Snowmageddon 2016- lessons learned.

http://fox59.com/2016/01/21/canceled-flights-empty-store-shelves-as-powerful-snowstorm-approaches-east-coast/

The threat is that people might be snowed in for up to 3 days. Power Might go out for a night. No Armageddon, no threat of widespread panic, no DHS threat upgrade, yet the store shelves are empty!

Had this been a true emergency, imagine how the general public would have responded. Instead of just bare shelves, you would have bare shelves, murder, rape and pillaging. People aren't reasonable, they have zero survival skills past the next 24 hours. Just peruse facebook for a few hours. I see people I know that work menial jobs wearing 600 dollar outfits and driving a new jalopy every few months from the buy here, pay here lot. No thought of the future, no idea that the money faucet would ever end up dry. They always have the new Ick phone 47 and the latest fashion and never consider the idea of going without should there be an event to disrupt society. Uncle Sugar will always be there to make it right is they get too stoned to get up and go to work, thus losing their job.

These are the Zombies. The dangerous, nothing left to lose, hungry, insolent masses that will be out to get you when the chips are down and survival comes down to the prepared and the Zombies. Things are good right now, Keynesian economics has fooled everyone into a false belief that the US is doing great and money is flowing into the middle class. We still have people fighting to the death over sale items on Black Friday. Urban youths continue to strike innocent subjects for fun. The Knockout game is now the Cut your face game and not a soul is worried about it. Remember Ferguson when the police pulled back? I had friends on the ground protecting some infrastructure and stores when the police went away. They won't be there when things fall apart and it's wide spread.  It's all a foreign problem to suburbanites. Imagine the depravity that would ensue in the aftermath of a coordinated electrical infrastructure attack. Think of an attack like the one on Silicone Valley in larger scale. http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/07/us/california-sniper-attack-power-substation/index.html

I recently read a book that explained the effectiveness of a coordinated mortar attack on several refineries using time delayed mortars from 2 angles. Genius to say the least, but catastrophic to the economy if it happens. Think about 10 dollar a gallon gas and it's impact on the economy. The 2007-2008 financial meltdown was triggered by fuel prices. Our current economy is on the razors edge, now would be the perfect time for an attack to have the greatest impact.

How would you survive? Would that $3k 1911 keep your family fed? Do you have enough fuel to put in a garden in the spring? If today was the last day you could make it to the grocery, would you make it til spring? Can you even heat your house without the utilities you rely on?

A snow storm is a non event. It's a hiccup and not a heart attack, yet the shelves are bare and people are acting like idiots. When it really happens, people are going to come unhinged in the first 24 hours when they can't nuke their corn dogs and the VP runs out of their brand of cigarettes. Prepare accordingly.

Budget AR15 Builds and Why I Choose Them.

It's well know that I prefer the AR platform to any other battle rifle. The reasons are due to it's proliferation in the US as well as my familiarity with the rifle series. It's the most common rifle sold in the US for a long time now and it really is well suited to 90% of shooters due to it's modular and adjustable nature. You can build them in literally any configuration imaginable.

 Most recent build. My son built the entire thing himself at 12 years old. It now has a Black Spider red dot.

Another significant belief I have was first iterated by good old Joe Stalin. "Quantity has a quality all it's own." So for the price of a high end manufacturer's AR15, I can build 3 budget guns. Once again, why? Because even a budget build can work remarkably well. Outfitting another person can be more of a force multiplier than a super whiz bang piston driven death dealer.

These builds tend to run around the 650 dollar mark and include a 1x optic. Why an optic? Because it's a crutch. Teaching fundamentals with irons take time, and it's much easier and faster to teach fundamental hold and bullet drop.You might not be outfitting a shooter, you might be outfitting a neighbor.

 The Minuteman Cache includes such a rifle.


What to look for in a budget rifle:
Standard quality parts
Mil spec dimension parts

For this discussion, there are some built rifles that accomplish these tasks. Smith and Wesson's base models as well as DPMS's base models work just fine. I haven't had much luck with PSA or some of the other cheapo parts like UTG and the like. Double star on the other hand have been nothing short of brilliant in my rifles. Many contractors are given DPMS rifles for ship defense and foreign protection details. They work and they're cheap. I've been using the DPMS oracle uppers for all the builds I've done in the past 4 years with a perfect track record. No functionality issues, decent accuracy and a cost around 300 bucks. Hard to beat with an included BCG and charging handle.

Optics are an easy choice. Something inexpensive and durable. Vortex is a good option for this. The Sparc series is pretty good, and there are a myriad of others out there that will work great. Always have extra batteries on hand. I include flip up iron sights as well. I've been prone to getting a gas block with a picatinny rail and dual flip ups die to wanting a clear sight picture. A standard front sight post occludes your sight picture.

I generally install a JP reduced power spring kit to loosen up the trigger a bit. A cheapo sling works great, and it is easy because the rifles I build are very light weight.

Finally sourced the rifle for the Grey Man Cache.

I've been on the lookout for a takedown 10/22 for a while now. I wanted a specific model that was stainless and had a threaded barrel. For a while, there was a distributor specific model that had those attributes, but they were gobbled up fairly quickly when they arrived. A recent trip to the shop had me staring straight at a 50th anniversary model 10/22 with a camo stock, all stainless and a threaded barrel.

I was also very happy to see several thousand rounds of 22 cal standard velocity ammo sitting on the shelf. I grabbed a couple bricks of that as well. Overall, it was a very productive trip to the gun shop. The place was pretty swamped, so I assisted a few customers as well. Ended up selling 3 guns for them so I believe it was fortuitous that I was able to get there.

At my first opportunity, I was able to pull the unit out and get a better look. It came with a nice bag, one BX25 magazine and some funky locking system. I searched through my stock of mags only to find that I only have a couple BX25's for my existing 10/22 race rifle. Looks like I need to grab a few more of those in the future.

My plan is to put this rifle into the Grey man cache if it doesn't push the weight over the 28lb threshold I've set for that pack. I'd like to install some type of sling set up and a low power scope for it with quick release rings. Once it's open sights and scope are zeroed, I'd put 3 mags with it and 300 or so rounds of standard velocity ammo. I *might* happen to throw a solvent trap adapter and "solvent trap" into the bag.

Firearms Selection

So many "experts" get hung up on having every gun under the sun to defend themselves. They feel they must have brand X or Y with these certain features and in this color with exactly the caliber they say. What a bunch of hooey. There are a few things you do NEED to have.

1. A functioning firearm
2. Cleaning kit for said firearm
3. Ammunition for the same firearm.
4. The skill to use it.

For a long time I've helped out from time to time at a gun shop that prides itself on making a customer for life out of the people who tread through the door. Over the last 17 years of hanging out there and buying hundreds of guns from the guys there, I've found many words of wisdom. The first of those being, beware the man with one gun, he more than likely knows how to use it.

Don't get hung up on which brand is the best or what sight system is optimal for certain conditions. The gun you have in your hand is the one that can get you out of trouble. The 16 in the safe are useless when you can't get to them.

Characteristics of a good firearm.

1. Functional 100% of the time
2. Sights you can see
3. Easy to use
4. Easy to reload
5. Proper weight and length for you to use in most environments
6. A caliber that is readily available
7. Accurate enough for your needs

If the gun won't work unless you jiggle the hammer a little, it's useless. If you can't aim it, why bother. If it's a single shot bolt action, you might have trouble with multiple targets. The L82A1 Barrett is a bad machine, but can you carry it in the woods or along your property line? There are a bunch of really cool rifles out there in exotic calibers, but will that be any use to you if you can't feed it or afford to feed it.? Accurate enough means just that, as long as you can hit a dirtbag sized target at the ranges you will more than likely engage at, you're good to go.

Being a certified gun nut, I have more than I need. I have multiple calibers and multiple platforms for engagement from point blank out to 1500 meters. I'm not saying everyone needs that, but I sure like mine. All but a couple of my guns are common calibers. 22lr, 12ga, 380acp, 9mm, 38spl/357mag, 40SW, 45acp, 223 and 308. I do have a couple odd balls. A 10mm and 300Win Mag. Why? Because I can. Common calibers ensure you can more than likely scrounge ammo in any situation. The 2 uncommon calibers I have are the ones I CAN get ammo for these days. Scary, right? 10mm ammo is going for $50 a box now and 300 WM is about the same, but it's available if I was out. I can't say the same for common calibers.

What would I consider a good "Stash" of firearms?

22LR rifle
12ga shotgun
A carbine in a common caliber. 223/5.56, 7.62x39, 308, 30-06
A pistol that can be carried concealed in a caliber above 380acp and below 41 magnum.
A pocket pistol in 22mag, 32, 380 or 9mm.
A bolt action scoped center fire rifle in a common hunting caliber.

A collection like this would have an arm available to fit the needs of most people in a serious need to defend themselves or feed themselves. I will say this though, a man with a 10/22 rifle and home field advantage could put a hurting on some well trained operators.

There is no replacement for trigger time. The more you shoot the better you will become. Training will speed up your abilities as well. I really can't stress that enough. A good instructor can shorten your learning curve by years. They can short cut you past all the mistakes people make in the beginning and allow you to focus on proper techniques and build confidence in your abilities. If you think about it, it's the cheapest way to become a better shooter. You can shoot 10k rounds a year and get very good, or take a few classes at 500 a pop and be thousands of dollars ahead monetarily and months ahead as well.

Any machine that isn't used will fall into disrepair. Practice!

A large stock of ammo is secondary to being able to utilize the firearm. If you have stashed up thousands of rounds of ammo, but haven't trained because you wanted to hoard it, you're behind. Have a decent stash, but concentrate on keeping your skills sharp. That ammo will only do the next guy good if you lose your first gun fight because you're rusty.

In closing, I'll offer a last bit of sage advice. If you find yourself in a fair gunfight, your tactics suck. If I'm forced to defend my life, I'd prefer to take the shot at 600 yards with a high powered rifle. The less danger you put yourself in the better your chances of defeating the opposition.