# Is a Dopp kit a thing to you **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 20, 2021, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668 "2021-06-20T03:28:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![SacFly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@SacFly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SacFly)\ **Post date:** [June 23, 2021, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/61 "2021-06-23T21:49:04Z")
I grew up on the east coast and it was always called a dopp bag in my family. I didn’t know where the term came from or if I’ve ever heard that used outside my family. But that’s what I’d call a travel toiletries kit. ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2021, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/62 "2021-06-25T23:46:39Z")
I got one when I was a teenager, because a young man should have one. That was over 50 years ago. I was about to toss it out, when I realized my blood pressure machine fits neatly inside it. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [June 25, 2021, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/63 "2021-06-25T23:57:02Z")
My grandfather taught me the term, ca 1980, when I was about 10. I always associated it with the very specific bag that kinda looked like a doctor’s bag with the flaps that come down on the ends. I’m sure he got the name in WW II. He was a radio man in the war. ---
**Author:** ![WolfpackJeep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpackjeep/32/2921_2.png) [@WolfpackJeep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WolfpackJeep)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2021, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/64 "2021-06-26T00:18:13Z")
My dad (born 1954) used the phrase “Dopp kit” to refer to a single-compartment, zippered, leather bag about the size of a ladies’ dress shoe box. He used it to store a corded electric razor; I don’t remember him using it for travel, but he indicated it was originally intended to be a men’s toiletry bag. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2021, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/65 "2021-06-26T08:22:26Z")
> [@swampspruce](#): > > The one I’m using was given to me by my parents when I joined the military 30 years ago a The one my dad had was _issued to him_ by the military. He got paid $5 cash, then the next stop in the line they took the $5 from him and sold him a toiletries bag with stuff in it, including, by way of change, a couple of cigarettes. He told me that the $5 was called “the flying five”. ---
**Author:** ![Limmin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f04885/32.png) [@Limmin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Limmin)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2021, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/66 "2021-06-26T16:26:46Z")
My dad always referred to a toiletry kit as a Dopp kit. I did not know it was an actual product with that name (thanks OP). He was an airline pilot and spent some time in the military, so maybe he had a real one at some point. Since I used to travel a lot, I have used the term occasionally and my spouse knows what I mean. My son, though, probably has no idea. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 5, 2023, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/67 "2023-04-05T23:44:03Z")
A couple of decades ago, I got a nice, blue, nylon, tri-fold toiletry bag from REI. It had a built-in hanger, and a built-in mirror. I seem to have misplaced it. I think I couldn’t find it when we went on vacation last November. I’m sure it will turn up eventually. In the meantime… … I’m building an old-school Dopp kit. I have a [leather bag](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01FVPOWD4), a [safety razor](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PKGXZ24) (I’ll have to take it out when I fly), and a [first-aid kit](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BIRMTY4). I’ll keep adding stuff to it until it’s complete. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2023, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/68 "2023-04-06T01:25:21Z")
A couple of people mentioned things to have in a Dopp kit; like nail clippers and a sewing kit. Here’s a page called [Building the Perfect Dopp Kit](https://www.artofmanliness.com/lifestyle/gear/building-the-perfect-dopp-kit/). > - $20 bill > - Brush/comb > - Deodorant > - Bottle of shampoo > - Bar of soap > - Band-aids > - [DIY travel first aid kit](https://www.artofmanliness.com/health-fitness/the-essential-travel-first-aid-kit/) > - Razor > - Shaving cream > - Toothbrush > - Lip balm > - Floss > - Toothpaste > - Nail clippers > - Extra pair of contact lenses > - Sewing kit > - Safety pins I don’t see a washcloth. I don’t need contact lenses; but a spare pair of reading glasses would be good. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2023, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/69 "2023-04-06T02:43:30Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > a [safety razor](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PKGXZ24) (I’ll have to take it out when I fly), Why do you think that? IME TSA sure doesn’t care about those. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2023, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/70 "2023-04-06T03:10:32Z")
It has a [razor blade](https://www.amazon.com/Double-Edge-Razor-Blades-Stainless/dp/B07Q1JNPRH), as opposed to cartridge razors. ETA: I’ve put a [straight razor](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B089NYBZBJ?th=1) into my shopping cart. I have no idea how to shave with a straight razor, but I did find [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ccdQe1FNWc). ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2023, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/71 "2023-04-06T03:24:46Z")
I just checked [TSA.gov](http://TSA.gov) and you’re right. Basic razor blades are prohibited. Razor blades embedded in cartridges are fine. I did not know that. Subject to the caveat that anything and everything, even your bagel, can be confiscated if the TSA dude(ette) decides they don’t like it. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2023, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/72 "2023-04-06T14:16:59Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > > [@CookingWithGas](#): > > > > Later I discovered that there were much better ways to pack your stuff than to throw them in a bag with one big compartment. > > After years and years of travel I discovered the exact opposite. I used to use a very nice LL Bean hanging travel kit, with netting and compartments for everything. Grew to hate it. Was hard to pack, hard to hang in a usual hotel bathroom and overall inferior to the nice leather Dopp my wife got me from Duluth Trading. It packs easier, fits anywhere on a counter and holds a ton. I believe this is the happy medium: > [@puzzlegal](#): > > I now have a sort of hybrid one, sewn of fabric, shaped like a dopp kit with a main zipper on top, but with pockets inside and out to keep things separate. It sits on the counter, it’s easy to pack, and I can find all my stuff. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/73 "2023-05-09T14:13:07Z")
I never heard the term until Johnny LA mentioned it in another thread today. The ditty bag I was issued in boot camp was a mesh bag maybe ten inches square like the one my wife uses to make sure her socks stay together in the wash. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/74 "2023-05-09T14:17:25Z")
The latest addition to my Dopp kit is one of these. > **[Style PS Multi-Tool | Leatherman​​](https://www.leatherman.com/style-ps-25.html)** > > With spring-action scissors, a file, knife, tweezers, bottle opener, and a mini-screwdriver, you'll never be without your most necessary tools. No blade, so it flies. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/75 "2023-05-09T15:32:30Z")
I ended up with two Gerber Multitools. One of them has a few sockets, and my first one – which I lost and then got a replacement before finding it – doesn’t. I’ve barely used them in the couple of decades I’ve owned them, so I may as well put one in the Dopp kit. They have blades though (as does my safety razor and my first aid kit), so they’ll have to go into checked baggage when I fly. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/76 "2023-05-09T16:16:15Z")
Never heard of the term but I have one. It is nearly empty except when I travel. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/77 "2023-05-09T18:37:49Z")
At one point, I would take the toiletries from the bathroom for travel in the toiletries bag. But then I put together a second set of toiletries that stays in the toiletries bag. And then with the TSA one-ounce restrictions, I have a third set, in which all of the liquids are in one ounce or 100ml containers. That one I use when I travel with only a carry-on bag, while the first one is used for trips where I drive or check a suitcase. And then I put together a “digital” Dopp kit, with all of the cables and accessories I might need for my computers and phones. It also has a little stand so I can use my iPhone as a bedside alarm clock in hotel rooms. ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/78 "2023-05-09T19:16:58Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > then with the TSA one-ounce restrictions, I have a third set, in which all of the liquids are in one ounce or 100ml containers I think you meant 3.4 ounces, not one ounce or 100ml. …**3.4 ounces (100 milliliters) or less per item**. [image] [https://www.tsa.gov](https://www.tsa.gov) › travel › liquid… ### [Liquids Rule - Transportation Security Administration]([Liquids, Aerosols, and Gels Rule | Transportation Security Administration](https://www.tsa.gov/travel/security-screening/liquids-rule#:~:text=You) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/79 "2023-05-09T19:18:03Z")
Sorry yes. The liquids are no more than three ounces or 100ml. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2023, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668/80 "2023-05-09T19:18:48Z")
> [@BippityBoppityBoo](#): > > …**3.4 ounces (100 milliliters) or less per item**. Unfortunately, I’ve never seen aftershave in containers less than four ounces. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-a-dopp-kit-a-thing-to-you/944668.md?page=5)