Survival Gear

[ScottDLS]

The key problems...in order are:

The Dead (Zombies).
The living with TOPS plans ("take other people's stuff").
The zombie virus which is in all of us waiting to be activated by death or a zombie bite.

[anygunanywhere]

I'm going to be a bit negative.

The thought of getting food by hunting sounds good, but how many others will doing the same on YOUR land!

If the world does go belly up, they'll be no police, but there will be roving bands of the "have nots" invading your world. They won't hesitate to kill you and take what you worked hard at to survive.

So, what plans do you have for them?

I am sure you can let your imagination wander and come up with the answer on what will happen to the hordes of orcs.

That doesn't take too much imagination. Orcs are bad and must be dealt with. I like the idea of balancing "give 'til it hurts" on one hand, and "show no quarter to those who take by force" on the other hand. The preservation of society depends upon it. I honestly don't know if I'm being foolish or wise on this.

AMEN.

Charity and mercy have a place at the top when dealing with a serious crisis. So does self defense and defense of others. They go hand-in-hand.

[Tracker]

If I was in my 20s I would do this class just for the fun of it. It just so happens they're doing one this week in Dallas. They teach you how to break out of locks, handcuffs, etc. At the end of the class is a roll playing game where people are hunting you and you have to try and avoid being caught. They know what you look like but you don't know who they are.

http://www.onpointtactical.com/product/ ... dallas-tx/

The instructor is Kevin Reeve who was feature in a Nat Geo channel hypothetical scenario where a virus kill 30% of the population. Reeves is the guy who says "We have a saying, we are nine days away from anarchy."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8_wACL7sw0

[Tracker]

If I was in my 20s I would do this class just for the fun of it. It just so happens they're doing one this week in Dallas. They teach you how to break out of locks, handcuffs, etc. At the end of the class is a roll playing game where people are hunting you and you have to try and avoid being caught. They know what you look like but you don't know who they are.

http://www.onpointtactical.com/product/ ... dallas-tx/

btw here's reporter's article who took the class
http://www.hemispheresmagazine.com/2014 ... mb8yhl2.97

[The Annoyed Man]

http://ar15mold.com

[LSUTiger]

My wife and I are looking at disaster preparedness - survival food stocks and the like. Obviously one of the most important things is access to clean water. There is a creek directly behind our house, so we have a read source for water, but it obviously needs to be purified. So I'm looking at the Lifesaver Jerrycan - http://www.lifesaversystems.com/lifesav ... r-jerrycan

I'm wondering if anyone has one of these and especially, if you do, if you've used it. Worst case scenario, if the water system fails, this would allow us to have drinking and cooking water.

Just some more ideas...... Remember the 5 C's, 10 C's and the Redundant C's

http://beprepared.com/water-storage/bar ... tanks.html

https://sawyer.com/products/type/water-filtration/

http://lifestraw.com/

http://beprepared.com/water-storage/water-filters.html

Don't forget about chemical water treatment and boiling! (of course you need stainless steel containers for boiling)

Firestarting
Lighter
Matches
Ferro Rod
Bow Drill
Hand Drill
Magnifying Glass
Fire Plough
Fire Piston
Flint & Steel
etc etc.

Zero dirt time, endless youtube time.

[TomsTXCHL]

Don't forget water for the toilet (and tp!). Will you be visible when lugging water? You have to consider whether you want others to see you, and if not a pump/intake system and storage tank adjacent to the house might be in order. Plant a couple of tomato plants and tell the neighbors your tank is for gardening.

[txglock21]

I have got into canning this last year. Last year's garden produced way more veggies (especially cucumbers) than I could use, so I started canning and storing. Not only was it fun, but very cost effective. Now I'm buying bulk fruit and veggies at the store for pennies on the dollar and canning. Also, starting making my own jams and jellies that are much tastier and healthier IMO. I didn't start doing this as a "prepping" thing, but it is a great by-product non the less. I also buy extra cases of bottled water and keep in a separate closet just in case. (And of course extra ammo).

[equin]

Interesting topic on opinions on water purification. Having lived in Puerto Rico, the Mississippi Gulf Coast and Florida for a number of years, I've already been through 5 or so hurricanes, including a post Katrina aftermath trip to look for my Dad in Biloxi when all communications went down.

The following is my experience in the hopes it may help others:

The aftermath is when all of modern society's conveniences end and you have to make do with no running water or electricity for a period of a few days to a few weeks. But don't think it's just the aftermath you have to worry about The actual hurricane is bad with all the destructive winds, rain and flooding. Don't do what I did back when I was much younger and foolish and drive over to a friends "hurricane party" in the midst of it. Nothing like seeing a metal stop sign fly by in front of you and over the hood of your car to make you realize that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to head out while mother nature is ripping everything apart - but when you're a young and foolish you think you're invincible.

The two most valuable things after the water and power go out are water and gas. We used to fill every bathtub and large container in the house with water and stock up on as much bottled water as you can get your hands on before the storm hits. Of course, everyone else will also be emptying the shelves of bottled water. Trust me when I say that you can never have enough water, especially with a family. You won't have enough to bathe with, except for maybe a quick sponge bath on a rare occasion. But you still need it to wash cooking pots, use the toilet and drink from. It will be used up quick.

When the power goes out, so do the gas stations. So driving is usually limited to short trips. But since American society is built around long commutes and driving everywhere, that can be tough. You also won't be able to buy more gas or diesel for generators once it runs out. After Katrina hit, my brother in law's partner, both of whom own a used car lot, managed to siphon gas from some of the cars on the lot to make do. I suppose looting thieves could probably do the same to other people's cars, but I never witnessed that.

When Katrina hit, it knocked down telephone poles and cell phone towers. So don't expect to be able to call friends and family to find out if they're ok. This is the main reason why my cousin and I loaded up my truck and drove down from Dallas to Biloxi to look for my Dad after news reports of death and devastation. Communications were down not only in the Biloxi area but also in a wide region of south Mississippi, Alabama and parts of Louisiana. Ham radio use could've worked, I suppose, with battery operated radios, but neither my Dad or I had ham radios. And I later learned that those ham radios that were available were used for more pressing, emergency matters.

Alot of folks talk about stocking up on guns and ammo for occasions like that, and although I think that's important, I never saw occasion for the need of the use of firearms, even in crime ridden Puerto Rico. By far, water was always a much more important commodity than guns and ammo since you will have to use it, whereas guns and ammo may not have to be used. Even so,?it's always better to be safe than sorry and have it and not need it rather than not have it and need it.

But despite news media reports of looting and aftermath mayhem, the most important consequence I've noticed after every hurricane, no matter how devastating (and Katrina was the worst I ever saw) was a local, group survival phenomena where neighbors who hardly knew each other started looking out for each other and helping each other. I don't know how to explain it, but I witnesses it each time. Need medicine or bandages? There was a neighbor running over to share some. Don't have a generator? String up some long extension cords and feel free to plug it in to keep the fridge on and keep the baby's milk from spoiling. Don't have enough water? Help yourself to the bottled water in the garage. Of course, this helpful phenomena was in place where most folks knew that things would get back to normal and the lights and water would come back on after awhile. I don't know if the helpful nature would last during a prolonged loss of water, sewer and electrical services, but I thought it was telling of human nature's ability to unite for survival purposes at least in the short term.