another overnighter: s1 & frog.

[JV3]

did my overnighter for this month next to a lake since most spots with small streams are all dried up.

i brought my new fallkniven s1 with an esee accessory pouch (i wanted to try a belt rig setup as opposed to stuffing everything in my pockets like usual).

it sucks being a lefty in a righty-world but surprisingly i got used to it quickly with the s1 on my left side oriented the wrong way...alright, alright i'm too cheap right now to get godspeed to make me a proper sheath for it.

the current contents...the esee fire kit is sporting a new rod by the way since i wore out the original rod a few weeks ago.

with the s1 rig on my belt i hanged my while-hiking-last-ditch-survival-kit-on-my-belt on my shelter pole.

first-aid kit on the other pole.

i'm down to about 13 lbs base weight...who says lightweight means being uncomfortable at camp? i still slept like a king

first outing with my new kifaru ku3700. it didn't feel any different compared to my zxr and i ended up saving 5 lbs right there...looks like it's a keeper!

the toys for the trip.

someone said that they are old mining equipment.

some crystal-like structure on this rock.

 

[JV3]

i also switched to orange cordage for my shelter since i keep tripping on it during the day (surprisingly, almost never at night though). i thought it might be annoying but you can barely see it just a few yards away.

i don't know if it's just me but i'm always weary of gators waiting to ambush me every time i'm near a water where i can't see the bottom of it even though they don't exist this far up north...too much watching those discovery shows!

saw this little fella lounging around nearby.

brave guy! he was very lucky i brought white rice and spam with me or else

also spotted two dried-up mullein along the bank.

really is a perfect spot - there's even a perfectly shaped rock to sit on while filtering the water.

some kids beat me to it...i always wondered if that island was big enough to support people.

what's wrong with this figure-4 trap?

after i caught the error, i had to redo it.

there was also this huge ant that was circling my shelter area...it was too fast for me to lay my knife down next to it for scale though.

 

[JV3]

[ double post ]

 

[JV3]

time to get the s1 dirty! i hate un-used knives.

started the split with the s1.

...then used a wedge to finish the job.

all marked up...that's more like it!

the kiwi machete and victorinox never got used on this trip - i wanted to use the s1 as much as possible to compare it to my f1.

everyone keeps recommending an f1 and i rarely see the s1 get mentioned but after this trip i gotta say the f1 is way over-rated compared to the s1 as a survival knife...stouter grind/true convex grind (rather than the f1's flat grind with a convex micro-bevel), handle is thicker than the f1 (a frequent complaint of f1 owners is too small a handle), and the lanyard hole isn't anywhere near my pinky finger.

this guy must've smelled my spam - he was watching me all day

nice pile of firewood and a lake-side view, i can't get tired of it.

i picked the right time to overnight too - the days before and after were in the high 80's but tonight it dipped into the 50's...almost perfect! just after dark i guess the frog that i didn't eat must've invited a gazillion of his friends over and they were making a racket way into the night...i mean they were LOUD! i've never heard so many frogs in one location before so i'm guessing mating season?

i left a nice pile of processed wood for the next camper the next day...i was never into the whole leave-no-trace behind...but rather leave the place better & cleaner than i found it.

all loaded up and ready to go home.

only thing i miss from the zxr is the side slots for my machete/axe...overall, i'm impressed with it...a couple more overnighters this september to shake things out and see...anyway, that was my overnighter for this month.

 

[Hawkeye5]

Great post as always. There wasn't mosquito's .

 

[tknife]

Great pics as usual. I like your sheath pouch set up too as I hate carrying stuff in my pockets while hiking.

 

[awestun]

I must say I always enjoy your overnighter posts.

 

[WILLIAM.M]

Great post Bro

Excellent gear and photos

Thanks for taking us along

 

[obedriverleather]

Great post and a beautiful spot as well, you are the first person i have heard of wearing out one of those esee rods, those things are huge, you must be a pyromaniac, haha

 

[Stickman]

Man, that's a beautiful campsite J, what a scene, eh. Great photos as usual, always enjoy them. Hope the S1 works out for you, I'm a fan of Fallkivens and convexed grinds. I'm not so sure about the F1 being a flat grind, I believe it has a large radius convex, much like the NL5. None of mine have factory handles or grinds anymore, so I really can't tell by looking at them. For me, the F1 is a good, small, all-rounder, but as you said, I favor other models in the Fallkiven line-up.
I like your new backpack, I'll have to research that one. I've also been on a weight reduction mission...solo canoe/camping has all the demands of backpacking with a few extra twists thrown in when you have to carry all that gear from one body of water to another.

 

[6shooter]

I can't tell how old those "kids" are, but that island looks to be inhabited entirely by females ...

(that could make me look terrible...)


Great post as usual bro. What tarp is that? I just got an MLD solo tarp that I ordered a few months ago. The catenary cut is a little finicky to setup, but Im hoping I'll figure it out after a few more practice runs. You gonna do a review on that KU pack?

 

[CellerDrummer]

Thanks again JV3..Always injoy your pictures and threads..
CD

 

[JV3]

Great post as always. There wasn't mosquito's .

thanks! no mosquitoes at all because it dipped into the 50's that night. i left the net at home but took bug spray just in case though but i lucked out.

Great pics as usual. I like your sheath pouch set up too as I hate carrying stuff in my pockets while hiking.

thanks! same here i hate stuff in my pockets, i should've bought this pouch a long time ago.

I must say I always enjoy your overnighter posts.

thanks!

Great post Bro

Excellent gear and photos

Thanks for taking us along

thanks, dr. bill!

Great post and a beautiful spot as well, you are the first person i have heard of wearing out one of those esee rods, those things are huge, you must be a pyromaniac, haha

thanks! haha, yeah i'm always playing with fire even at home...this pic was taken about 3 weeks ago i think:

the replacement rod is about 1/2" longer than the original and i find that it's the perfect length for me:

Man, that's a beautiful campsite J, what a scene, eh. Great photos as usual, always enjoy them. Hope the S1 works out for you, I'm a fan of Fallkivens and convexed grinds. I'm not so sure about the F1 being a flat grind, I believe it has a large radius convex, much like the NL5. None of mine have factory handles or grinds anymore, so I really can't tell by looking at them. For me, the F1 is a good, small, all-rounder, but as you said, I favor other models in the Fallkiven line-up.
I like your new backpack, I'll have to research that one. I've also been on a weight reduction mission...solo canoe/camping has all the demands of backpacking with a few extra twists thrown in when you have to carry all that gear from one body of water to another.

thanks! you might be right about the f1 since i've sold mine several months ago so i don't remember it that well. i tried hard to really like that knife but the thin handle and the lanyard hole touching my pinky finger really bugged me...glad i took the risk and bought the s1 - i really like it.

here's the site for that backpack: http://www.kifaru.net/KU3700.html
i'll start a review thread for it probably next week but for now there are first-impression pics of it here, starting at post #52: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/837192-review-kifaru-g2-zxr-backpack/page3

I can't tell how old those "kids" are, but that island looks to be inhabited entirely by females ...

(that could make me look terrible...)


Great post as usual bro. What tarp is that? I just got an MLD solo tarp that I ordered a few months ago. The catenary cut is a little finicky to setup, but Im hoping I'll figure it out after a few more practice runs. You gonna do a review on that KU pack?

thanks, bro! yeah, i wasn't too sure how old they are so i kept the pic to a minimum just to show the island. last thing i want is one of their dads who happens to surf here too with a machete waiting for me next time i'm there!

the tarp is an integral designs siltarp2 (8'x10'). it's working out well so far that i might not use my bcusa tarp anymore actually. is that mld tarp a custom order? months of waiting is crazy for a tarp.

yes i'll start a new review thread for the ku3700 probably next week but for now there are first-impression pics of it here, starting at post #52: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/837192-review-kifaru-g2-zxr-backpack/page3.

Thanks again JV3..Always injoy your pictures and threads..
CD

thanks! how'd your canoe trip go?

 

[SouthernCross]

G'day JV3

Now that you have used a stainless steel blade outdoors, what do you say to those who still maintain that a non-stainless steel knife is the only way to go, or better yet, that a stainless steel blade can't be used to raise a spark from a firesteel or mischmetal rod?

 

[Munky88]

I stared at that figure-4 trap for awhile trying to figure out what was wrong with it. I gave up, and searched the comments to see if anybody else asked.

Then I noticed the knife.

well done, sir.

 

[JV3]

G'day JV3

Now that you have used a stainless steel blade outdoors, what do you say to those who still maintain that a non-stainless steel knife is the only way to go, or better yet, that a stainless steel blade can't be used to raise a spark from a firesteel or mischmetal rod?

i'll show them my used s1 and especially the marks on the spine from the firesteel and tell them they're wrong

I stared at that figure-4 trap for awhile trying to figure out what was wrong with it. I gave up, and searched the comments to see if anybody else asked.

Then I noticed the knife.

well done, sir.

thanks! the first two pictures, the bait-end of the stick is not under the log - it won't kill the prey if it's not under the log to begin with, haha. i can't believe that slipped past me, it wasn't until i was reviewing the pics in my camera that i caught the error. also, mistwalker suggested that i move the vertical piece further out so there's less chance of it jamming under the log and preventing it from falling when prey trips it.

 

[BonhamBlades]

Wow! what a beautiful spot! thanks for shareing...

 

[SouthernCross]

G'day JV3

i'll show them my used s1 and especially the marks on the spine from the firesteel and tell them they're wrong ........

Good luck with this.

Been there, done that, and was essentially ignored.

Although being from the US, you have might have better luck than I have had


Kind regards
Mick

 

[Mistwalker]

Great post and great photos as usual JV. I like your campsite, and I like the knife kit. I like to build kits around some of my knives too

G'day JV3




Good luck with this.

Been there, done that, and was essentially ignored.

Although being from the US, you have might have better luck than I have had


Kind regards
Mick

You know the old saying Mick; you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make it drink. Sometimes people just have to figure some things out for themselves. Maybe spme people have had issues with softer stainless (I've had this issue) or maybe experiences with lower carbon stainlesses like 440A or 420. Most high-end stainless, and some not-so-high-end stainless, have a higher carbon content than a lot of good high carbon steels. Back home in my mountains I'm fine with plain old high carbon steel. It's a humid environment but a fresh water humid environment so the only time salt water becomes an issue is with my neck knives dealing with my sweat. Here in Florida three of the personal knives I brought; a Spartan/Harsey- Hunter (CPM=S35VN), a DPx HEST-2 in Niolox, and a Cold Steel San Mai III Trailmaster (VG-1 core) are all stainless steels and all throw great sparks if I need to fall back on them as a striker.

 

[Hawkeye5]

What state is that in , New Jersey ?