This post is a little different from our previous reviews. Mainly because it was written by our first “guest blogger”. It is also on an item many of you will not consider “survival oriented”.

About a week ago I asked my Dad to think about some things to review for my new blog. He checked out the blog and said he would get back to me. There are a few reasons I figured Dad would be a good resource to tap. First of all he lives on a lot of land in the middle of nowhere, and second, he and his wife survived Katrina (they live in southern Mississippi). So I invited him to review something that he thought was a great “survival” item to have around in cases of emergency. The review that they sent back was actually quite surprising. OK, enough back story, here is the review. (One last note: I just received word that my Dad actually pawned this whole project off onto my step-mom, Jakki. She actually told me she did all the work while he played Call of Duty, HA! This would also explain the high quality of the writing, my step mom is an English teacher.)

photos and review by Jakki Thornton

I originally chose this clock so I could get a decent night’s sleep when my husband was in town. He spends most of the time working in Alaska-so when he’s home he doesn’t want to be bothered by an alarm clock on his side of the bed-but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t need to use one occasionally waking up at the crack of dawn to fish or hunt. I’m not a nice person when nudged out of sleep to tell the time, or spanking the alarm just to wake him up. Or worse yet, having him roll over me just to look at the clock.

This clock answered all my prayers and more. It sits on my bed stand and projects the time and indoor or outdoor temperature on the ceiling up to ten feet away with large red numbers. The clock is radio controlled up to 2,000 miles from a place in Colorado so it’s self correcting and always accurate. Another great feature that my husband and I love is that it projects the outdoor or indoor temperature as well.

When Katrina hit, it was awesome. Because it runs conservatively on 3 AA batteries (without projection), we always had the current time, date and day yes it is easy to lose track of the day when you are without power, and the schools and most businesses stay closed for three weeks. We knew when the Red Cross would be here to distribute water and ice. And without getting out of bed, we knew how urgently we needed to start the generator to keep our perishables safe. If we let the batteries die, all we had to do was refill, then set to our time zone, and by the next morning the clock was set.

The thermometer mounts outside and sends a signal to the clock. My projector shows time for several seconds, then outdoor temperature for several seconds, and the clock face itself displays all the set information. There are six different variations for the projector, but this one suits our needs. And of course it can be set in 12 or 24 hour time.

The clock is small, only 5 ½” x 3 ½”. The projection arm can be angled for desired placement, and the beam can be rotated 90 degrees at a time for comfortable viewing. Obviously the projection is difficult to see in daylight so it has a backlight button. You can set two different alarms and choose snooze length. It takes AA batteries which are great for travel or power outage backup. You can choose time zones for easy reset when traveling.

The only frustrating thing for me is that when the batteries die in the remote temperature sensor, there is a specific order for powering it up. It’s not difficult, but it happens so rarely, that I need the book to remember. But if you lose the book, they have a web site to help.

This is my second one. The first one broke out of no fault of its own. I must have bounced that thing onto the hardwood floor 20 times before I finally killed it. So while it’s a great instrument, it’s not meant to bounce. It’s light weight, and my new one has flown a few times without a problem. It can be mounted, but I’m too lazy.

So, this clock not only helped us survive Katrina, it has helped us survive marriage as well!

I bought mine at Cabela’s for about $40.

[rating:4]

[youtube FRtC8aKy_hM]

Here is our first attempt at a video review. It was definitely a learning experience for me. I wasn’t really happy with what I ended up with but decided to post it anyway. Next time I will make some changes for the better. Let me know what you guys think. If the video quality is too low or slow loading let me know about that also I will try to tweak that on the next go round. Details and knife specs on the full article.

Model: SOG Seal Pup Elite Tiger Stripe TiNi FinishBlade
Length: 4.85″
Overall Length : 9.5″
Weight: 5.4 oz.
Edge: Partially Serrated
Steel: AUS 8
Handle: Zytel
Finish: TigerStripe Black TiNi
Sheath: Nylon
Retail Price: $140.00

[rating:5]

The SureFire E1E Executive Flashlight is a high powered flashlight that fits easily in the palm of your hand. I love this little thing. It provides 15 lumens for 1.5 hours according to the specs but our testing has proven to exceed that runtime. The rugged Mil-Spec Type III hard anodized aluminum body has survived everything we’ve thrown at it. The glass at the business end is Tempered Pyrex, which is some tough stuff as well.

The tailcap switch is much more convenient than your typical MagLite. Push for momentary on, or press further to click it to constant-on. This could be very handy for signaling because short bursts on the tailcap switch makes morse easy.

I especially like how this little guy can fit in the palm. If you every had to knock some guy out it would be a lot easier with this thing in your hand (its a lot like punching someone with a roll of quarters in your fist). Theclip on the side makes it easy to attach to a hat brim or belt. I wear mine everyday and forget I even have it on. Its also easily un-noticed so you don’t look like a freak carrying around a flashlight all day (you can also easily just slip it into a pocket or purse.)

This thing is bright, I don’t know how else to say it. I made the mistake of looking into the beam ONCE, it won’t happen again. These things are bright enough to be used in a tactical situation to temporarily confuse and blind someone. This light gets 5 stars for being tough, compact, reliable, bright and olive drab

Price: $79 Retail (I bought mine at the local Bass Pro Shops on sale)

[rating:4.5]

There she is. My newest daily carry knife. The Benchmade Mini-Griptilian. I chose the black on black tanto model with serration (model 557SBK). If you have never had the pleasure of checking out a Benchmade let me urge you to do so. These are some of the best production knives you can find. Benchmade has 4 different production classifications for their knives. Red Class, Black Class, Blue Class, and Gold Class. For more details on the classes of Benchmade knives check out this link: http://www.benchmade.com/about_knives/anewclass.asp. The Mini-Griptilian is a Blue Class knife (Gold is their highest class, Blue is second) and comes in a swanky blue box. A couple of things I love about Benchmade is their Lifetime Warranty (defects and workmanship) as well as their “LifeSharp” service which allows you to send the knife back to the factory for a resharpening to “factory edge” for only $5 to cover shipping! Speaking of sharp, Benchmade ships their knives with a razor edge, heed the warning on the box “Handle With Care – Benchmade knives are packaged extremely sharp”

Right out of the box I loved this knife. The grip is great, feels natural in both hands, I have longer thin fingers and this knife doesn’t get “lost” in my hands like some. The handle is a grip textured “Valox” material which is basically a high strength polymer of some kind. It seems like it would take a beating, its very dense.

The blade is 154CM Stainless Steel, which Benchmade describes as “An American made premium grade stainless steel originally developed for tough industrial applications. Known for its best all-around qualities, it offers great corrosion resistance with good toughness and edge quality.” Its hardness is 58-60HRC. The model I received has the black coating on the blade, it looks great and so far hasn’t “scratched” off like some knives I have had in the past.

The Mini-Griptilian uses the patented Mel Pardue locking system. This was the main reason I bought it. This is one of the best and most reliable locking systems you can get on a folder. What does that mean? Well, hacking and whacking is a little safer with this folder. I have been through my fair share of knives and that cheapo made in China you bought for $5 just isn’t going to stay open under much pressure. I like all 10 of my fingers. Do you?

The whole knife is held together with “six-lobe” screws (I always called them star screws). This is actually very handy if you want to adjust your knife’s tension or switch the side of the carry-clip (VERY cool feature). You can also just take the clip completely off if you aren’t into that. They also sell a “tool kit” made just for their knives but you could definitely do without it.

All in all this knife is tough, sharp, and comfortable. The Mel Pardue Locking System has functioned amazingly so far. It looks darn sexy too. This one is getting two thumbs up from me. I will try to do a revisit in a few months to update you on the wear and tear.

I purchased mine from Savson Swords and Knives for $67 (retail price is $102).