How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It - James Wesley Rawles [94]
When shopping for used pocketknives, one trick I’ve discovered for searching eBay is to search for the desired brand name and “knives” and “TSA,” searching both titles and descriptions (or alternatively, the desired brand name and “knives” and “confiscated”). These searches will show you lots of used knives that were confiscated by airport screeners. These are often name-brand knives sold in groups of two to ten, typically resulting in winning bids between 10 percent to 30 percent of the lot’s normal retail value.
Regardless of your choice of knives, a top-quality knife-sharpening system is a must for your retreat. At home, I prefer the Lansky Sharpening System. When out in the field, I use a compact Cam-Nu sharpener. Be sure to get a diamond-impregnated sharpener if you have any knives that are made with the modern stainless steels such as ATS-34. These knives are usually hardened to a high Rockwell scale number, so you’ll find that they are difficult to resharpen with a set of traditional stones.
A Final Note
In closing, you can own the very best guns or knives and have the very best holsters and accessories, but they will be marginal at best in untrained hands. Once you’ve invested in your first gun, you should follow through and invest in the best training available. If you are serious about preparedness, then you should get the best training available. Remember: Tools without training are almost useless.
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G.O.O.D. VEHICLES AND THE DREADED TRIP OUTTA DODGE
A key part of your survival planning should be your vehicles; both your pre-TEOTWAWKI and post-TEOTWAWKI vehicles will be addressed in this chapter.
A Mix of Vehicles
For the best chance to G.O.O.D. successfully and survive post-TEOTWAWKI, you will ideally have several vehicles. Here are some you might want to consider:
A Fuel-Efflcient Runabout
A car like a used Geo Metro or Toyota Corolla is good for day-to-day. For serious preparedness planning you may want to avoid the high cost and complexity of a hybrid. If you need four-wheel drive, consider buying a used Subaru.
The Old Station Wagon
A late-1960s to early-1970s station wagon with a big-block engine would be ideal as a collision-resilient Get Out of Dodge vehicle. They get pitifully low gas mileage, but they have lots of cargo room, as well as clearance for a roll bar behind the bench front seat. You can also add a roof rack for relatively lightweight items such as spare tires, tents, and camouflage nets.
To my mind, perfection in a gas-engine G.O.O.D. station wagon would be a flat-brown 1970 Buick Estate with a 455-cubic-inch four-barrel V-8 engine. What a ride: plenty of power, very tough in collisions, easy to maintain, EMP protection near ground zero, and even a touch of class.
Motorcycles
Consider getting a moped or motorcycle for handling some of your errands in the current pre-WTSHTF times. In a “slow-slide” situation in which the power grid stays up and law and order are maintained, a motorcycle could have great utility. With high fuel prices, a fuel-efficient motorcycle makes sense for day-to-day commuting and for other purposes. A motorcycle has great mobility advantages over most other vehicles—especially in stalled traffic, or for off-road trail riding—but keep in mind that you will also be far more vulnerable than when riding in an enclosed vehicle.
My general preference is for air-cooled medium-displacement-engine motorcycles with off-road suspension (aka dirt bikes) that are also qualified as street legal. About 350cc is ideal, but sadly that engine class is no longer available in the U.S. (There are, however, lots of used 350 dirt bikes on the market.) Heavier bikes with large-displacement engines (500cc or larger) have inferior fuel economy and are very difficult to get back to an upright position following a mishap in which you “drop” your bike. (The limit might be as little as 300cc for someone of small stature with limited upper-body strength.)
Perhaps the ultimate for preppers