Day: July 17, 2007

Notes from JWR:

The high bid is already at $250 in the SurvivalBlog benefit auction for a brand new Big Berkey water filter, kindly donated by Ready Made Resources. They are one of our most loyal advertisers. The auction ends on August 15th. Just e-mail us your bid. Today we present another article for Round 11 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The writer of the best non-fiction article will win a valuable four day “gray” transferable Front Sight course certificate. (Worth up to $2,000!) Second prize is a copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, generously donated by Jake Stafford …


Repairing Gardening Hand Tools, by Christian Souljer

Being able to plant your own vegetables during hard times will be greatly desirable. In order to do this, a preparedness person should have multiple duplicates of commonly used garden tools. Gardening tools such as rakes, hoes, and pitchforks often break at the connection between the handle and the head. The wood becomes aged and with downward pressure/force – the wood can break away and or the tool head can just become loose and fall out. This occurs mostly on older tools where the wood has shrank but can also occur on the cheaper imported garden tools. I recently had …


Letter Re: Advice on a Budget Rifle Battery for Retreat Security

Jim, For those folks residing in the Western U.S., the Big 5 Sporting Goods stores are selling ‘collectable’ Mosin-Nagant 7.62x54R rifles at very good prices; under $200. I don’t know if all the stores have them but a couple of stores in the south Denver metro area have one or two each and they appear to be in acceptable shape. – Ken M. JWR Replies: Thanks for that tip. OBTW, most Big 5 customers don’t realize that the military surplus rifles in the display racks are just examples of their inventory. Each store typically has from three to five more …


Six Letters Re: Proper Lubrication with Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel Fuel?

Jim A couple of points on ultra low sulfur diesel (ULSD). Back in the 1990s low sulfur was introduced and we had a rash of pumps “wear out” prematurely for the most part these were older and or rotary pumps that were poor performers to begin with. It has been my experience that the “Bosch in inline” pumps tend to be more forgiving. If on road legality is of no concern than a gallon or two of marvel mystery oil will cover your lubricity issue. When I was in the coast guard we had a mixing formula to mix 40 …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader “Ed7B” sent us a link to a page at the Medical Corps web site with an account of an emergency appendectomy in a submarine in WWII – with not a doctor for many miles, and a dearth of proper equipment, tools and drugs. Ed’s comment: “They still managed to get this sailor’s appendix out and have a happy outcome. Pertinent to what people can expect when there is no hospital open, let alone a doctor to be found.” Speaking of preparedness for austere medicine, don’t miss the outstanding Medical Corps training on August 24-25-26 at the Ohio State University …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"This is a delusion about credit. And whereas from the nature of credit it is to be expected that a certain line will divide the view between creditor and debtor, the irrational fact in this case is that for more than 10 years debtors and creditors together have pursued the same deceptions." – Garet Garret, A Bubble that Broke the World