Post-SHTF Lighting: Portable Power Stations – Part 3, by St. Funogas

(Continued from Part 2.  This concludes the article.)

HOW TO POWER LIGHTS USING A PPS

Now let’s take a look at various ways to power lamps, lights, and flashlights.

1. Rechargeable Lights

There are lots of options with rechargeable lighting so it shouldn’t be too difficult to find something that appeals to you.

Here are some things to look for when buying rechargeable lights. These features will be listed on the box or in the product description if shopping online.

Battery capacity – The higher the better. The larger the battery capacity, the longer it can provide light without needing to be recharged. The capacity is usually listed in milliamp hours and abbreviated mAh. The mAh can range anywhere from 1,500 on the low end to 10,000+ on the high end. For those who prefer working with amp hours, Ah can be determined by dividing the mAh by 1,000. A 1,500 mAh capacity = 1.5 Ah. In comparison, the deep-cycle 12-volt battery I use for various projects has a 123 Ah capacity. As mentioned, rechargeable lamps and lights having a USB port can be used as mini power bank. Their battery capacity can be used to determine how long various USB devices can run, or whether or not it can be used for things like charging cellular phones.Continue reading“Post-SHTF Lighting: Portable Power Stations – Part 3, by St. Funogas”

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 Tariff Arbitrage in Tangibles. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Despite the best efforts of the short-sellers, the precious metals bull market now seems to have been confirmed. The rise in gold now appears unstoppable. Meanwhile, the Silver Shorts are still pulling the weekly shenanigans, almost every Friday. But given the chronic physical silver shortage caused by the mining deficit, the shorts cannot keep up their suppression of the silver market much longer.  My advice: Hold on tight to your physical silver, and continue to buy more, on any dip days.  And, ratio trading out of gold (into silver) whenever the ratio is in the 100-to-1 range still makes perfect sense. Ratio trading out of gold and into some platinum would also be wise, especially if there is a specific threat of a regional war, or a world war. If India and Pakistan transition to full-scale war, or China invades Taiwan, or Russia invades Poland or the Baltic States, then I expect the price of platinum to nearly triple. – JWR

o  o  o

Facing Facts: Silver Demand in Solar Photovoltaics to Leapfrog in the Next Five Years. (LBMA)

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Goldman Sachs Reiterates “Structurally Bullish” View on Gold, Silver Set to Play Second Fiddle.

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Missourians could soon pay with gold & silver after lawmakers approve odd bill.

Economy & Finance:

Deloitte Releases 2025 Financial Services Industry Predictions Report.

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Morningstar: May 2025 US Stock Market Outlook: Eye of the Hurricane.

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Contrarian Outlook: This 11% Dividend is Backed by the Steadiest NAV We’ll Ever See.

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Japan – A Contrarian Bet?

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At Zero Hedge: The Import Armageddon Narrative Looks Overblown.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“The second item in the liberal creed, after self-righteousness, is unaccountability. Liberals have invented whole college majors–psychology, sociology, women’s studies–to prove that nothing is anybody’s fault. No one is fond of taking responsibility for his actions, but consider how much you’d have to hate free will to come up with a political platform that advocates killing unborn babies but not convicted murderers. A callous pragmatist might favor abortion and capital punishment. A devout Christian would sanction neither. But it takes years of therapy to arrive at the liberal view.” –  P.J. O’Rourke, Give War a Chance

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — May 8, 2025

Today is the 80th anniversary of VE Day, otherwise known as Victory in Europe Day, in 1945. World War II ended in Europe after Germany signed an unconditional surrender. The Brits have several days of celebrations planned.

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This is also the birthday of Austrian economist Friedrich Hayek.

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 118 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2,000.
  2. 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),
  3. 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),
  4. 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.
  5. 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. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  3. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  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. 3Vgear.com is providing an ultimate bug-out bag bundle that includes their 3-day Paratus Bag, a Posse EDC Sling Pack, and a Velox II Tactical Backpack. This prize package has a $289 retail value.
  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 $950,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 118 ends on May 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.

 

 

Post-SHTF Lighting: Portable Power Stations – Part 2, by St. Funogas

(Continued from Part 1.)

DETERMINING HOW LONG A PPS CAN SUPPLY POWER

To determine how long a fully-charged PPS will last, three things must be considered:

1.) The wattage of the device being powered

2.) How long you need it to run for, and

3.) The wattage capacity of the PPS battery.

As previously mentioned, to simplify the math some of the battery rules are ignored such as maximum drawdown percentage of a battery and the energy loss when inverting from 12 Volts DC to 120 Volts AC.

Appliance Wattage – Nearly every 120 VAC electric device has the wattage stamped on the bottom or labeled elsewhere. An average LED light bulb in your home uses 6 watts. A typical box fan is 100 watts, a coffee-bean grinder 130 watts, a soldering pen 350 watts, a food processor 400 watts, a blender 600 watts, and a rice cooker uses 700 watts. The higher the wattage, the more electricity the device uses and the faster that it will draw down the battery.

Run Time – A device may have a high wattage but won’t drain the battery much if it’s only for a short period of time. Things like coffee grinders, food processors, and blenders won’t draw the battery down significantly since they’re only on for a few minutes each time that they’re used. Ditto for things such as a drill press or a jigsaw doing a small job. A 700-watt rice cooker on the other hand, is on for 30 minutes at a time and will be a significant drain on the battery. And the heavy resistive loadof  a 1,500-watt space heater will drain it in no time.Continue reading“Post-SHTF Lighting: Portable Power Stations – Part 2, by St. Funogas”

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, the push toward greater use of military drones.

U.S. Army Plans Massive Increase in Its Use of Drones

Over at The Wall Street Journal: U.S. Army Plans Massive Increase in Its Use of Drones. Here is a pericope:

“The Army’s 10 active-duty divisions would shift heavily into unmanned aircraft if the plan is carried out, using them for surveillance, to move supplies and to carry out attacks.

To glean the lessons from Ukraine’s war against Russia, U.S. officers have debriefed its military personnel and consulted contractors who have worked with Kyiv’s military about their innovative use of drones.”

Israel Wants to Buy Thousands of Locally Made Drones

Israel Wants to Buy Thousands of Locally Made Suicide Drones, With Chinese Antennae.

Pakistan-India Escalation in Kashmir

The UK Guardian reports: Pakistan to respond ‘forcefully’ to India’s ‘act of war’, says prime minister after attack.

And the UK Daily Mail reported: India attacks Pakistan with air strikes: Nine ‘terrorist camps’ hit as Karachi threatens to retaliate – prompting fears of war between two nuclear-armed states.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Man, biologically considered, and whatever else he may be into the bargain, is simply the most
formidable of all the beasts of prey, and, indeed, the only one that preys systematically on its own
species.” – William James (1842-1910), in the Atlantic Monthly, December 1904, p. 84

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — May 7, 2025

On May 7, 1700, William Penn began monthly meetings for blacks advocating emancipation.

—

And on May 7, 1867, Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel patented dynamite in England. This was the first of three patents he would receive for the explosive.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 118 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2,000.
  2. 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),
  3. 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),
  4. 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.
  5. 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. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
  3. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
  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. 3Vgear.com is providing an ultimate bug-out bag bundle that includes their 3-day Paratus Bag, a Posse EDC Sling Pack, and a Velox II Tactical Backpack. This prize package has a $289 retail value.
  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 $950,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 118 ends on May 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.

Post-SHTF Lighting: Portable Power Stations – Part 1, by St. Funogas

This is the second of a four-article series on post-SHTF lighting options. It covers the basics of portable power stations (PPS) as well as what kinds of lights to consider using with a PPS or other 12-volt DC source of power.

I hope those who read Part 1 of this series on off-grid lighting came to realize that for a post-SHTF world, a portable power station (PPS) is not only far less expensive than candles or oil lamps, but also healthier and safer. When managed properly, not only can a PPS provide all or most of the light we’ll need per day compared to the limitations of candles or oil lamps, it will also have other important uses for recharging laptops, remote-alarm batteries, and night-vision gear to name but a few.

Candles and oil lamps for post-SHTF lighting are ancient technology and our thinking should be modernized to 2025. For those who are still planning on using oil lamps for post-SHTF lighting, what are the odds that on Day One you’ll have several drums of lamp oil on hand to provide suitable lighting just for the first year?

After testing out and using one of the small 500-watt units for the past few years, I now highly recommend a PPS for any serious prepper and have it as #7 on my top-10 list.

PORTABLE POWER STATION BASICS

Since there are so many different kinds of lights available to use with a PPS, and since we’ll want to light as many areas of our homestead as possible, let’s take a look at some of the basics of how PPSes work and the various ways they can be used to provide lighting.Continue reading“Post-SHTF Lighting: Portable Power Stations – Part 1, by St. Funogas”

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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Reader F.J. mentioned this informative piece by Eric Peters that describes the change from car timing chains to timing belts to illustrate how government regulations spawn higher prices: The Hidden Cost of Things.

o  o  o

I recently had a consulting client ask me about my current recommendation for an inexpensive dual-band handheld transceiver (“handie-talkie” or H/T.)  I mentioned that I no longer recommend the 5-watt Baofeng UV5R handie-talkie. Those that have been produced since around 2022 have most of their frequencies blocked from transmission. (So-called “locked” radios.)

I now recommend the 8-watt Baofeng BF-F8HP Pro. For now, these are available for only about $75 each. But tariffs are now in effect, so I recommend that you buy a pile of them, soon, before they go up 145% in price.  This new model has both a charging tray and a handy DC recharging socket directly on the battery pack exterior that accepts a mini-USB plug.  These radios are advertised as “locked”, but not really, if you use a laptop and CHIRP programming software.  You just select another model number in the CHIRP menu and then you can program a BF-F8HP Pro to transmit on any frequency in their receive bands. of course, I do not suggest transmitting on any frequency for which you are not licensed, or at a power level beyond legal limits unless there is an extreme emergency. (“All applicable FCC regulations apply, yada-yada…”) – JWR

o  o  o

Raeder H.L. wrote to mention:

“I learned something new today.  Have a friend who likes to walk their dog.  She got a tick that was embedded, so her daughter took my friend to Urgent Care.

The way they got the tick out was to put some undiluted dishwashing soap on a small towel and rub COUNTER-CLOCKWISE and the tick will come out on its own.  Do NOT try and dig it out because you could end up leaving the tick’s head embedded and of course that can transfer Lyme Disease.  They also gave her a prescription antibiotic, just in case.”

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog Readers’ & Editors’ Snippets”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“As it will be the right of all, so it will be the duty of some, definitely to prepare for a separation, amicably if they can, violently if they must.” – Josiah Quincy (1772-1864) — Abridgement of Debates of Congress vol. 4, p. 327, 14 January 1811

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — May 6, 2025

May 6, 1527: Spanish and German Imperial troops sacked papal Rome, ending the Italian High Renaissance. Charles III, Duke of Bourbon had been killed in the assault. It was reported that his death removed any restraint for the victorious soldiers.  The 17th-Century rendering above, titled The Sack Of Rome was by Johannes Lingelbach,

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May 6th is also the birthday of Tuvia Bielski. (Born 1906, died 1987.) You may remember that Daniel Craig portrayed him in the movie Defiance.

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Today’s feature article is an essay by JWR.

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We are in need of entries for Round 118 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. More than $950,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 118 ends on May 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 Survival Mindset: A Two-Decade Retrospective

Introduction

SurvivalBlog is now in its 20th calendar year. I began posting the blog in August, 2005.  That was just a few weeks before Hurricane Katrina. Over the past two decades, I’ve had many opportunities to write about what I generally term The Survival Mindset. The following is a mashup and updates to four brief blog essays that I wrote and posted in SurvivalBlog in November, 2005 and in April, 2006:

Prepper Angst

Many of my recent consulting clients have mentioned the same feeling of unease about the coming years. Perhaps it is just the general predisposition of my consulting clientele, but they nearly all say things to the effect of “I’ve always been well prepared, but now I consider myself under-prepared, because I feel like something big is coming.” One American client summed it up best when he told me, “I get the impression that I’m living in September of 1929 or November of 1941. Something macro scale is approaching, and I want to be in the right place and to be well-provisioned when it happens.”

Certainly, recent international events (Iran’s posturing and threats, sectarian strife in Iraq, etc.) are cause for alarm, as is the mountain of debt (both public and private) that is looming. Gold is seen as a refuge in times of war or currency chaos, and the fact that gold and other commodities are soaring is indicative that a growing number of savvy investors see trouble coming–especially for the dollar as a currency unit.

[Update for 2025:  When I wrote that in April, 2006, the spot price of gold was around $582 per Troy ounce. As I’m writing this, spot gold is at $3,388.50.]

Whether it will be just another economic head cold or whether it will be double pneumonia remains to be seen. Similarly, wars and major terrorist attacks are difficult to presage. I can’t in good conscience make unfounded predictions. In fact, I cannot say anything with certainty other than that tomorrow will not be like today. We are living in turbulent times, so it is prudent to prepare.Continue reading“The Survival Mindset: A Two-Decade Retrospective”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies located in the American Redoubt region that are of interest to preppers and survivalists. Today, news about some tax cuts and some tax increases.  (See the Region-Wide section and the Montana section.)

Region-Wide

Op-Ed: Montana, Idaho join the ‘record’ tax cut club while Washington imposes a ‘historic’ tax increase. The piece begins:

“If there was a theme for the 2025 Legislative Sessions in our region, it was major tax changes. On the negative side of the ledger are the “historic” tax increases rammed through in Washington state. On the positive side are the “record” tax cuts enacted in Idaho and Montana.”

o  o  o

60-Day Extended Weather Forecast for Spokane and Intermountain West.

Idaho

New details released on crash near Yellowstone that killed 7.

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Horse owners urged to vaccinate as West Nile virus threat looms in southwest Idaho.

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World’s tallest and smallest dogs meet up for a playdate.

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North Idaho man sentenced under new AI-generated child porn law.

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“The grass will grow in the streets of a hundred cities, a thousand towns.” –  President Herbert Hoover, from a speech given on 31 October 1932. (as quoted in ‘State Papers of Herbert Hoover’ (1934) vol. 2, p. 418, commenting on proposals ‘to reduce the protective tariff to a competitive tariff for revenue’.)