Suvivor Log Magazine

VOLUME 1 - ISSUE 1

JANUARY 2018

SURVIVOR LOG Lights Out

HOW TO PREP FOR POWER OUTAGE

Get Your Game On MILITARY SIMULATION GAMES FOR PREPPERS

Hunting with Muzzleloaders USING BLACK POWDER FOR BUCKS

DIY Focus

• HOW TO RUN A TROTLINE • TAXIDERMY TIPS FOR EURO MOUNTS • PRESSURE CANNING FOR DUMMIES

SURVIVOR LOG

JANUARY

FEATURES/COVER STORIES

SO MUCH TO READ! HERE’S WHERE YOU START...

SURVIVOR LOG VOLUME 1 | ISSUE 1 Director Charlie Deleon Guerrero Editor Dante Zuniga-West Designers Paul John Bongares Metodi Kolev Contributors Josh Lutje Kate Stover Trask Bedortha

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DIY TAXIDERMY

BASIC PRESSURE CANNING

Burying Your Deer Skull for a Euro Mount .

Pressure canning wild meats, such as venison, elk, and bear is an excellent way to build a healthy stockpile of meat that is ready to eat when you need it most.

Address 1863 Pioneer Pkwy E Ste 222 Springfield, OR 97477 Website www.PrimitiveSurvivors.com

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GRID DOWN Preparing for Power Outage.

05 HOW TO MAKE A TROTLINE Making your own trotline is not difficult. Here’s everything you’ll need to know about it.

CONTENTS

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MIL SIM GAMES For a small amount of time and money invested, you can participate in the fast-paced and fun world of mil sim, and be all the more prepared.

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SURVIVAL QUOTES Collection of quotes on survival.

MUZZLELOADING FOR MEAT Using black powder for bucks.

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BAG DUMP We dumped our bug-out-bag,here’s everything we carry, just in case.

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How to Make a Trotline

By Kate Stover

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trotline is a stationary device made from a long piece of fishing line with multiple hooks descending from it. Each hook is connected to the mainline by a swivel to avoid tangling the line.

A trotline is weighted down and placed across a river or creek. The multiple hooks allow for more fish to be caught at one time, maximizing your success

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with little effort required. Trotlines are excellent for survival situations, when gathering food is an essential priority. Though a little time intensive, making your own trotline is not difficult. Here’s everything you’ll need to know about it.

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Materials: • Snelled Hooks • Barrel Swivels • Fishing Line • Scissors • Bait • Card Board Box • Bricks Or Heavy Rocks

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DIY Taxidermy: 1. Cut your fishing line Keep in mind the width of the creek you are fishing on and give yourself a little extra line to tie off the end.

4. Make a Rack Box Take a small cardboard box and set each hook into the top of the box, lining the edge. Avoid tangling the line when placing the hooks. This serves several purposes.

It keeps the line in order and avoids tangling before you get to the water.

It also keeps the hooks from getting caught on other things or on you during transport. Lastly, the box can serve as easy access storage for your bait, extra line, or tools that will help you place the line in the water.

2. Attach Barrel Swivels Start attaching barrel swivels, approximately 12-inches apart, along the line. Tie them to the line using a simple square knot to hold them in place.

5. Bait Your Hooks Choose your bait and place it on every hook. It is recommended that this step is done as you are setting your line.

3. Attach your Hooks Once you have all your barrel swivels attached, begin attaching your snelled hooks. Take the loop of fishing line at the top of the hook and feed it through the bottom ring on the barrel. Carefully feed the entire hook through the loop and pull tight. Repeat this process for the rest of the barrel swivels on your line. Use caution as the hooks are sharp and your line will be moving a lot.

6. Set Your Line.

Check the area to make sure no one else has set a line. Tie your line off to either a brick or a tree. Begin baiting your hooks and dropping them across the river. Use bricks or heavy rocks in between the barrel swivels to weight the line down.

This is particularly important if the current is strong. Tie off the other end when all hooks are under water.

Burying Your Deer Skull for a Euro Mount

By Hunt Haldeman

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t’s that time of year again, hunting season is over and the time for projects is upon us. And as far as projects go, there’s nothing more rewarding for a hunter than doing his own taxidermy.

Affordable, simple and time-consuming in the best sense, DIY taxidermy is an excellent way to further personalize your successful hunt. Nothing brings

Materials: • Deer skull • Aluminum Foil • Duct Tape • Shovel

back the memories, and looks good doing it, like a clean European-mounted deer or elk skull hanging on the wall. Perhaps the simplest way to do this is to enlist the help of old Mother Nature herself. Here’s the quick and dirty way to bury your deer skull in preparation for a Euro mount.

In the same fashion, wrap the duct tape around the foil-wrapped antlers. Make sure that no portion of the foil is showing.

If you need to use more duct tape than you originally thought, don’t worry. The worst that can happen is you end up spending more time cutting the tape off when you pull the head from the ground.

After cleanly removing the deer head, and securing a clean surface to work on, wrap the antlers with aluminum foil. This is not a difficult process however the nature of antler shape means that you will need to use several strips of foil. Wrap the antlers tightly, making sure that all parts of the antlers are completely covered.

You are doing this to keep the bugs from damaging your antlers, while it is placed in the ground.

This is the simplest part. Dig a hole, approximately two-feet deep and twofeet wide. It is important to note that the entire head of the deer must be able to be covered. Place the head inside the hole, and fill the hole in. Only go up to the base of the antlers. The goal is to make sure that the bugs and the earth do their job naturally on the meat, eyeballs, brain, and tongue of the deer.

Sit back and let the river bring you fish.

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The Basics of Pressure Canning

By Hunt Haldeman

P Leave your deer skull in the ground for no less than 4 months. At this point, removing it and placing it in a bucket of bleach until all the extra small pieces of meat come off is key. This will also permit the skull to have a white color that looks way better than dirt brown.

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ressure canning is an excellent way to preserve and store quality food for you and your family. Not only is it cost-efficient, it is one of the smartest things a self-reliant person can invest in. Canned food doesn’t need to be refrigerated, which ensures your food is still good should you lose power and no longer be able to keep food cold. Pressure canning wild meats, such as venison, elk, and bear is an excellent way to build a healthy stockpile of meat that is ready to eat when you need it most. Pressure canning is also great for canning stews, soups, and gravy, all of which can be life savers in a cold world without power. While water-

bath canning, a process in which jars are covered in boiling water and processed for a particular amount of time, is great, the process only permits you to preserve food with high-acid content. Foods with low-acid have a pH value of more than 4.6, and must be pressure canned with higher temperatures to prevent the spread of harmful bacteria. These are foods such as red meat, poultry, seafood, and all fresh vegetables (with the exception of tomatoes).

Pressure canning provides you the option of canning virtually anything, it also uses less water and energy than water-bath canning.

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How it Works A pressure canner is a giant pot with a lid and a pressure gauge on it. A few quarts of water are added to the canner and the canner is heated on a stove. Just enough water is used to ensure it will boil properly, but water does not cover the jars. Meat, veggies or stew is placed in mason jars, capped with lids and placed into the pressure canner. The lid is secured, and the canner is brought up to pressure.

SURVIVORLOG poisoning. Botulinum spores exist on the surface of most fresh food, but because they grow only in the absence of air, they are completely harmless on fresh food sources. But in the absence of air, (like in a closed jar) the spores produce cells which multiply rapidly and may produce a deadly toxin. Pressure canning eliminates this threat because botulinum spores are not heat-resistant. This is why to safely ensure your food is good to go, you need to pay attention to the time and temperature requirements of the food you are canning.

Pressure canners with modern pressure gauges on them are either digital or weighted, and record pressure in pounds.

Note: The altitude that you live at will dictate the amount of pressure you need to use. For more information (including charts on the amount of pressure and time required to can meats, go to https://www.gopresto.com/recipes/canning/ meat.php

This means that the water inside boils, and pressure accumulates inside the pot until a desired temperature is reached.

The temperature gauge on the canner lets you know when the proper temp has been achieved. Food is then processed for a specific time, different foods require different amounts of time. After this time period has been reached, the stove is turned off and the canner is allowed to cool.

Then, the canner is opened and the jars are allowed to cool.

Jars and Lids A good ol’ fashioned wide-mouth Mason jar and some self-sealing lids are all you need to preserve your pressure-canned food in.

The key is making sure that you properly clean and prep your jars before putting food in them. Before every use, wash the jars in hot water. Some jars come in large packs and you may find that they have white residue on the exterior surface. This is hard-water film, and can be easily removed by soaking jars in vinegar and water. It is also very important to make sure that the bottoms of your lids are wiped clean before applying them to the jars.

Suggested Materials • 23-Quart Pressure Canner • Canning Funnel • Jar Lifter • Jar Rack • 12, 1 Quart:wide Mouth Glass Jars With Lids

Food Safety When it comes to canning, the thing you are trying to prevent the most is botulism. Botulism is a deadly form of food

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Mil Sim Games for Preppers

By Hunt Haldeman

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urvivalists and preppers know that the world can quickly become a very unfriendly place once the resources grow scarce. While it’s not the nicest thing to think about, being a survivalist is about preparing for the worst. This means potential armed conflict with people who seek to take what you have set aside to ensure the safety of you and yours. Short of active military service, competitive martial arts or DPSST training, the average Joe does

not have many options when it comes to preparing for a force-on-force scenario in which one may have to fight for his life. The good news is, military simulation games are not as expensive or esoteric as they used to be. For a small amount of time and money invested, you can participate in the fastpaced and fun world of mil sim, and be all the more prepared.

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Airsoft

Airsoft or Paintball?

The first thing you will need to do is figure out which type of milsim game suits your needs best. The two primary platforms are paintball and airsoft. Both types of games involve specialized guns (referred to as markers) that fire synthetic forms of ammunition.

There are pros and cons to both gaming platforms, so personal preference and environmental constrictions will likely play the strongest role in your choice. Most importantly, before you take the dive into mil-sim gaming for survival, make sure to do the research required to maximize your desired outcome. Choosing to play milsim for some folks is just a hobby, for others, it is training for a day we hope never comes

Paintball Paintball is the longest standing mil-sim gaming platform out there. Roughly 30 years ago, Nelson Paint Company, developed a gelatin-shelled sphere filled with oils and paint. The company then contacted airgun manufacturers Crossman and Daisy, to create a C02 powered pistol that was capable of discharging their paintballs.

The initial purpose of the paintball and the paintball pistol was for loggers to mark trees with and ranchers to mark cattle with. That is, until some survivalist folks in the New Hampshire woods got wind of these pistols in the late 1970s. From there, paintball grew by leaps and bounds, with multiple manufacturing companies sprouting up to meet the needs of paintball’s golden age, from 1987 to 1988.

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It was not only a US-based fad, paintball became internationally known as an “action pursuit game.”

The first paintball gun ever made was the Nel-Spot Paint Pistol, however now, there are hundreds of models on the market. For the pragmatically inclined prepper, looking to maximize the realism of their mil-sim experience, there are even marker models out there that are replicants of modern firearms one would use in a survival situation.

Pros: • Longer-standing platform of mil-sim, which allows for manufacturer reliability and more time-tested products.

• Biodegradable ammunition, made of oil, food-coloring dye mixture and polyethylene glycol.

• More fields and places of play.

• Clearly visible mark left by paint splatter.

• Paintballs are heavy enough to ensure more accurate trajectory.

Cons: • Messier, which makes for less indoor-play options.

• Paintballs hit harder than airsoft rounds, leaving larger welts on soft targets.

• Gas containers for paintguns are bigger than airsoft gas containers.

The origin of airsoft games and products comes to us by way of Japan. Laws against the private ownership of firearms created a demand from gun enthusiasts for replica firearms. This is why airsoft guns are so detailed and “real” looking. During the late 1970s this market began to boom, as the next logical step of replicating battles came to be. Military tactics, scenarios and role playing took the forefront of the first airsoft games.

The spherical projectiles used by airsoft guns are made of plastic and measure about 6mm in diameter. The first airsoft guns were spring-loaded, and needed to be pumped before each shot. Now, however, with such industry demand, airsoft guns come spring-loaded, gas-powered, and electrically powered. Referred to internationally as a “modern combat simulation game,” Airsoft spread widely throughout Europe in the 80s.

Pros: • Hurts less than paintball, as the projectiles are smaller in size and weight.

• More realistic looking markers.

• Ammunition is cheaper.

Cons: • Smaller ammunition makes tracking shots harder. This also makes corrections harder to make.

• Marking a hit is harder, as there is no visible paint splatter. This sometimes causes heated disagreements during games.

• Less professional field and p laces to play.

• Ammunition is not biodegradable, making outdoor play in some areas.

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Both paintball and airsoft are traditionally played as “Capture the Flag or “Team Deathmatch” scenarios. Familiar to most, capture the flag involves two teams attempting to steal the opposing side’s flag and return it to base. “Team Deathmatch” is an elimination scenario between two teams, attempting to take out every last player on the opposing side. Although both games have merit for those intending to participate in Mil Sim as a prepping tool, there are a host of other games out there

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that are more suited for the survivalist. Here are a few.

Game/Scenarios Predator vs Prey Divide two teams unequally, predator and prey. The prey will start off with less people.

You decide how the teams should be made, (2vs3, 2vs4, 4vs6, etc.). Prey goes into the field first. They may set up their positions and hide wherever or however they choose to. Predators then enter the field and

attempt to hunt down the prey. Being shot differs depending on what team you are on.

If a predator is shot by prey, they are out of the game. If prey is shot, they must become part of the predator team.

target secured and held by the end of the game. We recommend a 45 minute time window for this game, however you can adjust time and number of targets as you see fit.

Hostile Takeover Two teams of equal size must battle for three neutral targets. These can be buildings, structures or land features. The objective is for both teams to seize control of the targets. Points are scored for each

Escort Two teams of equal size must be chosen.

One team will be the “VIP escort” and the other will be the “ambush team.” The VIP escort team must select a VIP, who must wear some kind of bright clothing and be unarmed. The “VIP escort” must wait

until the ambush team has set up their desired field position. To win the game, the “ambush team” must take out the VIP. For the “VIP escort” team to win, they must safely escort the unarmed VIP from one end of the battlefield to the other.

The game ends immediately if all of the ambush team is eliminated, or whenever the VIP is shot.

Convoy This is played with two teams of unequal force (2vs4, 2vs6, etc.). The smaller

team plays the role of “attackers” and is tasked with taking out the convoy. Those in the convoy must move from one set navigation point to another to win the game. They also must carry a bag or large box with them. If even one of them makes it to the end navigation point unscathed with the box, the attackers lose. Those in the convoy are eliminated from the game when shot. Attackers have three lives, meaning once shot three times, they are eliminated from the game.

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Grid Down

Preparing for Power Outage

By Hunt Haldeman

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n our modern-day world of Wi-Fi signals, GPS systems, smart phones, smart homes and smart TVs, not taking the time to prepare for all that convenience to fail, would be dumb. Storms, earthquakes, floods, power surges, cyberattacks, even animals coming into contact with powerlines are all things that can quickly turn your world into a dark place, literally. Taking the time now to prepare for weather or disaster-related power outages can save your life, and the lives of your loved ones. While that may sound somewhat intimidating, the good news is that this task is not something that is incredibly difficult, nor is it terribly expensive. You likely have a great deal of the materials you need already laying around your house.

Remember, it’s not just the hardships brought about by the absence of electricity that you are looking to combat, it’s also the confusion that results from the absence of electronic communication. When the power fails, it creates utter chaos for those who did not have the foresight to properly prepare. The best thing you can do is to take the time now, to prepare yourself and your family, both mentally and physically. You need to know what you are up against, and have a plan.

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What to Expect in a Power Grid Failure The immediate result of power failure is the loss of electricity. This means things like communication, lighting, sanitation, cooking and refrigeration will no longer be present. As the power outage continues, shortages in local fuel supplies, food stores and water will become an issue.

If the power failure continues for more than a couple weeks, and resources continue to be insufficient, civil unrest will occur. If the power failure is a legitimate grid-down scenario, where the restoration of power is uncertain or perhaps not feasible for months, alternate means of power and sustainable solutions for every day needs will need to be in order.

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SURVIVORLOG What I need to be Prepared The absolute most important thing you must possess, first and foremost, in a power outage situation is a positive mental attitude.

There is a huge body of evidence in the scientific community that speaks to the benefits of having a positive mental attitude when confronted with hardship. Specifically, this means maintaining an optimistic disposition, no matter how dire the circumstance.

Interviews conducted on people who’ve survived everything from cancer, to concentration camps have shown that the folks who had the best chance of survival were those who could find a way to remain positive. Simply put, if you are fighting to survive, you’re fighting spirit matters.

In addition to maintaining a positive outlook, here the things you can do to properly prepare you and your family for grid-down scenarios.

1. Make a storage space that can be easily accessed by everyone in your household, even in the dark. This space should be somewhere that is least likely to be compromised by falling objects or displaced furniture that could potentially block your path to it.

2. Store a flashlight in every bedroom of your home. Ensure that the flashlights are in good working order.

3. Stockpile at least two-week’s worth of water. The general rule is that you should have 1-2 gallons available per day. For a larger family, this may mean having 50 gallons of water stored away.

Don’t forget to include pets in your rations.

4. Stockpile at least two-week’s worth of food. As a general rule, you should plan for at least two full meals a day, per person.

Again, do not forget to allot for the needs of pets if you have them. You should choose food items that require little or no heating. Canned food is a great choice, larger cans are better, provided that your family can consume the contents in one sitting. Lack of refrigeration will make saving opened food impossible, unless you are in the snow.

5. Establish an alternate heat source, preferably one that can also allow you to cook. Camping stoves are great. Wood-burning stoves are even better.

6. Aside from flashlights to combat the lack of light, you should ensure that you have headlamps as well. Being able to use

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both your hands while being in the dark is a gamechanger. You should also stockpile a healthy supply of candles and matches.

Candles are specifically important if you do not have a fireplace or wood-burning stove. Not only do the candles provide an element of warmth, but they add a solid boost in morale. While the idea of you and your family huddled around candles in your living room doesn’t sound so lovely now, in a grid-down scenario it can sincerely lift the spirits to have some light in the darkness.

7. Cleanliness and sanitation are huge issues to be contended with in a power outage. Lack of these things can bring about unwanted illness and disease. Staying clean is also a huge morale boost. Aside from keeping a special ration of toothpaste and extra toothbrushes, stockpile disposable tableware, to cut down on the need for washing dishes and silverware. Paper plates also serve the duel purpose of being great fire-starting material. Stockpile antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer, this will cut down on the need for washing with water. Stock buckets, cat litter and heavy-duty trash bags, in the event that your toilet is unable to be manually flushed. These can be used to create a makeshift toilet.

8. First Aid will b e particularly important when the power is out, as your local emergency services will likely be overwhelmed.

You must not depend on emergency services or government resources in the event of any grid-down situation. Stock an extra first aid kit, one that is not to be touched under normal circumstances AT ALL. Make sure that this kit is heavy on things like anti-diuretics, baby wipes and antibiotic ointments.

Suggested Foods • Dehydrated vegetables • Beans • Rice • Salt • Vitamin water (non-carbonated) • Canned chili • Honey • Sugar • Baking Soda • Instant coffee • Bouillon products • Dried corn

9. Purchase a hand-crank radio and ensure it is maintained in working condition. Not only will this provide you with valuable information from the outside world, but it can be used to charge electronic devices as well.

10. Given that a serious grid-down power outage could put the lights out for quite a while, it would prudent to stock a defensive weapon. Desperate times can turn otherwise well-adjusted people into potential threats for you and your family. The need to protect your family from people who did not prepare may be a serious priority. While touch weapons such as knives and axes or baseball bats may seem like a good idea, they all require that you be close to your attacker. Invest in a small defensive handgun or shotgun, and keep at least 300 rounds of ammunition in your home.

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Muzzleloading for Meat

By Josh Lutje

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e stepped out from behind a large ragged stump.

His nose pressed to the ground following the scent of a doe that had just disappeared from my view. His trek would take him further from me and, at ninety-five yards, I was already at the edge of my comfort range for the fifty-caliber muzzleloader hanging at my side. I decided to tempt the buck closer with an estrus call. He stopped moving away but did not seem too keen to break from his focus. I watched as he raised his head, his rack catching the early morning

sunlight. I realized this was going to be my only shot at him. I slowly raised the iron sights and squeezed the trigger. The frost around me shook from the blast and my view turned to bright white as a huge cloud of smoke followed the 385-grain conical slug that found its mark, dropping what was to be my biggest buck to date. Hunting with a muzzleloader can be the most gratifying and torturous method of providing table fare that a woodsman can choose. Part of the romance of it is the challenge of such a hunt.

While you may see more animals

than during general season, when it comes time to drop the hammer, there’s a lot that must be taken into account. Many states assign muzzleloader hunts to late fall seasons when deer are rutting. This affords the hunter a better chance of success. But even when big nocturnal bucks come out in daylight and stand broadside at forty yards, there are a multitude of ways that a seasoned hunter will miss or a well-cared for rifle may not fire.

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Read the Regs and Do Your Homework

Working Up a Load

Safety

There are more state-to-state regulations for muzzleloader hunting than any other method of harvest. Some states allow for scopes, others only permit open sights, others have restrictions on primer and chamber types. It is extremely important to become educated on your state’s regulations before investing in your muzzleloader.

Each year, before hunting season, the muzzleloader hunter will need to “work up” a load. Essentially every gun shoots a bit different and because of variations in powder quality, bullet quality and environmental changes. The gun can pattern a bit differently from year to year. When using FFF synthetic powder, start with 70 grains, shoot three bullets and then begin to work your way to a stronger load. For some rifles that sweet spot is around 75 grains, for some it could be as much as 100 grains. Consistency is key when working up your load. Make sure the wax or bore butter is evenly spread on the bullet, make sure you are accurately measuring powder, and most importantly make sure you are firmly seating your slug against the powder with the ram rod.

Modern muzzleloading is safer than ever. Aside from the regular gun safety rules, there are three big-ticket safety concerns that must be taken into account when you’re using an ol’ smokepole. The first is to never double load your weapon. Sometimes folks forget that they already have a load in their weapon, or carelessly left their weapon loaded but unprimed in their truck from the previous day’s evening hunt. A double-loaded rifle is extremely dangerous and will most likely result in catastrophe. The second safety precaution is making sure that your slug is properly seated. If the slug has too much room between itself and the powder, pressure could build up upon ignition and cause a barrel failure. Lastly, take great care, both at the range and in the field, when reloading a recently fired rifle. There is always the possibility that there is a cinder clinging to the barrel and, though rare, the chance that when you pour a new charge down the muzzle it could ignite. Make sure the muzzle is pointed away from your face and keep your hand to the side when pouring powder out of the measure.

The first thing you’ll need to research is breech style. A closed breech muzzleloader is one that, when ready to fire, completely covers the percussion cap or primer. This is a significant advantage in that it’s much more likely that you will be able to keep your ignition system dry. An open breach is one in which you can see the cap or primer when ready to shoot.

The next thing you’ll need to be aware of is the difference between inline and sidelock ignition systems. Inline ignition systems are more modern. This ignition system is in direct alignment with the bore of the firearm. The percussion cap ignites the black powder that has been loaded down the barrel, and the gun fires. A sidelock ignition system is one in which the cap, nipple and hammer of the gun are mounted on the side of the rifle. This gives it the more traditional old-timey flintlock look. The hammer is physically cocked back and pulling the trigger causes the cap to ignite and shoot a spark down into the chamber, where the gunpowder awaits.

Extra care must be taken when hunting with a sidelock system in wet climates. You don’t want to get any moisture in there or you will be seeing a confused expression on your buck as he walks away from you.

Remember, after working up your load, fire your rifle the day before the season opener, but resist the urge to clean it. This will ensure that you will have a dry barrel for the morning hunt. Cleaning solvent and anti-rust bore butter is the number one cause of misfires with new muzzleloader hunters.

Next is the ignition type. Among them is the percussion cap, musket cap, shotgun primer, flint and electronic. Many states have restricted hunters to primitive ignitions such as flint, percussion cap and musket cap. As a general rule get the “hottest” ignition system that is legal in your state. More spark equals a better chance of igniting the powder, even if it is a little damp.

Powder choice can go a long way when it comes to putting meat on the table. Steer away from traditional black powder, synthetics are much less corrosive and easier to clean. Hodgdon’s Triple Seven is a great choice and available at most sporting goods stores. The two main choices in grades of powder are the coarse FF and the finer grained FFF. There is a long-standing debate over which is the more appropriate choice for long rifle hunting. Traditionally, anything 50 caliber or larger would shoot FF. However, FFF is easier to ignite in damp conditions.

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Gear Like any method of hunting, there is a wide world of muzzleloader gear out there. Comfort and preference play a huge part in what hunters choose to outfit themselves with, however a few pieces of equipment are pretty vital.

1. A safari sling is particularly useful for still hunting with a muzzle loading rifle. The horizontal carrying position will help keep rain from falling down the barrel and getting your powder wet. For those required to use an open breech or side lock rifle it allows you to tuck the ignition system into your body to help keep it dry as well.

2. Slug pullers are absolutely necessary in the event that your weapon will not fire and you need to reload it. Failure to do so may likely result in ending your day early in the woods.

3. Believe it or not, getting your bullet started as you attempt to stuff it down the rifle barrel can be tougher than you think.

Even a large fellow with a good deal of strength could find himself struggling to load up on a cold November morning.

Bullet starters are great tools, for those who appreciate working smarter and not harder.

4. Archery hunters are well accustomed to carrying a range finder with them, however, new muzzleloader hunters will find this useful as well, especially if you are accustomed to the ranges allowed by modern high-powered rifles.

5. As previously mentioned, and particularly with open ignition systems, your first cap may not go off. But that buck might stand still long enough for you to get another cap on there and seal the deal. Straight line cappers can hold up to 15 caps at a time, they are excellent little tools that make a difference in the field.

In Closing If you’re like most who have chosen to delve into the world of muzzleloader hunting, you will miss some amazing dream bucks, but you will have more than a few chances at some real monsters.

Stick with it long enough and you will eventually taste the backstrap of success. Keep at it longer, and you will become consistent. But as with any hunting adventure you choose to embark upon, it’s not the racks on the wall that count most, it’s the stories of the hunt told around the fire. Good luck.

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Survival Quotes

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“I never saw a wild thing sorry for itself.

A small bird will drop frozen dead from a bough without ever having felt sorry for itself.”

D.H. Lawrence

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“The most important factor in survival is neither intelligence nor strength but adaptability.”

Charles Darwin

“That survival instinct, that will to live, that need to get back to life again, is more powerful than any consideration of taste, decency, politeness, manners, civility.

Anything. It’s such a powerful force.”

Danny Boyle

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“The line between life or death is determined by what we are willing to do.”

Bear Gyrlls

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“Knowledge is the key to survival, the real beauty of that is that it doesn’t weigh anything.”

Ray Mears

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“By failing to prepare you are preparing to fail.”

“Extinction is the rule.

Survival is the exception.”

Benjamin Franklin

Carl Sagan

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