Use A Military Survival Belt Rig To Stay Alive In The Wild! LBE
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Feb 4, 2024
I take the old Alice LBE Belt system and turn it into a great day scouting survival belt rig! USGI Industries Poncho: https://bit.ly/3ZdDh6N Prepared Wanderer Patches and Stickers: https://thepreparedwanderer.bigcartel.com Prepared Wanderer WEBSITE: https://preparedwanderer.com Prepared Wanderer AMAZON STORE: https://bit.ly/3Jjs1iO Prepared Wanderer FACEBOOK GROUP: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1835005976546722 Prepared Wanderer INSTAGRAM: prepared_wanderer
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0:00
So, I'm out in the woods today and it's about 7 a.m. right now
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And there's a couple hunting seasons going on right now, so if you hear some gunshots
0:34
in the background, don't be alarmed. I think goose has started up and of course squirrel season is going on right now
0:43
I brought my .22 pistol with me just in case I see some squirrels I can take a shot at
0:48
and do a little tree rat hunting. But what I wanted to do today is, is I wanted to show you a military surplus load bearing
0:58
belt system that I put together. I've been wanting to do this for a long time and I've always been fascinated with the LBEs
1:07
and the Alice load bearing system. And everything just kind of came together with the equipment
1:14
I found the right pieces that I wanted and I was able to put it together pretty quickly
1:19
and it turned out really well. And I am running it today and what I'm calling this is, this is my Wilderness Survival Belt
1:27
Rig and it has everything that I need for a day out in the woods and definitely has
1:36
items that can also help me if I have to spend the night in the woods. So we're going to go through the gear that I'm carrying, what I put on this belt rig
1:45
and talk about some of the philosophy behind those things and hopefully we'll see some
1:49
squirrels and I'll get a few shots at them. There's the rig itself
2:00
Pretty standard stuff. And I'm sure that the military guys who have worn these in the past are going to chime
2:10
in with some suggestions and that's awesome because I did not serve so I've never really
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worn one of these for any length of time other than just to mess around with in the woods
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But I really wanted to put together something that I could take out with me for scouting
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around areas like this and for hunting because to me it's just the perfect solution especially
2:36
when it's kind of warm out like it is right now. So let's take a look at what's on this kit
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So this kit that I put together is all based on the Alice LBE or the Load Bearing Equipment
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as they call it, the belt rig system. And this system has been around for a very very long time and has gone through a lot
3:01
of different developments and this gear that I have here is kind of a mix of stuff
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Since I'm not really trying to do any kind of reenactment or any kind of period correct
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looking pieces I've chosen what I feel is the best that I could find for this particular
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kit but keeping it simple and addressing the needs that I have when I'm out in the
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woods and no more no less. So it is a minimalist kit and it really is meant to be supplemented with a larger backpack
3:36
or hydration pack if you have that ability with this kind of kit. That's why these belt kits are great because you can wear this on your hips and then add
3:44
a backpack for much longer sustainment. So we have an Alice belt
3:51
This is the old style. This is actually from a buddy of mine who served in Iraq
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That was his belt. We have this MAHLE woodland butt pack which actually still works on the Alice system pretty well
4:07
It has all the connectors for it. Two canteens. These canteens are actually Nalgene Oasis canteens
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I prefer these over the military ones just because they're BPA free
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They don't have an odor to them. You can see through them. They're a little bit lighter but yet they're just as strong and they do not leak whatsoever
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So I'm not using someone's old scuzzy surplus canteen. I'm using my new canteen which works perfectly
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I love these things. So the Nalgene Oasis is a great addition and it fits all the military kit
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I also am using a canteen cup with the stove stand
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And if you're unfamiliar with that, this is how those work. So that actually allows you to put a heating tab or wood or twigs or whatever underneath
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and heat your coffee, heat and boil your water that way. And the Oasis canteen fits perfectly on there
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No issues. And that all goes inside a standard military issue canteen cover
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Over here on this side of the belt I've got a keeper that I think this is Maxpedition
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It's one of their key keepers. I just keep my gloves hanging from there
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That way they're easily accessible off to my side and I can get to them pretty quickly
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So continuing down my left side, the knife that I've decided to put on this kit is the SE6
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And I've done reviews of the SE6 in the past. And I'm really starting to believe that a larger knife on a minimalist survival kit
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is the way to go. And the reason I say that is because with a larger knife you're able to do a lot of
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different tasks that a smaller knife cannot do. And a lot of that is around wood processing, especially getting to the dry center of wood
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when it's been raining all day. Even here in the eastern woodlands, dry wood is really important
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There's a lot of rain, believe it or not, and you can come out here and try to find
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dry wood and sometimes there's not much. So you have to be able to get to that easily
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And I don't want to have to carry an axe or a hatchet all the time
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They're heavy, they're cumbersome, but a big knife can do that. It can get to that center wood through batoning
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It can also be used for brush clearing, game processing, wood processing
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So a lot of different things. And then when you couple that with a smaller blade, like a utility blade of some sort
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for the finer tasks, you get a great combo and you really don't need much more
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The only thing I would probably throw in is a saw. You always have some type of saw blade because that is a great way of bringing down dry leaning
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wood at least. So I've got the SE-6. And then really the heart of this kit is this pouch here
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This is all my fire making and survival type items. You don't need a lot, so I haven't put a ton in here, but there's enough to get the job done
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This pouch is from Lester River Bushcraft. This is a pouch that you're able to add to any sheath system
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What I've got in here, I've got my Bic lighter. I have my buck sharpening steel so I can maintain my blade in the field
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I have a brass match safe waterproof. These things are fantastic, but it also has a quality compass built into it
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So it's just a nice little additional item. And in here for matches, I like to carry the waterproof matches, the storm matches, like
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you find at Walmart, the UCO ones. They fit in there perfectly
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I have a ferro rod with striker, magnifying lens
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And then in this little baggie I have a mini fishing kit. So this has line, sinkers, hooks, a bobber, and a couple of lures
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Don't need a lot, but it's certainly enough that I could probably catch some panfish or
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something like that in a local stream or pond. And then in here I've got some brass snare wire, a mini signaling mirror, and some Aquamira
9:15
tabs to disinfect water. And then some man-made tinders to start a fire
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So I've got tinder quicks, some of the fire strip roll, and then some cotton balls that
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have some resin impregnated into it. I think these are from Black and White Firestarter
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I've done a review of their stuff before. So this is my little fire kit
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This with the ferro rod, the matches, or the lighter, I will be able to get a fire
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going pretty easily, even in wet conditions. Here is my medical kit, my first aid supplies
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So I've got some afterbite in case I get bug bites. Some mini shears
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I have some wet wipes for, you know what, cleanup
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I have this casualty blanket military issue, which is really nice because it's super lightweight
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and rolls up and it's protected in the bag. So that goes in there
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And then in this waterproof bag I have just a variety of first aid items
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Gauze pad, bandages, mole skin, lip balm, tape, neosporin, so a lot of boo-boo type stuff
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And then on the front of the kit I've added a tourniquet
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This is a cat tourniquet. And since, you know, you're out in the woods working with knives, and a lot of times I'm
10:54
out here by myself, a tourniquet is just a good idea. It doesn't weigh a lot
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So get yourself a good quality one and throw it on your kit. So I've got that
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And then we have the canteen pouch
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And then we get to the butt pack. So this is, I believe this is a MOLLE butt pack
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I'm not really familiar with all the different iterations of gear, but a guy I know sent
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this to me to let me try it out and I really love it
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It's very simple, but it's, you know, it's a nice water resistant material and it's got
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a collar to it. So that helps contain the items within it and also keep the moisture of the rain off
12:07
of it. And in here, this is really my sustainment stuff. So it holds quite a bit
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I have two contractor garbage bags, liners. So these are going to be utilized as a quick survival bed
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So I can fill these with leaves, sleep on that, collecting water, collecting material
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turn it into a rain poncho, just whatever. There's a lot of different uses for these, but there's no reason not to carry two of
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these in your kit when you're putting one together. I have a military issue MRE
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This has been stripped down of a lot of packaging. And this is cheese tortellini, so I've marked it, but this has the heater pack in it and
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the box to heat the main entree, of course. And then there's all the other accessories in here, still sealed
13:00
Pretty lightweight, not too bad. I don't know how old this one is
13:05
I can't remember, but it's not that old. It's still fairly in good shape
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So that goes in. And then, like I said before, a saw
13:17
Saw is such an invaluable item when doing wood processing and I don't need a huge one
13:22
I'm not cutting down trees, not felling trees. So this little Opinel, I've been carrying this for years in a lot of my different day kits
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There's actually wood resin in there, in the blade. But it's very effective and it's very sturdy, but also it's very lightweight and small
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so I don't have to carry a big saw. Another good alternative would be the Baco
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I carry a Baco in a lot of my bags. Or the Silky Gomboy, the small one
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All great saws and it's just your personal preference. Then I carry kind of a snack kit
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These are civilian rations. So I've got granola bars, some nutrient survival cookies, a couple nutrient survival entrees
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beef jerky, some Tabasco, and then just a little utensil set. So a lot of different items to supplement the MRE in case I want to cook something and
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not heat it up in a bag, I have that option. Here is my utensil set
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I think I got this off of Timu or something like that. It's pretty neat
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I've got the fork, the knife, and the spoon. Then I've got the lid to my canteen cup
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This is Rothko. They make the lid that fits the standard GI canteen cups, as well as their canteen cups
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So stainless steel. You've got to have a canteen lid, or you have to have a cup lid, especially when you're
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cooking over a fire. Then I have a headlamp. This is an old one that I have from Princeton Tech
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It has a green filter on it. It used to have a red filter, but I've lost that
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But having a headlamp is super invaluable. And then having something with a low light filter, like a green or a red, is really handy
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I'm out here. And then this is my military poncho
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This is an off-brand. It's not a military issue, but I got this off of Amazon
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It works really well. I did a test of it on a video a while back
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I'll show some footage of that. But what I do is I keep these bungees tied around it, and those are my tie-outs for the corners
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So if I'm sitting with an A-frame, those go on the corners, and I can stretch that out
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It's a pretty good quality poncho. So that's my shelter, as well as rain protection
16:00
I have a little kit that I've put together that has just some stakes ready to go, so
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I don't have to build those in the field. I've got 100 feet of paracord
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I've got my Gorilla Tape for repairs. And then a couple of these Night Eyes, what do they call these
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Like the figure eights or something like that. So those just clip on the end of my poncho, and then I can wind around that and tighten
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it up. Don't have to use them. I sometimes do ridge lines without them, but they work
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They're easy to use, and they conserve on 550 cord. So that all goes in here
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Then that's it for the butt pack. Along the side of the butt pack, though, I do carry a multi-tool
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And when I was talking about the tool philosophy of the big knife, so the big knife is gonna
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do a lot of the bigger tasks, but you still need a small blade
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And a good quality multi-tool will have several knives available on it
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And this is the SOG. So with that size blade, I can easily clean fish, a squirrel
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I can do feather sticks with this. Other items is really fantastic, and especially the pliers when you're doing any kind of fishing
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And of course, removing hooks, it's really handy. Or even setting up traps, things like that, working with wire, doing repairs
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And then of course, it's got the standard complement of tools. There is scissors, which is very handy
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Screwdrivers, of course, for repairing gear. And then files. So files can be utilized to sharpen tools and to improvise different things
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And last but not least is this .22 pistol. Now I wanna talk about this a little bit because there is a reason why I'm carrying a .22 pistol
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more so than just because it's hunting season for squirrel. Recently, I've been studying and rereading a survival manual by, I believe it's the USROG
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something like that. It's called Six Ways In, Twelve Ways Out. It is a manual that is specifically written for military personnel who may become trapped
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in a hostile environment behind enemy lines, in a jungle, forest, whatever
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And the instructors who wrote this manual talk exclusively about the .22 pistol being
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probably one of the most underutilized or underrated firearms to carry in a survival situation
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And I really like what they had to say about it because it made a lot of sense
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Through their experience and their training, the whole cadre of instructors in this group
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all carry .22 pistols and have taken pretty much all types of North American game, from
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frogs all the way up to white-tailed deer, everything in between. A .22 is a game-getter
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It will feed you. And the pistol in particular, especially when it's been accurized and tuned and you practice
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with it and it's a good quality one, it will fill the meat pot for sure
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So out here in the eastern woodlands, a .22 pistol makes a lot of sense
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I can do rabbit, squirrel, frogs, all kinds of different stuff. So if I'm truly in a situation where I'm going to be out in the woods for an extended period
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of time and I want to feed myself, the .22 pistol is a fantastic item
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So this is the Smith & Wesson Victory, stainless, and that's one reason I picked it because
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it is stainless. It is set up that I can add a scope to it, and that is something that I want to do at
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some point, putting a red dot on it. But there is a lot of accessories and fine-tuning you can do with this pistol, just like the Ruger's
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It is a very accurate pistol. I've had it for quite a while and I enjoy shooting it quite a bit
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Well I hope you got some good information out of this video. I think this house belt rig is really something to look at if you're putting together a survival kit
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It is comfortable, it carries a lot of weight, this is a heavy kit, it's not light by any
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means, but it's carrying everything I need. Shelter, water, fire-making, game-getting, all that stuff
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Tools, it carries it all. Even a shelter system and food. You couple that with a larger backpack and now you've developed a system
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That's really what I'm going for, I'm trying to build a survival system that can be utilized
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in many different ways. What my thinking is, I have a belt kit that can be used for scouting, and then if I want
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to add a chest rig to carry rifle mags, I can do that. Right now I'm into a patrol scenario
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If I'm bugging out, I can add a larger backpack that's going to have more sustainment items
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or I can add a hydration backpack for hotter months and more extended hiking or scouting
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So by having different components that all work together, as opposed to just a lot of
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different bags doing different things, I think it's going to make a lot more sense
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than what I've been doing in the past. So this is kind of the first step is developing this rig and then testing it out here and
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carrying it through the year and showing you guys how it works and what I put in it
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So far I'm really enjoying it, it is comfortable and it carries everything I need it to do
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If you like this content, please subscribe and share. Also leave a comment down below of what you would add or subtract from this kit, or maybe
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what you have on your kit. And then also do me a favor, go to Facebook, if you're on there, and join the Facebook group
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22:52
A lot of good content on there, extra content. Then also go to preparedwanderer.com, that is my website, that is a blog site primarily
23:02
there's also links to the videos, links to the store in case you want to buy a Prepared
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23:14
that so there's some interesting articles on there I think that will get you started in the prepper and survival genre
23:21
So as always, thank you so much for watching my videos, I really appreciate it, and we'll
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see you next time on the Prepared Wanderer
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