Multi-Use Survival Item Most Preppers Overlook

There are a lot of expert opinions on what bare minimum items one should have in a survival situation or a scenario where everything you are going to endure with in the field is on your body or in a backpack. Very few will disagree that as a minimum you at least want to have a knife. From there the dialectic as what else one should carry will include everything from a fire starter to a gun. Of course, if we had choices what to have on hand in a survival situation we would probably all pick Wal-Mart and a helicopter! Unfortunately, life is not so generous and we need to think in the extreme – what is the minimum that we need to continue our existence and mission to overcome adversity?
Obviously, a knife will serve not only as a cutting tool but also as weapon. As a tool, it will allow you to engineer things like traps and shelters. As a weapon, it will allow you to hunt and cut meat. Over the years of living out of a backpack in the field, I found there were two other essential items to carry that had the most use: 550-paracord and tubular nylon tape.

Parachute cord (suspension line) has a tensile strength of 550lbs and contains seven strands or yarns that comprise a single strand of suspension line. As a soldier, I used 550 cord as my boot laces with a couple of extra feet that I would wrap around the top of my boot when I laced them up. I also kept several more feet of 550 stowed in my rucksack.

I also carried ten feet of tubular nylon tied into a loop with the ends fused (melted with a lighter to prevent fraying) and tied together using a water knot, which is the most secure way to tie two ends of nylon tape together. The reason I carried tubular nylon is because its tensile strength is enough that you can tow a car with it and it can be used for a variety of heavy lifting or life support functions. In fact, one-inch tubular nylon is used for heavy-drop cargo parachutes.

Looped nylon tape can be used as a Swiss seat for rappelling, hoisting or lowering personnel. It can be used for improvised climbing and lowering techniques that are demonstrated in my survival instruction, and it can be used for lashing and securing objects together. The biggest advantage tubular nylon has over 550 cord is strength, width of tape for more secure handling and lifting support. In an extreme situation nylon tape can be melted and formed into a sharp object like a dagger or spear head if the situation calls for it.

In conclusion, if I had to make a recommendation for which four items I would carry with me that would fit into a cargo pocket on my pants in a survival situation whether it be in a field or urban environment, it would be a knife, fire starter, 550 cord, and 10’ of 1’’ tubular nylon. Of course I will ask for Wal-Mart and a Helicopter too!

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Dr. Dale Comstock is a former Delta Force Operator, Green Beret – Light and Heavy Weapons Expert, Paramilitary Operative, and former professor that taught Psychology of Violence, Technical Surveillance, and Area Study Analysis. See more about him at www.dalecomstock.com