Becoming The Bank In TEOTWAWKI, by J.M.

It has happened. The event that we have all talked about for so many years has come to fruition. The banking and monetary system, after many years of bail-outs and market manipulations, has finally collapsed. Many have plans to “bug out” to the safety of their isolated retreat where they plan to hunker down and weather the financial tempest that surrounds them. I have to admit that this is probably the best short-term plan to survive, but what do you do when your supplies run out? What will the long-term solution be, until a new monetary system is established? How could someone position themselves to be part of the solution rather than waiting for the solution to come to them?

Several very knowledgeable people have discussed a great many topics regarding preparedness in case of an economic catastrophe in our country. Whether it is inflation, deflation, or stagflation, the economic impact on our currency could be severe. That is why, in tandem with all my preps, which includes a paid off, well-stocked retreat with a water filtration system, solar/wind power generators, fuel and farming gear, and all the necessary supplies, I have also positioned myself to act as an interim bank, mercantile, and co-op for day-to-day purchases, exchanges, and loans, until a new currency is established by the government.

There will probably be a period, albeit a short one (I’m guessing six months or so but maybe longer), where U.S. dollars will not be the preferred medium for exchange. I feel that some will barter directly for food with whatever goods or services they may have, but what does one do when they do not possess something that the other party covets or desires? It will be necessary for something to serve as a “store” of value.

The biggest problem, though, is that whatever is used will need to be available in several small denominations and be easily recognizable to all. People tend to gravitate towards the familiar. The closest thing to our old beloved dollar will be pre-65 coinage, recognizable .999 silver bars/coins, and our current 75/25 nickels and pre-82 pennies. Gold will also be coveted but only for larger purchase, in my opinion, as even a gram of gold will far exceed the purchase price of most goods needed for day-to-day living expenses.

After assessing the demographics surrounding my retreat, I discovered that I had about 1,000 people within a 10-mile radius. I then established what the current AVERAGE dollar amount is for Americans to have for cash-on-hand at any given time. After pouring over several statistical analyses regarding this issue, I’ve found that that number rests between $80 and $100. That basically means that for each person (man, woman, and child), you would need 4-5 ounces of silver or a gram and a half to two grams of gold for each person. Your base coinage values would be established at coinflation.com values.

The key to all this is to not just put aside one ounce and one gram increments of bullion. You need that dollar value to be reached with a diversified breakdown of coinage and bars that allow the populace to be able to make multiple purchases with their $80-$100 worth of currency. This is where 90% dimes, quarters, half dollars, fractional bullion, and quality-base coinage come into play. Let’s take my population of 1,000 persons as an example. To serve as the “bank” for that many people, I have put aside these denominations:

  • 30 ounces of gold consisting of: (200) one gram bars, (50) 1/10 oz coins, (12) ¼ oz coins, (6) ½ oz coins, (10) 1 ounce coins, and one 100 gram bar.
  • 3000 ounces of silver consisting of: 500 ounces of Premium bars ranging from 1-10 ounces, 750 ounces of Silver Eagles, 750 ounces of Premium Silver rounds (Engelhard, Johnson Matthey, Maples), $1,000 face of 90% coinage ($500 in dimes, $250 in quarters, and $250 in half dollars).
  • $2500 of base coinage consisting of: $2000 in nickels and $500 in pre-82 pennies.

The above amounts are worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $100,000.00 at today’s “spot” value. That means, I am a little more than 10% above what I need to operate as an interim “bank”. That additional 10% will be necessary, as you still have to have additional liquidity to provide security for your “bank” and provide extra (float) money for those that wish to secure extra funds through collateralization or outright sale of their goods. People will still want “loans” to help get them through, and this will mean that if one wishes to act as a “bank”, they need to be prepared to lend and take in collateral for the loan, or be willing to act as a “mercantile” or “co-op”, as people will not have a lot of money but may also have goods that the “bank” can buy and then re-sell to others in the community.

You won’t be able to act as our current-day, money-grubbing, greedy banksters do. You will need to be a staple of the community– helping others and acting as a “conduit” for exchange in a noble manner. Anything else will lead to a good old-fashioned tar-and-feathering or worse…and rightfully so. You will still have to have excellent security, too, as banks have been, and always will be TARGETS. Do not take being a bank for your local community lightly. You are definitely breaching OPSEC in many ways by acting in such a manner. However, SOMEBODY needs to do it, but you better be damn sure that your neighbors are as committed and endeared to you as you are to helping them.

Another necessary item will be a VERY LARGE BUILDING with a stock yard to serve as your center for exchange. I would definitely recommend that you build it in such a way to house a myriad of goods and products. Everything from food, seeds, and livestock, to other material goods such as guns, ammo, and medical supplies will need to be stored there. You will also need, of course, a vault.

You’ll have to work hard, but being the center of exchange for a community has its benefits as well. When you are just a consumer, you eventually run out of money. When you are the bank/mercantile/co-op, you have continuous flow, and you can make a small amount on each transaction to be able to maintain and even grow your wealth…even in a bad time. This is not a license to fleece people by any means, but most people will not begrudge you a reasonable profit for the services you provide to the community, as long as you are compassionate, charitable, and friendly to all who patronize you.

Many will comment that putting yourself out there in such a manner is not responsible. Let me be clear: I do not recommend attempting this unless you have established yourself with people PRIOR to the “great reset”. Trying to do so when you are not integrated into the area would be foolish in my opinion, BUT, the potential to be “the bank” in your area is possible, if you lay the proper groundwork. When people know you, they tend to be more open to dealing with you. It is human nature to be suspicious of someone’s motives, if you are unfamiliar with them. When others in the area will vouch for your character, it can make all the difference in the world and can lead to strong relationships that can be of great use when things are difficult.

The reason for writing this article is not to show how someone can capitalize on other’s misfortunes but rather to show how we can be a part of the solution and be proactive in re-establishing commerce in our area rather than just waiting for civilization to restore itself. I would like to think that the people on this forum are going to be a part of our country’s rebirth after fiat paper collapses. We can all play an integral role in bringing REAL MONEY to the forefront in our area. It takes courage and fortitude to put oneself out there and help to be a part of the solution. Our forefathers were patriots and risked a heck of a lot more than what I am proposing.

Regionalized banking truly is the best system in my opinion. When folks are tight-knit and know each other, there are simply less defaults on loans, and risky lending does not take place. Once we went to global banking systems, the human factor was eliminated from the equation. Credit unions and co-op’s, as well as localized banking, is what can work and even flourish. It is that “village concept” that will be key to restoring faith and credit, as everything will be based on real and tangible assets and NOT a fractional reserve system that is, quite frankly “imaginary money” with no real backing. My goal here is to spark discussion, and I am sure others will have more to add to my thoughts. I welcome all your ideas, criticisms, and additional input to becoming the “bank” in TEOTWAWKI. The squeamish need not prescribe!

–God Bless

Letter Re: Artificial Intelligence

James and Hugh,

Regarding your entry on Artificial Intelligence, please see the book “Our Final Invention” by James Barrat. Our world lives with potential catastrophe, i.e. nuke war, EMP attack, famine, drought, civil unrest, asteroids, etc. These are all potentially survivable occurrences. The achievement of AGI (artificial general intelligence) leading to super machine intelligence is not. You might also check out the following: http://Plato.stanford.edu/entries/Chinese-room/.

Hugh Replies: While I understand the reasoning behind the desire to advance artificial intelligence, I also clearly see the dangers in it. Isaac Asimov was a visionary in his “I Robot” series in dealing with this issue. While the ability to make decisions can be clearly advanced, even in the face of unclear logic, the morality of making any decision without guiding ethics and principles is definitely questionable. That is really the crux of our humanity– the subjugation of our decisions to our sense of right and wrong. The whole point of natural law is that there are some universal concepts that we just recognize as “right” or “wrong”. Machines don’t and can’t know inherently what these “laws” are. At best, they can be programmed with the programmer’s ideas of the laws, but they will always be unable to infer the laws.

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week

Today, I’m launching a new weekly column to focus on the books and movies that I have found particularly useful and entertaining. I either have these on the shelf here at the Rawles Ranch, or they’ve been recommended to me by my family members or close friends.

Please note that many of my movie recommendations are not “training films”; they are simply entertainment. Also note that many of these films depict times of peril, so they are not suitable for children!

Books

Cookin’ with Home Storage by Vicki Tate
Raising a Calf for Beef by Phyllis Hobson
Wolf And Iron by Gordon Dickson

Movies

Shane (IMHO, the best western film ever made)
The Patriot

Odds ‘n Sods:

Why ISIS Won’t Stop With Iraq – J.S.

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A stark warning for today’s Christians in light of ISIS: Trapped in Hitler’s Hell – RBS

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Is Obama Allowing Illegals to Cross Our Southern Border an Encouragement of Domestic Attacks to Facilitate a Government Takeover? – B.B.

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South Dakota has Raked in $100 Million in Homeland Security Grants Despite No Known Terrorist Threats…Ever – T.R.

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The Freeze Dry Guy(along with all of our advertisers who sell Mountain House foods) are still having some fantastic sales. This is a slow season and now is the time to stock up, while prices are low and fantastic deals are to be had. Make sure you check out our advertisers in the column to the right (or below on mobile devices).

Notes for Tuesday – June 17, 2014

Today we present another entry for Round 53 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $11,000+ worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course (a $1,195 value),
  2. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear,
  5. A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value),
  6. A $300 gift certificate from Freeze Dry Guy,
  7. A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo,
  8. A roll of $10 face value in pre-1965 U.S. 90% silver quarters, courtesy of GoldAndSilverOnline.com, (currently valued at around $180 postpaid),
  9. Both VPN tunnel and DigitalSafe annual subscriptions from Privacy Abroad (a combined value of $195),
  10. KellyKettleUSA.com is donating both an AquaBrick water filtration kit and a Stainless Medium Scout Kelly Kettle Complete Kit with a combined retail value of $304,
  11. APEX Gun Parts is donating a $250 purchase credit, and
  12. TexasgiBrass.com is providing a $300 gift certificate.

Second Prize:

  1. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  2. A FloJak EarthStraw “Code Red” 100-foot well pump system (a $500 value), courtesy of FloJak.com,
  3. Acorn Supplies is donating a Deluxe Food Storage Survival Kit with a retail value of $350,
  4. The Ark Instituteis donating a non-GMO, non-hybrid vegetable seed package–enough for two families of four, seed storage materials, a CD-ROM of Geri Guidetti’s book “Build Your Ark! How to Prepare for Self Reliance in Uncertain Times”, and two bottles of Potassium Iodate– a $325 retail value,
  5. $300 worth of ammo from Patriot Firearms and Munitions. (They also offer a 10% discount for all SurvivalBlog readers with coupon code SVB10P),
  6. A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials,
  7. Twenty Five books, of the winners choice, of any books published by PrepperPress.com (a $270 value),
  8. Two cases of meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value),
  9. Dri-Harvestfoods.com in Bozeman, Montana is providing a prize bundle with Beans, Buttermilk Powder, Montana Hard Red Wheat, Drink Mixes, and White Rice, valued at $333,
  10. TexasgiBrass.com is providing a $150 gift certificate,
  11. Organized Prepper is providing a $500 gift certificate, and
  12. RepackBoxis providing a $300 gift certificate to their site.

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security,
  5. A MURS Dakota Alert Base Station Kit with a retail value of $240 from JRH Enterprises,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. Ambra Le Roy Medical Products in North Carolina is donating a bundle of their traditional wound care and first aid supplies, with a value of $208, and
  8. SurvivalBased.com is donating a $500 gift certificate to their store.

Round 53 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Letter Re: The Water Solution

I liked the article and the follow up comments noting the sanitary issue raised. My plan is to drill a hole in the bottom of the right side of the water closet tank and put a separate filler valve supplied by water from the catchment system via a separate pipe. I have an abrasive edged hole saw and am about to go test it out on some decommissioned 5-gallon flushers. It’ll be interesting to see if I can successfully drill porcelain. I think this solves the sanitary issues of hooking up a catchment supplied system in a useful way, saving a great deal of labor. You would just reach down and turn off the high quality water supply and turn on the supply from the catchment. If both were left on, there would be no foul as that filler valve is an acceptable barrier between the less than clean tank and the water supply. This set up is also attractive if you have city water with aggressively rising rates.

I would not want to bathe in a catchment supplied system. Perhaps I would also set up a mop sink not connected to the regular water supply to serve as in interface between questionable water and employing it in other areas of the house where I would want to be certain that it was clean for bathing and cooking. I can see my six year old brushing her teeth in catchment water if I make it too automatic.

My day job is as an insurance agent, and I see negative inferences in that vein in your blog. You can turn that around by picking the right agent. As an agent, my mind set is to be prepared for disaster. Independent Insurance Agents are generally business people who happen to be in the insurance business and not just sales people. They are wired to serve. For my part I jealously guard my client’s data. Smart fire walls, smart routers, data encryption, virus protection, and malware sweeps are the rule of the day. Every stinking thing has a password. The carriers are over the top serious about it, too.

For guns, gold, and silver, if you want more than a little covered, then you have to detail it. They handle thousands of transactions just like it, and yours is going to go in a file for later use in billing and claims. It will not stand out in their memory. They don’t send it anywhere except under your instructions (without a subpeona), so as to help you. Same with the claim adjuster. They handle hundreds of files in a month. It is a blur and you will not stand out. Find an independent insurance agent, and shuck the direct writer sales guy. You will be happier. The independent is likely a prepper, too. I know what I preach to my people. – VRV

Odds ‘n Sods:

So much for buying your son a birthday or graduation present. Once again, a law designed to punish law abiding citizens is validated, or you can look at this as a law to make criminals out of law abiding citizens for simply following the time-honored tradition of buying your relative a gift. Supreme Court Rules on ‘Straw Purchaser’ Law. – RBS.

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From Pat Cascio: This is what the past three presidents have unilaterally declared as “A religion of peace”. Warning: This video is extremely graphic! Muslims Force Christian To Convert To Islam, Then Brutally Behead Him

Also, This similar video is from another SurvivalBlog reader: Daesh ISIL muslim massacre 2014june. The religion of Islam is not a religion of peace but one of pure evil.

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Social cycles analysis: Fourth Turning Accelerating. – B.C.

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Some Unaccompanied Foreign Children Receiving Better Care than US Foster Kids . – G.R.

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Dealing With Flies the Old Fashioned Way. – J.W.

Hugh’s Quote of the Day:

“Return to patriotism, love of God and country – let your conscience mold your actions. There are no atheists in a firefight!” Hector A. Cafferata, Jr. U.S. Marine Corps, Medal of Honor

Notes for Monday – June 16, 2014

Mountain House Foods and Ready Made Resources have teamed together to allow you to “build your own” Barter/Bug-Out-Bucket with twelve 2-person entrees of your selection. Also, don’t forget that most SurvivalBlog advertisers who carry Mountain House Foods are still having a sale. Check them out!

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Today we present another entry for Round 53 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The $11,000+ worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course (a $1,195 value),
  2. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses. (Excluding those restricted for military or government teams.) Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  3. Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  4. A $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear,
  5. A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value),
  6. A $300 gift certificate from Freeze Dry Guy,
  7. A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo,
  8. A roll of $10 face value in pre-1965 U.S. 90% silver quarters, courtesy of GoldAndSilverOnline.com, (currently valued at around $180 postpaid),
  9. Both VPN tunnel and DigitalSafe annual subscriptions from Privacy Abroad (a combined value of $195),
  10. KellyKettleUSA.com is donating both an AquaBrick water filtration kit and a Stainless Medium Scout Kelly Kettle Complete Kit with a combined retail value of $304,
  11. APEX Gun Parts is donating a $250 purchase credit, and
  12. TexasgiBrass.com is providing a $300 gift certificate.

Second Prize:

  1. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  2. A FloJak EarthStraw “Code Red” 100-foot well pump system (a $500 value), courtesy of FloJak.com,
  3. Acorn Supplies is donating a Deluxe Food Storage Survival Kit with a retail value of $350,
  4. The Ark Instituteis donating a non-GMO, non-hybrid vegetable seed package–enough for two families of four, seed storage materials, a CD-ROM of Geri Guidetti’s book “Build Your Ark! How to Prepare for Self Reliance in Uncertain Times”, and two bottles of Potassium Iodate– a $325 retail value,
  5. $300 worth of ammo from Patriot Firearms and Munitions. (They also offer a 10% discount for all SurvivalBlog readers with coupon code SVB10P),
  6. A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials,
  7. Twenty Five books, of the winners choice, of any books published by PrepperPress.com (a $270 value),
  8. Two cases of meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value),
  9. Dri-Harvestfoods.com in Bozeman, Montana is providing a prize bundle with Beans, Buttermilk Powder, Montana Hard Red Wheat, Drink Mixes, and White Rice, valued at $333,
  10. TexasgiBrass.com is providing a $150 gift certificate,
  11. Organized Prepper is providing a $500 gift certificate, and
  12. RepackBoxis providing a $300 gift certificate to their site.

Third Prize:

  1. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security,
  5. A MURS Dakota Alert Base Station Kit with a retail value of $240 from JRH Enterprises,
  6. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances,
  7. Ambra Le Roy Medical Products in North Carolina is donating a bundle of their traditional wound care and first aid supplies, with a value of $208, and
  8. SurvivalBased.com is donating a $500 gift certificate to their store.

Round 53 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Book Review: Journal Of A Deserter

  • Author: Jacob Maccabee
  • Copyright Date: 2014
  • Publisher: Xlibris LLC
  • ISBN: 978-1-4931-5760-0
  • Amazon Link: Journal of a Deserter
  • Audio, e-book or foreign translation available: No Suitable for children: No

This is more a story of recovery than one of preparedness, but it does spend a bit of time on wilderness survival skills, and I expect many in the SurvivalBlog audience will appreciate the struggle. Besides that, depending on how the SHTF and what any given individual may experience, the recovery may need to be part of one’s life in the aftermath.

It should also be noted that while not an autobiography, it is pretty clear, from the author’s Prologue and from the contents of the novel, this is something which the author knows from first-hand experience. This is not someone just imposing their idea of war onto the audience. This is someone who has been through it. This is someone who has borne the burden and lived with the pain, and this is someone who has found a way back to being able to live with himself.

I do not believe any of the below will spoil the novel for a reader. The story is told through flashbacks, journal entries, and pieces of the present. More than anything, it is about the journey. Most of the below is the setting for the journey.

Master Corporal Walter Elrick was a Canadian soldier serving in Kandahar, Afghanistan. His role was running the supply system for his company and driving a 10,000-liter fuel truck to take care of his own camp’s generator farm and a Joint Signals Regiment in Kandahar City. That sort of truck makes a nice target, if you are looking to blow yourself up in a big way.

Walter’s truck was indeed targeted, but by luck his run was delayed until their window of opportunity was closed, and so the bomber settled instead for a UN convoy. Walter’s group got the job of towing those vehicles back to his own compound and dealing with the bodies and the knowledge that they themselves were the intended targets. In Walter’s mind one of those vehicles was to have been his own tomb.

Not only does he have that on his mind, but his local contractor, Sherife, had quickly become his right hand man, keeping things running smoothly inside the camp and with outside contacts, too. However, Sherife’s family convinced him he would make more money working for the Afghan National Police, so he left his job with Walter only to find himself being sodomized and abused in his new job. Convinced by his cousin that participation in homosexual acts was going to prevent him from going to paradise unless he died a martyr, Sherife puts on an explosive vest and sets out to make the infidels pay. It is MCpl Walter Elrick who shoots him down as Sherife tries to gun his motorcycle into their patrol, their eyes meeting as the double-tapped rounds impact Sherife’s chest.

These experiences, plus the helplessness of being caught under mortar fire with no shelter, become the material of Walter’s nightmares. His mind shifts, and he can no longer sleep well. Then his wife divorces him. He resorts to cocaine. He cannot do his job well. Back in Canada he has a desk job, but the papers just pile up in his in-box. He is prescribed Mefloquin, but that just seems to fuel the nightmares. Then Lorazepam. It is a veritable cocktail of drugs which are thrown at those suffering from PTSD, with suicide as a far too common “final solution”.

Walter recognizes that the drugs are destroying him, and he has no support from his superiors. To them he is weak. He is not standing up as a soldier should. Seeing what he is up against and how his life will probably end if he maintains this course, Walter decides to desert and go to the wilderness to find himself. This he plans very carefully and deliberately, so that his disappearance will go undetected for as long as possible and leave no clues as to where he went.

His desertion works as planned, but nature itself does not provide the healing Walter seeks. It is not until he meets the trapper, Normand, and is put on a spiritual journey that Walter finds the peace he has been seeking. His journey is a deeply personal one, as would be the case for anyone else. It is the direction taken that makes the difference, and it is a difference of life and death.

This book is a worthwhile read, and especially so for anyone who is wrestling with their own personal demons. It is abundantly clear that the author is writing from personal experience and is passionate about his subject matter.

Speaking as one with an editorial bent and a healthy inner stickler, I found a number of errors in grammar, spelling, and word choice, yet at the same time I found that those added to my ability to empathize with Walter. That may be from my own personal experience with a gentleman who has a Phd, yet war has taken much of his mind from him, and writing is one of his many struggles.

I did not note any profanity in this book, nor is there any sex, but there are some images of war which would not be suitable for children. Walter’s nightmares are not the sort of thing young folks should have to worry about.

The very end of the book is a bit of a conundrum to me, particularly regarding the use of the Word. It leaves more room for interpretation than I would really like. Even so, regardless of what is in store for Walter short term, his long-term future is assured.

Scot’s Product Review: G-Code Holsters

1

A friend told me about G-Code Holsters, when I was looking for a holster to use in “the bump in the night” kit I was putting together. I had settled on a belt, after trying several other setups, and I needed a holster for it. This is not for normal, concealed, everyday carry but rather something that I could quickly don in an emergency that would work with either my soft or hard body armor. One key element was to be able to get it on quickly, regardless of how I’m dressed. My normal carry is an inside the waist band holster, but those don’t go on quickly and work poorly with body armor. The armor hangs over waist, making it hard to draw or holster the pistol.

Besides a pistol, the belt carries a magazine dump bag, magazine pouches for pistol and rifle, and a pouch for a Surefire 6P flashlight. The dump bag holds spare batteries for the Surefire, along with a spare bulb for it and some gloves. A final pouch holds a compression bandage, tourniquet, some nitrile gloves, and a pair of EMT shears. On the chance I might decide to go with the shotgun, I clipped on some holders for 12 gauge shells. I hang a pair of amplified hearing protectors next to it.

The belt itself is kind of like a police duty belt with Modular Lightweight Load-carrying Equipment (MOLLE) attachment points. MOLLE is used to combine tactical gear by the U.S. and other militaries. It is extremely versatile. The belt can go over whatever I’m wearing for pants and then, if I have time and feel the need, I can add armor.

I had all of the other stuff, but I didn’t have a holster that I felt worked well on this sort of belt, especially if I were to add the body armor. Heeding my friend’s advice, I took a look, and G-Code appeared to have exactly what I needed in their OSH RTI Kydex Holster. It is as the name says, made of Kydex and costs $37.45. It is intended primarily for outside the waistband carry and offers ready access to the pistol. I discovered that it actually offers a lot more.

G-Code, you see, has a system. You can buy the holster and then wander about their site and find a number of ways to attach it to most anything, yourself included. The one I used is part of their Rapid Transition Interface (RTI) system. It ran $40.75. RTI allows you to quickly detach the holster from one mount and move it to any other RTI adapter. The way this works is there is an aluminum hanger that mounts on the holster and a wheel-like adapter that can mount on a number of holders offered by G-Code. The hanger snaps into the wheel, which has a very secure lock to hold the holster in place.

This is popular with folks who like to carry a pistol on a tactical vest at times and on a belt at other times. If you are moving in and out of vehicles, for example, you can have your weapon on the vest for easy access in the vehicle and then move it to your belt when on foot.

They have belt slides, paddles, MOLLE mounts, drop belt slides, and leg mounts you can choose from. I’m not that fond of drop mounts, but they work well for others. The paddle mounts could be useful, if you need to go without a belt. They hold pretty well on pants alone.

Another trick is to hang an RTI adapter someplace in your car or on the side of your bed or desk and put the holster and pistol on it as needed.

A nice thing when you move your handgun from one mount to another is that you are moving a holstered pistol, which is safer than unholstering it and moving it to a different holster. You can move it with one hand if necessary.

You can adjust the rake of the holster a bit with the RTI mount I used. This allows you to make it work with your mode of dress, position of carry, and whatever else you are carrying.

The only drawback I could see for RTI is it does add some to the thickness of the holster, but that worked well in setting mine up for use with armor. I needed to space the holster away from my body to ensure clearance for the armor. If you want to have a thinner rig, you can get paddle, belt, and MOLLE mounts that attach directly to the holster without the RTI adapter. Since all of this stuff is modular, you have a huge number of choices on how you set up your rig.

Surprisingly, you can even get an inside the waist band adapter for your G-Code OSH. This won’t work with RTI, so it isn’t rapid change, but it does work well. You can make a number of adjustments in ride height and rake, so it fits you and your needs. I have been happy with mine, although I think a purpose-built IWB holster is better. The OSH is made of very heavy duty, thick Kydex, which isn’t optimal for IWB. It is, of course, optimal for the primary purpose of the OSH, outside the waistband carry under hard use.

You get a choice of having a shirt guard or not on the OSH. The shirt guard helps keep your shirt from getting tangled up as you try to holster the pistol, so I highly recommend it. This isn’t so important on a duty type belt, but it’s very helpful on an inside the waistband. I would get it, just in case I needed it later.

The OSH, like most Kydex holsters, is formed by bending a sheet of Kydex around the handgun it is being made for. This leaves a sort of U-shaped creation. The open side of the U is closed with rivets. Like many Kydex holsters, there is also an adjustment screw so you can set how much tension you want holding the pistol in.

Besides the OSH, G-Code makes two similar holsters that I have not handled. The first is the XST. The OSH retains the holster by friction, while the XST adds a strap that pops off when operated by the thumb. The second is the SOC that includes a retention system similar to the XST, while adding an interesting system of interchangeable cowlings that adapt the holster for an assortment of weapon-mounted lights or no light at all. The XST and SOC use all of the same mounting accessories as the OSH. Both holsters appear to be thicker than the OSH to accommodate the strap system. The XST costs $37.45 without RTI and $48.95 with.

I spent a lot of time agonizing between the OSH, XST, and SOC, and in the end, the simplicity of the OSH won me over. I might try one of the others in the future, though. The retaining strap could be of value when covering rough terrain, though the retention screw on the OSH will easily hold the pistol when the holster is held upside down and jiggled.

I should point out that these prices are for the holster alone. You also need to select a carry mount which will add to the cost.

There are a number of other interesting items in their product line that I hope to review in the future. The HSP D3 magazine carrier system looks especially interesting, as it allows you to design just what you want to carry magazines in a form that minimizes space on a belt or vest. They also have pocket holsters, a concealment holster, revolver holsters, and a number of other carriers for shooting gear. The website also features a number of informative videos.

All of the G-Code gear I’ve handled is well made and solid. There are several choices in color, including an assortment of camouflage patterns. Being the boring sort, I chose plain old olive drab. The hardware is of good quality and spare parts are available on the website. They also have adapters to use other brands of holsters on their mounts.

G-Code has a contract to the U.S. military to supply holsters, which is a good endorsement, in my view.

Customer service from G-Code was great. My IWB adapter had a bad snap, and it was repaired quickly and without hassle. We all make mistakes, and the question is how we deal with them. G-Code gets an A. They didn’t know I was going to be writing a blog article, either. I was just another dweeb who bought a holster. They even offered an upgrade, but I was keen on trying the adapter and stuck with it.

Speaking of my bump in the night kit, on the off chance anyone is interested, I took a circuitous route arriving at the belt system. Initially, I just figured pistol in hand was all I needed. Then, thanks to training, I learned that arriving police might easily mistake someone with pistol in hand as a threat. Having a holster in which to secure the pistol would be a lot better than dropping it on the ground. I, therefore, planned to put on my normal inside the waistband CCW carry holster. Then we had some nasty home invasions in a nearby urban area that made me think I might want a long arm and some extra ammo, if things were to “go North”. (I’m a Southerner, so “going South” is a GOOD thing.) I might also want to put on the soft body armor I had for riots when I was a photographer or the hard armor I bought a couple years ago.

Since I had spent 30 plus years working as a photographer, I thought a shoulder bag like the ones I carried camera gear in would work. A carbine class showed me the error of those ways. Working a carbine and pistol is not the same as working cameras. The straps for the bag, for example, fouled my holster and magazine pouches. The bag kept flopping around and was never in the same spot, which left me groping for gear.

Going back to the drawing board, I tried a couple of chest rigs. Some of the folks in classes I’ve taken used them, so I figured they were worth a try. I’ve had some shoulder injuries, however, and it turned out that a loaded chest kit is awkward for me to get on quickly. Then there is the issue of armor. I would have to decide which to put on– armor and vest rig or just the vest rig. If armor goes on too, then the vest rig has to go over it. If I decided to put on the chest rig and then decided I need armor, I had to pull off the rig, put on the armor and then put the rig back on. I tried these combinations at the range, and they badly interfered with my normal IWB holsters and the belt pouches for pistol ammo. I also finally realized that getting the IWB holster on in a hurry was not so hot, either. It required pants with a belt to retain the holster. I might not have time to put those on and could wind up in pajamas and no holster. Even if I had on pants with a belt, it takes time to get the IWB on.

I next decided to try going straight to the hard armor in a carrier with MOLLE and festoon everything onto it, magazine pouches, first aide gear, dump pouch, pistol holster, et cetera. This was another error. I am no longer young, and hard armor is heavy. (Mine is steel and very awkward to get on, though the ARES plate carrier silencer I mentioned in another article helps.) The weight of hard armor tremendously reduces mobility, and I realized I would only use it for holding a defensive position. I might go with the soft armor, if I wanted to be mobile, but I desired to keep that in its concealable carrier, which couldn’t carry extra gear.

That’s when it dawned on me that a belt might be a good idea. It could carry all of my gear and be quick and easy to put on over most any form of clothing. I could add armor as the situation demanded without having to take anything off.

I first tried a GI pistol belt I had on hand. It held everything and was easy to get on, but after a range trip, I discovered that the magazine pouches and other gear tended to wander around. That’s not so good when what you are looking for has moved. Still, the concept appeared to be going in the right direction; I just needed a belt that would secure everything in a fixed location.

I then picked up a MOLLE belt, and lo and behold, it all appears to work as intended. So far though, it’s a lot better than anything else I’ve tried, in both dry practice and range drills. It works with both pistol and long arms. I still want to use it in a class to see if I am missing anything, but I think I am close to solving this problem. What I did may not work for you, but hopefully my progression may help you find your own way. For some, the chest rigs work really well as does putting gear on a plate carrier. The key is to test it and be sure it works for you.