Year: 2012

Constructing a Triple-Strand Concertina Wire Obstacle, by CPT Blackfox

Digging fighting positions, trenches, and emplacing various obstacles take a great deal of time and effort.  The greatest danger in emplacing obstacles is not being thorough enough due to the difficulty involved.  Stringing out wire and actually driving the pickets into the ground not only gives you good practice as how to physically create the obstacle but also gives you an idea of the challenges you will face and how long it takes to put up 100 lineal meters of obstacle. Triple-strand concertina wire obstacles consist of two rolls of concertina wire side-by-side on the bottom with one roll on …


Letter Re: Synthetic Motor Oil as a Gun Lubricant in TEOTWAWKI

Sir: During my two tours to the Sand Box with the U.S.M.C., we encountered some of the worst conditions weapons can endure. The sand in the Middle east is fine “moon dust” similar to talcum powder. The problem is that when mixed with water or oil commonly used in cleaning weapons systems it turns to a mud like paste. We discovered that the regular issue Cleaner, Lubricant, Protectant (CLP) [which is a Mil-Spec lubricant, sold commercially under the trade name “Break Free CLP”.] CLP was contributing to the problem more than fixing it. It is true that we cleaned our …


Economics and Investing:

Over at Zero Hedge: Chart of the Day: 803 Years of Global Inflation A good illustrated presentation on the economy, in light of Peak Oil: What the Economic Crisis Really Means – and what we can do about it James K. was the first of several readers to send this: Fears Rising, Spaniards Pull Out Their Cash and Get Out of Spain Moody’s Changes Euro Zone Rating Outlook to ‘Negative’ Items from The Economatrix: Everything You Need To Know About The September 12 German Court Decision That Could Rock The Entire World Economic Shock:  Global Food Prices Jump 10% The …


Odds ‘n Sods:

F.J.R. recommended: How to Build a 12×20 Cabin on a Budget    o o o James K. sent the link to this fascinating article: Measuring the Human Urban Footprint: Density Levels and Population Size of 129 Metropolitan Regions. JWR’s Advice: If you move to a lightly-populated region, the chances will be much better that you won’t get stepped on.    o o o Reader Stephen M. sent a reminder of why firearms training is so important.    o o o J.M.L. recommended this web forum: Prepared Ham. (No, not the kind that come in cans–the kind with moon bounce antennas …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"…the moral principles and precepts contained in the Scriptures ought to form the basis of all our civil constitutions and laws… All the miseries and evils which men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery, and war, proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts contained in the Bible." – Noah Webster, History of the United States, 1833


Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 42 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any …


A Prepper’s Point-of-View on Hurricane Isaac, by Leauxryda

Many a prepper may take the time to perform a test of their personal prep systems. Sometimes, Mother Nature will force you to do just that if you haven’t put your preps in practice yet. Ours came in the form of Hurricane Isaac. With media’s laying attention straight towards New Orleans and no one else, the Gulf Coast area residents laid their own attentions to their respective communities. And this attention consisted of hunkering down for a rain and wind event that would be nowhere near a Katrina event. How wrong were these expectations? At a seemingly last minute, Isaac …



News From The American Redoubt:

The Sustainable Preparedness Expo will be held at the Spokane Convention Center on September 30, 2012.    o o o Two new Ttabs flying videos: Flying Priest Lake Idaho and Message from a ‘Right Wing Extremist’ (In the vicinity of Juliaetta, Idaho. The title is a joke, referring to the fact that all of this video was shot from his light experimental’s right wing camera.)    o o o Take a minute to read this alarmist rant by a journalist from the Left Coast: 20 years after Ruby Ridge siege, extremists are fewer in northern Idaho but still remain. Even …


Economics and Investing:

Federal Reserve has already started QE3, says investor Jim Rogers H.L. sent: Higher CAFE Standards: “There’s No Such Thing as a Free Lunch” A surprisingly good article, considering that it is coming from McNewspaper: Vanguard’s Jack Bogle: Financial ‘train wreck’ looms Steve F. recommended: Why Billionaire Frank Giustra Is Making A Massive Bet On Inflation Items from The Economatrix: Gasoline Rising to Holiday High as Storm Surge Presses Obama Consumer Confidence in U.S. Declines Most Since October The Three Frontrunners for Fed Chairman in Romney Administration (Hint:  It’s not Ben)


Odds ‘n Sods:

Here at the ranch we just finished filling the wood shed. Some of my fellow church congregants might deride me for cutting any firewood so late in the summer, but I make a habit of cutting only dead-standing or recently dead-fallen trees that are dry, but not rotted. When you have so many Red Fir and Tamarack (properly, Western Larch) trees to choose from as we do here in our corner of the American Redoubt one can afford to be picky.    o o o Jay in Missouri mentioned this informative primer: Guide to Online Coin Bidding and Buying    …


Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“With national governments in collapse at the end of the XXth century, something had to fill the vacuum, and in many cases it was the returned veterans. They had lost a war, most of them had no jobs, many were sore as could be over the terms of the Treaty of New Delhi, especially the P.O.W. foul-up – and they knew how to fight. But it wasn’t revolution; it was more like what happened in Russia in 1917 – the system collapsed; somebody else moved in. The first known case, in Aberdeen, Scotland, was typical. Some veterans got together as …


Notes from JWR:

It came to me a bit late in the year, but I just realized that 2012 is the 125th anniversary of the patent of the world’s first automatic shoulder-fired battle rifle, the Mondragón. Talk about being far ahead of one’s time! The inventor, Manuel Mondragón was born in 1859. And speaking of fully automatic firearms, isn’t it high time that we repeal the National Firearms Act of 1934, and disband the BATFE? Or, failing that at least repeal the unconstitutional and never properly enacted 1986 machinegun production freeze, and declare a one-year amnesty period to register or re-register any un-papered …


Essential Medical Skills to Acquire: Splinting and Casting, by Cynthia J. Koelker, MD

In the introduction to this series I gave a brief outline of the medical skills that a layman should acquire when preparing for TEOTWAWKI. Injuries will be common among people required to be more active than they are accustomed to.   Lacerations have already been addressed in Parts 1 and 2 of this series.  Next we will turn to injuries that required immobilization for optimal healing including sprains, strains, and fractures. To begin, what’s the difference between a strain and a sprain?  To strain means to overstretch a muscle or tendon beyond its capacity to resist without tearing.  A sprain means …


Pat’s Product Review: Springfield Armory “Loaded” 1911

It is no secret in my family that my all-time favorite handgun is the good ol’ 1911 – in some shape or form. A 1911 was one of the first (not the first) handguns I ever owned, and my love affair only grew over the years. I have lost count of the number of 1911s I’ve owned in my lifetime, but I’m sure its a safe bet, that I’ve probably owned a couple hundred 1911s. I’ve had everything from plain old Mil-Spec 1911s, to custom made guns from big-name makers, and well as building a good number of custom 1911s …