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Survival Gear

The best survival gear, reviewed and curated by the Trailspace community. The latest review was added on October 8, 2023. Stores' prices and availability are updated daily.

user rating: 5 of 5 (3)
UST Survival Blanket 2.0 Shelter
$30
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (3)
Doan Magnesium Fire Starting Tool Fire Starter
$12
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
Yaktrax Hand Warmers
$1 - $10
user rating: 5 of 5 (2)
UCO Stormproof Matches Fire Starter
$6 - $9
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (5)
SOL Thermal Bivvy Shelter
$30 - $36
user rating: 4 of 5 (2)
UCO Sweetfire Strikable Fire Starter Fire Starter
$8 - $11
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
UCO Stormproof Match Kit Fire Starter
$9
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
Vargo Titanium Emergency Whistle Whistle/Horn
$11
user rating: 4 of 5 (1)
Vargo Ultimate Fire Starter Fire Starter
$25
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (1)
Coghlan's Waterproof Fire Sticks Fire Starter
$4 - $83
user rating: 4 of 5 (1)
MSR Strike Igniter Fire Starter
$13 - $17
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (1)
Exotac MatchCap XL Fire Starter
$36 - $39
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
HotHands Super Warmer
$8
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (1)
SOL Survival Poncho Shelter
$9
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (2)
Mautz Fire Ribbon Fire Starter
$7
user rating: 4 of 5 (1)
UCO Titan Stormproof Match Kit Fire Starter
$12 - $13
user rating: 4 of 5 (1)
Vargo Titanium Flint Lighter Fire Starter
$20
user rating: 4 of 5 (1)
Zippo Windproof Lighter Fire Starter
$25
user rating: 3.5 of 5 (3)
Exotac nanoStriker XL Fire Starter
$31 - $34
user rating: 3.5 of 5 (5)
SOL Escape Bivvy Shelter
$50 - $68
user rating: 3 of 5 (2)
Optimus Sparky Fire Starter
$17
user rating: 3 of 5 (2)
Zippo 12 Hour Hand Warmer
$20 - $24
user rating: 3.5 of 5 (2)
SOL Heatsheets Emergency Blanket Shelter
$5 - $6
Outdoor Element Firebiner Multi-Tool / Fire Starter
$15
user rating: 3 of 5 (1)
Coghlan's Flint Striker Fire Starter
$6
user rating: 3 of 5 (13)
Soto Pocket Torch Fire Starter
$24
user rating: 3 of 5 (5)
SOL Emergency Bivvy Shelter
$9 - $19
user rating: 2.5 of 5 (2)
Soto Pocket Torch XT Fire Starter
$27
user rating: 3 of 5 (3)
SOL Origin Survival Kit
$40
user rating: 3 of 5 (2)
Coghlan's Waterproof Matches Fire Starter
$4
user rating: 2 of 5 (1)
Coleman Fire Starter Magnesium Fire Starter
$7
Kupilka FireSteel 8 Fire Starter
$21
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
SE Magnesium Fire Starter Fire Starter
user rating: 5 of 5 (3)
UST StrikeForce Fire Starter
user rating: 5 of 5 (3)
Light My Fire Swedish FireSteel Scout Fire Starter
user rating: 5 of 5 (2)
Space All-Weather Blanket Shelter
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
UST Base Tube Tarp 1.0 Shelter
$40 MSRP
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
FireSteel GobSpark Armageddon Fire Starter
$18 MSRP
user rating: 4 of 5 (1)
Morakniv Survival Kit for Kansbol/Garberg
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (1)
Exotac nanoStriker Fire Starter
$27 MSRP
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (2)
UST BlastMatch Fire Starter
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
UST WetFire Tinder Fire Starter
user rating: 4 of 5 (2)
UST Sparkie Fire Starter
user rating: 3.5 of 5 (3)
Light My Fire Tinder-on-a-Rope Fire Starter
user rating: 4 of 5 (4)
Coghlan's Fire Paste Fire Starter
user rating: 4.5 of 5 (1)
UCO Waterproof Matches Fire Starter
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
Light My Fire Swedish FireSteel Army Fire Starter
user rating: 5 of 5 (1)
UST Delta Shockproof Lighter Fire Starter

Recent Survival Gear Reviews

rated 0.5 of 5 stars
ClickHeat Hand/Pocket Warmer

Horrible company. They keep changing their names; it’s now called “The Wonder Pax.” Stupid name and evil people. Nothing they said was true. You can feel the evilness as they celebrated a whopping $40 sale. Such a scam; they pretty much pressure you into buying it. They keep changing their names, from ClickHeat to now “The Wonder Pax.” Beware. Full review

rated 0.5 of 5 stars
ClickHeat Hand/Pocket Warmer

BEWARE if you buy anything from Click Heaters they will take your money and run. They sell faulty products and claim they are non-refundable without actually telling you this. Do not support this business, they are a scam. Paid over 600$ at a popup shop, to find the product to be faulty. They claimed they have a no refund fee and all shops have a sign. THERE WAS NO SIGN, this was never brought to my attention or else I NEVER would’ve made the purchase. They are shady, and they will hang up on… Full review

rated 1 of 5 stars
Primus PowerLighter

Do not buy this piece of junk! I purchased this lighter brand new from a retailer here in Sweden. Took it home, waited until I had the necessary adapter to fill it from a camping gas refill. Filled it and then tried to use it... NOTHING. You can see it occasionally try to light but never does. It sparks just fine. I have even tried adjusting the "intensity screw" both to minimum and maximum and many stops in between. Still Nothing! I would not recommend this lighter to anyone!! An expensive waste… Full review

rated 5 of 5 stars
Emberlit Flint and Steel

I have the Trout and T Rex strikers—they work great. I have the Trout and T Rex strikers that I bought back in 2017. The striking surface is shorter than other strikers that I have and I believe this is why they appear weak to other strikes. I did a comparison between my two Emberlt strikers and two other strikers: https://bushcraftusa.com/forum/threads/flint-striker-comparison.270433/ One of my other strikers did not do good at all. Maybe the steel was not tempered right. My other Pskook striker… Full review

rated 5 of 5 stars
HotHands Super Warmer

The best way to endure cold temperatures when your sleeping bag is not good enough. This is a review of "HotHands Body & Hand Super Warmers - Long Lasting Safe Natural Odorless Air Activated Warmers - Up to 18 Hours of Heat - 10 Individual Warmers."  Recently took up snow camping. Discovered my 5°F sleeping bag did not keep me warm at 8°F to 16°F despite sleeping pads over 8 R rating, a good 4-season tent, synthetic thermals, down socks, down pants, down jacket, and a wool baclava. First… Full review

rated 4 of 5 stars
Morakniv Survival Kit for Kansbol/Garberg

A reasonably priced accessory for the popular Mora Kansbol and Garberg knives that provides a sheath-mounted ferrocerium rod for fire-starting and a diamond sharpener for field sharpening. Quality materials and solid design make this a win for any Kansbol or Garberg owner whose knife use includes fire-starting and hard tasks.   Morakniv Survival Kit for Kansbol and Garberg Background I am the sort of hiker, camper, and backpacker who is never without a knife. I’ve enjoyed going down the gram-shaving… Full review

rated 1 of 5 stars
ClickHeat Hand/Pocket Warmer

Stayed hot for less than 30 minutes, then I carried a cold pack around. Horrible. Stayed hot less than 30 minutes. Horrible. Full review

ClickHeat Hand/Pocket Warmer

Terrible , ClickHeat's a scam—all of their products don’t work. If I could give no star I would. Terrible company with terrible products. Full review

rated 4.5 of 5 stars
SOL Thermal Bivvy

The SOL Thermal bivvy is an excellent addition to a 40-degree sleeping bag when temperatures drop and you want to add about 20 extra degrees. The bivvy is lighter than the lightest sleeping bag liners of the same temperatures. The soft material on the inside and out holds up to everyday use and doesn’t make a lot of noise like other survivor blankets.  By placing your sleeping bag inside the bivvy you turn a cool weather sleeping bag into a cold weather bag. If the bivvy is ripped or torn the… Full review

Other Types of Safety Gear

Find more safety gear reviewed in these related categories:

Avalanche Safety

Bear Safety

First Aid and Hygiene

+1 more type