And so it begins...

[fergsuk]

I managed to coerce the missis into letting me get a couple of things to get my kit started. Been way too long in coming. Here's to a lifetime of educational and motivational time spent in the wild


Prior to today, i didnt have a single thing in my "kit". Now i have my firesteel, a basic hatchet and my very own Mora . Will be doing a lot of reading and video watching on how to edge my axe properly prior to use.
I think i'm some paracord, a decent water bottle and some tarp away from being able to call it a kit but im off the ground at least. I'm overly excited heh

Very first Mora. While it is perhaps the cheapest one they do, i'm unable to throw money at the top bits of kit. Hopefully the bare essentials will help me grasp an understanding and respect for the skills needed. Plus at this price, they wont really break the bank if i bugger up the edge with my newbie sausage fingers.

 

[JonathanD]

You can't get a better knife to start and continue with, than ye olde Mora.

 

[resnikov]

As JD said you cannot go wrong with a Mora.
Did you get a first aid kit to go along with the sharps? They should go hand in hand because accidents happen.

 

[fergsuk]

I didnt buy one as i was confident in being able to scrape a basic one together with the things we already have in the house.

 

[Toddy]

Mora's are recommended by so many of us because they're good
Firesteels are fun, and very useful, and an axe, any axe, that you actually practise with is a good thing too.

Most folks now have no use for these tools in their daily lives, but somehow they're hardwired into humanity. If we don't pick up the skills by watching and using as we grow up then the only way to do a thorough job is to practice.

If you have no easy access to timber or woodland then even buying one of the bags of sticks from the garage forecourt gives you stuff to play around with. If you have no outside space to light a bbq to burn your feather sticks and such like, then make the curls fine and put them in a bowl for the missus to enjoy the wood scent and as they dry out a few drops of essential oil and there's a really nice pot pourri.
Bit 'tame' for a lot of bushcrafters, but the craft bit is important; it takes thought and hand eye coordination skills.
There's also a really good book on carving twigs that also gets you practice with your tools.......and there are always spoons and stirrers and spatulas and kuksas when you're looking for inspiration

Those rubber guards on axe edges are safe, but before long you'll maybe think about making a leather one, and there's another set of skills to be practiced and developed too.

Firelighting materials are a lifetime's study in themselves if you choose......and finding them is a great way to go for a walkabout fomes, piptoporusm, king Alfred's cakes, reedmace.

It's like Topsy this interest; it just keeps growing

atb,
Toddy

 

[fergsuk]

Making feather sticks is something i totally forgot about. There's a piece of land at the bottom of my street that i plan to use to hone my skills. I really want to practice shelter building and making fires as the first skills i learn. They're also really easy to keep the daughter interested with as well. Anything else is gunna be bonus me time when i'm alone.

Thanks for the ideas Toddy, much appreciated.

 

[Bartooon]

Well done fergsuk and welcome to the wonderful world of bushcraft! It's refreshing to see someone who is happy buying basic but good gear to learn the ropes rather than thinking they have to dive straight in to the top-end, expensive kit as soon as they start.

However, be warned my friend, you will soon find yourself seduced by the Dark Side and before you know it you will be drooling over postings showing beautiful handmade knives, sheaths, belts etc. Resistance is futile!

 

[fergsuk]

Resistance might be futile but limited funds and tighter purse strings are all the deterrent i need heh.

As long as what i have works for me, doesnt hamper my ability or pose a health and safety risk, i'm happy.

Spent a little time earlier trying to get an edge on my axe. I do have a very very poor sharpening stone though and i seem to have sharpened the bottom of the blade on a lesser angle than the top but i'll figure it out eventually. More video watching i think

 

[petrochemicals]

Spent a little time earlier trying to get an edge on my axe. I do have a very very poor sharpening stone though and i seem to have sharpened the bottom of the blade on a lesser angle than the top but i'll figure it out eventually. More video watching i think

file your hatchet,(probably heresy)rough cut to remove the majority of the material, and then a fine file, rat tail or saw blade tooth file for a polish along with the stone. Works wonders when you've put an enormous dent in the edge.
Remember files work on the push and you'll damage them if you pull them. A good file will do it in no time, just don't make the metal hot.

 

[fergsuk]

thanks for the advice. i dont have any files or the funds to purchase any, so will have to stick to my crappy stones for now. the blade is sharp, to a degree anyway. i just feel it could be better, as well as taking out the unequal angle on the edge.

 

[ozzy1977]

Great kit to get you started.

 

[fergsuk]

i think it's pretty adequate for the level i'm at, being a total beginner who's never lit a fire without liquid fuel or paper. never made a lean to or strung up a tarp. there are still plenty of thing's i'd like to add to it but those will take time. unless of course people have anything laying around they dont need

i actually cant wait to get out and start learning. even if i fail completely for the first few times. it's all information to take away and use to improve

 

[Quixoticgeek]

I would say the only thing missing from your list is a sharpening stone. A blunt knife is more dangerous than a sharp one. Add one to the list, along with the first aid kit people have already suggested.

J

 

[Johnnyboy1971]

Fergsuk, where in Leeds are you?
If your local to me I might be able to sort you some bits out from my spares bag.

 

[Big Stu 12]

Nice start for kit, as others have said make sure you have a nice first aid kit, remember its just as important to learn ho to use the Axe safely as a well as how to sharpen it.

Have fun bud

 

[fergsuk]

Yeah, it was suggested that i spend time to build a relationship with my axe, use it well and often and it will look after me. I think i've got a reasonable edge on it now. It cuts paper, well, just about anyway. It kind of brute forces through it but definitely cuts rather than rips. It's not a bad start.

Johnnyboy1971, i'm just off York Road near Asda Killingbeck, Leeds 9. Someone has to live here hehe. Thats a very kind offer mate, so thank's in advance if you manage to find anything.

Quixoticgeek, i have a sharpening set but it's a very very cheap one. I think that's why i've been having trouble honing an edge on my axe. It doesnt even have grade markings on to say what it is but there's definitely 2 different grains and a few smaller pieces for smaller tools.

 

[Squidders]

A knife, a way to maintain that knife and a first aid kit and you're set for some bushcraft my friend.

Tarps, paracord, sleep mats and sleeping bags are all camping equipment, albeit exposed camping. Bushcrafting can pretty much only be done while awake in my experience.

With a knife you can make nearly all the other tools, like digging sticks, splitting wedges, net making tools, fishing hooks, arrows, bows, catapults... you can use it to prep food and eat food, and more tasks than I could ever list.

Mora knives are about as good as it gets for functionality until you're way over the £100 mark. I still always have a bright orange stainless one in the bottom of my pack as a backup and love using it.

Anyway, congratulations on starting down the slippery slope! I hope you get many years enjoyment out of doing whichever aspects of bushcraft you fancy.

 

[fergsuk]

Thanks Squidders. I'm looking to just dial in my basic "survival" skills first before i start to work at the finer things. Although sitting and whittling something out of nothing on a cold winters evening definitely appeals to me. Need to practice using my knife so might as well start somewhere.

 

[copper_head]

Hey Fergs, why not come to the meet in Burley? Even if you don't fancy staying out yet you'll be able to come meet some folk and check out gear before handing your ready's over

http://www.bushcraftuk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=115537&p=1429793#post1429793

 

[fergsuk]

Sounds like a plan dude, i might just have to do that.

*Edit* Ah its Burley-in-Wharfdale not Burley. Thats waaaaaay beyond my realm of travel. Dont drive and have limited time outside of work, so i couldnt make it.