I see lots of post for urban shtf situtations. However what about those living in the rural sections what should we expect what gear would people recommend to stock pile.
Here is what I'm working on so far.
Have 2 MBR semi auto 3006 and 308 with bolt actions as well for each.
Short an med range guns are very well covered.
I own pistol rifle combos in 357/38 and 9mm
Ammo I think 1-2,000 rounds for each MBR will be fine
22 I keep 2,000
I believe in keepng a diverse range of common calibers for scavaging ammo.
As far as cold weather gear I got that fine have a wood stove in the shed a good axe extra glasses and such. what about food and water I have cows pigs horses and even them nasty deer arn't to hard to find. Plenty of timber creeks and open land and such.
I live off a well that is easy to drop a buck down into to get fresh water.
I'd like to hear the rest of rural americas plan just to get some thoughts on what you are thinking to get some ideas on what I may need to add. Gear for shtf situations will defintally be diffrent in rural areas.
from bodies will be your best and eventually, only source of ammo.
There will be a mass kill off and die off if things really break down. Millions of people will attack outward from the cities on the theory food and water can be found in or near farms and ag businesses.
Build underground bunkers from which you can move upward to attack when necessary. Also, protected firing slots above ground.
If you can last 30 days most of America will be dead.
Or, if you're not quite so pessimistic, I'd suggest getting a storage building you can lock and some low-maintenance farm equipment. Store up a year's supply of seed, fertilizer, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, hay/animal feed if you plan to keep livestock, and so on. Better still if you can make use of that stuff during normal time and continuously replace it, so that the stuff doesn't get old. Don't bother with a fortress if you can't afford it, but I'd recommend a comfortable "Tornado Shelter" that you can preferably access without leaving protection/your house. Useful in the case of armed attack and the forces of nature. If you're really concerned about people finding you from the city, perhaps build a watch tower through your roof or something you can sit in and observe your property from.
Basically, if you're in a good rural environment, learn how to be self sufficient and keep a year's worth of supplies on hand, under sturdy lock and key. For my farm, if things head south, life as I know it will hardly change at all, and that's the best way to be. The fewer surprises, the better.
When it comes to low-maintenance farm equipment, I'm going to take you back to the 19th Century. Get yourself animal drawn plows and wagons, and if possible harvesters and hay clippers, the kind of things exurban yuppies use as lawn decorations. Clean them up, restore them to full operation, grease and oil them well, and store them. You might try searching for outfits that supply the Amish; they have to get their equipment from somewhere. And get a couple of sets of draft horse harness, and perhaps plans to build an oxbow. And you'll definitiely need how-to written instructions on how to harness up draft animals; it is almost a lost art today.
As to why: go onto Youtube and search for "Connections Episode 1." It's out there, in 5 parts. As we are all well aware of what happens when the SHTF, you can skip the first two installments of the episode. But watch the rest and you will learn why I say you need this stuff if you are talking long term survival.
Bottom line: assume you will have NO electric power. Proceed from that starting point and see where you end up, and why. I realistically expect that if a SHTF scenario that does not involve an outside invasion, a nuclear strike or a civil war occurs, civilization is going to drop back to the 1870s level within a year, with technological anomalies making it different. But that's why you will need horse-drawn farm equipment and the know-how to use it.
Even horse-drawn equipment has its limitations - principally, the horses. The dumb animals are remarkably fragile, and truth be told, I'd trust a John Deere over a Shire any day, and the tractor isn't going to kick you when you try to clean his hooves. While it's up to you to make the calls for yourselves, my opinion is that a high-quality tractor with some basic spare parts would be a better bet, especially if you can install a diesel storage tank. Unlike gasoline, diesel can store for extended periods in simple above-ground no-maintenance tanks. The 300 gallon tank on our farm can keep three tractors and a bulldozer fueled for about a month during hay season, and we work about 300 acres of hay, alfalfa, pasture, etc. With a 1,000 gallon tank, or two 500 gallons, or three 300 gallons in different locations so you don't have all your eggs in one basket, you'll have plenty of fuel to go around. Exercise proper maintenance and these machines will serve admirably for many years, and you won't have to go outside to feed them twice a day during the winter when they're of no use to you.
As for power and electricity, there are a lot of potential ways to generate your own to operate important machinery like refrigerators etc, to heat water, to climate control your home. My first suggestion would be to invest in a solar roof. You can often get big government or utility cost-shares to install them, and it's fairly easy to run an entire modern household off the power generated by the roof. Many people who are conservative with their power are actually able to sell electricity back to the utilities when they generate more than they use! So there's a twofold benefit here - when things get bad, you can power yourself. Until that time, you have an extra little source of income! Other ideas include windmills - place one over a well, and you can keep the water flowing, and if you don't need water, hook it to a dynamo instead. Simple diesel generators will be fine too; you've already got some 1,000 gallons of fuel sitting around in case you need it. A number of places are good for geothermal heating and cooling, to boot. Geothermal systems require practically no maintenance and are pretty much free, so long as you can keep the water circulating. Yet another idea is a wood heating system; my personal favorite is the kind that's used to heat water, then the hot water is circulated through radiators and the walls. Or, you could just use a wood heater sitting in the living room. Worked for me.
As for the Amish, most of the time they fabricate their own equipment, wagons and such especially. Using them as a reference for how to survive comfortably and completely independently is a very good idea though; there's a large community of them near Lewisburg, Tennessee that I've dealt with on a number of occasions, and some of their solutions to complex problems are remarkably simple. You'd be amazed what you can do with a portable 5hp engine.
As far as equipment goes there are to many what if's I can support my family on what I grow my self on a acre or 2 and then I have plans for a smoke house for the animals I will harvest. I was thinking maybe about stocking up on canning jars and lids for them as well as a pressure cooker that doesnpt require a rubber gasket but I can't find one.
Just because people live in the country doesn't make them COUNTRY, a few years ago we had quite a large snowfall in our town, I thank God each day that I was raised poor and on a family farm where survival was more or less a daily task to be faced,,,,after the third day of no electricity, gas, heat, or any of the daily commonalities that most of my upper crust neighbors were used to seemed to drift down to our house which had the smoke coming out of the chimney that most had complained about previously but not now as they were about to freeze their ----off, most of the women who came to our house had no idea how to cook biscuits or make bread using a dutch oven, we cooked on our outside grill and also a 4-burned military style cook stove powered by regular gasoline, I finally had to go around and fire up the fireplaces of some of the families in our hood as even the men in these houses had no idea of making kindling for fires or to use Dura-flame logs cut into strips for easier fire starting, after the snow was gone and the power was back on our neighbors went back home without even as much as a thank you, see ya or kiss my ----,,,,maybe next time......
I live about 8 miles from town in a sort of resort area. I have neighbours and cottages around me, and I'm sure that most of the people are armed. I would be a little nervous about running around trying to forage for food with everyone else doing the same thing.
I would suspect the best thing to do would be organize into some sort of militia and join with the local towns people. Some things to consider are people with medication needs. My wife is in remission for cancer and has a stint. Our cupboard looks like a pharmacy, but that only lasts for 30 days. What about those needing insuline? If we join a militia and have the backing of local law enforcement, they would be hard pressed to disarm us.
There is not question that survival past about 6-months will depend on banding together for the common good.... sounds like socialism, huh? A solitary person is doomed. Folks will migrate out to more rural areas from urban centers and rural survivors will need to be prepared.
If you are one of the urbanites moving out into a rural area to survive, I would suggest you have some items with you that will allow you to barter your way into a group. Everything costs.
Location: a secret lab on the shores of lake titicaca
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if it really was SHTF you would have people taking potshots at you while you were trying to garden.
all that canned food?
it belongs to the guy that killed you and took it.
there are more bad than good people and the guns are spread evenly among them all.
__________________ "I don't practice what I preach because I'm not the kind of person I'm preaching to."
stoger 12ga 300 rds slugs 1000 rds 00 buck
rpk w/ multiple thousands of rounds
45 acp multiple thousands of rounds
I dont want to give up the plan on the net so I will say the horse drawn factor is taken care of and there is enough portein walking around to last a while baring nuckular action . If it does I have a b plan for protein . The veggie's are all canned and waiting to be used . I dont keep much seed due to the fact that it looses the ability to germinate in numbers that would be helpfull if in normal storage for extended period of time . Of couse I have a well and a gasoline pump to pump it . The rest will have to be delt with as it happens.
there are more bad than good people and the guns are spread evenly among them all.
You know, I don't believe that. You see or hear about the "bad people", but good people just stay behind the scenes. Yes, many will have firearms and be willing to use them. That is something the sheeple will have to get used to. Things will begin to settle down after about 6-months into a new routine.
I live in rural Ohio and have an old barn on the property, which I've turned into my survival storage barn...the time to stock up is before you need it. If you need it, it's too late!
Yes. If and when the Fall comes and the SHTF, you are going to be dealing with what the US military refers to as "hyperwar." In ten words or less, what's on the shelf is what you have to use. If you don't have it when the balloon goes up, you won't be able to get it later.
No matter which of the common SHTF scenarios comes home to roost, one of the first things to go will be the distribution system. Next things to go will be the stores. After that, government authority at least on the local level; and after that, who knows?
Bottom line: stock up in advance on what you think you will require to live through the first 30 to 60 days of SHTF. After that, the big die-offs will have occured and we can start figuring out what to do next, what kind of a culture and governmental system we will want to establish. But you have to get through the initial situation first. A good look at how the time immediately after SHTF may turn out can be found in Stephen King's The Stand. Forget the neo-theocracy and the Good vs. Evil subplots. Look at how the people cope when it becomes obvious to them that it has, for real, HTF. That's the kind of thing we are going to have to be giving thought to when we get that far. So think about it now, while you have the leisure and time to do so. You won't have the luxury when the time rolls around.
