Friday 29 January 2010

Tip of the Day - 5

I strongly recommend that you do not try to strop a Scandi grind knife with a belt - unless the belt is laid flat on a hard surface.

In many bushcraft books it is suggested that you can use a belt to strop a knife by attaching the belt to a tree, for example, and then holding the belt under tension. This does work to an extent and is perfect for a convex grind knife NOT a scandi. This is because you can't get enough tension in the belt to stop it from rolling round the edge of the knife as you strop. So with a scandi this would eventually turn it into a convex (in an extreme case) - in practice it means that you will be blunting the edge a little by this method.

That's why I say that a belt is ok on a flat surface - that way you do not get the leather curving round the edge in the same way as you would if it was under tension.

Give it a go and see if you get a better edge doing it this way!

Friday 22 January 2010

Tip of the Day - 4

If you own a pair of waterproof trousers that don't have zips on the legs and you always find that you have to take your boots off to get them on without covering the legs in mud - then try this tip.

Put plastic bags over your boots and then put on the trousers! This way you don't get mud on the inside of the trousers and the plastic bags also make the boots slide in nicely.

Monday 18 January 2010

Tip of the Day - 3

Remember to look up occasionally when out tracking - it's always embarrassing to walk straight past someone or something when engrossed!

Thursday 14 January 2010

Tip of the Day - 2

Don't start construction work just before the winter! You have been warned.

Wednesday 13 January 2010

Tip of the Day - 1

My very first tip of the day is:

Don't rely on my Tip of the Day to be daily!