How far do you guys take it?

[themighty9mm]

People tend to have hobbies, most hobbies usually cost money. Might be alot or a little. I have read awhile back in the past, about people taking prepping to some pretty exteme levals. Where they more or less stop living life for today and get so cought up in what can or could happen, they forget that at the current moment nothing extreme has happened. They stop doing things they love to do and invest everything into getting prepared for what could happen. So how far do you guys take it? Myself, gunsmithing, shooting handloading are a down right passion of mine. I'm also getting into casting my own bullets here before to long. I'm also married with a part time child. My son visits me every other weekend. So they all require my time and money aswell. Somewhere in the mix comes prepping. I spend roughly 20-40ish dollars a paycheck on prepping in one way or another. For things such as long term water solutions, go bag, food storage, and medical supplies ect ect. I am sure something will happen in my lifetime. As to what, I dont know. I know enough to know I need to be some what ready. But I simply can not stop the things I enjoy the most, or day to day life to prepare for something that hasnt happened yet. So prepng, while important has to be more worked into the schedual.
So where do you guys draw the line? Do you go all it, stop doing the things you enjoy the most to get preppared? Or do you just talk of being prepared? Or do you throw it somewhere in the mix of everything? Also whatever the answer is, why do you feel that way?

[Hondokov]

Sounds like you are doing whats right for you and yours and thats all that matters.
You still have to live and enjoy life. Being aware and doing something about it, hell
you are further along than most.
my 2 cents.......

[JohnyMac]

As Hondokov said, "hell you are further along then most."

Mighty 9, just keep plugging along and remember the old turtle and hare story.

One other thing that can go towards prepping and it doesn't cost you a dime is letting your representatives know where you fall on an issue (s). So many folks just don't take the time.

Last, don't forget to vote. It doesn't cost you a dime but will cost you more then a dime if you lose the privilege. Use it or lose it!

[sledge]

Good questions.  Everyone has to live day to day and pay their bills.  How much prepping anyone does is a personal decision and depends on two things:

1)  Threat assessment.
2)  Their ability to afford to prep.

At this point in time there are several things that could potentially lead to a tshtf situation of varying degrees.  I won't go into what they are but I will comment on people's reactions in preparing to meet those threats.  How a person assesses each individual threat depends upon:

1) Advanced knowledge concerning the threat.
2) Total lack of knowledge concerning that a threat exists.
3) When they recognize that a potential threat exists, assigning probabilities and a sense of expected timing to the occurrence of the threat.

These things will determine how much, if any at all, of a persons income is directed at preparing for the threat. 

There could be (will be in my opinion) large numbers of people who do not recognize a potential threat until it is almost upon them.  They will then be rushing out in large numbers at the same time in an attempt to prepare.

Even if a person does recognize a threat and believes it to be immanent.  If they don't have the funds to prepare for it then they won't be able to purchase supplies.  This doesn't mean they won't be out looking to aquire supplies.  They just won't be paying for them.

As I said in the beginning of the post.  It's all a personal decision based upon your threat assessment and ability to purchase supplies while still trying to pay your bills and live your life.   
 

[themighty9mm]

Sledge, very good assesment.

I wasnt so much looking to pull the attention to me. Just stating what I'm doing/my thinking, and wondering how others were going about it. Figure its not right for me to ask others what they think if I wont do the same

[thatGuy]

Mighty,

If you are putting 20-40$ worth away each week then you are well ahead of the curve and can amass an increadable amount of supplies over the course of a couple of years. Do what you can man that is all any of us can do right?

That said I am in your demographic. I spend more when I have more or find a smoking hot deal but I just can't afford to.

To add to what Johny was saying you could also bust your ass working out.. that is free and would be massive.

[mountainredneck2051]

i get the smokenest deals out there,
and all i really do is buy prepper shit even before i was awake
so i guess you could say i go pretty far

[v0dka]

I'm what most call a gun prepper right now. I do have some food but most of it id lose if the power went out. If i have power i can eat good for a month, and then a 2 weeks after that pretty meagerly.

The best preps i have are my guns and physical fitness. I lift weights on a regular basis and do cardio. I'm not going to stop working out until they bury me.
I'm currently unemployed but i plan on getting a job as soon as i can. When i do i'll start working on other preps.

[thatGuy]

So you are saying that you intend to feed my dogs? Put food away bro, you can't eat guns.

[v0dka]

I know its a major hole in my preps and i'm working on it.
I'm in a rather unique situation right now which makes it hard for me to stockpile anything except weapons and ammo.

If true shtf starts i'll be able to survive the first couple weeks without leaving my home after that if there is no other option i plan on  going as far in the wilderness as possible and "try" to survive.
I know i'm pretty much fucked as it is. if i had 24 hours to prepare to bugout i think my odds of getting somewhere where i could hide and live are about 30%.

As i said i know i'm fucked right now and i will be fixing that as soon as i get funds to do so. [img]http://www.arrse.co.uk/at

[Kentactic]

prepping is a sacrifice... unless your very well off you must to a point sacrifice some of the things you love to be prepared. its a balance. once you get a good chunk of preps put away you can start sacrificing less. atleast thats how i am... im nearing a semi acceptable level off food and water so now i can just take it down a notch and just get some here and there. but keep in mind for some a big ole stockpile of food, guns, water, ammo etc is a passion...that makes them happy... i know it does for me. if you won the lottery youd feel like you were set for life... this is like my set for life.

[WhiskeyJack]

Its a pretty good question 9mm. and i think any prepper should be asking it of themselves.
I personally spend between $60 to about $110 per month on preps. It all depends upon what it is im buying and the deals i come across. That money is split between food, ammo, medical, hygene,water solutions,fuels and other misc equipment. I do on many ocasions spend more, but it is usually a specifice item that i identify and save for. I am constantly running scrap metal to afford my preps and i have repurposed several items that i have found in an attempt to save cash.
I do not let prepping get in the way of living my life though. I simply make it a part of the day to day. for me it is like a bill that must be paid on time like all the rest. I spend more time with famly and friends than i do counting beans and bullets. I dont obsess over sports but i still like to follow my Red Sox. I havent a clue as to what fantasy football is, I just enjoy a one game season of football on the ocasianal sunday or monday. And while it is a skill that can feed my family i still fish for recreation at every oportunity.
I prepare for the worst. but I dont pretend to know what the worst might be or when it will come. I am simply purchasing another form of insurance(not the type you get from the good hands people).
I would have to say one of my biggest fears is the potential for pandemic.
I do train on my equipment and weapons. But i could prolly use a little more exercize. I study more than I run.
My wife knows that when we go shopping i will be buying a extra case or bag of something. And while im not building bunkers in the back yard, I am working on owning a few acres so as to plant many fruit and nut trees and putter around in a kickass garden.
I guess as prepping is never really done i have simply made it apart of the day to day for my family. I can honestly say that we notice the prepping the same way we notice cleaning the kitchen or running to the store for milk. its simply part of our day to day.
And vodka i hear ya brother. i too was unemployed for a good long time. in fact my current job isnt much better than being unemployed. Thats when i started to run scrap metal. If you own a truck or have a way to tow a trailer. I suggest it as a way of suplimenting your income. Spring summer and early fall are the best times for it but you can still make a little scratch in the winter time as well.
   

[sledge]

So you are saying that you intend to feed my dogs? Put food away bro, you can't eat guns.

Now this brings up something that I've been thinking about and haven't really developed a good answer to yet.

What if it's not the wolf that gets fed to the dogs?  I know some of the members will be in smaller groups.  Maybe just their own immediate family.  What happens with and to your family ( or person you're in a relationship with) if you go down? 

Sometimes there's just no justice, rhyme or reason for the way things work out.  Sometimes it's just pure dumb luck whether good or bad.  And I've seen several cases when the most unprepared, most untrained, know nothing turkey out there also turns out to be the luckiest SOB out there.   

I know a lot of us family guys take out life insurance to protect and take care of our families if something should happen to us.  Has anyone given any thought, or formed any kind of plan that your family should follow should something happen to you if tshtf?  Would they be able to survive without you?  Do they know what you know?  Is there somewhere they should go?  Someone who would take them in?

I've been thinking about this for awhile now and don't really like any of the answers I've come up with.  Even though I'm in a relatively large group.  Has anyone else considered this?

[WhiskeyJack]

Yeah sledge I have and i don't like the answers i come up with. I have a couple of a couple of positives such as the fact my wife and daughter do have people they can turn too. and my wife does know how to load and shoot my guns. but no she doesn't know what i know. she doesn't have my training military or medical. and she doesn't deal with stress nearly as well as i do. But its not like we live in a perfect world right now. In a SHTF it would be even worse. I do hope that the preps we make today can help mitigate some of the threats we may face tomorrow.

[Colombo]

Always been the cheap fix it kinda guy so I have some great advantages. The kids are grown up and on a good sized rural land in georga, takes out some worry there. The wife passed away so there's no threat there and the brother in law lives with me, old junkyard guy and former 1 percenter (not wallstreet 1%). My mom and brother are probably moving in, while I worry about mom my brother is former military so between all of us I'm quite comfortable. The hobbies over the years have done nothing but prepare and improve my situation, blacksmithing and smelting, build and repair of firearms, keeping old vehicles running from cheapness and stuborness, as well as years of construction experience.
   Only thing I really have to worry about is having my citizenship stripped and getting locked up or put down thanks to the asshats like mccain, obama and the rest.

[backwoodsboy]

Its great colombo that you know how to fix stuff up, im sorry about your wife man. I have a question though and dont think im atupid for asking this but you say you were a 1%er, you mean like one of those badass biker dudes?

Back to topic the way i prep is simple, when my dad buys me around 200 rounds of 7.62 i put away around 160 of that, and its definitly added up. as for as food my dad doesnt shop often but ill add 2-5 can goods in the cart and thats around 3 times a month. medical i have alot of but when i see rubbing alcohol on sale for 99 cents a bottle i grab 1 or 2. btw i hope most of u guys have investd in a safe, guns are getting stolen alot now.

[JohnyMac]

We all have to do what we have tp do using the resources we have. 2012 is going to be a wild ride so if you chose to go out to dinner one less time put the $$$ to your preps.

[thatGuy]

My original answer was going to be "in for a penny, in for a pound" and it seems like most of you guys agree.

Prepping isn't about socking every cent into dry beans and ammo for me it is about leaving a little butter for later. I'm having a hard time thinking of a good way to put it but I have the means now (albeit limited) to live my life in some fashion but am choosing to live at a lower station so that I can put some of that away for later in case we all get knocked down a peg or two... does that make any sense to anyone else?

It's the little things that make the biggest difference in my mind. Having metric shit tons of ammo doesn't mean a thing to me. A good well, a healthy garden, shelves full of canning jars and a sharp hoe means a lot to me because ultimately we need to not look at prepping the way Rawles shows it to us but the way folks did it 100 years ago. There is no way that you are going to get enough shit put up that you'll just be able to kick back and watch the world burn but you can get yourself set up so that when shit does it the fan you won't hardly even notice.

As to what you were talking about Sledge, I think it is really important to leave instructions for those who would come after us. Anyone of us can and will be killed in the opening days of a WROL situation and that would leave our otherwise uninvolved dependants holding the Mylar bag as it were.

So sit down and write a manual for the shit you put up, by and away explaining what your thoughts are and what you intended to do so that your wife isn't wondering why in the hell you have so much pool shock. Sure it would be best to get her involved but sometimes that just isn't going to be possible.

Sorry for rambling but that is what I am about these days.

[JohnyMac]

Gentlemen,
all good well thought out points.

I like the manual idea TG not necessarily for my wife but for my nephew and his friends. When it comes to basic "guy" (My wife calls them blue jobs) skills they are worthless!

My wife and I know that she will die within a true WROl situation. We have stockpiled insulin supplies but we know we can not keep insulin more then a year. We have purchased PM's if we have only have a deep depression rather then WROL. We figure that in that case meds will still be produced and sold. 

My current challenge is keeping my brother and his wife moving forward with preps. Some days they are gung-ho and then weeks go buy that they spend money on things that are not important. For example my brother just spend a shit-ton of $$$ on a customized Waser Romanian AK- Why? He has a lot of AK's and AR's- He doesn't need one more.

Or the most frustrating thing is my sister in law who is a RN. She is supposed to review and make changes to my medical list. This was supposed of been done by this past summer and it still isn't done.  [img]http://www.arrse.co.uk/at

Keeping everyone focused sometimes is more of a challenge then actually the prepping it's self.

[thatGuy]

I am sorry to hear about your wife Johny, I can't imagine the strain that would put on someone just knowing such a thing. Have you thought about putting away some heavy duty pain killers to help her though her last days?

I think it would be a kindness to both of you to know that she wasn't hurting.

[JohnyMac]

Thx TG, no we haven't put away any heavy pain pills yet. Still waiting for the list from my Sister in-law.  [img]http://www.arrse.co.uk/at

Thank you for your concern however it is what it is. The reason I brought it up was I figure that 15 -20% of the US population relies on some drug to survive. I pulled that number from the book, "One Second After." So if one of your crew falls into that bracket what are you doing?

Again, we have about one years worth of diabetic supplies and have bought PM's in hopes we can buy medicine.

[thatGuy]

It does help me understand why you are so hell bent on owning gold and silver.

[1000meterstare]

My guns, ammo and gear are straight.  So I throw some money every other paycheck into storable food.  Half of every tax return I throw into barter items (whiskey, tp, etc).  I also bought bottles of cabernet and red zin for myself since red wine stores indefinitely.  More or less I live a normal life; I just don't live it with my head up my ass.  I don't purchase things I don't really need.

[JohnyMac]

Yupper TG  [URL=http://www.smileyvault.co

1000meter, looks like you ahve a good plan and you are working it!  [URL=http://www.smileyvault.co