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Part 2

(Continued from Part 1, posted on Friday, Feb. 15, 2019.)

With the many disaster and TEOTWAWKI scenarios, we can’t be 100% sure of everything that we will need in a post-event life. But the goal is to be as close to that 100% as possible. Another good saying to apply to prepping is that “necessity is the mother of invention.” Having a diverse on-hand stock of sundries can allow us to improvise and adapt those items to what we need. When at the hardware store I like to go down the aisles and look at items and think if they have a potential use for survival. This is a great way to exercise your mind in some outside-the-box thinking. Some of the more interesting items that come to mind that I have picked up and stocked for TEOTWAWKI are pipe hanger tape in both metal and plastic. This stuff is very versatile and inexpensive. PVC pipe and fittings are also very useful for applications besides plumbing. Rolled aluminum and copper flashing in various widths is also something that can have numerous uses outside of its normally intended purpose. Flexseal is also great and comes in different applications from spray can, tube and tape forms. Again, the applications are endless.

My Own Hardware Store

My ultimate goal is to have my own “hardware store”. This way, if something breaks, I need to fabricate something or I lose a nut or bolt, I don’t have to run into town to the hardware store to get supplies. Obviously, this means acquiring and storing a lot of stuff. We literally have large totes full of various types and lengths of rope and cordage as well as spools of para-cord and other cordage. Boxes of wire/cable and as well as cable clamps and ferrules, thimbles, shackles, and hooks.

Nothing irritates me more than working on a project and needing something and having to stop and go into town to get it. My nephew was helping install a propane gas line at the BOL and he ended up needing a few parts that he had not picked up when getting the black pipe for the project. Into my stores I went and I had 4 of the 5 items he was looking for. But we had to waste an hour and a half just in travel to pick up a bushing. That was in “normal” times with modern conveniences. That same trip into town post-TEOTWAWKI might not be possible. When we got there, I picked up replacements for the items that I used and of course several bushings in different sizes. If you need it once, then there is a good chance you will need it again.

Continue reading“Sundries For Survival, Part 2, by 3adScout”

This article centers on logistics. This is not a list of what you need, but rather an inspiration to get us to think about a category of supplies that isn’t discussed a lot. Beans, bullets and band-aids are definitely key in survival but when you consider many of the items we will discuss in this article, they support our ability to raise, process or prepare food, ensure we can use our bullets if needed by having maintained and operational firearms and providing an ounce of prevention by supporting our health, safety and hygiene so we don’t have to use our band-aids (medical supplies). Having a deep stock of diverse sundries will enhance our ability to be prepared and to save time in a post-TEOTWAWKI world.

There is an old rhythmic poem about a nail that reads:

For want of a nail the shoe was lost,
for want of a shoe the horse was lost,
for want of a horse the knight was lost,
for want of a knight the battle was lost,
for want of a battle the kingdom was lost.
All for want of a horse shoe nail.”

I use this old poem, when I teach disaster logistics. It is such a clear and concise example of how the need for something so simple can have such huge impacts. Applying this quote to a TEOTWAWKI events, we can see that, for the want of a sundry item such as a chainsaw spark plug; a CR2030 Button cell battery; a spare wick for a kerosene heater; or numerous other seemingly minuscule and obscure items, our battle to survive can be lost. For many preppers being ready for a disaster revolves around a bug-out-bag. Having a bug-out-bag should not be construed as being prepared, since it just simply will not have the depth and ability to provide you with the wide range of resources that will be needed to survive post-TEOTWAWKI. Additionally, many of us have the traditional “Beans, Bullets and, Band-aids.” Having food, ammunition and medical supplies definitely increases our chances for survival in a disaster or post-TEOTWAWKI world but the reality is that our survival will also hinge on a plethora of seemingly trivial items. These items only seem trivial until you need one and Lowes has long been looted clean.

Continue reading“Sundries For Survival, Part 1, by 3adScout”