The Handloader Never Wants For Ammo, Part 3, by Wingfootjr

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(Continued from Part 2. This part concludes the series.)

After a couple years of this I decided the pocket reaming operation was too labor intensive and taking too much time, so I decided to throw some money at it. After evaluating tools, I decided on the top of the line Dillon Super Swage 600 primer pocket swaging tool ($125). While a fairly expensive tool, its performance is unequaled and known to be the best for the task. It is also a “lifetime” tool. If taken care of and used properly, it should last forever. But also very important, replacement parts are available.

The swaging tool doesn’t cut away metal from the edge of the pocket like the Lyman reaming tool. Instead it utilizes a hardened steel rod and compound leverage to “swage” or mechanically press the tip of the rod into the pocket to resize the pocket by “stretching” the brass to the diameter of the tip. Also note, the Dillon tool comes with rod tips for both small and large primer pockets, and case guide rods to accommodate both .30 caliber and .22 caliber cases, and an adapter for .45 ACP. Separate options are available to accommodate other calibers as well, such as 9mm, .38 Special and .40 Smith & Wesson. I was very impressed the first time I used this tool, quickly swaging about 450 cases in a couple of hours.

Now all the cases are completely prepared, the worst of the job is over, and its time to load those cases! This is the part I enjoy the most since you finally see the fruits of your labor by producing your own custom, high quality ammo.

Continue reading“The Handloader Never Wants For Ammo, Part 3, by Wingfootjr”

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 light sabers. (See the Tangibles Investing section at the end of this column.)

 

Precious Metals:

Gold Still To React To U.S. Dollar Weakness, Watch For A Move Higher — Analysts

o  o  o

A good market fundamentals article by Stefan Gleason, that dates back to late 2018: A Tale of Two Metals: One WAY More Valuable Than Gold, The Other Historically Undervalued

Economy & Finance:

Alan Greenspan says economy will start to fade ‘very dramatically’ because of entitlement burden.  A quote:

“Economic growth won’t last as the U.S. labors under the burden of growing entitlement programs and weakness around the world, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told CNBC.

The long-time central bank chief repeated his warnings about the weight that Social Security, Medicare and other programs are having on what have been otherwise solid gains over the past few years.

‘I think the real problem is over the long run, we’ve got this significant continued drain coming from entitlements, which are basically draining capital investment dollar for dollar,’ he told CNBC’s Sara Eisen during a Squawk on the Street interview.

‘Without any major change in entitlements, entitlements are going to rise. Why? Because the population is aging. There’s no way to reverse that, and the politics of it are awful, as you well know,’ Greenspan added.

While he said the economy looks ‘reasonably good’ in the short run, he expects that over the longer term, growth ‘fades very dramatically.'”

o  o  o

Goldman “Recalibrates” Fed Forecast: No More Rate Hikes Before 2020 Election

o  o  o

$2,198,468,000,000: Federal Spending Hit 10-Year High Through March; Taxes Hit 5-Year Low

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Handloader Never Wants For Ammo, Part 2, by Wingfootjr

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(Continued from Part 1)

My mention of custom tailoring brings up a great point: The variety of factory ammunition loading combinations has really waned over the past 15 years, at least in my area. It used to be common to be able to purchase .30-06 ammo in bullet weights ranging from 110 grains (woodchucks/ groundhogs) 130 grains (coyotes/ medium predators) 150 or 165 grain (deer/ antelope) 180-200-220 grain (bear). These days I only see 150 and 165 or 168 grain ammo on store most store shelves, unless going to a Cabela’s, where you will pay a special premium to find a wider variety. For some, cost is not a concern, and that’s okay. But as a handoader I can customize my ammo for the game I’m hunting and the maximum clear distance I can shoot where I hunt, which is about 300 yards.

A side note: You can measure maximum shooting distances where you hunt with Google maps or Google Earth. You can also see what the government can see about your area – just multiply the Google magnification and definition shown by 20 times better resolution. That knowledge of knowing your distances, without guessing, is priceless when taking a shot. With your rifle sighted at 100 or 200 yards and knowing your bullet velocity for a given load, the bullet drop for distances is easily calculated and tables are listed in all the better loading manuals, and a custom drop calculator with graphing capability is included in Sierra’s Infinity Loading software. That is a purchase  with value that well exceeds the cost.

Knowing velocity and drop, along with practice gives you the key confidence to take a shot because you know you can make the shot. It was not mere coincidence that after I started handloading I also started filling my deer tag almost every year.

Continue reading“The Handloader Never Wants For Ammo, Part 2, by Wingfootjr”

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 focus on California’s Brief Magazine Flood.

Mapping Armaggedon

To start off, Reader G.P. sent us this from France24: Mapping Armaggedon: Earth’s looming tsunamis and mega-quakes. Here’s a quote: “According to David Tappin, a marine geologist at the British Geological Society who has spent years examining the causes of tsunamis, there are at least 40 active volcanoes next to oceans around the world that ‘could be potential Anak Krakatoas’.”

Million-Plus Magazines Flood California

Gun Groups: Million-Plus Extended Magazines Flood California. JWRs Comment: They shouldn’t be called “extended”, because 30 rounds is standard for an AR, and 15 rounds is now typisch for pistols.

It was my great pleasure to contribute in a small way to to that flood. I walked into a gun shop in Stockton, California on the morning of Friday, April 5th where they had customers lined up to the door. The owners of the shop were overjoyed when I told them that I had brought them nearly 200 magazines. They bought nearly every Glock, M1A, and AR magazine that I brought. And they started re-selling them even before we had completed the final tally and they had written me a check. My personal estimate is that at least 2 million magazines were shipped or carried to California in that fleeting seven day window of opportunity that is now being called California Freedom Week. Oh, and I’m confident that the California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA) will prevail, in the appeal lawsuit.

Tainted Chinese Electronics

A tip of the hat to Reader David R. for sending us this: Huawei: A Formidable Threat To US Telecom Infrastructure. A quote:

“Yet even as U.S. President Donald Trump attempts to limit Huawei’s expansion into the global 5G market, some experts fear that it may already too late. Defense and telecom authorities assert that Huawei may have already accomplished its biggest espionage coup of eavesdropping on America’s Strategic Nuclear forces and other major defense installations located in the Western states.

According to telecom expert Gary Frost, in the early 2000s, smaller, rural customers in states such as Nebraska, Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, and Colorado were overlooked by equipment giant Cisco and others. These underserved states created an opportunity for a low cost, good quality infrastructure provider to step in. Huawei was happy for the opportunity to install its own cheaper versions of Cisco-type equipment—routers, switches, and other telephone and internet infrastructure—and gain customers in these rural communities.”

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

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — April 17, 2019

On April 17, 1961, about 1,500 CIA-trained Cuban exiles launched the disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba in a failed attempt to overthrow the government of Fidel Castro. Due to the Cuba/Soviet intelligence network as well as loose talk by members of the brigade, which was repeated in US and foreign newspaper reports, the Cuban government knew, in advance, of the planned invasion. The Washington Post also reported that the Soviets knew the exact date of the attack, that the CIA was aware that they knew, and that the CIA did not inform president Kennedy.

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 82  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3000 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 Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  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. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  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 82 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.

The Handloader Never Wants For Ammo, Part 1, by Wingfootjr

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Introductory Disclaimer: I am not employed by, or specifically endorse any products mentioned. I only offer what I have found works for me. Your mileage may vary. Also, this article is not intended to be an instruction course in handloading. Seek the help and guidance of a seasoned handloader when starting out, and make a conscious effort to continue to learn, indefinitely!

I apologize if portions of what follow may seem a little lengthy with tidbits of information that don’t seem relevant- I’m attempting to offer insight and convince those on the fence they are fully capable of undertaking the endeavors of handloading metallic cartridges, which can be intimidating to many.

I’ve been handloading metallic cartridges for 25 years, starting soon after I graduated from college. I had multiple reasons for doing so, the main reason being cost. I had learned from vendors at gun shows near my college campus I could purchase handloaded ammo that looked and shot better than factory ammo, for less money, as long as I could deal with their zip lock bag packaging. Some of these vendors were Combat Disabled Vietnam vets who really knew the ins and outs of the 5.56/.223 caliber, asking me what rifle I shot (a Ruger Mini-14 Stainless Ranch Rifle at the time) and recommending a certain load and projectile for the rate of twist in my barrel- selected from the various lots they had on their table.

Another significant reason was consistency of accuracy. Every year when I bought a couple boxes of factory ammo for practice shooting, sighting the rifle and having 10 cartridges left to carry for hunting, it always seemed the rifle was “just off” 1 to 1-½ inches, requiring minor scope adjustments before firing tuned shots for practice. To me, those couple of 3 shot groups to get it there was wasted ammo, and I wanted to avoid that waste and yearly inconsistency.

Continue reading“The Handloader Never Wants For Ammo, Part 1, by Wingfootjr”

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

4

Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. This week the focus is on tool storage. (See both the Instructional Videos section and the Gear section.)  As always, we emphasize items that are made in the USA.

 

Movies:

Discover Planet Ocean (Blu-ray and DVD)

o  o  o

A Quiet Place. Available on Blu-ray, DVD, or free streaming for those with Amazon Prime.

 

Instructional Videos (Tool Storage):

Building a Tool Cabinet

o  o  o

French Cleat Tool Storage Wall and Clamp Rack — How To Build – Woodworking

o  o  o

From Ian McCollum: Silent Destroyer: Reimagining the DeLisle Commando Carbine

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

Economics & Investing For Preppers

4

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 eBay items –that is, the things to look for, to re-sell. (See the Tangibles Investing section.)

Precious Metals:

What Happens When Gold Stocks Diverge From The Bullion

o  o  o

Silver Demand Hit A 3-Year High In 2018 – World Silver Survey . A snippet: “People are turning to silver because of its huge price divergent with gold. The gold-silver ratio is ridiculously high and is not sustainable, it’s just a question of when the ratio comes down.”

Economy & Finance:

Fed officials are leaving the door open for more rate hikes if the economy improves, minutes say. Here is a key quote from their meeting minutes: “A majority of participants expected that the evolution of the economic outlook and risks to the outlook would likely warrant leaving the target range unchanged for the remainder of the year.”  JWR’s Comments:  A stable Fed funds rate, coupled with continued unwinding of the Fed’s QE assets will probably mean a recession will begin in late 2019. They are surely hoping for a Soft Landing, but I doubt that they will get it. Given the huge overhang and malinvestment of the current boom (the longest economic expansion in modern times), this upcoming recession will probably be long and deep. Position yourself for that!

Continue reading“Economics & Investing For Preppers”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

“Recession is coming. We can debate the timing, but the economy will turn decisively downward at some point. My own analysis, looking at the data available on April 4, says recession isn’t likely this year but unfortunately looks very probable in 2020.

In addition to when it will happen, there’s also the question of how deep the next recession will be. A shallow downturn wouldn’t be fun, but compared to the last one might feel relatively refreshing.

Alas, I don’t think we will be that lucky. I think the opposite: The next recession will be deeper, longer and far more painful to many more people than your average recession, and could persist as long as the last one. That is because the next recession in all likelihood will be truly global. If you sailed through 2007–2009 without your lifestyle changing, I wouldn’t assume it will happen that way again.

Ironically, but not surprisingly, it will be the response to the last recession that makes the next one so much worse. Part of the reason is that investors once again “learned” that if you simply stay the course, the market will get you back to where you were and more. The massive move into low-fee index investing instead of active management will make the next recession more painful.

You must understand that 75% of today’s wealth is in the hands of retirees and pre-retirees. Most have a significant portion of their money in index funds, and they’re going to see significant erosion of their retirement assets. I’m thinking especially of those depending on public pensions, which are heavily weighted to a form of index investing. Public pensions are already significantly underfunded (in general) and a bear market will make them even more so. It will be painful and I can assure you it will cause a lot of political angst.” – John Mauldin

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — April 16, 2019

April 16th is the birthday of two notable novelists– J. Neil Schulman and Samuel Youd.

Agorist-Libertarian activist J. Neil Schulman (born April 16, 1953) is best known as author of the novel Alongside Night.

The late Samuel Youd (born 1922, died February 3, 2012) was the British novelist who was best known for his science fiction writings under the pseudonym John Christopher, including the survivalist novel Death of Grass (titled No Blade of Grass, in the American edition) as well as the Tripods Series of young adult sci-fi novel series. A fascinating man, Youd wrote prolifically, using eight pen names. He was a good friend of sci-fi novelist John Wyndham, and both of them were famous for writing what are often called “cozy catastrophes.”

—

SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 82  of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The more than $12,000 worth of prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

  1. A $3000 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 Model 175 Series Solar Generator provided by Quantum Harvest LLC (a $439 value),
  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. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  2. A large handmade clothes drying rack, a washboard, and a Homesteading for Beginners DVD, all courtesy of The Homestead Store, with a combined value of $206,
  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 82 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.

Raising Poultry in the Rocky Mountain West, by WyoDutch

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My wife and I operate a pastured poultry business in Northwest Wyoming at an altitude 6,000 feet. I grew up on a poultry farm back when everything was pastured and organic. Things were simpler then… the weak, fast growing commercial birds had not yet been developed, and we didn’t have to contend with many of the exotic diseases that international trade has brought to the American farm.

For a breeding flock of 75 turkeys plus a chicken operation, we have a total of six acres devoted to pens and pastures. Our land is high desert with no supplemental irrigation. Years of previous owners running horses on the land had destroyed everything but salt sage and prickly pear. Working with the local Extension Agent, we selected native grasses, trees and shrubs that do well in our dry, alkaline soil. We had our well tested under the Montana Well Educated program (operated by Montana State University) which gave us detailed information on our water. We learned for example, that high salinity and dissolved solids rendered our well water unusable for irrigation and only marginal for livestock use. We got around this problem by purchasing and hauling water from the nearest community water treatment plant.

Continue reading“Raising Poultry in the Rocky Mountain West, by WyoDutch”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

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Here is SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt. This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. We also mention companies of interest to preppers that are located in the region. Today, we focus on whitetail deer and their habitat.

Region-Wide

The latest video from The Bard Of The American Redoubt is a “must watch”:  Never Ending Threat of Civil War — A response.

Idaho

Watching the whitetail. The article begins:

“Researchers at the Idaho Department of Fish and Game are trying to get a better understanding of the relationship between whitetail deer and predators in northern Idaho.

The project is tied to a larger study on predator and prey relationships throughout the state, said Mark Hurley, wildlife research manager for the department at Boise. Although the impact that wolves, mountain lions and black bears have on elk herds gets most of the attention from both game managers and hunters when it comes to predator and prey relationships, Hurley said agency officials believe abundant whitetail deer may be key to understanding the way in which all the species interact.

‘Whitetail populations drive a lot of the predator populations because there are more whitetail than anything else,” he said. “We are trying to figure out how predators use whitetail deer and how that impacts other ungulate like elk.'”

o o o

Families stranded, road crews stretched thin as Idaho battles flood waters

o o o

Idaho man with punctured lung found in wilderness, one of 3 rescues in 2 days

 

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