Basic Chainsaw Maintenance, by Grandpappy

I’ve been sharpening chainsaws for many years, and l’ve noticed that most owners don’t perform basic maintenance on their equipment. They don’t even know what maintenance they should perform after use, such as cleaning, oiling, and unclogging the chain’s lubrication holes.

The file that comes with a manufacturer’s chainsaw kit is used to maintain the correct sharpening angle. Not all chains are sharpened to a 30° angle. For example, the Ripping Chaín used in some portable sawmills has a cutting angle of just 10°.Continue reading“Basic Chainsaw Maintenance, by Grandpappy”

Editors’ Prepping Progress

To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug-out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year.  We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those — or excerpts thereof — in the Odds ‘n Sods Column or in the Snippets column. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

This past week, we’ve had a blur of activity with our four grandsons visiting here. So we made only limited progress on our prepping and self-sufficiency projects.

Electric ATVThe oldest of the boys is 10 years old. The youngest is just 3. Admirably, and despite their young age, the three older boys stepped up to help us gather manure mixed with hay from one of our sheep pens, using pitchforks and our electric ATV and trailer.  The boys look for any excuse to operate our Bad Boy Buggy.  (We let the older boys do so only on level ground, and only under direct adult supervision.) Together, we hauled most of that rotted-down manure to our orchard, and fertilized the bases of our fruit trees and berry bushes.

I replaced the broken treadle drive strap on Lily’s Ashford traditional spinning wheel. This is one of the two spinning wheels that had belonged to my late wife, Linda. (“The Memsahib.”) Just a piece of thick scrap leather was all that was needed. The wheel’s first treadle drive strap lasted 30 years. Hopefully, the new one will last for another 30.

I’ve been quite busy boxing and shipping out Elk Creek Company orders. (We are presently running a sale on all of our pre-1899 sporter rifles.)

We recently received a new steel beekeeper’s hive combination tool, by mail.  Oddly, it arrived with some very rough edges.  Rough enough to break skin if it was handled hastily. Two of my grandsons helped me smooth that up, using our trusty old hand-crank grinding wheel.

Now, Lily’s part of the report…

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.

Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.”  – Isaiah 33: 15-17 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — June 27, 2025

On June 27, 1709 in the Great Northern War: Peter the Great of Russia defeated Charles XII of Sweden at the Battle of Poltava. Charles then went into exile in Bender, in the Ottoman Empire.  The painting above is titled The Battle of Poltava by Pierre-Denis Martin.

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June 27th, 1893: Great stock crash on the New York Stock Exchange, known as the Panic of 1893.

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Today is the birthday of the late Leroy James Sullivan (born June 27, 1933 – September 22, 2024), an American firearms inventor. Jim Sullivan designed several “scaled-down” versions of larger firearms. He also designed the Beta C-MAG double snail drum magazines.

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Today is the birthday of Paul Mauser, (June 27, 1838 – May 29, 1914). He was a German weapon designer and manufacturer. His strong and reliable bolt-action rifle design was used by many nations. The U.S. Springfield Model 1903 is based on the Mauser Model 1898, and in fact the U.S. government famously lost in a patent infringement lawsuit. Ironically, the U.S. government continued to pay the Mauser company royalties on each M1903 Springfield produced, even during and after World War I.

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Just a few days left!  We are running a one-week sale on all of our pre-1899 sporter rifles at Elk Creek Company. There are some very deep discounts. Order yours, soon. They can be mailed directly to your doorstep or your P.O. box, in most states.  This sale will end on Monday, June 30th.

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Today’s feature article is a guest post from a reader who asked that it not be considered an entry for the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest.

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We are need of entries for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

The Baofeng DM32-UV DMR Radio: A Review, by Mike in Alaska

This review is from my own personal experience with this radio. I bought and paid for this radio from a website that I subscribe to and in no way do I represent that individual(s) or the Baofeng company. Baofeng has been building and selling inexpensive radios for quite a while now. I have, in the past, bought at least 20+ of the Baofeng UV-5 radios and some of the variants of that basic radio. All of them have been proven to be reliable for their limited use. They were very inexpensive, and to some extent, they still are. For a first-time entry-level ham radio, capable of using FRS and even GMRS and up here in the interior of Alaska the Marine Band it is hard to beat this radio. They are low power (5 to 8 watts RF) and most of them use a free programming software called CHIRP.

NOTE: Sadly, CHIRP will NOT work for programming the DM32-UV radio.
Continue reading“The Baofeng DM32-UV DMR Radio: A Review, by Mike in Alaska”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. This column emphasizes JWR’s “tangibles heavy” investing strategy and contrarian perspective. Today, we look at currencies and precious metals in times of war. (See the Precious Metals section and the Forex & Cryptos section.)

Precious Metals:

Gold spiked versus paper currencies early this week. On Monday, there was an intraday high of $3,417.60 per Troy ounce. But on Tuesday, after an announced (but fragile) ceasefire, spot gold corrected to $3,307.50. By Thursday morning, gold was back up $3,338.40 and silver was at a respectable $36.84.  Note how the silver-to-gold ratio is gaining.

Whenever there is a major international crisis, the real worth(lessness) of paper currencies is revealed. Consistently, in crises, there is a well-justifiable “flight to safety” to the precious metals.  Gold and silver’s last really big bull market run was in the late 1970s, which was also a time of heightened tension in the Middle East. (Do you remember the lengthy Iran Hostage Crisis?) In U.S. Dollar terms, spot gold was up 22.9% in 1977, 37.1% in 1978, and 126.2% in 1979.

If the truce holds for a week, then I suspect that the precious metals market prices will revert to their status quo ante bellum. Even if there is a successful ceasefire and a true end to the Iran-Israel 12-Day War, I don’t believe that we are anywhere near the end of the current precious metals bull market. – JWR

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In The Financial Times: Germany and Italy pressed to bring $245bn of gold home from US.

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Gary Wagner: Safe-haven assets retreat as ceasefire triggers risk-on market rotation.

Economy & Finance:

Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq rally to put records back in sight.

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Will the Capital Gains Tax increase to 9.9% cause business to leave Washington state?

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At Zero Hedge: Forget About Iran, the Real Danger to the Markets Is Coming From Japan.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Whenever legislators endeavor to take away and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any further obedience.” – John Locke

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — June 26, 2025

On June 26, 1794 the Battle of Fleurus was a major victory by forces of the First French Republic under General Jean-Baptiste Jourdan over the Coalition Army (Great Britain, Hanover, Dutch Republic, and Habsburgs). It marked the first use of a military reconnaissance balloon.

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June 26th is the birthday of Marine Corps Lt. General Chesty Puller (born 1898, died October 11, 1971). Perhaps America’s finest-ever maverick officer, Puller was part of what I call the Even Greater Generation.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  2. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  3. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  4. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. A $269 retail value survival-ready power package from Solar Power Lifestyle. This includes two Solar Power Lifestyle 25W Portable Solar Panels, plus a $150 gift card to use for any purchase at solarpowerlifestyle.com.
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

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More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

Another Look at Your BOB and INCH Preps, by Dr. Rick

In my most recent article which was posted on June 23, 2025, we looked at and evaluated your EDC and GHB equipment in the framework of survival priorities. Hopefully, you found that information useful. In the preceding article, the focus was on individual preparedness for drastic situations. Now we are going to look at two very different situations. In the two situations presented here, the focus is on family or group preparedness. Both involve evacuation. In this article, we will be looking at your BOB (Bug Out Bag) and your INCH (I’m Never Coming Home) kit using the same survival priorities framework.

There are significant differences between Bugout and INCH situations. In a Bugout scenario, you are planning to return home. (“When” that return will occur is the unknown.) In an INCH situation, there is no thought of ever returning. Your BOB and INCH survival priorities should mirror your other survival priorities, except that the equipment is different. Those suggested priorities are shown below, but the items needed to satisfy your priorities are vastly different.Continue reading“Another Look at Your BOB and INCH Preps, by Dr. Rick”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, we look at a possible asteroid strike on Earth’s Moon.

A Possible Asteroid Strike on Earth’s Moon in 2032?

SurvivalBlog reader C.B. sent this: Earth’s satellites at risk if asteroid smashes into moon: Study.

ChatGPT May Be Eroding Critical Thinking Skills

SurvivalBlog staffer Tom Christianson sent this, from Time: ChatGPT May Be Eroding Critical Thinking Skills, According to a New MIT Study.

Suspected Killer Labeled a Doomsday ‘Prepper’

Randy E. sent us the link to a piece in USA Today: Suspected killer of Minnesota lawmaker is a doomsday ‘prepper’ with ‘bailout’ plan.  JWR’s Comments: The mainstream media is always quick to label any criminal suspect a “prepper” or “survivalist” if they A.) have any military training, and B.) they elude authorities in a lightly-populated rural region or a National Forest.

Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“L’immoralitè est la base du despotisme comme la ventu est l’essence de la Rèpublique.”

(Translated: “Wickedness is the root of despotism as virtue is the essence of the Republic.”) – Maximilien Robespierre (1758-94) In the Convention, 7 May 1794, as cited by A. Cobban, in: ‘Aspects of the French Revolution’ (1968)

 

 

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — June 25, 2025

On June 25th, 1530, German Protestant princes forced Holy Roman Emperor Charles V (pictured) to hear their Confession of Faith — a statement of Lutheran theology, now known as The Augsburg Confession.

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On June 25th, 1798, the US Congress passed the Alien Act, allowing the president to deport dangerous aliens.

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June 25th, 1876: Native American forces led by Chiefs Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull defeated the U.S. Army troops of Lieutenant Colonel George Armstrong Custer in a bloody battle near southern Montana’s Little Bighorn River. The Battle of Little Bighorn–also called Custer’s Last Stand – marked the most decisive Native American victory and the worst U.S. Army defeat in the long Plains Indian War.

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I’m sad to report that Quantum Harvest — one of our long-time writing contest prize donors — has gone out of business.  This means that we are now looking for another writing contest prize donor.  If you own a company that has a product or service of interest to SurvivalBlog readers, please let me know if you’d like some publicity.  Thanks!  –  JWR

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We are running a one-week sale on all of our pre-1899 sporter rifles at Elk Creek Company. There are some very deep discounts. Order yours, soon. They can be mailed directly to your doorstep or your P.O. box, in most states.  This sale will end on Monday, June 30th.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 119 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  2. A Peak Refuel “Wasatch Pack” variety of 60 servings of premium freeze-dried breakfasts and dinners in individual meal pouches — a whopping 21,970 calories, all made and packaged in the USA — courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  3. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
  4. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.

Second Prize:

  1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
  2. A $269 retail value survival-ready power package from Solar Power Lifestyle. This includes two Solar Power Lifestyle 25W Portable Solar Panels, plus a $150 gift card to use for any purchase at solarpowerlifestyle.com.
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

  1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
  2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
  4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

—

More than $960,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 119 ends on July 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.

A Lesson in Price Versus Real Value, by Nurse Michele

I have a story to tell that I believe your readers will enjoy. And it serves as a perfect object lesson for any person that doesn’t understand the difference between money and currency and/or an excellent example of how the dollar (and all currencies) lose value. I’m including two pictures that I have taken and you are welcome to share on your blog along with the following short tale about a gift that has been passed down to me.

My mother, recently gave me a gift that was originally given to her for her 25th wedding anniversary. Well, let me back up a bit…Continue reading“A Lesson in Price Versus Real Value, by Nurse Michele”

SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets

Our weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters.

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A news link posted at our friend Commander Zero’s Notes From The Bunker blog: Shooter killed by staffers at Michigan church, police say; at least 1 person wounded.

And here is some follow-up from the anti-gun PBS: Gunman killed after shooting into Michigan church, where his mother is a member.

JWR’s Comments: Note that the PBS reporter failed to mention that the “security staff ” were volunteer armed citizen church members.  Oh, and we can add Ford F-150 pickups to our list of viable self-defense tools. Any large mass in locomotion is a potentially useful lethal force.

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Reader H.L. sent this: Here’s Drone Footage of 150 Amish Men in New York Moving a Barn.

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North Carolina’s Democrat Governor Josh Stein Vetoes Constitutional Carry. (A hat tip to D.S.V. for the link.) JWR’s Comment: How predictable!

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Map shows where US nuclear fallout shelters are located if cities are attacked.

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Trump says both Iran and Israel violated the ceasefire.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Liberty is liberty, not equality or fairness or justice or human happiness or a quiet conscience.” – Isaiah Berlin (6 June 1909 – 5 November 1997), from ‘Two Concepts of Liberty’ (1958) p. 10