Build the Perfect Survival Kit
by John D. McCann
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Book Summary Information
Author: John D. McCannEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005-04-05
ISBN: 0873499670
Number of pages: 192
Publisher: Krause Publications
Book Reviews of Build the Perfect Survival Kit
Book Review: Fantastic resource
Summary: 5 Stars
As the name makes clear, this is not a survival guide, of which there are plenty of godd ones available already. This book will help you supplement your skills with the proper equipment.
The guiding principle of survival is `Be prepared'.
`Build the perfect Survival Kit' supplements this with its own: `Make it easy'.
Make it easy to be prepared. What good is it when you know how to make a fire when you have no fire-making equipment with you because you just stepped out of your car to take in the scenery, and, due to some freak accident, suddenly find yourself 15 miles downriver, wet and shivering?
The author emphasizes that he never leaves house without at least some rudimentary kit and explains in great detail how you could, too.
For this John D. McCann groups the necessary survival equipment into seven groups:
1. Fire & Light
2. Signalling
3. Navigation
4. Water & Food
5. Shelter & Protection
6. Knives & Tools
7. Medical
To these he adds two groups, multi-purpose and miscellaneous components.
McCann then describes the various alternatives in each group. Nearly every object is represented by a (b&w) photograph, often with a scale to get an idea of its size. Since the author is an accomplished outdoorsman with experiences of both the civilian and the military side, he has a wealth of experience and it shows.
Many of the items are used by him but this is not a list of personal favourites. He appears to have played with a great amount of gear and therefore for each group and for each size within the specific group you get several recommendations.
You are also given the supplier of the item in question and there is an appendix where you will find a comprehensive list of those. I understand that John McCann now also has his own website ([...]) where you can also order many of the tools described in the book. It should be mentioned that the equipment is geared towards the North-American market but since the author is so meticulous there should be no problem in other regions (like Europe) so select a fitting replacement if the original is not available.
Some items, like knives, are highly subjective and people will have very strong opinions about them. The author never comes across as pushing his point of view but rather as evaluating alternatives and giving you his reasons for his decisions.
After the in-depth discussion of equipment the author puts it all together and assembles a vast array of kits, from extremely tiny to full-blown, from personal-carry to something to take with you in your car or your boat.
Here again everything is documented with photographs, and again for each size-category there are several alternatives. From the Altoids-box filled with goodies (or the even tinier kit assembled in an ID-card holder) to kits in a bag or a backpack. In a further appendix every kits described is represented with its corresponding checklist.
After reading this, should you find yourself in the situation mentioned at the start of this review, you have only yourself to blame.
It should be noted that this book assumes that you find yourself somewhere in the wilderness. City-survival raised some different questions (you likely will not need a fish-hook, but perhaps some other items).
Overall, this is a fantastic resource and highly recommended.
Summary of Build the Perfect Survival Kit
An emergency can arise at anytime. Now everyone from the average commuter to the risk-taking sportsman can benefit from these just-in-case kits that may just save a life. Build the Perfect Survival Kit offers a number of kits, from very basic pocket-sized ones with just the essentials to elaborate ones designed for weeks of surviving in the wilderness. The book advocates careful advance planning and building a personalized kit specifically tailored to each outing or possible emergency that may be encountered. Readers will learn about the eight categories of gear: Fire and Light, Signaling, Water and Food, Shelter and Protection, Knives and Tools, Multi-purpose Items and Miscellaneous Items, and what to pack into a kit for their pocket, glove box, four-wheeler, car boot, backpack and more.Health, Mind & Body Books
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