These things suck. Here's how to make a better one.
Mostly what they give you is a bunch of bandages, and bandages suck for real first aid. They're finicky to use, and you never have enough of the right size. Instead of these, I bring 4"x4" gauze pads, a small pair of sharp scissors, and a roll of good quality paper bandage tape. With these, I can quickly cut as many bandages as I need in any size and apply them securely exactly where they need to be, with the pressure pushing in the direction to close up the wound, all with one hand. I also take some saran wrap and duct tape too for waterproofing the area, as I find this works much better than using "waterproof" bandage tape. I find waterproof bandages always tend to let moisture wick through to the wound, which gets it irritated.
In addition to this I bring a good quality cloth elastic bandage wrap to apply controlled pressure to joints etc. The most important part of these wraps is the steel hooks that hold them tight. On cheap ones, the hooks are stamped out of sheet metal and they always fail on me so I end up having to use safety pins (bring some of these too btw). So I would get the good one up front instead of wasting time in the field.
And that's it, basically. Yes there are other things that are good to bring along like alcohol swabs or a tourniquet, but in practice I've never actually needed them. The gauze pads and elastic bandages have saved my ass multiple times though. So this kit is just based on my own needs. I don't claim to be any kind of expert on this, so you'll probably need to change it up as you find necessary. Just wanted to give people some pointers who might not be experienced yet.
I keep one in the car because it's convenient.
Another thing I'll add. One thing I didn't expect when I got hurt was the massive nausea from shock. It's really hard to concentrate on stopping the bleeding when you feel like you need to vomit your entire guts out. So I would say it's worth bringing some sort of anti-nausea medicine. I'm a fan of attapulgite clay (kaopectate), but pepto bismol would probably work too.
I prefer cloth bandages to tape in most cases, so far I only used them for minor wounds.
If you want to minimalise your kit further then kerlix or any other rolled gauze would be much more effective at treating serious bleeds while being just as effective for the little stuff (just cut a square of whatever size you need off the roll). It can also be used in conjunction with the tape and a few good-sized sticks to improvise a splint if you roll an ankle or break a wrist.
>or a tourniquet
I swear to God you motherfrickers. The use case for those are exceedingly rare, and if that ever becomes your best option then fashion one out of the paracord that you should already have in your kit
If I'm in a situation where I need a tourniquet, shit has gone bad fast, and I don't want to frick around with the time it takes to make one. The velcro ones with a built in tension bar take literally 20 seconds to put on and apply one handed. good luck trying to do that with paracord, which is going to severely damage skin anyways unless you wrap it with a rag or something.
They don't really deserve a spot in your every day carry kit, but there's no reason not to have one in your larger kit.
>If I'm in a situation where I need a tourniquet, shit has gone bad fast, and I don't want to frick around with the time it takes to make one.
This.
thank you for the valuable insight mr redditor, updoots on the right.
Take your (You) back, I don't want it.
>If I'm in a situation where I need a tourniquet
And what situation might that be? Are you camping in Brazil and worried you might get shot by a drug peddler?
>there are no situations other than a gunshot where you can mass bleed from a limb
Didn't answer the question
Didn't extrapolate
Just admit you're a larper. No serious outdoorsman brings a fricking tourniquet with them. Not even hunters.
>needs to be spoonfed
What is it with tourniquets that cause you tards to crawl out of the woodwork and shit on anyone for carrying one?
Big falls are the main reason I have one in my pack. I've personally seen one save a guy's life who got caught in a small rockslide nearby. Had a bone-out break and damn near bled out cause the bone took out an artery on its way out. He had one in his pack and got it on before the chopper picked him up and saved his ass.
I also do a fair bit of caving and have seen some nasty lacerations from sharp rocks. I've seen guys get fricked up by some of the wild boar around here, and a tusk to the leg isn't far off a gunshot. There's a bunch of different ways you could get arterial bleeding.
Besides, it weighs ounces and packs down small, why wouldn't you carry one if it has a non-zero chance of saving your life?
>why wouldn't you carry one if it has a non-zero chance of saving your life?
Because you can fabricate one. Aren't you following the thread?
NTA
It’s just so fricking LARPy.
>yeah but you never know
Except I do know, because I’ve been backpacking, kayaking, and fishing since 1982 and have never needed anything this drastic or met anyone who has.
>I try to show the kids how young and hip I am by using their lingo
Just because you didn't need something back in the late Cretaceous doesn't make it roleplay today, old timer
I once came up on a car wreck in a mountain pass. The driver’s hand was ripped off. Now you’re correct in that you can fabricate them, as that was my only option at the time. But these new modern tourniquets that take up as much space as my old folding Buck knife are light years ahead of using shoestrings and sticks.
NTA, but
>chain saw accident
>slipped with an axe, knife, machete
>fell and hit something sharp or pointy
>bike/carcrash
>fishing from rocks and a wave drags you over sharp rocks
>if youre a burger, getting shot by an idiot hunter
>holstering you handgun and shooting your leg
With any of those, being able to stop the bleeding fast might be very critical, even if you're 10 minutes from a hospital
L A R P
A
R
P
moron
All I need is an elastic shoelace for a tourniquet (I actually had to use this once), some raw honey, and some large bandages.
Oh here we go again.. the fricking paracord and shoelace paragaygits have arrived. They gonna teach you how to get your arm or leg amputated or bleed to death because those fricks googled a youtube first aid lesson once you know
I accidentally sliced an artery open in the woods once. Lost shit tons of blood and watched it squirt 3 feet in the air. I grabbed an elastic coil shoelace I had handy (I use them for various purposes) and used that as a tourniquet and it worked very well. It worked well enough that I don't see the point of anything fancier or heavier like a cat tourniquet.
All the same I'd rather take advice from people who don't almost kill themselves
I don't want people to take my advice. I'm satisfied having personal kit and systems that are vastly more efficient than other people's.
>I accidentally sliced an artery open in the woods once.
How? I can't imagine what moronic thing you must've been doing...
Nta, but my bro did the same thing with an axe. Cut right through the log but didn't hit the stopped and went right into his shin.
If you gonna fashion improvised torniquete it's best done with a bandana folded to credit card width, a credit card, a tent stake or a solid pen (not a twig) and a zip tie or small carabiner.
Whoever figures out how all those components work together gets a (You) also can be applied one handed or on legs.
honestly a lot of these I wouldn't know how to use half the shit, and half the shit isn't needed.
I bought a med kit, and tossed the shit I wouldn't ever use, and filled the rest with Mole Skin and other foot related firstaid.
Because honestly, the main reason you'll ever dig into your aid kit is when you get a blister.
>the main reason you'll ever dig into your aid kit is when you get a blister.
Or minor cuts, which is why I fill mine with band-aids. Nothing more annoying than a small cut that won't stop bleeding all over everything you touch.
They're fine
Diarrhea has the potential to immobilize you in the backcountry and also causes massive dehydration. Imodium is small and light and could save your life. A strong antihistamine is similar. Moleskin or something like it is too commonly used to omit even if you can survive without.
I think we could break this down into categories.
>boo-boo kits
This is your bandaids and moleskins.
>blow out kits
These are your tourniquets and chest seals.
>immobilized
So far this year I’ve dealt with a broken arm and a completely dislocated knee (other people not me). So I’ve added a SAM splint, sling, and ace bandage.
>ingestibles
You and another anon reminded me. When I traveled for work I included Pepto Tabs and anti nausea pills in my carryon. In my blow out kit in the military we had a “combat pill pack” which was 500mg ibuprofen, Tylenol, and amoxicillin.