I went down the whole insurance route today. Lotta phone calls. I have a HSA apparently which the funds carry over, so spending out of it...though appealing to save a bit now, is just money I won’t have later. So, I dropped that idea just going to go ahead and buy a kit. I’d like to hear what
@doctorres112 has to say about the specific kit breakdowns from my spreadsheet. If I’m spending the money I just want to get the best option for it.
First Aid Kit
Now that I’m learning more about this, and really looking over what’s included, the $286 for the outdoor supply weekender doesn’t seem like a bad deal. Even though it’s more than others , that fancy case alone and with the ability to use their mounting solutions is worth some extra expense.
I’ll check with my local Red Cross on classes, I’d really like to know more about using all this.
In the mean time, I don't really like that $286 kit. It has a lot of stuff, as in a variety of things. But there isn't much abundance of anything. You really need more larger gauze pads, like 50x 4"x4". For tape, that kit gives you a 1/2" wide tape, that isn't going to help with much. 4" wide tape, its awesome, and when there's a lot of blood, things don't stick very well. 1/2" wide with a lot of blood is going to turn into string. I could go on.
So I guess what I'm saying is that it's okay to have more larger pads, more tape, and get more isreali bandages, and more tourniquets. That kit gives you a chest seal, ok, well then instead take the wrapper of an isreali bandage, lay the inside on the wound and tape it down with wide tape. That's when I want to ask what penetrated the chest? If a bullet because of a bad hunter, cool, but if you have a sucking chest wound, then wheres the decompression needle for it? Then we get into the training, because punching a big ass needle through the chest between the 3rd and 4th ribs takes some force, like Pulp Fiction force. You can go buy the medications on that list in greater bulk for cheaper price per unit at walmart.
That's probably why I don't like these kits much. They give you a lot different items, but little bulk of any one thing. Then some things I feel are thrown in for fun. Like tweezers (which will probably not be very good), and one chem light (which is cool, if you have some string, then you can tie a chem light to the string and spin it, makes one hell of a crazy spinning circle light for nighttime ID by people looking to find you). But then you need some string, which isn't in the kit.
I feel there is really two kits people should have. A boo boo kit, and a First Aid Kit.
Most of the time, people are going to get burns, get dehydrated, get a splinter, or get an upset tummy (yeah, I said tummy)
Then there is the aid bag, be ready to stop bleeding by restricting blood flow, then packing the wound, then sealing the wound. For falls and breaks, I love those moldable splints (which the kit only has one, so I guess the casualty shouldn't have more than one injury), , but this is where some 4" wide tape comes in again, wrap that SOB up and then you can stabilize limps or necks (but don't strangle them...)
So final thoughts, I guess I don't hate these kits. I think they are a great place to start, but over time you will add to it, not replace, and adjust it to suit what you feel is important. Don't buy it as a set kit, maybe get it, but just add some more things that I mentioned to it to make it really ready to handle a kid that go too close to cliff, or a person who trips into a fire, or a crushed leg from a vehicle rolling backward, or a serious head injury from a hi-lift (hate Hi-lifts, I got rid of mine 10 years ago), or a snapped metal winch that cut a guys abdomen open. All of those were true incidents I've handled, so they happen (and only one of those wasn't in the US).