Category: Self-Defense

Firearms: Understanding the Performance of Your Rifle Through Trials and Tribulations

Many times, we get so caught up in buying our toys and getting them out of the package to play that we don’t pay attention to the fine details that really matter. It’s no surprise that prepping has generally been all about more, bigger, and better firearms and ammunition. Yet, there is so much to be learned about the proper use and care of your firearms that becomes lost on the average person. Many times we buy the gun, we get it out of the package, throw all of our tacti-cool stuff on it, maybe shoot it a few times, …


Letter Re: Building Your Own No-FFL AR From an 80% Complete Receiver

Dear JWR, The mere fact that folks such as Carl X. and C. are discussing, researching, and indeed, well informed on the subject of 80% lower receiver completion gives me hope! I can’t begin to express just how pleasing it is that good people are informing themselves on the subject. Anyway, I’d like to clarify a couple of things, if I may? As C. notes, an inexperienced builder will likely spend at least two hours milling and shaping the fire control pocket. However, a slip of the Dremel does not necessarily mean the blank’s doom. One must remember that the …


Letter Re: Storing Ammunition

JWR, I’ve been reloading for almost 30 years and have tried many solutions for boxing up all the ammo including bulk in zip lock bags as well as just filling ammo cans and of course hard plastic boxes. If it’s made, I’ve tried it and nothing really worked well nor are they very compact. Until now. I have stumbled on RepackBox.com and found their cardstock boxes great. So far I’ve loaded 5.56, 7.62×39, 9mm and .45 ACP.  What I like is their boxes are made so the quantity will fit most standard magazines…i.e., the 5.56 box holds 30 rounds as …


Two Letters Re: Building Your Own No-FFL AR From an 80% Complete Receiver

Dear JWR, Regarding the recent article by “Nomad”: I strongly urge all AR-15 owners to get an 80% complete lower receiver, even if you do not finish it now.  [Under American jurisprudence,] if gun confiscation comes, the only thing that must be turned in is the stripped lower receiver.  The BATFE recognizes that the stripped lower receiver constitutes the firearm as it contains the serial number.  The rest IS NOT a “firearm”, by their own regulations.  With the non-registered (as per regulations, again) lower receiver, you can build a fully functioning AR-15 that is not on their books. – Carl …


Who Shall Protect Us?, by Shepard Humphries

Imagine you and your family are asleep in your home and at 2am you hear a downstairs glass window breaking.  You hear voices laughing and cursing, saying that they are going to F-Up you and your family.  Based on the historical length of violent encounters, you know that this whole violent situation will likely be over in 1 to 3 minutes. This is not a pleasant scenario, but I am setting the stage for you to do a mental exercise.  I will not give you solutions; rather you will.  As Gavin DeBecker describes in his must-read book, “The Gift of …


Building Your Own No-FFL AR From an 80% Complete Receiver, by Nomad

We live in very uncertain times. For some people, myself included, those times of uncertainty include anything from some financial hardship, to total economic ruin. In knowing this simple truth, I am inspired to share my knowledge and expertise concerning firearms preparedness: in particular, the AR-15 platform and a truly inexpensive option to owning one that is on-par with buying a much less versatile bolt-action rifle. For many of us struggling to make ends meet, an entry-level AR-15 is priced far beyond anything we can hope to afford. Starting at around $800 before background checks, taxes and licensing fees, the …


Letter Re: Connecticut Corralled: The Slippery Slope of Gun Registration

Jim,   The article forwarded by J.B.G. re: the Connecticut gun registration photo/article for ARs and high capacity magazines (‘Looks Like Weimar Germany’: The Viral Photo Out of Connecticut That’s Giving Some Gun Owners Chills) is really just the tip of the iceberg. This legislation was really designed to ultimately refine and maintain the firearm registry in the state that is already in existence for all firearms. The State police have been collecting and storing all firearms transactions for many years here. The Federal Government by law must destroy all the data gained from background checks for firearm  purchasing. The Connecticut state police have no …


Letter Re: Advances in 80% AR Lower Receiver Technology

James, There have been some interesting developments in the world of 80% complete AR lowers. The following are some companies that are producing beefed up AR-15 carbon fiber or polymer lowers that can be completed more easily than their older generation aluminum relatives: EP Lowers JMT Polymer 80 Another innovation is a jig that allows a hand router to be used to mill out the control pocket of an AR-15 80% aluminum lower. As many of your readers already know, the lower receiver is the part with a serial number that the BATF considers a “firearm.” However, an 80% lower …


Letter Re: Open Carry, Concealed Carry and Gun Free School Zones

Dear Jim, There’s another tricky loophole regarding permitted concealed carrying in or near schools. Many states have reciprocity with other states, but best I recall, the Federal statute requires valid licensure issued by that same State to carry in these areas.  So even if your license is valid throughout the state [via a reciprocity provision], it could conceivably still violate Federal law to be armed on or near school grounds. Thanks, – Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog’s Editor at Large)


Letter Re: Open Carry, Concealed Carry and Gun Free School Zones

James, I’m writing to warn fellow SurvivalBlog readers that there is a huge proviso for those wishing to open carry firearms in states where it is lawful to do so. I recommend reading the Wikipedia page on Gun-Free School Zones Act (GFSZA) of 1990. Some key excerpts form that web page follow: Definitions Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(25) the term “school zone” means— (A) in, or on the grounds of, a public, parochial or private school; or (B) within a distance of 1,000 feet from the grounds of a public, parochial or private school. Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 921(a)(26) the term “school” …


Pat’s Product Review: CRKT Redemption Knife

Back in the 1980s it seemed like every knife company was producing some sort of hollow handle “survival” knife, and the truth is, most were just junk – plain and simple. Oh sure, there were some good ones, however if you wanted a really good hollow handle survival knife, you had to go to one of the custom knife makers – and at that, there weren’t that many really producing this type of knife. I remember being at an auction one time in Colorado Springs, Colorado – and there was all manner of stuff up for auction. There was one …


Six Letters Re: A Contingency Bag for Frequent Air Travelers

Hey, Jim: I think we need some more collective thought on this. I’ve got more time in the air than most people–4,000+ hours as an Army helicopter pilot (where we wore a cleverly-stocked survival vest; alas, a lot of the contents would not pass TSA scrutiny), 2 million+ miles on Delta, and about that many more on defunct airlines (especially Eastern and TWA). Getting stuck somewhere could happen to me on a trip. Here’s some of my thinking (and I still need some help): It seems to me that anything important should be in the carry-on bag, not checked. Most …


A Contingency Bag for Frequent Air Travelers, by T.R. in North Carolina

Your Bug Out bag, Go Bag, SHTF Bag, or whatever you call it contains similar items for each one of us. Some are kept at the door ready at a moment’s notice, some in the trunk of each vehicle all with the same purpose; Mitigation of Risk. As a project manager, Risk Management is a key component to successful project delivery, and one tool of risk mitigation is contingency resources. Understanding the risk and developing contingency to avoid, eliminate, adapt to or reduce the impact upon a project’s outcome. I say all this to share with you my recent experience …


Letter Re: Firearms Selection for Times of Ammunition Shortages

Dear JWR, Last spring, with the ammo shortage clearing the shelves everywhere, I found myself in a position to expand my collection.  I decided on a Ruger .44 Magnum Super Blackhawk, with the 7" barrel.  Legal for whitetail in my state, you see.  Having neglected to actually check the retail supply, I assumed that the shortage would be primarily the military calibers (9mm Para, .45 ACP, 5.56mm NATO, .308, and 7.62x39mm) with the civilian calibers being readily available. Experienced wheelgunners are already laughing.  Took me a month to track down 100 rounds of basic .44 Magnum.  Eventually, diligent checking at …


Protecting Your Church, by Wandering Will

The service has ended, we say goodbye to our friends, wait for everyone to leave then lock up the church.  The drive home takes only a few minutes and when we arrive my wife and I take off and secure our weapons and conduct a debrief on any problems we encountered during the service.  Not exactly the Norman Rockwell version of a day in church.  I realize that the fact that someone would carry a weapon in church is appalling to many people.  However, before you begin stereotyping Christians as right-wing radicals, ask yourself a few questions.  When you were …