Letter Re: Long Distance Vision and Night Vision

Dear Sirs, I really enjoy reading your blog, but I have a question to ask you. I am blind in my right eye and I am having trouble trying to find a long distant vision and night vision for a one-eyed person. Do you have any suggestions? – R.H. HJL’s Comment: The PVS-14, carried by several of our advertisers, is an excellent choice for night vision. It is a monocle and is used on only one eye. It is commonly worn on the dominate eye, allowing the non-dominate eye to be used for peripheral vision. Without the use of your …


A Micro Solar Power System With Maximum Utility, by B.C.

Necessity being the mother of invention, I recently stumbled backwards onto an inexpensive and truly totable way to power two-way radios, shortwave, and other receivers; charge smart phones and iPads; provide lighting; quickly purify water on the go; keep night vision functional; enable electronic security systems; and pump rainwater to a gravity tank, while protecting all these functions from EMP in the interim. I will quietly be turning 50 next month. I joined the survivalist movement in the early 1980’s, at the tail end of that upswing of interest in such things. Vietnam was still fresh in our minds, and …


Letter Re: Using EMP-Hardened HF Ham Radio

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Hugh, I strongly recommend against using any Heathkit rig for an emergency radio. There was one solid state Heathkit but it was a rebadged, factory assembled Yaesu. All others were built by an individual, whose attention to detail you most likely have no idea about. They are known in the hobby as “GRIEF kits” for a GOOD reason. They fail – early, and often. They have too many disadvantages for the emergency backup purpose. Besides all the ones mentioned by the original author: They have high (LETHAL) voltages inside. They require 120V AC power. They have no cooling fan on …


Building An Infrared Triplight (and Other Ideas), by ShepherdFarmerGeek

Here’s an idea for how to build a tripline-activated infrared light that will illuminate a path or area when triggered. The person passing through will not know they have triggered it, and an observer with a night vision device will be able to see the person better than with only ambient light and without activating their own infrared source/spotlight. Why set up triplights? The reasons would be to: (a) alert you to the approach of someone at night, (b) to help you identify the approaching person(s), and possibly even (c) to help you target the approaching person if you absolutely, …


Letter Re: Lost Knowledge

Hugh, My great grandmother was born in the late 1800’s and was raised in an orphanage in a rural area. This orphanage had an on-site school where, in addition to the 3R’s, all the girls were required to learn to “Cook, Clean, Sew, Crochet, and Knit”. All of the boys were required to learn to farm and master carpentry skills. At aged 16 ,when she graduated school and left the orphanage, she was equipped to run a household and earn a living as a seamstress. My great grandmother lived through the 1918-1919 flu pandemic and a typhoid outbreak. She died …


The Prepper’s American Dream: A Practical Guide To Strategic Relocation- Part 3, by Charles T.

Land: Does the area you are moving to offer an improvement from your current residential situation? How fertile is the ground, if you are planning on gardening? Are there regulations on livestock or farming activities, if you plan on farming? What is the cost of living, compared to your current location? Is the housing market higher or lower compared to your current location? Are property taxes higher or lower in your location? Is the kind of house/property you would like to purchase readily available? Do houses tend to stay on the market for a long time, or is the resell …



The Prepper’s American Dream: A Practical Guide To Strategic Relocation- Part 2, by Charles T.

Planning a relocation When my wife and I realized that our current location was not where we wanted to stay long term, we had to take the hard step of figuring out where else to go. To do this, we leaned heavily on the core values we had identified for ourselves. We began our relocation pursuit by identifying that we were looking for somewhere that met the following criteria: We could afford to purchase a house on one salary. We could afford to have my wife stay at home with kids. There were mountains and plentiful outdoor spaces to explore. …


Letter Re: Hoof Trimming Piece

Hugh, Please pass my thanks to Charles T. for that. Interestingly, I had just come from the Oklahoma Horseshoeing School, having gotten one of my horses shod, when I opened the website and saw that piece. While waiting for the horse, I visited with a student from Mississippi, one from Wisconsin, and one from Colorado. They were in the 13-week class. After that intense training, they know their craft. A number of students were making horseshoes at the forge. It’s nice to know that ancient art is alive and well. – F.T.


The Prepper’s American Dream: A Practical Guide To Strategic Relocation- Part 1, by Charles T.

If you closed your eyes and pictured your ideal bug out location, what would your mind’s eye see? You’d probably see green grass, blue skies, rolling hills, fertile farmland, your family, friendly neighbors, and a basement stocked with a thousand years of food and supplies. Now, open your eyes. Is that what surrounds you now? If not, then why not? Are you stuck in a job, weighed down by family obligations, struggling with debt, or just filled with fear? Many of us have an idea of what we want in life and what we think would be best for our …


Letter Re: Hobbit Houses

Hugh, I looked at these houses you can bury. We found a few areas of concern. They are joined together in such a way that we were concerned about leakage. Also, you can only bury in about 6″ to 8″ of dirt, which doesn’t give much protection. We are planning to get InterShelter Domes. They come in 14′ diameter or 20′ diameter, and domes can be attached to each other to make bigger dwellings. InterShelter Domes withstand hurricane force winds, earthquakes, and require no maintenance. InterShelter Domes are made of aerospace fiberglass, and you would have to hold a blow …


Recipe of the Week: Corn Pudding

Ingredients: 3 slightly beaten eggs 2 cups cooked or canned whole kernel corn, drained 2 cups milk, scalded 1 Tbsp instant minced onion 1 Tbsp melted butter 1 tsp sugar 1 tsp salt Directions: Combine ingredients and pour into a greased 1½ qt baking dish (or any baking dish that fits into a 4½ quart or larger slow cooking pot). Cover with foil or a lid (but do not use plastic). Set a metal rack or trivet on the bottom of the slow cooking pot. Pour 4 cups of hot water in the pot. Set the baking dish on the …


Letter Re: How To Trim Your Horse’s Feet

Hugh, There’s a lot of good information in the article on trimming horses’ feet. The old saw is “no hoof, no horse.” So you have to be able to provide good hoof care. I don’t have the education or breadth of experience that RB does, but I’ve been trimming my band of horses for more than 20 years. I’ve found some things over the years that make things easier that folks may want to consider. I prefer to trim sitting down. I’ve never developed the skill that lets me trim comfortably standing the way a farrier does. I bought a …


How To Trim Your Horse’s Feet- Part 2, by R.B.

Using the Hoof Knife The next step is cutting away dead sole at the toe to find the white line. Dead sole is hard, flaky, and depending on the moisture of the foot may come out with little effort. If you live in a dry area, I recommend watering down an area about 10 feet in diameter around your horse’s water trough for about a week before you do your trimming. This way, every time they drink they will stand in water and mud, which will soak into the sole and make the trim a lot less work. After cutting …


Letter Re: Amazon Discussion

Hugh, Another great Amazon tool isn’t really Amazon at all. To determine whether today’s price is the best price, copy the item’s URL and go to camelcamelcamel.com. There, you’ll be able to see a historical chart of the item’s price and set up a notification when the item reaches the price you’re comfortable with (not only on Amazon but with third party sellers as well, if you’re so inclined). Camelcamelcamel.com is a great tool, if you don’t need to buy it today, for those items that may be more costly and in your budget at a lower price. – Dayzymom