The Most Valuable Items For Barter After The Collapse

[livingston]

The Most Valuable Items For Barter After The Collapse
We had previously polled our Modern Survival Blog readers to input their own thoughts on items for barter after SHTF collapse. Nearly 9,000 votes later from nearly 500 readers, I captured the barter list and I’m re-posting them here for your information.


The ‘perceived’ value of any one thing at the Trading Post is of course entirely subjective or relevant to what someone else might actually need at the moment.

Additionally, the specifics of ‘SHTF’ or the extent of ‘collapse’, how far into the collapse, etc., will bear weight upon the needs. That said, we had to start somewhere, and there were no specific conditions given (‘what if’ scenario).

Readers were instructed to choose value based on barter – not their own preparedness or what items they themselves believe are best for preparedness…



The Most Valuable Items For Barter?
after SHTF or post-collapse



Barter Items at the Trading Post
(according to polled readers)

1. Ammo (in general)
2. Antibiotics
3. Food (any)
4. Toilet paper
5. Alcohol
6. Batteries (rechargeable or otherwise)
7. Water filters
8. First Aid supplies (general, any)
9. Salt
10. Medications (various over-the-counter)
11. Seeds
12. Coffee
13. Lighters
14. Gasoline
15. Matches
16. Soap
17. Candles
18. Tobacco
19. Bleach
20. Sugar
21. Knives
22. Feminine hygiene products
23. Personal hygiene products
24. Food (‘feel good’ foods)
25. Spices
26. Hand tools
27. Honey
28. Canning Supplies
29. Silver
30. Diesel fuel
31. Duck (Duct) Tape
32. Flashlights
33. Shoes
34. Blankets
35. Hunting gear
36. Fishing gear
37. Clothing
38. Can openers
39. Tarps
40. Cordage (rope, paracord, etc.)
41. Sewing supplies
42. Books
43. Baby hygiene products
44. Solar lights
45. Propane canisters
46. Solar PV panels
47. Building materials
48. Hardware
49. Ziploc bags
50. Flour mill
51. Garbage bags
52. Paraffin oil (for lamps)
53. Bug spray
54. Contraceptives
55. Trapping gear
56. Maps
57. Kitchen equipment (pots, pans, etc.)
58. Charcoal
59. Eyeglass repair kits
60. Writing supplies
61. Adhesives
62. Playing cards
63. Backpacks


Here’s a graphic of the barter items with their percentage of popularity

The Most Valuable Items For Barter After The Collapse

 

[GOYABEAN]

Lead

 

[livingston]

Folks I still would rank boots and shoes in the top 5 ...Maybe not down south ...Up here in the north country They rank right up there.. Maybe not to barter ... 6 months to a year after a collapse going to be plenty of folks looking for foot ware.

 

[Catskillkid]

What about towels? Douglas Adams told me that the towel is the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have.

 

[Catskillkid]

Ok, serious question...it lists silver but not gold. Why does that have better barter value?

 

[Bananabandit]

Best things to barter are things you dont need for yourself.

Folks I still would rank boots and shoes in the top 5 ...Maybe not down south ...Up here in the north country They rank right up there.. Maybe not to barter ... 6 months to a year after a collapse going to be plenty of folks looking for foot ware.

good advice. my boots only last about a year before they are no longer waterproof..thats with moderate working.

 

[speedkills27]

Ok, serious question...it lists silver but not gold. Why does that have better barter value?

silver is easier to use because its smaller denomination is more suited for smaller everyday transactions.

 

[BDinPutnam]

Hot chicks.

 

[Marine Cpl]

Ok, serious question...it lists silver but not gold. Why does that have better barter value?

Any metal is useless when people are hungry. I wouldn't take metal for trade for any of those things on that list. I wouldn't be able to use it.

Metal only works in the beginning stages of a collapse when people are greedy and supplies still exist or years later after the collapse when those that survived are fortunate enough and have plenty of basic things to create a monetary system.

But when you really need things, metal is useless as a bartering item. You can't do anything with it but hoard it.

 

[prambo]

Hot chicks.

More to the point - poontang! Animal Mother says so!!

 

[fnfalguy]

Ok, serious question...it lists silver but not gold. Why does that have better barter value?

Due to its lower value, from a barter perspective it is more easily fractionable. Recent example. I had someone do some small work at the house and they were willing to trade their work for precious metals. Value of the work was ~200. I would either have to figure out how to split an ounce of gold into 1/6 of its value, or trade 16 or so ounces of silver. My experience in a non-TEOTWAWKI world is that silver is much easier to barter with, gold much easier to travel with.

 

[Blimey]

Hot chicks.

1:06

https://nygunforum.com/threads/a-little-fitness-motivation.26826/

 

[SomeSoldier]

Knowledge should be on that list.

 

[96coal449]

Knowledge should be on that list.

Here's a little ........
#30 Diesel fuel. Same as heating oil, off road diesel, and kerosene. The differences are what's taxed and what isn't. This is noted by the red dye in no or partial taxed fuel oils. Kero has a lot of detergents in it to make it burn clean and keep it from gelling in the cold climates.
Diesel engines will also run on trans fluid and motor oil. Not to mention natural oils.

Disclaimer. Do your own research before feeding yours.

 

[ArmedCorgi]

You forgot the #1 on @Eddie Gunks list


COCK

 

[Eddie Gunks]

Ha ha ha

 

[Doc8404]

Ok, serious question...it lists silver but not gold. Why does that have better barter value?

Smaller values.

 

[Doc8404]

Due to its lower value, from a barter perspective it is more easily fractionable. Recent example. I had someone do some small work at the house and they were willing to trade their work for precious metals. Value of the work was ~200. I would either have to figure out how to split an ounce of gold into 1/6 of its value, or trade 16 or so ounces of silver. My experience in a non-TEOTWAWKI world is that silver is much easier to barter with, gold much easier to travel with.

I will give you $200 for 16oz of silver shipped to me

 

[Blimey]

I will give you $200 for 16oz of silver shipped to me

I’ll pay $210.

 

[Doc8404]

I’ll pay $210.

I will see if I can have him drop ship it to you.

I make $10 without touching it.

 

[Marine Cpl]

I will give you 200 silver pieces for that deer you just shot and your boots.

Fuck you! I'm hungry and cold! Stick that silver up your ass dummy! Get me some .308 ammo and I'll let you boil the guts I don't want in a stew and maybe you can eat tonight.

 

[Doc8404]

Fuck you. Me and my boys will take that deer or you’ll get some 308 free of charge.

 

[meketrefe]

Where did you get this list from?
you can put medication in the nr. 1 as the potential one for many people because if someone needs meds and they
dot not have them they can get very sick or even die. (insulin for example)

What else do you need to survive?
It boils down to 3 things.

A) Water
B) Food
C) Heat &/or Shelter

Eventually everyone will need meds of some sort. Some they need them more than water.

 

[meketrefe]

Knowledge should be on that list.

I would say not just knowledge but some practice right? I think that is what you mean.

 

[96coal449]

Here's a little ........
#30 Diesel fuel. Same as heating oil, off road diesel, and kerosene. The differences are what's taxed and what isn't. This is noted by the red dye in no or partial taxed fuel oils. Kero has a lot of detergents in it to make it burn clean and keep it from gelling in the cold climates.
Diesel engines will also run on trans fluid and motor oil. Not to mention natural oils.

Disclaimer. Do your own research before feeding yours.

Here's another I almost forgot. Mineral oil, which can be found in every transformer found on telephone poles.

 

[Acer-m14]

We had previously polled our Modern Survival Blog readers to input their own thoughts on items for barter after SHTF collapse. Nearly 9,000 votes later from nearly 500 readers, I captured the barter list and I’m re-posting them here for your information.

Democrat voting rules ?? LOL ..

Hershey Candy Bars .. is the fking best to have on hand .. you can trade them for anything ..

 

[Acer-m14]

Here's another I almost forgot. Mineral oil, which can be found in every transformer found on telephone poles.

only if new .. old ones had PCB's in the oil and not pure Mineral oil .. and there not marked
with what .. when i was looking to build a can tenna to test RF transmission power ..
needed oil for cooling the resistor pack .. hit the local NYSEG place that had transformers laying
around .. was told not sure what the oil is so can't help ya ..

got 5 gal's from dad where he worked at the Chem place in Paffard NY .. pure mineral oil ..
and good luck keeping that shit in a gallon paint can .. it climbs and seeps out of every place ..

 

[Marine Cpl]

Democrat voting rules ?? LOL ..

Hershey Candy Bars .. is the fking best to have on hand .. you can trade them for anything ..

Now imagine if they were hungry. Gold and silver is useless.

 

[C3D]

These kinds of threads are amusing, insofar as we look at it from the standpoint of living in a largely urban area with some natural resources (think populations of NYC/Albany/Syracuse/Buffalo/Binghamton vs. how many farms we have). The upshot is that the natives will run over the landscape like locusts; every cow, pig and chicken will be dead within a month or two of a TEOTWAKI. So there will be no basis for a system of trade or barter to flourish, just starvation, cannabilism and tyranny.

Some of us here think we can hold out. You live in a rural area, you have guns, your neighbor has guns. Good luck when a 300 strong criminal gang shows up on your doorstep in some commandeered armored vehicles. (See Forstchen’s One Second After novel for an idea of a “killer caravan”.)

Barter may flourish in northern Idaho, but NY will be a burned out and uninhabitable waste.

Now, if you want to talk about a simple SHTF, that’s a different case. The number one barter item will be Maker’s Mark.

 

[spat]

Eventually everyone will need meds of some sort. Some they need them more than water.

The people who need meds that badly won't be around long enough to trade with.