Storm Preps Here....

storm preps here......


With a view to storm preps...here in Virginia...I have been checking my supply of rope for tying down items in my yard...what cannot be put into the garage..

Also at work....just in case...I charged up by Baofeng walkie talkie...and spare batteries.. Also charged up my Tecsun Model 368 Short wave set and it's spare rechargeable batteries..

Amazon.com: Tecsun Digital PL368 AM/FM/LW/SW Worldband Radio with Single Side Band Receiver (Black) : Electronics



And so too will I be doing here at home this weekend Vehicles will be topped off with fuel a is my weekly habit not to let them get below half a tank....l Also topping off my cans for my scooters.

Also my home based Baofeng walkie talkies...charged up.


Plan to check out my grocery list...and top off in that arena as well.

Need also to take inventory of prescription meds......very important should a lengthy shutdown of electricity take place.


Cash on hand is a no brainer....and this, to me, is one of the biggest flaws of going to digital currency.


Nonetheless...I need to get off my donkey and round out these storm preps....though most of them are in place..Sat...but need to be checked up on....just in case...


Need to know and be more precisely abreast of the current status of my ship...so to speak..

This is a 3 day weekend...a good time for this to take place,,,


My on Ishmaelite .02,
Watcherchris

 

Keeping an eye out on the Atlantic storm situation ......definitely....

Watcherchris
Not an Ishmaelite.

 

Some may think me a rope nut. My wife sure does.

Got it from helping my dad. He used to transport pool tables, jukeboxes, gambling equipment, ... nightspot entertainment equipment in his pickup. It had big steel-pipe rails and a hydraulic lift gate. To tie-off these machines, he used half-inch tar-sealed manila rope (good to use gloves, the manila jags you and the tar gets into your skin). Manila doesn't stretch. He told me to never use nylon rope due to it always stretching. A 4' x 8' slate pool table (1' thick slate) weighs SO much that the rope holding it must never stretch one bit at all. As a kid, I learned varying types of knots to cinch-down (tighten massively) very heavy loads. We'd tie-off to the heavy-duty steal rails. These heavy items can never be allowed to move in the back of a truck. We'd use shipping rugs to throw over equipment so that the manila ropes wouldn't burn them. If manila slides, it will put burn marks on wood. It will rip your skin.

Manila must be tarred/oiled else it will soak up water and then rot. Classic manila is made of Philippine hemp. There's synthetic hemp rope. I don't know anything about that material nor its behavior under stress. I'd have to go read about it.

Oh and this, manila / hemp is stronger than jute. I read that sometimes manufacturers go cheap on jute and use the root, no no no. The jute has to come from long strands, else it'll not hold weight properly and some other bad properties(?).

Me, I have 3/4 inch manila ropes -- very long ones, 50 footers. I use these when dropping trees so as to guide the fall. Two ropes at a 30 degree angle between. Put a come-along (hand-cranked winch) on each line. The attempt is to get the tree to fall between the two lines. You still have to cut the angle just right at the base of the tree. But as most of you know, getting the cut angle precisely true and your heavy lines true does NOT guarantee that the tree will fall in the direction you wish. This is why before you whip-out Mr. Chainsaw, you get at the base of the tree and look up to see if there is any lean whatsoever. You'd do well to get out your string and plumb bob to help you. Big limbs are mega-heavy and you have to take them into account also.

Do I ever use synthetic rope? Yeah, sure, all the time, but not for heavy hauling. Polyester rope doesn't stretch too bad, especially if the load isn't great. Polypropylene rope WILL stretch. It's used for boating because it floats and doesn't absorb water. I don't like it at all.

I use paracord all the time. I use true paracord from a known rope manufacturer, Atwood Rope. If you buy the cheap stuff, usually made in China, don't EVEN believe the weight rating. You get what you pay for.

https://atwoodrope.com/

https://atwoodrope.com/collections/shop-link



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https://www.seacorope.com/blog/sisal-rope-vs-manila-rope-vs-jute-rope-whats-the-difference/

Quote:

Sorting Them Out

Okay, so we have seen that these three types of ropes are quite similar in many ways. So what causes them to stand apart from one another? The points below should bring some clarity to the situation.

• Manila rope. This natural product comes from the abaca plant, which features harvestable leaves that produce fibers used for rope. While it shrinks in the water, as mentioned above, it also resists damage from saltwater; meaning it’s traditionally used for marine applications. Manila rope can be tied into knots effectively, but those knots may be difficult to undo after the rope gets wet and the knot tightens up as a result.

• Sisal rope. At first glance, it’s easy to mistake sisal rope for manila rope. However, if you look closer, you’ll find that the sisal version is rougher on the surface, due to the nature of fibers used, which are harvested from either the sisalana or agave plant. Sisal rope is a good fit for managing livestock.

• Jute rope. As the name suggests, jute rope comes from fibers that are found in jute plants. This product is a great pick for a natural rope that has a nice feel in the hand, as it is softer and more comfortable to use than the previous two styles of rope (especially sisal rope, which can be quite rough to work with). And, while the rope does naturally have the light brown appearance of a traditional natural rope, you can dye it different shades.

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"Manila hemp", where it is derived:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abacá

Abacá (Spanish) (/ɑːbəˈkɑː/ ah-bə-KAH; Filipino: Abaka [ɐbɐˈka]), Musa textilis, is a species of banana native to the Philippines. The plant grows to 13–22 feet (4.0–6.7 m), and averages about 12 feet (3.7 m). The plant, also known as Manila hemp, has great economic importance, being harvested for its fiber, also called Manila hemp, extracted from the leaf-stems.



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Cannabis sativa hemp is another beast. Yes, it can be made into rope, but it's not "manila rope".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp

Wiki quote

Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a botanical class of Cannabis sativa cultivars grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. ...

Fiber
Hemp fiber has been used extensively throughout history, with production climaxing soon after being introduced to the New World. For centuries, items ranging from rope, to fabrics, to industrial materials were made from hemp fiber. Hemp was also commonly used to make sail canvas. The word "canvas" is derived from the word cannabis.[25][26] Pure hemp has a texture similar to linen.

Ropes and strands
Hemp ropes can be woven in various diameters, possessing high amounts of strength making them suitable for a variety of uses for building construction purposes.[40] Some of these uses include installation of frames in building openings and connection of joints. ...

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A use to which I've put walkie talkies is when driving in convoy. Civilian drivers can communicate when they are taking exits from interstates and other critical info. These don't transmit very far, but then you're not far removed from each other in the first place. One job I had paying college fees was delivering truck parts. The company had a CB in that truck (1970s).

I've related this story a way too many time: My dad and his brothers communicated by short wave in their vehicles -- no cell phones back in the 50s and 60s. Their oldest brother was mega smart and he rigged some sort of bouncer station on a prominent hill; cut down trees to make a road, ran power lines (not his land). Legal? Proper? None of them cared. They just did whatever they wanted. We're talking S.Appalachia.

The Revenue agents were who they watched-out for. My dad had his federal gambling licenses, however. Those guys will throw you away forever. A good friend of my dad did a nickle in the Atlanta fed pen ("nickle" = five years; just in case y'din't know), this for unstamped whiskey, i.e. white lightnin'. Damn them! What's a poor boy to do?!!! Those taxes are too high. The regulations involve books of unnecessary sh##. Lower the taxes and simply run spot-checks on operations. The big deal is to keep idiots from cranking off methanol (wood alcohol). Everybody knows to pitch the heads on a run -- that gets rid of the methanol and other bad sh##. That tastes bad anyway! Everybody tosses the heads, DUH !!!
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Look for the Baofeng BL-5L 3800 mAh extended battery for your UV5 sets, make a hell of a difference to your run time and simply slot onto the radio. They will charge on a UV5 cradle but buy a USB cable and plug which plugs into a side port which is directly on the side of the battery; charges faster and can plug into a power bank, easier to pack than a charger cradle.

 

Yes ..indeed Max and have two of those 3800 mAh batteries on the chargers right now.

I keep one of those spare 3800 mAh batteries on my Baofeng Walkie talkie in the car and also a spare in a box.....ready to go...

I am in the process of recharging them while I can so as not to forget and get caught unprepared..

Yes....indeed...they last much longer than the factory issued batteries which normally come with these Baofeng radios.


Watcherchris
Not an Ishmaelite.

 

A footnote to those Baofeng walkie talkies....

Most walkie talkies...the factory issue antennas are marginal at best....

Better antennas can be purchased for them on line....for those walkie talkies like the Baofeng in which the antenna can be unscrewed and a replacement installed.

I have the Abree 42.5 inch fold out antenna for my Baofeng walkie talkie....much much more efficient but on the other hand not that portable.....very long..

Amazon.com: 42.5-Inch Length ABBREE SMA-Female Dual Band 144/430Mhz Foldable CS Tactical Antenna for Baofeng UV-5R UV-82 BF-F8HP UV-9R Plus Ham Two Way Radio : Electronics

I keep both factory and this Abree 42.5 inch antenna on hand...in my locker at work.


In the car I have my Baofeng walkie talkie hooked up to a magnetic base antenna on the roof...via an adapter....and run it off a 3800 mAh battery and also keep spare batteries in the car.

You members decide for yourselves .....as you are driving your bus so to speak.


Keeping an eye on the next possible storm coming off Africa and via the National Hurricane Center...

National Hurricane Center (noaa.gov)


Watcherchris
Not an Ishmaelite.

 

I like the Nagoya antennas and work much better than the antenna you get with the UV5. I don't much use 2m in the UK or Spain but I lashed three stout 6' garden bamboo sticks together and hung a wire J-pole around 15' up and it makes an incredible difference in range/performance. The wire j-pole folds up to nothing so perfect in a bug out bag with some paracord, easy to hand from a tree. Cheap enough on ebay

 

Verily agree on the home made J pole and gratified to know others make their own when they can..

On my base station I have a home made J pole up in a tree about 60 feet high. Yes..indeed ...altitude makes a tremendous difference. At times I have used by Baofeng from the top of an 85 foot building.

Oh..and I too have a home made wire J pole made from that flat wire FM radio/TV type antenna wire...300 ohm stuff....on some 40 feet of cable. Very portable.

My base station antenna from these plans here... made from 3/8 diameter solid aluminum rod and some aluminum angle bar.

Aluminum J-Pole Build (w8usa.org)


I have built several of these and they have a very flat response ...on both bands. I have also built a dual band antenna using that 300 ohm flat wire as well.

It is sort of a good feeling to know that you can make do if need be and not always need to go to a store or shop to purchase your antenna . I am ever grateful to the olde Timers ...Elmers ...for helping and encouraging me to keep at it.


I also keep several rolls of 12 gauge black insulated stranded wire....in my garage some 500 foot long each. This for making my own HF antennas if need be...

Dipoles can be quickly and easily made....but when I can I prefer a wire loop antenna. But I figured out some time back to keep spare antenna material on hand. Same with that 3/8 diameter solid aluminum rod....keep it on hand as well.


Oh....on the other hand.......I got a bit of a surprise with the last roll of 12 gauge stranded 500 foot wire roll I purchased.......the price of this material made a significant price increase...about 40 per cent....but I bought it nonetheless....and put it away.

Inflation???


Nice going on making your own.

73 to you and your house.


Watcherchris
Not an Ishmaelite.