Off Topic The Snark Thread

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MTM and I get chiggers every year and have found that Permethrin-sprayed clothes help a lot. For the chiggers that do get to feed, Chigger-X works wonders in the itching and scratching department!
 
Our go-to method for chigger repelant was to dust our shoes, socks and pants with sulfur just prior to wading into brush and grass. Usually worked well.Key word usually.

So far, the only positive thing I can say about fireants is that they eat chigger eggs and I seldom encounter chiggers any longer here in central Texas.
 
been at the lake since thursday, brought my challenge creekster with me thaat has never been sharpened and is still sharp well i wouldnt shave with it but i may have to try if i dont go home tomorrow
 
Chiggers - been fighting them in my yard for last 10 years, (they're currently 10-0 by the way).

Pre-chigger prevention:
Pre-yard work - powdered sulfer on legs, socks and pant legs. - works
Permethrin spray - works for a while
Permethrin spray or spectracide spray on yard - works for a couple days, then have to repeat

After the little buggers get on ya and do their thing:
Tried many things but Benadryl or Benadryl spray seem to be the most effective at preventing itching


And just for funsies: after a fire ant bite, if you can avoid scratching it or breaking the god awful unsightly and itchy pus sack that forms it will heal faster as the body will eventually absorb the minor infection. Open sore takes longer to heal.

YMMV
 
All this talk of chiggers makes me grateful to reside in the Pacific NW. We have mosquitoes but that is it for the most part, we also have ticks but I have yet to be bothered by them... Knocking on wood as I type. ;)
 
Out at several lakes last week.
21 miles and probably 4000ft elevation gain (6000ft as base camp, 8000 ft at backcountry camp, lots of up-and-down in between) with a 45lb pack.
1st week of July in Tahoe area Northern CA - 80ish degrees, roads still closed, and had to slide down/climb up sheets of ice and snow!

Lots of fire.
Lots of food.
Lots of fun.
Lots of snark!
Only a minor bout of the food poisoning...
More likely to follow. (Details/questions. Not stomach bugs.)
 
1 gal had a Camillus Carnivore-X. She just loves that thing, but was drooling over the midnight tiger G10 scales on my BK16.
You and I know she should get a BK3 with the TKC scales, but she's only 16 and I don't think she has the income to support such a transition all at once.
Any idea if the plastic molded handle could be cut/ground off her Carnivore and Becker scaled fitted in their stead?
Then when that "Titanium-Bonded" 440 POS snaps in half, I could direct her to the proper 1095 Cro-Van, and the scales would just swap over?
They call it full-tang, but it doesn't look like the right shape to support such a thing, sadly.
 
More Carnivore fun.
4 teens hacking, whacking and sawing at a 4" piece of green pine for an hour. They couldn't figure out why nothing was going through it.
I walked over with my Alox Farmer, pulled out the saw, focused on a 1.75" section of the tree (while they were still working on the fat end.) Less than 2 minutes later, I had a nice piece for next year's fire.
"What was that? How'd you do that? How come this saw doesn't cut like that?"
Hopefully I helped sell a couple SAKs that day.
I handed the Farmer to one of the kids (actually, I think he's 18 or 19.) He tried sawing through the 4" part, but his circle around the branch wasn't straight and went through a knot. After 15 minutes he gave up.
So, I cut off the knot, retraced his cut so it lined up all the way around, and in about 10 minutes it was ready to be snapped in half. Still a lot of trouble for the little gained. Not sure what they thought they were going to do with some a wet piece of wood anyway.

Fun stuff when out in the forest with friends, plenty of food, and nothing but time.
 
BK16 was amazing.
Batoning, I did manage to misalign the scales once - but that's because of my liners and non-original hardware. Need to trim the rear screws again.
Anyway, easily tapped back into place with the baton (lightly) and kept going.

I carried the thing in a Ka-Bar Short sheath. Which is an inch longer than necessary for the 4.3" blade.
Nice and light. Strapped to the pack, no problem. But when on the belt, the tip of the sheath kept snagging on my cargo-shorts pocket. And now it just looks tired and beat.

I have a nice Kydex pancake for a 15, a beautiful leather "scout" style for my FPR 16, and tons of tweener nylon sheaths.
Looking for something that rides light and tight like that Ka-Bar sheath; handle easily accessible and knife easy to return to battery; I really appreciate the retention strap for when we're off trail through brush, boulders and loose rocks; but like the single-snap for easy single-hand release, and that I can set it in there unstrapped and it'll stay put while I take a few steps and wrangle with a new piece of firewood or what-have-you. Trying to find something reasonably inexpensive in black (or gray!)

KSF has a few things which look like they'll fit, but no retention strap and the handle is partly covered by the sheath. I think the BR Bravo1 Sheath looks about perfect for my needs, but I don't see it in black.
Sagewood KCR Belt looks nice but way above my current price range.
Patriot has a few nice looking options, but the double snaps make me shy away a bit.
Anybody recommend off-the-shelf options I may want to look at, or where I might want to start looking in the sheath-builder inventory?
 
You should enter @azwelke's sheath giveaway. You might be able to get in on a Kydex sheath for your 16. Or are you set on leather?
 
Pàdruig said:
You should enter @azwelke's sheath giveaway. You might be able to get in on a Kydex sheath for your 16. Or are you set on leather?
Click to expand...

I already won a $20 gift certificate in his previous giveaway. But I really do prefer leather. I suppose a properly-sized taco would be downright compact, though.
 
tjswarbrick said:
I already won a $20 gift certificate in his previous giveaway. But I really do prefer leather. I suppose a properly-sized taco would be downright compact, though.
Click to expand...

Ah, gotcha. I tend to prefer leather too but I do like the kydex for its no nonsense, compact and rugged functionality. Leather requires a bit extra care, which I enjoy, but sometimes I want to rough it without too much worry and the kydex is superb for that. It does help that I can make both for myself though, so I am not usually plagued with the choice of one or the other. Instead, I have options! :D
 
I've thought about making my own, but knowing that it would take 2 attempts to be functional and 4-5 before it turns out as good as I'd like, I think I'll continue to buy from someone else - who actually knows what they're doing!
 
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