I saw on the internet people in Syria were making gas masks from paper cups, plastic bags, tape, cotton and charcoal. Even if one had military gear wouldnt ya need an atropine injector and the antidote to the atropine? The concern is sarin gas. Wondering how one would test the effectiveness of such. Any volunteers? Lol
I actually have a lot to say about this, as I'm an ex-paramedic with HAZMAT training and actual field experience using protective stuff.
When it comes to gas masks, I think they're good to have for certian reasons...but are a very low priority item.
First, nerve agents like sarin, tabun, soman, VX, VN, and the newer Novichok agents get absorbed quite readily through the skin.
You can have the best gas mask system in the world, and it may add five minutes to your life (at best) if you're exposed to any of the above nerve agents even in small quantities.
Also, gas masks have expiration dates, and many of the surplus models are past their sell-by date. It's the same with the filters. Also, many surplus masks contain large residues of inhalable asbestos dust.
If you really want to concern yourself with sarin and similar stuff, you need to be fully encapsulated in a protective suit...and most (but not all) protective suits are only good for 8 hours or so.
As for atropine, it can help keep you alive in some circumstances...but it's meant to be used in conjunction with full-fledged decontamination facilities. Multiple injections of atropine may prolong life a bit, but it's like giving a nitro tablet to a man suffering a massive heart attack.
As for the Novichok agents, many of them are 25 to 70 times more potent than sarin. A half-gallon of the stuff would be enough to kill every human being on Manhattan Island.
How does anyone think that a gas mask would do any more than buy a tiny amount of time under the circumstances?
Now...as for what they're good for?
I like the idea of full-face respirators and gas masks in a pandemic. I like the idea of a NATO NBC cartridge (good for biological warfare) protecting me from a respiratory disease. This is also good for riot agents like tear gas (CS gas and CN gas) which are used by the police.
You've all seen those hand-pumped sprayers for garden insecticides? I keep one so I can fill it with bleach water and spray down a masked person exposed to a patient with, say, MERS or avian flu.
The vast majority of the time, a gas mask is useless.