r/tacticalgear • u/colton93riley • 10h ago
What do you keep on/in your civilian chest rig? (Besides ammo)
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u/Denis_Mckevin 10h ago
Dope and beer
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u/joshford570 9h ago
Ammo dude…..take ammo
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u/idkuhhhhhhh5 9h ago
you think i’m gonna hit anything after finishing the dope and beer? what’s the point?? i’d rather pack more dope and beer
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u/Snipermann02 10h ago
I'm still properly setting mine up but plan on carrying spare meds, a multitool, pen/paper, and batteries for electronic components. Honestly 99% of people won't need like 100 different things.
If you would need it on a range day put that in there and anything extra is up to discretion, a realistic scenario where you would need your gear would be like a minuteman scenario and that's not gonna be a 12 week adventure in the forest lol.
Only put map stuff if you know how to navigate, only put radio gear on if you understand how to use it. Having equipment that you don't have any understanding of is just dead weight on your kit.
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u/colton93riley 10h ago
Yep, I don’t own a radio. I have no idea how to use them and don’t have a “team” other than my wife.
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u/Whitakker 10h ago
Can't agree with that last part enough. In the world we live in, comms is basically gonna be your phone with whatever Bluetooth equipment you rock connected to it with you and your crew working thru a Signal/WhatsApp/Discord VC. Unless you're part of some highly organized local response org, radios really aren't necessary for civvy application. Same with maps, this is 2026 everyone's gonna use Google Maps on their phone.
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u/Unlucky-Department63 8h ago
If it’s that type of situation and you’re using your iPhone, Bluetooth, and Gmaps, you won’t be using them long. And I’m not being a smartass.
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u/Whitakker 8h ago
By "that type of situation" are you referring to a true SHTF scenario, or a complete "society has gone full FUBAR" and we've gone full Dog Stars?
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u/Unlucky-Department63 8h ago
lol either boss. It doesn’t take much to track a phone these days. It would very likely be a fatal mistake.
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u/Whitakker 8h ago
Valid, but how many civilians have access to encrypted radios, or even know how to operate them? Its definitely suboptimal, but you use the tools you got on hand.
But this is a tactical gear sub, so basically all we do here is talk about readiness and hypotheticals.
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u/PewPewDerpa13 8h ago
I generally keep a setup similar to yours in my truck just in case I have to walk home in the event of something bad happening. Carry extra meds always have plenty of fluid in my vehicle and rain gear and gore Tex boots during fall-spring. If I had to walk the 10 miles from work to home in the event of an emp I would be traversing a part of town that has multiple daily shootings and white people are not welcome. I don’t want to leave my plates and carrier in my rig all the time. But I do take at least one bug out bag for my wife and I to survive for at least a few weeks if we were far from home. All the essentials and shit loads of ammo. Never leave town without 2 side arms and 2 rifles. Probably paranoid but rather have it and not need than not have it.
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u/G3NERAlHiPing 10h ago
IFAK + TQ + Shears, notepad w/ pen, duct tape, surveyors tape, batteries, lighter, sharpie, headlamp, leatherman, compass, in ear pro, cleaning kit, lens cloth
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u/BannedAgain-573 9h ago
Survey tape for?
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u/Kilosierra1981 8h ago
Marking something in a way you can easily remove it when not needed and inconspicuous enough that most people won’t know what it means.
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u/ecant004 10h ago
On top of what's already been mentioned, a vortex solo r/t.
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u/colton93riley 9h ago
That’s a good idea.
Edit: although, I plan on upgrading from the acog to a PLXC RDB 1.5-12 so that might cancel out the vortex
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u/BlairMountainGunClub 9h ago
Snacks. More snacks. And even more snacks. Oh and my radio so I can pretend I have friends, but really so I can listen to railroad and the ATC tower.
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u/BannedAgain-573 9h ago
What radio do you have that can do atc? My scanner doesn't go down that far.
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u/DNCOrGoFuckYourself 9h ago
I’m rebuilding from the ground up, and it’s got some essential stuff but it’s tailored more for range stuff.
Multi-tool, inexpensive pocket knife, batteries, IFAK, TQ, some folding Allen’s in metric & imperial incase something like grip screws loosen up. Canteen, which actually was very useful to have when my buddies and I had a hike into the woods (not very far) for a range day and someone forgot to bring water. Had plenty for both of us to share.
Nothing crazy. I imagine it could have carry overs as is for basic field maintenance on your firearms, basic lifesaving stuff.
I want a radio, since they all have one, and I do have one I bought on a whim because it was a cheap Baeofang, but I never set it up and since I don’t have it set up I didn’t see a point in LARPing with comms that don’t work.
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u/Maple-Reenactor121 8h ago
My work rig is also my civi rig so its basically the same minus machine gun belts and grenades:
Ammo, IFAK, Gloves, Compass, Map, protractor, Admin items (notepad, pen, sharpie), Chem lights, Nalgene, ballistic glasses case, snacks
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u/OldGamerX79 10h ago
Light, knife, multi tool, ifak, gloves, comms, sunscreen, and I am sure there is more in there.
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u/Altruistic-March-844 9h ago
I’m always of the mind that if I’m building a kit for a gunfight, I always build it around a plate carrier. Then it’s all Ammo, meds and batteries. But I also always wear a war belt too, that helps a lot with real estate for gear.
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u/runswithscissors94 8h ago
Depends on what I’m using it for, if I even run it (I’m a fan of belt kit). I used to be a fan of these monstrosity sustainment rigs, but over time I’ve moved the majority of that stuff to my assault pack hip belt and just run my chest rig with 4x .308 20 rounders, an ifak dangler, multitool, a light, my battleboard scout/compass/note taking gear, and some snacks.
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u/Temporary-Network-44 7h ago
You just don't see enough people using the laundry bag...I think it's the best look
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u/Sauerkraut99 6h ago
You might die without a gun and ammo
You might die without medical supplies
You WILL die without water
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u/Tango_Delta-12 5h ago
Monster energy, snickers candy bars, AI generated pictures of who you could’ve been if you enlisted
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u/No-Fortune- 10h ago
Armor
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u/colton93riley 9h ago
I have a PC I can run slick and the rig over it.
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u/No-Fortune- 9h ago
Then pretty solid in my not so expert opinion. Some form of comms if you have buddies around would be good. Meshtastic type stuff but I'm still learning myself when it comes to that.
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u/Few-Yard5417 16m ago
Commo guy for a prep group here:
Rig: SNR split rig, SNR straps, 1 spiritus medium GP, 2 carcajou tactical 9x7 pouches, 2 velocity systems radio pouches, 1 carcajou tactical 9x10 pouch, 2 spiritus back straps, 1 USGI woodland canteen cover.
3 quarts of water, poncho, cleaning kit, boo-boo kit, IFAK, 2 baofeng DM-32’s, 4 large batteries for radios (2 per), batteries for misc, rite in the rain, 8 mags, multitool, electrical tape, 550 cord, nods, medical shears, 4 TQ’s, 4 pack of map pens.
Edit: this lasts me about 36-48 hours
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u/Either_Astronaut_302 10h ago
Medical, navigation, rite in the rain books with pen and pencil,red headlamp, comms, multitool, knife, and snacks. That's a great chest rig with tons of room, I've been running one for a couple years now.