Bushcraft Biker

Across the Sea to Skye

2010-08-25T01:24:00.000-07:00

Looking for adventure, myself and a friend decided to head up to Skye, choosing the excellent campsite in Dunvegan in the far west of Skye as a our destination. The campsite is surrounded by magnificent mountains and sits right on the waters edge giving a very dramatic backdrop for our overnight stay. The roads in Skye as you can see by the photographs are pretty stunning and full of wildlife of the larger variety. Feeling a little uncertain if it was the right way to approach these things, a little cattle herding was required to clear the road but you do find yourself thinking "what if that big beast turns round and starts chasing me"!

It was a great opportunity for the excellent Tentipi, this one my friends Varrie 5 which has developed a tendency to leak in heavy rain (going to be sorted of course by the supplier), but luckily the weather stayed dry for us despite the forecasts. The campsite provide a very simple and elegant solution to the problem of stoves or fires leaving charred grass behind, something I always try to avoid. Rather than campers making their own makeshift platform from beach pebbles, the site provides a steel plate bolted to two wooden blocks, keeping the fire off the ground and allowing you to position it wherever you desire. As you can see, the excellent Honey Stove sits well on this fire stand and as usual performed admirably. One thing I will need to remember for next time is to bring some gloves for assembling and dismantling the stove as it can be quite sooty which is fine if you're close to some water and soap but not so good if in the middle of nowhere. I've also been moving away from Light My Fire Maya Dust as the resin saturated sawdust does light with the firesteel but it takes a good few attempts. I much prefer "Hamaro Lighting Paper", a Sweedish product which can be found at http://www.lightingpaper.com and is basically a light-able, world friendly paper pulp that works well in the cold and wet. It's very cheap, takes a spark first time found at local army surplus stores and one packet should last a year or more.

I also find myself, despite having many similar alternatives, leaning towards the Spyderco Bushcrafter. This I believe is because its larger, wider handle shape fits my hand perfectly and it keeps a very "shaving sharp" edge. The blade I notice does have a very fine tendency to chip while battening, but that can be expected I suppose with all knives of this kind under heavy use and nothing a session on the whetstones can't remedy. However, after a good several months deliberation, I've now picked up a Rat Cutlery/ESEE RC-3 compact knife from www.eseeknives.co.uk and first impressions are that it will make an excellent campcraft tool. I'll be reviewing the RC-3 next month.

Overall then a great trip and another opportunity to try out some new bushcraft kit and enjoy the stunning Scottish scenery.

Buffalo Bushcrafter

2010-06-17T06:02:00.000-07:00

I've been a quiet admirer of knife maker Stuart Mitchell's work for quite a while now and when one of his blades came up for sale I couldn't resist the handling opportunity! Stuart's knives are regarded as some of the best in the industry, being highly sought after and something I'd been looking at buying for a while.

This blade is 4mm 01 steel and with a slightly different "vibro" finish. Slightly hollow bevels with a mirror polished convex edge, a little different, well completely to the flat Scandi type grind I'm used to.

Buffalo is also another material I've been looking to use for a while and I sourced a few bits of extremely large buffalo from Highland Horn. At 15mm thick x 150mm long, I just wonder how big the buffalo was this set came from! Horn can be very tough stuff to work with but and I was quite surprised how transparent the buffalo can be in sunlight and the inherit natural flaws are just beautiful, well worth the effort.

With red liners and a coke bottle type profile as usual, the handle is finished to 600 grit then buffed up to a polish. Fellow British Blades member Marcus was very kind to supply me some of his excellent home machined nickel silver "corby" bolts and lanyard tube which were perfectly made I have to say.

Small Neck Knife in Camel Bone

2010-04-21T09:42:00.000-07:00

For a good few months, I've been wanting to use bone or antler for a while on a project so decided to ask knife maker Mark (Hillbill) at British Blades for one of his pocket/neck knife blades to handle. Below you can see how the project started after I roughly cut the scales to fit, glued liners and drilled the holes for the pins.

The knife for this project is made from 01 steel, is 3mm thick, 5 inches overall length with a 2 inch scandi ground blade. It's handled in camel bone from Highland Horn with red liners and a lovely set of brass mosaics from Rob J Evs.

I really enjoyed putting this blade together with this jigged/dyed camel bone - it was a big learning experience and good practice when for when I finally get my hands on some of my dream knife material, Sambar Stag which this is supposed to be an alternative to.

The sheath was one I made a few weeks ago for another knife, actually a Driftwoodwalker Pocket Pal but fits this one perfectly luckily enough! The sheath has a firesteel holder and a few days after taking a photo of this knife I made a firesteel from the camel bone to match.

Spyderco Bushcraft Knife Sheath

2010-03-25T12:32:00.000-07:00

Spyderco launched a bushcraft knife earlier this year and I was lucky enough to pick one up recently. It's a beautiful design with spalted maple handles and made in 01 steel. It feels great in the hand and looks trult stunning, not to mention being razor sharp. One thing that I did want to change was the sheath, the original being a little wide for my camping trips and lacking a firesteel holder. So I set about making my own traditional bushcraft style sheath.

The process started with a template that I have used on other bushcraft knife sheath projects and that I modify to suit by eye. I then cut out the leather and two welts to provide the correct width for the knife handle (thick in this case) and to allow the firesteel loop to be added in. I use a selection of implements that are cheap but made for jobs such as stitch grooving, stitch marking and edge finishing. These small tools make the job of making a sheath much easier and were sourced from a company called Le Prevo.

Once the sheath leather is cut, the firesteel loop is wet-formed and the holes drilled with a 1mm bit on a press drill, the process of stiching and gluing with Impact adhesive begins. I prefer a snug wet-formed design, with a lanyard hole and belt dangler that allows you to sit down without the knife handle digging into your side.

I finished the sheath with Fiebings Dark Brown Leather Dye and a coat of carnuba wax. The knife fits in a treat as does the Light My Fire firesteel and can be turned upside down without fear of either falling out to the ground.

I'm looking forward to using this knife on my next camping trip.

The first bike camping trip of 2010

2010-03-10T09:31:00.000-08:00

As the weather has been a little colder than usual, planned attempts to venture out on the bike have been thwarted at the last moment by 50 year record snow and cold temperature events. As you know motorcycles and ice don't generally mix (steel-spiked tyre snow speedway bikes aside) so even the mighty BMW GS has to make way to four wheel drive occasionally. This past weekend and with Spring on the horizon the clear roads made a camping trip possible so it was back to our favourite Scottish camp site.

The rourte on the bikes took us up to Stirling, Killen and over the snow covered hills to Aberfeldy. From then on it was back down the road to Crieff and a nice days/evenings camping with a friend in the Tentipi. As you can see from the image, the snow was piled high at the side of the road by snow plows and at one stage was literally higher than both of us riders on our motorcycles.

During the trip I had a good chance to try out collecting some firewood with my new aptly named Spyderco Hossom Forrester. With it's green micarta handles and a razor sharp 10" blade, the Spyderco made a good alternative to the axe for gathering and chopping smaller pieces of fallen branches making an ideal camping companion. It would go through an inch thick piece of wood in one chop or something much larger if required.

It was great to be out on the bikes and we even stumbled upon an excellent horn craftsman's store on the road to Aberfeldy from Killin. I was very tempted to strap an Antler on the back of the bike and the craftsmanship of some of the goods in his shop were outstanding. I suspect that's why Mr Cameron Thomson has been there so long.

Bushcraft knife in Lacewood - Project No 4

2010-02-18T07:01:00.000-08:00

Late last year I bought a very well made blade from maker HillBill as it was a little different from the norm and there was just something about it I liked. After having a good think about what I wanted to handle it in, I chose Lacewood and managed to source some lovely mosaic pins around the same time.

The blade is 01 steel, 3mm with a 4 1/2 inch handle and around 3 inch blade. It is scandi grind with a very micro bevel. It's shaving sharp as my arm can testify.

I decided with the lacewood to go with black liners so as not to detract from the beautiful wood. I also decided to go for a more rounded handle this time, still loosely coke-bottle shaped but a bt more chunky to give a good grip. I also remembered to line up the mosaic pins this time. I went with a smaller lanyard hole with brass tube than I have before due to it's closeness to the edge of the blade and as I like a lanyard hole. As lacewood isn't the most stable of woods for a knife handle I've been told, I soaked the handle in linseed oil overnight which has darkened the wood but is a bit more practical as this will be another user. It's finished to 600 grit then gone over with fine steel wool.

For the sheath I decided to try something a bit different this time. It's British Tan Fiebings dye, with a kind of strip application which I like. I also didn't wet form the sheath this time for a change and used a white waxed lined thread just to be different. I'm not sure of the results but it's growing on me and most importantly holds the knife securely.

Next time I'm going to try some camel bone or stag for a handle and maybe a smaller blade or a folder....

Honey Stove at the Beach

2010-02-14T03:04:00.000-08:00

After searching for a small stove for those times I don't want to lug the Tentipi firebox or Jetboil around I tumbled upon the Honey Stove from Backpacking Light. It arrived safely packaged and with a free bag of Skittles which put a smile on my face when I opened up the parcel. It's basically a few pieces of stamped metal which slot together to provide a simple but effective stove, big enough for a small pan or crusader type cup. All this makes for a very stable platform for making small meals and it's size allows you to use various small twigs or other bits of wood you find lying around.

So, for a first trial we headed to a beautiful, wild beach in East Lothian and set up the stove in a sheltered spot on the rocks on the beach. From the charring on the sheltered side of the rock it appears we were not the first to choose this spot and from the dark marks on the rocks I guess this place has been used for several hundred years to provide a great spot to cook. The amount of limpets and mussel shells make me suspect this has been a good spot for wild food for many years. However, I brought some contents of an army rashion pack I had left over from my last camping trip.

To get the fire going, I used a bit of cotton wool impregnated with a Vaseline type substance with a Light my Fire firesteel and brought a few pieces of dried kindling. Three pieces of kindling were enough to boil almost a litre of water in around 10 minutes which was impressive. Depending on what fuel you are using (you can also use a meth's burner from a trangia), you may wish to have a lid to cover your crusader cup as with any fire outdoors in the wind, ash can find it's way into your brew! The stove burns very efficiently and the various combination you can make it into provide a way of cooking small meals or bigger courses depending on your needs.

Overall I rate this Honey Stove highly and suggest at around £35 it's a pretty good bit of kit which should last many years.

Winter Camping Trip in the Tipi at Comrie Croft

2010-01-11T05:51:00.000-08:00

A couple of mates and myself had planned a January camping trip at Comrie Croft for a while and we weren't going to let the snow put us off. We had the Nordic Tentipi, firebox and a good few other bits of kit to keep us warm. Firelighting was a bit trickier in the colder temps as was finding tinder but birch bark helped out a great deal as well as cotton wool for a back up with the firesteels.

Waterproof trousers were a must for snow clearing at first, but an improvised elastic band round the bottom of the combats saves your trousers getting wet in the snow. Thermals are a must underneath.

I got a chance to try out the new Mick Spain bushcraft knife I handled last week and enjoyed trying to identify all the wildlife tracks in the snow!

Food was of the army ration and sausages type, the more carbs the better. Lot's of water was drunk (partly as the beer was just too cold) as dehydration this the blood in colder weather but a little Macallan 10 year fine oak whisky took the edge off the chill.

The trip was originally planned to be a biking adventure but temperatures in the minus degrees and lack of grit on the roads meant we had to go by 4 wheels. So much for Bushcraft Biker but I'm always one to agree with people who use the best tool for the job and the excellent Land Rover Discovery 3 was just the ticket. It certainly is practical but doesn't have any of the character of a motorcycle for a camping trip and essentially that fun part of the journey was lost but needs must.

I highly recommend camping in this weather but make sure as I'm sure you would to take the right gear and almost too many clothes. I ended up sleeping in two pairs of thermals, socks and two micro-fleeces.

I've another trip planned for late January and can't wait.

I've fallen in love with Anjan - Bushcraft Knife Project 3

2010-01-03T04:19:00.000-08:00

Although this is my third bushcraft knife project, it was the first blade I acquired and I just couldn't decide what to handle it in. After a suggestion from Jean at Knife Scales I decided to go with the hardwood Anjan (Indian I believe) and have to say it's a beautiful, if tough wood to work with!

The blade is 3mm thick o1 steel from Mick Spain, 220mm long approximately. It's razor sharp to say the least and my left arm was stubbly for a number of weeks after I decided to see how sharp it was! I decided to use corby bolts again on this one and an 8mm brass lanyard tube supplied kindly by a fellow member.

The wood as I mentioned is Anjan and I used black liners on this one so as not to detract from the wood. Jean tells me the silver spots will turn to black with age so I'm looking forward to that. I finished the blade in 200 grit to remove a few scratches but I'm sure there will be many more as this is destined to be a well used tool and I can't wait to try it out next week while camping.

I made the handle slightly coke-bottle shaped once again and as I did it by hand (need to get a bench sander) took quite a few hours.

Overall a very positive experience with this particular knife.

Fenix TK11 & Leather Sheath

2009-12-26T07:17:00.000-08:00

Having heard a few good things about Fenix torches, when one became available secondhand at a reasonable price I jumped at the chance.

It came with a nice nylon carry case but as I've been making a few sheaths out of leather recently I decided to set about making my first leather torch sheath!

The Fenix torch isn't the same diameter all down the tube or end cap so that posed a bit of a tricky problem in making a suitable holder. I wanted a sheath I could wear as necessary on my belt but with a quick release option as when you sit down while outdoors, quite often these things can dig into your leg or hip, something I wanted to engineer a simple solution around. The dangler loop with suitable rivet solved the quick release problem.

I decided to use the same 3.5mm veg tanned leather I've been using for my belt sheaths and dark brown dye. Also I thought a belt dangler loop would be useful so it didn't dig in and something that could easily be taken off meant a suitable rivet and hole. I wet formed the leather and it seems to hold the torch quite well, allowing it to be held securely and operated without taking out of the sheath if required. It's finished with carnuba wax, buffed to a nice sheen.

It's my first attempt at a torch sheath so a bit of a learning curve. Once I get a chance to use the torch while camping, I'll post back here with a brief review.

Hand Made Leather Belt

2009-12-22T01:33:00.000-08:00

For some time I've been looking for a decent leather belt, not just for outdoors stuff but for every day use. Most belts available from your local store these days seem to be made of plastic or reconstituted leather fibre and just don't seem to last. I prefer a leather belt for strength and the ability to strop a knife when out and about if required.

So after some thought I ordered a few parts from leather supplier Le Prevo, a long piece of pre-cut vegetable tanned leather, a 1 1/2 inch buckle and a few Chicago brass screw rivets. I'd recently dyed a sheath with British Tan Fiebings leather dye and the results were impressive so this would be the colour I'd go for. The length was decided with some expansion/contraction ability built in if you know what I mean and I got to work forming the belt keep. It was a bit of trial and error but using a hole punch made life easier and I was surprised how well it turned out. It's finished to a buff sheen with carnuba wax, beeswax and linseed oil.

Second bushcraft knife - 01 Carbon Steel with Olivewood

2009-12-10T04:26:00.000-08:00

fter a weekend camping in the woods and seeing my first bushcraft knife (Pau Rosa 4mm Bearing Steel) in action, a friend asked me to make him up and bushcraft knife. I suggested he go for a 3mm blade similar to one I had from bladesmith Mick Spain in 01 carbon steel as it would be the right combination of blade strength and weight for what he wanted to use it for. I contacted Mick who was kind enough to let me have one of his bushcraft blades and went about sourcing a suitable piece of olivewood for the project.

Specs for this bushcraft knife:

Blade: Mick Spain, 3mm O1 Steel, 58/59HRC, 25 degree bevels, blade length 105mm, tang length 115mm, 200 grit finish.

Handle material - Olivewood with red fibre liners.

Pins - Corby bolts and lanyard tube in brass.

Sheath - 3.5mm leather, dark brown without firesteel holder this time.

The olivewood, I considered using black liners initially but the bright red looked so good together with the light wood I pressed on with that combination. Olivewood can be a hazard to work with as the dust is very fine so a mask and safety glasses must be worn when working with it. However I had misplaced my safety glasses so a pair of retro Ray Bans were at hand to help keep the dust out of my eyes, albeit providing a very dark working environment!

As you can see from the profile images, the blade is heavily figured in a traditional "coke bottle" style. It fits the hand very well and with the olivewood really turned out better than expected. The corby bolts proved less of an issue than I was expecting and do a good job of holding the handle slabs on to the blade while the resin sets making a nice flush finish. The olivewood is finished to 600 grit and with natural Danish Oil then Renaissance Wax.

For the sheath, I used the same 3.5mm vegetable tanned leather I have before, wet-formed, stitched with brown linen thread and with the addition of a lanyard hole at the bottom of the sheath. The sheath is dyed dark brown and finished with carnuba wax.

Overall I'm happy with this knife and am looking forward to the next project which is another Mick Spain blade I have awaiting a handle.

Bushcraft Knife in Pau Rosa & Bearing Steel

2009-12-06T05:09:00.000-08:00

When I was a young teenager I was given my first knife by my father, a Boys Brigade folder he had when he was himself a young lad. I collected a few knives over the years, purely as tools and along the lines of a Weatherman Wave and the odd penknife. Recently the need for a proper bushcraft tool for use while camping became evident, with fire making a more frequent experience and a decent tool was required. I stumbled upon the excellent British Blades forum and their help and advice was second to none, so my journey began to make my first bushcraft knife.

The first step was to obtain a suitable blade that I could handle and Paul "Frenchy at Custom Knives and Sticks came highly recommended to me as a man who eats, sleeps and breathes knives. He had available a blade he calls the Talisman and offered me one in 52100 bearing steel. Now this blade is a bit of a beast and the specs are:

Material - 52100 bearing steel

Overall length - 228mm

Blade length - 115mm

Handle length - 112mm

Blade thickness - 4.2mm

Widest part (at start of cutting edge) - 32mm

Widest part (at pommel end) - 32mm

Type of Grind - Scandi

Depth of grind - 9mm

For the handle I decided to go with an African hardwood, Pau Rosa, meaning "red wood" in Portuguese from Jean at Knife Scales. With mosaic pins and a newly acquired B&Q pillar drill I undertook my first bushcraft knife project. The Pau Rosa was tough but beautiful to work with and the dark red liners worked a treat with the overall look I was going for - hardwearing, beautiful but functional. Now I'm very much a beginner at this so the shape was something that I studied online a great deal and went with a traditional coke bottle style.

For the sheath I decided to use 3.5mm vegetable tanned leather which seems to be the norm and made a simple sheath, similar to the Ray Mears Woodlore type design with a firesteel holder for the fire lighting tool I would also fashion from the wood. It wetformed to hold the knife securely and is dyed dark brown with leather dye to match the wood to some extent. Finished in carnuba wax.

So far I've had the opportunity to spilt wood with the knife, use it for firesteel striking, make pot stands and prepare food with it. It performs well and the bearing steel, although tougher to sharpen, holds an edge well.

Overall, it's a bit of a beast and I quite like that as it seems almost indestructible.

Tentipi Safir 5cp Tent Review

2009-12-06T03:14:00.000-08:00

After my budget Tresspass 2 person tent took on the new role of paddling pool on a somewhat wet and blustery night in Applecross earlier this year, I was forced to take shelter in a friends Tentipi. This lack of durability of my traditional tent in moderate Scottish weather made me look towards a different form of tent for my overnight outdoor accommodations.

Setting up camp. It takes 20 minutes when practiced.

As most of my camping and outdoor trips are undertaken by motorcycle, my R1200GS 2008 beast of a machine, iut would need to fulfill basic bike camping needs....

1. Be relatively compact, lightweight and be able to fit across the rear seat and panniers of my BMW.
2. Be able to sleep two or three comfortably
3. Be very durable and watertight
4. Be easy to put up and take down, particularly in bad weather

So, I popped down to my local Tentipi supplier Nordic Outdoors and spoke with David and Casper, both very helpful and full of great advice on these unusual tents. The Safir 5 weighs, with groundsheet approximately 10kg, so although a little more than my second choice, a Hilleberg Nallo GT tent, the space it provides inside is exceptional. Having the ability to stand up to put on motorcycle boots and get changed into your bike gear greatly transforms the experience from one of wriggling around on the ground to one of comfort. The tent is made from a cotton/polyester fabric, not unlike the Bell tents of old and is extremely well made. The fabric breathes and there is no real need for the optional inner tent, although a groundsheet (at additional cost) is something I wouldn't be without. That groundsheet comes in two options - both having zips that allow the ground to be made accessible for an open fire which we shall discuss a little further on. The only real difference between the groundsheets is weight, significant purchase cost and the ability to make an opening at the door or not. The latter being useful but not worth a hundred quid more in my view.

Camp set up at Comrie Croft.

One aspect of having stayed in a Tentipi was the experience of an open fire within the tent itself, having a chimney flap and ability to take a freestanding wood buning stove if required. This transforms wet and windy or even cold days to an enjoyable experience. The marketing blurb says "togetherness" with relation to sitting round an open fire but although slightly cheesy in concept, actually is pretty accurate. For the best part of a grand, you expect quality and I'm happy to say this tent oozes that particular asset. The difference between a traditional tent while motorcycle camping and the Tentipi is vast - the latter is like having a small house on the back of your bike, with a lot of comfort and the ability to practice all your firelighting bushcraft techniques upon arrival at your destination.

I'll be continuing to post feedback on how the tent performs over the next few years so watch this space for updates....

The Tentipi on the back of the GS in a waterproof stuff sack.

Altogether, the Tentipi Safir is highly recommended for motorcycle camping trips, particularly in the varied Scottish climate.

Maxpedition Versi Jumbo

2009-12-05T09:53:00.000-08:00

I recently bought the Maxpedition Jumbo Versipack (new model) in khaki after looking at their smaller packs and competitors. I use it as my EDC and it goes in the back of my motorcycle pannier for camping trips.

It's best features are the build quality, various pockets, all well thought out and "Nagalene" drink bottle holder which can be tucked away when not in use. With a couple of foam pads in the bottom it makes a great camera bag for a two lens SLR set up, flash or second lens going in the water bottle compartment. I chose khaki as it blended in well to most kit and black would have got lost on my Tentipi floor while also looking too "tactical" for me. The "concealed item" area is excellent for things such as passports and documents you want to keep close.

It's a good size if you don't want to carry a backpack and I highly recommend it for day to day use!

Welcome to the Bushcraft Biker blog

2009-12-05T03:14:00.000-08:00

A warm welcome to the Bushcraft Biker blog. I've always been interested and active in the outdoors from an early age, living next to acres of farmland and woods growing up and wanted to combine my love of all things bushcraft with my other passion, motorcycling.

After a few years of riding all manner of bikes from the latest Japanese sportsbikes to a 1976 Honda CB750, I've finally taken the plunge and bought a sensible bike, the 2008 BMW R1200GS, non adventure model earlier this year which will be the perfect companion for trips to the wilderness. Many of my trips will be with the motorcycle group I help run, Central Scotland Bikers, a great group of guys and gals from all over this fine country.

Adventure is in my soul as I've traveled and backpacked quite a bit around the world. From trekking, hitching and taking a 4x4 through several Central American countries, hitching across Malaysia. I even had a spell working as a Divemaster and Scuba Instructor on the Great Barrier Reef and on Santa Catalina Island off the California coast.

The Bushcraft Biker blog will cover a wide range of topics - motorcycling camping being the main one, bushcraft kit, bushcraft skills, outdoor photography as well as bushcraft knife making. Anything and all things practical and outdoors.

So, sit back and hopefully enjoy the articles with a nice single malt or freshly brewed coffee, whatever your desire...