VSSL Is The Vanlife Survival Accessory You Never Knew You Needed

29 May, 2019 by Rose

We’ve been in Arizona, USA at The Overland Expo West for the last couple of days, hosted by the amazing Four Wheel Campers. Here we’ve been immersed in everything van life and have seen so many amazing professional campervan conversions perfect for an off grid adventure. We haven’t only been checking out all the awesome vans here at the Expo there is also a load of van life gear to discover, like the VSSL that we’re going to be looking at today. The VSSL is a new and innovative way to carry all the essentials for off grid living and could be really useful for those who travel in a van in their off grid home. If you’re looking for campervan gifts for someone living the van life or someone who is going travelling in a van then make sure you read on and check out the VSSL as this is an item that vandwellers will actually love and use.

VSSL- feature

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So What Is The VSSL?

VSSL is a compact adventure tool that has been designed and created by outdoorsy adventurers to hold everything you need to get outside safely, all within the handle of a flashlight. Anyone living in a van, and especially in a compact camper van, knows that only the van life essentials make it on the road and VSSL can store up to nine modules within its handle meaning you could have nine essential survival items stored within another, your flashlight.

With advances in technology a torch doesn’t need large, bulky batteries to be bright and powerful, the flashlight within the VSSL has 200 lumens (floodlight) of LED light with 40 hours of burn time, meaning you will never be left in the dark. The flashlight, which is stored at one end of the VSSL, has four lighting modes: bright, dim, red and SOS and is entirely waterproof. It also boasts a long press activation button that avoids accidentally turning your flashlight on. The other end of the VSSL stores an oil filled precision compass which can operate in temperatures from -10ºC to 50ºC. The compass glows in the dark arrow in you to see where you’re going whatever the time of day.

VSSR- in backpack

In between the torch and the compass, the VSSL allows you to store up to a further nine modules within the 9” long x 2” diameter tube. Sets to choose from include the fire starter kit, fishing kit, mini first aid kit, rope and razor blade, trail markers, water purification kit, wire saw, survival cord 8’, zip ties, face paint, hunting- ammo tin, beeswax candle, VSSL rope, whistle, can opener, VSSL sewing kit, misc gear, adventure balm, bamboo cloth, adventure, elastic self closure bandage, shot cup and drinking dice games. Each item comes stored within its own screw top tin that slots inside the VSSL flashlight handle, some of the larger kits take up two spaces so come in a tin that is twice as tall.

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What’s Inside The VSSL?

Fire Starter Kit

If you’re a fire starter, a twisted firestarter, then this is one for you. But seriously, the fire starter kit is going to be essential in most people’s VSSL. The fire starter kit comes with five waterproof tinder quick fires starters, ten waterproof matches and one striker. In short, everything you need to bet the perfect campfire burning.

VSSL- fishing kit

Fishing Kit

This handy little fishing kit could be a lifesaver if you find yourself in the wilderness a little longer than expected and supply’s are running low. Included in the fishing kit is one spoon spinner, six J hook, one bobber, three rubber worms, one swivel spoon, 50′ of 20lb test fishing line and one EVA line winder- bobber. To a non-fisher like me that sounds like a pretty serious set for such a tiny kit and is sure to catch you a tasty meal.

Mini First Aid Kit

Be it on the trail or in your tiny home; you should always carry a first aid kit. This small first aid kit is the minimum that should be carried and is enough to deal with any minor injuries. This kit will take up two spaces in you VSSL. Included is eight regular bandage, eight butterfly bandages, two safety pins, two antiseptic wipes, two pain killer tablets and one roll of medical tape.

VSSL- ROpe

Rope and Razor Blade

This kit is pretty self-explanatory and contains 25 feet of 250lb breaking strength rope stored on a wooden spool and one single-sided razor blade. These two items can have many uses including- washing line for drying gear, building shelter, repair clothing, fasten loose items and make a snare for the rope and cutting rope, cutting cloth for first aid, prepare food, and shave wood for kindling for the razor.

Trail Markers

Trail Markers stored within your VSSL could be convenient if you plan on heading off the beaten track. They are an excellent way to mark your route so you can always find your way back to base camp. Included are 30 reflective arrow shaped trail markers.

Keep Scrolling To Check Out More VSSL Features!

Water Purification Kit

Having enough drinking water is key to survival. With this kit, you’ll be able to easily make safe drinking water from rivers lakes and streams meaning you don’t have to worry about running out of water when on the trail. Included in the tin is 10 Aquatab water purification tablets with instructions and one Whirl-Pak Stand-Up water bag.

VSSL-saw

Wire Saw

With this compact design, you can even carry a saw within your VSSL! Included is the wire saw which is high tensile, 60lb working strength with canvas handle straps and is made of 8 independent tightly woven stainless steel wires. The wire saw is a standard issue used by the British Military and can be used in areas difficult to reach with a traditional saw. This miniature but powerful saw can cut through wood, bone and soft metal.

SurvivorCord 8’

Designed to be the ultimate replacement for paracord, each line of SurvivorCord contains paracord, snare wire, fishing line and waterproof tinder. It can be used for any of the ordinary paracord uses and also: bushcraft, gear repair, starting fires, fishing, snaring small game.

Zip Ties

Within the zip tie tin thou will find two zip ties at 8”, two at 6” and eight at 4”. Use these handy pieces of kit to repair gear, or make quick shelters.

VSSL- face paint

Face Paint

This 1oz tin of warpaint face paint that fits within your VSSL comes in black or green and is easy to apply and wash off with soap and water — an essential for any hunters out there.

Hunting – Amo Tin

This Amo Tin is designed to hold 23 different bullet sizes. This VSSL tin is a good place to secure your hunting Amo safely. Bullets are not included in this tin.

VSSL- candle

Beeswax Candle

You can squeeze either a 4, 6 or 8hour candle within your VSSL meaning you can have light even when you don’t want to use your torch.

VSSL Rope

This high tensile three strand marine grade rope is 20’ long and has 300lbs of breaking strength. Useful to have in any survival situation.

VSSL- misc gear

Misc Gear Kit

This misc gear kit holds some handy essentials within your VSSL, including a whistle, can opener, gear ties, mirror and sewing kit. These are all helpful items that would be useful if you get stuck while out adventuring. Bundled together, they save space within your VSSL.

Adventure Balm

This adventure balm is a spot of luxury neatly pack within your VSSL. This soothing and organic balm is perfect for any chafing, irritation, cracked lips, insect bites, blisters, epic grazes, sun and wind exposed skin. This balm is made with all the good stuff including jojoba oil, beeswax and shea butter and is sure to smooth any irritations.

VSSL- cloth

Bamboo Cloth

This cloth is perfect for taking care of any dirty jobs that need doing or could be a great help when it comes to first aid. The fabric is fully biodegradable and unfolds to measure 12 x 20 inches.

Adventure Tape

Almost anything can be fixed with a good tape. This adventure tape is perfect for marking your trail route, bandaging wounds or repairing gear.

VSSL-flask

Shot Cup and Drinking Dice Games

These two items may not be essentials, but if you’re looking to have a little more fun with your VSSL, then these are definitely for you. The shot cup is cleverly designed to be collapsible so only takes up one space within your VSSL where the dice drinking games takes up two, but I can’t think of a better way to celebrate your summit!

Now, that’s a pretty extensive choice of items to build your own VSSL with and if you can’t decide you can buy a ready-made kit with all of the essentials based on your needs. You can either go for the VSSL camp supplies which hold over 70 pieces of essential outdoor gear; the VSSL first aid kit which includes an extensive first aid kit rolled up and stored within the VSSL; or the VSSL flask (yes this one acts as a flask as well as a flashlight!) that comes with everything you need to celebrate at the end of a hard day. The VSSL also comes in mini versions if you’re looking for something even smaller.

VSSL- campfire

Final Thoughts On The VSSL…

We love the VSSL and think it is a great piece of compact, lightweight kit. We can see how useful having one would be and carrying a VSSL would mean if anything did go wrong out on an adventure you’d be prepared to deal with it. The VSSL is pretty pricey coming in at £103 for a fully stocked VSSL camp supplies set but then can you really put a price on safety and survival? I know that I’d feel safer in the wilderness carrying a VSSL. We’d like to give a special thanks to Four Wheel Campers for hosting us at the expo. Let us know what you think of the VSSL by joining the van clan over on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.