Ep 1 Dared To Survive Podcast During Lunch

This is our first podcast episode leading up to our video series on Youtube. This is a rough recording using a phone during lunch with the guys. Most episodes in the future will be recorded with better equipment. Thanks for listening!

Music Credits:
Theme Song
Burt by JM Ballard
Special thanks to JM Ballard for letting us use his original music.
Find his music on Sound Cloud http://soundcloud.com/jm-ballard
Follow JM Ballard on twitter http://twitter.com/JmbWompRat

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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In the primitive shelter with the fire going

Gearing up for filming later this month! Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr using the links above to get updates.

In the primitive shelter with the fire going during a first run at filming Dared to Survive. This is after several failed attempts…. Remember we’re not experts. This dare challenge was building a primitive shelter and spending the night with no sleeping bag or blanket during a cold night.

Building The Primitive Shelter

Gearing up for filming later this month! Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr using the links above to get updates.

Building the primitive shelter during a first run at filming Dared to Survive. This dare challenge was building a primitive shelter and spending the night with no sleeping bag or blanket during a cold night.

Building The Fire

Gearing up for filming later this month! Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr using the links above to get updates.

Building a fire by the primitive shelter during a first run at filming Dared to Survive. This is after several failed attempts…. Remember we’re not experts. This dare challenge was building a primitive shelter and spending the night with no sleeping bag or blanket during a cold night.

Hanging Out at The Primitive Shelter

Gearing up for filming later this month! Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr using the links above to get updates.

Hanging out next to the fire in front of the primitive shelter during a first run at filming Dared to Survive. This dare challenge was building a primitive shelter and spending the night with no sleeping bag or blanket during a cold night.

Projects for 2016

Happy New Years Everyone!!!

Here’s a preview of a few projects that I have planned for this year.

Automated AeroGarden

An automated AeroGarden based hydroponic-ish herb garden. I picked up this AeroGarden version 3 at a resale shop for about $8. I took it apart, cleaned it up, tested the unit and found it to be in working order. I need to replace the tubing and filter but all in all that’s a good find. I will be doing this project in stages. First will be 3d printing the planter cartridges that hold the sponge and just get the unit functioning. 2nd will be automating a few functions using an Arduino and holding tanks for nutrients and reserve water.

Time-lapse Camera

An Arduino based Time-lapse Camera. This will be used in production of Dared to Survive shows.

Game Camera

An Arduino based Game Camera that will also collect environmental information such as Temperature, Humidity, etc. The data will be stored on an SD-Card and will be later used in an app to develop forecasting predictions.

Passive Repeater

I want to attempt a few things with a Passive Repeater design that integrates simple bi-directional amplification and/or filters.

Bench Top Power Supply

A simple bench top power supply made from PC and Server power supplies.

More Podcasts

I plan on starting a weekly 15 min per episode podcast covering my top 5 favorite Instructables projects.

I’m sure this list will change throughout the year so stay tuned. Have project suggestions or requests? Reach out to me @Mr_Red_Beard on Twitter.

HP JetDirect 300X j3263a

I have an older HP LaserJet P2035 that I picked up a while back for like $30. The printer works great but it isn’t networked so every time something needs to be printed I have to tote the laptop into the room and hook it up via USB. Solution! An office was getting rid of a bunch of stuff recently and one of the things they got rid of was an HP JetDirect 300X j3263a. This device has a network port and a serial port that attaches to the printer.

Today I hooked up the JetDirect to my printer and the network. To get started I pushed the test button to get configuration info sheet printed. That much worked! I noticed that the device was already configured for a network so did some digging and found out I could factory reset the device.

Unplug the power from the JetDirect
Hold down the Test button while plugging power back in
Keep Holding the Test button for 30 seconds
Wait 10 seconds then unplug the power then plug back in (grabs an IP address from the network)
Wait 5 seconds after power on then press Test button (prints info sheet with IP address)

Ok so now I have a local IP address but for this to work properly I need to reserve the IP address issued in my router so that the JetDirect always has the same IP address.

Success! I setup a network printer pointed at the IP address allocated for the JetDirect. Windows discovered the LaserJet on the other end and installed with no issue. I could use it like this but I’d like to see what the new firmware would bring to the table.

Fail! I first tested to see if the JetDirect web interface was responding and it was but no options appeared. Turns out that this model uses Java and possibly some form of an ActiveX control. If this can’t be changed via a firmware update and is an issue there is always the Telnet interface on the JetDirect. Also features may not be enabled on the device.

Fail! I tried using the HP Web JetAdmin application but couldn’t get it to work. This maybe due to compatibility issues or because of the way I have my network setup.

Success! Next attempt TelNet. I used Putty as a client. Well there’s no login, no password, no username, nothing.

Usernames: root, admin, administrator, supervisor
Default telnet password: password

Below are some TelNet Commands to either enable or disable features. Disabled = 0 & Enabled = 1.

ipp-config: 0 (Enable/Disable Internet Printing)
ftp-config: 0 (Enable/Disable FTP)
ews-config: 0 (Enable/Disable Embedded Web Server)
snmp-config: 0 (Enable/Disable Simple Network Management Protocol)
syslog-config: 0 (Enable/Disable server logging)
set-cmnty-name: (Sets SNMP community string)
syslog-svr: (Sets address of log server)
ip: (Sets IP address)
subnet-mask:
default-gw: (Default Gateway)
quit (save and exit)
exit (exit and do not save)

Success! Using an FTP client with username root and no password I was able to connect.

Download firmware from http://h20564.www2.hp.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docId=emr_na-bpj07429

Fail! Upgrading firmware via FTP. There’s supposed to be a folder called Download on the JetDirect via FTP but I don’t see one. Lets throw something at the wall and see if it sticks. I’ll just upload the firmware to the root directory…. and waiting. FTP errored out then telnet and web interfaced stopped responding correctly. Maybe it’s working? Everything I’ve read says that the JetDirect will automatically reboot….. Still waiting. Ok went to the printer and found that the printer was out of paper and that it had printed several messages/codes spit out blank pages leaving the printer empty. I put paper in and the JetDirect reset printing out the message below.

Fail! I attempted to the JetDirect update via TFTP with the commands below upon completion I got the message “Please wait, network upgrade will begin in a few seconds”. I used SolarWinds TFTP server on Windows 10. Nothing changes the version stays the same and the TFTP server log doesn’t show any activity from the JetDirect.

tftp-server:xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx
upgrade-file:300X_H0867.dld
upgrade

To be continued……..

Primitive Shelter Building – Lessons Learned

Time – Make sure you give yourself as much time as possible to build your shelter but not so much that you neglect other survival needs. We only had about an hour before we lost daylight. Remember if you are doing this for multiple days you can improve your shelter as time passes.
Make sure you have a relatively flat surface to lay down (being on a hill side makes it tough to get comfortable and remain safe)
Make sure that you cover as much surface area with branches and sticks
Height – During warming temperatures you will want the roof of your shelter higher and leave open the sides to allow for air flow. In the colder periods you will want the roof lower and as much of the sides closed so that the dead air space will aide in trapping warmth. Note you will not want it so low that you can’t sit up (very uncomfortable) and if you have a fire this will increase your chances to pose a danger of drying out your shelter and it possibly catching fire. I wish I would have made the shelter a bit higher and more closed in on the sides.
Bedding – You will want to pad the ground with as much as possible but prepare for some aches in the following days regardless.
Fire – One of the most essential tools to survival. You will want this a reasonable distance from your shelter but not so much that it does not provide heat for you. I may have had the fire a little close to the shelter because some of the shelter materials started to dry out and blacken through out the night. I’m not going to complain too much because it kept me warm and I was never asleep very deep or for more than 45 minutes at a time. We did one thing right! When gathering fire wood make sure you get enough to last the night. You will not want to burn more than absolutely needed so that your supply lasts the night plus it makes tending the fire a lot easier and safer to maintain. If you’re relying on the fire for warmth you will not want to sleep for long periods, I mean you will but won’t have a hard time when you get cold or uncomfortable, because you will need the hot coals to build the fire back up when it dies down which also reminds me that you will need various types and sizes of fuel to include small sticks and twigs to thumb size pieces, dry leaves & grass.
You will not want to skip the step of smoking out your shelter to remove insects and other creatures. Almost all living creatures have a natural disposition to fire. When we did this to the shelter a quarter size scorpion came out from the shelter and from under Mick.

Minimalist Survival Challenge 2016

At the beginning of 2016 Mr RedBeard is doing a Minimalist Survival Challenge. Here’s the gear load list so far. Be sure to communicate with us on Twitter @DaredtoSurvive. Feel free to give us suggestions, corrections, warnings etc.

Getting gear together for the survival challenge. What am I missing?

Pack
2 Wool Blankets
Sawyer Water Filter
Morakniv Outdoor 2000 Knife
A Winchester curved blade skinning knife
Estwing Hatchet
Head Lamp
Ferro Rod
Compass
Wilderness identification guides
State park ranger map with trails marked
Rat trap
Gloves
First Aid kit
Aluminum water bottle
MSR Pot not pictured

How I fixed my Poweradd Solar Panel Portable Charger

Poweradd Apollo 7200mAh High Capacity Solar Panel Portable Charger
Solar type: Monocrystalline Solar Panel (highest efficiency rates)
Original Cost: $19.99 on Amazon

The other day I was very bummed to find out that my solar charging battery backup had failed and no longer charged via sun or either USB. I wrote the seller on Amazon from who I purchased the device with no answer. Considering the high failure rate I was seeing while trying to find a fix and the fact that it didn’t cost a whole lot I figured what the heck I’ll try to fix it because what’s the worst that could happen cause it’s already broken.

First problem disassembling

There are no screws so the case just snaps together? Turns out yes but there is an adhesive tab on top of the battery stuck to the back of the solar panel. Pay attention to the wires when taking apart. Loosen the case all the way around with a flat edge blade or screwdriver then pull apart at the bottom end first (opposite of USB ports).

Finding The Problem

What I think happened is that the lithium ion battery protection circuit got activated (lack of better term)? Maybe? So what I did was first check the voltage directly from the battery and got about 3vdc, then on the opposite side of the main protection circuit at about 3vdc. So the battery has a charge which means the battery didn’t fail.

Battery is good and I have voltage so did a component fail?

I decided to start bypassing voltage regulators and charging circuits using alligator clips to see if I could get the battery to turn on. In the end I hooked the voltage entering the circuit directly to the opposite side of this diode or resistor (I forgot to note it and the resolution sucks) then held down the power button. Viola I’ve got power!