Category: Field Gear

Scot’s Product Review: MobileSec Cellphone Blocker and Laptop EMP Shielding

I always liked the line that states, “Just because you’re paranoid, doesn’t mean that someone isn’t out to get you.” These days, in addition to physically trying to “get” you, there are also those who are trying to virtually get you by stealing your information for misuse. There are those who might want to wipe out everything with an EMP event so that not only do you not get to use your own stuff, you can’t even get a backup from someone else. It could be a foreign government, a criminal consortium, or even your own government doing the deed. …


Lessons on Prepping From an Afghanistan Deployment, by A.K. – Part 2

We are continuing this article, from a Marine Sergeant, about lessons learned while living in a remote region of Afghanistan, Marjeh district, which seem similar to a possible TEOTWAWKI environment. Food After two months of eating nothing but MREs, I began to get sick of them and started losing weight. Many of my fellow Marines experienced the same thing. We started to barter batteries for food that the ANA ate. They had a cook and bought bread every morning from the Bazaar. They had chickens for eggs and meat, and occasionally they had a goat. Eventually we bought 12 chickens …


Lessons on Prepping From an Afghanistan Deployment, by A.K. – Part 1

My experiences as a Sergeant in a Marine Infantry battalion have ultimately changed my philosophy towards prepping. Living in a remote region of Afghanistan, Marjeh district, was very much like living in a TEOTWAWKI scenario. There were no roads, other than small cart paths, used by civilian and Taliban alike. There was no running water and no electricity. Locals pumped water from wells, if lucky, or drank from the canals. Electricity was a luxury and power came from a generator. Many of the locals were so poor they had never owned a single piece of any currency; barter was a …


The Importance of Bushcraft and Survival During TEOTWAWKI, by M.R.

You’ve all seen it. Hollywood makes films of a plane crash or shipwreck that cause only one or a few survivors to end up on a deserted island. He or she– the main character– frantically panics at first, maybe even screaming. Then a few months go by, the camera cuts back to him or her, and now this person is an advanced survivalist with a wide variety of skills and gear. They seamlessly kill and eat animals and make impractical but cool looking shelters. Then, he, for the sake of drama, is faced with some dire problem and has to …


The Road to Ultimate Self-Reliance, by M.R.

When I was only 5, my father reached down and rubbed my head and said, “I wish times were always joyful and peaceful like this, but they won’t be. In fact, in your lifetime, you are gonna see some horrible things. You’ll probably see financial hard times and maybe even have to see all of your freedoms, well-earned freedoms, stripped from you, and you will have two choices: fight and risk everything in order to restore those freedoms, or conform and lose that famous American Dream.” Of course, it went in one ear and out the other, to a little …


Scot’s Product Review: Chinook Level 1 Emergency Preparedness Medical Kit (EPMK)

Chinook Medical Gear, Inc. is a Durango, Colorado-based company that provides medical gear to first responders, military, and all the rest of us. They supply pre-built first aid kits, custom kits, packs and cases, individual items, and pretty much anything else medical you might need for an emergency. I’ve written about some of the modules they sell to help you put together a kit on a step-by-step basis. The kit I’m writing about here, the Level 1 Emergency Preparedness Medical Kit (EPMK) is a different strategy. It is a pretty complete package you can purchased in one fell swoop. It …


Rapid Prototyping and TEOTWAWKI, by PMN

If there is a breakdown in the normal manufacturing system because of TEOTWAWKI, the usual supply of parts may be unavailable to replace the broken pieces of our machines. However, 3d printing might provide a solution by allowing us to make whatever we need as we need it, but we’d need to exercise caution. There are problems of strength, accuracy, and technical ability involved in this process, and it isn’t “Beam me up Scottie” quite yet. Some of you guys/girls may have heard of rapid prototyping, which is also called 3d printing. If you haven’t, it is roughly equivalent to …


Becoming a Top-Tier Survivalist and Representing the Prepper Community, by M.M. – Part 4

Today, we’re continuing the list of EDC gear detailed under the fourth point– “Carry and Use Quality Gear”– of the six points that will be presented and detailed that, if implemented in your own life, will greatly increase your chances of success, both in surviving TEOTWAWKI and in breaking the stereotype of the “kooky prepper”. Lighter I have carried a lighter since I was very young, because of it’s usefulness. It can be used for a variety of tasks, including lighting fires, candles, and fuses; fusing the ends of synthetic cords and ropes; securing heat-shrink tubing; firing up gas stoves; …


Becoming a Top-Tier Survivalist and Representing the Prepper Community, by M.M. – Part 3

We are continuing through the list of skills in the third point– “Acquire Skills”– of six points that will be presented and detailed that, if implemented in your own life, will greatly increase your chances of success, both in surviving TEOTWAWKI and in breaking the stereotype of the “kooky prepper.” Shelter Building Shelter building is easily self-taught, especially if you buy some books on the subject and have the ability to “think outside the box.” The 1911 edition of the Boy Scouts Handbook shows many ways to construct shelters using a single piece of cloth (without ever cutting it), sticks, …


Letter: Regarding Ebola PPE

Mr Editor, I’m a small town Fire Chief here. From considerable reading on the subject as I plan for our EMS personnel, I agree with your opinion that N95 is a lame attempt at respiratory protection from Ebola. However, I disagree strongly with anyone suggesting depending on a castoff “gas mask”, discarded decades ago by some 3rd world military, to protect your lungs. Obsolete military gear of unknown history was likely improperly stored and not maintained for years or decades and, equally important, has filters of unknown capability, age, and condition. All filters have a shelf life. How old are …


Guest Article: Six Common Misconceptions About EMP, by G.B., PhD

Many misconceptions about electromagnetic pulse (EMP) effects have circulated for years among technical and policy experts, in press reports, on preparedness websites, and even in technical journals. Because many aspects of EMP-generation physics and its effects are obscure, misconceptions from those who do not perceive the seriousness of the effects to those who predict a doomsday chain of events are inevitable. However, not all EMPs are the same, with the most significant effects being caused by E1 and E3 fields. Nuclear bursts detonated at altitudes above 40 km generate two principle types of EMPs that can debilitate critical infrastructure systems …


Prepping While Commuting To Work, by A Minute Man

I live on the megalopolis east coast in an old New England mill city. The large city near me is usually considered to be one of the five most expensive urban areas to live in America. I’m lucky; I have a job. My daily commute is about 15 miles from where I live, and it takes me about 40 minutes each way on a good day. This commute takes me through seven suburban cities, on the back roads as well as the main city streets. The local interstate is too gridlocked to use for the morning commute. Before you feel …


Surviving With Electronics, by J.M.

While working in the high-tech security industry I’m frequently disheartened by people’s attitude towards electronic technology in disaster/SHTF/TEOTWAWKI situations. For example, I was down in the NJ area shortly after Sandy came through, and I noticed that many people weren’t using their cell phones. I asked some folks what was wrong with their phone, and the two most common answers were: A) the battery is dead and I can’t charge it, or B) there’s no service available. Those answers pretty much sum up most people’s attitude about electronics; power for them is something that comes out of the wall, and …


Letter Re: Cheap and Easy Ham for the Communications Novice by TSR

HJL, I am an amateur radio operator, and we have organized and trained many new “hams” in our community. We hold weekly on-air meetings for those new operators to hone emergency communication skills and develop proficiency as well as an emergency network. It has been our experience that those who start out with the low-powered BaoFeng UV-3R+ “handi-talky” (HT) become discouraged and drop interest in ham radio after a few months. Here are some reasons: The BaoFeng UV-3R+ operates at only 4 watts of power, while mobile units range from 15 to 75 watts. The BaoFeng UV-3R+ barely connects with …


Cheap and Easy Ham for the Communications Novice by TSR

[Editors Note: FCC rules stipulate that Amateur Radio operators may convert and operate transceivers designed for other services on Amateur Radio frequencies, but the reverse is not true. Unless a radio has been type accepted by the FCC for use on other frequencies, those transceivers may not be used for such purposes. They may, however, be used to listen to other frequencies (except for cellular frequencies.)] Purpose You’ll find the line item “ham radio” on a variety of prepper, collapse, and bug out bag lists, and for good reason. However, for the communications novice, this item can be difficult to …