My Survival Pack... Again

[IrideLLAMAS]

I ditched the old thread and thought that I would make a new one. I have added/changed quite a few items from my last post. I have finally reached the limit of my medium alice, so my next purchase will have to be a new pack.





I few of the major changes are that I added a butt pack for my E&E instead of the Molle pouch and the first aid kit went into the Molle pouch. I also put my old tarp back in, which took up too much room, so I will definetely have to look into those sil-tarps. I added quite a few smaller items like a boonie hat, foot powder, GI sharpening stone, tripwire, survival manual, and more.

Tools
Kabar Utility Knife
Swedish Mil. Mora Knife
Leatherman Wave
U-Dig-It Shovel
GI Pocket Sharpening Stone
First Aid Kit
Excedrin (100 capsules)
Pepto-Bismol (24 capsules)
550 Cord (150 ft)
Compass
LED Shakelight
LED Lightsticks
LED Keychain Light
Fishing Kit
GI Tripwire (80 ft OD)
Duct Tape (10 yards)
Screw-gate Links (2)
8” Zip-ties (20)
Trash Bags (2)

Shelter
8x10 ft Camo Tarp
GI Poncho
Thermolite Bivy Sack
Mylar Blanket
IMPS-Net
Sewing Kit

Clothes
TDU Pants [Khaki]
Fleece Jacket [Black]
Long-sleeved T-shirt [Forest]
Utili-T [White]
Heavyweight Polypro Pants [Brown]
Boxer-Briefs [Black]
GI Socks [2 Black]
Coolmax Socks [White]
Insulated Socks [Grey]
Nylon Balaclava [OD]
Boonie Hat [Khaki]
Polypro Gloves [Navy]
BDU Nylon Belt [Black]

Cooking/Water
Bottled Water (2- .5 L Sealed)
Stainless Steel Canteen Cup
2.5 L Platypus Bladder (empty/collapsed)
Water Purification Tablets (50)
Spoon

Food
Harvest and Cliff Bars (6)
Mainstay 1200 Cal Rations (3)
Assorted Rice, Ramen, Soup, Hot Chocolate, Spreads, Gatorade, etc
Salt (2oz)

Fire
Swedish Flint
Bic Lighter (2)
Wetfire Tinder (4)
Cottonball/Vaseline Tinder

Sanitation
Toilet Paper Roll
Wet Wipes (6)
Baby Wipes (15)
Foot Powder (4 oz)
Biodegradable Camp Soap (8 oz)
Travel Size Dental Kit
Disposable Razor Head
LightLoad Camp Towels (2)
Handkerchief
Contact Kit

Entertainment
Field book (Write-in-the-Rain)
Mechanical Pencil
Survival Manual

[Shotzee]

maybe more then one pencil, throw some sharpies in

not a bad pack at all, i like seeing the cable ties, id say get a better flashlight, you have plenty of hygene products which is good. same with rope and cord.
could use a radio, but im sure there is not much space

personally i dont keep many clothes in my pack, some socks, a wool od shirt, balaclava and a camo hat. i find it opens up a lot of space and i can just change quickly if need be at home, its not worth the space in my opinion

to each his own

[Blacksh33p]

Just get some sort of belt or sling to attach it to, and you should be good to go. But really, it seems like it would be quite cramped and unorganized with all of that jammed in a Butt Pack. It looks similar to what I see some troops being issued, though I am only going off of what I see at the PX.

[phoenixmastm]

Is that.......ramen......i see in your food stash?

Nice BoB though.

[IrideLLAMAS]

I just realized that it looks like the stuff in the second picture is what goes in the butt pack, but it is not. It was just some gear that I pulled out for a second pic. I will post a list of the gear that goes in the E&E.

Shotzee: I plan on adding one of those Pilot pens in red, but maybe I should add one of those short, fat sharpies. I also plan on adding a Petzl headlamp. As for the clothes, I wanted to have as much clothes as I could, especially in winter, because I don't have any supplies at my BOL. I don't want to show up there with little supplies and be their burden. That is why I want to pack as much food, sanitation, tools, and clothes as I can. Shelter I don't see as a big problem because they have plenty of room even if I have to sleep on the floor (roughing it right ). BTW, I have some more clothes on my future list. Thanks for the reply.

Kedyw: I am assuming you mean a LBE pistol belt, and I thought of that but if figured that I would make do with the BDU belt and some paracord if I had to. I wear a leather belt everyday so I expect the BDU belt to be extra, which I could use for another lashing, compression strap or something. Like I said above, the stuff in the second pic doesn't all go in the butt pack. Thanks.

Phoenixmastm: Yes, that is ramen. However, I don't think it is too bad right now. I have quite a bit more food so I am not relying on the ramen too much. I also have some spreads and stuff that I could add to the ramen. While not as nutritious, I enjoy a hot bowl of ramen more than a cold powerbar. The food hasn't changed since my first version of my BOB:

"Food containing: Mainstay 1200 Cal Rations [3], Harvest and Cliff Bars [6], Flavored Rice [2], Ramen Noodles [2], Packet of Honey Roasted Peanuts, Gatorade Drink Mix [3], Cup-a-Soup [3], Hot Chocolate [2], Cheese Spreads [3], Peanut Butter Spreads [3], Honey Packets [3], Sugar Packets [3], Jelly Packets[2], BBQ Sauce Packet, Nalgene Bottle of Salt [2 oz]"

Thanks for all the replies.

[IrideLLAMAS]

Alright, here is the contents of the E&E Butt Pack:

Leatherman Wave
GI Sharpening Stone
LED Shakelight
LED Lightsticks
Fishing Kit
GI Tripwire
Duct Tape
Screw-Gate Links
Trash Bags
Mylar Blanket
Sewing Kit
Heavyweight Polypro Pants
GI Socks (2)
Coolmax Socks
Insulated Socks
Nylon Balaclava
PolyPro Glove Liners
BDU Nylon Belt
Stainless Steel Canteen Cup
27 ft Paracord
Water Purification Tablets
2.5L Platypus Bladder
Mesh Dish Pad
Spoon
Bic Lighters (2)
Cottonball/Vaseline Tinder
Wet Wipes (6)
Foot Powder
Handkerchief

I think that I have the basic covered pretty well with the exception that I need to put a little food in it. It is separated with 3 gallon sized freezer bags, for additional field storage/waterproofing.

[Gunny]

Take a look at your caloric conent on your ramen noodles.

Now throw them out and use the space you just saved for another 2 pair of socks.

Break down your IFAK. I sense that it's lacking. I want you to add:

Asprin
Moltrin (optional)
Benadryl (mandatory)
Immodium AD (mandatory)

Also add a 'Space Blanket' and replace one bottle of water with a nalgene (or similar high quality lexan) bottle.

You can fill your nalgene with hot water and toss it in your sleeping bag to raise your temp rating 20+deg. That's pretty useful.

And waterproof your fire supplies. When those bic's get wet, they're worthless.

[Grace]

I think this is a damn-near-perfect idea of an good, inexpensive, basic BOB; nice job.

My pack of choice is a Medium ALICE, too; you can save yourself room by compressing your clothes in either Ziplocs or, better yet, a Space Bag. It makes them smaller and saves you the pain of having to put on soggy clothes. Personally, I'd have less clothes and more water, but if you think it'll suit your needs, more power to you. You're certainly saving yourself some weight without a bunch of water.

You could probably ditch the camo tarp and either replace it with another poncho or just not replace it. The GI poncho is one of the few pieces of gear that I think everyone should have. It does the exact same job as a tarp just as well, plus another one the tarp can't do, and you can give it to someone else and basically guarantee that they're going to stay dry when they're walking and sleeping.

All in all, nice job. The things I mentioned certainly aren't essential in the least, just trying to provide some constructive criticism. Nice pictures, by the way. Do you know offhand what this set-up weights both with and without the buttpack?

[phoenixmastm]

I still have yet to get all my crap together and organized, needless to say, my BoB is nothing more than a standard camp setup with one addition, I have a gun.

[Shotzee]

i need to post my updated bob, nothing much as changed though

[IrideLLAMAS]

Gunny: Thanks for the reply. The food is my cheap food which I will replace when I get my new pack. True, ramen noodles don't have much calories, but they won't be in my final food preps either. I am trying to come up with a list a food that will contain 12,000+ calories. When I have my pack done (with all the gear that I have planned) I plan to fill any additional space with socks, food, and toilet paper.

My IFAK can be found at:
http://zombiehunters.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=14812
It is the same as it was, except that I added Excedrin (100), Pepto-Bismol (24), nail clippers, and a small hemostat.

I have a Nalgene that I plan to add to my next pack. I am going to get a Nalgene belt pouch to hold it outside of my next pack. I also want to have a Camelbak bladder in the pack to carry more water. I am also considering taking your idea of the MSR dromedary bladder (I would use the 6 L) to replace the Platypus bladder.

Are you suggesting a second space blanket, because I have a mylar blanket if you missed it?

Almost everything in the pack is held in at least one ziplock bag, sometimes two. I took most of the things out of the bags for the pictures.

Grace: Thanks for the reply. I do have my clothes in ziplock freezer bags. I pack the clothes in there and kneel on it and use a small piece of tube to suck all the air out. It does help a lot with volume. I definitely need more water like you said.

I originally had that tarp in my first BOB. I ditched it when I thought of using a Gortex bivy, but since I ditched that plan I when back to the tarp. I will definitely have to find a lighter, more compact alternative.

All of the things pictured go inside of the pack. The butt pack sits at the top of the pack just under the top flap. I could free up some room by strapping the tarp to the outside of the pack, but I like everything to be inside of a pack. I just weighed it and it was 31 lbs.

[Gunny]

Ride:

I did indeed miss the first mylar blanket. A second wouldn't be a bad idea at all.

If you need an MRE or two to spice up your bob, send me a PM with your address and I'll send one or two out to you.

[Grace]

Grace: Thanks for the reply. I do have my clothes in ziplock freezer bags. I pack the clothes in there and kneel on it and use a small piece of tube to suck all the air out. It does help a lot with volume. I definitely need more water like you said.

I originally had that tarp in my first BOB. I ditched it when I thought of using a Gortex bivy, but since I ditched that plan I when back to the tarp. I will definitely have to find a lighter, more compact alternative.

All of the things pictured go inside of the pack. The butt pack sits at the top of the pack just under the top flap. I could free up some room by strapping the tarp to the outside of the pack, but I like everything to be inside of a pack. I just weighed it and it was 31 lbs.

If you can afford the sil-tarp you mentioned before, by all means, go for it, because it seems like it'd suit your needs.

If/when you do bug-out, I'd suggest wearing the buttpack if you weren't pleanning on doing so already. I can understand wanting it all together for when you have to grab it and go, but once you're en route, you'd be able to drop your pack and go a lot faster without having to take off your pack, open it, and then carry the buttpack and have only one free hand, or try and put it on while running.

[IrideLLAMAS]

I spent the last couple days reworking my idea of my BOB. I am thinking of going smaller and lighter. I would place any items that I ditch into a small duffel bag with a shoulder strap that I could also carry.

The pack that I am looking at is the Camelbak Talon. Anyone have any experience with this pack? I know it's small and that is what I'm going for. If you think that it is too small, let me know.

What do you think that I should ditch from my current BOB, because currently I have too much stuff for a Talon? I think I know what will go and what will stay but I wanted to hear what you thought.

[Vindex]

I reworked my mini-BOB a while ago; I'm now going with a North Face Kanga buttpack.

One of the things I like about the Kanga is that it's larger than I need; I figure the extra space would be helpful for storage of useful stuff I may find.

In fact, I've taken the idea of extra storage capacity to town by rolling up a light OD schoolbag and putting it into the Kanga.

Notice how vagrants often carry lots of spare bags around with them? Take the hint.

[IrideLLAMAS]

That is one of the reasons that I wanted something with Molle webbing. I have a few items that can be attached to the outside of the pack, freeing up room inside the pack. I was also thinking that one of those Maxpedition folding dump pouches could be carried to make a quick, sturdy bag that could be easily attached to the pack. Just some thoughts.

[Glockmeister]

Not Bad,...Not bad at All!!

[KingofSpain]

"Boy, I tell you whut..."
At first, I thought I had a good pack. Then I checked the bob flyer and added a couple of items. And then I looked at this post and I'm essentially scrapping what I had and using this, plus Gunny's suggestions, for my BoB checkoff list.
I'm probably going to print it off and hand it to the local chapter members that are too lazy to read the forums also.

So honestly, thanks for posting this.

[slingstone]

This may be a question of personal preference, or looking bad-ass, but what role do you have in mind for the KA-BAR?
I ask because you have a folding trowel, so you'll never need it to dig with. Most bushcraft, cooking, or camp-making activities are better suited for your mora knife. The Ka-Bar is a good multi-purpose choice if you don't have these other tools, but I don't think the redundancy is worth the weight. The only task a Ka-Bar can do beyond those other items is baton wood, but I think there's a better solution: get a good pruning or camp saw. It will weigh as much or less than a Ka-Bar and will allow you to take and split much larger limbs.

I got this one for a good price and I've been very pleased with it. I don't mean to say you need to run out and buy one right now, but something to think of for the future, as you expand and modify your camping/BOB equipment.

[KingofSpain]

Good point, that. I actually did re-re-read the list, and added things like a windproof lighter, deck of playing cards, and under armour long sleve shirt i(n place of the long sleeve tshirt). I have enough knives to combat a small Chinese army, so I wasn't thinking a k-bar specifically, but rather just my trusty camping knife with the little screw in compass in the hilt.
But the addition to some decent pruning shears and my "antique" 1903 bayonet strapped on the bag and I'm golden.
But I'm always looking to "tweak it", of course.

[bark-eater]

It always surprises me that people will pack a backpack to go "Bug Out" (camping) and not carry a sleeping bag and ground pad. I understand all the trade offs, but If i dont know where Im sleeping, I want to have the gear that will let me get some rest where ever i end up. That said my "BOB" sleeping gear is a sportsman's blanket ,poncho, poncho liner, and a super thin nato folding pad. Thats all inside a larger sporty "day pack" that doesn't broadcast "camping"

Now thats just me.. and my snivel gear. If i was going to recommend one extra for you to lug around it would be some way to insulate yourself from the ground. A sit pad cut from a foam pad that fits in your pack, really improves your quality of life when hunkered down under a poncho.

[Fenris]

As I understand it, those sun-reflecting things that go in cars' windows can be used as sleeping pads. And I've used a large sheet of waxed card-board before...

-fenris-

[Blackdog]

In your first picture, is that your canteen cup wrapped in 550 cord? If it is you might as well take the cord off and put it someplace else now in the light of day in your house before you have to heat anything in the cup in the field at night in the rain and cold.

[Pansy]

This is a nice bag. However it should be noted that the OP has not visited these forums in 2.5 years, and thus probably will not answer your guys' questions.