Category: Review

Scot’s Product Review: Officer Survival Initiative First Aid Materials

Officer Survival Initiative (OSI) says they are “a bunch of current and reformed medics, law enforcement, military, and general trigger puller types who want to help you come home at the end of the day.” That’s a great goal and one they are clearly advancing to. They have put a lot of energy into the law enforcement field, as the name implies, but they also make first aid stuff for outdoors folks and the prepping market. They were kind enough to let me look at some of their kits and modules. The Advantage II Personal Vehicle Aid Kit The first …


Letter Re: Grain Mills

Hugh, The author expressed little concern for his WonderMill’s tendency to heat the flour it milled, on the grounds that the flour was about to go into an oven anyway. This logic certainly makes sense; however, heated flour can be a problem in some cases. We once had a mill, whose brand I’ve forgotten, that heated its flour quite a bit. We make a fair bit of sourdough, and our starter quite noticeably failed to thrive when fed flour from this mill. Of course we let the flour cool before feeding, so latent heat wouldn’t kill the starter outright, but …


Scot’s Product Review: Grain Mills

Some call bread the staff of life. To make it you need flour, and that usually comes from wheat. Wheat is nutritious and can be turned into many tasty foods. Some argue that wheat made the original Old Testament cities in the Mideast possible, since it could be transported and stored so easily. Storage is of special import to a prepper, and many of us keep wheat as a key item in our long-term preparations. The part that we use is called the wheat berry. That’s the kernel. Most of the time, it is milled into flour. Keeping the kernels …


Product Review: Harvest Right Freeze Dryer – Part 1, by HJL

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I have to admit, I was excited when I was first contacted by Harvest Right. A freeze dryer in my own home? What a thought! This has been a dream of my family for a number of years. I have even played around with the idea of creating my own freeze dryer several times, but in the end, the work involved and the daily grind always won out. The Dream Our food preps have always had issues, with the solutions seeming just out of reach. When we first started, the preps simply meant two things– remodeling the pantry to hold …


Scot’s Product Review: Milt Sparks Holsters

In a way, I am reluctant to write about Milt Sparks as it will probably just make it harder the next time I need a holster, but my readers deserve to know, so here goes. Milt Sparks Holsters is named for its founder, Milt Sparks. Sparks began making holsters in the early days of competitive combat shooting in the 1960’s and 70’s. Magazine writer and founder of the International Practical Shooting Confederation, Lt. Colonel Jeff Cooper, among others, helped popularize Sparks’ work. What really made Sparks’ products so popular, though, is the quality of design and production. The only problem …


Scot’s Product Review: Bench Space

Like a lot of shooters and preppers, I reload most of the ammunition I shoot. While I agree with those who say they can reload better ammunition than the factory makes, my main motivation is saving money so I can shoot more. I suspect that is true of most reloaders. A problem I have is space. Reloading presses and equipment need to be solidly mounted to a workbench. They also need space around them to work in. I don’t have room for a bench dedicated to reloading. Mine has to share duties with Pinewood Derby cars for my son, broken …


Scot’s product Review: Quick Hits

Holster Ops Magazine Pouch I think anyone who carries a defensive handgun needs to carry spare ammunition. In today’s world, bad things are happening and it may be necessary to have a reload magazine handy. Additionally, many semi-auto pistol problems are caused by a magazine issue and being able to dump and replace the one in the gun might be the indicated response. I have long carried two magazines for my Colt Commander but recently decided to add a third spare. We 1911 sorts are somewhat ammunition limited, and it occurred to me, as I read of flash mobs and …


Pat’s Product Review: Ruger’s SR-762 Rifle, by Pat Cascio

Hands down, I received more requests from SurvivalBlog readers for a review of the Ruger SR-762 rifle than any other firearm, ever. Over my many years of writing about firearms, I’ve received quite a few requests from readers to test new firearms, and I try to accommodate those requests if possible. However, I honestly didn’t want to review the Ruger SR-762 for one major reason– I’ve already reviewed the Ruger SR-556 and SR-556E rifles, and this was nothing more than a “big brother” to those two rifles. It’s chambered in .308 Winchester/7.62NATO, and they are NOT the same caliber. However, …


Pat’s Product Review – Ruger 10/22 Roll-up Cases

Innovation! That’s what has driven our country. Unfortunately, as of late, so many things are being outsourced, and many products cloned or copied, with and without a license to do so. Some time ago, I reviewed the Ruger 10/22 take-down rifle. It’s a huge hit for Ruger www.ruger.com, and they keep coming out with different versions of it. Included with the 10/22 take-down rifle is a nice zip-up storage carry case, and it does the job. However, a fellow by the name of Ron Asman, thought he could do it better. I think he has. Up front I’ll confess that …


Pat’s Product Review – Cold Steel Recon Scout

Over the years, I’ve tested quite a few knives from Cold Steel, and I’ve yet to be disappointed in any of them. We’re going to take a closer look at the Cold Steel Recon Scout. This is one brute of a fixed blade knife, which is made In Taiwan, for those who ask. I’ve known Lynn Thompson, who owns Cold Steel, for at least 20 years or more, and he is one of these people who is dead serious about his knife designs and the final product. Lynn has, on more than one occasion, sent back an entire run of …


Guest Article: Why Do I Carry Concealed? by J.B.

I often get asked, “Why would you want to carry a gun?” My answer is usually a little different from other people’s. For me, it comes down to the experiences I had when I was younger. I grew up in Southern California. As a white kid, I was the minority at my elementary school. Maybe I was too young or just didn’t pay attention to the news, but I wasn’t concerned with my safety too much. There was a drive-by on my grandma’s street, and a stray bullet hit her house. Luckily no one was harmed, and having a gun …


Pat’s Product Review – Infidel Pepper Gel

The nice folks at Infidel Body Armor are always coming out with new products— products that can save your life, too. I happen to have a little bit of insight of the behind-the-scenes, and I know where their roots came from. They have continued to grow and grow. Back when I was in 5th or 6th grade, I remember the very first pepper spray that came out. I had an uncle who was with the Chicago Police Department, and he was selling pepper spray on the side. I also remember getting in on the business, even at that young age. …


Pat’s Product Review – Zero Tolerance Knives, Hinderer 0560BW Folder

Zero Tolerance knives Model 0560BW is the latest in the line up, at their plant in Wilsonville, OR from the mind of custom knife maker Rick Hinderer. I’ve reviewed several other Hinderer designed folders, all along the same line as this current folder under review for SurvivalBlog readers. Rick Hinderer is probably best known for the “Hinderer Lockbar Stabilizer” that is incorporated into the Titanium frame-lock style on his folding knives, which others are starting to copy (with or without license from Hinderer). What we have with the lockbar stabilizer is a simple two-piece special bolt/screw (for lack of a …


Pat’s Product Review – DIVVY 250 Water Purification System

The DIVVY 250 emergency water filtration station, designed in conjunction with Clearly Filtered and www.aquamira.com and manufactured in Logan, Utah, is one of the best water purification/filtration systems to come along for large group use in a long, long time. As SurvivalBlog readers know, from my previous articles on safe drinking water, my family and I are obsessed with having different methods available to provide us with affordable and safe drinking water, on a daily basis or in an emergency. You can have all the guns, ammo, and food stored away for a SHTF scenario that you can afford. However, …


Pat’s Product Review – Blackhawk’s MOD SFK Folding Knife

The Blackhawk Products MOD SFK folding knife has a very “tactical” look to it. It appears, at first glance, to be a double-edge folding knife, but the top edge isn’t sharpened. Made in Italy from N690Co stainless steel, it’s quite the folder for backup to your main self-defense weapon. I understand that this is a very popular folder with law enforcement and military personnel. I’ve reviewed several knives over the years that were manufactured out of N690Co stainless steel, and I don’t know exactly the chemical formula for this steel, but it holds an edge a long, long time and …