Subscribe / Back Issues
American Made EDC Guide
Here is the latest EDC Guide for American Made Gear, reviewed by Tim Stetzer.
County Comm Titanium Pocket Strong Box
If you carry small, loose items with you, it can be hard to keep them secure and accessible. Medication is especially vulnerable to being crushed. I’ve used small zip-close bags before, but they don’t really offer any protection to their contents. The smaller metal tins work well, but even those can easily crush under foot.
County Comm has a history of making slick titanium tools and gadgets, and the company has brought that experience to bear with its new Titanium Pocket Strong Box. This little box weighs only 1.7 ounces but is machined from a billet of titanium and is about as indestructible as you can get for something this size. It uses a sliding lid that secures with a spring plunger so that it snaps shut, keeping your contents in place.
The designers have run it over with a 7,500-pound truck with no effect—something that would flatten my little tin. The finish is an attractive matte gray with topographical map image laser engraved on the lid.
The Strong Box would also work for carrying a survival fishing kit, batteries, or other must-haves to keep your EDC gear running.
SPECS:
- Outside Dimensions: 2.5″ x 1.45″ x 0.6″
- Inside Dimensions: 2.35″ x 1.17″ x .47″
- Weight: 1.7 oz
Price: $24.95
VZ Grips No. 2 Tactical G10 Pencil
Discrete defense is never a bad idea, especially for times when you can’t carry a firearm or a knife. The folks at VZ Grips already make a line of lightweight, nonmetallic knives, but they’ve extended that to an even more discrete line of G10 tactical pencils.
Just like the myriad of tactical pens we’ve seen in recent years, the G10 Pencil is a self-defense item that hides in plain sight. The No. 2 Tactical Pencil is sized much like a carpenter’s pencil but it has a traditional round profile. It comes in eight colors including blues, browns, and reds, and is sharpened to a keen point. An optional leather sheath is available.
Unlike many tactical pens though, you can’t actually write with the VZ No. 2; it’s just for poking people, not really for taking notes. It works well in an ice pick grip, and I suspect you could probably use it for Kubaton techniques as well.
SPECS
- Length: 6″
- Diameter: 0.35″
- Weight: 0.58 oz
- Made in USA
Price: $39
JRE Industries Multipouch
A big part of everyday carry is the carry part. You can only have gear with you if you have a way to conveniently carry it. JRE Industries just came out with its new Multipouch, which is a universal pouch that can carry a variety of objects like pistol magazines, multitools, or similar sized items.
Unlike many of the pouches on the market, the Multipouch is made of 8-ounce vegetable tanned leather and is adjustable via a laced shock cord so you can adjust it to fit whatever you’re carrying. It’s available in either brown or black finishes and has a large leather loop that will fit over a wide work belt.
The loop is secured via a Line 24 snap so you can put it on and take it off without unthreading your belt. I tried it with Beretta 92, Glock 17, and 1911 mags, all of which worked fine, as well as a big Gerber Center-Drive multitool.
Features:
Material:8-ounce vegetable tanned leather
- Adjustable fit
- Made in USA
Price: $45
VRI Virus Response Tool
While I sit and write this, we’re still in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. If you’re in a high-risk group or just like to be cautious, not touching everything that everyone else does is probably a good idea. Heck, people are gross even when there isn’t a pandemic so it’s probably always a good idea.
Darrel Ralph of Virus Resource Industries understands your concerns and has responded with his new Virus Response Tool. The tool is constructed of aircraft aluminum with an anodized finish and is available in black, blue, or silver finishes.
It allows you to hook doors and press buttons so that you don’t have to touch them with your hands. It even has a proprietary coating on the tip so that it can be used on touch screens. The key-like construction with large ring make it easy for people of all ages to hold and use.
SPECS:
- Overall Length: 4.45″
- Thickness: 0.125″
- Weight: 0.4 oz
- Material: Type 2 aircraft grade aluminum
- Finish:Black,blue or silver anodizing
- Made in the USA
Price: $24.99
Tiny Survival Guide
The best time to prep for emergencies is before they happen, but it never hurts to have a reminder with you when things go sideways. I’m a big fan of easy-to-carry medical and survival manuals, and the Tiny Survival Guide might have the best information-to-size ratio I’ve seen.
This big pamphlet folds down to the size of a credit card and is maybe three credit cards thick. It covers a wide array of subjects including wilderness mishaps, civil unrest, surprise attacks, natural disasters, abduction, hostage and terror threats, vehicle accidents, hiking, camping and hunting emergencies, first aid, and more.
Aside from providing a ton of info for you when you’re in the field, it also has 19 QR codes embedded in it that will take you to the company’s website for further research and learning before you hit the woods.
The guide easily fits into a metal tin survival kit or even your wallet, and it comes with a small magnifier to help you read the small print, which can also be used as a Fresnel lens for fire starting. It’s very affordable and the company has discounts for bulk purchases of five or 10 units so you can stash them in all your kits or give them to family and friends.
Features:
- Ultra-compact survival guide
- Covers a wide array of survival and emergency topics
Price: $9.97
Spyderco Galley-V
I need all the help I can get when it comes to bringing back a truly dull knife, so I really prefer not to let it get to that point in the first place. That’s where something like the Spyderco Galley-V comes into play. Spyderco got its start making sharpening products well before it made knives, so it knows a thing or two about keeping them tuned.
The Galley consists of a set of 12-inch ceramic rods fitted to a high-impact plastic base. The rods are situated into a V at a 20-degree angle and are long enough to work with large kitchen knives. The base can either be clamped in place or permanently affixed to a counter top or workbench. The edges of the stones can be rotated to their edges to sharpen serrated knives as well.
The Galley V is perfect for touch-up work between blade uses so that you can keep them honed and never let them get truly dull, saving you time and effort on full sharpening’s later. Cleanup is quick and simple using common household cleanser.
Features:
- 12-inch long ceramic rods
- 20-degree angle (10 degrees per side)
- 6 x 12 inch high impact plastic base
Price: $80
Galco Ankle Trauma Kit
It always pays to be prepared. First-aid gear, though, can be hard to fit it into your everyday carry loadout. Galco has a new Ankle Trauma Kit that can help solve that dilemma. It works basically like a pistol ankle holster but is designed to carry critical trauma gear.
It’s made from neoprene and has five pockets that can carry tourniquets, strap cutters, knives, multitools, bandages, clotting agents, and similar medical equipment. It’s just the carrier, so you need to add your own gear, but you can customize it as you prefer.
It will fit up to a 16-inch ankle and has a 5-inch extender available if you want to wear it over a high boot. It is ambidextrous and secures with a hook-and-loop fastener.
Features
Material: Neoprene
Colors: Black
- 5 multi-use pockets
Price: $73