Most Unique Items in your BOB... Pick TWO

[Kbourque3375]

It has occurred to me that even though I thought I had a pretty complex bug out plan, I may need to add a few things.
That being said, I think one of the most unique things in my bags would be pictures of my family. It has occurred to me that once it becomes necessary to bail out of dodge, me being separated from my children, I may not see them for a long time, or never again. So it's like taking a piece of them with me.
Secondly, I don't know...it's hard to say, I have so many little odds and ends that I'd rather have and never need than need and not be able to get my hands on. not in my bag, but in my truck is a spare water pump and alternator.

[ODA 226]

The most unique piece of equipment I have is "The Solution" Knife by Alcas.

http://www.cutlerscove.com/survival-knives/alcas-solution.htm

It really works!

[ninja-elbow]

Set of gaming dice, as well as my tobacco kit (pipe with some cherry Cavendish, and a tin of some Romeo y Julieta cigars )

I don't smoke cigars as much as I used to (cut down when I cut out the "pro-level" drinking I was doing a few years ago) but I love them Romeo y Julieta cigars.

[flsgear]

Most unique? A large rat trap of the snap variety:



^^^ not me, though definitely seems to think similar to me

I'm not an expert trapper and not a fool(well... most days). No amount of snare wire is going to make me any better at making traps and frankly I can't afford to invest the time to become proficient at it at this moment. I do, however, know how to set a snap trap and have caught rats, mice, snakes, etc. Plus they're pretty light. I also carry three small mousetraps too. I figure that I can use the mousetraps to go after small snakes/rodents and the big rat trap to go after something with a little more meat on it (rats, squirrels, etc)

Second most unique:
Slingshot. I'm always surprised at how few people have a slingshot in their bag. It's easy to use, lightweight, the ammo is abundant, and it's a heck of a lot better than wasting pistol ammo or trying to machine my own bow out of natural materials. It's just a standard daisy el-cheapo with a bag of glass rounds and a sealed pair of spare bands.

[moab]

1) Dried squid for bait. And eating. Stuff is amazing. You can cut any shape out of it. (Read - long tailed - fluttering bait shape. It's white too. so very visible as a bait.) And it's bulletproof as a bait. Will last for hours. It's tough stuff. Like leather. Flavored stuff doesn't taste bad either. But probably not best for bait.
2) Bag of tobacco and rolling papers. Prison cash. Or if my own supply wears out. Probably the latter. LOL!
3) 100's of anti-biotics and pain killers. For trade and use.

I added three. Wasn't sure which ones were the weirdest. I guess the squid.

[moab]

Most unique? A large rat trap of the snap variety:



^^^ not me, though definitely seems to think similar to me

I'm not an expert trapper and not a fool(well... most days). No amount of snare wire is going to make me any better at making traps and frankly I can't afford to invest the time to become proficient at it at this moment. I do, however, know how to set a snap trap and have caught rats, mice, snakes, etc. Plus they're pretty light. I also carry three small mousetraps too. I figure that I can use the mousetraps to go after small snakes/rodents and the big rat trap to go after something with a little more meat on it (rats, squirrels, etc)

Second most unique:
Slingshot. I'm always surprised at how few people have a slingshot in their bag. It's easy to use, lightweight, the ammo is abundant, and it's a heck of a lot better than wasting pistol ammo or trying to machine my own bow out of natural materials. It's just a standard daisy el-cheapo with a bag of glass rounds and a sealed pair of spare bands.

You might look into conibear traps and professional squirrel snares. The conibear small (#10?) is probably about the same weight as your large rat trap. But way more effective for all sorts of game. Works just about the same as well. And professional squirrel snares can be used on many many things - rabbits etc. etc. And they are premade with all the right fittings to make them as effective as possible. Very light weight too. Check out conibear #10 on youtube. Some great videos. Very simple to set. Just as simple as your rat trap. Snares take a little more training. But at least with professionally made ones your only worrying about where and how to set them up. Instead of construction too. Which IMHO professional ones can't be beat. Especially using just wire. The professional ones are made out of cable. And use very effective metal fittings to keep the snare around the animal.

[ninja-elbow]

I have snap traps for home use (like when the cat is not good enough for the ninja-mouse) but decidedto not carry then in any BOB and just carry food instead.

But I get ya' on the snares thing. No way in Hell am I cool enough to set up a snare and/or figure 4 trap to catch my meat.

[Mountain Rooster]

Lumber crayon and chicken scissors

[flsgear]

Most unique? A large rat trap of the snap variety:



^^^ not me, though definitely seems to think similar to me

I'm not an expert trapper and not a fool(well... most days). No amount of snare wire is going to make me any better at making traps and frankly I can't afford to invest the time to become proficient at it at this moment. I do, however, know how to set a snap trap and have caught rats, mice, snakes, etc. Plus they're pretty light. I also carry three small mousetraps too. I figure that I can use the mousetraps to go after small snakes/rodents and the big rat trap to go after something with a little more meat on it (rats, squirrels, etc)

Second most unique:
Slingshot. I'm always surprised at how few people have a slingshot in their bag. It's easy to use, lightweight, the ammo is abundant, and it's a heck of a lot better than wasting pistol ammo or trying to machine my own bow out of natural materials. It's just a standard daisy el-cheapo with a bag of glass rounds and a sealed pair of spare bands.

You might look into conibear traps and professional squirrel snares. The conibear small (#10?) is probably about the same weight as your large rat trap. But way more effective for all sorts of game. Works just about the same as well. And professional squirrel snares can be used on many many things - rabbits etc. etc. And they are premade with all the right fittings to make them as effective as possible. Very light weight too. Check out conibear #10 on youtube. Some great videos. Very simple to set. Just as simple as your rat trap. Snares take a little more training. But at least with professionally made ones your only worrying about where and how to set them up. Instead of construction too. Which IMHO professional ones can't be beat. Especially using just wire. The professional ones are made out of cable. And use very effective metal fittings to keep the snare around the animal.

I'll check them out though I have to say that in my own experience using something you know how to use, even if it's a generic piece of shit, usually goes better than using something you have zero competence with that's amazing

I could probably fumble my way through some basic traps, deadfalls, pits, etc. But the reality is I know snap traps from having to kill mice/vermin. I've developed some proficiency with it. I basically look at it as the ultimate in keep it simple stupid when it comes to snares/trapping, which always take up a huge amount of space in survival manuals. The reality is that snares require a lot of direct instruction or even more time spent fumbling through to learn. Mouse traps/rat traps do not, aside from placement. I will, however, definitely look at those items you suggested and perhaps add them.

[ForgeCorvus]

Lumber crayon and chicken scissors

I'll bite.I'm going to assume the lumber crayon is one of those big lumps of coloured waxy/greasy stuff for writing on damp and/or uneven surfaces (like bits of tree)?
WITH are chicken scissors and why do you carry them ?

[tookieblueeyes]

Lumber crayon and chicken scissors

I'll bite.I'm going to assume the lumber crayon is one of those big lumps of coloured waxy/greasy stuff for writing on damp and/or uneven surfaces (like bits of tree)?
WITH are chicken scissors and why do you carry them ?

I AM SO CURIOUS ABOUT THESE TWO ITEMS MYSELF! Please... why those items?

[crypto]

Silcock key

Giant black permanent marker.

[flsgear]

Chicken scissors make chicken processing pretty flippin easy. So I imagine he'll use them for game processing. The other would be for writing in the rain

[lanzajr26]

Not as unique as I thought but I keep a hard drive platter and a bow stringer in mine.

[derf26]

Not as unique as I thought but I keep a hard drive platter and a bow stringer in mine.

Would an EMP destroy the data on the hard disk platter?

[Red_Snow]

Lumber crayon and chicken scissors

I'll bite.I'm going to assume the lumber crayon is one of those big lumps of coloured waxy/greasy stuff for writing on damp and/or uneven surfaces (like bits of tree)?
WITH are chicken scissors and why do you carry them ?

I AM SO CURIOUS ABOUT THESE TWO ITEMS MYSELF! Please... why those items?

I carry a lumber crayon in one of my bags simply for the fact that you can write on just about any surface in any condition. They won't write on surfaces such as ice, wax paper, etc.

Don't know what "unique" items I carry.

[lanzajr26]

Not as unique as I thought but I keep a hard drive platter and a bow stringer in mine.

Would an EMP destroy the data on the hard disk platter?

LOL, I have no idea, but I use it for a mirror.

[ITZombie]

Not sure how unique it is but in each BOB, I have a 16gb micro SDHD card wrapped in rubber and sealed in short pieces of capped copper tubing (EMP, electric and shock protection) that holds scans and flat text files of our mission critical data which includes but isn't limited to house deed, birth and marriage certificates, social security cards, drivers licences, car titles, vins and tags, insurance information, bank account data, passports, user names and passwords to financial institutions, all our digital pictures from the children's birth to reasonably current (update them every quarter or so), firearm serial numbers, pictures of every room in the house from all angles showing contents.

There's also a few thousand fiction and non-fiction books in e formats on there that can be read on our ereaders and smartphones. Entertainment in the PAW is going to be important and reading the Zombie Chronicles on something like a e-ink Nook Simple Touch (60 day battery life) could be critical to staying sane.

I keep a standard usb adapter on my keychain that I can put the sdhd cards in and read on any pc as well as one in each bob and they're readily available at any place that sells them usually.

Some of that's just case something wipes out the house and we need to make insurance claims.

Before you starting thinking this is a id thief's wet dream, it's all encrypted to the point where anyone who could crack it is probably watching me type this from an xray satellite in orbit right now anyway.

If you're considering this, this part is kinda important - The decryption software is also on the card and runs on virtually any windows based PC. The books are not encrypted, just the personal data.

[Doctorr Fabulous]

Not sure how unique it is but in each BOB, I have a 16gb micro SDHD card wrapped in rubber and sealed in short pieces of capped copper tubing (EMP, electric and shock protection) that holds scans and flat text files of our mission critical data which includes but isn't limited to house deed, birth and marriage certificates, social security cards, drivers licences, car titles, vins and tags, insurance information, bank account data, passports, user names and passwords to financial institutions, all our digital pictures from the children's birth to reasonably current (update them every quarter or so), firearm serial numbers, pictures of every room in the house from all angles showing contents.

There's also a few thousand fiction and non-fiction books in e formats on there that can be read on our ereaders and smartphones. Entertainment in the PAW is going to be important and reading the Zombie Chronicles on something like a e-ink Nook Simple Touch (60 day battery life) could be critical to staying sane.

I keep a standard usb adapter on my keychain that I can put the sdhd cards in and read on any pc as well as one in each bob and they're readily available at any place that sells them usually.

Some of that's just case something wipes out the house and we need to make insurance claims.

Before you starting thinking this is a id thief's wet dream, it's all encrypted to the point where anyone who could crack it is probably watching me type this from an xray satellite in orbit right now anyway.

If you're considering this, this part is kinda important - The decryption software is also on the card and runs on virtually any windows based PC. The books are not encrypted, just the personal data.

Encrypted personal documents are a must for a BOB. An encrypted flash drive is smaller than insurance documentation, and having to bug out because of fire/flood/natural disaster is far more liekly than a PAW bug out.

[Red_Snow]

Encrypted personal documents are a must for a BOB. An encrypted flash drive is smaller than insurance documentation, and having to bug out because of fire/flood/natural disaster is far more liekly than a PAW bug out.

This is something I really need to start working on. Are people spending the money on the "IronKey" drives or should someone just grab a reliable name brand thumbdrive and use software encryption rather than hardware?

[HKTackDriver]

(1) Siphon Pump - For water and gas.

I know you will not be using it for this OP, but just so others who may not know ZS rules, I'd like to reiterate ZS does not advocate any kind of stealing up to and including siphoning gas out of vehicles not yours. That said, this a a very unique item with a few uses. I have in my home BOB an old Camelback drink tube (the bladder started leaking but all the other parts were still good so I kept them) for occasions I may not be bale to access water in tight spaces like with a cup or bottle or some such. Some people also use aqcaurium hose for the same purpose.

Most people carry crowbars and PowerMax some such tools in their bags - I decided to carry an aluminum 4in1 tool instead.
http://www.redesupply.com/p212/On-Duty- ... _info.html

The first time I used the siphon pump was to transfer gasoline from a truck to a lawn mower. I was on an Indian reservation in North Dakota. The nearest gas station was an hour drive. Should I mention the truck belonged to the pastor and so did the mower? The second time was to move gas from my car to my sister-in-laws. They come in quite handy.

I really enjoy the forum, but this seems to be the second time today I've had someone accuse me of stealing. Quite frankly, it's getting old. I shouldn't have to put a full disclosure on every comment I make to insure that I don't offend someone. Nor do I need a lecture. I have a Jewish mother for that.

Amen. I was chastised for the use of the word "obtain" when referring to getting gas in the long haul trucker thread. Some people...

[Doctorr Fabulous]

Amen. I was chastised for the use of the word "obtain" when referring to getting gas in the long haul trucker thread. Some people...

You're paying for the mistakes of those before you who insist on crying that there's no law in a SHTF. Suck it up and word your shit better.

Encrypted personal documents are a must for a BOB. An encrypted flash drive is smaller than insurance documentation, and having to bug out because of fire/flood/natural disaster is far more likely than a PAW bug out.

This is something I really need to start working on. Are people spending the money on the "IronKey" drives or should someone just grab a reliable name brand thumbdrive and use software encryption rather than hardware?

There are multiple options for encryption, from encrypting a drive and loading the encryption software on the drive to buying a drive with encryption on it. I'm not an expert here, but I think most folks just put the encryption software onto the drive. Some also format the drive for linux and put a small, free version of linux on the drive so that any computer, Mac or Windows based, can access the documents. That's out of my league though.

[DJH]

I'm not an expert here, but I think most folks just put the encryption software onto the drive. Some also format the drive for linux and put a small, free version of linux on the drive so that any computer, Mac or Windows based, can access the documents. That's out of my league though.

Doesn't it kind of defeat the purpose of encrypting things on a drive if that same drive has the software to decrypt it? Or am I missing something? Like an encryption key that you have to have memorized to make the two work together?

[ninja-elbow]

Self encrypting is out of my league too, so I got a thumbdrive with security built in. Forgot what brand but Geardo recommended it to me and it was a few bills (like $70??). You create a password for it when you first load files on it, and if the password is failed in 10 tries it automatically erases the files. This is in one of my BOBs. I cannot afford a second one so the other BOB has the mini "gunsafe" in it with hard copy and non-secured thumbdrives in that.