Survival Skill Sets for After The Collapse

Skill Sets post SHTF

Survival skill sets will be crucial after society collapses into a heap of social chaos.

Whether or not it actually will is not the thrust of this article. Lets just say that it will descend or fragment into varying degrees of collapse.

SHTF Collapse Hypotheticals:

– Our modern conveniences and technologies break down
– Financial systems break down, collapse
– Many or most aren’t showing up for work
– Manufacturing has slowed to a crawl or even stopped
– Supply chains of distribution have been severely disrupted
– Shortages of everything
– Skirmishes, violent reactions
– Majority running low on food
– Period of Die-off as critical thresholds are crossed

 
As the collapse phase transitions from chaos to survival to rebuild, there will be unique sets of sought after skills.

These survival skill sets may fall under categories which include:

– Health
– Food
– Water
– Shelter
– Energy
– Security
– Infrastructure

There will be specific needs demanding specific skills. Some may be more in demand than others. A few years ago I had put out a poll which asked MSB readers for their opinion.

I recently looked at that resulting list again and have captured some of the more popular skill sets for your information:

Survival Skill Sets After The Collapse

Listed in order of popularity

1. Medical & Healthcare, Doctors
2. Agricultural, Farming
3. Water infrastructure, Wells, Pumps, Sanitation
4. Food Preservation
5. Dentistry
6. Carpentry, Handyman
7. Alternative Energy
8. Blacksmith
9. Gunsmith & Reloading
10. Livestock, Animal Husbandry
11. Security, Tactical
12. Foraging wild edibles, Horticulture
13. Hunting, Fishing, Trapping, Butcher
14. Mechanic, Welding
15. Sewing, Clothes Making, Cobbler

 
Additional survival skill sets may include:

– Day care for kids
– Teaching
– Basic electronics, cobbling together systems, communications, etc..
– Distilling
– McGyver
– Minister, Counselor
– Hygiene, soap making, toothpaste, laundry
– Herbalist
– Veterinary medicine
– Bushcraft

 
Do you agree with the list above? Would you add to it? Other skills that would be especially advantageous or in demand during such a time?

The following book provides insight into some of these areas:
The Encyclopedia of Country Living

Related:
Have You Learned Anything From Reading Survival Novels?

223 Comments

      1. I forgot, is it lawyers under politicians at the bottom of the ocean or the other way around?

        1. – Most politicians being lawyers in the first place, you might think it wouldn’t make a lot of difference. What people tend to forget is that politicians are great sources of hot air, and tend to float if not weighted down properly with lawyers. Rocks make a poor but acceptable substitute (Waste of a non-renewable resource {rocks} and room under the ocean.)
          – Papa S.

        2. Maybe use stacks of paper to weigh them down with all their rules and regulations that they push through. That should be a nice pile.

        3. Politicians and lawyers make great SCUBA diving buddies, especially in shark infested waters. The sharks in general will leave you alone as a professional courtesy.

        4. The Ohio Prepper;
          Actually that’s not true, Sharks will not eat ‘Junk’ Food… So if-in they are hungry ur in trouble :-) HAHAHAHA

    1. Lauren, Left Coast;
      I believe there was a reason that “Rope Maker” was in that particular list :-) :-)

      1. NRP
        Ammo is something you want to save, so rope is a great item as a reusable tool. One of the best knots has thirteen windings – takes a little training to get the rope to slide just right. Practice, practice, practice.

        1. #snort# Yeah!
          — that was me — didn’t see my name wasn’t attached until now

    2. Rope maker could be extremely useful,
      The rest of those are useless, even today

      1. Tommyboy, Not so, first three can be used to for things like fertilizer, crab and lobster bait, pig feed, etc, Left Coast, yeaah I realized I missed it but figured most folks would add it on.

        1. So I would add knot-tying skills, and you can interpret that as both a continuation of the sarcasm and as a serious suggestion.

        2. Actually bankers have been and always will be valuable. Groups of people chipping in and pooling their money to help one another acquire property and equipment were the first real banks, although today we might think of them more as credit unions.
          I purchased and sold my first house on land contract; but, when you need to buy or sell a house and “need” the money all at once, you have no other means, other than a bank of some sort. Even the local farmers get loans as “production credit” that allows them to purchase seed, fertilizer, fuel and other inputs to plant a crop. These loans are paid off in one lump sum when the crop is harvested; but, without those banks and lines of credit, we would all still be living in caves & huts, and hunting or foraging for our food.

    3. Probably the only one desirable would be rope maker. Lawyers and bankers, well, about as useful as tts on a bull, SHTF or not.

  1. Copyright laws will likely not be enforced. With that in mind, having copied info and providing that info to others will be of value. Also having done the actions of that knowledge could be a valuable barter tool To those who are not prepared, in exchange for their labor once they have been taught a skill.

  2. All the skills listed will, to some degree, be needed, some being paramount, at different stages of a collapse and/or recovery.

    Early on in a complete collapse, water, food, shelter, and security will always be top priorities, sharing importance interchangeably according to immediate circumstances. The rest are dependent on the depth, and longevity of the collapse.

    If there is not a complete loss of infrastructure (roads, factories, vehicles, etc.), the workers and management of such facilities could step right back in doing the same tasks as before. Lawyers, bankers, insurance folks would likely be the least needed skills.

    If there is not a total collapse of government and taxes, civil service workers will be needed. During the great depression, those in government jobs, while not making a lot of money, were among the few who actually had a steady income. In a collapse scenario though, if the government is perceived as the enemy or cause of the misery, they won’t last long. Those in power will use every resource available to retain that power. The people will use every resource to get rid of that oppression. This has repeated itself throughout history (think American Revolution, French, Texas, Mexican, and soon Venezuela).

    Those that have skills that actually produce a needed product or repair will always have someone willing to pay for that skill, either with whatever currency is still viable, or with products they have in barter.

    During the depression, my grandfather (paternal) was a skilled blacksmith. In those days, the blacksmith also served as the defacto veterinarian. He also was a farmer, with his own fields to tend. Other farmers, short on cash, convinced him to keep his blacksmith shop going full time and they would pay him with portions of their crops to replace what he would have grown. His skills were indispensable for the other farmers. My other grandfather was also a farmer. He supplemented his income doing odd job, handy man work, including hand digging and lining shallow wells (20-30 foot deep) and cleaning, deepening, or repairing existing wells. Many times his pay was with food items for his family. He was a forager, hunting, trapping, fishing for table fare. Cash was scarce, and many folks depended on whatever money they could gather mainly to pay property taxes and what food staples they could from stores.

    Life was tough during this period. Tougher than most of us have ever experienced. Yet, most survived. We are a weak generation as compared to our forefathers, but most will toughen up quickly. It will be harder for some than others, but free rides will end.

    1. Dennis
      One skill set millions have learned, is how to milk the system. I’m not sure of what it will take to get the hogs (rich and poor) away from the trough. I would guess that only half (50 million or so) are legitimate recipients of our tax dollars.

      1. That right there Hermit is my opinion of civil “servants” other than firemen or LEO the rest just milk the system,
        I pity the stupid shiff who is the tax collector, they wont live long

        1. Tommyboy,
          Yes , tax collectors are held in the same high regard as they were in biblical times 2000 years ago.

        2. Who are the tax collectors: the leos who use violence and deadly force arresting people for not paying taxes. IRS workers, judges, prosecutors and politicians are all bad but the ones who use the physical force deserve the most contempt.

          The leos are the biggest milkers of the system in the first place. Their very existence is only made possible by their violence. People want security from rapists, murders, vandals and thieves. A lot of people don’t want a police force that uses physical violence against people for completely voluntary and consensual decisions for ones own body and property like doing drugs or not wearing a seat belt or not paying taxes or playing poker for money with friends.

          I wish conservatives realized they are guaranteeing their enslavement by supporting law enforcement. If the laws are evil and the politicians making the laws are evil then the enforcement of those laws is evil as well. Politicians words have no weight without the violence of Leos.

        3. John Hampton,

          The leos are the biggest milkers of the system in the first place. Their very existence is only made possible by their violence. People want security from rapists, murders, vandals and thieves. A lot of people don’t want a police force that uses physical violence against people for completely voluntary and consensual decisions for ones own body and property like doing drugs or not wearing a seat belt or not paying taxes or playing poker for money with friends.

          WOW. You must live in a very difference place and situation than I, since I don’t see any local LEO’s acting like this at any time.
          Perhaps the next time someone mugs you or breaks into your home, you should talk the perp down instead of calling 911 and expecting help from some violent LEO.
          When that guy with no seat belt or insurance is thrown threw his windshield, you will I suspect be quite willing to chip in to pay his massive hospital bill, since forcing him to wear a seat belt would be such a cruel thing to do.

          I wish conservatives realized they are guaranteeing their enslavement by supporting law enforcement. If the laws are evil and the politicians making the laws are evil then the enforcement of those laws is evil as well. Politicians words have no weight without the violence of Leos.

          The only evil politicians I see are generally the demonrats, who live their political lives creating dependence on them to keep them in power and handing out crumbs to their beleaguered followers. They don’t want a wall or a closed border because they expect all of the new immigrants, legal or otherwise, to vote for them. If it could be proven that the immigrants would vote for the conservatives, the Dems would build the wall post haste.

        4. Like the story I read yesterday where a guy that wanted to get married in Washington DC and he was from New Mexico. The lady at the court house demanded that he show his passport as valid ID and not his drivers license since New Mexico is not part of the US. After her talking to her bosses, it was explained to her that NM is part of the US. 🤔

        5. WE can relate, DW wanted to send a package to our friend in Puerto Rico and the clerk wanted her to fill out a customs form. She told him it was part of the United States but he didn’t believe her until his manager intervened.

      2. The estimates I’ve read are between 8 and 10% of the population are actually in need. Many of those (possibly half) are temporary, out of a job or underemployed, and just need some help to get back on their feet. The remaining 2 – 5% are in actual need of continual assistance. Many of those who would otherwise need assistance (the physically and mentally impaired, essentially) do just fine running their own businesses or working menial jobs with a little extra supervision.

        I have two friends who are confined to wheelchairs. One has her own home, runs her own business, and just needs a little help once in a while to do things she can’t do on her own. The other lives with her parents, has never had a job, and considers herself the justified recipient of the world’s largess.

        Guess which one will survive?

        1. Lauren
          Reads a little like the “Story of the two wolves” The one you feed. I know this is a stretch but some that have a skillset and a work ethic will need to be cared for by more able bodied people.

        2. My point is, the one who survives is the one who can and will work. There is work that can be done without mobility. The one that dies will be the one who stays in her home and waits for rescue, expecting the world to care for her because it always has.

        3. Lauren
          I expressed it poorly, but should have said, one should have skills/work to trade for what one needs to survive. work around whatever ones limitations are, lack of mobility, size, ….

  3. Since nobody else seems to mention it I will.
    And it’s just a fact of life;

    Mortician, Coroner, someone to determine cause of death even in a time of a HUGE pandemic
    Grave Diggers, Someone with a strong back and a respect for the dead to bury a family member AND not die from what the dead person died from
    Coffin Builder, not as easy as some may think

    On the other end of the spectrum;
    Midwife, If you don’t know, don’t ask
    Household Help, aka Cook/Maid for when Woman is recovering from Child Birth

    Other needed skill-sets;
    A GREAT Bartender, remember the old-days, the Wild-Wild-West, the Bar was the meeting place for information and sharing of news
    How about someone that really knows how to barter; anyone here know why a shot of Whiskey is called a Shot AND the reasoning for the trade? And yes I know 0ldhomesteder does, heck he was there HAHAHAHA

    I get the impression that a lot of people believe that when/if TSHTF everything will be “sort of ok” in just a little while, I do not agree. I believe it will take decades to even start, START, to make progress. Think of going back to the 1700s than rebuilding from there. Think of all the ‘Trades’ that were need then, not of what we would need now.

    1. NRP, the shot came about back when cowboys were paid monthly. As the end of the month drew near, most cowboys were broke. So since a small glass of whiskey cost about the same as a bullet, bars started trading whiskey for bullets. Hence it took on the name of shot.

      1. Peanut Gallery:
        Correct, more precisely a 45 Long Colt.
        The 3030 was worth 3 shots or 2 beers

        1. NRP, I wonder what a 50 cal would get you…..LOL

          A whole fifth……. LOL

        2. NRP, well depends on the state you’re in I guess. I wouldn’t own one, they’re too loud and ammo cost too much….LOL

          And they make body armor obsolete….. LOL

        3. What would a M203 round be worth? That is if they had them back then.

        4. Old Homesteader, That one got me laughing and that would be just for possession, Using it in a meaningful way could get you a lot more time or possibly very little time to remain on the planet.

    2. NRP,

      You are correct (blind hog finds an acorn:-)? )

      One of the subjects many preppers avoid broaching is inevitable death and disposal (bad term I know) of bodies, especially loved ones. Realistically, if one accepts a coming collapse of society and infrastructure, and is a prepper who has access to property, should have a proper size and depth hole dug for every member of their family. Macabre? Probably, but I personally would be hard pressed to dig such a grave with a shovel, after the fact, if backhoes were unavailable. Most folks don’t have a clue how hard it is to lift and carry a dead human being even a short distance. Sadly, I’ve done it several times over my lifetime. Not all that hard when you’re being shot at (an adrenaline thing I’m sure), terribly hard when it’s a loved one that has to be moved with out help. We prep for everything else, why not have things in place for death of a loved one during/after shtf? Now when folks die, you have processes in place where others take care of the body. That most probably won’t be the case in a worst case scenario. (hint: a simple tarp and rope fashioned into a harness, helps greatly when used as a makeshift sled, even on bare ground, if by yourself)

      Fact is, most folks won’t prep for this. We avoid those thoughts, even though we know it’s inevitable. Yet, we buy insurance or pre-arrange for it during normal times.

      1. Dennis
        That is why I believe in cremation – puts an end to putrification and disease.

    3. NRP,
      Your whole list used to be covered by a few labels: “Family” & “Neighborhood”
      My family and MAG all help each other in the here and now, and have complementary skill sets and commitments to each other. Establishing networks and relationships right now is what will get you through the tough times, since a team is not just a group of people with skills that are thrown together; but, more on the order of a practiced and oiled machine.
      And BTW, the bartenders of the old west were not the mixologists of today; but, just someone who could take inventory, pour drinks, and collect money.
      As for the shot, one cartridge was often worth one drink and in bad times that standard might have more value than other things. If I have food and you need it, a brick of .22 RF might be a more valuable trading item than a brick of gold.

      1. The Ohio Prepper;

        I for one will agree in a second that PM’s are not limited to Gold and Silver by any means. Brass and Lead come to mind as mentioned for Barter along with the obvious things, as do Cast Iron for cooking and many many of the essential minerals need to maintain a good health.

        I agree with your philosophy of a “team”, obviously you have been fine tuning that team for many years, 50 years in the “Preparing” I heard it said. I applaud you for the accomplishment, tis not an easy thing to do, believe it’s even tougher now-a-days.

        That Bartender was also a heck of an information distributor as well, for many of folks had no Smart Phone back in the 1800’s hehehehe.
        And yes, that Brick of 22LR very well IS worth more than the Brick of Gold, especially if the Dems keep getting their way.

  4. – Have over the years learned to about a dozen of Ken’s list well enough to get by, at least six well enough to do for others. Thanks to the Army, I learned enough about “Ditch Medicine” that I can do as much or usually More than the average Physician under field conditions. That would of course, be primary choice for SHTF occupation, but also learned in the Army that you need a daily occupation as well, or you will get in a mess.
    So, I learned how to build a hand pump (think the Flojak type) using the EMAS videos on youtube and Vimeo for an additional post-SHTF job.

      1. More like a harmonica and be able to play a number of Beethoven sonatas while tap dancing..

        1. Playing a musical instrument will be a good skill to have, especially an acoustical one. Music can be very comforting when things are bad. Music for weddings, funerals, religion as well as entertainment around a campfire and calming the savage beast in all of us. Music will normalize a SHTF and help make it tolerable.

  5. It will be interesting to say the least, personally i have no shortage of knowledge of the skills on that list,
    Our island is pretty small, im betting that the political class and the criminals will quickly be seen on the same par with few exceptions,
    We do have a lot of good people here, lots of multi generational families some that have been here for centuries like mine. We also have a ton of FOB jerks who are the neauveau riche,
    They will in many cases be more of a problem than the criminal class as they will be the ones demanding that the rest of us feed them, aint happening.
    Once the political criminal class and the demanders get eliminated we will be anle to get about the business of feeding ourselves, we can do it, with the ocean all around, good weather and a fairly large number of conscious bodies we are in a good spot to do that depending on interferance, uncle sam and foreigners will be our biggest impediment, with stupid people like pelousy and shiff for brains in charge you can bet the gov will be a problem,
    But just how much? Anyones guess.
    I know this will be an unpopular statement and thats ok, im cool with the fallout, but the sooner it all comes unglued the better in my opinion and the worst and hardest will be preferred.
    It will either kill this beast or turn it back to that what it is supposed to be from the foundation, the way things are going i have no intrest in status quo, this thing needs to be gutted like a 42 Willys and rebuilt. And not rebuilt as a Venezuela2,
    I have abilities, everyone i am close to has abilities, we could make it and IMHO thrive. But those who are SJWs and the socialist or even communist will be the death of anything resembling a functioning society,
    Its going to be interesting

  6. How about some basic optician skills??? eye sight will still need to be corrected. they were making glasses in the 1700’s I believe. Anyone know how to grind a lens from a hunk of glass by hand??? it can be done. used to make telescope mirrors by grinding blanks with grit.

    1. Can’t grind a lens but hit some estate sales and buy up all of the used glasses you can find. I also purchased the itty bitty tools and some eye glass screws too.

  7. Making false teeth may be helpful – wood teeth do not appeal to me but were used widely in years past.

  8. I am surprised that nobody mentioned “Teacher”. while the adults are busy trying to provide an existence level environment, what are the young ones going to do.
    They need to begin learning basic life skills and literacy ( the 3 R’s) early on.
    History will need to be preserved as well as vegetables and seeds. lest we repeat what brought us to the current level. They are after all, the ones who will carry on civilization after our demise. Let them not be prepared for failure, but rather be capable to continue and improve our station, and the progeny that follows

    1. Mountain
      That goes without saying. When they help to carry and stack the wood, you ask them to compute how many arm loads are needed for each cord and if we burn one cord a month, how many arm loads would that make. If we eat 2 lbs of potatoes a week and each plant usually produces 1 lb, how many plants do we need to plant with a safety margin of 50%. On and On with the learning as we work.

  9. brewing wine and beer ,bread making cooking from basics (true cooking) distillation. real basic skills will be the most in demand even in a mild form of collapse most people have lost even the most basic skills. I was invited to Sunday lunch a while ago buy a (very) young single mum she assured me she cooked an exultant Sunday meal it was all aunt Betty food ! (i assume she thought the old single guy could not cook)!

  10. I would add “Power Production” to the list. Almost everything we use today requires a power source- be it electricity, electrically charged batteries, or on board power generation through the burning of fossil fuel. When those transports and tools start to fail for lack of a power source, life will become exponentially more difficult and the rewards reaped from the daily work to survive will fall correspondent to those failures.

    Consider…

    Chainsaws vs. hand saws and axes.

    Tractors vs. makeshift plows powered by increasingly rare livestock (taken for food and already rare to begin with) or human powered.

    All power equipment and tools from lawnmowers to drills to earth moving equipment. Think mowing the lawn will fall off the list of things to do? It will be vital as taller grass invites insects and the things that prey on them, as well as the things that prey on the things that prey on insects.

    “Power” describes more than electricity, but with electricity obviously at the top of the list. Someone who knows how to cobble together a means of creating and storing electricity from non-traditional means. Over the years, I’ve read about “emergency” systems made from stringing automobile batteries together and charging them with wind power turning home made turbines that were connected to everything from old truck alternators to washing machine motors.

    Bio-diesel will also become somewhat important should the event become severe and prolonged. Foraging and preserving gasoline will also be a priority until it all goes bad.

    I recall reading articles about wood-gas powered farm equipment used during WW2 where the engines were converted to burn the hot gasses from released from wood burning in a special chamber. Perhaps that falls under McGyver ;)

    1. restoringBrad,

      I recall reading articles about wood-gas powered farm equipment used during WW2 where the engines were converted to burn the hot gasses from released from wood burning in a special chamber. Perhaps that falls under McGyver

      I’ve built and used wood gasifiers and they work well enough to run small engines with some tinkering and adjustment. Here in Midwest farm country we have a lot of Amish and older farmers who still keep and use the old steam powered machinery. They are large, heavy, and elegant; but, with care they run well with any flammable biomass and water.
      The Amish do a ton of things with wind and horse power. Horses not only provide transportation but, horse drawn wagons in the fields, utilize gears from the wheels to run machinery to cut and bale the hay.
      Simple windmills turn a wheel with an off center shaft to convert rotation to linear motion (up and down) and with that tied to a standard hand pump, the wind pumps water all of the time.

  11. I highly suggest the first cordless screwdriver, everyone should have one of these.

    Yankee Screwdriver

    But don’t try to save money by buying the short cheap ones, the longer the stroke the better.

  12. Human Psychology and reality, and needing to be flexible and smart enough to LET GO OF ARTIFICIAL MORALITY constraints that you have because after SHTF event…humans WILL ABANDON morals as an excess of civility that no LONGER APPLIES!!!!

    If you go forward after the SHTF event and operate thinking in terms of polite society and morality, you will DIE QUICKLY AND VIOLENTLY because you fail to understand that the mental state you operated in prior to the event IS GONE and no longer applies.

    Mentally masturbate all you want about SHTF /WROL, but understand that you have to DISCARD the discussion as meaningless HOPIUM, because that is NOT how people think and act when the artificial civility goes poof and disappears. Better adapt that after SHTF/WROL you will not be trading for sh* UNLESS your area is relatively stable MONTHS or YEARS after the event. For the first 90 days a faux civility will exist, but as more and more of the people hit the end of the survival threshold of a standard of living they were accustomed to..civility ends. The rule of thumb is 9 meals or 72 hours. After that POTABLE SAFE water and health RUN OUT on the timer and all pretenses END. The BEST ADAPTATION you can learn is psychology and mental awareness and STRATEGIC PLANNING for tactical operations. You cannot be a Tactical planner or strategic leader is you cannot grasp SIMPLE BASIC HUMAN PSYCHOLOGY…End of Story. You cannot know YOURSELF and certainly cannot understand and ANTICIPATE OTHERS if you cannot grasp HOW PEOPLE ARE AND ACT and see how they telegraph their intentions prior to acting.
    That means you MUST be able to easily let go of your cognitive dissonance and brain washing and programming society has forced on you, and it particularly INCLUDES THE ARTIFICIAL MORALITY you live by. Survival has NO MORALS, and the “moral high ground” is the dirt on the top of a corpse that once tried to live through and by morals that SIMPLY DO NOT APPLY, especially after SHTF/WROL event.

    I did not write this. It came from a comment section over at SHTF. But it sure is food for thought. Skills, just staying alive will be the ultimate skill.

    1. Hey Stand, you know that all those CAPS trigger the millennials. Talk about sheeple to the slaughter.

      1. hermit us
        F the millennials.! I just want The MSB Patriots to think outside the box.!!!! Staying alive is the ultimate skill.!!!
        Was thinkin about all caps, but, naw, no today.

    2. I am quite old but yet very capable. Eyes are going so I like all caps. Have any of you fine folks considered GUN FIGHTER? AS IN “HAVE GUN WILL TRAVEL”?

      My first time to comment, but i have been watching a long time.

      1. Assuming you are not a troll trying to cast aspersion on preppers, the short answer is “NO”.

        Hope nothing you’ve read into our comments would lead you to think that. Prepping is about survival, not killing for hire. There is a huge difference between self defense and “traveling” to take a life for money. For the record, the show “Have Gun, Will Travel” was a bout a fictional character who was a dispute problem solver first, and foremost who only used his gun as a last resort. Problem solvers will rise in every community. Their abilities with a gun not withstanding.

        1. EL OSO
          Ok so I’m a little confused on your first post…..and I think many others as well.
          Uncle.Sam assigned you El Oso?
          Can/will you further explain what you mean on all?

        2. Jose C
          RE; confused. Understandable as you have a reading problem. On my first comment i spoke of “have gun will travel:’.

          On my reply I said “while in Uncle Sam;s service” not “Uncle.Sam assigned me El Oso”

          Yes of course I can explain, however I will not. By the way your question was asked I suspect you will understand.

        3. EL OSO
          You must be a peach to get along with.
          I didn’t think I had a reading problem, but thanks for telling me as such. And clarifying I have issues.
          And as to you it is JOE C not JOSE C.
          Comprende??
          Good night/good luck

        4. I dunno fellas
          El Oso
          Spanish to English
          The bear, osos feminine, or hairy man, mostly homosexual -as per Wiktionary.

          “Wiktionary is a multilingual, web-based project to create a free content dictionary of all words in all languages. ”

          Or OSO is a military definition.

          Office of Systems Operations (Social Security Administration)
          OSO Operational Support Office
          OSO Office of Security Operations
          OSO Office of Space Operations (NASA)
          Not clear if Uncle Sam was serviced or El Oso was assigned to Uncle Sam.

          Gawd is terrible being dumb. ( Oso conmingo) Bear with me

      2. EL OSO; what are your rates and what sort of gun do you use and how and where and how far will you travel? With your failing eyesight what kind of grouping are you capable of at say, 100 yards? I don’t mean to be rude, but I won’t use my cap lock key as I’m running low on ink and the caps eat it up like boy scouts at a wiener roast. We do have quite a squirrel problem here and so your services caught my attention, you could certainly help yourself to any of the tree rats that you drop. A bumper crop of walnuts and acorns are to blame. Eagerly awaiting your response, if you can read this… or do you prefer Braille? Kinda hard to do on a blog post.

        1. old chevy)
          RE; ink, Are you asking for a donation? Would the head squirrel drive a forked vibrator? (Chevy V8) Walnuts din’t grow here but acorns do. Most of the nuts around here seem to grow up around a blue bow tie. (Chevy badge) sorry no Chevy’s but how about a 48 Plymouth with a Vortec, or a 69 98 conv 455, perhaps a 73 mk iv or last but not least a 66 goat? You may see all are pulse proof, as are my F250 7.3 diesels. I used my spotting scope to write this (lower case) so as not to use to much more of your ink. You can thank me later.
          PS Tell Dennis i’m not a troll, what ever that us. HEH!! Got to go hear my keeper calling .
          always remember
          Illegitimi Non Carborundum

        2. -Have g u n will travel.-
          Yep
          Never leave home without it.
          Too many unstables out there

      3. For arguments sake, let’s say we live in a fairly safe community of like minded folks. We have a friend (cattle rancher) that lives not too far away but far enough away that their place is not as secure and is having issues protecting his family and cattle from members of the Golden Horde. If that friend asks you to come down and help protect his family and cattle, would you do so? Remember, your place is safe so if you leave temporarily, your family will remain safe. Is that a kind of have gun, will travel? If you go and help the friend, you will not only help your friend but help secure your interests as well since some of the meat you and your family use is from that friend. Just food for thought.

        1. I am that rancher. But to answer your question….. I would go. I’m old but sue to GOD”S grace still able.

        2. I was just giving some food for thought. I didn’t interpret ‘have gun, will travel’ as merely just some kind of mercenary job for a ruthless entity. Sure, a gun fighter could be a person standing in the street at high noon for a show down. It also can be a person well versed in weapons willing to help protect friends and loved ones. I don’t see that kind of person standing in the street at high noon but willing to help protect their interests even if it is away from the homestead.

      4. EL OSO
        In one of the books by JWRawles i think Patriots, the main characters exchange work as security with a farmer in exchange for a place to hold up for a while,
        Made sense to me….

        1. Tommyboy

          An excellent idea. We are in fair shape for a break down of normal life. (shtf) If some one offered their help, as you describe, they would be welcomed as brothers. In a loss of law and order things will go down hill very quickly. As Pancho Villa said, “what plata (silver) can’t buy lead will”.. As bad as that sounds I’m afraid that’s the way it will go down. To many folks depend on gov help and when that stops all hell will break out. A famous trend forecaster said “when a man loses every thing……… he loses it”.

        2. EL OSO
          If you like reading that book is excellent, gets ya thinking

        3. El OSO, I think you have a lot to contribute here, I’m looking forward to that.
          How did you stumble into this place?

        4. I tried rereading that book a few days ago and only made it half way before I had to put it away. Half the book is not a story but filler material about this kind of rifle with tritium sights and six spare mags, this pistol with such and such sights and eight mags and how the group members had to have similar weapons which are interchangeable. They went on and on about what was group standard and this rifle or this pistol was not in detail. If all the talk of weapons was taken out of the book, it would be about 50 pages in length. Overall, the story is interesting, but when a whole page is spent talking about the minute details of a rifle, the story overall is worse for it.

        5. Same here. Their thing is admittedly guns & groceries. I get PTSD just reading the book.

    3. Offer the hoards some “special stew”……………………..

    4. SMG,

      “Survival has NO MORALS, and the “moral high ground” is the dirt on the top of a corpse that once tried to live through and by morals that SIMPLY DO NOT APPLY, especially after SHTF/WROL
      event.”

      That statement by the commenter you are quoting is disturbing. Yes, desperate people are capable of desperate acts, and there will most likely be a proliferation of such if things go seriously south. That statement though, sounds as if the writer believes no one can be trusted (and maybe what, shot on sight?), after such an event. If that is what he meant by those words, I’ve got a news flash for him, he is in for a very short survival curve after he institutes that philosophy. Someone will take him out from a long way off. Most folks won’t tolerate such rude behavior. If he only meant that extra caution should be exercised and less benefit of the doubt extended in such times, he would be correct, he just used the wrong words to get his message across.

      1. Dennis,
        I don’t know what he meant, and I don’t follow with some of HIS thinking. I just used the article to try and get a point across.

        I’m sure as hell, not throwing my morals away, just because time are bad. I’ll trust that I make the right decision as each one will be different.

    5. Stand my Ground,

      Human Psychology and reality, and needing to be flexible and smart enough to LET GO OF ARTIFICIAL MORALITY constraints that you have because after SHTF event…humans WILL ABANDON morals as an excess of civility that no LONGER APPLIES!!!!
      . . . . . . . .
      I did not write this. It came from a comment section over at SHTF. But it sure is food for thought. Skills, just staying alive will be the ultimate skill.

      I completely disagree with you and the original poster. Morals and Ethics are the only thing that separates us from the animals; and one should never mistake compassion for weakness; but, that does not mean we should be naïve or lose our situational awareness.
      Current SecDef General James ‘Mad Dog’ Mattis has told troops some very sound advice that seems to apply here: “Be polite, be professional, but have a plan to kill everybody you meet.”
      Society only works when we all work together; but, until trust has been established, situational awareness should be paramount and your MAG need s to work and seriously train together.
      An early story on this from the 1940’s is “Earth Abides” By George R. Stewart and is another well worth the time to read.

  13. I like the rope making and slip knot tying idea…..
    Lol

    Well ya know I gotta say it, Old Chevy…
    Horse trainer. Farrier. Harness maker….all leather goods in general… Tommyboy
    Water dowsing…..AC
    What about a barber? Of course anyone can hack hair with scissors.
    Saw sharpening?

    1. Im not even going to get fancy, zip tie their hands then throw my skidder choker over their neck and drive till it comes off

        1. Problem on sailboats is many of them use steel cable for the standing rigging. Lately it is all coming out of China and it wears out much faster. Is your cable of recent manufacture?

        2. Nope, no fruity little sailboats here,
          this is all USA made yarder rigging, log skidder /choker line. 7/2/1

      1. Hey Tommyboy
        We were all writing metaphorically and jokingly about the use of rope, but in a SHTF situation, justice may require actual hard measures. Try to relax my friend.

        1. Im not,
          If it were up to me id set up a sky line in DC and set chokers on every last one of those shiffs in that swamp, set the throttle on high so them loads swing a bit as they leave the ground

        2. Y’all are too nice, I think the swamp needs a compass consisting of chains and 4 Harley Davidsons…… LOL Make a wish……

          Especially with the new bill they’re trying t make into law. HR7115 which is trying to ban all semiautomatic firearms……

          Molon labe

        3. Simmon
          They better be more concerned what i could do with a borrowed D9 than a stupid pea shooter,

        4. The same dilemma occurs in the Going Home series. Crimes committed by people varied. As ‘Sarge’ said in the story ‘some people just need killing’. While others that committed lesser crimes, the punishment should not be death which is why they built a set of stocks in the story to hold people which committed lesser crimes. So, in a SHTF situation, not every infraction against someone warrants a death sentence.

  14. It just hit me….
    A food preserver? A teacher category
    Can you actually believe how many don’t know how to do a simple water-bath canning?
    Let alone pressure canning, smoking, salting, etc

    1. What about a boot maker? Maybe not Gore-Tex but just something for when the last of the footwear in the household wears out. I don’t think having toes sticking out the from of the boots would be very effective in winter.

      1. Im working on my third pair of boots right now, upper is Nubuk, doing a layer of goretex and thinsulate between the upper and calf lining, vibram montauk soles, can even do composut safety toes out of this stuff called celastic,

  15. Dennis mentioned above , of 4 areas of primary concern : water, food, shelter and security. From these 4 areas , let your skills develop as you can. The list of needed skills is almost endless so develop the skills you need in somewhat of a planned priority to help maintain your sanity. We began our self reliant living going in too many directions at once and feeling a bit overwhelmed . After several discussions we developed a plan to move forward in a better planned fashion. It was far less stressful and we could mark off progress points as we went along . This is one trip where you need a good roadmap ( plan),, without it you will be lost .
    This article ,to me, shows the importance of having like a minded community of folks around you that can trusted and who have the skills you do not have .

    1. Bluesman,

      We began our self reliant living going in too many directions at once and feeling a bit overwhelmed . After several discussions we developed a plan to move forward in a better planned fashion. It was far less stressful and we could mark off progress points as we went along . This is one trip where you need a good roadmap ( plan),, without it you will be lost .

      That’s rather common and when I work with people getting started I always have them construct a “Threat Matrix” , where you list all potential threats in priority order, with “death in the family/group” or “loss of job” at the top and “nuclear war” or “asteroid strike” at the bottom.

      You then fill in other threat specific to your area. Here in Ohio at our location that would be blizzards, and tornados; but, others may have to include earthquakes, wildfires, flooding, etc.

      Under each threat you start placing resources and skills required for mitigation of that threat; but, as you work down the list, you will find that you add fewer and fewer items, since preparing for higher priority items, eventually covers all of the lower priority ones.

      When you have taken the time to construct your matrix, you now have that roadmap to help you acquire the resources, knowledge and skills in an orderly fashion. As you do this, check off the items, and remember on occasion to look at what you have accomplished. Looking forward may seem like still many things to do; but, looking back on occasion, will remind you of what has been accomplished, and that can make looking forward take on a more positive perspective.

      This article ,to me, shows the importance of having like a minded community of folks around you that can trusted and who have the skills you do not have .

      Absolutely!!! Our MAG has many skills and some equipment we don’t have and will make things much better if an event occurs; but, ours has taken more than 2 decades to put together, so don’t be frustrated when it takes a while to find and vet people for your own group.

    1. Anonymous;
      I’m thinking more like 22 rolls per, and 10 foot high…
      48X8X10X22 Ok Ok, 84,480ish rolls

    2. Is that a cord of TP? What is the measure of a bunch of TP? A gaggle? A s@@@t pot full? How about a “cubic buttload”? Need some guidance from the master, NOT.

    3. Minerjim, I like it, a cubic buttload. Reminds me of a couple of weeks ago when my 6 year old GD did something incredibly dumb in traffic. Afterwards I told her in no uncertain terms how stupid and dangerous what she did was. She knew I was serious when I told her I was going to spank her butt so hard. Then I defused it when I told her I wasn’t going to stop spanking until her butt fell of. Broke her up!

    4. Me,
      Spank her butt off ! LOL! That got the point across! Yeah, I think “cubic buttload” ought to become the standard measure of TP. 100 cubic buttloads= 1 NRP of TP, in honor of the grand master of TP, our own NRP.

  16. MSB Patriots, wanna have some fun?
    SKILLS, I DON’T NEED ANY FRICKING SKILLS, I’M COMING TO YOUR HOUSE WHEN SHTF..!!!!

    All caps, go ahead let me have your wrath.

        1. Okay, so your left hand might be clean :) NRP has four sea cans, but he does not seem to be good with math, so you might want to confirm.

        2. hermit us;
          3.5 Shipping containers, one is only a 20 footer….. or is that still 4 ?
          Thank god for “New Math”.

      1. Perhaps it is time to consider reusable toilet paper? Look at the fire hazard you would remove as well as the storage space you’d save. Toss them into the washing machine at the end of the week with your other whites, slam dunk!

        1. We have more than a few cases of baby wipes. Washing might be difficult to get all of the stain out especially if doing so by hand. But they can be sterilized with bleach or by boiling if it comes to that.

          I wonder if anyone else has purchased the MSR SE200 Community Chlorine Maker. If need be I’ll us3 the product to treat my water, sterilize what ever needs to be sterilized and make Dakins solution for wound infection. Ready Made Resource has it on sale at the moment. I have no connection to MSR or Ready Made Resources.

        2. me – I’ve been looking at the MSR SE200 Community Chlorine Maker as a possible addition to the preps. What sort of salt does it call for and how much does it need? Non-iodized? Have you made up a solution yet?
          I just received some well water test kits that I’m going to use to check our wells, but if they come back with too high a bacteria count, wonder if this might also be a way to “shock” it with chlorine if needed. Today it’s easy to grab a gallon of chlorine at the store, but in a SHTF situation….?
          Thanks!

        3. Finally, The instructions for shocking a well with chlorine is on line in you tube video’s.just put question in search bar in you tube…. there are several different video’s… i would advise you look at several..and wwrite down procedure you are most interested in , all run generally the same.. in that one must pull the cap off the well to gain access to the casing… have to put in correct amount of chlorine, mixed with water, run hydrant til chlorine smell comes thru, and run in house and all pipes , allow to sit for 8-24 hours. flush out well by opening outside hydrant first then inside lines to minimze chlorine in waste water system…

        4. – me, FinallyOuttaCA, Just Sayin’ –
          I sent Ken an article awhile back on a homemade version of the Chlorine maker. I built it, tested it and sent a (very) few photos along. Ken was just not ready to post the article yet, since it probably falls under level 4 prepping. You’d have to ask him.
          – Papa S.

        5. I have heard that bleach isn’t as effective as other means, but don’t know what the other methods are. Using bleach for killing mold isn’t a permanent solution.

        6. OLD CHEVY, for Mold a heavy paste of borax and water works to kill mold spores. I wipe down any places with bleached rag…for surface control , allow to dry and saturate with either borax solution or 75% acv solution…( water the dilutant-neighbor used pure effectively several years ago wih no return)I put acv in a bottle… have several small areas that got drenched…and with high humidity had begun a slow crawl. removed all sheetrock, ack to studs and have treated studs with three sprays of acv. a few days between each application. ..to allow dry…

        7. FinallyOuttaCA,

          I just received some well water test kits that I’m going to use to check our wells, but if they come back with too high a bacteria count, wonder if this might also be a way to “shock” it with chlorine if needed. Today it’s easy to grab a gallon of chlorine at the store, but in a SHTF situation….?

          We only shocked our well back in 1985 when we were purchasing this place, and for that we used a slushy mixture of Hypochlorite. I forget if it was calcium or sodium; but, either would work, and keeping the granules in a sealed glass container means you can make more when you want or need it. We have not had to shock our well ever since, and generally the only reason to do so would be if flooding covered the well head and ground water got down inside and contaminated it.

        8. Old Chevy,

          Perhaps it is time to consider reusable toilet paper? Look at the fire hazard you would remove as well as the storage space you’d save. Toss them into the washing machine at the end of the week with your other whites, slam dunk!

          The ancient Romans used sponges on a stick dipped in vinegar. Growing up we used old catalogs in the outhouse at our rural cottage and I understand corn cobs have also been employed. In these modern times, if you have water pressure, you could also use a Bidet, and then let us all know how it worked out, LOL.
          In our case we never have less than about 200 rolls of TP on hand.

        9. The Ohio Prepper;
          200 rolls??? HAHAHA
          Lightweight LOLOL
          Just kidding old man, Just kidding.

          Bidet, works, but in most Asian Countries they use a “wand” for ‘cleaning’, an easy attachment and very clean. Although I have always been asked if it can be hooked up to “Warm Water”. :-)

        10. NRP
          Wand?
          You mean their finger,,,
          Maybe the rich ones have a majic wand, but most got shiff

        11. NRP,

          200 rolls??? HAHAHA
          Lightweight LOLOL
          Just kidding old man, Just kidding.

          Keep in mind that the 200 is a rolling average and now it’s just the DW & me using it. Back when the kids were here,, especially the DD, I think we were purchasing the 20 & 24 packs almost weekly. Guys are rather easy on the TP other than the occasional G.I. issue; but, since a female uses it for every action, that can drain the supply pretty quickly.

          Bidet, works, but in most Asian Countries they use a “wand” for ‘cleaning’, an easy attachment and very clean. Although I have always been asked if it can be hooked up to “Warm Water”.

          I have seen the ones both with and without the wands and had the same concern about where one might be spraying icy cold water. In our case it’s more like 50° F; but, on certain areas of the body, it may as well be ice water, LOL.
          When camping I’ve been known to use things other than TP and could again if I needed to; but, those things don’t easily flush and decompose in the septic system at all, so a shovel and an old catalog or phone book might become a handy thing to have around. You also have to avoid the catalogs and magazines with the shiny pages, since they just slide around and don’t help at all.

        12. I can’t seem to get this working right so just search for:
          Produce your own chlorine! – Produis ton propre chlore! – Получим самостоятельно хлор!
          And see for yourselves.

        13. @ The Ohio Prepper, Just so you know, ALL comments with LINKS are automatically held for moderation.

          (You said, “I can’t seem to get this working right…”)
          Your previous attempts were simply sent to the moderation que because they had links.

    1. Thats a loooooooonnnnggg swim cuz
      I hear fishemen been having trouble with great whites jerking their catch,

    2. Stand my Ground,

      MSB Patriots, wanna have some fun?
      SKILLS, I DON’T NEED ANY FRICKING SKILLS, I’M COMING TO YOUR HOUSE WHEN SHTF..!!!!
      All caps, go ahead let me have your wrath.

      No doubt we’ve all had those “I have a gun and know where you live” discussions, at which point I tell them to take special note of the colored rocks and paint on the trees around the perimeter. When they scratch their heads, you just leave them wondering. In my case, many are welcome; but, they have skills and resources, and know who they are.

  17. NRP
    Even measuring the new smaller rolls I still only get about half your number – what do you do, put them in a compactor?

  18. Ken – good question.
    For me it’s like that question – when is the best time to plant a tree. Answer is 10 years ago; second best time is today.

    Survival skills needed after are those needed to be developed today, if not already in hand. Along with stockpiles of info and supplies needed to exercise those skills.

    What we won’t have enough of, if we are forced to go back to handmade ways, is time to do it all ourselves. Esp. if NRP is right about the time things will take and I suspect he is.

    So, big one for me is the ability to form up a cooperative, productive, smart (as in don’t let your emotions rule your actions), capable community. Multitaskers willing to pick up new skills and pitch in where they can will be needed. We rail against the sheeple of today, but on other sites I read about folks wanting to lead groups of just such who will follow them without question. Frankly I don’t see the warlord model lasting beyond the first po’d group member with a garrote.

    Given this website we can consider ourselves forewarned. The sharing of ideas and skills now is helping us prepare ourselves as best we can given our resources for what might come. Thanks again Ken for pulling this together and giving space for the MSB community to share.

    1. Lead Sheeple? I can see it now,….That’s too heavy, I have a bad back. You’re not paying me enough, I can’t work at night or on weekends. I’ll get calluses or it will ruin my nails. I can only work for drugs, etc. On the other hand,starvation is a great motivator.

      1. I can only work from lunch to dinner. Ohh wait, I mean from my afternoon nap to dinner. So, essentially from 3:00 to 5:30. No weekends either.

      2. me ,

        That’s too heavy, I have a bad back. You’re not paying me enough, I can’t work at night or on weekends. I’ll get calluses or it will ruin my nails. I can only work for drugs, etc. On the other hand, starvation is a great motivator.

        WOW, you folks must live in big cities, since we see little of that around here. My MAG consists of farmers, firefighters, paramedics and nurse practitioners, as well as a few hard working folks who haunt the local shops, factories, and construction sites. We have a multitude of skill sets; but, this has taken 30+ odd years to assemble, since each of us needed to know the others before making any kind of commitment. A MAG as most will know is a Mutual Assistance Group (sometimes called a Tribe) with no real leader; but, many workers whose various skills can work together toward a common goal, generally just working as their own families until a need occurs.
        In a pinch we have a lot of old and new order Amish in the area, who have kept these skills around for a long time, and are never afraid of hard work. BTW, the Amish are not as backward looking as one might think, and thus the general difference between old and new order. Old order will not use the Orange SMV (Slow Moving Vehicle) triangle on the back of their buggies; but, new order will use things like internal combustion engines and cell phones. The difference between the Amish and English (that’s all of us non-Amish) is that they know the difference between a labor saving convenience and a necessity and can do without the convenience If required. As a retired engineer, I have, use, and love all kinds of tech; but, I can get along without any of it in a pinch, and still live quite comfortably , can you? That BTW was a rhetorical question, and one we should all ask ourselves from time to time.
        Starvation is a great motivator; but, if it fails to motivate, it’s possibly a good addition to the compost heap, LOL.

  19. Hummmm, no wonder I made such good $$$$ on that last job I bid LOLOL

    Still think I could get close to 100K in there :-)

  20. Ya sure – NRP being dug out of an avalanche of TP by Blue ha ha

  21. NRP
    You are never going to order concrete for me – not unless you take it home with you in a couple of hours, or buy the truck after that.

      1. I thought it was the air in Washington…….. It drifted up from the California fires…..

  22. Taking a medical trauma treatment class in Dec…DH as well. This got me thinking about refreshing some skills….haven’t done a first responder class in a while. Will set us up to refresh our basic first aid and CPR next.

    1. PW,
      Is that class for laymen or professionals? Who puts it on? DW and I have been looking at additional training beyond basic first aid.

    2. Pioneer Woman,

      Taking a medical trauma treatment class in Dec…DH as well. This got me thinking about refreshing some skills….haven’t done a first responder class in a while. Will set us up to refresh our basic first aid and CPR next.

      We’re getting ready for updates in First Aid & CPR also. I attended a CERT class earlier this year and it’s well worth the time if available in your area. Many of the CERT team members are Amateur Radio Operators; but, even for those who are not, using license free radios like FRS and practicing communications within a team can be valuable, since communications under noisy and stressful conditions can be a challenge, until you are practiced and the skills are honed.

  23. – Simmon, NRP –
    Question? Does the new roll go in the back or the front and then feed the other way? Also, does it go over or under on being dispensed?
    – Papa S.

    1. Tango,,,
      Look at the first post,,
      Only one needed is the rope maker
      Add polititian to that list and yall have a useless trio

        1. Actually the banker or some kind of banking system will be a requirement, for the same reason we have them today. Eventually a population gets to large and a society too complex for barter to fill the needs of everyone, so some kind of ”liquid barter” will be required, along with some mechanism to manage it. Over time that has been tulip bulbs, wampum, flint ridge flint, metal coins, fiat paper currency, or just some number in a ledger, like what many of us use today.

  24. The folks who can make the alcohol will have plenty to bargain with . . . HA! my shots might be worth six rounds . . . one way or another.
    Of course I’ll need to wait till the liquor stores are looted and the land is dry. Something tell me that that won’t take long!

    1. Been thinking about a still. Legal here to make 200 gal for your self. Suppose to register though. Lots of corn and wheat grown in the area.

      1. Mrs. USMCBG:
        Actually distillation of alcohol is illegal without a liscens in every country in the world except New Zealand.
        Beer wine yes 250 gallons, but NOT distilled.
        I have done the research. Can send the .gov regs.

        1. NRP,
          Beer and wine legal yes. Distilling fir your own or any other use, no. But in most states it I’d a misdemeanor offense. You get into Federal offenses for manufacturer, transport, and sale of illegally distilled alcohol. BTW, how much ” organic parts cleaner” is reasonable to store?

        2. An outfit called Origo makes stoves that run on alcohol. If you had one of them you could say you were distilling stove fuel. I now regret selling mine but I did get $100. for it.

      2. Mrs. USMCBG,

        Been thinking about a still. Legal here to make 200 gal for your self. Suppose to register though. Lots of corn and wheat grown in the area.

        I don’t know where “here” is; but, in the US, distillation is illegal without having either a “distilled spirits permit” or a “federal fuel alcohol permit.” . I took a seminar on this back in the mid 1980’s, and when you make it for fuel, you need to denature it, by adding something that makes it unpalatable (i.e., poisonous). The book we were given was “Fuel From Farms A Guide to Small Scale Ethanol Production” that can be found as a free pdf, here: https://www.nrel.gov/docs/legosti/old/519R.pdf
        The 200 gallons is for beer and wine; but, should that wine (or apple jack) happen to accidently get frozen and the ice crystal strained out of it, what’s a guy to do, LOL
        While running a small pot still would not be legal, done incognito with no bragging might just work fine, although I would never do it or recommend it, LOL.

  25. NRP, you’re welcome, I started thinking hey, we need to know how its made because eventually we will runout of TP and have to revert back to corncobs… LOL

    I used to have it under, now I have it over….LOL still wipes the same…..LOL

    But belt fed………

  26. Homesteader,
    One thing i have been toying with is building a steam engine to run a generator, if a single cylinder Lister can turn one and pump out 10-12-16 Kw why couldnt a simple steam engine?
    Granted it may make more sense to just have the Lister as its fairly easy to grow oil crops, but from what ive seen its much easier to come up with burnable wood fuel to generate steam, especially here, yes solar, wind whatever can do it but that stuff all costs big $ to buy and install, however, building a small boiler and fabricating a steam engine might be done from scraps,, the fuel for myself anyway is close by and plentiful, was just something i was toying with, trying to figure out alternatives.

    1. Was thinking more a turbine design similar to the big GE units in a power plant,

  27. Barber or hairdresser. Looking good goes a long way toward feeling good. We can survive without it but sure don’t want to. And no, just anyone can’t cut hair right.

    1. I’ve been a hairdresser/barber for 40 years I can also sew and make soap. My Mr is a retired pipefitter. Between the two of us I believe we would have some valuable skills that would be in demand. Even people who have skills but are willing to work and learn are valuable because we always will need worker bees. Those folks will need to learn so they can teach others when the time comes.

  28. Hey, dont knock it NRP,,, i might just be the oddball on project runway next season and certainly the only straight guy ever on that show with my survivalist inspired line….
    Deer hides and leather and wool!
    Utilitarian but oh so stylish!!!!

    1. Tommyboy:
      “Deer hides, leather and wool”, careful there sweetheart you may be a little too …. nevermind LOLOL😍😍😍😍

  29. Homesteader,
    Not dead set on anything,
    Would prefer the Lister, know anyone got one for sale?

    1. Tommy…..

      There’s a train-load of Lister Petter diesels on ebay. Some complete with generators. One person in Missouri has over 50! LPWS2 model. 15-25 HP. Freight would probably be a kings ransom.

  30. Yeah, trying to corner the market will get you in trouble, just look what happened to the Hunt brothers

  31. The local Amish use to have steam powered machinery but now mostly diesel.

      1. El Oso (or should I say WhatHappenedtoCompromise)
        A new day….
        Umm either my Spanish sucks or.your one stange person.

        EL OSO 12/02/2018
        El Lobo Loco
        Mucho Gusto

        “The wolf crazy alot of taste??”

        I know you don’t like or can’t find your way to the Saturday free for all. And like to bother Ken on non productive thoughts on certain subjects.
        Or maybe your too afraid these lobos will rip you apart on your frivolous posts.

        Your Thoughts pending on the free for all Saturday.

        What says you?

        1. Haaaahahahaaaa
          Thats pretty funny, his spanish is like Freddy on ScoobyDoo!

      2. EL OSO
        It’s risky wandering away from the village, your tribe is looking for you.

  32. Why can’t we just take a lesson from our dogs and scoot along the carpet to clean our backsides.

  33. Simmon,
    Does the belt feed system have tracer rounds every so many squares? If so, that could be a fire hazard. Plus, what do you do if the dispenser jams?

  34. – INPrepper –
    – No tracers, that tends to be a pain in the … Anyway, if the belt jams, you just undo the buckle and drop it to the floor pending repairs.
    – Papa S.

  35. When I think about skills I need around the house the #1 is electrical work. You have to know what you are doing and you have to have the tools and supplies. I always keep numerous and various electrical components on hand. There are a lot of U-Videos on the topic but you also have to be knowledgeable of your local codes.

    A basic tool box should be put together that would be portable with which you could hit the road and have everything you need to fix your camper or do some McGyvering.

    1. Why is electrical know-how important during a crunch? Because if you have a generator and think you want to hook it up to your house you are going to want to know how to do that. The village “expert” will probably suggest a “suicide cord”. Not only highly illegal but also appropriately named. So if there is a societal breakdown why bother with following codes? Because they are based on common sense and safety. And I could say more.

    2. Old Chevy,

      When I think about skills I need around the house the #1 is electrical work. You have to know what you are doing and you have to have the tools and supplies. I always keep numerous and various electrical components on hand. There are a lot of U-Videos on the topic but you also have to be knowledgeable of your local codes.

      I’ve been doing electrical wiring since I apprenticed with an uncle around age 10-12 as his gopher and have completely rewired one house, and added a lot of new circuits to this one. While one has to know how to safely wire and ground circuits properly, use appropriate wire gauges and GFCI’s in certain installations, post SHTF I don’t think I’ll be worried about the local codes, since I suspect the MZB’s won’t be concerned with whether I grounded the boxes with a green pigtail, LOL.

      1. Ohio: Why do I emphasize following the code? Because if someone not as experienced as you say you are does not know the logic behind the codes they will likely take shortcuts that could have fatal results.
        But in general I reject the notion that when the there is no rule of law that anything goes and one can get away with whatever they want.

        1. I agree whole heartedly, have seen some real doozies when it comes to homeowner fixes on stuff, have even seen what happens if things take the Murphies law route.
          That said, i am guilty of shortcuts myself, but they are safe, perhaps a bit eyebrow raising, but still safe.

      2. The bottom line here is to not admit or advocate doing anything that isn’t code or legal. You do not only put yourself in jeopardy, but the website also.

  36. Providing security.

    From the Woodpile:
    “What the evacuees truly needed wasn’t tangible. It wasn’t clothes or money or a hug. They needed someone to keep an eye on their families, to protect their traumatized children, cast a watchful eye over what belongings they still had and to defend the elderly. Looting in the shelter was becoming a problem, with bad actors and transients helping themselves to goods and services meant for survivors. In those early hours, confusion reigned and it was a free-for-all… ”

    source: orovillemr-dotcom

  37. I used to wonder about this topic years ago. Now days, I find myself in the enviable position of being in a high demand field despite my age: I am still a working floor nurse with a background in Security and patrol work and lots of experience in gunsmithing and crop protection.

    My job in health care has carried me through several economic downturns and I have been able to find work though it has meant a relocation to “greener pastures”

    I have my RN from a Community College. I did not see the need to progress any higher because at some point, you educate yourself off the floor and into the realm of management.

    During a recession, the first to be laid off are the mid level managers. Besides, most of my patients are reassured when they find out I have been nursing for over 20 years and was a paramedic for almost 8 years prior to nursing school.

    We are in the midst of nursing shortage (again) and most of that shortage is on the floor. I hope there are young people out there reading this posting as I was looking forward to training my replacement one day.

  38. when i first read the title, i instantly thought of the book(s) One Second After and One Year After. I think these books show a great example of what is expected with the coming collapse.

    for those who are yet to read/listen to it.. (youtube still has it on there for those interested.. listening on youtube is not stealing, its borrowing ;) )
    the books highlight how fast food runs out, how fast civil disorder starts, the flooding of local towns from transients, people demanding food, medicines, how fast diseases spread with lack of care and ability to clean, simple tooth aches leading to infections.. the list goes on.

    for anyone who is yet to read or listen, this is a number one for me. its a realistic great read, with very limited “fictional” drama that a lot of the “survival” books showcase.

  39. Skill set? Mainly it’s about attitude. My grandfather told me “a man built this and a man can fix it.” If a person is willing to work and learn, that person will be an asset. Skill sets are acquired over many years of “let’s take it apart and see.” The willingness to work will be the most important skill. Unfortunately it is in short supply today.

    I’m an expert in only a couple of things. I love to tinker on stuff. Who knows? Maybe I can fix that. What have I got to lose? It’s already broken. If I can’t fix it, well at least I’ll have a few bolts, nuts, screws, etc. for my stash. Our throw-away mindset will have to change.

    Carpentry- yea I can do some of that. Electrical- I get by OK. Pumps- not really that complicated. Many on this site are just the kind of folks that WILL be needed. I have so much to learn and fewer years to learn it.

    1. @Plainsmedic, I really like your comment, “If a person is willing to work and learn, that person will be an asset.”

      While not a skill per se, it is an attribute that WILL make a difference. And it should be something that we look for when evaluating others.

      1. I have had several people work for me in the shop. If some one is willing to work I can teach them how to fix a car. If they are not willing to work I can not teach them to be motivated. This principle applies to much more than fixing cars.

        1. Well said. One cannot ‘teach’ motivation. Although I suppose ‘fear’ could be instilled upon a person as motivation ;)

    2. Plainsmedic,

      My grandfather told me “a man built this and a man can fix it.” If a person is willing to work and learn, that person will be an asset. Skill sets are acquired over many years of “let’s take it apart and see.” The willingness to work will be the most important skill. Unfortunately it is in short supply today.

      Your grandfather sounds like my father who could seemingly do anything and everything and expected me to do the same. I can do and have done, rough and finish carpentry, plumbing, electrical, drywall (sheet rock for some of you), an roofing; but, will hire the last two done when I can afford it. I can do as good a job as any professional; but, that professional will have most of it done, cleaned up, and gone long before I finish it and start the cleanup. When I married I had two stepsons ages 10 & 14, who I often dragged to a house I owned to help with the remodel I was doing. When I sold that house I paid off this one and was debt free; but, the boys still hated being used as “slave labor” and were quite vocal about it. They are now grown, gone and on their own, and both have thanked me for showing them the potential that each of them has, as they do their own maintenance and remodeling on their houses, saving tons of cash. The wife of the youngest boy often jokes about how the other guys in the neighbor hood hate her husband, when they are nagged by their wives about why they can’t do what her husband does.
      “Look, he’s building that nice deck on the back of the house and she has porcelain tiel in her new kitchen”

  40. You mention the book: “The Encyclopedia of Country Living” by Carla Emery and I agree it’s a good one. I have an edition purchased back in the early 1990’s while getting this homestead into shape.

    Another I would recommend is “Making the Best of Basics: Family Preparedness Handbook” by James Talmage Stevens
    I have a first edition I purchased back in the 1970’s and another from the mid 1990’s I purchased from Mr. Stevens at a preparedness expo in the mid 1990’s. He was kind enough to sign both of them. I have subsequently purchased a newer edition along with a pdf of the same.

  41. BJH
    The sheer scale and complexity of some of the sites with the engineering and the physics involved is all i need to be a skeptic of these so called experts theory on how it was built.

  42. Have you read any of the volumes of info that they have gathered from that new radar tech that strips away vegetation?
    Pretty cool, it shows everything

  43. Tommyboy ,
    I have followed it since they presented their findings. It is amazing how many buildings they have found.
    This isn’t an isolated find either.
    It’s all over. I read an article about them finding some interesting stuff in the water by the big island.
    One of the most interesting finds is the one between Florida and Cuba. Now it’s way down under the water. But if you look at the map of the world prior to the 6-800 feet rise in the oceans?
    There is twice as much land mass than there is now.
    Made it easier to travel to areas that now are more isolated . They are even coming out with all the sites in China thanks to Google earth.
    There a couple of Scientists with YouTube videos that make for some really convincing hypothesis of our distant past.
    They get hammered hard from the mainstream over it but it begs the question … who the Hell are we really?

  44. BJH
    One of the articles i was reading regarding how the earliest inhabitants of Nirth America got here was theorizing that rather than ice bridging the gap between Russia and Akaska they migrated on land, the piece spoke about the much lower water levels and tectonic changes that may have drasticly changed the land masses since then. The theiry was tied to the fact that core samples from the arctic ocean had sediment and spores consistant with a much much warmer climate than is there now. Was a real interesting read, ill try to find it again,

  45. Homesteader,
    The bible, and religion has been used as a means of control over others, not knocking it, but the reality is that it was written by man, and has been changed by man over the centuries and unfortunately was changed to suit the agenda of those who were rewriting it.
    Organized religion is generally nothing more than a club used to beat believers into submission and compliance.
    Sorry, just what i see

  46. Tommyboy,

    The bible, and religion has been used as a means of control over others, not knocking it, but the reality is that it was written by man, and has been changed by man over the centuries and unfortunately was changed to suit the agenda of those who were rewriting it.

    I agree in part, and the evidence is that the copy used by the most people has this premise in its name: “The King James Version”, and I suspect if the King didn’t like a passage, it’s not in there.

    Organized religion is generally nothing more than a club used to beat believers into submission and compliance.
    Sorry, just what i see

    I don’t know that it’s true of all of them today; but, the early Roman Catholic (Universal) Church had quite a deal with the royal families. The church ruled that the kings were of divine heritage, and the kings supported the clergy and the church with force if required.
    When Martin Luther started the protestant reformation, he wasn’t against the church per. se.; but, some of what he saw as corrupt practices, like the selling of indulgences.

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