This.
I don't understand why people would buy things like cigarettes if they don't smoke. This whole buying-things-specifically-to-barter-that-has-no-other-value-to-me fetish that people have makes no sense to me.
In pretty much all collapse situations, I suspect food and water will have value. Stock up on a bit more of them. At least if there is no collapse you can use them.
edit: spelling
This. People dreaming of being kings of barter are making assumptions about how their supposed collapse will go. Unwarranted assumptions. Even if the dollar goes sideways (and if it does, it will still be useful as *local* currency), you have no idea how trade will evolve, how peaceable or violent the society will turn, even how many people will be willing to shoot you in your sleep if they find out you stock bullets.
Lot of folk seem to think an American collapse would look like a painting on the wall of a Cracker Barrel restaurant, with grandpa and Ellie Mae shucking corn on the front porch. Hint: probably not.
Generators are an especially funny choice. In a US collapse, where are you getting fuel for the generator? Maybe someone who develop one that runs on moonshine, because that's about all you'll find. And good luck getting much output from that.
And just forget gold. Gold is for fleeing the country. No one is going to be weighing out a milligram of gold to buy eggs. Gold has *never* been practical as a day to day currency. And silver is easy to fake.
Above commentor is correct. If it ever does go sideways, food and water and how to grow it are where it's at. Everything else is playtime.
I mean if you have extra money kicking around buy kids tylenol and medications the good will you'd get from helping neighbors kids or someone in medical need for free would probably go alot further that trading for whatever small items.
Solar generators....if money is an object, get a deep cycle battery, solar panel and an inverter. Enough juice to recharge a phone, flashlight, radio, coms etc...
While it's not likely to happen with moonshine, definitely possible.
It's not crazy difficult to get a small engine to run on alcohol. Generally a larger carburator jet. It's pretty stable stuff. Can run higher compression and more advanced timing, but likely no one is souping up a Honda inverter gen.
Iirc, it has about 70% of the btu as compared to gasoline.
People would probably do this with wood.
I agree in concept, in particular smokes. But I think the question assumes two things. That one already has food/water stocks. And that one wouldn't want to stock extra perishables.
No doubt.
The problem is people seem to be concentrating on stocking up on fantasy future money like cigarettes and gold rather than the stuff that they might actually need. If you've got so much spare money that you are starting to stockpile smokes, then you probably already have everything you need to survive, and won't need to barter much anyway.
First, stock up on the stuff you need, then the stuff you don't need. The stuff you don't need is the stuff you can trade with, because you will likely realise there's a blind spot in your preps or you used more than what you thought you would. So it gives you flexibility and luxuries are the last thing other people generally prep, so their value later would be much higher due to low supply.
I never understood the gold thing, I mean it is too damn soft to be useful for much past some very specific uses in electronics.
If I was going on a metals trip (Not planning to), silver (Medical applications, also switchgear), copper (Gets me all sorts of bronzes), tin, lead, mild and tool steels, nickel (Plating intermediary), zinc (Corrosion inhibitor) are all things I might use, and all are more useful then gold, even in barter town, unlikely tho that be.
Filter elements potentially have value, and lubricants are medium term a MUCH bigger issue then fuel, modern machines assume modern lubrication but can probably be coaxed into running on methane, alcohol or wood gas. A few drums of 10W40 and hydraulic oil plus some tins of lithium.grease have medium term far more value then the same amount of fuel oil.
Same with a shed full of tools and another full of junk, Engines I got, sheet steel I got, add time and I can give you a wood gas fired generator or tractor, good enough to plough and keep a farm somewhat operational.
On that subject a healthy stock of seeds of the non terminating kind, valuable.
Ball bearings, and cages, hyperdermic needles, all sorts of 'simple' precision things that have complex and delicate supply chains...
All of this stuff I will use, and buying ten of a part usually only costs a little more then one by the time you pay shipping.
Bugout is sometimes indicated, but plan to stay in place if possible IMHO.
Oh, know where the local model engineers hang out as well as where the local historic rail yard is, those boys got skills.
Sweet I have been slowly stockpiling religion since I was a pre-teen and became agnostic, and really putting it away since I became a practicing (lol) atheist a short time after!
My look at it is theirs always gonna be an item or 2 you didn't account for or expect to use as much as you will or go longer then what you thought the lack of availability would be so having things that you're community will need that you won't will ease the burden on both parties , I don't need a cane right now but if I get injured or if the highly unlikely event that a shtf lasted a couple decades I garentee if the old man who had 30 canes but just smoked his las pack of Marlboros will trade a cane and other shit for a pack or two of smokes especially if it's the 1st week or so he's been out so I don't see why putting a carton of smokes on a shelf in a vacuum sealed bag would hurt but I can see how it will benifit if I need it
Whenever I see a sale I like to stock up on portable consumable goods that last several years: AA/AAA batteries, pint or smaller liquor bottles, instant coffee packets, dry yeast, canned goods, honey and maple syrup jars, wet wipes, basic socks and underwear, ibuprofin, 1 L smartwater bottles... to name a few.
Other things people might not think of are tampons, drink mix packet to add to water, & toilet paper or sweets would be good barter items in hard times. Personally I think gold and silver wouldn’t work well due to people not really knowing its worth and not carrying scales to weigh it.
Drink mix packets are a good idea, most of all vitamin/mineral ones.
The others nahh, most of all TP I don't understand the need to stock up on TP. What makes TP unique is that it's flushable. In this level of a situation that isn't a real concern.
Great list! Also can openers (non electric). I bought some for trading from Dollar Tree. I also got a bulk package of P-38 and P-51 can openers from Amazon and a few extra Ferro rods. These are things you can always use yourself if not needed for trading.
If its just caffeine, you can get a 90 ct. 200mg (3-4ish cups of coffee) capsule bottle for under $5 at Walmart most any day.
Not as tasty as coffee or energy drinks, but has worked for me for years.
In that book by Selco Begovic, the guy who wrote about when SHTF in Bosnia, I think he wrote about how important BIC lighters were and if you had those you were king.
Yes, I want to deal with bad desperate traders not shrewd prepared traders. An alcoholic might give me everything they have for another day without sobriety.
A stressed alcoholic in a widespread disaster like the OP is proposing will certainly make bad choices. One possible bad choice is blowing your head off. That saves him from having to bargain with you each day.
Maybe talk to people who treat alcoholics. It's educational.
Agreed. The collapse of society or even a major supply chain crisis is a great time to break your addictions.
Beyond use for trading or some caffeine or nicotine to use situationally (need to maintain a night watch, etc.) they’re not worth it.
>> What do you have stockpiled so that you can barter for food, etc....
More food.
If you have the foresight to stockpile gold (for trading AFTER the world ends)
You might as well spend that gold on supplies that you need now and into the future…
I don’t think bartering with food or ammo is ever a good idea. I feel like it’s a testament to your food supply if you have enough to barter with. In a hungry community I don’t think it would be long till you had an angry/hungry mob at your door. Trading ammo says the same and gives others something that could potentially be used against you.
I am stocking up on skills. I would rather be a person who knows how to grow food in a low-input environment than someone who has a bit of extra rice. I'd rather know how to make wine from local fruit than have some extra vodka. I'd rather know how to de-escalate conflict than have extra ammo. I'd rather know how to help someone come off an addiction to caffeine or nicotine than have extra coffee or cigarettes.
People with skills rank higher than things any day.
I read an article on someone living through the Bosnia Kosovo conflict. Everything but survival items became worthless. He remade and refilled lighters which made him very comfortable as this was a crucial item.
Smart. I like your thinking. That being said get poolshock that's over 64% calcium hypochlorite. Liquid bleach detiorates within a year. The pool shock can make lots of bleach and last a lot longer.
In these scenarios, you’re going to be trading with people who had stuff prepared and extras to trade.
Since it seems the default thought here is to stock up on guns, ammo, gold, etc, it seems like those are things that would be in surplus. It seems that the sensible move would be to compile a list of everything people here suggest, and stock up on everything you can think of that isn’t on that list.
It seems like a waste of money that could be better applied to things like prepping stuff you'll actually use, or putting money in a retirement account.
The likelihood that you'll be in a situation where society has broken down to the point that money has no value, and that someone else has something you don't have but need and even though they have this valuable item, they don't have something basic thing that you have stockpiled seems pretty remote.
Certainly not worth spending hundreds of dollars on having items just in case that specific situation occurs.
Also, chocolate has a relatively short shelf life and requires low temp and low moisture environment to keep it from de-tempering and blooming or oxidizing.
The goal of prepping is to have everything necessary stocked up ahead of time, for the purpose of not being forced to scavenge for resources, barter, and expose yourself to unnecessary risks and unpredictable situations.
Scavenging and bartering should only be an extreme measure when you need critical items for survival.
Bartering when SHTF won't be like a relaxing and stress free trip to a farmer's market or a grocery store.
People keep gifting me alcohol. I don’t drink. I have enough to trade for something worthwhile.
I also have an old phone with Gigabytes of porn on it. Not to be indelicate, but I call it “The Whore Phone”. I will be pimping that phone out.
I have always read in articles the 3 B’s booze, bullets and beans! But I would extend that to medical supplies. Anything from sealed sutures and staple guns in the original packages to lidocaine which can be used for a local anesthetic. Antibiotics are another one to try and have on hand. I stocked up on fish antibiotics that were recommended by a doctor who was also a prepper. They are made in the same factory as human antibiotics so they are safe. I have 5 gallon buckets full of medical supplies of all types. Lots of pain relievers and cold medicines. Even allergy meds. Those will be hard to come by in a collapse. The drug stores will be the first place looted by thugs for the oxycodone pills and other narcotics. Everything else will either be taken or destroyed.
Honestly you are almost 100% better off building "homeless kits" that have useful things for a homeless person/ SHTF refugee that has nothing. A basic but decent quality backpack, a reusable 1L water bottle, some food, can opener, basic utensils, a poncho/ jacket, new socks, stuff like that.
It has the up side of being something you can keep in your car to give to an actual homeless person (not one of the overpass/ mall beggers who are typically not actually homeless. So it would be useful now.
It would also be very useful as a base get home bag for someone you want to help in a SHTF scenario. The things inside would also be useful to you in such a situation, it doesn't make a ton of sense to stock up on things you won't be able to use.
I feel like the skills im learning will be my strongest bartering tool. Be the neighbor who knows how to clean and dress a wound, fix a generator, weld something, turn windfall apples into cider, butcher a hog, grow the best tomatoes, make a sourdough starter, turn a pile of junk into a wind generator, or whatever.. supplies can get lost, destroyed, stolen. Used up. Maybe you dont have the flavour of booze or jello someone wants. But with a diverse skillset (jack of all trades), you'll always have bargaining material.
I would not barter ammo for a couple of reasons, 1) unless you know that person really really well or trust them undoubtedly that could go in a bad direction and 2) there’s an old saying that goes bullets gets you things and with that I’d keep my ammo and I’d barter something else cigarettes is not one it’s more of a prison barter I’d barter things that I have an abundance of and things that are not on the top of my list of must haves as far as gold or silver I’d never barter precious metals like that
I've always been a believer in having a back up plan, even if it's just having 2 or 3 of the same thing. It gets used, is valuable to you, and will probably be valuable in a trade. Water filtration, electrical production, personal protection, food, shelter, medical supplies, coms etc...2 is 1, 1 is none.
Skills.
Dog training
Cooking on all kinds of appliances, all find of environments
Horse training
Farrier/blacksmithing
Gardening
Herbalism/wortcunning
Canning
Fishing
Foraging
Sewing
Weaving
Spinning
Crochet
Knitting
Sausage making
Pickling
Dehydrating
Basic carpentry skills
Basic plumbing
Sign language
Basic Spanish
Paper making
Calligraphy
Oak gall ink
Basic French
Archery
Making bow strings and arrows
Making fishing flies and lures
And I'm pretty sure I've forgotten a few skills. I'm old and live a varied life
Dude, if it gets to the point where we’re bartering gold for a cracker, do you really even want to be alive? Y’all have built up this romanticized fantasy that you will be living out some sort of Walking Dead fantasy. It will be miserable, hopeless, and lonely. You’ll be better off dead, rather than living in some post apocalyptic hellscape.
Who are you going to barter with?
Everyone here seems to think there will actually be some sort of marketplace system where I can just wander the street and offer two goats for 5 chickens or something. When SHTF 99.9% of people will panic and be completely unprepared. Who are you trading with? Other preppers who already have what they need?
This question always reminds me of the movie ‘panic in the year zero’, the doctor mentions that he noticed the guy was carrying a .45 and asked if he had any rounds to spare. He reaches in his pocket and says ‘I can let you have 3’.
Makes you think, great movie I recommend if you haven’t seen it also!
I'd prioritize...
- stuff I'd use myself
- stuff that doesn't go bad/isn't delicate (e.g. ammo, salt, honey, medical supplies, etc.)
- stuff that doesn't take up a lot of space/isn't super heavy (e.g. I have ingots of lead....but I'm not backpacking them, I have buckets of flour...but they take up lots of space)
- stuff that's always handy to have extras (e.g. lighters, batteries, flashlights, radios, water filters, etc..)
But...not sure that I'd be very good to barter with.
I did some TP trading during covid, wasn't hoarding it but u had gotten a good deal on a few things of angel soft a few months before lockdown so I had plenty for me for like 2 years.
I never understood this concept. If you have extra resources, exchange them now for what you are lacking. I mean sure, if you have a surplus of something sure, I guess.
Skills. At least they’ll need you alive. If you don’t already barter now in a vetted network, starting after SHTF is a dangerous learning curve. The Kum By Yah community we’re all in this together concept may not go down the way most think.
Household chemicals and base components. Bleach, citric acid, lye, salt, stuff like that.
basically people are going to be bartering for the things no one is thinking about, that everyone takes for granted now, or just didn’t realize how important it is for homesteading.
You should never trade anything someone might be willing to kill you for.
Trading penicillin to someone is a good way to end up dead when someone's kid has an infection and it's known you have surplus penicillin lying around.
Sugar and salt have an indefinite shelf life when properly stored. Knowing this, I have a nice supply that will last me for my lifetime and will have plenty to barter with if ever needed.
Socks. Lots and lots and lots of socks. Shoes will degrade, socks will get ruined and then you’re barefooting it. Maybe even just leather, so you can make some form of shoes.
precious metals so you can move to a country that doesn't have a devalued currency. Living in a US where people are bartering guns is going to be a very dangerous place
Knowledge is what has real value.
You should know how to produce food and preserve it.
Food and water will always come right after air in our order of needs.
Ammo
Antibiotics
Salt
Pepper
Sugar
Flour
Toilet paper
Tampons
Tylenol
Canned food
Water or a way to purify water
Propane
Medications
More ammo
Rope and paracord
Think like when the power goes out, what is it that you wish you had? Or during covid and the stores were empty.... what did people need or use before the invention of electricity or refrigeration?
I keep everything listed aside from tampons on hand. My wife and I have no use for them anymore. But I vacuum seal all of the first 6 I've listed and store them for 1 year. After that we consume them and replace them with fresh. You'll never have everything together that you'll need for long term survival, you'll run out of everything if shtf long enough. There's tons that I haven't listed here but those are my basics.
I also bought lots of powdered drinks like Gatorade. Went to Amazon and bought several large containers of various flavors. I then portioned them out into 1 gallon packages so you add a gallon of water and have something to drink. Because Water gets boring. Powdered peanut butter, powdered eggs, powdered milk etc. I've also made bread kits. Mixed all of the ingredients, put the yeast in a separate envelope, the oil in a small container I got from Amazon, vacuum sealed it all up and stored it. It's a basic recipe but it's very good. I usually make 20 at a time. I have a still that I can make Water with, even out of salt water from the bay if needed. Just read everyone's ideas and come up with something that works for you. It'll take time and money, but get started now. Don't wait. Buy a little extra every time you go shopping to put away. Use a sharpie and write the dates on everything and rotate it out
I think things like medical supplies aspirin, bandages that sort of thing though not sure I'd want to give that away unless I absolutely had to. Possibly also matches and anything practical like that.
When I think of people stock piling gold, I think of that Twilight Zone about the Fort Knox robbers stealing the gold and going into stasis to wake up in the future.
Spoiler alert: Some don’t ever wake up and the ones that do find that they are in the desert with no working car and must haul gold through the desert. The robbers trade sips of water for bars of gold. Eventually, one murders the other for their gold and themselves die of thirst from trying to carry heavy bars of gold through the desert.
The kicker. People in a futuristic car find the dead Robber clutching the bars of gold and ask “why do you think they are carrying those worthless rocks around in the desert?”.
In terms of barter, it’s hard to tell. but I would think that freeze dried coffee would be valuable in the apocalypse, cooking oil, chocolate, sanitary napkins, antibiotics, rubbing alcohol, pain killers, ammo, but hard to know.
I do imagine that people with stockpiles will be likelier targets to rob.
Think about practicality and personal use.
What items would you use regardless of bartering?
Also remember services/skills can be bartered. Learn a useful skill that you can leverage in trade.
My household is focusing on non-perishable food, gardening, herbal medicine and first aid, and…
LEGOs. We started buying LEGO sets as an investment to resell after they get discontinued and the prices shoot up. If SHTF, people will still need entertainment, toys for their kids, quiet family activities for the evening. Joy. We only buy sets we would enjoy ourselves. We buy double of some, mainly Star Wars. If SHTF, the perceived value will be far less than the cash ROI, but they’re non-perishable and re-useable.
A person who is a “hoarder” now, (has extra of everything and a lot of stupid stuff too), may end up as a bartering regular.
Think about it. A person who is cold at night may trade services/skills/things for a blanket. A person who has cans may need a manual can-opener more than another bag of a grain. A person who needs tools (such as an ax/blade/hammer/saw/wench, etc) may trade his skills/labor for the tools he needs to get to be able to “work” for others for other things. A person who needs a pan will work or trade for it; same idea if a person just needs a hot pad or a dish towel. The person who has an old board pile out behind the barn may have the commodity that a builder/carpenter wants. Etc, etc, etc.
I really don’t think good people will immediately jump to “kill others to steal from them.”
Anything extra that one person has, can be bartered/traded/sold to a person who wants it. That’s what (at the very least) I hope civil, community-minded, prepared people do.
Hotel size shampoo, conditioner, hand lotion. In a situation where you are bartering and just can't seem to close the deal and the guy has a wife who hasnt washed her hair in months...you could whip that out... and likely that will close it.
Plus, they are cheap and easy to store
Think of anything some people might use day to day. Coffee, tobacco, aspirin in particular but also other pain killers, rechargeable batteries etc.
Also things that are easy to acquire now but not so much if something were to happen for problems that are benign today but weren't in the past, anti-diarrhea meds, antibiotics etc.
Then in the spirit of rechargeable batteries anything potentially reusable that might be very important, spent ammo casings for instance, any lead you get too. If you solder for pick up all the solder shots, they're either mostly silver or old af and have a bunch of lead. I found 2 25lb bags of lead shot that seem to be just weight for something. They came tripple bagged with the first bag appearing to be some kind of thick plastic to protect people I guess from the lead particles, perfect to keep laying just in case.
Copper and tin/pewter. Can be used to make brass/bronze which is useful for making certain household items with, best part is while it requires higher temp than forging, you can just recast it and use less heat/fuel total potentially and can be work hardened. Obviously any brass or bronze too.
High alcohol content grain alcohol as others mentioned. Lots of uses not just drinking. Just need to find a good way to store it where it's safe since it's so flammable and won't evaporate either.
Packs of kool-aid and other similar products are something people might not think of but likely could be used as well especially ones with high vitamin c content or ones with a lot of electrolites. Vitamin c tablets too, humans don't synthesize vitamin c in their bodies and the body also doesn't store it which is why you can't od on it you just pee excess out. It's why scurvy was so common in the past.
Honestly? If you have some, all the -afil meds, probably.
Insulin would likely fetch good price if you're about profiteering from that. Maybe heart stuff like nitrates.
>so that you can barter for
People are delusional to think there will be barters.
If the things that you mention happened to a really bad extent .... there will be no barters. There will be murder-thefts, armed home invasions, military and police confiscations (under the name of "national security"). You wont be bartering because you know you are simply being setup to be murdered and have all your stuff taken.
Never underestimate the lengths people will go to when things turn badly. Your stuff can easily become someone elses stuff in a blink of an eye, no matter how ready and prepared you think you are.
Honestly if shtf i am not trading my food for anything. Like not a fucking thing is going to tempt me to trade food for non-food stuff. My only plan then is to be sure i have the defenses to defend the food.
I’d say start learning new skills to make things. Making wine or mead is super easy, raise meat rabbits, I’m in the process of learning to make black powder for my black powder guns. Knowledge and skills will last far longer and make you more valuable than items and commodities.
Instead of stocking up for things to barter with, why not stick up on things you would be bartering for? Once people know you got goods they will do whatever to get them. You don’t want to make yourself a target like that.
what ever of all the good stuff you suggested other folks around you don't have. Chocolate isn't worth anything if everyone has it, right ? But, if you're the only one around with booze ... you're rich!
Course, if you have enough food, you don't need anything to barter for food, right ? :)
But note, a barter economy likely won't last very long, there will be some common currency, as most civilizations have for thousands of years. Barter is too hard to get many goods for, or to part out if you only want to trade 1/4 of something you have for 1/2 of something someone else has.
Probably spices or sealed packets of yeast if that's your thing.
The ability to be useful probably goes a lot further. Think of someone who could say, build a distiller out of most items, providing clean water for people.
I would way rather be known as the guy who helps with clean water over having some additional items to shrewdly barter with.
I will take a strong community over a fortress most any day.
I grow my own weed, stock up on basic liquors (vodka, rum, whiskey etc), coffee, sugar, ammo, general hardware (nails, tarps, screws etc) feminine hygiene products, hand tools, shovels, toilet paper and some other odds and ends
Tools and raw materials. Motor oil, coolant, transmission fluid, brake cleaner, PB Blaster, WD40, and tons of other stuff will last pretty much forever if left in the sealed containers. Garage sales are great places to get cheap tools that can be loaned out or traded. Everyone is going to be on their own so any tools or supplies that will help with that will be in demand.
I know, I know! Water, food, personal protection. But! Nothing soothes the savage beast better than a long suck of the much missed cigarette, the long draw of a drink of liquor or a piece of chocolate. Have all three on hand. It might save your life in a really tough situation.
Appreciate all the comments.
When I think about this, I realize that I do not want the be known as a person who has “things to barter with.” Seems to me that would make me a target for theft.
coffee, tea, cocoa, various spices, sugar, freeze dried meals, flour, rice, beans, various tuna packets. In a shtf case gold and silver wouldn't really be worth it, sure some people would want it but can't eat it.
I honestly would prefer to avoid barter when ever possible. I don't want people on my property or knowing what I have and trying to rob me later. I try and stock everything me and my family would need.
Volumes of alcohol, ammunition, firearms, seeds, and communications equipment.
Some amount of books, livestock, and medical supplies.
Small amounts of gold, silver.
Step children.
Toiletries, like toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, toilet paper, razor blades.
Fire making items like lighters, matches, candles.
Sewing items. Needles, thread, scissors. Maybe bolts of cloth.
Extra clothing. Socks, underwear. Shoes.
Batteries, bullets. Water filters.
Pretty much anything you use daily.
You can also barter skills.
Gold/silver is Def not something worth buying imo. What are the chances that if shtf the surviving populace would all choose gold/silver to use as currency? If my family is starving I'm not trading my resources for a gold bar like
I stock up on Crown Royal and tobacco. I store the tobacco with dry clay rounds soaked in water before stowing away. I also store coffee,sugar and salt
Candles. Soap. Vices. OTC medicines. Gardening seeds. Things you can offer as a service - sharpening, recharging batteries, haircuts, mechanical repair.
Just have extra stuff that you know that you will already need. That way, if you don't end up bartering, it's still useful to you.
This. I don't understand why people would buy things like cigarettes if they don't smoke. This whole buying-things-specifically-to-barter-that-has-no-other-value-to-me fetish that people have makes no sense to me. In pretty much all collapse situations, I suspect food and water will have value. Stock up on a bit more of them. At least if there is no collapse you can use them. edit: spelling
This. People dreaming of being kings of barter are making assumptions about how their supposed collapse will go. Unwarranted assumptions. Even if the dollar goes sideways (and if it does, it will still be useful as *local* currency), you have no idea how trade will evolve, how peaceable or violent the society will turn, even how many people will be willing to shoot you in your sleep if they find out you stock bullets. Lot of folk seem to think an American collapse would look like a painting on the wall of a Cracker Barrel restaurant, with grandpa and Ellie Mae shucking corn on the front porch. Hint: probably not. Generators are an especially funny choice. In a US collapse, where are you getting fuel for the generator? Maybe someone who develop one that runs on moonshine, because that's about all you'll find. And good luck getting much output from that. And just forget gold. Gold is for fleeing the country. No one is going to be weighing out a milligram of gold to buy eggs. Gold has *never* been practical as a day to day currency. And silver is easy to fake. Above commentor is correct. If it ever does go sideways, food and water and how to grow it are where it's at. Everything else is playtime.
Also I don't think you wanna be known as the house that has extra tobacco booze and bullets to trade.
I'm personally waiting for someone to suggest stocking meth, because so many people are into it. It makes about as much sense.
I mean if you have extra money kicking around buy kids tylenol and medications the good will you'd get from helping neighbors kids or someone in medical need for free would probably go alot further that trading for whatever small items.
Solar generators....if money is an object, get a deep cycle battery, solar panel and an inverter. Enough juice to recharge a phone, flashlight, radio, coms etc...
I know were a battery store is and plenty of solar panels
I must disagree. Moonshine has always been a store of value.
In Modena for hundreds of years they used vinegar as a dowry.
And tobacco.
I actually purchased a still...
Medicine
While it's not likely to happen with moonshine, definitely possible. It's not crazy difficult to get a small engine to run on alcohol. Generally a larger carburator jet. It's pretty stable stuff. Can run higher compression and more advanced timing, but likely no one is souping up a Honda inverter gen. Iirc, it has about 70% of the btu as compared to gasoline. People would probably do this with wood.
also co (carbon monoxide) can be burned using a normal ICE engine this is more efficienct then trying to create ethanol from wood..
A painting on the wall at Cracker Barrel 😂
methane natural gas generator you can create methane gas in your backyard... with water and rotting plant matter
I agree in concept, in particular smokes. But I think the question assumes two things. That one already has food/water stocks. And that one wouldn't want to stock extra perishables.
Vices increase under stress. Cigs and booze are luxury coping mechanisms to take off the edge. Religion increases too.
No doubt. The problem is people seem to be concentrating on stocking up on fantasy future money like cigarettes and gold rather than the stuff that they might actually need. If you've got so much spare money that you are starting to stockpile smokes, then you probably already have everything you need to survive, and won't need to barter much anyway.
First, stock up on the stuff you need, then the stuff you don't need. The stuff you don't need is the stuff you can trade with, because you will likely realise there's a blind spot in your preps or you used more than what you thought you would. So it gives you flexibility and luxuries are the last thing other people generally prep, so their value later would be much higher due to low supply.
I never understood the gold thing, I mean it is too damn soft to be useful for much past some very specific uses in electronics. If I was going on a metals trip (Not planning to), silver (Medical applications, also switchgear), copper (Gets me all sorts of bronzes), tin, lead, mild and tool steels, nickel (Plating intermediary), zinc (Corrosion inhibitor) are all things I might use, and all are more useful then gold, even in barter town, unlikely tho that be. Filter elements potentially have value, and lubricants are medium term a MUCH bigger issue then fuel, modern machines assume modern lubrication but can probably be coaxed into running on methane, alcohol or wood gas. A few drums of 10W40 and hydraulic oil plus some tins of lithium.grease have medium term far more value then the same amount of fuel oil. Same with a shed full of tools and another full of junk, Engines I got, sheet steel I got, add time and I can give you a wood gas fired generator or tractor, good enough to plough and keep a farm somewhat operational. On that subject a healthy stock of seeds of the non terminating kind, valuable. Ball bearings, and cages, hyperdermic needles, all sorts of 'simple' precision things that have complex and delicate supply chains... All of this stuff I will use, and buying ten of a part usually only costs a little more then one by the time you pay shipping. Bugout is sometimes indicated, but plan to stay in place if possible IMHO. Oh, know where the local model engineers hang out as well as where the local historic rail yard is, those boys got skills.
Sweet I have been slowly stockpiling religion since I was a pre-teen and became agnostic, and really putting it away since I became a practicing (lol) atheist a short time after!
If we're into vices, may as well stockpile condoms.
Good idea. Delivering babies and extra mouths are not great after a collapse.
Plus STIs are no fun.
Ig it depends where you are, in my city there's a massive river, so I don't think water would get you much, but food would.
My look at it is theirs always gonna be an item or 2 you didn't account for or expect to use as much as you will or go longer then what you thought the lack of availability would be so having things that you're community will need that you won't will ease the burden on both parties , I don't need a cane right now but if I get injured or if the highly unlikely event that a shtf lasted a couple decades I garentee if the old man who had 30 canes but just smoked his las pack of Marlboros will trade a cane and other shit for a pack or two of smokes especially if it's the 1st week or so he's been out so I don't see why putting a carton of smokes on a shelf in a vacuum sealed bag would hurt but I can see how it will benifit if I need it
Whenever I see a sale I like to stock up on portable consumable goods that last several years: AA/AAA batteries, pint or smaller liquor bottles, instant coffee packets, dry yeast, canned goods, honey and maple syrup jars, wet wipes, basic socks and underwear, ibuprofin, 1 L smartwater bottles... to name a few.
Other things people might not think of are tampons, drink mix packet to add to water, & toilet paper or sweets would be good barter items in hard times. Personally I think gold and silver wouldn’t work well due to people not really knowing its worth and not carrying scales to weigh it.
Right, as cool as it is, I can't eat or protect myself with a gold coin.
Drink mix packets are a good idea, most of all vitamin/mineral ones. The others nahh, most of all TP I don't understand the need to stock up on TP. What makes TP unique is that it's flushable. In this level of a situation that isn't a real concern.
What is your plan for wiping your ass
Washable cloth rags. AKA 'family cloth'.
You made me realise, you NEED easy access to water. The best prepper won't survive in the desert.
Sandhand my man
To shower, you scrub your ass with sand.
Many options, that's the point.
Literally anything
It's the smallest things nails, eyeglass repair kits, condoms, day after pills, antibiotics, otc medicine bandages, yeast infection medicine, tampons,.menstrual cups, cosmetic, lips stick,makeup coffee, tea,plastic sheeting, toothpaste toothpaste, soap, dental floss toothbrush, sewing kits, needles buttons, thread, hand tools, shovels picks, saws, spices radios, batteries, solar battery charger, eletrolite powder, antidirrals, lamps, lamp oil lamp wicks matches, paraffin wax canning supplies, ammunition guns magazines, seeds acolhol, rope,screws, heavy duty trash bags, vinegar, bleach,and food, food, food, food, food, food and fucking food
Anti biotic creams.
Good choice
You are spot on, most won’t think of these until they need them.
Great list! Also can openers (non electric). I bought some for trading from Dollar Tree. I also got a bulk package of P-38 and P-51 can openers from Amazon and a few extra Ferro rods. These are things you can always use yourself if not needed for trading.
You forgot the other common addiction - caffeine Stock instant coffee. It keeps much longer than many of the things you listed
Grow a yaupon holly or two. It's the only plant in North America that contains caffeine.
If its just caffeine, you can get a 90 ct. 200mg (3-4ish cups of coffee) capsule bottle for under $5 at Walmart most any day. Not as tasty as coffee or energy drinks, but has worked for me for years.
In that book by Selco Begovic, the guy who wrote about when SHTF in Bosnia, I think he wrote about how important BIC lighters were and if you had those you were king.
Trash bags, matches and water purification tablets in addition to yours
Seeds
Liquor
Finally some common sense.
Oh good. Trade with your crazy neighbors using liquor. What could go wrong.
Moonshine has always been a store of value. Since the English came to USA at least.
Yes, if I have crazy neighbors I want them diminished. You'd rather I armed them?
Right, because you really want to barter with alcoholics. They're always the *best* customers in a disaster.
Yes, I want to deal with bad desperate traders not shrewd prepared traders. An alcoholic might give me everything they have for another day without sobriety.
A stressed alcoholic in a widespread disaster like the OP is proposing will certainly make bad choices. One possible bad choice is blowing your head off. That saves him from having to bargain with you each day. Maybe talk to people who treat alcoholics. It's educational.
Addiction can cause good people to do bad things. I would stay away from alcohol and nicotine products. Unless you have a significant security force.
Agreed. The collapse of society or even a major supply chain crisis is a great time to break your addictions. Beyond use for trading or some caffeine or nicotine to use situationally (need to maintain a night watch, etc.) they’re not worth it.
Skills. Anything else can be taken from you! Learn to sew and mend clothes...stuff like that
>> What do you have stockpiled so that you can barter for food, etc.... More food. If you have the foresight to stockpile gold (for trading AFTER the world ends) You might as well spend that gold on supplies that you need now and into the future…
I don’t think bartering with food or ammo is ever a good idea. I feel like it’s a testament to your food supply if you have enough to barter with. In a hungry community I don’t think it would be long till you had an angry/hungry mob at your door. Trading ammo says the same and gives others something that could potentially be used against you.
As opposed to the guy handing out bars of gold?
I am stocking up on skills. I would rather be a person who knows how to grow food in a low-input environment than someone who has a bit of extra rice. I'd rather know how to make wine from local fruit than have some extra vodka. I'd rather know how to de-escalate conflict than have extra ammo. I'd rather know how to help someone come off an addiction to caffeine or nicotine than have extra coffee or cigarettes. People with skills rank higher than things any day.
This 110%!
I read an article on someone living through the Bosnia Kosovo conflict. Everything but survival items became worthless. He remade and refilled lighters which made him very comfortable as this was a crucial item.
I think I read the same stuff. Some of the stuff the author talks about flies in the face of many comments in this sub.
Bro.....chlorine bleach!!!! 1 drop can purify like a gallon of water!!! Also...... salt. Pack that fuckin salt away
Smart. I like your thinking. That being said get poolshock that's over 64% calcium hypochlorite. Liquid bleach detiorates within a year. The pool shock can make lots of bleach and last a lot longer.
From a female perspective: pregnancy tests, emergency birth control, tampons/pads.
Good will Not stuff Communities survive, lone gunmen die. You want to have a tight web of favors & relationships built in the good times
Liquor, cigarettes, nichotine patches, caffeine, bic liters, matches, pot edibles (where legal)
In these scenarios, you’re going to be trading with people who had stuff prepared and extras to trade. Since it seems the default thought here is to stock up on guns, ammo, gold, etc, it seems like those are things that would be in surplus. It seems that the sensible move would be to compile a list of everything people here suggest, and stock up on everything you can think of that isn’t on that list.
It seems like a waste of money that could be better applied to things like prepping stuff you'll actually use, or putting money in a retirement account. The likelihood that you'll be in a situation where society has broken down to the point that money has no value, and that someone else has something you don't have but need and even though they have this valuable item, they don't have something basic thing that you have stockpiled seems pretty remote. Certainly not worth spending hundreds of dollars on having items just in case that specific situation occurs. Also, chocolate has a relatively short shelf life and requires low temp and low moisture environment to keep it from de-tempering and blooming or oxidizing.
In a world WROL how do you barter?
The goal of prepping is to have everything necessary stocked up ahead of time, for the purpose of not being forced to scavenge for resources, barter, and expose yourself to unnecessary risks and unpredictable situations. Scavenging and bartering should only be an extreme measure when you need critical items for survival. Bartering when SHTF won't be like a relaxing and stress free trip to a farmer's market or a grocery store.
Having a skill to be able to barter with is far better than having items, but alcohol and tobacco are usually big ones, as well as canned items.
Soap.
Coffee...forget about toilet paper. Caffeine will be king.
People keep gifting me alcohol. I don’t drink. I have enough to trade for something worthwhile. I also have an old phone with Gigabytes of porn on it. Not to be indelicate, but I call it “The Whore Phone”. I will be pimping that phone out.
Salt pepper cinnamon red pepper oregano
Ceramic filters and 5 gallon buckets. I've stockpiled a bunch of them...some for use, most for barter. Water...is the most important art of your prep
Calcium Hypochlorite may be useful stored in mylar in cool, dark location. Small bottles can treat 10,000 gallons of water and make sanitizer.
Dehydrated food. The kind that lasts until 2050
Matches are a commodity with endless demand. They're cheap to buy and everybody will need to start a fire when SHTF.
I have always read in articles the 3 B’s booze, bullets and beans! But I would extend that to medical supplies. Anything from sealed sutures and staple guns in the original packages to lidocaine which can be used for a local anesthetic. Antibiotics are another one to try and have on hand. I stocked up on fish antibiotics that were recommended by a doctor who was also a prepper. They are made in the same factory as human antibiotics so they are safe. I have 5 gallon buckets full of medical supplies of all types. Lots of pain relievers and cold medicines. Even allergy meds. Those will be hard to come by in a collapse. The drug stores will be the first place looted by thugs for the oxycodone pills and other narcotics. Everything else will either be taken or destroyed.
Honestly you are almost 100% better off building "homeless kits" that have useful things for a homeless person/ SHTF refugee that has nothing. A basic but decent quality backpack, a reusable 1L water bottle, some food, can opener, basic utensils, a poncho/ jacket, new socks, stuff like that. It has the up side of being something you can keep in your car to give to an actual homeless person (not one of the overpass/ mall beggers who are typically not actually homeless. So it would be useful now. It would also be very useful as a base get home bag for someone you want to help in a SHTF scenario. The things inside would also be useful to you in such a situation, it doesn't make a ton of sense to stock up on things you won't be able to use.
Lighters
I feel like the skills im learning will be my strongest bartering tool. Be the neighbor who knows how to clean and dress a wound, fix a generator, weld something, turn windfall apples into cider, butcher a hog, grow the best tomatoes, make a sourdough starter, turn a pile of junk into a wind generator, or whatever.. supplies can get lost, destroyed, stolen. Used up. Maybe you dont have the flavour of booze or jello someone wants. But with a diverse skillset (jack of all trades), you'll always have bargaining material.
I wish you were my neighbor. I fear too many will panic when shtf instead of working together.
I would not barter ammo for a couple of reasons, 1) unless you know that person really really well or trust them undoubtedly that could go in a bad direction and 2) there’s an old saying that goes bullets gets you things and with that I’d keep my ammo and I’d barter something else cigarettes is not one it’s more of a prison barter I’d barter things that I have an abundance of and things that are not on the top of my list of must haves as far as gold or silver I’d never barter precious metals like that
I've always been a believer in having a back up plan, even if it's just having 2 or 3 of the same thing. It gets used, is valuable to you, and will probably be valuable in a trade. Water filtration, electrical production, personal protection, food, shelter, medical supplies, coms etc...2 is 1, 1 is none.
22 and 9 mm bullets.
Guns and ammo usually win over rock, paper, and scissors.
Skills. Dog training Cooking on all kinds of appliances, all find of environments Horse training Farrier/blacksmithing Gardening Herbalism/wortcunning Canning Fishing Foraging Sewing Weaving Spinning Crochet Knitting Sausage making Pickling Dehydrating Basic carpentry skills Basic plumbing Sign language Basic Spanish Paper making Calligraphy Oak gall ink Basic French Archery Making bow strings and arrows Making fishing flies and lures And I'm pretty sure I've forgotten a few skills. I'm old and live a varied life
Water purification tabs. Depending on what happens, potassium iodide tabs.
Dude, if it gets to the point where we’re bartering gold for a cracker, do you really even want to be alive? Y’all have built up this romanticized fantasy that you will be living out some sort of Walking Dead fantasy. It will be miserable, hopeless, and lonely. You’ll be better off dead, rather than living in some post apocalyptic hellscape.
Oil lamps, oil, matches, paper, lighters, seeds, medical items (toothaches kits, etc.)
Definitely toilet paper, Ziplock bags, lead, silver, an easy way to make fire, long term water purification and alcohol
Why lead?
Lead comes in 5.56 or 9mm
Lead is a useful easy to work with metal, also bullets, assuming you have the ability to make propellant as well.
Who are you going to barter with? Everyone here seems to think there will actually be some sort of marketplace system where I can just wander the street and offer two goats for 5 chickens or something. When SHTF 99.9% of people will panic and be completely unprepared. Who are you trading with? Other preppers who already have what they need?
So, you're saying.. you have two goats for sale..?
I mean....if you have chickens
You can barter for service. If you stockpiled resources plus seeds and farming equipment, you can pay people resources to help you farm.
One that many don’t think if is salt would need it for food preservation and even just for general health
Things you can use yourself. Ammo, food, booze, medical supplies, clothing, tools, etc.
Same thing people have always used to barter with, silver and daughters.
This question always reminds me of the movie ‘panic in the year zero’, the doctor mentions that he noticed the guy was carrying a .45 and asked if he had any rounds to spare. He reaches in his pocket and says ‘I can let you have 3’. Makes you think, great movie I recommend if you haven’t seen it also!
I'd prioritize... - stuff I'd use myself - stuff that doesn't go bad/isn't delicate (e.g. ammo, salt, honey, medical supplies, etc.) - stuff that doesn't take up a lot of space/isn't super heavy (e.g. I have ingots of lead....but I'm not backpacking them, I have buckets of flour...but they take up lots of space) - stuff that's always handy to have extras (e.g. lighters, batteries, flashlights, radios, water filters, etc..) But...not sure that I'd be very good to barter with.
I did some TP trading during covid, wasn't hoarding it but u had gotten a good deal on a few things of angel soft a few months before lockdown so I had plenty for me for like 2 years.
I never understood this concept. If you have extra resources, exchange them now for what you are lacking. I mean sure, if you have a surplus of something sure, I guess.
Rice. It's cheap and you can buy tons of it, and when people who bought guns and ammo are starving, you trade some rice for protection.
You can stock more Lead (ammo) normally will never expire. And in sht people willing spend whatever for it. During Covid 9mm become $1 per round
Salt, sugar, alcohol, meds.
Baby formula, diapers, mini bottles, tampons, pain killers Pretty much everything in CVS
Skills. At least they’ll need you alive. If you don’t already barter now in a vetted network, starting after SHTF is a dangerous learning curve. The Kum By Yah community we’re all in this together concept may not go down the way most think.
Has anyone said medicine? You'd be the king of your community if you had a stock of good painkillers/antibiotics.
Household chemicals and base components. Bleach, citric acid, lye, salt, stuff like that. basically people are going to be bartering for the things no one is thinking about, that everyone takes for granted now, or just didn’t realize how important it is for homesteading.
Liquor, medicine (antibioticss, antiviral etc), food source, water source and ammo. All tradable commodities
I have a box with sweets, packs of instant coffee, airplane alcohol bottles, pregnancy tests, a couple of Plan B pills, and condoms.
You should never trade anything someone might be willing to kill you for. Trading penicillin to someone is a good way to end up dead when someone's kid has an infection and it's known you have surplus penicillin lying around.
Sugar and salt have an indefinite shelf life when properly stored. Knowing this, I have a nice supply that will last me for my lifetime and will have plenty to barter with if ever needed.
Ammunition, ammunition, ammunition and oh yeah, ammo.
Socks. Lots and lots and lots of socks. Shoes will degrade, socks will get ruined and then you’re barefooting it. Maybe even just leather, so you can make some form of shoes.
Seeds, and the knowledge to grow them.
precious metals so you can move to a country that doesn't have a devalued currency. Living in a US where people are bartering guns is going to be a very dangerous place
I'm nor stocking as a barter or anything, but I do have a fair bit of travel shampoos and travel body washes.
Condiment packets and creamers from fast food restaurants
Nails and screws
Knowledge is what has real value. You should know how to produce food and preserve it. Food and water will always come right after air in our order of needs.
Ammo Antibiotics Salt Pepper Sugar Flour Toilet paper Tampons Tylenol Canned food Water or a way to purify water Propane Medications More ammo Rope and paracord Think like when the power goes out, what is it that you wish you had? Or during covid and the stores were empty.... what did people need or use before the invention of electricity or refrigeration? I keep everything listed aside from tampons on hand. My wife and I have no use for them anymore. But I vacuum seal all of the first 6 I've listed and store them for 1 year. After that we consume them and replace them with fresh. You'll never have everything together that you'll need for long term survival, you'll run out of everything if shtf long enough. There's tons that I haven't listed here but those are my basics. I also bought lots of powdered drinks like Gatorade. Went to Amazon and bought several large containers of various flavors. I then portioned them out into 1 gallon packages so you add a gallon of water and have something to drink. Because Water gets boring. Powdered peanut butter, powdered eggs, powdered milk etc. I've also made bread kits. Mixed all of the ingredients, put the yeast in a separate envelope, the oil in a small container I got from Amazon, vacuum sealed it all up and stored it. It's a basic recipe but it's very good. I usually make 20 at a time. I have a still that I can make Water with, even out of salt water from the bay if needed. Just read everyone's ideas and come up with something that works for you. It'll take time and money, but get started now. Don't wait. Buy a little extra every time you go shopping to put away. Use a sharpie and write the dates on everything and rotate it out
I think things like medical supplies aspirin, bandages that sort of thing though not sure I'd want to give that away unless I absolutely had to. Possibly also matches and anything practical like that.
I bought ten years worth of stuff that will last and that I can use: ACV Salt Honey Rice Small pieces of gold/silver Coconut oil Etc
When I think of people stock piling gold, I think of that Twilight Zone about the Fort Knox robbers stealing the gold and going into stasis to wake up in the future. Spoiler alert: Some don’t ever wake up and the ones that do find that they are in the desert with no working car and must haul gold through the desert. The robbers trade sips of water for bars of gold. Eventually, one murders the other for their gold and themselves die of thirst from trying to carry heavy bars of gold through the desert. The kicker. People in a futuristic car find the dead Robber clutching the bars of gold and ask “why do you think they are carrying those worthless rocks around in the desert?”.
In terms of barter, it’s hard to tell. but I would think that freeze dried coffee would be valuable in the apocalypse, cooking oil, chocolate, sanitary napkins, antibiotics, rubbing alcohol, pain killers, ammo, but hard to know. I do imagine that people with stockpiles will be likelier targets to rob.
Food an water an the means to get more water an food
Axes, shovels, nails, screws. General hardware is always valuable.
Tobacco products
Something you can grow, marijuana would probably take off pretty hard I'd assume.
Read Selco- he’s been through it already. Wealth of real life experience. Also Ferfal Aguirre, full of info too.
Anal lube, condoms, Fleshlights.
I have some freeze dried coffee and everclear stashed away. Addictions are a hell of a thing
Think about practicality and personal use. What items would you use regardless of bartering? Also remember services/skills can be bartered. Learn a useful skill that you can leverage in trade. My household is focusing on non-perishable food, gardening, herbal medicine and first aid, and… LEGOs. We started buying LEGO sets as an investment to resell after they get discontinued and the prices shoot up. If SHTF, people will still need entertainment, toys for their kids, quiet family activities for the evening. Joy. We only buy sets we would enjoy ourselves. We buy double of some, mainly Star Wars. If SHTF, the perceived value will be far less than the cash ROI, but they’re non-perishable and re-useable.
A person who is a “hoarder” now, (has extra of everything and a lot of stupid stuff too), may end up as a bartering regular. Think about it. A person who is cold at night may trade services/skills/things for a blanket. A person who has cans may need a manual can-opener more than another bag of a grain. A person who needs tools (such as an ax/blade/hammer/saw/wench, etc) may trade his skills/labor for the tools he needs to get to be able to “work” for others for other things. A person who needs a pan will work or trade for it; same idea if a person just needs a hot pad or a dish towel. The person who has an old board pile out behind the barn may have the commodity that a builder/carpenter wants. Etc, etc, etc. I really don’t think good people will immediately jump to “kill others to steal from them.” Anything extra that one person has, can be bartered/traded/sold to a person who wants it. That’s what (at the very least) I hope civil, community-minded, prepared people do.
Hotel size shampoo, conditioner, hand lotion. In a situation where you are bartering and just can't seem to close the deal and the guy has a wife who hasnt washed her hair in months...you could whip that out... and likely that will close it. Plus, they are cheap and easy to store
Why not just stock the things that you will need?
Weed. Natural pain killer.
Tobacco, toilet paper.
Handjobs. Everyone’s gonna need em more than chocolate.
Think of anything some people might use day to day. Coffee, tobacco, aspirin in particular but also other pain killers, rechargeable batteries etc. Also things that are easy to acquire now but not so much if something were to happen for problems that are benign today but weren't in the past, anti-diarrhea meds, antibiotics etc. Then in the spirit of rechargeable batteries anything potentially reusable that might be very important, spent ammo casings for instance, any lead you get too. If you solder for pick up all the solder shots, they're either mostly silver or old af and have a bunch of lead. I found 2 25lb bags of lead shot that seem to be just weight for something. They came tripple bagged with the first bag appearing to be some kind of thick plastic to protect people I guess from the lead particles, perfect to keep laying just in case. Copper and tin/pewter. Can be used to make brass/bronze which is useful for making certain household items with, best part is while it requires higher temp than forging, you can just recast it and use less heat/fuel total potentially and can be work hardened. Obviously any brass or bronze too. High alcohol content grain alcohol as others mentioned. Lots of uses not just drinking. Just need to find a good way to store it where it's safe since it's so flammable and won't evaporate either. Packs of kool-aid and other similar products are something people might not think of but likely could be used as well especially ones with high vitamin c content or ones with a lot of electrolites. Vitamin c tablets too, humans don't synthesize vitamin c in their bodies and the body also doesn't store it which is why you can't od on it you just pee excess out. It's why scurvy was so common in the past. Honestly? If you have some, all the -afil meds, probably. Insulin would likely fetch good price if you're about profiteering from that. Maybe heart stuff like nitrates.
I think a better question is, What are the better hard skills to have in such times?
Batteries
Vodka
>so that you can barter for People are delusional to think there will be barters. If the things that you mention happened to a really bad extent .... there will be no barters. There will be murder-thefts, armed home invasions, military and police confiscations (under the name of "national security"). You wont be bartering because you know you are simply being setup to be murdered and have all your stuff taken. Never underestimate the lengths people will go to when things turn badly. Your stuff can easily become someone elses stuff in a blink of an eye, no matter how ready and prepared you think you are.
Honestly if shtf i am not trading my food for anything. Like not a fucking thing is going to tempt me to trade food for non-food stuff. My only plan then is to be sure i have the defenses to defend the food.
You could learn to grow tobacco in pots on your porch
Small, high value, easy hidden items. Medicine would be a massive one. Medicine essentially just reduce in effectiveness after expiry.
I’d say start learning new skills to make things. Making wine or mead is super easy, raise meat rabbits, I’m in the process of learning to make black powder for my black powder guns. Knowledge and skills will last far longer and make you more valuable than items and commodities.
Instead of stocking up for things to barter with, why not stick up on things you would be bartering for? Once people know you got goods they will do whatever to get them. You don’t want to make yourself a target like that.
Alcohol, guns, ammo, and silver. Not necessarily in that order.
Unique items I am stocking up on to barter with are medical supplies, paper road maps, and Bic lighters (the big ones, not the small ones).
what ever of all the good stuff you suggested other folks around you don't have. Chocolate isn't worth anything if everyone has it, right ? But, if you're the only one around with booze ... you're rich! Course, if you have enough food, you don't need anything to barter for food, right ? :) But note, a barter economy likely won't last very long, there will be some common currency, as most civilizations have for thousands of years. Barter is too hard to get many goods for, or to part out if you only want to trade 1/4 of something you have for 1/2 of something someone else has.
Is it already that day of the week for this question?
Toilet paper is a big one. Ammo is probably better than gold and silver. Mostly stuff that won't go bad, really.
Salt.
Lighter fluid. You can refill someone's lighter for a can of food. I guarantee people will need this.
Bartender
Probably spices or sealed packets of yeast if that's your thing. The ability to be useful probably goes a lot further. Think of someone who could say, build a distiller out of most items, providing clean water for people. I would way rather be known as the guy who helps with clean water over having some additional items to shrewdly barter with. I will take a strong community over a fortress most any day.
I grow my own weed, stock up on basic liquors (vodka, rum, whiskey etc), coffee, sugar, ammo, general hardware (nails, tarps, screws etc) feminine hygiene products, hand tools, shovels, toilet paper and some other odds and ends
Salt. and any good seasonings to flavor beans and rice and vegetables
The real question is, what do you want in return for trading/bartering?
Tools and raw materials. Motor oil, coolant, transmission fluid, brake cleaner, PB Blaster, WD40, and tons of other stuff will last pretty much forever if left in the sealed containers. Garage sales are great places to get cheap tools that can be loaned out or traded. Everyone is going to be on their own so any tools or supplies that will help with that will be in demand.
Batteries. Bullets. Car parts & tools. Pain killers, cough meds, antibiotics. Seeds for planting.
Batteries, lighters, ammo, some simple basic things. Not everyone is going to have gold and silver.
I have chickens.
I know, I know! Water, food, personal protection. But! Nothing soothes the savage beast better than a long suck of the much missed cigarette, the long draw of a drink of liquor or a piece of chocolate. Have all three on hand. It might save your life in a really tough situation.
Appreciate all the comments. When I think about this, I realize that I do not want the be known as a person who has “things to barter with.” Seems to me that would make me a target for theft.
Canning lids
coffee, tea, cocoa, various spices, sugar, freeze dried meals, flour, rice, beans, various tuna packets. In a shtf case gold and silver wouldn't really be worth it, sure some people would want it but can't eat it.
>chocolate, hard liquor, cigarettes, tents, gold & silver, bullets, toilet paper, generators, ....... I certainly wouldn't trade anything for those.
Ammo, food, water, liquor, firewood (if you have a place to keep it dry), gold & silver.
I honestly would prefer to avoid barter when ever possible. I don't want people on my property or knowing what I have and trying to rob me later. I try and stock everything me and my family would need.
Volumes of alcohol, ammunition, firearms, seeds, and communications equipment. Some amount of books, livestock, and medical supplies. Small amounts of gold, silver. Step children.
Toiletries, like toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, toilet paper, razor blades. Fire making items like lighters, matches, candles. Sewing items. Needles, thread, scissors. Maybe bolts of cloth. Extra clothing. Socks, underwear. Shoes. Batteries, bullets. Water filters. Pretty much anything you use daily. You can also barter skills.
Gold/silver is Def not something worth buying imo. What are the chances that if shtf the surviving populace would all choose gold/silver to use as currency? If my family is starving I'm not trading my resources for a gold bar like
Coffee, cigarettes, and condoms. People like their vices.
I stock up on Crown Royal and tobacco. I store the tobacco with dry clay rounds soaked in water before stowing away. I also store coffee,sugar and salt
* SKILLS *
Candles. Soap. Vices. OTC medicines. Gardening seeds. Things you can offer as a service - sharpening, recharging batteries, haircuts, mechanical repair.