Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“For ye were sometimes darkness, but now [are ye] light in the Lord: walk as children of light:
(For the fruit of the Spirit [is] in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)
Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.
And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove [them].
For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.
But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.
Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,
Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord [is].” – Ephesians 5:8-17 (KJV)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A roll of $10 face value in pre-1965 U.S. 90% silver quarters, courtesy of GoldAndSilverOnline.com. The current value of this roll is at least $225.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300 and 10 TAPCO polymer magazines (5 AR and 5 AK) courtesy of Armageddon Armory, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) 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, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 46 ends on May 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.

Tree Felling, by George H.

Disclaimer: Tree cutting is inherently dangerous with many injuries and fatalities every year, please do you own research and obtain training before trying this on your own.

In New England there is extensive woodland and always a need to cut down trees to keep your garden growing and your house from being overrun. This keeps your house warm with the resulting firewood. Cutting down a tree is always risky but there are many ways to reduce this risk using various tools and skills.

Never start cutting unless you are well rested, fully alert and all your tools are sharpened and fully fueled.

First clear the area around the tree to be cut. Make sure you have several escape paths it case the tree decides to come down when and where you least expect it. Check for wind, do not cut if it is a windy day as the tree may suddenly get pushed over by a sudden gust.  Look for dead branches on the trees which may fall onto you during cutting, take these down if at all possible. If you can not remove the dead branches wear a hard hard and do not work under the dead branch Next look at the tree and branches, if it is on the edge of a forest odds are it will weigh more on the side away from the forest. Branches grow toward the sun more so then into a shaded forest. This helps with your estimate of where the tree will LIKELY fall. Another trick is to hug a tree and look up, which way is it leaning? That is a likely falling direction.

Once you know where you want the tree to fall or where it is likely to fall make sure there is nothing in the way. If there is might be a good time to throw a line over a high branch and begin directing the tree either with a helper and/or tying the heavy rope taught to a tree in the direction you are aiming for. Make sure the rope will not catch you when the tree falls! Placing the rope: the higher the better as this gives you more leverage. Also make sure the falling tree will not get hung up on another tree. This will result in a dangerous situation where the tree you are cutting may swing back at you or create a widow maker.
Use two tow straps and come-a-long if a shed or other structure is in possible danger. Or if the tree is too large for a heavy rope. Get the ropes and straps in place before cutting, after cutting has started the tree is more likely to come down at any time with a sudden gust of wind or if the tree has damage from ants, internal rotting or disease.

Get all of your tools ready for use, not just the tool you think you need. If the tree shifts and pinches your chainsaw you need a backup right away not after the batteries charge and saw is sharpened and you have found the wedges. Keep the tools nearby but safe. I keep the tools behind a tree I am not cutting so if the tree comes down towards the tools they should still be safe.

NEVER TURN YOUR BACK ON A TREE ONCE YOU HAVE STARTED TO CUT IT.

Next notch the tree on the side towards to desired felling. Chainsaw or axe works great for this, chainsaw requires two cuts about one third through each at about 30 degrees from horizontal.This takes some practice as the first few cuts may not line up on both sides requiring a 3rd or 4th cut. An axe can also create this by shifting the swing angle to match. Next make a single cut on the side away from the fell direction with a chainsaw or timber saw, this gives the tree one way to fall without resistance (desired direction and the other side can only shift slightly before coming to rest on the saw and tree. Do not cut completely through the tree. You want to create a pivot point NOT have a moving tree coming at you. Hopefully the tree comes down right where you want it to.
If I am using an axe I make a point of switching my swing direction. Swinging to the right is the most comfortable and accurate for me but it limits how much I can do. Plus if i am ever injured on that side no more tree cutting. Switching the swing allows me to cut faster longer after getting used to it. If there is not room to swing an axe then stop and clear the brush and branches. How are you going to get out of the way when the tree starts coming down at you if you don’t have room to swing an axe?

After the tree is down the next step is limbing the tree which is fastest for me with an axe. Always stand on the side of the tree opposite of the branch you are swinging at. If you miss or the axe goes through the branch the tree will take the blow not you. Also swing at the branch to hit the branch towards the bottom of the tree. This results in a cleaner break the swinging from the top down.
After limbing pull all the branches out of the way and create a brush pile well out of sight. This gives you a safe work area for cutting up the trunk. This brush pile can be used as a barrier for someone approaching your house and could also be used as concealment for both you and someone approaching you.

I typically cut the trunk and large branches into 4-6 foot lengths and leave to season for firewood. 4-6 feet is what I can comfortably handle for heavy green wood depending on the tree size. Next year I will cut it into size and know it is ready for burning.

After an ice storm two years ago my tree cutting took greater importance. We had many heavy branches on our power lines and lost power for a week due to trees in the area taking out power lines. At the time I had all my hand tools, no power tools. Hand tools are fine if you have time and energy, during the ice storm I had neither! Power tools I consider a force multiplier, Same amount of time and effort I get twice the work done.

Hand tools were fine for clearing our 400 foot driveway after the storm but not the garden, yard and woodlot that year. Gas powered chainsaws were great when I was cutting many trees but for occasional use electric has much less maintenance and is faster to setup. Initially I went with a battery powered chain saw and pole saw both using the same battery packs. This worked very well as by the time the batteries were drained I had as much cut up as I could handle before needing a rest. I also shifted to vegetable oil for chain lube since my fruit and nut trees need pruning often. I obtained a corded electric chain saw soon after for firewood cutting. I can run this off the photoelectric battery bank and keep my work quiet good for OPSEC.

Safety equipment- always steel toed boots, leather gloves and safety glasses. If I am using a pole saw or a branch might fall from above then a hard hat or lumberjack helmet as well. Kevlar chainsaw safety chaps are recommended for frequent use of gas chain saws but can be pricey and not rated for electric chain saws. Leather gloves with a gel insert to protect your hands from the vibration are a definite plus. If your hands hurt from splitting wood then try a pair, I bought one pair only because they were on sale and never went back. Personally I prefer working in the winter and fall wearing at least a long sleeve shirt and heavy duty pants. This keeps the bugs, thorns and branches from scratching up my skin. Last summer there was one small job where I was not wearing my work pants and boots found a hornets nest that day. If I had my usual work clothes I would not have been stung several times on my legs. Summer work is the most challenging because of the heat and PPE only adds to the heat. Spring brings Bugs, rain and mud.

Here are the tools I have used:

  1. Axe: Best all around woodcutting tool. Can fell trees, cut and split firewood.  Not perfect for every use but can fill most in a pinch. Great for notching a tree to help it come down where you would like it to and limbing a tree when it is down. Plastic/fiberglass type handles last much longer than the wooden handles. I have a double edged axe for use when I know I will not need to drive the wedges in.
  2. Maul: Ideal for splitting wood and driving wedges. Definitely use a plastic/fiberglass handle, and vibration resistant gloves plus a rubber collar for the occasional missed swing.
  3. Large timber saw: Good for cutting firewood and felling trees, very fast if you are in practice.
  4. Loppers: good for removing small branches, Axe or Hatchet is faster but loppers have reach.
  5. Bow saw: useful for small branch removal and cutting small firewood
  6. Chainsaws: The fastest way to take down trees but require skill and maintenance to use regularly. Every time someone uses a gas powered chainsaw in my neighborhood everyone knows it. Electric chainsaws are very quiet with much less maintenance but you need electricity and are limited by extension cord distance to the outlet or battery life. Gas powered saws need frequent fuel changes and carb cleaning if left to sit between seasons.
  7. Cordless electric pole saw: for removing overhanging branches, clearing low hanging branches which are in the way and cutting down small trees.
  8. Cordless electric chainsaw: good for small jobs away from an outlet or to do a small job without running an electric cord or priming the gas chainsaw.
  9. Throw bag, cord and heavy duty rope: to rope and pull or convince a tree to fall where you want it.
  10. Tow straps and come-along: to further convince a tree which way to fall. I run the throw bag and cord first, then rope then tow strap.

Maintenance:

  1. Flat files for removing dents on the maul and sharpening the axe and timber saw. Round files for the chain saw, with light oil to preserve the steel and lube the cutting tools. Sharpening stones could be used as well in place of the flat file for the axe.
  2. Spare chains for the chainsaw, spare vegetable oil for cutting lubrication and other use. Spare axe and handles are another plus.

Not to overstress safety but many people I have been trained by have later been injured cutting trees. Eventually chains break, trees kick back or bounce back, logs shift, branches fall, things happen. PPE is required not optional. Make sure you can finish cutting down a tree before making the first cut. Don’t limb a tree or start another tree when you need a rest. And never put your back to a falling tree. I only know of one local tree felling fatality, someone who had 40 years experience. He walked away from a tree cut to move his truck out of the way and the tree fell on him.

In a short article I am trying to describe what can be a month long process of clearing brush and cutting down trees. There is a lot to be learned, for experience there are always Arborists and loggers needing help pulling brush and cutting up branches and summer camps needing volunteers. You do not want to learn the hard way, learn from experienced people.

Two Letters Re: Sewing, Mending and Altering Your Clothing After the Ball Drops

James:
I would like to add a couple of things with regard to the recent article and letters on sewing.
 
1.  Get a button jar.  People used to save the buttons from discarded, worn out clothing and use them for repair or when making new items.  When a button hole begins to wear out even a novice with needle and thread can sew on a larger button and make the garment wearable until the button hole can be repaired. A riveted metal button cannot be sewn back on and neither can a broken button.  I have buttons that have outlasted several garments and are still doing their duty.
 
2.   Wal-Mart sells an assortment of needles suitable for most sewing tasks including some that are sturdy enough to sew leather.  They also sell a large spool of thread that is meant for sewing on buttons but is ideal for repairing work clothing as well.  Both of them together are less than $3.00.
 
3.  Next time you go to Goodwill or your favorite thrift look at the far end of the rack of denim pants/jeans.  Often you can find a pair of new or nearly new jeans in a very large size.  I bought a size 48 heavy denim jean that was  new or nearly new for $.99.  I hope to never be able to wear that size but by buying them I got several yards of heavy denim and a new zipper.  The back pockets are already cut and hemmed and can be used as patches on coat elbows or the knees of kids jeans.  When I buy a pair of bib overalls I put double knee patches on them right away.  It is easier to do this when they are new as the knees are not stretched out.  Put the patch on the outside of the overalls and leave the bottom of the patch un-sewn.  They dry faster when washed, you can put padding in there if you have to spend a long time on your knees and any lint or debris that finds its way behind the patch will fall out.  Jeans patched this way from the bottom of the pockets to below the knees are warmer and more comfortable to kneel in than before they were patched.  This large pair of jeans will provide patches for two pairs of bibs and that will double the wear that you can expect from them. – Larry K.

Jim,
Another reader commented: “Buttons. Lay in a store of metal buttons. I can’t tell you how many plastic, conventional buttons I’ve smashed working on something. Metal shirt and pant buttons don’t break and wear for years. Plan on making clothes using buttons, including suspender buttons. Zippers break, jam and are far harder to replace than good metal buttons.”

That’s another of the things that our zinc sandwich phony pennies are good for: Turning them into buttons is really simple and easy with a drill press and 1/32″ drill bit, but can be done with hand tools if necessary. – George S.  

Letter Re: One Year Food Supply at COSTCO

Hi JWR,
Just a quick note regarding the posting of “One Year Food Supply at COSTCO”. Just in case Walt G. and others are not aware, that particular food storage system has no meat
In Costco’s THRIVE special, it’s all TVP. True, there is milk and egg protein, but if someone needs actual meat, there isn’t any–it is [soy-based] TVP (textured vegetable protein).
 
Take care, and thanks, Steve N. in Arizona

JWR Replies: There are other food storage packages on the market that do have real meat. And one alternative is to supplement with real canned meats (such as tuna, salmon, ham, and chicken), or retort packaged meats (such as smoked salmon fillets). These are available in case lots at COSTCO and other Big Box stores. I describe how to do an “11th Hour” food shopping trip at any of these stores in the Rawles Gets You Ready Preparedness Course.

Economics and Investing:

Peter Schiff: A Collapse Happened In 2008, But The Real Collapse Is Still Ahead

Andre D. sent: Gold buyers forced to go on waiting list

Items from The Economatrix:

We, As Americans, Are About To See A Major, Major Collapse In Our National Monetary System, And Our Normal Way Of Life

Ron Paul On Bitcoin: If I Can’t Put It In My Pocket, I Have Reservations”

ObamaCare Is A “Neutron Bomb” That Will “Decimate” Jobs In America

Odds ‘n Sods:

The editors of Mother Jones have belatedly discovered prepperdom.

   o o o

For the gent in Ohio who wrote to chide me that: “.308 [semi-auto]s are impractical for rapid fire shooting, and close combat.” Well, Jerry Miculek shows how it is done. Perfect practice makes perfect!

   o o o

Monday (May 6th) will be the last day of the Ready Made Resources 25% off sale on Mountain House canned long term storage foods. Order soon.

   o o o

Alan S. sent this headline from Australia: Murder trial after NSW knife man shot dead. The hand-wringing Aussie judicial system pundits seem horrified that someone would defend another life decisively. And they implied that taking a steady aim and taking a second shot showed murderous intent. That fact is, until someone ceases to be a threat to life, you must keep shooting!

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;
While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:
In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,
And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low;
Also [when] they shall be afraid of [that which is] high, and fears [shall be] in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:
Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
Vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all [is] vanity.” – Ecclesiastes 12:1-8 (KJV)

Notes from JWR:

Happy birthday to Pastor Chuck Baldwin (born 1952), of Kalispell, Montana. He has done yeoman service as a pastor. Many of his sermons are available online. I commend him for promoting the American Redoubt movement. He has exhorted hundreds of families to relocate to Montana.

—

Ready Made Resources is running their semi-annual 25% off Mountain House Sale. This includes all Mountain House long term storage foods nitrogen packed in #10 cans. The sale ends on May 6th, so order soon.

—

Today we present another entry for Round 46 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate, good for any one, two, or three course. (A $1,195 value.) B.) 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, and C.) Two cases of Mountain House freeze dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources. (A $350 value.) D.) a $300 gift certificate from CJL Enterprize, for any of their military surplus gear, E.) A 9-Tray Excalibur Food Dehydrator from Safecastle.com (a $300 value), and F.) A $250 gift certificate from Sunflower Ammo. and G.) A roll of $10 face value in pre-1965 U.S. 90% silver quarters, courtesy of GoldAndSilverOnline.com. The current value of this roll is at least $225.

Second Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, B.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training. Together, these have a retail value of $589. C.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. D.) A “grab bag” of preparedness gear and books from Jim’s Amazing Secret Bunker of Redundant Redundancy (JASBORR) with a retail value of at least $300 and 10 TAPCO polymer magazines (5 AR and 5 AK) courtesy of Armageddon Armory, E.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials and F.) Two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value).

Third Prize: A.) A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21. (This filter system is a $275 value.), B.) 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, C.) Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy. This is a $185 retail value, D.) A Commence Fire! emergency stove with three tinder refill kits. (A $160 value. E.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 value), and F.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 46 ends on May 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.

Traditional Skills: What Value are You to Other Preppers?, by Blacksmith Tom

Prepper communities and compounds rely on each members worth to their group, cooking, sewing, carpentry, leatherwork, gardening. There is one skill that cannot be over looked as one of the most valuable skills/trade for a prepper to possess.  Blacksmithing.  All other crafts and trades will require once again the skills of a blacksmith to replace stolen, broken tools.  In addition to making these tools a blacksmith can also make weapons, swords, axes, daggers, spears, arrow heads. 

But how would one go about obtaining these skills?  Look in your local areas for classes offered, some community colleges are now offering blacksmithing courses. Look for a local blacksmith group, a living museum that has a working blacksmith shop can help locate a blacksmith that’s willing to teach the basics. After taking the lessons or classes, it’s just a matter of practice before you’re looking for more complicated projects. A blacksmith with even the minimal skill set will be of great value, even if all they can do is make a simple knife, tomahawk or even a hinge. 

Once you’ve gotten the basic knowledge of blacksmithing practice is very important, for you to learn how to not burn your metal. (Yes metal will burn if heated too hot.) So you need to practice, how you’re asking, what next?  Build or purchase a forge, while a gas forge is great because it’s harder to heat the metal too hot in a gas forge, if TEOTWAWKI occurs, it won’t be long before propane or natural gas will become more valuable than gold.  So by all means use a gas forge to increase your skills, but also look at the many plans online to build your own coal/coke forge.  Even if you don’t have a supply of coal or coke you can use charcoal that you can produce yourself.  I believe the winner of round 42 of this contest is about making your own charcoal.  Tools, you can find blacksmithing tools at most flea markets, trade days and even on craigslist, or you can make your own tools.  Something most blacksmith will usually do when they want a specific tool for a job. That’s why when you see a picture of a blacksmith shop it’s cluttered looking due to all the tools and metal laying around. There are companies that also sell the coal forges as well, I took advantage of a sale and purchased a coke fire pot for the forge I built. Coke is coal with the impurities burnt out, coke burns cleaner and hotter making it quicker to heat your metal and finish your project in less time. Again practice is the most important thing in getting better at blacksmithing.

Hammer control is, (IMHO) the best and hardest skill to learn in blacksmithing.  Take a piece of wood and place it on your anvil, mark and X in the middle of the wood, now strike it with your hammer. Now hit it again. Did you hit the mark twice? Were you off the mark on the first and on the second? Or were you able to hit the mark twice in a row? Continue practicing this till you can hit the X every time, or until the wood splinters for your kindling.  Hammer control will allow you to finish a project in fewer hammer blows.

A source of metal is something else you’ll need, at one time I had several thousands of pounds of metal stored. When I was forced to sell out and move back into town, I sold most of it to a scrap yard. The one thing to be careful of is galvanized metals, the gas put off from heating galvanized metal is very toxic and can kill you if you breath it in. Zinc, the metal that galvanizes is the metal that creates this deadly gas. So again, classes, reading everything you can find on blacksmithing may save your life.

Speaking of heating metal to white hot, this is the perfect temperature to work metal, you want to push the metal around with your hammer. Make hard confident strikes, practice, practice, practice. Make nails, when you can make a nail in less than three heats then you’re doing fantastically well. The trouble I see most newcomers to blacksmithing is having a timid hammer strike. Once the metal cools to almost a dull red, put it back in the fire. If you see sparks, you’ve gotten it too hot. Once the metal has burnt, it’s not worth anything and after you heat it back up, cut the burnt piece off.  Remember, strike it while it’s hot is more than an old saying our grandparents used to say.

A lot of the old equipment was ran off a steam powered system or a system powered by water, they used belts and pulleys to power the equipment. If you’re homestead has the means for something like this, it will make life easier as a blacksmith to have the better equipment.

Being a blacksmith has been a great experience, you can learn a lot about life from blacksmithing. Blacksmithing as in life, you will get burned. Some will be minor irritating burns that are forgotten the next day. Some will be second or third degree and will leave a scar, a gentle reminder of a lesson learned at a price. The burns will heal, most of the scars will fade, but taking a cold hard piece of metal and heating it white hot, then molding and shaping it into something useful, there’s no greater thrill than seeing something you’ve created work like it’s supposed to.  The pride you’ll feel when someone oohs and aahs over a sword you’ve made.

Blacksmithing at one time was a common trade, many farms and ranches had a blacksmith shop for creating tools, repairing equipment, and many other tasks. In old Sears and Roebuck catalogs a complete blacksmith kit would cost less than $20. Now you’re lucky if you can find a single tool for that price. Blacksmithing as a prepper, you will gather your tools and supplies and build a nice stockpile of them. You never know when someone will come up and request a certain tool and you don’t have a piece of metal big enough to do the job.

Imagine making a hunting knife with which you can trade a hunter for two deer.  A chisel to a carpenter for a tool chest. A candle holder to someone for twelve jars of canned vegetables. The list goes on and on the things you can make and barter for.  An additional thing a blacksmith can do is create bolts for doors, hinge straps to re-enforce a door, metal for the corners of a wooden box. Just remember when you barter, you are the one that has what they want, and if they want it, they’ll make a fair trade. If not it’s up to your judgment on how to proceed, will not giving in create a hardship for you your family, will it put you in possible harms way. Unfortunately when TEOTWAWKI is gone, there are going to be people out there who won’t think twice about hurting you or your family to get what they want. A blacksmith is going to have many things that people want. Trust your instincts.

While the government may track down and take the guns away from the registered owners, they’ll overlook the knives, arrow heads, spear heads, thinking they’re just pretty flea market items. If someone breaks into your house and all they’re armed with is a small knife or club, pulling a sword or spear on them will make them change their minds quickly.  As will a crossbow with a sharp arrow head you’ve put the finishing touches on. England defended many invaders with nothing more than swords, axes and spears. If I can make a nice stockpile of weapons that don’t have to be registered with the government to keep my family safe, then light the forge and heat the steel, it’s time to increase my value.

A great place to start is with the Artist-Blacksmith’s Association of North America (ABANA), you can locate local smith’s, classes and even find a few projects to try. Another good place is Anvilfire.com, with loads of useful tips and projects. Last but not least is The Blacksmith’s Journal, they publish a small booklet that contains new projects and tips each month that will be mailed to your house each month, you can also purchase past issues as well.

Remember, while you have the chance to enjoy this wonderful craft, do just that, enjoy it. Because when it’s no longer a hobby, but a matter of putting food on your table for your family, or protecting them. There won’t be many days you’ll be able to remember to enjoy it. Don’t be afraid to contact a blacksmith, most are eager to share and pass on their trade especially if they’re doing it mostly as a hobby. It’s a little harder to get someone to share their knowledge when it’s what pays the bills.

Blacksmithing can be enjoyable, profitable and useful. It’s never too late to learn, and you can start out with simple equipment like a piece of railroad rail, hammer and a long handle pair of pliers for tools. I hope this helps put a spark in your life and will help create a few more blacksmith’s in the world.

Letter Re: IED Awareness

I received the following from an embedded mil-blogger friend.  His personal information has been redacted:

Sir, 
If I may, I would like to share some information with you.  Some is based on personal experience, and some comes from experts I know and trust.  What you do with this is up to you, but I wanted you to have it to think about just in case.  

First, I can commend an I-phone app (should be available for other platforms as well) that the Army had suggested to me called IED Aware.  It is actually pretty much the basic Army awareness course (pre-deployment) done as an app.  Maker is ForceReadiness.com, that does other education and training apps as well.  Not sure if it is free or not, but quite a few of the study apps are.  

Something I can share with you based on experience is that situational awareness is the key.  But, not just in trying to spot something — you need it to be prepared for realistic options.  

Visually and otherwise scout your AO immediately.  You are not just looking for potential IED sites, you need to get an idea of cover options.  Concealment is NOT cover.  Things that can hide you from view are concealment, not cover.  Cover is something that can protect you from bullets, blast, and fragments.  Cover is concrete, it is thick metal as in armor or even the engine block of a car, it is a ditch, a culvert, or other thing that can stop/deflect incoming.  And, yes, cover can help deflect a blast wave, as they are strange creatures that can and do bounce, deflect, and reflect.  Buy me a beer and I will tell you of one (non-IED generated) I know first-hand caused a relocation of a wall without breaking a pane of glass in that glass wall.  

You need to know cover not just for yourself, but if something happens you need to be able to direct people away using as much of that cover as realistically possible.  So, scout, plan, and plan options so that you do not have to think about things if something happens, but can assess and be proactive in an emergency.  Having to stop and think can and does get people killed.  Plan ahead. 

Then, scan the area thinking of where an IED can be easily concealed (trash can, paper bin, etc.) and check those for anything suspicious.  It looks suspicious, call out and call in.  Clear the area, and hunker down in a place that gives you as much cover as possible yet still allows you to control the cleared area to keep idiots and others from wandering in.  

If the area is clear, scan for distance markers.  One of the most common currently is a plastic grocery bag tied to a branch or otherwise secured; but, the key is to look for something out of place and or a series of things that also happen to be a uniform distance apart.  Just as we use distance and aiming stakes, so to does the enemy.  While it is often that such a bag or other signal marks the spot of the IED, it can also be a trigger point so that a vehicle or group moving at a steady speed will be in the blast zone if the remote detonator is triggered as they pass that point.  Using this method, someone can be at home or a nearby bar watching an event on television and know when to dial the phone or press the button.  If you see something that could be a distance/location marker, call out and call it in.  If that marker is near a culvert or sewer line under the street, it needs to be checked out immediately.  Admittedly, IEDs in such are mostly for vehicles, but… 

It is doubtful that most terrorists would try to bury anything, but do keep an eye out for a freshly plowed or dug flower bed or such, just in case.  

Watch for suspicious behavior.  Someone moving a bit too nonchalantly, exceedingly nervous, obviously drunk or on drugs with a coat or such over themselves (amazing how many suicide bombers have to have chemical enhancement to do the job), or someone who may or may not be praying but has a look on their face and/or in their eyes that really can’t be described other than to say that when you see it, you know it.  They will usually move confidently and force their way towards their destination no matter what, and one hand is usually at their side or in a pocket.  It’s not just someone moving in quickly, dropping a backpack or other container and then moving away, it is a host and range of behaviors that don’t fit the norm.  If you spot someone like this, don’t approach if at all possible, but here stay calm, talk normally and call in and have LE come and intercept the person.  

If an IED goes off, take cover.  If possible, choose cover that provides overhead cover as well.  Roll under a vehicle, concrete bench, etc.  If there is no cover, go flat:  shrapnel tends to go out in a cone, and if you can get under the cone, all you have to deal with immediately is blast effect.  Quite a few wounds in Iraq and Afghanistan from incoming happen because people kept trying to run to a duck and cover or other shelter, instead of going flat.  You hear blast, or get an incoming warning, you go flat if you can’t make shelter in about five seconds.  

Keep in mind that immediate shrapnel is only part of the issue:  blasts like that tend to toss things in the air, sometimes substantial things.  That’s why if you can get to cover that provides overhead cover, you should.  Keep in mind that in Boston, parts of the bomb were found on a rooftop some ten stories up.  Debris can be coming down for up to a minute after a blast.  If there is no cover, after the initial blast front and shrapnel wave has passed, you go turtle (legs and arm under you, head back so your helmet goes over back armor as much as possible) or squat with your feet flat, knees to chest, back to blast, and hands over head so that you make the smallest possible area from a vertical perspective.  

Next, know that there are likely to be more explosions, as various online manuals (and generally smart terrorists) will do secondaries or even tertiaries to get first responders.  You will have seconds to a couple of minutes to regroup, try to get people moving in a safe direction, and get set for the next blast.  Use it well.  

For any form of IED, tourniquets are essential.  In Boston, we saw a lot of improvised and it is likely that we will have to do so at need as most IGR do not have combat tourniquets.  People are going to be screaming, there’s going to be blood and debris, and triage needs to be with traumatic amputations first and foremost.  If a limb is gone, or just about gone, get the tourniquet on as low as possible on the limb and as quickly as possible.  Then worry about shrapnel wounds.  Know that if they follow standard doctrine, bleeding is going to worse because the shrapnel was coated with rat poison, warfarin, which is known medically as Coumadin.  It is an anti-coagulant, and the idea is to get as much as possible into the wound to make the victim bleed out.  

Now, to something I put last because it is against most current doctrine.

One thing that is not to the liking of academics and other rear-echelon types is that you want to see if there is a dump point in your immediate AO.  A dump point is something that will reduce blast effects and shrapnel.  Good foxholes have a grenade sump for this, when you are on foot or at an event, you don’t have that but you do have other options.  Keep in mind that blast waves, no matter how powerful, like to follow the path of least resistance as much as possible.  You want to spot a dump point in advance because sometimes you roll snake eyes don’t have a lot of options.  A dump point can be a concrete road barrier, a dumpster, a sewer opening, or anything that gives thicker sides and no top or a weak top.  You dump an IED into such, it will be destroyed, but most of the blast and shrapnel is likely to go up, not out; and, what does go out will not go out as far.  

Two quick scenarios under this heading.  First, someone drops a bag of some type nearby and takes off running.  If they do that, things are out of control on both sides and your options are very limited.  If they have dropped it, and there is no boom, the odds of it having any form of movement trigger are slim to none.  If they are running, they are panicked and no longer thinking and can trigger immediately or even forget to do so.  If it is a timed bomb, then they may be running because time is running out — but you have time to think and act.  Right then, you have to make a choice.  

First thing you do, is get people to get down and/or move away as quickly as possible, because even if it is someone playing a “joke” on security, you have to treat it as real.  If you are that close, there are few realistic options for survival unless you have a dump point planned.  Get the bag to the dump point, then try to get people and yourself away if no immediate boom, and do so as low as possible.  If you hear any noise from the direction of the bag, go flat.  You can’t help anyone if you are dead.  The second scenario is a suicide bomber near/next to you.  Your only viable option is to try to control them, get them into the dump point, and try to get away.  Odds are you won’t, but you are pretty much out of options at that point anyway.  If you are within about 15 feet of either, odds are that you are going to die, the only difference being how many die with you. – X.

– Michael Z. Williamson (SurvivalBlog Editor at Large)

Letter Re: Penny and Nickel Debasement Bill Introduced in U.S. Congress

Sir,
I often received assorted mail in flat rate VHS videotape-size USPS Priority Mail Flat Rate boxes.  I found that these will hold 27 rolls of nickels.

Not near as heavy as a .30 caliber ammo can when full.

Folks (like me, over 60 and female) that find the .30 cal ammo cans a bit heavy might like to use these boxes.  I just use strapping tape and run a band around the box horizontally, fill it with the nickels and then run two bands of tape around it to seal it.  They stack nicely and I can move them with ease. – P.W.

Economics and Investing:

The perception of currency inflation is derived through the contextual prism of our daily lives. For my neighbors who burn a lot of gasoline commuting more than 40 miles each way every work day, the perceived inflation rate is more than 30%, per annum. And for my #1 Daughter, who’s main commercial interaction involves .22 cartridges, the perceived inflation rate is more than 200%, per annum. And for almost everyone, the fact that 32GB iPods are deflating in price because of economies of scale is a meaningless abstraction, when groceries have risen around 20% since last year. We don’t buy an iPod every week. But we do buy bread, milk, eggs, and 89 octane.

Jim W. recommended: Hoarding Alternative Money & Reforming Banks. The article begins: “Argentina is going through the classic stages of economic collapse. The government seized all pensions. They are destroying everything that gives the people incentive to be a society that emerges from the cooperation of everyone. When government turns against its own people, even as the USA is currently doing, you end up with deflation insofar as the economy collapses and wages are not available, while hoarding emerges as does barter.”

Gee, this was inevitable: Canada to tax Bitcoin transactions. Of course it is mainly the cash-outs and other transactions with the mainstream banking and credit system that can be tracked. Private (peer-to-peer) transactions are still invisible. (Thanks to B.B. for the link.)

Items from The Economatrix:

Economy Showing Signs of “Spring Slowdown”

A New Report From Wells Fargo Reveals A Scary Fact About The Economy

The Economic Depression Is Deepening

Durable-Goods Orders Sink 5.7% in March

Odds ‘n Sods:

Building Your SHTF Gunshot Survival Kit

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Here is a new online publication that might be of interest: The Preparedness Review. Their latest edition includes an excerpt from my novel “Survivors.”

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Some good news from an anti-gun state: The Connecticut State Police today released their training memorandum regarding the open carry of firearms in the state. This is a significant concession in a Nanny State where up until now many police have treated Open Carry with contempt and high suspicion, and often with unjustified detainment. (Thanks to H.L. for the link.)

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And some more good news: Arizona Governor Jan Brewer (R) signed H.B. 2455 into law Sunday, thereby banning the destruction of guns turned in at gun buybacks or otherwise seized by or surrendered to authorities.

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The first Doomsday Expo in Denver is scheduled for June 27-29, 2013.

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Lynn G. mentioned a Boston Globe article that cites’s SurvivalBlog’s glossary, titled: How to talk like a doomsday prepper.