North American Rescue Combat Application Tourniquet (C-A-T) Gen 7 vs Safeguard Medical TMT Tourniquet (Tactical Mechanical Tourniquet)

The C-A-T Gen 7 is on the CoTCCC recommended list, is the device most bleeding control courses put in your hands, and has the clearest published counterfeit-checking guidance of any tourniquet we looked at. The TMT is also on the list, is wider at the band, and its maker publishes a definite shelf life, which makes it easier to manage in a kit you rarely open.

North American Rescue Combat Application Tourniquet (C-A-T) Gen 7

Buy it

The tourniquet on the CoTCCC list that you are most likely to have already practised on, with the best published guidance for confirming yours is genuine.

• Listed by name on the CoTCCC Recommended Devices and Adjuncts document, under the same national stock number North American Rescue prints on the band.
• The most commonly used device in civilian bleeding control classes, so the muscle memory you build in a course transfers to the unit in your kit.
• North American Rescue sells a blue trainer version of the same Gen 7 design, so you can practise repeatedly without wearing out the one you carry.

• At 1.5 inches the band is the narrowest of the devices here, and wider cuffs are associated with occlusion at lower pressure in the surgical literature.
• It is the most counterfeited tourniquet in the world, so where you buy it matters as much as which model you buy.
• North American Rescue publishes no fixed shelf life, only conditions, which means you have to inspect it yourself rather than read a date.

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Safeguard Medical TMT Tourniquet (Tactical Mechanical Tourniquet)

Buy it

A CoTCCC-listed windlass tourniquet with a 2 inch band, two independent locks, and a manufacturer-stated 7 year shelf life.

• On the CoTCCC recommended list as the Tactical Mechanical Tourniquet, matching the national stock number Safeguard Medical publishes.
• The 2 inch strap is wider than the C-A-T band, and Safeguard Medical states it achieves occlusion at lower pressures.
• Safeguard Medical publishes a 7 year shelf life and a UV-protective additive, which makes an unopened unit easier to manage in a kit you rarely check.

• It is less commonly used in civilian classes than the C-A-T, so you may have to seek out instruction specific to it.
• Safeguard Medical does not list a separate trainer version, so practice means either buying a second unit or borrowing one.
• The wider band and quick-disconnect buckle make it a slightly thicker package than a flat-folded C-A-T in a narrow pouch.

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Side by side

The bottom line

Our overall pick is the North American Rescue Combat Application Tourniquet (C-A-T) Gen 7 - The tourniquet on the CoTCCC list that you are most likely to have already practised on, with the best published guidance for confirming yours is genuine. Choose the Safeguard Medical TMT Tourniquet (Tactical Mechanical Tourniquet) instead if a buyer who wants a wider band and a printed expiry date to work from, and who is happy to seek training on a device that is not the default in every class.

Want the full picture, including the other options we compared and the popular one we'd skip? Read the complete The Best Tourniquets: 4 Compared (and One to Skip).