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silenthunterstudios

silenthunterstudios

Slipjoint Addict
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Feb 2, 2005
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In Backwoodsman, the only magazine I subscribe to anymore, there is always a section called Woodslore, which accumulates tidbits of information that the publisher, Charlie Richie, has assembled from old magazines and various sources. Many simple instructions, others are as in depth as a paragraph can get. I have seen a lot of interesting and informative, and concise, advice.

I propose this thread as a culmination of short, to the point instructions, that the reader could use. For example, a soda can lantern. A special way to cook beans in camp. Maybe a diagram for a small tent made from tarp and some bungee cords. Anything that could be of use.
 
I made one of these cutting a large rectangle in the side
of the aluminum soda can. The top of the can got very hot;
the top had a tab hole, but it was otherwise intact.

If I were going to experiment with it again, I would cut
most of the top off. The top itself is much tougher metal
than the side; think about using tin snips or chisel.

For suspending it, use wire or some other metal attached
to the can. Do not attach string or rope directly to the can.

I do not favor tea candles in any case, because tea candle
wax melts completely and this seems dangerous to me.
I use the pink candles (cut to size), they don't drip as much
as some others.

I would like to here of your experiments.
 
i don't know if this is the sort of thing that belongs here but...

use the corkscrew on an SAK to untie knots and things if they are too tight or your hands are too cold to be nimble. the edge on the awl can be sharp enough to cut some of the threads in rope and strings and cause a week spot.
 
I don't know if this is appropriate, but here goes, anyways...

One of my most favorite 'knots' to use around any campsite is the tautline hitch. It is quick to tie, it can be easily untied, it can be tied easily with bare or gloved hands, and it allows for quick and easy length and tensions adjustments.
tautline-hitch-01.gif

tautline-hitch-02.gif

tautline-hitch-03.gif

Temporary clotheslines, tent/tarp guy lines, securing the bow and stern of a canoe or kayak on top of a vehicle, etc. It isn't the end-all greatest do-everything knot/hitch, but itsure is handy. I've even used the tautline hitch to rig up adjustable leg loops on my PFD so that I could assume a seated position in the water during an extended soak.
 
Great thread, I love that part of the magazine as well.

I've found the file on my Leatherman Blast throws big blasts of sparks off the ferro rod on my magnesium block... and I've posted this before, but 2-liter and 20-oz. soda pop bottle tops make handy protective covers for a mag-lite... might fit others, too.
 
Great pic on the tautline. Neato. IMO, essential (minimum) knot knowledge for a MAN is: square, bowline, tautline, clove. There are other basic ones. But these you really have to know. Learn them.
 
Got similar pics for those other knots, FiddleBack? I know a square knot and that's about it :o I can see I would have a lot better success with my tarp-shelters and clotheslines if I had known how to tie that tautline hitch right...
 
is there a book on knot tying and different uses of knots? hopefully with lots of pics.
 
WVHILLS said:
is there a book on knot tying and different uses of knots? hopefully with lots of pics.
Click to expand...

Tons of them, but perhaps the most comprehensive is the Ashley Book of Knots. A lot of others have nice, shiny, colour pictures, but Ashley is the bible. The first few times I saw it, I thought, "What a piece of crap - line drawings et al". Just one more of the many times I've been wrong. :(

BTW, Jim, it continues on, " Berries white, shun the sight." (Technically, though, it shoud be leaflets three.)

Doc
 
GibsonFan said:
Got similar pics for those other knots, FiddleBack? I know a square knot and that's about it :o I can see I would have a lot better success with my tarp-shelters and clotheslines if I had known how to tie that tautline hitch right...
Click to expand...

http://www.folsoms.net/knots/

Thats the basics. I forgot to mention the sheet bend.

Here is a rundown of their functions:

Square - join two ropes of equal size
Sheet bend - join two ropes of unequal size
Bowline - make a loop (so many uses its not even funny - this IS the rescue knot, btw.)
Clove hitch - begin and terminate lashing
Taut line hitch - ajustable tightenable slip loop (as in tent stake lines)
 
WVHILLS said:
is there a book on knot tying and different uses of knots? hopefully with lots of pics.
Click to expand...

Im a lefty so this one was helpful.
Climbing Knots for lefties and righties. by Michael Noonan.
ICS Books 1997
isbn 1-57034-053-6
 
WVHILLS said:
is there a book on knot tying and different uses of knots? hopefully with lots of pics.
Click to expand...

I learned a lot of my basic knots way back when I acquired the Klutz Book of Knots. It is a spiral-bound book that comes with two pieces of cordage; one red and one blue. There are some stiff pages in the book with various holes so you can practice tying various knots and hitches alongside the instructions and illustrations. It is a great book, and I highly recommend it. it doesn't bog down trying to teach every single knot in the world, but focuses on maybe 15 or so of the most useful knots.
 
One that I heard here sometime back...

The hook on the back of the SAK is handy for alot of things, like lifting a hot pot by the handle, or using as a makeshift coat hanger for drying things.

Glenn
 
the hook on the SAK is also good for carrying heavy plastic bags that would otherwise cut into your hand. (even though that isn't very wilderness)

another good use is to use it like a drop spindle to spin thin cord to double twist into thicker stronger cord...if that makes sense at all
 
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