Author Archives: Woodsbum

Rawhide Mora Sheath

by Woodsbum

A couples of weeks ago we taught another NBEF Bowhunters Education Class. While other people were teaching, I took a few minutes to whip up a sheath for my friend’s son who was going to a summer camp. The camp was called “Ranger Camp” where they taught many different skills to include quite a few bushcraft techniques. So that the poor kid was not stuck with a plastic Mora classic sheath as well as giving him a chance to be one of the “cool kids,” I took some time to get his neck knife squared away.

The first thing I did was cut off the plastic belt loop off the stock sheath. I then wrapped the sheath in rawhide and sewed it together along the back so the original sheath became an insert/frame/internal structure.

Sewn along the back of the Mora

Unfortunately the rawhide shifted quite a bit and was difficult to keep in place considering my work bench was nothing more than a couple catalogs and a bow case across my lap. I did get a good stitch on it and it dried quite nicely.

I then did an outer wrap that was to become the belt/strap loop and attachment for a firesteel. Since his firesteel was at home and I needed one to make a loop, I went downstairs and picked him up a Light My Fire. This one had an antler handle and was pretty nice looking so it went well with the rawhide sheath design.

Belt loop/strap loop

Here is the loop I did for the Light My Fire. I love how rawhide forms and hardens into shape. The way this loop formed perfectly to the firesteel made me quite happy.

Firesteel loop

All said and done, Tristan was envied by the other kids and some of the instructors for having a nice sheath for his Mora. He is a good kid that does a whole lot for his brother and parents so I really hope he gets lots of good use and many years of enjoyment out of this sheath. He definitely deserves to have good things happen for him.

AND. In case you were wondering, he did have a great time at his “Ranger Camp.” They taught him firemaking, archery, shelters, how to cook over flame, and all sorts off fun skills that anyone spending time in the woods should know. You can definitely see that this time in the woods learning bushcraft skills really fired him up to learn and try more. It really brings big smiles to my face when I see that spark in his eye.

Final Product

Grain Mill

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by Woodsbum

Over the last several years I have been on a mission to lower my dependency on stores and manufactured products. Of course there is little to no way to get completely independent, but I have been making as many strides as I can reasonably make toward that end goal. Having a way to mill grains and make flour for cooking is one such leap I had yet to make, until recently.

The criteria for my milling system was fairly straight forward. I wanted something that was NOT electric, but I could attach a motor to it later on if I so desired. Other than that I just wanted it to be sturdy and actually work as advertised.

Since our family is not a huge bread consumer, this device would not be expected to produce pounds of flour every week. I figured that a few cups at a time was more than sufficient. Even my big bread recipes only call for a max of 6 cups. My son can grind away for a few minutes to get us that amount.

Now that I knew what I wanted (usable, durable, inexpensive, and manual) I went to work on Amazon in search of something that would suffice. There in lies the rub…… I had NO clue what I was buying really. There are hundreds of devices out there in a multitude of configurations and they all claim to be the best thing since mortar and pestle. Getting some rocks and grinding didn’t sound like fun so I just read some reviews, bought something, and crossed my fingers.

Here is what I got:

Grain Mill

It had great reviews and I had a coupon to get a solid discount, so I figured I couldn’t get too badly hurt if it turned out to be a bust. Interestingly enough, it seems to work pretty good. We have only used it 5-6 times, but it works as advertised and I get a good arm workout in the process. The wheat berries we picked up are some sort of hippie stock, GMO deprived, organically sealed and hermaphrodite free or some such crap. The flour tastes okay so I guess I picked well.

Wheat Berries

We have not figured out how many berries it takes to get a cup of flour, but I can tell you that it seems to be a lot. Several refills of the hopper are required to get enough flour for a pizza crust. That is about as scientific as I can get on it, but I have discovered a few things that I would like to pass along to everyone.

Cleaning this thing is not for the faint of heart. Holy sheep shears…….
The table clamp scratches the crap out of your table so only use it when you wife is gone and you can use thick socks to protect the table. Don’t tell my wife.
The flour from this allows dough to raise more than store bought flour. The taste seems to be the same, though. For all the work I wanted it to taste like fluffy gold and it doesn’t.

For those that have considered jumping into this purchase for themselves, I would recommend what I got. It works and hasn’t killed me yet. Nothing fancy, just functional. This being said, I would have to say that this isn’t just a prepper tool. Anyone that likes fresh cooking components would be happy with this setup in all honesty. Just the fact that I can store the berries in small, vacuum sealed packages and just make the flour as needed keeps all my ingredients fresh. If nothing else it makes me feel like I am doing something “special” for my family when I bust this guy out. That and it is kinda nostalgicly amusing.

Have fun with the arm workout!!!!

Fish Trap

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by Woodsbum

This last week’s episode of Alone showed Alan making a fish trap. I have seen various versions of fish traps before, most being very similar to what he made. I did run across a very simple and effective trap made with only sticks driven into the ground with a “V” shaped opening like the fish trap openings that Alan made. This type of trap seems that it would be quite effective for a multitude of different species as well as being quite easy to build. Easy build is VERY important because I hate expending calories when I don’t need to. Winter is coming, you know.

Here is the video. Although it is a bit shaky with regard to sound you should be able to get a good idea of what is going on. Enjoy!!

Bitterroot

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by Woodsbum

In continuing my ongoing foraging and edible plant series, I have picked the bitterroot as the next installment.

Bitterroot is an edible plant when cooked. It does, obvious through reading the name, have a bitter taste although it is best when gathered just before the flower blooms.

To prepare it, remove the dark outer layer and the orange-red core of the root. You can either dry them for later consumption or you can cook it immediately. If you dry it and then reconstitute it, the root will grow to about 5 times the previous size. It also will have a jelly like consistency and a bitter taste.

You will find bitterroot in dry, open grassy areas in the foothills or mountain regions.

This plant is also the state flower of Montana and has shares a name with the Bitterroot Mountains there.

Weekend Excitement

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by Woodsbum

This last weekend I had a bit of excitement. We had just closed down the bar and were waiting for the streets to clear out a bit before we walked to our vehicles to head home. As we sat there talking there were multiple gunshots fired right across the street in a bank parking lot. We then watched all the drunks running away from the gunfire in their clubbing gear and high heels. Various cars and trucks went speeding away and one large service truck ended up rear ending a parked car as all the occupants were ducking and looking around for the gunman.

When we called 911, the operator argued with us that the vehicle accident was a “hit and run” and then argued that the gunfire was actually just “fireworks.” Several minutes of trying to set them straight took place and they finally promised to send out a patrolman.

The patrolman finally arrived numerous minutes later (10-15) and slowly drive past the scene, no lights and more focused on the computer screen than paying attention to the guys in the wrecked vehicles waiving their arms and yelling at him to stop. He then drove around for several minutes and then parked his car in the road at the intersection, again without lights or anything. He just parked their and started to look around on the ground.

Since he appeared to be looking for cartridge casings, someone from the truck that hit the car tried to direct the police officer to the spot where the shots came from. The cop ignored him and just kept wandering around all the cross streets. After the second cop showed up and they were still looking in the wrong area, ignoring those that witnessed the shooting, I finally got fed up and left before I got involved out of irritation.

About 45 minutes after I left I got a text from someone I was with when the shots were fired that confirmed 10 .40 cal casings were recovered. It appears that the cops finally figured out how to follow the pointing fingers to the location that the shots were fired.

The real insult in this whole thing is as follows: Above and beyond having to argue with the 911 operator that the gunshots were fireworks and the accident was a hit and run, the news has yet to report it. There is nothing on any local news site. If a shooting takes place downtown and in the parking lot of a closed bank, don’t you think that might be news worthy?

It just blows my mind that this sort of crap takes place and no one in “authority” really gives a crap. I guess I have a reason to wear my body armor next weekend, don’t I?