Spring cleaning is one of my favorite times of the year. I’m always surprised at the amount of “stuff” I’ve collected over the past year and how, with a little thought, that “stuff” could be a valuable addition to my survival kit list. There are some obvious items that I’ve collected from my survival gear list with my monthly purchase program that somehow got misplaced. There are also some larger items from my survival equipment list that just suddenly show up. They’ve been there all along but through time, have become obsolete or been replaced by newer models and these items make great additions into my cache.
Hog Snares in my Survival Gear List |
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Texas has hogs – and lot’s of them. They are smart and wary of people. There’s a lot of noise and hoopla about hunting hogs – even from helicopters with automatic weapons and night vision equipment. I find that a slower, quieter approach using snares works a lot better. Hogs are damn smart and snares take a lot of patience. That said, if you have hogs and a couple snares in your survival gear list you stand a good chance of having some pork when you need it! |
Taurus Judge, Reloadable Rounds and my Survival Equipment List |
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I’m not a huge fan of a massive armory in my survival equipment list. I regularly use a Taurus Judge pistol as I’m wandering around the ranch. I typically keep it loaded with personal defense rounds in .410 bore. This gives me the flexibility I want to cover anything from snakes to coyotes. I don’t expect to need to use it and I never have (so far) but I prefer to be prepared rather than a victim. I expect to include some weapons in my survival equipment list and I like the versatility of the Taurus Judge. That said, I also want some more flexibility to have ammunition when I need it. The .410 bore in the Taurus Judge also uses .41 Long Colt ammunition. I bought a box to test them and they worked fine – as long as I was willing to acknowledge that I’m not going to win any pistol competitions! The other benefit to the .41 Long Colt is that it should easily reloadable with simple or hand loading tools. If I can also find a rifle chambered in .41 Long Colt I’ll be set. The first step is complete – I know the Taurus Judge can shoot the .41 Long Colt round. Now to think through the reloading needs….. |
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Smal Gun Repair Tool |
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My brother-in-law very thoughtfully gave me a small gun repair tool for Christmas. I didn’t have it on my survival kit list but the array of little tools and overall small size impressed me. I also don’t have a current need for this type of tool so in it went – to the survival kit list! |
Speedy Stitcher to the Rescue! |
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The Speedy Stitcher has long been one of my most favorite tools. It has a very specific use – to sew up heavy canvas and leather items. I used to use one when building saddles and have recently found the need when repairing some canvas chaps that I use for hunting. I loaned mine to a buddy, forgot I loaned it and got a replacement and then found I had an extra when he returned it to me. I realized when I got the extra that when SHTF things are going to break. If I have this cool little tool in my survival kit list, I’ll be able to make the repairs I need and keep going. |
Bilge Pump in my Survival Gear List |
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I’ve spent considerable time and money thinking through how I’m going to obtain and provide water when SHTF. I have a lot of water collection, storage and filtration items in my survival kit list. All of those are no good if I have trouble collecting or moving water. And, without water you may just as well roll over. I looked an thought for a long time before deciding that a bilge pump for my survival kit list was what I needed. This little rascal can move a lot of water very quickly with only hand power. I like it! |
Gas Lighters in my Survival Gear List |
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I’m not a huge fan of lighters but they sure are handy if you have them when you need them. Yeah, I can build a fire from scratch and I have a flint steel but if I have a couple lighters in my survival gear list, then we’re definitely going to have fire much sooner than if I have to start scratching and clawing with my more primitive tools. It’s not a long term solution for starting fires because they are not refillable. But, the weight and size tradeoff versus ease and comfort makes them a very happy resident on my survival gear list! |
Shears and Wrenches for Survival Equipment |
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I’m going to go ahead and guess that most survival equipment lists don’t include shears, scissors or a multiwrench. I went one further and added some strong scissors. Remember, I’m building this survival equipment list and kit for both short and long term. I won’t be able to rebuild an engine or cut the parts to sew a dress but I’m pretty confident that I’ll have a need to tighten/loosen a nut or cut some thick stuff and I want to make sure that I have the tools I need to easily do the job at hand and then go on providing for my family. |
Pencils & Paper as Survival Kit List |
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When SHTF, communication as we know it is going to change very rapidly and greatly. I believe that something as simple as paper and pencil may be very hard to scrounge if and when it might be needed. If you assume an EMP then the loss of all electronic communication will only make this problem larger. Then, consider that it might be very easy to have your family need to go in different directions on different schedules – just to scrounge and stay safe. How will you let each other know who went where and when? Paper and pencils in your survival kit list will be a huge asset when the time comes. |
Summary of Spring Cleaning and muy Survival Kit List |
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| I love spring cleaning and it always benefits my survival gear list. Not only has my regular monthly program of small item additions worked well, I’ve found several gift items that can easily be repurposed to fit in my survival equipment list. | |
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