Learning How To Be a Marksman – Part 2, by Tunnel Rabbit

(Continued from Part 1.) The Killing Power of Firearms: More is Better The 20 gauge or 12 gauge shotgun and semi-auto handgun is a good combination for close-quarters combat or with home defense distances of 35 yards or less. If using Federal Flight Control buckshot, the maximum effective distance can be 50 yards. A modified to full choke can also extend the range of the shotgun. A shotgun loaded with buckshot shells can stop the fight instantaneously. If you hit somewhere in the torso, it would be lights out and they will drop like a sack of potatoes, dead before …


Learning How To Be a Marksman – Part 1, by Tunnel Rabbit

I taught myself to shoot at an early age on my Grandma’s farm. I do not understand how or why, or if it was natural or instinctive. As I look back, I simply cannot imagine how I knew what do to. I did not have a father or older male relative to teach me. The same thing happens when I am engaged in carpentry or similar work today. Often it is better to simply stop thinking and just do it, and it just happens. It is scary to see how this manifests itself as I see the project come together …


Field Intelligence Collection – Part 6, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 5. This concludes the article.) Scent and Touch Smells and tactile input generally won’t provide a lot of significant intelligence by themselves, but there may be instances where they could be useful. For example, the smell of smoke can be detected from a long distance away, especially if you’re downwind from the source. If you’re patrolling and you smell smoke, make a note at the location using OsmAnd and include the current wind direction – that way if you don’t have time to check it out immediately it can be added as a ‘to be investigated’ item …


Field Intelligence Collection – Part 5, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 4.) Another potential standalone camera option is one of those inexpensive infrared night vision cameras. While their primary function is night vision, they can also be used to take pictures during the day. Here’s a sample from a GVDA GD900, which is a compact night vision device with a 12MP sensor and 4X digital zoom that costs around $50:


Field Intelligence Collection – Part 4, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 3.) Map Markers are similar to Favorites but much simpler, since they don’t allow you define a custom name or add them to a group. Markers are designed to allow you to plan a route, but they can be very useful for documenting the route you’re taking. Adding a Marker is similar to adding a Favorite – tap and hold your current location, then click on the ‘Marker’ (triangular flag) option on the bottom pop-up menu. A colored Marker flag will be added to that location; note that the color of the flag will automatically change for …


Field Intelligence Collection – Part 3, by J.M.

By using a standardized set of tags you’ll ensure everyone’s notes are categorized consistently, which makes it a lot easier to manage a lot of notes from a lot of different people on your home Intel system. Every note should have at least one standard tag in it. I recommend that you use separate smaller notes for each separate observation or thought instead of having a single large note with a lot of different tags in it, which simplifies management. This ensures that each note file will have its own unique creation date/time, which helps with understanding timelines when you’re …


Field Intelligence Collection – Part 2, by J.M.

(Continued from Part 1.) There are also a variety of different types of image collection devices that the lenses sit in front of to view and process the light coming through the lens: Mark I eyeball – Many types of lens devices like binoculars are designed to be held directly up to your eyes, typically to allow you to view things at a distance. Digital Single Lens Reflex (DLSR) cameras – These are large-body cameras that have interchangeable lenses and lots of advanced bells and whistles. Compact digital camera – Smaller digital cameras with built-in lenses. Cell phone camera – …


Field Intelligence Collection – Part 1, by J.M.

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.” – Sun Tzu, The Art of War In a post-disaster scenario, your survival and the survival of those you care about is going to depend heavily on several factors: Skills and experience – Knowing how to perform tasks that are critical to survival Mindset – The ability to face reality and take appropriate actions Resources – Having the right equipment, tools, and supplies Information – Knowing what’s going on around you and how it impacts you While the first three have been …


Observations on an Attempted Assassination, by R.G.

What a world we live in when we are given evidence that we cannot believe our government institutions. This assassination attempt keeps getting crazier and crazier. This is proof before our eyes that we are currently living in a world of disinformation and subterfuge. In the days of Kennedy and Reagan, the alphabet agencies could get away with something like this. But with smartphones and social media of today, it becomes infinitely harder to attempt an assassination and then get away with it. I am a retired quality assurance manager who in my past life specialized in determining what went …


Growing and Preparing Dried Beans – Part 1, by A.F.

Do you remember your first assigned chore from childhood? Starting at age four, I was tasked with walking up the ridge to my grandparent’s home every Monday around five o’clock to bring home our portion of the week’s pinto beans. To my knowledge, my grandmother fixed pintos every Monday from the late 1940s through the late 1990s. On Sunday evening she would spill out the dry beans on her kitchen table, then “look them” for stones or debris then sweep them into a large bowl to soak overnight. On Monday morning the beans were rinsed, moved into a large pot, …


Prepper Outreach – An Example, by PrepperDoc

Most movements or organizations require some form of “outreach” in order to grow – or even to avoid getting smaller! Perhaps one of the only group to gain ever larger adherents without any form of outreach…..is the cemetery! Political parties, private schools, certainly retail establishments, hospitals, and pharmaceutical companies all understand that outreach is part and parcel of growing their income and influence in a society. The survivalist/prepper movement has traditionally left outreach to the purveyors of related products. Preferring anonymity and eschewing public recognition, leadership and followers alike have avoided any form of outreach. But Christian love and compassion …


Vacuum Sealers: For More Than Just Food, by 3AD Scout

We have had a Vacuum Sealer for over two decades having received it as a wedding gift. Although we originally used it for food storage over the years we have found other things to vacuum seal for survival. Here are some of our thoughts and experiences on vacuum sealers For Prepper Food Storage When we first got our vacuum sealer I started sealing up white rice. I did packages with two cups of rice and then placed them inside a five-gallon food-grade bucket. As time went on we started to seal up five cup packages as well. The two-cup packages …


Solar Powered Water Pumps: The Shurflo 9325, by Tunnel Rabbit

This article is in response to a question that I received from another blog reader, that was forwarded to me by the SurvivalBlog staff. Reader O.S. had written, to ask: “I would like to ask a question regarding your Aug 4th, Survival Blog article in the water section.  You mentioned an “inexpensive Shurflo model number 9325″.  I would like to confirm that the model number is exactly the one you are noting.  The reason is, the best price I can find online is $895 at this location: https://thesolarstore.com/shurflo-9300-submersible-solar-water-well-pump-12-24v-model-9325-043-101-p-500.html Other dealers have even higher prices.  When you noted “inexpensive”, it led …


Basic Sewing: Cloning Clothes – Part 3 , by N.C.

(Continued from Part 2.  This concludes the article.) Front And Back Seams Now you have two separate pieces and each piece (left and right) has one completed French seam. You can pick front or back for the next seam, I will show with the back. To join them into a single 4-panel piece of cloth use the same French seam procedure. The only difference is to start at the top and only go down the sharp angle Figure 17.   Right sides out, pin from the waistband area down to the sharp angle. Sew with a running stitch. Flip the …


Basic Sewing: Cloning Clothes – Part 2 , by N.C.

(Continued from Part 1.) Figures 4 and 5 (below) show a little more of the process of tracing. Note that the shorts themselves are moving around a fair bit.                     Figure 6 shows that using this method of keeping parallel to the seam you will wind up with a gap. That’s not a big deal. Extend the lines out and you’ll be done drafting the pattern. The little error here doesn’t matter. Extend the lines and you’ll be fine. Then cut the pieces out.