What Will Be The Most Useful Tools To Have? (stoves, vegetables, livestock)

[ABQConvict]

All the people who reply to this thread with thoughtless and simplistic responses concerning their guns are funny. Their bullet ridden bodies will ring the urban scavenging sites while those who can make their future instead of sniffing around the decaying remains of the cities, like starving dogs and vultures, live in relative peace.

[Happy in Wyoming]

Originally Posted by ABQConvict

All the people who reply to this thread with thoughtless and simplistic responses concerning their guns are funny. Their bullet ridden bodies will ring the urban scavenging sites while those who can make their future instead of sniffing around the decaying remains of the cities, like starving dogs and vultures, live in relative peace.

After that excellent and powerful post, I'm almost embarassed to make my small contribution. But I do believe that a calculator will be of great value in any situation, whether it be figuring an exchange of gold for copper or figuring out how to most efficiently build something. Pen and paper are fine; however, speed is often desirable. Therefore, I suggest that item once seen hanging from the belt of every physical science or engineering major, to wit, the slide rule. Many here may not even know what they are, so here's the information. For the beginner, I suggest purchasing a book on their many uses. Both the slide rules and books are available on ebay; the best are made of bamboo, not metal.

Even if you have spent a great deal of time with a slide rule, the following should be of interest:

Slide rule - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[arctichomesteader]

Originally Posted by alphamale

Not very mobile.

I like the tank idea better!

Doesn't need to be too mobile when one's not a looter.

[lollykoko]

Thanks for the Wiki link on the slide rule. It's been 40 years since I used one daily, and did drafting with a set of triangles, compass, and pencils in various weights. I've kept the drawing skills fairly current, but how to use the slip stick has slipped my mind. I did acquire one recently, more as a curiosity to show my grandkids than thinking to use it as a tool. The instructions are bringing it all back to me.

[ChrisC]

Originally Posted by Happy in Wyoming

After that excellent and powerful post, I'm almost embarassed to make my small contribution. But I do believe that a calculator will be of great value in any situation, whether it be figuring an exchange of gold for copper or figuring out how to most efficiently build something. Pen and paper are fine; however, speed is often desirable. Therefore, I suggest that item once seen hanging from the belt of every physical science or engineering major, to wit, the slide rule. Many here may not even know what they are, so here's the information. For the beginner, I suggest purchasing a book on their many uses. Both the slide rules and books are available on ebay; the best are made of bamboo, not metal.

Even if you have spent a great deal of time with a slide rule, the following should be of interest:

Slide rule - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

That's an interesting point. Depending on the situation, engineer types could need to actually learn the computational math to build even relatively simple structures--even things like trusses, bridges, etc. Previously, builders have relied on their experience to guide them in keeping a structure safe (like a housewright, for instance, sizing timbers) and relatively simple computational techniques (classical structural analysis methods). The most recent crop of engineers rely on techniques so complicated that hand computation is nearly impossible (for instance, matrix methods for solving huge linear systems of equations). In many cases, engineers don't even know how to do (or couldn't do because of the extreme computational complexity) the math by hand any more. Even simple statics problems can require quite sophisticated computation that used to be done with tables and slide rules and logarithmic techniques. Now it just magically pops up on a screen after punching in a few numbers. It's almost to the point that a structural engineer is not a structural engineer without his/her software and computer. But even more disturbing is that many, many basic, essential services are provided by a skilled worker who is only skilled behind a computer screen and would have no clue when it came to "doing it by hand."

[lollykoko]

Machinery's' Handbook has all the equations you might need.

[Mac_Muz]

Arctic, I got a door stop in the form of a bronze gun, you could load with 1 pound of nuba' 4 machine screws. I have to rebuild the carriage(s). I got to mess abut with a like one that works. It was awesum

Mine currently sits is a garrison carriage much like a naval mount. I'ld like to build a galloper carriage, and also mount a oak carriage on a tobbagan fer winter threats.

[arctichomesteader]

Sounds like fun. A friend of mine has a hern cast iron/steel lined barrel for sale (no carriage), and I'm buying it this summer if I can afford it.

You can stuff all kinds of things in a cannon. I was thinking of trying a canister load with gravel...

[Mac_Muz]

Chain shot is where it's at

[arctichomesteader]

Oh yeah, who can forget the good old chain shot. There's nothing quite as effective as a chain with a couple metal balls on it hurling toward a bunch of thugs...