MacGyver

Welcome

Thanks for sharing that Brooks. Glad we could help.

Nice setup.

Thanks for sharing Mike. I'm glad we could help him out a little bit.

Having been there on "business" a time or two, here are some helpful tips to make your stay more pleasant - If you get an invite to visit one of the "art galleries" - steer clear. They've got more streets named after dead U.S. Presidents than we do, and five lanes of traffic squeezing into a two lane road is SOP there. Food from street vendors here is fun, there it might kill you. Hati is closer than you think, and just one ill directed cab ride away. Pedestrians absolutely do not have the right of way. Ever. It is possible to break the bank in the casino downstairs in the Intercontinental. The $5 5lb. bag of coffee beans simply labeled "coffee" in the airport is some of the best coffee you'll ever drink. Have fun. Be safe down there.

The post above got me looking at 4 bores, and I came across this pretty cool story in 2 parts: Return of the 4 Bore Part One Return of the 4 Bore Part Two

Welcome

welcome

Welcome.

Don't let the amount of stuff get to you. I and many others have built our kits over time, and used or replaced almost every item in them as we've experimented or gone through different trials. Start with the basics, and build up from there. What you can carry in your pockets is what you are going to have available most of the time. Start by making sure you are squared away there. The intent is that if you were to find yourself stuck with only what you have on you, you should be able to get back home. Each level kit builds up from there. If I have a cargo pocket, or am carrying my briefcase, my level I kit rides along. If I'm in the car, level II is there, etc... Couple that with having adequate preparation at home, and you should be pretty well off for most situations As Suntzu said spending an extra $5 on non-perishable foodstuffs and drinking water is a great idea, and one that is neglected by almost everyone. My kits are structued the way they are because I spend a lot of time in the field. We are prepared at home to last for a while, though. The LDS folks have one thing right, in that they teach their believers that they should have one years worth of provisions for their family at any time. That may be a lofty goal that takes real planning and maintenance, but it's a great goal to reach for.

550 Paracord is the cord used for rigging parachutes in the military. You want the mil-spec stuff as opposed to hardware store variety twine or cord because it has sever individual inner strands that can be separated from the outer core and used independently for fishing line, light lashing, traps/snares, etc... Most gun shows will have that guy in the back that has it. It is also available online. I buy it by the spool, as it's like duct tape - once you have some it's easy to find uses for it.

My pelican 2150 came with three layers of solid foam. You only cut the middle layer. I traced a template of my weapons with a colored pencil and then cut with an X-acto knife with a longer blade. It took 45 minutes or so to cut for all three weapons, accessories and mags, but it turned out well. I wouldn't use an electric knife unless you are really skilled or prepared to mess up the foam in the blink of an eye. Take your time and you will do fine.

The AFO is a great blade. My experience with some of the rest of Benchmade's line is that quality has suffered a bit in the last few years. I have retired the last couple non-auto Benchmades that I've had after just a couple of months of use. There wasn't anything major wrong with them, they just didn't feel right. They wouldn't hold a good edge, and on one, different parts of the blade seemed to sharpen differently. If it's an auto, which the AFO is, you're fine, if not - make sure you hold it in person before you buy it. I've not used an AFO in a couple of years, but would buy another one in a heartbeat.

You can use a reverse step curve for calculating the value of any of them - upon going to Washington they are worth about 80% of their original value for about a month after which their value drops immediately to zero.

I don't know another platform where you can shoot 6000 rounds of ammo for $8.

We found that when shooting my friend's Red Ryder at 50 feet, it would puncture one side of a coke can, but not the other. A box like copier paper comes in stacked with old newspapers should set you up for a while.

One of my friends just got one at Wal-Mart, and I was pleasantly suprised after not having fired one in 20+ years. We took it down to the lake and spent the better part of the evening shooting bottle caps at 25 feet. Daisy has done a great job with keeping the detail of the original carbine as well.

Every time I fire the PPK, I am reminded of how snappy it is on recoil. I actually get a little bit of hammer bite, even with a strong grip. I fired my dad's PPK this weekend next to my PPS, and even in 9mm the PPS has significantly less felt recoil.

It was great to be a part of this, and I hope that a lot of families Christmas's will be at least a little bit better because of it. Nice work TGO!

I sure like my current P99. I hope they don't screw it up.

Try this thread. http://www.tngunowners.com/forums/survival-skills/14085-your-go-bag.html

I'll post a link to a good thread on this following this post. On my iPhone, so going backwards and forwards is tough. Start with level I so that you always have something on you and move up to level III. Survival gear is just like your carry weapon. If it's sitting at home - it won't do you any good when it comes down to needing it. Man has an incredible capacity to survive - but a little gear goes a long way. If you are going to stare down the reaper and send him packing, you have to be prepared. My kits are broken down on a graduated basis as opposed to just a bugout bag - what if I'm not at home when it all heads south. I need to have some gear on me as appropriate for any occasion. These kits are broken down into levels pocket, I, II and III and are fully 'stackable' That is, if I've got Level III, then I also have Level II and I. Here they are: Pocket kit - this stuff goes everywhere - everyday - to church, the grocery store, wherever - this is what goes in my pockets: Multitool (currently Leatherman Skeletool CX), Knife with locking blade (backup is good - currently a Benchmade axis folder - a big knife can do a little knife job, but not vice versa), small lighter, small flashlight (Streamlight Nano is AMAZING), lip balm, space pen, phone, wallet, carry weapon - usually IWB Level I kit - this should fit into a cargo pocket comfortably - some people like an Otter box or something like that. If you are old school, this is your tobacco tin kit. Both are too bulky for me, so I fit it in one of those wallets for kayakers that looks like two heavy ziploc bags and folds in half. Contents: · Flint Rod and Scraper – 1 ea. · Butane Lighter – 1 ea. · Betadine – 10% solution ½ Fluid Ounce Bottle -1 ea. · Signal Mirror – 1 ea. · 24 Fish Hooks & Split Shot · Large Fish Hook – 2 ea. · Spool of Tripwire – 1 ea. · Sewing Needles (Large Eye)– 3 ea. · Fishing Line (10-12 lbs.) – 40 ft. · 550 Para Cord – 20 ft. 2 ea. · Eze-Lap Diamond Sharpener – 1 ea. · Space Blanket – 1 ea. · First Aid Kit – Personal · Button Compass – 1 ea. · Fuel Tabs (Hexamine)– 2 ea. · Freezer Bags – 2 ea. If I'm actually in the field then my other cargo pocket usually has a MS2000 rescue strobe, a MSR steripen, a better compass and a Garmin Etrex loaded up with the maps of the operating area. If I am in a more civilized area, the Level I kit goes on the inside pocket of my suit coat and the extra gear in my briefcase along with a bigger light and some extra AAs. Both make it through magnetometers at the airport fine - the kit is so crowded it just shows up a one mass - that or the fine folks manning it just don't get paid to care. Level II kit - carried in a small (500 cu. inch) ruck or buttpack - Always in the car. I'm always stuffing things in here. Thus, there are always some extra goodies, but the contents always include: · Insect Repellent · 550 Para Cord – 50 ft. - (You really can't have enough) · Ranger Sighting Compass · Flashlight (larger LED light plus LED Headlamp) · Dehydrated Sponges · Mini Cable Ties – 50-75 ea. · Commercial Game Snares – (4 ea. Small, 1 ea. Medium) · Animal Scent Lures · Fishing Kit · Small Frog Gig · Sun Screen · Hygiene Kit (Campsuds, Toothbrush, Toothpaste, Dental Floss, Small Roll AP Paper) · Clear Plastic Trash Bags · 9 Hour Candle – 1 ea. · Medium Fixed Blade Knife · Notepad (Waterproof) with Pencil · Tubular Webbing – 1 Inch, 15 ft. · Carabineer (Locking) · Sling Rope – 15 ft. · Mini Chain Saw · Emergency Bivy (AMK makes a great one that's cheap) · Trioxane Fuel Tabs – 4-5 ea. · Emergency Strobe · Global Positioning System · VHF Radio with Weather Bands · Extra Batteries – 6 ea. AA, 3 ea AAA · Leather Gloves with Liners · Watch Cap · Rations – 2 Day (3 High Protein Myoplex bars, 3 Gatorade, Peanut Butter, Bullion Cubes, Tea Bags, Sugar) · Nalgene Canteen (1 Liter) – 2 ea. · First Aid Kit (Rapid Deployment Kit) Level III kit - carried in a small assault ruck (~1500 cu. inch) - this one is for when you know that you might be stuck out for a while - I guess this one qualifies as the 'bugout bag' - and for me, it's truly that - by the time we get here, things have seriously headed south · Water Purifier · Game Snares – (3 small, 2 medium, 2 Large) · Utility Pot · Military Fuel Tabs – 5 ea. · Gortex Pants and Jacket · Nalgene Canteen – Large · Sling Rope – 50 ft. · Hydration System · Large Fixed Blade Knife · Small Shovel · Whetstone · Gortex Bivy · Poncho Liner · Stove with Fuel · One pair clothes - matched to mission, environment, season · Extra Socks · LRP First Aid Kit · Pistol with Extra Magazine · Ammunition (matched to objective, but typically 40 ea. Hollow Point, 10 ea. Shotshell) · Rations – 3 Day (5 High Protein Myoplex bars, 5 Gatorade, Peanut Butter, Tea Bags, Sugar, Bullion Cubes) Beside the Level III kit is a Sabre Defence M5 with an EOTECH 552 - I occasionally think that I need to swap this out for something that draws less attention, but keep coming back here. It's fast, light, and if it really heats up, I know it won't let me down. Parting notes - Unless you have a specific mission need, ditch the military surplus gear and go commercial. It's generally lighter, faster and a lot more comfortable. That said, some of the companies selling new military, tactical gear make great stuff - BlackHawk, Tactical Tailor, etc...

You should really read Michael Pollan's Omnivore's Dilema. It was one of the sources for the movie. It is not an understatement to say that it changed my worldview.

How times have changed since 1789. Imagine that being read today. I found this article in the WSJ a couple weeks ago pretty meaningful:

I really regret not getting my grandfather's big green egg when he passed away. I think those are the best you can get. As a consolation, I've gotten pretty good at smoking chickens and turkeys on the grill. I use one or two burners depending in the size of the bird and don't put the bird on the grate. I put the bird in a roasting pan on a rack, so it never comes in contact with the flame. You can add chips or whatever you plan to smoke with - I've been using pecan chips lately. When you first put it on, check it every few minute until you get the equilibrium temperature you want, and then resist the urge to check it until you reach a safe temperature on your meat thermometer. I've had success with long slow smokes around 230F, and if I'm in a hurry with higher temperatures around 350F. Good luck.