storage

Swamp Thing: The Emergence – ZCORR Storage Bag Torture Test Results

A long time ago, in a swamp far, far away, we buried a ZCORR Zero Corrosion Products Vacuum Pistol Bag.

When we originally buried the ultimate survival kit, the water table was normal, and the bag and its contents were buried about 2 feet deep in damp swamp mud. Did we say swamp? Sorry, we mean scenic wetlands. Since that time, we’ve had a lot of rain, and when we went to recover the goods, we found that the water table had risen and the bag was fully immersed in water. For how long, we don’t really know.

Ewww.

Step one was to hose down the bag thoroughly before opening. We wanted to make sure that our box of macaroni and cheese did not get contaminated by swamp mud – assuming that it was still intact and dry.

When we went to open the storage bag, we were somewhat surprised to find the vacuum seal still well intact.

Here’s the status of our survival kit…

	The gun frame held up perfectly. The frame is in process of being restored so it was bare metal with no protectant. Considering it’s been immersed in a swamp for months, the condition is excellent. No visible rust.
	Mmmm! Macaroni and cheese! We have not (yet) died of swamp poisoning. If this web site goes silent without notice, we may have to change our commentary on the ZCORR Vacuum bag…
	Whew! We’re still able to play silly puzzle games with our rust-free Cracker Barrel wire puzzle.
	Black powder pistol pellets? Crackle, bang, smoke!
	The Zippo lighter still lights…
	And the primers still prime…
	And most importantly, when the world becomes one giant Mogadishu, we’ll still be able to publish My Gun Culture – at least on dry paper.

So what did we learn?

Jason from ZCORR is NOT a liar! We really didn’t think he was, but he just sounded so darn confident and all.
You can literally submerge stuff in a ZCORR Vacuum Storage Bag safely – at least for a couple of months.
Submerging stuff in a swamp is a pretty ridiculous thing to do, but it sure was a fun way to test out these long term storage bags.
We have not yet learned how many boxes of Macaroni and Cheese will fit in a larger rifle storage bag, but we’re working on that…

These storage bags are definitely a 4 Nun product!

You can buy ZCORR Storage Bags from Brownells: Vacuum Seal Storage Bags: Handgun Storage Bag

Swamp Thing: The Immersion – A ZCORR Storage Story…

Some time ago, Jason from ZCORR Zero Corrosion Products left a comment on MyGunCulture.com. Something about his corrosion-proof storage bags for guns, ammo, supplies – most anything one might need to keep intact and rust-free for long periods of time in, let’s say, less than ideal storage conditions.

We (pridefully) told Jason that if we were going to evaluate something and write about it, that we were going to do it on our terms. Surprisingly, he agreed.

We live on the edge of a swamp. Real estate brokers call refer to this as “scenic wetlands” but we all know it’s just a swamp. It’s complete with all sorts of swamp critters: deer, raccoons, fox, snakes of all varieties, and gators. We thought that a good old fashioned swamp would be the perfect place to bury one of Jason’s bags for a while.

We can think of lot’s of scenarios where one might want to bury tactical stuff. Didn’t tell your spouse about that new gun you bought? Secret weapons cache in the yard in case your house is overrun by the undead? Those handcuffs that you sawed off late one night? The list goes on and we won’t ask questions or pass judgment on things you might want to bury.

Anyway, we quickly agreed to the challenge. As Jason seemed so supremely confident about the protective capabilities of his bags, we joked that we might even bury a sandwich and eat it at a later date when the package was dug back out of the swamp. Unfortunately Jason double-dared us and now here we are – trapped into either accepting the challenge or being exposed as trash-talking wimps.

With some trepidation, we assembled our version of a survival kit to submerge in a ZCORR Vacuum Pistol Bag…

Post Apocalypse (choose your favorite type) Survival Kit

Gun: Post thermonuclear war, zombie virus outbreak, global economic collapse, or 30 straight days of cable TV downtime – it doesn’t matter. When civilization breaks down and you’re going to want a gun. We really trust Jason, but let’s be real. We’re not going to bury one of our favorite guns in a swamp just for this article. However, we found a reasonable compromise. We’ve been working on a restoration of a low cost, .25 caliber pocket pistol for a friend for, umm, a few years now. Since the frame is eternally getting polished, why not bury that? Worst case, out comes the Dremel tool once again.
Zippo Lighter: Yeah, we know, lighter fluid will be in short supply when the zombies come, but it seemed like a good idea to bury this. Will it still light? Will it explode from some freakish reaction with the ZCORR protective molecules? Will American Horror Story ever come back for season 2?
Macaroni and Cheese: Boxed macaroni and cheese takes a close second in importance to our least favorite gun. Plus you’ll want at least one more synthetic packaged meal before you enter a lifelong diet of insects and berries.
Metal Spring Puzzle from Cracker Barrel: Yeah, basic survival is important, but what are you going to do with your new-found leisure time with no X-Box, cable television, or Words With Friends? Bet you didn’t think of that did you? We’re packing hours of engaging entertainment with the puzzle. Oh, and it’s metal so we can see if it rusts in the swamp.
Black Powder Pistol Pellets: You guessed it. We packed these loose and unprotected, kind of like Paris Hilton, in the bag. And we’re going to shoot them out of a Remington Bison .44 cap and ball revolver replica post swamp-emergence. Does anyone know a good insurance agent? By the way, our policy got canceled recently with no explanation. Hmmm.
Primers: You’re gonna have to reload if you want to stand a chance against Mad Max. Until the supplies run out anyway. We packed a box of Federal Pistol Primers and we’re gonna load up some .38 Swamp Specials to see how they work. Still waiting on a referral to a good insurance agent by the way.
Official SHOT Show Media Day Notepad: We’re dedicated to this web site and fully intend to keep writing after the total breakdown of civilization. So we’re packing a notepad. Granted, we haven’t figured out how we’re going to handle worldwide distribution…

ZCORR Vacuum Seal Bags

The vacuum seal is one tough cookie (bag.) It features what we reluctantly describe as a zip-lock seal. We say reluctantly because its nothing like the sandwich, or even freezer bag type. It feels about 1/2” thick and locks together in clamp like fashion. If we had access to a fragmentation grenade, we would love to set one off inside the bag just to see if the seal held. 50/50 chance that it would.

Once you have your survival kit in the bag and have zipped the seal shut, it’s time to vacuum out the excess air. Just place most any vacuum hose over the waterproof seal and draw out the air.

That’s it.

If you’re going to do something ridiculous like bury stuff in a swamp, ZCORR recommends using an external container to prevent tears to the bag, but let us tell you, this bag is tough. We buried it in it’s birthday suit.

Check back in a few weeks. We’re going to: