Well, you guys seemed to like the 2-ton Beebe winch I posted about, so you’re gonna love this: It’s the 5-ton big brother to the 2-ton. I was cruising eBay looking for a beater one to use for parts and maybe get the correct handle. Naturally, I got sidetracked and started looking at all the winches that were up for sale. I came across this monster which was, at $550, the cheapest one in good condition that was for sale. I had discovered that while you may find these things online at reasonable prices (although often they are wildly unreasonable) the shipping absolutely queers the deal. Shipping? $372. I mentally shrugged and was about to move on when I noticed that the listing said this thing was sitting in Corvallis….well, thats about 40 miles down the road. I’ll drive 40 miles to save $372…especially if I can get a better deal. So I contacted the buyer and asked if they’d take $300 and could I come pick it up. Yes to both, it turned out. And, in fact, they were passing through Missoula on their way somewhere for the weekend, so they actually dropped it off here in town for me. Sweet!

How does it compare to the 2-ton? Well, for one thing, its more than twice as heavy. As for size, here you go:

I’m thinking of how best to use this thing. It weighs about 150# so portability is a bit of a challenge. What Im thinking of doing is mounting it on a flatbed cart and using that to haul it around. Chain the winch to a tree as an anchor and all the stresses and weight goes into the chains around the anchor and the platform takes no strain at all. Need to give it some more thought. 

But, its a really neat piece of machinery from ‘back in the day’. I’m looking forward to spooling some cable on it and seeing what kind of mayhem I can create with it.

One of the interesting things I’ve noticed since I acquired the Beta Site is that many people, people I know in real life and internet strangers, suddenly become invested in the adventure. I get a goodly amount of messages of people saying they are living vicariously through my experiences and that I’m doing something they’ve always wanted and haven’t gotten to do yet.

People who know me in ‘real life’, as it were, are also very happy for me. I get quite a few offers of people wanting to come up there and help, or to loan me equipment, etc, etc. One thing that a friend dropped off on ‘indefinite loan’ is this cast metal monster:

Its a Beebe Bros. 2-ton hand winch. You anchor this monster to a solid object (hence, the chains), play out the line to the object you want pulled, and start cranking. These things turn up sometimes at ranch and farm auctions. I like the idea of a hand-powered winch that I can use up at the Beta Site for moving heavy objects. Here’s some more detail on it.

This thing has some weight to it but there isn’t a part on it that isnt made of metal. This is one of those utilitarian objects built back when you built something like a tank and expected it last for generations.

My use for it is in moving a rock sled and some fallen timber around. Given my druthers, a lightweight portable ATV-style electric winch would be my first choice. But we don’t always get what we want and the apocalypse is certain to have a distinct lack of electricity. So…why not have something like this in the toolchest?

I’d like to thank the local person who dropped this thing in the back of my truck and said “theres no hurry in getting it back”. Much thanks.

The Missoula gun show was this weekend. Its always a fun time, and I often get to see people whom I almost never see the rest of the year.

Johnny Trochmann wasn’t there this year. Not sure why. Nonetheless, there was someone there selling the parachute flares I normally get from John. Picked up two dozen as well as some sealed up lifeboat first aid kits.

I also scored what I believe is the largest Hardigg/Pelican case you can fit in t pickup truck. I was walking through the parking lot and there was a pickup truck with three Hardigg/Pelican cases on it and an ote with a price and phone number. I texted the number, met with the guy, did the dance, and wound up with this monster to take to the Beta Site:

Easily holds two, maybe three call girls hookers.

Its four feet by five feet and about 32 inches tall. I could pull the foam and use it as a hot tub. It is, I think, the last word for storing a secreted stash of gear to be hidden in the woods somewhere, You could easily fit clothes, food, water, sleeping bag, tent, pack, radio, batteries, utensils, and everything else you’d need to hide out for a week or so.

Anything else acquired at the show? Guns? Well….one, yeah. Found a 5″ 1946 vintage Smith & Wesson M&P (pre Model 10) revolver in very good condition. I have a weakness for 5″ barrel pistols and the old timey Smiths are always well made guns.

A buddy of mine will be heading up to the Beta Site this week to level the area where I’ve decided to drop the 20′ conex. Tomorrow I need to go see the conex people, show them the maps and Google Earth views of the area and access, and then ask them if they think they can deliver that 20′ conex to where I want it. If so, we have a deal. Fingers crossed.

The gear survivalists leave lives on after them, and the tinfoil is often  interred with their bones……

Got a text message from a buddy the other day.  A person he knew passed, the wife wants to sell the house and move to be near the grandbabies, and the guy was a survivalist with a buncha gear…and everything must go. Would I be interested?

Well….yeah. I mean, I have a secondary location that needs to be stockpiled, right?

So whats on offer? Water storage tanks, smaller water containers, hand tools, holsters, water purifiers, kerosene heaters, camp stoves, coleman lanterns, kerosene, propane, radios, etc, etc. And, naturally, this potential money sink is taking place the same weekend as the big Missoula gun show. I foresee a lot of money leaving my hands this weekend. However, if theyre good deals then the short-term suffering may be worth it. I’ll be heading out there this evening after work, so we shall see what winds up coming back with me in the truck.

It’s always an interesting experience when a survivalist dies and you get the opportunity to go through their stuff. How much of a true believer were they? What was their particular flavor of apocalypse? Were they well-rounded or gun-heavy? You wind up trying to reconstruct a life by the things they left behind.

I like to think that if I die there won’t be a huge garage sale or anything like that simply because I’ve already made plans with the people in my life to make sure they get what I’ve accumulated. If I have to shuffle off this mortal coil, the last thing I want is all my gear winding up in a bargain bin somewhere. I want it going to the people I care about who can use it and, in some way, have a safer and more secure future as a sort of legacy from me.