PRN Episode #25 Interview Dr. Tom Cannon

PRN Episode #25 Interview Dr. Tom Cannon

PRN Episode #25 Interview Dr. Tom Cannon
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For today’s show David is interviewing an real-life rocket scientist, innovator, and Hall of Fame athlete Dr. Tom Cannon.

Dr. Cannon holds 21 different patents – from things such as the fiber optic connectors on the Patriot Missile system, to a bubble level device to help you perfect your golf swing – but today we talk about his ThriftyVac® invention.

Thirftyvac is a device that allows for the non-electric vacuum sealing of food using ordinary zip-lock type bags.

As with all innovators, Tom started with a problem, defined it, and then came up with a cost effective and sturdy solution.

The second I saw his video I knew I would back his project – Not because it is worth it (I think it is), but because it solves problems I have experienced and therefore makes my life easier.

Dr, Cannon‘s invention is currently being funded through Kickstarter.com, and for those not familiar Kickstarter is a way for innovators and producers to receive funds from actual consumers instead of venture capitalists – this way products either fail or succeed based upon what people actually want rather than how good a salesman you are.

The kickstarter project for the Thirftyvac is already successful, and Tom has raised enough to ensure his product will be produced.  So I am not having him on the show to help him, as much as to give you the opportunity to back the project so you can get the device and other backer rewards much sooner and at a lower cost than what will be available to the general public.

His project will close on July 10th at 10:56am CDT, after that you will have to wait for the Thirftyvac to be sold commercially – (early 2014) – backers are scheduled to get theirs before Christmas 2013.

Besides talking about the Thriftyvac, Tom also discusses his booklet “How to be an Innovator” which explains how to go from a problem to an idea, to a product – and then a business.

I approached Dr. Cannon because I believe that a non-electric vacuum sealer than is non-destructive to the bags (ziplock can be reused) is something the prepper community could use.  I have not received anything in return for my endorsement.

You can find more about the Thriftyvac here:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1066541019/thriftyvac

Watch Videos about it on Youtube:

The show is scheduled for Monday at 10pm central time at this link.

If you cannot listen on Monday, you can always download the podcast for listening at your own leisure.

How to Replace A Glock Trigger to Make it Smooth

 

Glock Smooth Trigger Replacement
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I do not believe in modifying carry guns outside of factory specifications. A small part of this is because of liability, but mostly it is because of the unknown consequences to reliability.

A firearm is a machine, and the weight of the parts of the gun are factored in with drag, inertia, spring weight, type of ammunition, and hundreds of other factors to create a gun that functions with the desired ratio or accuracy and reliability.

Every part has to work together and when you replace a part you are piddling with the whole. Tiny tolerances add up – and when you replace many parts you may end up with an unreliable gun. Since the most important factor in choosing a defensive handgun is reliability I don’t risk compounding tolerances.

The Smooth Trigger Was What Glock Designed

However, the modification in todays post is actually bringing the gun back to manufacturer’s specifications. When Gaston Glock created his pistol he built it with a smooth faced trigger, but due to some unfathomable reason the ATF has import points and for a gun to able to be imported it has to have enough points. The ATF considers a smooth trigger to be a combat trigger, and a ridged trigger to be a target trigger.

A full sized Glock has enough points to be imported with the original trigger, but the compact and sub-compact guns were one point short. Therefore Glock has to make a target trigger to meet the red tape.

Luckily, many (if not most) of Glock parts are interchangeable, and if you want a smooth trigger for your compact or sub compact all you need to do (in most cases) is to order the trigger from the full size gun in your caliber.

I have a Glock 19, so to get a smooth trigger I just ordered the Glock 17 trigger and swapped them.  It only cost me a few dollars and a couple minutes to change the feel of my trigger pull.

Now this does nothing to change the weight, take up, or break of the action.

If only changes the feel of the trigger on your finger. However if you are going to a high round count school where you will spend 8 hours a day on the range shooting hundreds or thousands of rounds you will feel a difference, and you will be thankful you made the switch. Other than that it is really a personal preference thing and just something nice to know.

The specifics of how to do this can be found here.

Organize Fishing Hooks With Safety Pins

Organize Fishing Hooks With Safety Pins

Organize Fishing Hooks With Safety Pins
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This simple project of learning to organize fishing hooks with safety pins takes less than a minute, and can make your fishing trips much less stressful.

Simply sort your fishhooks by type, and then run a safety pin through the hook’s eye.

This not only keeps your fishhooks sorted, keeps them in place, and it gives you a reason to have one of the greatest prepper tools (the safety pin) in your tackle box.

This has saved my tackle box from turning into a rats nest of mixed junk.  It is a simple little thing, but its the little things that help.  Besides, with all the safety pins now in your fishing gear you have “survival gear” also – you never know how useful a safety pin is until you need one and don’t have it.

As a bonus tip for reading how to organize fishing hooks with safety pins, I will tell you that for years I was highly unsuccessful at catching fish and then I was told I use too big of a hook.  The smaller the hook the more fish you will catch.  Sounds simple right….

Now I am just a moderately unsuccessful fisherman, but that is because I keep loosing lures to the trees above me…

I keep trying to learn more about fishing, as my son really likes it, I look up information on fishing all the time, I just found this post on types of fishing poles.

Using the Survival Still with a Rocket Stove

 

Gear Review: Survival Still Rocket Stove
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When it comes to survival gear I demand that no matter what the other selling points are, if I am going to stake my life on it, it has to work every time. If I don’t get a “do-over” then my gear doesn’t get excuses made for it.

That is one thing about the survival still that makes me not only keep one for myself.

I love that the survival still works no matter what is the heat source.  If you can put a pot on it and boil water the still will purify it.

Today we use a homemade rocket stove powered with scraps of wood and twigs picket up from the ground.

The small twigs and inelegant build of the actual stove caused the still to work slower than normal.  However, it was not a flaw of the stove, but more a flaw of the builder (me).

Actually the design came in quite useful as I got mud all over the inside of the still and since the survival still is designed to physically separate the dirty water from the pure steam my fumbling did not cause any problems.

I know that in the short term there are cheaper alternatives to this stove, but they all will wear out, be used up, or require replacement while the stainless steel survival stove will keep putting out pure water every day for at least one lifetime.

PRN Episode #24 Interview Glen Meador

PRN Episode #24 Interview Glen Meador

PRN Episode #24 Interview Glen Meador
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Last week’s show was about the basics.  This week we will talk about water purification with one of the most knowledgeable subject matter experts in the business.

Glen Meador is the inventor of the Survival Still.  He comes from a family that runs one of the best water distillation companies in the world.  Their products supply embassies worldwide with pure water free of any contamination.

Glen took his knowledge of water purification and used it to design a non-electric, no moving part water distiller that can function anywhere.

I personally own one.  You may have seen my videos using it on rocket stoves, campfires, charcoal grills, and kitchen stoves.

I have purified urine, salt water, pond water, muddy water, and have even pulled pure water from sweet tea and juice just to see what would happen.

We talk about the mechanics of water, types of contaminates, methods of purification, the FEMA and Red Cross purification suggestions, and of course the survival still itself.

You can learn more about the survival still at survivalstill.com.  Alternatively, on my website https://www.tngun.com/survival-still-review/  I used his device to purify all manner of contaminated water and I used multiple methods of heat.

You can download the episode at this link.