Category: Field Gear

Two Letters Re: Advice on Chainsaws

James: Probably the best [chain]saws on the market are Stihl and Husqvarna. Unfortunately, as noted previously, they use a lot of plastic in the construction of them today. One design feature you need to look at very carefully is the handle bar and how it is mounted to the saw. I own an 046 Magnum Stihl, which is supposed to be one of Stihl’s upper end, “pro” model saws. The handle bar wraps around to the right side and mounts with two self tapping screws into the gas tank. Any blow to the top of the handlebar results in shearing …


“Zeroing In” Your Bugout Bag, by SF in Hawaii

Last week my wife told me that another couple had gotten reservations at the cabins at Haleakela State Park for the Labor Day Weekend. We would hike across the crater floor, then down the Kaupo Gap. These are hard to come by and since we were invited, I felt we had to go. Great, a chance to try out my bug out bag. I gave my feet a liberal and prophylactic spraying of anti-fungal medication (a ritual I would end up doing every morning on that trip) and put on my Bug-Out Bag (BOB). Before we left, I unscrewed the …


Letter Re: Advice on CONEX Storage, and Preventing Damage to Stored Items

I really enjoy your site and books and regularly recommend your work to a number of friends. Due to a job transfer I will be moving from my retreat to a large metropolitan area. I purchased a [Continental Express] shipping container (CONEX) to store some of my preparation items I will not need or be able to transport/store. Do you or your readers have any experience storing saddles/tack, wood items in a CONEX? Bulk food packed in 5 gallon buckets? How about soft goods (clothing, blankets etc.) in steel 55 gal drums placed inside the container? My main concern is …


Letter Re: The Importance of Stocking Up on Batteries

James: I have been corresponding with an infantry soldier (E-6 [pay grade]) in Iraq named Ray that I met through AnySoldier.com. BTW, thanks for running that free ad for them on SurvivalBlog. All those “forgotten” soldiers need our real support–not just a “Support Our Troops” yellow ribbon magnet on the backs of our cars. In the last 8 or 9 months I have sent more than 30 “care packages” in [Priority Mail] Flat Rate boxes to [AnySoldier.com addressees in] Iraq and Afghanistan. In our e-mails, one of the things that Ray mentioned a couple of times really impressed me: It …


Letter Re: Useful LifeHacker Articles

Sir: A recent entry on your blog from ‘Tanker’ gave the link to a video on the Lifehacker web site. The last video he mentioned was made by a poster named KipKay. I have been a fan of KipKay’s for several months. He posts regularly on Metacafe.com. Incidentally, for each video he is paid and he has made approximately $55,000 from his creations. He has several videos that may be of interest to your audience. Below are the links and a brief description of each. Please decide if any of these merit inclusion on your blog. His official web site …


Letter Re: Alcohol Stoves

Jim, I found this very cool German-made alcohol stove called the Turm Touring. I’ve never seen anything like it before. Took it home put some alcohol in the brass tank and lit the burner. It really works well. I got a nice blue flame; lots of heat from this little single burner stove. Very interesting design; no pressure! You don’t have to pump up a tank with air like the Coleman stoves. Then reading some more I found this web site: SpiritBurner.com Very interesting and seems like something a survival type person would be interested in. – Fred The Valmet-meister


Letter Re: Useful LifeHacker Articles

Mr. Rawles: There are so many great and not-so-great ideas on the LifeHacker site including this one I found showing you how to use C cell batteries in place of a D cell compartment in an emergency situation: There are some other interesting things on this site like creating make-shift air conditioning systems using cold well water (others have made emergency air conditioners using beverage coolers, fans and copper coils): DIY Heat Exchanger and Make Your Own Air Conditioner. There is this one showing you how someone made hand washing more efficient while filling the tank of his toilet. [JWR …


Letter Re: A Nearby Wildfire Was My Preparedness Wake up Call

James: Don’t know if the callow-youth angle is of interest to your readers, but I dashed this off after a recent wildfire alert: This evening around 5:30 there were reports of a fire very near my home. Wildfires around here can get interesting quick, especially this late in the year with plenty of dry fuel waiting around. I thought we might have to Get out of Dodge and so I ordered the wife to pack up the paperwork and prep the munchkin for a few days field trip. Error. Wife does not respond well to orders, and she judged the …


Letter Re: Povidone (Betadine) Will Be Exempted from the New U.S. Iodine Ban But Polar Pure Will Not

Jim, I was reading through FR Doc E7-12736 (Federal Register: July 2, 2007, Volume 72, Number 126, Rules and Regulations, Page 35920-35931, online at your link this morning when I found this language at the bottom of the document: Sec. 1310.12 Exempt chemical mixtures. … (4) Iodine products classified as iodophors that exist as an iodine complex to include poloxamer-iodine complex, polyvinyl pyrrolidone-iodine complex (i.e., povidone-iodine), undecoylium chloride iodine, nonylphenoxypoly (ethyleneoxy) ethanol-iodine complex, iodine complex with phosphate ester of alkylaryloxy polyethylene glycol, and iodine complex with ammonium ether sulfate/polyoxyethylene sorbitan monolaurate. It appears that Betadine and some other organic iodine …


Letter From David in Israel: On Bootlaces

James I remember hearing an ex-army friend comment that he would always remove the laces from his boots and replace them with 550 parachute cord. His reason was that he could remove the laces and make survival stuff from the inner strands. If a person is in the military and has a steady source of 500 cord to replace their laces every other month in the field hen this is a good idea… Until they have to do real SERE and they are unable to replace the laces when they wear out. A survivor has priorities than having seven tiny …


What if The Schumer Doesn’t Hit The Fan? – Reasons to Prepare Anyway, by MB

As long as I can remember, I have felt that someday the comforts of a modern American lifestyle would vanish, at least temporarily. So I have made small mental preparations for some time now; keeping my mind and body fit and strong, staying informed, dropping hints to the wife, etc. Recently, and mostly after reading Patriots, I have a renewed interest in preserving my life and protecting those I love. After educating myself on the subject of survival, I felt, as I’m sure many others have, very vulnerable and even overwhelmed. I needed to take action, immediately. Many thoughts spring …


Product Review: SteriPEN UV Light Portable Water Sterilizer

The folks at Safecastle recently sent us a SteriPEN Adventurer, charging case, and pre-filter for evaluation. Our #1 Son tested them in the secret laboratory beneath the JASBORR. Here are his findings: Model Tested: SteriPEN Adventurer The SteriPEN uses an ultraviolet light to sterilize microbes in water. The pen can treat water in 1 liter batches, in only 90 seconds. It runs on standard CR123 batteries, which are becoming ubiquitous. (A plus for anyone that already stocks these batteries for their tactical lights and/or lasers.) USE: You just push the power button, put it into a bottle of clean water, …


Cutlery Considerations for TEOTWAWKI, by Gage

In a post-TEOTWAWKI environment many of the services we take for granted now will be nonexistent. We will be growing or own produce, butchering our own livestock, cooking our own food, performing our own minor surgeries and protecting or own lives. We will have to rely on our own skills, knowledge and equipment. Of all the tools available to humans none has more importance than a wide selection of cutlery. History has revealed to us six simple machines that revolutionized the world: the wheel, the lever, the pulley, the inclined plane, the screw, and the wedge. As you may have …


Three Letters Re: Chainsaws and Long Term Gasoline Storage

Dear Mr Rawles, After reading Edventures’ letter about there not being any diesel chainsaws available, I had a thought: why not combine an electric chain saw with a small, portable, diesel generator? Besides solving his fuel problem, he would also have a mobile power source that could be used to operate other devises. It’s just a thought. Best Wishes, – James K. Sir, Saw the letter about chainsaws and how stored gas didn’t work well in them. There was some question about the availability of diesel chainsaws and how they aren’t made anymore. ([Since they are] heavy and [have] slow …


Two Letters Re: Tourniquet Pros and Cons

Jim, I’m afraid you’re out of date on tourniquet use. It’s been a couple years since we were in the Army, and the world in general has shifted gears on tourniquets. In Iraq and Afghanistan, [we read] “no iatrogenic injury has been reported, even with tourniquet times up to 8 hours.” (Royal Australasian College of Surgeons, 76th annual scientific congress.) US Army literature on the subject has indicated that if the limb can be saved, it can still be saved three hours after a tourniquet is applied (U.S. Medicine, May 2005) Tourniquets got a bad rap, probably deservedly, in WWII. …