Sawyer Water Filter: Initial Impressions
I got to fiddling with the Sawyer Water Filter. Not sure why it took so long but here we go. Do bear in mind that these are just initial impressions. Maybe the thing will fall apart in a month and I will write that it sucks, who knows. (Though they have a million gallon manufacturers guarantee. I do not think anybody has really put that to the test but it is definitely a positive sign.) Anyway here we go.
The Good: Two words; small and affordable. They cost somewhere around $40 and the dimensions of the filter are about 4″x2″x2″. Weight is around a half pound. If those numbers do not illicit some interest I am not sure what would.
The Bad: The arrangement where you have to fill a bottle with questionable water and then filter it by squeezing it through the filter requires some getting used to. It isn’t really bad, just different. The need for bladders are definitely the weak link in the system. That being said water filters are a fairly fragile item anyway. They have lots of little pieces like hoses and gaskets. The setup comes with little bladders to use. They seem fine but I would probably look at other options for serious use. Available bladders like those made by platypus might be a good option. I really like that the threads on the filter are compatible with 1 and 2 liter soda bottles which are readily available and almost indestructible. This is how I will probably use the Sawyer Water Filter.
You do really need to squeeze the bottle or bladder for it to work. Not a big deal as pumping the little handle on most filters 1,000 times to get a liter of water is probably more of a hassle. It is however a consideration. Filters like this are not what you would want to use to provide clean water for a family of 5 when the power is out or for a base camp kind of situation. While you could do it that would suck. I think you really want a small compact filter for hiking or mobile emergency use and a larger gravity flow filter like a Berkey water filter for a cabin/ base camp or a bug in type situation.
The Ugly: Please note that this is a filter vs a purifier. The significance is that the system does not eliminate viruses such as Hepatitis or Rotavirus. This may or may not be a concern for you depending on where you live and what you are looking for it to do. Admittedly I am not as educated on the topic as I could be. My semi educated guess is that for areas that have all sorts of nasty diseases like sub Saharan Africa or the 3rd world in general this would be an issue. Also for situations where you might need to make water that could have co mingled with sewage (like a fairly populated area during a hurricane or flood) this could be problematic. I suppose you could boil and filter or something but I am not exactly sure.
My overall (initial) assessment is that these filters are pretty cool and a darn good deal. They would be great for a lot of situations. Given the price of the Sawyer there are a lot of possibilities. For the price of a Katadyn Pocket Water microfilter with a spare element we could get Sawyer water filters for ourselves, our parents and all of our siblings! Storing filters in all manner of kits, having a filter per group member or whatever is realistic given the affordable price point of the Sawyer filter.
EDC Depot Closeout and Sale
Free and Low Cost Survivalist Actions
1.Physical fitness. Start a running program. Put on your ruck and do some marching. Do body weight exercises like pushups, situps, pullups, planks, dips and plunges. Lift heavy things because well, it makes you stronger and more awesome. If you cannot wrangle free access to weights (or theoretically other good heavy things) to lift I recommend that you check out Beast Skills and Convict Conditioning (brief description, you tube channel, I have heard you can find a PDF of the book online if so inclined) for some ideas on serious body weight training.
2. Dry fire practice. Do it. Drawing your pistol, ready up drills for the rifle, mag changes and trigger squeeze drills. Somewhere awhile back John Mosby talked about this if I recall.
3. Planning. Put thought and research into things that worry you.
4. Organize your stuff. Build thought out systems to suit your needs using things you already have.
5. Cross training, If you are a skilled mechanic the other members of your group or family should be also. Same if you are an MMA guy or a competitive shooter or an ER nurse.
Revenue neutral ways to prepare. These ways are not free but are ways to get more out of things most folks already do.
1. Shooting. If I had to guess about a quarter of the US based readers of this blog shoot monthly. Probably half (50%, not half of the remainder) shoot at least quarterly. Be intentional about this shooting. Don’t get me wrong dumping mag after mag into empty beer cases and such is fun. Plinking is one of my favorite things to do. However if money is tight (and probably anyway) you need to really get something out of shooting. Shoot to zero a weapon, improve or test a skill, not to destroy cheap pumpkins you got the day after Halloween. Again I have to refer you to John Mosby’s excellent site for specifics, half because he talks it better than me and half because I don’t feel like working hard enough on a post at this time to do the topic justice.
2. Food Storage via normal food purchasing. This takes a few bucks to get going but is definitely worth it. By purchasing THINGS YOU NORMALLY EAT in quantity when they are on good sales you can then wait until they are on sale again. Thus you can eat stuff at sale prices (almost) all the time. Also by not needing to purchase baked beans (or whatever) every week it frees up dollars to buy extra peanut butter when it is on sale. By dropping the average price of much of the food you eat it lowers the cost though that money will likely be sitting in the pantry, not the checking account. You can eat better and increase food storage without spending more. Talk about a win.
Working coupons helps a lot also. So many folks talk this better than I do. Also learning which sales are when helps a lot. This is best when you can work 2-3 big stores. Buy meat once a month at the big sale at store A, canned goods when store B does BOGO, or whatever you can work.
I noticed that the sidebar with my links, ads and such was gone from the main page. Since I didn’t change anything I am going to wait a couple days in the hope that the problem is a glitch that will correct itself.
Anyway I hope you all enjoy the post.
A Great Movie, a Great Blade and Dirty Fun
I have been carrying my cool new Benchmade Griptillian 551 for about a week now. It is still a bit premature for a full review but I only have good things to say about it. Until I got this knife benchmade is the only major manufacturer I hadn’t owned. To be honest the price point was higher than I was willing to go for a knife. Two things have changed in that regard. The first is the griptillian model(s) which come in around a hundred bucks instead of more like $150+. Secondly since getting out of school and starting a real job my situation has changed over the last few years. I don’t buy knives I would hesitate to use or would be stressed to replace if they were lost or stolen. The dollar value of that has come up over time from about $50 to $100. Between those two now I have a benchmade folder.
Today I needed a part for our vehicle. Without sufficient time to order it online and well I like saving money. Naturally this led me to the junk yard. I forgot to dress down sufficiently for the occasion and had to be careful not to get oily grit or grease on my clothes. Not that they are fancy or anything but worn out jeans and an old t shirt would have worked better. Anyway after some looking I found the part. I yelled to the guy working there who was going about his work to see how much he wanted. I saw his hand go up and it looked like he was saying 5. I said I would leave the money in the office and then he made an exaggerated wave. Turns out he was telling me to just take it. So that was pretty cool.
Going even further from any sort of point I have been enjoying ale’s a lot more lately. Can’t wait to get back to America and start brewing again. Also hummus is pretty awesome and relative to other comparable options healthy and guilt free.
Sale on Cloth Diapers
HK Mags for less than a Buck!
Deals at Sportsmens Guide
Choosing To Get Equipped and Ready
I cannot say how long that will last. Maybe inflation will make these things slip out of the reach of poorer folks, then middle class folks and finally only be available to the really rich. Maybe importation of cheap Russian/ Croatian/ whatever ammo will get cut off. Maybe the sale of body armor and night vision will become regulated or just banned entirely. Who knows what could happen with guns. Maybe the economy will get even worse and you will lose your job and not be able to buy anything. The point is that within reason it would be advisable to get what you need to sooner instead of later.
I can’t tell you what to do or how to prioritize your money or life but getting the training, capabilities and stuff that increases your chances of survival is pretty important. I am probably preaching to the converted here. That being said you may have a spouse who is not on board, other priorities or goals or just a tight budget already strained by the rising costs everyday basics or other problems. As I mentioned yesterday you do not have to break the bank to get gear. It is also worth finding that sweet spot between what you would like and what you can afford to pay for to get the best deal possible on the right kit.
To spend money on this stuff you have to cut it from someplace else or figure out how to earn some new money. While it is not possible to tell you exactly how to do it but I can say how we do it. Looking at your life and finances wholisticly is important. See where everything is going and think about what your lifestyle is like. Also priorities definitely come into play here. If you drive a newish cool guy tricked out 4X4 and the Mrs has a BMW, go on a great 2 week tropical/ international vacation every year and have a huge house full of the newest coolest electronics, gadgets and other stuff but “cannot afford” to prepare then rethink what is really important to you.
Life is uncertain so getting equipped and ready is a good thing to do.
You Don’t Have To Break The Bank To Get Gear
I got to thinking. You don’t need to spend a ton of money to get decent and totally functional gear. Often amply functional pieces of kit and weapons are available at reasonable prices provided you aren’t married to the coolest names or the newest CDI (chicks dig it) set up’s. Saving $40 here and $200 there adds up in a hurry.
It is important to be realistic. You can’t break the cost curve. I do not expect the $35 RAT 1 to be on par with a hundred dollar Benchmade. There is going to be a shortfall someplace beside the name on the item. Maybe it will be design or materials or fit and finish or durability or warranty/ customer service. The question is if the shortfall is something you can live with.
While you can’t break the cost curve you can definitely bend it a little bit in your favor. Some products and companies provide a lot of value for your dollar. Knives like the Ontario RAT 1 or just about anything by Cold Steel are a great value. Pistols like Glock or the Springfield XD are equally as capable as HK or SIG models when the goal is for a rugged duty/ service pistol. Savage Arms has really stepped up their game over the past few years and offers a lot of value in rifles. The good folks at Condor tactical seem to offer some very well thought out gear at great prices.
If you are willing to be flexible on some brands it is quite realistic to become properly equipped in a reasonable amount of time while staying on a budget. This is probably the way to go if you are on a tight budget or trying to get equipped in a hurry (like yesterday). Folks who have to have the right CDI brand names are going to pay for them. This approach is fine too but it costs a lot of money. Most people do not have a lot of money. Personally my sympathy for a brand whore that constantly complains about prices and won’t have a decently functional setup of guns/ fighting/ camping gear for a decade is nonexistent.
Working on the Get Home/ Car Kits
The thing about having kits/ systems is that a lot of the benefit comes from the process of making the thing. In reality we do not have much in the car that we didn’t before this. However I thought through what we really needed, made some lists and filled a few small but significant gaps. Also kits are a forcing mechanism to have the stuff that you might need where you might actually need it. There isn’t much point in having stuff (not talking about stores, redundant items and such) at home in the basement. A jacket, knife, compass, poncho and pair of boots at home are far less useful than having that stuff in a backpack out in the woods or in the trunk.
My long term (probably 6-12 month range) way forward with kits is probably as follows. The kit I recently put together will get lightened down and be Wifey’s BOB. One in a larger bag will get put together for me. On the bright side I already have most of the big ticket items lying around so the total cost will not be too bad.
Sportsmens Guide has used Alice Packs for $45. For some reason I have really been feeling a real urge to buy one. I don’t really like them but if I had to go all Mad Max/ The Postman that is the bag I would want to carry. A pack that I will have for the long term would be worth modifying to make as comfortable as possible.
I am not sure exactly what I would use it for. Maybe a BOB but then again in some scenarios having a pack that does not look militaryish would be very nice. A scruffy guy carrying an (earth tone) commercial backpack looks like some hippie slacker not a crazy right wing evil wacist militia nutjob. If you want to go a little bit further, toss a peace symbol pin on this or that and make a cardboard sign that says ‘damn the man, spare some change’ or whatever. Depending on the situation switching contents between bags would be easy. Also at a bit under 50 bucks I would be more comfortable leaving an Alice in a vehicle than a more expensive bag that says “steal me, there is good stuff inside’.
Anyway that is what is going on with that.
Total Survivalist Blog 