At Chez Szondy, we have three levels of kits. The first is a sardine tin packed with gear that I slip into my pocket when I go hiking. The second are commercial 72-hour packs (one for each in the family) that include water packs, lifeboat rations, space blankets, etc. that we've customised for each person (multitool kit, shortwave radio and brandy in mine, puzzle books and toys in my daughters, etc) along with throw blankets and augmented roadside emergency kits that we divide between our two cars (the wife's in hers and mine and the daughters in the 4x4). These are small enough to fit into a couple of school packs and tuck away neatly in the boots where there's no temptation to remove them to make space. The third is a large Tupperware container and another pack containing a camp stove, cooking gear, etc. a supply of bottled water, and the dogs' emergency pack of food and toys. We keep these in the larder on the grounds that if we have to evacuate, one of us grabs these along with the tinned and dried food while the other grabs clothes, boots, computer drives, etc.
A scenario involving kit number three is actually pretty remote because, as I keep reminding wife and daughter, we live where people flee to rather than from. The only thing that we'd realistically have to worry about is either invasion or the collapse of society, and that's a different scenario from keeping going until the emergency services arrive and I'd be stocking up on some heavy weaponry while forming a Home Guard regiment.
Still, a 72-hour emergency kit is something everyone should have. It not only can change a survival situation into an annoyance, but it frees up the relief lads to deal with those in real need. Frankly, my ideal situation is to be so well prepared that when the relief arrives and asks what we need, I can honestly tell them that we need mixers and olives.
7 comments:
A BOB should ideally not be in the same weight/bulk class as a Ranger's full ruck in the back country of AFPAK.
Mine is a photographer's gadget bag, plus a small rucksack (the real thing, not the "carrying books to school" kind). Total weight 18 lbs including spare ammo for rifle and pistol, Sterno heat tins, etc. Victuals go in another bag which weighs maximum 5 lbs loaded, and of course will get lighter as stores are expended. (With arthritis, weight is a critical factor for me even more so than for most people.)
Everything else goes in a drag bag in the vehicle. As David has stated, a Shank's Mare evac is not a viable option.
BTW, the only thing worse than looking "too professional" is looking like an "Outward Bound" hiker. The ungodly classify them as "fresh meat". Also, a high-capacity automatic should be seriously considered as an alternative to the revolver. Six shots aren't enough when you run into seven or more wannabee Crips, Devil's Disciples, etc. With a P-35, M9, Glock, etc., it's more like "14 rounds, no waiting- who wants to be first?"
cheers
eon
I prefer a Henry AR-7 Survival rifle. It's a .22, which makes it suitable for hunting small game, stores inside its own stock along with extra magazines, and it takes a sight. I like it because its lightweight and fits neatly into a a rucksack while the wife is happy because it breaks down, which makes her more comfortable. I wouldn't recommend it if you're trying to get out of the city, where a concealable handgun is more useful, but out in the country it's a bit more practical.
Also, it used to be standard Q Branch issue to all 00 field agents.
David;
I am in the "getting out of a city" situation, but as soon as I can afford one, the Henry .22 is on my "to-get" list. Along with a Remington 870 SP Deer 12-gauge, which I will probably fit with an extended magazine tube (and possibly a folding stock, although I'm not a fan of same). My rifle is a bolt-action with a scope, so the shotgun and 9mm pistol are the designated CQB items.
The best thing about the ex-Armalite AR-7 .22 is that it, and a lifetime's supply of ammunition, can go in the rucksack with very little extra bulk and mass.
Although I distribute the spare ammo, like spares of all items, throughout all containers- you never know, one might get lost or have to be ditched. As the old Chinese proverb says, "A wise man will be prepared to abandon his luggage several times in the course of his life".
cheers
eon
Dislike on the AR-7. After getting sights adjusted, I've found that the barrel starts pointing in interesting new directions after a couple of magazines, so reloading procedure involves retightening the barrel. Scopes are useless: they mount on the receiver, so retightening the barrel puts you about a half-squirrel off at 20 yd. until you get them adjusted as well. And also, you can no longer stow the scoped receiver in the stock.
I do like the way everything nests, though. Just can't really see a use case other than crashed in Alaska and waiting for rescue. Or I suppose, broken down in Washington State in a huge blizzard. Breakdown of services (natural disaster or terroris^WMan-Made Catastrophe), few days of canned food or trail chow should be enough. Invasion from Mars/China/Canada, or else The Man coming after me for some old unpaid parking tickets... I think this requires Patrick Swayze and his mighty mullet. Something really massive, like the Yosemite mega-volcano blowing, or Godzilla (or Reptilicus?) attack, I figure I can just carry my 10/22 for critter-hunting needs. And a large .45 on the hip is a gentle hint for unfriendly humans to behave themselves all civil like.
It's not blizzards that I worry most about, though I have nearly ended up sleeping in my car more than once. It's the fact that I live literally in sight of Mount Rainier. If that blows or if there's a force 9 earthquake, I could end up trapped on a smashed, ash-buried back road faced with at least a day's hike to get home–if I'm lucky.
Sergej;
Marlin used to make a takedown .22 called the Papoose, with a wood stock housing the action and a barrel held on by an AR-7 style thumb nut. The difference is that it had the rear sight on the barrel, which meant that once you had it sighted in, disassembly/reassembly caused no shift in the relationship between front and rear sights.
I've often thought that all weapons of the takedown persuasion should have any and all sights attached to the barrel, for this exact reason. Col. Cooper's "Scout Rifle" concept with the long eye relief scope shows it can be done with optical sights as well. In fact, both Bushnell and Lyman used to make LER scopes for use on the Winchester lever actions, due to their upward ejection. The Wehrmacht even had one use on their K98 sniper rifles in WW II.
Either way, putting the sights and barrel together permanently is just common sense.
cheers
eon
Isn't the Papoose still around? I now think it's a better takedown rifle than the AR-7, even though it's not nearly as packable. There is an aftermarket barrel for the AR-7, with a spur for mounting a scope on, but that's not very packable either. I guess I'm going with 10/22 for marksmanship practice and critter hunting, and AR-7 for something that will fit into its own stock.
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