Body Armor Basics, by Raskolnikov

It’s always struck me as odd that we often think of defensive preps almost exclusively as involving firearms. Don’t get me wrong, I love guns. I’ve taken courses and train regularly so I can use them effectively if the need should ever arise. But in a gunfight, the bullets don’t just go in one direction. Often, they come back at you as well. Today, we’re going to talk about how we can protect ourselves with various types of body armor or ballistic protection. We’ll talk about some of the basics of body armor, how it works, what options are available, …


Springfield Hellcat Review, by G.L.W.

I am an amateur shooter at best and three years new to concealed carry. My goal is to give you my impressions of this newly-introduced gun and hopefully assist anyone considering one of these “micro-compact” handguns. I am in no way affiliated with Springfield Armory. After beginning our family in 2015, it was clear that the best, most responsible way for us to protect ourselves was to relocate us into the beautiful American Redoubt. You can be protected by the biggest arsenal, but in my mind, if your own local government is against you, you are at a disadvantage. Following …


Finding The Right German Shepherd, by John Adrain

I don’t profess to be a writer or the authority on German Shepherd dogs. But I can share almost four decades of experience with my German Shepherds. Growing up in Ohio, one of my first experiences with dogs was with Golden Retrievers. They are fantastic loving dogs, and you’re more likely to be struck by lightning than bit by a Golden Retriever. However, if you want a dog to protect your family, they are pretty much worthless. They are more likely to roll over and piddle than protect you. We had a female, which is generally more protective than males, …


Vehicle Preparation – Part 1, by Traveling Mechanic

Like what seems to be most of SurvivalBlog readers, I am stuck near a city by the need to work. I have an exit plan (a.k.a. Bug-Out plan) that we are following. I decided to share some aspects of our actions. If you do the suggested vehicle maintenance and repair work then this will assist you to avoid being broken down along the road during your Bug Out exit. These checks and corrections will also benefit by eliminating typical defects that arise in normal use. The beginning part of each check is an inspection of your Bug-Out Vehicle (BOV). I …


What if a Riot Comes Down My Street? , by T.S. in Ohio

A few weeks ago, I jumped on SurvivalBlog hoping to see discussions about the riots and good ideas being shared but I was very surprised with such a major disaster unfolding to see that there was barely a mention about the riots. (Sorry, I meant “mostly peaceful protests”!) But I was glad to see the discussion pick up a few days ago with the article titled: Is It Time to Worry? by Jim S. because I believe these riots and the groups behind them are the most “clear and present danger” that the citizens of America currently face. I believe …


Leadership: Who Will Really Fight?, by J.D.

As of late I have been pondering who amongst us –meaning Americans– will really be willing to pick up their rifles or pistols and defend their neighborhoods, homes, and families when it’s apparent that help, i.e. 911 is not going to be an option. I was recently at a large Christian campout that had a shooting range with a long table and roof. There was a large amount of brass on the ground and we were all having a good time sending lead downrange. Although I was encouraged to see the number of people that were exercising their second amendment …


Adventures in Central Texas Gardening – Part 2, by Lisa

(Continued from Part 1. This concludes the article.) — First let’s go over how I built my raised beds. The materials needed for 1 raised bed are: 4 – 8-foot landscape timbers (try to find the ‘untreated’ type) 3 – 12 in by 1 in by 8 foot yellow pine (untreated) 1 ½ – 1 ¾ inch deck screws 2 – 3-inch deck screws 8 – small “L” brackets (approx. 2 inches) 4 – 7 in. 16-Gauge Galvanized Reinforcing L-Angle – Note: I am not a professional carpenter and I was shopping at my local ‘mom and pop’ hardware store …


Adventures in Central Texas Gardening – Part 1, by Lisa

As a child growing up in North Texas, my family was of the Depression era. We raised beef for the freezer, milked our cow for milk, raised chickens for both meat and eggs, raised a hog occasionally but always had a huge garden. I can’t tell you how many times I spent a summer day picking green beans on what seemed like the endless rows of the ½ acre garden. Of course, as I grew older, being the typical teen, I couldn’t wait to leave the country and move up in the world to the big city, which I did. …


Be Ready to Repair Your Rifles, by O.T.D.

There is nothing like the joy of acquiring another firearm and more ammo. Once you are approaching that magic number of firearms and ammo you think you need, what could go wrong? You have taken each firearm to the range and have run it through the paces. You can shoot straight, quickly, and are having a great old time. Your ammo stocks are enough to support at least a squad of infantry. As I shoot more and use different firearms I have a better feeling of which rifles run better as far as ease of use, and are less prone …


Inexpensive Expanding 7.62×39 Ammunition, by Tunnel Rabbit

Most people have ARs that they do not know how to keep running long term. If folks will not get the training needed to keep the AR reliable, then they would be far better off with an AK variant rifle or carbine. I have both.  My handloaded 5.56×45 ammunition using Hornady 55 grain FMJ bullets with 23.4 grains of IMR 3031 powder is right at 1 minute of angle (MOA), and 2,900 feet per second (fps) out of a 16-inch barrel.  I would have used a soft point, but the FMJ was all that was available for the trade made …


Hawkeye’s First Gun – Part 1, by The Novice

We saw images of looting and burning everywhere. In the midst of chaos, some civic leaders promised to eliminate their police department. Other civic leaders abandoned a portion of their city to anarchists. The world seemed to be going mad. Some people paid attention. They decided they needed to take steps to protect themselves from the madness. One of these people was my friend, “Hawkeye.” He stopped by my office one day, concerned about what he was seeing in the news. He asked, “Can you help me find a gun for home defense?” I knew Hawkeye was from a family …


How to Teach Situational Awareness to Children – Part 3, by T.Y.

(Continued from Part 2.) In part two of this series, I listed age-appropriate ideas for introducing situational awareness and preparedness concepts to children. In Part 3 and 4 of this series, I’ll share actual games you can play with your children, including objectives, instructions, and assessment criteria. Since we don’t want to alarm our children, it can be difficult to talk with them about what to do if there is an emergency. After all, children need to know they are safe, and we parents want more than anything to make sure they both feel safe and are safe. But we …


How to Teach Situational Awareness to Children – Part 2, by T.Y.

(Continued from Part 1.) In Part 1 of this series, I covered why it’s critical that we teach situational awareness preparedness skills to children. The way I like to do that is with age-appropriate games, and I’m excited to share some of those games with you. But before I cover the actual preparedness games, I’d like to share some suggested survival skills appropriate for various age groups. However, you know your child, so it’s up to you to decide what skills you want him or her to know and how you want to teach those skills. I hope this list …


How to Teach Situational Awareness to Children – Part 1, by T.Y.

(Part 1 of 5) Until I was four years old my family lived in the “old house.” It was a wooden, four-room cabin overlooking a mountain stream. My grandfather built the cabin in the 1940s. When we wanted a drink of water we walked to our spring, filled a bucket and toted it home. If grandma needed hot water she had to start a fire first. While my sister and I played outside in the dirt, grandma cleaned clothes on a washboard in the creek and wrung them dry. She let us “help” when she churned butter or shucked corn, …


Is It Time To Worry?, by Jim S.

All the readers of this blog have been preparing. Prepping for disasters, both man-made and natural. We even prepped for Financial Crises and Economic collapse. But were we anticipating an insurrection? Not really. We all on this blog believe in America, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. We also believed the American Dream and that our way of life would survive almost any disaster. Now come groups, mostly college-educated that say America is 100% racist, amoral, evil and their solution is to destroy it. “BURN IT TO THE GROUND” says the BLM New York City leader. Last week I …