Most useless survival tool

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PrimitiveMan

Joined
Dec 16, 2008
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OK, we discuss at length what the best items are for our "Kit" and have preferences for this blade or that, or this firestarter or that, but what is the LEAST useful item you normally hear about people carrying in their BOB or survival pak?

To me it is the signal mirror. Really, I know an airplane can spot one for a billion miles on the ocean, but I am unable to come up with a real reason to make it worth displacing another item in a land based kit.

Any other least favorites out there?
 
Aluminum foil. supposedly this is to be used as a canteen or to boil water for purification, but carry a folded piece for a week then see how well it holds water.
 
Those cheap $10 Survival Knives that came out after the Rambo movie, there wasn't a single redeeming value to any aspect of that knife, you were better off in the woods without one.

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Primitive man,

While I never needed my signal mirror for flashing down planes, I have used it to get nasties out of my eyes like mosquitos or debris. I'll say it is my least used of my 10 essentials but not my most useless piece of gear.

As far as my most useless piece of gear, I can't think of anything as everything you have can be of some benefit than going at it "naked".
 
Not all of them are useless, but some of those wire saws snap whenever you go to sue them.
 
I really can't put a finger on my most useless survival tool ... I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

I'd like to think everything I carry could be useful in a potential survival situation.
 
T. Erdelyi said:
Those cheap $10 Survival Knives that came out after the Rambo movie, there wasn't a single redeeming value to any aspect of that knife, you were better off in the woods without one.
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They make great tent pegs, albeit a little heavy :D

My peves:

Swiss Army knives with ten zillion tools, especially cork screws. If a four layer SAK won't do the job, you need to stay home.

Cheap combo gizmos-- whistle/match case/mirror/flashlight thingies.

Cheap "survival kits in a bottle."

Chinese multi-tools.

Dull knives

Anything over a pound or longer than my forearm.
 
Of all the things in my kits, The last thing I would probably use in a real emergency is a fire steel. While I love the things and almost always carry one, when the chips are down and conditions are bad I want a much more sure, faster and one hand usable fire starter.

A mirror has many uses besides signaling, Hanging on a string, it can signal constantly. It can be used for the reasons mentioned above, it can be used to distract critters of all kinds while you either get away or stalk them. If your lady is with you it is a must so that she can look cute when you are rescued.:D

OK some of the uses may not be needed in civilian life.
 
k_estela said:
Primitive man,

While I never needed my signal mirror for flashing down planes, I have used it to get nasties out of my eyes like mosquitos or debris. I'll say it is my least used of my 10 essentials but not my most useless piece of gear...
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Carry a compass with a sighting mirror and you get it all. Then you can see who it lost too :)
 
I have to say I use my corkscrew constantly.

I guess the most useless thing is the knife blade on my leatherman. Never needed it. If I could replace it with something more useful I would.

Other than that, I stopped carrying the orange bandanna a while ago. It's not really all that visible, it's cotton, and it's just a spacetaker.
 
I gotta say, koyote, I have never used a corkscrew in my life. Really don't enjoy that they slap them on so many SAKs.

I'll have to think about it, to see if I can think of a really 'useless' tool that many folks put in their kits.

SubaruSTi said:
My knife.
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?
 
well, I'm one of those people whose philosophy is that the kit should be used every day if possible. Since we drink wine and homebrew mead, and I always know where my SAK is, it makes sense :)

We also drink wine while camping, so it's handy to take into the field. it also holds the little baby screwdriver, which I use when shooting or to fix my safety and sun glasses. Also, IIRC, none of the non-corkscrew vics have the stickpin, which I also use out in the field and evne in the shop for help with splinter removal, blister care, and picking up tiiny screws (I magnetized mine)
 
Whistles fit this category for me. It's a single use item, and it's replaceable with a bottle cap, a strip of grass, a slice of aluminum can, or an acorn top.
 
I'd say anything that you haven't already tested before. Being lost in the wilds is not the best time to try and learn something.
 
CWL said:
I'd say anything that you haven't already tested before. Being lost in the wilds is not the best time to try and learn something.
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You know I tried that once. I tested out all my matches, and they all worked just fine at home. Then when I tried them in the field none of them worked, and I got black stuff all over me!:)
 
You know I tried that once. I tested out all my matches, and they all worked just fine at home. Then when I tried them in the field none of them worked, and I got black stuff all over me!
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^^^one of my favorite quotes i think i've ever seen on this website so far!

i agree with some of the others, anything i carry is because it has a use

but things i see in other people's kits that don't make sense to me; mostly underdeveloped fishing kits. i think it is best to either make your kit a bit bigger and carry gear that will work better, or leave it at home so you don't get frustrated when you are in a survival situation. i also don't have any areas to fish where i normally hang out, so it would be deadweight in my kit...
 
I understand the whole
Need and not want vs. want and not need"

But if you take out the mirror, you can put something more useful in it's place.
Never needed one to "scare away critters" and never needed one to get something out of my eye.
 
LittleHairyApe said:
Whistles fit this category for me. It's a single use item, and it's replaceable with a bottle cap, a strip of grass, a slice of aluminum can, or an acorn top.
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I guess an argument can be made for or against pretty much any one item.
A whistle , for me , is an essential piece in my PSK ... I mean what if you're hurt such as broken fingers or hand could you still fashion a whistle with a bottle cap, a strip of grass, a slice of aluminum can, or an acorn top ?
The whistle is hopefully around your neck and WILL be heard for a distance can you say the same about a "bottle cap" whistle ... would you wanna bet your life on it ?

just my 2 cents
 
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