Note From JWR:

Today we present the final article for Round 5 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. It discusses auxiliary pumps for home water wells, and well buckets.

The writer of the best non-fiction article will win a valuable four day “gray” transferable Front Sight course certificate. (Worth up to $1,600.) Second prize is a copy of my “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course, (normally $149) generously donated by Jake Stafford of Arbogast Publishing. If you want a chance to win Round 6, start writing and e-mail us your article. Round 6 will end on September 30th. Remember that the articles that relate practical “how to” skills for survival will have an advantage in the judging.

How to Build an Inertial Well Slow Pump for Grid Down Emergencies, by TruthFirst

This article describes how to build an inexpensive, simple, easy to use pump that can pump water out of a residential water well from about 100 feet down. It’s called the “Simple Siphon” pump because its key component is a cleverly designed valve by that same name. (See below). Under ideal conditions it can bring up between 1/2 and 1 gallon per minute. I know this works, because I built and tested one on my own home well. If the power goes out, this pump can get you lifesaving water! Building the Simple Siphon™ Well Pump (SSWP) will require the following:
1. One Simple Siphon™ valve, $12 for a three-pack (not including shipping), available from http://www.siphonsonline.com or write to Simple Siphon Plus, 684 South Drive, Divide Colorado 80814, simplesiphonplus@earthlink.com (Congratulations guys for making a simple, durable, affordable valve that can be used for a wide range of fluid-handling projects!)
2. Amazing Goop® Plumbing adhesive and sealant by Eclectic Products, Inc.
3. One 200 foot roll of 1/2” black thin-wall drip hose (drive around with your valve to different hardware stores until you find one that carries hose small enough to form a tight fit with your valve). The brand I found was RainDrip, 1/2” (.620) Poly Hose, 200 foot coil, part #052020, from Lowe’s Hardware. (You probably won’t be able to get the SSWP to work much deeper than 100 feet, but the extra hose could come in handy for other things, and it certainly is cheap.)
4. One section of 1/2” rigid white PVC pipe, (make sure it will fit over your thin-wall drip hose) and cut off a 2 foot section. (OPTIONAL)
5. One pop riveter (I used one made by United Shoe Machinery Corp, but any manufacturer will do.) Compact, lightweight, simple to use. Read the directions.
6. One box of pop rivets (you only need 4 for this project, but you might wish you had more), 1/8” diameter pop rivets for 1/8” “work thickness”, United Shoe Machinery Corp, stock # S-42-100
7. One small triangular file (a little wooden handle for the file is nice, but not necessary)
8. One electric drill and 1/8” drill bit (some of you will be prepared enough to have an old hand-held crank or push drill, in case the power is already off).
9. One roll of commercial-grade, outdoor-rated duct tape. (You really don’t need it to be that high quality, but you’re only going to use a little of it with this project and if you’re in some kind of survival or emergency situation you won’t want to have cheap duct tape…)
Note: Read through all the instructions below before beginning this project!
Using a small triangular file, file the grooves on the Simple Siphon™ valve a little deeper. Angle the file so that it cuts a more barbed shape into the valve stem. Go easy on the filing – you want an edge, but don’t want to cut too deeply into the copper.
It will keep the hose easier to handle if you leave it coiled in its original size coil, but work loose the end you will be attaching the valve to about 2 feet. Do your best to not kink the hose at any time, if possible.
Before mounting the valve, you’ll want to slide your 2 foot section of PVC over the end of the thin-wall tubing. This will keep the working end of the SSWP straight, so it can’t curve and get caught on the gaps between well pipe sections.
First, bevel both ends of the rigid pipe section so there is no edge to catch on any mineral accretions or pipe gaps. This is especially important for the top edge of the pipe! Getting your SSWP caught going down into the well isn’t such a problem, but getting it caught or snagged coming back up could be a real problem!
Put a little water or dish soap on the end of the flexible hose, then slide the rigid pipe on. There should be enough friction that you won’t need to glue the stiffener in place, and it’s not going to fall off! Push it up far enough to leave you with about 3” of black thin-wall hose to mount the valve to. Once you’re through attaching the valve you can slide the stiffener pipe back down as close to the valve as you can get it.
Now, using a new pencil end (not the eraser end), squirt a small amount of Amazing Goop Plumbing onto the side of the tip. Roll the tip around inside the end of the hose to more or less evenly coat the inside. (Epoxy turned out to be too brittle in early testing. Goop appears to have just the right balance of adhesiveness and flexibility.)
Apply more Goop to the pencil and roll / spread it over the valve stem, especially in the barbed grooves. You have to move quickly, because Amazing Goop Plumbing dries fast!
Push the valve stem into the hose end as far as the valve will go. There will be a bead of Goop at the end of the hose, which will be no problem. Wipe it off with your finger if there’s TOO much and it threatens to drip.
While the Goop is still uncured, drill one hole in the side of the valve stem, close to the top. You should be able to clearly see where the top of the valve stem is through the bulging in the hose. Press the un-turning drill bit into the plastic to start an indentation, then back off of the pressure and start to drill. Use light pressure so that the drill bit does not slide out of position and across the tubing! Be sure you’re not drilling right at the end of the stem.
Immediately put the pop rivet head into the hole and apply the rivet with the tool. If you haven’t used a pop riveter before, practice on a sheet of metal or a few inches of hose.
Turn the hose over and drill a hole approximately opposite the first hole. Rivet it.
Turn the hose so that both rivets are parallel to the ground. Drill a third hole closer to the end of the tubing and rivet it.
Turn the hose over and drill the fourth hole approximately opposite the last hole. Rivet it.
Wipe off any excess Goop, or Goop that may have gotten onto the hose elsewhere. Any Goop you may have gotten on your fingers will just roll up, and you can then wash up with soap and water. (If you’re concerned about getting Goop on your hands, wear vinyl or rubber gloves.)
The Simple Siphon Well Pump assembly will dry more quickly if it’s kept warm indoors (the smell is not strong). 24 hours is the minimum. The Goop’s main job is to seal any leaks that might form between the hose and the valve stem, but it’s also going to help hold the valve to the entire end of the hose, while the rivets only hold the valve to the hose at four points. (This assembly – with no glue – has been actually tested to hold at least 53 pounds of weight, in a bucket hanging from the valve. In further testing the rivets tore through the tubing around a load of 100 pounds or so. This is plenty of strength for the water above the valve and any peak load caused by pumping the hose up and down.)
After a few hours of drying, when the Goop isn’t tacky anymore, re-coil the tubing into a larger circle. My tubing originally came in a coil that was 18 inches across. The hose will have less resistance to moving up and down in the well pipe if it’s not coiled so tightly. I re-coiled my tubing around the back of a recliner, for a diameter of about 25 – 26 inches. If you’re going to be handling your Simple Siphon Well Pump in cold weather, you might want to coil it even larger.
To make handling the hose inside the cramped quarters of a well-house / pump house easier, duct tape the end (not the valve end) to the hose when you make your FIRST loop of hose. This will keep the end from whipping around, and keep it clean if you cover the hose tip too. Every 5 or so loops, duct tape the coils together (one layer will do), then keep coiling. As you insert the tubing, tear off the duct tape as you come to it. Reverse this process when you take the tubing back out of the well when you’re done.
To protect the valve head from damage from getting flung around in tight quarters with metal pipes and fixtures (the pump house), I’m outfitting my pump valve end with a bit of foam rubber-type material to cushion it, and will remove the tip cover when I’m ready to insert the SSWP.
NOTE: If you’re building your Simple Siphon Well Pump in advance of a regional or national electrical emergency, you might consider preparing at least one of your spare Simple Siphon valves in advance. Since drilling through the copper valve stem is the one step that involves an electrical tool (drill), you could pre-drill (and pre-file, might as well) one of your spare valves in the appropriate places. Save the spare to replace your main valve if it gets damage, if you need to build a second pump, or if your original hose gets damaged and you need to shorten it (removing a valve once riveted on is hard work unless you have an electric drill handy).
Once your spare valve was slid into a tight-fitting hose end, you should be able to gently probe the plastic to locate where the holes are and manually drill through the hose with an awl, or small and sharp Phillip’s screwdriver head, or with a manual drill (crank, or Yankee screwdriver-style push drill), then rivet it in place.To use your SSWP you’ll need:
1. The SSWP
2. Two pipe wrenches (at least 14” long, probably no shorter than that, wrenches that are much longer than that may be hard to use in a cramped pump house)
3. 2 clean rags or washcloths – one dry, one soaking wet
4. Roll of duct tape (of course!)
5. One contractor-grade 30-gallon trash bag
6. One or two 5-gallon water bottles (When transporting water remember this: it weighs 8 pounds per gallon. Each of these bottles will weigh 40 pounds. It’s probably easier to move heavy weights like these two at a time.)
7. Two feet or so of the thin-wall tubing, cut off and carefully split lengthwise
8. Teflon thread tape for plumbing
9. A 3/4” x 1” female plumbing adapter (50 cents or so, threaded for 1″ O.D. pipe on one end, with a 1″ inner diameter un-threaded end on the other) will cover the threads on the well pipe so they don’t cut into the SSWP piping.
Take two pipe wrenches out to your wellhead and remove the well pipe cap. One wrench holds the well pipe from turning, and the other, facing the opposite direction, turns the well cap. Get help if you don’t understand how pipe wrenches work. (If you’re testing this before the power actually goes out, you must first shut off the well pump switch and drain the water from the pressure tank. In fact, even after a power failure, to be on the safe side, check that there is no water pressure in the pressure tank.)
Use one clean rag to thoroughly dry around the top of the well pipe, inside and out.
Tear off a 4 inch piece of duct tape and wrap it around the well pipe, with half of the duct tape above the end of the pipe. Roll the half sticking out over the top edge and into the pipe end. If you can still feel sharp edges through the duct tape, add another layer. Run another section of duct tape around that tape to firmly attach it to the outside of the well pipe. You’re creating a slight cushion at the top of the pipe to protect the SSWP from being scratched or rubbed through when inserting the SSWP or when pushing it up and down. (A hardware store may have something more durable you could adapt to protect the SSWP, just be sure the SSWP will pass easily through its opening, and securely tape your guard to the well pipe to keep it from moving around.)
As you lower the SSWP into the top of the well, use the damp cloth to wipe down the hose as you insert it. Ideally, you could mix a little (a l-i-t-t-l-e !) bleach in the water that you soak the cloth in, to help clean and sterilize the hose as it goes in. Too much bleach will be hard on your hands.
Don’t insert the SSWP too rapidly unless you know the depth of the pump. You don’t want to ram the valve into the top of the pump at the bottom. Slow down as you approach the bottom.
You don’t absolutely need to reach the very bottom of the well pipe. All you need to do is to get the Simple Siphon™ valve several feet (say 6 feet) below the static water level inside the well. The one unknown is how fast water will seep into the well pipe through your model of electric well pump. The deeper you can empty the well pipe with your SSWP, the more water pressure will be exerted at the pump to refill the pipe, and it will refill quicker.
So if you’re pumping the well pipe dry, try pumping at a lower depth. If you’re still pumping it dry at the bottom of the well, you’re just going to have to pump more slowly. Leave the SSWP at least 6 feet above the well pump to give it room to refill (water will seep around the SSWP and up the well pipe, but it will not seep into the end of the SSWP because of the pressure of the water stacked above the Simple Siphon valve, that’s why you have to shove it up and down to create a sucking/pumping action).
Once inserted, if you’re really at the bottom of the well, and you’ve got a lot of extra hose left, cut the hose so there’s enough length to reach your water container and a generous loop as well. Take the remaining part of the hose and have your assistant hold it in your water jug. If you don’t have an assistant, duct tape the hose so it won’t pull out of the opening of the jug.
Do your best to not kink the hose at any time! Once you’ve determined the best working depth for the SSWP, take the split section of hose you prepared earlier and tape it to the SSWP hose so that one end is just inside the well pipe and the other end is where your upper hand will hold the hose. Don’t duct tape the part that is going to be going in and out of the well pipe unless you’re sure the extra thickness won’t be too much for the well pipe. You are reinforcing the “working” part of the SSWP so that it can take the motion of pumping without kinking. If the hose kinks it will continue to fold at that point each time you move the hose, and you’ll have to hold the hose there or otherwise support it.
If you need more hose, you could splice on a short section of hose from another roll, using a double-ended barbed plastic coupler (ideally glued or clamped into place). But don’t use spliced hose in the well pipe unless you’re absolutely desperate, because of the possibility that it could come apart at the splice (long hose stuck inside the well…). You can buy a $15 crimping tool by Murray Keystone (“045, OTC-1000 Tool Crimping”, looks like a nipper, but with no sharp edge) and some 3/4″ Ideal Crimp Clamps (high-nickel corrosion resistant, my package said 3/4” but it actually fit pretty well over the 1/2” hose. These crimp clamps – use two per side of the connection – work pretty well, but they stick out from the side of the hose too far to risk putting them inside the well pipe. They’ll be fine for an extension between the SSWP and your storage jugs. If you absolutely must use a spliced hose in the well pipe, pin the connector to the two pipe ends with long pop rivets or nails, passed through drilled holes, instead of using a crimper or clamp.)
Once everything is in place, lift the Simple Siphon valve well away from the well pump at the bottom so you don’t smash into it (this is important!). (Remember, the SSWP only needs to be below the static level of the water, not all the way at the bottom of the well…) Quickly build speed going up, then quickly shove the SSWP down into the well pipe about 9 to 12 inches. Draw it back up, then, quickly reversing direction, shove it down again. What causes the suction and pumping action is that the water in the hose gets moving in one direction (up) until it’s moving quickly, and when the hose reverses direction and starts suddenly downward, the water in the hose continues upward from inertia. This creates suction in the valve end of the hose! Water gets sucked in, and the valve keeps it from running back out. (This inertia-caused pumping is the principle behind the SSWP, in fact we first considered calling it the “L.I.F.E. Well Pump,” standing for Lightweight, Inertial-Flow-Effect Well Pump)
Each time the water level in the SSWP will rise about 6 – 9 inches, because of suction caused by the inertia of the water. If the water level is 50 feet underground, this means working the pump up and down 100 times before water reaches the surface – be patient! Eventually, the water will reach the top of the well and come spilling down the hose into the water jug. Repeat for as long as you need, trading off if the operator gets tired. Depending on the well refill rate, you may have to pump for a minute, then wait for 5 minutes or more while the well refills, then pump again. It will be different for every situation.
I strongly recommend that you not leave the SSWP in the well pipe when not in use. For one thing, someone could come along and steal it or damage it, and you are already in a desperate survival or emergency situation. For another, pulling it up gives you a chance to inspect how the valve end is doing and if any holes are being worn in the tubing somewhere along the length of the well pipe. (If you need to remove the Simple Siphon™ valve to move it higher on the tube, or to move it to a new tube, you can drill out the pop rivets if you’re careful, and reuse it!)
When you pull the SSWP out of the well, have your assistant duct tape the first coil of hose as you did when preparing the pump for use. Then as you feed hose to your assistant, have him / her duct tape the coils together every 5 or so loops to keep it under control, and prevent it from kinking. Once the SSWP is completely out of the well and taped off, store it in your construction-grade trash bag. The tube will still have some water in it that you can collect in the bag.
Lightly replace the well pipe cap so that no dirt or insects get into the well. Be sure to tighten the cap (using plumber’s Teflon thread tape, or “plumber’s goop” sealant) before you try to operate the well pump once electricity has been restored! It would be a good idea to leave the pump shut off, in case power comes on unexpectedly and the well cap isn’t on tightly yet…
Once you’re back at home, you can completely drain the tubing of water to get as much out of it as possible. (None of the components are prone to corrosion, so that’s not an issue.) Be sure to check it for damage and repair or replace what has been damaged. A tiny hole in the tube towards the top will only drain off a small amount of water, but a hole nearer the bottom will drain more water because of the greater water pressure there, and will eventually risk the structural integrity of the SSWP.
If you aren’t sure what the quality of the water in wells in your area is, if there is any possibility they are contaminated with bacteria, fungus, or parasites, then please treat the water you retrieve from the well with regular, un-perfumed laundry bleach in the recommended proportions (or use some similar purifying technology). In a crisis, the last thing you need is to come down with some condition or sickness because the water was contaminated.
If you test the SSWP in a functioning well, it would be a good idea to run a cup or two of the bleach described above through the well cap vent hole into the well shaft when you’re finished with your test to kill any bacteria you may have introduced to the system. And it should go without saying that you should NOT use the same SSWP to pump gasoline or contaminated water, as you would to pump from a well.

On a personal note:
The knowledge you now possess on how to get water out of a private well when there is no electrical power could be life-saving power. Before the next major crisis strikes, share this article and concept far and wide. Many people will just dismiss you as a “survivalist nut,” but others will understand and prepare.
Water is a unique resource. You can’t make it from something else. If you find water you can purify it, filter it, sterilize it, store it. But you need to have water, even lousy water, as a starting point. Many locales will have surface water that can be made drinkable. But some locations rely heavily on water wells and have little, if any, surface water. The knowledge in this article will make life-giving water easily available to people in any of those circumstances. (Getting water out of municipal or corporate wells is a slightly different challenge.)
Share the knowledge. Make a difference. The more people who are prepared, the better off we ALL will be.
Other valuable survival resources can be found at:
www.ready.gov
www.redcross.org
Rand Organization Quick Guide
Crofsblogs – Coming Pandemic
Campus Crusade (the ultimate “preparation” – spiritual!)
Note! If you have the money and would like to buy a commercially made inertial well pump, check out Waterra.com.
Also, well “bailers” have been around for a long time in the well drilling trade. They’re long, narrow tubes with a simple ball valve at the bottom. You lower them into your well (small ones – typically 3/4” diameter – can fit right into the well pipe by only removing the pipe cap with a pipe wrench and not the whole well cap!) with a cord or twine and pull them up to empty them. It’s slow going, but VERY simple and VERY reliable. Here are some suppliers: Vosstech, Environmental-expert.com, and Waterra.com Buy a pack of them and share with your neighbors!
This information is copyrighted for the purposes of making it freely available to the public. No one else can copyright or control this information, except perhaps to charge for the cost of simply photocopying this article. It can be reproduced or transmitted in any form, so long as the entire text is included. No promotional support has been received from any company for endorsing any product. This article exists because this approach works, and could make a very large difference in how well families across the United States cope with a long-term disaster. May God have mercy on us all. – TruthFirst

Odds ‘n Sods:

SurvivalBlog reader “d’Heat” reminded us about http://www.tpub.com, which provides a wide variety of military manuals online, free of charge, with manual CDs available for purchase.

   o o o

In his Global Economic Trend Analysis blog, Michael “Mish” Shedlock recently quoted real estate market expert Mike Morgan of Morgan Florida. (Scroll down the piece titled “Ghost Housing Market” on July 20, 2006.) SurvivalBlog reader Bill in North Idaho comments: “There is a mountain of data in the article but the most salient point to take home is this: Combine increasing interest rates, a declining dollar and explosive increases in housing inventory and you have the recipe for a recession that could slip in to a depression rather easily when combined with other external factors such as war overseas, enormous debt and defecits–both trade and fiscal, uncontrolled spending by our masters and critical national outsourcing of traditional industrial strengths. My advice to home owners is pay it off and my advice to prospective home buyers is wait for the crash and pay for it with cash.”

   o o o

Pakistan is rapidly expanding its plutonium processing facilities. This move could be powerfully destabilizing, and could have ramifications as far away as Iran and the Korean Peninsula.

  

 

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"This is the law:
There is no possible victory in defense,
The sword is more important than the shield,
And skill is more important than either,
The final weapon is the brain.
All else is supplemental." – John Steinbeck

Letter Re: Advice on Surviving a Dog Attack?

Dear Jim:
The New York press recently reported on two pit bull attack on police officers. In the first incident, the companion officers, according to one article, fired 26 rounds in an effort to subdue the attacking animal which they finally did.

Your site ran an article on the danger of feral dogs in the case of TEOTWAWKI. What is the best method of dealing with an attacking dog without endangering the life of the person being attacked? – JH

JWR Replies: Dogs–domesticated, feral, or wild species–can take a lot of punishment before they are out of the fight. The best defense against a dog is not Pepper Spray or other ineffective repellant sprays. Nor is it a handgun, since most commonly handgun chamberings are under-powered for the task. At short range, a repeating shotgun loaded with #4 buckshot is the best choice for canine defense. Beyond 20 yards, a semi-automatic centerfire .30 caliber rifle is best. BTW, I do not consider .30 U.S. Carbine adequate (since it is essentially a pistol class cartridge), but 7.62 x39 Russian will do, since it has about the same energy as .30-30 Winchester. IMHO, the.308 Winchester / 7.62 mm NATO is the best and most sure stopper for both two legged and four legged predators in North America.

The greatest danger would be an attack by a pack of wolves or feral dogs on open ground. Climb a tree or climb on top of a large vehicle if need be, but don’t try to fight off multiple dogs at ground level, or odds are that you will lose. Just like with bears, your safest way to deal with them is from inside a vehicle or a building. In any confined space you will of course need proper hearing protection, preferably electronic ear muffs. One inexpensive brand that works remarkably well is the DeTune Model EO9240R, available from Law Enforcement Targets. Regardless of the brand that you buy, be sure to get a pair that has a noise reduction rating (NRR) of NRR-24 or higher!

MBR Scope Selection: Trijicon TA-11E Versus Leupold Mark 4 CQ/T

James,
My 2006 Ten Cent Challenge contribution is on the way, via snail-mail. Congratulations on “cutting the cord”.

I’ve decided against the Trijicon TA-11E ACOG purchase. I interviewed a local who owns one of the Trijicon fiber-optic scopes. It has cracks in the fiber optic element, but the scope still works. I spoke with a Trijicon customer service representative who said:
1. The fiber optic often breaks from stress or impact. The tritium will not power the scope during daylight so the scope is “down” until dim light or the fiber optic is replaced.
2. The company is aware of the problem and is addressing it. That may be why we’re seeing the Docter red dot being mounted on some models. I did not verify that with the customer service rep.
One other drawback IMHO is an ACOG-series scope is protected by a cover that is relatively slow to remove.
I’ve settled on the Leupold Mark 4 CQ/T for my Main Battle Rifle (MBR), instead. It’s more robust than the fiber-optic ACOG and uses flip-up lens covers for inclement weather.
It also has two integrated MIL-STD-1913 rail mount cross-slots for accessories like lights.
Its field of view at 3X is three times that of the 4X ACOG.
Like the ACOG it needs no battery. Unlike the true “red dot” sights, the night-vision compatible circle dot reticle is always present but requires a AA battery only for illumination. The CQ/T can be used as a 9 MOA dot sight with no magnification or [it can be] be turned up to 3X for a more precise 3 MOA dot.
And it costs several hundred dollars less! No bullet drop compensation (BDC), though. (You have to go to the company’s MR/T line for that.)
I’m sure that the CQ/T has its limitations, too. Just thought I’d give you some food for thought.
I am eagerly awaiting delivery of my copy of your “Rawles Gets You Ready” preparedness course.
Regards, – “Redmist”

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“And how we burned in the camps later, thinking: What would things have been like if every Security operative, when he went out at night to make an arrest, had been uncertain whether he would return alive and had to say good-bye to his family? Or if, during periods of mass arrests, as for example in Leningrad, when they arrested a quarter of the entire city, people had not simply sat there in their lairs, paling in terror at every bang of the downstairs door and at every step on the staircase, but had understood they had nothing left to lose and had boldly set up in the downstairs hall an ambush of half a dozen people with axes, hammers, pokers, or whatever else was at hand? […] The Organs would very quickly have suffered a shortage of officers and transport and, notwithstanding all of Stalin’s thirst, the cursed machine would have ground to a halt!” – Alexander Solzhenitsyn, The Gulag Archipelago (Chapter 1, “Arrest”)

Five Letters Re: Selecting a Martial Art and a Dojo

Mr. Rawles:
Having done this (being involved in running a professional [martial arts] school) for ten years, and having studied twice that long, here’s my $1.83 (two cents, adjusted for inflation). First, what does your gut tell you about the place and the instructor? If you get an uneasy feeling, listen to it, and back off a bit. It may be that the guy exudes an Alpha-dominant energy, and that’s what’s making your hair stand on end. Then again, it might be your rip-off alert/ BS detector going off.

1) Take a couple of days to think it over, and:

2) Ask for references. Talk to students away from the school; talk to parents at the school. If this guy is any kind of sensei, sifu, professor, or whatever handle he hangs on himself, his students’ parents will overwhelm you (to the point your BS detector may begin giving false readings!). Kids in today’s world crave the structure that society used to provide as reinforcement for parental structure. Sadly, society today denigrates parents’ best efforts. Your children will thrive in a good school;

3) Does the school have a children’s program? Private instruction? Specialized classes? While the art of aido (drawing and striking with the Japanese sword) has a great esoteric appeal to me, it is not of any particular immediate value, as I rarely carry a katana with me. An HK USP, now that’s a little different story. This brings us to;

4) Does the school teach a rigid style, a system, a hodgepodge of many styles, or do they teach movement and the underlying principles contained therein? In other words, are they going to waste your time with a lot of semi-mystical crap about chi-force coming from your tantien, or do they explain that the power you gain comes from leverage generated by your strike aligning with your center of gravity, and timed with backing mass, body alignment, and relaxation/tensing at the time of impact. Again, do they deal with the esoteric historical context of the Far East, or the reality of the world and Newtonian Physics? (hint, folks: it’s all about leverage and timing).

5) Does the school teach self-defense? This may seem like a redundant question, but again, if you’re studying Japanese swordplay, you’d better be carrying a Japanese sword! Obvious, yes? Did you know that International Tae Kwon Do emphasizes, in fact encourages use of the most difficult technique in any given situation? That many “sport” karate schools teach students to break contact immediately after “scoring”? I have had personal experience with both. This is not how you learn to defend yourself, if that is your goal;

6) Be an informed consumer. This means a couple of things here: What do you want from the experience? We had a special class for home-school kids, and it became the nucleus of their social life (a lot more useful than dodgeball in the future, as well). Are you interested in learning to fight, to improve your reaction response, to get your butt back in shape with something a little more useful than step-aerobics? Or does the Eastern influence of many styles provide you with a new perspective on your world? When Bruce Lee talked of “style with no style” he wasn’t advocating an anything-goes attitude; rather that one should not be constrained by traditional techniques. “When one is bound by tradition, the one must serve it, when tradition is bound, then it is our servant”.

7) Does the system fit you, as it should, like a suit of clothes. Not only will different fashions look and fit differently on each individual, but also, the last time I looked, clothing, like people, came in different sizes and widths. I’m 6’/250 lbs…for me to try shaolin wu shu is almost a guaranteed trip to the emergency room…grappling, however… and,

8) If self defense is your pursuit, does the school teach a brad range of technique(notice, technique, as in broadly applied, NOT technique(s), as in a new one for every situation). Bruce Lee’s analogy to water was only partially complete: water, like motion, exists in a constant state of transition, from solid (ice, rigidly applying the same motion to whatever comes, whether appropriate or not, the beginner) to fluid (constantly seeking its own level,moving all things to that level, the intermediate student) to a gaseous state ( where it expands to its volume, true mastery of motion…the technique is formed by the attack). Don’t think this is important? I can almost hear the grapplers grumbling… Okay, you’ve just slipped behind your attacker, and nabbed him in a perfect naked choke…now what do you do about him comapdre who’s immediate plans are to stove in your head? You can only wrestle one guy at once, and all too often, bad people come in bunches…About martial arts, Zen, and bushido being antithetical to Christian views: Poppycock! Bushido, at its core, is founded in the ideal of devotion of one’s life, in every moment and every way to a set of values and principles, defined in the heart of each man. Zen is the pursuit of oneness with the Universe (i.e. God, the Divine and Benevolent Creator, and all His Creation). At its core, you’ll be learning to beat people up. In the process, hopefully, you’ll be learning about yourself. If that is part of the journey that doesn’t rest well with you, then maybe this path is not for you. I, however, rabidly endorse martial arts training for EVERYONE!!! By the way, I’m not in the business anymore, so I’m not trying to gin up customers.

One final thought on selecting a dojo, and probably the area of most dissatisfaction, ultimately: never forget when dealing with ANY school that you are in charge! You are the consumer,you are the customer! The school, and its instructors are making their living by providing a service to YOU!!! Be clear on this. You do not have the right to dictate what the school will teach (unless you’re running it) but you do have a right to be told, in clear and certain terms, what is expected of you, and what the organization you’re dealing with will deliver. Assert you rights as an informed buyer, and don’t go in for that Shiloh/ servant manure manifestation. This is the 21st Century America, not feudal China or Japan.

Study that which is practical, but remember not all things fit. as Niestchze once observed “If the your only tool is a hammer, you must treat all problems as nails”. Techniques are either useful (fit the situation at hand), not useful (fit, but not necessarily THIS situation), and useless(or, you’ve got to be kidding!?! I paid you to show me this?!?). More than whatever you study, you MUST practice until you reaction comes without conscious thought involved. Therefore, find something useful to practice, as practice DOES NOT make perfect; it only makes PERMANENT what is practiced. Study hard, learn well, live long, and keep The Faith.

OBTW, Teddy Roosevelt practiced jujitsu in the White House, moving furniture from the Main Floor Living Room, and installing mats! Bully! Regards, – Bonehead

 

Hi Jim!
My name is Frank, I’m an Aussie guy living up in Queensland, a survivalist and a Christian by belief in Jesus. As a regular reader of your blog I came across the recent post “Eight Letters Re: Selecting a Martial Art and a Dojo”. I was surprised to see the lack of mention about karate and the fact that its only mention was in reference to it being a “hard” martial art, with the inference that a law abiding Christian should perhaps not pursue such a path. I have studied karate for some years now and it is definitely a decisive and effective form of self defense, but one that most all of its practitioners rarely if ever use outside of the dojo. The reason for this I learned is that training in traditional karate gives a person an ‘air’ of capability that is obvious to the average punter in the street and tells them in no uncertain terms to “look for a softer target… or else”

I know this sounds arrogant, but it’s true, and I have met many practitioners of the ‘soft’ arts and they just don’t seem to carry this tangible warning around with them. They will allow total strangers to stand close, “in the danger zone” and rarely seem to be aware of who and what is going on around them. These are the basics of karate training. Personal protection through awareness and keeping threats at a manageable distance. To me self-defense should not rely fancy wrist locks or nifty grappling techniques, although I have learned these. Because the reality is that once an attacker has you in their reach, or the ground, you are in real danger of getting your eye poked out or your spine kicked in. Karate works well because it works at a distance and relies on speed and precision of attack, and believe it or not, a great deal of training is devoted to “getting out of harms way”, to avoiding an attack by retreating. But if attacking is unavoidable, a quick fist into someone’s nose or a kick to their groin will knock them off balance for several seconds and allow you to get away from a dangerous situation. This is all that matters, avoiding a dangerous situation.

I believe Karate has been downplayed over the last decade due to the perceived fashionably of the myriad of other arts. This and the fact that we modern western people have grown lazy. Karate training is very demanding physically and injury, though usually minor, is unavoidable. But that is the world we now face, a world full or stress and danger. I see karate fighting as an invaluable tool to carry with me through life, to protect myself and my loved ones. Violent, aggressive, yes! But thoroughly decisive against one or several unskilled attackers. Best wishes and I’ll see you when were together with the Lord. – Frank H.

 

Dear Jim:
I trained with a school that had a traditional martial arts progression, but more importantly, also did PRACTICAL self defense. It became very obvious after a couple of years of training that much of the martial “art” or “sport” was not directly relevant to surviving on the street. High kicks, spinning movements, complicated katas and the like, all look impressive, but have little practical value in street clothing, on uneven ground, against a surprise attack – you shouldn’t be spending valuable time on these unless you are so wealthy you don’t have a day job.
If it isn’t something you can see yourself using right away after you learn it, it’s probably too complicated to work on the street without years of training to ingrain your muscle memory. The real litmus test is whether you learn SIMPLE gross motor movements that you can duplicate without very much training, and under extreme stress.
If they teach elbows, knees, eye gouging (and biting when appropriate) in the introductory class, then you know you have a good school! Even better – do you get to practice all the skills, half speed, Force on Force with a well-padded instructor? (Yes, even the eye gouging on a fully visored instructor, but not the biting!) Ground fighting is critical too, if that is ignored, you do not have a complete training regimen.
The best proponent that I know of this practically-oriented philosophy is Tony Blauer who has refined it to a high level.
I have taken just a short seminar with him – very impressive. Jump on it if you get the chance.
Perhaps even more important for gun carriers, is integrating hand to hand techniques with drawing, moving and shooting skills, and/or knife or pepper spray,
You may not have much luck finding a practical school out in the boonies, but for those in larger metros you can find a few truly practical schools, in a sea of traditional martial artists. Regards, – OSOM

 

James,
I was thinking further on martial arts and believe it is possible and indeed preferred to incorporate shooting survival skills into your martial arts regime. Progressively more difficult skills could be added, as you become more proficient in your studies:
Consider the use of martial stances in firearms training. The “Horse Stance” taught by many arts is very similar to the FBI “Combat Crouch” and the modified “T-stance” is a strong or weak side forward stance, which could be combined with a two hand Weaver grip to make a very stable shooting platform. Ritual katas, or a predefined set of martial arts movements -which helps improve technique and body awareness can be combined with pistol draw, tap and rack drills or rifle to pistol transition practice. Rondori or sparring “free practice” could be combined with weapons draw, disarm or weapons retention drills. Muzzle awareness should be stressed. [Solid plastic training] Red guns could be used due to safety concerns. Advanced students could “ratchet up” their stress training, by substituting soft pellet or paint ball guns (with face masks or goggles) into their firearms drawing or retention drills. – Terry in the Northwest.

 

Dear Jim,
Jiu Jitsu and other grappling arts are an excellent choice for defense and fitness. As noted author Steven Barnes (who is belted in multiple forms) told me, one can grapple in training repeatedly, but it takes only a few blows before practice must stop to prevent injury.
I have found the Kung Fus to offer an excellent balance of striking and grappling. While much of the mystique is no longer relevant, there are certain mindsets and processes that do go along with a school of training. A lot of the newer forms are simply refined and more limited derivations of earlier styles (Such as Kung Fu). Why limit oneself to part of an art?
Quite a few schools have oriented their philosophies more in line with the West, and incorporated Christianity into the structure. While not Christian myself, I approve of this because it makes the arts more accessible to Western mindsets, and still provides a necessary guiding philosophy (necessary when we’re discussing the ethics of potentially maiming opponents).
I studied for several years Song’s Kung Fu, and can recommend it to anyone in the Illinois area. Master Song is one of the most competent yet truly modest men I’ve ever met, and provides an excellent program with good explanations of the principles. His teaching is aimed at defense rather than sport, and in fact, advanced students wishing to compete have to take an extra course to learn competition rules to avoid disqualification or injuring opponents.
Generally, Tae Kwon Do in the US is taught as a sport. There’s nothing inherently wrong with learning it, as it will improve fitness and teach good balance, etc, but it will be of much less effect in a no-rules brawl.
I agree with others who have said that a few good moves well rehearsed are adequate for most circumstances. To that end, the Marine Corps manual on combatives is excellent, covering a handful of grapples, strikes (including common military weapons such as knives, sticks, shovels and helmets) that can be learned quickly and studied in short time each day. It’s practical and concise. Also, the Marines now have a dedicated martial art they are teaching. I haven’t seen a lot of it, but I assume it will run on the same practical principles.
If one can find a school that doesn’t over-stress the mysticism, Indonesian Pentjak Silat and similar forms are absolutely brutal and designed for multiple opponents. There isn’t much in the way of restraint or low-end force; these are styles to kill with. The disadvantage is that they are predicated on having all four limbs functional. The Kung Fus are adaptable for temporary or permanent disability including wheel chairs.
It is a combination of these two forms (Silat and Shaolin Kung Fu) the Freehold forces use in my novels.
One of the best hand to hand weapons to learn is short staff/cane, as it’s societally acceptable for almost anyone to carry a walking stick. A stout piece of rattan (light) or cocobolo or maple (heavy) is a devastating weapon in the hands of someone determined to use it and with some basic training in checks, blocks, hooks and strikes. Since I occasionally need a stick for support anyway, I practice regularly with one. Worst case, stick like things are very common either lying outside (“sticks”) or in most buildings (brooms, handles, etc) and readily obtainable. Actual walking sticks run from $5 rattan at Farm and Fleet stores to pricier carbon fiber or fiberglass sticks with metal heads from Cold Steel. – Michael Z. Williamson

 

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"Develop a a passion for hoeing. To cut down a weed is, therefore, to do a moral action. My hoe becomes an instrument of retributive justice. Hoeing becomes, not a pastime, but a duty. Nevertheless, what a man needs in gardening is a cast-iron back with a hinge in it." – Charles Dudley Warner, My Summer in a Garden. 1872

Note From JWR:

The high bid in the SurvivalBlog benefit auction (for the RWVA Super Shooter’s package is still at $150. The auction ends on Monday. Our special thanks to the RWVA and Fred’s M14 Stocks for sponsoring this fund raiser! (The prize is worth $250+.) Please submit your bids via e-mail. This auction ends on the last day of July. OBTW, speaking of the RWVA, they have a Rifle Instructor’s Camp coming up at the end of August in Ramseur, North Carolina–a great opportunity for you to learn how to teach others how to shoot like a pro, including your own family members.

Letter Re: Transportation for the Disabled in the Event of TEOTWAWKI

James:

Thanks for such good reading. I had a copy of “Patriots”but lost it in a house fire last year. I was able to find TEOTWAWKI [the draft edition] through eBay and was happy (it was a signed copy-YEAH!) but am thrilled that you will be releasing the updated version along with the ‘Retreats and Relocation’ book.

What I am interested in is finding the best way to transport my wheelchair bound, handicapped son and my elderly (near wheelchair bound) mother in the event of TEOTWAWKI. I am in the process of getting completely out of debt, which will help tremendously in any plans (provided WTSHTF holds off a little while) and my son and his soon-to-be bride have purchased property that is deeper in the boonies that I am now. Can you recommend any specific books or sources of info for this situation? I was very well prepared before the fire but that just drilled home the wisdom of NOT putting all your eggs in one basket! Thanks again for a wealth of information and God Bless you and yours! – R.B.

JWR Replies: Your situation is unusual but hardly unique. I have an acquaintance in northern Idaho who is wheelchair bound. He is a fine shot with both rifle and pistol, and he can do some simply amazing shooting with a submachinegun. (He is a Class 3 licensed dealer.) When the Schumer hits the fan, I would much rather have someone like him at my retreat than most other “able bodied” men. BTW, he was the basis for one of the minor characters in my novel.

I strongly suggest that if it is at all practicable, that you make arrangements to have your family live at your retreat year-round. And needless to say, that habitation should be a one story structure, on level or nearly level ground, with an easy retrofit for a wheelchair ramp to the main door. Also, if either (or both) your son and mother currently use electric wheelchairs, get old-fashioned wheelchairs for backups in the event of a long term power failures.
As for transportation over longer distances, plan ahead for providing for your disabled family members. One great option, in my opinion, is a 4WD drive full size van conversion. See:
http://www.glinx.com/~sbest/
http://www.glinx.com/~sbest/4vanfaq.htm

Note: Be sure to read this FAQ in detail. Beware of buying an older 4WD conversion. Some of the 4WD van conversions that were done back in the 1970s and 1980s were plagued by reliability problems–mainly involving front differential linkage and other power-train problems. But in more recent years the conversion companies seem to have “gotten it down to a science”–at least for some models. Just be sure to get a written warranty! OBTW, With the current high cost of gasoline, many of these companies have cut their prices to stay competitive. So this is a great time to have a conversion done.

These can be “dual converted” with a wheelchair lift apparatus. See:

http://www.vantagemobility.com/

Also see:
http://quadvan.com/
http://www.sportsmobile.com/4_4x4sports.html
And in Canada: http://www.clydesdale.bc.ca/

OBTW, in the event of a worst case scenario, don’t underrate the value of disabled people at a retreat. Most can “stand” watches of guard duty at an LP/OP, providing extra eyes and ears. So stock up on cold weather clothing for those folks, too!