Category: Vehicles

Going Ghost: Planning for a Low Profile Mobile Lifestyle

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A number of my friends and consulting clients have begun talking about making contingency plans to drop entirely off the grid. One of them calls it “going ghost.” His goal: Being ready for a time of repression that would require him to drop off the radar–to essentially become mobile and invisible to authorities. He said that he wanted to have two options: 1.) In CONUS, being ready and ablrice to blend in and travel by road fairly anonymously, and 2.) being ready and able to travel internationally (OCONUS). This whole concept of “going ghost” would be daunting for most of …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of JWR. (SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor.) Today’s focus is on classic cars as an investment. (See the Tangibles Investing section.) Precious Metals: First off, at Sharps-Pixley: Silver Price Volatility at 2001 Lows as Rally Outpaces Gold, SLV Grows But GLD Shrinks o o o Is Silver (SI) on the Verge of a Breakout or Breakdown? …


Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of JWR. (SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor.) Today’s focus is on investing in vintage motorcycles and mopeds. (See the Tangibles Investing section, near the end of this column.) Precious Metals: Gold Prices Expected To Trend Higher In Quiet Holiday Week o  o  o 2018 Gold Price Forecast: A Major Bottom Is Forming   Stock Markets: Dow, …


Letter: Hybrid or Electric UTV?

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HJL and JWR, After conducting Internet research with mixed results, I’m reaching out to the Survival Blog community. Does anyone have experience with electric UTVs, either hybrid gas/electric or all electric? For obvious reasons, the ability to quietly and quickly access remote areas of the homestead has definite advantages. There seem to be multiple choices in all-electric UTVs and hybrids. I should mention that I currently do not have an ATV or UTV at this time. My partially wooded homestead of 50 acres has elevation differences of over 200 feet. Many areas are easily accessible with a conventional 4×4.


Training for Truly Defensive Driving, by K.W.

After a long day of work, where you had plenty of motivation to get your rear in gear and start working on your projects, you hop in the car for the drive home. As you grab 5th gear, good choice on driving a manual, and look over your left shoulder to merge on the highway as a truck 200 yards in front of you just dropped a huge pile of tree branches in your lane. You look ahead as you are merging and see that pile of branches! What do you do? Time is quickly going by, and so is …


Letter Re: Hurricane Matthew–Some Lessons Learned

JWR & HJL: That was another great article [on Hurricane Matthew]! A suggested alternative that I have adopted is buying a turbo diesel automobile and truck.  The benefits are simple and yet many people still have not discovered the option. Here are a few:My VW tdi as an example gets about 43 miles per gallon, so with a 15 gallon fuel tank it achieves about 600 miles plus on a  tank, and by adding three NATO style 5 gal metal cans (15 gallons total) in the trunk I have a 1,200 hundred mile cruising range. That is hard to beat. …


Letter Re: Hurricane Matthew–Some Lessons Learned

Good Morning, SurvivalBloggers, SurvivalBlog recently had a very good list of hurricane preparation tips in Hurricane Matthew–Some Lessons Learned, written by a Florida resident. As a former 20+ year Florida resident I’d like to add to his excellent piece. In Florida, hurricanes are a way of life, and the period from June 1 to November 30 is known as “hurricane season.” The period from December 1 to May 31 is known as “not hurricane season.”  “Not hurricane season” is when one should be doing their preparation for the other six months. During “not hurricane season” one can find plywood on …


Selecting the Perfect SHTF Vehicle, by W.L.

So, you’ve got your bug out bag packed and ready to go, survival supplies laid in at your bug out location, and you keep your powder dry. Have you stopped to consider how you’re going to move people and gear around? Traveling on foot is slow (about two miles per hour for the average person) and your hauling capacity is limited to 50 or 60 pounds of gear, food, ammo, et cetera. More realistically, take a look at recreational backpackers; their goal is to carry no more than 30 pounds for movement of 10-15 miles per day. If you are …


Winter Survival- Part 2, by R.C.

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In Your Vehicle In this part, we will discuss how to survive in your vehicle. We have all seen the news of cars stuck in a trafic jams or abandoned on the side of the road. Then we listen to the mayor or some emergency management guy telling us to stay off the roads, not to abandon our vehicles, or please not walk down the middle of the plowed street because the sidewalk is now shoveled. As a former snowplow operator and first responder, I would have to agree. Stay home, and keep your kids home if it’s a bad …


Two Letters Re: Bug Out Boats

Hugh, I don’t know if this is the kind of information you like to pass along. A coworker was planning to live on a sailboat. My brother had lived on a sailboat for a year, so I asked him for suggestions. His advice to help prepare you for the experience: Buy a good shredder and set it up beside your basement entrance. On Friday, shred your paycheck on your way into the basement. Huddle in a cramped corner, preferably under a leaky pipe. Don’t come out until the end of the weekend. – S.R. o o o Hugh I have …


Letter Re: Bug Out Boats

Hugh, I want to address the specifics of Catamarans and their abilities. My experience exceeds most others. I grew up on powerboats, both large and small. Eventually, when it was my own money, I graduated to sail. I have owned and cruised on plastic classics, steel hull, and ferro-cement monohulls, as well as plywood/e-glass catamarans. The sailing rigs on those boats were simple modern sloop, ketch, cutter, wingsail, and lug (junk) schooner. Cockpit designs ranged from open, pilot house, center cockpit, and flush open. As a marine technician service manager, I have worked on more types of cruising boats, charter …


Letter Re: Bug Out Boats

Hugh I have spent many hours thinking about using a vessel as a bugout vehicle and the many pros and cons involved, and it’s a topic I constantly revisit in my mind. What type of boat to use? What kind of weapons and armor? How to provide provisioning and storage? Where to bug out to? I just generally run different scenarios through my head, and there are way too many to address without being long-winded, so I’ll just share some of my background and try to give some opinions and thoughts. I’ve spent my entire life on the water and …


Letter Re: Bug Out Boats

Hi Hugh, First, thank you for providing SurvivalBlog to all your readers. When things finally come to a head in the world today, I have no doubt that the information that you have provided over the years will be responsible for helping countless citizens and saving many lives. I’d like to add my two cents to the article “Bug Out Boats” as well as the comments from your other contributors. My wife and I have been full-time live-aboards in the northeast for over 20 years, and we have gained some hard won knowledge and experience over the years that I …


Bug Out Boats, by Budget Boater

As a man of the sea, the topic of using a boat for the purpose of escape and survival seems to be misunderstood in many instances. I can even remember JWR dismissing the idea several times in the past. I can only assume that it comes from lack of knowledge and understanding of the “cruising” community. Recently there has been some discussion about this topic and some questions, so I thought this might be time to shed some experienced light on the subject. First, I will answer the questions posted recently: Question #1: If it’s a true EOTW scenario, establishing …


Letter Re: Bug Out Boats

Hugh, Living in a coastal city on the northeast has had me thinking of bugout boats for some time. A cabin cruiser with supplies and full tank would make for an expedient exit from a burning city. Having a retreat to arrive at would beat trying to make it on the boat à la “waterworld”. Sadly the logistics are daunting. A year around-maintained boat is not easy in a zone 5 climate, plus a maintained retreat to arrive at and then trying to make it in your “new home”. As mentioned in numerous survival articles, you will most likely not …