suggested it a while ago, but haven't tried it yet...chopsaw a narrow square notch in the hook end of a Wonderbar for a chain link fence breaker...

a short section of hacksaw blade in your EDC does not take up much room...if you carry a knife with pocket clip with lanyard hole at the same end, a split key ring can connect the saw blade to knife, rotate the saw blade through the pocket clip to make a fairly efficient handle...if lanyard hole is at opposite end from clip you will need a longer piece of blade.... the saw teeth will chew up the scales of your knife though

Channel Lock has a 6 in 1 rescue tool for firefighters you might look at in addition to a pair of fence pliers

How does that work?



CountyComm sells a nice one with a handle: http://countycomm.com/seresaw.htm . If you drill a hole in the right spot it cannot come open when it's on a split ring or lanyard.

chaos..I've used the nail puller "v" in my Wondertool to break chain link fence wire, push in tight and turn tool at right angle to the direction of the wire... it would be more efficient if a tighter grip could be obtained on the wire... a square notch just slightly larger than wire diameter...depending on the malleability of the wire, may break on one twist, if not a little back an forth action usually does the trick

my EDC kit tools fit in a nylon multitool pouch, and space was really at a minimum with a Victorinox Farmer, mini Bic, compass, AAA battery,strip of quarters, mono for cordage, and tweezers, so just included the taped edge blade and cleartaped firesteel, needle, safety pins to back, and made a pretty small package... split ring on my key chain with light and pill fob

Makes sense. Thanks!

An old trick used to cut large gauge steel wire without a dedicated cutter or pliers is to use a knife, or other edged tool, to start a notch. You notch needn't be large. Just a substantial scratch really. You then grip the wire as close as possible to the notch with your hands, a bit of cloth helps, and you bend the wire toward and away from the notch repeatedly.

The notch causes a stress riser and metal fatigue causes the riser to crack and spread. Mild steel snaps quickly if you do it right. practice makes perfect.

Caught without the proper tools I've snapped galvanized steel "nine-wire", about 3/16" in diameter, pretty quickly using this method.

Art..for a college summer job I worked at a chemical plant in Tarpon Springs as part of the yard crew...we had need to add a section of railroad rail less than a full section ...supervisor elevated the section at the desired break point, we marked and cold chiseled a score around the Sun heated rail, poured a salt/ icewater bath over the score, and smacked the end with a sledge hammer... cracked precisely where intended...I had heard about it being done, but was impressive to actually do

Les..i have a small section of track i use as a anvil,a yard sale buy,it did not look sawed or burned thru,they must have cut it that way.

If you would be more specific as to some of the containers, it would be more helpful for specific answers.

For food containers or other items that may deteriorate if left opened, why not carry your own containers to re-seal them for transport and storage: Dry food – freezer zip-loc bags; liquids – Nalgene, zip-loc bags or other durable containers…

Bung and bucket lid lifters are handy, but may be too long for your kit. The handle can be shortened (with some loss of leverage) and a bicycle grip or other handle wrap for ergonomics.

Old style can openers, as found on boy scout knives and Leatherman tools are not the easiest to use, but don’t break as often as the mechanical “turn knob” type.

“Church keys” make nice openings in juice cans, but simple can openers (as above) work and precludes carry of another tool.

For "Stuck" jar lid openers the small, silicon pad type works, takes up little space and can be used to hold hot objects, too. (99 cent store) (also works as knee pad, if working on concrete)

Wine / beverage bottle openers – I suppose if there was nothing else to drink, and I was dying, wine would be an option… the old Leatherman Flair had a corkscrew, knife, fork and pate spreader…

"Stuck" interior doors and drawers – Hawk, prybar

Padlocks, chain, chain-link fencing – bolt cutters

In areas where chains are used to secure gates, you sometimes see many padlocks for different users (Forest Service, power company, property owners ... Simply cut a chain link and add your own. If the lock is pre-weathered, it may go unnoticed.

Many folks know that carrying lock picks can get you into trouble; it may not be a concern in an emergency for you. Carrying other, common tools can also get you into the same trouble for carrying “burglar tools”, even though they are normal, everyday tools.. depends on set of circumstances…

Anyhoo, I would think a couple of vise-grips, a set of tin-snips, bolt cutters, pry/wrecking tools (Stanley 55-099 FatMax Xtreme Fubar Functional Utility Bar is an example of a HD one that is relatively compact), leather gloves, shims, glass cutter/breaker, duct tape, zip-ties, epoxy, zip-loc freezer bags, canteens, kitchen shears, multi-tool (knife, screwdriver/prytool, needle-nose pliers, awl, can and bottle opener...), mirror on telescoping holder, hawk, BKT sharpened prybar and silicon pad would be a good start.

If you know someone in LE that works a lot of burglaries (several hundred, at least, 1000’s better) you may try to tap into their knowledge for ideas…