Having a Cache and Sit X Bartering: what to do.

What is s good site for a cache?

The key points when deciding on a Cache are:

1]It must be well hidden.
2)It must be close by (you don't want to have to burn too much energy getting to and from it).
3)It must be protected from rain and flooding.
4)It must be defendable.
5)It must not be in a commonly visited area.

Why not at home you say? Well looters, maybe troops doing door to door searches, fire and squaters, all make having a Cache at home risky.

I would also recommend having a good tarp or a metal trunk for added protection from the elements, maybe with a couple of smaller metal lock boxes, that can be buried near or around your cache for really valuable items.

Timing: I think it may be good to point out that the stocking of your Cache will take good timing on your part. It may be unwise to stock it up too early incase of accidental discovery. But I'd recommend having the actual items at home, and seeing the imminent need to secure your stuff, tranfer your items to the Cache.

Bartering: A Key Skill in Sit X.

1)APPEARANCES CAN BE DECIEVING

Firstly the key here is NEVER to look desperate, even if you are. What I mean is if you are bartering for food, and are really hungry, wear a few layers of clothing to pad yourself out. Don't apper to be starving if possible, as this will just make your trade less advantagous to you. So look disinterested in the items you actually want, mention them as an afterthought. It will get you a better trade than appearing desperate for the item(S).

Remember! You want to get as good a deal as possible.

Okay so you have been approached by another potential barterer, what do you do?

2)SECURITY

Secondly be aware of attack and theft, have weapons visible so as to deter this. Do not point or gesture towards your cache and give it's location away, all trades must be done far away from your cache's location.

Eg: Don't barter in a valley, below a rock formation that could to a casual observer contain a cave system. This will no doubt be the area of your cache and could compromise the security of it.

3)LABOUR, KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

These should be the first things you are willing to exchange for obvious reasons.

But keep this in mind, you are tring to SURVIVE here. If possible, withold information that is not necessary, or that can be kept back in order to make further trades in the future. Don't do it in a way that renders the original trade worthless (this may cause friction and lead to violence), but you learned your knowledge the hard way, don't give it away for nothing.

4)TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT

The next items on the list. But beware, tools break, they wear down and they are difficult to replace, so factor this into your barter. Always be on the look out for replacements or tools to mend your tools. if you do trade the use of a tool, ensure you get something in exchange as a deposit, not just for the barter. Or you can accompany the tool with the person, but this has in itself added security risks.

5)THE VALUE OF LUXURIES

Tobacco, alcohol and chocolate will become the new must have items. They will be the luxuries that may just seal a very important barter. But these must never be shown or revealed unless absolutely necessary, and remember they are irreplaceable unless you manage to grow the ingredients yourself which should be beyond most Sit X survivors to begin with.

A footnote to this point is that alcohol and chocolate also can be used as anticeptic and an energy source respectively, so this will add to their value.

6)HAVE BULK OF CHEAP SUPERFLUOUS ITEMS

If the deal is hanging in the balance, it is key to have something that is cheap now, easy to buy now, but may just be valuable or important in the Sit X scenario.

Items like SALT, SOAP, ROPE, WOOL and COTTON are all relatively cheap and easy to store, but if a barter hangs in the balance, being able to throw some of the above into the bargain may be enough to clinch it.

7)THE NEW GOLD

Food stuffs, seeds, water purification, medicines and food knowledge will be the new 'gold' in any Sit X bartering scenario.

These items must be guarded at all times. Only in the case of an extremely imperative barter must you reienquish them. As long as you have these your surival is looking good.

I would keep these in a well guarded secondary cache, possibly with pyrotechnic booby traps that go off if not opened correctly. This would also be a good time to use the lock boxes mentioned above.

8)FINAL THOUGHTS

The value of goods and knowledge will vary hugely depending on the needs of the people you're bartering with.

Security of your cache, items and your group is always to be considered.

Start negotiations high, remember it isn't like a trade today, there is no embarrasment, your life is at stake.

Most impotantly,where ever possible, don't rip off your fellow humans, attitudes like that probably reulted in Humankind eventually finding itself in a Situation X scenario in the first place!





[edit on 23-5-2009 by kiwifoot]

reply to post by kiwifoot


I think I may have forgotten one area of bartering and cacheing, that is WEAPONS AND AMMO, but being from the UK I would appreciate some help from some of the US ATS'ers as I have really no experience in this!

Thanks, Kiwifoot

[edit on 24-5-2009 by kiwifoot]

Heres a tip I know. Graves... If you buy a plot and throw a barrel in it instead of a casket your pretty well garunteed that very few will attempt to rob it because of the Taboo..

Or you can go the extra mile and find a spot just off the side of a grave yard..

I happen to know a fellow that has several caches just like I describe.. He has been buying plots for years now... ANd should the need arise one can always dig up the barrel and sell the plot say if you have tough economic times.

Originally posted by titorite
Heres a tip I know. Graves... If you buy a plot and throw a barrel in it instead of a casket your pretty well garunteed that very few will attempt to rob it because of the Taboo..

Or you can go the extra mile and find a spot just off the side of a grave yard..

I happen to know a fellow that has several caches just like I describe.. He has been buying plots for years now... ANd should the need arise one can always dig up the barrel and sell the plot say if you have tough economic times.

Great (if a little weird) tip. It's the perfect hiding place!

reply to post by titorite


That is a good idea,

No shovel or other tools are required to dig it up especially with soft dirt and I wouldn't forget where I burried my cache.

What should the tombstone read? or should there be any at all...

Barters should be done with the same safety as you would do a Kijiji sale/trade site, be in public, with a lot of friends or offer to trade at a different time and place so you can check the person out first.

Never come with the item in hand to a secluded area and don't have them come to your home. They might return with others thinking you have more and more.

Burying in disguise of the dead has been done before, at a point in time when all systems collapse people would open up their own loved onces to dig out something of value (ever see SAW? and the need to open a guy's instestines for a key?). Even a virus laden body would be of interest to someone who was trying to save themselves or their family. Gravediggers even been known to dig looking for wedding bands or other artifacts.

The best hiding place of all is the old pirate/miner's trick of burying with a treasure map, perhaps with clues only a close friend or relative would understand.





[edit on 24-5-2009 by suzque66]

reply to post by OrangeJuice


Here lies:

Thomas Samuel Henry Timothy Franks

1980-2012

We will see you again one day!






[edit on 24-5-2009 by kiwifoot]

reply to post by OrangeJuice


No tombstone. The less attention you draw to a cache the better... Just mark it by the grave stones around it.. or a tree or some other land mark... and get the grass growing over it as soon as you can... Once you own a plot the grave digger aint gonna sell that 6 foot patch of dirt to anyone else... Most anything buried is as safe as a bank but on the off chance of grave robbers... Don't give anyone a head up. No tombstone. Mark your spot by its location to other peoples stones.

EDIT:

I second Kiwis Great Tombstone name.. If you had one That would be the name to put

[edit on 24-5-2009 by titorite]

reply to post by kiwifoot


OMG!!! kiwi you're too much

Now my side hurts, I'd kidding myself if I said I wouldn't use that Namecroynm

reply to post by OrangeJuice


It'd be worth doing it just for the photo op!

What an Avatar pic!

If you do bury it in disguse of a dead body,

be sure to write the epitaph "Augustine Ullman (Au), He lived poor, He died poor, but he had a hell of a heart of gold"

lol

[edit on 24-5-2009 by suzque66]

reply to post by suzque66



Should have started a thread on this topic, would have been a good laugh!

I kind of did start a threat similar kiwi

www.abovetopsecret.com...

with my theory on how they would rid of us of anything of value BEFORE the poo hits the fan.

Ps! no one bit at my theory LOL.

[edit on 24-5-2009 by suzque66]

Bury a bunch of scrap metal around your cache. people have metal detectors.

Do not rely on GPS alone to find your cache, the government may turn the system off, fudge it, or encrypt it.

Bury you cache in a sandy area with few rocks.
then put a flat slab of rock about 6 inches down but above your cache.
then its easy to find the exact location with a sharp 1/4 inch steel rod by probing the area till you find the rock.

I many rural areas you can bury your cache near a USGS survey marker
www.alaskageographic.org...

These markers are easy to find at every corner of township, range. and sections across the US and they are marked on all USGS maps
find the marker then step off a distances in one direction and bury your cache.
This will get you close enough to later use a probe to find the flat rock that you have buried over your cache.
the best thing about this system is that it can be done at night with no light.

Oh and for barter don't bring gold.
If i want gold i will take my knowledge of explosives and blow a few bank vaults with safe deposit boxes.
If you have explosives that will be a very good trading idem.

Oh and hiding a cache in graves/graveyards.
Where do you think some people will look for gold
in filling in teeth in bodies in graveyards.

Gold is no longer used in fillings.

I used to have silver, had those taken out years ago and they are now white.

Originally posted by ANNED
Bury a bunch of scrap metal around your cache. people have metal detectors.

Do not rely on GPS alone to find your cache, the government may turn the system off, fudge it, or encrypt it.

Bury you cache in a sandy area with few rocks.
then put a flat slab of rock about 6 inches down but above your cache.
then its easy to find the exact location with a sharp 1/4 inch steel rod by probing the area till you find the rock.

I many rural areas you can bury your cache near a USGS survey marker
www.alaskageographic.org...

These markers are easy to find at every corner of township, range. and sections across the US and they are marked on all USGS maps
find the marker then step off a distances in one direction and bury your cache.
This will get you close enough to later use a probe to find the flat rock that you have buried over your cache.
the best thing about this system is that it can be done at night with no light.

Oh and for barter don't bring gold.
If i want gold i will take my knowledge of explosives and blow a few bank vaults with safe deposit boxes.
If you have explosives that will be a very good trading idem.

But doesn't explosives degrade and become unstable over time? Even the military stuff?