The Survival Punk Podcast

DIY Beats Store-Bought Gear Part 1 | Episode 571

Most people default to buying everything off a shelf because it feels easier. In this episode, I break down why that’s often the wrong move. This is about knowing when DIY actually beats store-bought — not as a hobby, but as a smarter, cheaper, more reliable way to prep. Some things are absolutely worth buying. Others? You’re getting ripped off.

This kicks off a multi-part series on when it makes sense to build instead of buy, starting with a few high...

New Year’s 2026

New Year, Real Goals | Episode 570

Good morning, this is James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re doing something way less flashy than predictions, doom charts, or crystal-ball nonsense. We’re talking about goals — real ones — and why the new year is actually a useful checkpoint if you don’t screw it up.

This episode isn’t about manifesting or pretending you’re a different person because the calendar flipped. It’s about taking an honest look at where you are, where you’re going, and how to stop sabotaging yourself every time y...

Taking Your Health Into Your Own Hands | Episode 569

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re talking about something that quietly scares the hell out of people once they actually experience it:
how fragile the healthcare system feels when you’re the one stuck dealing with it.

This episode isn’t about conspiracies or miracle cures. It’s about reality — insurance headaches, administrative bloat, chronic health issues, and why more people are being forced to take responsibility for their own health whether they want to or not.

2025 look back

2025: The Year That Squeezed Everyone | Episode 568

Good morning, this is James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re doing something every prepper should do once in a while: a hard look in the rearview mirror. Not nostalgia. Not doom. Just an honest assessment of what actually hit people in 2025 and why so many folks feel worn down even though nothing “collapsed.”

Because 2025 wasn’t a disaster year — but it absolutely was a pressure year.

Housing Didn’t Break — It Locked People Out

Housing was the big deer-in-the-headlights problem of 2025...

Christmas Traditions

Keeping Christmas Traditions Alive in Hard Times | Episode 567

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today’s episode is a little different. This one isn’t about gear, food buckets, or backup power. It’s about something just as important for survival, especially when things feel shaky:
keeping traditions alive.

Specifically Christmas traditions — but this applies to any tradition that anchors your family and your sanity when life gets chaotic, stressful, or flat-out hard.

Because when everything else starts to feel unstable, traditions are the thing that tells your brain...

Apartment backup power

Apartment Backup Power That Actually Works | Episode 566

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and it’s one of those cold, gray mornings where power outages feel just a little too plausible. Today’s episode tackles a question a lot of people quietly stress about but don’t get good answers on:
how do you do real backup power when you live in an apartment or rental?

You can’t install a Generac.
You can’t modify the panel.
You probably can’t even touch the breaker box wit...

Diy Gifts 2

DIY Christmas Gifts That Actually Matter (Part 2) | Episode 565

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and holy hell — it’s cold. Like ten degrees, why do I live here cold. That makes today’s episode even more fitting, because we’re continuing the DIY Christmas gift series with Part 2, and this time we’re getting into non-edible gifts — the stuff you can make with your hands that people actually use, appreciate, and remember.

Part 1 was all food. This one is about skills, crafts, and practical items that quietly make people more prepared w...

Diy Gifts 1

DIY Christmas Gifts That Actually Matter (Part 1) | Episode 564

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and we’re continuing the Christmas run with something that hits harder than anything you can grab off a shelf:
DIY, homemade Christmas gifts.

These are the gifts that save money and mean something.
They’re practical, personal, and they say, “I gave a damn,” instead of “I panic-bought this at Target on December 23rd.”

This might turn into a two-parter — because once you start talking about food, tools, and handmade skills, it’s hard...

Christmas dinner 2

Cooking Christmas Dinner From Your Preps (Part 2) | Episode 563

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re finishing out the Christmas dinner series with Part 2 — the stuff that actually makes the meal feel like Christmas:
side dishes, breads, and desserts, all made from long-term storage and everyday pantry preps.

This isn’t about pretending canned food is gourmet.
It’s about proving that even when money is tight or life goes sideways, you can still sit down to a real holiday meal without running to the store.

Cooking Christmas Dinner From Your Preps (Part 1) | Episode 562

Good morning — it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and it’s a crisp 40-degree December morning. Today we’re kicking off Part 1 of a new holiday series:
how to cook a full Christmas dinner entirely from your preps — no grocery trip required.

Because when we talk about “the shit hitting the fan,” we don’t always mean global collapse. Sometimes SHTF is extremely personal:

losing your job right before Christmas

a medical bill

reduced hours

a...

christmas gifts 2

Prepper Christmas Gifts (Part 2) | Episode 561

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and — surprise, surprise — it’s another 36-degree morning. Today we’re continuing the Christmas prepper gift series with Part 2, diving deeper into practical gifts you can give to preppers or use to sneak-prep your non-prepper friends and family without freaking them out.

These are fun, useful, budget-friendly items that improve someone’s survivability without screaming “I think the collapse is coming.” And based on the drive-time episode, we’ve got fire-starting gear, wool socks, serious tools, and a few stories al...

Prepper Christmas Gifts Under $100 | Episode 560

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re talking about something fun, useful, and extremely relevant this time of year:
Christmas gifts for the preppers in your life — all under $100, all practical, all survival-ready.

You walked through a solid list in your recording — from Leathermans to cheap knives to power banks — so this episode breaks down those ideas into a clean Survival Punk gift guide.

Let’s get into it.

Leatherman or Multitool — The Gold Standard Gift Duration: 00:23:33

How to Prep Around Dumb Laws (Part 2) | Episode 559

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re continuing the series on ridiculous restrictions, overregulation, and government “solutions” that make preparedness harder instead of easier.
Part 1 hit Berkeys, rainwater, kratom, and general self-reliance.
Part 2 is all about the banned, the restricted, the neutered, and the over-regulated gear every prepper deals with.

And yes — we’re covering gas cans, body armor, Chinese radios, and all the little “illegal-but-not-really-illegal” workarounds that every prepper should know.

Before we jump in...

How to Prep Around Dumb Laws (Part 1) | Episode 558

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re kicking off a brand-new series about something every prepper eventually runs face-first into:
dumb laws that make preparedness harder — and how to prep anyway.

Some of these laws are outdated.
Some are politically motivated.
Some are pushed by corporations to protect profits.
Some exist because some bureaucrat in a cubicle decided you shouldn’t be allowed to take care of yourself.

But here’s the Surviv...

Prepping for Your Pets | Episode 557

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today we’re talking about a part of preparedness that almost everyone forgets until it’s too late:
your pets.

If the world gets ugly — whether that’s job loss, supply chain issues, natural disasters, or a true SHTF scenario — your animals are completely dependent on you to keep them alive.

They’re family.
They’re security.
They’re companions.
And they need preps just like you do.

Let’s get into how much f...

Shaving for the Apocalypse | Episode 556

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and it’s a cold 42-degree start to the day. Today we’re talking about something every man deals with, but almost nobody thinks about as a prepper:
shaving — specifically why new shaving tech sucks, what actually works, and what you should use when SHTF.

This whole topic hit me after a terrible shaving experience that reminded me just how far downhill modern products have gone. New doesn’t mean better — and when the apocalypse comes, you don’t want...

trt 2 month

TRT After Two Months — My Honest Thoughts So Far | Episode 555

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and it’s a crisp 54 degrees on this Thanksgiving Eve. You’ll be hearing this long after the holiday, but today we’re diving into something that’s been a huge part of my personal health journey these past two months:
TRT — testosterone replacement therapy.

I’m still early in the process. A lot of the deeper changes take months to fully kick in, but even at this stage, I’ve got plenty of real-worl...

survival shed

Building Your Ultimate Survival Shed | Episode 554

It’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and this morning the fog is thick enough to feel like Silent Hill. One of my headlights is probably pointing toward the sky like a drunk lighthouse, but that’s a problem for later.

Right now, we’re diving into a topic I’m uniquely qualified to talk about because I’ve done it myself:
building your ultimate survival shed.

A survival shed is simple in theory — a structure on your property filled with your gear — bu...

Why Kids Today Won’t Survive SHTF (Unless You Teach Them) | Episode 553

Good morning, it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and it’s a chilly 47-degree start to the day. Today we’re hitting a topic that’s part reality check, part rant, part parenting manual, and part prepper manifesto:
kids today would absolutely crumble in a real collapse — unless we teach them otherwise.

Look, generations have always complained about “kids these days.” Cavemen probably sat around the fire saying, “Grok, these little ones don’t even know how to throw a spear. Mammoth meat...

thanksgiving special

Thanksgiving Rerun Special: The Great Depression & the Spirit of Survival | Episode 552

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone — it’s James from SurvivalPunk.com, and today’s episode is a little different. This is our Thanksgiving Rerun Special, not a repeat of recipes or turkey tips, but a deep look at how Americans held onto Thanksgiving through one of the hardest eras in our history: The Great Depression.

We’re dealing with rising prices, a shaky economy, and more uncertainty every month — but none of it holds a candle to what families went through in the 1930s.<...