I have been writing to preppers for almost 10 years now. Never before have we been so close to a genuine collapse of our society. Never before have we had such a level of surveillance and technological tyranny upon us. It makes many just wanna head for the hills.
Vanishing with a family of four is a tall order. It requires some serious planning and execution. I should also add that the timing of an operation like this could make or break the entire things So, with all that said I will tell you how I plan to vanish in the next crisis and how you might want to vanish, too.
We are going to assume that I will not be a specific target of any one person with excessive resources so that my vanishing will simply be a means of waiting till people forget about me.
I’ll Leave Fake Leads
As I prepare to get out of dodge, I will be very intentional about my communications with neighbors, friends, and family.
Online communications and messaging will be another important place to leave these fake leads. This is just a matter of leaving a handful of options so that if anyone comes looking, they will have a few places to check first. Of course, none of the leads you leave are going to be remotely close to where you are actually going.
Sell Everything and Pay Off Debt
You cannot take everything with you. The less you can take the better!
Those expensive things hanging on walls, hidden in boxes or on shelves, all should be sold. Sell them sooner rather than later because things like entertainment could lose value depending on the nature of the next crisis.
Related: How To Stay Off The Radar In The Upcoming Economic Crisis
If rising food costs and food shortages grip the nation, then people are not gonna wanna spend money on a PlayStation 5 or a massive flat screen television. Use all of that money to pay off any debt that is clinging to you.
Creditors have lots of resources, so you want them off your back. They are likely the people that will come looking for you the hardest.
I Will Smash or Move Electronics
An important and even satisfying step will be the destruction of all your electronics that ever held any information about you or could follow you around. I know that my footprints on the internet are well documented.
Still, destroying electronics will keep people like google from tracking your GPS locations.
If you want to get really tricky, you could tape your cellphone to the top of a freight train or trolly and let it ride around the country a bit, while you make your break for it.
You could use a panel from Powerfilm Solar and hide the phone up on a roof somewhere. It would give a great false position and the solar film would likely keep it on for weeks if not months on low power settings. Put it in a Ziploc bag so the rain doesn’t ruin it.
I’ll Change My Appearance
This might be a simple one for you or it might be one that evokes some real emotions in you. Prepare for that. The good thing is that simple changes to your appearance can radically affect how the world perceives you.
For men it can be as simple as shaving that beard you have always worn and getting a new haircut. For women things like changing hairstyle, hair color and even changing the makeup style can make a big difference.
Related: How To Camouflage Yourself In A Survival Situation
How you dress can be changed and unique accessories like glasses and hats can be used to give yourself a completely different look.
I use my family as a metric. How would my family do at recognizing me? That is the question you should ask yourself while planning to vanish in the next crisis.
I Will Maintain Constant Movement
The only way that a person can truly vanish in this modern age is to be consistently moving during a crisis.
This is why one of the first things we will do is buy a used camper with cash. This will allow me to move from one place to another or even spend days at a time on the move.
Settling down for long periods of time should be avoided. You can settle for a bit and make some money, but it will take a lot if you are going to lay a serious foundation and rebuild your life as someone else. Instead, remain transient in your new life.
Choose a Cash Business for Income (Or an SHTF Career)
It’s important to have an emergency fund. I think people really struggle with this prep. Saving in general is something of a struggle for many Americans. No matter how big that emergency fund is though, eventually, you are gonna run out of money.
If you go back to work with your same name and social security number, then you will be back on the map. The whole vanishing act will go up in smoke.
The better option would be to consider a kind of cash business or what I call the SHTF career. If you are choosing to vanish than I assume the world has taken an even worse turn. I have trigger points for this, and you should develop some of your own trigger points for when it’s time to get out of dodge.
Some Great SHTF Careers For Making Money After You Vanish:
• Firewood Splitter and Delivery
• Blacksmith
• Craftsman
• Handyman
• Security or Bodyguard
• Potter
• Butcher
• Farmer
• Delivery Man
• Apothecary Healer
Weather the Storm
For the person who is vanishing during a crisis the early days are going to be the hardest. There may be people who truly want to find you and those people are going to use most of their resources to do that in the early days.
Not to mention you will likely be migrating in a collapsing world. You will be trying to reestablish yourself in a world that is coming apart at the seams.
Related: The Best 5 States for Living Off-Grid
You are going to have to weather some kind of storm. It might be a good time to just stay boarded up in whatever it is you call home.
Park the camper at a state park with good views for a week or two.
The heightened surveillance state, the collapsing world, and the rise in crime all over this nation is enough to make anyone want to VANISH tomorrow. Things are getting wild out there.
While disappearing yourself in this modern age is a lot harder than it used to be, well, it’s still possible.
It’s gonna take a little extra planning but you can pull it off. There is nothing easy about this and you will likely have deep regrets at times, but it could also be your path to safety and prosperity as the world goes fallow around you.
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A person’s actions, to be successful, would depend on the nature of the crisis. We may feel a sense of doom. People have been feeling that for millennia. And societies have, indeed, collapsed across those millennia. Yes, it probably will happen again. But, I don’t know how it will look.
Humans are pretty resilient. A slow collapse produces counter-measures that prop things back up for a while. Seems to me, it would take a sudden collapse, of an unexpected nature, to actually bring society to its knees. But, yes, it could happen.
We are dominated by surplus economics; an economic and political enslavement that milks our labor and numbs our minds to hamper our personal independence, the kind spoken of by John Locke.
A growing number of people are opting for a return to subsistence economics, the old economy in which one’s direct labor creates wealth for themselves, not wealth that bubbles to the top 1%, their banks, anointed lords and knights.
Those who are able to fully embrace subsistence economics and leave the surplus economic grid behind, will barely notice the collapse, if it happens. But, even those who cannot become fully subsistent will be less impacted by collapse, to the extent they are able to adopt subsistence economics.
Run? No, be where you have no need to run. The best prep is a change of lifestyle, independence.
I agree John, this person’s plan (and unless he’s being deliberately ambiguous about it ONLY a plan) requires near perfect knowledge when and how things will occur. Only in SHTF Novels is a CLEAR Moment of THIS IS IT occurs. Otherwise aside from a Series of Bright Flashes across the sky and or the power poles melting there is apt to Not be a clear BUG OUT Moment. And even then, without a place to go with trusted friends you’re but a Refugee.
Far better to have established yourself among trusted friends and as self-reliant away from the crashing system as possible. Note I did not say self-sufficient, that has never happened in human history. Even in the Indian times a tribe had to work together to gather enough to survive and put away some for the times of scarcity.
As I see it, we are already in a slow motion SHTF economic collapse. The system reserves of trust in the system is badly depleted, the abundance of nearly fake money is near the toilet paper stage, the Just In Time system that worked to “Perfect” the system for more profit AT the Cost of System Fragility has been shown a wobbly wreck from a fairly minor COVID “Plague”. THAT and We HAVE NO National Grain Reserves Russia and China however Do have a year’s PLUS set aside. There is currently nothing in deep pantry for the USA and I suspect the rest of the WORLD. China has ALREDY Bought the bulk of the US Crops for this Year before they were harvested. THINK about that for a moment.
As John says systems tend to self-correct BUT with Gov.com stomping on the accelerator (this times it’s different MOAR Money pumping) and then the Brakes (Price Controls, Rent Controls), system oscillations and MAJOR Failures easily occur.
If your “constantly moving seeking cash employment” you’re a Refugee. Dependent upon the kindness of others to park your “Used Camper” somewhere (How about ah drinking water-portapotty issues?) and with an abundance of UNEMPLOYED people NEEDING some sort of employment how do you be “The ONE employed”?
Even today when I hire folks for cash work if I don’t KNOW them or they are vouched for by friends I DON’T Hire them. In BAD Times where a “Temp Employee” might be inclined to steal OR WORSE from you WHY should I hire some random dude in a Used Camper Van?
You NEED a Tribe, not the dream of fleeing troubles.
I didn’t say so, but I agree with what you called “tribe”. I say community. Same thing. Trusted circle. First, for security. Second, for psychological and faith support. Third, as trading partners of skills and products. Fourth, someone to banter and joust with.
Agreed, Should have a fall back place in the mountains with as many friends as you can muster up for defense as the roving packs of animals who are well prepared are the main danger here.They have the guns and they will use them to take whatever you have,,, Stand alone and you will die, that simple..Arrange this now if you haven’t already and land is still available. Remember 1 thing….. gangs are lazy and will not climb hills..All chip in and buy a place where you can get a T Trailer or build a small cabin and get solar and batteries and pray it doesn’t break. Have everyone come with al least 2 years worth of food,, and dogs.Lots of dogs..
Definitely, be the gray man. Hide in plain sight.
Good post, much thanks. niio
John You are correct in what you have said.
But this article is very misleading for a lot of reasons.
First it does not matter if you don’t have a cell phone with you and use an old classic vehicle with no electronics if they want to find you, they will. How you say? Even purchasing and old vehicle will leave a trail because you bought it from someone and that someone has its description. People will see you leave or with that vehicle. That is where the trail starts. Then there are video cameras on almost all hyws and roads. Then you have to buy fuel for it. So, tracing you may not be as easy, but it can be done.
Also, it says to pay all your bills of because those you owe will hunt you down. I ask you how you will do that if it is a collapse? Because the money will be no good.
Moving constantly puts you in danger from attacks because the roads will not be safe to travel. Nor will a campground be safe even with a good view. The safest place is an area you know well because you know what is on the other side of that hill, stream or lake and don’t have to scout out strange areas.
Selling all you unneeded stuff might bring you some money but if a collapse happens money will be no good. So, the money no matter the denomination will not be worth the paper it is printed on. Gold, silver and precious metals maybe but it will be a year before it will become useful again.
Also are you willing to give up family and friends that you cannot take with you? I know I will not.
I will not run. I may die right here but I will die trying to protect my family, friends and neighbors. Life is only worth living if you can live it with honor and I do not see any honor in running and hiding while your friends, neighbors and family are dying.
I don’t tell you not to prepare because without preparation you will not have any chance of survival. SO yes, put back food, guns, ammo, water and things that will aid you. But your mind is as important as anything else so, learn methods of doing things like using wood gasification, water filtering, canning, gardening etc.
Dreaded: Did you every read Wolf and Iron? Story basics, the computers go down. No one knows why, but society slowly collapses. A young college professor in Michigan went to school in that town and lived there ten years is suddenly a stranger. He gets worried and takes off on a solar powered electric bike, heading home to a ranch in Montana. One of the worse signs of social collapse is when he stops at a remote store to buy or trade and sees a man in chains, a slave. Next, he encounters gangs of raiders. Back when this was written, it was popular with us survivalists. 🙂 niio
https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/wolf-and-iron_gordon-r-dickson/352019/item/2741475/?mkwid=%7cdc&pcrid=77172118016632&pkw=&pmt=be&slid=&product=2741475&plc=&pgrid=1234751784898761&ptaid=pla-4580771610506224&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Bing+Shopping+%7c+Literature+&+Fiction+%7c+LOW&utm_term=&utm_content=%7cdc%7cpcrid%7c77172118016632%7cpkw%7c%7cpmt%7cbe%7cproduct%7c2741475%7cslid%7c%7cpgrid%7c1234751784898761%7cptaid%7cpla-4580771610506224%7c&msclkid=bca288ace9b41db61babeabc41941e59#idiq=2741475&edition=1754627
Red I read Wolf and Iron, and like most of my books it’s still in my library.
Like most of the SHTF genre a lot of “Lucky Breaks” and Dex Machina occurs so the Hero or in this case almost a non-hero continues onward.
As a hobby sailor and boatbuilder there is a saying among the small craft folks. You LEARN and DO all the things to keep everything safe and ADD points to your Luck Bucket. When troubles occur, you reach into that Bucket for Luck.
So, in short, make your own luck, lest you find yourself out of luck.
Learn and Do folks, a van full of mountain house and gadgets still in the plastic will not be the sort of luck you need when darkness falls and this internet connection fails.
Get Busy folks, our won “Leadership” has already sold us down the river (selling our crops before they are harvested to the Chinese) and is looking at Ontario Canada for ideas they can use to Selma Alabama us when we protest.
Michael: If a boatbuilder, you’re a step ahead of a great many. I was taught how to make a dugout, as well as a canvas covered canoe.
After all these years studying and listening, I don’t consider Wolf and Iron anything but teaching. Dickson went to friends in the CIA and FBI for what they thought might happen. The best advisors were asked to read the manuscript and make changes. Not a lot was changed. He knew his stuff because he was a survivalist. Before his father passed away, he said they spent a lot of time in the rural areas learning everything. What is luck? Knowledge which helps in foresight. As you say, we make our own luck.
Did you see the elder woman trampled by a mounted cop in Ottawa? niio
One thing not mentioned is how & where your “camper” will be registered. I’d suggest SD as you can be a non-resident and register a vehicle there.
I think Wyoming is another state that allows out of state registration. Either that or there is a Wyoming corporation furnishing bus service in our town as all the transit company’s buses carry Wyoming plates.
Registering will give away the area you in or at least the state. Also, if there is a collapse there will be no law enforcement. What would you be doing if you were a police officer during a collapse? You would be doing the same as everyone else.
While I see the reason to bug out to a remote location and try to be self reliant, I do not really think you or I are important enough to need to change your identity unless you are a wanted criminal. Why would anyone need to find you? When SHTF the government or society is not going to give a hoot about you or I or where you are. I do not really understand this article.
Chris:
There are over 800 FEMA camps in the USA alone – mostly built by the Bush family with Halliburton money; and at least 100,000 electronic guillotines ordered from China by the Clintons when they were in D.C. — they can behead over a hundred people per hour, with no human to man them….
Now, Pfizer has just been given more power than any government on earth has ever had… and….along with Israel’s a.i. (that can even read thoughts)..clearly world government plans have been in preparation for decades, if not centuries (starting with guys like Albert Pike).
The fact that you are still human and still breathing…makes your soul and body very very desirable fodder for sinister powers & principalities diligently at work.
Amazing for the 11 thumbs down (and more will fillow, no doubt…Most Americans are effectively brainwashed into denial)! Fair enough…all will find out for themselves as the time nears…. As for me, I am praying daily rosaries+???
I would like to scope out a FEMA camp. With over 800 across the country, I wonder if you can give me the locations of such camps in the LA area? Also where are “they” storing 100,000 electric guillotines?
It seems to me 800 such camps would be hard to hide all 800 locations, even in the desert areas.
If there is no electricity after an EMP/CME or even a financial crash, how do “they” plan on operating the electric guillotines? Seems like more poor goobermint planning or could it possibly be an urban legend?
Inquiring minds want to know.
could you please point out where one of those camps with guillotines is?
rm p, where did you obtain this information about 800 FEMA Camps and electric guillotines? Do you have any legitimate information we can review for ourselves, as in links to support your claims? If so, please post them.
An old hack a military friend had shared. One of the only ways to destroy computers and technology to prevent followers is to microwave the computer chip and other things on a plate for 15 minutes.
A hammer seemed to work just fine for Hillary.
build a good hot brush fire. It’s cheaper and 100% sure to destroy.
Miz Kitty: There are two great places to learn what people by the herd are like. Sheepherder and Monkey house at a zoo. niio
I am not a microwave specialist, but based on all the warnings I have read about metallic parts in a microwave and my own personal experience watching a tiny piece of aluminum foil that had inadvertently been left stuck to the cardboard tray put on an impressive albeit miniature firework display, it is my opinion that putting the computer chip in the microwave is going to result in an impressive fireworks display in your kitchen before the microwave self-destructs in an even more impressive display. Better have a fire extinguisher rated for electrical fires handy and a good story to tell the fire marshal when he or she comes to investigate the cause of the fire.
Might I instead suggest a large rock whereon you place the chip whilst vigorously applying a three pound sledge. I guarantee when the chip is in almost microscopic pieces as suggested above if you are not some notorious spy for a threatening country, no one is going to spend the time and money in an attempt to reconstruct that chip
I had a un-backed up hard drive crash with all my business accounting on it. ( Yeah, another lesson in the School of Hard Knocks) and about 30 years ago it cost me $500 to get the info off the disc onto a 3.25” inch floppy. That was with a very simple SuperCalc spreadsheet program. I can only imagine how much that chore would cost today with the greatly expanded and thus more complicated algorithms
No creditor or governmental agency is going to go to that effort to find Joe Average unless you are NOT Joe Average. If you are Joe Wikileaks, maybe they will expend the effort and the money but it is my belief that none on this list are in that category. If they were they most assuredly wouldn’t be posting here.
Hi Chuck… I respect your advise I use ViseVersaPro to backup my data to a JABOD, no raid, no complications. As far as digital security, a 10lb sledge with concrete behind it or a metal cutting saw work really good! Personally, I’d prefer to get to know my neighbors and form an alliance rather than leave all my resources and run to who knows where,
If we have a government national or worldwide collapse, they’ll have bigger fish to fry than a nobody like me.
LCC:
Otoh, never underestimate human stupidity or hubris!?
Give me a break. Literally. You’ve never heard of a cheapo propane torch?
Plastic burns. Even SDRAMs fry under high heat. If you have little time, hell, dig a firepit (or use a charcoal grill) and set the device in question upon it and stand upwind.
Period.
By way of example – a simple candle took care of an old SDRAM (NOT applied to the plastic coated with gold that constitutes a SIMM connect) just as a test for writing this very message.
Dead, dead, DEAD!
How about just removing the plate?
Many valid things have been put forward. Overthinking is an operation to avoid. When things go down the reaction period is 72hrs max., lucky time 1 week. The big question is the response by the police, the military, FEMA, and other gov. Agencies. Will they follow orders (Nazi style, Soviet style, ChinaCCP style) after the 1st week.
A plan must be put forward for yourself and then those who will be part of your “force”. Those must be screened (vetted) even family for those that don’t understand what survival of the fittest means and that includes offense and defense and elimination of the actual problem as needed. This means any any associations (once again) are carefully vetted and they can be in a diff. but close location with constant contact and daily monitoring (all this previously agreed upon), basic procedures and action agreed upon. The # of people need to be controlled probably no more than a military company total with each “squad” (location) a carefully self sustaining #. There are no tribes or communities but an association of complimentary individuals with agreed upon goals. This association can be as little 1 person ( the loner-who has many skills and flexibilities).
As has been mentioned the business model put in place starting in the 1990’s,”on time” inventory (ie 1 week in stock depending on bus. type)no funds tied up means that there will be no product of any type in quantities to sustain any area of the country, especially the cities. There “dog eat dog” will occur quickly if things last too long. The problem of roving band s of individuals ,families and groups will have to be contended with- probably harshly, everything is about survival. Do not become what is now called “humanity” that term has been bastardized and distorted because of the current state of civilization- where the governments are transforming the concepts of democracies and republics back into the form of totalitarianism by bureaucracies who back susceptible politicians- it is all about control of the population as the trial run has shown about the “pandemic” and the number of the willing was/is unbelievable. There are many more aspects to be discussed just not here and not now.
That’s great but what are you going to do for gas to move around when they go to the mark of the beast and your cash won’t work.I suggest you study the “Great Reset ” It’s happening as we speak .
In such a situation, I don’t think I am important enough for anyone to be trying to find me.
I also do not want to be moving about in a vehicle. Who knows who you might encounter, and you would be at the mercy of finding gas to propel yourself around.
I would head for the country, where I was born and raised, without electricity or running water. I was born 77 years ago, and I fully remember what my parents did without amenities for a family of 7 children to survive, without lights, or telephone, or any electrical appliances. I remember them placing meat into a bucket and lowering it down into the well to keep it for a few days longer as it was cooler there. My father cut all the wood needed (we lived in a climate where winter was very cold), with a buck saw, and an axe… it was all hard physical labor. I remember going to bed when it got dark, and getting up when it was light.
I remember in the winter having so many quilts on the bed one could barely turn around, and still being cold to the bone, because the mattress below was so thin it provided no extra heat.
I would head back there, where we have a cottage, in a small community in the country. And I would stay put. For food, until a garden could be planted, one might be able to trade ‘things’ for food from local farmers. Rabbit traps could be set, fish could be caught in the river beside the cottage. Living would be harsh for a couple of years, but I think one would be safer in that scenario than in a van, hoping for a safe place to stay, and ready to flee at any given moment.
But then, as mentioned, I am not very important, no one would be trying to find me.
There may well be times when going underground is the only option. That said, I will bug in here on the ranch I live on. There are some heavily wooded areas where we could easily survive while still being close enough to our possessions should we need something. A few trips with the side by side would cache enough supplies and tools to get by for awhile. Unless a group of folks took up residence here, I doubt anyone looking for us would hang around waiting for us to return. A long, hard surveil would determine whether anyone was around. Would we be impossible to locate? Hardly if someone wanted us that badly, but not likely. But it’s like my preps. I’m ready for almost anything but hope I never have to go into shtf mode.
I don’t think the method(s) described in this article are sustainable if society collapses. They may be useful to get you to a bug-out location if circumstances are agreeable to traveling like this, but I would not depend on these methods as a reliable way to be a permanent transient.
I haven’t read all the comments here, would like to just not enough free time. My thoughts:
* You can destroy your electronic, but they have already sucked your info. into the cloud, so good with that. Destroying your electronic is the best you can do, but don’t count on it being enough.
* That camper is a great idea if it can run on veg oil – is it a converted diesel? If we get hit with an EMP the gas pumps won’t work.
* Cash, you are better off with a SHTF skill – wish I had one, my career didn’t help me with that. They are going digital for all the compliant sheep & if you are not one you will be left with bartering. The most your cash will be good for is TP imo.
* I agree with the guy who said you should be were you want to be already. Sadly, I’m not. Still that is no guarantee since geo/weather/floods/fires/political changes may continue to force moves even if you don’t want too.
* I think the best strategy is finding a skill & learning it quick for bartering. Get rid of everything you can so you can just walk away and not feel devestated. Learn to live & survive off the land – what’s left – bushcraft I think it’s called. Then hope you don’t have to resort to that.
* Good Luck Everyone we need it.
The thing that always comes to mind for me is water! It will be the new currency. If you bug out you are really are at the mercy of others. At least at home you hopefully have a large store of water and a collection system, that isn’t very portable, And people may frown on you if you hijack there gutters!
Well, any of you city slickers looking to come to the countryside for respite when SHTF, had better be prepared for rural dwellers who will not want you here. Most of us do not have much respect for you anyhow as it is most of you that got this country in the jam it is in. You will not have our resources, you will be chased off our lands and out of our areas. Most of us all know and agree with our neighbors, so it will not be one family you will face, but multiple families, all well armed and well trained. You will be nothing but a plague of locusts to us and if you think you will survive in national parks on your own, you are very delusional. They will be combing through those like wildfire. And even if not, few of you know how to deal with the elements, wildlife or have serious survival skills. And that is not even counting the nasty things that happen with human kind when there is not enough food or water, you are dirty, sick, no fuel, etc.. Talk about predation, it will be from human beings, though an occasional bear or bobcat might find you a tasty morsel. Once deprived of adequate food and water, your body and brain will start to go downhill depending on your current physical status. Looking at all the extremely obese and lazy people in this country, I would say that will happen quickly. So you best stay home and deal with the situation. You may not like my comments, but that is the truth of it.
There is a lot of “countryside” in the USA, so if you really don’t want people coming to your area you should give at least the general location or state. I’ve planned for years to move from suburb to rural long before the SHTF even became a thing. Certainly wouldn’t want to be moving to a place where people were unfriendly.
Phyllis: Stranger equals enemy in bad times. You should have decided where to move, and spent vacations there, bought in there, and churched there. If you have the money, now is always better than waiting. The less of a stranger you are, the better all around. niio
yeah i agee with him… Don’t be coming here thinking you can just bug out in the county by us either. Or do come and come with a lot of cool stuff because that would be nice to find cool gear.
the article is semi typical here but i give credi where its due its well written and thought out. however the lone wolf deal is a joke. Tribes and Mag groups are key
Phyllis, I’m in a similar position, we currently live where we do because of career and family/medical concerns. With retirement coming in a few years, we are considering taking trips to Northern Arizona, Eastern Texas, and the Florida Panhandle to see what each is like during both the hottest, coldest, and stormiest seasons for each area, then decide what would be best for us and start some serious real estate shopping.
I grew up in Oregon, with some family still living there that have invited us to move back anytime, two in rural areas, one is a functioning Homestead, but we prefer milder winters and are willing to deal with the issues of living farther south. Going back to the Northwest to live is “Plan C” if needed. The only time I could ever imagine us becoming “Permanent Nomads” is if we need to hunt and gather to sustain ourselves and had to keep moving to survive.
Raven: Exactly. Bugging in, you know the area, the people, who can be trusted, who maybe can be, and those instinct say shoot first and ask questions later. If bugging in, you should have an intimate knowledge what and where you can forage, fish, hunt, or trap. Good post, niio
Phyllis, I think Redsheep was referring less to folks who decide to “move” to a rural community, and more the those who think they can just use any old woods or field as a place to “bug out”. Our community doesn’t have a problem with people buying a place here, but if you think you can just set up camp in our bottom field by the woods, at the very least you will be asked to leave, or you may be dodging some buckshot…
I’ve talked to people just from our medium size city about 20 miles away who had assumed that they could just drive down some country road and set up their camper! Some urban types don’t really understand that vacant land doesn’t mean public land…
redsheep: Y2K all over again but on steroids. niio
Spare me the attempt to illicit my sympathy of living in a “unfriendly” area. Lot of countryside yes, suitable for rudimentary living, not necessarily. Planning to do something and actually doing it are two different things. I have been here for 35 years. Didn’t even think of such a thing when I moved here. And as for my general location, it does not matter, because what I said will be going on in most locations. Country people are usually very nice, but not to the the extent of feeding and supporting a herd of desperate people, none of whom you know, some of whom are probably mentally ill and those that will become desperate criminals when the going gets tough. We are here for living peacefully, we do not like the ways of city and suburban people, we are very self sufficient in varying degrees. You can’t just hie yourself to the country and think you will be welcomed during a crisis. You have to be on that land and develop subsistence skills because there may not be grocery stores nearby, the power might be down, yada yada. The parasites in the inner cities will be going out to suburbia to pillage there and you people will be coming here to do the same thing to us. Maybe you are naïve enough to think it will be all kumbaya, And yes, such articles as the one here, may try to tell you such things, but it is not true. All you have to do is look at what happened when Katrina struck New Orleans to see what happens to people during a crisis and that is only in one city. Be wise, get on the land you planned for and learn some survival and plain living skills. If you have been planning for so long, I would think you have acted on it. I can tell you that land is becoming more and more expensive every day, especially now. The resources, wells, septic tanks, gardening skills, livestock and hunting skills, are just a few of the skills you will need just to have a chance to survive. Unless you have resort to a large sum of money, now is hardly a time to start. Build up your defenses where you are, get armed, stockpile food and water. Too bad you are not liking my response to all of this. But having a starry eyed dreamy outlook on this escaping to the countryside is not going to make it work for you. Get serious and take action to the best of your ability and monetary resources. Good Luck.
I agree I’m don’t consider myself as a prepper but as a survivalist. Look out for your family, friends and community everyone else may be an enemy.
LOL I wasn’t looking for sympathy Redsheep & agree with what you are saying. Your first post seemed very hostile where this reply has something to offer people here in this discussion. Why haven’t I moved yet? Because I was working and waiting to retire which I’ve did this past fall. I’m currently getting rid of unnecessary things & fixing my property to sell. I’m really annoyed at all that is going with this SHTF & lockdowns (things you’ve mentioned) that are making finding a quite, peaceful place in the country more difficult. I have no delusions about surviving off the land at my age in my condition. I would like to spend what ever time I have left in a peacful, beautiful place. I’ve always been on my own, so not looking for anyone’s handouts. Agree 100% with you in that area of people leeching off others and being dangerous – they are. Just looking for a place where people will leave me alone & be respectful of my property as I would theirs. I pray you don’t have to fight off the Zombies 😉
Truthfully, you’re probably better off just staying put, Phyllis. At your age (retired) you could live another 30-plus years, but that lifespan will be reduced should shtf. I suggest overhauling your possessions, keep some for bartering purposes and sell the rest, using the money to build up your supplies, and arranging a secret location for the bulk, but keep some readily available for looters to think they got it all. Then, prepare to meet your Maker. Why should God let you into His heaven? You need to be ready for that moment. And in all the moments before, no matter what happens, you’ll be able to live in peace, knowing God’s got your back.
Sheila: Good advice. I moved back to Arizona 4 years ago and have never regretted it. Better to bug-in; in a worse-case scenario as the saying goes, better to starve in your own home than the doorstep of a stranger. Extra from the garden goes to neighbors. Hear about a need, help where I can. That’s what builds good relationships. Church and ‘hood. As I was raised, be a ‘hand. niio
Red that’s a basic truth, BE a HAND in your area. Sweat equity in your neighbors is worth a lot when things get weird.
The best way to find out if someone might be a bad times asset is give them a hand in a small yard project. Shovel snow with them, rake leaves, something.
If they come over to help you later that’s Excellent. Continue to help each other, soon enough you get to know them better. You can build upon this as time allows.
If not, they are likely a taker. I’d give them a second try with a small project to confirm taker status. Takers need not apply at my homestead when things are weird.
Also following the wisdom of Proverbs
22:24Do not make friends with an angry man, and do not associate with a hot-tempered man, 25or you may learn his ways and entangle yourself in a snare.…
Proverbs 15:18
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger calms dispute.
Proverbs 29:22
An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered man abounds in transgression.
Who NEEDS such troubles when so many other things are going weird around you? Goodness WHO needs such when things are “Normal”?
I say never get involved with folks that want to “Start something”. Generally, easily duped angry fools or Feds seeking a quick promotion.
To expect you can simply drive up in your car even with useful supplies expecting a welcome when things get weird is foolish. You’re an UNKNOWN, probably a Hazard when things are stressed. ANYBODY can Talk a Good Story about being a Nurse or expert gardener or other very useful SHTF asset, but you have to PROVE you’re not a dangerous BS artist or Worse.
Michael: Yes, always, be a ‘hand, be a neighbor. (unwanted trivia>)Um, no. When it does snow here, little kids hide from it. The only reason we don’t have major wrecks is because most folks work in Tucson and have to go up a thousand feet in elevation before heading down to civilization.
Proverbs are filled with wisdom, wisdom that came because Solomon set aside God to satisfy himself. That should be the main point learned.
Stranger equals enemy. I’m known as a friendly man, helpful, and easygoing. I also have a dog that’s family rep is very, very bad. He’s a mountain xolo/Indian village dog/pariah. A neighbor has a female who gets loose now and then. When she does, they find dead coyotes in the brush. We have a mountain lion that makes round down through the canyon and they’ll kill a dog left out overnight, but not her. The breed is generally very quiet and not given to noisy, but playful? And energetic. niio
Red about Solomon you might want to read:
1 Kings 3: 4 The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for that was the most important high place, and Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”
6 Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.
7 “Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. 8 Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”
10 The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. 11 So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies but for discernment in administering justice, 12 I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. 13 Moreover, I will give you what you have not asked for—both wealth and honor—so that in your lifetime you will have no equal among kings. 14 And if you walk in obedience to me and keep my decrees and commands as David your father did.
So, I am unclear why you thought Solomons wisdom was from “Setting Aside God”?
2 Timothy 3: …15From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be complete, fully equipped for every good work.…
Maybe I misunderstood your comment?
Why so many word to ask one, very simple questions? How many wives did Solomon have who were not of his faith? How many high places were covered with idols and pagan priests by the end of his reign? The only non-Jewish wife he took out of the 1,000 who joyfully immersed in the faith was the Queen of Sheba. He wanted her to sit at his side to rule Israel, but Moses Law forbids that. We hear hints of how important she was to him in the Gospels. Matthew 12:42 and Luke 11:31 and their son, Menelik I, who she gave Ethiopia to as an inheritance. “For Solomon’s son should have a kingdom. Shebans were matriarchal, so their daughter (unnamed) inherited the Sheba throne from her.
Now, the point is according to rabbis I learned under, Solomon was rebuffed from putting anyone not born into the faith on the throne. He got angry and studied foreign gods. 1 Kings 11:1–13 He led the kingdom away from God and only in his lattyer years did he repent, yet still did nothing to stop the corruption.
This is not under the discussion but he’s ex-Muslim and very much a Christian. A lot of Muslims love him, and some hate him for his knowledge and outspokenness. If you dialogue/witness to Muslims, he’s a good one to study under.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQuMV1val00
Timing is everything in a situation like what we’re talking about.
The very best time to go would be ASAP, because I really don’t think the situation we are currently facing is likely to improve any time soon.
The last thing I personally would want to be doing is driving around during a shtf mega crisis, and there is a very real possibility that the federal government will use the crisis as an excuse to restrict travel, (even private cars and commercial vehicles), by declaring martial law. There may well be “no-go” areas declared around major cities, bridges, airports and other transportation hubs. Certainly there is likely to be restricted travel around military installations, federal buildings, ports, etc.
That all would mean that there would be a likelihood of detours at the very least, searching of vehicles for “contraband” and weapons with potential for seizure of supplies, extra gas, weapons and possibly the entire vehicle leaving you to walk or be interred as a “potential threat”.
If you don’t think that can happen, just take a look at Ottawa and the Truckers’ convoy.
As to what exactly constitutes a shtf situation, I would suggest (as someone else did earlier in this thread), that you sit down and plan it out with your family and possibly bringing in any family or friends that you may be planning on “visiting” for the duration. It would suck to drive across country and find out that THEY have bugged out when you go to knock on their door, and unless you communicate with them ahead of time that might happen.
Now what does vanishing have to do with prepping?.The author doesn’t seem to realize you need new paperwork to vanish. Everywhere you go the police are driving around with license plate readers that automatically check the plate against a variety of data bases. If that camper is registered in your name you have completely failed at vanishing. Texas is dealing with an interesting scandal, the law on dealer tags was so poorly written criminals have purchased millions of valid tags that are not associated with a specific person.. Something like that would be ideal to help hide your identity. I worked with a lot of illegal Mexicans over the years and made a lot of good friends. Any Mexican flea market has somebody selling fake I.D., drivers license, social security, birth certificate. It’s surprising how easy it is to pass off a fake I.D. The guys would go to a tote the note car lot and put down cash on an overpriced junker using their fake I.D., buy a one month insurance policy and register it, buy fake dealer tags, never make payments and abandon the thing on the side of the road when it broke after 6 weeks. Once we sent in a bunch of I-9s with 10 digit social security numbers, 6 months later the Government wrote back asking for valid numbers but most of the guys were already back in Mexico for the winter.
Back in the 70s and 80s I spent a good bit of time at a little town on the Rio Grande called Lajitas. It has since been destroyed by the wealthy, back then it was a great place to disappear. We got to know a few of the characters down there who worked as horse wranglers for the T.V. and movie companies that were filming a lot in the area in those days. The guys lived in a little Mexican town, San Carlos, about 15 dirt road miles inside Mexico, a pretty little village with a live creek arising from a spring in a beautiful canyon. None of the Americans there had a last name or a true first name. One fella was called ‘Just Jake’, if asked his name he answered, Just Jake. Rumors said he worked for the Mafia and was hiding from the FBI, or that he was a good guy hiding from the Mafia. It was really something drinking beer and shots on the porch of the old Lajitas Store and here would come Just Jake and his partners leading their horses up from the Lajitas crossing looking like some bad old 1875 outlaws. Just Jake eventually died of cancer, his Mexican wife buried him in the Terlingua graveyard. The world used to be a lot more interesting place.
Yep, those were the good old or bad old days depending on your viewpoint lol.
When I was a younker I live in Brawley California. I went down to Mexico every weekend. Had a pretty little Mexican gal I was dating. I was only 15 years old then. I went anywhere down there by myself and had no problems. Why did I not have problems because I made friends with people there. I showed them respect and they returned it. I only had a cople of issues and one was when I got stopped by the police for going down a one-way street the wrong way lol (those darn signs were hard to understand). But a friend saw me and came over asked for 5$ which I gave him, and he gave the officer. The officer just said don’t do it again where he had already said he was taking me to jail lol.
Where this gal lived was in a hilly area and had a cold spring that they drew water from man that area was nice.
Yes, it used to be interesting, now it is boring with all the hype going on.
Dreaded: Wow, inflation. When I was a running the border it cost 2 bucks to keep the man happy. 5 later, when running down there as someone much more mature (OK, old, aging aka papi 🙂 My ex is Tarahumara and spoiled our son rotten, but when he misbehaved as an older preteen, he got a pinch on the butt and was told you come from respectable people. Then a sweet to make him feel guilty. If he was really bad, it came from mami, his grandmother, what will people say? then tears. No child psychologist ever understood kids better than those women. niio
Dreaded: It was stated he wasn’t going to do this. We bugged-in four years ago, coming home to Arizona. For most of us, that’s the best thing to do. There are sites dedicated to doing that, usually in the city.
I agree because stranger equals enemy. This is a great village, and a great many folks are from other states so it’s easy to blend in. We made friends with ranchers, and none mind if we forage for fruit and mesquite on their lands. An avid gardener, I share produce and sometimes get fresh rabbit or chicken in return. Fresh means on the hoof. Rooted cuttings of fruit trees and veggie plants are free for the asking. We save a lot of seeds, so share them, also. Coming here was a great thing, but I know the desert and mountains.
In winter, we get snowbirds. Come summer, people moving up from Tucson or down from Phoenix. Most are cool, interesting, and often bros. Then the small percentage of troublemakers like some bikers and so on. When they go back to the city after the heat dies down, some abandon dogs. But, stray packs are never a problem. Most are friendly and lonely, and wind up at the shelter. Others, coyotes trick them back into the thorn brush and kill them or the big kitties do (a mountain lion who calls this part of the area home, and a female bobcat who scares off the mountain lion).
This article is for post-SHTF. Right now there are possibly thousands of ‘nomads’ who sold off everything and bought a camper van. An aunt and uncle did that. He owned a plumbing business and owned a farm. When he retired, they sold the farm and business, and bought a small camper. Winter in south Florida, spring and fall back home, God knows where in summer. Once in a while to the Zona Mennonita in Mexico, where German is a first language for many. They always said, stranger equal enemy. Go slow, be respectable, and a friend but never a patsy. niio
Judge: True, but remember, there’s thousands of nomads out there, people who sold out and moved into camper vans or even small cars. An older couple told me to stay under the radar. The secret is, always follow speed limits and understand local laws. Even with modern tech, it can be hard to track the free people.
We get flooded each fall and prices shoot up thanks to the snowbirds. There are RV sites all over, as well, who do nothing but cater to them. There was a prepper I used to follow, the Greyman, who bought a nice sailboat and took off. He owns a small ranch north of Flagstaff, AZ, and leased it out to a family of Navajo and in the lease it states he has the right to come back any time but only to use a small shack near the main house. niio
Red your reply to comment was turned off about if I had read those books you mentioned. No, I have not read them, but I will when I get a chance. I did see a show once based on that scenario.
I have made comments I think might make people think more about reality then most of these comic book articles like this one.
This article will get some people killed because they will think well this might be a good way to be invisible or to hide. But it will make them even more visible to the people that is near them that they might not know is there.
My point is travel in chaos is more dangerous than staying still and quiet. For instance, you have to move to a new area because you were discovered by unruly people and say it is 10 miles away. So now you have to run, and those unruly people will be watching which way you go. Then you have a problem of not being seen as you find a new spot. So, say you find that new spot without being found now, you have another problem. You do not know what you is around you and will have to scout out this new area which means moving around in it. You have just increased the likely hood of being discovered again.
So, my basic point is not to move any more than you have to. This is from the very start of the shtf. If you stay quiet, have your things hidden so others can’t see or find them. look as if you’re in as much need as they are then your invisible to them. I ask what the best way is to hide? Well from experience in plain sight by blending in with your environment no matter the environment, it could be city, rural, wilderness or like other people that is moving and hunting. You would be invisible to them.
I was hunting one time and got tired. So, I sat down on a fallen tree in plain sight. I sat there for 30 minutes not moving around any. The squirrels, birds and other animals started playing as if I were not there. I was at that point invisible. 3 deer came out of the bush, and I started raising my rifle to take one when one of them looked right at me. I froze and waited till it looked away then I raised and fired. To make a long story short I took that deer and my grandson sitting about 100 yards away took another one, so we had meat for the freezer.
This article in my opinion will do more harm than good. Once your place is discovered all you can do is protect it. Running will do nothing but make you lose what little you have that could help you survive. I could not take even the food I have put back because using any vehicle just says you have something and so will draw fire from people who are taking what they want.
I worked with a woman over thirty years ago and she left me with information that I will never forget. We were eating chicken at lunch one day and I happened to notice that my discarded bones still had meat (all-be-it gnawed} on the bone, her bones were shiny, even the gristle was removed. I mentioned the difference in a nice way, kind of beat up myself for being wasteful. That is when she told me about Castro sending “soldiers” to remove her family from their home. She looked back and another little girl was holding her doll. she said you learn when you have something appreciate it because in the next moment you could have nothing. It was not that she was somebody to come after, the family that took her home were people to be rewarded. All of these comments are good info even though the actions can be debated. It’s personal decisions and I am grateful for the article as it makes me access my plans and even adjust my plans to be able to flow into that option in case the need arises. Maybe hide a few supplies in safe containers in the bushes down the road, even bury them, so if I have to walk away, I have something.
Also, there was a wrestler who turned politician, I can’t remember his name, who videoed a FEMA type fenced in camp. There were thousands of metal boxes that looked strangely like coffins. I don’t think too many people paid much attention. Maybe just to laugh. The Clintons were in office, so they just could have been for people that got on Killary’s bad side and were prone to be “suicidal”.
And for those with little to no SHTF skills, buy seeds… vegetables, fruits, and/or the little inserts that fit into the rim of the lids on canning jars that seal them. The other parts are reusable but those don’t last. The seed packs and the lids are lightweight and small so you could carry a pretty good amount even if you’re backpacking it around the country. You can stuff a lot of those in a kid’s book bag and just hook it to your backpack. I hope if any of you should ever have to wander and come my way that I am able to offer you a seat at my table, even if it’s on the ground and we have to share a can of beans. Remember to pack a spoon, lol, I would share mine, but I hope I wouldn’t have to.
Rosa: Thank you. Good post. niio
Maybe years ago when I worked some of those 3 letter companies someone would have wanted to find me but now at 70+ I’m just a relic from the past. Will stay home in Texas where I have family, friends and resources.
Terry: No, you’re a treasury of what was. Good and bad, and everything worth remembering for the last seven decades. You remember what the old folks taught and need to pass it on. In Japan, where elderly people committed suicide rather than feel useless, the government pays them to stay alive, to pass on what they know. Stay safe and teach. niio
The comment regarding rural folks rejecting urban and suburban refugees is noteworthy. Harsh post, but not off base.
I don’t think rural dwellers are unique in being wary of strangers. So are urbanites and suburbanites. The community structure is different. The rural structure is more stable with generations having lived and worked within a tight geographical area. Intrusion by an outsider is noticed and quickly communicated. Showing up as an outsider, with a world in chaos, to compete for resources wouldn’t be welcomed. Security of resources within a trusted circle is a pretty good thing to have.
Suburbanites and urbanites have their community as well, their trusted circle. What’s lacking is neighborhood unity except what’s artificially imposed by neighborhood associations or organizers, trying to capture what naturally exists in a rural community. The trusted urban and suburban circles are based more on common interests derived from the workplace, or church, or club, or favorite bar, or past acquaintances. Try to intrude into any of those circles as a rank stranger and see how far you get.
In a SHTF scenario, disunity of urban and suburban neighborhoods will be detrimental. Unity of rural communities will be beneficial. Either unify your urban and suburban neighborhoods while you still can, or become rural and prove your worthiness to your fellows while you can; but don’t expect acceptance in any unified community as a stranger, especially when security of person and of resources is on the line.
John Caton:
This is true and it is also true that unless you have established and maintained ties to your selected area, people are going to reject you when you decide to show up.
Your post also made me think of this song – this is a decent cover.
https://youtu.be/RLLoqOzoUpY
Thank you for that link. I really enjoyed the heck out of it. They did that well.
Miz Kitty: Good music. Even as a kid, I liked Bluegrass but my parents, no. My grandmother (a W. Virginian) used to tell me to shut it off. She didn’t listen to hillbilly music 🙂 niio
Claude must be smiling from ear to ear.
Of course he is not going to get a van and make tracks… he said in his first paragraph, tell people you are going somewhere that you are not going.
I wish he got a dollar for every comment, because this post sure has generated lots of them!
Nice trick Claude!
I have been speculating what I would do if traveling during SHTF and really needed to contact other people while in route for something like obtaining water or medical help before moving on to our destination. I don’t recommend approaching strangers if SHTF because they are going to be very defensive and may just start shooting at you, but if we were traveling and found ourselves in a dire enough situation and were desperate enough to risk contact, I would like to have thought about possibilities in advance.
I have no idea how much time I would spend attempting this, or what types of risk I would accept if desperate enough, but If in a rural area, my first action would be to observe and use situational awareness to determine if, or how, I should try to make contact. If deemed reasonably “safe” to approach a property line, as in, how much risk are you willing to take, I think I would have something written on paper such as “I would like to trade for water and I have some skills such as basic home maintenance/repairs, or tool and knife sharpening I could perform in exchange for water. If interested, please write a return comment and leave the paper for me to retrieve.” I would have others in my group covertly stand overwatch, while I then approached with a white t-shirt or towel in one hand raised high (hopefully they honor the “truce flag”), the written on paper plainly visible in the other hand, and yes, I would wear a holstered weapon and hand held radio so they know I am armed but not trying to attack, then leave the written note in plain sight for them to find, wave a slow and friendly farewell, then slowly back out to a safer location. Then continue to observe and see if anyone retrieves the paper and what they do, such as write a return comment and put it back (good start, but remain cautious), they walk away with it (maybe they will reply and return the paper), or instead they wad or tear the paper up (hostile – quietly and cautiously leave the area). If they wrote something on the paper and left it for you to find, cautiously approach again, see what they say, return to your group to discuss, then decide what to do next.
I may also look for “bulletin boards” where others have left written notes but would still remain cautious before approaching. The “bulletin board” may be bait used by Hostiles to lure others in close enough to be easier targets.
If anyone else has thought about how to contact strangers after SHTF and also avoid conflicts while doing it, please post your ideas.
dz as to contacting strangers there is only two ways that is the safest.
1. Communicate with paper as you suggest.
2. Use a white flag and approach slowly to a point where you could talk.
Either of these ways could get you killed.
Now I do not plan on approaching strangers until things have settled down some. But if I had to, I would approach in plain sight, with a white flag. You may get shot lol and that would tell your people they are enemies but then they may be in need of information or other things and wish to barter which is the most likely because they are a settled group. Never approach a roving group (one that sets up overnight camps and does not set up at least a simi permanent camp).
Best thing to barter with are ammo, coffee, salt, sugar, flour and spices. But then there are many other things that people might want.
Dreaded: Tobacco will be as important as food. It’s strongly antibacterial and once was mixed with peppermint or cloves for inhaled medicinal. Before obama screwed things up, people with bacterial lung infections (pneumonia, bronchitis) bought natural clove/tobacco cigarettes’ which work fast. Allergic asthma attack, a little medicated scotch snuff in each nostril knocks it out before I wind up passed out from the windpipe swelling shut. niio
dz: when in Indian Country, be an Indian. All very good advice. Be redundant. I remember reading a story how pigmies hunt elephants with only a stabbing spear. Constant pinches of dust to check the wind. Lots of cover. Need be, take a day to do a single job. niio
Red,
Way back, long ago, in my youth, a handsome young man traveled down to the states from up by Prince Rupert, B.C. I had considered what it would be like to trade my city life for his. If he still lives up there today, he most likely does not have to worry about learning to live off the gird. I am sure that the First Nations up there are doing better than those in Ottawa.
After 4 years in the USMC and 28 more in the Army I can snoop and poop to watch before I do anything stupid, but how many others have the training to do that?
Terry, teach. How did you learn? After SHTF, there’s going to be a ton of orphans in need of a pappy, bro. niio, walk in His beauty
I was thinking about how to travel without being able to get fuel. But I do not advise travel during a shtf.
Wood gasification and you would have to research and learn. The old timers used to use this to fuel their tractors when they could not get fuel back in the first two world wars and in the economic collapse that happened after. Now this can run a gasoline-powered engine, but it has to be sized right for the horsepower of the engine.
Look up Fema Wood gasification. The page below downloads a book that is from this lookup.
http://www.build-a-gasifier.com/PDF/FEMA_emergency_gasifier.pdf
I did not get any darn virus from it so I think it is safe.
Dreded: That’s excellent. niio
I saw a video a few years ago about a couple of back woods guys somewhere around Kentucky or by there. Their family history included being able to make alcohol stills. They transferred that knowledge by building a still-like steam machine in the back of their pick-up and hooking it up to their modified truck engine. The whole thing huffed and puffed a lot but it got their truck going. Nothing they used looked like it was newer than 50 years, if that. Talented guys!
Lin, it sounds similar to a TV show called Mountain Men, and a guy named Eustace living in the Blue Ridge Mountains rigged up his truck with a wood burning gas converter and it worked.
What did you guys think of the series that was on years ago called, “Revolution”? Where the lights went out forever. I don’t know how long it was on because around that time I dropped cable.
Phyllis: It got a lot of people interested in prepping. Started out top rated but became redundant. SSDD. niio
There have been a couple of comments above regarding people feeling that they’re not important enough to be noticed by the evil doers. From what I have seen, the left has a special dislike for non-descript elderly people. The Ottawa enforcers attacked a little 4’10” 80 plus year old elderly man and beat up on him. There was a second gray bearded man on video that they beat up on too. Then, there is the horrific sight of the horse’s body raising up as it trampled over the old woman with walker. The police blatantly lied and said that the horse was attacked by someone with a bicycle.
The left is full of college aged people who spend their days doxing anyone who might have said something that is not the party line. A silly store clerk noted what I said on the Next-door site regarding masks (I used the word, “research”.) and got me removed from that forum.
Each one of us is important and some of us with years of wisdom are deemed the most dangerous by the leftists because we can still extrapolate out a train of thought. Thinking clearly and cogently is the weapon that they fear the most.
Personally, I don’t much care for the political labels and pigeon-holes. I believe the powers-that-be want us to wear the labels so they can more easily target-market their pablum to us.
Nevertheless, that doesn’t diminish the fact that we’ll have opinions and world views that differ from each other. If we think the opinions of fellow citizens are wrong, then we probably think they are deluded or ignorant of the facts.
The better route, to me, would be educating them of their misunderstanding, not pigeon-holing them with a label that sets up the fight or flight mode. When you say “left”, to the “right”, you’re preaching to the choir and losing any chance to educate the “left”. When you say “right” to the “left”, you’re preaching to the choir and losing any chance to educate the “right”. If you’re on the “left”, you’re too loud to hear the real concerns of the “right”. Vice versa.
I really don’t know if this nation can heal or not, but I’m pretty sure it cannot happen until we cast aside the manipulations that each side profits from.
On a day in which I’ve struggled to find much good news comes this poll from Missouri respondents. Maybe there is hope. Maybe the people understand what the parties can’t.
“The poll found that 80% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed with this message: “The United States is dangerously divided, politicians on both the left and the right encourage that division by playing on perceived grievances and turning Americans into enemies of each other.”
I think you are correct. I think things have gone too far for this nation to heal without another war to bring the people back together as has happened in the past. I am not talking about the civil war I am talking about WWII and how everyone came together, worked together for one end.
I hear a lot of people talk the talk, but I see very few that can walk the walk. I do not know if I can walk the walk required by a shift or not. I know I have walked the walk of being an honorable man for 70 years, have abilities that most people don’t have and have the knowledge of what it will take to survive and walk the walk. But having all this means also knowing that doing is entirely different then knowing how.
John: One ting I’ve noted when talking to liberals is the blinders they wear. Selective deafness is another. It took Carter’s fumbling and contempt of the people for the US to turn to Reagan. Same thing with BO’s hate. Now, with the help of computerized elections, it’s going to be more difficult to get an adult in office. It took a massive landslide to get Trump in, and will take a massive landslide to get libs out of office. Pelosi seems to have come to a truce with biden’s owners because instead of leaving office as pelosi said she would, she decided to stay. With so many libs abandoning DC by the next election, what does that mean? She’s 3rd in line for the presidency after harris. niio
John: A cousin posted a very telling meme on YouTube. Upper picture, a man saying the covid plague is done. Below that, a woman shouting “Bring on the war.” This is the new shriek of the dnc. Word is, the dnc and Russia are again in collusion to keep the dnc in power. It didn’t help LBJ, Carter, or Hillary Clinton. niio
Sage: Canada and other nations in revolt against nazism need an excuse to claim violence so the governments can use violence.
There are films on exactly what happened on sites like Wintery Knight. No bike attack and the cop simply rode over the elder lady. She suffered a dislocated shoulder. Those being hauled off under arrest by cops are being released 15-20 miles away. niio
Red I saw in a comment you’re from Arizona. I do not know how much it has changed since I was there in 1966-1967. I lived in Phoenix and my dad worked for a Lechuga lettuce corporation. I worked for them for about 6 months until the the system found out I was only 15 and forced them to fire me lol. I changed oil and fueled all their trucks. The system also said I could not drive even though I was licensed in the state of Ms. But I drove any way. We used to take some old sand buggies someone had built and go out in the dessert and drive all over. Had a great time out there. Most of the people back then was friendly. Oh, there was a few that did not like us because we were not from there. Before that I was in Brawley California. Lived there 8 months before dad was sent to Phoenix. So, I know a little about out there. What I mostly remember is it was hot during the day and cold at night out in the dessert. There was an area I liked out toward the mountains. It was a small area that was green with no one for many many Miles. Have thought about that place a lot over the years. But I looked on google maps and there is no longer a green area there. Might be the draughts that have been happening out west. I have either lived in or visited most of the states. Arizona is not a bad place to live.
Red, I just found a report that the elder lady, a full-blood Mohawk, suffered a broken clavicle and, thankfully, did not die.
The good thing is that there are so many cameras out there now – no more secrets.
Dreaded: Definitely, it’s home. An ex (Tarahumara in Mexico) wants me to move down there but I said I gave my word to dad before he died when I retired, I’d stay in the US. Here is home. Every state I lived in I loved, but Arizona is best. I-10 corridor is one large city from Phoenix to Tucson. Every town has housing developments, but there’s still wide open spaces. It’s still cattle country with a lot of very good folks. But, many neighbors are escapees from Phoenix and Tucson. Tucson metro is now all the way to Catalina, 25 miles south of me. But, get stuck along the road and somebody usually stops to say hey and ask how you are.
You need to read up on Clergy Lady here. She lived in Kali for a long time but now is in New Mexico. Excellent adviser on all things survival. LCC (in San Diego, I think), and Miz Kitty (Boston), and so on. I also like to read City Chick (NYC), Ginny from Au and more. All are very intelligent and very knowledgeable on what we’re about.
Green usually indicates who controls an area. niio
Sage: Yeah, they ran over her with a horse, then CBC, the liberal-owned Canadian version of Pravda, reported she was dead. Liberals are trying to get protesters to become violent to make excuses for their violence. niio
Hey Red, you are right. Biden shut down our pipeline then lifted the sanctions on Russia. I imagine Putin’s pretty grateful. I heard there are truckers headed for the Capital here in America. I don’t think they should. Instead, Stay Home! and I mean stay home. There are enough of us who could spare a twenty, fifty or one hundred a month to help them through a vacation. Shut down and see how Washington handles it. Wouldn’t hurt for the Canadian truckers to follow up with this. Truckers don’t get enough respect. It’s not an easy job and they don’t get rich. Closest thing to cowboys left. I was so angry with those Canadian cops, They will probably claim they are not Nazis but that’s irrelevant any way. They are willing to do this because their pension plan is at stake and their mortgage payment is due every month. They’re just cheap cowards, that’s all. I love our police officers, they have a dangerous job but like the rest of us that make up the population, some would be more concerned with their mortgage than their freedom and their honor. I hope our police officers know we appreciate what they do for us now and what they won’t do one day. GOD be with the lady with the walker and give her a quick recovery.
Rosa: I agree. Last time truckers rebelled against the government, they didn’t go to DC but shut down interstate traffic. liberals in Canada ae trying to force protesters to get violent. They’ll do the same here and use it as an excuse to declare martial law via Gen. Miley the chickenhearted. Right now, congress is down a number of dem congressmen. Trudeau tried to disband parliament in Ottawa. in order to keep control, soros will try that here. niio
And on a lighter, nonsensical note:
In 2 days, it will be 2/22/22. And it falls on a 2’s day.
Hope you found that amusing, 2.
John: And soon it’ll be 2/22/22 2222 o’clock 🙂 Yes, I 2 found it amusing. niio
Flyovercindy, Thanks for your comments.
I think you are replying to my comments on his 1st post which to me came across as a blank statement to all without knowing us, our plans, or our hearts & respect for others & their property. To his point, he is correct as it is not the case with most people out there today. They are out for themselves and would act at the expense of anyone including thier own families, I have seen it in minor situations never mind survival ones. None of us really know how we will react when the pressure to survive is on or how well we will do in those situations. We do know how a large majority will react as he pointed out. That’s why we read these articles, why we have these discussion, so not to be so unaware or blind sided, to get ideas of what we are lacking & need to acquire esp. skills. I never even considered the squarter problems that will come; that will be horrible.
His follow-up reply I agree with his points, they are very valid esp., “Be wise, get on the land you planned for and learn some survival and plain living skills.” Long before SHT that was & still is my plan; to retire, get out of my liberal state that is full of the ones he is complaining about. Move somewhere south where my retirement $s will go further. Buy a home in a rural area to find peace & people who are conservative, pull their own weight, not looking for handouts, but willing to help neighbors who truly need help, & be around those who believe in & love our Creator & Savior.
My career was in high tech (low level) so I am not rich, my money is in my current home which I have only because I spent years in dumps of apartments saving for it. I have to finish fixing some things to sell to be able to move. I still have some hope in these current times that I might be able to pull it off. I have always planned on bugging-in, but know it may not be possible if there is fire, flood, or other circumstances requiring me to leave. That would be a great hardship on me at my age & condition.
So, my plan A is to Bug-In. My relocation plan is find a rural place in the south away from cold winters & coastlines. Who wants to add cold weather survival to their plan? Not me. I want some land for gardening, water, and a view to enjoy. I have been replacing electric things with manual things, trying to switch over to old school so if the power goes out who cares. As long as power is on I’ll enjoy it. I don’t trust my off-grid skill just yet and doing it alone is a lot of work. So, the current plan is to be on grid, but able to survive with little adjustment off grid. Learn skills that I may be able to barter with since our education system failed us in this area big time. The fortunate ones are those who became tradesmen, many of the rest of us our jobs have left us unfit in basic survival skills. Our current system did everthing it could to make us slaves & totally dependent on it. I’m sorry I didn’t see I was born into a prision sooner or my choices would have been different for sure. I’m working on growing my own food, will be learning to sew, grow & use herbs (dabbling now), & learn to forage. I don’t eat meat, so no need to raise animals for slaughter or hunt them. I’m not opposed to fishing for meat if needed, but would rather just raise chickens for eggs.
Do I have some emergency food? However, that is only a Band-Aid until I can learn to produce what I need off my own land. I want to be as free of our current system as possible. I know full well, let’s call them zombies will be searching & taking what others spent years stock-piling. So, it’s pointless for someone like me to do so for the long term. We, imo need skills & knowledge that cannot be taken. Fighting and risking injury & death over stockpiles of stuff is not worth it in my opinion. I understand others thinking it is worth it for all the time, money, sweat & tears put into their prepping. I’ve made my peace with our Savior & Father and I am ready to go home right now if they want me. I’m tired of coveting things that I though I needed when I did not. I’m getting rid of useless possessions and simplifying my life as much as possible. For many of you, you have families so it’s different.
Staying where I am now is a possibility, but my support group here is extremely limited. Most of my family is gone and the ones who remain, as well as most of my friends drank the cool-aid, so I don’t have much hope of them surviving long. Whether I stay here or go somewhere else I’m really on my own, alway have been for the most part. I understand the comments about how difficult it will be for the lone-wolves and it’s true, but some of us are introverts and not comfortable with groups, do not trust for valid reasons/experiences, and just want to be left in peace until it’s time to go home. It doesn’t matter if we are in groups or alone, It is our heavenly Father who decides who will or will not survive what’s coming. I pray he’s chosen all of you & yours to make it & with the least difficulty possible.
Phyllis, you are correct, it was the first comment – his comment seemed harsh and unfriendly, but it isn’t an unusual attitude of farmers/ranchers in some areas of the country. I guess I wanted to clarify the type of people us rurals are worried about.
I’ve read your other comments, and your attitude and knowledge puts you way ahead of the majority. I hope we don’t have to ever know how we will all act or live, if “IT” happens, but you will fare better than most. I’ve been (very) blessed to live on the farm my grandparents settled from Germany in 1837, and I’ve researched, studied, practiced and loved self-sufficient living since I was a teenager in the 60’s. We are all still learning, it’s why we’re here.
God Bless!!
Phyllis: Remember, kid, a grown man on active duty (military) can live and even thrive on 2 tablespoons of chia seed a day. Aztec military took chia with them and little else other than medicines. We have 100 lbs stocked and plan to buy more from https://foodtolive.com/ They’re based in NYC, Brooklyn, I think. Good stuff, and the price of chia is standard. While I can raise Mexican chia here, it daylight sensitive and does best after summer solstice. Tarahumara and California seeds are smaller, but spring bloomers. All demand low humidity. niio
Red, I have an account with them, so I’ll check it out. I know my local grocery store sells it too, but in small pkgs. I’ve seen it added to other foods, like rice or oatmeal, but will look into ohter ways to cook it. I have stuff to start growing sprouts too & have started experimenting with growing indoors. Still pretty cold here in MA. Also, what happens if nukes start flying, we may want to grow indoor for a while. Thanks! Phyllis
Phyllis: I have a pipe hydroponics unit but am going to go to the tub method. No pumps or things that need power, just water, fertilizer, and sun. ASAP, tomatoes and chilis are going out. Tonight, snow, but by the weekend, about 80F. But, snow is loaded with nitrogen and negative ions, but vital for plant growth. As cabbage doesn’t do well in the canyon, I planted a LOT of kohlrabi to see ow that tastes as kraut. Everybody seems to rave about it and turnip kraut. niio
Speaking of kraut check out this video. I LOVE these people home & setup & watch thier videos a lot. So many things to see that may help one get off power. I need a blacksmith to make me some of their stuff; the stand they use for their cooking pots 😉 I’m sure there must be some of those stands out their it just hasn’t made the top of my to-do-list. Love all thier tools, cutting boards, how they make their herb teas, etc. You have a watch a few of thier videos to see all their stuff & ways. Lots of good ideas. They work hard, but seem at peace living in a beautiful place. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWgibRcL5qU&list=LL&index=9 Someone gave me an areo garden, so I can get started with that too for now. I bought some kelp fertilizer to try with all my plants too. I have an old aquarium I think a 30 gallon that I might be able to do something too. I was hoping to move before starting to setup everything.
Phyliss: I have a 20 gallon tank but want that in case I decide to start fingerlings in the house. Of course, we could use one of the water barrels, but I don’t like the house humid.
Good video, but I don’t use salt in kraut or kimchi. My ancestors never used a lot of salt so it’s not a big necessity for me. I left the chilis and tomatoes out front. some spent the winter there, making fruit, even the eggplants. come summer, we need to juice tomatoes to add to the chili vinegar to make hot sauce.
Lord, but I’m yawning. time for bed. it’s 2:24 but since the operation (on the 22nd) I’ve been wired I feel so good. It’s nearly time to get up and I’m telling myself to get to bed. You have a good night. niio
It’s a big puzzle what one will need in a shtf scenero, because no one has a crystal ball to tell us what to prepare for.
But I know of a woman, in the area where our cottage is, which is very rural, decided to divorce from her husband, and she bought a largish garden shed… probably it was 12 by 14 feet. And she furnished it with what she needed (a bed, a wood stove, (It gets bitter cold here in the winter) a table and chairs.. and she lived in it for 15 years until she passed away last year. She even moved at least twice, hiring a truck to load her abode and relocate it. (The last time being on her ex husband’s property, just down the hill, where she used an extension cord for her power source.) She had also added another shed in her last location, because she made quilts, lovely quilts and that was her work-shop.
Just telling this because people can pretty easily right now purchase a property somewhere rural, near a lake or river, and order a shed and have it placed discretly on the property. Then you would have someplace to go if needed. Want to see sheds that people are living in? Here are a few:
Woman lives in a shed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sc4HkVWdpVg
living in a 12 by 16 shed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7F2_uq0HPM
$6000 shed turned into a tiny home:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PClJMWmL7qQ
It’s doable for just about anyone. Where I live, our local lumber store sells finished sheds, and delivers them for less than $4000.00.
Well Folks, I see myself referred to as a “he” by commenters. It is sort of funny as it was assumed so. Actually I am a woman,. Surprising that such comments could come from a woman? Harsh and unfriendly though it may sound, it is the stark truth of what city people will face by coming to the country in a SHTF situation and that is everywhere, because despite individual differences, reversion to the survival mode will kick in and human behavior will become pretty much the same everywhere. If you don’t act that way, there will be others including most, who will do so and you will be at their mercy. I think you are living a cozy little dream if you think it will be otherwise. That is why you must get to know people in your neighborhood and team up, train up and share resources. That is what we have always done in the country. It is reflective of how the Revolutionary War was won. Quit depending on the system (government, police, grocery stores, etc). Stockpile supplies, yes a little prepping. This is what people have always done in previous generations. Get a long gun and learn how to use it, Know your state laws regarding firearms. Fight for the 2nd amendment. The first phase in any government takeover is to disarm the populace, so they can’t fight back. They will never be able to disarm the criminals, so think about that for a moment. If you are too scared of guns, you will not be able to face SHTF reality. Guns don’t shoot people, people do. Hopefully none of this will be necessary, but that does not mean I am not planning for it. . You all are sort of like calling Trump “mean” when he tweeted, not because what he said was not true, but you did not like the way it was couched. I’d much rather be told the stern truth instead of sweet murmurings that are lies. Thankfully I am not that civilized. But at least I stirred up a discussion.
You sound like my first wife she could outshoot me, out fight me, and out talk me with the foul words got to love the French ladies.
Terry: LOL, but for the French part, your 1st wife sounds like my 1st wife. She was a Stanley, a metis (mixed blood) who’s father was a Polish American. niio
Miz Redsheep: I tend to thumb’s up your posts because they’re sensible. Several years ago, we moved home to Arizona. Not to where we once lived, but just north of Tucson to a very conservative village. Even people from Kali-fornia are conservative and most of those are families with children.
When coming here, strangers, we set up and began to reach out and still do. We’re high on the list of conservatives, high on the list of helping hands, staunch Christians, generous to a fault. But, if I see someone trying to break into a neighbor’s house, I’ll be asking why with a baseball bat in hand. When someone tried to get in this place when we were gone, neighbors asked why with guns in hand. It’s Indian country and several large ranches are around. Peace to you, ma’am, abnd thank you for posting. niio, walk in His beauty
Redsheep la domina 😉 If you are western, do you eat chia and Indian Rice Grass? Mexican chia is daylight sensitive, but Tarahumara and Californian aren’t Indian Rice Grass needs drylands, prefers sandy soil, and is a perennial. A rancher in Montana said he harvests the rice, then lets it cure down, and puts his cattle on it for a time. I’m in Arizona and over toward Yuma, Zone 10, it does well on their sandy soil. niio
…and a good discussion – thank you. I totally understood your post (and up-voted it). I believe we are on the same page – any community would be safer and better off if its members are of your mindset and abilities.
I applauded Trump’s posts as honest, welcome and refreshing, and hoped that what many viewed as “mean” would finally awaken Americans to truth – to show the emperor with no clothes, so to speak. To unveil the Washington we understand, but most don’t see.
Which is why we prepare – most still don’t see it, and they will be a danger in many ways. We are duty-bound to defend and protect ourselves.
So sorry Redsheep for mistaking you as a man, the same happens to me all the time if my email is used. I agree with your comments on Trump, most in my area hate the man. They don’t want to hear the truth. Nothing wrong with being a storng woman, it certainly will be needed. You were very direct & most women I know dance around a subject before they get to it trying not to be offensive. Why I usually prefer the company of men you don’t have to figure out what they want or what they are talking about. LOL The PC environment is killing our country & why Trump was so refreshing. Too bad the whole system is corrup, so it didn’t make a difference. Have a good night all & thanks for all the good advice.
Keep moving in a crisis? You will have to fill that van with gasoline cans to do that. It’s not like you will be able to pull into any gas station and charge a full tank on your credit card During a crisis. Are you sure you are Prepper with well thought out plan ?
You asked the right question.
Anyone planning on moving about is just begging for trouble.
I ask you this how safe is it to drive a camper around the US right now? From all I have read it is not safe at all. Now just imagine all those hungry people out there that does not have anything holding them back from robbing and killing you so, that safety factor is going to drop into the negative overnight.
As to the gasoline problem I suggest you look up wood gasification as an alternative to gasoline.
Sure ….. have you done it ? i love the posts but the truth is a few very few people have done or it would be popular…. its mostly a novelty
Raven: I knew people who had done it. During WWII, it was how most Germans ran their vehicles. Opal was forced to retrofit a lot of their military vehicles. Wood gasification is no less dangerous than any refinery. Equipment is bulky and can be hard to maintain. Methane production for home use made it obsolete until now. but, it works! There are downloads of how-to out there.
difference between knowing people and reading a book then doing it yourself and having it running….
There are places that have plug and play, so to speak – I’ve talked to these guys, but there are others.
https://www.facebook.com/ThriveOffGrid/
Raven Prepper expert. You think you’re an expert lmao.
No such thing as an expert in something that has not yet happened. Oh, you can research and do all the garbage you read about but to be an expert you have to have experienced an actual shtf event and then your only an expert for that particular type of event.
Me I am a redneck old country boy that has graduated college. I know how to survive in the present-day woods, but does that make me an expert? Hell, no it doesn’t.
The reason most people have not tried wood gasification is because they do not have the funds or equipment to build one.
I have the equipment and material to build one, but I am waiting. Why you ask are you waiting? I am researching a way to store the gasses or at least to build a larger one that would run several engines or just one small one. I see no need to build one that will just run one size engine when you can do some research in building one that say can be adjusted to run any engine up to a vehicle, multiple engines and at the same time be portable enough to use on a vehicle. The one I showed was used on a tractor during the depression and is a good design.
Say you want to run a 5 hp but have a gasifier built for a 25 hp. You could use it but you would be wasting a lot of wood chips running it. But if your design could be adjusted for HP at the gasification point then your wood usage wood be reduced.
Knowledge is power and even during a shtf if you know how it works this knowledge will help you. Oh, during a shtf event you might not have a welder to weld parts, but do they have to be welded or would just bolting them work or even just a tight fit. See you’re not thinking about common since and how it works.
ok…. so lets play the game of “having the idea vs actually making one” the guy who makes one has worked out the kinks and all the bullshit that isn’t in the book and has a better knowledge on how to improve it. Vs the guy who is waiting for the sky to fall and now is scrambling to find the odd parts you can’t find anymore.
Roflmao. But the guy that hasn’t wasted his time building something he may never need. As I said knowledge is power. You think someone is stupid for learning about something even though they do not build it. Then you have already lost because I have a lot of knowledge and I may not have all the various things made but I have the knowledge and if push comes to shove, I can use the knowledge to benefit me and my group. But if you only have the knowledge of things, you have built then you have restricted yourself to just those few things.
Which is best to have one or two things that you have research and perfected or Knowledge of a multitude of things you can build and use. I will not restrict myself to just what I have done.
its ok you don’t know how to make one or you would of …. lets not play games
You know your full of it. I can and have built anything I wanted to. I just do not at this time think it is something I will have to have to survive. You want to know what is important on my list. Surviving today, taking care of my family and bedridden wife is important on my list.
Your IQ must not be very high because you are stuck on you have to build it for it to be of use. What you cannot understand is the knowledge of it just might be applied to something else you do need.
Yes, I am researching a way to build one as I described but that is only because it interests me and not because I have to have it. I am certified in electronics/electrical/robotics/mechanical/welding/AC repair/ and a lot more that is just too long to list. I have materials that I could use to build one. I have two welders, a wire welder and an arc welder. I also have a cutting torch, grinders, drills and saws to use in medal work or woodwork. See I am retired and on fixed income so, I have to take in some work to make ends meet. This keeps me busy so, I only have time right now for research when I am not taking care of my wife.
As to working kinks out Hell I have been an equipment troubleshooter all my life lol the small kinks would be very little issue.
I just said something about the wood gasified fuel system because I thought it might interest some of the people out there that is staying in. See they will have to grow crops and they will have to plow fields. I ask you just where this fuel is going to come from if it is 6 months before they can plant?
So, you must not be a real prepper if you think this is a bad idea for those that have tractors and will not have fuel for them.
Forgive the stupid question. Would old school version of welding be Blacksmithing? I believe so, but don’t know. Another skill that will be in demand imo.
The old school version is heating the metal to almost the melting point then hammering it together until it binds together where welding actually melts both pieces of metal at the same time allowing them to flow together. To me anyone working on a project building something is blacksmithing be it modern or old style. Steel is made from Ores, so is iron. Horseshoes are made from various materials. Iron, steel and several other materials. I have heard of horses being made of lead because to allow the horses legs to strengthen. Shoeing horses is blacksmithing.
So, What I think blacksmithing is, is doing something with metal or other materials that is needed.
The only people in the old days that built anything other than houses were blacksmiths. The gun makers were blacksmiths back then.
Dreaded, don’t forget about all the other crafts and trades, such as furniture making, weaving and sewing, masonry, tanning and working with leather, pottery and glassmaking, even “tinkering” and much more. These folks all made things too.
Thanks Dreaded. I agree 100% with your comment, “So, What I think blacksmithing is, is doing something with metal or other materials that is needed.”
Dreaded: Yes, and steel is iron with the right amount of carbon in it. the process is ancient, and was kept secret by smiths for centuries. In pagan times, a smith was a follower of Volcan, god of volcanoes. In the Christian era, he had to at least be a knight to manufacture weapons. Me, I hope to never, ever have to shoe another horse. Man but even when used to it, my back would be in knots. Shorter men do best at that. niio
Dreaded: Heylo, cousin! Old country saying, quick on the brain or quickly dead. niio
That’s interesting about them having to be a knight to make weapons. One of my not too distant ancestors was a blacksmith, but no knight LOL. He immigrated here from Ireland. Phyllis
Red
You are correct “quick on the brain or dead”. In a shtf or present world everyone needs to learn something about smithing. First and most important is to learn how things work and why. If one knows this, then if one sets down and gives it due thought one can build almost anything. niio
Dreaded: Well said. Youtube has channels that teach how things work. Primitive Technology is a great one. He never speaks, but shows. niio
Yes I know how to make a wood Alcohol converter to fuel older autos but they lose a lot of power and yes I have my house which is 3/4 underground but I’ve had 80 years to prepare SHTF.
What most people don’t realize about wood alcohol in use with a gasoline engine is that the alcohol that is not burned washes the oil off the cylinder walls causing the engine to fail. The time the engine fails will depend on how old of an engine it is. The newer engines will seize up pretty quick because of the close tolerances. The older ones might run for a month or two. That is the reason they only put 3 to 10% alcohol in the gasoline.
I quess you never ran what we called drip gas, produced by heating crude oil to remove saltwater. Side product it produced was 400+ octane gas you could run it in your car but had to mix oil with it to keep it was causing just what you said. Of course we had to hid it from the government since they didn’t get their tax cut.
Terry: YouTube, look up plastic converters that make oil from plastics. niio
Dreaded, how about a diesel engine set up for methane? Would it work there? Any thoughts? Methane has to be neutralized with iron or the acid eats holes in metal. I need to get on fam in Germany to find me more info on how to use a wood gasifier. niio
At least I know my kids, grandkids and great grand daughter will have a semi safe place to live.
Magpie is still pretending he can read minds and knows all about other posters, what a liar he is, pretending to be “religious” but continues with his deceitful bad conduct, and just like the spoiled child he is, it’s all to get attention.
Is it only me or has some people in this group seem to want to cause unrest with everyone?
Terry, it is not only you. Unfortunately, we have a Troll that thinks he is some sort of “Prepper expert” when in reality he is really naive, inexperienced, and fails to comprehend the world that exists and functions outside of his “bubble”. What is really sad is on a very rare occasions, he may actually post something useful, but then reverts right back to the spoiled child and the majority of his posts are then lies and false accusations intended to provoke other posters.
dz
Sorry, I did not mean to imply there were not others that made things. Most people back then made their own stuff or had someone make it for them. I tried to convey the blacksmiths made everything contrary to what it shows in TV shows. Some blacksmiths back then made coffins, furniture, buggies, saddles, tanned hides etc. On the ranches back then they killed their own meat and tanned their own hides, and it was mostly up to the blacksmith to do this. What I was trying to convey the name blacksmith means a lot of different abilities. The definition of most words has changed in reality where they have not been changed in the books.
Red:
Glad to hear that you’re doing well.?
What about kale for your kraut? There are some varieties that are supposed to be better in heat and drought, and since it’s a type of cabbage it probably would taste ok. Swiss chard might work too.
Miz Kitty, howdy! I have tree kale and will try that. Asians blanche strong flavored greens before fermenting. For heat or cold, collards are great, but make lousy kraut. In N. Carolina, Aunt Stel used it but no one remembers how. I’ve been told to freeze the leaves for a few hours, to blanch it, and so on. A quart of each should be a good experiment. Bud heads off collars need to be blanched before cooking, but we’ll see.
chard was loved by Mom and Dad and all us kids still hate it. Beers we would eat till our hair turned red, then ask for more. Pickled raw then added to pickled eggs or cooked and butter added are still a favorite. Our version of Harvard beets.
The snow turned to sleet in the canyon, but I bet Oracle and Mt. Lemmon were blasted in a blizzard. Checked the garden. The aquaponics unit is OK, and the green beans no worse for wear. Eggplants, chilis, and tomatoes are fine, as is the moringa tree in the 5 gallon pot. Out back the lemon is sulking but will start to bloom again after this weekend when it hits about 80. Only 1 spur on the Golden Dorsett apple but they tend to develop fruiting spurs till after summer equinox. The original tree was a cutting from a Golden Delicious taken by a lady from New York to family in Barbados. they never expect an apple to do more than make blooms, but one branch bore apples. But, gotta get more beet seed in the ground, and Japanese turnips (those have no bitterness and the skin can be eaten). niio
red, I think you meant beets, not beers, but as a curiosity, I like dark beers so if I drank enough, often enough, will my gray hair get back some color? ?
dz: LOL, beets, but beer is good, too. As an aficionado of Bock and dark ales, I know that no, you’re hair will not grow dark and you’ll need to buy a dicky-do shirt. that’s for when your belly sticks out father than the dicky do. But, carbs, wow. Beer and rice are where Kobi beef gets all that sweet tallow from. If we were raising livestock, anything, even poultry, I’d build a spout shed. Grain as greens means fat animals, not wrecked livers. And, yep, on those rare occasions we brew a batch of beer, they would get the sprouts 😉 niio
Love pickled beets! Pigs feet, too, but hard to find around here and very expensive, but I might splurge if I can find some. Can’t say I’ve tried pickled eggs, but I might try some someday. What do you like to do with them – make egg salad?
Don’t care much for kale except cooked, like in Portuguese kale soup – can’t understand why you would take mature greens, chop them and serve raw when they’re so much better tasting and better for you cooked. Yuppies are weird!
Miz Kitty: I have a younger sister who would put greens in the homemade ice cream if you let her LOL. My idea of greens is amaranth and never spinach, some collards, a lot of fresh cabbage and sauerkraut, watercress and it’s cousin nasturtiums, some rocket (now is a good time but it’s already getting too hot/wild mustard tasting), fresh tobacco and so on. I like salad but tend to drown them in dressing. Purslane is best cooked by dropping in boiling water and taking it off the heat. Better, let the animals eat it, they love it, and eat them 🙂
We get raw pigs feet and pickled at a tienda Carniceria Rancheros. The pickled are Mexican style, which means a ton of salt, but still good. niio
Heard gray hair is a copper deficiency & if you correct it the color will come back. I don’t have the details for correcting that so still have my white locks that started in my 30’s. :-}
Phyllis: I had white hair in my 30s, too, but I was raising teenagers 🙂 Stress does that. Ask for peace and meditate on it, demand all stress related spirits be expelled from your life. niio
Red: At the time (30s) my mother was dying, so I always thought that stress caused it. I’m sure it’s a combination of stress & nutrition deficiencies. Many moons ago.
Phyllis: that’s entirely possible. My ex, a Tarahumara, lost 9,000 ‘family’ during a planned famine when the creepy clintons were trying to suck every nickel they could from the sewer. That was caused by GMO, and the resulting lawsuit by PAN in Mexico put Monsanto into Beyers arms. But, it was famine food and a lack of meat that caused brain damage and many physical problems with the children. niio
Red: It’s incredibly evil what they are and have been doing to us. Don’t get me started on GMO! Now they are GMOing us! Only by the grace & mercy of our Heavenly Father & Savior are we all still here.
Red:
I bet that sister would have loved avocado ice cream!
Baker’s Creek is advertising red Malabar spinach (basella rubra), an edible vine that’s supposed to be a heat tolerant spinach substitute. Doesn’t say how it would do in your balmy, gentle summers – it probably would need a lot of water, but it looks good.
Miz Kitty, It’s always good to hear from you. I will ask her about the avocado ice cream. I like Helado de Chili, Fire and Ice, made with hot peppers. Chocolate is the best 🙂
Meanwhile, back on the ranch, plenty of moringa, collards are in the ground. 2 major patches of amaranth volunteer, as well as wild prickly amaranth each year. Leaves from both Red Merlot and Tarahumara amaranth can get bigger than my hand and are still tender. turnip and radish plants, as well. Radish seed pods when green are very good to eat. One variety is still sold commercially, rat tail.
The phacelia is up! That’s a native bee weed that I asked a younger brother if he remembered it. His daughter in Germany, who never came father west than Ohio, told her dad, hey, phacelia! All the farmers here (Eltersdorf, Franconia, Ger.) plant that to feed honey bees. A polite plant, it comes on, blooms for weeks, then dies in the heat. niio
Red:
If she’s interested, there are recipes online for avocado ice cream. It seems that you mash ripe avocados, add flavorings and sweetener and freeze it. Similar to frozen bananas. Former Patriots’ QB Tom Brady was a big proponent of it as part of his health regimen.
Red I am not sure about diesel engines. From what I know about diesels is not only a fuel that burns when compressed but it burns slower and takes more compression. If gasoline is used in a diesel, it severely damages the engine because it burns faster (explodes in the cylinder). So, Methane would probably do the same to a diesel as gasoline does.
As I said I am not fully trained in diesel engines.
Dreaded: Diesel generator are used to make electric from methane. But, they’re better than gasoline generators because they resist acid in methane better. Find a vegan and hook it up 🙂 (As I used to be one, there are 3 fingers aimed right back at me) niio
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261615102_Conversion_of_Large_Diesel_Engine_to_Run_on_Biogas_for_High_Efficiency_Electrical_Power_Generation
I would say, tho, best bet is to build or buy a methane generator that’s acid resistant. One more thing, a switch in the generator that detects levels of gas is great. Auto-start will not wear out.
Red,
Thanks, I read the article you gave and yes it can be done. I did not know this, so I learned something new, What I was told when I was a youngster is “if you don’t learn something new every day, that day is wasted”. So I have tried to learn something everyday.
“The better option would be to consider a kind of cash business or what I call the SHTF career.”
Women already HAVE a career for that.
Oldest profession known to man.
When they get hungry enough or their kids are starving, you can bet anything they will do whatever to get food – ANYTHING.
Stay in if at all possible.
Bug out if your life is truly in danger.
About cell phone – top of train is a dead giveaway as they place your signal on the rail line.
Best is to stick it to a police car or interstate truck.
See you understand it…. Nobody here will admit that anything goes when your family is starving. They currently are shoveling Ding dongs into their pie holes claiming they will do the moral thing and watch there kids starve to death.
Speaking of careers, I would add being a barber. People will want to have some semblence of civilization about them still.
As for cutting my own hair, I’ve been looking for a good solution. One I’ve found is Revocut. Is a plastic sizing guide that can be used with scissors. The guide measures 1-3 inches to cut evenly your hair. May give this a try and other self haircutting involves using power.
One thought that not everyone is considering is keeping your head in order. In your bug-out location you need to have your mind occupied or you go mad like the rest. Having a stockpile of LIGHT literature, comics even, a guitar, board games, moodlifters of your preference like chocolate etc. You dont want to survive going through all that effort and then still become mad like all others in the end and be no good for anything or anyone. This and all the other sensible stockpiling is in contrast with selling everything for the sake of mobility. Nomadic tribes can only evolve to a certain level.