Note From JWR:

Today, we begin another SurvivalBlog benefit auction. This one is for a fully stocked M-17 Advanced Medical Bag (Backpack), donated by one of our most loyal advertisers, Ready Made Resources. This bag has a $179 retail value. Also included as a bonus is a 5 gram unit of Traumadex instant wound clotter (a $25 value.) Please submit your bids via e-mail. The opening bid is just $30!


Letter Re: Advice on Firearms Caching

Mr. R.: We started playing around with this eventuality in the 1990s.  A few observations: We buried old guns and cartridges in 155mm howitzer tubes (M82) in our garden, where they were regularly watered over. End-result ? With dessicant tins inside, they were A-OK after 6 months. Others buried out in the boonies, without regular water-challenge, were A-OK after 12 and 18 months. No rust. Cartridges went bang. Guns functioned flawlessly. We’d prepped them with ProLix, a non-petroleum based cleaner/lube/protectant. ( ProChemCo, ph. 800-248-LUBE ) I’ve tried most products and this is superior. I’ve cleaned scrupulously (can you say “OCD”? …


Letter Re: Get Ready While You Can, When You Can

Dear Mr. Rawles, Arguably, the first commandments of the preparedness movement is to get ready for bad times before they get here. However, it doesn’t have to be TEOTWAWKI for it to be too late, or darn close to it. I offer the following real life example to illustrate the point. I get a lot of sinus headaches, especially this time of year; what I have always relied on to relieve them is Tylenol Sinus formula. Traditionally, the active ingredients have been acetaminophen (for pain) and pseudo-ephedrine (for nasal decongestion). Because scum use the latter ingredient in making crystal meth, …


Odds ‘n Sods:

The next U.S. hurricane season: The government says “you’re on your own.”    o o o Thousands quarantined in Bucharest to stop spread of Asian Avian Flu.    o o o SurvivalBlog reader J.C.S. alerted us to an auction for 20 factory refurbished Motorola Talkabout T7200 NiMH GMRS 2-Way Radios on eBay for $69 USD each.    o o o The P-10 self-contained fallout shelter that I mentioned previously is still available on eBay. It appears that somebody with some foresight is going to get an $80,000 shelter for around $27,500.



Note from JWR:

And the winner of Round 4 is… “Northwest Huey”, for his article “Using Rechargeable Batteries”, which was posted to SurvivalBlog on May 30th. He will be mailed a transferable gray Front Sight Four Day Course Certificate. (It can also be used for two people to attend two day courses.) Congratulations! Meanwhile, Round 5 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest is already underway. Further congratulations to David M., the high bidder in the SurvivalBlog fund raiser book auction. Many thanks, sir, for your generous $200 bid. Kudos to Kurt and Angie Wilson of Survival Enterprises for donating their last copy of …


Letter Re: East Coast WTSHTF: You Can’t Get There From Here

Sir: In my role as “the good citizen” and amateur radio operator, I have just competed a state sponsored FEMA “Incident Command System” class (IC-700). My worst concerns regarding bugging out from my coastal home in Connecticut were confirmed at that class. Here in Connecticut we have no mass evacuation routes available or realistic plans in place to deal with a catastrophic scenario resulting in the exiting of the people who live in this area. You see we already have quite an impressive rush hour traffic pattern which as gotten geometrically worse over the past 30 years. Back in 1976, …


Letter Re: Recommendations on Flashlights and Battery Powered Lamps?

Jim, You recently endorsed reader recommendations for kerosene lamps.  What about flashlights and battery powered lamps?  Do you have any recommendations there?   I realize battery powered devices may have limited value in a long-term, grid-down scenario.  But what about short-term scenarios like a power outage associated with a hurricane–a few days or weeks? Best Regards, – d’Heat JWR Replies: The advent of white light emitting diodes (LEDs) in the 1990s revolutionized flashlight technology. Up until a couple of years ago, I would not have recommended buying an electric camping lantern, since they were such battery hogs. But now, a …


Letter Re: The Mainland Chinese Threat

Jim: While we pour blood and treasure onto the shifting Iraqi sands and frighten ourselves silly with the scarecrow of terrorism… Red China forges ahead with one of the greatest military buildups in history.   Jed Babbin and Ed Timberlake have put together a compelling case as to why we need to refocus our attention on the red giant.   Of particular interest is a 228 page document titled “Unrestricted Warfare“, written by Colonels Qaio Liang and Wang Xiangsui of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).   I fear we are living in the declining years of the American Republic. – …



David in Israel Re: Buckshot’s Survival Attitude Versus the “Commando” Survival Attitude

James: Just a quick response as I expect such responses after the pro .30-30 posts. 1- Outfit with a basic defensive firearm .30-30, SKS, 12 gauge, etc. 2- Take care of other more important survival purchases 3- When your budget allows upgrade to better defensive weapons 4- Don’t let ownership of exotic/military utility weapons make you believe you are a SEAL (the point of the .30-30 post) Unless defense is the most pressing danger, then don’t sink your whole survival budget into guns if you can already accomplish that mission with existing arms. Most of us enjoy firearms and we …


Letter From Buckshot Re: Housing Bubble Schizophrenia

Hi Jim, I was over on Realtor.com and checking on housing prices for the bubble. On the right hand side was books advertisements. The first one listed was Cash in on the Coming Real Estate Crash, the second book was Learn How to Profit from Foreclosures Without Risking Your Savings! the books are from Wiley real estate.   Talk about Wiley Coyote stepping off the cliff on part of the page they are trying to sell houses and the other part they are saying Real Estate is going to crash. Only in America. Here’s the link to Wiley


Letter Re: Firearms Training and Subsequent Practice

Jim: Reading the letter from the gentleman who mentioned on all the western states instruction opportunities compared to the eastern ones, I noticed my all-time favorite instructor was not mentioned: Pat Goodale, of Practical Firearms Training. His primary range is located in West Virginia, and I wholeheartedly recommend his courses. Last year I decided I was slacking off with my practice and signed up for a full summer of his courses (he also owns a company in Montana, so there are courses offered here as well). I took Defensive Handgun I, II, and III, Precision Rifle, Tactical Rifle, and will …


Odds ‘n Sods:

Trading on the new Russian RTS oil and gold bourse begins June 8th. The transactions will be denominated in Euros. Sound familiar? This does not bode well for the U.S. Dollar.    o o o The US DoD Upgrades its Assessment of the Chinese Military Threat.    o o o Here in the U.S., the unsold house inventory backlog jumped to 565,000 in April. The housing bubble has popped. There are no more bidding wars for houses. Now its price cut after price cut. In the coastal markets, I anticipate a race to the bottom, most likely starting in September …