# Bag essentials



## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

Decided to make a new thread instead of muddying up my other thread about bail out bags. I have a box full of stuff ready to go, in fact I am already at the point where I have to make some choices between item A and item B. But before I get there, I thought I was ask what you consider to be bag essentials. Get home, bug out, bail out ... essentials. They all might be for different missions, but some things are universal.

Now I am not looking for responses like "fire" or "water". I am looking for something more like "Flint & Steel" or "Camelback hydration reservoir with mouthpiece". Do you prefer a smaller multi-tool like the Leatherman Juice or a larger multi-tool like the Leatherman Supertool? Fixed blade knife good enough or are you more of a machete guy? Maybe you are happy with just a folder?

Give me your list of essentials or breakdown an essential item or two.

Here is one of mine: Flashlights

I have dozens and dozens of flashlights. I am a lumenaholic. In fact I have two dresser drawers in my man cave full of lights, many new in the box. I also have a tote full of lights that I have rotated away from but refuse to get rid of. And that does not include lights I use, stash around the house, stash in cars, carry with my everyday, etc. I think I have a half dozen 5.11 lights sitting in my desk drawer at work still in the packaging.

First off you of course you want some level of durability and water resistance. After that I tend to go for AA powered LED lights in my bags. The opposite of all of my duty, home security and tactical lights. AA batteries are less expensive (have to have spares) and easier to find than CR123A's if things have gone to crap. Plus if I am going to a bag that usually mean I am flying under the radar, so I don't really want or need a 2,300 lumens super light. A good light for this is the Fenix LD09. It has thumb activation, variable brightness from 3 lumens to 130 lumens, is waterproof and is the right balance between size and performance.










I also usually include a small multi-colored lens LED light like the Gerber Recon. The red lens allows me to navigate the darkness without screaming "I'm over here!" or killing my night vision. Having a blue lens helps you follow a blood trail. And if wanted it has green for map reading and white for general use. It is also quite small and light, like all of these lights.










I of course also tend to throw in a light stick. Cyalume if I have to but normally a Life Gear glow stick. And I have boxes of them in my preps. They give me a small flashlight for redundancy, a colored glow stick, a whistle and a flashing beacon if I need one. They have a very long battery life and are pretty durable for what they are. Plus unlike the Cyalume light sticks, these last a long time and you can even replace the batteries.


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## phideaux (Nov 7, 2015)

As dangerous as I am to myself....

I wont be caught anywhere without one of these...

Car ,garage, shed, house , truck...









Jim


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## CrackbottomLouis (May 20, 2012)

As far as leathermans my favorite is the surge. I also have the tool kit for it and a case it all fits in for my belt. 

I like a good quality poncho (the rubberized one I did a thread on a while back), 550 cord, larger knife with a magnesium rod(I like my cds survival knife and I upgraded the included magneium rod cant remember the brand), a couple bic lighters, wide mouth metal canteen or water bottle you can put in a fire(I like dave cantebury's army style canteen set up I got years ago that has the canteen cup and lid and stove thingy), water purification tablets for when you dont want to make a fire, petzl strix vl headlamp, ibuprofen, antidiareal meds, moleskin, socks (I stick with green army ones), bug spray 1 bar of soap and foot powder ( antimonkey butt powder is my go to). Everything else, for me, is season/skill/comfort dependendent. Maybe a little food.Those are the things (plus firearm and ammo) I need when on the move quickly for a day or two. Might have forgotten something but thats the gist. Multivitamins?


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## Pessimistic2 (Jan 26, 2017)

phideaux said:


> As dangerous as I am to myself....
> I wont be caught anywhere without one of these...
> Car ,garage, shed, house , truck...
> View attachment 18811
> ...


First aid kit has got to be a priority item, no doubt about that!!


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## sgtusmc98 (Sep 8, 2013)

I do not generally have a bag as good as I should unless I'm traveling. Around home, like to work (30 miles) my goal is to get home through rough rural terrain. In general I prefer boots but for weight and space good hiking shoes are in the bag.

Prefer the larger leatherman tools

12" knife or so for bush whacking or shelter making

I like camelbacks but they have failed me before so I always have a hard canteen like a Nalgene bottle and I keep a MSR filter that attaches to the bottle.

I carry a Nalgene bottle everywhere including long distance traveling. It doesn't always have water in it since flights don't allow it, shirts and socks can be put in the bottle so it doesn't really take up space.


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## Tirediron (Jul 12, 2010)

I have a Swiss "laptop" back pack that goes pretty much anywhere I go.
ferro rod/ magnesium block , small first aid kit, a days water, pain killers. 
no smell deodorant. a full province map book. socks and underwear, shorts


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## hashbrown (Sep 2, 2013)

I have a Cat key and a John Deere key hanging on mine. You never know!


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## phideaux (Nov 7, 2015)

One more item I try to have in special place that I may need them..
car ,Truck....









btw, I'm not a Bug outer, I'll be bugin.
But like my straegically placed tannerite, these items are also .

If Im injured and thirsty , Ill be ready.

Jim


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

Because every bag I have also contains a gun of some sort, I am very mindful of my bags. And since most of them cover a multitude of possibilities another item I keep in them is cash. Green US Dollars in various denominations. The amount varies from bag to bag depending on what it's for but we are talking 4 digits. For my long term bags, which I might grab if I may never be returning to my domicile, I have both cash and silver/gold. I also vary the size and amount using a mixture of jewelry, coins, etc. I also do not store it all together in the bag and plan to divide it between different people, on body, in packs, etc. Lose the bag and lose it all. Plus if I need to use any of it, I do not want to pull out a large cash roll or bag of silver coins. Which is also why I like to buy gold or silver jewelry that I can wear or my wife can wear if need be. Nothing says "we don't have anything else" like shedding a few fake tears over trading off a "wedding ring" for some goods.


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## sgtusmc98 (Sep 8, 2013)

Cash in hand is important and probably often over looked, it has helped me before for sure, not on a shtf day but a car needs wrecker day, cash helps in smaller problems too


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

sgtusmc98 said:


> Cash in hand is important and probably often over looked, it has helped me before for sure, not on a shtf day but a car needs wrecker day, cash helps in smaller problems too


Several years back a buddy of mine had a house fire. They grabbed what they could on their way out and ended up living in a hotel for almost a week. They had nothing but what they were wearing initially. Red Cross helped them out as did some other groups, but I did a little rethinking of my short term evac bag that sits next to my bed after that.

The first thing I did was add more cash, spare keys to the house/cars, some toiletry items, prepaid cell phone, spare charger for my phone and some additional preps that I keep in our vehicles. I also now keep a pair of easy-on tennis shoes right next to my bed and make my wife/kids do the same.


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## sgtusmc98 (Sep 8, 2013)

I love this belt.








https://spystore007.com/product/escape-evasion-gun-belt/


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## Flight1630 (Jan 4, 2017)

sgtusmc98 said:


> I love this belt.
> View attachment 18835
> 
> 
> https://spystore007.com/product/escape-evasion-gun-belt/


That s a cool belt, I'll have to see if I can get it or something similar up here.


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## CrackbottomLouis (May 20, 2012)

sgtusmc98 said:


> I love this belt.
> View attachment 18835
> 
> 
> https://spystore007.com/product/escape-evasion-gun-belt/


Too cool. I might have to try and make one.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

I don't know, that belt doesn't seem to hold much.


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## terri9630 (Jun 2, 2016)

Sentry18 said:


> I don't know, that belt doesn't seem to hold much.


There's the bat belt. Your missing the grappling hook.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

terri9630 said:


> There's the bat belt. Your missing the grappling hook.


The best part of that quote is that just this afternoon I ordered a grappling hook off of Amazon! It's for my 72 hour bag though and not my duty belt. But maybe... Just maybe...


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

This is the video I watched that prompted my gravity hook purchase by the way. The one I picked up was $18 off of Amazon.


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## sgtusmc98 (Sep 8, 2013)

Sentry18 said:


> I don't know, that belt doesn't seem to hold much.


I stand corrected, the belt I have doesn't have as much storage or accessories.


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## Sentry18 (Aug 5, 2012)

sgtusmc98 said:


> I stand corrected, the belt I have doesn't have as much storage or accessories.


It does however have the benefit of stealth!


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## terri9630 (Jun 2, 2016)

Sentry18 said:


> The best part of that quote is that just this afternoon I ordered a grappling hook off of Amazon! It's for my 72 hour bag though and not my duty belt. But maybe... Just maybe...


If it folds up well enough you can pull out those extra cuffs and put it in their place. You can run some flexi cuffs through a keeper if you need to or just keep em in the car.


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## terri9630 (Jun 2, 2016)

Sentry18 said:


> It does however have the benefit of stealth!


The belt sgtusmc98 has also won't tear up or rub a hole into the car seat as you get in and out a million times.


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## genard (Jul 25, 2017)

Flashlights, some cash, food, and a first-aid kit. Well, those items I have whenever I go camping just in case of emergency.


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