I guess I am looking for different prespectives from different people. I have a buddy who just came into a few pesos and wants to spend 2500.00 on setting up the future "just in case". He asked me for a list of items that I thought would be essential and wants specifics in terms of brands, etc. In this list, he needs included pretty much everything. he drives a civic and although your not going to buy a bug out vehicle and have anything left over, there are viable options. So suppose your starting from scratch, what would you buy if EVERYTHING had to come out at 2500.00? Keep in mind he has no land nor plan of buggin out but i will help him with that.
Its actually tougher than one may think being a years supply of food can cost 1500. A shotgun is 1000, etc.....
The food may be 1500 or more but you can buy a good shotgun new for 150 dollars or a few cents more.
Maverick and H&R shotguns are cheapest and well made.
does your friend have a mountain bike and rack for the civic... thats a thought incase you can use the civic till traffic becomes to bad then load the mountain bike with essentials and go off road if an off road vehical is not viable...and the bike doesnt have to be expensive wal-mart about $150...
nice hand gun, Rock River Arms .45 1911 about $400.00 with extra mags from cheaperthandirt.com for $7.95 per/mag and a box of rnds... shotgun 12g about $250 and some change two shotgun shell belts that hold 25 shell each are $5.00 a pop and then bulk box ammo 100 rnds $24.00...
more to come...
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Start him out with a large ALICE pack, the one with the frame, the carrying shelf and the waist belt. Add to that a current issue combat harness - the pistol belt and suspenders type. That will go about $100 in round figures, maybe less if you get a good sale.
Next, add pouches and belt accessories as needed. That means at least one 1 liter canteen, 1 first aid kit, 1 compass and pouch, 1 holster and at least two magazine pouches or speedloader carriers. You've spent somewhere into the second $100 here.
Get him a good survival knife, not one of those ChiCom crap knives. There's another $100.
Buy him a good used S&W revolver with a 4 inch barrel. A .357/.38 Special combo would be preferred, but don't overlook a plain late-production Model 10 in .38 Special only. There's at least $200
Spend $100 on ammo, cleaning kit and speedloaders.
We're up to $500 spent.
Get an MSR Miniworks II water filter and repair kit. This will give him safe drinking water. That's another $100.
Get him a reliable SKS carbine. That's another $350. Buy $50 worth of 7.62x39 ComBloc ammo on stripper clips for it. Stress to him that the only things he ought to be shooting at with it are deer, antelope or mountain goats when he needs meat; or a man when negotiation or running away won't get it done.
We're now up to $1000 spent.
He's going to need good military surplus clothing, including a parka with liner, poncho, boots, underwear, socks, gloves, hats and the like. Call it $200; the boots drive up the cost.
He will need at least a good sleeping bag, and one of the new US Army three bag 'systems' would be better. Call it another $100.
A good first aid kit, firearms cleaning gear, maps, a solid 1 piece axe, a flashlight, a flexible saw, fishing gear, fire-starting gear, a mess kit or even a one-man pot and pan setup, and other smalls will easily add up to another $200.
We're up to $1500 spent.
At this point you need to think about dehydrated foods and vitamins, and a redoubt/cave/bunker/soddy/ whatever for your friend to retreat to. That will finish off the $2500 in short order. Enough dehydrated foods and vitamins to get him through a period of at least 60 days will cost.
Hope this is not too discouraging. I'm predicating the costs on having to buy everything new in a hurry. If you can shop around and take a little time, you may be able to do better.
does your friend have a mountain bike and rack for the civic... thats a thought incase you can use the civic till traffic becomes to bad then load the mountain bike with essentials and go off road if an off road vehical is not viable...and the bike doesnt have to be expensive wal-mart about $150...
nice hand gun, Rock River Arms .45 1911 about $400.00 with extra mags from cheaperthandirt.com for $7.95 per/mag and a box of rnds... shotgun 12g about $250 and some change two shotgun shell belts that hold 25 shell each are $5.00 a pop and then bulk box ammo 100 rnds $24.00...
more to come...
+1, except I think it's a Rock Island 1911. Rock River's are substantially more $$. Great idea about the bike with a rack for the civic (I keep forgetting about my bike hiding in the shed). Part of that camping gear should be an Alice pack (will work well with the bike if needed).
Lists and costs are totally dependent on whether he plans to bug out or stay in place. Also, he needs to list his expected emergencies, and prioritise them.
Does he expect fairly short term emergency, or long term?
Does he have cash flow to buy smaller amounts of 'stuff' after this single initial payout?
As you can see, they vary in price and I am a firm believer in you get what you pay for in shotguns. I have a buddy who buys a new Mossberg pump every season and sure enough, it breaks down every season. Had he bought a nice one to start with, he would have saved money in the long run.
People who say a single shot is plenty, has never missed or just does not hunt alot. There are many times where the second shot has come in handy and a few times where I took down the quail/pheasent/chucker with the third. As nice as singles are, they are not the know all to beat all. In a survival situation, I want the most reliable and accurate gun I can afford. Thats also why I carry HK for my side arm.
With a single shot; a person would get good at shooting it or they would go hungry, better practice up. granted you get what you pay for but let's say remington 870, under 4hundo for a base model, little higher price if you get a shotshell/slug barrel combo rig. but well worth it 2 guns in 1??? and from my experience super reliable also
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