Basic needs tools

**TheWoodsman** · 10-13-2010, 11:02 PM

What would you take, if you could only carry one item for each of the 5 following basic needs catagories below? The item has to be close to 100% reliable, with almost o% chance of failure. Of course your clothing and such would change in different enviroments, but your basics i would think stay the same, you just get extra gear for where you are specificly going. Here's mine

1. Fire- Fire piston (reliable)
2. Water- Pot (boil, collect water, drink water)
3. Food- Knife (make traps, spear tip, cleaning game)
4. Shelter- Tarp ( water/wind/sun protection, also catches water)
5. First aid- Tweezers

**Rick** · 10-13-2010, 11:05 PM

You might want to take a look at this post. Your question is far too vague. What I carry will depend on the environment, time of year, geography, etc.

http://www.wilderness-survival.net/f...ead.php?t=5477

**TheWoodsman** · 10-13-2010, 11:07 PM

fire piston for fire?

**Rick** · 10-13-2010, 11:15 PM

Okay. I deleted one version of this and merged two others. Just ask a mod to move a post if you have it in the wrong place and we'll be happy to do so. Otherwise you wind up with multiple threads on the same subject.

**TheWoodsman** · 10-13-2010, 11:17 PM

thank you mate

**Alaskan Survivalist** · 10-14-2010, 01:53 AM

I choose food...

**canid** · 10-14-2010, 02:19 AM

Originally Posted by TheWoodsman

What would you take if you could only carry one item for every basic need?

fire-
water-
food-
shelter-
first aid-

one item for all those needs: why; an rv.

a general purpose carbon steel knife would also be a huge single asset. assuming there is game to hunt or trap and stone to strike a spark on along with tinder to start and wood to burn and make tools and such from, it would allow me to make all of those things. remove any one of those prerequisites and things get a lot trickier.

**kyratshooter** · 10-14-2010, 02:58 AM

One item for each need or one item for all the needs?

My one item for first aid would be a quart of JD. It cures anything that ails you. It is also the only one item first aid kit I now of.

I'll share it with Canid if we can drink it in the RV.

**your_comforting_company** · 10-14-2010, 06:50 AM

fire- bic lighter
water- hydration bladder
food- jerked meats and/or pemmican
shelter- pup tent (or my new hammock and tarp)
First Aid- any 210 piece first aid kit

I also think the question is far too vague to be very productive.

**Sarge47** · 10-14-2010, 07:45 AM

I'm with Canid! An RV works for me as well!

**TheWoodsman** · 10-14-2010, 08:00 AM

I meant like one item for each thing. Like for fire a fire piston or such. Similar to what "your comforting company" said. Thanks all who replied so far.

**BENESSE** · 10-14-2010, 08:09 AM

If I could carry AS, then that's what I'd take.
Otherwise, H2O.

**Winnie** · 10-14-2010, 08:21 AM

Originally Posted by BENESSE

If I could carry AS, then that's what I'd take.
Otherwise, H2O.

Tell you what, if we do this together, then AS would be lighter

**Rick** · 10-14-2010, 08:26 AM

Woodsman - I'm not certain the information you receive will be valid for anything other than the person responding. For example, I normally make fire with a BIC lighter because it's easy to use in my environment. I would not want it to be my primary fire starter in swampy, wet or snowy conditions. There I might choose a mag fire starter.

Shelter starts with your clothing and protects the dead air space around your skin. Everything you do beyond a base layer is designed to insulate that dead air space. All the way out to your tent/tarp/debris hut. So knowing what environment I'm in will dictate what shelter I will go with.

It's no different than asking what's the best survival knife. The answer is there isn't one. It depends on the job and the environment.

**rwc1969** · 10-14-2010, 08:49 AM

Originally Posted by TheWoodsman

What would you take if you could only carry one item for every basic need?
....

I'm going to assume that the items must be as reliable as possible, I'll be on extended leave with no known date of return, and I may be in a cold or hot environment.

fire- Ferrocerium rod
water- 1 gallon milk jug
food- 6 quart SS pot with a lid, is that two?
shelter- 4 man dome tent
first aid- knife

Given the scenario and limited items a knife would likely do me better than a first aid kit, but i'd sure like to have one.

I could have chose knife for fire, but considering I have yet to find a local rock that will spark with one and probably couldn't find a tinder that would catch the spark I'd rather have a pot for food and for boiling water.

The most essential item is fire and the ability to use it. Everything in our world revolves around fire.

**your_comforting_company** · 10-14-2010, 09:07 AM

Originally Posted by rwc1969

I could have chose knife for fire, but considering I have yet to find a local rock that will spark with one and probably couldn't find a tinder that would catch the spark I'd rather have a pot for food and for boiling water.

The most essential item is fire and the ability to use it. Everything in our world revolves around fire.

I have not found any rocks that will spark in my area either, though I know many spark catchers that would work provided I had a way to make a spark.

I agree 100% that fire is the ultimate tool. Everything we know, touch, see, and use revolves around fire and it's use as a tool. Even a ferro-rod, and char-cloth are manufactured using fire.

**TheWoodsman** · 10-14-2010, 09:24 AM

Yeah RWC... thats what i meant. The things that are always reliable don't have to worry that it will run out like a lighter. I shuold have been more clear.

**canid** · 10-14-2010, 01:24 PM

i realized the mistake i've been making all this time in selecting stone for striking sparks. i'd generally been going for the same cryptosilicates i'd consider for knapping. for the heck of it, i tried a piece of the 'junk chert' in my knappable stone display; the kind of stuff that's chock full of inclusions and wouldn't make anything but the crudest of tools easily. it surprised me by giving sparks more intense, and doing so far more reliably than the material i had tried before.