Notes from JWR:

The high bid in the SurvivalBlog Benefit Auction. is now at $1,010. This auction is for a large mixed lot, which includes:

1.) A Three-Color Desert Camo Interceptor OTV (Outer Tactical Vest) size XL only, and a spare Woodland camouflage outer shell, kindly donated by BulletProofME.com. These items have a combined retail value of $960!

2.) A vehicle detection system, which includes: one MURS Alert Probe Sensor (MAPS) with 50 foot probe cable and one MURS Alert Hand Held (M538-HT) transceiver. The MAPS unit’s probe can be covertly installed under the surface of a driveway or road to detect vehicular traffic and a voice alert is sent to the hand held transceiver when a detection occurs. Donated by MURS Radio. Retails for $303

3.) Two cases of Yoder’s Canned Bacon, courtesy of CampingSurvival.com. (12 cans per case.) A $276 retail value.

4.) A NukAlert compact radiation detector donated by at KI4U.com (a $160 retail value). 

5.) Three Garden Security Collections, and two Garden Bean Collections, donated by SeedForSecurity.com. With included free shipping to any US postal address, this is a $100+ retail value.

6.) Two America Stone knife sharpeners (with belt pouches), donated by the manufacturer. (A $60 retail value.)

Thus, this auction has a combined value in excess of $1,800. This auction ends on May15th. Please e-mail us your bid. Your bid will be for the entire mixed lot.

—

Today we present a guest article from Kathy Harrison, the author of the popular mainstream preparedness book Just in Case . I highly recommend getting her book to first read yourself and then pass along to any of your “head in the sand” neighbors and relatives.

Maximizing Use of a Backyard Greenhouse, by Kathy Harrison

Here in Western Massachusetts, with its short, cool growing season, a backyard greenhouse is a real boon for those of us concerned with providing our families excellent food, even when supply chains are shut down during a time of crisis. We have spent three years figuring how to maximize the relatively small interior space of our rectangular, rigid-walled greenhouse in an efficient manner.
Early on, we realized there were steps we could take to increase the interior temperature during our cold, windy winters. My husband rescued an old thermal pool cover that was headed for the landfill and cut out sections to fit against both the north and west sides. By doubling this cover, we now had both a wind break and heat sink that held sun-generated warmth. He also made a double 6 ply plastic cover that is raised during sunny days but can be lowered to about a foot above the ground at night. This essentially makes an interior cold frame that protects crops from frigid night air. We added a stone walkway down the middle of the greenhouse that captures heat as well as keeps the area cleaner. Our final step was to ring the exterior of the greenhouse with bales of hay, stacked two deep. It is an easy matter to move the hay away from the door so we can enter as long as we keep the area free of snow. On the coldest nights, we bring out the day’s ashes from a wood stove, captured in a metal bucket. With these measures in place, we have never had the ground freeze on the interior, in spite of nights that dip to -20 degrees.

The next step is to ensure that the soil inside is as healthy as possible. This means liberal applications of compost and bi-weekly applications of a weak fish emulsion fertilizer.
Finally, we developed a plan of crops and crop rotation that makes the best use of our available space. We were looking for crops that provided maximum nutrition and dietary bulk. We were surprised by some of the things that did quite well.

In mid February, we plant several varieties of lettuce seeds. They start slowly but by mid-March, we harvest a salad a day. This was an early spring for us and I can’t guarantee such good results every year. We started our seedlings inside in early March. My early April, we were able to harden them off in the greenhouse. We have never had such healthy and vigorous starts. As the lettuce starts to bolt in the heat, we will be removing those plants and replacing them with some miniature melons, something we could never grow in our climate, as well as root crops such as carrots, turnips and beets. We ate turnip and beet greens late into January and we were pulling the roots throughout the winter as the ground never froze. We planted hardy greens such as bok choi, tat soi, chard and spinach in August. By October, we were eating the first of those greens and they continued to produce well into winter.

As the root crops develop below ground, a shelf above hold individual pots of salad greens and cherry tomatoes grow in suspended planters. We started these later than our garden tomatoes and we were enjoying fresh salad tomatoes weeks after frost had done away with the main crop. We did not have luck growing bush tomatoes in the soil. We got all vine and no fruit.

Other important considerations are water, pests and heat control. Greenhouse plants need a lot of water. In early spring, I water seedlings every day. As it gets warmer, it is not unusual to water twice a day so having a source of water nearby is terrific. A rain gutter that drains into a bucket would be helpful. Our greenhouse has two roof vents that have to be opened early in the day, before the sun gets too high. Unopened, the temperature can reach 110 degrees by 10:30 in the morning, a temperature that will fry any tender plant. Even in mid-winter, the greenhouse is so warm we are able to eat lunch out there. Some greenhouses have solar operated vents that open and close as the temperature fluctuates. It is an upgrade we wish we had invested in. We do have a black shade cloth to keep the interior cooler in extremely hot weather. This is seldom necessary in our climate but a more southern location would find that useful.

Pest control is vital as aphids can be a real problem. We find that a squirt of soapy water followed by a clear rinse does a good job of keeping them under control although at one point the infestation was severe and we had to pull out the Asian greens, which were the biggest problem. If you plan to bring any plants from the greenhouse inside, check closely for these pests.
We have been so satisfied with the productivity of our greenhouse that we are planning to invest in another one, further enhancing our ability to feed ourselves throughout and food, energy or weather crisis. – Kathy Harrison, author of Just in Case

Letter Re: Expanding the Family Larder with Coupon Shopping

Dear Jim,
I’m a mom, and new to your site, but I’ve long been thinking that my instinct for planning should ramp up to a new level of preparedness to keep my family safe. Like many of your readers I’ve long felt an increased sense of alarm at the state of our world on numerous levels.

And, as many of your readers – preparing within the parameters of my normal household budget along with the current financial challenges makes preparation challenging! … in short – I don’t have lots of spare cash around to go around buying pallets of food “just in case”…

I really feel convicted that as a Christian mom who has learned a better way to shop – it’s my duty to educate your readers about rethinking their normal shopping to a more frugal and economic shopping style that will allow them to create and build a food stockpile for their possible future needs. If more people are prepared, then as a community we will be able to hold each other up.

So – let’s talk coupon shopping.

As I said – I’m a mom – a normal mom, married with two kids. But food is expensive and most people think. I can’t go in the store and just buy 40 boxes of pasta to put on a shelf –that would be crazy. I need to buy my normal groceries! But I did just that, this week – and for free! Coupon shopping has evolved into such a crazy science that there are tons of web sites dedicated just to that.

People generally think it’s great if they buy something on sale. Or if they get an item with a coupon. But what people need to realize is that they need to buy something on sale with a coupon when it hits the rock-bottom sale price. If you live in an area where coupons double, you need to use your 75 cent coupon when an item hits $1.50 so it ends up being free.

I have not spent a cent on toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant or nearly any other “health and beauty” item in the three years I’ve been couponing. If the only thing that enabled me besides the ability to stockpile for myself and donate to my friends and food pantries abundantly. It enables me to not spend money on those items, [and hence] to shift it to food spending. The pasta I bought today for free.: It was on sale for $1, with a coupon for $1/2 that was part of a special dollar doubling deal at my local grocery store.

I normally buy 10-15 newspapers and have delis that hold me their unsold papers and have no qualms about dumpster diving for more.

The end result of this is that I don’t spend more than 50 cents on a box of cereal and get a great portion of my food needs for free. Of course there is still produce and meat so it’s a work in progress.

I want your readership to realize that with savvy coupon shopping within their own shopping environment, they can start to build a stockpile. It’s imperative that they do so.

To start couponing, do a Google search on “coupon shopping”. Find out if your local grocery store offers any coupon cards, doubling, or tripling. Be prepared to do some Internet research on the big coupon sites. Invest in at least 10-15 papers if you have a family of four (or find a free source for newspaper coupon inserts such as a recycling center) Keep at it. Coupon savings sometimes take four weeks for the coupons you get today to come into play as a maximum savings item. This takes time, but saving money and being prepared and taking care of your family is the only motivation you should need. Regards, – Ida

JWR Replies: Thanks for those suggestions. I encourage SurvivalBlog readers to bookmark and regularly visit some of the major Internet coupon web sites, such as as and RetailMeNot.com, Mommy Saves Big, and Wow Printable Coupons.

Economics and Investing:

Roddy sent this from the Guatemala Times: The Great Depression Analogy

R.S. forwarded this from The Financial Times: If China loses faith the dollar will collapse

A recent column by Libertarian commentator Vin Suprynowicz: Light at the end of the tunnel: They only need another $20 trillion

DS liked this piece by Karl Denninger, over at Seeking Alpha: Independent Analyst Numbers Far Uglier than Official Stress Test Rumors. JWR’s comment If we take into account that most US residential real estate will likely fall another 30%, and most commercial property by another 50%, then the “official” stress test results will be downright laughable. All those “underlying assets” are little more than sinking sand.

Dave L.sent us this piece at Bloomberg: Bank of America, Citigroup, GMAC Need More Capital (Billions more in the MOAB!)

Odds ‘n Sods:

Rhett mentioned the AOPA “Pinch Hitter” course. (Imagine that you are the passenger in a friend’s private plane,when suddenly he suffers a massive heart attack. What will you do?)

   o o o

Some places you have to go well-armed, to share the Gospel. Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition.

   o o o

Eric sent us this: Montana sovereignty bills have national scope

   o o o

Reader Don E. spotted this: Homeland agency pulled back extremism dictionary. Why haven’t the biased authors at the DHS been fired?

   o o o

Another item for the “Home invasion robberies thwarted” file: College Student Shoots, Kills Home Invader. (A hat tip to Tamara’s View From the Porch blog for the link.)

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Why should taxpayers who live in apartments, perhaps because they did not feel that they could afford to buy a house, be forced to subsidize other people who could not afford to buy a house, but who went ahead and bought one anyway?" – Thomas Sowell

Note from JWR:

Today we present a brief but very practical entry for Round 22 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The contest prizes include:

First Prize: Two transferable Front Sight  “Gray” Four Day Training Course Certificates. This is an up to $4,000 value!
Second Prize: A three day course certificate from OnPoint Tactical. This certificate will be for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses.
Third Prize: A copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, from Arbogast Publishing

Round 22 ends on May 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

Zero Your Rifle with Just Two Rounds, by Pete C.

What makes our rifles fun? Shooting them! However, we have all seen first-hand the spike in ammunition prices since the 2008 Presidential election. American’s in fear that they will soon not be able to get ammunition because a possible government bans, smart bullets schemes, etc; citizens have been stockpiling ammunition causing a stress on the market. This in turn causes shortages and prices rise.

Here I will discuss a simple and inexpensive way for you to stop wasting ammunition and money; and zero your battle rifle (or any that you might “come across” during a TEOTWAWKI situation) with only two rounds. If you have been in the military, you know that the current procedure for zeroing the M16 type of rifles wastes time and ammunition. The military will allow up to eighteen rounds of ammunition (in three round shot groups) to be fired per soldier in order to zero their weapons. This allows several variables such as breathing, trigger squeeze, stock weld, etc. to affect the zero.

Borrowing techniques from expert hunters, everyone can easily streamline their zeroing procedures and only use two rounds of ammunition to quickly zero their weapon. This method works whether zeroing iron sights or scopes, and it will work on many different kinds of rifles with reliable adjustable sights (AR-15s, AR-10s, M1As, FN/FALs, etc). The purpose of this method is only to provide the shooter with a weapon that places rounds on target. It does this while saving time and ammunition.

Required Items:

  • A safe shooting location (range) providing at least 25 meter shooting distance.
  • One solid bench rest (many ranges have these for use, or they can be purchased from many gun shops or on-line, ranging in price from $50 – $150 or more, but then it is yours.
  • Your chosen weapon (for example, an AR-15 using iron sights)
  • 25-meter zero target (for example, an E-type silhouette)
  • One extra E-type silhouette (cut out from another zero target)
  • Staple gun and tape
  • Eye and hearing protection

Zeroing Method
Place the mechanically zeroed weapon (See FM3-22.9 at the link below on mechanical zero) securely in the bench rest and use the adjustments on the rest to put the rifle sights directly over the center of a 25-meter zero target, or the desired aim point and fire one round at the target. To compensate for the weapon’s recoil, you should (if needed) again use the bench rest adjustments to move the rifle sights back over the desired point of impact. Make sure that your weapon is on safe.

Now walk downrange with the extra cut out E-type silhouette and tape it directly over the impact point of the round fired. Walk back to the weapon (still secured in the bench rest) and carefully move the sight picture directly over the taped-on target. To do this, simply raise or lower the front sight post for elevation corrections and turn the rear-sight (windage) knob either left or right to make corrections.

You should now have your sights aligned precisely over the actual point of impact on the target. If you have been careful not to make the rifle slip within the bench while making the adjustments, it should now be zeroed. To confirm the zero, simply move your sights back over the original target (using the adjustments on the bench rest) to the desired point of impact and fire a second round. If the rifle is zeroed, this round should hit the desired point of impact. Get up and move again downrange to confirm the hit. If the round is not at the desired point of impact, simply repeat the procedure from the second round’s point of impact on the zero target. This simple procedure allows you to zero a rifle quickly by moving the point of aim to the point of impact.
The use of a bench rest eliminates the need to fire three rounds of ammunition to obtain a shot group before making sight adjustments. If the first round is not true, the second (confirmation) round will alert you to this fact, and you could than repeat the process.

Yes, there are other items that you can purchase that will assist you with getting a weapon zeroed. Laser bore sights for example are great and easily obtained from gun shops or on-line sites and range in price from $40 – $150 or more. With these items, you can zero your rifle quickly without even firing a single shot saving both time and ammunition. However, if you do not have the correct caliber laser or insert sleeve to change to a different caliber; or the mini-watch batteries run dead and you have no way to replace them, the laser bore sight will do you no good. If you already have one though, don’t get rid of it. Sometimes there may be a situation in which you are in an area where discharging of a firearm to zero may not be possible.

In addition, there is a wonderful company called Shepherd Scopes that developed a patented dual reticle system that gives you a point of reference inside the scope allowing you to zero the scope/weapon with just one shot from a bench rest position. These scopes however range in cost from $700 – $800 apiece. I would rather spend funds on purchasing more ammunition, as we all know from reading SurvivalBlog.com, that ammunition could one day be more useful than silver for the purposes of barter.

In closing, zeroing your rifle makes it more effective. This expedient two-round method will give you confidence that your sights and bore are aligned even if you happen to “pick-up” or borrow a weapon from a friend; have limited time or limited ammunition. Understand that different positions, body armor, winter clothing, etc. will change your head position, but your bore and sights will be properly aligned/zeroed. Having a zeroed weapon is a fundamental you can build on. The rest is up to you. Good-luck and God Bless!

References:
– Ammo Price Hike Has Many Biting the Bullet
– WorldNetDaily, There was ammo on these shelves …Nationwide shortage leaves gun owners scrambling, paying extra, Zahn, Drew, March 31, 2009.
– FM 3-22.9 Rifle Marksmanship M16A1, M16A2/3, M16A4 and M4 Carbine
– Shepherd Scopes

Odds ‘n Sods:

From the Dr. Housing Bubble blog: The Paradox of Spendthrifts – Government Offering 0 Percent on I Savings Bonds and Creating Incentives to Spend. Punishing the Prudent and Savers. $115 Trillion in Total U.S. Debt

It is nice to see that the spot price of silver has bounced back. I hope that you folks took advantage of the recent dip. (I did!) It may not occur until after inflation kicks in, in the aftermath of overspending on the Mother of All Bailouts (MOAB), but I stand by my long term prediction of $50+ silver.

Great Recession’ Will Redefine Full Employment as Jobs Vanish (Thanks to Eric for the link.)

Odds ‘n Sods:

Eric sent this from New Scientist: Regional nuclear war could trigger mass starvation. One billion dead?

   o o o

“Word” forwarded a NRA Institute for Legislative Action bulletin link: BATFE Reform Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate. Please ask you senator to support this much-needed legislation.

   o o o

I heard that the folks at The Old Schoolhouse magazine (on homeschooling), are offering their latest issue (Spring, 2009) for free download.

   o o o

S.H. spotted this from the New York Times: Fearful Brazilians Keep Armored Car Sales Booming

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"In the end, more than they wanted freedom, they wanted security. They wanted a comfortable life, and they lost it all — security, comfort, and freedom. When… …the freedom they wished for was freedom from responsibility, then Athens ceased to be free." – Sir Edward Gibbon (1737-1794)

More About Depression Proof Jobs–Consider the Three Ks

In these perilous economic times, marked by increasingly frequent corporate layoffs, I’m getting a correspondingly large number of question from blog readers and consulting clients about “recession proof” jobs. I’ve already mentioned quite a few possibilities, but there is one whole category that doesn’t require much (if any) special training:

In Japan, these are called the “”Three-K” jobs: kitsui (“hard”) , kitanai (“dirty”) and kiken (“dangerous”). If you are willing to take on any of the Three K jobs, do cheerful and hard work, and have exemplary attendance, then you will likely have a job that will carry you all the way through a deep recession or even a depression. If times get truly Schumeresque and you get laid off, then please be willing to “think outside the box”, and consider taking a Three K job. Some of these are low level city and county payroll jobs. And by low level, I mean things like sanitation worker, animal control officer, sewer technician (BTW, when did that become “technical?), solid waste transfer station worker, highway maintenance worker, and so forth.

Think about it: If you get laid off and can’t find work in your chosen field after several months of searching, then you ought consider taking a cut in pay, to take a far less glamorous job. When corporate layoffs are happening recurrently, a steady job beats no job. Don’t let your family starve, or end up homeless. There is no shame in accepting good old-fashioned hard work. If you take a job that brings in only one half of your existing income, consider that you’ll actually come out ahead of any of your contemporaries that are laid off more than half of each year. Further, you will have uninterrupted benefits, such as health insurance, that they will also lack. A menial and low-paying job is better than no job.

Letter Re: Gun Show Report–A Window of Opportunity?

Jim,
On Sunday, I attended what is billed as the largest gun show in North Carolina and thought you and your readers might appreciate an update.
What I saw lead me to believe that supplies of black rifles and magazines are catching back up to demand but that ammunition and reloading components remain in short supply — especially primers.

When I attended the November show, I had to wait in line 30 minutes or so just to get in. I heard the March show had a two hour wait. Today, there was no wait at all. It was crowded inside, but not jammed like the first post-election show. Still, a healthy amount of business was being conducted, far more than two years ago when I last attended as a dealer.

My first stop was to pick up the smokeless powder that I use to load .223. It was sold out at my normal dealer. They had a big sign that said “No Primers.” I found another dealer and bought two pounds. The price was reasonable. He had only magnum pistol primers in stock. He told me the price as $48 per thousand, but he expected it to settle back down in three months. I did not see any other primers in the entire show. Several folks were selling bags of 100 pieces of brass, but no one was selling 1,000 piece bags of it or other large lots, and prices were up. So brass and primers remain in short supply. Possibly it is all going to commercial ammunition production.

I was surprised to see that there were lots of new black rifles available — more than I had expected. There were plenty of AR-15s well as AR uppers and lowers. Despite wider availability, prices remain high. The cheapest plain vanilla AR-15 that I saw was $1,080, with most guns starting at $1,200 and anything with an adjustable buttstock and rails instead of the older forearm starting at around $1,600. In fact, I would say $1,600 was the average price for a Bushmaster or a S&W M&P. Of course, there were still $3,000 guns for sale, but no one was showing much interest.

Stripped lowers from the lesser-known manufacturers were going for about $139 and full lowers with an adjustable buttstock from Rock River Arms were $359. I was looking for a spare bolt and bolt carrier, but never found one. I also saw that part kits for lowers were in short supply. So if you are planning on piecing together a gun, it might make more sense just to buy one complete. You could wait weeks for parts and possibly spend even more when all is said and done.

AK-47s were widely available, as were the Ruger Mini-14 and Mini-30. AKs were running in the $600 and up range while SKSes were closing in on $400. A CETME rifle with a Century Arms receiver that cost $300 five years ago was not going for a shockingly high $1,295. I only saw one Springfield Armory M1A. It had a stainless steel barrel and was $1,695. FALs were scarce and at least as pricey.

Based on this show, magazines seem to be back to reasonable availability. Used AR-15 magazines were $9. New .223 alloy magazines from C-Products or DPMS were starting at $15 at most sellers. MagPul polymer magazines were $25 to $29, depending on the model. They were some available, but limited quantities.

Pistol dealers were doing a very robust trade. I saw many more people buying pistols than I did long guns. There were dealers with 20 tables just lined up with Glocks, Springfield Armory pistols, SIGs, Smith and Wessons, Kahrs, Kel-Tecs and just about anything else you could see. Every pistol dealer had people sitting in chairs filing out paperwork.

Rifle ammunition was in decent supply. I saw at least three dealers that had stacks of 1,000 round cases of new, commercial .223/5.56 from Federal XM193 and/or PMC for $459 and up. Many others had Wolf, Bear or other Russian or Eastern European ammo. There were also folks selling “remanufactured” ammo — 500 in a .30 caliber ammo can for $275. Since this was the second day of the show and near the end, I was surprised at this availability — all the anecdotal evidence I had heard lead me to believe cases of .223 would be sold out. .308 ammo was harder to come by, with very little domestic production available. There was a moderate supply of Russian calibers and one guy had a pallet of 8mm [Mauser] that didn’t seem to be selling.

Pistol ammunition was much more scarce than rifle ammo, especially in common calibers. I saw only one dealer with .380 (for $35 a box) and only a few with 9mm. Dealers had signs saying “No 9mm” or “No .45 ACP.” Self defense ammo with a good hollow point, such as Gold Dot or Ranger SXT were going for $45 or $50 for a box of 50 rounds. There was more .357 and .40 [S&W] and good supplies of less common calibers like .44 Special. I only saw one dealer with bricks of 1,000 .22 LRs, but plenty were selling the small 50 or 100 round boxes.

If this one show is any example, I would say that the industry is doing a good job or meeting the increased demand for firearms, albeit at the expense of the secondary market. Demand remains high, but is down from the surge in the months immediately following the election, and supply is now catching up. The threat of additional legislation, assault weapon bans and magazine bans remains and is likely to grow rather than recede. As a result, this may be a good window of opportunity to buy a new firearm. While it is possible prices will drop if we reach an over supply situation, I personally think that is unlikely in the next two or three years unless the Republicans win an awful lot of seats in the next congressional election.

The strong sales of pistols and lack of availability in pistol caliber ammunition leads me to believe that many people are worried about rising crime and are arming themselves. This is consistent with the up tick in people taking concealed carry courses. One has to wonder if the same lines that produced pistol ammo have been converted over to rifle calibers and if we are destined to see shortages in one or the other for some time to come.

Finally, the recent sales explosion in firearms and the sudden lack of availability in the market should be a lesson to anyone sitting on the survival fence. Do not put off your preparations any longer. A sudden change can suck all the supplies out of the pipeline and result in months of backorders for long term storage food, water filters, medical supplies, etc. The just-in-time supply situation is a precarious one and any small shock can upset the balance, resulting in shortages and price increases. – Captain Dave

Bicycles in War, a Book Review by by Michael Z. Williamson

I just finished reading the book “Bicycles in War” by Martin Caidin and Jay Barbree. Caidin, of course, is a phenomenal writer, and does a great job of presenting the material. There’s not a lot of technical how to, though there are some useful pictures, and comments about how the Viet Cong, for example, reinforced their bicycles to carry up to 500 pounds of cargo while pushing them.

During WWI, entire regiments moved more quickly than marching troops, and quite a few clandestine operations in both World Wars used bicycles, including some by the British Commandos and the SS, behind enemy lines.

Summarizing from the book’s conclusion, the bicycle’s efficiency can be explained as allowing a man to move up to fours times as fast or far than
on foot, while carrying two to four times as much gear, for less calories expended–1/5th to 1/2, depending on load. A bicycle can go most places a walking man can, and can of course readily use roads as well. – Michael Z. Williamson