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Messages - husker77c
301
« on: July 24, 2015, 06:36:41 PM »
I wish I could add to this, but the words are not there.
We will pray and you are finding the way.
You know there is a search above for the Bible.
Yeah I've looked at that site but I don't know enough to know what I'm looking for. I just google inspirational bible verses or fighting bible verses and start reading.
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« on: July 24, 2015, 01:46:52 PM »
So honestly I'm just googling bible verses right now but I did get the app as was suggested that way I can read it some in my downtime at work (which is significant). it's better than reading doom and gloom news all the time or mindlessly staring at FB.
Leviticus 26:3
“If you walk in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them … you shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely. I will give you peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid; I will rid the land of evil beasts, and the sword will not go through your land. You will chase your enemies, and they shall fall by the sword before you. Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight; your enemies shall fall by the sword before you.”
That's what I sent today.
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« on: July 24, 2015, 01:34:24 PM »
I will keep that in mind when installing the new parts. It seems to just drive like an old truck currently but after checking things like you suggested I can see there is a whole world of room for improvement.
Well with my 5% discount code it turned out to be $585 shipped for all the parts. I don't think that's terrible for all that I got.
I figured while my card was still smoldering I would just make it scream a little bit more. I ordered a reverse shackle kit for it. This kit puts the shackle at the rear of the front spring and mounts it solid at the front. Supposed to give you a much improved ride and allows the use of super duty springs.
With the shackle kit and the springs I should gain about 4" of lift in the front which will allow me to run 35s trouble free. I may have to run taller blocks in the back or I may even do completely different springs back there. The kit was right around 400 shipped and it comes with a track bar bracket to lower the track bar. Found some junk yard SD springs for $75 ea so this is a fairly economical way to lift the truck while gaining a substantial increase in ride quality.
Hoping to pick up the springs next week and get started in all this. When I pick up the springs I think I will change the bushings out for energy suspension units before I install them that way I know everything in the front end is as new as it can be.
I may need a new pitman arm some say yes some say no so I'll see how it goes without it first. Also probably have some longer brake lines made up.
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« on: July 24, 2015, 06:39:10 AM »
Man guys I wish we were all closer because it would be nice to have friends like you guys to hang out with.
So I don't own a bible but plan to remedy that this weekend. Been talking with fiancé about all this and I'm going to start reading the bible out loud to us every night before bed.
My prayers I say have evolved in the few days since I started this thread and hope they continue to get better.
Ephesians 6:13 “Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm.”
I believe that passage is why you were referring to in the post above Don
I sent that to my family in a group text yesterday. I'm going to send a verse to them every day from now on.
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« on: July 24, 2015, 06:32:49 AM »
One more question. Should I be looking at switching to manual hubs? What about just doing drive flanges? 35 spline upgrade? As I said above I don't want to do this twice.
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« on: July 23, 2015, 04:50:21 PM »
I will cowboy the alignment up to get it close then takebit for a spin and see what I've got. If it's too bad there's a tire shop within a half mile from where I am so that's a last resort of I need it
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« on: July 23, 2015, 02:43:59 PM »
Limb risers are so freakin cool 8)
I remember reading 4wheel and off road when I was a kid and seeing the Camel Trophy Land Rovers with them.
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« on: July 23, 2015, 02:40:24 PM »
Yep that's what I thought too. Have to take the tie rods off to do the ball joints anyway so might as well do it once and get it done. Front end work is arguably the worst work to do on a vehicle so I don't want to do it twice for sure. I'm gonna start working out and hit the punching bag to prepare for an epic battle I'm sure. Every time I've done something to the front end of one of my vehicles it sucks. I survive it......but just barely.
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« on: July 23, 2015, 12:58:45 PM »
A little update. I've been driving the ford for work the past few days and started having some issues. I posted a thread over in the drivetrain section about noises in hearing in the front end. Well after a few days I have the noises I posted about and more clicks, clanks, bangs, and snaps than I can decipher. So since the dodge is getting out of the shop today the ford will be parked until the front end can be addressed. I put it in 4x4 a few hours ago and I have some really nasty noises that I am thinking is bad u joints again. Last night I crawled under it while my girl was turning the wel heel and he tie rod is rotating front to back and there is quite a lot of play in the steering before it catches and actually turns the wheels. As per suggestion I jacked up the front wheels and checked the ball joints. Let's just say the only thing they are doing is holding the knuckle on at this point. A couple bolts and large washers would do the same thing. So for the last hour I've been in my phone sourcing parts and price shopping for the parts here's what I found.
This is for every seal and bearing on both ends of the axle, new u joints, ball joints and tie rod and tie rod ends. All moog brand steering gear, spicer u joints and timken or CR seals and bearings.
Rock auto is around $600 with shipping.
Napa was going to be close to $900 with Napa premium ends and joints and Napa brand u joints.
Advanced I stopped looking after the moog ball joint was a few dollars shy of double what rock auto had them for.
So after burning up the credit card I have everything on the way to completely rebuild the front end with the exception of anything in or attached to the pumpkin.
I'm sure some of the noises are coming from the wore out leafs and their non existent bushings but those will have to be lived with until I decide what to do in the way of suspension mods.
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« on: July 23, 2015, 12:35:20 PM »
Thank you again guys for the thoughts and prayers.
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« on: July 23, 2015, 10:40:54 AM »
Thank you all for the words of encouragement. I didn't mean anything derogatory by my strangers statement. this is the nicest forum Ive ever been on and the support I see everyone give one another is outstanding. We will get through all of this.
I am working towards being a better human and Christian. Whenever I pray I never ask for anything for myself other than the health and well being of my loved ones. And to thank him for the blessings he's given me. I feel to ask him for anything for my self is selfish and since I don't really need anything right now I don't want to waste his time. You never know when I might need to call in a favor. I'm thinking now might be a time to call in that favor.
Words do go on forever but the leap of faith has always been difficult for me to grasp. And me questioning my faith essentially means that on some level I don't believe he will have my back. I've never seen miracles I've never seen something happen completely against the laws of science. I've heard stories but it's never been anything I can see, and put my hand on.
As I said I always keep my problems to myself and handle them myself but this out of control feeling is driving me crazy.
It's just hard because my life wasn't always great but it was never that bad and this is the only time in my life that I've felt that God is the only way. I'm just afraid it's to late.
Yesterday was just a bad day. Today's looking up though.
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« on: July 22, 2015, 02:37:54 PM »
I didn't even see those ;)
Thanks again man
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« on: July 22, 2015, 02:14:52 PM »
So my father was diagnosed 11 months ago with cancer. Stage 4 in his lungs and his bones. They intially said without treatment he only had around 3 months left. This all came as a massive shock because up until then he was fine. He had hurt his back dragging a log out of the yard and he couldn't get rid of the pain from that. Went in had an MRI and they found a spot on his lung. Further tests found it all over.
They started him on radiation and chemo immediately. At first it all seemed to be helping he felt better after the radiation. It relieved some of the pain. Lately though he's on a downhill slide it seems like. He got an infection in his lung which put him in the hospital for a week. Now it's a week of chemo every three weeks.
It really pisses me off that all the money that is spent in cancer research and we are still using something as archaic and barbaric as chemo therapy. I know that I'm naive to think this way but he was perfectly fine until the chemo set in. sometimes I think the chemo is doing more harm than good. Especially if he has to keep this regimen up until he inevitably passes on. I had an aunt go through this almost identical scenario and she just got to the point where she gave up. Was tired of fighting it and the constant sickness.
I know most people in this country and maybe most people on this forum don't like to hear it but cannabis has been shown to work wonders for cancer patients. Studies are showing that the oil is effective in attacking cancer cells and the "side effects" are beneficial too. Munchies, pain killer etc. The problem is the stigma surrounding it. For years it has been beaten into everyone's head about being a doper or a pot head and now my dads generation is dropping left and right from cancer and a possible miracle cure for the disease is tied up with bureaucratic red tape.
But it's not just that treatment that's being stifled by the big pharmacuetical companies and the government. There's all sorts of treatments that are made to jump through years of hoops to even get through to the point of human trials and for most patients that's just to long to wait
There's the Kansius research that was started by a guy in Erie PA that uses nano gold particles and sound waves to attack the cancer cells and leaves healthy tissue alone. That gentlemen died, of cancer, and his research was picked up by Baylor. Now it's going to human trials but they will be in Italy in 2016.
Greed is the worst of all sins as far as I'm concerned. Greed is what's tearing this country apart. It's more profitable to maintain a patient and treat them until they die than it is to cure them. So all this possible research is put through the ringer while people die left and right In agony injecting poison into their bodies under the guise of treatment.
I know there's a plan and should work harder at putting my faith in God but when I think about all these things it's so hard. It's so hard to see what goes on in this world and still believ it's part of a plan. I haven't been a very good Christian for most of my life but I'm trying now and things like this make me remember why I didn't believe for all those years. I'm struggling right now and you guys are one step away from strangers to me and it's awkward to write sowmthing like this. I don't ever push my problems onto others because I feel like that's selfish. There are a boat load of people in this world that need more than I do. I just needed to vent to someone partially anonymous.
I graduated with 12 people in my class and 7 out of 12 of us have a parent that's dying or has died of cancer.
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« on: July 22, 2015, 01:31:22 PM »
El Tate. Does spicer have or do you have an exploded view of the axle? The pinned thread up top has the service manual with all the parts laid out but not an exploded view. Would be helpful when it comes time to start this project. Also are there any special tools I'm going to need? I think I read I need an axle nut socket and I've seen references to a slide hammer. I've gathered up info on what I believe to be every seal and bearing I need to completely refresh the outside of the axle. What about the bushings mentioned in the pinned service manual? Do those need to be replaced or are they re usable.
If I'm going this far into it I want to come out of it with as close to new as I can for The project
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« on: July 21, 2015, 09:19:00 PM »
Awesome man. Thanks for the help. I'm no where near NE right now unfortunately but with the part numbers I should be able to find them without to much trouble.
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« on: July 21, 2015, 06:30:31 PM »
Would be glad to buy the u joints from the store. I'll need one for each side and one spare. If you could kindly point me in the direction I need to go to give someone money I would appreciate it. I'm thinking I'm going to get all the bearings and seals that I will come in contact with doing this repair and replace those. It will be a good time to clean the axles up and paint them as well I think.
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« on: July 21, 2015, 04:49:59 PM »
So if the nut is tight I take that to mean I need new u joints in the front end? Anything I should be looking at upgrading or preventative maintenance while I'm in there?
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« on: July 21, 2015, 02:49:49 PM »
Ok so since I've been driving the F350 for the past few days I've started hearing noises. Getting a pretty noticeable clunk in the front end mostly when turning. I pulled over and did some checking. Mostly just grabbing parts and giving it a good shake to see if I could find the culprit. Everything seems tight but then I grab the u joint. I can jiggle it up and down and side to side. probably around 1/8". Also can pull it out and push it in about the same. Is that normal? All things I know would say it isn't but I've never had a truck this old to work on and never had to deal with these issues.
Also how does a man go about checking tie rod ends and ball joints? The truck is prett darn smooth on the highway hardly any wobbling or anything although to look at the tie rod ends they do look pretty ragged. But all in the steering seems tight.
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« on: July 21, 2015, 12:54:05 PM »
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« on: July 17, 2015, 02:05:04 PM »
http://www.amazon.com/Mountaineering-Freedom-Hills-8th-Edition/dp/1594851387That book helped me a bunch back when we used to rappel off of anything we could find. Which being in NE wasn't much. We ended up hanging off of grain elevators and the occasional "steep" cliff by a river. That book has all the knots you need and has some really great stuff on glacier travel, mountain climbing etc. Not all applicable to your situation but good reading and valuable knowledge for mountain traveling. Make sure you protect your rope from abrasion and cutting. That's a bad lesson to learn the hard way. Ask me how I know.
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« on: July 15, 2015, 09:37:55 AM »
Small world. Like I said my mom is back there and I still have a bunch of friends in Halsey. I haven't lived there in 15 years but it will always be home.
Next time you make it to Halsey have dinner at the Double T and IM me and I'll make sure you get a beer on me.
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« on: July 15, 2015, 09:27:37 AM »
That definately is a good historic road trip. We took many field trips up to Ft Robinson growing up. Stuhr Museum was always one of my favorite places. Don't forget the arch out side of Kearney. Where are you from if you don't mind me asking? I grew up in Dunning and my mom is still in Broken Bow.
There's some decent dirt roads and scenery in the National Forest at Halsey also if you ever need a camping destination.
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« on: July 15, 2015, 09:11:28 AM »
Where you headed out in western NE?
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« on: July 13, 2015, 11:19:01 AM »
Good ideas. My idea was to Tee off of the heater hoses and run hoses along the frame rail and into a U shaped piece of pipe in one of the fill holes. That way when your engine is up to temperature you would know your tank was as well. This would also help with gelling fuel. Although with winter blend fuel that wouldn't be as much of an issue.
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« on: July 13, 2015, 10:37:28 AM »
This is a little off the tire carrier topic but goes back to the in bed fuel tank. Have you thought about incorporating a setup to run waste motor oil or waste vegetable oil? I know to run it guys usually set up a filtering/refinement setup in their garage before dumping it into the tank. I've been thinking about how to set it up to work with the transfer tank after you run out of options for diesel i.e. When all your tanks are empty. Have a se t up to drain motor oil from dead vehicles/equipment and filter it onboard before putting it in the tank.
If you're having your guy build that tank you could have him put a drain plug on the very very bottom and then your fuel line an inch or so above that. That way you could filter the oil before it goes into the tank and let it sit in the tank for a few days then pop the bottom drain open to expel the water that separates from it and you would have an alternate source of fuel.
I'm probably going to try something like this when I get slowed down from work this winter. Not only for TEOTWAWKI but simply because it's pretty darn cool. I like fuel for less than a dollar a gallon.
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« on: July 12, 2015, 08:03:30 AM »
Yes I am NOT a welder by trade. Kind of wished I'd have gone that way early on in life but I won't lose sleep over it. I'm 99% a bumper I weld will handle a deer or a zombie but that 1% is what makes me second guess anything life threatening.
The $600 bumper is a great deal but it will still bolt to the factory angle iron mounts so I'm left relying on those for the ultimate strength of my tow points.
I'm leaning towards the mounts bolted to the side of the frame rails. Probably use 1/2" plate or 5/8". I was thinking last night if I went that way I could have a winch plate welded in on the bottom side of the two frame rail pieces to tie them together and allow a winch to be attached.
I probably will make a template and then take them to a machine shop to have the pieces built and welded together. Once that's done then I can start building the bumper. I'm leaning towards 10" channel that I will cut reliefs in the web to allow it to angle back and then I can cut wedges out of the bottom on the sides to angle it up towards the outside of the truck. Then throw a piece of 3/16 plate on top of that and have the bumper done. Very few welds and most of the strength of the channel will remain intact. The less welds the better so I'm not spending days grinding down my welds. I have an idea for the grill guard using rectangular tubing for the uprights and square tubing for the headlight guards. That will come after a little while though. I want to get the basic structure down so I can put the truck to work first.
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« on: July 11, 2015, 01:33:48 PM »
Thanks for the help guys. The plate over then end of the frame is by far the simplest way to go but I'm scared of that for one reason......I don't trust my welding. I can stick two pieces of metal together well enough to hold the rest of the bumper together I'm sure. I'd even trust my welding for the grill guard. I'd trust it for that because if it fails the worst case scenario is some body damage and I have to build a new bumper. If a shackle mount breaks while I'm being pulled the results would be catastrophic to say the least. Backwards down a mountain while in neutral does not sound like a pleasant afternoon. Anything to do with the shackle mounts my plan was to tack it in place and take it to a shop to have it welded out. If I could use the bolt on method the bumper would be removable also.
I have seen the diy kits and they are appealing. I've even tried to get ahold of the one I saw but never got a response from the vendor. Those kits are pretty slick and i will probably use one if I can find one
I also found a local guy that would build me one for around $600. Basic bumper no grill guard. He said his mounts would be strong but if it just mounts to that angle then it won't be strong enough.
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« on: July 11, 2015, 11:33:43 AM »
Well the old Ford just made the 1400 mile trek up to where I am working so I can start updating this thread more often. The truck will have an added purpose in addition to the duties layed out above. It will be my pipeline Right Of Way truck. I'm not going to beat my nice truck to death using it for work. I don't want to pay though the nose to repair it back to stock if I break something, after having several issues with my aftermarket rims I have no desire to modify it any further. I need it to stay reliable to haul my camper now that I'm back on the road working. So the Zombie Ford is a much better candidate for this type of use because if something breaks I can modify it better than it was before and It's not as big of a waste as it would be with my good truck. Now I need some help This is the type of terrain I will be dealing with, this is one of the milder hills I may have to negotiate. There are occasions where I will have to be pulled up, or let down, some very steep hills.  That being said I need to build some bomb proof shackle mounts for the front of my truck, for the rear I am thinking about just using the reciever and a shackle. These mounts need to be able to support the weight of the truck being drug in neutral up the side of a mountain. Also I figure while Im at it i will build a bumper around these mounts. I got some images from the web of the bumper mounts on my Ford. I don't want to pull mine off until I have a solid game plan.   My questions are numerous but the most glaring thing I'm wondering about is if the factory angle iron mount is going to be sturdy enough to meet my requirements? If it is I was thinking of bolting a piece of flat bar between them and then welding the shackle mounts at a 90* angle from that piece. From there they could protrude through the front of the bumper and be welded on both sides of the plate, or channel iron, front piece of the bumper. I'm thinking that they are because almost every bolt on aftermarket bumper uses these and you can get shackle mounts on most of them. But can i trust that you could basically lift the truck up with them? If they aren't going to be strong enough then i was thinking about bolting some 1/2" flat bar to the outside of the frame rail sticking straight out. Those could then go through the bumper in the same fashion. After I figure out how to attach the mounts to the bumper I will beef them up on both sides after they come through the bumper to where I have Approx a 1" thick mount drilled for a 1" shackle. A Crosby 1" Shackle has a WLL of 8.5 tons so that should be more than enough for one shackle to be able to handle the load (although i would use both whenever possible). Any thoughts?
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« on: July 10, 2015, 02:14:19 PM »
Bilderberg has made the main stream news for a few years now. Makes me wonder what secret meetings are happening now since that one has been exposed.
Everything that is pushed by the media is to further an agenda. The reasons things happen is so blatantly obvious it makes me wonder how the talking heads can even keep a straight face anymore. And it's not just the liberal CNNs and MSNBCs. Fox News is guilty of it as well. Paid opposition to give the illusion of two sides to An argument.
Yes the flag is about a deep hatred for things but it's also about control and testing boundaries. That is what most everything is. Seeing how much they can get away from.
They're in it for the long haul. Unless some thing drastically changes and soon they will win. It's not going to be overnight but they will win eventually because schools today are nothing more than re-education camps. We are bringing up a group of gender confused anti-gun anti-violence socialists. There are exceptions of course some parents are doing the right thing but one look on my FB page at the way 90% of the people I grew up with are raising their kids makes me realize we are vastly out numbered. We're fighting the battles of today while they're ensuring in the future there aren't any battles at all.
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« on: July 10, 2015, 01:55:17 PM »
I just bought your book on Amazon. Well the kindle version anyway. Anytime you feel the need to publish things here I'm sure no one will complain.
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« on: July 09, 2015, 09:57:26 PM »
That is awesome. ;D
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« on: July 09, 2015, 08:47:43 AM »
I had a thoughtful post written, but am just going to dip out right here... we've got a different point of view, and that's ok.
Love ya Real Men, and wish for nothing but the best for everyone financially ;)
Don't be afraid to put it out there-- we're allowed to have different views and approaches; makes us stronger challenging our own thoughts!
Exactly!! That's part of the reason behind the site (forgive me for channeling my inner Don. Don correct me if I'm wrong) We all respect each other and have different views on things around a core of faith. A man who does not respect and seek to understand the views of others who disagree with him will never grow.
Also, diversification is a solid concept IMHO. We can't completely predict the future and we all have different tolerances for risk. Heck, some of us may believe were close to being able to pull the plug on life as we know it and get off the grid/treadmill. Others of us may be just starting out. Pessimism is an interesting phenomenon. It is with me more and more every day as I get older.
Who can say for certain? No one. But diversification is wise for a young man with a much longer horizon.
Ok then... here's what i was going to say.
I'm going to dump my brain here for a minute. I apparently look at this a little differently...
I think, and plan, in terms of expected outcomes…plural, more than one. This is a mathematical/economic term used to describe the probability-weighted outcome. As we know there are lots of outcomes: economic/financial collapse for whatever reason, foreign war, civil war, invasion, individual prosperity, economic prosperity, disease, "normalcy", unexpected death, winning the lottery, the rapture... so on and so forth. Each of those has a hypothetical probability that it might occur, and these are of course variable, and can have different expected time-frames. Of course some of the potential outcomes are positive, and some are negative, ranging from a reemergence of conservative USandA and everyone growing fat and happy, to TEOTWAWKI.
What I would caution is to go all-in on one expected outcome or the other, given that each have variable probabilities of occurring. Abandoning all of your traditional investments in favor of precious metals, for example, would be foolish if you only think there's a 50% chance of total Financial Collapse in the immediate term (just as going all in on stocks and bonds is foolish if assuming status quo; being naive to the emerging threats to the global economy due to uncontrolled spending and debt, among others). A more appropriate strategy would be to diversify out of financial assets and into physical assets for example. If you do that though, it would also be prudent to choose things that remain valuable (and useable!), and most importantly, less volatile, in the most environments to reduce risk. For example, I think of Big Don's farm... practically invaluable in a TEOTWAWKI environment, but still quite valuable in times of "normalcy" or economic prosperity. Ammunition? Probably diminishing marginal value, but still a valuable commodity (especially if legislation changes)... and in status quo, fun to shoot! Gold? That's tricky. It's volatile, its commercial worth in times of incivility is debatable... Ounce of gold or my AR? I'll take the AR... 20 Oz of gold or 10 acres in the boonies? I'll take the land... and camp on it if things don't go south!
I guess my point, Men, is this.... Please be smart with your money. I would be remiss if 20 years from now I looked back on somebody who I knew who dumped all their investments in favor of gold and got absolutely butchered by gold prices, or missed out on years of other asset appreciation that would have prepared them for retirement, and I hadn’t spoken up. You can still diversify tremendously in favor of a vastly more conservative portfolio (hard assets, precious metals, etc) to prepare for more severe economic or social events. Just be careful... I care about y'all, or I wouldn't speak up.
That is a good post and I should probably clarify my statement. I may have come off a little hot in my response to your chart. I made really good money from the time I was 22-30. But honestly I squandered it. Brand new trucks, 4 wheelers, Harleys. Heck at one point I had close to $50k in high end watches (which are actually not a terrible investment btw). I sure wish I had invested better in my younger days. That being said I've been in a pretty rough patch since then. My girl wanted me to stop traveling so I started a business that did ok but she talked me into hiring her father to do my accounting and, well long story short I owed my soul to the IRS for several years and I still am paying for those mistakes. That girl and her father are gone. This left me 4 years out of contact with the people in my last job, broke except for my metal. I never sold any of it. I sold a bunch of other things to get back into line financially and recently got a job doing what I used to do and making good money again. So now I'm smarter and making good money again and need to be looking to the future. I just can't see getting into the market right now. I think it's over valued by a loooong ways and a correction is inevitable. I think the potential upside to getting into the market for me is not that great. It seems like I would just be chasing profits. The real money has already been made. That's the reason I'm 100% ok with having only metal right now. My money at this point in my life and the economy can be better spent elsewhere. I've made my bed as far as investing goes thus far in my life and I am stockpiling cash to buy some land and a house. If the market crashes but we don't collapse I will be a bargain hunting fool.
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« on: July 09, 2015, 08:29:22 AM »
I have a question for the gold buyers here. I see the rationale for buying gold bullion but I also wonder whether 1 ounce bars makes the most sense in a SHTF scenario. A 1 oz. bar will be worth a LOT and it won't be that easy to "get change", or at least "change" that you want (paper money etc.). So I am thinking that coins that may be in 1/10th ounce or 1/4 ounce might make sense as well. Then you are not always dealing in an instrument that is worth much more than you may want to spend for whatever you are buying. I think that same rationale makes sense with silver as well given that you can get even smaller amounts in silver coins.
The other reason I like that idea (buying smaller amounts more often as opposed to waiting for X months and then buying a larger amount) is that you can apply a dollar cost averaging approach to building up your stash. If you are familiar with the term then you get it but for anyone unsure of it- by setting a specific dollar investment amount that you will make each month you are "dollar cost averaging" which lowers you average cost as the price fluctuates over the period of time you are investing. In the silver chart that was posted the average cost over the past 12 months was approximately 17.28 per ounce. If you had invested $500 a month then your average cost per ounce would have been $17.11 per ounce, below the average cost of silver over that 12 month period. This strategy works best in volatile markets which precious metals certainly falls in to. But as with all things like this YMMV.
The only downfall with buying smaller denominations of metals is the premiums are higher. Rough example a 1oz gold coin at $1200/oz will cost somewhere around $1250 with the sellers premium. Whereas 10 1/10oz coins would cost you closer to $1450/oz. and also if you bought a kilo bar you might get it for $1205/oz. One thing to think about that an old timer told me is after a collapse Or a return to a gold and silver backed financial system you could carve off a piece of your gold coin to make smaller denominations. That's where the term bits came from as in a "two bit no good such an such". This assumes people have a way to assure your gold is legit. I imagine fraud wasn't as rampant back then as it is now. Tungsten filled bars etc.
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« on: July 08, 2015, 05:15:01 PM »
Wow guys thanks for that info! I wish I could try some before I made a purchase. It's so much coin to drop to get something I hate or can't use. I was going to seriously get into hunting hogs in TX before life stepped in and killed those plans. I would have been able to get with some guys that use them and been able to try some different kinds out. I definately want one that can be used wih my rifle. I see some people mount them behind their optic which would be ok in a hunting situation but wouldn't be very useful otherwise. The monocular type is what I've looked into before and what I see most guys using on the "tactical" forums but how is it to get a cheek weld and look through the monocular and then through the red dot on my AR? I assume it's an acquired skill but it just seems like you would have to be lined up absolutely perfect for it to work and when walking and shooting or moving through a house it seems that would be difficult. http://tnvc.com/shop/tnvpvs-14-l3-gen3-omni-viii/I've had that bad boy in the cart for a couple years now. $3000 seems to be the going rate just about anywhere I've looked for a new unit.
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« on: July 08, 2015, 05:02:57 PM »
I had husky in my last truck and I really liked them. I don't know why I haven't bought them for my current ride. I especially like them in the winter when you've got snow on your boots.
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« on: July 08, 2015, 05:00:31 PM »
We rained out today so I've been following this closely. I find it strange that China's markets are in free fall, the Greece situation unfolding, United grounds all their flights due to a glitch and Washington DC is experiencing sporadic power outages.
Option 1) Markets were down 200 points when trading stopped. Makes me think it was about to go over the edge and the plunge protection teams stopped it.
Option 2) Attack
No way it was a glitch.
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« on: July 08, 2015, 04:44:58 PM »
But other than that my metals are all I have as investments. And I am 100% OK with that... I'm not going to put my hard earned money into stocks or bonds just to keep feeding the machine that has created this mess in the first place. Only to watch half or more of my "wealth" dissapear potentially overnight.
Just going to leave these right here boss...
1 yr troy oz silver
Roughly 30% drop in silver in a year... and I own a fair bit of silver. Good thing my equity portfolio offset it... that's called diversification ;)
I'm well aware of silvers performance in charts. As i said above I'm not buying metals to trade and make a profit. I'm converting worthless paper into a tangible asset. I know the meaning of diversification. Just because I refuse to participate in the game doesn't mean I don't know how it's played. Stocks, bonds, mutual funds etc are paper that is worth whatever the bankers want it to be worth. The only thing propping up the stock market is low interest rates and QE unlimited. when you sift through all the crap the media is telling us about the economy you can see just how bad of shape we are in But since they've kept it going for this long who's to say they won't keep it up for another 20 years? People that have large amounts of money in the markets should pray that they can keep it going because that's about the only chance you've got.
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« on: July 08, 2015, 10:48:03 AM »
Yep. I'm 37 years old and I have very little in the way of retirement investments. I have a small pension through the Teamsters union that will continue to grow as long as they don't go bankrupt, which is a very good possibility.
But other than that my metals are all I have as investments. And I am 100% OK with that. If the charade keeps going the way it is a man will have to work until they are dead anyway or retire and get what? Maybe $2000/mo social security, maybe. But I don't see this current economic state as sustainable for very much longer. I'm not going to put my hard earned money into stocks or bonds just to keep feeding the machine that has created this mess in the first place. Only to watch half or more of my "wealth" dissapear potentially overnight.
the way I see it is if all these countries, India, China, Russia, even Texas are falling over themselves to get as much gold as they can then they probably know something I don't. It's like on the highway when you are driving along and someone ahead of you hits their brakes it might be wise for you to hit yours too.
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« on: July 08, 2015, 09:05:06 AM »
I started a topic this morning and didn't even notice this one so I will move my comments here.
Metals took a beating yesterday. Silver was below 15/oz and gold dropped $20/oz. another buying opportunity for those who are able.
In the other thread I was wondering how a person in Greace that owned precious metals would be doing. Could they sell the metal for euros still or had that avenue somehow been cut off. Inflation doesn't seem to be an issue there but a lack of cash sure is. I read ATMs are only allowing 60 euros a day withdrawals.
I am also thinking a long the lines that if you can weather a financial collapse with a decent stock of precious metals you can come out like a king on the other side but that's a big if.
While I like gold and do own some I'm sitting at about a 25-1 ratio of silver to gold right now because I feel silver is still the better buy. Silver is way below the historical gold to silver ratio. Right now it's approx 80-1 while throughout history up until recently it's been around 20-1 so silver "should" be north of $50/ounce. Only problem is it takes pounds of silver to have the same amount of value as ounces gold. My solution to that is I have a pretty large safe.
Texasredneck was wondering how, with China and the rest of the world going down the drain financially yesterday, could metals drop in price when they should be going up. Well metals are manipulated heavily by banks. Banks can buy and sell gold and silver certificates to make the price do whatever they want. Essentially the same as the stock market. They were most likely selling certificates yesterday which drove the price down. The screws people who buy certificates but creates great opportunity for people who aquire physical metal. And anyone who buys a piece of paper that says you own gold or silver is an idiot but there are lots of people out there who do. Chase bank is the leader in silver manipulation. They are keeping the price low due to the fact that they have sold more certificates for silver than they have physical to back it up. If silver went up in price and people started wanting to sell or acquire physical for their paper they would be in a massive bind. It's all a dog and pony show.
That being said metals could fall even further with all the manipulating but I think it's unlikely they will fall much below where they are now. They have to keep the game somewhat believeable to keep raping the public with metals and with the markets in general.
Using the same analogy flyin6 used above with silver. In 1964 when a quarter was 90% silver it was worth $.25. That quarter would buy a gallon of gas. Today that same 1964 silver quarter is worth about $3.00 which would buy a gallon of gas.
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« on: July 08, 2015, 06:33:05 AM »
Another aspect of the plan is going to be weather. The boat idea might work great in the summer but I'm the middle of January when the river is full of ice will put a kink in the plans. Although an event that happens in the winter would probably be easier to navigate than in the summer because people will be more occupied with staying warm and surviving the cold than pillaging.
But just goes to show what needs to go into the planning. What if your plan is hampered by snow or torrential rain.
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« on: July 07, 2015, 09:15:34 PM »
We could probably start a whole 'nother thread about whiskey. Which actually isn't a bad idea. But back on topic. http://porta-bote.prohost.mobi/?That could easily be layed flat on a roof rack. A small trolling motor and a spare battery out of the truck and you're in business.
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« on: July 07, 2015, 08:56:58 PM »
I carry a flask of crown royal in the BOB. Just like real life beer weighs you down whiskey is much lighter. 8)
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« on: July 07, 2015, 08:44:56 PM »
Thanks again guys for the replies. To address some of the things said. I am a Ham I have a general class license so communication is covered. I plan on having a frequency that she knows to tune to in the event something happens. I have a Yaesu VX8 handheld and she has a UV5r so we're pretty covered there. I have a plate carrier with lvl 4 ceramic plates that I just got set up last week so I'm going to start walking with that on to train my body to get used to the weight.
Her bugging in until the dust settles a bit will have to be part of the plan. Sometimes I could be a solid two day drive away in a normal situation so if things go south it could take me several days to get there.
The boat idea is very intriguing. Im going to look into that some more. There's a possibility of someone being with me and you could be dropped off upstream with nothing but oars and then they could pick you up downstream out of harms way.
And I'm going to have to buy my helmet and NV now. I mean it's for the protection of my family right? ;D
My wheels are definately turning now. Lots of stuff to think about
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« on: July 07, 2015, 04:25:44 PM »
Those were the exact types of responses I was hoping for. You guys have a vast amount of knowledge from experiences I will never have. That's why this has become the only forum I frequent on a daily basis.
I can say without fear of revealing to much that the city we are moving to is Pittsburgh. I Really can only think of a couple more places that would be worse in a bad situation. Bridges over large rivers bridges over small rivers/ creeks, a cliff on one side of the river etc. A major problem and the reason I'm asking questions is because she will move into a place without me there because I'm working and will live there for a few months before I will even see the place. So if somethig were to happen I'd have no info on much of anything.
The google earth suggestion will be my go to resource for planning for the worst. I think I'll go so far as to print out maps with routes and options. I know roughly which areas will be worse than others so I can at least come up with a plan that will maybe let me stop worrying so much about it. I already have collected gazetteers for every state that I would possibly have to travel through to get there but I'm not so much worried about getting to the city. I've grown up on back roads so I know how to take the road less traveled. It's the traveled roads that scare me.
I pray everyday for the safety of this country and my loved ones but the more news I see the more I know I have to get my ducks in a row for every outcome I can think of.
And with my new job there might be a little left in the budget for a pvs14 this year. I bought my T1 for the AR just in case I ever added night vision to my safe.
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« on: July 07, 2015, 10:23:45 AM »
Didn't really know the place to put this. I figured since it could end up being a how-to of sorts that this is where it belongs
So my life in the oil field changes way more often than the normal person and it has recently evolved to the point where my fiancé and the dogs might be moving into a fairly large urban center. I will be there when I'm not working and when I am working she will be there alone. I realize this is far far far from ideal in the event of a major incident. But it is what it is and it's an entirely different thread for a how to on how to change a women's mind ::)
So that being said lets discuss some tactics and ideas for extracting loved ones from a city in the event of a collapse.
For the purposes of this thread assume a large city back east. Houses packed on top of houses and some streets that are difficult for me to maneuver in my full size truck on a normal day. And as far as that goes we may as well go worst case scenario. EMP/solar flare/red dawn etc.
You are outside the city and have to get in and get out with your loved ones and sparse belongings.
I've been contemplating this for a month now and here's what I've come up with so far. Two approaches.
One would be a smash and grab. Dual sport motorcycle to navigate blocked roads and sidewalks limited on capacity but my situation could stuff the small dogs in backpacks and put girl on the back and roll out. Would be the fastest way but also has a lot of drawbacks. You're terribly exposed on a motorcycle. Exposed to everything from gun shots to a random dude stepping out in front of you and knocking you off the bike. Pros and cons for sure.
Second would be a methodical approach. Travel at night and keep your head down. Would have to be on foot as even a bicycle would make you stand out. Advantages for this type is it would be much less exposure. You could hide in buildings and cover of night would be your friend. Downfalls are time mostly. To get across a large city that could span 50 miles on foot could possibly take you days in and days to get out.
Any other ideas or comments?
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« on: July 05, 2015, 09:05:46 PM »
So you popped the hood and lined over the edge, and opened the doors to line around the edge of the panel? Sorry to be a pain but the more I think about it this is the way I'm gonna go and you're the first person I've talked to that's done it themselves.
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« on: July 05, 2015, 08:06:33 AM »
That turned out really well. Did you like the door jams? Also did you do anything special when rolling across a body seam? I've been thinking about doing this with my truck but was wondering how well rolling it on will get the color into the gaps between panels.
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« on: July 03, 2015, 08:48:14 PM »
And another question. In your Bosch tool box thread you mentioned having a cot in the camper shell how do you plan to deal with the fumes from the diesel tank? I have a shell on my Dodge and I'm contemplating putting one on the Ford but with the tank in the bed I am hesitant because everything you put back there will smell like diesel.
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« on: July 03, 2015, 08:45:15 PM »
I may have missed it but you said you were going to custom fit the end piece. Are you going to wrap it around the drivers side tail light?
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« on: July 03, 2015, 07:01:39 PM »
Some very thought provoking posts there 6.
I'm using the 105 gal tank in the Zombie Ford (which I am about a week away from starting back up on) and it never occurred to me to consider the weight of the fuel. My tank full will be pushing 800#s. Pretty significant amount of weight and loss of performance. With a tuned 12 valve not so much an issue but what if I don't get the swap done by the time things go south? Then I'm left with a seriously loaded down, barely adequatly powered pig lol. Wheels are definitely turning in my head now.
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