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I still recall when I saw the first Ruger P85, 9mm pistol. I was living in Colorado Springs, Colorado at the time. Only one gun shop in town had a P85 sample, and people were literally lining-up all week long to see this new pistol. There were several reasons for this, first of all, this was the first center fire semiauto handgun from Ruger. Secondly, the design of the P85 and appearance was rather radical at the time. And, I believe lastly, was the retail price of the P85 – which was $295.00 – well below what other similar 9mm pistols were selling for. Of course, for the first few months, you couldn’t purchase a P85 for the retail price – whoever had them in-stock, were selling them above the retail price, and people were paying the price, too.
 
The P85 didn’t actually appear on the handgun market until 1987 because of design and manufacturing problems. And, there were very low production numbers to start with. (Ruger was just getting their new factory in Arizona up and running, and the P85 was hard to come by.) I owned two of the first P85s to come on the market. One was flawless, the second sample had a strange problem, where the slide would lock open for no particular reason, while firing the gun. I never was able to figure out what the problem was – the slide would lock open during recoil, and it wasn’t retracting to the fullest rear position – the slide would lock open about halfway through the recoil process. I traded that gun off after a couple weeks. The other P85 sample worked perfectly, but the accuracy was lacking. Ruger resolved the accuracy problem in short order. However, there were some reports of the P85 causing accidental discharges when the slide mounted decocker was applied – the firing pin would hit a loaded round in the chamber and the gun would fire.  These things happen, even with the best gun designs – there are teething problems. However, Ruger was quick to recall guns and make the needed improvements on the P85. I had enough confidence in the then new P85, that I carried one on-duty when I was the chief of police, in a small town. The sheriff in the county where I worked – he also carried a P85.
 
Through the years, Ruger updated the P85, with improved models, like the P89, which was cosmetically the same gun, but there were big improvements in the barrel making process and the safety aspects of the gun. There were a number of other improvements over the years, and each time, the P-series of guns got better and better. And, if you’ve followed my articles for any length of time, you know I consider Ruger firearms, to be real “meat and potato” firearms – they are rugged firearms, and priced for the average person. That’s not to say that Ruger doesn’t make some spendy firearms – they do! However, most of the guns in the Ruger line-up are meat and potato guns in my humble opinion. And, if you’re like me, you want the most value for your money as you can possibly get – and Ruger provides this.
 
I had quite a few SurvivalBlog readers e-mail, and ask me why I haven’t featured a Ruger P95 in my articles. Some asked me what I had against Ruger firearms? Well, I answered each and every e-mail I received. First of all, I didn’t have a Ruger P95 in my meager gun collection. Secondly, I have nothing against Ruger firearms. They are always a best-buy in my book, and some of the strongest firearms on the market. If anything, Ruger over-engineers their guns – they are made strong. [JWR Adds: While I formerly shied away from Rugers for political reasons, I now fully endorse the company. To explain, the Late William B. Ruger, Sr. had cozied up to anti-gun politicians, in the hopes that they would slow their legislative onslaught. Among other things, Ruger actually endorsed a ban on magazines over 10 round capacity for citizens. I found that reprehensible. A few years after the passing of Bill Ruger in 2002, the company resumed selling 20 and 30 round magazines to mere mortals. I’m glad that they saw the light.]
 
I e-mailed Ruger and requested a P95 sample for this article. And, my timing couldn’t have been worse – I made my request when we were in a real buying frenzy, especially with Ruger firearms – they were backordered several months on firearms – they weren’t even taking any orders from distributors – they were making firearms as fast as they could, and still couldn’t keep up with supply and demand. Happily, Ruger is back on-track, but some Ruger firearms are still a little bit hard to find. Beth McAllister, who is my super-contact at Ruger, got me a P95 sample inside of a couple 2-3 weeks – thanks, Beth!
 
This isn’t my first P95 sample – I owned a used P95 some years ago, and there have been some subtle changes in the design. And, the current P95 is the best in the P-series if you ask me. What we have is a polymer frame, with a light texturing on it, for a sure purchase on the gun. We also have an ambi mag release, and the mag release isn’t pushed “in” – instead, it is pushed forward. The slide is made out of stainless steel, with a decocker, and manual safety in one. On top of the slide, we have nice, 3-dot combat sights, that are adjustable for windage with the rear sight. The stainless steel barrel is 3.90″ long – so the P95 is a bit compact in my humble opinion. Honestly, I’ve owned quite a few Ruger P-series guns over the years, and I’ve NEVER once had to make any adjustments to the rear sights – they were always dead-on. There is also a massive external extractor on the P95. A rounded combat-style hammer is also a nice feature.
 
The P95 comes in, of course, 9mm – and I still live in a fairly “free state” and can have full-capacity mags – the P95 holds 15 rounds in the mag, and one in the chamber, for 16 rounds on-tap. And Ruger also provides a second mag with their guns. I wish more gun companies would do this – some, like Kimber, only provide 1 mag with their 1911 handguns – why? The P95 only weighs-in at 27-oz, quite a bit lighter than the original P85 that weighed 33-oz empty, with it’s aluminum frame. One thing I really like on the P95 is the trigger pull – in double-action, as well as single action. With the hammer forward, the first shot will be double-action, and the trigger pull is super smooth, at about 10-11 pounds. The single-action trigger pull is about 4-5 lbs and just as smooth…the pull is long, but smooth – what’s not to like here? There is also a Picatinny rail on the frame, if you want to mount a light or a laser on your P95. The trigger guard is rounded, too – not like the squared trigger guard on the original P85 was – I like it!
 
Take-down on the P95 is a bit different than some similar guns, however, it’s quick and easy, and described in the instruction manual – read it before your attempt to take your P95 apart for cleaning.
 
I was anxious to get this new P95 out to the range for some fun shooting. I found half a box of Blazer FMJ 115 grain ammo in my ammo box in my car, and headed right to the range, instead of heading home for more ammo – yeah, I was “that” anxious to shoot this hummer. I loaded-up the mag with 15 rounds of this Blazer 9mm ammo – and I had numerous problems – empty brass wouldn’t cleanly eject, and some wouldn’t even feed from the mag. Could I have gotten a lemon from Ruger? Not a chance! I’ve had a lot of problems with this Blazer brass-cased 9mm in the past. It’s not very powerful, and doesn’t always have enough power to fully operate the slide in recoil. So, rounds don’t eject cleanly, and rounds don’t get picked-up from the mag during recoil. I knew it wasn’t the P95 having problems – it was an ammo problem.
 
I headed home, and got some Black Hills Ammunition (www.black-hills.com) 115 grain +P Barnes TAC-XP hollow point ammo, and some of the Buffalo Bore (www.buffalobore.com)  95 grain Barnes TAC-XP +P+ hollow point ammo to test. There were zero malfunctions with either of these ammo brands – which proved, to my mind, that it was the Blazer ammo, and not the P95 – just as I surmised. I fired more than a hundred rounds of the +P+ Buffalo Bore Barnes ammo through the Ruger P95 – the gun ran extremely smooth with this round. And, seeing as how this is only a 95 grain bullet, and even though it is +P+ rated, there wasn’t any noticeable difference in recoil from standard velocity loads. This would prove to be an excellent load for stoking in your house gun – where you might worry about over-penetration of a 9mm through walls. The load is easy to handle…and Buffalo Bore uses a flash retardant power, so your night vision won’t get ruined if you fire the gun in low-light conditions. I was getting 4-5 inch groups, at 25-yards with the Buffalo Bore load – more than “combat” acceptable. I fired over a rolled-up sleeping bag, over the hood of my car.
 
The Black Hills 115 grain TAC-XP +P Barnes hollow point proved to be the accuracy winner in the P95 – I was getting 3 to 3 1/2-inch groups if I did my part. And, the Black Hills 115 grain +P Barnes load was also a pussycat in the P95 – anyone can handle this load – anyone! I didn’t do any penetration tests with either the Buffalo Bore or Black Hills loads, but I know that the 95 grain Barnes load won’t penetrate as deeply as the 115 grain bullet will – that’s just common sense. However, both rounds will penetrate deep enough to get the job done in a self-defense situation. And, remember – please remember – there is no such thing as a magic bullet – shot placement is still what matters.
 
Just before doing this article, Buffalo Bore sent me some of their new 9mm 115 grain Barnes TAC-XP +P+ ammo – and I only had a limited supply, so I didn’t get to do a lot of testing with this round. The recoil was on-par with the 95 grain +P+ load and the Black Hills load – I could hardly tell the difference between the bullet weights. Then again, I don’t find the 9mm punishing in any way. It is a caliber that you can shoot all day long. I also fired 100 rounds of Black Hills 115 grain FMJ reloads through the P95, and every round functioned perfectly – unlike the Blazer new ammo, that caused a lot of problems. I would have zero problems carrying Black Hills reloaded ammo in any of my carry guns – I’m that “sure” of their reloads!
 
Picking a brand of ammo is important to a lot of people. And, let’s be honest here, some guns shoot certain brands or styles of ammo better than other guns do. I have never fired any Buffalo Bore or Black Hills ammo that was more than accurate for the task at hand. The Buffalo Bore 95 grain Barnes TAC-XP +P+ shot groups a little bigger than the Black Hills 115 grain Barnes TAC-XP +P rounds did. For this particular Ruger P95, I’d pick the Black Hills 115 grain +P load for my daily carry use because it was a bit more accurate. For a bedside load, I’d take the Barnes 95 grain +P+ load if I were worried about over-penetration. For my money, you can’t go wrong with any of the Black Hills or Buffalo Bore loads in the P95.
 
In more than 500 rounds of testing the P95, the only problems I encountered were with the Blazer 115 grain loads – then again, most 9mm guns I’ve fired this under-powered ammo in, I’ve had problems! The only “good” thing I can say about this Blazer ammo is, it’s cheap, and it’s good if you want to practice malfunction drills. The P95 just perked along without any problems with the Black Hills and Buffalo Bore ammo – as expected!
 
In summary, I like the way the P95 fills my hand, the grip angle feels good – real good! The gun balances nicely, and the texturing on the polymer grip helps secure the gun in your hand when firing. The trigger pull is outstanding, in double-action, as well as single-action. Years ago, you’d pay a gunsmith at least $150 to give you a trigger pull like this, but the Ruger P95 is a production gun – seriously!
 
And, like all Ruger firearms, you get value for your hard-earned dollars. The P95 has a full retail price of $429 – but you can usually find Ruger handguns deeply discounted. My local gun shop usually sells the P95 for around $359. As a matter of fact, they had a used P95 decocker model, now discontinued by Ruger for $299 a week ago – I bought (traded into) it – it was like-new! I sure didn’t “need” this P95 decocker model, not since I had the brand-new current P95, but I couldn’t pass it up.’
 
Ruger firearms are still “meat and potato” firearms if you ask me – at least many of their guns are. I believe you get added value for your hard-earned money when you buy a Ruger, than you do with many other brands of firearms. Are Ruger handguns “pretty?” Well, it’s all in the eye of the beholder – I thought the old P85 was “sexy” to my mind…and the current P95 is very stylish if you ask me. It has a polymer frame like many of today’s handguns do, and a stainless steel slide…and you get a second mag, combat sights, super-smooth trigger pulls, and total reliability – with good ammo. What’s not to like here? If you’re in the market for a new 9mm pistol, give the Ruger P95 a close look – you’re gonna like the value there, as well as the gun. It’s a gun you can bet your life on!

I was privileged to meet Hank several times, and participate in one of his lectures on knife fighting.  At the time, the man was 30 years my senior and I would not have wanted to rumble with him.

His Book of Knives was written largely in the 1970s, compiled and published after his death, with assistance from his widow and friends.  It follows his Book of Swords.

The first half, in Hank’s voice, is entertaining, anecdotal and informative.  It covers various lessons learned from fights he observed or was involved in, in some seedier areas of the country.  In very honest language, Hank informs us 1:  Not to get into a knife fight.  2:  If you must, bring a gun by choice.  3:  If you must use a knife, be fast, brutal and effective.  There are no Queensberry rules in a knife brawl.  The winner is likely to go to the ER.  The loser will likely be going to the morgue.  The stories are accompanied by clear drawings of how to engage each tactic.

With advances in knife design, some of the recommendations on knife choice are a bit dated, but all the advice on how to fight remains vital and current.  All revolve around engaging fast, disabling the opponent, with attention to his knife hand and vital areas, rendering him incapable of pursuit, and evacuating the area.  This is not a book for the squeamish.

There is an interlude with comments from Hank’s friends and students, including Massad Ayoob and Michael Janich.

The second half, compiled from his notes by Greg Phillips, one of Hank’s students, continues on with information on more modern knives, and some very excellent exercises on how to practice deploying a knife, accurately striking a still or moving target, and cutting effectively, with inexpensive practice targets of rope, water bottles and cardboard tubes.  Practicing these drills will most certainly improve one’s handling of a knife as either tool or weapon.  There are instructions on how to make foam and plastic practice knives for sparring.

I have two criticisms with this section.  First, Phillips has strong opinions on knife choice, voiced almost as universal facts.  However, knives are a personal item, and choices and effectiveness will vary from person to person, just as with guns. 

Second, he advocates carrying a knife specifically for fighting, never to be used as your working knife.  The problems I have with this are that one is far more likely to need a tool than a weapon; that one should be avoiding a fight; that if a fight is inevitable, one should be using a gun if at all possible; and if one is in a jurisdiction where guns are restricted, the authorities are unlikely to look more favorably on a knife.  A knife with tape residue, gum and grease on it, as a tool pressed into emergency use, is far more defensible to the authorities [or a jury] than a custom knife carried specifically for fighting.  I also disagree that a dagger is a good choice, since its non-weapon utility is low and it’s very clearly intended as a weapon, once you wind up in court.  The same cuts and thrusts can be accomplished with a variety of more useful knives.

However, opinions do vary, and this book is an excellent introduction to developing skills with hand held blades.  The fighting and practice techniques are simple, straightforward, and recommended for improving one’s tactical knife use.

Hank’s preferred book dealer was The Missing Volume.  Glennis LeBlanc offers excellent service.  The book can be ordered through her site.

Hank’s Book of Swords (referenced above) covers design, development, crafting and use of swords, while debunking a great many myths about them.  I recommend it for those interested in longer blades. 

Note; I received a free review copy of the book from the publisher. – (SurvivalBlog Editor at Large)

Have you ever wondered how you will react if your children are starving and light-headed from malnutrition and you have no food left?

Have you questioned your resilience to life’s opportunities if you are continually beat down by nature and circumstances?

Want to know how to make a smokehouse out of a hollow tree? How to provide heat when there is no wood left to burn?  Crop failure?  Wild bees?

When I was a child, Laura Ingalls Wilder had already published her saga which included practical homesteading information wrapped inside a series of books. Her books for children were the story of her growing-up years in America 145 years ago.  She began this autobiography when she was over 60 years old. She realized a pioneer and frontier way of life had ended, and she could tell the story.  Laura’s life spanned the era from post-Civil War to the modern age. She serialized her story in the third person, told through the eyes of a little girl named Laura. As a child, it took me several books before I understood that the author was the Laura of the books. (My parents also had to tell me that Alice fell asleep and was only dreaming when she saw a rabbit run past her tree proclaiming that he was late, late for a very important date and then pop into the rabbit hole. I got smarter and more practical as the years passed.) Laura was a tiny bit naughty  —  occasionally slapping mean children on the face — and had, in her own mind, ugly brown hair instead of her sister’s lovely blond curls. My father would go to out-of-town conventions from time to time and my present, upon his return, was a new “Laura” book.

If you only know Laura through the television series, “Little House on the Prairie,” then you don’t know Laura. That family program only faintly resembles the Laura books by the use of the title of her second book, Little House on the Prairie . Eventually, people called the book series the “Little House on the Prairie” books.  Characters were even invented for the television series. While television is entertaining, the book series and the television series are two different creatures.

Ma and Pa Ingalls had four daughters, and these girls worked! They were not entertained to keep out of mischief. A leaf, a stick, a hanky, a corncob, and plenty of imagination could provide hours of enjoyment on a tree stump. And they obeyed when given orders, which could make the difference between life and death (encounter with a bear, fording a flooding river, fighting a chimney fire or wildfire).  The girls watched over each younger child everyday while the parents did farm work. Each daughter had daily jobs called chores and they were expected to be a part of the family and do her part to help the family survive during treacherous times.  For us, “treacherous times” translate as their “daily life.”

The family was responsible for their own food, and they had to work for almost every bite. Their diet included a lot of corn, using sacks of cornmeal traded for furs that Pa had trapped, but occasionally fresh ears and hulled corn.  During The Long Winter, my favorite book, the family and the whole town is malnourished, out of food, and starving to death. No trains can get through in order to deliver needed food supplies to the prairie town due to an extremely harsh winter and snow that blocks the tracks. Particularly read this book if you are considering moving to the American Redoubt and have never lived in the northern tier, i.e. snow country.

Laura and her family worked hard and they were not afraid of work. Laura lived from 1867-1957, ninety years. The childhood privations made her into the survivor she became and did not destroy her spirit or health.

These books were written for children. I read them as a child, I read them to my children, my grandchildren have begun the series, and now I reread them often. I teach in an urban elementary public school and introduce my class to Laura by reading one of her books aloud each year. Laura’s lifestyle is completely foreign to my students. However, in light of the world situation now in 2012, the books are more relevant than ever. I encourage you to acquire the set of books and cherish it. The Laura books are written in the style of our mentor, Jim Rawles. His book Patriots has been described as a handbook encased in a novel. The Laura books are how-to books for living in a primitive world without our ready access to modern conveniences and Wal-Mart.

Laura’s life spanned the period from right after the Civil War when panthers roamed the northern Big Woods and her mother cooked over a campfire on the open prairie, through the Great Depression, both World Wars, construction of the Interstate Highway system, invention of the automobile, and atomic bombs. She lived long enough to experience modern life such as running water, indoor plumbing, rapid transportation, antibiotics, washing machines, clothes dryers, and air conditioning. Her life was the essence of adaptability.

How did the Ingalls family spend their days? They were almost completely independent of a monetary system; they bartered and traded their way along life. A single penny was almost a fortune. They simply lived and lived simply, existed, and thrived, finding happiness and contentment on the life road they chose with faith, among family and a few friends in virgin land. These true pioneers had itchy feet, yearning for new, less crowded horizons with neighbors miles apart and sufficient wild game to hunt. They stopped moving west when Ma finally put her foot down and said, “No more.”

Laura proved to be made with great resilience and the ability to adapt to a changing world. These books are an incredible resource for individuals with interest in prepping for a changing future. Laura survived malaria, scarlet fever, and starvation.

I’ve listed her books with some of the crucial information bulleted that can be found embedded in each book. When you read the series, your outlook will be changed.  These books should be cherished and passed down. You will find the same themes running through each book: family as the basis for existence, importance of community and faith, simple recipes for simple foods, the joy that music brings to life, and an appreciation for the natural world.

Hopefully I’ve convinced you to purchase the Laura series, read them to yourself, your family, and learn from the practical lessons. The descriptions of flora and fauna in the untamed Midwest take your breath away.  Many, many people, both children and adults, have grown to love Laura and her writings. Vacationing families still visit her homesteads and home sites throughout the Midwest in Wisconsin, Kansas, Minnesota, South Dakota, and Missouri. She has had fan clubs since she began writing. Her inspiring story is classic and enduring.

There are dozens of other books written about Laura’s life and family by various authors, but they were not written by her, simply about her. The “Little House” books number only nine. Some other books about Laura and her growing up that round out her story that I have read and can recommend are: The Little House Cookbook by Barbara M. Walker; Young Pioneers by Rose Wilder Lane, Laura’s daughter; A Little House Sampler by Laura Ingalls Wilder and Rose Wilder Lane; Laura’s Album compiled by William Anderson; and On the Way Home by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  Enjoy!

Little House in the Big Woods

• ·       How to keep needles from rusting
• ·       Collecting maple sap
• ·       Making maple sugar
• ·       Gathering honey from wild bees
• ·       Making butter
• ·       Cheese-making with a calf’s stomach lining (rennet)
• ·       Pouring and molding lead bullets
• ·       Gun cleaning
• ·       Building a smokehouse from a hollow tree trunk
• ·       Harvesting and stacking oat sheaves
• ·       Making straw hats
• ·       Treating massive numbers of wasp stings
• ·       Gathering wild nuts
• ·       Nixtamalization of corn (preparing hulled corn)
• ·       Making a salt lick
• ·       Cooking varieties of squash and vegetables
• ·       Preserving various foods for cellar and attic
• ·       Insulating a house and barn with stones, dead leaves, and straw
• ·       Family and community entertainment and recreation
• ·       Personal hygiene and grooming
• ·       Housekeeping practices
• ·       Salting fish in barrels
• ·       Root cellaring
• ·       Braiding onions
• ·       Pig butchering
• ·       Making sausage and head cheese
• ·       Using a kerosene lamp

 
Little House on the Prairie

• ·       Fording a rising river with a team of horses
• ·       Outdoor cooking with cast iron cookware
• ·       Traveling cross-country in a covered wagon
• ·       Where to position a homestead in relation to a creek
• ·       Hand tools essential to homesteading
• ·       Building a notched-log cabin
• ·       Picket lines for horses
• ·       Importance of music for happiness and contentment
• ·       Importance of a good, faithful dog (watchdog/guard dog)
• ·       Why not to camp in creek bottoms (malaria)
• ·       Latch string to open/close a door
• ·       Importance of neighbors
• ·       Reusing bent nails
• ·       Chinking cracks in a log cabin wall
• ·       Building a stone fireplace with river rock
• ·       Constructing a stick and daub chimney
• ·       Log splitting for floors, roof, furniture
• ·       Preparing rabbit fur for clothing
• ·       Digging a well, testing for natural gas in the ground
• ·       Milking a wild cow
• ·       Drying wild blackberries
• ·       Recipes for various cornmeal dishes
• ·       Treating malaria
• ·       Chimney fire
• ·       Making a willow rocking chair
• ·       Fighting a prairie fire
• ·       When government makes rules

 
Farmer Boy

• ·       Abundance of food and simple recipes

 
On the Banks of Plum Creek

• ·       Grasshopper plague
• ·       When crops fail
• ·       Life cycle of a grasshopper
• ·       Minnesota blizzard
• ·       Getting caught out in a blizzard and surviving
• ·       Haying

 
By the Shores of Silver Lake

• ·       Effects of Scarlet Fever
• ·       Feeding livestock during a blizzard
• ·       Grading and scraping plowed land
• ·       Making a road cut
• ·       Mob psychology
• ·       Which water birds are fit to eat
• ·       Lyrics to many old-timey, long-lost songs
• ·       Making a homemade checkers game
• ·       Living on salt pork and wild game
• ·       Family working together to succeed at life
• ·       Taking in boarders to earn money
• ·       Fighting mosquitoes with smoking fires
 

The Long Winter

• ·       Saving seed for spring planting vs. eating the seed to survive
• ·       Braiding hay to burn for heat
• ·       Grinding wheat in a coffee mill daily to make bread
• ·       Surviving starvation
• ·       Isolation in winter
• ·       How starvation and malnutrition affects the body
• ·       Taking extreme life-threatening steps to survive
 

Little Town on the Prairie

• ·       Skimming cream
• ·       Teaching a calf to drink from a pail
• ·       Plowing prairie sod
• ·       Hand-feeding a tiny kitten
• ·       Sewing on a treadle machine
• ·       Hand-basting seams, buttonholes
• ·       Using a chicken tractor
• ·       Saving a corn crop from blackbirds
• ·       Entertainment in a small community
• ·       Public schools/education in the 1880’s

These Happy Golden Years

• ·       Severe winter in South Dakota
• ·       Breaking horses to buggy and wagon
• ·       Tornado season on the Great Plains
• ·       How to dress in bitter winter weather

 
The First Four Years

• ·       Pros and cons of farming as a career choice
• ·       When a homestead is invaded by thieves
• ·       Folksy sayings about the weather
• ·       Getting from house to barn in a blizzard to feed livestock
• ·       Stacking hay
• ·       Home birth
• ·       Diphtheria with complications
• ·       Prairie blizzard
• ·       Prairie fire
• ·       Prairie tornado
• ·       Youthful optimism