Author Topic: Monthly Project - March 2012 (Read 38963 times)

Kep · « **on:** March 03, 2012, 04:34:27 PM »

Yes folks, it's back and in a new home to boot,the original and best "Keps Monthly Challenge" - Da Da.

For those that don't know what the Monthly Project is, well to put it simply, i/we post up a bushcraft project that i or others who have PM'd me with an idea, think would be a good challenge for people and then you, if you want to take part of course, have until the end of each calendar month to complete the project, bonus is, there are only a few simple to understand rules

1. You must post up photographic evidence to prove you actually made and/or undertook the project

2. There are no prizes, only the satisfaction of knowing you have increased your skill set and understanding of bushcraft.

3. There is no such thing as failure, it's a learning experience, so even if you think your project doesn't come up to scratch, still post your attempt up, as you will have learned from the experience, so to help others to learn & understand, post it up regardless, nobody is going to ridicule you for trying, material wise you can use ANYTHING that you find whilst out and about, including other peoples trash, after all isnt Bushcraft about improvising, adapting and overcoming?

Erm, that really is about it, this is not a competition, it's all about learning and having fun.

As it the first time this has run here, we will keep it nice and simple this month, next month though i'll try and get a poll up so you have a choice of a couple of projects, by the way, if anyone has any ideas, just drop them through to me on a PM as it gets damned hard after a while to keep coming up with ideas.

So this months project is................. ....

Make a take apart pot hanger for use over a fire.

A new challenge will be issued on the 1st April 2012.

Have fun.

Kep · « **Reply #1 on:** March 03, 2012, 04:35:13 PM »

PS, sorry the 1st post is in bold, i did a spell check and it all changed to Bold automatically and i cant change it back

Red · « **Reply #2 on:** March 03, 2012, 04:54:12 PM »

YAY!!!!

rogumpogum · « **Reply #3 on:** March 03, 2012, 05:21:56 PM »

Whee!

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #4 on:** March 03, 2012, 05:25:15 PM »

Awesome Kep!

Bold is just fine.

Looking forward to seeing what everyone comes up with.

easy_rider75 · « **Reply #5 on:** March 03, 2012, 05:46:45 PM »

Ah cool been wanting to try my hand again at making one of these

Mr. Tettnanger · « **Reply #6 on:** March 03, 2012, 06:11:53 PM »

Do you wan the pictures posted in this thread?

Gurthy · « **Reply #7 on:** March 03, 2012, 06:48:59 PM »

I'm looking forward to these already!

Kep · « **Reply #8 on:** March 04, 2012, 01:51:20 AM »

Quote from: Mr. Tettnanger on March 03, 2012, 06:11:53 PM

Do you wan the pictures posted in this thread?

Yes please, keeps it all neat & tidy that way

Gurthy · « **Reply #9 on:** March 04, 2012, 04:56:07 PM »

Edit: I didn't read Kep's post close enough, and now that I see PW's hanger I see that I missed the "take apart"portion

This will require a little more designing than my original plan of making a Ray Mears style adjustable hanger me thinks

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #10 on:** March 04, 2012, 06:53:29 PM »

I got one about 75% finished today.

I still need to carve the locking wedge. I think I might have made the 'split" section too long so that the wood will flex enough to make it pop apart, but part of this is learning by doing, and I've already learned more than I ever could about this design without actually taking a knife to some wood.

Red · « **Reply #11 on:** March 05, 2012, 09:44:18 PM »

lookin good PW! ill gather some wood this weekend and do one up, been getting slammed with work last week, and this week doesnt appear to lighten at all.

JTD · « **Reply #12 on:** March 06, 2012, 08:49:30 AM »

Will do..

Kep · « **Reply #13 on:** March 08, 2012, 11:10:34 AM »

well here's mine, made it up the woods today, not the best one ive ever made as the wood was a little too thick apart from the fact that one piece was also dead and just starting to become a litle punky, but it will work

Made from Hazel, i couldnt for the life of me today find the right thickness of wood, i might do another, better one in a few days time as i know where i will be there are suitable branches i can use

rogumpogum · « **Reply #14 on:** March 08, 2012, 01:48:50 PM »

Looks good to me, Kep!

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #15 on:** March 08, 2012, 03:15:29 PM »

Looks good Kep! I think I'll go work on mine a bit more. I'm going to shorten the joint quite a bit and cut narrower notches.

Kep · « **Reply #16 on:** March 08, 2012, 03:19:29 PM »

cheers guys, im going to redo mine i think, not happy with it at all

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #17 on:** March 08, 2012, 03:55:42 PM »

Bah, yours looks great, Kep!

Mine's not nearly as nice, but it holds together enough to lift my knife and probably a one quart pot.

I shortened it up a good bit from the first attempt, and was able to save the pieces that way.

If I were to make one "for real" I think I'd go with much thicker limbs. These were about 5/8" at the thickest. The larger the parts are, the less precise the cuts have to be. And I'm terribly sloppy at carving.

Red · « **Reply #18 on:** March 08, 2012, 05:21:22 PM »

looks good guys! and just a little reminder: if you use green wood to do this, leave it together as it dries out, otherwise it can warp and you will have a useless set of sticks

Kep · « **Reply #19 on:** March 11, 2012, 11:57:19 AM »

i wasn't totally happy with the pot hook i made earlier in the week, so today i made another one which has turned out far better

The hooked sections are Hazel and the wedge is seasoned Cherry, made the whole thing with my Little Whittler knife, will probably make another later in the week of a slightly different design

Mr. Tettnanger · « **Reply #20 on:** March 11, 2012, 01:24:19 PM »

Ok, I tried this today and learned a few things. It is a fail, but I will try again when I get a chance!
I stopped because attempting to go any further was silly!

Things I learned:
1.) do not try with dry hickory
2.) Use a more stout knife
3). Carving skills are forgotten when you are so use to just hacking at things with long blades and axes!
4.) have fun, I started to get frustrated and realized that this was supposed to be fun!
5.) pick straighter more even sized pieces
6.) have a plan!

Here is what I got. The wood was a bear to carve and would split when trying to do the angle cuts

rogumpogum · « **Reply #21 on:** March 11, 2012, 04:29:04 PM »

Nice stuff!

Now that the weather has really gotten nice, it's time for me to get this project going.

easy_rider75 · « **Reply #22 on:** March 12, 2012, 06:54:37 PM »

My first shot big failure will be trying again any lucky maybe my new knife will bring me better lucky

easy_rider75 · « **Reply #23 on:** March 13, 2012, 02:53:42 PM »

Well here is my take on it she ain't purdy but it worked sorta LOL

wolfy · « **Reply #24 on:** March 13, 2012, 05:44:31 PM »

Kep, I was examining the photo of the pothook that you took and posted on March 11th and while it looks hefty enough to hang a 13" cast iron potjie, brimful of Cajun gumbo......I think I see a potential problem. As pictured, the wedge isn't filling the mortise all the way to it's ends and it is depending on friction alone to keep it from slipping, so it doesn't appear to be taking full advantage of the basic mechanics of the design. In other words, just a little too much weight could allow enough movement to pop the ends of each hook out of it's dovetail mortise. Correct me if I'm off base, but I am one to always anticipate looming disaster....after all, I'm a farmer

I hope that makes sense to you......just trying to keep the cauldron from falling off the crane and into the fire pit. A lighter billy pot probably wouldn't be a problem at all, but an old Dutch oven slinger like me would probably encounter disaster

GrowlingBear · « **Reply #25 on:** March 13, 2012, 07:39:11 PM »

I finished mine today. It's made out of the only two pieces of cottonwood I could find that weren't too thin or rotten. Both are about an inch in diameter. I tested it with a full 1.3 gal./5 liter jug of Tide detergent. (only thing heavy and with a handle I could find at the time) It held up fine.

Red · « **Reply #26 on:** March 13, 2012, 10:43:47 PM »

that is a good solid fit GB! im still trying to find some pieces for mine amidst my work

i will finish it before April!!!!!

zammer · « **Reply #27 on:** March 15, 2012, 07:42:30 PM »

Nice job guys, these monthly projects look like a great idea, thanks for getting the ball rolling Kep

Mr. Tettnanger · « **Reply #28 on:** March 16, 2012, 12:52:18 PM »

Is everybody using saws?

GrowlingBear · « **Reply #29 on:** March 16, 2012, 12:54:07 PM »

Quote from: Mr. Tettnanger on March 16, 2012, 12:52:18 PM

Is everybody using saws?

I used my Home Depot folding saw and my shorty I got from Red.

Kep · « **Reply #30 on:** March 16, 2012, 12:58:04 PM »

Quote from: Mr. Tettnanger on March 16, 2012, 12:52:18 PM

Is everybody using saws?

i did

Kep · « **Reply #31 on:** March 16, 2012, 12:59:14 PM »

anyone got any ideas for Aprils project then, i have a couple up my sleeve

, but am always happy to receive project suggestions, dont jot them down here, drop them through to me on a PM

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #32 on:** March 16, 2012, 01:00:34 PM »

Aw, heck If I'd known we could use saws!

easy_rider75 · « **Reply #33 on:** March 17, 2012, 10:12:58 AM »

Quote from: Mr. Tettnanger on March 16, 2012, 12:52:18 PM

Is everybody using saws?

LMAO I did to pretty much best way to get the main cut

Kep · « **Reply #34 on:** March 27, 2012, 02:01:27 PM »

still a few days left if anyone else wants to have a go at this one?

rogumpogum · « **Reply #35 on:** March 27, 2012, 07:45:26 PM »

I've been trying to get out, but I've been swamped with work, Kep...

Doesn't help that I'm practically knifeless at the moment, lol.

Highlife · « **Reply #36 on:** March 29, 2012, 02:44:38 PM »

Did it! Don't know what the wood is, but it seems to work. I'm going to make a new wedge, but it fits and hangs pretty well. I pulled on the hooks and it stays together.

Next time I do one, I'll make it a tad shorter, but I like the double hook on one end, will work to hold multiple things.

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #37 on:** March 29, 2012, 02:56:47 PM »

Nice job THB!

Sent from my LGL55C using Tapatalk

Red · « **Reply #38 on:** March 29, 2012, 03:18:25 PM »

lookin good G! im still trying to find some suitable branches for this one... may resort to using some palm fronds and carving the hooks $:-\$

Kep · « **Reply #39 on:** March 29, 2012, 03:31:24 PM »

Quote from: redman8066 on March 29, 2012, 03:18:25 PM

lookin good G! im still trying to find some suitable branches for this one... may resort to using some palm fronds and carving the hooks $:-\$

Hey, whatever works has to be right

Red · « **Reply #40 on:** March 29, 2012, 03:35:01 PM »

Quote from: Kep on March 29, 2012, 03:31:24 PM

Quote from: redman8066 on March 29, 2012, 03:18:25 PM
lookin good G! im still trying to find some suitable branches for this one... may resort to using some palm fronds and carving the hooks $:-\$

Hey, whatever works has to be right

thats the way im lookin at it for now anyway!

easy_rider75 · « **Reply #41 on:** March 30, 2012, 08:07:23 PM »

Looks good like the double hook

Kep · « **Reply #42 on:** April 01, 2012, 02:34:27 AM »

A superb response to the first project, cheers guys, this thread will remain open so people can continue to do the project and post up their hangers in this thread if they want to, Aprils project can be found here http://bladesandbushcraft.com/index.php/topic,879.new.html#new

MnSportsman · « **Reply #43 on:** April 01, 2012, 06:11:33 AM »

I missed this Topic somewhere along the line...

I will have to do a remedial one. & post it up...

upthecreek · « **Reply #44 on:** April 02, 2012, 10:42:02 AM »

not sure how I missed this either.. I'll get going!

MnSportsman · « **Reply #45 on:** April 03, 2012, 09:58:02 PM »

Here are my pictures of the project with a bit added in:

Out in the woods to get the stick:

Duke looking at the rver I just called him out of:

Another look at the river, since we were there:

Some of the steps I took:

Got interrupted by the neighbor about this time & lost train of thought. got the pieces turned about, but it still worked...

Put a beercan in my Mug for weight, I didn't want to go dig out one of my pots, as I was thirsty & the mug & beer were handier..

Took me over an hour to go get & make that potholder. I will likely not make one again unless I get bored sometime..LOL was losing patience with that damn wedge part..let me tell ya LOL

so...I took about 3 minutes to walk over to a tree in my yard & cut this potholder below(next to the other one), which is what we usually do for a holder when we use a crossbar:

Been using the type I showed in the last pic for so long that I think I'll just stick to that kind, or one of those pole type ones... Much faster to make, & I don't carry stuff like that around with me, when I can just make a field expedient one on the spot.

So I got the project done & as a matter of fact I did the DeadFall(April) 2 days ago, just haven't up loaded the pics yet...

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #46 on:** April 03, 2012, 10:30:19 PM »

Nice job on both of the hooks! Nothing wrong with a quick and dirty one that works.

Gryphon · « **Reply #47 on:** April 05, 2012, 10:36:29 AM »

I don't have the materials close at hand to make one right now...unless I sneak into a neighbors yard and cut up their stuff...

..but bonus brownie points if anyone can name that joint y'all are using on these hooks.

Be back later with the answer.

Hint: It's a timber framing joint that was first widely used in shipbuilding. The USS Constitution has a number of those joints in her framing as well as her keel and they are still tight to this day.

PetrifiedWood · « **Reply #48 on:** April 05, 2012, 12:11:42 PM »

Quote from: Gryphon on April 05, 2012, 10:36:29 AM

I don't have the materials close at hand to make one right now...unless I sneak into a neighbors yard and cut up their stuff...

..but bonus brownie points if anyone can name that joint y'all are using on these hooks.

Be back later with the answer.

Hint: It's a timber framing joint that was first widely used in shipbuilding. The USS Constitution has a number of those joints in her framing as well as her keel and they are still tight to this day.

I had to look it up so I'm not going to post a spoiler. But very interesting!

MnSportsman · « **Reply #49 on:** April 05, 2012, 01:03:57 PM »

We always called it a "(Clue=item you can wrap around your neck)joint".

Don't know if that is too much of a clue, but I could type the name, but I will wait for others. I have been doing carpentry as a business for some time, & found that different regions of the country call things different names.

But That is what I think most folks call that type of joint/joinery.

I will wait to see if I am gonna get corrected.

News:

Author Topic: Monthly Project - March 2012 (Read 38963 times)