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  • Bug out bag - Book review, sort of

    Being the newb that I am with all of this I decided to start reading some books on how to build a bug out/72 hour bag. I will say this, even the bad ones contain some nuggets of useful info, and the good some things that had me scratching my head.

    Over all they seem to fall into 3 categories.
    1- Incoherent ramblings. Possibly good info but so poorly organized and written that in some cases I gave up and moved on to the next.
    2- It's about sales. These were an improvement over the first group in writing and organization but they smacked of being more about name dropping and directing people to certain manufacturers or re-sellers. As I said, the base info is useful but it felt like I was reading advertisements and not equipment recommendations.
    3- Good all round. These were pretty well written and very well organized. They broke things down into well thought out categories and then explained what each item is and why you should be carrying it. Yes there were some specific make/models mentioned but I didn't feel as if I was getting set upon by a commissioned salesperson.

    So......over all I would recommend Build the Perfect Bug Out Bag: Your 72-Hour Disaster Survival Kit by Creek Stewart. For me it hit all of the major categories of gear and why he thinks you should have it. He made recommendations of items based on multiple pro and con lists and suggest alternative for those with cost restriction. I thought this to be the best of what I have read thus far. One bonus for me was that he did it without coming across as a smarmy know it all. Oh, and It has pictures!

  • #2
    I have read a "few" books on BOB's also. Funny thing is the one I liked is also titled "How to build the perfect bug out bag" by I. M. Leaven. Which come on just the name alone made me want to read it. LOL. But he also name drops a bit but not to the point that I wanted to slit my wrists. I also believe I got it for free on Amazon as one of the 1 day freebies or something like that.

    My opinion is one persons version of a perfect bag is not going to be another's perfect bag. There are those "goto" items and the "have to haves" but all people have unique environments and needs. I think the thing to take away from the good and the bad opinions is find your "basics" that all bags need then expand as you need and your budget allows.

    bob.JPG
    2TNA = 2nd to none Arms, Albany, Oregon
    Where a big 2 and a big A matter...

    "They that can give up liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." -Benjamin Franklin

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    • #3
      Got it from Amazon and it is still free for KindleUnlimited members. It's fairly short compared to some of the others. Let me get started on it. Always room in my head for more info.

      I really should actually build one for me and my wife. We can then load up the dogs head out for a day for a bit of a shake down cruise. That will let us know some of what works and what doesn't. Best to find that out now vs when we really need it.

      Link to the book:http://www.amazon.com/How-Build-Perf...rds=i+m+leaven

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      • #4
        Start the "shake down" before you get the bag up to the target weight you have in mind for it. Your back will thank you, and you'll build stamina more carefully.
        quam minimum credula postero

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        • #5
          Good idea. My back needs all the help it can get. I can usually tough my way through the activity but the recovery time keeps getting longer as the years go by.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by Boston_Joe View Post
            Good idea. My back needs all the help it can get. I can usually tough my way through the activity but the recovery time keeps getting longer as the years go by.
            True Story...
            2TNA = 2nd to none Arms, Albany, Oregon
            Where a big 2 and a big A matter...

            "They that can give up liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." -Benjamin Franklin

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            • #7
              OK, I went through the whole 68 pages of the I M Leaven book. I gotta say it left me wanting. Overall it had some good info and it made me think about adding or leaving out a couple of items. Now for the rest of the story. It was not (IMHO) very well organized. I know there is some overlap with regard to certain items and they may fit into more than one category but at times this book skipped about seemingly at random. I noticed that more in the list at the back of the book. I love a good list and this was fairly comprehensive it just was not ordered in a very logical, dare I say reader friendly way. I'll give the author an A for effort but a C- for execution.

              I've got to stick with Build the Perfect Bug Out Bag: Your 72-Hour Disaster Survival Kit by Creek Stewart as far as a published book goes. Graywolf's website is excellent and I have incorporated much of his article on BOBs into my planning. Now that I have what I think is good info it's time to stop reading and get on with the building.

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              • #8
                I think John D. McCann's book "Build the Perfect Survival Kit" is about as detailed as you'll find. It's strictly a bug out bag book. I also like his "Stay Alive! Survival Skills You Need" as a all around good reference book. It doesn't have the detailed kit lists that his first book has, but it goes into techniques. Good books no doubt.

                You can't go wrong with the bible of survival books SAS by John 'Lofty' Wiseman.

                One Book to stay away from is" Survivability for the Common Man" by Dave Canterbury it was the worst edited book I've ever read. My 9 year old was like "Daddy is this what you mean when you say literacy is sign of intelligence, what happened to this guy?" Trust me, it's not worth the water proof paper it's printed on. However he redeemed himself with "Bushcraft 101" that was a well written well organized book. I reference that book all the time.

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                • #9
                  I haven't read "How to build the perfect bug out bag" by I. M. Leaven, will have to check it out.

                  Originally posted by Boston_Joe View Post
                  ....I've got to stick with Build the Perfect Bug Out Bag: Your 72-Hour Disaster Survival Kit by Creek Stewart as far as a published book goes......
                  I have read Creek's book and also Surviving Doomsday: A Guide for Surviving an Urban Disaster by Richard Duarte.


                  I will reserve judgment on the IM Leaven book till I read it. But I believe there is no "PERFECT" bug-out bag but maybe a perfect bag for you. Every persons' skill level, location, circumstances, etc are different.
                  What I like to do is "take a little from here, take a little from there..." use what's best for me and my locale.
                  I am forever tweaking my bag.

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                  • #10
                    It's not a book, but a DVD. "Survival Bug Out" by Jonathan Hollerman has a lot of good stuff in it and it's not just one bag, it all depends on what you are trying to do ie. get home, patrol etc. And it depends on where you are and what season it is. Anyway a couple of hours well spent.

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                    • #11
                      Hi,

                      I agree with a lot of the reasons given about BOB bags. I have 2 of them. One is a get home bag, using only essential equipment I need to make my trek of 32 miles from work to home. Mostly it's battle oriented, because most of the trek is thru hostile territory. I figure 2/3 days to walk home.

                      The bug out bag is like an inch bag, so I can survive for a longer time.

                      johnk568

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