We note with humble thanks that we’ve surpassed 2,000,000 unique visits. Congrats to SurvivalBlog reader “Stealth Neighbor”, who as the two-millionth visitor. (He even sent us a screen capture to prove it.) I’ll be mailing him a special gift.
Dear Mr. Rawles, Perhaps you could help me understand the mixing ratios for two stroke oil. I remember buying the old Homelite oil, you could either buy it in a can to mix with one gallon of gas or a can to mix with two gallons of gas. Most of the new two stroke oils I have seen recently state that they are 50:1. Is this mixture acceptable for my old Homelite Super XL chainsaw and other two stroke equipment? The rep at the Stihl store by us said that the new oils are so much better formulated than the …
Jim, I don’t know if you are familiar with this product already but I thought it couldn’t hurt to bring it to SurvivalBlog readers attention. It is called “Dip Seal” protective removable coatings, peels off like a banana [skin]. It is, from the company’s own description two or three different types of plastic seal, “Type one coatings are the most commonly used for corrosion protection. These coatings leave an oil film on the protected part. A relatively hard coating that is excellent for long-term storage and protection from rough handling. Part numbers, UPC codes, etc., can be easily seen through …
Mr. Rawles: Anyone who carries a sidearm for protection should watch these three videos by Surefire: One Two Three. The first one covers principle of using light and flashlights to your advantage. It also discusses the Harries and Rogers Surefire techniques for shooting and advantages and disadvantages of both. The second one covers the FBI and neck index methods of shooting. The last covers clearing techniques in a building. I personally don’t like the Rogers Surefire technique because it requires a specific flashlight and will not work if the switch is not properly adjusted. – Bill N.
There is an interesting thread in progress titled: “Popular Mechanics new take on Heinlein’s skill list“, over at The Mental Militia Forums (formerly called the Claire Files Forums.) I agree with the consensus view there. Parenthetically, I’m glad that I’m raising our kids out in the hinterboonies in a largely self-sufficient lifestyle with plenty of “do it yourself”–mostly by economic necessity but partly by choice. A boy should know how to build a field fence just as well as a web page. o o o From Bloomberg: U.S. New-Home Sales Drop, Prices Fall Most Since 1970 o o …
"It’s all wrong. By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are. It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened. But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the …
Today we are pleased to feature an excerpt from the novel Enemies Foreign And Domestic by Matthew Bracken. The story is set in the near future, as a small scale resistance movement develops in reaction to the end of constitutional liberty. The author is a SurvivalBlog reader, former US Navy SEAL, novelist, and an accomplished blue water yachtsman. I trust that like me, you find survival fiction a useful tool for “thinking outside the box” and considering “what ifs”, in preparedness planning.
Brad was driving his red pickup with Ranya snuggling against him as they crossed the five mile wide I-664 James River Bridge-Tunnel from Newport News. They covered in only a few minutes the same water which they had sailed upon yesterday at a tenth of their present speed. It was a little past four PM on the warm Sunday afternoon when they passed back onto the northern shore of Suffolk County, almost within sight of the burned ruins of the Edmonds house. Neither one of them spoke of it, although they both stared in that direction. Driving down from Poquoson …
I was doing some web surfing and stumbled across this video clip on American Gun Owners. I haven’t yet seen the book on which it is based, but the video is remarkably unbiased. I think that it would be a good introduction to the American “gun culture” for SurvivalBlog readers that live in countries that restrict firearms ownership. o o o A Financial Sense editorial by Eric Englund: From Prime to Sub-Prime: America’s Mortgage Meltdown Has Just Begun o o o The WRSA has a high power rifle shooting clinic scheduled for October 6-7 in Brookings, Oregon. These …
“I cannot guarantee that you will not get hurt or killed whether you follow my advice or not. Just keep in mind that people who never lifted anything that could be classified as ‘heavy’ got hernias from coughing and died of a stroke when they strained on a toilet. As someone smart said, fear of doing things does not prevent you from dying, only from living.” – Pavel Tsatsouline
We are rapidly approaching the two million unique visits milestone, and we have readers all over the planet. Thanks for making SurvivalBlog such a huge success. Please keep spreading the word. Links at your personal web page and/or in your e-mail footer would be greatly appreciated. The bidding is now at $460 in the SurvivalBlog benefit auction, for a scarce pre-1899 antique Finnish M39 Mosin Nagant rifle from my personal collection. This rifle was rebarreled by Valmet during WWII, and is in excellent condition. It comes with a replica bayonet, original sling, and original muzzle cap. Since the receiver for …
Hello Mr. Rawles I’m a fairly new reader of your site and have been meandering through your archives and checking back periodically. It’s a wonderful site you have here, and I’ve found your articles to be quite interesting and informative. My personal concerns for the future are more focused on nuclear events than fiscal ones, but in either case I’m likely screwed as I am living on the east coast in close proximity to dense population centers and terrorist/military targets. As of late however I have been considering buying a few acres in one of the rural areas a few …
Sir: About your comments [on Thursday] and others in regard to kerosene use in a gasoline engine: From anything I’ve experienced, you are correct about it not being as simple as some have posted. Engines that were built for “all fuel” use – including distillate and kerosene, had very low compression ratios – usually around 5 to 1. Low compression makes a low-power, inefficient engine. The carburetors were jetted differently, a twin fuel tank setup used, a selector-valve installed for quick fuel changeover, and a closeable air-shutter on the radiator to keep the engine hot. You started the engine on …
Doubling Up Before the “Crunch” This is a unique time in survival real estate. Never before have we seen so many people actually wanting to purchase a family retreat for the coming hard times, but as last week’s update alluded to, most people are struggling to complete their purchase due to the lack of capital, usually because a current real estate asset has yet to sell. These times call for more purposeful thought and planning in order to come up with a solution. One idea is to bring two or more like minded families together in order to increase their …
From The Independent: Only £4.4m left to protect UK’s bank deposits o o o There is an interesting topic posted over at The Mental Militia Forums (formerly called The Claire Files), about the tremendous gains in the price of Rhodium in the past five years. Obviously, somebody made a lot of money. (FYI, it wasn’t me. I was very conservatively invested in silver and gold.) o o o Pets being slaughtered in meat-starved Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe is now truly in crisis. 80% unemployment. An average life expectancy of just 37 years. The inflation rate is continuing to increase–some analysts …