This is similar to what happens to me in Britain. On hearing my American accent, Brits around often position themselves so it is possible to quietly ask if I have any pistol ammunition I wish to trade!
Consumables
Consumable items such as ammunition, soap, film, medicine, toothpaste, toilet paper, shoes, underwear, aspirin, pens, pencils, paper (I was continually asked for these last simple little items in Cuba), cooking oil, salt, wire, wire snares, computer disks, nitrogen fertilizer, blasting caps, gloves, tape, knives, sharpening stones, matches, saws, files, chain saw parts, light bulbs, garden hose, motor oil, engine filters, powder, primers, bullets, canning lids, plastic freezer bags, electrical supplies, nylon rope, coffee, welding rod, batteries, lamp mantles, LP gas, flour, yeast, detergent, needles and thread, tape, bleach, Toothbrushes, antacid, sugar, steel wool, calcium hypochlorite (used to home-manufacture bleach), nails, screws. bolts, flashlights, batteries, bulbs and repair parts, tires, pepper, boot oil, and shoelaces all have potential as city survival trade goods.
It’s very sobering to contemplate, but apparently the higher the casualty rates among fellow residents, the more these items will be scrounged up and put on the market. There were, for instance, so many German casualties at Stalingrad that hordes of Soviet soldiers enjoyed adequate supplies of captured boots and coats when the shooting died down—some for the first time since they had been in the army
The importance of simple flashlights in a collapsed city economy is easily overlooked. There are never enough of these. Flashlights and batteries were the principal items we used in our little company store to manipulate the economy of some rural African communities in which I worked. In a few cases we charged up to a full day’s wages for a new set of flashlight batteries. The principle employed here may be identical to those we will likely encounter in city survival situations. Africans in the area were happy to work, but could see no reason to work. There were no stores in which they could spend wage money By opening a company store and carefully orchestrating prices and availability of some especially desirable items, we were able to both get our work accomplished and provide a benefit to our workers.
In many regards it was similar to our own society. (Except here it’s the politicians’ running the government store that forcibly takes away our money in the form of taxes to finance showy, make-work projects.) Placing money on a cord to wear around their necks as a means of ornamentation was common among rural Africans. This was of little economic benefit to the Africans. Providing flashlights, bulbs, and batteries they desperately needed was a benefit. It was never mandatory that they buy from us. When other stores opened we closed ours. Money is money and is always fungible.
Obviously the above list is at least 5,000 items fewer than complete. All of these items share the characteristic of being small, portable, somewhat durable, and almost essential in many circumstances. They are also all consumables. The only variation is that some of the desirable items are capital goods or tools—as things with which to make other things are called.
These are my favorite trade goods. Based on past experience, especially in large cities, I like ammunition, matches, and flashlights and batteries. Thirty years ago, for example, I purchased 1 million rounds of ammunition from Interarmco in Alexandria, Virginia. The cost was 2 cents per round. On the way home I was really concerned. What were we going to do with all this 8mm Lebel, 8 x 57mm and 7 x 57mm Mauser, .303 British, and other assorted pistol ammo? Not to worry, the boss advised. Unlike firearms, which are not generally consumed, ammunition is used up in large quantities. Guns that use this stuff will probably still be here in 50 years, but ammunition supplies are always shrinking. He was right. We put a price of 8 to 10 cents per round on the ammo. In 6 weeks enough was sold to pay for the entire original purchase. The last 80 percent was profit.
Wholesale ammunition dealers currently report sales of tens of millions of rounds of ammunition. Every time the government beats the gun control drum, citizens start laying in even more ammunition. Eventually Al of this will come out again in one form or another. Perhaps I am wrong and there will be no scarcity. But scarcities are often regional. I wouldn’t take chances on not having enough ammo on the outside chance that there will be too much to trade when cities go down. If you as a city survivor do not have enough ammo of the correct kind, it will be very serious indeed.
Lowly, cheap kitchen matches are another often overlooked trade item that is always in tremendous demand by city survivors. Several characteristics of matches quickly lead to this circumstance. Unless we smoke, under normal circumstances of life we currently use relatively few matches. As a result, nobody thinks about them. In survival circumstances, especially in cities, we will have opportunity to use scores of matches every day. We will need matches for lighting stoves, lamps. cookers, smokers: starting fires; burning trash; and dozens of other uses that will quickly become apparent.
Difficult as it is to believe, city survivors report using about three 250-match boxes per month! Careful conservation can cut this to about two boxes per month. But I would prefer to purchase and store a bale of matches now while they are easily available.
Some types of trade goods are frequently viewed with a jaundiced eye even by city survivors in desperate circumstances. Home-canned meat and vegetables are good examples. People just will not trade for something unknown that they think might have potential to harm them. Convincing them that you eat this same stuff every night might work, but don’t be surprised when it doesn’t!
Reloaded ammunition is another of these suspicious items. Amateur gun owners are fearful of reloads, while experienced gun owners already reload their own ammunition. Little demand remains in the middle for reloads. Test this theory at your next gun show. Take a big box of reloaded ammo in and see what kind of offers you get. Desperation could turn this philosophy a bit; we will have to see. In the interim, don’t get too excited when reloads are not viewed as desirable trade goods.
Medicine
Fresh medications in original sealed bottles stamped with current expiration dates are always very desirable. Out-of-date or scruffy-looking medications are viewed with suspicion. Individuals without needed medications are often forced to pay virtually any price to secure vital supplies. I recently encountered a dramatic example in Cuba. A mid-ranking bureaucrat working in the government tourist bureau had a seriously epileptic 4-year-old daughter. We believed that her ever-more-frequent seizures would soon lead to permanent damage. Absolutely none of the medication the little girl desperately needed was available in Cuba. Her father was willing to pay any price for drugs that would only have cost $8 at most in American pharmacies.
The point, of course, is that some drugs in some specific circumstances will be priceless. Everything we currently use should be stockpiled in a goodly quantity. Most drugs gradually lose their vitality when kept past their expiration date. Freezing helps prolong the life of many medicines, arguing again for use of a freezer in city survival circumstances.