Purchasing Survival Kit vs. Making Your Own

Should I purchase a survival kit or build my own? I'm new to this and want to know which is the better option. I have done a little research and have seen ready made kits for sale. I was wondering if there is any value in these, or should I just create my own. I have also seen several how-to guides on making kits, and I wanted to know if anyone could recommend one that was good.

 

You could start with a survival & first aid kit, but along the line you'll find yourself thinking "Oh, I need this and that too!". Each person has their own needs, especially if you also intend to care for medical conditions like diabetes and such.
The manufacturers of these kits can't predict where you live or what special things you might need. So after you get your basics either through ready kit, or by gathering them yourself, it's good to sit down on an afternoon and think things like:

How far is the nearest hospital and if you have a vehicle to reach a destination.
What's the chance of roads being damaged and what you can do instead.
What to do if you don't have a car or you car is incapacitated.
What are your/your team's medical needs (chronic illness, handicap)
What do you do with your pet, if you have one.
What kinds of gear you'll need to generate or store electricity.
Tools to fix things around you, and getting to know how to fix things in general.
Understanding the weaknesses and fortitude of your residence.

And so on.

All these questions will answer what else you yourself need to stockpile or assemble to be ready when dissaster strikes.
Remember that half the value in stockpiling items is knowing how to use them. That could be cooking, or turning on a generator, or just changing the oils in your car. Knowledge and preparedness are the things that will make a difference, what makes us autonomous.

 

Each person or family has there own specific needs that would not be provided for in a survival kit. For example, I am on medication and would need to keep some extra medication in my survival kit. There is nothing wrong with purchasing a survival kit and adding items that your family will need.

 

I think making your kit would be of more value. Maybe your kit could include a bought kit. However, you definitely would want to pick out things unique to your needs that are not in the bought kit. The things inside the bought kit are usually of low quality. If you make your own, you know exactly everything you have and where it is. There will be no messing it around if it becomes necessary to utilize the things inside of it. I suggest doing some more research on other kits professionals have made and then putting one together yourself.

 

It's more convenient to buy them, and you wouldn't have to worry about the quality and reliability of the product if you ever need it, HOWEVER if you DO get lost in the woods with nothing but the clothes on your back, the knowledge of having to build your own equipment, no matter how sub-par, would still be better than panicking in the wilderness while you are helplessly waiting for help to arrive. So I say yes to both, in that you should trust the equipment, and professionally made stuff are just that, but you also need to know how to make one, in the event that circumstances are forcing you to do so.

 

You can complement what purchased kits cannot accomplish by making your own survival kits. In the area of first aid, you can make an alum stick to put on wounds for cessation of bleeding in wounds. You can also make your own knives by hitting big stones against each other and then joining the shards with a wet, sturdy branch so that when it dries, it will grip firmly.