College Lockbox Prep

[YoungMilsurpGuy]

Hey everyone, Im a 21 year old college student and I dont have a huge ammount of $$$ but for now I have 10 gallons of water, a first aid kit, and a week of food

I recently have purchased a lockbox to keep my makarov in since I will have a roomate in the fall, and I have put 50 rounds of ammo in there as well as $100 and my passport. Now I was wondering if it would be smart to buy a few ounces of gold in fractional rounds both as an investment and also as a means of barter should something horrible happen. Im thinking smaller fractional coins for such a thing like 1/4 ounce

Anything else you guys would recommend putting in there.

 

[skulhedface]

If you're just starting out, I wouldn't worry about barter items at all right now. Personal hygiene products, bug out gear, more food (one week isn't much), training, paying off debt/starting to build wealth all of these would likely be of more use to you than gold. Gold is a poor investment, but good wealth storage. It won't make you wealthy. Since water takes up a lot of space and you have a few days worth on hand, might look into water purification and find a few less than obvious sources (sources others are likely to overlook) so you can resupply of the faucets ever stop working permanently.

Also make sure you know what side of legal that makarov is on campus. I'd hate to have to do without, but it's not worth your future and weapons aren't top priority 99% of the time. Good luck to you. Apartmentprepper.com may have some useful info for you as well since some of their content is geared towards prepping in a smaller living space

 

[YoungMilsurpGuy]

I live off campus

 

[The Bubba Effect]

I personally like silver eagles over gold. They are more recognized than fractional gold bars or tiny gold coins.

Do you have a good water filter? One of my best investments was a MSR microworks water filter. I have used that thing to filter really nasty water and had no problem. The Sawyer filters might be a better bargain for the buck, but I have faith in my Microworks (and you can take it apart and clean it). A good water filter gives you hundreds if not thousands of gallons of clean water. That is hard to beat.


Also consider putting a photo copy of your driver's license/LTCH/ any other important docs in your lock box.

Also consider a list of important phone numbers. How many phone numbers do you have memorized? If you lose your phone/it craps out, do you know all of the people you might want to call? How about including a trac phone in your box too?

 

[YoungMilsurpGuy]

I personally like silver eagles over gold. They are more recognized than fractional gold bars or tiny gold coins.

Do you have a good water filter? One of my best investments was a MSR microworks water filter. I have used that thing to filter really nasty water and had no problem. The Sawyer filters might be a better bargain for the buck, but I have faith in my Microworks (and you can take it apart and clean it). A good water filter gives you hundreds if not thousands of gallons of clean water. That is hard to beat.


Also consider putting a photo copy of your driver's license/LTCH/ any other important docs in your lock box.

Also consider a list of important phone numbers. How many phone numbers do you have memorized? If you lose your phone/it craps out, do you know all of the people you might want to call? How about including a trac phone in your box too?

A trac phone isnt a bad idea. Though how long do those things last with the minutes if you leave it sitting?

And I will look into a filter

 

[rhino]

Hey everyone, Im a 21 year old college student and I dont have a huge ammount of $$$ but for now I have 10 gallons of water, a first aid kit, and a week of food

I recently have purchased a lockbox to keep my makarov in since I will have a roomate in the fall, and I have put 50 rounds of ammo in there as well as $100 and my passport. Now I was wondering if it would be smart to buy a few ounces of gold in fractional rounds both as an investment and also as a means of barter should something horrible happen. Im thinking smaller fractional coins for such a thing like 1/4 ounce

Anything else you guys would recommend putting in there.

Pre-1964 dimes instead of gold
More cash if you can manage it
scan of all of your personal documents on a flash drive
backup knife
backup multi-tool
backup flashlight and batteries

 

[mkress77]

In a disaster situation shiny rocks will be of little value.

 

[KUJO2388]

A good knife would be helpful and possibly a multi-tool. Also training, training and more training.

 

[Woobie]

Second on the water purification. Lifestraws are cheap, and are not a bad option. You're a lot better off with them if you still have a way to boil. I also have a purifier that screws onto a Nalgene bottle, but it's about $100.

Think medical too. If you've got away to start hemorrhaging (that Makarov), you need a way to stop it. Two way ranges aren't a good place for wishful thinking. A good tourniquet or two, some pressure dressings, gauze, Benadryl, aspirin, a pill crusher, an oclusive dressing for a chest wound, butterfly band aids, alcohol, neosporin, and the knowledge to use them all under stress. I'm sure I'm forgetting something. An epi pen would be nice if you could get one.

Baby wipes.

Think about basic human needs, things we need on a daily basis. Water, food, sanitation, security, shelter, energy . In what ways can we prepare these things ahead of time? Now what can use to facilitate those needs? Tools, friends, communication, transportation. Being a college student, I'll bet you have a bike. That's a very efficient way to move yourself and very limited cargo.

Now if you have in your possession everything you need in the event that the supply chain and or services are interrupted, then you also have the best barter items availble. You can't eat gold, you can't wash your butt with it, and it doesn't pack a wound well.

Cash. Most disasters are short term, and the supply chains may be there, but the electricity to run your debit card will not.

Dont use a credit card to get this stuff. Budget $25 or $50 a month to accumulate what you need. The zombies may never rise to eat you, but debt always will.

I know not all of that will fit in a lockbox, but you'll know what needs to, and what can go in a tote.

 

[woowoo2]

College?
Condoms.....

 

[Enkrypter]

I'd go with a sawyer mini for the same price as a life straw and it is 1 million times more useful and functional. They also last a hell of a lot longer. I can't say enough good things about sawyer mini's.

I'm a guy who actually uses one one a regular basis and has hiked/backpacked with one for several days.

Also, roommates can be thieving b@stards. Lock your gear up tight and unless they are part of your strategy, they don't need to know. You'd be amazed at what a college kid would do for weed or pizza money.