A bandana is another one of those things that is useful for a thousand things but nothing specific. It’s right up there with duct tape and rope. The things only weigh a couple ounces, they are dirt cheap, and are a must have in your Bug Out Bag or Urban Survival Gear. Here is just a short list of possible uses for a bandana.
1. Signal (also see signal mirror)
2. Neck Gaiter for cold weather
3. Tourniquet (But for Snake Bites use a Sawyer Extractor)
4. Pot Holder
5. Collecting Wild Edibles
6. Sun block for neck
7. Sling (first-aid – also see medical kits for you BOB)
8. Sling (as in David and Goliath)
9. Sling (for a staff )
10. Cordage (strips or as is)
11. Washcloth/Towel (Bathe out of a Collapsible Bucket)
12. Sweatband
13. Waist pack/pouch
14. Hobo Pack
15. Padding a hotspot
16. Cleaning Patches for Firearm
17. Bullet Patches for Muzzleloader
18. Gun Wipe Cloth (with oil)
19. Toilet Paper
20. Mark a Trail
21. Dish Rag
22. Napkin
23. Eye patch
24. Pre-water Filter (like Coffee Filters)
25. Clean Glasses and other lens
26. Ear Muffs
27. Bind a stone and toss a line over a limb
28. Dust Mask (in Urban Survival)
29. Wet and wear for Hot Weather
30. Sneezing
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What Else?
Leave a comment and tell us what else you use bandanas for.
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Roll up as if it were a headband and cut slits for eyes and use as snow shades (prevent snow blindness). Use as pockets for making other weapons such as bolos and hurls.
Survivor_1997,
Good idea for the snow blindness, it can be a real pain and even dangerous in a survival situation.
The only time I have made something like a bolo is when I was a kid, but it could definitely work.
A bandana was one of the first things I got for backpacking and it goes with me every time no matter how light I'm packing.
My preference is a thin 100% cotton cowboy bandana, at least 34" x 34" in a light/neutral/dirt color/pattern. Unless you really can't find/make something similar, don't bother with those crappy little poly blend ones you can buy at 'sports' stores, urban outfitters, convenience stores or truck stops. A fallback and good for some of the mentioned uses in the article would also be one of those Arab scars – variously known as keffiyeh, kafiyah, (ya)shmagh, ghutrah, mashadah, shemagh, or hijab.
My uses:
1. drape a wet one loosely around your neck for evaporative cooling when hot – very effective
2. knot/fold into a hat/head and neck shade for protection from sun, wind or cold
3. draped loosely over the head and shading the eyes to keep gnats or no-see-ums out of your face and eyes
4. general sweat/dirt wipe
5. folded up as a butt pad for sitting on rough/damp surfaces
You could use one as a field dressing too, but I'd really hate to have to use one as a butt wipe – too useful for other things.
Matt,
I agree with you about getting cotton ones. There are very few survival items that are better cotton than synthetic but a bandana is one.
I used it to knot my pack shut when the zipper failed. I didn't want to duct tape shut it because I wanted fast access to what was inside.
That's a good one Elizabeth.
Another one of those "you never know why you're going to need it until it happens" type of uses.
head band….dog collar …horse lead
teresa,
Great call on those, I hadn't thought about uses for animals
We always tell the scouts to have a bandana, Didn't know there were this many uses.
Prepper Man,
I'm always looking for multi-use items in my preps.
Over at TEOTWAWKI Blog they published another large list of uses for bandannas in your EDC
http://teotwawkiblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/multita…
I like to use them on my wife, to tie her up and mostly blindfold her.
LOL……. I think?
I agree equalizer.
My all around survival round?
Give me my .22 rimfire.
Ammo is super abundant almost anywhere you go.
You can easily pack 500 rounds in one small box.
It's effective out to 50-75+ yards,
It can kill a deer, small game, even a person if need be .
it's quiet
A bandana, is about the most massively useful thing a survivalist can have. Partly it has great practical value. You can wrap it around you for warmth as you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches of Santraginus V, inhaling the heady sea vapors; you can sleep under it beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of Kakrafoon; use it to sail a miniraft down the slow heavy River Moth; wet it for use in hand-to-hand-combat; wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes or avoid the gaze of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (such a mind-bogglingly stupid animal, it assumes that if you can't see it, it can't see you); you can wave your bandana in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.
More importantly, a bandana has immense psychological value. For some reason, if a strag (strag: non-survivalist) discovers that a survivalist has his bandana with him, he will automatically assume that he is also in possession of a toothbrush, face flannel, soap, tin of biscuits, flask, compass, map, ball of string, gnat spray, wet weather gear, space suit etc., etc. Furthermore, the strag will then happily lend the survivalist any of these or a dozen other items that the survivalist might accidentally have "lost". What the strag will think is that any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his bandana is is clearly a man to be reckoned with.
oh wait, that's towels.
Damnit.
They are great when you get an allergy attack or have a cold and don't usually carry around a box of tissue or a roll of TP. The only down fall is that you have to wash them often.
Yep. I carry a hankerchief everyday. a "fancy" bandana I guess you could say. It just a good utility tool.
Wet the bandana with any liquid you would allow to touch your body/face. Pinch one corner of the bandana between thumb and fingers. Twirl the bandana quickly for about ten seconds. Apply cooled bandana to hot area of body. Temporary relief. Twirling the wet bandana uses the principle that heat goes where there is less heat. Remember this principle whether you are hot or cold.
People pay quite a bit more than the cost of a bandana for this same "cooling device"
Very good idea.
Knot any hard object into a bandana. Place in pocket with part of bandana hanging out. The part hanging out is the handle for the innocent looking very close range improvised impact weapon you are now carrying.
also good to sling a rope over a tall tree.
beside the "joke" about the wife, they are good improvised handcuffs/restraints
haha, yes good point.
Instant kotex. Duh, boys.
Living down south (Louisiana) in a very humid environment, I once found myself in a survival situation where I needed to start a fire, but everything was soaking wet. After sorting through my pack for what little I had available, I actually came to the conclusion that I could add an oil-based insect repellant to my bandana in attempt to at least dry the tender enough to light. Unfortunately, I lost my bandana…fortunately, I'm living today to tell the story.
-By tying a bandana around the legs of your pants you can keep out ticks and chiggers when hiking. But by doing this in the mornings when dew is fresh on the ground you can pick up a good bit of fresh drinking water. If your rag is clean of course.
-If you are caught in a dust or sandstorm you can tie them over your long sleeves at the wrists to keep particles from getting in your clothes.
-And you can use them to make good old fashinoed cowboy coffee to hold your grounds.
Water filter if needed, blocks dirt & other stuff, then add iodine to kill bugs. Vitamin C masks that nasty iodine flavor.
high concentration of vitamin C in pine tea
Another "odd" use I just thought of…. ALMOST anything organic, cotton bandanna included, can be eaten as a "last ditch" attempt to obtain calories. I don't think it will taste good, or go down easy, but its an option. There are many stories of folks in arctic climates eating their gloves/mucklucks/ ect. that are made of animal skins, though they take a considerable amount of boiling from what I understand!
great stuff folks. I'm a beginning survivalist …. and I appreciate the info.
Love this list. Five stars *****
n 95 mask
not even close to an n95 mask
Use a standard kitchen flour sack towel, it's only drawback and some may say advantage is it's white.
tie around ankles legs or waist while walking through tall grass to gather a small amount of water (desperate measures)
woah u have alot ov time on ur hands. however it is a good thing to know so good work
What a great post! Thanks!
Few other uses. Silence a rickety sounding rifle due to loose fitting hand guards. As a good dust cover over the bolt or action when not in use. A modified rest/sling for a rifle when in the standing where offhand shooting may be too unstable. The use as a bandage if no first aid kit is available and as a pressure bandage by tying the knot over wound. Place a rock in it and it can be used to smash a window, tethered to a stick can be used as a bludgeoning implement for self defense from animals.
These things got some good uses. Another thing is wet it and wrap it around your neck. Keeps you cool. The people who thought of all this sure are hitting it square on the ball.
do you just eat 'er whole or do you broil them or something?
Fold it into a strip tie a padlock in the middle and you have a good weapon if its needed
wrap it around your face as a mask
Grab a stick and you have a turniquet
bandanas are almost as important as duct tape…..only almost
I love this article! Good stuff!
I use mine for robbing trains.
I'm particularly fond of the Cambodian krama scarf, myself. It's been used in that country for centuries and with good reason. One of the uses I've read about was stuffing them in motorbike tires to seal a puncture.
Great for leaching out found acorns to make them less bitter entertainment for small children protection while gathering food like stinging needle or fruit from cactus
you know that In the U.S., a sleeping bag's rating typically indicates the lowest temperature at which it will keep the average sleeper warm. For example, with a 0° bag, you should be able to sleep comfortably in 0° temperature.
Thermal pharmaceutical bags are designed to provide a method for pharmacists to supply their customers with a way to transport and protect their medications from extreme outside temperature changes, as well as shocks and light. They have been in use for more than 15 years in Europe by major drug companies to help preserve the cold chain.
I carry a cowboy bandanna thing, plus wear a camo bandanna on my head with most of my hats.. . also carry/wear two shemags (terrorist rap thing)
dont forget you can also use it as a reusable baby diaper. if you tie a couple of them together and put a few slits in them then you have a makeshift fishing net. and not to mention you could tie 2 together fill it with leaves or whatever and make a pillow.
This is great info and a huge help to me as I begin with a bug out bag. Its basically the site I am going to most now! That along with Forge Survival Supply. For search reasons, especially in the header of the article, the item we are talking about is spelled BANDANNA. Thought you'd appreciate that so you could make the change.
I live in Louisiana too. Everything in my bag is sealed in ziploc bags. I figure it keeps everything dry and once I use the item, I have the ziploc for future use.
haha . from the survival guide hitchhikers guide to the galaxy
Boys never think of the obvious. Good one, though! That's a true need.
I like to use them on "your" wife too! But she really likes the whip and cattle prod!
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