Carry In Kit

[Dandewalt]

Hi all I'm newly retained and wondered what serving firefighters amongst you carry in your leggins/tunics ?? Anything you reccomend? Tips? 

Many thanks 

[Jet]

I carry a link to the search bar on this forum 😉

[Rory-495]

Officially.... nothing that is not issued.

Unofficially I MAY have used to carry anything I found useful and actually used. If I had something in there I hadn't used I got rid of it.

Generally included these items, the ones in bold most important 

10mm spanner, utility cupboard key, tourniquet, lift key (when in LFB), FB Keys (when in LFB), Canal Bridge door key (in WMFS), glass breaker tool, dust mask, personal line attached to a proper karabiner, pieces of plastic for slipping locks, penknife, whistle, sharpie and teaspoon

[Guest]

A load of stuff I've built up over the years and rarely use.

• 10mm Spanner
• Torch
• Tourniquet
• Pulse ox
• Personal line
• Triangle/Gas Key/Various other keys
• Waterproof Pad/Pen
• Glass hammer
• A scope.
• Multi tool

There's probably more but that's all I can remember off the top of my head.

[Navigator]

Tunic:

Pad and pen,spare nitrile gloves, chinagraphs, utility key, a few aide memoires, sharpie, torch. Evac whistle!

Bunkers: 

Pencil sharpener as we can't be trusted with sharp things... personal line, screwdriver, adjustable spanner/hammer, other pocket full of wedges (door not potato) 

Tech rescue jacket:

Glass breaker/seatbelt cutter tool, pads/pens/sharpie/china, voltage tester, more spare nitrites, trauma algorithm, torch

Sounds like a lot but it's all there for a reason and all gets used regularly enough to be there. You'll find after a few months what you want on hand, build it up slowly with experience.

[Messyshaw]

My kit used to comprise of:

Set of 'idiot cards' (home made aide memoires)

A curved section of plastic milk bottle for lock slipping

A piece of plastic packing strapping for slipping locks (My station got well over 150 lock outs a month in those days)

A stainless steel mirror prised from the front of a roller towel machine (for younger members, Google it)

@Rory-495What's the significance of a 10mm spanner and why not a small adjustable one? 🤔

[BurtMacklin]

must haves for me are; small pry bar, cable ties, wire coat hanger, adjustable spanner, door slip, assorted manual call point and AFA panel keys 

[Lumie]

I wouldn’t get carried away, you have the biggest toolbox carrying 95% of things you need out there on the street, it’s called the fire engine!

Only things I carry that aren’t on the truck are a small plastic slip for non-destructive entry, a drop key off Amazon and a set of AFA keys. 

When I first joined the job I went overkill and bought loads of pieces of equipment for myself. Seatbelt cutter/window breaker, small pry bar, screwdrivers, Allen keys, wrenches etc. 

As things have progressively gone missing over the last 5 years, I’ve realised I hardly used them and don’t see any point in replacing them. 

[Rory-495]

@Messyshaw generally up until the last few years 10mm would do you for a car battery. Skinny and lightweight compared to an adjustable. Nowadays though isolating batteries on new cars is akin to sonething from the crystal maze

[OscarTango]

Whittled it down to flat head screwdriver, small torch, toughcut scissors. Does 90percent of the little annoying tasks that come up without having to run back to the lorry to get the proper tool. 

[Toffer]

Other than the stuff we are supposed to carry. 10mm spanner, folding Stanley knife, some paper for writing down occupants details for hfsa's.

Have had other stuff in pockets since I started a couple of years ago but as others have said it's all on the pump and it gets annoying carrying more. 

 

[Fridge03]

Nothing in my FF tunic. RTC tunic is a seat belt knife and small glass hammer in the pocket on the arm. Leggings I have my flashhood in one pocket and small prybar and slip cards in the other. 
I've got a small bag I have on the pump which I carry a variety of other things such as woolly hat, spare work t-shirt, spare set of gloves, ear and eye protection, sunglasses, vicks, permanent marker, spare filters for half face, and a few flash cards/aide memoirs such as medical stuff, high rise procedures etc. 

[Andy252]

I have loads of stuff. I outgrew my boot bag thing and have recently bought a small rucksack perfect for on the truck.

I have a basic lock opening kit, picks, bump keys, J tool with rotational end, air bag, thumbturn lock bypass tool, (made by me), long mica cards for lock slipping x 2, 1 piece is cut for outward opening doors, manual lock pick gun, (I'm a locksmith on my 4 off) you wouldn't believe how handy this kit is. 

• Respirator for BA mask. (Issued)
• Multitool, the penknife thing, not the oscillating tool 🤣 although 👀👀
• about 10 pairs of blue gloves stuffed into an old hypo pack case,
• plug socket tester and electrical tester pen, (also handy),
• drivers log book,
• notebook and pen,
• aid memoire for trauma,
• ratchet screwdriver, and small screw driver with various bits and security bits,
• spare pens,
• Chinagraphs,
• spare clean fire gloves,
• spork and KFS,
• glass breaker,
• 10mm spanner,
• rechargeable cree torch,
• Small prybar, 
• random karabiners,
• Sweat rag,
• Small individual packs of hero wipes
• Plasters

And that's about it I think...maybe, but all this kit is built up because at somepoint I needed it and didn't have it.