Having a Few Extra Odds and Ends
Kevin Felts 12.21.17
Guess who got another backpack? This one is a medium MOLLE in multicam. What do you do with a new pack? You outfit it with odds and ends. Rather than having to buy gear for the new pack, why not have some extra stuff on hand?
Back in 2012, I posted a thread on the forum asking members, “What is your fetish?” My fetish is backpacks. From time to time, something will catch my eye and it will be ordered. The bad thing about backpacks is that they have to be outfitted with gear. Either gear has to be moved between the packs, or each pack has to be set up with its own odds and ends.
Most of my military surplus gear comes from Ebay. When a canteen, canteen pouch, or canteen cup is ordered, a few extra items are added to the order. Rather than ordering just enough to outfit the new pack, an extra two or three items will be added to the order. For example, if I am ordering two canteens with pouches, the order may be for six. The extra go into storage. Some of the gear is used to make hand-out bags, while other gear is used to outfit new packs.
However, some packs are not outfitted with anything, such as school backpacks and other civilian models. Most of them do not have MOLLE webbing, so there is nowhere to attach military surplus items. Those types of packs are kept in a storage bin and are rarely used.
Examples of odds and ends kept on hand:
- Canteens.
- Canteen pouches.
- Cook pots.
- Single burner stoves.
- Rain ponchos.
- Fleece blankets – they make a good warm weather sleeping bag.
- Knives.
- Canteen cups.
Most of the time, a pack will have two canteens, a canteen cup and maybe a knife kept in it. Before heading out on a hiking trip, a water filter, TOPO maps, rain poncho, and snacks are added to the pack.
It saves a lot of time to have a few extra items in storage. Rather than having to go through the process of ordering a couple of canteens when the new pack arrives, there are already some here ready to go.
