New member: Angus, Scotland. Newish Prepper.

[TheWolfXX]

Hello everybody,

I find talking about myself rather inefficient, especially when actions speak louder words. Haven't had it easy but then I never do anything the "easy" way either so; 'six and two threes'. Always had a keen sense of self-reliance and a strong intelligence despite a lack of formal institutionalised learning.

Before two - three years ago as a single, unnatched male I could become self reliant very easily with fluidity. Now my OH and two year old daughter have forced me to completely re-evaluate the basic plans for survival I previously had, because with children especially in any harsh condition you must be careful and precise at times you previously would not have been in the slightest (i.e. swinging a spade). In turn this has caused me to realise I lack some vital skills and information (for instance: until yesterday I had no comprehension of how electricity actually worked despite having repaired many electrical components).

I was brought here by my meanderings through the information superhighway and namely a post by "defender130" (found here: viewtopic.php?f=16&t=13318) which contains a link to a large source of "survival guides" for nearly everything from dentistry to combat skills and field surgery!

I've been spending a large amount of time over the past 7+ months collating sheer amounts of information into hardcopy format. From the method of extracting penicillin from the fungi penicillin to simple pulley systems purely so that when I can't "ask google" (lmao) or hit up wolfram alpha for some simple data I have a way of gaining/revising the information without such modern conveniences.

Right now I've stopped in my mad frantic dance, after digging out my garden, to try to learn how to: "light a fire by friction", namely a fire drill method because of the noise it is making upon my floorboards lol and I have an elderly neighbour. If anyone has any hints on this please feel free to shout them out because I am struggling to learn what I believe should be a simple, ancient method of making fire and I consider myself an intelligent boy so it's a little embarrassing that I can't master such a thing, although I know perserverance like with anything is key and will try again when I light my fire tomorrow (before the digging begins again).

That's me, why I'm here and hello once again.

Hope everyone still awake is having a good evenings/mornings/days/nights.

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TheWolfXX

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Sun Tzu - "[05.06] In battle, there are no more than two types of attacks: Common and uncommon, yet the variations of the common and uncommon cannot all be anticipated."

[poppypiesdad]

I think I know you , maybe not ,

Your not from Liverpool originally are you .......

Anyway either way , hi from Fife

Jamie

[TheWolfXX]

Hello poppypiesdad.

I'm not from liverpool no but you're correct in that I'm not Scottish. From near London originally I came up to Scotland for a holiday with a friend and never left, now have a lovely little girl with said friend and still trying to eek out a living in Brechin which is an awesome place despite what everyone thinks about it lol.

[Deeps]

A second welcome from the Costa del Fife, I hope you find plenty of useful stuff on here. I sooooo hope J knows you, that would be brilliantly weird.

[TheWolfXX]

--waves-- Hello from lovely little brechin lol.

I don't actually know many people in the area thus big hello's.

[womble]

Right now I've stopped in my mad frantic dance, after digging out my garden, to try to learn how to: "light a fire by friction", namely a fire drill method...If anyone has any hints on this please feel free to shout them out because I am struggling to learn what I believe should be a simple, ancient method of making fire...

Ancient it is, indeed, and simple in concept. But it's far from simple in execution, and largely unnecessary. Even if the SHTF, there will be steel and there will be flints, and if you're prepared, you'll have enough fire steels to last until civilisation is restored, or it's no longer your problem.

Spend your time learning to make fire with firesteel first, then go to flint and steel.

If you're just after learning how for the interest, there's a bunch of good advices on the intertubes: http://www.jonsbushcraft.com/bowdrill%20tutorial.htm seems to cover the basics and mention some essential non-obvious stuff.

[TheWolfXX]

Right now I've stopped in my mad frantic dance, after digging out my garden, to try to learn how to: "light a fire by friction", namely a fire drill method...If anyone has any hints on this please feel free to shout them out because I am struggling to learn what I believe should be a simple, ancient method of making fire...

Ancient it is, indeed, and simple in concept. But it's far from simple in execution, and largely unnecessary. Even if the SHTF, there will be steel and there will be flints, and if you're prepared, you'll have enough fire steels to last until civilisation is restored, or it's no longer your problem.

Spend your time learning to make fire with firesteel first, then go to flint and steel.

If you're just after learning how for the interest, there's a bunch of good advices on the intertubes: http://www.jonsbushcraft.com/bowdrill%20tutorial.htm seems to cover the basics and mention some essential non-obvious stuff.

I love watching flint and steel. Even two bits of flint on the ground were fun to make fire with when I was younger. Only now do I realise that this valuable material I had taken for granted in my younger years: flint is not so easy to come by in Scotland. I have acquisitition plans in place along with my lists and magnesium steels are high in priority.

The technique has not actually taken long to master despite my previous frustrations (two evenings). I have now produced what I call my "urban fire-drill" kit consisting of coat hanger (which will soon be upgraded), washing machine drive-belt, pallet wood and it works rather efficiently (although I hadn't mastered it when it came to light my fire this morning).

My "prepping" if you can call it that, has today consisted of gardening. I'm in the process of finally overhauling my garden into a workable farming space now my daughter is old enough to allow such things to occur around her. It's lovely hard work even in the miserable weather, will pay for itself in foodstuffs as well as seeds and a plus is that today it earned me 6 or so fishing poles from the holly bush I took out to entertain my daughter with another simple mechanism of life: Fishing (although I'm unsure if I need a license for such a thing but would get one before putting rod in water anyhow).

Hope you guys have had a productive day. Going to head for another one tomorrow.

[tigs]

Welcome to the forum

[poppypiesdad]

Hi anyway pint ?

Jamie

[TheWolfXX]

Thanks for the welcome tigs.

We'll have to sort that out Jamie. I keep getting told I need to expand my social circle of zero people.