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| Can one of these spell the difference between coming home after an unplanned outdoor activity or being found a year later by someone's dog? |
It’s hard to think of survival gear and not
think of a knife. No matter if we are
thinking of late night in a dead-end-alley survival or where-the-hell-are-we
lost, one of the tools we would like is a knife.
Certainly there are other items we
might want. It's way too easy to compile
a most wanted list: handgun, compass, matches/flint, ‘space’ blanket, button
light, cell phone, warm clothes, water, food.
The list seems endless. Even
intrepid TV survival experts would not survive for long in most environments
without some equipment.
It is with some curiosity I see
paracord survival bracelets
being hawked at gun shows, websites
and worn about town. In agreement with
my policy on true transparency I’ve got to say, I make ‘em, too. I wear them as well. It’s sort of a fashion statement that the
wearer is committed to staying alive and has the rope to prove it.
Let’s take a look at this.
I put long brightly colored
lanyards on tools like Leatherman, axes and some fixed blade knives. To me that makes a certain amount of
sense.
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| Yeah, the tool is purple, because the diamond file only came in purple handles. Still, put your thumb over the tool and see if you can find it. I bet you can. |
I drop something in the snow, mud,
leaves or just put it down next to me and the cord helps me locate it. In a water environment I could undo the cord
and re-use it to tie the tool to my belt.
Any survival tool you lose when you use it has limited value.
A lanyard loop assures the knife
will hang from my wrist when I need my fingers and will give me that little bit
of extra security when I’m holding something by the very end to get a little
more leverage out of it.
Lanyards, like the bracelets, also
contain useable cord just in case. In
case of what you should ask?
My bracelets use about 6 feet of
cord. Much of it isn’t the classic 550paracord containing 7 small lines with a
breaking strength of 78 pounds each. (The kermantal adds to the strength too.) Frankly,
I think that breaking strength is urban legend. Much of it looks like paracord but
is filled with a one irregular, fluffy mass of fibers. There’s no reason not to use this material if
you just want to look cool or need a clothesline. Just know what you have.
With 6 feet you could make a
snare. With your knife you could use a
foot here and a foot there to secure the ends of an impromptu shelter. Of course you could use it to tie someone’s
hands and feet if you had to, but they better be unconscious while you unweave
your bracelet.
You could cut off about 3 feet and
pull the inner core strings. With 550
cord you would have 7 three foot long strings to tie into fishing line or to
sew with if you have a stout needle or sharp thorn. I’m not sure what you could use the kermantal
for. If you went with 750 cord, you’d
have 11 strands!
Using the entire cord you could tie
several large branches together to make personal floatation aid or you could
make a fire bow. That’s a good tool to warm yourself
twice with the same wood, once starting the fire and the second time burning
the wood.
Still six feet isn’t a lot of
cord. So if you were to make/buy a belt
40 inches long you might have 24ft.
You’re not going to climb down much of anything with that unless you leave
it behind. A big log raft would still be
out of the question, but you could make several personal rafts with more buoyancy.
What you need to remember is all
knots degrade the strength of rope as does exposure to sun, moisture, dirt, and
salt. And what is a paracord bracelet,
but knotted rope exposed to salty perspiration, water, sun, soap, dirt and
other chemicals? Maybe a survival
bracelet isn’t the answer.
If you’re heading off the pavement
pack a coil of 50
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| The bright metal strip is a 6 inch ruler in front of 50 odd feet. You can rebundle 50 feet of cord in any shape you want. Long to fit in your game or forager pocket, a ball to fill that empty spot in your day pack. You could even run it back and forth like a yoke to fit in your jacket. |
along with your knife, compass, handgun,
and other accoutrements. The right tool
for the job is always easier than makin’ do.
