Paracord Survival Bracelet with Compass, Ferro Rod and Whistle

This paracord bracelet is one of the stuff I bought after Christmas from eBay as a gift to myself. I liked it because it has the 3 things I always carry with me when I take a short hike or bike my favorite trail - compass, ferro rod and whistle. I thought having a spare of the essential things I need for the unexpected would add to my peace of mind and self-confidence.


The Paracord Survival Bracelet.


The compass is relatively accurate.


The ferro rod throws sufficient sparks.


But the whistle doesn't work. No matter how hard I blew on it all I hear is the sound of my breath, no whistle at all.

I informed the eBay seller about it and requested a replacement of the whistle. I am still waiting for the replacement to arrive. I hope the one I will receive will work well.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

P51 Can Opener

Used and unused P51 can opener stamped "US Shelby Co" bought from Amazon. Worn out after using it less than 20 times. See arrow in the photo above.

It doesn't work anymore. What is this opener made of - aluminum? Used to be steel, I know.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Hand Warmers

Brrr. The temperature is really going down to almost single digit, usually in the 12-10 degrees range this week. I guess it's time to bring out the hand warmers.

My job requires me to work outside early in the morning for 1-2 hours and with these kind of weather you're sure to get numb and painful fingers, even when you have your gloves on. Before I had my hand warmer, I used to go back inside the building maybe 2 or 3 times to warm my hands and that's a lot of hustle because you have to walk quite a distance. Ever since I had my hand warmer I don't need to do that anymore.


The Jon-e hand warmer I bought in a garage sale last summer for $2. You have to fill it with lighter fluid and light it and works similar to a regular liquid filled lighter. Zippo also makes a hand warmer like this and there are China made ones that are of comparable quality. One refill will last for 8 hours, they say, but I haven't used the hand warmer that long yet.

There are also disposable single-use hand warmers and there are reusable ones that are chemically filled but they do not give enough heat. The same is true with electronic hand warmers. For me, the Jon-e type hand warmers are the best.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Opinel Knife - Lightweight Carry

I first saw this set up from one Youtuber named luv2sharpen. He says this is what he carries when running on the trail because it's light and don't take much space. His plastic match box contains a fire steel, small sticks of fatwood and folded wax paper for fire making. My container below stores the same items but I added a jute twine as well.


Opinel #6 and Coghlans's plastic match box.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Making Espresso

I like coffee, especially on a chilly morning. Sometimes I drop by the park after working night shift, take a short walk and then have a cup of coffee afterwards. I just enjoy preparing my coffee by myself boiling the water using my alcohol stove. But I want to try something else too, not always the instant coffee variety. So when I saw this small, simple espresso maker, I did not hesitate to buy it.

Primula Aluminum 1 Cup Stovetop Espresso Maker, $12.95 at Amazon.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Vapur 0.5 Litres Anti-Bottle

Here's a cheap alternative to platypus bottle. If you need additional water container but don't want to add bulk to your pack. If you hate lugging back home a big empty reusable bottle at the end of the day. This might be what you are looking for.


Foldable, reusable water bottle designed for convenient on-the-go use. Reinforcing grommet and custom clip; BPA-free and has FDA-approved polyethylene liner that resists taste and stains. $7.81 at Amazon.


Can be rolled, folded, or flattened when empty, easily fitting into pockets, purses, or packs.


Stands upright when full.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Headlight

One item that is always in my EDC is an LED flashlight. It is a very useful tool when looking for something or finding your way around in the dark. But what about if you need both your hands and a flashlight? That is where a headlight will come in very handy.


Rayovac BRS5LEDHLT-BB Value Bright 5 LED Headlight, $5.88 at Walmart.


4 white LEDs, 14 lumens, 32 hour run time.


1 red LED, runs on 3 AAA battery.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Clipper Lighter

One item I always include in my fire kit is a disposable lighter. Why, because using a lighter is an easy and convenient way of making a fire. I know a lighter is no good when the flint is wet but you can blow and wipe it dry and it will function again. What about when the fuel runs dry or evaporates? Well, you can still use the spark from the lighter to make fire if you have a char cloth, cotton balls soaked with petroleum jelly, jute twine or any tinder that will catch fire easily. You can convert your lighter into a sparklite. See my previous post on how to convert a lighter into a sparklite. But you don't need to do that if you have a clipper lighter.


Clipper is a brand name of a lighter that is refillable and world renowned for durability and reliability.


It's just like any disposable lighter.


But it has a removable flint system that allows you to replace the flint. You just pull the flint system up with your fingers.


And you have an instant sparklite. Clipper lighter, a conventional lighter and a sparklite all in one.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

ResQMe Tool Gone

Another gadget lost. I lost it the same way I lost my guppy knife - yanked out from the carabiner attached to my pant's belt loop. I should have learned my lesson the first time but I guess I'm so hard headed.


My car keys with the black clip that holds the ResQme tool.


How it was attached to the black clip.


The ResQMe tool. Read this post to find more about it.

Well now I will never attach a carabiner with my stuff on my belt loop ever again.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Mess Kit

As part of my preparation for our vacation (see post below), I bought a mess kit from Walmart. I thought it would be nice to have a bonfire and cook our food by the beach.


Mess kit by Outdoor Products. Includes a fry pan/plate , bowl, a pot with a handle and lid, and a cup with a handle. Lightweight and made of 100% aluminum.


Fry pan/plate.


Bowl.


Pot with lid.


And a cup with handle.

Unfortunately, its been very cold and nobody wants to go out and have a bonfire so I wasn't able to test my mess kit. I guess I just have to use it in the park one of these days.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Mosquito Head Net

Summer is a time for outdoor fun. It is a time for exploring forest preserves and walking or biking its many hiking trails. It is also a time for mosquitos and other pesky insects. Therefore, it is a good idea to wear insect repellent, as mosquitoes can be quite thick along the trail, especially the natural trail. Wearing a mosquito head net is a good precaution too.


Put it on your head, and it keeps mosquitoes and other insect pests off. By the way, did you know that flies here bites too.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

UCO Micro Lantern

One rule of survival is that all items in your kit should serve more than one purpose. If the gadget is not multi-purpose then it is not worth including it in your survival kit.

Take this UCO micro lantern for example. You will find below that it has other purpose aside from providing light.


Collapsing lantern is made of aluminum. Lantern holds two tealight candles


Glass chimney creates a windproof environment for the candle. Attached bail and chain allows lantern to be hung anywhere.


Burns all varieties of tealight candles.


So what's its other use? It can keep your coffee warm for 8 hours(that's how long a tea light candle lasts). I don't have my stainless cup when I took this picture so I just used a can to show you how.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Amazing Alcohol Stove

I made this alcohol stove based on a design I found on the Internet. I have a hobo stove which uses wood as fuel. But sometimes early in the morning when the surrounding is damp, it's hard to find dry twigs.




It's made from a cat food can and has a total of 32 holes. I used a paper punch to make the holes.


It uses denatured alcohol or heet as fuel. It takes 2 - 3 minutes to boil a cup of water.


A very convenient way to boil water when dry wood is not available. Light and easy to carry too.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

ResQMe

Another gadget I acquired is this little extrication tool that prevents car entrapment in the vehicle. Below, is a short description of the product from their official website.

What is ResQMe?
ResQMe™ is a unique portable safety device that goes on your key chain. This innovative tool allows people to escape from being trapped in vehicles.

What is ResQMe?
ResQMe™ is a unique portable safety device that goes on your key chain. This innovative tool allows people to escape from being trapped in vehicle.

How does it work?
ResQMe™ attaches to your keychain with a detachable clip. Pull the clip away from the product to reveal the cutter (blade). Hook over seatbelt and pull. To activate the window breaker, simply push the black head against a side window until the concealed spring-loaded spike releases and shatters window.


It goes in your keychain.


Window breaker.


Seatbelt cutter.


Get yours now!

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Screw Pop 4-in-1 Keychain Tool

I've got a nice little item for Urban EDC. I bought this from ebay for $5.95 + free shipping. Here's the website of the seller.


Full size Flathead #2 and Phillips #2 Screwdriver plus 1/4" hex driver and a bottle opener .


The bottle opener and flathead and phillips screwdriver removed from the hex driver.






Very strong, durable tool and can be used as a weapon too.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Four Function Whistle

It's been more than a month into the summer and I haven't gone biking, hiking or camping yet. That's what happens when your work schedule is overnight - you just want to sleep during the day. I also have some catching up to do with my blog posts. At least 4 blog posts a month is my quota and it's already the 3rd week of July and I haven't posted one yet. Well, for the meantime, I'll just make a post on the gadgets I have especially on my EDC or PSK. Here's one of the them.


Coghlan's 4-function whistle. I bought it from Walmart for $3.75 maybe 2 years ago.


It has a pretty accurate compass and a fairly loud whistle.


On the back it has a thermometer. But you need a magnifying glass to read the temperature. The graduations on the thermometer are just too small for me to read.


And a small magnifying glass that you can use to start a fire on a sunny day. You can use it to start an ember on a char cloth or you can use it to help you remove a sliver stuck somewhere in your body. It won't work with petroleum jelly coated cotton balls though. I tried but I wasn't successful.

It's a nice little gadget that can provide you with your navigation, signalling and fire lighting needs.

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.

Sunpak 620-786 Mini-Spider Tripod

I've got a new spider tripod from Amazon for $3.23 + free shipping. I bought this tripod so I can make videos of my stuff conveniently. Its really hard to do videos with your one hand holding the camera while the other hand is holding your stuff.


Only 5 inches long and weighs less than two ounces.


Features individually adjustable, flexible legs.


Tripod holds compact 35mm and digital cameras. Holds your camera steady at any angle, indoors or out, on virtually any terrain. I don't have another camera so I can't take a picture of the tripod with a camera mounted on it. Good buy!

That's all folks! Thanks for reading.