Though I do have several other small kits, my primary kit is a general use kit. I keep it ready to go for any emergency. Since I can’t carry much on my back, I use a game cart to handle the overwhelming majority of the items.

And since I have to use it anyway, I take advantage of the weight & space capacity and take rather more than most people recommend. Some of the additional weight and space is in the gear, but much of it, however, is in food. I can last well over a month just on what food I have with me.

If the situation changes, or is such that I must lighten or reduce the size of the load, I can merely drop or cache what I don’t need and keep going. Since I plan for many different situations, and can’t afford the duplication necessary for having a bag for each situation, I went with the following non-specific kit:

Field equipment kit (Evac/BOB/BIB/GOOD/INCH/DHS)

(Well on the way to having it all, but not quite yet.)

(It is a fairly comprehensive pick and choose list covering all four seasons and the terrain here in the High Desert. Not everyone needs everything. Some items would be left behind or cached, depending on the circumstances. And there are cheaper options available for some of the items for those on a tight budget.)

As to quantities of consumables, since I can carry much more on the game cart than I can on my back, I go for one month plus. I think three days minimum, seven days much better, and a month or more preferred. You will eat more when on the move than when bugging in, so up the amounts you think you would eat by 10% - 25%. Somewhere in the kit should be important documents in a water proof container.

Just my opinions.


Worn:

Propper khaki Tactical Pants – best quality/price/feature I’ve found
Propper khaki Tactical shirt – as above
Orvis Leather money pants belt (with 1/10 ounce gold Eagles) – nice belt, with slot. Gold coins for emergencies
Rustedfables The Grizzly Leather Suspenders (brown) – hold the pants up better than elastic ones
FOTL Boxer briefs (white) – Just my preference
FOTL v-neck T-shirt (white) – Just my preference
Wigwam F2161-051 Coolmax liner socks – good wicking
Carhartt Wool boot socks – very warm even when wet
Danner Ft. Lewis boots – just all around good boots w/goretex lining
Akruba Territory Hat with chin strap wide brim hat (brown) – for sun protection
Peltor Comtact II dual radio talk through hearing protection communications headset – best available I’ve found
Petzl TacTikka XP LED headlamp on hat – has the features I want
2 tan bandannas – Gotta have two. One for the nose, one for the neck or whatever
Hatch Operator lightweight gloves – good for mild weather tasks that are hard on the hands.
Hatch XTAK tan elbow pads – I fall down a lot
Hatch XTAK tan knee pads – Ditto above
Timex Automatic Self winding watch – No worries about batteries or winding, good price compared to others
Wiley X JP-2-510 photochromic sunglasses – the only ones of quality I could find
Zippo lighter/Brunton Helos butane lighter – Either will do. Easier to carry fuel for the butane, Zippo works at altitude
Pantac Wallet C wallet w/cash & ID (tan) – just a nice simple nylon wallet. Cash… well, can’t have too much
Maglight Solitare flashlight w/Tectite LED conversion w/AAA battery – extremely bright for 1 AAA
Cold Steel Voyager medium plain edge pocket knife – good size/function/quality/price combination
Spyderco CO8 Harpy pocket clip knife – hawkbill serated blade for getting out of lines, nets, and is a wicked last ditch weapon
Tec-tite Tekna Ocean Edge Arm knife – an option for the boot knife. Already has harness for arm use
Cold Steel Counter Tac II boot knife – good quality and price if you need a boot knife
Nikon compact binoculars on chest harness (alternate: 7x50 Steiner Commander XP C) – have the Nikons, nice and small and very capable
Write in the rain notebook in left shirt pocket – for note taking. Works well for a nice price
2 Fisher Tactical Space pens in left shirt pocket – can’t lose the cap since there isn’t one. Write anywhere
Arrowtech W-742 Dosimeter in left shirt pocket – if planning for nuke situation. Good price for new production
Arrowtech W-138RM pen type rate meter in left shirt pocket – can use this instead of W-742 plus has rate meter function
Cell phone in right shirt pocket – useful in some situation. Might not work in an emergency, but emergencies aren’t all the time.
Dakota Alert M538-HT MURS hand held radio in pants radio pocket – Best option I’ve found for short rang comms.
Garman Oregon 550T GPS in pants left cargo pouch (opt) – best of the bunch in my opinion, if you’re going to use one
Kestrel 4500NV weather instrument in pants right cargo pouch (opt) – again, the best of the ones I’ve found if you need one
Key ring w/Benchmade knife sharpener, whistle – Sharpener is very small and very effective, whistle is for signalling
Leather change purse w/silver coins (brown) – the coins are for emergencies. The change purse keeps them together, separate from other things in the pocket
Beretta Tomcat .32 ACP w/4 spare magazines in pocket holster in right rear pants pocket – great hideout gun, and the .32 ACP is useable in cartridge adapters in .308 and .30-’06 rifles for almost silent hunting of small game



In FMCO CSV-M10 Vest (4 double magazine pouches, 2 large utility pouches, 2 small utility pouches, 620ci field pack): High quality/military type accepted, purpose built, no mesh, no plastic zippers, no Velcro, pouches made to fit

8 20-round .308 magazine in 4 double pouches – about the maximum I can carry plus the rest of the items in the vest
Brunton 8010G compass in 2nd small utility pouch – Very good quality/size/price option
Motorola HT-750 low band business band handheld radio in 2nd small utility pouch – Low Band VHF (just above CB) gives the best medium range comms I think that are available besides Amateur radios Expensive
Survival kit* in first large utility pouch – See below
Hardware and tools kit** in second large utility pouch – See below
MSR 3-liter hydration bladder in attached field pack – MSR is as good or better than the competition. Had good luck with their products. I’m in the high desert. Need a lot of water.


On TAG MOLLE Belt: - easy adjust, high quality

Glock 21SF in Tactical Taylor MOLLE holster (alternate: ParaOrdnance P-14) – Glock for price & capacity, holster can be configured in several ways
Surefire G2 flashlight in Specter Gear MOLLE pouch – Great basic light, not too expensive. The pouch is the only one I’ve found specifically for the G2
Cold Steel Oda in Spec-Ops MOLLE sheath – Based on the Randal #1, the Oda has a good sheath, but not MOLLE. The Spec-ops sheath solves the problem
IFA kit in Custom Tactical SAR MOLLE pouch*** - See below
Nalgene Guyot SS 38oz water bottle w/18oz cup & Maxpedition 4x10 MOLLE carrier – extra capacity/large opening/can be heated/big cup, & the pouch carries both plus room for other things, too.
Soldiers Optimized Butt pack w/GI Poncho & Ranger Rick liner attached, 3 days food (jerky, gorp, Millennium ration bars), Otis Tactical gun cleaning kit, CD V-750 Model 6 manual dosimeter charger – SOB is laid out fairly well. Best of the aftermarkets I’ve found. Ranger Rick liner has head hole and zipper for sleeping bag, Otis Tactical will clean all the weapons I have or plan to get. The V-750M6 doesn’t need batteries to charge dosimeters
Nalgene Guyot SS water bottle w/cup & Maxpedition 4x10 MOLLE carrier – second one for same reason
OKC-3S bayonet in MOLLE sheath – like the Oda, the OKC-3S is much like the Randle R-1. Comes with the MOLLE sheath
HSGI MOLLE Dump pouch – I like the construction of this one better than the competition for holding empties
Leatherman Surge in one pocket of Spec-Ops brand dual MOLLE pouch – best balance of function vs weight. The dual sheath is easy to adjust and can take different sized items
Wenger Survivor Swiss Army Knife in one pocket of Spec-Ops brand dual MOLLE pouch – It’s call the Survivor for a reason.
Spec-Ops brand double MOLLE pouch w/2 pistol magazines – have extra magazine in the other gear. Two is enough. Same thing on the double pouch as above


Kifaru Marauder 2,500ci MOLLE back pack w/cargo chair & gunbearer options – Great quality, the smallest of the Kifaru that will take the cargo chair (I think). The chair and gunbearer let me carry what ever I need and have both hands free

In Marauder:

MSR 3-liter hydration bladder – second bladder. Just have to have plenty of water
SAS Survival Handbook – Best of the field manuals in my opinion.
Food for 3 days (Jerky, gorp, Millennium ration bars) – light, compact, nourishing, and tastes good
Katadyn Hiker Pro water filter w/MP-1 tablets – best of the small filters in my opinion
Extra underwear – standard reasons
Extra socks – standard reasons
Double zip-locked packet of important papers (copies of licenses, deeds, insurance, etc.) – might not be able to recover the originals

On Marauder:

PTR-91 MBR in gunbearer (alternate: Springfield M1A) – best value for the money in a .308. Prefer the .308 for its versatility
Left side 2-quart GI canteen in Kifaru pouch – just more water. Unlike the bladders, can be poured from canteen to pot
Right side 2-quart GI canteen in Kifaru pouch – ditto above
Cold Steel E-tool – multipurpose. Digging, cooking, making debris huts, CQC weapon, best of the bunch in my opinion
Cold Steel Rifleman’s tomahawk – prefer a hawk with a hammer head. I like Cold Steel’s quality vs price