Innovation in Bushcraft

[Klenchblaize]

Notwithstanding the questionable reality of increased 'activity' in the woods and meadows of this overcrowded Isle, surely the biggest "innovation" is the heightened awareness of the spiritual fulfilment that may be derived from Bushcarft (whatever this term means to you) and that is derived in direct proportion to the oneness attained with the Land?

That and consideration to a mass produced Ray Mears knife so we may all just get on with it!

Cheers

 

[Tony]

There's quite a bit of innovation that we don't see, Mors is constantly looking at how we do things and improving on them, his ground breaking work in shelters for instance. However this doesn't really filter down due to bushcraft being generally perceived as old skills and materials, he would state otherwise, that it is a mixture of the two. For those that accept modern materials, kit etc it would be a lot easier to identify innovation as there's been huge steps forward, the bushcrafters of the past would have used the best equipment, materials etc that they could get appropriate to what they were doing and the intent of what they were doing.

Going back to Mors, he uses modern materials where he can get them and applies them to old techniques that are modified to create the best shelter he can make that uses the least heat to warm it, some though would say this is survival and then we get back into what's this and what's that

We could also say that there's lots of re-discovery which some think of as innovation.

 

[fireman sam]

For me personally, the biggest ‘innovation’ is the ‘floating hands’ technique for the hand drill. Whether this is a relatively new development or not I don’t know, but I have never seen a reference to it in ‘old’ bushcraft survival material, so I suspect it is. If anyone knows more on this I’d love to hear.

This technique alone has completely changed my outlook on the hand drill, as with it you can quite easily use a drill of five inches or less. For me that’s massively important as it increases your material options dramatically. Not only that, but the technique’s uninterrupted friction means that once learnt, making a hand drill fire becomes infinitely easier.

It’s a tricky one to master, but thanks to this ‘innovation’ I’ll never go back to the basic version again. Oh, and I learnt it off YouTube, which like others have said is a wonderful innovation too.

 

[durulz]

I remember discovering cotton wool balls as tinder and being thoroughly impressed. I was a bit of a late-comer to that one. Even better, were the cotton wool balls smeared with Vaseline.
My firelighting kit has cotton wool as standard now.
It seems obvious now, but at the time it was quite a revelation.
I learnt that idea on here.
So, cotton wool tinder gets my vote.

 

[deeps]

I would suggest the Bahco Laplander saw and its ilk.

Lightweight, portable, safe and can do 90% of any routine bushy/survival wood cutting chores.

Imagine if you were a 'First nation' chap/chappess and you had been given one of these by the nice man at the Hudson Bay shop - would have changed your world for ever.

Also got to support the vote for tinternet. Often repeated statement is that best bit of bushy kit is knowledge and boy does it (and specifically this forum) disseminate knowledge.

 

[Chance]

So, in summary so far :
- At number one, Tony (aka the Internet, aka the Moot, aka teaching in general)
- At number two, Wayland (aka the King of Hobos)
- Fabrics: ventile, merino, and the breathable plastics (extending this to tents, bivis, etc.)
- Metals and ceramics: water purifiers, the Kelly kettle, firesteels, gas lighters
- Electronics: GPS, mobile phone (and, via spacecraft, accurate maps)

I'm still interested to hear about any more "nice idea !" moments :
- The "Evenk" hitch
- The Hoodoo hone
- Tinder preparation

If I'm honest, I'm using you lot as a Search Engine; with the emphasis on technique, more than equipment. Following on from what Tony said, I'd hope that the likes of Mors and Lars, Bear and Ray are still on the learning curve; albeit closer to the plateau. Your most recent innovation may be nothing more than a slightly shallower angle for feather sticks.

And to pre-empt the inevitable, I don't include 'hotel choice' in techniques.

 

[Chance]

We do like our lists, don't we ? Collating the techniques so far, without judging their novelty:

- Fastenings: Evenk hitch; Blake's hitch
- Fire-lighting: bog roll on a firesteel; vaseline cotton ball; tinder cigarette; floating-hands fire drill; fire blower; pot chain; testing the length of the blade for feather sticks
- Shelters: the cordless shelter
- Sharps: the hoodoo hone; wet and dry sandpaper

For me, one major revelation was that fire-by-friction wasn't simply rubbing two sticks together. Few manuals explain the physics/chemistry of the bearing block and the coal, and give you the 'why' to match the 'how'.

 

[Hoodoo]

For us old geezers, titanium pots and utensils.

 

[Chance]

Do you remember when they brought in that new-fangled "bronze" stuff, and put the poor rock-heaters out of business ?

And they call it progress. There'll be indoor lavatories, next !

 

[SMARTY]

I would say the mobile phone and PLB. They both offer a safety system for those out of doors and those left behind.

 

[Hoodoo]

There'll be indoor lavatories, next !

Yes but the real innovaton is...

 

[Chance]

The chimney hole seems quite wide.

That's a bush oven, right ?

 

[Humpback]

Whats the bog roll on firesteel you mention? I've missed that.
alan

 

[John Fenna]

The chimney hole seems quite wide.

That's a bush oven, right ?

I guess I will not be dining at your campfire then!

 

[Chance]

Whats the bog roll on firesteel you mention? I've missed that.
alan

I'm not sure whom to credit, but if you wrap a firesteel in lavatory tissue before striking it, you'll get lit tinder with one less step.

 

[Nyayo]

Hello all - laid up with 'Shaka's revenge' so expect a lot of posts today
For one: modern, portable, reliable medical kit, and for another: Tom Brown's tracking books - enabled a childhood pastime to become an exact science. Oh, yes, and plastic, TV, decent steel and ultralight fabrics.

N