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DIY Body Bag

frankp

Active Member
Joined
Feb 3, 2021
Messages
141
A couple years ago I made two body bags from an 11 mil tarp from Harbor Freight and some spare webbing and buckles I had. I think total cost for each is about $18 if I had to buy everything new. I gave one to a buddy of mine but kept the second one for myself. It's a "roll top" like a dry bag and I just sewed a "z-fold" seam with three bands of stitching so it's quite sturdy. Diagram below has solid lines for layers of material and dotted lines indicating where the stitches are.

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First picture is me, 6'1" 180 pounds, just for rough size. I've put 200 pounds in it but picking that up really sucks.

Second picture is 100 pound person with the bag loosely closed.
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so... what do you use these for?
I used them to put a deer in to keep my 4Runner clean and blood free while transporting a deer home. Zippers are sealed etc. so it won’t leak. You can pick them up on Amazon or make one of your own as the OP outlined. I had one that I used before I picked up a hitch hauler. You can wash them out and reuse them so it will last a while if you don’t drag it around on the ground too much.
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As @2Sloe indicated, they are for deer. I participate in a population control program that allows me to hunt in neighborhood easements in my area. One of the requirements is the deer needs to be fully covered (including any antlers) before removing it from the woods. I used to just cover them with tarps but it was always a hassle keeping parts from sticking out. This solves that problem.

I must admit, though, I hadn't seen any of the zippered ones for as cheap as 2sloe found them. When I did a quick search prior to making mine they were ~$60-$100 each.
 
Yes! Making some traction. Wasn’t that long ago I was personna non grata for telling folks about body bags…..

And, yes, they’re dirt cheap on Amazon.
 
These would also make great survival shelters in a snap or in a bad situation where you may not be able to use both arms or a hand or something and face hypothermic conditions with shock. Climb into one of these to keep as much body warmth in as possible while you await rescue etc.
 
These would also make great survival shelters in a snap or in a bad situation where you may not be able to use both arms or a hand or something and face hypothermic conditions with shock. Climb into one of these to keep as much body warmth in as possible while you await rescue etc.

That’s a great plan until one of these guys drag you into their truck
 
Sportsmans Guide used to sell mil-surplus body bags for hauling deer around.

If you buy commercial body bags, be aware that some are made out of recycled shower curtains and will fall apart if you get them wet, or look at them wrong, or say things like "dead" or "body" or "evidence". The other ones are made out of super-heavy-duty tarp material and incorporate lifting straps so it's basically a litter as well as a remains pouch, and cost 10x what the cheap ones cost.

On the topic of lists:
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ETA: I like the roll-top closure vs. zipper. That's clever, and much easier than making a 'traditional' pouch.
 
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