July 6th is the anniversary of the 1994 Storm King Mountain wildfire that took the lives of 14 firefighters. Weather changes, resulting in 45 mph wind gusts, caused a modest wildfire to erupt into a blazing inferno, which threatened homes in and around the town of Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Firefighters from around the country were called to assist in fighting this wildfire. We will never forget the young men and women who lost their lives battling this fire:
Prineville (Oregon) Hotshots: Kathi Beck, Tamera Bickett, Scott Blecha, Levi Brinkley, Douglas Dunbar, Terri Hagen, Bonnie Holtby, Rob Johnson, Jon Kelso
Missoula Smokejumper: Don Mackey
McCall Smokejumpers: Roger Roth, Jim Thrash
Helitack firefighters: Robert Browning, Jr., Richard Tyler
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We are getting lots of orders, now that we switched to Pre-1965 silver coin pricing, at Elk Creek Company [1]. We also take debased Federal Reserve Notes (FRNs), at a multiplier. Take a look, and you will feel like you’ve stepped out of a time machine: A typical antique gun is priced at around $75 face value in silver coinage. Postage is $1 in silver for handguns, and $2 for long guns. Good Old Days Guns, at Good Old Days prices! Consider this: It is not the real value of guns that has changed in America. It is the purchasing power of FRNs. Since 1965, we’ve been gradually robbed by both currency debasement and currency inflation.
Oh, and there is no FFL paperwork required for pre-1899 antique guns, in most states. (Consult your state and local laws before ordering.)
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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest
Today we present another entry for Round 95 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest [2]. The prizes for this round include:
First Prize:
- The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon [3]. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
- A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course [4] (a $1,095 value),
- A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses [5], excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
- DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper [6]. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (a $1,100 value),
- Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees [7] in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
- A $250 gift certificate good for any product [8] from Sunflower Ammo,
- American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses [9].
Second Prize:
- A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
- A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 [10] Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, that have a combined retail value of $589,
- Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord [11] (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
- An Israeli CBRN Gas Mask with Hydration Straw and two Extra 40mm NATO Filter s – Manufactured in 2020 [12] (a $229.99 value), courtesy of McGuire Army-Navy [13].
- Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit. This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum-sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag. The value of this kit is $220.
- An assortment of products along with a one-hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).
Third Prize:
- Three sets each [14] of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
- A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of [15] Directive 21 (a $275 value),
- Siege Stoves [16] is generously donating a SIEGE® STOVE kit, including a Titanium Gen 3 Flat-Pack Stove with titanium Cross-Members and a variety of bonus items including a Large Folding Grill, a pair of Side Toasters, a Compact Fire Poker, and an extra set of stainless steel universal Cross-Members. (In all, a $200 value.)
- Two Super Survival Pack seed collections [17], a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
- A transferable $150 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company [1], toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!
Round 95 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail [18] us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.