after tshtf how do you value XXX or a chicken?

[rockriver]

ok folks.
the shtf... n. korea bomb, economic collapse, chinese emp.
mooslim bacteria... whatever..
and bottom line american frn are no good. my check, my credit card and my green backs i had hidden back are no good. but you have something i need real bad.... for discussion purposes, let's just say it's a hen.. a rhode island red healthy hen.
i have no chickens now... the varmints got 'em... but i know that in good weather, being fed proper, i could get 8 or 9 eggs a day out of 10 hens when i used to have them. ( i threw that little formula in here to help folks know what a hen could do for them) not counting the fact you put the ole gal in the frying pan, when she gets old.
this motivates her to keep up the production!!

back to my question... now that all the facts are laid out..
you, my neighbor, a mile down the road, have a barn full of chickens.
you ain't in a pinch to sell, but you would if the price is right...
by the way, i'm a big volume customer.. i need 5 hens. and would like to trade for 10 if the price ain't too steep.

what do you want for 1 hen? you don't have any silver, but you know that the old pre 64 coins had 90% silver in them and that folks are taking these coins as good valuable coinage in trade.
just pretending that i've got silver coins, and maybe some other items that you would need?
i'm thinking of rawles trading day from the book Patriots.

when the balloon went up, a pre 64 dime was trading for about 20 x face value or 2.00 and had melt value of
about 1.70 in each dime. people like coins because it's not just a silver piece of metal they can i.d. it as a dime.


if yall don't like bargaining for a chicken. if that ain't manly enough, then you pick the desired trade good.

a box of 50 .22 long rifle ??

[WiseOwl]

I would say a chicken would trade nicely for 2 bricks of .22 (100 rounds)
Or maybe a case (24 rolls) of toilet paper
I would say a good egg layer could be worth a bicycle also.

My brother just got some chickens and got a nice coup built. So my BOL has poultry. I plan on getting some as soon as I move to my new homestead. So I will use his learning experience for pointers.

I have a rooster I can go get right now.... just need a place to put him.

[Matt In Oklahoma]

and what am I supposed to do with this PM? You sitting right here right now typing this out can't tell me what it's worth or going to be worth. I as a common man wouldn't know a mercury dime from a canadian maple leaf. Don't believe me ask your nonprepper friend neighbor to ID one or tell you what todays spot was.
I'll take something else tangible, skilled or labor in trade

[EX121]

Good question.
I would add how about 1 AR or AK mag, may be a bit steep.
One problem with trading ammo is how can you make sure it isn't used against you?

[Benn Gleck]

I would say a chicken would trade nicely for 2 bricks of .22 (100 rounds)
Or maybe a case (24 rolls) of toilet paper
I would say a good egg layer could be worth a bicycle also.

My brother just got some chickens and got a nice coup built. So my BOL has poultry. I plan on getting some as soon as I move to my new homestead. So I will use his learning experience for pointers.

I have a rooster I can go get right now.... just need a place to put him.

Maybe its different in Georgia but here in the Buckeye state a brick of .22's is 500 rds. ;)

[WiseOwl]

I always say those 100 rounds of CCIs are a brick.
I call them endangered species nowadays.

[rockriver]

wise,
for 2 boxes (50 each ) i'll take that deal... i'll trade for 10 chickens.
matt,
right now.. you're wrong.. yeah i can. right now, me and a fellah on this board are about to do a deal using silver coins (of course someone might outbid me but i've met his asking price!)
going to be worth you're right.
you need to learn what a dime looks like. seems to me, that would hurt you in the right now.
but, your point is well taken. at a recent swap meet. the biggest ole boy in the club there who is ex cop and i made a deal for me to buy his silver dollars at 25 each. he went and got on the phone and some idiot told him his were worth 250 to 300 and up.
i thought he was gonna whoop me as he came across the parking area. i told him straight up that he got bad info, then offerred him my stack of silver dollars for 25 each, he could choose.
these guys are 'regular ole boys' and they are all concerned about the state of the country and discuss it at every gathering.
at 2 swap meets i've sold and bought using pre 64 coins. folks are learning fast.
i guess i won't be buying your chickens or your .22!!

[Not_Yet_Prepped]

what do you want for 1 hen? you don't have any silver, but you know that the old pre 64 coins had 90% silver in them and that folks are taking these coins as good valuable coinage in trade.
just pretending that i've got silver coins, and maybe some other items that you would need?

The beauty and the beast of a "barter" system is that "hen" or whatever you are trying to get changes in value almost everyday, all based on the current needs of the two working the deal. Bartering is a "Skill" anyone that tells you otherwise has been in the current system too long. My stepmom had a "Consignment" Shop for years, we called it the "junk shop" but watching her day in and day out at the store and out "working" the flea markets and yard sales and it was all bartering. Sometimes for "Dollars" but it usually involved some other items as well... She knew that she could pick up X here and trade if Y there and then sell it for $$ at her store. She spent alot of time getting to know who needed/wanted what and then would "wheel and deal" to get make it happen.

[Lowdown3]

Go down to the chicken farmer's place. If he's amicable to a conversation start talking, bringing him the extra head of cabbage or two from the garden, tell him they are a gift. Chat about the current situation. How are ya'll getting along? Observe without "looking around" and acting like your casing the place. Think about his NEEDS, observe more. Maybe offer a NON RELATED "problem" your having up in conversation- "well I'm getting stronger carrying all those buckets of water from the pond to the house so we can filter them anyways. Guess that's just one of the things we have to adjust to now huh?" Open ended statements that ask for a reply/response. Eventually their will be CLUES if not his entire need laid out in front of you. If not, then you have to create it.

[Not_Yet_Prepped]

Lowdown3...
Exact types of things my step mom would do... and it usually worked out great! Everyone needs or wants something they don't have (EVERYONE and sometimes its NOT material). You may find the old farmer needs help digging a few post holes to add some fencing and willing to exchange a hen for it, or maybe he lives by himself and just needs a good ear to talk to sometimes...

I did not learn much from my stepmom but I learned a few valuable things about bartering.

#1. Everyone needs or wants something they don't have.
#2. Every deal must leave both parties willing to deal again (you never know when you will want to trade again).
#3. The deal does NOT have to happen so don't push it.
#4. Sometimes you can take a loss but gain a friend and that MAY become more profitable, but don't push it.
#5. Don't expect a great deal from a friend and vise versa.
#6. Trying to play a "Hard Ball" during a trade usually just Slams the Door on it.

[rockriver]

not yet, lowdown,
great info.
lowdown, my auger is hooked to the tractor right now. if you ever need any holes dug, holler. it's got a new tip and will cut right through this tough soil. i wouldn't burn hardly any diesel popping those holes. by the way, looks like you've been sent to the dog house. any time you wanta talk, holler! we're getting some bream now...
they aren't big, but they're tasty. come on over, and hey, bring the bride and the all the kids if you'd like. up to you.

[Grinnan Barrett]

Trade values fluctuate with the wind. Currently ammunition is about as good as gold was a while back. Gold just took a big nose dive due to investor sell off. Ammunition if you have held it for a while is a great value. In the 1990s 7.62 x 39 was going for around $69 a thousand. Today the value is all over the place due to panic buyers. I have seen it for $650 a case in the last two months. Trading is truly an art form. I agree with Not Yet Prepared in that trading with friends is not the way to go. Everyone expects you to give it to them at 1960 prices. I also have found that if you shake on a deal and then the other party wants to change the terms then it is time to walk away. Just say thanks and move on. If a guys handshake is not good then you are going to regret the deal down the road.

[MustangGal]

I think I would want something that would further my ability to produce food. I suspect you would have to keep your animals close to keep them even remotely safe, so what do you need? Hay, seeds - not people food types, but animal food, maybe a bin of worms/bugs (I have plans to make a maggot generator if needed - to feed the chickens), corn stalks from their garden for fodder, etc.

[Not_Yet_Prepped]

when trading especially in a SHTF or other EVENT... Maybe if you can help someone become more productive for themselves then it might be one less person you have to worry about... And maybe one more person that could help you in the long run.

I believe there are many possibly "productive" people in our sociality that can not currently "see the light" simply because of the heard of sheeple blocking their view.

[EX121]

Another thing to consider is your physical labor. Can you do some chore for the goods?