Potpourri of Survival, Prepping & Firearms Articles

It was time to go through the dumpster of my in-box and bookmarked articles that I found interesting and/or helpful but never got around to posting or writing about. So here in no particular order are some that I've accumulated over the past month that pertain to survival, prepping, firearms and/or self-defense.

• "The Civilian Defensive Rifle, Part 1: New Gas Length"--Guns America. Thought that your AR platform had it covered what with having pistol, carbine, intermediate and rifle length gas systems? If you said "yes" then you're wrong! Craddock Precision has introduced a new barrel and gas system created specifically for SBR length-suppressed AR-15s using 11.5 inch barrels. But Docent, you cry, what if I'm running a 15.29 inch length barrel? Don't worry because, according to the article, the company actually offers 14 different gas system lengths to fit any application. 
• "The R51 – Remington’s Coffin Nail"--Gat Daily. Long time readers know that I've had an interest in the R51 because (a) I found the hesitation lock system interesting and (b) it looked cool in a science-fictiony (is that a word?) kind of way. Unfortunately, Remington dropped the ball somewhere between the pre-production models (which were universally praised by reviewers) and the mass produced versions initially released to the public (which had such serious problems that Remington took the step of recalling all of the pistols). Remington ultimately came out with a Gen 2 version of the pistol, but between all the bad press over the Gen 1 pistol and continued reliability issues (which appear to be issues with the magazines), the company was never able to revive interest in the handgun. 

    So, with that background done, let's turn to the article in question. The author takes the reader through the background of the weapon, which was the Model 51 designed by John Pederson and manufactured between 1918 and 1926. If very briefly goes over the release of the R51 by Remington in 2014 (which disaster I related above) before going on to the author's recent experience with the firearm. He concludes:

The R51 was a neat idea. My model mostly works, and [sic] it doesn’t stand out. I wouldn’t want to fire it in a high-round count class by any means. It’s a painful little gun, and I’d imagine getting irritated quite quickly. It mostly works, with some quirks, even in the Gen 2. Had Remington released a working gun in 2014, it would likely have a cult following but probably wouldn’t have saved them from bankruptcy.

I would argue that nothing could have saved Remington from bankruptcy because, at that point, the conglomerate that owned it was merely interested in sucking out as much wealth from the company as possible. 

• "Yard Cart Wagons For Homesteading and Preparedness"--Modern Survival Blog. When I saw this article, I was reminded of a post-nuclear war story--I believe it was Farnham's Freehold by Robert Heinlein--where one of the major difficulties faced by the characters was that, for some reason, they didn't have a wheelbarrow, which made it immensely difficulty to do a lot of the gardening and other tasks involving hauling around dirt, wood, etc. Yard cart wagons are sort-of an improvement over a wheel barrow in many ways. They are obviously more stable, and instead of just hauling and then dumping, you can actually park the wagon with everything still inside, which is especially great if you are using it to move pots or transfer seedlings. The author of the MSB article notes, for instance:

• We use it during garden weeding / maintenance.
• Hauling those rocks that keep coming up out of the ground every spring – a common thing here in New Hampshire, the Granite state.
• It’s great for simply loading up with tools and ‘stuff’ for working on any given project out on the homestead.
• Hauling bags of wood pellets from the shop to the house when needed.
• Harvesting from the gardens.
• Hauling firewood.
• Getting a chainsaw and associated supplies out to that fallen tree from yet another wind storm.
• Rolling a fresh battery over to my tractor storage area to jump start my ATV (guess I need a new battery).
• And so much more.. of course

They recommend the Gorilla Cart, which I believe is what I have. (I have a Rubbermaid yard cart).

• "3 Things To Know About Wheelchair CCW"--NRA Family.  The article is primarily about holster selection and suggests that someone in a wheelchair or that needs to use a scooter look for (1) a leather holster with (2) good retention of the handgun in the holster and (3) which can be detached as a unit from the user's belt for bathroom breaks or transfers. I admit that I don't have a lot of knowledge of what wheelchair bound CCW carriers do for carry that works--I don't go up to people in wheelchairs and ask them, "Hey, do you carry a firearm and how do you carry it?"--but there was a guy I knew back in my college days who carried a small pistol and he preferred a fanny pack.
• "Resistance is Never Futile" by Mark Hatmaker, Indigenous Ability. This is a great mindset article that addresses those that are unsure about using force to resist a predator. The author begins:

    Should you always fight back? Yes. “But what if…”

   Over the course of many years teaching survival-based strategies and tactics the above-exchange has taken place more than a few times. The “but what if…” question is usually posed by well-meaning individuals who haven’t quite grasped the seriousness of physical violence. These are people whose own humanity, whose sense of civility is so strong that they are caught vacillating between fight or flight decisions. It is a shame that these good qualities can sometimes stand in the way of grasping the essential facts of just how dire the threat can be.

    He addresses a couple specific situations that might cause you to vacillate between resisting or acquiescing to the attacker. The first is where the criminal promises that if you cooperate, he (or she) won't harm you. But Hatmaker asks the reasonable question of why should you trust that person? The reality is that you can't. Because of their actions, they are inherently untrustworthy.

    The second is the person that won't resist because they think the situation will not get worse: e.g., the carjacking won't lead to an abduction or murder.  "To gamble on kindness and choose inaction," he explains, "gets you hurt or killed if the situation escalates, while on the other hand, gambling that all who have stepped outside the dictates of civilized conduct intend to do you bodily harm keeps you primed, prepared, and is most likely the correct guess."

• "The Goose and Gander – Why Military Gear Isn’t The Best Option" by Travis Pike, Gat Daily. This article focuses on rifle gear; specifically the optic and the lights. Pike offers two examples to illustrate his point. The first is the ACOG, which while he admits is a good optic, he questions why anyone would spend $1,200 on a fixed 4x optic with terrible eye relief and a small field of view when you could get a much better LPVO for the same or less? The other is the white lights mounted to the military rifles which are underpowered and nowhere near as good as the Cloud Defensive, Modlite, and Arisaka lights available to the civilian shooter. He concludes:

    You and I don’t have to change gear slowly. We can buy it on Amazon without a process, have it shipped to us, learn on Youtube how to use it, and hit the range all in the same day. Keep that in mind when you’re considering if something is worth purchasing just because the military adopted it. Mission drives gear selection, and you’ll need to see what your mission will be and choose gear based on that rather than what Uncle Sam swipes his credit card for.

    To me, if the military adopts it, I know it’s likely durable, especially if it’s issued to 18-year-old grunts. Those guys can break anything. This is all not to say there isn’t any crossover, but just choose the gear that fits you.

•  VIDEO: "Have We Learned Nothing? (You're Training Wrong for SHTF)"--STOKERMATIC (14 min.). 

Although this video also addresses the topic of "what is good for the military may not be good for you," he is approaching the issue from the point of view that you may not want to dress in full military kit after a SHTF event for reasons ranging from not revealing your full capabilities to trying to avoid being targeted by government (or other forces) to trying to blend in.

    This is something I've thought about off and on over the years.  My wife and I have a couple of older, but still very nice Osprey backpacks in somewhat subdued red and blue colors, respectively. Not something that you might consider very good for survival and SHTF and I've thought about replacing them with something in a camo pattern (or at least a bland coyote color)--something more tactical! But I've never made the switch for a few reasons. The first, and most obvious, is cost. Good gear cost a lot of money. The packs I have are reasonably good quality, even surviving my oldest boy going through Boy Scouts (he used my wife's pack when he was younger and smaller and then my pack when he was older and taller). 

    Second, if my goal is surviving generally, I have to be concerned about maybe being found by search and rescue. I'm sure that they would be able to see a somewhat brightly colored backpack better than one in black, coyote/FDE, or a camo pattern. I could probably find or make camo pack covers if I thought it necessary.

    Third, as I was moving and sorting some of my "tactical" gear one day, I started thinking about the issue of what I would do if, post-SHTF and without warning, I encountered someone in camo and fully kitted out on my property. Essentially, it is the question of who would you shoot first: the guy in normal jeans or slacks, normal shirt or jacket, etc., or the guy in full camo with helmet, a chest rig and armed with a rifle? 

• "Canned Food That’s Best For Survival Storage"--Modern Survival Blog. The article particularly focuses on foods that are calorie dense and high in protein (and fat): i.e., foods that are canned meat or contain meats.
• "Romanian AKs: The Best Among The Worst, The Worst Among The Best" (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3) by Vladimir Onokoy, The Firearm Blog. A good history and review of Romanian AKs including their use outside of Romania.
• "How to Recondition Old Gasoline on Your Own" by Tom Marlowe, The Survivalist Blog. An excerpt:

    This might be a surprise to some readers, and especially to beginning preppers, but gasoline can in fact expire.

    Now, to be really technical it doesn’t expire in the same way that food in our pantry or refrigerator expires, by going rancid, but it does go bad over time for a couple of different reasons.

    One of these reasons is that the volatile compounds that make gasoline a usable fuel begin to oxidize and lose potency.

    Very literally, this means the gasoline provides less “pop!” The other way that gasoline goes bad is specific to modern gasoline-ethanol blends, the typical stuff you get at your local gas pump.

    The two components are very much like oil and water, and over time they will separate, permanently ruining the fuel.

    Either of these outcomes can be a showstopper if you are depending on your stored gasoline in an emergency, but for our purposes it is only possible to reverse a loss of potency by oxidation, or to potentially halt or slow the separation of components in gasoline-ethanol blends.

    But, the first step in the reconditioning process is determining whether or not the gasoline can be saved in the first place.

    Trying to recondition gasoline that is too far gone is just throwing away good money after bad, and will still likely wind up damaging your engine. The next section will help you figure that out.

• I sometimes joke here or on John Wilder's podcast about cannibalism post-SHTF and so was amused seeing this article at the Daily Mail not too long ago: "What does human meat taste like? Scientists reveal the unique flavour of our FLESH – as an influencer admits to eating part of her own knee in a spaghetti bolognese." An excerpt:

    Back in the 1920s, American adventurer William Buehler Seabrook set out to provide a detailed record of the societies that devour human flesh.

    He even went so far as to taste it himself when he met with the Guero people in West Africa, and wrote of his experiences in his book 'Jungle Ways', published in 1931. 

    The explorer noted that the raw flesh looked like beef but less red and with pale yellow fat. 

    And, once cooked, it turned grey and smelled like beef.

    As for the taste, he wrote: 'It was so nearly like good, fully developed veal that I think no person with a palate of ordinary, normal sensitiveness could distinguish it from veal.'

    Seabrook's account is regarded as unreliable by many, because he later confessed Guero tribesmen refused to let him take part in their tradition.

    He claimed he made up for the disappointment by obtaining a chunk of flesh from the body of a dead hospital patient in France and cooking it on a spit.

    But experts regard his description as the most useful, because most commentaries on cannibalism come from the criminally insane and are often contradictory.

• "Study: Devoted Leftists Often Are Narcissists and Psychopaths"--The New American. You might be wondering why I am including this article in a list of articles ostensibly for preppers and survivalists. And the answer is that if you are forming a prepper group or, post-SHTF, thinking of taking in a few people, you will need to screen them to determine if they would be suitable for your group or safe to admit to your home during trying times. And let's be honest: some of the worst people you could have in your group would be narcissists or psychopaths because of their lack of in-group loyalty. 
• "World War Two Firearm Quals" by Travis Pike, Gat Daily. A look at the qualifications required by the Army for the 1911 pistol, the M3 submachine gun, and the M1 carbine. 
• "Emergency Dental Kit and Remedies"--Modern Survival Blog. A look at a few tooth pain remedies and a lost filling or loose cap repair kit available on Amazon. (See also my post on "Dentist In A Box").
• "Field Report: Taurus 856 T.O.R.O."--The Revolver Guy. The TORO is a revolver specifically designed for mounting a red-dot. 
• "Guns being stolen out of cars is a disturbing trend happening in Meridian"--KIVI Channel 6. This is a local news story that ran almost 2 months ago here. From the lede:

    There has been a 42 percent increase in car burglaries so far this year in Meridian, but the disturbing trend is that in about a quarter of those a gun has been stolen.

    This year Meridian Police has received 44 reports of car break-ins and out of those 12 have had guns taken, 10 of those were from unlocked vehicles.

I often see or hear of stories like this from all around the country. And it isn't just regular gun owners. I was thinking about writing an article on this topic once and came across about a half-dozen news articles from just the prior few months where it involved thefts of firearms from police cars or private vehicles owned by police officers. Jon Low often touches on this topic. The basic thing to remember is that your car is not a gun safe so don't be storing your weapons in your car.