Notes From JWR:

Happy Thanksgiving Day! In the United States, today is set aside to give thanks to God for His blessings. Here at the Rawles Ranch we do, indeed, most earnestly. God is provident. Praises to Jehovah Jireh!

The high bid is already at $45 in the latest SurvivalBlog benefit auction, This one is for a big batch of survival/preparedness reference books, courtesy of the fine folks at Ready Made Resources. (They are one of our first and most loyal advertisers. Be sure to visit their site and give them some business. BTW, they have additional copies of each of the titles listed below, as well as more than a hundred other titles.)

Please submit your bid via e-mail. The auction ends on January 15th. The books in the auction lot include:

1. From Seed to Bloom- How to Grow Over 500 Annuals, Perennials & Herbs by Eileen Powell
2. Keeping the Harvest- Preserving Your Fruits, Vegetables & Herbs by Nancy Chioffi & Gretchen Mead
3. How to Build Your Own Log Home For Less Than $15,000 by Robert L. Williams
4. Camouflage by Desert Publications
5. Natural Pest Control- Alternatives to Chemicals for the Home and Garden by Andrew Lopez The Invisible Gardener
6. The AR-15/M16- A Practical Guide by Duncan Long
7. Apocalypse Tomorrow by Duncan Long
8. Guide To Emergency Survival Communications- How to Build and Power Your System by Dave Ingram
9. Raising Rabbits The Modern Way by Bob Bennett
10. Mountainman Crafts and Skills- An Illustrated Guide to Clothing, Shelter, Equipment and Wilderness Living by David Montgomery.
11. A Guide to Raising Pigs- Care, Facilities, Management, Breed Selection by Kelly Klober
12. Survival, Evasion and Escape by Desert Publications
13. Raising Your Own Turkeys by Leonard S. Mercia

and, three more books that I’m adding, just to “sweeten the pot”:

14. “Patriots: Surviving The Coming Collapse” (the scarce out of print Huntington House edition)
15. The Encyclopedia of Country Living by the late Carla Emery
16. One more surprise book title!

Together, these books have a retail value well in excess of $250. Get your bid in soon!

 

Letter Re: Clothes Washing Without Grid Power

Mr R.:
Saw the post this morning about the large washing machine at Lehman’s Non-Electric. Great catalogue, and obviously a washer for TEOTWAWKI. Let me give a heads-up to a much smaller, portable washer – the Wonder Clean Pressure Washing Machine. The parent company (Wonder Wash Corporation – Mesa, Arizona) developed this nifty little washer. Add in the load ( weighed ), soap, water, close the top, and turn the handle to revolve the washer barrel for a specified time. By their charts 5 pounds ( max load) would be about 10 shirts or two pairs of jeans
It’s not as robust or sturdy as the metal James Washer – it is plastic – but it works pretty well, it’s portable, and for the price of the James Washer you could have ten of these.
We have a couple and the Solar Showers ready to go, along with plenty of contractor bags, which can be used in a pinch for washing, amid their myriad uses.
The Wonder Clean is found online at several sites. A quick web search turned up Emergency Essentials and The Laundry Alternative, Inc. Season’s Regards, – MurrDoc

JWR Replies: The Wonder Clean is also available from two of my favorite vendors: Lehman’s and Major Surplus. (I’ve done business with both for many years.)

Odds ‘n Sods:

Just when we thought that things couldn’t get any worse in Zimbabwe, we opened Cathy Buckle’s latest letter. The inflation rate is now at 1,070 percent per annum. Life expectancies are plummeting. Starvation deaths are increasing. Government mismanagement, nepotism, and corruption are rampant. Cathy’s October and November letters are “must reads.” Please pray for the people of Zimbabwe.

  o o o

Joe Farah, Editor of WorldNetDaily opines: ‘Jericho’ and ‘Heroes’ TV Series Spark Concern with Civil Defense.

   o o o

Our friend Kit, author/editor of the delightful Forever Vain blog suggested the following: “I’m not sure if you’ve mentioned this site on Survivalblog before, but FEMA’s Emergency Management Institute offers lots of courses free of charge to the general public with respect to emergency preparedness and disaster planning. Check it out:”

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“Great cities, the emblems of Western Civilization, began as a walled defenses against marauding enemies. In a world turned upside-down, they are now our great vulnerability. They are suicidal concentrations of expensive economic, cultural and political assets waiting, exposed, for destruction. The only way to ignore nuclear terrorism will be to “redeploy” preemptively out of the crosshairs. Within years our cities will die – abandoned or incinerated.” – “Flamethrower”, at the FreeRepubliic Forums

Letter Re: 12 VDC Wall Outlets and Power Cord Connections

Jim,
For anyone using 12 VDC in their vehicle or home, you should strongly consider using Anderson Power Poles. Compared to the standard cigarette lighter plug, these are far more reliable and safer. (Cigarette lighter plugs have no uniform rating, and can melt if used for high [current] load applications.)
These connectors come in ratings from 30 Amps (A) to 350 Amps. The 30A size is the de-facto standard for Ham radio operators now, and the larger sizes are what you see used for things like large battery racks in computer rooms and tow truck jumper cables.
They are easy to install, using a soldering iron or special crimp tool, and they last. Additionally, there is no male or female, as the blades are flat and wipe against each other, unlike a regular spade or butt connector.
I have changed out the cords on all of my 12V chargers, inverters, and other devices. You can make an adapter cable with a cigarette lighter on one end in case you do need to plug something in to a car socket.
To make a 12V wall-mount outlet, you can buy a chassis-mount power pole holder, then cut a hole in a regular house wall plate and pop it in. When installed, it looks neat and tidy.
Chassis mount:
http://www.powerwerx.com
Here are some tutorials on using them:
http://home.comcast.net/~buck0/app.htm
Remember to to either fuse your 12 volt circuits or install a breaker panel. A quick way to set up a 12V fuse box is with the Rig Runner. (Westmountainradio – Rig Runner.)
If you install a 12V breaker panel, be sure to check if the breakers are rated for DC. Some breakers do not trip properly if used for DC. You can order DC-rated breakers from most alternative-energy stores if you can’t find out for sure. Good luck! – JN

Four Letters Re: Prowlers and Lighting

James:
The subject of handheld lights is as long as it is wide. Ask 20 people what is best, get 40 answers and recommendations! As with many things, today we live in a great time for flashlight technology. My recommendation is to immerse yourself in www.candlepowerforums.com. Some guys there are truly on the cutting edge of lights.
Some of the modified lights are incredible. Have fun and enjoy a winter’s worth of reading. – Straightblast

 

Jim:
Just enjoying a last respite prior to retiring in my mountaintop isolated home and read the letter on Prowlers and Lighting at SurvivalBlog. Since this is still pre-TEOTWAWKI, I use car headlights [with my retreat DC power system.] I got them for free from a couple of salvage yards. Not just the lights, but the entire fixture. They mount rather nicely to trees and such and can be aimed. ( I might mention that if done right, they don’t draw attention or look tacky). I use military WD-1 [Army field tele]phone wire and the lights seem to function ok even at the distance I’ve strung the wire (surprised me?) I can turn them on selectively or all at once (panic switch). I set them so they backlighted the intruders (The intruders were between me and the lights). Only had to use it once and it turned out to be a neighbor (Boy, was he surprised!) He’d been over a lot and never noticed the lights before. He said it sort of took his breath away when the woods behind him lit up like a football field.
For four legged varmints, I use a surefire whit light and a red laser on the rifle.
For two legged varmints, I use an infrared laser, night vision goggles and a really good flash suppressor.
BTW, the latter works great on coyotes, which should tell you something.
Oh, it was the seismic intrusion detector set that told me somebody or something big was in the woods.

On another note: When you’re doing everything all by yourself, you’re bound to forget something. You might want to remind everybody who is using batteries and inverters that it’s Fall headed into Winter. I checked the water in my batteries and was feeling good about everything being fully charged and ready for winter and then, just happened to wiggle all the battery connection wires. Whew! Only a minor spark on one connection (batteries were on charge) and lo and behold! A loose connection. I was just lucky to have seen it. I took the volt meter and checked each and every battery and sure enough, two were lower than the others. Cleaned the connections, and the batteries started bubbling as they took a charge. The batteries are all series and paralleled in my 24 Volt system using L-16, 6 volt [deep cycle marine] batteries. If I hadn’t caught that, two of my sixteen L-16 batteries probably would have frozen and burst this winter.
Best regards to you and yours. Check Six! – The Army Aviator

 

Jim:
I bought one of the Thor-X lights at Costco last year for about $25. There great and have a high and low setting. High is 10,000.000 [candle power]. It also can be run off a 12 volt car hookup or charged and used off the battery. Great light and rugged. I found the light on this page so you could see a picture. I have seen them at Costco since I got mine but I don’t know if they still carry them
http://ledmuseum.candlepower.us/third/thor.htm
As you say there are times for light and many times the night is my best friend, use it to your advantage. – D.M.

 

Hi Jim,
I was reading the inquiry L.K. made regarding spotlights and I thought of the Maxa Beam. Perhaps you’re already familiar with it, but if not it is very powerful and versatile, and can be used covertly with NVD. I haven’t priced them yet, but they do look pricey (no prices listed on their web site). A short video showing the capabilities is can be found here –
http://www.peakbeam.com/video.html
I thought you might be interested in knowing about this product if you weren’t already aware of it. Take care, – Tom

JWR Adds: Beware when using handheld spotlights. They draw a lot of current and can drain a car battery in a hurry. Be sure to leave your engine running if using a spotlight for more than a minute.

Odds ‘n Sods:

At the library today, the kids were immersed in Brian Jacques books. The Memsahib was checking out books on fly fishing and travel. Meanwhile, I picked up the book: “Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed” by Jared Diamond. The Memsahib commented with a bit of sarcasm: “Oh, so I see that you found some of your usual light and cheery bedside reading.”

   o o o

Venezuelan president Chavez distributes free energy efficient light bulbs and promises a “energy revolution” including distributed small power generation for emergencies.

   o o o

U.S. police department radio “10 Codes” being phased out.

   o o o

T.W. sent this one: Global Hawk UAV to Fly First Mission Over U.S.

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

"It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes. A principle which if acted on would save one-half the wars of the world." – Thomas Jefferson to A. L. C. Destutt de Tracy, 1820. FE 10:175

Letter Re: Preparedness and Charity

Dear Mr Rawles,
As Thanksgiving and Christmas approach, churches and charities are conducting food drives. Besides being a chance for us to act in a charitable manner to the less fortunate, it is also a terrific opportunity to cycle out some of our food stockpiles. Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been donating excess wet-pack canned good (with 2007 expiration dates), and replacing them with new, 2008/2009 expiring items. From my way of looking at things, it is a win-win for the recipients and us — the donors; the hungry are fed, and the shelf life of our food reserves are extended. Best Regards, – Jim K.

JWR Replies: I have always placed a strong emphasis on Christian charity. Rotating your food storage is a great opportunity to dispense charity. If the food goes to a charity organization rather than an individual family, be sure to thoroughly vet the organization. Many charities have huge staffs and overhead costs, resulting an less than half of cash ending up in the hands of the needy. Such organizations should be shunned. Also, some food bank organizations are distrustful of donated long term storage canned foods and have been known to discard or destroy them, even if they have clearly marked expiry dates. Ask a few key questions before making a donation! If in doubt, then donate it elsewhere.

Two Letters Re: Another Perspective on Selecting Barter Goods

Mr. Rawles:
I’m glad to see I’m not the only one that thinks having skills in different areas is a great barter tool. I worked for years as a mechanic, in my thirties I changed careers and went into construction as a General Contractor. After about 10 years in construction. I semi-retired and when to school to become a professional farrier. I spent seven years shoeing horses and working metal in a forge. That lead me into custom knife making. My wife & I have been selling handmade and factory knives for the last several years. I have always kept a stock of materials to make knives for along time. We keep a fair number of handmade and factory knives for exactly the reasons of barter. In fact we barter a lot or as we call it trade all the time.
I really enjoy your blog. It has become my daily reading. There is some very good ideas from your readers also. – C. J.

 

Sir:
Having just recently found your [SurvivalBlog] web site, I’d like to let you know how much I’ve enjoyed it so far.
Regarding barter items : there are a few things I’ve not really seen anyone mention (at least in the articles I’ve gone through so far)
1. This may sound silly but – toilet paper. Much like ammo it is fairly easily divisible into small amounts, and lets face it, it’s one of those things that no one really thinks about until they need it. Also it has the advantage of being relatively cheap and long lasting if stored in a dry place. It does have the disadvantage of being bulky but if you have the room to store a large quantity it makes an excellent trade item that can’t be used against you at a later time.
2. Nails and screws. Once again, relatively cheap and easy to store. Easily divisible into small quantities and one of those things that you may not think about until you really need it.
3. Feminine hygiene products (pads and tampons) : Until I got married recently I certainly wouldn’t have thought of it but now its definitely on my list. Also pads have the added advantage of making excellent bandages for wound dressings.
To my way of thinking its the little things like this, the things that make life a little more bearable WTSHTF that may have as much, if not more, value as gold or ammo. – M.B.

Odds ‘n Sods:

Roger sent an article as a reminder to all readers of SurvivalBlog that being prepared is not just for TEOTWAWKI: Vancouverites boil water for 5th day as rain continues

   o o o

It looks like the spot prices of silver and gold have recovered solidly from their slump, just as I predicted. I still expect higher prices by the end of this year, and sharply higher prices in another year

   o o o

Wanted: Man to land on killer asteroid and gently nudge it from path to Earth

   o o o

U.S. housing construction plunges in October. “Housing construction plunged to the lowest level in more than six years in October as the nation’s once-booming housing market slowed further.” I told you so…

Jim’s Quote of the Day:

“In a time of drastic change it is the learners who survive; the ‘learned’ find themselves fully equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.” – Eric Hoffer

Note From JWR:

We had three nice days of weather in succession here at the Rawles Ranch, giving us a chance to get into town in comfort. The nearest large grocery store is more than 50 miles away. We saw several large flocks of wild turkeys while en route. Even though I try my best to show restraint, I usually end up with two or three times the canned goods that I had planned to buy. (I can’t resist sale prices on staple items, and the “squirrel” in me always wants “a little bit more” to keep on hand for winter.) Invariably the clerks at the cash registers roll their eyes or make comments. This time, when the clerk saw my two nearly full shopping carts, she asked: “Did you leave anything on the shelf?” Maybe its a good thing that I do this sort of shopping more than 50 miles away from home.