Editors’ Prepping Progress

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To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make long-term and short-term plans. Steadily, we work on meeting our prepping goals. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities. They also often share their planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, property improvements, 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 the Comments. Let’s keep busy and be ready!

Jim Reports:

I took some of my own advice and bought another box of five Baofeng UV-5R transceivers.  For the next few months I predict that they yield better returns than money in the bank.

Since I was so busy writing the book manuscript for Carlton Publishing, I didn’t have much time for many outdoor activities. But I did take advantage of some cooler weather to do some turkey slaughtering and butchering.

Now I need to finish up my firewood cutting and hauling project for the summer. We have plenty of downed larch and red fir that was either deadfall or purposely cut in the past two years. But it needs to be cut to stove length, hauled, and stacked under cover.

Continue reading“Editors’ Prepping Progress”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

1

“Deliver me from mine enemies, O my God: defend me from them that rise up against me.

Deliver me from the workers of iniquity, and save me from bloody men.

For, lo, they lie in wait for my soul: the mighty are gathered against me; not for my transgression, nor for my sin, O Lord.

They run and prepare themselves without my fault: awake to help me, and behold.

Thou therefore, O Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, awake to visit all the heathen: be not merciful to any wicked transgressors. Selah.

They return at evening: they make a noise like a dog, and go round about the city.

Behold, they belch out with their mouth: swords are in their lips: for who, say they, doth hear?

But thou, O Lord, shalt laugh at them; thou shalt have all the heathen in derision.

Because of his strength will I wait upon thee: for God is my defence.

The God of my mercy shall prevent me: God shall let me see my desire upon mine enemies.

Slay them not, lest my people forget: scatter them by thy power; and bring them down, O Lord our shield.

For the sin of their mouth and the words of their lips let them even be taken in their pride: and for cursing and lying which they speak.

Consume them in wrath, consume them, that they may not be: and let them know that God ruleth in Jacob unto the ends of the earth. Selah.

And at evening let them return; and let them make a noise like a dog, and go round about the city.

Let them wander up and down for meat, and grudge if they be not satisfied.

But I will sing of thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: for thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble.

Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defence, and the God of my mercy.” – Psalm 59 (KJV)

Preparedness Notes for Friday — June 21, 2019

June 21st is the birthday of Rex Applegate (June 21, 1914 – July 14, 1998), author of Kill or Be Killed. He was the friend and mentor of SurvivalBlog’s Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio.

—

Today is the Summer Solstice. Here at our latitude, the nights are incredibly short, at or near the solstice. We have difficulty getting enough sleep. (It doesn’t get full dark until nearly 11 PM, and then dawn begins soon after 4 AM.) It is not quite like living up at Sommarøy, but close. I will actually be happy to have the days shorten, in the coming weeks!

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 83  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 83 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.

Surviving a Move to the Middle of Nowhere, by Ozarks S.

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One women’s view on leaving the city behind and enduring tough lessons of love in training to become a “warrior mom.”

The Move

Moving from the city to the middle of the woods has done a lot to change my thinking on preparedness. I have studied survival training, read all the JWR (James Wesley, Rawles) novels, and practically majored in understanding the preparedness movement, from the reasonable to the extreme. However, reading and living are two very different things. My dear husband and son have been helping me to improve in areas that I have less exposure. They have both exhibited great patience and perseverance, and for this I am grateful and blessed.

I’ll begin with a quote:

“If you are serious about preparedness, then it is time to get out of your armchair and start training and preparing. It will take time. It will take some sweat. It will take money. But once you’ve prepared, you can sleep well, knowing that you’ve done your best to protect and provide for your family, regardless of what the future brings. Don’t get stuck in the rut of simply *studying* preparedness. Unless the shelves in your pantry and garage are filling with supplies, and unless you are growing muscles and calluses, you are not preparing.” – James Wesley, Rawles

Capable of Learning

To be clear, I am capable of learning. I left behind a high-level position in the medical equipment field some years ago to become a mother and to then homeschool our son. I am capable of scholarship and have advanced degrees. But to be honest, I could not seem to “learn” a protection mindset when it came to self-defense.Continue reading“Surviving a Move to the Middle of Nowhere, by Ozarks S.”

Economics & Investing For Preppers

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Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. We also cover hedges, derivatives, and obscura. And it bears mention that most of these items are from the “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective of SurvivalBlog’s Founder and Senior Editor, JWR. Today, we look at investing in AR Lowers. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

Gold at 14-Month High Heading into FOMC Meeting Next Week

o  o  o

Eight Reasons a Huge Gold Mania Is About to Begin

o  o  o

And for the leftist-globalist perspective, there is this discussion at CNBC: Traders discuss why gold is near highs as dollar also rallies.

Economy & Finance:

Walmart’s Desperate $3.3 Billion Acquisition of Jet.com Fails. But it Now Discloses its US Online Sales, and They’re Big

o  o  o

Reader H.L. sent this: PG&E’s bankruptcy: Renewable energy costs at 800% of market rates. H.L.’s Comment: Another nail in California’s coffin. How very sad. JWR’s Comment: Here is where Liberal Feel Good intentions conflict with common sense. I won’t be surprised to see electricity rates jump to 40 cents per  kilowatt hour in California, within two years. Here in the American Redoubt we are still paying under 10 cents per kilowatt hour.

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

Preparedness Notes for Thursday — June 20, 2019

June 20th is the birthday of Audie L. Murphy. He was born in 1925. He died in a plane crash on May 28, 1971. This is also the anniversary of the death of novelist Vince Flynn. (Born April 6, 1966, died June 19, 2013.) His death at age 47 was a loss to the literary world.

—

I just heard that Ready Made Resources has started another AN/PVS-14 night vision sale: Photonis PVS-14 Autogated WHITE PHOSPHOR ECHO SPEC tube “Onyx” P-45 On Sale $2,599.  These are 4G scopes with a 10-year warranty.

—

Today’s brief feature article is by SurvivalBlog’s founder, James Wesley, Rawles (JWR).

The Baofeng Sales Ban Countdown Continues

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Here is a reminder on an upcoming rule change by the FCC:  On September 30, 2019, it will become illegal to sell or “offer for sale” (advertise) radios like the popular Baofeng UV-5R that can operate in the FRS radio band (462.5625 – 462.7250 MHz) and any other licensed band in a single device. Manufacturers will have to either quit selling them or block out the FRS bands–like they already do for the current cellular bands. This is the relevant verbiage:

§ 95.591 Sales of FRS combination radios prohibited.

Effective September 30, 2019, no person shall sell or offer for sale hand-held portable radio equipment capable of operating under this subpart (FRS) and under any other licensed or licensed-by-rule radio services in this chapter (devices may be authorized under this subpart with part 15 unlicensed equipment authorizations).

I strongly recommend stocking up on dual band Baofeng UV-5R handie-talkies before this regulatory change takes place. Presently, if bought in a set of five, the cost per transceiver is only around $23 each, postage paid.  By law, these may still be bought by any adult. But a license is needed to operate them outside of the no-license FRS, GMRS, and MURS bands. (That is, in the amateur operators’ bands.)

Note that this upcoming ban WILL NOT be a ban on the possession or use of FRS dual band ham radios. Nor will be it be illegal to gift them to other adults. Hence, any that are legally owned on or before September 30th will effectively become “grandfathered”. Read between the lines folks: The FCC doesn’t want non-licensed individuals to own radios that can transmit in both licensed bands and unlicensed bands. My supposition is that this is because in the long term they don’t want unlicensed folks to have plausible deniability for toting around ham band-capable gear. Ironically, it was a few boot-licking sycophants within the ham community that pushed for this rule change. Often, people jealously guard their own privileges and want to deny privileges to others who are not in their elite clique. This is essentially a Country Club Members mentality.

So, reiterating my advice: Buy a box of five of these, or perhaps two boxes, while they are still readily available and affordable. The FCC rule change won’t go into effect until September 30, 2019. But if you wait until July or August, then it will probably be too late. It is very likely that by then they will be sold out, or their price will escalate. But for now, they can be had for just $23 per transceiver. Within another month or so, they will be history.  The countdown clock is ticking. Don’t hesitate on this one.

Also note that there will also be some room for profit from the upcoming ban. It is safe to assume that just in the months of August and September, you may be able to double your money, if you decide to sell off any of your spare “new in package” UV-5R transceivers. But starting September 30th, you will only be able to give them away–not advertise or sell them.

Update: Several readers wrote to mention that there are a few other more capable but still quite affordable Baofeng models that will also become import-banned on September 30th. These include:

Regardless of the model that you choose, I recommend getting one spare battery (preferably the long 3800mAh capacity one), and at least one spare antenna per transceiver. The latter, because the Baofeng  antennas are notoriously fragile.

For Baofeng frequency programming instructions (both from the keypad, and “off-board” with a CHIRP cable and PC), see this web page.

I hope that your readers find this information useful, and that you act on it. Again, the clock is ticking. – JWR

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods:

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Today, we look at the Army’s plans to develop a new high velocity SMG. Instead of a Trench Broom, the Army now wants a Room Broom.

Brits Handing Out ‘Blunt’ Knives to Reduce Stabbings

Reader H.L. sent this news: British Police Handing Out ‘Blunt’ Knives To Reduce Stabbings

The First Pinterest Whistleblower Speaks Out

Project Veritas Features – Pinterest Insider Speaks Out: “The tech companies can’t fight us all”

And here are some details and leaked documents showing how Pinterest actively blocked Christian and conservative content: Pinterest Bans Zero Hedge By Adding To “Porn Domain Block List” Used To Target Conservatives.

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

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

3

“Let us hope our weapons are never needed – but do not forget what the common people of this nation knew when they demanded the Bill of Rights: An armed citizenry is the first defense, the best defense, and the final defense against tyranny.” – Edward Abbey

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — June 19, 2019

June 19, 1834 was the birthday of Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon, who died 31 January 1892. He was a British Particular Baptist preacher.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 83  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 83 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.

Perimeter Defense Part 2, by L.K.R.

8

(Coninued from Part 1.  This part concludes the article.)

Defensive Equipment – Each capable team member should have an AR, AK, or similar rifle — plus a handgun. It is useful to have at least one shotgun for close in firepower and an accurate, scoped bolt action rifle if you have longer range potential threats. While handguns and shotguns are useful in or immediately around the house, perimeter defense will depend on your rifle skills. Assuming you are capable of safe, accurate and reasonably fast target engagement with your rifles, then here are a few additional considerations:

  • Sights – While it is essential to be proficient with iron sights, you should take advantage of better options for speed and accuracy at longer range. Inside of 50 yards, red dots are much quicker to acquire. Beyond 50 yards, scopes come into their own. If you have the potential for longer range defense, especially beyond 100 yards, the new breed of 1-4x, 1-6x, and 1-8x power scopes give you the option for fast engagement up close when set on 1x and the ability to find a small or hidden target at longer range when set to the higher power. At 1x they are relatively fast but not as fast as a red dot due to the need for proper head position behind the scope tube. Several of these scopes also provide a red dot as part of the reticle – giving you another way to quickly index on target. If you use a variable power scope, be sure to keep it on the lowest power setting. This gives you the widest field of view if needed up close. You should have time to dial up magnification if the threat is further away or partially hidden.
  • Lasers – Another option is a visible laser on your firearm. These work well in low light conditions where it’s harder to see your sights and the laser isn’t washed out by bright sunlight. They work out to 25+ yards but are best within 10 yards – making them most effective on handguns. At longer ranges they are relatively dim and you spend too much time trying to find the beam and get it on target. Infrared (IR) lasers, on the other hand, are extremely effective when coupled with Night Vision Devices (NVD or NVG for Night Vision Goggles). Although invisible to the naked eye, they are highly visible with NVD and extremely effective to 100 yards – further depending on power level and the quality of your NVD.
  • Lights – Flashlights are essential for home defense since you must be able to see and identify a potential target before engaging. Handheld flashlights are best for navigating and searching. Weapon mounted lights are best for targeting with the caveat that the muzzle is sweeping anything you light up. A weapon mounted light is useful on a perimeter defense rifle but will not be your primary observation tool since (1) regardless of how powerful the light, it will eventually lose effectiveness at longer range and (2) if you are counting on surprise while defending the perimeter, the white light will be a beacon for incoming fire. IR lights, on the other hand, are a great addition if you are using NVD. They extend the range at which NVD can find and identify threats.

Continue reading“Perimeter Defense Part 2, by L.K.R.”

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

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Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. This week the focus is on the writings of former U.S. Navy SEAL Matt Bracken. (See the Books section.)

Books:

Reader Allen A. highly recommended the book Forty Years in the Wilderness, by Dolly Faulkner

o  o  o

The Bracken Collection: Essays and Short Fiction 2010 to 2019

o  o  o

Also by Matt Bracken: Enemies Foreign and Domestic

o  o  o

Bushcraft Illustrated: A Visual Guide, by Dave Canterbury. (Thanks to Tim J. for the suggestion.)

o  o  o

This is worthy of a follow-up mention: Unfreedom of the Press, by Mark Levin.  (Now in its fourth week at or very near the top of both the NYT bestsellers list and Amazon’s bestsellers list.

Continue reading“JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“Let every man, every corporation, and especially let every village, town, and city, every county and State, get out of debt and keep out of debt. It is the debtor that is ruined by hard times.” – President Rutherford Hayes

 

 

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — June 18, 2019

June 18th is birthday of Pastor Douglas Wilson. Born in 1953, he is the pastor at Christ Church in Moscow, Idaho and a prodigious author of books and articles on Reformed theology.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 83  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3,000 gift certificate towards a Sol-Ark Solar Generator from Veteran owned Portable Solar LLC. The only EMP Hardened Solar Generator System available to the public.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any one, two, or three day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (an $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Made Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

  1. A gift certificate from Quantum Harvest LLC (up to a $2,200 value) good for 12% off the purchase of any of their sun-tracking models, and 10% off the purchase price of any of their other models.
  2. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  3. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, which have a combined retail value of $589,
  4. A Three-Day Deluxe Emergency Kit from Emergency Essentials (a $190 value),
  5. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  6. An assortment of products along with a one hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Expanded sets of both washable feminine pads and liners, donated by Naturally Cozy (a $185 retail value),
  4. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  5. Mayflower Trading is donating a $200 gift certificate for homesteading appliances.

Round 83 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.