Draw back though is that you need to have the knowledge of how to make powder . As was said , not hard if you know where to get of find the ingredients.
I was a bomb tech for the Anchorage Police Dept for a long time. Part of the Duties of LE EOD is post blast investigation.
Based on my training and experience I advise to STAY AWAY FROM MAKING YOUR OWN POWDER. I cringe when I think of the number of investigations I've done because people try to make their own BP or other explosives.
You hear of fireworks and powder manufactures having explosions all the time. They have labs and facilities to make powder and still have accidents. Making that crap in your kitchen is dangerous and probably illegal depending on where you live.
I agree with stock piling powder and primers. But dead set against trying to make your own gun powder.
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People over think the GUN deal in survival situations. Thinking they have to have AR/AKs and all sorts of weaponry.
My first two years I lived in Alaska I lived in a little cabin north of Healy near McKinley Park. I got laid off in the winters and there were NO jobs to be had so I had to do the best I could feeding my family. I had heavy rifles and shotguns, even BP. But I fed my family with a Savage 24D 22/410. (and a bit of fishing). Yeah we had Moose, but rabbits and ptarmigan were the main stays.
My grandfather fed his family with a single barreled 16 gage during the depression.
Again, I don't believe in the Zombie/SHTF BS but I understand during rough times you still have to feed your family. AR/AKs and such are just not practical. Shot guns and 22 rifles are. Shotguns are like Muzzle loaders, meaning you can shoot just about anything you can get into the barrel, but Smokeless powder is easier and safer to store, you don't use as much so its much cheaper then BP.
I get a kick out of survivorest who stock pike guns and ammo like they are preparing for war with no idea what it takes to feed their families.
You can't gun your way to survival. Water Food and Shelter is key. You cant shoot everything. Get a book on eatable wild plants in your area. Learn to make a garden concentrating on staples, beans, corn, etc. Learn to make candles. Learn to convert animal fat into oil that can be used as light, cooking, and heat. Learn to preserve food without electricity.
Learn to be gathers and not hoarders. In extended times of stress, such as hurricanes, hard winters, etc. Storehouses make for targets for those who don't prepare. If you're a gatherer, you don't have anything to steal, yet you can still feed your family.