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Cupronickel
Penny Pincher Member
USA
110 Posts |
Posted - 06/06/2009 : 20:15:03
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| Depends what you're melting. For Al,~1400 F, brass ~1700, iron > 2400'F. |
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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
Posted - 06/16/2009 : 02:34:12
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Here's a great post from SurvivalBlog.com pointing out the importance of acquiring skills and not just tools:
You must be logged in to see this link.
The topic I will cover is one I have not seen on SurvivalBlog. Everybody is caught up in the equipment side and not concentrating on the training. I have two examples several months back our dryer started squeaking & we had to stop using it. I am a trained air conditioning technician. At first I thought about going out and purchasing a new dryer and then I had a thought: I have fixed multi thousand dollar air conditioning units, how hard could it be? After two days it was back up drying clothes and for a lot less money than a new dryer would cost.
The other example was Saturday night a week ago I killed a feral hog and with some help from the friend that owns the land where I killed the pig, we quickly had it in the chest freezer. You ask, “how do these two examples apply to TEOTWAWKI preparedness?”
I am 50 years old; things I take for granted younger people do not understand or do not have the ability to do. Can you sharpen a knife? Can you tune a small engine? How about sharpen a chainsaw? I have been trained as an equipment mechanic and then trained as a HVAC tech. I have also taken first aid training, I am not an EMT but I know the basics. I have fixed several small appliances. My father was a carpenter. He taught me the basics of construction, such as how to build a wall and how to hang sheet rock. I had a small business that repaired rental properties in Texas.
Do you hunt? And are you planning on hunting to supplement your meat supply if not how do you expect to put meat in the freezer after TSHTF? By hunting you learn where to look for game. Small game hunting can teach you where to find rabbits and squirrels are at certain times of the year. Also when you make your first kill you will have a hands-on butchering class. You can not make a mistake that can not be repaired before it gets to the table. I remember the first feral pig a friend killed I was at my parents' house when a friend called and ask if I had butchered a hog? I said no but I have sure put enough deer in the ice chest that a pig could not be that hard.
I have also gar
dened quite a bit. When I was a child some of the first memories are of working in the garden. We did not raise all of our food but we raised a significant portion. We had a cow and chickens. I helped my mother can vegetables from the garden. I have caned tomatoes I have raised in my back yard. I can make my own soap. I also know where to get the lye with out going to the store. (Wood ashes).
What do you read? Back Home, Backwoods Home, and Mother Earth News magazines--although Mother Earth News is not as good as she once was. I keep all the Back Home and Backwoods Home that I pick up. I also found several books that will be passed on once I go to my final reward. I have books on a variety of topics from engine repair to gardening and other topics.
Do you reload the ammo you practice with? You can store more powder, primers and bullets in a given space than loaded ammo. Then when you shoot some you can reload to re-supply. Shotgun ammo is very economical when you reload. I would not suggest that you use reloaded ammo to defend yourself. Use store bought. I talked about the pig I killed a couple weeks back I used a Savage model 40 in 22 Hornet. The cartridge I used was reloaded and in fact was a case that had been reloaded several times. I have reloaded a variety of calibers and presently I can keep my guns shooting for awhile. I also cast lead bullets for a number of my guns and I am planning on getting a few more molds for different calibers. Also think about this I have in my gun safe a. 22 Hornet, .223 Remington and a .22-250. They all take 223 caliber bullets. I have bought a lot of .223 caliber bullets, mostly 55 grain weight. I can use the same bullet in all three. I also I am going to purchase a shot maker and will be able to produce shot for my own use and barter. I am stocking up on primers and bullets.
What do you watch on television? I watch Discovery and the Science channel. People talk about gas powdered tractors gasoline has a shorter shelf life than say diesel or propane for that matter. I have not seen propane discussed much on the blog for a motor fuel. Propane has a "forever" shelf life. Also, you can still find Ford Model 8 or 9N tractors that were powered by propane. As long as the propane did not leak out it was good and the tractors could sit idle for a long time and did not have to have the carburetor cleaned.
The reason I mentioned television shows is this one program I watched 2 to 3 years ago had a teams on an oceanic island. The team had to do some projects, one of which was they had a diesel powered go-cart. Both teams were given some sesames seeds and a machine that could make oil out of the seeds. The first team to start their go-cart and get it to run a course distance won the event. This got me to thinking that all trucks, generators, tractors should be diesel powered. You can make your own fuel!! The inventor of the Diesel engine was Dr. Rudolf Diesel, a German who envisioned a system where German farmers were not dependant on fuel sources that came from outside Germany! Remember the pig I killed? If it had been a survival situation. I would have rendered the fat to oil and could have used it in my truck and drove 20 or so miles or used it in a generator or plowed the garden with a tractor.
The upshot of the foregoing is that what you have in your hands is not as important as what you have between your ears. Learn all you can. Take classes at your local community college. Read all the preparedness’ magazine’s and books you can. Concentrate on survival skills. Learn to start fires without matches and to build a temporary shelters. Learn to maintain your car or truck, local community colleges are great places to learn vehicle repair and you can save money in the short run. Imagine if something broke and you needed it to survive. Could you fix it? Stockpile spare parts for the most important items. Ford 8 of 9n tractors are great and look simple. But if the clutch went out, could you replace it? I have done that and it’s not as easy as you might think. Repair manuals are not an option, in my thinking. They are a must. |
Visit my new preparedness site: Preparedness.cc/SurvivalPrep.net
--Latest article: Stocking up on spices to keep food preps lively
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Be prepared...and prepared to help: http://www.survivalblog.com/charity.html
Are you ready spiritually for hard times? http://www.jesusfreak.com/rapture.asp |
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caridad
Penny Pincher Member
USA
227 Posts |
Posted - 07/01/2009 : 18:16:34
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| i think learning a musical instrument is a good skill. people will always need entertaining. if the power goes out, guess what, you can entertain them. |
ARE YOU READY? ARE YOU SELF SUFFICIENT? ARE YOU GREEN???? |
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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
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caridad
Penny Pincher Member
USA
227 Posts |
Posted - 09/14/2009 : 00:32:13
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| being "invisible" or under the radar is something everyone and anyone can and should do. first and foremost, strive to be a good citizen. pay your taxes, work...do everything everyone else does. go with the flow. those who stick out are noticed first. |
ARE YOU READY? ARE YOU SELF SUFFICIENT? ARE YOU GREEN???? |
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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
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beauanderos
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
2408 Posts |
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n/a
deleted
24 Posts |
Posted - 10/23/2009 : 19:50:18
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| with out medicine your dead in 5 yrs |
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Kurr
1000+ Penny Miser Member
2906 Posts |
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Bluegill
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1964 Posts |
 Posted - 10/24/2009 : 17:37:21
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quote:
Originally posted by smc1967
with out medicine your dead in 5 yrs
With all due respect my friend. 
If you eat healthy food (no GMO's or chemicalized artificial processed food), avoid chlorinated and fluoridated tap water, toxic environments, and take natural supplements when the aforementioned can't be avoided, you will live well past 5 years. Humans don't need big pharma's modern medicine to survive (lord, how did humanity survive for the last 20,000 years with out big pharma's medicine). I can't remember the last time I visited a doctor or took big pharmas "medicine".
There is a more effective, safer all natural alternative out there to every single one of big pharma's long list of "medicines".
Also, don't cook or store food in plastic, Teflon, silicone or aluminum, or keep it to a bare minimum as best you can. Use iron, stainless, glass and earthen ware.
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Edited by - Bluegill on 10/24/2009 17:40:41 |
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n/a
deleted
24 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2009 : 05:08:41
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quote:
Originally posted by Bluegill
quote:
Originally posted by smc1967
with out medicine your dead in 5 yrs
With all due respect my friend.
If you eat healthy food (no GMO's or chemicalized artificial processed food), avoid chlorinated and fluoridated tap water, toxic environments, and take natural supplements when the aforementioned can't be avoided, you will live well past 5 years. Humans don't need big pharma's modern medicine to survive (lord, how did humanity survive for the last 20,000 years with out big pharma's medicine). I can't remember the last time I visited a doctor or took big pharmas "medicine".
There is a more effective, safer all natural alternative out there to every single one of big pharma's long list of "medicines".
Also, don't cook or store food in plastic, Teflon, silicone or aluminum, or keep it to a bare minimum as best you can. Use iron, stainless, glass and earthen ware.
Yeah, but with out some sort of support structure to help you fight of infection, insect bites, animial bites, o0oo say the flu... maybe even the bird/swine flu.. Yeah your a gonner..
unless your in 100% shape or health you wont be having a productive time going forward. the hunter becomes the hunted. |
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Bluegill
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1964 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2009 : 07:53:47
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What ever... 
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Edited by - Bluegill on 10/25/2009 07:54:19 |
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Delawhere Jack
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1680 Posts |
Posted - 10/26/2009 : 22:21:58
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quote:
Originally posted by Bluegill
quote:
Originally posted by smc1967
with out medicine your dead in 5 yrs
With all due respect my friend.
If you eat healthy food (no GMO's or chemicalized artificial processed food), avoid chlorinated and fluoridated tap water, toxic environments, and take natural supplements when the aforementioned can't be avoided, you will live well past 5 years. Humans don't need big pharma's modern medicine to survive (lord, how did humanity survive for the last 20,000 years with out big pharma's medicine). I can't remember the last time I visited a doctor or took big pharmas "medicine".
There is a more effective, safer all natural alternative out there to every single one of big pharma's long list of "medicines".
Also, don't cook or store food in plastic, Teflon, silicone or aluminum, or keep it to a bare minimum as best you can. Use iron, stainless, glass and earthen ware.
Amen Brother Bluegill!
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"Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty." Thomas Jefferson
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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
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caridad
Penny Pincher Member
USA
227 Posts |
Posted - 12/16/2009 : 16:34:52
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| what about becoming the new town barber? |
ARE YOU READY? ARE YOU SELF SUFFICIENT? ARE YOU GREEN???? |
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Delawhere Jack
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1680 Posts |
Posted - 01/10/2010 : 15:33:59
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New skill learned Friday, field dressing deer. You can only go out and shoot so many deer before the other guys insist that you leard to field dress what you kill. I gave it a try last year, (arms in the carcass up to the elbows) but I was afraid I'd puncture the bladder, or dull the knife by hitting bone, so I mostly observed.
No excuses this time. I took 2 deer, including a nice 8 point (4x4 for you guys out west). Time to step up to the plate. It's really not that bad. Most people have probably cleaned a fish at least once in thier life, so just think of it as a big four legged, grass eating, cud chewing, tasty fish...
My brother in laws son told me what to do, and I cleaned three deer in a little over an hour. The upside is, when it's 7:30pm in January, and the temp is 24deg F, the warmest place to have you hands (if your oustide) is inside a freshly killed deer....
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"Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty." Thomas Jefferson
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wheeler_dealer
Penny Collector Member
USA
402 Posts |
Posted - 01/11/2010 : 23:43:39
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| Wild rabbits are good eating. Ask your dog. Raising rabbits is fairly easy. Raising chickens isn't too tough either. I was a scout leader so I learned to identify many plant(edible-vs-non) and tree species(firewood). I have learned to tie many different knots. I can skin and butcher most of the animals that can be shot or purchased in our area.I am CPR/aed certified and know advanced first aid. I have been hoping to become EMT but have to do a lot more training. I can sharpen ax/knifes with a stone. I can read a compass and find my way. I can cook on open fire without pots or pans. I can and have built outdoor shelters and survived in them in cold snow/frost type weather. |
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wheeler_dealer
Penny Collector Member
USA
402 Posts |
Posted - 01/11/2010 : 23:53:24
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| I agree with bluegill. Good health start with a healthy diet, eat right exercise and educate yourself about natural remedies. I think one of the toughest things to overcome would be oral health problems. Fortunately dentists are plentiful these days and silver is an excellent barter item as they may still use it for fillings. |
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tmat
New Member
USA
24 Posts |
Posted - 06/11/2010 : 07:30:57
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basic fitness and health a must
jogging and old school execise
have a few navy seal books and they teach just body wt exercise
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ozarkbilly
New Member
USA
12 Posts |
Posted - 07/06/2010 : 00:11:53
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might sound silly to some, but I took a class on wire jewelry making, and I mainly make bracelets, ankle bracelets, and such, using little gemstones. Really cheap to make the stuff, and it puts smiles on faces. The ladies tend to love it
I also decided about 3 yrs ago to teach myself to play the banjo, both clawhammer/frailing and 3-finger style. I've got a cheap little open back banjo. Its really lightweight and portable, I take it camping with me all the time. I tend to gravitate towards lively, spirited tunes to learn. They span from pre-Civil War even up to pretty modern pop or country stuff. I stay away from complex technical stuff, mainly just pickin' the melody and acting like a darn fool while doing it. I've also managed to pick up a bit of harmonica on my own, as well as a tiny bit of guitar.
I think that if it ever comes to pass that TSHTF on a broad scale, mental well-being and morale/spirit boosters will be quite important. Anything that helps to take peoples' minds off of their current state of affairs and put a smile on their face, even for just a bit, will prove quite valuable I think. |
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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
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abe
Penny Pincher Member
117 Posts |
Posted - 08/22/2010 : 09:37:09
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| The biggest thing that worries me when TSHTF is the city folks flooding the country folks out. My buddy says there will be so much chaos and pile-ups that most won't make it. As far as I'm concerned, I hope he's right. So, protect your homes city folks, you don't wanna be seen with a bunch of country bumpkins do ya. My pics and shovels are sharpened and ready for use. |
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Ginger
New Member
4 Posts |
Posted - 08/31/2010 : 21:13:01
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I am a seamstress! I have been sewing things since I was seven years old when Grandma finally thought I was old enough to handle sewing supplies. I can make/repair clothing, design it, quilting, corsetry (hehe), curtains… it would be tough without a sewing machine, but it can be done.
Right now I am experimenting with gardening and playing around with home remedies. I am also learning Japanese but that one won’t help me WTSHTF. :P |
New collector! |
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Nickelless
Administrator
USA
5580 Posts |
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Beyond hoarding: What skills are you learning?
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