As a good citizen, especially in time of war, I'm doing my part to be prepared for some unforeseen event that forces me out of my house for a few days. That means having a ready-to-go stash of common stuff that won't be so easily obtained in a crisis. My "bailout bag" consists mostly of "hardware", stuff that provides fire, light, shelter, communication, navigation, etc. These are items that can help a number of people, not just one.
My bailout backpack, a work still in progress, is aimed more toward food, water, and clothing. It has just enough "hardware" redundancy to get me by if I don't have the bailout bag. Every bag has a minimum of a couple of chemlights, matches, butane lighter (the best source of fire), compass, pocket knife, flashlight, and maybe a sheath knife.
But I want to be a good citizen, and do more than the government urges. For some reason, they left "firearms" off the list, and this is my first attempt at correcting that.
My current project is to make up a "gun kit" that is pre-packaged with everything needed for one weapon in an emergency situation. It should be grab-and-go, but also have a low visual profile. I'm starting out small with the Maxpedition FR-1 combat medical pouch.
It has D-rings, a handle, and also PALS straps for mounting on MOLLE-compatible gear. It also has enough loops to hang other small pouches on, plus a Velcro patch and an elastic cord. Right now, I'm using the Malice clips like belt loops, as the view of the back shows.
It's organized inside with a drawstring to allow the front cover to drop down like a "shelf", along with elastic straps and a couple of internal zippered pockets. The main compartment is 7x5x3 inches, and could be used to keep lots of small items handy and organized, in addition to first aid supplies. This is what I'm keeping in mine:
It's not a fast draw, but it can be done one-handed. Things are quite secure with all the elastic. Since I took this photo, I put a thin piece of closed-cell foam in the mesh pocket behind the Smith for a little added protection against the revolver being poked into some soft part of my anatomy. This is what the contents are when unpacked:
I had to remove the Pachmayer rubber grips because they were too big, and go back to the originals. Still, it's a .38 snubbie with 24 rounds of ammo, including six shotshells. Cops went out on the street with less firepower than this 30 years ago. I'm sure a compact automatic and a spare magazine would also work just as well.
This particular revolver was my "hot weapon" in the house until I got the FN FiveseveN. Now it will serve as my "grab something and go" weapon if I don't have the luxury of time to sit and think through all the items needed for a "perfect" three-day jaunt from home.