Is There Anybody Still Out There?

 Clicked a link to my own blog and it's still here!

Anybody still getting notifications that might want to see this thing fired up again?

Life got REALLY crazy but I'm adjusted to the new "normal" now so maybe I've got the time to get back to the outdoor stuff for you?

Anyway, if you're out there, thanks for reading.

B

It has been a long while since I really got a chance to play around much so I took some time this afternoon to see if I still had the chops to get a fire started with nothing more than a knife and a metal match and it turns out I DO. :)

I made several feather sticks from birch, fat wood, and some old dead branches I have picked up from the back yard and the sparks from a Bayite 6" X 1/2" rod were enough to get the feathers going with just a few strikes.

Yeah, one glowing spark made contact with my finger at 5500º so OUCH but otherwise I made it out alive and intact.

This knife by AA Forge really works a treat with a ScandiVex edge that has at least been maintained as I've used it even if it wasn't out doing some grand adventure.

Thanks for reading,


B

Watch This Space

Toying with the idea of restarting this blog in the very near future.

I didn't honestly realize that people WERE still blogging but my kids assure me that they are.

So...let's see what I can come up with. ;)

See you soon?

Thanks for reading,


B

Theoretical Versus Practical

I spend way too much time *thinking* about equipment and skills than I do actually doing those things...

I don't think that's so uncommon but I realized this morning as I was working out the "best" way to neck carry a Mora 510 or Basic Carver that I wasn't actually neck carrying it to work out the practical issues.

Working on a "best" tarp suspension is fine but it isn't until you actually USE it outdoors that you can fine tune the idea to handle those things that you hadn't considered while sitting on the couch watching Ray Mears...

I have a few campouts on the calendar now so I really need to stop thinking so much and start DO-ing to work out the kinks beforehand.

Time to get to work...

Thanks for reading,


B

Solo Stove Titan

Here's something I've been playing with for the past week or so. It's the Solo Stove Titan from Solo Stove--a wood gasification stove.

You load it up with twigs and sticks, ignite your tinder, and the gas produced by burning wood is "double burned" through a process called gasification.

This one, the Titan, nests perfectly inside the Zebra 14cm Loop Handle Pot (also known as the Zebra Billy) but you have to remove the bowl. It comes in a stuff sack which is nice because it will prevent the spread of soot once the stove gets nice and dirty.

Solo Stove also offers some lightweight pot options but I already had "old reliable" here so I purchased the stove that would fit best.

I brought 1L of cold water to a boil relatively quickly (VERY non-scientific test) and had plenty of fire left over before reloading and I've tried various methods to overload the canister to see if I could prevent the stove from working properly. Just like fire-building, proper preparation is important (i.e. don't throw big chunks of wet wood in and expect this thing to light with a single match) but having tinder, kindling, and fuel wood WILL lead to success and sub-optimal fuel will burn once you've got the stove running.

I highly suspect that burning charcoal briquettes (or chunk charcoal) would work equally well in this stove and will be trying that a bit later this week so I can do some cooking. You can see down into the stove here as the initial load has burned to coals and the new wood is beginning to light.

I don't have enough time under my belt yet with this stove to know just how flexible it is but I've been impressed so far.

It weighs 16.5 ounces, is made of 304 stainless steel and nichrome wire, and packs down to 5.6" high and 5.1" wide. There are two other sizes (one larger; one smaller) to choose from also.

Thanks for reading,


B

Not Sure I Remember How To Do This

Recently I learned of the existence of a NEW (to me) version of the venerable Mora 510 called the Basic Carver shown here with the current production 510.

Both are carbon steel and both share the same handle and sheath but the finer point of the Basic Carver will allow you to make tighter turns in your carving while still giving you enough blade to handle most of your bushcrafting tasks.

If you've been reading this blog for a while you know how much I like the handle on the 510 so it should come as no surprise that I really, really like the Basic Carver and have already worked up a method of neck carry so I can have it at the ready when I need it.

Best of all, they're priced like the OLD Mora knives (NOT the Bushcraft line) so you can pick one of these up from a place like Ben's Backwoods for a whopping $10.98US pretty much any day of the week.

Now, DON'T snap them all up before I can get a couple more for stashing around the house, in the car, etc. but DO feel free to get one and put it through its paces. I think you'll agree it's really a fantastic addition to the knife stable and very hard to beat from a value to performance standpoint.

Now I did put my own Scandi edge on it as soon as it arrived but that wasn't because it was dull but rather because I really LIKE to put my own edge on a knife so that any edge issues are on me and it also minimizes the chances that a knife designed and built for performance might have to endure a life as a safe queen. :)

Welcome back and thanks for reading,


B

Hey There!

Hey!

Anybody still out there?

I finally found some "free" time and was thinking about getting back on top of this thing. :)

What do you think? See you soon?

Thanks for reading,

B