Category: Traditional Skills/Fieldcraft

Letter Re Buying the Right Cookware and Knives for Long Term Preparedness

James, I am a recent (6 months) reader and learner from the SurvivalBlog and I really do appreciate all the work and information that you have shared with the world. Thank You! My survival preps are going slowly but steadily, and thank God I purchased a few cases of 308 for my M1A before the prices went ballistic. Now for the meat of the subject. I notice that you have a ton of information on retreats but something that I notice is a lack of kitchen information, which is a must. If you don’t have good cooking utensils, then all …


Letter Re: Build-It-Yourself Pocketknife Kits

James: I just wanted to pass along my experience with KnifeKits.com. I purchased their FLX-25 frame lock folder kit. As a beginner, I found this kit to be an excellent little project. It took me only about 20 minutes to put it together and I had a nice rugged (and repairable) pocket knife. (I wish it took longer to build as I was having so much fun!) The blade sharpened up very nicely and it has been a great pocket tool ever since. I ended up buying another five-pack of this kit which came out to be $16.25 per knife …


Prepping for Children, and Teaching Them Preparedness, by RSC

Perhaps the most difficult demographic group to prepare for is children. Their needs are constantly changing as they age, grow, and learn. The sheer number of variables involved can be mind boggling, but with enough planning and foresight all their needs can be met. We have eight children under the age of 12 still at home (with three grown and gone), so this is something we have given much thought to. If you are of child bearing age and still have your God given equipment, you must prepare for infants. Even if you have stocked birth control, it is not …


Letter Re: Advice on Stocking up on Clothing For Families With Children

Mr. Rawles, I’ve read your book and perused your web site extensively, yet there is one issue which I cannot find a plan or answer for: growing children. I have three and five year old boys. Kids grow of course, and fast. Stocking up on clothing, shoes, et cetera while planning for future growth is like stocking up for five or six separate people. I’m sure there are many of us who would appreciate some advice on this issue, and maybe some time in the future you could address it. As a comment, I highly recommend an anti-diarrheal such as …


Letter Re: Swords and Bows for that Dreaded Multigenerational Scenario

Mr. Rawles: I would like to add to the article “Swords and Bows for that Dreaded Multigenerational Scenario” [that appeared in SurvivalBlog back in September of 2006, with lots of follow-up letters in the following week.] I have been a closet survivalist for some time now and thought it prudent to learn several old world skills. Metalworking was one of the skills I put a high value on and for good reason, knives, spears, swords, and arrowheads are all important if in a “multigenerational” situation. Also knife making is a fun (and maybe even profitable) hobby. The comment on leaf …


Two Letters Re: Lee Handloading Tools and Surplus Ammo Quality

Jim, I took note in Jason’s recent message regarding Lee reloading tools, and I must say I agree wholeheartedly. I have a Lee challenger press, and strongly recommend it. In fact, I recommend the Lee Anniversary Reloading Kit with “Modern Reloading” Manual (available from MidwayUSA: for $89.99 plus shipping). It comes with everything except dies, primers, powder, brass, and bullets. Oh, a set of calipers is a handy thing to have too. The case is the most expensive part of the cartridge to make, requiring multiple steps in shaping the brass into the final cartridge case. Reloading can significantly cut …


Letter Re: Lee Handloading Tools

Jim, I’ve been following the links to all the surplus ammo dealers..most of that ammo is corrosive, old junk. Totally unreliable. This is a great time for people to start reloading, on the cheap! Here is a great link to Lee brand cartridge reloading tools. I bought the Challenger press kit and now reload .308 and 8mm Mauser. Lee Precision has the best prices I’ve seen and the product is top notch..The hand press is also cool. Its easy and after the initial investment things really go down in price: bullets, powder and primers are still cheap and brass, at …


Letter Re: The Female Side of Surviving

Jim et al, Having seen [the movie] ‘300‘ this last weekend and the cable documentaries about the Spartans, one particular concept stood out. Debates about the culture, the movie, and such aside, I was stuck by the idea that to raise strong and capable men that it was essential that they be born of strong, independent and capable women. Elite Spartan women had a level of freedom that was nearly unprecedented in the ancient world and as young girls went through much of the same training as the boys. This is not generally the case today. As I’ve been learning …


Letter Re: Non-Fiction and Fiction Book Recommendations

Jim, Here are a couple of books that I have stumbled across recently that I would recommend to SurvivalBlog readers. The first book is actually a set of books written by Rita Van Amber. She wrote five volumes of books entitled, “Stories and Recipes of the Great Depression of the 1930s.” The recipes are from readily available ingredients and are simple to make. However, the stories are the best part of the book. The people of this time lived with such hardship and so little food yet they lived well and family relationships were strong. There was no whining for …


Bear Country Basics, by “SNO” in Alaska

Many times when we think of survival skills, our minds turn to the most exotic and specialized of skills. When reading on Survivalblog about this writing assignment I fell victim to this same tendency. My initial idea was to write an article on the construction and operation of a fish wheel, commonly used here in my home state of Alaska, and a tool of great value in a survival/retreat situation. But the detail and complexity of such writing is more involved that practical for this forum. So rather than try and explain some intricate and complex device or skill, that …


Letter Re: Stocking up on Horse Tack

Jim, If there were an EMP event, what would be the primary mode of transportation: shank’s mare; the bicycle; horses? Likely all three would rate pretty high on the list of most likely. Accordingly, are most prepared? I would anticipate most have the necessary footwear. A bicycle would be viable for personal and logistics transport…if one has an appropriate unit and the maintenance supplies…in fact, this would be a practical way to move young children from one location to another as they already have their bikes. But what about the eventual and likely need for horse transportation? While it may …


Letter Re: Leatherworking as a Post-TEOTWAWKI Occupation

Dear Jim, Basic leatherworking [suggested in the recent poll on potential TEOTWAWKI home businesses] is fairly easy, if time consuming. Shears, a punch and strong thread are all that’s needed. Fine work or more elaborate items than pouches, belts, hats and such take practice, but the leather can frequently be salvaged from mistakes and reused. I think the most important aspect of the skill for a TEOTWAWKI environment would be skinning, curing and tanning. Brain, urine, vegetable and oak tanning are time consuming (Everything about leather is), but books exist and functional (as opposed to pretty) leather isn’t too hard …


Poll Results: Best Occupations for Both Before and After TEOTWAWKI

In no particular order, the following are the first batch of responses to my poll question on the best occupations or home businesses for both before and after TEOTWAWKI: Locksmith/Home security systems installer/repairman — Beekeeping Small scale vegetable gardening. Growing herbs (medicinal) — 1) Electricity: a. Recharge batteries for folks, rebuild the bad batteries, and lots of folks don’t know squat about electricity for lighting, etc. Got several methods: Solar, miscellaneous generators powered by hand, animal, wind and even the old one lung gas engine with that darn heavy flywheel. b. Also use the above for communications when there aren’t …


Advantages of Owning a Small Sawmill for Homestead and Retreat Building, by Tennessee Hillbilly

There are many ways to be prepared for whatever the future may hold and no feasible way to be prepared for every scenario. While “Beans, Bullets and Band-Aids” should be given the top priority, there are many situations where a small band saw mill fits the bill. In the current situation, it’s a cheap source of lumber for building projects. On a homestead/retreat there is always a need for lumber. Having selected a remote area for security reasons, by default, places an individual a long way from any supplies, but usually an abundance of trees are available. There have been …


Letter Re: U.S. Civil War Era Hardtack Recipes From North and South

Sir, These recipes are in addition to the letters on hard tack that you posted on your site: Union Army Hardtack Recipe 2 cups of flour 1/2 to 3/4 cup water 1 tablespoon of Crisco or vegetable fat 6 pinches of salt Mix the ingredients together into a stiff batter, knead several times, and spread the dough out flat to a thickness of 1/2 inch on a non-greased cookie sheet. Bake for one- half an hour at 400 degrees. Remove from oven, cut dough into 3-inch squares, and punch four rows of holes, four holes per row into the dough. …