[greenhorn]

What is the best way to get started on preparing? What is the first priority
guns, food or gear? How much will I need for start up Money for a family of four (2 adults and 2 children 8 yrs old and 11 yrs old) for 4 months. Thanks for any and all input.

 

[sierra308]

I would start with guns and ammo.the prices are going up rapidly,availability is also an issue.The local gunshop in my area can't keep enough AR 15's and AK's.

 

[jeffreyamanning]

Always remember the Rule of 3's. It's the best way to start prepping, in my opinion.

Many people ask what survival supplies to stock for an emergency.
Preparations for disasters and threats can be minimal or immense. You
get to decide. No one can tell you what to stock but yourself. Make
your own list. Make your own decisions. Are you going elk hunting for
two weeks? Are you going rafting for four hours. Are you going to
hole up in Idaho for the winter?

A good way to prepare for future emergencies is to list the threats and
the corresponding solutions. The RULE OF 3 categorizes threats by the
time they can greatly effect you. With this kind of thinking in place,
you will respond to threats in the correct sequence. THE RULE OF 3 is
often summarized that you can die from: blood loss is 3 seconds, air
loss in 3 minutes, heat loss in 3 hours, water loss in 3 days, food
loss in 3 weeks, shelter loss in 3 months and health loss in 3 years.

THE RULE OF 3 is
often summarized that you can die from: blood loss is 3 seconds, air
loss in 3 minutes, heat loss in 3 hours, water loss in 3 days, food
loss in 3 weeks, shelter loss in 3 months and health loss in 3 years.

TIME YOU CAN DIE FROM THESE THREATS

3 SECONDS Major arterial blood loss, gun shot, knife wound, being
crushed, a fall, other accidents.

3 MINUTES Suffocation, drowning, avalanche, heart attack, cave in, gas
poisoning, serious blood loss.

3 HOURS Hypothermia from cold, wind and rain. Heat stroke from sun,
desert, exhaustion and drought.

3 DAYS Die of thirst, some water born diseases, food poisoning, snakes,
severe infection, tick paralysis.

3 WEEKS Starvation, bad water, general infection, strong radiation.

3 MONTHS Starvation, disease, loss of shelter, general health
deterioration, weak radiation.

3 YEARS Poor diet, vitamin deficiency, lack of exercise, despair

In the same order of need, list the items in your survival kit under
the five headings: SURVIVAL, HEAT, WATER, FOOD, SHELTER & HEALTH.
Refer to THE RULE OF 3 to determine what equipment is needed in each
category. We often are asked how much equipment or food to store. We
don't know your resources. We always recommend asking your self
"HOW LONG DO I WANT TO SURVIVE ?"

SOURCE

 

[ChubbyHubby]

food, water, and shelter. These have utility in virtually any crisis.

 

[MOS19K]

The usual answer you get when asked what to get is, "get a gun". There's reasons for this, I think mostly it's because it's the "cool" fun part of prepping. Everyone likes to get a new gun and talk shop about different weapons and ammo. The reality is you need food and a clean water supply first. Since you're online I'll assume you have shelter so we'll skip that.

As to what kinds of food to stock up on, well that really depends on you and your family. For the most bang for the buck, go with dry goods; rice, pasta, beans, grains. For convenience you can go with canned goods that you see every time you visit the supermarket. Other choices are freeze dried goods, such as those from Mountain House. MRE's are another option you can look into. Don't get overwhelmed, start slow, see what items your family likes. Make sure whatever you decide to stock up on that you have a balanced diet.

Water, is a bit more complicated. Storing water is difficult because it takes up a lot of space. You might want to look into a water purifier, such as those made by Katadyn. I would still suggest you try to store as much as you can.

Another item that isn't talked about much is cooking the food. How do you plan on cooking? Do you have a camping stove? Look into these, you can find them for under $50.

Now we can talk about weapons for self defense. What are you comfortable with? Do you already have a firearm? If you're going to only have one weapon, I'd suggest a shotgun. It's very diverse, can be used for home defense and to hunt with.

Please remember this is just the opinion of one person.

 

[rridgeoutlaw]

IMO, Stock food first. If SHTF tonight, This will give you time to scrounge the rest. If you don't have to worry about feeding your family this will be a big load off your shoulders while you prepare shelter.
Second, get a rifle. I wouldn't worry about assault guns at first. A good .22 semi-auto will help keep food, it's quiet, no kick. In addition, with a little scouting you can use the .22 to "get" assault weapons. Watch the "bad guys", perhaps a small road check point and plan your attack to secure their weapons. A good knife can also be a big help here. If you're not up to this, to survive, find the nearest FEMA Camp and give it up. Good Luck!