The Nessmuk Challenge

[Nix]

Day 25:


Getting the weekend started right.....

[comis]

I put a little oil or grease (a smear of Chapstick, once) on the spindle (bearing block end) to reduce friction there. Not sure how much of a difference that actually makes. But it makes sense to me.... 

I think you are right, though: you don't need a lot of friction at the bearing block.

Great trick!

Nice selection of smaller knives Comis. I hope you like the Humphrey because it does look very comfortable.
What about a reverse bow drill?  If you develop a coal in the bearing block instead of in the hearth board you have still successfully made a coal, and that is the point of the exercise isn't it?

I do like it, the curved down handle really does give a lot of tactile feedback to the pinky when cutting, and that's really awesome.

Following your idea, I end up searching for different methods of friction fire, and found a new technique that I don't think I have tried in the past:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yVrr4KCUmbo&ab_channel=DavidWest

Of course, one may argue how likely we are going to find two perfectly flat wood to do this, but interesting concept none the less.

[ReamerPunch]

What about a reverse bow drill?  If you develop a coal in the bearing block instead of in the hearth board you have still successfully made a coal, and that is the point of the exercise isn't it?

I honestly considered using the bearing block as a hearth and the hearth as a bearing block.
I've got an idea that should work. We shall see.

[Nix]

 

[RF52]

Day 25

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JG5 attended mail duty.

Alan, here's a comparison of short fixed blades I have, and the Lou Humphrey and Erapuu are new.

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From top to down:
Modded Mora with shorten blade
ESEE JG5
Becker BK24 (like this, but the handle is 1/2-1" too short)
TM Hunt Skelemagua(awesome grip, and very useful knife)
Mora Junior
Erapuu Taskupuukko
Lou Humphrey Tarpon

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New Humphrey I got, really like the ergo, fit and finish is quite decent, 95% on par with Bark River.

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Erapuu is also new, I love the idea of slim, small fixed blade good for pocket carry.  The sheath/cap with lanyard attachment reminds me of Japanese design.

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This is Mora Junior.  One of the most overlooked knife, since people think it's for kids.  But the ~4in handle still offers pretty good grip if you want to hammer fist it, and I like the little guard on it, so I could easily draw it in and out without paying much attention.

Very nice selection comis

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[David]

Day 25:


Getting the weekend started right.....

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Everything is better with bacon!     

[Borg]

 

Day 25

[Nix]

Lovely knife!   

[David]

Day 25

Poor Moose on package duty today. Moose is dreaming of the wilderness.

[Nix]

   The Moose is loose!   

[ReamerPunch]

Show content

Day 22 (late entry, part 2):


Until the bears come along….

Yes, there I was, pleased with my relatively safe campsite, sipping my yuppie-style Lemon-Ginger Tea, when a bear decided to circle my camp:





There is something about sipping a nice hot Lemon-Ginger Tea in the woods by yourself that leads to a certain quiet refection. Which is nice for people, but apparently also appeals to bears.

I was sitting there, enjoying said tea, when I heard a loud ‘crack’. Hmmm….. A moment later I saw the aforementioned bruin foraging around the camp.

Who knew bears liked Lemon-Ginger tea? 

Instead of reaching for my bear spray, I moved to a spot where I could get a better shot for you guys.  Mr Bear paused and nibbled up some berries, then turned to move closer to me…..




So the bear was only about 20 yards (18 meters) away at this point. My bear spray was about 10 yards (9 meters) away. I realized that if the bear decided to be aggressive, I was essentially a dead man. 

So, I said, in a friendly voice, “Hey, bear.”

Is it too late to change my "Wild Man" entry? 

[Nix]

 

[Alan K.]

Day 25:


Getting the weekend started right.....

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[cody6268]

Day 25. Not much use.

SAKs plus Farmall by cody6268, on Flickr

[Nix]

Who needs a minute to make that decision?

 

[Alan K.]

Day 25
I've got a tree stump that just wont die. About once a month I have to knock down a bunch of fresh shoots coming out of it.  The Tramontina machete works good for that.

[ReamerPunch]

Day 26

The Paiute Deadfall
Having everything ready made this easy. Two sticks from the Figure Four, and the cord and toggle from the Y Bone. The only thing missing was a twig for a bait stick.
This was a lot of fun. The bait stick holds the toggle, which holds the line, which holds the lever stick, which holds the weight on the post. Thank you, Physics.



And a ginger beer

[old Lefty]

Day 25. Not much use.

SAKs plus Farmall by cody6268, on Flickr

pls. ignore. Wrong thread

[old Lefty]

Day 17:
Early morning mist, SwissChamp is contemplating the about to start ME-training session:



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[David]

Day 17:
Early morning mist, SwissChamp is contemplating the about to start ME-training session:
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Whats ME training?

[old Lefty]

^
Westside's Conjugate systems Max Effort.
An all out push in a particular weekly changing lift/variation. Done once a week for lower and once a week for upper body.

Lähetetty minun SM-T515 laitteesta Tapatalkilla

[RF52]

Day 26:

Outdoorsy pic for this lovely gray saturday and some cold cuts for lunch

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[comis]

Day 25
I've got a tree stump that just wont die. About once a month I have to knock down a bunch of fresh shoots coming out of it.  The Tramontina machete works good for that.

Good use! 

Day 26

The Paiute Deadfall
Having everything ready made this easy. Two sticks from the Figure Four, and the cord and toggle from the Y Bone. The only thing missing was a twig for a bait stick.
This was a lot of fun. The bait stick holds the toggle, which holds the line, which holds the lever stick, which holds the weight on the post. Thank you, Physics.
(Image removed from quote.)
(Image removed from quote.)

And a ginger beer
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Another day, another cool trap.  RP, which one so far do you think is most effective and easy to setup? 

Day 26:

Outdoorsy pic for this lovely gray saturday and some cold cuts for lunch (Image removed from quote.)(Image removed from quote.)

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Nice walk and 

[Nix]

[ReamerPunch]

Another day, another cool trap.  RP, which one so far do you think is most effective and easy to setup? 

 


 

Well, let's see what we have here.
-Spring-loaded snare
-Figure Four
-Promontory Peg
-Y Bone (Paiute variation)
-Paiute

Snare
All are deadfall traps except the snare, so the snare is either the best or the worst. I'd say that you'd want to be more particular about where you set the snare. Not that you should set up the deadfalls anywhere, but you could. Considering the fact that you need two cords for this, and a suitable spring-pole, and a game-trail to set it in, I'd say that this is not the easiest to set up.

For the deadfalls, the Promontory Peg would be the easiest to set up. Find a stick, saw two opposite cuts, and snap it in two. Clean up the cut a little, find any toggle to tie the cord, and you're done.
The Figure Four takes a lot of fiddly carving to get right, in addition to being mindful of the length of the sticks.
The Paiute and Y Bone would be better than the Figure Four, I'd say. Easier to set up, and more reliable to trigger and get you dinner. The Y Bone takes a lot more carving than the Paiute but is much more stable thanks to the Y, which also makes it extremely easy to set up.

So, in order of easiest to hardest, it would be
-Promontory Peg
-Y Bone
-Paiute
-Figure Four
-Snare

[Nix]

I think the Paiute has the best trigger. Or, atl east it seems the easiest for me to tune/adjust.   

[ReamerPunch]

I liked setting up the Paiute. 
It seemed a little too fiddly to start with that one. The Y Bone is essentially a Paiute with a Y. It is easier to set up, but once done, it is a Paiute. There is a reason the Paiute is more popular than the Figure Four.

[RF52]

Good use! 

Another day, another cool trap.  RP, which one so far do you think is most effective and easy to setup? 


Nice walk and 

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[comis]

 

Well, let's see what we have here.
-Spring-loaded snare
-Figure Four
-Promontory Peg
-Y Bone (Paiute variation)
-Paiute

Snare
All are deadfall traps except the snare, so the snare is either the best or the worst. I'd say that you'd want to be more particular about where you set the snare. Not that you should set up the deadfalls anywhere, but you could. Considering the fact that you need two cords for this, and a suitable spring-pole, and a game-trail to set it in, I'd say that this is not the easiest to set up.

For the deadfalls, the Promontory Peg would be the easiest to set up. Find a stick, saw two opposite cuts, and snap it in two. Clean up the cut a little, find any toggle to tie the cord, and you're done.
The Figure Four takes a lot of fiddly carving to get right, in addition to being mindful of the length of the sticks.
The Paiute and Y Bone would be better than the Figure Four, I'd say. Easier to set up, and more reliable to trigger and get you dinner. The Y Bone takes a lot more carving than the Paiute but is much more stable thanks to the Y, which also makes it extremely easy to set up.

So, in order of easiest to hardest, it would be
-Promontory Peg
-Y Bone
-Paiute
-Figure Four
-Snare

 

[comis]

Day 27



Get the Ranger to pose while taking a stroll, I don't know why but there are really more than usual amount of people hiking the trails.  I'd love to post with my axe and fixed blade more, but not with dozens of people watching over my shoulder.