Video Overview

Big thanks to Maurice Moves for putting this one together. Maurice has a knack for building kits that are small enough to actually carry but comprehensive enough to actually use — and this Altoids tin EDC build is a prime example. People have been repurposing Altoids tins as compact carry cases for over 150 years, and this video makes a strong case for why the tradition isn’t going anywhere. Maurice walks through his process of selecting and fitting the most functional items he can into the iconic hinged tin — the result is a genuinely capable pocket kit that weighs almost nothing and fits anywhere.

Gear & Items Featured

• Altoids Tin (metal hinged tin — the container itself) — Purchase on Amazon
• Mini folding knife or razor blade — Purchase on Amazon
• Small LED flashlight or squeeze light — Purchase on Amazon
• Mini lighter (BIC or Djeep) — Purchase on Amazon
• Waterproof matches — Purchase on Amazon
• Ferro rod / fire starter — Purchase on Amazon
• Adhesive bandages / micro first aid — Purchase on Amazon
• Safety pins (assorted) — Purchase on Amazon
• Paracord (short section or bracelet) — Purchase on Amazon
• Mini multi-tool or Leatherman Squirt — Purchase on Amazon
• Small zip ties — Purchase on Amazon
• Folded cash (emergency fund) — no link needed
• Ibuprofen / pain relief tablets (blister pack) — Purchase on Amazon
• Mini compass — Purchase on Amazon
• Altoids tin insert organizer (3D printable) — Download on MakerWorld

Editor’s Insight

The Altoids tin is basically the OG compact carry platform. Before MOLLE panels and modular organizers and titanium pill fobs, people were stuffing Altoids tins with emergency gear and calling it their kit. It’s been happening since at least the 1800s — the tin is strong enough to protect its contents, sized to fit a pocket or a small pouch, and cheap enough that you can dedicate one permanently to a kit without thinking twice about the cost.

What Maurice does well in this video is apply modern EDC logic to the classic format. This isn’t a survival-fantasy build with forty items crammed in so tightly nothing is accessible. It’s a real kit: high-utility items, thoughtfully selected, that you’d actually reach for in a genuine situation. The distinction matters. A kit you never build isn’t useful. A kit too complicated to access under stress isn’t useful. Maurice keeps it in that functional middle ground.

The thing that elevates an Altoids tin kit from a novelty to a genuine EDC tool is organization. Without it, you’re shaking the tin looking for the safety pin buried under the paracord while your sleeve is unraveling. This is exactly where the 3D-printed Altoids tin inserts we featured earlier in the series earn their place — they give every item a dedicated slot, prevent rattle, and let you access what you need without dumping the whole tin. If you’re building from this video, print the inserts first and plan your loadout around the layout. It changes the experience completely.

A few build notes from experience: the fire-starting redundancy (lighter AND matches AND ferro rod) seems like overkill in a tin this small, but fire is the one survival priority where backup matters most — pick two that fit, skip the third if space is tight. For the blade, a small fixed blade or razor section is more reliable than a tiny folder in a kit this size — fewer moving parts, nothing to fail under stress. And the folded cash deserves a mention: a few bills in the tin have solved more “emergencies” than the ferro rod ever will. Flat tire on a back road, dead phone, food situation, transit fare — practical problems that cash fixes every time.

The overall lesson from Maurice’s build, and from the Altoids tin format in general, is that constraint is a design feature. The tin forces prioritization. You can’t fit everything, so you fit the right things. That discipline carries over into bigger kits — the people who build the best EDC loadouts are usually the same people who’ve worked within tight constraints at some point and learned what actually matters.

Closing Remarks

Maurice Moves consistently puts out EDC content that’s practical, well-considered, and genuinely worth your time — this video is a great example of that standard. Whether you’re building your first kit or adding a compact backup to an existing loadout, the Altoids tin format is hard to beat for the combination of protection, portability, and cost. Build one, toss it in your bag, and forget it’s there until you need it. That’s the whole point. Thanks to Maurice for the inspiration — go show his channel some love.