[JackBohm]

I'm not sure what to add to my stuff to stockpile. I live in a semi-rural area. I have a somewhat defensive outlook. I can see a break down of society- shades of the James Wesley Rawles(SP?) book "Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse." I have 3 small- 35k, 22k 9k people in the 3 cities biggest to smallest of them - cities with in 1/2 hour of me. Big cities- Toledo Detroit, Lansing- 100k or bigger- are an hour or more from me.

Problems- Lack of funds- My dad is unemployed. I have money coming in but I am on austerity program. Can't spend anything atm.

So far, my stuff includes, among other things

Reloading equipment- press, dies, etc for metallic cartidges- stuff for any gun I own that is reloadable
Reloading supplies- enough for some ammo.
Guns- some handguns, couple of hunting shotguns, 1 Muzzleloader, 1 .22, and old Enfield.
Clothes- nothing special- just general normal day to clothes plus some hunting clothes.
Cutlery- 1 black short K-bar, a couple of multi-tools, a few folding knives and pocket knives
1 abreviated set of Web Gear- American 1990s Issue I think."Y" suspenders, belt, 1 canteen with pouch, cover & cup, 1 empty canteen pouch, 1 mag pouch, a couple of other bags that attach to it
1 Swiss Rucksack, old but very servicable.
1 MRE kept in the car
Minor bit of first aid stuff.

The Family has stuff besides mine- a number of other guns, assorted canned goods- not a lot of food.
We've got enough guns, though I Still want to add a couple of rifles and a riot gun or 2.


My wants-
more MREs. as an emergency food supply
Water purification supplies
More Fire wood- we've got a fire place we can heat with.
More blankets and such
Mil grade outdoor sleeping gear.

More ammo & reloading Supplies

a couple sets of BDUs- Black & khaki please- Camo is too conspicuous in some areas-plus it looks too para-military both up close from a distance. I figure khaki makes more sense- good concealment, and looks "normal" from a distance- and normal if you ditch the web gear & shirt when up close. That includes field jackets. Size is an issue- I take 3XL sized bdus. 2XL can go around me but a bit snug.

More medical supplies.

Any ideas? suggestions? what shoudl I add?

 

[556X45]

I'm not sure what to add to my stuff to stockpile. I live in a semi-rural area. I have a somewhat defensive outlook. I can see a break down of society- shades of the James Wesley Rawles(SP?) book "Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse." I have 3 small- 35k, 22k 9k people in the 3 cities biggest to smallest of them - cities with in 1/2 hour of me. Big cities- Toledo Detroit, Lansing- 100k or bigger- are an hour or more from me.

Problems- Lack of funds- My dad is unemployed. I have money coming in but I am on austerity program. Can't spend anything atm.

So far, my stuff includes, among other things

Reloading equipment- press, dies, etc for metallic cartidges- stuff for any gun I own that is reloadable
Reloading supplies- enough for some ammo.
Guns- some handguns, couple of hunting shotguns, 1 Muzzleloader, 1 .22, and old Enfield.
Clothes- nothing special- just general normal day to clothes plus some hunting clothes.
Cutlery- 1 black short K-bar, a couple of multi-tools, a few folding knives and pocket knives
1 abreviated set of Web Gear- American 1990s Issue I think."Y" suspenders, belt, 1 canteen with pouch, cover & cup, 1 empty canteen pouch, 1 mag pouch, a couple of other bags that attach to it
1 Swiss Rucksack, old but very servicable.
1 MRE kept in the car
Minor bit of first aid stuff.

The Family has stuff besides mine- a number of other guns, assorted canned goods- not a lot of food.
We've got enough guns, though I Still want to add a couple of rifles and a riot gun or 2.


My wants-
more MREs. as an emergency food supply
Water purification supplies
More Fire wood- we've got a fire place we can heat with.
More blankets and such
Mil grade outdoor sleeping gear.

More ammo & reloading Supplies

a couple sets of BDUs- Black & khaki please- Camo is too conspicuous in some areas-plus it looks too para-military both up close from a distance. I figure khaki makes more sense- good concealment, and looks "normal" from a distance- and normal if you ditch the web gear & shirt when up close. That includes field jackets. Size is an issue- I take 3XL sized bdus. 2XL can go around me but a bit snug.

More medical supplies.

Any ideas? suggestions? what shoudl I add?

add the guns after you have the food. IMO dont loss sleep over the tactracal look sounds like you could blend in as you are.

 

[danger]

Water. Water. Water. Food, shelter, and finally defense.

You mention a fireplace. Are you talking about a wood stove, or a brick and mortar fireplace. Most fireplaces send most of the heat up the chimney.

Also, seeds and gardening tools. Think long term.

 

[Crutch]

Looks like you are a prepper, not a survivalist. I don't think I can help you, however I will try.

Don't be a prepper.... no I can do better then that.

Go through the LDS to obtain 30 year foods CHEAP. (Church of Latter Day Saints) Stock pile them. Pray they last you to the other side.

To be honest though, a 40 cent pack of seeds would be cheaper, go further, and might see you to the other side.

 

[14DFASniper]

You need a saw and some type of axe. I would add a few small sets of tools since you are reloading and may need to do some gun smith work. file, punches, screwdriver, small cresent wrenches, nut driver, exacto knives, sharpening stones.

shelter - need tent, poncho, rain gear, tarp
sleeping gear.
Warm clothes, sweater, jacket w/ liner, leather work gloves,


Web Gear:
I'd add a buttpack to your web gear, extra ammo pouches, map/compass and GPS, water filtration, canteen stove, first aid kit, and some type of communication, whistle, poncho w/ liner, leather gloves, eye protection, small folding saw, binoculars, Full sized quality knife (CS recon scout), Gerber LMF2 or something along that order, a little bit of food and electrolyte powder drinks, maybe an extra canteen too. Basically turn your web gear into a survival system suitable for recon or EE.

 

[MikeK]

Start with water first. Water always comes first! It's more important than food or anything else. If you have plenty of available water in your area, all you really need to look into is purification and some ways of storing it.

After that's in place, you might want to start working on building your food supplies. You can add a little here and there as you have a few extra dollars. Beans, grains and dry pastas add a lot of bulk foods cheaply. There are many threads here on food storage to look through for ideas.

 

[snowdog650]

1. Water. Even if it means buying a few packages of water purification tablets ... it is better than nothing ... which is what you have. Get a canteen for your empty canteen cover on your LBE. A filter would be nice ... but can be pricey. At least get a couple Aquatainers.

2. Food. 1 MRE is not going to cut it. Forget buying expensive MRE's. Buy canned goods on the cheap at your grocery store. Cheap, and a good start.

3. You mention a lot of shooting gear (reloading equipment, guns, components, etc.) ... do you have anything to clean those guns?

4. Did I mention water?

5. Forget mil grade sleeping gear. I used to be mil grade myself. And I froze my ass off in that mil grade crap. For the same price or even cheaper, buy non "mil-grade" sleep gear when it is time to buy that stuff. But, personally, I think to should focus your funds elsewhere.

6. You are in Michigan. What I learned while growing up in Wisconsin was that if your feet are cold, then you are cold. If your feet are warm, you are warm. In the infamous words of Lieutenant Dan, "Always take care of your feet." Look at getting some good, rugged, WARM footwear if you do not already have it.

Best, my friend.

 

[JackBohm]

1. Water. Even if it means buying a few packages of water purification tablets ... it is better than nothing ... which is what you have. Get a canteen for your empty canteen cover on your LBE. A filter would be nice ... but can be pricey. At least get a couple Aquatainers.

2. Food. 1 MRE is not going to cut it. Forget buying expensive MRE's. Buy canned goods on the cheap at your grocery store. Cheap, and a good start.

3. You mention a lot of shooting gear (reloading equipment, guns, components, etc.) ... do you have anything to clean those guns?

4. Did I mention water?

5. Forget mil grade sleeping gear. I used to be mil grade myself. And I froze my ass off in that mil grade crap. For the same price or even cheaper, buy non "mil-grade" sleep gear when it is time to buy that stuff. But, personally, I think to should focus your funds elsewhere.

6. You are in Michigan. What I learned while growing up in Wisconsin was that if your feet are cold, then you are cold. If your feet are warm, you are warm. In the infamous words of Lieutenant Dan, "Always take care of your feet." Look at getting some good, rugged, WARM footwear if you do not already have it.

Best, my friend.

OK, some more info.

1 I'm about 1/4 mile or less from a Large lake- by large, I mean about 1300Acres of water surface. Plus there is a another lake linked to it less than 200 yards from it by a canal. Its a clean, clear lake- unless the confounded Jet-skiers have been out. Its clean enough to drink- at most I'd need to boil it. I was figuring on storing a lot in washed out milk jugs. How much bleach to 1 gallon of water?

2 I figure on buying more canned goods. The MRE was intended as a patrolling ration.

3 . Yes I have stuff to clean and lube all of my guns.

4. I figure on adding more blankets for the house.

5. Boots are all good- day to day I usually wear Ecco Track Hiking boots. I have soem winter stuff. Socks are uniform socks- blackk, mostly wool. I find I have fewer problems with wool than cotton or other stuff.

As far as tools go, we've got a pretty good assortment of socket sets, wrenches, hammers etc. Several shovels, a couple of garden rakes, a hoe or 2.
Gunsmithing stuff- I've got 1 brass punch, a gunsmith's hammer, a arkansas oil stone- my brother used some of that stuff to tune 3 of the handguns- action jobs on the revolvers. Probably will buy set of screw drivers.

Nice thing about where I work-A sporting goods shop- as a part timer hired before 2010, I get a house charge, limit is $250, plus we employees get discounts on stuff we carry and a lot of gear that is of use is carried. I've picked up a lot of my ammo, Reloading supplies, and gun stuff there. We carry a great selection of Cutlery, camping gear, firearms, fishing gear, hunting & casual clothes. The bad news is my limit is near max atm- they take 10% or $20, what ever is more every 2 weeks.

What should I add to my LBE? I planned on usign it for Recon or E&E. I have a "butt Pack" that came with it. I figure on the MRE, a 2nd canteen, my K-bar. In the butt pack, I was figuring on the MRE, a space blanket, water purification tablets. What else should I add?

The Enfield is my sole rifle- its currently scoped with a Burris Fullfield II 3-9x40mm scope. I have the 2 position iron sight- a 300 yard battlesight and a click adjustable ladder rear- & parts stored safely where I can re-install 'em if needed. I wonder what is more practical- the scope or the Irons.

My brother has a new production Auto-Ordnance M-1 Carbine- its accurate, and we have the dies etc for loading for it.
Aside from the handguns, most of our guns are hunting models- a mix of 12 & 20 gauge shotguns- 3 Semiauto 12 gauges, 3 semi-auto 20 gauges, 1 O/U 12 Gauge, 1 SxS 12 gauge, 1 pump 20 Gauge, 3 semi-auto .22s.

Handguns- all revolvers
2 S&W .22s
1 S&W J frame .38
1 S&W .38/44 Outdoorsman
1 Dan Wesson .357
1 Ruger GP-100 .357
1 S&W Model 29 .44Mag
1 Dan Wesson .44Mag- 3 barrels- 4 inch, 6 inch with Power Control porting system and 8 inch, plus a red dot scope & mount for it.

 

[K2user]

I don't really know what to add, but I am jealous of your Cabelas job! I love shopping there. What kind of discounts do employees get, if you don't mind me asking?

 

[ebbiedeadboards]

Newby

Hi gang,

I'm a newby here, just joined about 15 minutes ago so if I'm in the wrong place please bear with me.

I found this post interesting and was just setting up what I do have to stockpile so far. My question is about medicines.

I think it is important to have antibiotics on hand and other medications that might be needed and would like information on this. Some of the antibiotics I have right now: should they be stored in the freezer, vacuum sealed, or what? And how long are they really good for?

Food, I'm working on. Guns, well....consolidating everything in one spot of my tiny house is my main goal right now. Hence, the question about what to do with the meds. Thanks.

 

[JackBohm]

I don't really know what to add, but I am jealous of your job! I love shopping there. What kind of discounts do employees get, if you don't mind me asking?

It varies. Somethings its as much as 25%

 

[seawind]

First thing : DON'T use your real name on your posts (I hope I'm wrong here)!! You revel way too much personal info, there is no real need to do so. (you can say you work at a sporting goods store, no need to state it's name)
The info gathered from this site + Common Sense will let you know what you need. Best of luck

 

[223shootersc]

shelf stable foods rice and beans can get 10 lbs of each for less than $20 maybe some extra sugar and flour and oil

 

[MikeK]

1 I'm about 1/4 mile or less from a Large lake- by large, I mean about 1300Acres of water surface. Plus there is a another lake linked to it less than 200 yards from it by a canal. Its a clean, clear lake- unless the confounded Jet-skiers have been out. Its clean enough to drink- at most I'd need to boil it. I was figuring on storing a lot in washed out milk jugs. How much bleach to 1 gallon of water?

Milk jugs are not good for water storage. First off, it's hard to get all the milk out of the pores. But also the jugs break down and start to leak in a relatively short time. Soda bottles are much better.

The recommended bleach treatment is 8 drops per gallon of clear water or 16 drops for cloudy or suspect water. But bleach has a short shelf life. It starts breaking down as soon as it's made and loses potency quickly. It still smells like bleach for a long time, but after a few months has lost the ability to disinfect your water. A better choice is calcium hypochlorite, AKA pool shock. It lasts for years. There's a big thread on it in this same forum. It is always either on page 1 or 2. It's worth a read.

 

[Olypengal]

Hi gang,

I'm a newby here, just joined about 15 minutes ago so if I'm in the wrong place please bear with me.

I found this post interesting and was just setting up what I do have to stockpile so far. My question is about medicines.

I think it is important to have antibiotics on hand and other medications that might be needed and would like information on this. Some of the antibiotics I have right now: should they be stored in the freezer, vacuum sealed, or what? And how long are they really good for?

I agree with you, medicine will be VERY important. Besides prepping what I can of OTC and animal antibiotics, I'm thinking really long term and am now planning my medicinal plant garden and have bought several books on how to grow and prepare many extremely useful herbs. Most can be dried and stored for a year or more. Just a thought!

 

[JackBohm]

Milk jugs are not good for water storage. First off, it's hard to get all the milk out of the pores. But also the jugs break down and start to leak in a relatively short time. Soda bottles are much better.

The recommended bleach treatment is 8 drops per gallon of clear water or 16 drops for cloudy or suspect water. But bleach has a short shelf life. It starts breaking down as soon as it's made and loses potency quickly. It still smells like bleach for a long time, but after a few months has lost the ability to disinfect your water. A better choice is calcium hypochlorite, AKA pool shock. It lasts for years. There's a big thread on it in this same forum. It is always either on page 1 or 2. It's worth a read.

OK what else is good for water purification, aside from Boiling?

 

[JackBohm]

Water. Water. Water. Food, shelter, and finally defense.

You mention a fireplace. Are you talking about a wood stove, or a brick and mortar fireplace. Most fireplaces send most of the heat up the chimney.

Also, seeds and gardening tools. Think long term.

I think this one is designed to heat at least part of the house . We looked it over thoroughly.

 

[momof4survivor]

I just hit Sams Club 10# bag of pinto beans = $6.86
10# bag of white rice = $4.28

So I got 50 lbs. of beans today and 20lbs. of rice today to add to what I already have. My buckets/mylar/O2 absorbers should come next week.

 

[MikeK]

I just hit Sams Club 10# bag of pinto beans = $6.86
10# bag of white rice = $4.28

So I got 50 lbs. of beans today and 20lbs. of rice today to add to what I already have. My buckets/mylar/O2 absorbers should come next week.

Their large bags are an even better value. 50 lbs pintos usually runs about $25 and 50 lbs rice about $15. I wish they had more variety in beans, but pintos is all I usually find there. Luckily most hispanic markets have good deals on other beans such as black beans or lentils, and asian markets have a good variety of different types of rice. I love Calrose.