BEST BARTER ITEMS IF THE GRID GOES DOWN LONG TERM

Real trading will be based On ‘long term’ items. Seeds, not food. Arrows, not ammo. Tools, not filters. See, once the ‘short duration expendables’ are consumed, you won’t be re-supplying, you’ll be making your own or doing without. From turning your own arrow shafts, to cutting arrowheads from old license plates; from building filtration weirs to filter water, to needing copper tubing to make ‘wood-fired-water-heaters’.

Knowledge and durable supplies (axes, hammers, spoke shaves, saw blades, etc.) will be the real money. He who has stocked dozens of saw blades will be king. He who sits on a case of toilet paper will be sad he didn’t learn how to replace it with what they used 200 years ago, instead (FYI, toilet paper is only about a 100-year old concept – ask yourself, what did they use before then, and get a real clue – because THAT is VERY valuable in the long term!)

So, forget stocking for that 2-week event, it’s not that difficult. The hard part is stocking for the total paradigm shift, that few remember how to do much of. You won’t be making your own saw blades anytime soon. Now, ask yourself, what else will you NOT be making, that you need to learn how to make, or replace with older technology, before you need it (or need to trade it).

The best barter items list would look like this:

• 1.Tools (saw blades, hatchets, axe heads, hammer heads – many sourceable from auctions, garage sales, etc.)
• 2. A simple still (or the components to assemble one), as this will make your alcohol for drinking, cleaning, medical use, etc. (don’t forget to learn how to make the corn mash itself, or to have extra parts put back)
• 3. Learn to make alternative bows (PVC bows are excellent, weather-proof), and how to turn arrow shafts, as well as how to lace and tie bowstrings – not all string will suffice for it – dacron works well
• 4. Learn to make filtration weirs for water. Forget store filtration units, understand how rain barrels work, how to purify water with boiling, and how settlement works to remove metals. Extra barrels are highly tradeable.
• 5. Forget trading foods, long-term you will have far more demand for trading seeds. Those with the most-seeds and largest fresh selection will draw the best trades.
• 6. Long-term storable items are great (salt, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, some cheeses, dehydrated or cured foods possibly). He who can build a primitive dehydrator, and had the parts to trade to others, will be king. Dried beans and salt-cured hams can last 24 months, these will be in demand as well. Jerky was used and looked-at differently 200 years ago (the jerky was used as a stew meat with the salt extracted to flavor soups and stews – knowing this extends the use of your stocks – and IS TRADEABLE INFORMATION!)
• 7. Survival information is valuable, and in a time when it is desperately needed, being able to have a few copies of condensed information on-hand and barter-ready will be very valuable, indeed. Type up and print a dozen copies of general information that others may not readily have.
• 8. Fire-making will ALWAYS be critical, and having a dozen extra ferroceramic rods and striking steels will be worth their weight in gold, if it all goes south.
• 9. Enough can’t be said for water containers. Seems simple now, but if things go wrong, one of the hardest things to usually find is a good canteen or water jug. Put enough back for yourself, but put more back for trade. The harder to break, the better. I’ve got a dozen military 1-qt canteens laying around here than there, in a pinch, I have 2-3 I’ll use, but the rest can be had – for a price.
• 10. Everyone needs a warm place to sleep. Funny thing is, linens wear out pretty fast – as do blankets. A good blanket is like a good coat. We’ve all planned for clothes (I hope), but when’s the last time you heard someone brag about having a couple of good wool blankets put back? I’ve got two good wool blankets. I paid $40 each for them. Let the power go out, in November, and you not have one. I don’t know how much you’re willing to pay for them, but I know what you’re going to trade me for them, if you don’t want to freeze at night. I won’t trade both at all, but I’ll be looking for what would be several thousand dollars worth of trade for the one I can ‘spare’.

See, barter comes down to how desperate (or how much does your life depend on it) you are, as to how critical it really is to have for barter. Can you live without toilet paper, versus that last wool blanket? THIS is how barter REALLY works.

Barter is far scarier than you can even understand, if you are UNABLE to assess ‘critical need’ from ‘whimsy want’ right now. Fire, water, shelter, warmth – yeah, you’re going to pay dearly for what you didn’t see fit to pack now. Think about critical needs, before you think all that ammo is so important. I bet my wool blanket is worth AT LEAST all of your ammo, if you’re cold and we’re both armed. Again, don’t plan on thuggery, stock what you can’t afford to trade for. Have extras to trade yourself, in regards to those critical things we MUST have.

Toilet paper? LOL, Davey Crockett didn’t have toilet paper and he did just fine. HE DID have a weapon, a knife, a fire flint, a good blanket, and good clothes and boots. He traded horses, burros, saddles and whiskey. Take a 3-year, 1,000 mile trip in your mind, and imagine only meeting others on the road like yourself. Each packed differently, not all are nice, not all are passive. Now, prepare for the trip in your mind and take it. What do you see yourself needing, each day, as the seasons change, as the environment changes, and as bad and good people cross your path.

Once again, toilet paper is like a good cigar or stick of chewing gum. It might give you ‘modern comfort’, but there are far more important things you need first.

Did you pack them?

By BioPrepper

Six Kinds of Currency That Might Emerge after the Collapse

Among preppers, there is a common argument between those who buy gold and those who don’t. On the one hand, gold has been used as money for thousands of years. It wouldn’t be a stretch of logic to assume that if our current monetary system falls apart, something like gold might pick up the slack.

But, on the other hand, gold by itself can’t help you survive. “You can’t eat gold” is a common saying on the other side of the debate, and I can’t disagree.

I would argue though, that it depends on how severe the collapse is. If we’re talking about an economic collapse, I believe gold will become very valuable. After the Greek economy contracted several years ago, gold was being sold on the streets of Athens for more than double its spot price.

However, if we’re facing a truly devastating event, something that may kill millions and take decades recover from like a nuclear war or an EMP strike, then things like gold may go on the back burner for a while. It’ll still have some value, but when survival consumes your every thought, your priorities tend to change.

So if you want an idea of what items may be used as currency when the grid goes down, it would be wise to look into history to see what our ancestors used for bartering. These people lived their entire lives with a standard of living that was far lower than ours, and the commodities they prized were essential to their survival. If you want to call yourself “rich” after the collapse, here’s what you can look forward to accumulating.

Salt

Water often gets all the praise for being so essential to our survival, while salt gets to play second fiddle. In reality, salt is almost as important to our well-being as food and water. Nowadays salt can be had for a few dollars, but there was a time when it was worth its weight in gold, and was used as currency to pay Roman Soldiers. Not only was it valued for its health benefits, but it could be used to preserve food and cleanse wounds. Anywhere in the United States that is far away from the ocean will probably see the price of salt skyrocket after the collapse.

Fur pelts

During the Middle Ages, squirrel pelts became a common unit of exchange among the lower classes in Russia, and the Czarist government sometimes demanded their taxes be paid in pelts. In Finland the term for money (raha) used to be synonymous with “squirrel skin”, a throwback to when pelts were used as legal tender. And in the colonial New England, beaver pelts became so prized that they could be used in lieu of money.

There’s really no mystery behind this. While clothing is relatively cheap nowadays, before the industrial revolution a good jacket could set you back. And in places like Canada, New England, and Northern Europe, the clothes you wore were a matter of survival. So holding a handful of beaver pelts might as well have been a wad of cash.

Tobacco

While tobacco has likely been used for trade among Native Americans for centuries before the Europeans arrived, by the 17th century it was practically an official currency of colonial America. In modern times, it’s frequently used as currency in American prisons, and its portability and addictive nature makes tobacco a hot commodity almost anywhere in the world. After the collapse, it would be safe to assume that a pack of cigarettes will go a long way in any barter situation.

Knives

One of the strangest stories in the history of currency, involves a prince from ancient China. He was running low on funds for his army, and gave his soldiers permission to trade their knives with the local villagers for supplies. The knives became so popular among the people, that it soon became a standard form of payment for the next 400 years.

It’s easy to see why. Knives fit the profile of a good currency. They are portable, durable, and they have intrinsic value(especially for a population that is struggling to survive). It wouldn’t be surprising to see knives become a part of everyday transactions after the collapse.

Alcohol

During America’s colonial period, it was common practice to reward slaves with alcohol. However, even free men expected more than just pennies and silver for their hard work. Paying laborers beer in addition to money was considered customary.

However, if the grid goes down tomorrow it’s the hard stuff that would become highly sought after. It has a much higher shelf life than most beers, and is far more useful. Liquor can be easily rendered to its purest state, where it can then be used for fuel, food preservation, and for disinfecting wounds. In addition, alcohol is fairly portable, divisible, and durable, making it a great stand-in for modern currency.

Herbs and Spices

Much like salt, peppercorns used to be far more far more valuable than they are today, and were used as currency for centuries. No matter where you were in the known world, having a sack full of pepper could buy shelter, clothes, and food.

In South America, Cocoa beans were frequently used in trade, and cultivation of the plant was often suppressed by the Spanish to keep its price high. And in China, tea leaves were usually compressed into bricks which made them far more durable for long distance trading with their neighbors.

However, these items aren’t as valuable in modern times, and few would argue that these plants are essential to human survival. They are mere luxuries. If our modern world were to fall apart though, there is one plant that will likely become an essential part of everyday trading. That plant is marijuana.

Not only has it been recognized for it’s medicinal and pain relieving properties, but its hemp fibers can be used to make rope, clothing, paper, and fuel; and the seeds can be eaten for their protein. In Colonial times, hemp was so important to the British government that farmers were forced to set aside a small percentage of their farms for growing it. The plant was so valuable that it could be used to pay to your taxes. So if there’s one item on this list that may end up being the survival currency of the future, then I suspect marijuana is the strongest contender

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