Category: Field Gear

Letter Re: How To Survive Without Your Glasses

Regarding the “How to survive without your glasses” post from contributor J.E. on Saturday August 23, those were all good tips, but some folks have sufficiently poor uncorrected vision that rough shapes and colors is all that can be detected beyond a few feet. Planning a self defense strategy with those limitations could wind up being hazardous to everyone around them, friend or foe. Simple myopia (nearsightedness) can be at least partially overcome with magnifying lenses, which is what’s going on when J.E. suggests using binoculars in place of glasses. For those with astigmatism (distortions in the lens of the …


Scot’s Product Review: InstaFire

Fire is kind of a big deal. It keeps us warm, cooks our food, and can signal for help. It’s comforting to sit around one. Being able to have a fire quickly is a very nice thing. InstaFire FireStarter lives up to its name, though you do actually have to go to the bother of striking a match to light it. That’s really not too much to ask for, though, considering the benefit. Yes, there are a lot of things you can set on fire with a match, but unlike a piece of wadded up newspaper, this stuff burns hot …


Introduction to Tactical Combat Casualty Care, by W.H.

This is an introduction to Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC), which is the medical training that U.S. troops are currently taught to save lives on the battlefield. TCCC is the result of collaboration between U.S. Special Operations Command, trauma doctors, and emergency medical personnel to address the shortcoming in combat medicine at the start, and actually well into the current Wars On Terror. It is the combination of good medicine with good tactics. It incorporates some procedures that are proven to save lives but in the past 75 years were shunned in the medical community. TCCC has proven to reduce …


Scot’s Product Review: SUN OVENS International All American Solar Oven

I’ve already written about solar cooking (and plan to continue writing about solar stuff), but I will try not to repeat too much from the last review in this one. That said, there was some good generic information there, and you might want to refer back to it . As I continue on this trail, I have come to the All American Solar Oven http://www.sunoven.com/. It is a very high quality, made in the USA product that works extremely well. SUN OVENS is a long time player in the field. The original Sun Ovens came on the market in 1986, …


Letter: “Be Smart Get Prepared” First Aid Kit

Hugh, Scot’s review made me decide to review what I carry in my car trunk– the Be Smart Get Prepared First Aid Kit sold by Sam’s Club. It was designed as a kit for a small office and meets OSHA and ANSI requirements for such use. The cost is $19.98, so it is less expensive than the Chinook MinimalistPak, even though it is larger. The Be Smart kit comes in a sturdy plastic case with a rubber gasket around where the lid meets the case. It appears this was intended to make the case waterproof when closed, but the tolerances …


Three Letters Re: Time “OUT”

Hugh, Thanks for publishing the pertinent article by KT entitled, “Time OUT”. Timing and coordination with other group members can and will be very critical ability in the future. Many of us grew up watching old World War 2 war movies, and this article reminded me of memorable scenes from some of these classics, to-wit: a scene with a bombing group having a pre-raid briefing and the closing of the meeting would conclude with the commanding officer having all pilots and crew members “setting” their watches. This was done by a “hacking” mechanism in the watch movement. One can pull …


Letter Re: Time “OUT”

Sirs I believe that K.T.’s well-meaning recommendations regarding timepieces for survivalist situations is flawed, and incomplete. The best choice would be a Seiko SN007 Coutura Kinetic Perpetual Watch or other similarly-featured model from Seiko. As documented in the links below, it is widely acknowledged that electronic movements are more accurate than even the best mechanical movements (even in the $20,000 and upwards range), though as with all things made by men, some items will by “luck” be right on the money, even a cheap Timex. However, since we are talking about survival, it would be best to go with what …


Letter Re: Time “OUT”

Hugh, I very much enjoyed the article. Great information. This is something that I have thought about for quite some time. My question is how do I re-synchronize my watch to the proper time if I forget and let it die overnight? Thanks for the awesome blog and all the insight. – MRM HJL Replies: There are a variety of ways that you can use to determine the time without another watch, some more accurate than others. A Google search will reveal at least 20 different ways. There are two that I remember right off the cuff, but you have …


Scot’s Product Review: Chinook MinimalistPak

Chinook Medical Gear, Inc. calls the kit I’m reviewing the MinimalistPak. They mean minimal in terms of size and cost. It’s not minimal, however, in terms of what you can do with it. It’s a good basic kit for handling most of the injuries one might get on a hike or perhaps while doing a roadside repair on a recalcitrant car. It can handle a good sized cut, though I would want more with a gunshot wound or other major injury. It is one of the seven kits available in their PAK line of first aid kits. The kit comes …


Letter Re: Time Out

Hugh, In reference to the excellent article Time “OUT”, by K.T., it is important to note the difference between “automatic” and “self winding” watches. Over the past couple of decades some companies have produced “automatic” and “kinetic” watches that charge an internal battery when the watch moves. These watches are different than “self winders” that wind the mainspring with an internal pendulum when the watch is moved. When the battery starts to go in these new automatics, it is very cost prohibitive to fix. Also, I’ll repeat what K.T. stressed in his article about buying quality mechanical watches– the cheap …


Seasonal Items and Survival Steps, by P.F.

It never ceases to amaze me when something seemingly trivial that occurs in my life can lead to so much self reflection and totally change the direction I travel, so to speak, in my life planning. I recently decided to purchase a spare, portable plug-in heater for my camper, in the interest of redundancy. So, off I went blissfully unaware that this simple, last-minute decision would alter the course of history, my history that is. I went to my local big-box store and soon realized an important issue I had never thought about before– seasonal items are difficult to find …


Time “OUT”, by K.T.

Any serious survivalist has thought through numerous scenarios and situations, right down to the most seemingly insignificant minutiae. I have been engaged in various stages of “preparation” for over 40 years now. Over the last 20 years or so, I have noticed that the vast majority of the public, in general, counts on assorted digital gimmickry to keep track of time. As a result, many people now do not even wear a wristwatch; they just pull out their ever-present cell phone to see what “time” it is. Of those who do wear a wristwatch in the traditional style, an ever-increasing …


Guest Article: Assorted Tool Sharpening, by C.J.

(Article transcribed from a CD sent in to SurvivalBlog) I have been sharpening now for about 15 years. I started out small, because I didn’t want to get too much invested; so, I started out with small machines, mostly hand sharpening. Our emphasis is on hand tools for sharpening, if you consider we may not have any electricity to work with. Steps for Getting Started: Decide what tools and blades you want to sharpen. Buy several books on sharpening and get some initial knowledge. Study the angles on the blades and tools you want to sharpen, make notes on these, …


Scot’s Product Review: SUNFLAIR Solar Oven

I think I’m on to something– solar cooking. I’ve been interested in it for a long time but never got around to doing much about it. Writing for SurvivalBlog gave me an excuse, actually a duty, to check this subject out. I plan to do at least two reviews on solar cookers and hope to do more since there are a variety of them on the market. You can also make your own, and I’ll look into that, too. Why solar? Well, being able to cook without requiring fuel is huge. Not only can you cook, you can make water …


Prepping During the Calm After the Storm, by D.L.

One of the hardest things to do in prepping, especially if you were inspired by a specific incident or disaster, is to maintain your preps long after the initial threat seems to have faded away. There’s an initial burst of energy and acquisition of skills; then there is a slow fade and then a rapid fade. Eventually, something will happen, and you will find yourself unprepared again. It’s a bit like dieting before your high school reunion. Then, once the reunion is over, trying to keep your diet going but allowing yourself a weekly cheat day, then adding a cheat …