• Another pretty obvious source of good steel for knives is the humble file. Most files are made from high-carbon tool steel and can be used [...]

  • Plastic is the obvious choice of material, and while I do have Kydex and the tools to work with it, that seemed a lot of effort. Fortunately, whilst mulling this over with a cup of tea, I spotted a bit of plastic drainpipe that I had used as an impromptu wood steamer a few years ago.

  • Heat treating The starting material in its raw form (as in a handsaw) is a medium carbon spring steel, that has been commercially heat treated [...]

  • 'After the failed attempt at cold forging a shallow gouge, I decided that it was time to turn up the heat.' Dave Budd shares how to make great tools from old handsaws.

  • Cold formed hook tools No bushcrafters’ tool kit would be complete without a spoon carving hook or three. Normally these would be formed hot, when [...]

  • Dave Budd tells us about managing his woodland and harvesting the wood he needs to make tools and craft items. Most of us think of [...]

  • More tools from old saws! After writing the article on making knives from an old saw, I started thinking about other tools that could be [...]

  • Hobby knifemakers often turn large circular saw blades and industrial bandsaw blades into knives, but even cheap handsaws will make decent enough knives.

  • Way back when I would buy my charcoal in from various woodsmen but after a while, I started to make my own in oil drums, [...]

  • Tutorial on fitting a handle to a stick tang knife

  • Pt 3 -  Making and fitting the handle. Since I don’t use factory made drifts to shape the eyes of my tools, they don’t take [...]

  • Ok, now we have a lump of steel with a hole in it. Time then to turn it into an adze. (Link to part one) [...]

  • Making an Adze by Dave Budd Most folks that have seen me forging only get to see me making twiddly little things or a knife [...]

  • What saw? by Dave Budd Whether it’s as mundane as cutting firewood or as involved as building an entire camp, there are lots of times [...]