Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader James M. sent us this safety note: If making a smoker conversion to a discarded refrigerator (as described in a recent posted link), “make sure to use only chrome-plated racks. The-zinc plated racks will react with the acids in the food and toxify the food being smoked.”    o o o I found this at Fleet Street Daily: Introducing Gideon Gono, a Proven Deflation Fighter (“Zimbabwe’s inflation estimated at 89.7 sextillion percent”.) And now, from Cheryl, our volunteer Economic Editor: Black Friday Shoppers Out in Force, But Cautious — Wal-Mart Employee Dies as Shoppers Stampede (A Wal-Mart employee died …



Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 19 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The contest prizes include: First Prize: The writer of the best contributed article will be awarded two transferable Front Sight  “Gray” Four Day Training Course Certificates. This is an up to $4,000 value! Second Prize: A three day course certificate from OnPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. Third Prize: A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing Round 19 ends on November 30th, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry …


Gardening and Seed Saving, by Carolyn W.

I see some people making choices that concern me because these choices may cause them problems if they really have to survive on the food supplies that they have stored for TEOTWAWKI. I am no great expert, but my husband and I have been concerned about the possibilities of having an economic disruption since the early 1970s when a friend let us borrow some tapes by Robert Preston. We have learned quite a bit, but still have a long way to go. If this article can at least encourage people to actually try to grow a garden and save seeds …


Letter Re: Seeking Advice on Storing Guns and Magazines

Mr. Rawles, I have taken your good advice and purchase a few rifles and a number of full capacity magazines as an investment,. Now how do I store them for the long term? Should I spray them with something first? Please continue to help. – James B. (a “Ten Cent Challenge” participant) JWR Replies: The precautions that you need to take depend a lot on where you live. If you live in a high humidity climate, then you need to be particularly vigilant with your guns, magazines, and other tools. In essence: the higher the humidity, the greater the degree …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Tim in Baltimore found a great web site that shows how easy it is to make a variety of cheeses, as well as your buttermilk and yogurt.    o o o Experts call for global network to prevent asteroid disasters    o o o From the Economatrix comes some post-Thanksgiving reading to digest: For Stores, the Holiday Season May Already be Over — China’s Banks to Pump Billions into Economy — Torrent of Gloomy News Gives US Little to be Thankful For — Europe Needs Big Bailout to Put Economy Back on Track — UK Car Industry Chiefs Beg Gov’t …




Product Review: Ultramag .50 BMG Upper Kit for AR-15, by Michael Z. Williamson

I recently tested the Ultramag .50, manufactured by Safety Harbor Firearms (SHF) of Florida.The Ultramag .50 is a bolt action, side-fed magazine, .50 BMG upper that uses the AR-15 lower and trigger group. The two big advantages to this setup are that [in the US,] the Ultramag .50 [barreled upper receiver] requires no paperwork to purchase, and is not on record as a large caliber weapon, since it is bought strictly as “replacement parts.” As far as anyone is concerned, you own an AR-15, which can be more discreet if either purchased privately, or by using a forging such as …


Letter Re: Give Your Kids $100 Billion for Christmas: An Economics Lesson

Hi Mr. Rawles, Thanks for SurvivalBlog and for your novel “Patriots“. Both have been real eye-openers. I have several nieces & nephews that I (like many people, I’m sure) take care of on birthdays (and sometimes Christmas) with a card and some money enclosed. This year I thought it might be fun to send them 100 billion dollars along with the card and note. I looked around, and lo and behold, several people are selling Zimbabwean currency on eBay. Prices and denominations vary, and of course it costs millions (trillions?) percent more than it’s actually worth, but we’re still talking …


Two Letters Re: A Vehicular BoB

Mr. Editor: I have been a reader of this blog for a little while now and one of the earlier postings I read caught my eye: In regards to a vehicle “bug out” kit. That list was certainly a good place to start, but it was missing a few items, so I thought I would put my “two cents” worth in. To give you a little bit of background, I would describe myself as essentially being a realist. I watch the news, I read the papers. I know what is going on around me. I am aware of today’s political …


Odds ‘n Sods:

A brief update on magazine prices that I’ve observed in gun shops and at recent gun shows: M16 (AR-15) magazines have jumped from around $17 in October to close to $40 each. The hot seller in that category, BTW, seems to be MagPul PMAGs. The once cheap and plentiful US M1 Carbine 15 round magazines were under $3 each in the early 1990s. After the 1994-2004 Federal ban expired, they were around $8. But in just the past two weeks they’ve catapulted to $25. The so-called “SWAT” factory original 20 round SIG P226 magazines went from $36 to $60. “Glockamole” …



The Time Has Come to Cache Some Cash

Looking at the escalating global credit collapse it now appears to be precipitating global economic depression. I can foresee conditions in the United States getting far worse in the months to come. There is now a fairly high likelihood of a general banking panic, with a large number of bank failures. The next few years will most likely be marked by significant deflation, followed by a tremendous surge of consumer price inflation. (Much of the $7.7 Trillion in bailout money that Uncle Sugar has promised will be created via highly inflationary monetization.) As the Mother of All Bailouts (MOAB) grows, …


Letter Re: The Year Gift that Cards May Spell “Gotcha”

James, I stumbled over this, earlier this week, and I feel it may be of interest to you and your readers. Certainly, this warning needs to be passed around to as many as possible, here in the US. Many retail stores are planning on declaring bankruptcy after the holiday buying season is over. Many more are planning on closing down stores, once the holiday sales have emptied inventory. This means trouble for one of our newest ‘gift choices’, the Gift Card. Gift cards are not actual money. They are treated as “Unsecured Loans” from the purchaser, to the company who …