If only a Peanut

jackknife said:
Really, Stich, you move up 3 levels to guardian in the cult for your dedication.

Carl.
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Thank you Carl, I am truly honored, I will stand my ground and hold off those hollow handled foes :-)

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Thanks,
Pete
 
Stich2442 said:
What are you talking about Pinnah? Battoning with a peanut no problem just takes a little finesse & time :-)
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GUFFAW!!!

I live in New England and if doing dry shavings is your thing I don't see why the Peanut couldn't handle it. My fire technique is generally to spend some time prepping, gathering, fallen birch bark, small thin twigs, and pine pitch, fluffed jute twine, teepee method and a spark from a flint, I very rarely make fuzz sticks or shavings, never had a problem, except one time on a solo trip camping on the Appalachian trail near northwest corner of Ct. border on NY and Ma. a week of rain in the fall made things tuff.
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I think we're very much on the same page. I think knife choice in the wood is a much emotional as rational. As I noted earlier, I EDC single blade lockers with 3" blades, so it's not surprising that I'm more comfortable with that style of knife in my hands in the woods too. My most commonly carried knives are the Buck 112, the Buck Ecolite 112 and occasionally an Opinel #8. I have big hands and struggle with knives smaller than this. My woods knife is traditional inspired Buck 486 - something like Buck 110 but with a lighter frame.

I recall a trip to Flat Mountain Pond in the Sandwich region of New Hampshire a few years ago. It was mid October. Lots of rain and wet snow and we stayed in an open shelter. For comfort, we decided to make a fire and while browsing as you describe (birch bark is great) got a fire going, we struggled to get dry enough wood and to process wood to burn. I had for many, many, many years just relied on a small Camillus peanut for backpacking to save weight. But, that was the trip that made me reconsider moving to something bigger. I know carry a traditional lockback Buck. I definitely find that shaving down wood helps when tinder is wet and I also find that a large sawing action (suggested in Cliff Jacobsen's good book) helps in making the shavings. For this, a bit longer blade really helps me, hence my move to a 3.5" blade more in the Buck 110 or Buck 486 range.

And that trip got me to consider a small folding saw during months when snow was a possibility.

Knife selection can't be made in the absence of other survival gear. Here's my list:
http://home.comcast.net/~pinnah/DirtbagPinner/essentials-list.txt

As for walking out of the woods in the Northeast, it is not always possible, at least not in a day.
http://home.comcast.net/~pinnah/trip-reports/sabbaday.txt


As for survival in the car in the winter, it's a real issue. When I used to live in the north country, a winter sleeping bag in the trunk was pretty common.
 
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Robert thanks for the suggestion.

The smallest knife that I like, and actually hold as one of my all time favorites in any size, is the Buck Colt

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A lot like Ryan's texas jack I really like the 3 1/2" gunstock

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Both of these I have always thought of as slightly overbuilt and clunky for a knife this size, but they are both very comfortable for ME to use :)

Im really not trying to bash the peanut or its followers, I am trying to express my reasons for not preferring it.
 
richstag said:
Both of these I have always thought of as slightly overbuilt and clunky for a knife this size, but they are both very comfortable for ME to use :)

Im really not trying to bash the peanut or its followers, I am trying to express my reasons for not preferring it.
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not to get too far off topic, but really? clunky and overbuilt?

i am under the impression the outlaw is comparable to the texas jack. It doesnt feel clunky or overbuilt to me
slim, slender slicer...at least in my opinion.

Then again, maybe the outlaw is thicker, gec is known for being overbuilt i suppose :/
 
Ryan, if you compare the Colt to a serpentine stockman it feels clunky. If I compare the gunstock to a serpentine jack it also feels clunky. The bolsters on both are more squared, substantial and much less contoured. Remember now, I am saying clunky by comparison and for this size range of knives.

Make sense?
 
hrm i definitely get your point with the stockmen
i guess the outlaw isnt exactly "serpentine" is it :p
 
No its not quite as sleek and contoured as a serpentine. The outlaw is quite a substantial little knife. Much more so than photos show.
 
Nice write-up Pete, i was thinking about that kind of scenario for quite a while, and then it slipped my mind, when i saw your thread. Excellent. Thanks.
 
You know, I've thought about this recently with all of the foolishness going on in Baltimore, I work just inside the city.

I usually have my wallet with plenty of receipts I need to clean out, a small magnifying glass credit card sized in my wallet, and I need to put some paracord in there. I have a small classic on my keyring, along with three small lights (I think I have bad ADD or ADHD, not making fun of those that do, but I think I have it). I always have my peanut on me, a single blade damascus Case. I have about three other flashlights, a Lenslight CR123A, an Eagle Tac AA and a Maratac AAA copper. I believe that if something happens and I can't get to my truck, I would be able to fashion an adequate sharp end on a walking stick. With my limited knowledge of bushcraft, I would be able to utilize the peanut to fashion some larger tools. I would still be scared of breaking it, whether a SHTF scenario or just a get home scenario.

One year, a police funeral procession, coinciding with the beginning of the Memorial Day summer holiday weekend, and several accidents thrown in, it took me four hours to get home, my commute usually takes about 45 min to an hour.
 
An old thread but very enjoyable. A good reminder for all to check their state of preparedness in the event a day doesn't go as planned.

I have a 3-4 week cross country car trip coming up. The yellow Peanut and a Vic Farmer will be my companions. Of course my trusty 20+ yr old Leatherman Classic in the center console. :thumbup:
 
AZ, why not take that fine 6375 of yours along as well....just in case. You never know....!

Regards,
Ron
 
jackknife said:
The peanut also gives you a blade with almost the same length cutting edge as a barlow. If you think about what you're doing, a couple of inches of blade goes a long way.

As far as fire making, a guy I served in the army with was a Navajo from out in New Mexico. He had a way of making a small fire in a hole that just used twigs and small sticks. He called it a hatful of fire. He said the white man makes fires too big to get close to. Jimmy always carried a well used old Kabar barlow. He kept the main blade really sharp, and the pen blade was his rough cut/can punch/awl tool. Oil came in cans back in those days. Jimmy would sharpen a stick, use it to dig a little hole wth a kind of trench leading from it, and make his hatful of fire. He kept stuff in his pockets, and always seemed to now how to get by with his barlow, a Zippo or some matches, and some twine.

On fishing/camping trips, he'd cut a small sapling, lay it in the crook of a tree or tie it with some twine to another small tree and make a kind of 3/4 tepee with his issue pancho. He'd then build his little fire almost right in the opening of his shelter, and curl up in a wool blanket or two and go to sleep on a cold evening. His little fire would be a bed of coals, and once in a while he'd toss in some more small sticks to burn down to more coals. I tried it, and it does work. I really believe Jimmy was one of those guys you could drop off someplace with just what he had in his pockets and he'd be fine. He got a lot of milage out of a barlow with a couple inches of steel. He influenced me to keep a small sharp pocket knife, fire, and twine on hand.
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I know this Is a old post Carl but was it like a Dakota fire it I am wanting to camp some soon and need a good way to heat my lean too I might make
 
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