This post will show you how to take something you can store and turn it into an approximation of something that does not store well. We will use coconut milk in a can to make “whipped cream” I call it Coconut Whipped Cream.
It is not exactly like whipped cream from milk, but it is very easy, gluten free, and good for those that do not like or cannot tolerate dairy
How to Make Coconut Whipped Cream
Step 1: Cool a “full fat” can of Coconut Milk for several hours to over night
Step 2: Scoop out all the thickened coconut cream, leaving the coconut water in the can. (Don’t waste the water, use it for something else.)
Step 3: add a little cinnamon and/OR vanilla to the coconut, and whip it in a mixing bowl until it turns foamy.
It took me some time to find the right brand of coconut milk, any brand with stabilizers won’t work because the stabilizers are designed to keep them from clumping.
I also find that I don’t like the taste of coconut – the taste is pretty mild, and may not bother most of you, but I didn’t really like it – even though I did think it was pretty neat.
This post is another article I made specifically to help me out more than to share information with you. I have a hard time remembering what colors of hot metal means, so I did some research and found several charts to explain. This one was the best for my purposes and came from stormthecastle.com, this is a very cool website and they have a lot of good information.
Blacksmithing Color Chart of Steel
The problem with Blacksmithing Color Chart of Steel like this is that they are slightly different for the different types of irons and iron alloys. Additionally (and more problematically) the colors are subjective and will be seen by the same person differently depending on conditions at the worksite (more or less light, overcast or clear conditions)
Additionally different types of metal act differently at the same heat color. Some have a short working temperature, which means that they only should be worked at medium to bright yellow. If it gets to orange yellow quit and take another heat. This is something you will have to either learn on your own or seek the advice of others that have worked this type steel.
Your eyes see colors differently then how others see and label the same color due to age, glasses, and life experiences. You are building YOUR heat standard for YOUR forge under YOUR smithy conditions.
If you really want/need to know what temperature a specific color represents, or what temperature the steel has been heated to, purchase a temperature measuring device called a pyrometer.
I would also suggest that you buy special wax pencils that can be applied to the steel that will melt at a specific temperature. (the wax is also useful when annealing brass for reloading purposes).
So realizing that this chart is just a guide and it does not supplant personal experience at your forge, under your conditions it is quite useful beginners like me.
Today I am taking some Sellier and Bellot 308 Match Ammunition to the range to try out in my CETME rifle.
Sellier and Bellot has been producing cartridge ammunition since 1825.
They produce ammunition using high quality components which is used by hunters, competition shooters, law enforcement agencies and militaries around the world.
This ammunition is new production, non-corrosive, in boxer primed, reloadable brass cases.
Here is the Technical Information on the rounds:
Caliber: 308 Winchester
Bullet Weight: 168 Grains
Bullet Style: Hollow Point Boat Tail
Case Type: Brass
Ballistics Information
Muzzle Velocity: 2628 fps
Muzzle Energy: 2577 ft. lbs.
I found this ammo to be good quality, but I had a problem with very hard primers. That is not always a problem and if you have a gun with a free floating firing pin, then it is a good thing, but if you are shooting a gun with a light firing pin spring you may have many failure to fire malfunctions with this ammo.
This .308 Math Ammunition is actually better than my ability to fire it, and after using it in other guns, I am starting to think that it may have been my gun – not for the group – that was my fault, but for the hard primers.
This post came from several places; Christina Ott and I talked about this on the podcast and I read about it in the Hand Sculpted House.
I think Cob construction has some great benefits to preppers and homesteaders, but before you decide that cob is the material you will build with you really ought to test your soil to see if it is appropriate for your land.
Cob should be a mixture of sand, clay, and fiber – It is my understanding that the best mix is 30-50% clay. Sand gives it form and the fiber gives it tensile strength, but it is the clay sticks it all together. This post shows an easy soil test for cob.
Cob Building Clay Test
First scrape away the top organic layer.
Next take a cup or two of soil from various potential house sites and from various depths. (Soil samples can vary a lot even a few feet from each other.)
Take out any stones or pebbles.
Put each sample in a quart jar, you should have about 1/3 of the jar full of broken up soil.
Label each jar
Next fill the jar 2/3 full with water and either some salt or a couple drops of dish soap.
Shake well. Very well – make your arms tired, switch off with someone, and then switch back and tire yourself out again.
Then let it settle. If your soil has sand, silt and clay in it, you’ll get three distinct layers.
The sand is the heaviest and will sink to the bottom as you watch.
The silt will settle next, and the clay will stay suspended in the water for a couple days then settle on top of the silt.
Finally, the best soil with have little silt and a lot of clay. As you can always add sand to get the proper consistency.
In today’s show we interview Steven Wright of 4 Walls International, Steven has earned B.S. in Biological Sciences with an emphasis in Evolution and Ecology from the University of California Riverside (2006) and is co-founder and executive director of 4 Walls International, a California based non-profit that uses abandoned tires and other trash to build sustainable housing in Tijuana Mexico.
The mission of 4 Walls is to to address and solve current and future environmental challenges while improving overall quality of human life.
Their program unites the community in the common goal of building dependable shelters that promote agricultural production and sustainability, we will encourage recovery of finite natural systems and promote education for a more environmentally conscious future.
With self-reliance as a goal, they have a lot in common with preppers – I have long said that our community can learn a lot from appropriate technology advocates, missionaries, and Non-governmental organizations working in third worlds.
If they can build sustainable communities in areas lacking resources and infrastructure, there is no reason why we cannot do the same here in America.
