Category: Hunting

Letter Re: Advice on Obtaining an FFL

Dear James,   Thank you for all that you have done for millions of us who were once asleep and unprepared!   I had a question for you regarding obtaining a Federal Firearms License (FFL).  I am in the process of starting some home businesses as a backstop to my “office job.”  I have considered getting a FFL and Class 3 license to generate income from gun and ammo sales out of my home.  Is this advisable or does this make me too “high profile?”  I remember the movie Red Dawn!   Thanks and I wish you and your family a Merry …


Inventory, Organize, Adapt and Overcome, by T.C.

My wife and I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina and we have been in serious preparation mode for about a year now. Let me explain what I mean by serious preparation: I am talking about creating a defend in place (bug-in) plan and a bug-out plan along with identifying and obtaining the necessary resources to carry them out. Understanding how to Hunt, fish, trap, raise livestock, garden, can and preserve food along with the necessity of having an alternate heat and readily available water sources are still a way of life in the Appalachian Mountains. …


Letter Re: Pre-1899 Antique Guns and The Black Letter Law

Hello Mr. Rawles,       I’ve been using your Pre-1899 FAQ web page to advise many auction sellers from whom I buy [Federally exempt] antique guns. You invited comments or questions so here is my latest problem: An auction gallery in Indiana offered a pre-1899 S&W .32 Hammerless for sale. I won the item at auction and the gallery owner is of the opinion that State law prevents him from mailing the item to a non-FFL holder because it uses a currently available metallic cartridge even if it is pre-1899. But when I go to what seems to be the state …


Budget Survival: The Ins and Outs, by J. Lewis

Where to Begin First, take into account how many mouths you have to feed, what resources you currently have available and what resources will be available if SHTF in your current location.  Figure out a monthly budget that includes money coming in, bills going out, and what you have left over.  This will give you an idea of where you can trim the fat. (We will cover more on this later.)  Next, take an inventory of you already have that will be useful if SHTF, such as lighters, matches, wool clothing or blankets, canned food.  If you have camping gear, …


Letter Re: Advice on AK, SKS, and Mosin Rifles

Mr Rawles,   I’ve read through your section on firearms and have a question about the rifles.   As I’m very much on a budget, I am looking to add one or two self defense rifles for the TEOTWAWKI type scenario.  I’ve been looking into the AR rifles and find that they are ungodly expensive.  I’ve found some Bushmasters that seem to be in good shape for around $800, but these were chambered in .223, which seems like a fine personal defense caliber, but is not versatile enough to use to kill game, should you have the opportunity.  The .308 …


Letter Re: The .357 Magnum: An All-Around Survival Cartridge

Mr. Rawles, I have been reading your blog for a couple of years now and it is something I look forward to every day. I have even persuaded my wife to open her mind and start preparing as a result of many of the articles on SurvivalBlog.   Regarding the article on the .357 Magnum, I agree with most of what the writer had to say regarding the performance of the round. But there are a couple of  points I feel compelled to make.   1) To take advantage of the ballistics he refers to in comparison to other cartridges (specifically, I …


The .357 Magnum: An All-Around Survival Cartridge

As an avid reader of SurvivalBlog I know that most preppers like the .45 ACP round as their standard. That’s a great choice and an excellent round. It has a long and solid history as a combat round. It falls short in the arena of woods carry and most don’t consider it a hunting round. This report is not to compare the .45 to the .357 Magnum as it is an overdone conversation. Instead, I would like to outline the facts about the .357 Magnum and discuss some of the misconceptions as well as the viability of this classic as …


A Crucial DIY Skill: Ammunition Handloading, by Aaron L.

Would you like to learn a skill during these relatively quiet times that will assist you to obtain, or at least keep,  gasoline, diesel, food and every other commodity the a day after this society falls?   The SurvivalBlog posts regarding TEOTWAWKI may provide you with information regarding  what is the bare minimum you need to strive for in you preparation of the day after disaster strikes.  What if you want to be more prepared?  Do you want to possess a skill that everyone will have a need for the day after the disasters strike? Some people believe that a person’s …


From Beginning Prepper, to Fully-Stocked Retreat: What to Buy, and When, by Scott in Wisconsin

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It’s easy to see that the world may be heading for more trouble, and we need to prepare for hard times ahead.  But it can be daunting to decide what to do, what to stock, and when to get it. I’ve been working at this a while, and I’ve figured out a simple balance in what to buy, and when to buy it, that I think will help other Preppers move ahead with confidence. You could call it my 100/1,000/10,000 system, and I hope it helps you get going, and get to a place where you feel more prepared for …


Survival and “The Right Stuff” Thoughts on Guns and Medicine, by Matthew R.

Survivalism in our age represents a gamut of knowledge in diverse subject areas. Expertise in a specific subject area can be a rare and valuable find. But anyone who claims to be a “general expert” is an oxymoron at best. I have been serving in the Army Reserve and National Guard as a medic for seven years now; and I am an OIF veteran. That makes me an expert in a very limited area of combat medicine. It also makes me generally knowledgeable in areas of basic soldiering. Based on these experiences, I believe I knowledge and skills that could …


Letter Re: A Lifetime of Prepping Without Knowing It

Mr Rawles, I recently read “Patriots” and wanted to let you know how this book got me to thinking about how to be prepared for a potential social collapse. I thought through all of the steps that needed to be taken and realized that I’ve been prepping since I was born. I was born and raised in the suburbs of Kansas City, but my family history was one of extreme self sufficiency. My mom who lived through the last great depression taught me how to can, garden, make things stretch as far as possible and be able to survive without …


Suburban Survival Revisited, by The Suburban 10

In April 2010 I submitted “Suburban Survival”. a set of ten steps I was going implement in order to get ready for TEOTWAWKI. Boy… did I underestimate the power and importance of survialblog.com! First and foremost I thank all of you who responded and gave a cold slap of reality. I thought I was going to be in good shape, but now my view and attitude are vastly different. How did it change? It really started when I bought and read Jim’s survival book. It offers solid fundamentals and interesting insight that I am adapting to my particular situation. My …


Learning Traditional Skills, by R.I.P.

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There is only one sure thing about plans: at some point they have a good chance of failing. Not necessarily because the plans were faulty, but because it is nearly impossible to plan for everything. The universe has a way of ensuring that we get to experience the widest range of possibilities. So what if, after all your preparing, storing food, water, fuel, fortress etc., etc, what if you suddenly do not have access to all of that? We don’t have to go through all the ways that this might happen, I’ll let your imagination work on that. So, could …


El Cheapo Prepping 101, by Christopher S.

In today’s economy you maybe having a hard time keeping up with the bills let alone preparing for the next Armageddon. Are you sitting in your cheap Wal-Mart chair staring at your computer screen wishing you had a Kifaru pack. Are you wishing you had the money to go to the range even once a year? Let me get out the chalk board and you get your pencil ready. I am about to school you on prepping that will take you to the next level without skimping on the good stuff. First off I would like to explain I am …


Letter Re: Cartridge Lead Hygiene

Jim, Any serious firearms enthusiast should know the basic makeup of most ammunition normally includes a lead containing primer and projectile and while this does not present an immediately serious hazard per se, anyone planning on handling ammunition and firearms should be mindful of the risk of prolonged exposure to lead components and both pre- and post-TEOTWAWKI, take precautions to protect themselves. As an Army reservist for eight years (doing the occasional field exercise with blank ammunition and the annual range qualification), we would eat our IMP rations after loading hundreds of magazines without a second thought towards washing our …