Odds ‘n Sods:

Our mid-year 25%-off sale on the SurvivalBlog Archive CD-ROM ends on May 31st. The latest six year compilation includes my book “Rawles on Retreats and Relocation” in digital format. At the sale price, the CD-ROM is $11.25 and the Digital Download is just $7.50. Be sure to order your copy before the sale ends.

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K.A.F. was the first of several readers to send this: Space weather expert has ominous forecast –Mike Hapgood, who studies solar events, says the world isn’t prepared for a truly damaging storm. And one could happen soon.

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An interesting water still development: Pure Water Revolution.

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“Belle Ringer” of the Salvation and Survival blog posted a nice review of my novel “Survivors.”

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Matt M. mentioned that Linda Letcavage’s book Basic Soap Making: All the Skills and Tools You Need to Get Started (How To Basics) is presently available as a free Kindle e-book, from Amazon.com.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Whether we like it or not, we are in an era of colliding crises that will culminate in a transition to a new social and economic system. Humanity always has burdens and troubles—that is the nature of a changeable world interacting with human nature—but there are decades in which little happens and years in which decades happen. We are in just such an era, and we will all be swept along by events that no longer respond to the Status Quo’s financial magic.” – Charles Hugh Smith, in his blog Of Two Minds

Notes from JWR:

A reminder that this is the last day of Safecastle’s big sale on Mountain House canned freeze dried foods with the maximum allowed 25% off, free shipping, and buyers club member incentives and rebates. The sale ends at midnight on May 6th. It is expected that Mountain House can prices will be going up very soon, so take advantage of this opportunity.

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Today we present another entry for Round 40 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, 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.

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. C.) 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, D.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and E.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value) and F.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 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.), and E.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 40 ends on May 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Prepping: A Nickel, A Dime, a Dollar at a Time, by, T.J.

Many years ago, when I was a young teen, I started a hope chest. My grandmother had taught me about having a hope chest during the depression. She said that as a young girl, living in hard times, the only hope she had of having a dowry was her hope chest. So she embroidered on used pillow cases to make them seem nice, and even special. She learned to darn old tablecloths and repair small tears and holes, and she would put these in her hope chest. Small things really, and admittedly, not necessary, but things to make her future house more like a home.

So it was, that at the age of 12, I started my own hope chest. The first item I ever bought for it was a brightly crocheted hot pad at a local craft festival. I liked the colors, and after having bought it, my mom said that it might be for my hope chest, so started my life as a prepper. After that, I would go to yard sales/garage sales with my mom on Saturday mornings and every now and then I would use my hard earned babysitting money to buy something I thought might be useful one day when I had a home of my own. By the time I began dating and became engaged, my hope chest, which was not actually in a chest of any type, but in boxes under my bed and in the top of my closet and even under the bottom drawers of my dresser, was rather extensive. I had pretty much everything I needed to begin housekeeping, except for large appliances and furniture. And when I did become engaged, my fiance and I began shopping for furniture at yard sales and storing it in an empty garage, so the only new furniture we had to buy was a bedroom suite and a television. We were given bridal showers and since we already had so much ’stuff’ we were gifted with all of the china that my mom suggested we register for at the bridal gift shop. I do not know what I was thinking back then to have requested so much china, but now I have it and seldom have I ever had occasion to use it for anything other than a display.

Once married, I began looking at yard sales for items that might come in handy if I should ever have any children. I bought blankets, bibs, and burp pads, giving a whole new meaning to the idea of prepping with “B’s”. When I found a deal on used baby furniture, I bought it and put it in storage, also. I had clothes for boys and clothes for girls. I even started storing up maternity clothes, for some future time when I may need them. It was five years after marriage that we decided to start a family. Again, we had all of the main items we needed for the baby, the shower gifts we received were mostly dry goods. We were given over a years worth of disposable diapers, wipes, lotions, shampoo and baby bath items. These all came in very handy as anyone who has tried to shop for baby can tell you. I was able to leave my job just before the birth of our second child due to the money we saved by not having to buy all of the expensive baby supplies that were gifted to us and by being very frugal with the household income.

Coupons were almost a new idea at that time, and I jumped in with both feet. I gathered coupons anywhere I could find them and was able to buy groceries for a family of four on $20 a week or less. We would stretch a dollar until it yelled for mercy! But seriously, all the while, on Saturday morning it was hunting time. I went to garage sales with my mom and we were looking for the clothes my children would need for the next summer or winter or for Easter dresses or Halloween costumes, always trying to get the best value for the money.

Now if you have never been to garage sales, you are missing something if you are a prepper! Much can be had for very little money. The old saying, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” is very true. I have bought things for a nickel or dime that would have cost me five dollars or more at the store, and it was brand new! Still in the store package. I have even found Tupperware, Pampered Chef, and Princess House products, still in the boxes, at yard sales for prices so cheap, I bought them as gifts even when I knew it was not something I could use myself. Most of my children’s Christmas and Birthday gifts came from yard sales. They knew it and did not care where it came from, because it was much more than what they would have gotten if I had spent the same amount of money on them at the department store. Because of thrift, they were given a much more materialistic childhood than what our budget could afford, and they were grateful and appreciative.

When they were small I began buying craft items that I could use to teach my children different skills as they got older. At yard sales, you could buy a few yards of fabric for a dollar, a new skein of yard for a dime, a wooden birdhouse kit for fifty cents. So that when the time came, and they were ready to learn to make things and repair things, we would spend a day every week during their summer break, doing and making and fixing and learning skills that I thought might be valuable to them, later in their lives.

And they did learn. My daughters learned to sew among other things, and my son learned to build and repair. Of course, my son learned to sew and my daughters can build also, but you get my point. They were learning and doing and it did not cost much to teach them. When they started middle school and joined the school band, I was able to find them used instruments and have them cleaned and repaired like new so that we would not have to ‘rent’ them from the school.

It was around this time, about nine years ago, that I started having the urge to buy things that would be useful if we were to have hard times ahead. I suppose it was after 9/11/2001 that I felt the veil lifted from my eyes on the supposed security of our country from those who would wish to do us harm. I began looking for things that could be useful in the event that an attack were to happen in our neck of the woods, or if there were some natural disaster, like a hurricane, tornado, or wild fire, which is the biggest risk in our area of the country. What if the power went out for a few days, or a few weeks…how would I connect to my family and neighbors if the phone system went down for even a short time? These were the questions I asked myself as I searched through other people’s junk. What could be useful during a time of stress or deprivation? So I made a list of things to look for at yard sales.

First I thought of light. One of the biggest concerns I have is being in complete darkness during a crisis. So I began looking for candles, and what I have found has far surpassed even my hopes for a good supply of lighting. I now have a ‘collection’ of well over forty hurricane lamps in good working order with the oil and extra wicks to replenish them as they are used. I have not paid more than $3 for any of them. I find it hard to believe that people will part with candles, both new and used, as well as bags and boxes of unused matches. I have even found boxes of new lighters for as little at 10 cents apiece. There were fifty lighters in a box and I offered to buy every box they had for $3 each, and they were glad to get rid of them for that price, so I ended up paying only .06 each for brand new, full lighters! I also will gladly buy tea light candles by the bag full. I have several candle holders hanging in my house that hold the tea light candles and when lit and reflected in the mirror, they can fairly light up a room.

I am able to find canning jars and other canning supplies at yard sales regularly. I don’t pay over 10 cents each for jars of any size unless they come with the ring and a new lid, for which I will pay 25 cents. I can sometimes buy a dozen jars for a dollar or two and new boxes of unused jar lids for a dime or quarter. I always check the jars for chips or cracks before I buy them, because they are of no use to me broken.

Another item on my list of things to store are medical supplies. It is truly unbelievable the different things I have bought at yard sales for next to nothing. I was able to get several boxes of sterile surgical blades for a dollar (and each box had 150 stainless steel individually wrapped blades). I can’t imagine what I would ever use them for, but maybe someone with a medical degree will be able to use them, or I may just use them as skinning knives for small game. I got two cases of sterile gauze for $1.50 and have even purchased sterile syringes for a few bucks a case. We always give our pets their puppy shots ourselves, except for the rabies shot, so these syringes will save me from having to buy them from the pet supply store. I have found numerous boxes of bandages and sterile gloves as well as face masks. I do not understand why people will buy something like that and never even open the box. But I am glad they did, because it comes as a GREAT deal for me.

Over the years, my mom and I have found great blessings from some of the treasures we have found at yard sales. Sometimes when she picks me up and we start to go out, I will tell her, “I’m looking for ______________ today.” Just fill in the blank; shoes for the grandchild, a step-up car seat for a toddler, a new colander for my kitchen…whatever it is, it may be something we have not seen for months or years, but did you know, I usually find that particular item that very day. I just think it is a blessing from God! My sister does not get to go with us very often, but a few months back she decided to get out of the house and go with us to yard sales. Her husband had been sick and in a coma for several months and she had been spending every possible moment with him at the hospital, and he had woken up from the coma and had developed MRSA on a bed sore on his ankle. The doctor said he needed to have a foot brace, like someone wears when they have had foot surgery, but their insurance was exhausted and would not pay for one just to contract MRSA. So when we started out I asked her, “what do we need to look for today?” She told me about the foot brace. I said I had not seen one of those at a yard sale in a few years. But believe it or not, at the second sale we went to, there was a brand new brace, in the package, just what he needed and it only cost $5.00! Now I would say that was a blessing!

Other items I have found and have bought to save or to use now are a hand turned meat slicer, a manual food strainer, a hand crank food slicer/chopper, a pressure canner/cooker, old type hand drill, all for $5.00 or less. I bought a push rotor lawn mower that had only been used twice for $20.00 and a couple of wooden fold up clothes drying racks for a dollar each. I frequently find bolts of sturdy fabric for $5.00 or less and try to get only the best quality denim or corduroy and good strong cotton. I have a new quilting frame for only $25, I have found lots of stuffing for making pillows and stuffed animals and can get simple sewing patterns every week for 5c or 10c a piece. I even find sewing boxes full of thread and buttons, snaps and eyelets for a few dollars a piece. Once I bought a sewing awl and extra thread for repairing leather and other stiffer items for a buck.

I believe there will be a need for these types of things in our future. I do not know when I might need them, but feel blessed to have been able to get them now so that I have a chance to learn how to use some of my ‘finds’ before they become necessary. I seldom have to go to a store except to buy groceries, and sometimes we even find canned goods at yard sales that are not out of date. Do I buy these as well, you bet I do! Anything I can find for a better deal than full price, I will get it for myself or for someone else I may know that needs it.

My most recent favorite finds include: a half a spool of barbed wire for $5, an ammunition box for $1, another ammunition box with 19 road flares inside for $5 (and I have no idea what I will use these for, but was very excited to get them), a silver window reflector was free and can be used to make a solar oven, and a large bag of about 30 tea light candles for .50 cents. So you see, there is so much useful stuff being disposed of that can be picked up at yard sales and thrift stores for a pittance that I can not think of any logical reason why I should pay retail prices for anything.

Now that my children are grown and I hope will soon be providing me with more grandchildren, my search has turned again to buying baby and children’s supplies. I have enough clothes for boys and girls in both summer and winter seasons to last up to age ten. They have been separated into size and season in vacuum sealed bags and marked with the appropriate notations so that when the time comes, we should be able to just pull a bag as needed and when we are finished with that size, reseal the bag until someone else needs those items. Oh, and by the way, I usually pay only 25 cents apiece for shirts and shorts, 50 cents for jeans or outfits and no more than a dollar for a nice dress or pair of shoes. It’s out there, people trying to clean out or just make a few bucks to pay a bill. You can help them by getting it out of their way and at the same time save yourself money by not paying retail price for an item you know will be useful to you now or in the future.

So check the classifieds in your local newspaper, make a written list of the yard sales that are in your community, (we usually group them together according to neighborhood to prevent driving back and forth across town and thereby saving on gas), take a written list of the items you would like to find and happy shopping!

Letter Re: Don’t Be Blind-sided By a Secondary Event

Mr. Rawles,

Bill W. recently wrote about some of the possible consequences of nuclear power plants when the SHTF. Although I agree that a minimum safe distance during an individual plant emergency is 50 rather than 20 miles, I have to wonder if distance is that important 4 – 6 weeks out during a continent-wide event. I work for an electric cooperative and live less than 25 miles north of the North Anna Nuclear Power Plant in Virginia. During last summer’s earthquake, an electrical engineer told me the plant had tripped offline. I could not find this out from any news outlet on the internet. Nor could the engineer answer my real concern: did the backup cooling systems work? The lack of information left my wife (who was at home and scared from the house’s violent shaking) and I who was another 50 miles northeast at work, in an information blackout.

Nuclear plants have many backup systems from distribution electric facilities to generators and batteries, but in the event of an EMP, what are the chances for all of us on this planet? Obviously, the distribution electric system will be down. Are the generators EMP hardened, will they come online? They did not at Fukushima, and the mainstream media has elected to ignore the ongoing problems at this plant. Are the vents mechanical or do they require electricity that may not be available to operate? I count +/- 36 nuclear plants east of a line due south of Detroit to the Gulf of Mexico. If no safety systems are working and no one is there during a catastrophic event to operate them, will the +/- 36 plants (and a lot more counting all the nuclear plants in the U.S.) melt down, implode and spread an insane amount of radiation into the jet stream condemning everyone to a month-long agonizing death by radiation poisoning except for the political swells in the world’s capitols who will be evacuated to underground bunkers created at our expense? Given no secondary events like an earthquake, are most containment building strong enough to contain an uncontrolled chain reaction? Will the radiation be so strong that potassium iodide pills will not be enough? Would living in our basements for a year be adequate or simply too little too late?

I think it would be invaluable if one of your readers, a professional nuclear engineer could address the truly worst case scenario of an EMP attack over the entire country. Given that most plants store used fuel rods within the containment pools, the meltdown effects of each plant are intensified almost beyond imagination. – George C.

Three Letters Re: A Beginner’s Guide to Buying Silver on eBay

Mr. Rawles,
Gil G. had some very informative information and almost all of his instructions can be transferred to purchasing silver in a local coin shop.

I have had nothing but a positive experience with buying “junk” silver on eBay.

On two separate occasions, my order was missing some required coins. I had purchased $5 face value (FV) in dimes. In one order, I had only received 49 dimes. I sent an email to the seller and they promptly (within hours) refunded my account with the price of the dime. In another order, one of the 50 dimes was a coin from 1968. Again, I quickly email to the seller and they mailed me a pre-1965 dime and $2 (I guess for my troubles). Because they sellers corrected the situation very quickly, I was able to leave a positive feedback that will help out other buyers. Make sure you check the sellers ratings and the comments. Before you purchase silver online, you need to be searching for an honest seller. After the silver purchase, make sure you have verified your purchase. Don’t just assume that you have received what you paid for. In the case where the seller sent me a 1968 dime, they had bought a roll of dimes a couple of years earlier and just put it on the shelf without fully checking the roll. They then sold it to me without checking it again. Accidents happen. Don’t automatically leave a negative rating. Most sellers are honest and want you to be satisfied with the deal. And they want their rating to be as high as possible.

Even though I have had a very positive experience, I stopped purchasing silver on eBay a little over a year ago. The main reason is because of the electronic “paper trail”. Ebay, PayPal, and my bank know exactly how much silver I have purchased online. I would hate to have this information handed over to some government official if/when it is decided to start confiscating precious metals. Yes, I know that silver hasn’t been confiscated in the past, but with recent laws/Executive Orders (NDAA, CISPA, National Defense Resources Preparedness Executive Order, HR 347), Washington DC wouldn’t surprise me if owning precious metals became outlawed.

I still purchase silver, however, I do so at a local coin shop. And I only purchase with cash. Also, the owner doesn’t have records with my name, so I don’t have to worry about him spilling who has purchased gold and silver from him.

Here is how I found this coin dealer. I went in pretending I knew nothing about silver and asked him some basic questions (make sure you understand the concepts presented in Gil G’s letter. You can also go to coinflation.com for current spot prices for US coins). I think my first question was “I heard somebody talking about ‘junk’ silver. What is that?” He responded with, “don’t ever call silver ‘junk'”. (Right away I knew that I was going to like him). He explained some basics, like purchasing non-numismatic coins, looking for pre-1965 US coins (for 90% silver) and 1965-1970 1/2 dollars (for 40% silver). After he successfully explained basic silver knowledge to me, I negotiated to pay spot price for the silver however, a small % over spot would have been acceptable. He pulled out his scale and we did business in cash.

One time, the owner accidentally sold me a Seated Liberty dime. This has some numismatic value. When I got home and went through the dimes (again, check your purchases since accidents can be made), I found the dime. The next time I went into purchase silver, I brought in the dime to trade back. He was impressed with my honesty and gave me a silver quarter for the dime even though I was only asking to trade for another dime. Lesson of the story, make friends with the owner. You are purchasing products from them. You want them to succeed so that you can continue to make your purchases. If you screw the owner, they will go out of business, and then you have no place to purchase.

I have also sent friends/co-workers his way. Almost every paycheck, I stop by and purchase some more silver. He has always given me a fair price (even when purchasing gold, he has also given me spot price) and has never asked for my last name. I just give him a call and the coins are ready for when I get to his shop.

If you have the opportunity to purchase anonymously, do it.
God bless, – Matthew G.

 

JWR
This was an excellent article, thank you for printing it.  Gil is very knowledgeable and was pretty thorough.  I work for a precious metals company and I am in charge of the eBay listings for our store.  While we mainly deal in the collector’s slabbed coins, in our physical storefront we also have junk silver so I am familiar with it.  Something I would like to mention for the newbies out there is to be aware of who you are dealing with on eBay, especially what country they are in.  There have been a lot of problems and complaints lately about counterfeit silver that is coming from China and some other foreign nations. Some new folks might see the low prices and think they have themselves a deal when they really don’t.  Also, make sure you read the entire listing and don’t be afraid to ask the seller questions.  A reputable seller will always answer you and usually within 24 hours.  

Another thing to remember for those that choose to buy locally, at least in Texas there is no sales tax on any purchases of precious metals totaling $1,000 or more and junk silver is not tracked by the government like bullion is, no paperwork to fill out. 
You can also find the information on the composition of foreign/non US coins on the Internet but you may have to dig a little. For example, one site that lists the metals content of many foreign coins is Global Coins. [JWR Adds: The “by country” listing in the right hand bar is a quick way to navigate to find information on a particular coin.]

Thanks for your great blog great site, I learn something new every day! – A.M.M.

 

Mr. Rawles,
I found “A Beginner’s Guide to Buying Silver on eBay”, by Gil G. helpful and I acknowledge that he specifically wrote about eBay.
However, there may be a better way to buy silver; visiting a local coin dealer, and developing a relationship with them.

I recently began purchasing some silver on eBay buying us minted coins and found that this was an easy place to buy small amounts of silver
including silver dollars. What I did determine is that my local coin dealer would sell me the same coins as eBay typically for a lot less.
On my first visit to the coin shop in town I decided to purchase a silver dollar for my father’s birthday, a 1928 Peace dollar – minted on his birth year. I paid $30 for the coin and after viewing comparable sales on eBay I found that I did far better by visiting my local store.

My coin shop has been in business for over thirty years, in the same location, it is close to my work and the people understand customer service and they take the time to answer my questions.

So, my advice is, if there is a coin shop nearby give them an opportunity to earn your business.

Sincerely, – Greg in Tennessee

Economics and Investing:

Spain’s poorest region suffers 32% unemployment. (Thanks to Pierre M. for the link.)

People Not In Labor Force Soar By 522,000, Labor Force Participation Rate Lowest Since 1981

Each Child Born Today will Inherit $1.5M of National Debt, Study Shows

Items from The Economatrix:

Euro-area Unemployment at 15-year High as Slump Deepens

Private-sector Hiring Slows In April, Stirs Concern

April Turns Weak For Retailers

Jobs Report Preview:  Traders Fear Evidence of a Downtrend

Odds ‘n Sods:

Lee M. mentioned this fascinating web page: Worldometers.

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An interesting blog on penny-pinching, gardening, and couponing: One Hundred Dollars a Month.

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The latest ultralight flying video from Ttabs, in eastern Washington: Pterodactyl Terror – Trike Flying – Elk. Eastern Washington seems to be greening up early, this year.

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CAN’T WE END ALL THE SHOUTING? Here is an editing tip that I learned from Patrice Lewis (of the excellent Rural Revolution blog): There is a handy tool available at ConvertCase.net to automagically convert those ALL UPPER CASE SHOUTS into normally-formatted text. But be advised that it won’t recognize proper nouns in mid-sentence that will need to be re-capitalized.

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G.G. send this: The Gun Explosion: Why the firearms boom is good news for the American economy

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
Therefore let us not sleep, as [do] others; but let us watch and be sober.
For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.” – 1Thessalonians 5:1-10 (KJV)

Note from JWR:

Today we present another two entries for Round 40 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize: A.) A gift certificate worth $1,000, courtesy of Spec Ops Brand, 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.

Second Prize: A.) A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol. It is a $439 value courtesy of Next Level Training. B.) A FloJak FP-50 stainless steel hand well pump (a $600 value), courtesy of FloJak.com. C.) 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, D.) A $250 gift card from Emergency Essentials, and E.) two cases of Meals, Ready to Eat (MREs), courtesy of CampingSurvival.com (a $180 value) and F.) A Tactical Trauma Bag #3 from JRH Enterprises (a $200 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.), and E.) Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security.

Round 40 ends on May 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

The Prepping Imperative, by P.B.

Growing up in a fairly large family with a work at home Mom, and a truck driver Dad, we learned to “make ends meet”.  One of our favorite dishes was “teedl-oh-bow” as Dad called it…wild rabbit (or squirrel) with biscuits and gravy.  Some even call it, ahem, “Stuff On A Shingle”.  Made many a supper meals for a family of six.  Mom even “barked” a squirrel once and it’s still a standing joke that Dad tells on her.  “Couldn’t find a bullet hole anywhere in the darn thing!”

Breakfast was nearly always oatmeal, cinnamon, and honey with mixed powdered milk over it and a piece of homemade bread toast.

Mom made us girls’ underwear from the pretty pink with blue flowers sacks that our flour was bought in.  Life was hard…but we survived.

After I married, life got even harder.  My first husband (who is now passed on) was a drinker and life was miserable.  Meals were hard to come by and sometimes me and my two kids found sanctuary at Mom’s house with something to eat.  When pregnant with my first child when I couldn’t work, beans and biscuits were our staple and wasn’t very good for someone carrying a baby…but we made it.  Raised some rabbits, raised some feeder pigs, plus worked a full time job at one time. Gardening was a must, and I didn’t even have the fancy hoes & shovels!  I picked weeds by hand and planted on dirt that I turned over with a kitchen spatula and depended on the skies for water. He became severely disabled at the age of 38 and I cared for him for 26 years before he passed on.  Good food, a lot of love, and knowing how to make ends meet, life was hard…but we survived.

One “unprepared” trip nearly cost us our lives and our baby boy … we were traveling across the mountains from a warm climate and forgot that it snows in the mountains and that a car needs anti-freeze.  We got stranded and the only shelter we could find was a post office and thank God the lobby doors were open.  We placed the baby over the floor vent (they probably don’t have these any more) and we laid down on each side of him to keep him warm.  The next morning we hauled water from a local creek to put in the radiator and managed to make it to the town we were going to…rolled down that mountain with smoke barreling out the back of that car like a freight train!  Didn’t dare stop for fear the engine would seize up.  Life was hard, but we survived.

I remember when we were raising rabbits that we had no heat other than a small wood stove (ran out of propane) so closed off all the rooms except the living room where the wood stove was and the kitchen.  We all slept on the floor of the living room to keep warm.  What a time for some friends to come calling!  They enjoyed our living room floor also and they guys slept in front of the wood stove and woke up to re-stoke.

I used a stock tank warmer to heat water in the bathtub and washed our clothes with a toilet stool plunger when I got the water hot enough.  Hung them on the clothesline to dry.  We pretty much ate tame rabbit, chicken & eggs from my 20+ Buff Orpington hens and a few roosters, and what I gleaned from the garden or bought really inexpensively at the grocery store.  Didn’t have a big box store anywhere near.  Life was hard, but we survived.

When we raised feeder pigs we lived a little better, but had our hands full when both of us got laid off from our jobs and had to depend on ourselves to put a roof over our heads and eat.  Sold off all the sows, boars and feeders and moved to town.  That was one winter my kids still remember because all they got for Christmas was a pair each of pajamas I made from scrap material from a discount store.  For Christmas dinner we ate gravy and biscuits and had a cake I made with only whipped cream dyed pink for frosting.  Life was hard, but we survived.

My then husband had a past, and that past took him to prison and I found myself alone with two small children and working in a factory to try to make ends meet.  I got behind on the payments on our house and they locked me out without anything that I owned.  No begging could persuade them to even let me have our personal things like clothes, pictures etc.  Some friends managed a trailer park and they helped me by letting me move in without a deposit and the first month’s rent free.  Some church friends gave me money for utility deposits.  Me and the kids at off paper plates etc, with plastic spoons etc., and my friends loaned me a skillet and some pots.  Life was hard, but we survived.

After my late husband had his brain surgery and radiation, we moved back to our hometown to be closer to family.  I then had two teenagers that didn’t understand why their lives had been turned upside down. Once we had a power outage that lasted for 3 days, so we heated with a fireplace (one room) and cooked eggs and bacon on a KeroSun heater in the kitchen.  Life was hard, be we survived.

After his death, I met my gentleman and after a year of dating, we married a few years ago.  He was a “prepper” I guess for years, because his house was absolutely full of survival stuff.  It really made us feel bad when someone broke into it, rummaged through it like crazy, and took nothing but our two valued metal detectors.  Just turned everything upside down and made us a mess to clean up.

So being a prepper really isn’t a question for me, since I married one! (smile) Now we both are engaged in watching out for our own futures.   We put in a square foot gardening system very early with the “domes” to cover it in cool, frosty weather or hail storms…here it is late April and I’ve got lettuce in a jar in my frig, dehydrated onion tops in a spice jar, and a tiny little tomato that is a signal for the best to come!  Also have dehydrated pineapple slices in my fridge for my “sweet fix”, fresh cut up tomatoes in a vacuum sealed jar in the frig for salads and lots of other goodies.  I’ve gotten to be pretty good at dehydrating, food sealing, and looking for bargains at the grocery stores, discount stores and freight damaged stores.

I’m not excited about washing our clothes in our little counter-top hand crank washer but in a pinch it’ll do…and doesn’t take much water or soap!   I’m not excited about living life after shoot hits the fan, but…we’re doing what we can, with what we have, to prepare as best we can.  A big part of that is saving money at every turn. 

We’re not “scaredy cats” … we’re just two people who don’t like what we are seeing around us and know from experience how hard life can be if things go south in your life.  You don’t need a major event for life to wreak havoc for your family.  Sometimes all it takes is a bad decision for you to find yourself in dire straights or even deadly circumstances. 

I guess the moral of my story is simply that being “unprepared” is going to make it really hard on a lot of people for quite awhile…and they won’t have the support structure for them to survive that I had back 40+ years ago.  Even though I didn’t get welfare etc., I still had neighbors, family & church people to take my hand encourage me to keep on keeping on.  That’s why I’m saying that to prep or not to prep shouldn’t even be a question!  If you’ve ever been caught between the fence and the gatepost you know what a tight squeeze it is and how difficult it is to get loose. 

My current husband and I don’t smoke we don’t drink much other than an occasion beer, and we are very active for people in their 60’s.  We’re headed for a preppers expo this weekend and are really excited about learning even more than we’ve learned and are practicing.

Right now we’re loners, but have met another family not far from us, and we’re looking forward to getting to know better.  We’re being extremely careful about who we take into our confidence.

We’re looking forward to taking some gun training shortly so we don’t shoot our feet off. I haven’t hunted in more than 30 years.  I love fishing so that comes natural for me and my husband is going to make a great fisherman. 

We don’t plan to leave our “homestead” because we can’t afford to buy land. We’ll just do the best we can and if we fail we fail and we’ll meet you in those heavenly realms.  We love to travel and will do some of that when we can, and will keep our camper stocked with emergency supplies at all times.  We’ve purchased a lot of small propane bottles and are getting them filled.  Our travel trailer’s refrigerator runs on propane, our stove and furnace run on propane, and we have a nice outside grill if we need it.  We’ve practiced “dry camping” and found we could stay warm quite nicely with the furnace turned down really low, wearing well-insulated underwear, and hiding under a biscuit quilt that weights a ton. But I believe that it insulates better than any sleeping bag every could.  We carried jug water to “sailor bathe” as well as quick flushes in our toilet (we traveled winterized because the weather was cold and we didn’t want the plumbing to freeze up in our travel trailer. 

Never know when we might want to take a vacation for a few days (smile).

I’m not sure if this posting qualifies for anything “new” to do but hopefully will point some people forward to start making some sort of preparations…just in case something unexpected should come up. 

Letter Re: Experience with a PTR91 (HK91 Clone)

JWR,
More than a year ago, I bought a PTR91 MSG clone of the HK91 for my primary SHTF rifle. I thought I’d pass on some information collected after about 3,000 rounds down range. 

Note that I have no economic or personal ties to PTR Inc.

PTR as a company was responsive when asking questions about what mil-spec parts could be replaced and what could not.  You’ll have to email them about your specific rifle though.

Robustness

• Almost day one, I chipped the barrel paint taking off the hand guard – be careful, slide the handguard forward at an angle, after removing the attachment screw.
• S/F indicators on the safety side paint started to fade out after about 1 year. Indents for the S and F are still there and fine.  Probably my chemicals for cleaning stripped off the paint. No impact with using the safety.
• If you live in a humid environment keep an eye on the flash suppressor and the trunnion pin.  Easy to rust. I clean after every use, apply lots of BreakFree CLP, use dehumidifiers and still I got spot rust there.
• Speaking of flash suppressor, mine came loose after the first week – had to Locktite it. There was no flash suppressor pin like on the original HK91/G3 rifles.
• Other than those cosmetic issues, the rifle has been very robust, no cracking, no breaking of parts.

Ammunition and Accuracy:  

• I often see a 1 MOA -to- 2 MOA drift from a cold bore shots and a hot barrel. Typically this drift is 1 MOA high once the barrel heats up, and takes about 3-5 rounds to stabilize. On average I shoot 100 rounds at a sitting. So I am not sure if there is any additional drift.
• My primary ammo is American Eagle 150 grain – for accuracy with a 10 power scope, I can get around 1 MOA.  Not always, sometimes less than 1 MOA, more often it is up to 2.5
• Although I do not reload – friends of mine that do seem to think that the casings are about 80% re-loadable – with 20% too dented to reload.

Add-on Parts:

• I installed a bayonet adapter and discovered that the MSG model has a different hand guard length which prevents the use of a bayonet on the rifle. Win some, lose some.
• Surplus Steel SEF Lower from a G3 fits fine (clipped and pinned), and personally I find it to be more ergonomic.
• Fleming HK Ambi Selector – for Steel lower, fits but is a little too loose. Too easy to drop to the fire position for my liking. I’m right handed, but I chose this for the ability to ‘AK’ style  position selection as a secondary option, along with a larger normal selector on the left side of the receiver. Also, if you haven’t see one, there is a tiny c-clamp that goes on the right side to hold down the right side safety selector. It just makes me wonder how long it will be before I lose it.
• The safety selector for the stock plastic lower will work on a Surplus Steel SEF lower, and has a better grip on the positions than the Fleming HK Ambi Selector.  There will be a little overhang on the Steel lower right side, but nothing that impacts usability. 

  
Optics and Sighting:

• I have two optics for this rifle, both with quick release mounts. One is the new Aimpoint PRO, the other is a IOR M2 with 308 CQB reticle.  The Aimpoint came with a mount, but I replaced it with the LaRue M68 mount.  The IOR has a set of Leupold QRW high rings.  Note about the Leupold QRW high 30mm rings: with the IOR’s  limited eye relief along with the iron sight drum installed, there is very limited flexibility as to how the scope can be usably mounted. You might not want the Leupold QRW high mounts if you have an IOR M2 and plan to keep the iron sight drum installed.

• On a side note, I ran across the IOR M2 while reading Boston’s Gun Bible.  I can not recommend this scope though.  The eye relief is horrible for me. I need to be very close to the scope in order for a full field of vision, and to me this is not what I want for a CQB optic. Heck, not just CQB, but any type of scope. Midrange is okay, but that eye relief takes too much time to get lined up. This is one of the main reasons, I ended up getting the Aimpoint Pro. 

• I keep two optics, along with the Irons, available for this rifle because I expect the engagement areas to change from short range to long, and back to short during a SHTF situation, depending on timelines.  The irons I keep zeroed to MPBR using the number 2 position.  Thee armorers manual of the G3 rifle states that position 1 is for close quarters, and 2 is for a 100/200 meter zero, but out of personal preference, I keep number 2 to MPBR.  At 11 MOA wide, anything beyond 400 meters is going to be a rough shot anyway.  

• For the AimpointPro, I also keep this zeroed to MPBR.  Since the PTR91 MSG has an adjustable stock cheek piece, both scopes work to the same adjustment, and are easy to transition between.

Web Gear US Army Surplus:

Two G3 Magazines – fit well into a US Army surplus  M16 3×30 round ammo pouch. There’s some head room but they are not too tight to remove, the magazines are tall enough to easily grab,  and not too loose to make noise.

This allows for a very inexpensive web gear configurations for a HK91/G3 clone rifle.  Each M16 ammo pouch goes for about 4-12 dollars each, and the LC-2/3 web belt price range is about the same. Adding a H-Type harness is another 12 dollars on average, allowing for a four ammo pouches, with belt and harness for around $44 plus tax and shipping.  This configuration also allows for a M17A1 gas mask bag for used as a dump bag. 

Although there are many new styles of web gear, I find the older style ALICE / LC-3 gear to be the most practical for my terrain: woodland southeast.  Chest rigs don’t work so well crawling through mud, and at 103 degrees in the summer, that chest rig might as well be an oven, and access to magazines may be an issue in the prone position.  

Hope this helps some. – Robert B.

JWR Adds: As previously mentioned in SurvivalBlog, one of the great advantages of HK91 clones is that spare magazines are presently very inexpensive. (Under $3 each for alloy magazines.) Two great sources are KeepShooting.com and CheaperThaDirt.com.

Letter Re: Home Water Storage in Water Cooler Bottles

JWR:
A reader recently enquired about using water cooler jugs for long term storage. You suggested taping the original cap to the jugs. I’d like to mention that 55mm snap-on reusable caps can be purchased very inexpensively on eBay. They are not water tight i.e. if turned on its side, water will slowly leak but the caps are adequate to keep out dust and allow transport. 55mm is the standard size for most 3 and 5 gallon jugs. – George C.

Economics and Investing:

B.B. suggested a piece over at Zero Hedge: Hugh Hendry On Europe “You Can’t Make Up How Bad It Is”

Also from B.B. came a link to this piece by Monty Pelerin: The Economic Charade is Almost Over. His essay begins: “As we near the end point, the point where the economy collapses, government becomes more desperate to convey the myth of a recovery. Government data have always been suspect because of the political ramifications of a good vs. bad economic report. Fudging the numbers, or at least the ways of measuring various statistics, likely began once government began issuing economic data.”

Items from The Economatrix:

No End In Sight To Global Job Crisis: UN

Three Fed Policy Makers See No Need to Ease

95 Percent of the Jobs Lost During the Recession Were Middle Class Jobs

Payroll Survey Signals US Jobs Slowing as Orders Drop

Odds ‘n Sods:

More media attention: Doomsday ‘preppers’ are getting ready for the end of the world. It is notable that the journalist quotes Shane Conner of KI4U.com–one of our advertisers.

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Jim K. recommended this very basic how-to video: How To Make a Secret Compartment in Your Wall, as well as this more elaborate procedure: How to Make a Secret Door to a Room or Closet, and this one: How to Build a Secret Underground Room, this one: Hidden-Pivot Bookcase Door, this one: Secret Passage Behind A Custom Built In Bookshelf, and lastly this one: Hidden Door Walkthrough.

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E.B. mentioned the new $1.00 map sale from the USGS for selected topographic maps.  The sale continues through June 4, 2012.

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I recently received a small sample of a hard ballistic protection panel made to NIJ Level 3 standards. These Armorcore panels are mainly sold to beef up bank teller booths, pharmacy sales counters, and similar structures. While quite expensive per square foot, this material would be very useful in places where you can’t stack sandbags, such as when constructing apartment panic rooms.

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Kyle Myers (that fake Russian accent gun nut guy, “Dimitri”) has a new FPS Russia video: The Quadrotor Machinegun. (Warning: Coarse language.) JWR’s Comment: I am dubious whether the “100-round magazine gun” shown mounted on the UAV was functional. Do a freeze frame and look closely. All that I could see was a bogus-looking barrel assembly with a flexible tube coming out the back. I suspect that it was a mock-up gas gun, and that the bullets hitting the Tannerite in the mannequins (and the equal opportunity womannequins) came from a traditional shooter, off camera. I am also not convinced the was personally handling all of the UAV’s flight controls. But it was a glimpse into the future–and entertaining–nonetheless.