What do I carry inside my EDC backpack?
Couple of posts back I wrote about how I see EDC backpacks and what works the best for me.
Today I want to look into what I carry inside the backpack in 90% of the time. I travel a lot and that is why I have selected one backpack I use for years (5.11 Rush 72 with 56l capacity) and this is my EDC backpack no matter where I am. I had a black color now I have dark green.
Sometimes I stay on one place, suddenly I need to take flight and going somewhere else. That is why I do not want to re-adjust my set-up every single time. When possible (90% of the time) I have set-up that doens’t change much and I know where exactly every single item in the backpack is located.
Let’s start, shall we?
Backpack
Good, tested, durable backpack that can serve me for short or longer trips. I use it daily in the city plus when having short trips up to 10 -14 days max.
In case of longer longer trips I normally add another backpack that is larger and goes as a checked bag (that is good as in checked bag I can carry items that are not allowed in cabin bag).
My pick for backpack is below - plenty of space for clothes + EDC items + laptop + water (bottle or bladder - depending on a set-up). More on backpack itself is here.
MULTITOOL
Absolute no-brainer and everybody must have one. Honestly I can’t imagine to leave without it. There is not a single day without using it. In case of multi-tools buy a good one. Crappy, cheap multi-tools won’t last, you can’t apply much torque on those. I cannot say enough good things about Leatherman multi-tools. There are fantastic. I am using mine for years and except some minor dents and being decolorized a bit it works as a new one. My choice is Supertool 300M because of many different reasons:
it’s heavy duty and handles tremendous torque
fantastic and precise pliers
wire cutters
electrical crimper
bit driver - you can fit standard bits in it - not only Leatherman ones
KNIFE
Always have knife with you. This topic is very broad and every individual will have different preferences. I don’t want to get into that much because everybody has different use case.
I am not a big fan of serrated blades. For EDC carry I selected small and kind of sturdy Karambit type foldable knife. I know full-tang non-foldable knifes are much better but for EDC use i need to balance out durability, size and usability in different scenarios.
Good thing about this knife is that it is cheap with “ok” blade and can handle really hard beating. As an example can be that it can open up a coco like nothing - great penetration. I have opened like 100 cocos with it. I think there is not many other things that can be harder to open than coco nut. Down side is that liner-lock will fail and break after some time if you are abusing knife. But hey, for $30 you get a new one.
I will look more into knifes details later in other post.
SHEARS
I use them for everything in terms of cutting where knife is not enough. Not only as emergency tool but great when you need to cut a tubing, fabrics, etc… Great about those shears is that are foldable and lightweight. Again, they can handle tremendous torque and force, can cut through plaster, jeans, fabrics, can even cut rings and metal materials.
GLOVES
Essential item, no doubt. Everything that gets hot, sharp, cold you need pair of gloves for that. Find pair of gloves that fits your needs.
I don’t like over complicating things that is why I use only one pair of gloves that are more sturdy and made from leather and nomex. These are not perfect for precise tiny work/jobs but serve the purpose of protecting me against hot, sharp, cold. I don’t need them daily, but it is good to have them in backpack.
FLASHLIGHT
You always need a flashlight. The one on phone normally is not enough. I prefer small one but with enough lm (700) and re-charable battery. Plus all metal body and water resistant. Plenty of options on the market. I am happy with my selection and i use it pretty often.
BOO BOO KIT & MED KIT
Med kit adjusts depending on an environment I go to. But generally speaking I have some sort of “boo boo kit” with me all the time. “Boo boos” happen quite often and they are pain in the butt :-) I suggest to create 2 types of med kits: One is boo boo kit for daily use in the city or certain perimeter I know. The other one is med kit with more important items in it - various sorts of pills and drugs, curlex wraps, sterile gloves, needles, etc.. - for longer trips (africa, Latam, Asia), not having it inside the EDC backpack all the time.
MONOCULAR
Especially in new environments it is good to have a zoom in your backpack. Not using it a lot but helped me couple of times and saved many extra steps. For example in latin america outside cities it is good to have it with you. Plus there is another benefit to use it with family when checking on nature beauties, animals etc. This one is cheap, lightweight. 10x42 will do the job.
KNIFE SHARPENER
You don’t need a knife sharpener until you need one. Mine is with ceramic benchstone from Lansky. When you travel and using Airbnbs almost everytime there are dull knifes in every single apartment. And I am telling you, you don’t want dull knifes.
SHEMAGH
Multi-purpose item. Protects against sun, cold, wind, sand, serves as a towel if needed. And you can filter water through it if you get into a bad situation. Get one.
TAPE MEASURE
Just get one. Sometimes its needed.
EMERGENCY BLANKET
Used it many times. Example: we were in the jungle and weather suddenly changed. You need to find shelter and wait for some period of time. This keeps you warm and protects against the wind. Great to have it with you because it weights nothing and size is 7x5cm.
TAPE
Tapes, tapes, tapes. They solve all your problems.
PARACORD
Holds easily your body weight. Regularly happens that you need to tie something down, secure, etc… Paracord is super light and super small. You can break it down into filaments and tie them together. Once it saved my butt in Brazil.
ZIP TIES
Solve many problems.
MAGNIFIER
Splinters, cuts, etc..
POWERBANK
Always have a source of juice with you.
DONGLE
A must have for me when operating on laptop with USB-C only.
LAPTOP
Macbook with M1 chip. Light, small, powerful.
CONCLUSION
These are some basic items that might worth to have with you. Might look like the backpack will be fully loaded but the truth is that backpack still has plenty of capacity.
It is also possible to live and travel without these items in many places however it is a pain to outsource items/services when you need them the most. Besides it takes time valuable from you. That is why I prefer to be operational without relying on local environment.
I am not saying that you have to have all items but these make my life easier. But again, depends on your life set-up and where you live, travel or operate. There are many variables in the equation and it would be a mistake to say this is the only set-up. Think with your own brain and make set-up according your needs.
I just want to mention that when traveling with plane there are some items on the list that are not allowed on board. All depends where I am going. If this is a quick trip for couple of days to another city I don’t carry knife or multitool with me, because I can travel with carry on only. But at least you are ok to go with shears on board of the flight.
When moving from one continent to another I prefer to go with checked bag and carry knifes, multitool and other items with me. Many of you can say that checked bag is a pain (and that is true) but you have to evaluate your priorities. I will leave this one for you.
And don’t forget a lighter, pen and note book.
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