Knife & Sheath Making

This is one of my many hobbies. So far these are the only knives I have made. The blades I bought already shaped and heat treated since I don't have the tools necessary to do this yet. The first knife I made was this skinning knife. The handle is made of black dymondwood that I shaped and mounted to the blade.

This is the knife and dymondwood handle material.

Finished knife. I also serrated the blade and added thumb grips on the spine.

The sheath is made of brown Kydex with a horizontal belt loop.

My second knife was this survival knife. I bought handle material called G5 but decided to go a different route with the handle.

Knife blank.

Wrapped the handle with 550 cord.

I also serrated the blade and made a black Kydex sheath.

Making a Kydex Holster

After buying my new conceal carry gun, Taurus PT709 "Slim", I needed a good holster. I decided to make my own since I couldn't find one I liked. The material is called Kydex, which is an acrylic-polyvinyl chloride alloy. I bought a 12"x24" sheet for $10 online and only used 1/3 of that. Here is the process and final product.

First thing I did was made a paper template. Then I transferred that to the kydex and cut it out using tin snips.

Then I heated up the kydex in the oven at 325 degrees for 5 minutes.

After the kydex became workable I wrapped it around my pistol and stuck it in my press. The press I made using foam, 3/4" plywood and 2 clamps.

After being in the press for 3 minutes this is what it looked like.

I then drilled the holes for the rivets and inserted those using my eyelet setters. Placement of the rivets is very important, because they determine how snug the holster fits the gun. I also folded the belt loop over using a heat gun.

Once the rivets were installed I used a heat gun to fine tune the fit and sanded the edges clean. This is the final shape of my holster.

It works really well and is very comfortable. It can be used inside or outside the belt and is virtually unnoticeable.

Bug Out Vehicle

Having a vehicle that is capable of getting you and your family out of a disaster is imperative. Most everyone has a means of transportation of some sort. Depending on the situation, any vehicle can serve this purpose. These are the vehicles we have available.

This 2007 Jeep Cherokee is my wife's daily driver. We drove it when we moved from Indiana to Alaska. It gave us plenty of room for everything we needed for a cross-country trip. We added the cargo hitch rack to carry extra fuel and bulky items. It is very fuel efficient and comfortable.

This is our 2002 Jeep Wrangler. We use this mainly for fun, but it is a perfect BOV. It's small, maneuverable and very capable off road. It doesn't provide much cargo room, but with all the accessories and racks that can be added it's doable. We added a winch and air compressor to help while offroading.

This 2007 GMC Sierra 2500 HD is my daily driver. The truck has plenty of power and enough room for the family to sit in comfortably. The camper is an 8' cabover with a 30 gallon water tank, heater, stove with oven, sink, refrigerator, shower and toilet. It is fully self contained with propane and 12v electric. It works well for camping or extended stays.

As you can see it's very easy to make your every day vehicles work for you in a Bug Out situation.

Camping at Hatchers Pass 2009

This was our first opportunity to explore Alaska. We bought this small camper and after spending many long weekends fixing it up we were able to do a little camping. One great thing about Alaska is all the free camping sites with great views. This was up in Hatchers Pass about an hour North of Anchorage. Even in July we needed our jackets on. The camper worked well for my wife and I, but we realized it wouldn't be usable with a child.

We found out the water was very cold after we crossed the river while hiking.

Alaska Blueberry Picking

After 2 years of living in Alaska we finally got some blueberries. It took us several hours of looking and tried 3 different locations to find them. The elevation was 3,800 feet and the views were spectacular.

The Family

Hiking up to 4,000 feet

Me with my day hike bag and Sig Sauer .40 S&W

The view

Knik Glacier Trip

Offroading is a huge sport in Alaska. We were lucky enough to find a group to show us around. I'm sure you can guess that the weather in Alaska is a bit extreme so safety is very important. Going out alone can be deadly so we run in groups. This trail isn't particularly hard, but has some of the best scenery. It took us about 3 hours to plow our way through the snow and arrive at the glacier. There were some tricky spots and the creek crossing swallowed a full sized Suburban, but we all made it in and out safely. This is one of very few Glaciers that you can drive up to and on in Alaska. This route can only be done in the winter when the creeks and rivers are frozen.

Me blazing a trail

It was bitterly cold in the flats

Jim's Creek crossing

All of us safe and sound on Knik Glacier

Survival Mindset

Many experts, including survival expert Cody Lundin, state that 90% of survival is psychological. Even the US Army Survival Manual states, "Without the will to survive, your chances of surviving are greatly diminished." Survival Psychologist Dr. John Leach found that only 10 to 15 percent of any group involved in any emergency will react appropriately. Another 10 to 15 percent will behave totally inappropriately and the remaining 70 to 80 percent will need to be told what to do. He also states that the most common reaction at the onset of an emergency is disbelief and denial. The best thing you can do in a survival or disaster situation is S.T.O.P. Not just stop what you are doing but use the S.T.O.P tool.

Stop: Unless it's dangerous, quit moving and sit down. take at least 30 minutes to allow the adrenaline to wear off.

Think: Assess your choices and tools available.

Observe: Take the surroundings into account, because this will affect what comes next.

Plan: Based on your previous actions make a plan. Make some immediate decisions and get going. Don't expect anyone to help you, and don't procrastinate.

Ray Smith, a former Marine Drill Instructor, with 27 years on active duty as a survival instructor, was asked, "What is the secret of survival?"
"Faith in God. It's a major factor in all survival scenarios."
Basically never give up, always stay positive and think before you act. Everyone gets so caught up in stockpiling gear they forget to prepare their minds. Don't forget this important step in your preparation.