The Wonders of Paracord

One thing that I really like to have in my camping/ hiking/ survival equipment is versatility. A quick definition describes versatility as: 1. Capable of doing many things competently. 2. Having varied uses or serving many functions. Paracord, parachute cord or 550 cord, however you want to call it, is one of the most versatile things you will ever buy. It is right up there with duct tape. For those of you who are unfamiliar with paracord, it is a nylon kernmantle rope originally designed to act as shroud lines for US WWII parachutes. It gets the name 550 cord because mil spec type III cord is rated at 550 pound test. It has a woven outer sheath and in its mil-spec designation, has an inner core of 7 strands, each made up of three strands. It comes in many colors, the most common being some type of "army green" usually a little darker than the common olive drab green. (I also like the "coyote brown" color, it blends just about everywhere.) To prevent fraying, the cut ends of the cord are almost always melted and/or crimped.


Its uses are as infinite as your imagination. The conventional things are pretty easy to think of, you can (of course) use it as shroud lines for a parachute or you can use it for just about any tie down task that you might use rope, string, twine, or even bungee cords. Some of the more typical uses might include attaching equipment to harnesses, securing tarps or camo netting as shelter, tying backpacks down to trailers or vehicle racks. Pace counters are made by threading with beads (or knotted pieces of the sheath) to estimate ground covered by foot. The inner lines or guts can be taken out and used for sewing thread to repair gear, or as fishing line. But that is really just the tip of the iceberg. Word is that 550 cord was used by the astronauts of STS 82 to repair the Hubble Space Telescope.


My buddy has become quite the artist with paracord and has been nice enough to make a lot of little items for me. Below are some pics of his work.


Knife grip wraps of paracord are pretty common and it makes for a pretty solid grip, impervious to rot and decay that can also be taken off and used for other tasks if needed. Since this knife (my very first...sniff sniff) did not have a handle, it made it useful again.



Lanyards and pull tabs are another common use, here we have a neat little square lanyard for my everyday pocket light (a Coast LED Lenser) and below a more complicated and stronger weave attached to a d-ring and a waterproof box. This set up is perfect for keeping camera handy, dry and protected on a canoe trip.
(or cigarettes, if you like those nasty bastards)


I wanted a new grip for the tomohawk that I keep in the trunk.
(What do you mean? You don't keep a tomohawk in the trunk?)
My friend really outdid himself with this one, a great looking design, it affords a good grip, keeps the tomohawk head firmly in place and keeps a large amount of cord at hand. Getting it off would be another thing, though. It might take more than an minute.





Here is where my imagination came in. I was thinking about some ways to amuse myself and decided that I could get my friend to make a blackjack for me. A $0.75 package of little lead fishing weights and bam:

this thing would certainly do the job, you could use the braided grip to swing it or hold it by the lanyard loop and get some more velocity. two things are certain: this thing would knock the hell out of someone and that amount of materials invested in it would not buy you a hamburger.


One final note: things that you should not do with paracord: wear it around your neck (it could strangle you) or use it to climb or try to bear all your weight on it. FYI

Hillbilly Emergency Candle

Right about now, you might be asking yourself "Why is Mr. Kevlar showing me a picture of a regular old steel can?" Well that is because it is not just a can, grasshoppers. I am going to try and spice up the blog with some survivalist/DIY type stuff and here we have what we might call the Hillbilly Emergency Candle. If you are like me, you might get a bunch of catalogs from various companies with all manner of survival and emergency equipment. Some is great and some of it is junk. But most of us simply cannot afford every single type of equipment that we might need or want. So I find that ways of increasing my preparedness without spending much money are very valuable. By the way, I did not come up with this myself, one of my good buddies showed me how to make these a little while ago, so remember that there is always more to learn.


So that brings us back to the hillbilly candle. The materials are common and cheap or free. Start with an empty food can that has been washed out and preferably opened with one of those side opening can openers. More on that in a second. Most of us eat canned food at least a little, so the can is pretty much free. The second ingredient is some cardboard, another item you probably throw away every week. (you should recycle though- don't be an asshole)
Cut and roll the card board into a tight spiral that will fit in the can, stopping just below the rim. The last item that you need is two blocks of paraffin wax, available from just about any grocery or hardware store. It is very cheap and has many uses so it is not a bad idea to keep a box or two around. To complete the hillbilly candle, melt the wax in a double boiler (place a pot with the wax blocks inside a larger pot of boiling water) Let the wax melt, but be careful to not let it get too hot. (It should not smoke), Then simply pour the wax into the can and over the cardboard. Try to let the wax cover as much of the cardboard as possible. Let it sit for quite a while as the wax will stay liquid for longer than you might think. Keep in mind that the can will be hot, so don't burn yourself.


And there you are, one hillbilly emergency candle. Burn time is estimated at about 8-9 hours. It is good for low level illumination, you can warm up some soup or water for coffee or whatever on it. It does make a lot of sooty smoke, so don't burn it in your mama's house. Also, keep in mind that a fire inside a steel can will make said can very hot, so don't come crying to me if you pick it up after it has been burning for 3 hours and leave your fingertips on it. To extinguish the flame you simply put the lid down on it and cut off the fire's oxygen supply. That is why I recommend the side cut lids because they make a tight seal with the rim and are also easier to hold and less likely to cut you. The hillbilly candle can take the place of or supplement real standard and emergency candles, firestarters, Sterno cans or other types of open flame heating elements. It is completely waterproof, mostly windproof and about as cheap as can be. My next project is to make a couple out of smaller cans for decreased weight and size, like the ones that tomato paste comes in.

Emergency Preparedness

yes, it is a bit dramatic

I like to think of myself as a survivalist, but don't often use that term due to most people conjuring images of me eating SPAM in a basement with a gas mask around my neck, sitting on a crate of ammo. And that would be wrong.
I don't even HAVE a basement.

But I try to impress on people the good sense of being prepared for trouble. That will mean a great deal of different things to different people. But I think one would be pretty spot on with a prediction that something bad is likely to happen. You know, sometime. That does not mean that you should move to the Mosquito Coast, dig a bomb shelter, or invest your 401k in gold coins and AKs
(well, not all of it at least)

[Seriously, leave your retirement alone unless you can't pay rent. And now is a bad time to buy gold. That's why they are advertising it]

Anyway...

It is a good idea to be prepared. There are all sorts of things that can go wrong.

(terrorist attack, riot, hurricane, earthquake, wildfire, virulent pandemic, flood, zombies, global economic meltdown, tornado, solar flares, zombies, meteorite strike, cat uprising, nuclear war, conventional war, civil war and zombies.)

See? and that's just off the top of my head.


So some things I think everyone needs: (very basic)

1. 12 gauge Shotgun (if someone kills you, all other plans are moot)
   
2. Water (you need way more than you think)
   
3. Non perishable foods
4. Cash
5. Flashlights
6. First aid kits
   
7. Hammer
8. Duct tape
9. Multi tool
10. Insurance and a good lawyer (OK, so that is at least two things. It is my list)
    

You would be surprised how many of life's problems can be fixed with the above items. And how many people would be completely at a loss without them in 48 hours if the lights and water stopped working.


Obviously, the above items do not in any way guarantee that you will survive the apocalypse, or even at the championship weekend of your local sports team. This list is woefully inadequate. But it is a start, and I can't give away all my secrets now, I want you to keep reading.

I believe everyone must take steps to ensure the security and health of their persons, families, and property. Those who fail to do so run the risk of fleeing down the highway, starving with no shoes on, wondering why the government won't save them.