Blunt Object's EDC repository

[Blunt Object]

Or is it suppository? I get those two mixed up, like the Marine in Full Metal Jacket. Anyway, I've wished for years that I had made a thread, blog, video, pdf or any kind of archive of my EDC habit, to reminisce the whats and whens of my habit. Just for fun. So I'm pegging this corner of the Internet and MTO to fill that function. To review, reinvent, and remember what is and was in my pocketses. I see some members have their threads up for years. I don't presume to reach the level and quality of other forumites' erudition and photography, but here goes anyway.

Pics and rambling forthcoming. Feedback appreciated. And thank you for this platform.

[MTSAK]

I've been thinking of doing the same. Just mulling over the direction I want to go with it. I look forward to seeing what you post!

[Blunt Object]

Maybe start a bit unorthodox and talk about the method of carry first. As a kid I was obsessed with the Bat Belt. Weren't we all? The idea of having all you need to deal with everyday problems on your belt was fascinating: tools, weapons, toys, superhero kit. So EDC has been a part of my life since I was a kid.

Alas, tactical nylon and MOLLE gear wouldn't be invented for many years. So I actually got to carry very few items. Later I experimented with early military nylon, belt pouches and sheaths, and found that apart from fixed blades in dangler sheaths, belt carry generally sucks. We're not talking about battle belts or gun belts, just regular belts and jeans. The pouches get in your way, get stuck in seat belts, stick you in the belly and make sitting down awkward. Remember time before smartphones? You could make a Nokia work in a belt pouch, but not these monster phones we have now. The original Leatherman PST in leather sheath was manageable and stayed on the belt for years.

So long story short, I pocket carry. My "platform" is a pair of cargo pants with a wide leather belt, Finnish military style, with a couple of items from the time when I moonlighted as security: a Snigel key keeper and a wide elastic sleeve with Velcro backing, which I will discuss later.

With me whenever I leave the house I have
-keys on belt keeper
-edc knife rf pocket
-wallet in a tool/phone pocket
-phone in lf pocket
-paper tissues and ear buds in left cargo pocket
-pen and notebook in right cargo pocket

That's about it. So, much ado about nothing? As on body carry, it sounds kinda meh. But of course, there are layers. And I do try to carry only what I need. No eye candy or fluff.

Guns are NOT carried in my country. Maybe a handful of high profile people have CC permit, and weapons of any kind for self defence are not allowed. OTOH, it is a very safe country in general. My EDC knife (and any carried multitools with blades) are, strictly speaking, illegal. Tough. All it does is prevent from using the telltale pocket clip. Not that the Police or anyone cares, as long as you don't cause trouble.

EDC BAG

Everything else goes into the bag. As it is Winter Holiday and I'm taking a couple of days off with the Missus, I've removed all work stuff and only left my EDC adjacent kit. The bag, since 2011, is a 5.11 RUSH 12. It seems to last forever and I don't believe I'll be shopping for new bag any time soon. Normally I carry a laptop, planner, some folders and my lunch. Always in the bag are:

-Mechanix gloves
-face masks (not for the you-know-what but for dust, smoke and such)
-hand sanitizer (carried it long before you-know-what)
-a titanium Spork (for lunch)
-wet wipes and paper tissues
-power bank and phone charger with usb-c cable
-a large carry bag for after work grocery shopping
-my tool kit, naturally.

I usually also carry something to drink. But my day to day grind does not involve disaster preparedness or doomsday survival. I have other kits and lots of goodies in my car and at home. They fall outside the EDC domain.

[IMR4198]

    This is a fun thread so far.  Very interesting.  Best wishes.  Gary
 

[Blunt Object]

Of all things "always" on us, aren't our keys the only truly indispensable item? I wear them clipped to a belt keeper, because I know from experience that they will still be there, even if I have to wrestle a crazed addict, run or climb, or hang upside down. I don't do it anymore, but this guarantees I will have my keys on me, unless I leave the house without any pants on. I add and remove keys when needed, like right now we're staying in my in-laws' house and the occupants are no longer with us. For me, losing keys is not an option, especially other people's keys. So I slip them into a split ring and clip them to my body.

In my keys are

-flashlight, a time tested Olight
-a small SAK - Classic, Mini Champ, Rambler, anything with scissors; now the latter for a change, removed from key ring to cut some gauze. Sometimes I throw in a Micra just for variety.
-a very crude and unfinished trolley token shim cut from a larger one, steel. It works.

TBH, I've been using my key ring tool less and less lately, having a bigger and more versatile tool always handy. I might drop it in favour of a larger SAK that I carry anyway. Those little SAKs are just so darn nice and fidgety...

I find that less is more, keys-wise. The lighter the better, less jingle.

[Blunt Object]

I've always carried a pen, and invariably they have either broken or leaked. As a giant nerd, a pocket protector with multiple pens in breast pocket would be quite all right, but I still want to have a pen that can withstand my daily grind in and outside the office. I've had a Bullet pen for twenty plus years, with new refills and occasionally a new clip. I've also carried a "tactical" S&W pen and a couple of bolt action, all metal pens from Böker. Again, I've found that smaller is better, so I always gravitate back to the Bullet. Though I do 90% of my work related writing with other ball point, pencils, and markers, the Bullet is on me at all times. Small and slippery enough to just fly away from a pocket, it now lives in a cheapo leather organizer from China via Amazon. As does the mini Moleskine. I've shaved maybe 5 millimetres from the width of the notebook to make it fit better.

And of course there's SAK number two. The slot fits all my Alox Vics, from Bantam to Farmer. Sometimes I go light, but currently, when not in my normal routine,  with my opener-less Farmer X, that covers a lot of ground with its tools. Instead of trying to find the ultimate one tool, I try to carry things that complement each other, without too much redundancy. For example, Skeletool and Farmer X have the same functions as a Wave, and more. Along with all the other stuff in the tool pouch. More on this in the tool section...

[Blunt Object]

THE TOOL KIT

Nothing here really needs introduction, but maybe a "why." My go-to MT used to be the Wave, and it is an all time favourite all-in-one LM of mine, has been for decades. But now I'm thinking, "one of each" instead of "all in one." Everything fits in the pouch. Some parts float around in the admin compartment of my bag, such as the Böker Bit Pen, Bosch mini wrench, measuring tape... I could cram everything in, or get a bigger pouch, but for now it works for me.

For pry bar, a cut up old Stanley. Small in size, yet I can put my body weight on it, pull nails, jam things open or shut. Key ring pry tools do nothing for me. For heavier B&E, I have a full size breaching kit in my car, always nearby. Axe, shovel, saw, crowbar, the usual.

Half-a-Micra for flatheads, 2D Phillips and tweezers. Handy for glasses, no knife blade, so it's travel friendly. Also the only cap lifter in my inventory. My brand of beer comes in cans.

Knipex for larger nuts and whatever the Skeletool can't handle.  The problem with Wave and other PBMT:s is that you can't hold the thing you're working on with the same tool you're using as a driver. So having a MT and pliers is not really redundancy. More like "two is one."

To be continued...

[Blunt Object]

Skeletool - what hasn't been said about it? I don't use the pocket clip so I removed it, making the Skele even slimmer. It is my primary driver now, and my secondary plier, and my tertiary knife. So obviously, redundancy is unavoidable.

The bit keeper holds the bits I'm most likely to use. At home I have all the 4mm and 1/4 bits I need, multiple sets, sockets too, and on the move this kit is quite enough.

I haven't modded the Surge blade & saw yet. No hurry, I already have a saw in my SAK and the file works without the holder just fine.

Swiss Card scissors - redundant, but handy because they don't come with an entire MT attached.

Mini marker for ... marking.

That leaves the centerpiece of any EDC, our oldest and most used tool - the knife.

[Blunt Object]

I've carried a knife for nearly five decades, no joke. That's something, because strictly speaking, it's against the law. However, we are a blade culture, and only recently has the p*ssification virus infected our society. A puukko is now considered too much, after serving us since the dawn of iron ore working. I got mine when I was not yet in school, and it didn't leave my side all summer. In school it had to be something a bit less conspicuous. Problem was, folding quality cutlery was unobtainable. Cheap Chinese jackknives that would rust on day one, or lame slipjoint pen knives, that was pretty much it. But then I got my first SAK - probably a Spartan. Then another one, and another, because I broke the first one, then dropped the second one in a lake. Then my Father brought me my first lockback from a business trip to West Germany - a 110 knockoff made by Othello. I was over the moon. Until I lost it... and my Father, bless his soul, kept his faith in me and got me a new lockback from Germany which I still have. That was 1983. I carried that Herbertz (with "Kettner" etched in the blade) as my pocket knife for over a decade.

Here's a picture of my first real EDC setup, ca 1986-1991. That was when I realized that it's not just about having a knife. It was so much more  The camo is no coincidence - I started gathering quality gear to be able to better operate in Reservist NCO activities. The USSR collapsed and everyone was nervous, so what better way to relax than rocking a Valmet and some sweet M62/M91 camo with the boys.

[Blunt Object]

In outdoor activities, nothing beats a puukko style knife in utility, versatility, price, and something approaching a spiritual connection between a man and his blade. I have many, but not in EDC capacity, them being unsuited to discreet daily carry.

Like I said, I have had a SAK most of my life, and carried it without giving it much thought. Same with those nice lockbacks. The one knife that caught my eye and started me down this dark and costly path was featured in the Sylvester Stallone film "Cliffhanger" in 1993. You know, the one where Merl from the Walking Dead whips out a first gen Endura with integral pocket clip and full Spyderedge, and offs a baddie. I was like WHAT knife is that, HOW did he snap it open like that, with ONE HAND, WHAT is that blade shape and teeth, and WHERE did he carry it! So I heard of Spyderco for the first time, and I was sold. I scoured every sporting goods shop, surplus store, outdoor and hunting store and if I saw a Spydie, I bought it. But the supply was pitiful, there was no Internet shopping worth mentioning until the early 2000s. But ever since I've had a Spyderco in my EDC rotation. The first one was the SS Police SE. A long time favourite was the Endura, which I broke. Turned out folders can't do it all. All time favs and still in use: Delica, Dragonfly, Centofante, Native. Pretty basic models, so close to pocket perfection that I have never seriously looked into their premium models like the Military and such.

Occasionally I go rogue and sport a Cold Steel. The strenght of the Triad Lock is something to admire. Between Spyderco and CS Hold Out or Air Lite, my folder needs are thoroughly satisfied.

[Blunt Object]

Now then, why a full size folder? Why not just a SAK, or a gentleman's pocket knife? Well, I want the following:

SIZE - must be substantial to perform nearly as well as a puukko would
STRENGHT - see above
ONE HANDED - major advantage in any imaginable knife adjacent situation
LOCKING - no compromise. Never have to fear having the knife close on your fingers
STAINLESS - don't have to go full Salt, but rusting is not an option
SIMPLE - no gimmicks, must be easy to clean, no complicated mechanism
PLAIN EDGE - I'm no longer a fan of serrations
CLIP and LANYARD HOLE - a must for carry options and safety, even though rarely used (I often remove clips because I can't use them; visibility issue and the law... Lanyards work for smaller knives
LIGHT WEIGHT - G10 and FRN work for me, I hate pocket drag

WHY KNIFE?

Because it does almost everything. This being MTO, I'm sure most of us pity the fool who has to ask why we carry what we carry. I'd love to be able to have a big fixed knife on my belt for "whatever comes up", but I can't. Weapon? Sure, but let's hope not. I have pulled a knife in self defense, once, in fear of my life, but the aggressor/would-be mugger never saw it, and it went back to my pocket without being used. That was my old Endura, by the way. I don't carry for SD, but it would be foolish not to use any weapon available to you if that's what it takes. I've never been in a fight, never had any trouble with the law.