Knife Skills

[Deleted member 4605]

Not really Bushcraft Chatter, but couldn't decide a better place to put it.

Tonight I'm supposed to be doing (pen)knife skills with my Scouts. I had intended to do a version of Mor's try stick or making a catapult, but the gods have conspired against me and I simplay haven't had time to collect/purchase enough wood for them to use. So now I need to come up with a Plan C.

All the Scouts are bringing or will be supplied with a penknife. They already have some unfinished tent pegs they could continue, but I wanted to do something different. I can supply loads of kindling sticks (i.e. pieces of wood 20-30cm long and 2cm or more wide/deep). My immediate thought was to get them to whittle wooden knives, but I wondered if anyone else had other/better ideas.

 

[pothunter]

Feather sticks, toggles, pot hangers preparation for bow drill, hearth board, drill running out of ideas now???
Help more suggestions please.

Best of luck

 

[ArkAngel]

Spoons could a bit advanced so maybe a spatula?

 

[FGYT]

practice Staff decoration on the short lengths

wooden Marbles

slice the carrot give them 1" of carrot see who can get the most full slices
do a few more veg and put a stew on while they practice on wood

 

[Burnt Ash]

Not really Bushcraft Chatter, but couldn't decide a better place to put it.

Tonight I'm supposed to be doing (pen)knife skills with my Scouts. I had intended to do a version of Mor's try stick or making a catapult, but the gods have conspired against me and I simplay haven't had time to collect/purchase enough wood for them to use. So now I need to come up with a Plan C.

All the Scouts are bringing or will be supplied with a penknife. They already have some unfinished tent pegs they could continue, but I wanted to do something different. I can supply loads of kindling sticks (i.e. pieces of wood 20-30cm long and 2cm or more wide/deep). My immediate thought was to get them to whittle wooden knives, but I wondered if anyone else had other/better ideas.

So how many fingers got cut/lost wood carving and whittling with (presumably) non-locking folding knives? Do tell.

Burnt Ash

 

[Deleted member 4605]

So how many fingers got cut/lost wood carving and whittling with (presumably) non-locking folding knives? Do tell.

Fortunately none. I got them making feather sticks. All had a go, some successfully, some not so. They all enjoyed it though - there's something about carrying a proper knife (Frosts Mora) and setting fire to things (esp. indoors) that captures their attention!

Yes, they all - apart from me - used a folding blade. They also learnt from experience how much difference a sharp blade can make.

 

[Pipistrelle]

Gypsy flowers... Elder whistles


both require some fine motor skills without posing too much difficulty.
Gypsy flowers get the skills for feather sticks well tuned and is easier to do, I realise the time has gone but will do tutorial for y'all (in time) as explaining can be tricky. A picture tells 1000 words and more when your gramma is as crap as mine....

Pip

 

[gregorach]

Gypsy flowers impress the heck out of me! I can do OK(ish) feathersticks, but that's just taking it to a whole other level. I'd love to read a tutorial.

On a related subject, I was pretty impressed by the basting brush Ray knocked up in the last episode of "Wild Food"... He makes it look so easy!

 

[Cormac]

but he had about 8 hours to do it

 

[Simon E]

Tent pegs, fire hardening, traps like the fig-4

As for fire woods, you can teach them about the amount of heat you can get from each type. For exapmle, which woods burn bright and hot or which are liable to spit. The you can get a selection of woods, have each lad light one and they can all guess which one it is like, or at least similar to. You can then have pictures of the tree and leaves so that they are readily identified.

example

Overall Rating Type of Firewood

EXCELLENT
Ash, beech, hickory, sugar maple, oak

GOOD
Black cherry, black locust, red maple, black walnut

FAIR
Elm, sweet gum, poplar, white pine

POOR
Spruce

APPROXIMATE HEAT VALUE RANKINGS
FOR COMMON FIREWOODS
IN THE NORTHEAST

1. White Oak
2. Black Locust
3. Shagbark Hickory
4. Sugar Maple
5. Beech
6. Red Oak
7. White Ash
8. Red Maple
9. Black Walnut
10. Black Cherry


info shamelessly stolen from here

http://www.donnan.com/firewood.htm