# What's Your Vehicle Plan?



## Ozarker

I searched but didn't find this, it's probably been addressed but if not here it is.

What is your bug out vehicle plan? 

Vehicle type, modifications, travel range on a tank full, additional fuel arrangement and does it include a trailer? Multiple vehicles in your family, do you convoy more than one vehicle? 

Not an inventory list or what goes in it, but how long will it take to hit the road ready to go? How long to implement you long term or short term loading plan?

My F-150 XLT 4x4 has a range of about 320 miles (not good) on stock tank. If I pull a utility trailer for long term the range drops about 10%. The Rodeo is the college kid's vehicle and doesn't have a hitch and runs about 300 miles on a tank, the same is true for the Subaru Forrester. Depends on the situation, we may all pile in the truck or convoy out. We have 3 five gallon fuel cans, so the truck will go about 470 to 500 miles before it needs a fill up. All vehicles are stock. 

I can get to my bug out location in an hour, 60 miles away and if in a pinch watching fuel consumption stay and operate a couple months, maybe longer without fuel requirements. Same with my next alternate spot along a river 2 hours away in a remote area, one hour from the primary spot on a lake front. So, my distance to travel is about 20% of my initial fuel carrying capacity. 

What's yours?


----------



## Genevieve

this is our BOV. I'm not giving specifics. sorry it's called opsec


----------



## nightwing

Jeep with overhead stowage and a small pop up camper trailer
Nuttin' fancy


----------



## GrinnanBarrett

We have multiple Truck/SUV options all with trailer towing capability. We currently have one travel trailer set up for off road by raising the axle for ground clearance. Since the vehicles are all newer models we have spare electronics in Faraday boxes stored on board. Also complete tool sets with each vehicle. 

Range of any vehicle is going to depend on several factors. For one how much traffic congestion you are in. Our main truck in optimum conditions can run for around 550 to 600 miles on a tank of fuel without spare cans. With trailer in tow, cut that in half. 

In our main truck under the back cover we keep two fold up bikes as back up in case all else fails. GB


----------



## TheLazyL

For our situation a Kawasaki Mule 4x4.

We are a meet point and the secondary BOL.

At 52" wide the Mule can squeeze thru places that other modes of transportation can not.

A car carrier on the roof and the bed will carry the necessities. Pulling a small trailer loaded with the nice to have stuff. Worst comes to worst we could abandon the trailer quickly without losing our necessities.

Our Cross country scouted route will take us 8 hours to reach our Primary BOL. No traffic congestion or road blocks to be concerned about.










Equip with a SSB CB










A pair of electronic earmuffs with loud sound cutoff and external jacks allow quiet monitoring of the CB


----------



## Ozarker

Genevieve said:


> this is our BOV. I'm not giving specifics. sorry it's called opsec


Cool, LOL, it's about 12 MPG, less fully loaded and wind conditions, I've been many miles in a duce and a half. I thought about getting one myself with a como box or better yet the M292 Expandable 5 ton that I had used in the service. Not really good grocery getters or for the fast get away but certainly have advantages, besides the cool factor. :factor10:

Actually, I was in operational security, intelligence and a bit to counter intelligence, I can assure you saying you have an F-150 or a Chevy Blazer or a VW rabbit isn't critical information. Especially since the public sees me as Ozarker and not as John C. Smith at 1480 S. Oak Street, Bolivar, Mo. LOL 

More interesting is the type and range as that is simply saying what you have decided is best for you and your family. Thought we might see how many Chevy 1/2 tons we had, how many leaned to a Dodge or Ford. Any Hummers?

Any custom builds, rail buggies?

It's tuff finding the right combination of fuel efficiency and capacity to carry stuff. If we looked at it as a ratio, power required to move X tons, the big boys would win. A Subaru Brat gets great MPG but many midsize cars can carry the same load.

Reason I was asking is that I'm thinking of trading my vehicles around trying to get a better arrangement. Range or MPG, towing capacity, carrying capacity and some comfort level for the occupants.

So wondered what folks were using rather than asking opinions of what they thought was the best solution, if I ask that I'll likely be told an Earth Roamer, or Unicat, or G-Wagon, things that are out there but not really relied on by most folks in reality.

I'm also not concerned folks know I'm heading to a lake or a river, or how far it is, I can go in 4 directions and hit different areas, or the distance, it's useless information. The trick is to remember what you post so that you don't end up making a riddle that can be solved if you want to keep it secret.

Hey, Lazy, that's the beast, cool, you're in a great position to start with! Us city dwellers will be dealing with roads, when I get where I'm going I can head off for hundreds of miles without hitting civilization, not that I would but could. That's a nice set up.

Nightwind, Jeeps are always good to go, had them but mine drank gas so I got rid of them.

GB, pedal power always works too. An expedition trailer is where I'm heading too, good call. What kind of SUVs/Trucks what kind of fuel do the drink? I prefer gas, some like diesel and alternative fuels (great idea if you can swing it).


----------



## hashbrown

This will get me where ever I want to go in the Blue Eye area


----------



## LincTex

Ozarker said:


> Any custom builds, rail buggies?
> It's tuff finding the right combination of fuel efficiency and capacity to carry stuff. If we looked at it as a ratio, power required to move X tons, the big boys would win.
> Reason I was asking is that I'm thinking of trading my vehicles around trying to get a better arrangement. Range or MPG, towing capacity, carrying capacity and some comfort level for the occupants.


1978 F250 std cab, long bed
4WD, Dana 44 front, Dana 60 rear.
NP435 4speed with Granny low (no OD), NP205 iron X-fer case.
Cummins 4BTA-3.9L with mechanical Bosch VE pump, 
Holsett HE351 turbo with 14cm2 turbine housing, +propane injection.

No electricity at all is required to run this truck. 
It is 100% EMP proof.
It gets 25 MPG empty if I drive it nice, pulling a loaded trailer it'll do about 15-18MPG. I can carry enough fuel at 15 MPG to go 1200 miles.

1988 Harley Davidson Softail. 
Even if an EMP kills it dead I have enough spare parts to make it run, in about 15 minutes.


----------



## Tirediron

I just figure on loading my boys excavator on my low bed and going to some strategic bridges jack knifing an lift out some precast, unless you know a way around (meaning you are local) your not coming into the zone. unless a hazardous good plane crashes here I see no reason to bug anywhere.


----------



## Ozarker

Hashbrown, we gotta meet up! That's a fun machine! Yep, I'm in Blue Eye! On the Missouri side of the alley. I'll buy the beer, you bring the gas....
Blue Eye is a lot bigger than it looks. Do you guys work at SD? 

Link Tex, love your avatar, you must be in hill country, running down hill to get that kind of MPG. Is that a diesel 6 banger?

I probably should have mentioned, street legal vehicles, I can't be chass'n off with out tags around here in civilization. Can't just be parking the BOV just in case.


----------



## tsrwivey

We have this 2.5 ton with an additional 100 gal diesel tank & a fifth wheel. We can be hooked up & loaded up with the kids & animals in under 10 minutes (most things are stored on the camper). We also have a Tahoe. We removed an axel from the 2.5 ton & replaced the bed with a trailer bed. We won't get there fast, but we can move whatever's in the way.


----------



## Foreverautumn

What's MY vehicle plan? My "bug out" vehicle, if you can even call it that, is an '03 Kia Spectra. It's all I've got. If I had to bug out for whatever reason, I would likely be in serious trouble, unless I could refuel somewhere. I could maybe carry a couple of 5-gallon Jerry cans of gas, but I think that would be about it, given the fact that I'm going to be carrying some gear as well as all the water I can (no pun intended!).

One could imagine hitching a SMALL trailer to it, but let's face it, there are real limits to how much weight my poor little 4-cylinder engine is going to be able to pull. And I can NOT afford a pickup truck, let alone modify one.

Depending on EXACTLY what the disaster is, and how severe it is, I may well be screwed, UNLESS I can resupply somehow. To that end, I can THEORETICALLY cache some supplies along some likely routes, but frankly I have little idea how to properly cache gasoline.

THANK GOD I only have to prep for myself!


----------



## Provider

Here is my setup. Stays ready to go at a moments notice.


----------



## hashbrown

Ozarker said:


> Hashbrown, we gotta meet up! That's a fun machine! Yep, I'm in Blue Eye! On the Missouri side of the alley. I'll buy the beer, you bring the gas....
> Blue Eye is a lot bigger than it looks. Do you guys work at SD?
> 
> Link Tex, love your avatar, you must be in hill country, running down hill to get that kind of MPG. Is that a diesel 6 banger?
> 
> I probably should have mentioned, street legal vehicles, I can't be chass'n off with out tags around here in civilization. Can't just be parking the BOV just in case.


I lived in Blue Eye from 68 until 06 my family all still live there. We don't work at the city I'm a builder/real estate speculator. I'm in Blue Eye a couple times a week.


----------



## Dakine

I look at those deuce's and I'm thinking.. okay I can buy one, I'd have to sell the suburban and I'd have to turn the "fun" switch off for at least 3 paychecks, but yeah, I could buy that.

but then I think about... it's gonna cost $1000 to put new tires on the Suburban.. holy hanna! (to borrow nightwing's phrase!  what would that cost to get tires or a brake job, or rebuild a tranny.... yikes! 


for right now I'll be happy with my project truck Suburban. If I'd stop feeding other projects and start buying tires, maybe I'd even get to enjoy it a little bit more.


----------



## Lake Windsong

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/BuTbe00CQAATuk7.jpg


----------



## Ozarker

Wow, there are some serious bug outers here! You can get a decent 2.5 ton for $10K, you can put $10K in new tires too. Know a guy here that uses his in a landscaping and tree service daily, the used tires that were on it when he got it still look decent after five years. He runs at slow speeds, 90% pavement, no rough stuff and those tires will last another 5 years I'd bet. The sun and dry rot seem to be the cause to replace those tires before you wear the tread off. Surplus tires can be had cheaper, I have no idea about brakes. He bought another non-running truck just for parts, just in case. 

Provider, you have the right trailer too! You can live in that rig!
A couple in AZ have two, one's a box and they live in the vehicles off grid, I think they have a water trailer and one like yours. 

Foreverautumn your Spectra is just fine, watch where you go and go slow, won't be rock crawling but it can sure take you further into the boonies than you (or I) would want to walk. Consider portable type roof rack you can get a carrier at a garage sale pretty cheap. Pack like a backpacker, you'll be fine in most situations. Drive what you got! 

Lake Windsong, LOL, Batman's BOV. 

Hashbrown, guess we could have breakfast at the café. I'm not really in the "city limits" of Blue Eye, I'm in the Blue Eye zip code. 

Am I the only one with a stock pickup ? 

Pics are great!


----------



## Coastal

I just put a mechanical diesel in a 2008 ford super duty. Good fuel economy...0 electronics to worry about, and capacity to haul whatever I want.


----------



## hashbrown

Ozarker said:


> Wow, there are some serious bug outers here! You can get a decent 2.5 ton for $10K, you can put $10K in new tires too. Know a guy here that uses his in a landscaping and tree service daily, the used tires that were on it when he got it still look decent after five years. He runs at slow speeds, 90% pavement, no rough stuff and those tires will last another 5 years I'd bet. The sun and dry rot seem to be the cause to replace those tires before you wear the tread off. Surplus tires can be had cheaper, I have no idea about brakes. He bought another non-running truck just for parts, just in case.
> 
> Provider, you have the right trailer too! You can live in that rig!
> A couple in AZ have two, one's a box and they live in the vehicles off grid, I think they have a water trailer and one like yours.
> 
> Foreverautumn your Spectra is just fine, watch where you go and go slow, won't be rock crawling but it can sure take you further into the boonies than you (or I) would want to walk. Consider portable type roof rack you can get a carrier at a garage sale pretty cheap. Pack like a backpacker, you'll be fine in most situations. Drive what you got!
> 
> Lake Windsong, LOL, Batman's BOV.
> 
> Hashbrown, guess we could have breakfast at the café. I'm not really in the "city limits" of Blue Eye, I'm in the Blue Eye zip code.
> 
> Am I the only one with a stock pickup ?
> 
> Pics are great!


I never lived in the city limits I grew up on the cow creek arm of the lake. My grandparents old farm is straight across from the school. My parents grow a garden there that I promise you is one of the finest that you will ever see.


----------



## LincTex

Foreverautumn said:


> I have little idea how to properly cache gasoline.


Try this process:
Gasoline stored for 5 years - success!

http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f2/gasoline-stored-5-years-success-22028/


----------



## Ozarker

Coastal, seeing is believing! Bet your Ford gets better MPG than mine.

The area I have really isn't the safest to store fuel, so I never thought of it in large quantities.

Hashbrown, I've driven past that land many times, never saw the garden up close but I've seen the land and I wouldn't doubt it, it's a nice spot. My place is mostly uphill and rock, I'd have to use raised beds to get much out of it. But that's another thread, LOL.

I have a friend that is a diesel mechanic and he keeps telling be he can do a swap on my truck, while I get tempted I'm not sold. I'd think selling mine and buying one would be better for me since I wouldn't be doing the work. 

BTW, I'm also thinking of another spare tire, 2 to bug out. I've driven out of tornado and hurricane damage, you name it, it's in the road, I've been lucky not to get a flat. I carry the goop for a temporary fix and an air compressor, but if it was nasty it would be better just popping another wheel on and go. Another spare would have to go in the bed.
Another spare for the trailer too, if I had the same wheels I'd make that easier.

Back to vehicles, range, capacity.....what are you counting on?


----------



## LincTex

Ozarker said:


> I'd think selling mine and buying one would be better for me since I wouldn't be doing the work.


Yes, Most likely



Ozarker said:


> I carry the goop for a temporary fix and an air compressor, but if it was nasty it would be better just popping another wheel on and go.


Yucky tire slime, tire plugs work so much better!


----------



## Coastal

Ozarker said:


> Coastal, seeing is believing! Bet your Ford gets better MPG than mine.
> 
> Back to vehicles, range, capacity.....what are you counting on?


I'm hoping that I will go from the 8-11 mpg I was getting up to around 20 with this motor. 6.4l ford was a diesel pig.


----------



## Caribou

I have a Jeep GC, that will have to do. I don't plan to bug out if I am able to avoid that. With the two spare cans on the bumper I can make 500 to 600 miles. My close bug out plan takes about half a tank so I could make multiple trips if I had time. My best BOL would take about three tanks of gas so I would have to leave early.


----------



## fteter

Bug-out not part of my primary plan. Still, flexibility is a good policy...

My primary BOV is a 2003 Toyota Tundra Limited with Access Cab. Also has the heavy-duty towing package, including the tranny coolers and the heavy-duty suspension. Truck is my daily driver and still performs as well as the day I bought it. Backup is a 1988 Chevy S10...base model. Nothing fancy, but it takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'. Option 3: bicycles for the wife and me.

We rotate through 300 gal. of gas storage to keep our supply fresh and follow a "fill up at half a tank" policy.


----------



## Geek999

I will bug out only if forced to do so. However, I have a current vehicle which is a Jeep with jerry cans, etc. with a better than 500 mile range and for the future a older model Suburban project car. When complete the Suburban will be a diesel with a 800 mile range. At present the range is about 10 feet with 4-5 guys pushing.


----------



## machinist

I'm not planning on going anywhere. If there were some local disaster, we have a couple old S10 pickups and a bicycle. I can't think of a reason I would need to go more than 15 miles. :scratch

Yeah, an EMP would trash our trucks. Doesn't matter. If we had an EMP, I won't be going anywhere. Whatever happens, happens RIGHT HERE. Save the gas for the chainsaw and garden tractor.


----------



## Ozarker

LinkTex, Agreed, I haven't used that slime but carry it and a few plugs in a kit, tires are in great shape and I'd rather not use either. Not going to dip out the cash for run-flats on a truck. 

Caribou, sounds like you have it covered, in fact sounds like everyone does to their expectations. Nice truck fteter!

Geek, LOL, the Suburban is a great build going diesel! 

Guys, I'm in the same boat, I won't be going anywhere from my primary unless it's destroyed or really damaged. 

I'm not concerned with EMP either, I'll probably be going underground anyway.

Stuff doesn't always happen when you're at home, I'm usually here but I do get out. If my neighborhood area was shut down I have other places to go, I'm sure the ex-wife would let me in.

Guess it all depends, have a son in Texas, I can almost make that in one non-stop trip. 

As expected, lots of jeeps here, love the jeep, all jeeps, but most rattle my teeth and really like gas stations. I do like the old Cherokee it rides much better and I've not been in the new Grand Cherokee, I'm sue it rides like a Caddy. 

What I want doesn't exist I know, the ride of a Lexus, the capacity and towing of my F-150, the capability of a Jeep CJ and the MPG of a Smart Car! Everything is a trade off.


----------



## LincTex

Coastal said:


> I'm hoping that I will go from the 8-11 mpg I was getting up to around 20 with this motor. 6.4l ford was a diesel pig.


Did you drop an International 466 in her?


----------



## nightwing

empty the last U.N. vehicle in the convoy and move out 
(the opposite direction)


----------



## Coastal

LincTex said:


> Did you drop an International 466 in her?


Close...its little brother the DT360..same basic engine, but smaller dimensionally, as well as displacement.


----------



## LincTex

Coastal said:


> Close...its little brother the DT360..same basic engine, but smaller dimensionally, as well as displacement.


Good. The 466 is an excellent engine... but it's huge and weighs 1400 lbs!

My 4BT weighs 840lbs - more than the all-cast-iron-everything 400M that I pulled out... a LOT more.


----------



## besign

the bigger, noisier the vehicle, the more stuff in it, the more it will be worth shooting-at. The further you try to go, the more rds fired at you. If you try it in daylight, those rds will be placed a lot more accurately than they would at night, too. Really bad idea, actually.


----------



## labotomi

besign said:


> the bigger, noisier the vehicle, the more stuff in it, the more it will be worth shooting-at. The further you try to go, the more rds fired at you. If you try it in daylight, those rds will be placed a lot more accurately than they would at night, too. Really bad idea, actually.


It's OK. If you press circle-up-up-left-circle-square-up it gives you invincible mode. No worries about being shot so you can take your time. You could even make multiple trips.


----------



## Tweto

I'm at my BOL and I have no relatives within 1500 miles to go to, so a BOV is not my concern. I do have a 71 bronco for emergencies so would this be called an EV?

Like a few other people on the thread, I'm hunkerin down here.


----------



## Geek999

It seems that every thread is turning into the apocalypse. I guess we don't need to worry about hurricanes anymore.


----------



## LincTex

besign said:


> how will you move a highway full of cars with flattened tires and shot up fuel tanks, hmm? You are just kidding yourself


Easy!!

I *won't* be on the highway.... duuuhh!


----------



## Tirediron

Abrams don't really mind parked cars and or puny gun shots so I don't see the problem


----------



## readytogo

*My humble vehicle idea???????????*

Ok so are we talking about a vehicle or a doomsday scenario right out of a Hollywood movie everybody keeps going back to an escape from hell movie vs a normal running vehicle,lived through Andrew in Miami, 92 and Terrible Tuesday in Lawton,OK, 1979 ,I don`t recall seen to many M3 or M35 on the roads trying to get out ,my 1989 Astro did very well in flooded roads and the few trips for ice,had no need for the .50 mounted on the roof or 1/2 inch armor plating,it seems to me that some out there would love to see a Mad Max scenario without actually seen the inside of a body bag or serving in a funeral detail or even proper weapons training,I can tell you that is not pretty and if you think that you will be the only one with weapons in a real Mad Max world you are mistaking.I pray everyday that it does n`t happen and that some should take a trip to a VA hospital and really see what real bullets do.
We should concentrated on Vehicle & Transportation vs Doomsday dreams.
My Humble and ignorant opinion.


----------



## Ozarker

I suppose since I started this thread I can ask that we stay on topic, that would be about vehicles and not the reason we must use them or any far out paranoid schizoid declarations of the end of times. The reason I joined this site is that it's more about being prepared and educational unlike the survival forums with ranting Rambo idiots. 

Let's stay on topic please. Vehicles, parts, engines, tranny, MPG, cargo abilities, recovery gear, is all good I'd think, zombie talk isn't the topic. 

I have a 4x4, an AWD, a dual sport bike and a cruiser, (I've always had too many vehicles, I need to regroup to my needs and scale down) but in reality, any reliable vehicle can work to get you away from trouble, it doesn't have to be a tank or a rock crawler. 

I raced VWs (and other cars) long ago, 2wd, light, quick and I'd lose a 4x4 truck in a heart beat simply due to size. I floated down rivers with a few tricks applied to a VW bug, never saw a Jeep do that. So all vehicles have advantages and disadvantages. There is no vehicle on earth that can't get stuck. It's the nut behind the steering wheel that gets a vehicle in trouble, not the vehicle itself.

So, if your BOV is a mini cooper or a Smart car or a duce and a half or an Earth Roamer or a '64 Chevy BelAir station wagon, all are fine for what they are. As I stated before, I was considering changing things around, thought I'd see what others were counting on. I've decided (I think) to keep what I have (most economical solution). Every time I trade cars its always cost me money!

The reason I was interested in the range without additional fuel was due to the fact that there are some places in the country where it's several hundred miles to a gas station, I believe a section in AK requires a 450 mile range, if you get off road and do some sight seeing or scouting, hunting, whatever, you need more than that. If you get stuck in snow you better be able to run the engine for heat unless you have a camping set up for winter. My solution is to carry more fuel as required. Everything is a compromise.


----------



## LincTex

I bought a bike motor kit to put on the kid's mountain bike. It's a chinese 80cc 2-stroke and is supposed to get over 100 MPG.

Honda makes a SWEET little GX22 and GX25 4-stroke motor (25cc?) that would make a great bike motor - I think it'll do close to 180 mpg.

Assuming you don't have to dodge any bullets (Sheesh!!) that would be an excellent vehicle to own.

Stihl 4-mix, Subaru EH025 and Ryobi make 4-stroke weedeater motors, too.

http://www.amazon.com/Honda-Horizontal-Engine-Stroke-GX25-S3/dp/B001P29OY0


----------



## Ozarker

In the late 60's someone, Benelli I think, made a small engine that dropped a shaft down on the rear tire of a bike and simply ran on the friction of the tire off the weight of the engine. It had a release to drop it down and a cable lever to raise it again. Worked pretty well. 

There are several scooters that would qualify as a dual sport type bikes.

I'd think too that what we toss in this thread ought to be street legal, here we can have under 50cc without tags if it's a manufactured vehicle, they don't want mini-bikes. Front and rear brakes, mirrors, horn and lights. So, that leaves off skateboards, powered roller skates, hotrod wheel chairs and the like.

First rule of adventure traveling or expedition travels, go as small as you can but as big as you need. 

An under rated 4x4 is the little Samuri. (sp?) The 2wd is pretty nimble too and gets better mpg. It can tow a small utility trailer just fine too. Anyone have one?


----------



## Tirediron

the older Honda 4 stroke motor bikes around 100 CC must have gotten pretty impressive fuel mileage and would be capable of pretty varied terrain. the trouble that I see with tiny engines is the speed that they have to spin to make power, and the inherent internal losses due to this speed.


----------



## LincTex

Ozarker said:


> An under rated 4x4 is the little _*Samurai*_. Anyone have one?


Those are VERY popular to swap a VW diesel engine into.

http://www.rocky-road.com/samurai-diesel.html

http://www.acmeadapters.com/index.php

http://www.zukikrawlers.com/showthread.php?t=40702

http://www.keltecsystems.com/hardware/suzuki.html


----------



## LincTex

Tirediron said:


> The trouble that I see with tiny engines is the speed that they have to spin to make power, and the inherent internal losses due to this speed.


On a bicycle, they only need to "help" 

I can bike ride 20 miles pretty easily, but I'll bet with 25cc of "help" I can do 50 miles in a day. It doesn't have to do all the work, just help me keep going.


----------



## Ozarker

LincTex, I think you need a Moped. Pedal or motor it, popular in the 60's. 

Today there are fairly efficient electric bikes, pedal and charge the battery or plug it in, no gas needed at all. 

Which reminds me of electric boats!

Now, if they built an electric truck that could haul a ton and a decent range, that might be something to consider.


----------



## LincTex

Ozarker said:


> LincTex, I think you need a Moped. Pedal or motor it, popular in the 60's.


I rode one in the early 80's... They DON'T pedal easily like a bicycle does. There's a lot of extra weight and tire friction happening there.

I thought the military was playing with all kinds of electric trucks?


----------



## nightwing

here is what I am riding


----------



## Ozarker

Lucky you Nightwing! Getty up!

LincTex, There is a facility in Springfield, Mo. that is experimenting with batteries under government contracts, a private/public partnership that includes the DOD and NASA. The main focus is on vehicle batteries increasing capacity and developing a lighter weight storage system. Have no idea how that's going. I'm not in the loop as to military R&D and I probably couldn't understand it if I were, I'm not an engineer.

I've ridden the moped years ago, no, I wouldn't what to pedal one a mile and I use to road race bikes, I'd ride 120 miles+ in a day for training so I know how to pedal but now, at my age and with my changing attitudes, I turn a key to take off on two wheels.


----------



## Geek999

LincTex said:


> Those are VERY popular to swap a VW diesel engine into.
> 
> http://www.rocky-road.com/samurai-diesel.html
> 
> http://www.acmeadapters.com/index.php
> 
> http://www.zukikrawlers.com/showthread.php?t=40702
> 
> http://www.keltecsystems.com/hardware/suzuki.html


Actually, a diesel Rabbit from the late 70s, early 80s, would be a handy vehicle if you could find one at a good price and in decent shape.


----------



## hashbrown

Geek999 said:


> Actually, a diesel Rabbit from the late 70s, early 80s, would be a handy vehicle if you could find one at a good price and in decent shape.


 A Rabbit has almost enough ground clearance and wheel travel to get you to the first mudhole.


----------



## Geek999

hashbrown said:


> A Rabbit has almost enough ground clearance and wheel travel to get you to the first mudhole.


True, but a high mileage diesel vehicle could be handy if you are in a world of little or no resupply of fuel.


----------



## nightwing

Imagine Rocky Balboa saying, "whot yous drivin'"

It is hard to decide with all you want to carry and you know it will be like Katrina 
the roads were impassable the road was blocked by vehicles from houston to dallas.

I had considered a old dirt bike but even the best ones had little weight capacity 
over a couple of humans, besides many years ago I traveled from cali to florida 
on a bike and back to texas there are some difficulties with that idea.
Although a friend has a trike I think that may be the way to go he can haul a 
Trailer passenger and backpacks I guess with a bit of tinkering more gas 

If I were younger and though bugging out was a high probability I would build a 
diesel trike from one of the aforementioned diesels my favorite was a Isusu truck 
that Isusu diesel was one tough motor.
Of course now that we need higher mileage vehicles we can't get them here 
the government talk a lot of crap but unless it butters their side of the bread 
they act like it does not exist.


----------



## Ozarker

My r had a diesel Rabbit, pretty good car and you'd be surprised where he took it. Diesel engines have their advantages but I'm not a diesel guy, lots of stations still don't have diesel and the cost difference probably makes up for the better mileage in my thinking. Most all diesels now are turbos which adds to the complexity and maintenance, I'd rather have fuel injection or a carb I could adjust myself with a screwdriver. But having diesel fuel makes your vehicle more versatile as you can have a diesel heater, stove and genset all off the same tank. (Thinking truck camper here, not so much cars)

The Weather channel had a show about the worst areas to bug out, Atlanta would take 72 hours of traffic to get millions out for a hurricane, they need to begin before they even know if they'd be effected. Safest place to head is the second or third story of a parking garage. Some owners have prearranged spaces set aside for storms.

The best vehicle has more to do with your location and expected travel requirements than saying a particular type of vehicle is always best. Big is not always better, part of the American way of thinking that a raised 4x4 F-350 is a great way to go, and could be, but not always or even most often. In my area we have state and county 2 lanes through the Ozarks where a VW Rabbit would flat out run such a pickup. Same thing on many gravel roads. 

Speed can be an important factor in getting out of Dodge, if 4x4 trucks were the superior vehicles they'd have the best times in all the rally events, they are good at Baja but not Pikes Peak. The bigger the vehicle, you can count on it being slower. 

Capacity, I'll never need a moving van moving all my stuff in any situation. I can go back if I need to or acquire what I don't have or substitute for it along the way. The first rule of overland travel is go as small as you can and as big as you must. While I wouldn't be nuts about the idea, I could pack up, ride two up on my Honda Transalp (650 dual sport bike) and be gone for months, I could end up at the Artic Circle.

I think what we all shoot for is traveling in the most comfortable means we can under budget constraints, if I had 200 million dollars on hand I'd probably be flying out in my executive helicopter and having my stuff follow in a CH-47 carrying my Hummer. My C-130 could come later and land on my island. Until then, I'll be driving, probably my truck pulling a trailer, but I could be on my bike too. And, there are very few things that could ever get me to leave, my vehicles will most likely be used in the general area as necessary.


----------



## LincTex

Geek999 said:


> True, but a high mileage diesel vehicle could be handy if you are in a world of little or no resupply of fuel.


It would be ideal. And, you can always swap the rabbit motor into something else, like a YJ jeep or Samurai, or what ever. My Cummins F-250 getting 25 MPG could theoretically go 2500 miles on 100 gallons of fuel (which it nearly holds right now). I DO NOT intend to rely on filling stations.

"Reliability" or even "the ability to adjust with a screwdriver" is a moot point. 
A good diesel will run for decades with nothing but the simplest of maintenance.

How often does anyone really fiddle with the carb on a gas vehicle? Almost never.


----------



## Geek999

Ozarker said:


> My r had a diesel Rabbit, pretty good car and you'd be surprised where he took it. Diesel engines have their advantages but I'm not a diesel guy, lots of stations still don't have diesel and the cost difference probably makes up for the better mileage in my thinking. Most all diesels now are turbos which adds to the complexity and maintenance, I'd rather have fuel injection or a carb I could adjust myself with a screwdriver. But having diesel fuel makes your vehicle more versatile as you can have a diesel heater, stove and genset all off the same tank. (Thinking truck camper here, not so much cars)
> 
> The Weather channel had a show about the worst areas to bug out, Atlanta would take 72 hours of traffic to get millions out for a hurricane, they need to begin before they even know if they'd be effected. Safest place to head is the second or third story of a parking garage. Some owners have prearranged spaces set aside for storms.
> 
> The best vehicle has more to do with your location and expected travel requirements than saying a particular type of vehicle is always best. Big is not always better, part of the American way of thinking that a raised 4x4 F-350 is a great way to go, and could be, but not always or even most often. In my area we have state and county 2 lanes through the Ozarks where a VW Rabbit would flat out run such a pickup. Same thing on many gravel roads.
> 
> Speed can be an important factor in getting out of Dodge, if 4x4 trucks were the superior vehicles they'd have the best times in all the rally events, they are good at Baja but not Pikes Peak. The bigger the vehicle, you can count on it being slower.
> 
> Capacity, I'll never need a moving van moving all my stuff in any situation. I can go back if I need to or acquire what I don't have or substitute for it along the way. The first rule of overland travel is go as small as you can and as big as you must. While I wouldn't be nuts about the idea, I could pack up, ride two up on my Honda Transalp (650 dual sport bike) and be gone for months, I could end up at the Artic Circle.
> 
> I think what we all shoot for is traveling in the most comfortable means we can under budget constraints, if I had 200 million dollars on hand I'd probably be flying out in my executive helicopter and having my stuff follow in a CH-47 carrying my Hummer. My C-130 could come later and land on my island. Until then, I'll be driving, probably my truck pulling a trailer, but I could be on my bike too. And, there are very few things that could ever get me to leave, my vehicles will most likely be used in the general area as necessary.


Jerry Young makes a nice distinction between a BOV and a PAW vehicle. The BOV is to evacuate to your BOL. The PAW vehicle is what you want afterward. My thought on the old diesel Rabbit is One Second After has happened and you need aren't going anywhere, but need local transport that won't break down, and your fuel supply is in a tank in the backyard.

An old diesel Rabbit and a stock of diesel fuel will keep you supplied with wheels for awhile. Maybe that will be my next project after I get the Suburban done unless I get a better idea in the interim.


----------



## Viking

Ozarker said:


> In the late 60's someone, Benelli I think, made a small engine that dropped a shaft down on the rear tire of a bike and simply ran on the friction of the tire off the weight of the engine. It had a release to drop it down and a cable lever to raise it again. Worked pretty well.
> 
> There are several scooters that would qualify as a dual sport type bikes.
> 
> I'd think too that what we toss in this thread ought to be street legal, here we can have under 50cc without tags if it's a manufactured vehicle, they don't want mini-bikes. Front and rear brakes, mirrors, horn and lights. So, that leaves off skateboards, powered roller skates, hotrod wheel chairs and the like.
> 
> First rule of adventure traveling or expedition travels, go as small as you can but as big as you need.
> 
> An under rated 4x4 is the little Samuri. (sp?) The 2wd is pretty nimble too and gets better mpg. It can tow a small utility trailer just fine too. Anyone have one?


I have two, a soft top and a tin top. I changed the engine in the tin top from a 1.3 to a 1.6 and the fuel mileage stayed the same, that is if I stay at 55 to 60 mph, otherwise the poor aerodynamics begins to knock the mpg down some but I get between 21 and 30 mpg. We paid $1,500 for the soft top and $1,700 for the tin top, last week I saw a Polaris Razor and it was almost $14,000, that's a lot of money for something that the Samurai can pretty much follow on some of the same trails. They are extremely easy to work on and there are a lot of parts available from various suppliers even though new Samurai' haven't been sold here in the USA for a long time.


----------



## Ozarker

Now, I can see a veggie oil rabbit, it even sounds proper a veggie rabbit. 
The hassle and time not to mention the mess of making your own fuel seems worth it when you're getting 30+ mpg. You don't have to produce hundreds of gallons, maybe a 120 gallons could get you by over a year. Some diesel bug might be an option too. 

You could build a rally worthy little bad bunny too, skid plate, wheels and tires with some shock treatment would be a great car for many areas.

Viking, sounds like you took the route I did with the old Dodge Raider, but one of mine was for parts. Both are gone now, the Samurai is a good off roader and it can be built to do things a Razor won't ever do. You have a good thing going there!


----------



## readytogo

*Nimbus concept e-car*

http://www.hemisferiocriativo.com/pesquisa-nimbus.php

It has plenty of potential in a fuel starve world, reminds me of the vw bus/camper of the 60-70`s.But if you are interested on building your own&#8230;.. http://www.ev-propulsion.com/adapterscouplers.html


----------



## Viking

readytogo said:


> http://www.hemisferiocriativo.com/pesquisa-nimbus.php
> 
> It has plenty of potential in a fuel starve world, reminds me of the vw bus/camper of the 60-70`s.But if you are interested on building your own&#8230;.. http://www.ev-propulsion.com/adapterscouplers.html


A few years back I did a lot of research of EV's, checked out a lot that were for sale, including a Samurai. All of course were using the most affordable batteries, lead-acid, some had 15 or more batteries depending on the electric motors used. I checked on the prices for motors, controllers and chargers, chargers are rather special due to the battery banks on the systems I was looking at running 90 to 120 volts or so. The system that I figured would work in a Samurai would use 20 six volt golf cart batteries, weighing between 1,100 to 1,300 pounds. Being as the engine in the Samurai uses and aluminum block and head the weight difference between it and a drive motor is really not that much. Thing is due to the weight of batteries I would have to get heavy duty springs, minimum of around $500, Batteries $1,960 at Costco, which is about the lowest cost I could find. Motor, controller and charger prices I don't remember but they were not cheap and in the end most of the information I got from those using a like system generally got about 40 miles on a charge. Many of the EV vehicles I saw that were for sale had various issues, mostly it was batteries needed replacement. In the end, weighing cost vs. fuel savings I figured if I did anything to get away from gasoline or going to diesel, it would be propane. It seems no matter how one slices it, you end up being beholden to someone, wither it be fuels or the electric company, oh yeah, you could have your own solar charge system but if you are 40 miles away you'll need power. You could carry a little generator to do that but that's extra weight and space taken up. Or you could just have a cow for multipurpose use, for milking and pulling a cart. A friend talked about doing that many years ago, practical for people that have enough land to take care of a cow. Now if we lived in an area that had a gas well on our property, we'd be in hog heaven, I could just collect the condensate (drip as they called it in the panhandle of Texas where we lived) and we'd have all the fuel we would ever need.


----------



## nightwing

I cant afford one but I can probably rustle one :laugh:

and with my luck it would be as crazy as this one looks


----------



## Ozarker

Good looking mule just needs brushing, seems to have a good sense of hummer. The Missouri state mascot, don't let Hashbrown see it, he'll want to ride it to work.


----------



## nightwing

Ozarker said:


> Good looking mule just needs brushing, seems to have a good sense of hummer. The Missouri state mascot, don't let Hashbrown see it, he'll want to ride it to work.


It not mine but looks like something I would end up with but I do think 
animals over machinery or as a backup plan fuel is high now I always wonder just how high it could go under the right situation.

for my needs to till ground drag loads and keep the grass down 
it is also a good defender of other animals and security animal.

it does not take much and a vehicle is disabled and with all the different parts what we could in the day is not possible today

We are the ones with a bullseye on our back to me to have commonality of parts between vehicles would be common sense like ac compressors alternators and sensors even fuses are all over the place cant even get 
common bolt sizes new vehicles are junk off the show room floor.

I could tell the horrors of new vehicles and the first thing someone would say is I have one and it's wonderful as long as even on person states that 
it will only get worse 4 oxygen sensors a computer that could have run the whole space program of NASA into the early 1980's todays mp3 player 
has more electronics than my first vehicle It had none I could make it 
run with tape and bailing wire.


----------



## hashbrown

Ozarker said:


> Good looking mule just needs brushing, seems to have a good sense of hummer. The Missouri state mascot, don't let Hashbrown see it, he'll want to ride it to work.


Gee haw, Nope....Ive plowed and drug logs out with a team. Ive had my fill


----------



## Ozarker

LOL, Gee-haw Ginny!...well, the ultimate SUV is a horse, but I can't keep one in my garage! 

As I recall, it took about 5 wrenches to completely strip an old VW bug, engine and all. The best KISS vehicle I've ever had and it floats down rivers too. Can't really get stuck, just pick up the front end and head it in another direction. I don't remember the mpg, gas was a quarter and that wasn't an issue.


----------



## readytogo

Ozarker said:


> LOL, Gee-haw Ginny!...well, the ultimate SUV is a horse, but I can't keep one in my garage!
> 
> As I recall, it took about 5 wrenches to completely strip an old VW bug, engine and all. The best KISS vehicle I've ever had and it floats down rivers too. Can't really get stuck, just pick up the front end and head it in another direction. I don't remember the mpg, gas was a quarter and that wasn't an issue.


You are right ,I had one,28 to 30 mpg on the hwy,no air and mine was a 411 model fuel injected Bosch system,pure German tech.The best car I have ever own.


----------



## LincTex

Viking said:


> Now if we lived in an area that had a gas well on our property, we'd be in hog heaven, I could just collect the condensate (drip as they called it in the panhandle of Texas where we lived) and we'd have all the fuel we would ever need.


"Drip gas" or "condensate" has such low octane, it would be OK in an old 1940's era tractor with 4.5 to 1 compression but would ruin a modern engine.


----------



## Ozarker

Just thinking along the alternative fuel lines, seems the "average" miles driven is set at 15,000 miles by aspects such as trade-in and insurance. I'm not influenced much at all by most scenarios of long term havoc except that of economic hardship. 

In the SHTF scenarios I'd think that after your initial few days to react 
(bugging out, final preparations, hauling goods and materials) that the travel requirements would drop significantly. Schools are closed so you won't be taking the kids anywhere, no more soccer games, you won't be going to the water parks on weekends or going out to eat. Where are you going to go? 

I know some may elect to hit the roads, stay in the boondocks off the grid and turn into gypsies, for those folks I can see fuel concerns and expenses going way up. If that's the plan I've got nothing. 

My driving requirements would or could be down to less than 5,000 miles a year and that is being 20 miles from civilization. If I hunker down in my primary, miles would be less than 2,500, probably use as much fuel running the vehicle just to keep the battery charged!

Making fuel in my case is a low return endeavor, decent storage tanks aren't cheap, materials for operations need to be acquired, time expended not to mention the mess and safety issues just isn't worth it. Even in the depression fuel was available. 

Back to the vehicle, seems to me you almost need two or more vehicles, one highly efficient for travels that don't require much hauling capacity and one to haul with. The hauler could be a shared vehicle among the clan. A bicycle, motorcycle or a high mpg micro or compact car could be mostly what's needed, if you don't really have rock crawling involved. 

Clearly I need to get rid of some vehicles, two bikes a truck and a car for one guy is a little excessive.


----------



## LincTex

Ozarker said:


> Back to the vehicle, seems to me you almost need two or more vehicles, one highly efficient for travels that don't require much hauling capacity and one to haul with. The hauler could be a shared vehicle among the clan. A bicycle, motorcycle or a high mpg micro or compact car could be mostly what's needed, if you don't really have rock crawling involved.
> .


A motorized bicycle or small motorcycle is GREAT for running errands, messages, checking in on others, and with a backpack can easily haul 40-50 lbs of goods.

A diesel truck is GREAT for hauling equipment between farms, or hauling goods like grains, vegetables, wood, lumber, etc.


----------



## tsrwivey

FWIW, hubby's hearing rumor on the military vehicle owner boards that the EPA is not going to allow the military vehicles to be surplused out anymore so if you want one, it may be now or never.


----------



## LincTex

tsrwivey said:


> .... the EPA is not going to allow the military vehicles to be surplus'd out anymore.....


If Johnny Cash were still alive, he'd have this to say about that:


----------



## Viking

Meanwhile, from what I've heard, there's approximately 15,000 jet airliners in the air at any given time dumping tons, TONS of carbon in the atmosphere and nothing is said because they are the sacred cow for all the tree huggers, owl lovers, no oil, no coal fired power plant people that run all over the world telling us how bad of polluters we are to have our gas hog pickups, or in this case, bullet proof ex military BOV's. Yeah right, just haul that load of gravel or 16' 2X lumber in your CIVIC and see how that works out. Amen for Johnny Cash!!!!


----------



## sgtusmc98

no gas, diesel or oil required.

Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum


----------



## Viking

sgtusmc98 said:


> View attachment 9762
> no gas, diesel or oil required.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum


How many miles per bale of hay?


----------



## LincTex

sgtusmc98 said:


> View attachment 9762
> no gas, diesel or oil required.


I have had horses. There may not be any diesel required.... but the list of other expenses required is not a short one.

A few years ago (2011) we had a bad drought in Texas... Hay got so expensive you could get a dozen free horses any day of the week. For some ladies with lots of money and a lot of love for their horses, I got chartered to drive almost 600 miles to pick up a truckload of bales (40 foot gooseneck). For what they paid for that hay, they could have sold their horses and bought other ones when the prices of hay came back down.


----------



## sgtusmc98

There are definitely other expenses, one of my future preps if you call it that is to have enough pasture so I don't have to buy hay but for now I get it pretty cheap. I feed the two for about $500 a year. One never has had shoes but the other does and that is the biggest expense. If shtf my use for them will be short distance checking trap lines and they won't need shoes just to do 6 miles a day or so alternating horses. I have the stuff to shoe but haven't because of time. My wife is a vet so that helps too.


Sent from my iPhone using Survival Forum


----------



## Ozarker

TS, all they can do is cut the supply of military vehicles, once owned in private hands they are grandfathered just as the Model T is. I'd bet too you could get a special tag like historic vehicles to drive in a parade, to the shop or test drives to where ever with limited miles. Such rumors are often started to drive prices up too, I wouldn't fall for that one.

I might fabricate some inflatable pontoons for my truck, Kirksville, Mo. got 9 inches of rain last night and it's going to be headed my way.....here come the floods.


----------



## OldCootHillbilly

99 Chevy Suburban, decked out fer emergency service. I can live out it fer over a week with what be carried in it on a daily basis. Lots a options fer buggin out if need be.


----------



## Geek999

OldCootHillbilly said:


> 99 Chevy Suburban, decked out fer emergency service. I can live out it fer over a week with what be carried in it on a daily basis. Lots a options fer buggin out if need be.


What does "decked out for emergency service" include? I'm still looking for ideas for my Suburban project.


----------



## LincTex

Geek999 said:


> What does "decked out for emergency service" include? I'm still looking for ideas for my Suburban project.


Sounds like: food, water, first aid kit, blankets, clothes, a source of heat, etc.


----------



## marlas1too

3 mopars 77,82,87 dodge alltime 4x4 -one a dodge ram charger and the 77 and 87 are power wagons


----------



## Geek999

LincTex said:


> Sounds like: food, water, first aid kit, blankets, clothes, a source of heat, etc.


Sounded to me like an EMS vehicle.


----------



## OldCootHillbilly

Yup, food, water (in cooler), sleepin bags, Survival gear (space blanket, alcohol car heater), 2 man tent, shovels, axe, saw, rope, chain, tool chest, ammo can with nuts, bolts, screws. Nother ammo can with mechanics wire, duct tape, electrical tape an so forth. CERT gear bags, get home bag. Come a long, handy mans jack. Lighting, CB radio, FRS/GMRS radios, scanner. Oils, fluids an spare belt fer truck. Air compressor, road flares. Truck is equipped with emergency lights, off road lights an siren. Top quality hitch with all 3 sizes a hitch balls an a attachment (pintel type) what will pull farm wagons er military type trailers an good fer connectin a chain. Additional fuel carried in 20L NATO cans (it's got a 44 gallon tank ta start with).

That be most a it.

Oh yeah, tarps (several sizes) ratchet straps, portable chairs. Garbage bags, bungee cords.

Basically it be a private EMS vehicle. As a Safety Officer fer our county CERT team, when disaster strikes I need ta have everthin with me cause it's likely gone where were headed. It could be home, office, an supply house fer a couple days er longer. I also need ta be able ta get where the disaster occurred as well as get out if needed.

I fergot the snow shoes an winter gear.


----------



## Padre

For me its whatever car I am in, or whatever vehicle is viable. I initially thought about doing the tacti-cool Suburban thing. I bought a used beater and fixed it up, added some cool godies, and stocked it up, but I am not a mechanic and although I would love to learn I just couldn't see putting more and more money into the thing. The other thing is that it attracted attention (Grey man protocol violation), and although I wouldn't mind that if things went all Mad Max out there, until then I realized this car, which was everything I wanted as a kid survivalist, was also imprudent. Along with the fact that it looked like a survivalist mobile it had a NRA bumper sticker on it which a senior coworker zeroed in on after Sandy Hook, causing me all sorts of grief. I may have kept it if it was older, and theoretically EMP proof, but I end up trading it in. 

As I wrote in another post I traded it in for "regular" cars that were particularly good on gas. I drive a hybrid sedan and we have another hybrid as well as a pickup truck. They are clean, meaning stickerless, and aside from the fact that they have no overt yuppie ad content on them they fit in very well in the yuppy area I live in. Aside from blending, my vehicles have a couple of added benefits, all of them are VERY fuel efficient, which is to say that all of them easily travel 500 miles on a tank. That is multiple times the range I need to bug out. We keep at least one or two 5 gallon cans on hand for each vehicle and try to keep the tanks about half full. I also have been doing some research into turning a hybrid car into a generator for a house, and so theoretically I have two extra generators for any needs that may arise. Finally all three of these cars have get home bags pre-loaded in them.

However, when we talk about vehicles most people assume we mean cars, but while cars are a nice option, realistically, in my area I need to also think about other options.

Thus I have been making friends with some pilots at the local air field and hope to try a bug out by air in the near future. Also, as I have mentioned elsewhere I have the means to bug out by sail boat, either to get to my BOL, which is somewhat accessible by water (although we would have to walk or find transportation once the boat could take us not further. The other option is simply to bug out to the boat.


----------



## hashbrown

I think it will make it to the spring on the back of the place without much trouble, bout as far as I plan on going.....


----------



## Viking

I like Padre's idea of a sailboat. My wife, however, is not enthused about rolling seas. We have an EMP proof 1989 F-250 super cab 4X4 diesel that could work for a BOV but because of where we are, the neighbors we have and our age, well probably only bug out as a last resort.


----------



## Geek999

OldCootHillbilly said:


> Yup, food, water (in cooler), sleepin bags, Survival gear (space blanket, alcohol car heater), 2 man tent, shovels, axe, saw, rope, chain, tool chest, ammo can with nuts, bolts, screws. Nother ammo can with mechanics wire, duct tape, electrical tape an so forth. CERT gear bags, get home bag. Come a long, handy mans jack. Lighting, CB radio, FRS/GMRS radios, scanner. Oils, fluids an spare belt fer truck. Air compressor, road flares. Truck is equipped with emergency lights, off road lights an siren. Top quality hitch with all 3 sizes a hitch balls an a attachment (pintel type) what will pull farm wagons er military type trailers an good fer connectin a chain. Additional fuel carried in 20L NATO cans (it's got a 44 gallon tank ta start with).
> 
> That be most a it.
> 
> Oh yeah, tarps (several sizes) ratchet straps, portable chairs. Garbage bags, bungee cords.
> 
> Basically it be a private EMS vehicle. As a Safety Officer fer our county CERT team, when disaster strikes I need ta have everthin with me cause it's likely gone where were headed. It could be home, office, an supply house fer a couple days er longer. I also need ta be able ta get where the disaster occurred as well as get out if needed.
> 
> I fergot the snow shoes an winter gear.


Aside from lights and siren, it sounds like most of it is what you've loaded, not any changes to the vehicle. You should probaby paint it CERT green.


----------



## LincTex

OldCootHillbilly said:


> That be most a it.


You need to have a little 36cc-38cc-40cc chainsaw "ready to go" if you have a lot of trees along the roads in your area. Usually just getting the limbs off will let you drag the trunk off to the side so you can drive around it... unless you are really in the mood to buck a tree. Add some cheap nylon tow straps - 3" x 30 footers go one sale here for only $10!


----------



## OldCootHillbilly

It's got CERT decals on it. The truck really doesn't need much fer mods. Added, fuel can carriers, shovels an such on the top rack. Brush guard an a winch be in the works. Real good tires an that about does it. The suburban was perty much built fer this lifestyle ta begin with.


----------



## OldCootHillbilly

LincTex, fer some reason CERT from the top folks on down don't like chain saws! We don't even have em in the equipment trailers. Now that don't mean I might not toss one a mine on the rack with some fuel an oil though! I got some tow straps an chain in the truck along with a cable choker I use fer dragen firewood logs. If I be deployin, I also got my atv that I can put on the trailer an take if need be.


----------



## Ozarker

Well, speaking of trailers, they are considered a vehicle. I have an all steel trailer, custom made with a tilt bed and 3 position rear ramp. I built it to haul my rider and bikes, but now kind of thinking of mods for a camping set up as a pod that can slide in and out. 

Depends on what's going on if I were take a trailer, in the city there can really be traffic jams, on off ramps get backed up into streets just at rush hour, imagine if half the area was bugging out! So, a trailer pull might have limitations, but once out on the highways or secondary roads or off road, the trailer wouldn't be much of an issue. 

Say a tornado wiped out my primary, I'd be taking my trailer to the secondary, 53 miles away door to door. 

I'd definitely load my Transalp dual sport bike.

I don't haul a lot in my truck or any vehicle, depends on the circumstances as to what gets loaded. No sense in buying gas to haul 500 pounds of stuff around all the time. Different if I were like Old Coot being a cert guy. 

What I do need to do is get better organized to reduce load time for being out longer term. My short term scat, I can be pulling on the road in about 3 minutes easily, that's from bed, only takes seconds to grab the bag and a couple items and get out the door. 

One thing I will say about the F-150, it has never ever (knock on wood) failed to start, turn the key and it fires like instantly, never had to do that raaah raaah, raaah, pump, pump thing, just turn the key.

Reminds me, my chain saw got trashed in water, gotta get another one and yes, I'd be taking it.


----------



## LincTex

OldCootHillbilly said:


> LincTex, fer some reason CERT from the top folks on down don't like chain saws! We don't even have em in the equipment trailers.


Sounds to me like they are trying to avoid any liability.

"Play it safe" keeps lawyers away but doesn't make life easier sometimes...


----------



## helicopter5472

Originally Posted by OldCootHillbilly View Post 
LincTex, fer some reason CERT from the top folks on down don't like chain saws! We don't even have em in the equipment trailers.

Why you carry Band-Aids and Bigger Band-Aids, and Body Bags.....


----------



## ONEOLDCHIEF

I came across a duece and a half, thinking about getting it. They are asking $5,000 for it, runs good just needs some cosmetic work... plus trailer...


----------



## OldCootHillbilly

We have standin agreements with all sorts a organizations an companies. That includes tree service companies to. If we need em, we call em an there on the way ta help. But yah, I thin it be a liability issue as much as anythin. Nother thin, we can count on nearby communities ta come in with big equipment an hep when needed. Were gettin ta the point where we all can work tagether without the old bickerin and fightin about jurisdiction an so fourth what was the norm years ago.

I got a whopping good first aid kit, just don't trust some folks with sharp thins er we might need the first aid kit er heaven fer bid the body bag!


----------



## Ozarker

ONEOLDCHIEF said:


> I came across a duece and a half, thinking about getting it. They are asking $5,000 for it, runs good just needs some cosmetic work... plus trailer...


Not a bad price but I found in getting these you pay for what you get, it sounds like a fixer but it could be just body work. Check out parts prices, what it costs to tear into that tranny and check the price of tires, they last forever but forever seems to sneak up on you, you can have more than $5K in tires! Wear hearing protection while driving too.


----------



## Tirediron

the major flaw that I see with a non civilian production military vehicle is a lack of local parts sources after the shtf . Military has/had long supply chains to keep stuff running. If 10 of your buddies have the same mil spec truck chances are you will have a parts pool, but if it is a loner, it might be hard to find parts for.

Chevrolets for instance had a common bell housing from 1955 to 1998 on V-8s and the inlines joined them in 1963.


----------



## OldCootHillbilly

Ifin it boils down ta where I need a military truck, it ain't far ta get my hands on bout a hundred of em with a full maintenance shop an repair fleet. It also ain't far ta several hundred thousand gallons a gas an diesel fuel to. I hope we never get ta that point.


----------



## Ozarker

I considered buying a duce'n half. but not long. Rag top is okay in good weather, they are loud, need hearing protection, not something to go through the drive through of park in a parking space, especially down town, mileage sucks, if you can't fix it, plan on pulling or having it towed to some diesel shop, $80+ an hour, limited parts and if you can get them, they don't come from O'Riely's so plan on shipping time. 
Obviously not a primary vehicle, maybe a third vehicle waiting for the excitement that doesn't ever come. 

In a city, you can get stuck on a street you can't get out of, I wheeled these things on four continents are they are great in the field, a PITA in urban areas on mule trails streets, mountains aren't fun either on switchbacks. 

I know we have folks here that have them, good for them, they may fit the dream or be real handy to have in rural areas. Great for camping, but a good pick up can take you camping. So, the real use you get out of them and your conversations with your insurance agent, I decided to pass. And, pick any spot in the country, we'll start off together, travel 25, 50, 100, 500 miles away and I'll beat you there. Heck, go three blocks and I'll wait on you. 

No, I can't carry the same load, but might pulling a trailer. Bottom line, they are very limited use vehicles. I did check on the tires, new ones at $700, ten tires, wow, hope that includes balancing. (We never balanced them, I know.)

Sorry, not for me, but if you really have a use for one they can be a great vehicle, I just can't justify, in reality, having one.

Now, an Abrams is another matter, an old APC might be fun, so long as you can find spare tracks. 

Guess it depends on where you think you're going, how long to get there and how conspicuous you'll be. 

But, they are macho, Rambo drove one!


----------

