Customer Reviews

Adventure Medical Kits Pocket Survival Pack

5 star:		(33)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Doug Ritter and his foundation, Equipped to Survive, has come up with a very economic method to equip yourself and your family with an emergency kit. It is small enough to carry unnoticed in a pocket, yet fully functional.

Although you can control the amount of certain items if you put together your own kit (something of a rite of passage among the survivalists/emergency preparedness folk), I spent twice as much putting together a comparable kit. The military issue sparklite and tinder-quick, Fox-40 whistle, and Rescue Flash signal mirror alone could cover the cost of the kit and they are all top notch gear. This pack is extremely high quality through and through, from choice of equipment to packing and instructions. I recommend looking at the ETS website at the slideshow of how such a kit is put together and what Doug Ritter himself recommends that you add to the kit (the pouch can hold a few more small items such as water purification tabs).

The Pocket Survival Pack is an amazing value. I've purchased all of the items separately, and just the shipping or driving to pick up 3 or 4 of the items probably covers half the cost! If you are lucky enough to get everything at one store, you'd be hard pressed to get the entire kit as cheap as this. I know people who have purchased this kit to take the parts for their own self-built survival kits! That's how economical it is. Plus, if you buy this PSP, a portion of the proceeds goes to the ETS non-profit group which gives free survival consulting to deployed troops and is actively involved in improving survival equipment and standards. In fact, Doug Ritter is the only consumer advocate working with the governing body on personal locator beacons used in marine, aviation, and remote travel.

The kit itself comes in a waterproof container. I found it to be a bit tight when closing back up, but there is actually some room for more items. All components are of the highest quality. It's lightweight and I never notice it in a pocket. With the recommended ETS or similar keychain LED flashlight and a good pocket folding knife, you have a complete survival kit that rivals ones costing $100+. These are cheap enough to get one for each car and any camping/hiking/marine/aviation gear you might have. I highly recommend this PSP. I'm not affiliated with ETS, but I've come to appreciate their no-nonsense advice and forums. And if this was a bad kit, I'd still say so. I give it 5 stars, great value for the price and it really could save your life.

I've been looking over Doug Ritter's website for a while and finally broke down and bought two of these kits. In short: this is a fantastic bargain, and is truly a useful set of things to have with you if the poo poo hits the fan near you. The spark-lite sparker and tinder is worth $8 alone, the signal mirror is worth another $6, and there's half of the purchase price covered right there. All of the components are very deliberately selected to be easily useful, to work together to improve your chances, and to be impressively affordable.

I found that there is enough extra space in the pouch for a keychain LED light, six hurricane matches with striking strip wrapped in foil, and 10 Potable Aqua tablets in a perfume vial. You lose the ability to fold the top over when you add these things, but I'm keeping my kit in a backpack pocket, not in a pants pocket. So, not a problem for me.

I also decided to make a more substantial survival kit for when I'm backpacking. After doing a little looking around and checking prices on the individual bits and pieces, I chose to use my second Pocket Survival Pak as the starting point. This saved me a bundle of time and effort, knowing that all of the components were very high quality and already configured to be compact and ready to go. The only thing I didn't use in the bigger kit was the tiny compass. Even the vinyl pouch became the first aid kit holder in the bigger survival kit.

In closing, this is an amazingly well-conceived set of items that you may need some day, packaged in such a way that you're likely to have them on you when that time comes. I can't say enough about this kit. Truly amazing.

I think this survival kit deserves another 5-star review. At 3.9 oz., this kit is small, and that's a good thing to me. It's amazing how much stuff is in this little bag. All of the items are of the best quality. The signal mirror is beautiful. The inclusion of a lens magnifier is something I haven't seen in almost any other kit (great backup for fire starting). I know the firestarter that comes with it is normally about $8 just by itself. I just tried out the Fox 40 Micro whistle, and it's so loud, my ears started ringing (be careful). For a complete personal kit, I would recommend adding a knife, light, survival blanket, water purification tablets, wire saw, and a water bag. For the price, you can't get a better survival kit than this. I am really impressed by the quality here. My only minor complaint is that I wish they made the bag that the items come in a little bigger. I have trouble fitting everything in there properly and keeping it closed after I've taken items out and tried to get everything back in. That's almost not even worth mentioning though because this kit is excellent. I've bought other kits before... the kinds that tell you they have a signal mirror until you find out they mean the inside of the tin can the items come in. Not cool. This AMK Pocket Survival Pack is the best.

No idea why anyone would think it's cheaper to buy these items separately as noted in some reviews with other sellers. That's just flat out wrong as far as both my experience and common sense shopping dictates. My guess is that the person doesn't like pre-packaged kits (and rightly so!). But this kits is an exception among the dross.

Doug Ritter and his foundation, Equipped to Survive, has come up with a very economic method to equip yourself and your family with an emergency kit. It is small enough to carry unnoticed in a pocket, yet fully functional.

Although you can control the amount of certain items if you put together your own kit (something of a rite of passage among the survivalists/emergency preparedness folk), I spent twice as much putting together a comparable kit. The military issue sparklite and tinder-quick, Fox-40 whistle, and Rescue Flash signal mirror alone could cover the cost of the kit and they are all top notch gear. This pack is extremely high quality through and through, from choice of equipment to packing and instructions. I recommend looking at the ETS website at the slideshow of how such a kit is put together and what Doug Ritter himself recommends that you add to the kit (the pouch can hold a few more small items such as water purification tabs).

The Pocket Survival Pack is an amazing value. I've purchased all of the items separately, and just the shipping or driving to pick up 3 or 4 of the items probably covers half the cost! If you are lucky enough to get everything at one store, you'd be hard pressed to get the entire kit as cheap as this. I know people who have purchased this kit to take the parts for their own self-built survival kits! That's how economical it is. Plus, if you buy this PSP, a portion of the proceeds goes to the ETS non-profit group which gives free survival consulting to deployed troops and is actively involved in improving survival equipment and standards. In fact, Doug Ritter is the only consumer advocate working with the governing body on personal locator beacons used in marine, aviation, and remote travel.

The kit itself comes in a waterproof container. I found it to be a bit tight when closing back up, but there is actually some room for more items. All components are of the highest quality. It's lightweight and I never notice it in a pocket. With the recommended ETS or similar keychain LED flashlight and a good pocket folding knife, you have a complete survival kit that rivals ones costing $100+. These are cheap enough to get one for each car and any camping/hiking/marine/aviation gear you might have. I highly recommend this PSP. I'm not affiliated with ETS, but I've come to appreciate their no-nonsense advice and forums. And if this was a bad kit, I'd still say so. I give it 5 stars, great value for the price and it really could save your life.

This is no doubt an excellent kit and I won't rehash what everyone else has said. But why the fishing gear??? Fishing gear in an emergency kit always makes me laugh. Your first priority is protection from hypothermia/exposure either by clothing, shelter or fire. Second is rescue, being found, extraction, etc. I don't think you'll do much fishing while trying to keep warm at night, and while extracting yourself or being found the next day, as is what happens in most all emergency survival situations. Fishing gear belongs in an extended stay kit or on a planned fishing trip. I know we all think about crash landing in a remote part of the world and needing to eat something after a few weeks so we better have a fish hook just in case we are near a great fishing lake and the fish are biting... not likely. I'll take a compass over a fish hook any day! Make a fish trap instead - fish swim in and they can't swim out. While the trap does its work you can prepare firewood or signal for help. Most people couldn't catch a fish with the best pole and gear anyway, never mind just a hook and some line. PLEASE Help Me Spread The Message... Shelter and Rescue first! The life you save may be your own. Okay, I've done my part. Good luck!

In my quest to build my own 'perfect' survival kit, I've bought about 8 or 10 commercial kits and looked through every other one I could find for ideas and, sometimes, components. Most kits are very poorly thought out and equipped even worse. Every kit I've bought or looked through has had obvious weak points: cheep components, missing necessities or poorly thought out combinations of items (weighing down the pack with too much food and not enough water procurement or supplying several fire making components and no shelter components).

The AMK Pocket Survival Pak is the first personal survival kit that I've been truly impressed with. All of the components are well thought out and of high quality. The Spark-Lite Firestarter is top-notch. The Fox-40 Survival whistle is top-notch. The Rescue Flash Signaling Mirror is top-notch. Any of these three items would be first or second choice when building your own kit (all three were first choice for me). The rest of the kit is of quality general components, many of which will be making their way into my normal, larger kit. But, the beauty of this kit is its size. It fits the most important survival gear into a tiny (less than 4 oz), water-proof bag that easily fits into a shirt pocket, fanny pack, purse or glove compartment.

There are only three things I would add to this kit: a Leatherman Micra, a Bic lighter and a survival blanket. I already carried the Micra and lighter with me and a survival blanket or plastic poncho is easily added.

Of all of the kits I've bought or examined, this is the first one I would recommend and the only one of which I'll be buying more than one of; I'm buying three more of them so I can keep one in my truck, hiking kit and home and this one will supplement my larger pack.

Doug Ritter, the designer of this kit, also has a great site ([..]) with reviews of several other kits, if you want to see what they come with or just want to read reviews on survival gear in general.

This kit is perfect.
Small enough to fit in your pocket, yet everything you need if your outdoor trip takes a turn for the worse.
Would highly recomend, and I will buy more.
Everything is very high quality, nothing looks or feels cheap.

I started putting together my own pocket survival kit before coming across this package, and purchased one to complete the items my own kit ... it was cheaper than buying the few items left individually! This is an incredible deal, and contains a great assortment of items while still keeping its weight and bulk very low. I wish I had found it sooner! There are, however, a few things I recommend adding:

1. The most essential item missing is a flashlight. I added a Photon pinch light, only 0.2 ounces and very bright. Red is the best color for survival for a couple reasons; it is visible from the farthest distance, and gets significantly better battery life (they claim 40 hours).

2. Iodine tablets such as Potable Aqua will ensure you don't ingest contaminated water while waiting to be rescued.

3. A bag to contain water for treatment and transporting. I tested and chose an oven bag from my kitchen drawer, and marked the 1 liter point so I use the right amount for treatment. Also add a straw -- drinking out of a bag is tricky and straws weigh next to nothing.

4. A space blanket, cheap and only 2.5 ounces, will make cold nights much more bearable.

[optional] Not essential, I added a small folding knife (Gerber LST Ultralight, 1.2 ounces) in the event that I become separated from my other knife. The small bulk and weight of redundancy is worth it to me for peace of mind.

[optional] Another optional addition is minimalist first aid. Not a whole kit, but a few basic items in case, let's say, your first aid kit is in your backpack and you become separated from your pack (I carry the survival kit in my pant pocket). Keep in mind that the clothes on your back can serve many first aid purposes.

It is false security to carry a survival kit without knowing what's in it. Inspect each item, and think about its purpose or even test it. Then add items to customize the kit for your activity, your location, and you as a person. If you are allergic to bees, for example, antihistamine capsules are an obvious addition. Perhaps the area you're traveling to won't have great fishing, but snare wire would prove invaluable in a survival situation. Learn the skills necessary to use everything in the kit, and know the steps to survive and be rescued.

I found the Adventure Medical Kit to be one of the lightest, most compact kits on the market. The weight and size being saved by replacing the standard tin with a water-tight sealing pouch.

While the tin is gone everything else is pretty much still there. Duct tape, a very good whistle, cordage, etc. The only thing lacking was a light source and small $2.50 led light was easily added to the kit.

The only concern I might have with the kit is whether the water-tight seal would hold, it seemed somewhat fragile and only time would tell. The kit is a easy way to have a back up. I say back up, because you shouldn't rely on these kits over having standard equipment, they should be for emergencies and should be practiced with.

Doug Ritter knows what he talks about. As a Marine and avid outdoorsman, this is a great, basic kit that should be carried at all times -- and in your vehicle when you are driving. Included are basic items that will help keep you alive and get found. Yes, there are better kits out there, but for the price, conveinence and novice -- this is it.

Wolf
USMC 85-89