Headlamps. I had flashlights and lanterns stashed everywhere, but when you need to work on something with both hands in the dark (like tinkering with my solar setup in a blackout), nothing beats a good headlamp. Forgot how much I rely on having light pointed exactly where I’m looking, especially when it comes to instrument repairs or setting up telescopes outside at night.

Another big one for me: spare cords and adapters for charging small devices. I thought I’d gotten all the right cables for my solar chargers, but some of my gear takes oddball plugs, so I ended up improvising. Now I keep a small pouch with assorted connectors, fuses, and even some old-school AA/AAA batteries. Sometimes it’s the techy odds and ends you forget, especially if you’re thinking more about food and water than electronics.

Has anyone actually had to use a wind-up radio for info? I have one but never really tested it—curious if it’s worth keeping in rotation or

Been caught out by this myself—didn’t realize how important a pack of spare reading glasses would be until I broke mine in the middle of a project. Couldn’t read labels or instructions, and my backup pair was buried somewhere useless. Now I stash a cheap pair wherever I keep my main supplies.

One super underrated item: heavy-duty gloves. Not the garden kind, but real leather work gloves. After a storm a few years ago, cleaning up debris, hauling wood, even handling old fencing, my hands were torn up. Splinters, cuts, you name it. Can’t believe I didn’t