Here's my pathetic attempt to demonstrate solar capability. It's a very crude and 1st attempt on video usage for me and I shot it in the back yard before going to work so go easy on me if you will. This is one of those fast forward videos that if I get some time, vastly needs edited.

The basic idea is solar cells can provide some of the basics and more
1. Communication
2. Shelter
3. Fire
4. Water Purification
5. Navigation



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I looks to me like you are on the right track!! I think I will make this a project for the year & see what I can accomplish.

Thanks wildman800. I have a lot of ideas that it would be nice to convey to those who want to listen but time has always been my enemy. I never have the time to get the video down or what have you.That's the by product of using an obtaining gear is that I work a lot more than I have to enjoy things. A vicious by product.

I have a annemometer cups that I want to see if the miniscule power output will trickle charge a cell phone battery. I'll try it while I'm home and post the results.

That's great,I'm curious to see how much of the primary survival group we can cover with. Example-fire,shelter,signal,water,food,medical,etc.. (Iknow you can't eat it for food but mabey power a laser pointer to coral fish in a trap (I use to use the laser pointer to run the fish around the pond at night for kicks). The one thing I have noticed is that 20 watt cells seam to be the starting point of effectively utilizing the sun. A 5 watt cell can take days over what a 20 Watt or greater can do in hours.

Neat Idea Falcon,

You can bet that I will be taking my lazer pointer to the river this spring to see how the walleye respond! I am sure it would work on bass.

Thanks,

Mike

Very cool. I liked seeing how you didn't have to be super-gentle with the solar cell "blanket". It seemed like you were fairly rough with it but it was rugged enough to handle it.

-Blast

I'm glad you did this! I believe most people should have a portable panel or two around the house,camp, or car. Any skeptics should see your videos, it would give them plenty to think about.

I noticed we have similar gear, the fan I still have but upgraded to one I like better and we have the same Steripen, too.

Thanks for sharing.

I did not hear it if you stated it in your movies, but how much does one of those solar cells cost?

I read a post about this either here or read an article about it somewhere elese. The general idea was the annemometer had some "electrical" things that didn't work out so well. I'll look for it. I know that is in no way helpful but I just I would put my 1 cent.

Google "Sunlinq" or "Global Solar P3" and you'll find some pricing on a few different kinds of foldable solar chargers.

Do a lot of shopping around first, the panel I eventually purchased was 319 on one site, about 400 at another, and a third site had the exact same thing,no extras, for over 500!

Frostbite

jasond, solar cells are coming down cheaper, there still expensive but it's a investment that pays for it self. The one I upgrade to was a 40 watt cell. It is a tough cell, I can rough house it reasonably and is water proof in case of rain or shelter. If you are interested in setting on up, see some of my older posts on solar with a search of falcon5000 and select a year back of I would be glad to answer any questions if I can. I believe we should have the brain to know how to survive without anything, and equipment helps make everything a whole lot easier. The old saying work smarter not harder. I would definitely get a 20 watt or greater cell and if you look at this vendor's store (vitabon) he has great prices. If you google around you may find he's the cheapest.

http://cgi.ebay.com/40-Watt-Foldable-Sol...1QQcmdZViewItem

This is a 40 Watt Foldable Solar Panel. It is made of thin-film, lightweight solar technology. It is good for charging 12-16 volt batteries. Use for mobile electronic devices or charging lead-acid batteries on campers, trailers, RVs or farm equipment. Solar trickle charging has proven to extend battery life preventing batteries from deep discharge, saving money and time.

Also available, (sold seperately), is the solar cable kit that will enable connection to several devices. The cable kit comes with the following pieces; battery clamps, 8' extension cord, 2.5 mm plug (for portable battery packs), and a male and female cigarette lighter adapter.

Thanks frostbite, let me know if you want to set up your steripen. The adapter I made cost about $5.00. It was a wooden dowel with 2 stainless screws in it, a cigarette lighter plug, a small metal bracket and a small screw. You can run it with batteries or 100% off the cell with no batteries.

Thanks Blast, I don't know if you will be able to fire off any NSI's (Nasa Standard Initiators) or solar igniter's on your explosives though, but maybe..

SwampDonkey, let me know if you catch anything, I'm thinking a M type trap and run them into it with the laser.