Year: 2006

Letter Re: Out-of-Print Bushcraft Book Now Available Online

James: I just found my way to this site and thought it would be another good source of survival information for your readers, especially as it had been compiled with military rescues in mind at the time. I have no affiliation with the site, author, etc. Just wanted to pass on a link: http://tions.net/CA256EA900408BD5/vwWWW/outdoor~03~000 Here is a snip from the site: “The section is home to an on-line edition of a classic text that is sadly now out of print, ‘The 10 Bushcraft Books’ by Richard Graves. Richard Harry Graves was born 17th July, 1898 (some sources list year of …


Letter from Michael Z. Williamson Re: Black Powder Replica Revolver Cartridge

Jim, Here’s one of at least two commercially available conversions for black powder to cartridge: http://www.kirstkonverter.com By installing one of these cylinders, one is legally manufacturing their own weapon, so no paperwork is involved. [Under the Federal law] as long as the components are shipped separately, it can be mailed to any adult per federal law. Note however, that some states and localities will have differing laws. – Michael Z. Williamson    


Letter Re: Inexpensive Fallout Shelter Construction Method?

Hi Jim, Boy, is your blog the “cream of the crop”! I’ve read it daily, almost from the very beginning, and am always amazed by the breadth of knowledge within. Great job! I fully recognize the need for a suitable fallout shelter for my family in these trying times. By suitable I mean more than just an expedient shelter. We may need to be sealed off for several weeks in a worst case scenario. Don’t get me wrong, an expedient shelter will save lives but may not be the most desirable conditions for a wife and toddler. In doing much …


Odds ‘n Sods:

A professor at the University of Texas proposes that a plague wiping out 90% of Earth’s population would be a good thing. (I’m dubious.) See: http://story.seguingazette.com/drudge.html, and  http://www.sas.org/tcs/weeklyIssues_2006/2006-04-07/feature1p/index.html    o o o I just heard that Ready Made Resources is now offering free shipping on their freeze dried food!    o o o To our U.S. readers: Just enter your zip code in the site below, and it tells you which gas stations have the lowest (and the highest) gasoline prices in your zip code area. It’s updated every evening. Be sure to scroll down after getting a map of …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"This course is dedicated to the idiotic proposition that you can be taught the fundamentals of Organic chemistry, Inorganic chemistry, Qualitative analysis, Quantitative analysis, Physical chemistry, and Biochemistry all in one semester. The odds against any of you passing this course would be staggering to contemplate if there were any time for contemplation. However, there is not. Get out your notebooks." – Max Shulman in The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis


Note from JWR:

As previously mentioned, I will be writing SurvivalBlog full time, starting April 7th. Quitting my “day job” is a huge leap of faith. To make a living at this, I will need far more 10 Cent Challenge contributors. I don’t intend to place “guilt trip” on anyone, nor do I want to sound like a beggar, but ponder the fact that less that 2% of the folks that read SurvivalBlog weekly have ponied up 10 cents a day. All that I ask is that if find what you read here valuable, then please pitch in. Thanks! Today we present the …


From #1 Son: Asian Avian Flu Cannot be Prevented by NAIS

The USDA is now claiming that the NAIS (National Animal Identification System) is necessary because of Asian Avian Flu. It would is pointless, because the flu could carried by wild birds. See this article in the Seattle Times. Mike Johanns (Secretary of Agriculture and one of the major advocates of the NAIS) said, “None of us can build a cage around the United States. We have to be prepared to deal with the virus here.” The NAIS program is clearly an attempt by the big agri-corps to remove competition and open foreign markets, or if you are more conspiracy minded, …


Your Mind is Your Primary Tool for Survival, by Warhawke

Let me tell you a little story. It was January 1978, my sister was 8 and I was 11, and we were standing in front of the window in my parent’s front room. Outside the world was being covered in ice, or at least the slice we could see from there. The trees, the streetlight, the cars, even the recent snow had a pretty sheen that we thought was beautiful. Mom and Dad didn’t seem to share our enthusiasm, but heck, we knew that the old fogies didn’t know what cool was. Then of course, the lights went out. No …


Letter Re: Military Strobe Light Batteries

James: Regarding’s Dave’s recent mention of the Firefly strobe: “…the PX32 can also be used in an adapter for the old “Firefly” strobe…” I just thought that I’d mention the solution I found for military strobe batteries. Actually, I may be thinking of another strobe, the military SDU-5E orange rescue strobe.An amazing gentleman, Brooke Clarke, has simply done so much for so many at his site: http://www.pacificsites.com/~brooke/ . Be it a military radio, or a cool battery facilitator, Brooke is simply amazing. Here’s the URL for his adaptors: http://www.pacificsites.com/~brooke/PRC68COM.shtml or directly for the strobe adapter: http://www.pacificsites.com/~brooke/5BA.shtml. I know he made …


Odds ‘n Sods:

The U.K. is making contingency plans for mass burials in the event of an influenza pandemic: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/4869224.stm    o o o If you have an interest in raising livestock, or even just an interest in healthy eating, take a look at this informative (and quite amusing) parody site: The Meatrix    o o o As reported by the NRA’s Institute for Legislative Action, on March 28, U.S. Congressman Bobby Jindal (R-La.) introduced H.R. 5013, the “Disaster Recovery Personal Protection Act of 2006.” This NRA-supported bill would amend federal emergency statute laws to prohibit local authorities from confiscating lawfully owned firearms …



Note from JWR:

Wow!  We just surpassed 10 million hits since SurvivalBlog was launched eight months ago! Of course it’s not as important as unique visits, but even that count is exploding: More than 322,000  unique visits!  Thanks for making SurvivalBlog such a success. Please continue to spread the word. I will be writing SurvivalBlog full time, starting April 7th. To make a living at this, I will need to find more advertisers. I’d greatly appreciate your help:  If you know of a potential advertiser, please call or e-mail them, and ask them to get a banner ad at SurvivalBlog.  They cost as …


Letter Re: New Zealand as a Retreat Locale?

Mr. Rawles, Thank you again for your blog. It is a VERY helpful resource. I plan on becoming a contributor to your site soon. What are your thoughts on moving to New Zealand? Would it be an alternative ‘safe place’ to be located, instead of putting together a retreat here? You have chosen to remain in the states for certain reasons. What are those reasons? Regards, – Luke JWR Replies: The mild climate, low population density, and low crime rate in new Zealand make it quite appealing as a retreat locale. I can say much the same for parts of …


Three Letters Re: Source for IM-179 Radiacmeter Batteries?

Jim: The IM-179 is a really neat little meter unless you need to measure background, but there are other meters for that. I’ve been using the following as replacement batteries for my IM-179: #1 [Replacement for Mallory BA1312U]: Batteries Plus: ALK 1.5V/325Mah Cat # DURPC640A Were $2.99 each UPS #041333040431 Batteries Plus -91 On the battery it says: PC640A China (Ha!) Alkaline #2 [Replacement for Mallory BA1318U]: Batteries Plus DANTR164A Batteries Plus #90 Were $11.99 each On the battery is says: Excell A32 . A164 6.0V Alkaline PX32A EN164A PC164A Hope this helps. Isn’t it amazing how common pieces of …


Odds ‘n Sods:

The folks at The Pre-1899 Specialist tell us that their new batch of 8 x57 pre-1899 Turkish contract Oberndorf Mauser rifles is going fast. This is by far the nicest batch of Turks that they’ve ever acquired. Since they were all made between 1894 and 1896, they are Federally exempt “antiques” –which means no paperwork required for delivery to most states. (They come right to your doorstep, with no pesky 4473 form required!)    o o o Gold and silver aren’t the only commodities on a stratospheric trajectory. Copper and uranium recently hit all time records. Oil is very strong, …