My 1000 Post Fiddleback Giveaway Challenge (WINNER ANNOUNCED!!!)

[McVeyMac]

Thank you Tod for a great idea for a give away. My grandson will turn 14 in August, and I am going to have him read through this thread and pick a project to do. Whichever project he choses, I am thinking that I will do the first attempt with him watching and helping. Then he will have to do it from scratch on his own with me photographing and answering questions. If our entry is lucky enough to win, then the knife and sheath will be his.

I am very excited about this, now I will see if I can capture his enthusiasm.

 

[hasco]

WOW. Not an entry. Thanks for sharing those pictures. I really enjoyed these. beautiful. :thumbup:

Thank you Zemapali!

Thank you Tod for a great idea for a give away. My grandson will turn 14 in August, and I am going to have him read through this thread and pick a project to do. Whichever project he choses, I am thinking that I will do the first attempt with him watching and helping. Then he will have to do it from scratch on his own with me photographing and answering questions. If our entry is lucky enough to win, then the knife and sheath will be his.

I am very excited about this, now I will see if I can capture his enthusiasm.

That sounds great Walt! That is the spirit of the challenge I was hoping for! If you all get an entry in, you might have good odds, as there are not a lot of entries so far.

Looking forward to seeing your entry!!

 

[Odaon]

I ordered my first Fiddleback from USA Made Blades this weekend! It's on it's way to Rick to get a custom sheath and then I get to play with it! As soon as I get it I'm planning on doing the friction fire challenge because I don't have any kids readily available.

 

[McVeyMac]

Thank you Zemapali!



That sounds great Walt! That is the spirit of the challenge I was hoping for! If you all get an entry in, you might have good odds, as there are not a lot of entries so far.

Looking forward to seeing your entry!!

My problem is going to be that most of his weekends are booked between now and when school starts with outings with his mom. Luckily, it stays light pretty long, so we should be able to knock this out after work during the week.

 

[Lobo13]

Thanks Zemapeli ! I just explained the concept and gave suggestions. The prize will go to my son if our entry wins so that hopefully he will keep up with the practice & learning of skills

 

[McVeyMac]

My problem is going to be that most of his weekends are booked between now and when school starts with outings with his mom. Luckily, it stays light pretty long, so we should be able to knock this out after work during the week.

Tod, I wanted to report in that my grandson and I did get started on this challenge, but the mosquitos cut the night short. We were both getting eaten alive. I will try to get out of work early a couple of days to see if we can finish this off before the mosquitos come out in force.

 

[GooberBoober]

Congrats on your 1000st post Hasco!

I'm almost half way there myself, haha.

Awesome idea for a giveaway, that should make an interesting thread for sure. I'll see if I can contribute before the deadline ends, I don't think I've done a bow-drill yet with my scandi Bushboot so it's about time I guess :thumbup:

Tod, I wanted to report in that my grandson and I did get started on this challenge, but the mosquitos cut the night short. We were both getting eaten alive. I will try to get out of work early a couple of days to see if we can finish this off before the mosquitos come out in force.

Those creepy little bugs are good at ruining what could have been a nice night out unfortunately. In my country it's not that hard to stay away from them unless you absolutely have to be in their preferred habitat, but I had some really terrible encounters with them when I was camping in Sweden last year. Luckily the Swedes have come up with a great solution to deal with them. You probably won't be able to get it in your country, but it's sold on ebay as well. Look for Djungelolja if you want to try it yourself. It's an oily substance that smells a bit like tar, and it works ten times beter then any kind of Deet I've tried so far. You'll only need to apply it once every six to 8 hours or so to stay well protected, even when sweating like a madman. I only bought the smallest bottle they make and it's still half full after a year so it lasts as well.

 

[Stropping Young Lad]

McVeyMac, sounds like you have the same problem we have over in Jersey. I'm in the southern swamps on the opposite side of the Delaware River, and I can't even take my dog out without getting a handful of the little monsters on me. Can't wait to move to the western dry country...

This is a fantastic idea, promoting outdoor activities is always good. This isn't an entry, but I will be lurking this thread.

 

[McVeyMac]

GooberBoober, there was a DEET product I used in the boundary waters between Minnesota and Canada that worked really well called Muskol. It was very oily as well and lasted a long time. I was portaging my canoe and the underside was nothing but a thick cloud of mosquitos. Not one bite.

We were working in my back yard, and I live in the woods next to about 2.5K acres of state lands. There are several pockets of standing water in those lands that are not too far from my house. If we get it done when the sun is high, we should be alright.

 

[abbydaddy]

I just wanted to update that I have managed to make a lot of smoke so far, but I have not yet managed to make a fire. But this has been a very fun challenge so far. I think I'm getting close.

 

[hasco]

Tod, I wanted to report in that my grandson and I did get started on this challenge, but the mosquitos cut the night short. We were both getting eaten alive. I will try to get out of work early a couple of days to see if we can finish this off before the mosquitos come out in force.

Great! I can't wait to see some pics! I am glad that mosquitos are one thing I don't have to worry about too much in these parts. My son doesn't complain about them, but he gets pretty big itchy bumps that last for a four or five days afterwards. I feel bad for him so I try to be aware and keep him covered when we are in mosquito country.

I just wanted to update that I have managed to make a lot of smoke so far, but I have not yet managed to make a fire. But this has been a very fun challenge so far. I think I'm getting close.

Cool! Post some pics and you will be entered in the drawing!

 

[hasco]

Having the right wood and a good hand hold can make all the difference in the world. If you collect your wood from the woods, you want to make sure it is not too hard or too soft. You can try and press your thumbnail into the wood. It it doesn't make a mark it might be too hard and if it just crumbles it is too soft. You also want to make sure you are not getting much friction on the top of the spindle. You can put a green plant or a little soap or something to in the hand hold to add lubrication.

 

[GooberBoober]

Well, I gave it a try this afternoon but without success unfortunately.

I started out a with a birch board and spindle, then tried a curly willow spindle with the birch board and eventually I made a board from the curly willow as well. Best results were with the birch spindle and willow board, but even though I got lots of smoke I only got medium to dark brown dust and no coal. I'll see if I can find some dry enough pine later this week because I have made successful bow-drills with pine before, but this was all I had handy at the moment and I figured I'd just give it a shot.

To be continued!

 

[hasco]

Well, I gave it a try this afternoon but without success unfortunately.

I started out a with a birch board and spindle, then tried a curly willow spindle with the birch board and eventually I made a board from the curly willow as well. Best results were with the birch spindle and willow board, but even though I got lots of smoke I only got medium to dark brown dust and no coal. I'll see if I can find some dry enough pine later this week because I have made successful bow-drills with pine before, but this was all I had handy at the moment and I figured I'd just give it a shot.

To be continued!

That counts as an entry!

I have experimented with some really thin spindles and they often bore through the base board before the dust gets hot enough. The spindle on the right looks smaller than I would use for the contact area because of that tendency. I like my spindle to come to a point like that on top for minimal friction on the hand hold, but I usually have less of a point on the bottom. If I were using that spindle on the right, I would chop off about a half inch to get more surface area. I can't remember if I said this before, but I also find it is always easiest the first time you start a new hole. After it gets deep you start getting friction on the side of the spindle which doesn't help. You can always use your knife to make the hole a little larger, but that first go after cutting a notch is always the easiest for me.

Keep it up!!

 

[hasco]

I did the second challenge just for fun with my son and a couple friends who were visiting.

First they found a natural shelter site that would be easy to build on.

Then they cleaned it up, making a comfortable place to be in. After the sticks were cleared, they found a few ridge poles.

Here they are adding some ribs and weavers.

Finally they were ready for some debris to insulate and waterproof it.

Here is their completed shelter including a bark door.

Everyone had a good time and they were ready to spend the night!

 

[GooberBoober]

That counts as an entry!

I have experimented with some really thin spindles and they often bore through the base board before the dust gets hot enough. The spindle on the right looks smaller than I would use for the contact area because of that tendency. I like my spindle to come to a point like that on top for minimal friction on the hand hold, but I usually have less of a point on the bottom. If I were using that spindle on the right, I would chop off about a half inch to get more surface area. I can't remember if I said this before, but I also find it is always easiest the first time you start a new hole. After it gets deep you start getting friction on the side of the spindle which doesn't help. You can always use your knife to make the hole a little larger, but that first go after cutting a notch is always the easiest for me.

Keep it up!!

Dang, if I'd known that would count as an entry I would have made sure there was a Fiddleback included in the pic as well

I guess I'm in then, thanks!

Still not giving up though.

Oh, and the truth is that that spindle with the thin point (the one on the right in my pic) was intended to be used upside down originally. But as has happened to me before it start smoking at the bearing block instead of the fire-board, so I just turned it around, made a smaller matching hole in the fire-board and continued drilling, lol

The birch spindle on the left in the pic also had a more flattened shaped tip when I started out, but this is what it looked like after a few tries.

Great looking shelter by the way, looks like those kids had a good time!

 

[abbydaddy]

I really wanted to post pictures of real success on this challenge, and if I ever actually do manage to make a real fire with a fire bow I will post it here. But in the meantime, just to make sure that I have an entry in, here is what I have managed so far. Mostly a lot of smoke.









Even if it takes me until way after the giveaway, I will post my success when I have it.

Edit: Ugh, I have no idea how to rotate the pictures.

 

[VANCE]

Abbydaddy
I'd say you get bonus points for doing it upside down!

👍😜

 

[GooberBoober]

Haha, he must be from Oregon Australia

At least you had a photographer handy for some action-shots

 

[hasco]

Great entry abbydaddy!! Your form looks good in the picture. I haven't tried upside down but it looks promising

Keep at it! I was taught to work on form first, then go for a coal. Sometimes it just takes trying different local woods or different pieces of the same type. You want to see fine dark dust.

Good luck!