TSHTF Vehicle
 

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Where can I buy one?

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Those things are bad! I would love to buy one.

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High center of gravity. Seems like it could tip sideways easily on grade. Otherwise impressive.

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I guess my RX-7 won't be suitable for TSHTF circumstances :bear_cry: :Sorry:

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I'm so glad DARPA's looking at these cool machines :censored:

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http://howeandhowe.com/ripics/Rip-pics/rip-11web.jpg

Coming soon to a sheriff's department near you

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buff01, that looks like my 84; same color, rims, etc. Looks like you are running 60 series tires too!

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Check out MatTracks...

http://www.mattracks.com/

http://www.mattracks.com/assets/images/kodiakhome2.jpg

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hoot-- I've only had this one for about a year, and those are the tires that came on it! I'm pondering whether to a) sell it or b) throw some money at it.

It's my 4th RX-7 and my umpteenth car in the last 10 years. I'm a sicko.

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Wonder what one of those would cost???

Can I get a .50 Cal mounted on top??

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Thats some serious climbing ability.

E-A

http://www.mattracks.com/assets/images/H2_home.jpg

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It doesn't look like you'll get any decent mileage out of that thing. For a TSHTF scenario mileage is king.

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If you are not already where you want to be when it hits the fan, most likely you will never get there.

Live in a decent sized city? Ever look at your highway grid on a map? See that outer-loop around your town? It is a citizen containment corridor. About one hour after tshtf, it will be locked down. How ya gonna get outa Dodge then?

About the most versatile vehicles I've ever seen are on the turtleexpedition.com pages. A diesel 4x4 truck with camper, maybe pulling a short trailer can take you anywhere there isn't swamp.

About the best deal for the money when it comes to a bug-out vehicle, for those with no place to bug-out-to, is an older class C motorhome or van conversion. Betcha for under $3k you can find one with low miles in your paper right now, or for sure in the penny/green sheets. Might need a bit of work, but that's how you get to know how to fix it when the chips are down. A house on wheels that will carry a ton or two of gear, go almost anywhere and attract little attention is a Martha goodthing.

Bugging-out, first requires getting out. Going camping/RV style attracts little attention, especially if your rig is not some $1m Prevost with a LookAtMe paintjob.

A dodge cummins 12v diesel can deliver 24mpg maybe more and still carry a ton of gear. Add a 8k rated trailer loaded to the max and you still get 17mpg maybe better if you aren't crossing the Continental Divide. Likely you can find a 4x4 hd 12v truck for $6K or thereabouts. The running gear, motor and such are perpetually rebuildable. Rebuild the transmission and inspect motor, axles and suspension and you are good to go. 700 plus mile range on one tank of fuel. Put in a saddle tank and cross the continent w/o filling up.

Of course, all your plans will be for nought if you don't get out of the starting gate... Best to bug out before you need to. If you are out of the city and supplied & ready, you might have a chance.

Good luck.

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buff01 That one looks to be in better shape than mine, just missing the rear side rubber molding. To bad they made about a half million of them and they aren't very collectable yet. Wonder if I guy could get one of those rotory engines to run on wood or coal smoke like the Germans did in WWII to some of their equipment. Heard that the rotorys are not very fussy about fuel.

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As money matters suggested...get a motorhome if you don't have a rural getaway. With a motorhome you can keep things together a lot longer than you could living out of a car or truck.

My rig hold 90 gallons of diesel, 60 gallons of propane, and 100 gallons of fresh water...plus it is equipped with solar panels and inverter/charger. I could pull an enclosed trailer loaded with preps and hang on a long time.

Plus, if you show up at a friends or relatives rural place with your own self contained living situation with supplies...you would be welcomed and not be a burden.

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hoot--

The company I work for has converted some rotaries to run on nat gas, and we're working on a diesel version. The factory Mazda (non-turbo) engine runs best on crappy gas, 87 or even lower. Unfortunately they are not very fuel efficient though.

PS. I have the molding, just haven't stuck it back on yet :)

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You could go half and half...

http://www.military-collections.com/.../HalfTrack.jpg

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I say get a good motorcycle and a good back pack loaded with ammo, knives, matches and guns. Rifle strapped to bike. Head to the hills. Easiest and fastest way to get out of a locked down city. I dont worry much about food and water in that situation, guns and ammo will get you all the food you need in the hills. Boiled stream water works fine. The most important thing in the bug out is to GET OUT AND GET OUT FAST.

A good running motorcycle is the best and only answer to the bug out situation in my opinion. You dont need to worry about roads, just make a straight beeline to the nearest wilderness area, staying OFF ROADS is the answer.

If you can shoot your gun well, you will find plenty of wildflife to provide you with food, I would also strongly encourage you to learn what plants are edible in your region beforehand. 90% of all natural growth can be eaten, its the 10% that cant be, that you want to be aware of. Plenty of food all around us.

If you plan a your bug out right at your home or compound, sure, load up on food, water etc, but if you plan to ditch at the first sign of chaos, forget preps, get a bike, a backpack, load it with your ammo and weapons, matches and a nice pot for boiling water, and get OUT FAST.

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If you already had caches of food, fuel and supplies in a few possible bug-out
locations, a motorcycle is the way to go.
If you ever seen massive evacuations in a natural disaster, our roadways
become a parking lot. Motorhomes will be nice to live in for a few days
in the middle of the parking lot where everyone else has run out of gas.
Motorcycles only need 2 1/2 to 3 feet of width to go through or around traffic.
They just can't carry enough supplies to survive, pulling a little trailer behind them negates the mobility advantage.

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Of course, some people are better packers than me and can pull off the loaded down two wheeled escape vehicle :clap2:
http://murgatroid42.smugmug.com/photos/15089104-M.jpg

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What would cause you to want to bug out?
Just curious about the different scernarios you might be considering.
Nuclear? Nothing will be running in the event of a nuke.
Biological? The gubmint will try and contain it all they can and that means letting noone in or out until they go through a decontamination process.

What else?

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There are two different levels of preparedness needed for when TSHTF. One is for surviving a totalitarian takeover or a post-nuclear war situation. For that the dirt bike is king. Mobility and cover are the most important factors, not total weight. Ammo is the only coin. Sleeping bag, dome tent, mini-water purifier. Assume a total weight of about 80 pounds per bike/person. That's about the most that can be carried around on your back if need be. You'll need the mobility to stay free. The other scenario is for a general breakdown in services where you can stay put in a rural area if you have a well, rifles, and honorable neighbors. A jeep to get out if it get bad enough. BTW, if your vehicles have the usual electronic ignitions, expect the EMP pulse in a nuclear event to render them worthless. Only a mechanical ignition would start after an EMP pulse. A jeep converted to run on 100% ethanol with a mechanical ignition would be the ultimate...

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How about this? http://www.snowcrest.net/fox/landmaster/pics/10.jpg
I remember the movie this thing was in! Im really dating myself now.
http://www.snowcrest.net/fox/landmaster/

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A diesel would be the ultimate, because scrounging fuel would be easier; heating oil, veggie oil, even some quickly filtered fryer oil out back of a restaurant (though I wouldn't want to run on it long). Ethanol still has to be distilled; that, and it's propensity for attracting water, make it unsuitable for uncertain fuel replenishment.

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I would take a Toyota as my escape vehicle. Actually, that movie gave me horrible nightmares as a child and it was one of the first movies I ever saw and I just had a flashback.

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I had horrible nightmares from it too, from the acting.:haha:

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dude, i hid under my bed for weeks on end. :confused_ma:

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Speaking of beds, my bed on 40 sustainable acres is my preferred "vehicle" of survival. I sure do hope I'm home or within walking distance when the SHTF as I suspect that roads and autos will be pretty useless for a time.

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Sorry, I already got me my SHTF vehicle....the last of the V8 Interceptors!

http://www.idternet.co.uk/images/memax.jpg

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Do you have a pic or a link to a similar vehicle to yours?

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LESSON LEARNED:

Have as bugout vehicle you can live in or else you are a REFUGEE. In KATRINA those who did not have a set place to go like a SECOND HOME or SUMMER CAMP learned this lesson, you will be directed to the nearest FEMA/GOVERNMENT camp. Since I have an RV, my options were open and I was allowed to park anywhere! I got to Rayne, LA just west of Lafayette using the back roads ans was set up with Electricity, Water and Sewer FOR FREE. I had my father-in-law with me who was dying of Lung Cancer as well as my family so after I saw the living conditions in the CAJUNDOME and RAYNE CIVIC CENTER which was used as a processing area for REFUGEES from NEW ORLEANS, I was glad to be set up in a secure area. FT POLK was crowded with REFUGEES and response folks and the forward base was set up to handle what might happen.

We stayed put for 9 days awaiting an all clear and resumption of Electrical Services in my area, while I was able to return to the New Orleans Environs in an official capacity, my family had a safe refuge guarded by the National Guard!

Point being: Coose you BOV carefully, you may have to live out of it and while a tent is fine for warm weather, if something happens in the cold months, living out of a tent could bring you untold misery.

If you use a 4WD SUV as your BOV, have some where to go, be welcomed and self sufficient. Have rural Redoubt and the trick is to get there.

Here is the long and short of BUGGING OUT:

1. Have a workable place to go
A. Rural Home/FAMILY
B. Plan Route with alternates (every sheepie used the Interstates-DUH)
C. Have Plenty of FOOD with you or else your welcome could be short.
D. Carry enough money with you in CASH, do not use PMs unless
absolutely needed.

2. What may 6 hours may take a week
A. Drive only in daytime
B. Pay Attention
C. Do Not Flaunt anything, look sheepie, not be sheepie

3. Establish your new digs out of the way
A. Nobody likes Refugees, Aunt Alice may be kind but not stupid.
B. Keep a low profile, don not flaunt money or guns, both attract
attention.
C. Pull your weight

4. Your RV is now your home, you have a home, don't worry, be happy.

My rig is a 1 ton dually diesel with a fifthwheel, able to live off the grid! Solar Panels on top!

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But what if you can't help flaunting it? My lovely BOV vacationing in the mountains of southern Mexico. I know...I know...you're all jealous. Note the mountain of gear in the back. She was carrying 5 adults, 3000 feet of rope, jerry cans of gas and water, and expedition and camping gear/supplies for 5 people x 1+ month. Downside: Federale magnet. Upside: Federales visibly paled at mountain of muddy gear. Never searched an inch of it on that trip.

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Hello Maddie...

LOL at the Federales and the muddy gear...!
When I used to mountain climb and take extended ventures such as this...
I would always place a few "choice" pieces of undergarments on the top of the bag when coming back through customs...if you know what I mean and I think you do...:wink:

Regards,
Haystackneedle

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The main reason I don't flaunt it, FEDERALES, LOCALISTAS y personas muy malos. Southern Mexico? Estado de Oaxaca or Chiapas? Fue un place de actividad de los guerillos de Senor Carlos de anos pasados, NO?

The dirty underwear trick, gross but effective.

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Here is a link to Turtle Expedition vehicle #4:
http://www.turtleexpedition.com/vehicles/turtle4.php

These guys have been some pretty incredible places, like driving across Siberia!

From what I have seen my 12v Cummins diesel perform, a 4x4 3/4 or 1 ton Dodge Ram is the finest vehicle on the planet. I owned a `96 F350 4x4 Crew Cab w/Powerstroke Turbo and it hauled a 14' trailer weighing 7500lbs like it was nothing. Doing 80mph on the Interstate, like it wasn't there, but the Dodge hauled a bigger load and gets better fuel mileage; as high as 24 with a full passenger load and a full bed of 500lbs or more. Of course, the Dodge has a full-blown Banks Stinger and 4" exhaust system which the PS did not have.

If I was going to bug out, I would add a 100+ gallon reserve tank in the bed. This would give me a range of about 2700 miles before the fuel ran out. I'd get a lightweight camper shell and build a frame around the tank for storage. Insulate the thing super well and pull a dual axle trailer.

Your real concern in a shtf situation is self-sufficiency; staying hydrated, fed, warm & dry, in a defensible location.

Yeah, you can pull a home on wheels Grande Teton or some other huge 5th wheeler, but... Damn they are hard to handle off the pavement. Ruggedness becomes a factor. A motorhome is built on a truck chassis. Huge frame members and axles to take weight and movement. A 5th wheel trailer is simply not engineered to haul all over Timbuktu. Fiberglass is a material I am leery of. My motorhome is aluminum skinned, but unless the ocean tides are approaching we will not be bugging out.

My theory is you take all the food, tools and gear you think you might ever need to where your going to relo to.

Maybe you see the writing on the wall, now?
I think if you aren't already relocated, you might have an hour to get out of town once it is apparently Time To Go.

I hope you are on your "extended vacation" or taking some sick-leave, already. Unless you make a command decision about bugging out, you likely won't make it.

God Bless us all and enable us to allow HIM to make our way.

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hystckndle, I do the same thing, except I usually pack a loose bunch of tampons on the top. On one trip the Federales inspected my truck while pretty much the whole village gathered around to watch (3 women traveling alone through the mountains at night was apparently the most excitement they'd had in months). El jefe found a daypack behind the seat of my truck and, squeezing it, surely thought he'd found drugs. With a huge flourish for the townspeople, he dramatically raised the pack high enough for all to see, ripped open the zipper, and was promptly showered with tampons and toilet paper. :haha::haha: Inspection over.

CajunCoin, the pictures were taken in northern Oaxaca. Some of the deepest caves in the world are down there. I've been lucky enough never to have had a really bad experience with the Federales. Some of my friends have had seroius problems with them, though, including being kidnapped and robbed by them. The Federales actually cleaned up their act considerably for a few years in the early 90s, but they're back to their old ways these days. Actually, I hear they're far worse, but I no longer drive down there. Too many problems, especially since the opium trade has moved into Chiapas. Mexican cops are always a problem.

I stayed out of Chiapas, but none of my friends ever had trouble with the guerillas in Chiapas, nor did my sister, who took a trip down there by herself when the Zapatista were in their heyday. It was only when they started growing poppies down there and banditry became frequent that the problems started.

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Or if you are a parent.... dirty DIAPERS! :D

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Amen, brother.

For Alaska, the situation is different than say Louisiana, but you have the right idea, I perfer a small towable camper with the springs reversed for my bug out and the wifey wants here mini condo, but here both are workable, you are right about getting off the road, need something you can drag! A 20 ft'er is better than a 40ft'er in that respect!

I am stocked in the camper with a months supply of MREs, and I can set the other stuff on the drag trailer if needed!

Here, Humberto grew from a group of thunder clouds to a Huricane in less than 24 HRS, so SEMPER VIGILANTIS. BE PREPARED.

The concern about having a practical shelter, warm place to eat, sleep, s**t, shower and shave as well as a defendable area is a primary concern.

Each TSHF is different and everyone should plann accordinly.

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Great story, Maddie, having some feminity at the house, I have been sent out more than once on errands of mercy:no_ma: nothing makes the common male more haunte (CAJUN FOR EMBARRASED) than THAT ERRAND to purchase feminine products!

We go down to Satillo, Coahuila and I usually cross in the morning at first daylight, get the paperwork:thumpdown in order along with visas, car permit for RV and god knows whatelse. CAN YOU SAY MORDIDA! Travel only in the daytime and get to Saltillo about 5 PM! We have some Mexican friends down there and the stories about the cops are legend, anybody on this board that thinks they want to bug out down South doesn't have a clue. Nice Folks, but the corruption is everywhere! However speaking spanish and smiles gets you almost anywhere. There is usually a checkpoint operated by the military between Monterey, NL and Saltillo, COAH that is manned by weekend soldiers, young boys doing their reserve thing. They marvel at the Camper and the Female bric a brac (Teenage Daughters), wonder about the Ham Radio Equipment but after cold cokes are passed out and everything is in order, I am free to go. Military types understand each other, they are trying to stem the flow of drugs, and the enlisted men are interested in getting phone numbers!:s9: My daughters have spent some time in Mexico (several summers) so Spanish along with their French (we are Acadiens "CAJUNS") so they two cultures are quite similar. We help out a poor padre with a church mission effort in Saltillo and that is our connection to Mexico!

Remeber to get your LIBERTADS and OROS en Mexico, Monedas de Plata estan my facil ha obtenido aqui.

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Here's a link to a dealer that specializes in the brand I have, Foretravel. I don't necessarily recommend these type of coaches because most of them are very large and expensive.

http://www.motorhomesoftexas.com/sal...ned_inventory/

http://www.motorhomesoftexas.com/sales/web_inventory/

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Si. Es importante sonreir y demonstrar respecto tambien. En areas rurales, hacer un esfuerzo de aprendar la lengua local. Even learning a few words of Nauhautl or Mazateca shows that you respect them (plus, a lot of the children don't know Spanish well yet, and some of the older women never learned it). They're often keenly aware that Americans and wealthier Mexicans tend to look down on them, especially the campesinos.

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Es la Verdad. C'est la sverier. Its the truth. Learn the language, even a few words like please and Thank You will go a long ways.