Articles

There is a direct correlation between the weight of ultralight gear sold in backpacking stores and the cost of said goods. In this economy, we need to be mindful we can do a deep dive into ultralight kits but at a steep cost. Our goal may be to reduce the weight of our pack by 10% (for me about 4-5 pounds) or more but it can also reduce the weight of the cash in our wallet in the process. It’s possible to not only reduce the weight of the gear you carry but also avoid spending more than you have to in the process. We can look at cost-saving alternatives like recycling certain gear and reusing others...

You may have overheard stories about the first one at BLADE Show. Perhaps you know of a rumor or two of the happenings from that epic weekend back in 2017. Maybe you are one of the lucky ones who was there and can verify what may or may not have happened. Cast all of that aside because new memories and experiences are scheduled for Memorial Day Weekend this year in Georgia. The Fiddleback Forge User Weekend is a combination of training, camaraderie, story telling, friendly ribbing, no shortage of fun, and plenty of opportunities to be immortalized in the memory books. If that doesn’t pique your interest, let me further explain what you can expect should you sign up.

“Flesh runs from steel”. That’s an old Filipino expression. You can probably recall the last time you accidentally cut yourself. We’ve all had it happen to us. When that blade touches your skin, you retract your hand or pull away. Getting cut hurts and we all have a visceral reaction to the idea of it. Compound this idea with thoughts of your kids or kids entrusted to you and your blood pressure and stress levels will skyrocket. You never want to see a child in pain and yet there will come a time when you must teach a child how to use a knife because one day, they’ll need to. This task can be daunting but there are some very easy rules a kid can follow that you are probably already familiar with. When emotions overpower how we think, we can default to a proven method of breaking down safety by looking to another tool kids should know how to use. If you’re familiar with the 4 Rules of Firearms Safety popularized by Jeff Cooper, you’ll appreciate this methodology.
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I think we all have a box or bin of knives at home that we purchased, regretted, became disappointed with, and stored away for safekeeping never to be lusted over again. I know my friends and I joke about this all the time. We’ve probably spent (or wasted) more money on knives that didn’t ultimately meet our expectations than most people will spend on knives they actually want. Perhaps we should have exercised a bit of expectation management or maybe the hype around a knife clouded our judgment. Whatever it was, we should have had more clarity in our decision making process and a formal way to determine if a knife is quality and suitable for our purposes. Much like a game plan that falls apart under stress from our opponent, how we examine a knife can be influenced by carnival-esque knife demonstrations, blade bunnies, the cash-laden mob around a booth, or countless other factors. Before you pull out that card, tap the electronic payment on your phone, or whip out the Benjamins, follow this advice when you are considering another knife at a show. 

It’s been a couple years since I traveled to Alaska and a couple years seems like way too long. Last time, I came with a handful of friends to explore the Kenai Peninsula and drive around the interior a bit.  That trip was incredible with plenty of fishing, laughs, and site-seeing. The opportunity came up this year to go back and highlight some of the good times I had before but from a new perspective through the lens my job at Fieldcraft Survival provides.  How do you attempt to replicate the awesome group chemistry you naturally had with your friends but this time in front of a camera for the audience to enjoy. The answer is, you don’t. You must simply trust you will have a great time in this rugged environment. When you have an opportunity to go back to Alaska, you don’t pass it up. While the world has changed some since 2019 when I was last here, I’m happy to report there is something familiar about this land. You see, the less things change the more the land keeps calling me back.

Author’s Foreword:
In August 2020, I attended GUNSITE Academy’s 250 Pistol Course. I had applied and received the Jeff Cooper Memorial Foundation’s scholarship (for more information, please visit jeffcooperfoundation.org) for free tuition to this baseline course all students must take. I attended and was one of 23 students broken up into two classes. At the end of the course, I earned the “Silver Chicken” which is the silver raven pin for shootoff winner. Upon completion of the course, I swore I would attend another class in the future to further my studies in the ways of the late great Lt. Col Jeff Cooper. I set aside some funds, ammo, and time and by September, had my deposit down on the 270 Rifle course.

In early June 2021, I was invited by my friends at Kifaru to join them on a backpack fishing trip to the high mountains of Colorado. If you’re not familiar with Kifaru, it is a company known for opening up the backcountry with their lineup of backpacks, sleeping bags, ultralight shelters, and hunting accessories. The company is led by Aron Snyder, a modern-day traditional bowhunting legend along with a team of employees that live the mountain life and who can often be found in the mountains at elevation. Kifaru is situated just outside of Denver, the mile-high city. Compared to my home state of Connecticut where I lived for many years at elevations ranging from 131’ to 390’ feet, the elevation of Colorado is significantly greater. What we consider mountains on the east coast, Coloradians think of them as molehills. Even though I moved to UT in January and have lived at 4524’ and work at 5587’, the trip with Kifaru would take me to double that elevation and help me identify some considerations at elevation. I can only imagine what this trip would have been like if I didn’t have half a year to acclimatize. As you’ll read, when you travel to greater heights, you need to be aware and consider some of the possible effects on your body and trip you wouldn’t expect at lower elevations.

Author’s Foreword:
I’m a perpetual student. I enjoy learning and will always be a student for life. Recently, I was invited as a guest to the Modern Warrior Conference. I could not make it last year for the event due to COVID restrictions and I wasn’t going to let the highly-survivable pandemic prevent me from going this year. An invitation like this isn’t handed out to everyone. This event started in 2020 as a fundraiser for a family member of a veteran and doubled this year in size. Given the interest of those in attendance and their willingness to train paired with the growing unrest found on Main St. America, I predict it will continue to grow and become a regular event. The information provided was both wide and deep and the student in me was refreshed with the wide array of content. Many of the readers of this blog definitely share the interests I have and should think about the importance of this training.

Have you ever purchased a knife for your wife/girlfriend, only to see it wind up permanently residing in your kitchen drawer? Unlike most men (who have no issues displaying their blades to the world throughout the day), women can find themselves uncomfortable or even ostracized when attempting to carry a knife out of the house. Luckily, there are numerous different ways for female knife enthusiasts to bring their hobby outside without sacrificing comfort or effectiveness.

The blacksmithing trade is dead! Blacksmithing has become mostly an art or hobby to be admired at quaint old historical towns or your occasional craft fair, asopposed to a trade found in every town and city. With the advancement of industry, technology and societal changes the trade has been forever altered andis mostly fading into an obscure distant memory. The image of a blacksmith is mostly derived from movies. Picture a small town with a muscle bulging man covered in sweat and black soot as he toils over the hot forge. Now I know you have pictured Andy Roy in exactly this way as he is making your most beloved fixed blades. The truth is, the modern knife maker is as much business man as a skillful brute forger.

In the survival community, most people have heard of the rule of 3. That is, on average, a human being can live approximately 3 minutes without oxygenated blood running through their body, about 3 hours exposed to the elements, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food. You’ve probably heard other additional “3s” that are added to this list including the body’s ability to survive approximately 3 degrees off of the 98.6 degree homeostasis and perhaps even 3 seconds to make a decision. Keep in mind, these are all averages and you may be to the left or to the right of these numbers. Well, I’m here to let you know there are additional rules of 3 you should know that come up frequently in survival courses. These are easy to remember and you should add them to your understanding of readiness.

Most of the time when the phrase “location, location, location” is used, it's in a larger geographical context. It usually refers to a good place to live, vacation, or set up a business. Or maybe the best place for a camp site, hunting blind, or photography observation point. However in this case it's about something much smaller but no less important, where we store specific items in our kits and why.