putting together my own survival kit. I've now got one together, based on Doug Ritter's survival kit, but I could't find a suitable rectangular tin. So, being that I am a new father again, I stole one of the baby's Penaten Cream tins. The only downfall is it is circular. But I think I 've managed to put a good deal in it. I couldn't quite get everything that Doug has in his, and I've added a couple of things of my own. <br><br>Does anyone have any experience with round tins verses rectangular ones? I find that it actually works better as my snare wire, thread, and nylon line can all be coiled into the bottom of the tin. My Penaten Cream Tin has a volume of 10.67 cubic inches where Doug's has a volume of 10.98 cubic inches, but obviously I am limited by the shape of the can. All my space is used up by packing with smaller items like safety pins and dryer lint for fire starter. I also came across some alcohol preps from a first aid kit, similar to small individually packaged wet wipes. These contain isopropyl alcohol. Would these be viable fire starters as well? <br><br>I am going to find some waterproof paper and cut it into circular pages which will fit into the upper tin and also protect my shiny inner surface. One of these sheets of paper will also contain survival notes.<br><br>So rounds tins versus rectangular ones! Any comments?<br><br>Ironbird<br><br>

Sounds like Jonathan Swift's satire on cracking eggs on the small or large ends leading to war LOL. Id save the alcohol prep pads for first aid. I tried it and they consumed themselves to rapidly. Barry at BlueLine Outfitters sells the BCB tins. These are much larger than the Altoid tin I started with and my current twin pack of Swedish tins ( sold out). It pushes convenient daily carry. I am slowly building it up to reside in my packer coat. As an aside; larger tins are advantagous for heating smalll quantities of water. Notice I didn't say boil! Most of these tins will be irrepairably warped or scorched. If you carry a small esbit stove or similar unit it pays to have a stable mating of the two. there is no rule against carrying more than one unit! I have one dedicated just for meds and it's G.P. mate.

Oh dear if you can't get the altoids tins your never gonna make it in tight spot! Oh Dear Me!!! Try any phamacy if you must have them. the mints are pretty good too! yeah I know I ain't exactly hiddin ther sarcasim.....<br><br>I see thing a bit different and would not give 2 cents for an altoids tin. The have a built in stamped hindge that will allow water in fast! I like the french candy tins that are round and seal pretty tight. These will keep out water even if dropped in a pond for a pretty long time. I bend out the bottom, as to begin with they are dome up. it ends up looking like 2 tops more or less when done.<br><br>I don't keep the same things in my tin as most here do, so I won't comment much on that, but since both tins hold fire makings one way or the other, you just might want to keep out water for the most part.<br><br>I heat my tin red hot often and so it is grayish black. Since my tin is part of fire making..a tool, I don't care what color it is, so long as it is water tight

A co-worker "donated" an extra large Altoids mint tin to me. It can hold three regular Altoid mint tins inside with some headroom to spare. It has sort of a brushed surface that will not strip dwn to bare metal and the lid has the Altoids logo as a raised embossing. Both the top and the bottom are formed into a slight dome. I tried to hammer down the bottom dome flat to regain some space, but it springs right back up.<br><br>I'm not sure how I'll use this box, if at all. My initial thought was to make a super kit for my pack using three small tins inside, one of which would be my PSK. But then my PSK would be sepaated from me should I lose the pack somehow. But, since most of my outdoor activity is restricted to car camping, that's not a likely scenario, although still possible as anything can go wrong in an emergency.<br><br>Amyway, I just couldn't resist the tim when it was offered to me. :-)

One thing on the large survival tin front you might consider is the compact mess tin made by trangia of sweden, it's rectangular, got the capacity of around 3 tobbacco tins, has a fitted lid and detatchable handle. I use this in my ruck for my main emergency/medical kit and carry my psk in a tobbacco tin in my pocket. They cost around £7 ($10 ish) and should be available from most camping stores i guess.

They are impossible to find in the US. Try Blueline, it would be your only shot. <br>Recently, I started a thread "enough is enough" about procuring exactly this. I received many helpful private responses including some very generous folks willing to mail me from overseas.

Sounds like the rectangular tins that Maxwell Housed used about four or five years ago, to celebrate thier hundredth birthday. Supposedly a collectors thing, but they made a couple million of them, so.....<br><br>I've got one or three kicking around here, and they are about the size of a brick. Might not be a bad container. Hmm......

I just discovered this thread, so sorry about resurrecting it.<br><br>I noticed most of the responses pretty quickly switched from 'are rectangular tins better than round ones?' to 'which rectangular tin is the best?' <br><br>I firmly believe that the most important aspect of a survival kit is that you have it when you need it. Read the story on this website (http://www.equipped.org/waldock698.htm) about the two small aircraft crashes, where a Wilderness Survival Instructor (*an INSTRUCTOR*) died of hypothermia after a plane crash in which he sustained only minor injuries. ("Them that can, do; them that can't, teach." :-) His carefully packaged survival kit was later found in the trunk of his car at the airport. A SAK in your pocket is better than the most carefully crafted PSK in a car 50 miles away.<br><br>I haven't thought of using a round tin, or of the Altoids not being watertight. The big advantage to the Altoids tin, IMO, is that will fit in a shirt pocket. Maybe that's not where I'd want to keep it, but the point is, if I have to exit a burning aircraft, I don't want to have to stop and look around for my survival kit, I want something in my pockets that will be there without me having to think about it. I may not even take time to grab my Mega-Keyring out of the ignition.<br><br>So if a round tin does that, and is reasonably waterproof to boot, who cares what other people think? It's not a fashion statement :-)

Willie, i also have one of thoes "extra large altoide tin's. At first it seemed like i would never get the paint off and get to the metal surface. What i did was put some paint remover(turpentine) on it and visicoulsy scraped at it with a large metal file this took a little time and elbow grease but it worked.

I switched from Altoids tins to those pretty little Fench candy tins. They're round, and fold into each other. <br>With clear tape on the outside they're waterproof. I like a little rattle in them, and leave the outside trade packaging on. When I have to empty my pockets at a metal detector nobody gives it a second look, and I neither have to go to the trouble of opening it up and/or explaining to some moron what it is. A lesson I learned from my first one that I went to the trouble of stripping with paint remover. The inside is shiney enough for signalling anyway.