- This topic has 61 replies, 1 voice, and was last updated 9 months, 1 week ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Im sure this topic has been brought up before so I thought Id bring it up again. I gusee I should preface this thread by mentioning that Im not an EMT or other medical professional, Im just an edc’er.
I guess when I started to EDC one of the first things that went into my bag were some bandages and Tylenol. As time went on I began to think outside of the box, “what happens if I get cut with glass or worse suffer a gunshot wound”. So I invested in some QickClot products which too have evolved from grains of sand like absorbent materiel to a sponge like substance. Fast-forward to 2006, I head in to my local outdoor shop and notice they have FAK’s. Being the edc noob that I was I got first FAK I layed eyes on, fast forward once again to 2010 Im now in Walgreen’s picking out Butterfly Sutures, Nitrile gloves, 4x4x4x4 gauze, etc none of these items were in any FAK I purchased over the counter. So far Ive racked up $40 in supplies for my custom FAK and Im still not completed. One thing Im very happy about is that $40 has purchased enough supplies to start a FAK for my bag and start a second FAK for the house (which I dont have one).
Ive got a couple of questions for edc’s with FAK’s do you store buy or build your own FAK. Second question is it worth the price to custom build your own FAK.
When regarding a FAK, think of it this way. How much is your life worth to you? If I hit a bad situation and I had me a good wound dressing, instead of a small piece of gauze, that extra buck or two will be well worth it.
I personally don’t skimp on first aid, but there are some things you can buy cheaper. A store bought FAK is a good starting point, but you will have to upgrade it to be a good one. Just my two cents.
While the contents of a off-the-shelf FAK might not be ideal one potential benefit is the external appearance of the FAK (red and/or red cross) which may be useful in emergencies for identification purposes.
You can spend some serious money on first aid supplies.The deal with the premade kits is that they are mostly “boo-boo” kits,few have the things needed to handle much more than a small cut with minor bleeding.That said they can be useful as long as you understand their limitations.There are tactical kits that are designed to handle more serious trauma,but are limited in the minor things(don’t want to whip out an Israeli bandage or Olaes for a kid who scraped his knee).Both kits are generally useless in medical emergencies(chest pain,allergic reaction hypoglycemia,etc.). Building your own kit allows you to tailor it’s content to your training level,activities,and environment.I recommend having your kit separated into two or three areas,one for minor/comfort issues,one for trauma and one for medications.USNERDOC on youtube has a good set of videos on what he calls a level 1 kit that seems pretty balanced if you choose to go with one pouch due to size requirements.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P60_sELRkqw
You can spend some serious money on first aid supplies.The deal with the premade kits is that they are mostly “boo-boo” kits,few have the things needed to handle much more than a small cut with minor bleeding.That said they can be useful as long as you understand their limitations.There are tactical kits that are designed to handle more serious trauma,but are limited in the minor things(don’t want to whip out an Israeli bandage or Olaes for a kid who scraped his knee).Both kits are generally useless in medical emergencies(chest pain,allergic reaction hypoglycemia,etc.). Building your own kit allows you to tailor it’s content to your training level,activities,and environment.I recommend having your kit separated into two or three areas,one for minor/comfort issues,one for trauma and one for medications.USNERDOC on youtube has a good set of videos on what he calls a level 1 kit that seems pretty balanced if you choose to go with one pouch due to size requirements.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P60_sELRkqw
You can spend some serious money on first aid supplies.The deal with the premade kits is that they are mostly “boo-boo” kits,few have the things needed to handle much more than a small cut with minor bleeding.That said they can be useful as long as you understand their limitations.There are tactical kits that are designed to handle more serious trauma,but are limited in the minor things(don’t want to whip out an Israeli bandage or Olaes for a kid who scraped his knee).Both kits are generally useless in medical emergencies(chest pain,allergic reaction hypoglycemia,etc.). Building your own kit allows you to tailor it’s content to your training level,activities,and environment.I recommend having your kit separated into two or three areas,one for minor/comfort issues,one for trauma and one for medications.USNERDOC on youtube has a good set of videos on what he calls a level 1 kit that seems pretty balanced if you choose to go with one pouch due to size requirements.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P60_sELRkqw
You can spend some serious money on first aid supplies.The deal with the premade kits is that they are mostly “boo-boo” kits,few have the things needed to handle much more than a small cut with minor bleeding.That said they can be useful as long as you understand their limitations.There are tactical kits that are designed to handle more serious trauma,but are limited in the minor things(don’t want to whip out an Israeli bandage or Olaes for a kid who scraped his knee).Both kits are generally useless in medical emergencies(chest pain,allergic reaction hypoglycemia,etc.). Building your own kit allows you to tailor it’s content to your training level,activities,and environment.I recommend having your kit separated into two or three areas,one for minor/comfort issues,one for trauma and one for medications.USNERDOC on youtube has a good set of videos on what he calls a level 1 kit that seems pretty balanced if you choose to go with one pouch due to size requirements.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P60_sELRkqw
You can spend some serious money on first aid supplies.The deal with the premade kits is that they are mostly “boo-boo” kits,few have the things needed to handle much more than a small cut with minor bleeding.That said they can be useful as long as you understand their limitations.There are tactical kits that are designed to handle more serious trauma,but are limited in the minor things(don’t want to whip out an Israeli bandage or Olaes for a kid who scraped his knee).Both kits are generally useless in medical emergencies(chest pain,allergic reaction hypoglycemia,etc.). Building your own kit allows you to tailor it’s content to your training level,activities,and environment.I recommend having your kit separated into two or three areas,one for minor/comfort issues,one for trauma and one for medications.USNERDOC on youtube has a good set of videos on what he calls a level 1 kit that seems pretty balanced if you choose to go with one pouch due to size requirements.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P60_sELRkqw
You can spend some serious money on first aid supplies.The deal with the premade kits is that they are mostly “boo-boo” kits,few have the things needed to handle much more than a small cut with minor bleeding.That said they can be useful as long as you understand their limitations.There are tactical kits that are designed to handle more serious trauma,but are limited in the minor things(don’t want to whip out an Israeli bandage or Olaes for a kid who scraped his knee).Both kits are generally useless in medical emergencies(chest pain,allergic reaction hypoglycemia,etc.). Building your own kit allows you to tailor it’s content to your training level,activities,and environment.I recommend having your kit separated into two or three areas,one for minor/comfort issues,one for trauma and one for medications.USNERDOC on youtube has a good set of videos on what he calls a level 1 kit that seems pretty balanced if you choose to go with one pouch due to size requirements.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P60_sELRkqw
Very nice kit. I think the one thing many people fail to plan for is proper cleaning of the wound. Sterile water is probably the best thing to use. Obviously the copious amounts that would truly be needed is weight/size restrictive. But a small bottle would be a very good start if you can fit it in. Personally, i carry pre-loaded 10ml syringes of saline. But i am able to “allocate” these from work with out any fuss. So a small bottle is probably a better option. I believe you can get small 250ml bottles that don’t take up too much space.
Very nice kit. I think the one thing many people fail to plan for is proper cleaning of the wound. Sterile water is probably the best thing to use. Obviously the copious amounts that would truly be needed is weight/size restrictive. But a small bottle would be a very good start if you can fit it in. Personally, i carry pre-loaded 10ml syringes of saline. But i am able to “allocate” these from work with out any fuss. So a small bottle is probably a better option. I believe you can get small 250ml bottles that don’t take up too much space.
Very nice kit. I think the one thing many people fail to plan for is proper cleaning of the wound. Sterile water is probably the best thing to use. Obviously the copious amounts that would truly be needed is weight/size restrictive. But a small bottle would be a very good start if you can fit it in. Personally, i carry pre-loaded 10ml syringes of saline. But i am able to “allocate” these from work with out any fuss. So a small bottle is probably a better option. I believe you can get small 250ml bottles that don’t take up too much space.
Very nice kit. I think the one thing many people fail to plan for is proper cleaning of the wound. Sterile water is probably the best thing to use. Obviously the copious amounts that would truly be needed is weight/size restrictive. But a small bottle would be a very good start if you can fit it in. Personally, i carry pre-loaded 10ml syringes of saline. But i am able to “allocate” these from work with out any fuss. So a small bottle is probably a better option. I believe you can get small 250ml bottles that don’t take up too much space.
Very nice kit. I think the one thing many people fail to plan for is proper cleaning of the wound. Sterile water is probably the best thing to use. Obviously the copious amounts that would truly be needed is weight/size restrictive. But a small bottle would be a very good start if you can fit it in. Personally, i carry pre-loaded 10ml syringes of saline. But i am able to “allocate” these from work with out any fuss. So a small bottle is probably a better option. I believe you can get small 250ml bottles that don’t take up too much space.
Very nice kit. I think the one thing many people fail to plan for is proper cleaning of the wound. Sterile water is probably the best thing to use. Obviously the copious amounts that would truly be needed is weight/size restrictive. But a small bottle would be a very good start if you can fit it in. Personally, i carry pre-loaded 10ml syringes of saline. But i am able to “allocate” these from work with out any fuss. So a small bottle is probably a better option. I believe you can get small 250ml bottles that don’t take up too much space.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.