I completely agree with you on that type of kit Brad. I spent 20 years working for the local authorities, dealing with flooding, landslides, storms etc. I could easily be away from home for days or nowhere near shops. One day I saw a kit like the one you have, and thinking I was being clever, I purchased it and put it in the cab of my lorry. Boy was I disappointed when I eventually came to use it. It was totally inadequate and also demoralizing. Since then I have always made my own kits to suit my needs.
In your line of work, yeah, a custom kit is the way to go. What got you was lack of familiarization with the contents of the kit. What would have been really clever was examining and repacking the kit when you bought it, so you already knew it's limitations.
This looks like it could be a viable component of a larger preparation strategy. The water pouches are basically there to tide you over until you can find a source of good drinking water, and it has other shortcomings, but for initial response, it's not a totally bad approach. With a name like "Ready America" one would only hope this kit is made in the US, but this is the world in which we live. For the mentioned price, this would be a good kit to have on hand for every person in a family or other group, but it only represents a starting point in an overall preparedness strategy. I live in a hurricane-prone area, and my main focus is being prepared for that as opposed to some unreasoning fear of the Zombie Apocalypse (TM). You have touched on several areas where customizing this kit would result in a greatly enhanced readiness posture, and I think that's the right approach. Yeah, there's room in the bag as packed for a skein of 550 cord, and I wonder why they left that out, but, hey, that's just me. Seeing as these have a shelf life, it would be wisest to accumulate them in a staggered manner so that they don't all expire at the same time. Don't worry about "diverting" your videos. You raise good points, and provoke thought that might otherwise lay dormant until it's "go time" (which is the exactly wrong time to confront those issues). I will check ReadyAmerica's website to see what I can find out about provenance of the components. This is about the third video of yours I have seen, and I like that you have a serious and rational approach to preparedness and are not some kind of "wild-eyed southern boy" (with a tip o' the hat to Lynyrd Skynyrd) who's worried about the end of the world overmuch. Have a subscription, Brad. You've earned it.
for me, rule of thumb with this genre of products is that if it says for 2 or 4 people cut it in half. when these things say survival, they mean it. because that's exactly what you will be doing barely surviving. it's to keep you from the brink of death. with that being said i picked myself up 2 of these i found on a clearance rack for 35 bucks each but my intentions is to give these to a family member for themselves not to share unless they want to i can give this to a friend and they will definitely be doing fine with it for a few days
Also there are very simple things you can add to a bag like this that can stretch them a lot further. A heavy duty ziploc for water collection, purification tabs, a lighter, some cordage and quick-tinder, a multi-tool, and some actual bandages for real blood loss, a turniqette etc. That would all easily fit in this bag and if they want to be prepared they probably have some EDC stuff that could easily add more, like a good knife Also realistically, this pack isn't for some world ending or nationwide type of catastrophe, like Brad is talking about, having to stealthily move across terrain. This is for someone who gets in a wreck on a lonely road -- it's meant for normal everyday kind of emergencies. It'll keep you fed, keep you hydrated and should be enough to wait for rescue, and for 35 bucks that's a bargain.
These kits aren't meant for peppers. They are a reasonably priced choice for people to keep in the car for a blizzard shutdown or an earthquake kit. They won't keep you super comfortable and you aren't going to outrun the soviet army or whatever but it will keep you going for a bit until help,gets to where you are.
Good food for thought. I really need to go over my stuff and customize it more to my situation. I walk to work every day so I don't have to worry about that.
You're not a chemist? I am! Any water treatment in the field only takes care on one wrong thing with water. If you have two things with water you have a big problem! Chemicals in the water is a hard problem to solve to make the water safe to drink without specific knowledge of the chemical and the best way to remove that specific chemical. It gets really complicated. So the kit you show is a one day kit for two people stuck in their car or lost for a day in non freezing weather. Having the ponchos are good for rain. They grossly underestimate the amount of water you would need for 3 days.
Definitely an unrealistic survival pack. So many things missing. Brad you make a good point these bags should be custom and your region and personal health should be involved. Probably better to teach people how to just be prepared for an emergency in their region. I could talk for hours on what could work for who. I think the costs of my flee on foot bag is close to $600.
And therein lies the difference. 50 bucks vs 600 is a no-brainer for most folks, including those of us with a preparedness mindset. I didn't see this pack advertised as a "flee on foot" bag, so it's not really fair to compare it to one, especially one you have built yourself. It's just there to get you through the initial response to an emergency situation. It really shouldn't be counted on for much more than that unless you heavily customize it.
Anyone who buys one of these without familiarizing themselves with its contents, capabilities, and limitations is doing themselves a disservice. Hat's off to Brad on this video, because it can be used for familiarization without opening a purchased kit.
That kit is a joke for the price. It might be okay in your car along with a first aid kit and a few other supplies, but I agree with you that you could build your own and be better prepared. I'm not even a "survivalist," but I think I could build a better kit than that, there are so many things missing.
This kit is a joke and a quick money grab, like you said. It obviously doesn't have enough water for the two people for three days like they declare the kit to be for! That's false advertising. I could not imagine tearing into the kit when it's most needed only to find out there's not enough EMERGENCY water. What a sham. This is marketed to people who don't have a clue. The sad part is the lack of education and training revolving around emergency preparedness and self reliance. What would set a good emergency kit apart is if it identifies as a STARTER kit with actual decent basics along with a comprehensive list of recommended items to add to it. The company could even have these items listed for sale in their own website for a quicker, more convenient purchase and kit-building process. It took me two years to finish building my Winter Emergency Vehicle Kits after watching multiple TH-cam videos and reading forums. It's subjective and some may say it's overkill, but it's worth it for peace of mind for my family. I never got around to making a TH-cam video on it yet but I'll forward you the list if you'd like. Thanks for another interesting video, Brad! Keep up the excellent work, brother. 👊🔥
M6 Walmart sucks its so out of date it sells junk and cheap trash gear mainly Ozark Trail junk only a few items they sell is ok and actually lasts I remember when Walmart would sell Gerber , UST , Camillus , and other good brand stuff but that's all in the pass
It's a good starting point for someone 2 start building a kit anything is better than nothing
Yup. And it's not too hard to get started with these for someone on a budget (most of us, nowadays...)
I completely agree with you on that type of kit Brad. I spent 20 years working for the local authorities, dealing with flooding, landslides, storms etc. I could easily be away from home for days or nowhere near shops. One day I saw a kit like the one you have, and thinking I was being clever, I purchased it and put it in the cab of my lorry. Boy was I disappointed when I eventually came to use it. It was totally inadequate and also demoralizing. Since then I have always made my own kits to suit my needs.
In your line of work, yeah, a custom kit is the way to go. What got you was lack of familiarization with the contents of the kit. What would have been really clever was examining and repacking the kit when you bought it, so you already knew it's limitations.
I keep 4 Orion road flares double vacuum sealed in my kit .
This looks like it could be a viable component of a larger preparation strategy. The water pouches are basically there to tide you over until you can find a source of good drinking water, and it has other shortcomings, but for initial response, it's not a totally bad approach. With a name like "Ready America" one would only hope this kit is made in the US, but this is the world in which we live.
For the mentioned price, this would be a good kit to have on hand for every person in a family or other group, but it only represents a starting point in an overall preparedness strategy. I live in a hurricane-prone area, and my main focus is being prepared for that as opposed to some unreasoning fear of the Zombie Apocalypse (TM). You have touched on several areas where customizing this kit would result in a greatly enhanced readiness posture, and I think that's the right approach.
Yeah, there's room in the bag as packed for a skein of 550 cord, and I wonder why they left that out, but, hey, that's just me.
Seeing as these have a shelf life, it would be wisest to accumulate them in a staggered manner so that they don't all expire at the same time.
Don't worry about "diverting" your videos. You raise good points, and provoke thought that might otherwise lay dormant until it's "go time" (which is the exactly wrong time to confront those issues). I will check ReadyAmerica's website to see what I can find out about provenance of the components.
This is about the third video of yours I have seen, and I like that you have a serious and rational approach to preparedness and are not some kind of "wild-eyed southern boy" (with a tip o' the hat to Lynyrd Skynyrd) who's worried about the end of the world overmuch. Have a subscription, Brad. You've earned it.
for me, rule of thumb with this genre of products is that if it says for 2 or 4 people cut it in half. when these things say survival, they mean it. because that's exactly what you will be doing barely surviving. it's to keep you from the brink of death. with that being said i picked myself up 2 of these i found on a clearance rack for 35 bucks each but my intentions is to give these to a family member for themselves not to share unless they want to i can give this to a friend and they will definitely be doing fine with it for a few days
Also there are very simple things you can add to a bag like this that can stretch them a lot further. A heavy duty ziploc for water collection, purification tabs, a lighter, some cordage and quick-tinder, a multi-tool, and some actual bandages for real blood loss, a turniqette etc. That would all easily fit in this bag and if they want to be prepared they probably have some EDC stuff that could easily add more, like a good knife
Also realistically, this pack isn't for some world ending or nationwide type of catastrophe, like Brad is talking about, having to stealthily move across terrain.
This is for someone who gets in a wreck on a lonely road -- it's meant for normal everyday kind of emergencies. It'll keep you fed, keep you hydrated and should be enough to wait for rescue, and for 35 bucks that's a bargain.
Check your expiration dates on those clearance items... (it's the primary reason things get put on clearance.)
These kits aren't meant for peppers. They are a reasonably priced choice for people to keep in the car for a blizzard shutdown or an earthquake kit. They won't keep you super comfortable and you aren't going to outrun the soviet army or whatever but it will keep you going for a bit until help,gets to where you are.
Any videos you would suggest? I'm trying to put several vehicle kits together for my family.
Good food for thought. I really need to go over my stuff and customize it more to my situation. I walk to work every day so I don't have to worry about that.
Needs candles and matches. A knife, multi tool and a saw would be great.
The food is a brick, mine was apple cinnamon. You need a saw to separate the squares. I'd be swapping it out, for sure.
Might be ok for a car kit but you would be better off building your own.
You're not a chemist? I am! Any water treatment in the field only takes care on one wrong thing with water. If you have two things with water you have a big problem! Chemicals in the water is a hard problem to solve to make the water safe to drink without specific knowledge of the chemical and the best way to remove that specific chemical. It gets really complicated. So the kit you show is a one day kit for two people stuck in their car or lost for a day in non freezing weather. Having the ponchos are good for rain. They grossly underestimate the amount of water you would need for 3 days.
Not a bad starter kit for the price
Always wondered if these kits were worth it or not.
I wouldn't treat that thing as a 2 person kit. I just keep it in one of my closets as "One more prep" lol
nice video again.but me .and no one i know or hang out witg would have any use for that kit.just carrying it would hinder u more than help.
Definitely an unrealistic survival pack. So many things missing. Brad you make a good point these bags should be custom and your region and personal health should be involved. Probably better to teach people how to just be prepared for an emergency in their region. I could talk for hours on what could work for who. I think the costs of my flee on foot bag is close to $600.
And therein lies the difference. 50 bucks vs 600 is a no-brainer for most folks, including those of us with a preparedness mindset. I didn't see this pack advertised as a "flee on foot" bag, so it's not really fair to compare it to one, especially one you have built yourself. It's just there to get you through the initial response to an emergency situation. It really shouldn't be counted on for much more than that unless you heavily customize it.
Eat it!
it is missing a emergency radio and flashlight.
Hi Brad i know there is lots prep channel's.
Can you put this to the test out in the real world.
I'd like to see that myself. A "piney woods" trip with one of these would definitely be instructive.
I can walk to my work
A complete false sense of security for those lack knowledge.
Anyone who buys one of these without familiarizing themselves with its contents, capabilities, and limitations is doing themselves a disservice. Hat's off to Brad on this video, because it can be used for familiarization without opening a purchased kit.
That kit is a joke for the price. It might be okay in your car along with a first aid kit and a few other supplies, but I agree with you that you could build your own and be better prepared. I'm not even a "survivalist," but I think I could build a better kit than that, there are so many things missing.
Nice but too small. Real basic kit.
Not enough for a real survival situation.
This kit is a joke and a quick money grab, like you said. It obviously doesn't have enough water for the two people for three days like they declare the kit to be for! That's false advertising. I could not imagine tearing into the kit when it's most needed only to find out there's not enough EMERGENCY water. What a sham.
This is marketed to people who don't have a clue. The sad part is the lack of education and training revolving around emergency preparedness and self reliance.
What would set a good emergency kit apart is if it identifies as a STARTER kit with actual decent basics along with a comprehensive list of recommended items to add to it. The company could even have these items listed for sale in their own website for a quicker, more convenient purchase and kit-building process.
It took me two years to finish building my Winter Emergency Vehicle Kits after watching multiple TH-cam videos and reading forums. It's subjective and some may say it's overkill, but it's worth it for peace of mind for my family. I never got around to making a TH-cam video on it yet but I'll forward you the list if you'd like.
Thanks for another interesting video, Brad! Keep up the excellent work, brother. 👊🔥
I could not have said this better, these kits are a joke. Make a video of that kit man, thanks for being here. 👊🏼
First
I dont drive so I dont have a car
Sorry man, this is rubbish, rely on this and you're in trouble.
M6 Walmart sucks its so out of date it sells junk and cheap trash gear mainly Ozark Trail junk only a few items they sell is ok and actually lasts I remember when Walmart would sell Gerber , UST , Camillus , and other good brand stuff but that's all in the pass