Month: February 2022

Jackery Explorer 1500 and Solar Panels, by Michael Z. Williamson and Jessica Schlenker

This is a review of a battery/inverter/solar panel combination. The Jackery “solar generator” (portable battery pack with charge controller and inverter) and the solar panels were well-packaged. They arrived just after Christmas, so temperature concerns (here in Indiana) have made testing it tricky. The battery pack arrived partially charged, and per instructions, it was plugged in to charge from a 120-volt AC wall jack. The input options are DC from the solar cells, DC from a car (12 or 24V), or 110/120V AC household current. Outputs are three 110V outlets (with pure sine wave power, rated for a 1,800-watt load), …


The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we look at a 2022 resurgence in the preparedness movement. More Americans Prep for Doomsday Across the Divide: More Americans prep for Doomsday—while rural residents live it. Prepping is Not Just for Pandemics …



Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — February 9, 2022

February 9th is the birthday of Major George Charles Nonte Jr. (Born 1926, died June 30, 1978.)  After his retirement in 1964, as an Ordnance Corps Major, he became a well-known firearms writer. He also served as an expert witness on firearms for criminal trials. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 99 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite …


The Dragon’s Breath: DIY Nonlethal Home Defense, by A.S.

People in their own homes may encounter an intruder who intends to take what they have and do them harm. They might run away if they could. But what if there is no way out? They may have no choice but to stand their ground. Unfortunately, many people in a situation like this are reluctant to use deadly force even if they stand to lose their possessions and possibly sustain personal bodily harm even death. So what can they do if they have been forced into a confrontation when the time for talking is over? You are in your own …


SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

This weekly column is a collection of short snippets: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. We may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — By way of American Partisan, there is this useful video: How To Unlock A New Baofeng UV-5R – Easy Unlock Hack To Transmit On GMRS & Other Frequencies. Note that this hack is not necessary for the older-vintage UV-5Rs that I recommended stockpiling, a couple of years ago. Those are the “open” or “unlocked” type.) …



Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — February 8, 2022

February 8th, 1828 was the birthday of Jules Verne, the French writer who wrote From the Earth to the Moon. He is considered the father of science fiction. On February 8th, 1963 the Kennedy administration issued an order prohibiting travel to Cuba and banned financial transactions and commerce with Cuba, by U.S. citizens. — I just noticed that we are now down to less than 100 of the second batch of SurvivalBlog 2005-2021 Archive USB sticks.  There were 600 in that batch. There probably won’t be another  batch, this year. Going, going… — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another …


Raising Chickens From Scratch, by ZChick Lover

To the point: I have accidently discovered a simple action that is of great assistance in raising little chicks – moisten the chick food sometimes. Although I did this in an attempt to save some little distressed chicks who were not eating, this probably is simply called “mash”. Mash is mentioned in this older pamphlet, downloadable free as a pdf from google books. There is a wealth of other information found here in this 1917 book. Another successful action: have a “hospital” area always ready in the kitchen. And finally, I’d like to relay a story of how simply warming …


SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies of interest to preppers and survivalists that are located in the American Redoubt region. Today, we focus on the ongoing Coutts – Milk River border crossing anti-vax mandate protest. (See the Montana section.) Idaho Ada County deputies rescue woman from icy pond. o  o  o Idaho National Guard activated again for COVID repsonse. o  o  o Police release name of …



Preparedness Notes for Monday — February 7, 2022

On this day in 1775 in London, Benjamin Franklin published “An Imaginary Speech” in defense of American courage. The speech was intended to counter an unnamed officer’s comments to Parliament that the British need not fear the colonial rebels, because “Americans are unequal to the People of this Country [Britain] in Devotion to Women, and in courage and worse than all, they are religious.” Franklin’s response included his usual wit and acuity. February 7th, 1867, is also the birthday of Laura Ingalls Wilder (died February 10, 1957). SurvivalBlog highly recommends the Laura Ingalls Wilder books as well as her biography. …


Springfield Armory XDm Elite 9mm, by Pat Cascio

META: Another new acronym. It drives me crazy with acronyms for so many things. Acronyms help save time when communicating with someone. That is, if they are schooled in the terminology with certain things. The military and police find that important. However, META is a new one to me. It doesn’t refer to the new name for the Facebook company or The Metaverse. Rather, it stands for Match Enhanced Trigger Assembly, and it refers to the trigger on the Springfield Armory XDm Elite 9mm pistol. The acronym from Springfield pretty much explains it all. They claim that this trigger is …


Recipe of the Week:  Winter Trail Mix

The following recipe for a winter trail mix is from reader McKenzie: Ingredients 1 cup Dried Cranberries or Raisins 1 cup chocolate chips (regular Toll House or white) 1 cup Pistachios, dry roasted (Don’t get salted ones, if on a low-salt diet.) 1 cup (or more) Granola, store-bought or homemade 1-1/2 cups almonds (candied, roasted, or raw — to suit your taste) 2 cups M&Ms (Optional, for you chocaholics) Directions Just mix it and bag it. This is a great high-calorie mix for X-C skiing, or snoeshoeing.  If you find you like this and do a lot of winter sports, …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. Most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at the potential impact of a Russia-Ukraine war on precious metals and commodities. Precious Metals: How will the U.S. respond if Russia invades Ukraine? Implications for gold, oil, and stocks. JWR’s Comment: Retired USMC Colonel Harold Kempfer has a good grasp of both strategy and tactics. His assessment is correct. …