Letter Re: Seeking Advice on Discreet Carry Money Belts

Hi James, When I traveled in Europe, I found the inside-the-waist, in-front-of-your-crotch travel pouches sold by REI and the like to be very useful for passport, ID, etc., although they do get a bit hot and whenever they get out of position, it’s hard to avoid the urge to mark yourself by adjusting them. Trying to do so in public can also get you some very strange looks. Because of all this I’ve refrained from wearing them when at home in the States, but I’m missing the comforting feeling of having extra cash and essential documents discreetly hidden. I’m imagining …


Letter Re: Building Strength for WTSHTF Preparedness

Dear SurvivalBloggers: Modern images of strength conjure up big pectorals and biceps and perhaps a set of 6 pack abs but are these the muscles we need to develop for WTSHTF? No, not really. Here’s some ideas of the less romantic parts that would be useful to work on now. 1) Hand and forearm strength: Gripping, grappling and weapon retention come to mind. Consider how many things we would have to use our hands for if there were no power (and no power tools). Kneading dough, screwing screws, pulling ropes. Do you have the grip strength to carry two 5 …


Letter Re: A Useful Heated Steel Color Emission Chart

Dear Jim, That chart that you posted on Saturday only applies to steel alloys. At a given temperature, oxidation will show those colors. The brighter colors are incandescent colors that are emission, not absorption colors. This is a good reference for heat treating metal, but only works if you know the alloy in question. It is actually best to use that chart on overcast days or in shadow. Bright sun will generally cause one to excessively heat in the incandescent range, leading to red-shortness, cracks, decarburizing and burning. – Michael Z. Williamson


Odds ‘n Sods:

Congolese behind rebel lines try to return home. Once again, we see that the last thing you want to be is a refugee–or an “Internally Displaced Person” (IDP) in the modern parlance.    o o o Ted suggested this article over at Gold-Eagle, by Scott Wright: Commodities Bull Market?    o o o Reader Marsha U. asked about a good place to find full capacity magazines for her FN PS90 and HK93. (She notes: “I feel the need to stock up well before Bush leaves office.” ) For commercial vendors, I recommend CDNN Sports. For finding private sellers, I recommend …



Note from JWR:

There are just a few days left in the pre-election 33% off sale for the “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course. This course only rarely goes on sale, so don’t miss out on the discount price! BTW, the demand has been so great that a rush printing had to be scheduled. There may be brief delay before some of the most recent orders are shipped.


Letter Re: A Useful Heated Steel Color Emission Chart

Dear James: I came across this table in a reference book and thought it may be useful to everyone. Note: This chart should not be used as a guide to combating fires. Remember all fires are dangerous, and you should call the fire department, if that is a possibility, when you see flames. All degrees are in Fahrenheit below. Yellow 450 degrees Fahrenheit Brown to Purple 550 degrees Fahrenheit Blue 600 degrees Fahrenheit Faint Red 900 degrees Fahrenheit Dark Cherry Red 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit Full Cherry Red 1,400 degrees Fahrenheit Salmon 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit Lemon 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. White 2,200 …


Letter Re: Prisons and Other Institutions Amidst a Societal Collapse?

Hello Jim, I work at a Correctional Facility. It is a Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) prison with some 1,900 inmates currently housed. Our facility is cross-fenced inside with a 12 foot fence topped with the military razor wire. Yes, you can get across it but you are going to pay a price. They have tried that here and the one that got across would have died in hours from the cuts without an emergency room. I have experienced a full blown riot. This was only 98 prisoners but they trashed the whole mess hall and it spilled out into …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Ready Made Resources (one of our original advertisers) just launched an unusual 25% off sale on Mountain House and AlpenAire freeze-dried foods. Unlike many storage food dealers, they actually keep considerable stock in-hand. This is a limited-time offer, so don’t delay in placing your orders!    o o o They say a picture is with a thousand words. Well, these photos are worth 100 Billion: Chuck mailed us a link to a series of amazing photos from Zimbabwe, posted at blogoncherry. Make sure that you scroll all the way down to see the Z$100 Billion note. I suppose that next …



Note from JWR:

Round 19 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. is still underway.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. Remember that articles that …


Letter Re: Warning on Insect Pests Getting Into Storage Food

Dear Jim, I thought that due to the recent influx of newbies on your site, I would send this warning to not do as I did. Last year, I lost a lot of my stored food as I left it in the original packets in which it was shipped. I ended up with a major infestation of cupboard beetles, losing food and having to steam clean my cupboards. The bad news is thee bugs reproduce unbelievably quickly. The good news is the die just as quickly, and won’t harm you if you eat them, but they sure are unsightly. It’s …


Letter Re: The Least Expensive Way to Stock Up on Storage Food?

Sir, In regards to TJD, “Somewhere in Kansas” lamenting that he is in the middle of nowhere and can’t easily stock up on food, I must say I find his worries a bit hard to understand. In the Bible, Joseph stored up seven years of harvests to prepare for seven years of famine. Those stores were made up of grain crops. That is how Egypt made it through a great famine and gained great wealth by selling their grain at high rates to nations that did not prepare. Being from North Dakota, I know that the title for greatest wheat …


Letter Re: Market Observations From The Trader Blog

Mr. Rawles – Thank you for your recent mention of my site, TheTraderBlog.com. I am a former Lehman Brothers employee, I worked in New York City on the FX trading desk, but left in 2002, so I am glad to have missed all the recent excitement. I publish my blog in an effort to help me reason through my personal trading strategies, and also like to share my opinion about the markets and related events in general. I have not yet figured out how to make any money off of the site, so for now it is just a great …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Reader Mark A. wrote us to mention that he had found this web site that houses “more information then in one spot then I have seen anywhere else. The site is maintained to provide Third World countries information on farming and sustainability. All their information is free to download. Note, however that their ZIP files are very, very large. There are 4,000 titles, totaling 13 gigabytes.”    o o o In a recent e-mail, The Chartist Gnome mentioned two things about the precious metals market that confirm my observations: 1.) The COMEX spot prices now have no correlation with “real …