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"I acceptt Ethan's Challenge"
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Ethan's March Challenge- Weapons at the Ready....
- Thread starter Moosez45
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i accept ethans challenge
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I accept Ethan's Challenge.
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I accept Ethans challenge....
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I Accept Ethans Challenge.
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I Accept Ethans Challenge.
Ok, here we go folks, tools and materials used; BK9, paracord, denim, stone, wood, my brain and my mitts.
First weapon was an age old classic, a fire hardened tipped spear, made from a long thick piece of fallen oak.
Its a simple weapon but works pretty well killing cardboard boxes and if need be animals or people as well. Is that a wild BK9 there to feast upon the dead box with me? I think it is.
Spear and Becker triumphant over the kill.
My next offering is a very versatile one, weapon as well as tool. The slungshot, once seen as the weapon of thugs, sailors and bar brawlers, now forgotten by most. Its made of paracord, with a decent length braided handle with a loop at the end to help me retain it and 3 rock core monkey fist knots at the end. I started with only one monkey fist, which still worked pretty well but I wanted it to have some more weight. As a weapon it is awesome, gives reach and power, can be thrown if need be and allows for grappling work to control an attackers hands or arms with the handle. As a tool can be used as it was originally intended by sailors to throw line over long distances, woods applications such as over a stream or over a branch to make raising food up out of reach easier are some. NOTE OF WARNING, if you do make one of these be aware of your local laws, these are very illegal in some places and can even be a felony like in my home state, California, or as many like to call it Commiefornia, so if you make one do not carry it out of your home before knowing, cause even using it in self defense could get you in trouble.
Its so pretty.
[/IMG]
Only 2 medium power swings and it destroys the side of the box. Oh look, is that a Bk9 there? I think it is, it gets around.
The fists buried in the box after a swing, the BK9 looks on in approval of the brutality.
Last, but by no means least, the sling, 3 in fact, with varying lengths. I made 2 out of single lengths of paracord, and yep your seeing it folks one from paracord and the fabric of the Gods, DENIM. The first 2 I was a little worried I would not be able to pull off without a wood and nail jig at home but, I was able to use 7 sticks pound into the ground to make them which is pretty cool. Only cost me a dirty and sore butt as well as some time to do it. The last one is made of a back pocket of a pair of jeans and some paracord. You can cut the back pocket off of pair without ruining the pants and make this in only a matter of minutes. It works amazingly well for such a quickly made sling. The other 2 took some time and patients but work a little better.
Here is a target I used them on, I wont embarrass myself and say how many attempts it took to even get those 6 hits, though I was about 35 feet back from the target. The maddening thing is that I hit that thin metal post about 30 times when trying to nail the box and I wasn't even going for it, so I am consistent but not accurate. I wish I had done some video of this to show how awesome and satisfying it is to land a rock and to see them shatter on impact too even if you weren't aiming at it. There's that BK9 again, keeps rushing into my shots.
Regardless of my accuracy, the range that can be achieved is amazing. Using my preferred throwing method and sling, a backwards vertical swing with a side release and the OD green sling with a little over a 2 foot length, I was lobbing stones well over the length of a football field. I can only imagine how horrifying and deadly these were back in ancient wars, hundreds of throwers lobbing stones down range onto their enemies from hundreds of yards away. My 3 slings on the target with some ammo at the bottom, the wild Becker ran into my photo again, well it did help so its OK.
Group shot of the arsenal.
What can be done with a knife, some simple materials and ingenuity is a wonder to behold. These weapons were used for thousands of years and still are at times and are a testament to what humanity can come up with. We lack the sharp teeth and claws of other animals, but we make up for it with an over sized brain and opposable thumbs.
I had tons of fun doing this, and wanted to do more but didn't want to go over 3 weapons and make an ever longer post then i already did, lol.
I am glad to have been a part of this and will look out for future contests, good luck to everyone.
Ok, here we go folks, tools and materials used; BK9, paracord, denim, stone, wood, my brain and my mitts.
First weapon was an age old classic, a fire hardened tipped spear, made from a long thick piece of fallen oak.
Its a simple weapon but works pretty well killing cardboard boxes and if need be animals or people as well. Is that a wild BK9 there to feast upon the dead box with me? I think it is.
Spear and Becker triumphant over the kill.
My next offering is a very versatile one, weapon as well as tool. The slungshot, once seen as the weapon of thugs, sailors and bar brawlers, now forgotten by most. Its made of paracord, with a decent length braided handle with a loop at the end to help me retain it and 3 rock core monkey fist knots at the end. I started with only one monkey fist, which still worked pretty well but I wanted it to have some more weight. As a weapon it is awesome, gives reach and power, can be thrown if need be and allows for grappling work to control an attackers hands or arms with the handle. As a tool can be used as it was originally intended by sailors to throw line over long distances, woods applications such as over a stream or over a branch to make raising food up out of reach easier are some. NOTE OF WARNING, if you do make one of these be aware of your local laws, these are very illegal in some places and can even be a felony like in my home state, California, or as many like to call it Commiefornia, so if you make one do not carry it out of your home before knowing, cause even using it in self defense could get you in trouble.
Its so pretty.
Only 2 medium power swings and it destroys the side of the box. Oh look, is that a Bk9 there? I think it is, it gets around.
The fists buried in the box after a swing, the BK9 looks on in approval of the brutality.
Last, but by no means least, the sling, 3 in fact, with varying lengths. I made 2 out of single lengths of paracord, and yep your seeing it folks one from paracord and the fabric of the Gods, DENIM. The first 2 I was a little worried I would not be able to pull off without a wood and nail jig at home but, I was able to use 7 sticks pound into the ground to make them which is pretty cool. Only cost me a dirty and sore butt as well as some time to do it. The last one is made of a back pocket of a pair of jeans and some paracord. You can cut the back pocket off of pair without ruining the pants and make this in only a matter of minutes. It works amazingly well for such a quickly made sling. The other 2 took some time and patients but work a little better.
Here is a target I used them on, I wont embarrass myself and say how many attempts it took to even get those 6 hits, though I was about 35 feet back from the target. The maddening thing is that I hit that thin metal post about 30 times when trying to nail the box and I wasn't even going for it, so I am consistent but not accurate. I wish I had done some video of this to show how awesome and satisfying it is to land a rock and to see them shatter on impact too even if you weren't aiming at it. There's that BK9 again, keeps rushing into my shots.
Regardless of my accuracy, the range that can be achieved is amazing. Using my preferred throwing method and sling, a backwards vertical swing with a side release and the OD green sling with a little over a 2 foot length, I was lobbing stones well over the length of a football field. I can only imagine how horrifying and deadly these were back in ancient wars, hundreds of throwers lobbing stones down range onto their enemies from hundreds of yards away. My 3 slings on the target with some ammo at the bottom, the wild Becker ran into my photo again, well it did help so its OK.
Group shot of the arsenal.
What can be done with a knife, some simple materials and ingenuity is a wonder to behold. These weapons were used for thousands of years and still are at times and are a testament to what humanity can come up with. We lack the sharp teeth and claws of other animals, but we make up for it with an over sized brain and opposable thumbs.
I had tons of fun doing this, and wanted to do more but didn't want to go over 3 weapons and make an ever longer post then i already did, lol.
I am glad to have been a part of this and will look out for future contests, good luck to everyone.
Last edited:
- Joined
- Aug 4, 2010
- Messages
- 1,638
I Accept Ethan's Challenge.
Tool of choice? My BK10LE.
I. French Arrow
I saw this recently on another forum and thought I'd try it. Very simple, basically uses a notch on the rear of the arrow to hold a knot, and the leverage from the cord gives you more speed and distance.....
II. Heavy Duty Spear
Basically made a bigger, thicker version of a fishing spear. Started by splitting the stick with a baton.....
Wrapped the spear with jute cord to prevent the split from continuing, used two twigs to spread the prongs, and wrapped more jute cord above to lock them in place.....
Lastly, shaved down the prongs to sharpen them up.....
Pointy.....
III. Thor Hammer
There were a lot of downed trees from the storms we've had recently, so I kicked stumps until I found one solid enough to use as the head. I wrapped both side with jute cord just to make sure the stump didn't split, then used a long stick to drive the BK10 into the stump to get my notch started.....
Next I used the tip to drill the notch far enough for the head to be secure.....
After shaping the end of the haft into kind of a flat tab, I hammered it into the head. To secure, I made notches on the haft and head, then secured it with more jute cord.....
But are they effective?
Spear..... easily punctures the melon......
Thor Hammer..... not much left after that.....
French arrow..... well after finishing the weapons I had limited space for the testing. The pictures I got from the arrow were less than impressive so I didn't include any here.
Group shot:
Summary:
1. Making these took quite a while longer than I originally anticipated. ESPECIALLY drilling the hole for the hammer head. It's really difficult to drill a smaller hole with a knife this size and shape. I mostly had to dig and pry with the tip to make any progress. Luckily the BK10's tip is good for that kinda thing.
2. My original plan was to drive the BK10 all the way through the stump..... this will not happen, haha.
3. Using the reverse cut/ lat cut I saw in one of Moose's threads a while back was essential in carving the insides of the spear prongs.
4. If you're going to be using the french arrow to hunt small game, you'd better practice up real good before hand or you'll be going hungry. I think adding fins to the back would've helped stabilize it's flight, but I never felt like I got the technique down good enough to be effective with it.
5. I had a lot of fun doing this challenge. I'm really glad I took the time to finish it and it makes me want to participate in more of the challenges.
Tool of choice? My BK10LE.
I. French Arrow
I saw this recently on another forum and thought I'd try it. Very simple, basically uses a notch on the rear of the arrow to hold a knot, and the leverage from the cord gives you more speed and distance.....
II. Heavy Duty Spear
Basically made a bigger, thicker version of a fishing spear. Started by splitting the stick with a baton.....
Wrapped the spear with jute cord to prevent the split from continuing, used two twigs to spread the prongs, and wrapped more jute cord above to lock them in place.....
Lastly, shaved down the prongs to sharpen them up.....
Pointy.....
III. Thor Hammer
There were a lot of downed trees from the storms we've had recently, so I kicked stumps until I found one solid enough to use as the head. I wrapped both side with jute cord just to make sure the stump didn't split, then used a long stick to drive the BK10 into the stump to get my notch started.....
Next I used the tip to drill the notch far enough for the head to be secure.....
After shaping the end of the haft into kind of a flat tab, I hammered it into the head. To secure, I made notches on the haft and head, then secured it with more jute cord.....
But are they effective?
Spear..... easily punctures the melon......
Thor Hammer..... not much left after that.....
French arrow..... well after finishing the weapons I had limited space for the testing. The pictures I got from the arrow were less than impressive so I didn't include any here.
Group shot:
Summary:
1. Making these took quite a while longer than I originally anticipated. ESPECIALLY drilling the hole for the hammer head. It's really difficult to drill a smaller hole with a knife this size and shape. I mostly had to dig and pry with the tip to make any progress. Luckily the BK10's tip is good for that kinda thing.
2. My original plan was to drive the BK10 all the way through the stump..... this will not happen, haha.
3. Using the reverse cut/ lat cut I saw in one of Moose's threads a while back was essential in carving the insides of the spear prongs.
4. If you're going to be using the french arrow to hunt small game, you'd better practice up real good before hand or you'll be going hungry. I think adding fins to the back would've helped stabilize it's flight, but I never felt like I got the technique down good enough to be effective with it.
5. I had a lot of fun doing this challenge. I'm really glad I took the time to finish it and it makes me want to participate in more of the challenges.
- Joined
- Jan 3, 2011
- Messages
- 477
I made a self bow out of hickory stave I had laying around with my Bk7. From the stave to the finished bow it took about 11 hours. It was not none stop work but time spent on it. With this brace height its 21#. With a proper brace height Im guessing it will be over #60. I just didnt want to break it lol!
This is what took the longest. just scrapping. I did this to achieve the shape and smoothness.
It's done, FINALLY!!
This is what took the longest. just scrapping. I did this to achieve the shape and smoothness.
It's done, FINALLY!!
Last edited:
Dave from State Farm
Basic Member
- Joined
- Aug 24, 2011
- Messages
- 4,731
Excellent work all of you. Its great to see so many different ideas.
Davy
Davy
- Joined
- Aug 14, 2011
- Messages
- 708
I accept Ethan's Challenge
I created these using my BK-5 and 2 short pieces of paracord, some cordage I made from the stringy inner bark of a branch I used, and two stone points I made along with some feathers I had laying around. All the stone and weapons-grade timber used in these projects was harvested from the location from the first two pics, excepting the blowgun, which was a complete backyard invention.
Here I am roughing out my spear with my trusty BK-5
And making the cordage to lash the point I made on
Blowgun made from reaming out some cane I snap-cut with my BK-5
Closeup of blowgun darts and arrowhead. lashed with one of the strands of gutted paracord.
Blowgun darts on target... a little to the left
Bow and arrow made from a sapling and a stone arrowhead. Poorly, but effectively fletched with some turkey quill and a strand of 550 inner.
Arrow on target. My marksmanship needs improvement, but the weapon was shockingly effective to have been cobbled together by a novice.
Spear, lashed mostly with natural cordage with a handmade stone point.
The cartoon bunny really bought it this time. Right in the face!
Tomahawk take 2: the first one snapped under the pressure of the lashings. This one did better.
Tomahawk Crumps 'da wittle wabbits good.
Lightning round destruction of this milk jug with my favorite, the sapling bow&arrow.
This was a real blast.
I'd never tried most of the skills I used for this before, it really was a good learning experience--and not as easy as it looks. But, with a little effort and a lot of time, I was able to come out with a couple of serviceable weapons. At least serviceable enough to kill a cartoon rabbit
I created these using my BK-5 and 2 short pieces of paracord, some cordage I made from the stringy inner bark of a branch I used, and two stone points I made along with some feathers I had laying around. All the stone and weapons-grade timber used in these projects was harvested from the location from the first two pics, excepting the blowgun, which was a complete backyard invention.
Here I am roughing out my spear with my trusty BK-5
And making the cordage to lash the point I made on
Blowgun made from reaming out some cane I snap-cut with my BK-5
Closeup of blowgun darts and arrowhead. lashed with one of the strands of gutted paracord.
Blowgun darts on target... a little to the left
Bow and arrow made from a sapling and a stone arrowhead. Poorly, but effectively fletched with some turkey quill and a strand of 550 inner.
Arrow on target. My marksmanship needs improvement, but the weapon was shockingly effective to have been cobbled together by a novice.
Spear, lashed mostly with natural cordage with a handmade stone point.
The cartoon bunny really bought it this time. Right in the face!
Tomahawk take 2: the first one snapped under the pressure of the lashings. This one did better.
Tomahawk Crumps 'da wittle wabbits good.
Lightning round destruction of this milk jug with my favorite, the sapling bow&arrow.
This was a real blast.
I'd never tried most of the skills I used for this before, it really was a good learning experience--and not as easy as it looks. But, with a little effort and a lot of time, I was able to come out with a couple of serviceable weapons. At least serviceable enough to kill a cartoon rabbit
Last edited:
I was going to attempt entering this contest. I was able to make one weapon. I made a bundle bow out of bamboo and paracord. The only knife/tool I used was my BK9.
It worked great for a few shots, then it folded in half. I was able to fire 6 or 7 arrows that I made out of some straight sticks.
Unfortunately this was my only weapon made. I'll have to find more time next month for the next contest.
It worked great for a few shots, then it folded in half. I was able to fire 6 or 7 arrows that I made out of some straight sticks.
Unfortunately this was my only weapon made. I'll have to find more time next month for the next contest.
Ethan Becker
Moderator
- Joined
- Sep 1, 1999
- Messages
- 3,564
Hey everybody.....
You all did not make it easy this month.......A lot of really good work......
Pointy End earns his monniker and first prize........Consistently fine and complex work....
Ouroborrosso taught me about slungshots and thereby gets
Second place...
Saturated Shadow gets third place....Good work and with the smallest tool......The smallest knife is the one you will prbably have with you ......A probable corrollary of the optimist Murphy and his damn law.....
One Legged Josh ....Gets an honorable mention for doing "dirt time" where he can.......
TankerWolf Gets an honorable for making me do my hyena in pain laugh......
Everybody done real good ...........
All Best
Ethan
Email me at beckerkt@gmail.com with the following info
Forum name
Name and address
What you won....
Thanks .....
You all did not make it easy this month.......A lot of really good work......
Pointy End earns his monniker and first prize........Consistently fine and complex work....
Ouroborrosso taught me about slungshots and thereby gets
Second place...
Saturated Shadow gets third place....Good work and with the smallest tool......The smallest knife is the one you will prbably have with you ......A probable corrollary of the optimist Murphy and his damn law.....
One Legged Josh ....Gets an honorable mention for doing "dirt time" where he can.......
TankerWolf Gets an honorable for making me do my hyena in pain laugh......
Everybody done real good ...........
All Best
Ethan
Email me at beckerkt@gmail.com with the following info
Forum name
Name and address
What you won....
Thanks .....
