Month: August 2008


Letter Re: How to Store All Those Saved Nickels

Mr. Rawles: I diligently read your “nickels”article and archived follow-ups, but nowhere do you mention which size ammo can it is that cubes rolled nickels for storage most efficiently? I have cleaned out my children’s bank accounts slowly over the last few weeks and am walking into random banks and grocery stores converting the cash into rolled nickels. ”Havin’ a yard sale, don’t ya know.”.Wink. It keeps the Stepford bank weenies from asking unnecessary questions. – Laura C.; Hiding in Plain Sight, Somewhere Deep In The People’s Republic of Northern Virginia JWR Replies: In my experience, the USGI .30 caliber …


Letter Re: New High Performance .410 Shotgun Slugs for Self Defense?

Dear SurvivalBlog Editor, Anyone considering the 410/.22 long rifle combo or any other 410 bore shotgun for survival use should take a look at the new state of the 410 slug. It is far more powerful than before and has potential as a defensive weapon against dangerous animals, human attack or as a big game getter. Those interested in details may find it at Hoening Big Bore South. You may want to check this out occasionally as work continues on new loads for smooth bores and barrel offerings. – James Hoening JWR Replies: In my estimation the standard factory .410 …


Odds ‘n Sods:

The Werewolf (our correspondent in Brazil) mentioned a free web site with 883,542 downloadable manuals on 3,627 brands of products.    o o o Frequent contributor Cheryl N. spotted this: Sharp US money supply contraction points to Wall Street crunch ahead. As I’ve been warning for nearly a year, the global credit collapse is going to have some profound and long-lasting effects, and thusfar we are nowhere near the bottom.    o o o Ogre sent us a link to an article about Fannie and Freddie’s Uncertain Future    o o o And from Eric, comes this expected news: Food …



Note from JWR:

Get your entries in for Round 18 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. Starting with this round, the contest prize list has been expanded. The prizes now include: First Prize: The writer of the best contributed article in the next 60 days will be awarded two transferable Front Sight  “Gray” Four Day Training Course Certificates. This is an up to $4,000 value! Second Prize: A course certificate from OnPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. Third Prize: A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing Round 18 …


Letter Re: Energy Bars as a Storage Food

James; This might interest your readers. I am considering buying compact, high-calorie emergency food bars for long term storage of food. I know they are not “real” [nutritionally complete] food but they easily moved and taken along, they have a great storage life and taste pretty good. The problem is that no pizzas and no cereal might make for a dull year, but having some of these on hand might be good. I was wondering if the ‘food bars’ are a good storage product. I would not stop storing real food, but would rely on the ‘bars’ for [short term] …


Letter Re: Preparing for Pole Shift?

Mr. Rawles, I have been trying to find out more about the consequences of a polar shift, particularly the effects it will have on the Great Lakes Region. I know that no one really knows what will happen, but everything I’ve seen points to something really really bad. If possible could you post what knowledge you may have on the subject on SurvivalBlog? Thank you, – Scott from Michigan JWR Replies: Rapid pole shift is a little more than an unsupported theory, touted mainly by the Art Bell crowd. In my opinion it should be one of the least of …


Two Letters Re: Questions About FRS Radio Capabilities

Sir: I’ll establish my bona fides by stating that I am a General class Amateur Radio licensee with extensive experience in the VHF and UHF radio bands. While I applaud your promotion of the MURS radio for general use, it is not the best choice for the gentleman residing in the concrete condos in Florida. Penetration of concrete and steel structures is significantly better (by approximately 30%) at UHF frequencies (as used by FRS/GMRS radios) than at the VHF frequencies as used by MURS. Though free air range favors VHF, UHF penetrates obstacles better, assuming the effective radiated power (ERP) …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Norman in England found a web page with some useful information on assembling outdoor survival kits.    o o o Reader Bill T. asked me: “I’m a denture wearer. Do you know a formula for home-made denture adhesive?” I have no idea, but given SurvivalBlog’s large worldwide audience, perhaps there is a reader that can chime in with a formula.    o o o Cheryl N. spotted this interesting piece: ‘Liar loans’ threaten to prolong mortgage crisis. She also found this one: The Endgame Nears for Fannie and Freddie    o o o Rich at CGW has created a page …



Letter Re: Ramen Noodles as a Food Storage Supplement

Mr. Rawles, First off, thanks for your fine web site! I was proud to become a 10 Cent Challenge subscriber. For those looking to increase their food storage supply in a cost-effective manner, I would recommend stopping by Wal-Mart and picking up their 12-pack containers of Ramen noodles (in various flavors). They’re currently $1.73 per package, which comes out to just 14.5 cents per single pack. Nutritionally, a single pack of Ramen noodles contains: 380 calories 14 grams of fat 52 grams of carbohydrates 2 grams of fiber 10 grams of protein and 16% of your daily requirement of iron …


Letter Re: Will the War in Georgia Trigger a Russian Ammo Import Ban?

Hello James, I have been an avid reader of your novel and SurvivalBlog for about six months now, and I have to echo the sentiment of many other readers–that it has given me a desperately needed focus and sense of purpose. The increased threat of TEOTWAWKI was clear in my mind, and prior to finding your blog, I just had anxiety and was confused over what actions I should be taking t protect my family. I was like a deer in the headlights. Now it is a whole different story. I have stopped wasting money on non-essential items (sodas at …


Letter Re: Questions About FRS Radio Capabilities

Dear SurvivalBlog: At my condo complex in Florida, we’ve been wondering if we could use consumer two-way radios–such as Motorola Talkabout two-way radios–to communicate successfully between (from inside) condo units. We would do this during scenarios such as a severe hurricane. The question is whether those radios (which, of course, come in several models with different specs) use the right frequency band and and have adequate power to penetrate the multiple concrete walls that would be line-of-sight between the communicating radios. We assume–in planning for worst possible case–that both line telephone and cell phone service would be down, and are …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Mr. Lima mentioned a site with some useful videos on basic homesteading skills like gardening, fruit trees, growing grains, beekeeping, and so forth. They’ve promise to add more videos coming about alternate energy, raising rabbits and chickens, food storage and more.    o o o Philip N. flagged this: Depression survivors: ‘We lived the hard way’    o o o Jack B. sent this: Lights are on, but banks increasingly closed: James Saft. And meanwhile, several readers mentioned this ominous prediction: Credit crunch may take out large US bank warns former IMF chief.    o o o Susan Z. sent …