Up until a few years ago, I never really put thought into what I carried around with me every day or why I carried it. Now I have a loadout that suits my needs and I wanted to share some of the things I’ve learned along the way. This is mainly focused on a Level 1 EDC, but several of the principles can be applied across all levels.
Choosing Gear
What Do I Need?
It’s easy to look at “celebrities,” retired members of the Military, or someone with thousands of YouTube subscribers and think, “Oh, he carries (X), I want that!” Rather than this train of thought, you need to find items that work for you. Items that fit you and work well in your environment.
What works for a SEAL in Afghanistan might not be the best fit for you. For me, an example of this is appendix carry. I love the idea of carrying this way, as it makes concealing and drawing very easy, but I’m a big guy and it’s very uncomfortable. It just doesn’t work for me, so I don’t carry that way. Also, you need to decide what you want to get out of a particular piece of gear.
Do you want an external safety on your carry gun? A single stack or double stack mag? How many lumens do you want on your flashlight? Do you want an automatic opening knife or a regular folder? Based on your reasoning and research, figure out what you want and get something that fits those parameters.
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Photos courtesy of ITS Tactical