malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on May 24, 2023 15:22:54 GMT 10
What would you do if visiting relations several hundred km from home, and there is an EMP that kills your car ? You have your BHB, but no wheels, and its a long walk.
Most BHB's sre designed to give you 3 days supply's, and its gunna take at least a week or more to strut it out.
OK, first stop, the tip. There are 100's of pushbikes discarded every year, and they mostly end up at the tip.
Look for a simple one, no, or 3 speed gearing. Tyre's are the next to think about. Unless you are very lucky, most bike will have flat tires and puncture repair kits/pumps etc, probably are not available as the shops are closed.
Time for some lateral thinking.
Look for some plastic tubing, or garden hose/fire hose, about the same diameter as the Tyre. Remove the dead tube and stuff the hose inside the casing. Cut to the right length and then push the rest of the casing over the rim. It will be a bit 'soggy' on the handling, but does work, as I have tried it just to make sure.
A fit person can cover 30 km a day walking, using wheels can make this over 100 km a day, with less effort as well. I would make several spare 'tubes' up and carry them, they wont take up much space or be heavy. Most discarded pushbikes only need basic repairs to be functional again and are a worthwhile device to consider after a disaster happens.
When I was working a few hours from home, I always carried a pushbike on the ute. Small, takes almost no space and light. Gives a peace of mind, knowing you are ready.
Lighting is probably a luxury, as most people can see well enough after dark when the eyes get adjusted to it.
Being prepared is also thinking about possible survival situations as well as the physical activity of prepping.
So when is the "old enough to know better" supposed to kick in ?
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spatial
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Post by spatial on May 24, 2023 17:11:56 GMT 10
What would you do if visiting relations several hundred km from home, and there is an EMP that kills your car ? You have your BHB, but no wheels, and its a long walk. Most BHB's sre designed to give you 3 days supply's, and its gunna take at least a week or more to strut it out. OK, first stop, the tip. There are 100's of pushbikes discarded every year, and they mostly end up at the tip. Look for a simple one, no, or 3 speed gearing. Tyre's are the next to think about. Unless you are very lucky, most bike will have flat tires and puncture repair kits/pumps etc, probably are not available as the shops are closed. Time for some lateral thinking. Look for some plastic tubing, or garden hose/fire hose, about the same diameter as the Tyre. Remove the dead tube and stuff the hose inside the casing. Cut to the right length and then push the rest of the casing over the rim. It will be a bit 'soggy' on the handling, but does work, as I have tried it just to make sure. A fit person can cover 30 km a day walking, using wheels can make this over 100 km a day, with less effort as well. I would make several spare 'tubes' up and carry them, they wont take up much space or be heavy. Most discarded pushbikes only need basic repairs to be functional again and are a worthwhile device to consider after a disaster happens. When I was working a few hours from home, I always carried a pushbike on the ute. Small, takes almost no space and light. Gives a peace of mind, knowing you are ready. Lighting is probably a luxury, as most people can see well enough after dark when the eyes get adjusted to it. Being prepared is also thinking about possible survival situations as well as the physical activity of prepping. Like in the old days I knew a guy who used to keep a pair of ladies pantyhose's in his car in case the fan belt broke, it was a thing they used in the movies. A discussion with him was if that is your big concern, why not carry a spare fan belt and minimal tools needed. Sourcing a bicycle is an excellent idea. Keeping some spare cash, there are many that would consider an EMP a temporary event - 'she'll be right' attitude. So buy a bike or keep a bike tire repair kit in your BOB, very minimal weight and patches and glue is very useful for repairs. I have a few of them might go put one in my BOB. Will include a small pump. |
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on May 24, 2023 17:16:48 GMT 10
True, a puncture repair kit is cheap and lightweight, and most bikes dumped do have reasonable tires, just flat due to neglect. Some bikes Ive picked up even have the original pump still clipped to the frame, bonus. Oiling it before riding would also be a good idea, plenty of old motors at the tips to get a little engine oil.
I'm not fat....I'm fluffy.
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bushdoc2
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Post by bushdoc2 on May 24, 2023 20:29:50 GMT 10
Spatial, agreed on the spares.
Also, a small card, with the part numbers of the usual suspects, eg. what radiator hoses, fan belts or spark plugs you need. These will be on the labels in the shops, but if the net is down, the ipad showing you the part number will be no help.
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on May 25, 2023 8:32:18 GMT 10
Preventive maintenance. Change the belts when they look a little worn, keep the old ones as spares and order a new one at the same time. Hang on the wall in the shed, ready. Ditto spark plugs, fuel filters etc. I run a twin filter system on the vehicles here, 2 filters in line, even on the wife's newer Prado (petrol). Gives the peace of mind that if u pick up bad fuel, which can happen, then u can get moving again by simply removing the dirty filter (first one in line), and relying on the second one to keep things clan until u can replace it as well.
Interestingly, the farm ute is duel fuel, gas and petrol, and Ive a filter on the gas installation and have picked metal flakes from it as well. Contaminated fuel is much less of a problem with LP gas, and also Ive found storing petrol in Jerry cans can also clean it up, as long as u don't suck up the last 1/2 inch or so of fuel.
People say I act like I don't care...Its not an act.
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frostbite
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Post by frostbite on May 25, 2023 10:02:03 GMT 10
Preventive maintenance. Change the belts when they look a little worn, keep the old ones as spares and order a new one at the same time. Hang on the wall in the shed, ready. Ditto spark plugs, fuel filters etc. I run a twin filter system on the vehicles here, 2 filters in line, even on the wife's newer Prado (petrol). Gives the peace of mind that if u pick up bad fuel, which can happen, then u can get moving again by simply removing the dirty filter (first one in line), and relying on the second one to keep things clan until u can replace it as well. Interestingly, the farm ute is duel fuel, gas and petrol, and Ive a filter on the gas installation and have picked metal flakes from it as well. Contaminated fuel is much less of a problem with LP gas, and also Ive found storing petrol in Jerry cans can also clean it up, as long as u don't suck up the last 1/2 inch or so of fuel. People say I act like I don't care...Its not an act. And keep spare blades for your mower, so you don’t have to rely on a trip into town to source new ones. |
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on May 25, 2023 11:17:15 GMT 10
I make my own blades for the ride on from high tensile steel flat. They last heaps longer than factory one do.
Also, Steel stock is easier to find in the shed than 4 blades are as well !!
That said, I have spare blades for the slasher and the 6 foot rotary hoe for the tractor. Must remember to get some spare blades for the petrol tiller next town trip. They are quite intricate in design and pressings and probably outside my scope for home made. That said, in a grid down situation we can do things we wouldn't have dreamed of in normal times.
Where do you stop in stockpiling spares ? I think it gets to a point where you have to have confidence in your ability to improvise and make essential spares from whatever you have available at the time. Backup ways of dong things is also essential, such as a hand hoe for use if all the engine driven stuff fails.
Like a BUG HOME BAG, is only meant to give you breathing space to get your s..t together and get more organized. I'm not suggesting a hand hoe could be used to feed a group, but it would see you through a failure point and give time to think about how to repair the broken bits. And equipment like hoes are gunna be vital for survival after the collapse. We all have to eat. Ditto for fuel, oil etc.
The local tip would be a resource not many will think of. Unfortunately, in town, its usually locked up, surrounded by a chain wire fence with cameras etc monitoring. Another reason for bush living, just a wire gate on the access road from the highway, jump over and yr in. No monitoring, cameras, etc as well. Bonus.
That idea is absolutely ludicrous, when do we start ?
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frostbite
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Post by frostbite on May 25, 2023 11:49:13 GMT 10
Quote:
“Today's jobs.
Load the rubbish and take to the tip.
Remove the blades from the ride on, ready to replace them with the new ones the troops will bring home from town this afternoon.”
Quote:
“I make my own blades for the ride on from high tensile steel flat. They last heaps longer than factory one do.
Also, Steel stock is easier to find in the shed than 4 blades are as well !!”
******************************************************************************************************
So which one is it? Make your own or buy from the shop?
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on May 25, 2023 13:19:54 GMT 10
At present, the ride on has a set of homemade blades, that are at least 2 years old and quite worn down. However, I have 'she who must be obeyed' getting a set from town today, as I'm basically lazy and couldn't be bothered spending a hour or two fabricating something that can be bought for less than $50. After the collapse it will be a different matter when they are not available at all, and keeping the grass down is part of our fire plan, along with animal grazing. No issues with fuel as we have enough for several years use.
The older I get, the better I was.
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frostbite
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Post by frostbite on May 25, 2023 13:37:47 GMT 10
You don’t need spare blades or belts or spark plugs or fuel to keep the grass down. Or a dual fuel car with an emp proof electrical system to get around after shtf. all you need is to think outside the square and get some of these:  |
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on May 25, 2023 14:56:34 GMT 10
We have 3 of them, and 3 cows, but its much more convenient (and lazy !) to gad about in a motorized vehicle of some kind. But, as per usual, MWAT has his backup plan in place and does have a 2 Tyne horse drawn plough in stock. I also have the knowledge and gear to couple it to a steer, although what he would think of that I dunno !
We have a couple of miniature pigs for the same job, they do a marvelous job of digging up a paddock, down to the roots of the weeds, and manure it as well. A quick going over with the rotary hoe and that paddock is ready for planting out. (Ignoring the wallows they make along the way !).
Getting older is just one body part after another saying "Ha ha you think that's bad, watch this".
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journey
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Post by journey on Jun 13, 2023 11:41:14 GMT 10
Great thread. Lot’s of ideas here I will put into use. For silent, low energy scouting or getting stuck closer to home… We also have an electric scooter with good sized wheels and a small electric bike. We take them in the camper. They dont take more space than a push bike and the battery will get you about 20k on the scooter and 50k of the bike. They can be recharged from a solar panel but it’s a long process and it would take ages to get home. The bike is power assist, so it can be peddled like a bicycle. They were second hand and only had to replace they batteries. I damaged my knee a while back so it got me thinking… If someone was injured or unwell or had to carry a child, a trike would be good too.
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on Jun 13, 2023 12:02:56 GMT 10
When I was working a sawmills some distance from home, I too carried a pushbike on the tray of the ute, along with spare ignition components, the bike was the if all else fails backup. Obviously, getting the ute going first was the priority.
It is not despair, for despair is only for those who see the end beyond all doubt, we do not.
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Post by Stealth on Jun 13, 2023 14:42:03 GMT 10
I damaged my knee a while back so it got me thinking… If someone was injured or unwell or had to carry a child, a trike would be good too. Yahtzee. I bought an electric bike for the exact same reason a year or so ago. I LOVE it, it allows me to go much further, much faster and with far more weight hauled. I bought a little trailer to add on for the youngest sproutling for school drop-off and pick up. In the next month or so we're going to get more emphatic about said sprout learning to ride a bike though. We haven't pushed it that hard because all of our kids have learned to ride in their own time with encouragement from siblings but this time it's taken a bit longer. Hopefully a new bike for the upcoming birthday will be motivation enough! Anyway, said trailer will become a haulage trailer once it's been retired from child-toting duties. It'll carry approximately 35kg quite happily which doesn't sound like a lot, but it's a decent amount of extra weight that you've got behind you instead of on your back. It also folds up flat so I can stick it behind a shelf in the garage when it's not in use. It means that if we couldn't get fuel for the car for some reason I could get groceries and the like from one of the stores not too far away, but if necessary I could travel a pretty significant distance (ie. to local farms etc) and get supplies. Obviously the worse the situation the more options it allows for, but the biggest dilemma is the fact that the bike is powered. It's a pedelec bike, so you can still use it as a regular bike without power. But I've found from the one time that it ran out of juice that it really wouldn't be feasible for me to ride as I'm suddenly trying to push forward a 21kg bike. And that's 21kg unloaded! It takes a heap of effort on anything but flat terrain, even if you don't have an injury. While it's manageable for a short distance on the flat hills quickly destroy stamina. Hubby has an extremely light bike that'd be ok for me to ride for a very short distance but he's much taller than me and as a result it'd be a very uncomfortable ride. But thankfully the trailer is very easy to hook up to a new bike so if needed he could do the trip instead. I debated getting a lighter, normal bike for emergencies but the reality is that at this stage we don't have anywhere further to bug out to unless we have a working vehicle to bug out in. We'd likely bug out to my inlaw's place if things got truly hairy, but that would be in a civil disturbance situation only really. I don't see us going that way unless something like a minor civil war took place where we live. And at this stage their place is the only travelling we really do outside of our close suburb region. So for us the bikes suit anything that would require small-scale haulage and transport needs but that's assuming my bike is juiced. We can only prepare the best each individual can given their circumstances though so I'm not beating myself up about it. |
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on Jun 13, 2023 14:56:36 GMT 10
Like Ive mentioned before, we've set up here, 55 km from town, literally in the middle of nowhere, so if we needed to bug out, even to the National Park adjacent (1 property down), things are really not survivable for the average person, and therefore gunna be almost impossible for us. People in town will have no hope, even with a bug out plan. We all have a pushbike and camping gear, but I don't know how far my old knees would take it !
Closer to the second coming, bailing out might buy time enough, and that is the aim, but Australia isn't the type of country you can live off the land for long, there just isn't enough wildlife, especially for a group.
I also believe you cant have too many options or backup, backup plans.
Harden your hearts gentlemen and gentlewomen, for the fight against evil is close at hand and I hope you are prepared for more than just surviving.
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frostbite
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Post by frostbite on Jun 13, 2023 14:59:12 GMT 10
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malewithatail
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Post by malewithatail on Jun 13, 2023 15:01:18 GMT 10
We do have a couple of pony's and they might not like being hitched to a cart, or plough, but that's too bad !!
OH no, not another learning experience !
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