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Read The Third Wave by Alvin Toffler!
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Phillosoph

Nitecore Thumb Flashlight

Update

Recently I decided to recharge my Nitecore Thumb Flashlight.
I left it plugged into the computer for several hours. When I went to unplug it I was surprised that the green light that indicates a full charge was not visible.
The flashlight seemed to have taken a charge, but when activated, one of the main LED bulbs was dead. The other is still quite bright, but given the flashlight has experienced nothing more stressful than riding around in my thigh pocket, this is pretty poor.
Regrettably, I withdraw my recommendation of this item. The search for a good, affordable EDC flashlight continues.
—————————————————————-
When it comes to the field of flashlights we have, perhaps, a little too much choice.
Firstly, we have the tactical lights designed to mount on firearms. Since they must endure the pounding of recoil, these have to be good quality, and have a price tag to match. Very nice if you are being equipped from someone else’s budget.
Next, you have the class of flashlight that was once typified by the Mag-lites. Robust, and waterproof to conditions under which the user has long ceased to function.
The above use conventional batteries, and have the limitations inherent with these as a power source. There are a number of survival torches that use “exotic” batteries intended for a very long shelf life and/or long use. The problem with these is finding replacement batteries when these eventually run out. Typically they are not the sort stocked by a village store or gas station. This is not to say that some such flashlights do not have a place. A little Photon light should be part of your “every day carry” (EDC). Carry it on your keys or with your dogtags I even have one as the zip-pull of my lock pick kit.
“Batteryless” flashlights have become more widely available in recent years. Some use solar panels, some use a variant of a hand-powered system and some a combination of methods. Sadly, the majority of these do not have the durability or water-resistance of more conventional survival flashlights. On the other hand, some can be obtained at very low prices, and if their limitations are understood and accepted can prove very useful. I have one hanging up in the cupboard under the stairs, where it often proves useful. More capable models are beginning to appear on the market, some claiming to be water-resistant. Some models include radio receivers and/or the ability to charge phones and other devices.
The final class I will look at are that of rechargeable flashlights. Up until recently rechargeable flashlights needed a special charging cradle or you had tounload the batteries into a charger. Now we are seeing rechargeable flashlights that charge by USB in much the same way as a mobile phone.
While I was writing about EDC it became apparent that my personal kit could use a little more capability in the field of illumination. I decided to treat myself to a USB-rechargeable Nitecore Thumb.

This is quite an impressive little device. It is a little bit bigger than a USB-drive and thus small enough to add to my EDC without any noticeable penalty. It comes with a large strong clip that can be unscrewed and removed if the user desires. The clip is quite tenacious and is ideal for securing it to the top of my right cargo pocket, where it can easily be accessed. It would have been nice if an option to reverse this clip had been included. I would prefer to carry my Thumb with the bulbs inside the pocket.
The primary light source is a pair of white LEDs. Usefully, these are mounted on a swivel head. In needed the flashlight could be clipped to a headband or shirt pocket and the beam directed forwards.
The body of the flashlight has two buttons. There is a lockout mode should you find yourself accidentally activating the flashlight. The button nearest the white LEDs activates the main beam. Pressing the button once triggers the high power setting, which is claimed as 85 lumens. Repeated presses cycles through high, mid, ultralow, flashing (high) and standby. Waiting for three seconds or more and pressing the button will deactivate the beam without having to go through the cycle. The orientation of the flashlight can easily be determined by touching either the ends or the clip.

A second button is mounted towards the other end of the flashlight. This activates a red LED light positioned between the two buttons. Hitting the button twice in rapid succession causes this light to flash. If walking a dark country road at night hanging a red light on the back of your rucsack can be prudent.
The red LED panel also serves as a charging indicator. When the flashlight has fully charged a green LED shows. The USB port is a “micro” I think, so you should be sure you have compatible lead. Being behind the curve most of mine are minis, but luckily I have at least one micro, due to my pack-rat tendencies. When not being used the port is covered and plugged by a rubber fixing.
Two sizes of split-ring were included, the larger of which seems to be quite substantial. The packaging claims a twelve month warranty.
The Thumb is made in China, which may automatically turn some of you against it. It is not the sort of flashlight that will survive a nuclear blast at the bottom of the Marianas trench! For what it is, and the role I want it for, it seems to be good quality, and some intelligent thought has obviously been put into the design. Shop around, since price varies considerably. I found mine for nearly half what most other outlets were asking.
I had occasion to use it the other night when looking for something dropped in a gutter. It was certainly bright enough for the purpose! And I can charge it for free when at my computer at work!

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Phillosoph

Bowls for Backpacking

Decades ago I had the pleasure of visiting Vancouver, Canada (both the city and the island).
In the middle of the city I visited an art exhibition. One of my recollections was that the artist had a kitchen based around dozens of half-litre glass (pyrex?) bowls.
Half a litre, she maintained, was good for a sensible portion of food, a coffee for the parched or an entertaining margarita!
When washed, these bowls formed a well-aired pyramid on the draining board.
Their size and shape allowed them to be nested so they took up little cupboard space when not in use.
The bowls could be used for both hot and cold foods and drink, and presumably could be used in a microwave too.
It was an interesting concept and I am usually reminded of its simplicity whenever I see a Buddhist monk with his bowl.
Unfortunately it is not an idea I have been able to put into practical use myself. There are always other priorities for my money, and I have yet to come across a really good bulk offer of bowls.
This brings me to the subject of “tableware” for camping and backpacking.
As I have discussed recently, if we are really travelling lightweight our only cooking vessel will be a canteen cup or mess tin, and this also serves as our coffee cup, soup-bowl or similar.
Other situations may warrant a more extensive cooking kit. With the possible exception of the old US Army mess kit, most military mess kits do not offer you many more options than a canteen cup. Most civilian kits are less than ideal too.
Today’s blog is not about cooking kits, however, but how you eat the food once it is cooked.
You can, of course, eat your food direct from the pot or pan, taking care not to scratch any non-stick coating, or burn yourself.
If you have company, or a third party is cooking for you, you will need some bowls and/or plates.
There are a variety of camping tableware kits available, although to my mind many of these appear somewhat expensive for what they are.
Ideally, we need some kind of bowl, made from a material that will withstand the inevitable knocks and bumps that transport in a pack can involve.
Root around you local discount store and see what is available in the shape of sandwich boxes.
I got particularly lucky, since they had a whole shelf of boxes similar to this:
The lid locks shut for extra security.
In addition, the 1.1 litre box comes with a 0.5 litre smaller box inside. The inner box also has a locking lid.
Size and shape of the larger box is well suited to carriage in the side pocket of a rucksack. You may prefer a squarer or smaller item, so shop around.
The box bottom can be used as a bowl.
The lid can serve as a plate for foods that are better suited to plates than bowls.
The shape of the inner box is not ideal as a drinking vessel, but this can be replaced with something else.
Many designs of plastic beaker could be fitted inside the larger box, and plastic mugs or cups are fairly easy to acquire at a reasonable price.
And you may be carrying your canteen cup, anyhow.
The interior of the sandwich boxes can be used to carry additional items. A spork seems to be an obvious choice.
Teabags and other food items can be carried.
Don’t use the interior of your eating vessel to carry items such as hexamine fuel, or anything that might taint your food.
The box itself might be used for stoveless cooking.
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Phillosoph

Thai Swordplay

The other night I watched a movie called “Paradox” (2017 aka Saat Po Long: Taam Long). This was described as a “neon noir”, and given that it was set in Thailand, made me think of the goddam awful “Only God Forgives”. Paradox was actually an entertaining action film, and is worth a watch.
In one notable scene we see a fight with Thai swords (daab/dhaab/krabi). At least I think they are all Thai swords. Given the scene is set in a meat processing plant it is quite possible one or more of them is actually a butcher’s tool. 
Much that I respect the katana, it is rather overused in action and superhero movies and it is nice to see something else for a change. I tend to favour shorter blades anyway. Long swords have a lot of momentum, which can be hard to manage if you are not a full-time swordsmen. Shorter blades such as a wakazashi, on the other hand, tend to be swift and highly agile. Come the apocalypse and I will probably reach for one of the shorter swords or machetes in my collection. 

I found these interesting videos:

In the first video we see some inversions and hand-switching, the latter of which is not a tactic you usually see with swords. This gives some rationale to such long grips on single-hand weapons. Flips, swaps and inversions are covered in Attack, Avoid, Survive. In the second video we see these techniques used in some sparing. As well as switching we see good use made of the empty hand, as well as elbows and even kicks, which is to be expected from Thai fighters. Such techniques can also be used with knives, nightsticks or riot batons.

Siam Blades have some very nice looking Thai-inspired designs, which are sadly way beyond my budget. Cold Steel has a Thai-inspired machete that looks to be more affordable (but I am still skint. Buy more books!). There is a rather fun review of the Thai machete here:

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Phillosoph

My Left Pocket: Epilogue

An amusing little endnote to my previous post.
Last night I walked into my local takeaway. My iPod is hanging around my neck.
“That is exactly what I need!” enthuses one of the staff. “I am always losing my phone.”
“It’s a shoelace.” I explain.
“Where did you get it?”
“Er, my pocket.”
I have to explain that one day my headphones had broke.
The only replacements I had had too short a lead for me to use them and place the iPod in a pocket.
So I had fished a shoelace out of my pocket, tied it into a sort of net around the device and hung it around my neck with another shoelace.
The only later improvement was replacing the second lace with a badge lanyard I had in a drawer.
I end up reaching into my left pocket and demonstrating that I really was the sort of person who walks around with old shoelaces in his pocket.
I explained the technique was very simple, and was actually just a modified bottle hitch or parcel tying method. (even though it looks like my iPod is into Japanese bondage). 
Figure Eight Can Sling Method
I informed the lady there were doubtless lots of websites that could show her the knots, and also lots of interesting decorative knots too (for her phone that is, although that statement is also doubtless true of Japanese bondage too).
She suggested she could use ribbons, and that is a nice idea.
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Phillosoph

My Left Pocket

A common piece of advice is to re-lace your boots with paracord. The more thoughtful of you may have wondered about the wisdom of being in a survival situation with unlaced boots!
What is usually omitted is that in an emergency you are supposed to take the cores out of the cord, then re-lace your boots with the empty outer or some of the core cords. This assumes you did not buy the budget cord that doesn’t have particularly good cores!
Re-lacing your boots with paracord isn’t a bad idea. It cannot hurt. One day you may find yourself cold, tired and wet, your numb hands trying to unlace your boots, gut the paracord and then re-lace your boots. That sounds like something you may want to avoid if possible!
In my post on an EDC shopping list, I suggested that you add about two metres/a fathom/an armspan of paracord to your everyday carry (EDC). Or a pair of long, strong bootlaces, whichever you can acquire more easily.
The utility of this was expanded on in one of the links from my 4-4-4-4 article. In the event you missed it:

I had a quick look in the left front pocket of my trousers. The contents were:
  • One bandanna, various uses.
  • Disposable lighter, for emergencies.
  • Two hanks of paracord, roughly two metres. An arm-span and a bit.
  • A actual length of shoelace. I tend to pick up potentially useful bits of cordage! Useful for stuff that does not require the paracord. There was another shoelace but I used it to make an iPod carrier.
  • A tubular spectacle safety cord. My habit of acquiring cordage paid off here. What I thought was a bit of shoelace turned out to be something very useful to me. If the situation requires, I can retrieve this from my pocket and add it to my glasses.
  • A couple of metres of cotton string. Saves the paracord for important jobs. Potentially could be used as tinder. 
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Phillosoph

Arrows: Time of Flight and Momentum

Many thanks to Ric Morgan for his donation to support the blog.
Recently I got to thinking about archery. In particular, I was curious about the time of flight of arrows and quarrels. This seemed quite a practical thing to know. I was a little surprised at how little information on this could be found on the internet.
Most modern archers are target shooters, so not particularly interested in how long the arrow takes to reach a static target.
They also shoot at ranges that provide very little insight into, say, bows being used on medieval battlefields.
If you play role-playing games, arrows probably hit in the same turn, which may be the same second, of firing.
You would think there was considerable discussion of flight times among bowhunters, but not according to my search engine.
One target site did inform me:
“Recurve bow arrows can travel up to 225 feet per second (fps) or 150mph while compound bow arrows can travel up to 300fps (200mph). Longbow arrows travel slower due to the weight of the arrows. Even at 300fps, it takes around a second to reach a 90 metre target. You hear your release first followed by the thud of the arrow hitting the target a second later (you can’t see it unless you use a telescopic sight).”

More trawling found me this article, with the following table:

I also remembered an old book I had, which gives the following table:

90 metres in the first second sounds like a good rule of thumb, although I would like to know how this changes beyond this range. 
Why does it matter?
If in an emergency situation a bow may be one of your options for defence or food gathering. Much of the information relevant to arrows will also apply to other hand-thrown missiles such as spears or rocks.
Contrary to what you see in action movies, bows are not “silent killers”. Some of the energy stored up in a drawn bow is released as sound.
Your arrow will travel at 100-200 fps, while sound travels at about 1,100 fps. The animal you are shooting at will hear you before the arrow arrives. Many animals survive by being paranoid, so there is a good chance it will begin moving before your arrow arrives.
Thus, you need to lead your target. For this, you need to know time of flight. Calculating lead and other parameters is covered in my book on survival weapons.
While there was very little discussion of time of flight, it seemed initial velocity and kinetic energy seemed to be of great interest to bowhunters.
The V0 of a bow is the equivalent of the muzzle velocity of a gun. Most bows don’t have muzzles.
Arrows lose energy at a pretty steep rate. One of the above sites uses a working figure of 3% per 10 yards. This means that the terminal velocity of an arrow is going to be very different from the V0. Failing a really strong tailwind, V0 is the one velocity your arrow will not be at!
As discussed elsewhere, kinetic energy is something of a red herring when predicting bullet performance. It is popular in the gun press. It is far more impressive to say a round has 2,352 ft/lbs of energy than that it has 1.7 ftlb/sec of momentum!

Terminal performance of arrows is somewhat easier to estimate than for bullets. Arrows mainly rely on cutting to produce blood loss.

Given similar size and configuration of arrow heads, it seems reasonable that the more effective arrow will be that that penetrates more. Just for fun, I ran some figures using the following formulae:

Energy (ftlbs) = [(Velocity (fps))^2 x Weight (grains)] ÷ 450,240

Momentum (ftlbs/sec) = Weight (grains) x Velocity (fps) ÷ 225218

From the above chart, I selected a 450 gr arrow at 130 fps and compared it to a 350 gr arrow at 147.4 fps. These would both have a kinetic energy of about 16.89ftlbs. Since weight is different, so will momentum be.
The heavier arrow is at 0.2597 ftlb/sec while the lighter is 0.225  ftlb/sec. That is about 15% difference.
One would expect the arrow with more momentum to penetrate more due to its higher inertia, but would the difference be significant in real world applications?
Something to think on.
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Phillosoph

Lock Picks from Soldier's Handbook.

Long ago, before we had the internet, one of the books talked about in certain circles was “The Soldier’s Handbook” by Anthony B. Herbert. This included information on how to make lock picks! It also came with a hefty price tag, so only serious/rich readers could dream of obtaining a copy. Wealthy people never misuse information, of course.
The Soldier’s Handbook has some interesting sections, but in retrospect I am glad I never tried to make lockpicks from the designs given. Here is a scan of the relevant page. Looks like a batarang, a half-ball, half-snowman, a full diamond and what look more like dental tools. I would not have gotten far! The instructions on how to use lock picks, and other entry techniques are not that bad, in fairness.

How lucky we are now! There are plenty of good sources of information on how to use lock picks, including, I hope, this blog. Companies such as UKBumpkeys and WithoutAKey offer good quality picks at reasonable prices. And if you are really on a budget there are Chinese-made sets from companies such as Goso and Klom. Not so nice but they are good for learning.
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Phillosoph

I'm Coming In.

One weekend I was watching a few movies. At least two of these movies had a scene where someone punches through a glass panel and reaches in to open a door. Having a glass panel within reach of a lock is foolish, but it is commonly done. Your own door may be of this sort.
Chris from UKBumpkeys has passed on an excellent video on ways to bypass locks without lock picking. It is quite long, but well worth a watch.

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Phillosoph

DePugh on Wilderness Food and Gear

A friend of mine had some questions about food, and this reminded me of a section in Robert DePugh’s book “Can You Survive?”.
DePugh was on the run for seventeen months, and estimates that  about twelve of these were spent in the American wilderness.
Can You Survive? was written after this, and his insights into what was and was not useful makes interesting reading.
Not surprisingly, the need to avoid detection and capture influences his choices:
“Clothing has already been mentioned and the first aid kit will be considered in a following chapter. This leaves a long list of items that might be labelled “miscellaneous.”
In our previous list, we included a nylon cord. This item I would still retain but not more than 20 or 30 feet. A climbing rope is nice to have if several members together are working their way through mountainous terrain but unless some definite need is anticipated, I would leave such heavy and cumbersome items at home.
In our previous list of materials for the backpack we included such food items as these: dehydrated meals for at least 14 days, boullion cubes [sic], coffee or tea, sugar, salt and pepper, vitamins, halazone tablets, malt tablets and chocolate. Of all these items only one that I would include in a backpack survival ration today would be the halazone tablets—but I would include an abundant quantity of them. The dehydrated foods are fine so far as weight is concerned but I am more convinced than ever that cooking must be kept at an absolute minimum. There are times perhaps when it may be essential to cook certain vegetable items to guard against toxic substances or to cook animals that have been captured and might be infected by some disease. Except for these necessary occasions, even the smallest fire places such a traveller in great danger of being discovered by the enemy. For these reasons, the coffee, tea and boullion cubes are also out. Sugar can best be carried in the form of candy that cannot be spilled or be easily ruined by moisture. Most medical authorities agree that the American people eat more salt than is healthy for them. Ordinary foods contain all of the salt that a person normally needs for good health. Pepper, of course, is one of those niceties of civilization that are best left behind along with your cigarettes and pipe.
Of those foods that are readily available, the best in my opinion for emergency survival rations would include canned meats and cheese, peanut butter mixed with sugar packed in plastic containers, and various types of candy that are customarily sold in small pieces and in plastic bags. All of these items are very low in water and therefore contain a high proportion of nutritive value and they can be eaten with knife and fingers out of the container in which they are carried. For the person who may be required to flee for his life at any time, survival foods beyond the amount he can carry in his pack are a very dubious investment.
Our previous equipment list also included several items for cooking such as a nesting set of cooking utensils, heat tabs or sterno, knife, fork and spoon, plate, cup and scouring pad. Of these I would make do with my canteen, canteen cup and a good hunting knife. Such cooking as may be essential can be done in the canteen cup. If you know where to look, tinder is always available for starting fires. Sand can be used to clean your canteen cup thus eliminating the scouring pad. Under desperate circumstances, good table manners do not justify the extra weight of a fork and spoon.
Other items from our previous list which I would now eliminate include candles, shovel, ax, wire, rubber tubing, folding saw, pliers, wirecutter, screwdriver and file. Items which I would retain include matches in a waterproof container (I'd carry along a lot of these); a flashlight is good so long as the batteries will last; a sharpening stone is worth the weight; compass, maps, ground cloth, thread, safety pins, needles and extra buttons are well worthwhile but since they weigh very little a few fish hooks, line and sinkers might be included though I have grave doubts as to their practical value. Except in the high mountains I would say that a good insect repellent is worth its weight in gold.
A small towel or washcloth has many uses that justify the weight involved. Soap and toothbrush are essential. For men, a razor and blades may be necessary to avoid looking conspicuous on those occasions when contact with other civilians is unavoidable. Other desirable miscellaneous items include a small magnifying glass, paper and pencils.
The dangers of shooting or trapping wild animals while trying to evade hostile forces has already been referred to. In this regard a good slingshot might be worthwhile in killing small game silently as the opportunity presents itself. In capturing wild game, beware of those animals that are caught too easily. They may be diseased and therefore, unsafe to eat without cooking.”
Does “canned meat and cheese” mean canned cheese? Canned cheese may sometimes be found, and would make a change from the tinned meats. Presumably he does not mean the spray can cheese, which would be mass inefficient. Many uncanned cheeses keep fairly well if kept dry, including the often maligned processed cheeses.
Eating boiled leaves with a hunting knife sounds like a chore, so I think a spork is worth the weight.
Trail mix may be worth carrying for a little variety.
One can get a little more creative with the peanut butter.
A quick browse of the internet turns up two-ingredient cookies (peanut butter and syrup), three-ingredient cookies (peanut butter, sugar, egg), four-ingredient cookies (+baking soda), no-bake cookies and oat-squares (peanut butter, honey, rolled oats).
These probably do not have the shelf-life of peanut butter and sugar but can be used on shorter trips.
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Phillosoph

Don't Carry a Rucksack (If you can help it)

A friend of mine e-mailed me recently and told me he felt it was impractical for him to carry his bug-out gear in a rucksack. There was just too much, he said.
I pointed out to him that others had been managing this for centuries, and that it wasn’t actually a “bug-out kit” if he couldn’t move it anywhere. Same friend often e-mails me wonderful, must-have gadgets that he has found. The two facts may not be unrelated. 🙂
Your core bug-out kit should be man-portable. What is lost on many people is that you should not be carrying it on your back if you can avoid it!
This is something we seem to have inherited from the military. A fundamental of military training is marching long distances with heavy loads. As well as the physical conditioning this provides it also improves traits such as self-discipline, determination and resolve. Unfortunately there is a downside to the old adage that “You fight as you train!” Lost on many officers is that long marches with heavy rucks’ may be great training but in an actual operation are to be avoided whenever possible. Most combat theatres are “vehicle-friendly”. Infantry may need to operate on foot, but gear they do not immediately need may be carried on vehicles and brought forward once an area has been pacified. Many soldiers during the Second World War learnt to operate effectively in “light order” and many modern “irregular” fighters do the same. Many armies need to relearn this. Current efforts are towards exo-skeletons and robot mules that will increase the weight that can be carried. The opposite strategy may be more productive.
As an individual prepper or survivalist you may not have a support unit that can bring your heavier equipment and supplies forward for you. Additionally you may be in “vehicle-proof” terrain where the operation of conventional or military vehicles is not possible or very restricted. Military forces sometimes find themselves in the same situation, of course.

A tried and tested solution is shown below. Porter-bikes were modified to carry heavy loads. When fully loaded they could not be ridden. A pole extending the handlebars allowed one or more individuals to push the bike along by walking beside.

For bugging out a bike has a lot to recommend it. On terrain where it is difficult to ride you can push it, and use it to carry your pack rather than your back. Overall load should be kept in the man-portable range since there may be obstacles you will have to carry bike and pack across.

Another interesting option is found on this site and others. Its inventor calls it a “travois” but it is actually a hand-cart (or possibly a “man-cart”?)

As an aside, a real travois is an option you should always consider if you have to move something heavy over relatively soft ground.

Handcarts were once not uncommon in armies. After WW2 the “big ruck” mentality seems to have taken hold and they become rarer. In the early days of ATGWs some models were offered with golf-trolly-like contraptions so a dismounted infantryman could move them. Nowadays a few mortars are provided with trolleys, but in most forces they are unknown. If a skier can tow a pulk, why not a a walker a cart?

The wheeled travois has been designed with ease of manufacture in mind. I would suggest making the poles a little longer so that if necessary the cart can be carried over an obstacle like a stretcher. For ease of use in vehicle-proof terrain I would suggest reducing the width so that it can be used on narrow paths and trails. Bicycle wheels may be a good source for the wheels. I particularly like the net that forms the bed of the cart. With a bit of ingenuity this might double as a camouflage screen.
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