Mmmmm Rah, I would propose what you wrote: One, 3-4 person team (4 being optimal) with a slight change. That team would be your core group.
With that core group; Lets call them team leaders, you then build 4 other teams of 3-4 folks with your
buddies AKA Team Leaders heading up each of those teams.
Original Team of 4X X X X
Four new teams
X X X X
YYYY YYYY YYYY YYYY
Now you have a nice manageable platoon with four teams or squads.
In theory, you could send the four Team Leaders to school, ala Velocity or Mosby or ? and when they come back from class they train their teams. Competition could also be pushed between teams to heighten everyone's skills.
Now of course once the four squads are at 90%+ readiness you could then continue and do the following:
X
X X
X
Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y Y Y Y Y
Y Y Y Y
ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ
ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ
ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZ ZZZZNow you have a Militia Company.
Add a Company Captain and his squad that supports the whole Company, (Supplies, Communication, Intel, Captain) you have 88 or so folks.
With all of this gibberish that I have written, the biggest challenge is getting three other friends with a similar desire and a few bucks to train, to start the local militia. Remember that there is the initial training courses. Then the training to become proficient enough to train others who have the time and desire to train.
Man O' man, it is like a pyramid scheme.
I suspect it would take 6-10 months of the core group getting up to speed. Then another 6-10 months of each Team Leader to recruit and get his team up to speed. So a platoon in 12-20 months.
Remember, Rome wasn't built in a day and the men who make up the teams will be volunteers not 24/7 military recruits. Life will interplay with the core groups plans... That is until SHTF happens.
It is truly to bad that many of us are separated by so many miles.