# Mainstay, Datrex or S.O.S.?



## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

Currently I have the Mainstay in my car kit but it's been in there for 3 years and with out super hot summers and cold winters parking outside at work, I'd like to replace them early. Also, I need to get more for the big BOB/GHB. 

The question is: Which one to get and where is the best place to get them?

The last time I bought the 2 for the car, they were already a year old because the shelf life was down to 4 years. That means I need to find a place that is pretty reliable.

beprepared.com seems to have good prices. Agree?

So which one tastes better and is the better? Is there any one you recommend and why? I would rather have one where the individual meals were wrapped as well as the whole 3600 calorie amount.

Would you stick with the 3 day 3600 calorie bar? Or do you go for the 1200 or 2400 and why?

Any info and opinions gladly accepted! Thanks


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## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

Does no one use these? On S&P?


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## Dutch 106 (Feb 12, 2008)

Hi,
I have a bunch of the datrex 3600 calorie. when I first bought thease I opened one think of palm oil very slightly lemon shortbread. I'll buy them again when they come due I remember that the price for 10 was very good, compared. 
I'd recomend opening the first pack on the table in the coffe room at work put em out on a plate. Try one they ain't bad They will disapear, put the second pack out with an opened but readable packaging and you will be accused of trying to kill em off. try it and see!
Dutch


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## stamphappy (Jul 29, 2010)

I'd probably get the 1200 bars so that I could dole them out and say "that's it for the day". Having the 3600 bar in your hands as you eat, it may be too easy to eat the whole bar without even thinking about it???


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## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

Good point Stamphappy.

I'm wondering also since not all 3600 bars have the cubes inside individually wrapped. So then you wind up with the issue of trying to keep it dry after breaking the seal.

I sure wish more people who had these in their kits would lend their experience in this matter. They aren't cheap and I'd hate to wind up wasting money.


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## lostspring (Jun 29, 2007)

I just went to the beready website and saw that they were sold out all of their emergency car kits. Does anyone have a list of suppliers that they could reccomend.


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

Christy, I was in the market for some "car storable" meal bars several months ago...I asked the same questions you are and got a similar lack of response. In fact the most often posted reply was for me to buy several brands as samples, try them and make a first hand choice. Folks said "yep dense,dry,lemon pound cake", not bad tasting but no real preference for brand as most respondants had only tried one kind.

What stopped me from purchasing was that most offered are not individually wrapped "meals" so opening one means you need to consume the whole package regardless of size(1,200-2,400-3,600).

If you find a source and make a choice for purchase; please post what,where and why!


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## tab (Aug 20, 2002)

Sorry, haven't gotten any. Stuck with things like granola bars. But, with what is going on, am rethinking the whole issue. Been rethinking lots of issues lately.


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## Pelenaka (Jul 27, 2007)

bee said:


> What stopped me from purchasing was that most offered are not individually wrapped "meals" so opening one means you need to consume the whole package regardless of size(1,200-2,400-3,600).
> 
> If you find a source and make a choice for purchase; please post what,where and why!


Could you add zip lock baggies to your bob for repacking the portions you don't eat for later ?

I just have power bars that I bought with coupons for now. We still have a bit of money left in the prep budget so I should consider these for our personal bobs. 


~~ pelenaka ~~


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

so it's basically $7 dollars for 3600 calories (and low protein). Personally I would choose a jar of ADams Peanut natural peanut butter(just peanuts), at my store $4 for about 4000 cals, more balanced in fat, carbs, and protein(put it with wholegrain and the protein is complete). 

Of course you have the jar to deal with and the volume of this appears to be 1.5 times the package of bars? 


BUt I'm just putting this consideration up as an example of thinking through purpose and cost etc. The description of the bars say it's high in carbs, low in fat and protein, so you dont' need as much water to digest. BUT, I look at a SHTF situation not as sitting around in one's car stuck on the freeway, but as a ironman event--long sustained effort, with periods and bursts of medium to high level effort. You NEED fat and protein as well as carbs to keep energy and performance up and nourish tissues and provide materials to repair and rebuild muscle(which you get from protein, not carbs). It's NOT a time to diet, avoiding fat. Your body is going to need more calories in a stressful time, and budgeting as many (balanced as you can) cals as possible will be beneficial. 

WE have a serious disconnect in our culture, people are focused on dieting "nutrition"--basically it's just "starvation lite" while they sit in a cubicle, and have no clue how to power their bodies and feed it to work. 3600 cals would be half a days intake for an old time logger.

So I would say if anyone really wants to learn something about the engine of the body research nutrition for long endurance endeavors. What do the Pacific Crest trail hikers all scarf at any opportunity? ice cream, potato chips, hamburgers, peanut butter, beef-- things all high in fat, salt, carbs, and protein. Then they settle down and chow salad for the fresh vegetables/greens(water, minerals).

So, to my mind, these bars would be great for a relatively non stressful, low energy output situation--like sitting around in a shelter(like the Japanese are right now). You can pack a lot to keep you alive. But for doing sustained strenuous work, it won't cut it.

Hydration is so vital to enable muscles to work as well. People dont' respect this FACT enough. You can stretch this by THOROUGHLY hydrating when you'll be at rest, and when the ambient temp is cool(er) enough so you're not sweating it right out. If you begin exertion being fully hydrated, you'll be able to go way further than someone half dried out to begin with.


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

Wyld Thang; the purpose for me was to purchase something that is packaged and formulated for long term storage without regard to temperature extremes. The products we are discussing have been manufactured for such storage..in Coast Guard emergency kits. I'd hate to see what that jar of peanut butter would look like after 5 years of freezing and heating over 100 degrees multiple times. Personally I much prefer to eat the peanutbutter(try it on toasted raisin bread..heaven!). I know stocks can and should be rotated; but these rations were developed so that only needs be done every five years.


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

Pelenka, for short term the baggie would be fine. What I want is the individual meal portions sealed in the same fashion as the original package for the 5 year storage life(open the outer wrap that holds the unit together and there are the 3 meal portions individually wrapped and sealed). Probibly not gonna happen.


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

bee said:


> Wyld Thang; the purpose for me was to purchase something that is packaged and formulated for long term storage without regard to temperature extremes. The products we are discussing have been manufactured for such storage..in Coast Guard emergency kits. I'd hate to see what that jar of peanut butter would look like after 5 years of freezing and heating over 100 degrees multiple times. Personally I much prefer to eat the peanutbutter(try it on toasted raisin bread..heaven!). I know stocks can and should be rotated; but these rations were developed so that only needs be done every five years.


yes, that is why I said "purpose"--there are many variables in making a choice, and you weigh them all together.


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## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

Okay...no arguments needed on whether or not I should pack food for olympians in training vice these bars. 

Everything has a place.

We've given these bad boys out everywhere we've gone in emergencies and it is a LOT harder than you might think to get luxurious amounts of clean water at times. What if you are limited to what you are carrying in your GHB because the rest isn't safe and can't be made safe? 

I really don't need a lecture on how I should pack 40 portions of protein, 6 pounds of bacon and at least 3 bushels of carrots into my GHB.

These have their place. I was just asking for opinions on which one people like.

Honest to goodness....what? You think I'm enjoying these for breakfast or something? I really don't get how a bag used to get home in emergencies being trapped is somehow being equated to eating poorly?

Did you honestly think I needed diet advice? Did you really think I don't know what to eat? Did you even remotely consider before launching into some lecture as if I were a 400 lb couch potato that I don't understand what food is? Did you honestly think I was asking for diet recommendations to keep a slim figure while walking home?

Wyld thang, I think it is great that you are a superhuman who eats 3 horses and a farm each day. GREAT for you. These are 3600 calories of non-thirst inducing food that will give energy. There is no RULE that says I don't eat however much of it I need to in order to keep my calories up. They are nearly impervious to heat and cold temp changes and reliable in ways very few other food items are. 

Sorry for the rant...but really...a little common sense. I'm not asking so I can develop a passionate relationship with the darn things.


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## shawnlee (Apr 13, 2010)

I think any of those will work great for what you have planned...sorry no input on which is better.

I will be getting some of these.....not sure which brand either...

Personally from experiance with hunger I think any of those will tast like a 5 star meal when needed.

I would just get the one that is the best deal size wise...as already mentioned you can put the rest in a ziplock.....it would only be stored for a day or so at the most in the ziplock and should be fine.

Keep us updated on what you decide....


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## Pelenaka (Jul 27, 2007)

bee said:


> Pelenka, for short term the baggie would be fine. What I want is the individual meal portions sealed in the same fashion as the original package for the 5 year storage life(open the outer wrap that holds the unit together and there are the 3 meal portions individually wrapped and sealed). Probibly not gonna happen.


Perhaps then you could repackage using mylar & an absorber if needed. 
Have to agree with shawlee. The deciding factor for me will be price & quanity. 


~~ pelenaka ~~


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## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

shawnlee said:


> I think any of those will work great for what you have planned...sorry no input on which is better.
> 
> I will be getting some of these.....not sure which brand either...
> 
> ...


I sure will. I think I might just get more mainstay since they are supposedly individually packaged in there. Might make for less waste and mess. But the datrex sound good too. Coconut vice lemon.

I like that they have so many vitamins, some protein but not enough to make one need more water.

I sure wish places would offer a "taste test" version. Like one block of each SOS, Datrex and Mainstay so you can decide for yourself!


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## seedspreader (Oct 18, 2004)

ChristyACB said:


> Okay...no arguments needed on whether or not I should pack food for olympians in training vice these bars.
> 
> Everything has a place.
> 
> ...


Tell us how you really feel! LOL!

Oh, and coming from a "big guy"... if I open the package... I'm eating the whole bar... 1200 or 2400 or 3600 calories. I think it's more of a "culture" thing, but I don't want to eat some now and save some for later... A little bit of "volume" goes a long way.


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

ChristyACB said:


> Okay...no arguments needed on whether or not I should pack food for olympians in training vice these bars.
> 
> Everything has a place.
> 
> ...


did I ever say you were a 400 lb couch potato?

why don't you just buy one of each and taste them? why are you relying on someone's else's sense of taste?

I simply took the opportunity to share some information on basic nutrition etc for extreme physical circumstances, just throwing it out there so in the course of someone evaluating a product and putting it to good purpose for the best results, they can make a better decision, which includes when to use something. That will be what we will have to do SHTF. 

I wasn't giving diet advice to keep you slim walking home neither, go back and see I was talking about fueling the body for best performance. Getting skinny and performance are two very different birds(to reiterate). 

exaggeration isn't productive


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

regarding the claim of the bar to make you use less water(for digestion), I think it's a nebulous thing to depend on, atmospheric conditions, clothes etc will matter more. There is very little water content in the bar, you will still need to get water from somewhere to digest it. I don't think that is a factor to weigh heavily in the decision for use.

so far all the info I can google up about carbs taking less water to digest than protein + dehydration etc, is that when one does an abrupt changeover to a low-carb diet they require more water to help the system recalibrate. 

remember I said balance of carb, protein, fat. I'm not, nor ever have pushed the lo-carb diet. 

whatever, I'm not an olympic athlete, but I have done some really hard work/play. I know(besides being physically prepared) that eating right can make the difference between having enough to finish, or pull oneself out a jam, or avoid a weary brain that makes bad mistakes and poor judgement. Sure SHTF is not a recipe for perfect resources. But you can try to make the best of what you've got. We're always saying knowledge is power--there ya go.


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## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

wyld thang said:


> did I ever say you were a 400 lb couch potato?
> 
> why don't you just buy one of each and taste them? why are you relying on someone's else's sense of taste?
> 
> ...


Exactly....you're giving diet advice for a product meant for extreme short term calorie input. 

I don't think people are going to be counting fiber at this point..do you?

I just think it is really nuts to get onto a thread that is asking about very long shelf stable emergency rations and start talking about nutrition and ironman competitions. It's just...just...ludicrous!

I mean, can you see how out to lunch it is to even compare the idea of "eating right" when you're talking buying these things for a GHB? You might eat this for 7 days or so. Ya ain't gonna die of muscle wasting in 7 days. 

But you very well could die from trying to eat more than your body can process with it's existing water rations. You very well could die from running out of energy and not making it home.

This has nothing to do with all the wonderful food I have out in my garden or my personal preference for stuff grown organically and locally or even my passionate attachment to whole grains. It is about which bar can I pack in a kit that will keep me alive in an emergency. That's it.

As for the peanut butter:
-You wanna eat peanut butter that's been sitting in a car in blazing heat with an interior around 140degF for 16 hours a day. You say change it out more often...okay...so SHTF happens on days 179 of your 180 day change out cycle. Gross.
-You say...just bring more water because Peanut butter will help you keep strong muscles on your trek home. Ah..yeah. Sure...We're talking a WEIGHT limited bag of everything I need. 

Now let's compare that jar of PB against a mainstay and a S.O.S. bar:

-One large jar of PB here (I'm just getting the dog PB out of the cabinet, Skippy) weight 2.5 lbs SOS weighs 1.665 lbs and Mainstay weighs 1.5 lbs
--
PB has 6650 calories total. Serious thirst inducing calories. Mainstay and SOS have 3600 calories.

So weight to calories..they come out fairly equal. PB maybe a little better except for the container.

Nutrition: 
PB offers primarily protein 7, niacin 20%, E 10%, Iron 4% and fiber just 2g. Sodium is 6%.

Mainstay offers Protein 3 gr, A 50%, C 50%, Calcium 50% and Iron 10% with fiber at 2 gr and 1% sodium.

SOS offers Protein 3 gr, C 15%, Thiamin 25%, A 15%, C 15%, Ribo 15% and Niacin 15% along with 9 gr fiber.

So what's the difference? Primarily ease of use (break off a bar and eat it while walking), ease of packing, ease of storage (lasts 5 years no matter the heat or cold), sturdiness (that PB gets hot and runny and the cap gets loose and you're in the poo) and the fact that it's survival food..not a philosophy of food.

I don't know, but your post just reminded me of one of the Katrina folks. MRE's were being passed out and most people were pretty grateful just to have food that hadn't been soaked in contaminated water. But one lady actually brought hers back and asked if we had anything organic since she only ate organic.

It's just the difference between apples and oranges.


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## AngieM2 (May 10, 2002)

Ladies - did I stumble in to General Chat where taking offense has been elevated to a new sport?


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## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

LOL Angie...just getting frustrated. I just don't know how so many things get turned into a referendum on how to eat properly. Frustrating.


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## shawnlee (Apr 13, 2010)

Weight is crucial as I am finding out for BOB/GHB ..it adds up soo quickly.

.2 .3 .4 etc adds up to alot on 50 items....


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## ChristyACB (Apr 10, 2008)

shawnlee said:


> Weight is crucial as I am finding out for BOB/GHB ..it adds up soo quickly.
> 
> .2 .3 .4 etc adds up to alot on 50 items....


Absolutely! I'm right now doing the 1/2 ounce juggle. LOL. Makes a huge load of difference.

Especially when you want to ensure you pack enough water when you can, meaning allowances for extra weight when needed.

A good pack really helps. Getting it packed to have great balance also helps.


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

ChristyACB said:


> LOL Angie...just getting frustrated. I just don't know how so many things get turned into a referendum on how to eat properly. Frustrating.


ANgie, and Christy--let me say again, I'm trying to think through the particulars of fitting a specificly built item, into a whole with a purpose. NOT a diatribe on "eating properly". If that is a load of crap for the vision of this forum, then so be it. I get frustrated when I try to offer the "cons" of relying (perhaps solely) on a high carb resource for energy, and Christy turns it into me bashing her for being a 400 lb couch potato--seriously, WHERE did I say that??? 

Sure I said "people" don't understand the basics of nutrition for performance--is that an inaccurate statement as well?

My jar of Adam's(my default PB)--no salt, just peanuts. 26 ounces(a tad over 1.5 pounds). ease of use? stick your finger on the jar and lick the PB off. Vitamins? throw in a handful of one a days. I'm not concerned about vitamins, I'm concerned about carbs AND protein AND fat. Each has a role, and the body can't use carbs to do what fat does.

Of course everyone lives in a different climate and needs to take that into consideration(storage and warmth needs, ie keeping the body warm in cold). Everyone will have different energy expenditures, some will sit in a car for days(I guess) driving home with no op to stop to buy food. Others will have to walk a really long ways. Others might be part of a search and rescue where they are doing heavy lifting and scrambling. 

Take what I'm offering with a grain of salt, but I guarantee those who HAVE done long term exertion(walking and above), KNOW that carbs alone don't cut it. You may drag yourself there, but why drag when you can walk with some extra fat and protein, which fat is dense, volume wise. Or maybe a little extra oomph will enable you to get that beam off your child?

If you know the pros AND cons of a tool, that will enable you to use it more effectively. That's all I'm trying to get to here. Basically carbs have no bottom end, no grunt, no torque(speaking engine-ese). They'll keep you running on the flat with no strain on the engine--if that is fine, fine. but if you want some torque, you gotta add the fat, and the protein(which works to repair muscle, when you are sleeping).


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

PS to flesh out my thinking on "performance a la SHTF" it's NOT winning the race against the zombies. It's can I walk 100 miles home, can I drag my 200 pound husband out of the house and into a vehicle and out of the vehicle. Can I pull rubble off to find my child, etc etc etc, along with all the other chores that will have to be done when nothing works and things have to be done differently. If someone envisions all this as just sitting in a shelter waiting for things to get better, THAT"S FINE--if someone sees themselves performing heavy work, then what fuel you put in your engine DOES make a difference. especially the longer things are drawn out. If you know what you're missing, you can keep an eye out for it.

Bottom line, the bars are high carb. Fit that into the mix.


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

ChristyACB said:


> I don't know, but your post just reminded me of one of the Katrina folks. MRE's were being passed out and most people were pretty grateful just to have food that hadn't been soaked in contaminated water. But one lady actually brought hers back and asked if we had anything organic since she only ate organic.
> 
> It's just the difference between apples and oranges.


Yes, there's a huge difference between being offered a MRE, and planning what to put in your pack. Thanks for the underhanded "you're a snob" quip.


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## AngieM2 (May 10, 2002)

Cool it.

I do think there are some imagined, looked for insults.

Want to stop it NOW?


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## Ernie (Jul 22, 2007)

I carry some Spam and beef jerky in my get-home pack. So long as there isn't a foot of snow on the ground I can find the rest of my food in transit. I'm not so picky.

I haven't eaten those strange bars you're talking about Christy, but I remember back in the day being issued something similar. It was some sort of arctic ration that was basically nuts and grains all held together by what appeared to be Crisco. You polished off a whole bar without drinking a gallon of water to wash it down and you felt like a cement truck had just backed up into your colon.


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## Farmerwilly2 (Oct 14, 2006)

Likewise, I have no idea what these bars are so I can't give an opinion on them. I am curious about them though. I've spoke with my sweetie about this and I'm leaning toward the old time rations of jerky, parched corn, pemican. These are things we can grow and make ourselves without being beholden to some outside source. I can either eat them when I want to cycle them out or feed them to the dogs and goats.


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## seedspreader (Oct 18, 2004)

So... I've thought of this a bit and had a funny flashback/solution here. Imagine this...

Wyld Thang is walking down the hall with an open jar of Peanut butter with her friends, around the corner, Christy, and her ROTC buddies are getting ready to go march somewhere. She's eating her Energy bar... 

Bam! They bump into each other... "Hey your Peanut butter got on my Datrex bar..." "Hey, your Datrex Bar is in my peanut butter"...

The rest, as they say is survival food history and a new product is born. Reese Peanut Datrex Cups.

Isn't it a happy world we live in?


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## logbuilder (Jan 31, 2006)

I can't speak to the high cal bars. I'm sure some folks must like them. If someone has a brand that they really like, I'd like to hear about it. I like lemon cookies so it might be great.

I took a simple route for my GHB. I have designed the GHB contents for 3 days of foot travel. I have 3 MREs in flavors that I like. Lots of energy there. Of course I'd be on the lookout for more food as I traveled but would not necessarily need it. It would depend on how much it weighed and what it was as to whether I would add it or not.

Just sharing what I did.


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## wyld thang (Nov 16, 2005)

Ernie said:


> I carry some Spam and beef jerky in my get-home pack. So long as there isn't a foot of snow on the ground I can find the rest of my food in transit. I'm not so picky.
> 
> I haven't eaten those strange bars you're talking about Christy, but I remember back in the day being issued something similar. It was some sort of arctic ration that was basically nuts and grains all held together by what appeared to be Crisco. You polished off a whole bar without drinking a gallon of water to wash it down and you felt like a cement truck had just backed up into your colon.


Ernie, those nut bars weren't suppositories. :baby04:


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## Roadking (Oct 8, 2009)

seedspreader said:


> So... I've thought of this a bit and had a funny flashback/solution here. Imagine this...
> 
> Wyld Thang is walking down the hall with an open jar of Peanut butter with her friends, around the corner, Christy, and her ROTC buddies are getting ready to go march somewhere. She's eating her Energy bar...
> 
> ...


Dang, same thouhgts... but you got there first...:bow:
Spew alert, and I need windex and towles...:happy0035:
Personally, a box of granola bars and a bag of jerky would do more than fine for me.
Matt


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## bee (May 12, 2002)

Well, I had a post all typed out and ready to hit send..hit the wrong button and lost it. Since I likely was on the way to getting myself banned from the forum I think I will consider that the BTB were looking out for me.

It is my plan to try the Datrex and Mainstay bars in hopes of replacing several cans of vienna sausages that have been rolling around under my passenger seat for several years. I think something that the Coast Guard will stock is less likely to poision me after the heat/cold changes than those poor lil sausages.


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