Harry's Army Surplus Blog

Posts Tagged ‘survival gear’

Each year we hear plenty of stories from around the world about people or their pets getting bit by venomous snakes, many of whom die or lose a limb. Recently, the news informed us of a man who was hunting and was bitten by a poisonous snake ( you can read article here ). He was able to stay calm enough to get his $10 snake bite kit out of his bag and extract the venom. In doing this, he was able to save his own life. Now, you’ve got to be wondering ‘Well, where can I get one of these snake bite kits?” No worries! Harry’s Army Surplus has got you covered!

You may think having a snake bite kit is not a top priority in your bag while hiking, camping, or even walking the dog, but it should be especially if you live in an area with a high or growing population of venomous snakes. We offer three different snake bite kits and all three are extremely affordable. The most basic kit we offer is the Coughlan’s Snake Bite Kit. At $4.99 this is something anyone can afford. We like this kit for its compact size. This kit is small enough to keep in your pocket (which is ideal in a snake bite situation). it comes complete with 3 suction cups, an easy to use one-hand lymph constrictor, scalpel, antiseptic swab, and detailed instructions that we recommend you read before you head out on you adventure so you already know how to use it.

If you want a kit that is not so basic, then take a look at the Sawyer Bite and Sing Extractor Kit. On sale for just $17.95, this kit is perfect to have at home, in your car, or in your pack. This emergency kit can remove venom and poison from snake bites, bee stings, wasp stings, and other bug bites. It includes the extractor pump, 4 plastic cups, 1 razor, 3 sterile adhesive bandages, 2 alcohol wipes, 2 bite antiseptics and pain reliever wipes, and instructions all packed into a small plastic carrying case.

Either of these kits would be a great addition to you survival gear. Remember, you can never be too prepared! Check out all of our great survival gear and make sure your next adventure is safe one!

NDUR is another great brand Harry’s decided to pick up this spring. They make a line of innovative survival products, designed to provides excellent performance and extremely functional. With a slogan like “to Survive – to Outlast – to Endure”, NDur products will help you get through your next camping or hiking adventure.

The coolest product, in our opinion, is the  Portable Water Filter Survival Straw. This straw is way more convenient and easier to carry around in comparison to water bottles and canteens. Probably more important than the size, this straw is packed with awesome features that you wont find anywhere else. This straw is made with BPA-free plastic and it’s filter life is good for up to 25 gallons or more depending on the quality of the water source. The filter in this straw removes up to 99.9% of viruses and bacteria, 99.9% of micro-organisms, 99.9% of heavy metals, and (here’s the most impressive one) 99.9% of radioactive elements such as Gross Beta, Uranium, Plutonium, Radon, Radium, Cesium, Strontium,  and Radioactive Iodine. Basically this straw could save your life. All you need to do is fill up a bottle or a glass and drink from the straw and Voila! Clean Water! We recommend having one of these around the house just in case the impending zombie apocalypse happens.

Looking for an actual filtered water bottle? Well, NDUR has one. This water bottle offers all the same great features as the straw minus removing the radioactive elements. Other great items are the survival blanket, the super lightweight camp stove, and a 7 in 1 survival whistle. Even if you’re not a hiker or a camper, all of these products would be great to have in your home in the case of a natural disaster or power outage. We really love these products and are sure you guys will too!

Check out our review of the Fox Tactical Excursionary Hydration Pack! This hydration pack not only has room for a bladder, but has several other compartments for the other gear you need. Another great feature is the MOLLE compatible webbing, allowing you to attach a variety of pouches to the pack. Hydration packs are extremely convenient and great to have. Check out all of our gear at Harry’s and for more great product reviews, check out our Youtube channel .

If one of your New Years Resolutions this year was to  start prepping, then take a look at this list of the top 10 items you’ll need to start your collection!

1)    One of the most important items for our body is fresh drinking water. Key for survival packs is to include a water filtration system. This Katadyn Mini Ceramic Water Filter is small and compact which will make it easy to carry and pack in your survival gear backpack.

2)    This Zippo Fire Starter will allow you to keep warm no matter what weather you encounter and it’s small compact size allows you to easily tote it with you in your survival gear pack.

3)    Along the same lines as the Fire Starter, this Survival Blanket will keep you warm on cold nights. This blanket is lightweight, reusable, waterproof, and can be folded to fit in your pack for storage and carrying.

4)    In case of an emergency happening to you or someone you are travelling with, make sure you have a First Aid Kit handy. This Military Olive Drab Large First Aid Kit contains everything you will need in case of an emergency.

5)    Doomsday Preppers often carry some type of weapon for various uses. This 11 Inch Junge Survival Knife Kit contains two separate knives, an 11 in. larger knife and a smaller throwing knife as well as a few other survival accessories. Again, this is compact enough to be stored within your survival pack.

6)    To ensure that you never lose track of where you are, make sure you pack a compass in your survival kit. This Multifunction Solar Powered Digital Compass is great because it can be re-charged using solar power so no matter what you encounter, you will be able to continue using this compass.

7)    Because you will never want to be in the dark, pack a Solar Powered Lantern with you. This Solar Powered Lantern can be re-charged and has two different modes including one that will save energy.

8)    Known for its multitude of uses, Paracord is one of those things you should never leave off of your survival pack checklist.

Pretty much anything you can imagine, you can use Paracord for including making a hammock, gear repair, decoration, security, belt, boot laces, tying food from a tree, etc.

9)    The Shark Safety Whistle is imperative to a survival pack emitting a loud whistle that will assist you in search and rescue operations as well as outdoor and personal safety.

10) Last, but definitely not least, you will need a tactical backpack that will hold all of your survival equipment. The Rapid 96 4 Day Tactical Backpack has padded shoulder straps, a padded back, and is MOLLE Compatible so extra pouches can be added for additional room.

If you’re looking for any other survival items on your shopping list, stop by Harry’s Survival Gear section, guaranteed to fulfill all of your needs!

Tomorrow is the first day of winter and it’s starting with a bang. Winter Storm Draco is currently pounding the Midwest and heading Michigan’s way, so we thought putting together some tips to help make it through the upcoming winter storm season would be helpful!

The first step in being prepared for winter is making sure your winter wardrobe is up to par. The clothing  and footwear industry has made significant strides in developing new technologies and designs to help improve warm and performance in the winter. Columbia Sportswear is one of our favorite winter brands and with everything from electric boots that heat your feet with rechargeable batteries, great layering pieces like hoodies and fleece pullovers, to winter coats featuring insulation and silver linings that reflect body heat, you are sure to stay warm.  Other brands such as, Carhartt , also offers top notch winter wear that is durable enough for a construction site and can last for years.

The second step for winter preparedness would be to make sure your home is prepped with some basic survival gear, in case you get snowed in or lose power. Having extra water one hand is a must. Cases of water bottles can often be hard to store so try out a case of emergency water rations. Each case contains 64 sachets, with 4.227 ounces in each packet. The water has been purified and has a 5 year shelf life. You’re sure to get hungry during a blizzard and if you’ve lost power, most of what you have in your fridge would spoil, so  survival food bars or ready to eat meals would be a great thing to have in your cabinet. Flashlights and candles are also necessary to have as a light source.

The final step to be completely prepared for winter is to prep your car. I know from first hand experience driving in a blizzard is not fun and can be quite dangerous. In the unfortunate case that you get into an accident, your car breaks down, or you need to pull off the road because  you can’t see, make sure you have everything you may need. A pre-made kit is a great option for your car or home because it can be easily stored in the backseat or in the trunk. One of our favorite picks is the Emergency Preparedness Survival Kit by Coghlan’s. This kit includes a variety of first aid materials, disposable hand warmers, emergency ponchos, survival candles, and more. Blankets are always handy to have in the car. You can chose between the reflective emergency blanket or go with a thick, heavy wool blanket….or go with both to be ultimately prepared. 

Some of you may think being this prepared is extreme, but if you live in an area that has the potential for winter storms, then being this prepared will be beneficial in the long run. This was just a few tips and suggestions,so check out our whole selection of survival gear at Harry’s to create your very own emergency preparedness kit!

By now, many of you have heard about Siri, the “automated” voice assistant that is integrated with Apple’s new iPhone operating system. Well, if you’ve ever seen Terminator, you already know that this seemingly innocuous Siri is nothing short of Skynet. Think about it, she’s there living inside your iPhone, watching, learning and biding her time before she brings about the Apple android apocalypse.

With the prevalence of iPhones and iPads, the Apple’s Siri will ensure that our lives will never be the same. Basically, the singularity is here, human governments will soon fall and all we can really do is protect our own assets.

If you’re gonna fight, you’ve got to have the right gear…right? We at Harry’s Army Surplus have prepared a list of the best survival gear to protect you when judgement day comes. We hope you enjoy it and we’ll see you on the other side. God save the queen!

Best Gear for the Siri’s iPhone Apocalypse:

1. Army Type Sawback Machete:

The blade on this machete is well balanced. You can hack through the underbrush in order to sneak up on the enemy and with a wide enough swing, you could probably lop off the heads of Skynet’s (aka Siri) minions.  The saw back on this machete might be useful for hacking through a twist of wires in case you have to disable any nuclear warheads.

2. Leatherman MUT Military Utility Tool

This isn’t just a Multitool, it’s a soldier’s tool box. The Leatherman MUT has specific tools designed to maintain AR-15′s and SKS’s, including a bolt overide tool to grab the leading edge of a bolt carrier and allow the shooter to easily pull back the bolt in order to clear a jammed casing, allowing the user to quickly un-jam a weapon and get back to killing that army of cyborgs.

3. Basic Issue Combat Shirt

Rather than wearing some stuffy old military BDU or ACU, you’ll want one of these new fangled combat shirts. It’s lightweight, moisture wicking, breathable and fits under a tactical vest. If the Machines blast you with a flame thrower, you’ll be happy to be wearing a combat shirt with a 230 degree melting point. On top of that, chicks dig em.

4. Inforce Four Force Tactical Light

The future is murky and you’ll need a great light to lead the way as you crawl through dark tunnels and through the backcountry in your pursuit of safe harbor from your Apple adversary. With a woppin’ 300 lumens and strobe functionality to disorient the enemy, this flashlight just might save your life when Siri comes for you.

5. Cross Draw Tactical Vest

You’ve gotta have your gear at hand when Siri comes. This tactical vest holds your gun, ammo and all the rest of your essentials.

6. Solar & Wind-up Radio

Of course you need a radio in a survival situation. When the power grid’s taken down and you’re hold up in your dank bunker just south of hell, you’ll welcome the sweet sounds of another human voice being broadcast to all those resistance fighters just like yourself.  Just give this crank radio a whirl or leave it sitting in the sun and POOF, instant sanity.

There are definitely more items you’ll need to survive the iPhone apocalypse and we’ll be right here helping you find the right gear. For now, we hope that this’ll get you started on your bug out bag.

For all of you who’ve had a good laugh at this article, please take note: Siri, Apple’s evil artificial intelligence, is no laughing matter. Don’t be surprised when you look down and notice that your iPhone is shooting a laser beam straight through your leg and Siri’s evil voice is telling you to submit yourself for registration at her internment camp in Cupertino California where you’ll be processed and put to work.

Long live the resistance! Down with the iPhone!