Wednesday, January 10, 2018

kerosene 1 of 2


KEROSENE
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note: I posted this in a comment yesterday.  "Fun filled fact. An M1 Garand was fresh out of the factory 2-4 MOA specs. Just like the no.1 Enfield. The no.4 Enfield was 1-2 MOA. Everyone loves the Garand and says the Enfield is a sloppy shooter. That says different, doesn't it? Or course, full disclosure, second hand info from a YouTube vid. But the guy did seem knowledgeable."
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note: how can you not love 'Ol Remus at Woodpile Report?  This guy is funnier than most stand-up comedians.  "Sometimes Mr. Reed's "check engine" light comes on without him noticing it."
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A short while ago a minion brought up the joys of kerosene lanterns.  I responded with my normal “LED’s rule, fool” ( I was an advocate of LED lighting when it was a niche item on hardly anyone’s radar-so much I was dubbed by one reader as “the LED guy”, similar to my use of “druid dude” or “Yuppie Scum Survivalist Guru” ).  And yet, nothing should ever be cut and dried, should it?  There is a place for everything and everything has its place.  I detest semi-automatic weapons because of the logistics.  That doesn’t mean they cannot be used in a proper unconventional way.

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We were discussing the best manual saws.  The Kunukian Prepper ( Canadian Prepper on You Tube ) introduced-or at least popularized-the Japanese saws that are like most things from Nippon ( except Subaru-bad experiences with those cheese dinguses ).  They cost a kings ransom and then, after time, the quality is so high they end up costing you far, far less as they just never seem to break.  They make cross-cut saws look weak and befouled in comparison, from minion reports. 

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This got me thinking about saws, again ( I thought I had completed this phase years ago ).  I knew the ones I had were crap and wouldn’t last long, but looking at the Japanese saws, no matter how good, just seemed to be an investment commitment I was unwilling to undertake.  I only have sagebrush for wood here, and you can take them out with a Mattock or a pry bar or even reverse twist them and uproot them.  I thought an ax would be sufficient, if I even needed another tool.  Which got my brain into the Butt Simple tool concept.

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It is far better, long term planning wise, just to go Butt Simple.  Even if you are using extra energy calorie-wise, you are using less resources to make or maintain the tool.  This is a trade off that wasn’t uncommon.  We are so used to the opposite, investing in a tool regardless of its resource use, to save the minutest amount of human effort.  This is a little bit because of an aging affluent consumer and a lot to do with the elites automation to take away as many jobs as possible to control us better ( the money they throw our way in welfare or similar is just conjured out of the glittery fart unicorn reality anyway ).

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We, you minions and I, fight this paradigm all the time.  I say, turn the damn bolt.  You hate bolt actions because everyone used the Mauser action, which was the VHS to the Brits Betamax.  Not as good but popular, and a stiff action is considered the norm.  Using a darn semi because you are too lazy to turn the bolt ( I know, I’m being sarcastic-no need to remind me of the tactics you are attempting to emulate ).  I say, four friggin minutes to grind half your days calories with the cheap Victoria grain mill.  You say, NO, I want it in thirty seconds, and if I have to spend $300 and buy back-up parts to do it I will!

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Yes, yes, I know we are all getting older.  We cannot do like we used to.  But while that is a reason, it shouldn’t be an excuse.  You still have to force yourself to perform a minimum amount of labor.  I can’t install an elevator down to my underground hovel-I need to navigate those steps regardless of arthritis or other ailments.  I’m not saying you shouldn’t invest for the loss of muscle use aging brings.  I’m saying there should be a cut-off point where you draw the line between coddling and necessary compromise.  Instead of buying an electronic chainsaw and more solar panels to power it, a cheaper solution that requires SOME manual labor ( the Jap saw ), even if it is less than swinging an ax.

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Perhaps, instead of felling a tree a day as you would in your youth, you still use an ax as a geriatric but you only chop a little every day.  No matter how old I get, I’m sure I can still haul a gallon or half of water.  I don’t need the tank for gravity to make getting water labor-less.  You save a lot of money this way.  Not that it is about SAVING money, it is about getting more for the same amount of money. 

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Like, instead of spending two grand on a rifle you spend $200 on it, then buy junk land and ammo and a beater RV.  You still spent two grand, you just bought a crappy rifle instead of a perfect one, and got more tools for the same investment ( obviously, these prices are pre-2007.  I finally sold my Texas land, the $300 lot I got in 2005 [ with $250 title insurance Title America screwed me out of, the bastards-at the time I was making too much to trade money for aggravation so I never fought them on it ].  I think now you’d spend five times more for it.  Junk land seems to increase universally in price in bad times. Which should be a warning to you to buy before it is too late ).

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Anyway, Butt Simple has as much of a place in your preps as High Tech does.  Instead of just back-ups to current tech tools, you should also have two lower tiers as well.  Current tool, its back-up, a 100 year old tech tool, and then a medieval tech tool.  So, with lighting, you have a lot of LED’s ( assume sloppy Chinese manufacture ) with its necessary infrastructure, then kerosene lanterns, then plans for candles.  As the minion stated, kerosene can be your Forever Lighting.  It is one step up from lowest tech, with a minimal amount of stockpiling needed.  It has almost zero vulnerabilities unlike LED’s.

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Yes, it has a bottleneck of More Than Cottage Industry tool construction.  It isn’t as Butt Simple as candles.  But it is close enough.  It is similar to buying a twenty pack of frensel lenses for ten bucks.  It is nominally higher tech than cottage industry can manufacture but it is a nominal fee for bypassing more laborious fire starting.  A single roll of cotton wick is all you need for five years of lighting, assuming you make bio-diesel at your farm.  We’ll go into all that tomorrow.

END ( today's related link http://amzn.to/2CLYWfi )
 

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13 comments:

  1. Simple tools...
    Years ago I was exploring in western NV up in the pinion pines. I discovered some areas where the Indians had stashed some of their poles for knocking the pine cones down for the fall harvest. Along that same theme, I visited a farm store and purchased two 18' fiberglass knocking poles and two 20' bamboo poles for knocking pine cones and acorns. The salesman recommended wrapping the thin end of the bamboo poles with duct tape to maximize its durability under impact. All four poles are stored in black ABS sewer pipe with a glued on slip cap on one end and a screw on cap on another, up against the foundation of an outbuilding. This keeps them clean and out of the weather for the day of need.
    Peace out

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  2. “I detest semi-automatic weapons because of the logistics. That doesn’t mean they cannot be used in a proper unconventional way.”


    Whenever I would use a semi-automatic, I noticed that I was always far more wasteful with ammunition. And this was under normal circumstances, as opposed to combat. But then again, aside from my
    .22’s, I’ve never had semi’s in any other caliber aside from my 9mm, so maybe with more costly ammo, you might be less inclined to waste it.

    But given a hypothetical situation, where someone has both a semi-auto and a bolt action or single shot, while in the collapse, here’s my guess as to the outcome. After depleting the main bulk of the ammo using the semi, that person must now reload all of that depleted ammo. After going through the painstakingly slow process (at least compared to buying it ready to fire by the brick) of having to reload that ammo, that person will now be more inclined to appreciate the value of that ammo a little more, and will resort to using the ammo conserving arm from then on. Sort of the difference between the kid that had everything handed to him, vs the kid that had to work for every dollar that he received.

    I hear people around here where I live, blasting off big stuff all the time, and the rate of fire tells you that they’re firing off semi-auto’s for recreational purposes. It must be nice to be rich.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Just in the process of reloading you might see how little components you have left, and it would "scare you straight".

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    2. My brother discovered that the hard way. He started out dove hunting with the single shot break open shotgun action, then changed to a Remington semi-auto. He ended up shooting three times the amount with slightly LESS birds, because his brain told him another shot was just a trigger press away, vs. take care to aim better because this is all you have.

      The money he spent on the new Remington would have bought a lot of shotgun shells. The one saving grace of said semi-auto is that recoil is not nearly as bad.

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    3. I was looking at the Lee Loader kits just recently Jim. They don’t make crap for variety when it comes to pistol calibers, and only the most popular calibers are offered (.45 ACP .45 long colt .357 magnum .38 special 9mm .44 magnum).

      Sure, they do sell a few different presses and die sets, and I also have access to my fathers old press, but I like the portability of the kit. The above calibers are all fine, but I’m looking for a tiny, lightweight pistol, and I can’t find the features that I want in any of the above calibers.

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    4. Is a rimfire too small of a caliber? I ask because now you can get the 22lr reloader which is rather small. Now, don't quote me because it has been up to twenty years since I discussed this, but I think that the Lee Loaders only work in some, not all, calibers. Something about only neck sizing for the rifles ( I don't pay enough attention to the pistol reloading ). I know you want to use Lee loaded brass in the same rifle all the time, not mixing it up. I love the Lee and have three of them plus the rifle bullet mold. But they of course have limitations as do most things ( if nothing else, the cost. I was just watching Kunickian Prepper-damn! An $800 jacket??? ). The rimfire isn't a Lee, another company entirely, just BTW.

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    5. I’m actually thinking that I might get a rimfire now Jim. I really want something that is reloadable (practically speaking, unlike the rimfire) but since I can’t find anything small and light enough, I might get something like the .22/.22 magnum convertible in the link below. Now I confess to being the minion that vowed to slap the shit out of anyone that told me that they were getting a .22 magnum :D However, if I can get a convertible such as the one in the link below, then I might do so, and use the .22 magnum strictly for defense, and the .22lr for practice and plinking. Probably wouldn’t even bother to reload .22. I figure that it’s probably just better to stock up on extra .22’s than buy the reloader, unless of course the argument can be made that the .22 rimfire reloader is a practical purchase?

      To answer your question Jim, the Lee Loader usually neck sizes only, making the ammo usable only in the same gun. However, on some calibers such as the 9mm, it does the full length size.


      NAA Ported .22 Magnum with Conversion Cylinder, Revolver, .22 Magnum, Rimfire, 22MCP

      https://www.sportsmansguide.com/product/index/naa-ported-22-magnum-with-conversion-cylinder-revolver-22-magnum-rimfire-22mcp-744253002175?a=1809195

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    6. I wouldn't consider a 22lr reloader unless that is your Forever Gun round and you are on a strict budget limiting the number of factory loads you can buy. When you said "small reloader for mobility" I kind of pictured that being a/the criteria.

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    7. 7:32 AM, DO NOT BUY the NAA you linked to! Not for the purposes you listed. The porting reduces the effective barrel length (they're already velocity challenged), increases the muzzle blast (upward unburnt powder discharge), and the noise (they're already VERY noisy).

      Instead, go for the Black Widow model, much more ergonomic, excellent sights, and better accuracy and velocity. The larger grip on the Black Widow is much more useful, and it's not really harder to conceal in your pocket. The stock rosewood grip on the standard NAA is rather slippery and you have to take time to have a perfect grip before you fire, otherwise it can rotate in your hand, out of position for the next shot.
      Peace out

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    8. Thanks for the suggestion 9:18, I checked it out and agree that it would be a much better choice. And actually, I didn’t have time to look through the different choices, but that one that I linked was really more of an example of something that I’m looking for. I want something that fits in the pocket, but also something that’s a little bigger than the one that I linked. I’d like for it to have a long enough barrel length that in a survival situation, it could procure game at close range.

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    9. Right before the New Year, Savage offered $50 Gift Card (Visa) when buying a long arm. It included the $147 "Rascal" Youth single-shot .22LR, which is a pretty darn good little launcher for under a hunnert bux (+ten dollar background check in Oregon). It's not as fancy as a Ruger 77/22 (smooth 10/22 magazine fed boltie), but much-cheaper AND lighter for my future as a pedestrian. My only want can be added at a machine shop: Outside-threaded recessed crown barrel that will coincidentally match an SAE oil filter (gotta catch and reuse bore-cleaning solvents). If I don't have NV or an IR scope, I'm fine with some metal peeps on a .22lr with typical target range of 200 feet.

      pdxr13

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    10. I wonder if anyone actually made money this X-Mas. Sportsmans Guide with free shipping for like two months? I thought only Amazon was getting subsidized package delivery. Well, I guess just keep losing money buy jack up the stock price and cash out.

      Delete

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