Category: Traditional Skills/Fieldcraft

Letter Re: Best Military Manuals with Field Fortification Designs?

Jim – There is an absolute plethora of military manuals out there. I’m looking for a Listening Post/Observation Post (LP/OP) diagram such as you use in your novel “Patriots”. What manuals would you consider your “must read and own” manuals that would answer this question and others I that haven’t arrived yet? I’m a 10 Cent Challenge subscriber and enjoy your web site and books. Thank you and God Best You, – Brent I. in Louisiana JWR Replies: The basics describing and illustrating one-man and two-man fighting positions (suitable for LP/OPs) with overhead cover can be found in FM 7-8, …


Letter Re: The Fabric of Our Lives

Mr. Rawles, I am prompted to send along some information that I am hoping will be useful to your readers looking for instruction in spinning and weaving. The Handweaver’s Guild of America has an online list of local guilds as well as a list of Member Artists/Leaders, both of which are rich resources. There are some 454 guild, listed by state. Contacting a nearby guild is a great way to learn about local class opportunities in spinning and weaving. Most of these guilds also have member newsletters that will often list used equipment for sale by members at significant discounts …


Letter Re: Observations on Hand-Powered Tools

Sir: I’m 60-ish. My old man had a lot of projects using “recycled” lumber and nails, and you know who did the nail recycling. As an electrical engineer and general artificer, I would pass along some thoughts if I may. I was involved in a demonstration at a Navy base in the 1980s where a bicycle was coupled to an alternator and sealed beam lamps were attached for a load. One would pedal the bicycle up to speed, and the MC would switch on a lamp. Then two. Then the third. Very few could maintain output for two lamps, and …


Letter Re: Treadle Sewing Machine Conversions

James Wesley, I am not much into sewing but I know ladies who are. For them I have modified some newer sewing machines from electric motor to the foot powered treadle sewing machines. Some of these ladies are off grid and one just likes the fine control the treadle gives her. Bases can be found in many antique stores. These bases are often missing the machine itself and have been made into tables. Look for one with the treadle and crank assembly still in place. Removing the electric motor from the sewing machine and replacing it with a pulley for …


Letter Re: The Fabric of Our Lives

Mr. Rawles, I took a textiles class while in college. This is a subject I recommend to anyone, as it is very interesting, and more useful than you would think (our textbook was Textiles by Sara J. Kadolph if anyone is interested). One of the things I learned is that fabric should not be stored in plastic or next to cardboard or wood. The chemicals or natural acids will be absorbed by the fabric and deteriorate it. The best way to store fabric is to wrap it in cotton (I use an old pillowcase), and of course keep it in …


Letter Re: The Fabric of Our Lives

Mr. Rawles; Spinning and weaving are certainly not lost arts. I know many women and some men who spin, and some who also weave. Spinning wheels and lessons are available in many cities, and there are active spinning and weaving guilds. Cards, wheels and looms can also be ordered online, and there are YouTube videos demonstrating the various processes. It is true spinning is more difficult to learn than knitting, and requires a larger initial investment in equipment. The cheapest spinning wheels start at around $200, from Babe’s Fiber Garden. (I have not used one of these so I cannot …


Letter Re: Preparing Your Spouse

I really liked the post about preparing your spouse but saw one thing missing or at least not stated explicitly. Your spouse needs to know how to do these things and the only way to really learn most of these practical tasks is to do them with your spouse. Binders [full of information] are great but unless you know how to execute all the steps, where all the necessary tools and pieces are and how to use them binders are not going to help much. To illustrate the importance of actually doing something I will relay a recent tale from …


Letter Re: Preparing Your Spouse

Mr. Rawles,Several years ago I took a serious fall and was out of commission for several months. My husband had to completely take over the household responsibilities during that time. Fortunately, he was working at home and I was available to give him direction and information. Had I not been, he would have really struggled to figure out just how I got things done. As he was buttoning up the house in preparation for winter this year it occurred to me that, if he were suddenly unavailable, I too would be at a loss to remember all of the details …


Three Letters Re: The Fabric of Our Lives

James: Thanks to Jeanan for raising a very important but easily overlooked point. It’s amazing how we take for granted having drawers full of clothes! Curiously, though, I do know folks who know how to spin thread and weave cloth. Some of the ladies in a Dark Age re-enactment group that I’m a member of perform demonstrations of these very skills. I have seen them work with raw wool, spin thread, and demonstrate weaving on period looms. Granted that the Dark Ages are a little too primitive (no spinning wheels, for example) but it does point to a partial solution, …


The Fabric of Our Lives by Jeanan

We don’t often think much of the clothes we wear. Oh, we think of what color they are, whether or not our purse matches our shoes, does this make me look fat, blending in with our surroundings or not, but not the actual fabric. We lost our “fur” a long time ago, and we always seem to have items like jackets, sweaters, undies and socks in abundance. We now argue over the benefits of the latest innovations in fabric, whether it will wick moisture or not, how waterproof it is, but we never seem to worry about where we are …


Letter Re: Short Term Survival or Long Term Self-Sufficiency?

Hi James, You have an excellent blog. It is good to find another right-wing Christian who thinks we’re going down the wrong path, and someone who cares about other people. I have to take issue with your blog though. It focuses on survival in the short term (maximum five years after collapse). It does not give direction for how to proceed from there, how to thrive, how to rebuild society (or rather, how to build a better society). Surviving the collapse on modern medicine only to die from disease when it runs out is pointless. Surviving only to find that …


Lessons Leaned from a Wildfire Evacuation, by Daniel in Montana

It was a gorgeous Saturday night, Sept. in Montana’s mountains the weather was hanging onto summer’s 70 degree temperatures, warm and dry. Working all day at the hospital and finishing some of my home preparedness projects gave me a satisfaction and sense of accomplishment. Time to relax, I sat down, put my feet up and was sipping my week’s end treat, a cold beer. I phoned my friend, “Brett” to finalize our plans to butcher a few of his farm animals tomorrow. He was finishing a Bible reading with his boys and was putting them to bed, and would call …


From David in Israel: Off Grid Alternatives to Utility-Supplied Electricity

James One of the most troubling things I see when speaking to people about going off grid is how badly they want to keep all of their electrical appliances and just spend many thousands of dollars on a battery bank more appropriate for a U-boat and solar cells or generators to keep them topped off. Having had a minor role in a micro-satellite system design proposal one thing you learn when confronted by limited power supply is to either economize or do without. The appliances you own for on grid use are not efficient. They are built to be inexpensive …


Survival Preparation on Low or Fixed Incomes, by Shawna M.

So you’re convinced that the free ride is over, that things are getting worse, and when the worst happens, you want to be prepared. But you have a problem—you don’t have a lot of money for prepping and day to day living. Maybe you only make minimum wage. Maybe you make a little more than that, but you’ve got a lot of bills. Maybe you live on a fixed income, or have irregular self-employment. Regardless, don’t assume because you can’t afford expensive classes or pricey gear that WTSHTF, you’ll be unable to fend for yourself and your family. My husband …


Two Letters Re: How to Capitalize on Urine, Car Batteries, Wood Ashes, Bones and Bird Schumer

Jim: Car batteries are designed for one thing and one thing only – delivering a bunch of power for a very short period of time. Said time is measured in seconds, not minutes, hours, or days. I have been living “Off the Grid” for fifteen years, and can assure your readers that vehicle batteries can only handle 3-5 complete discharges before they are useless, i.e., after but a few discharges they cannot be recharged and expected to hold said charge. Ergo, they are the wrong choice for any task where discharge exceeds the constant charging input into the battery. They …