I just wanted to pop in and say Happy New Year! I hope all is well and you got to spend time with those that mean the most to you. 

I've been working hard and travelling to visit family this season which has put me out of touch. For the rest of this week I will be home, thankfully. It will provide me the opportunity to finally finish cleaning up the shop which I have been buried in since Halloween. Once clean I will be getting to work on a few things including a limited run of Slidas so keep your eye pealed. I have not selected the Mora model yet but it will most likely be a Bushcraft or Clipper. I will let everyone know how to get one after they are complete so don't start sending me messages asking to be added to a list for them,.

I have two children that are coming up on scouting age, a 7 year old girl and a 5-1/2 year old boy. I'd like to get them involved but I just can't get committed to the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) because of it's discriminatory policies and the Girls Scouts appear to have become an unfocused, watered down version of it's previous self. We tried a starting SpiralScouts circle but that organization has such an internal pissing contest going on with the founder that we decide to abandon it.  I've been looking at the other alternatives out there. I am looking for a secular organization that still teaches the basics of outdoor skills like the BSA of old without the politics and BS policies attached.

• Camp Fire USA – Not available in our area currently so I'd have to start a council.
• Adventure Guides & Princesses – Looks promising but is owned and overseen by a christian organization.
• Earth Scouts – While I agree with the charter of this organization it is not apparent that they teach the skills I want my children to learn. They also appear to be fairly political in nature since they are part of the Earth Charter US.
• Scouting for All – While started as an inclusive alternative to the BSA its activities make it overtly political.

I'm taking a more serious look at:

• Baden-Powell Service Association - After all Robert Baden-Powell was the founder of the scouting movement.
• Navigators USA - Still in the trial stages of the organization.

Over the past several years I have seriously considered starting up a some type of traditional scouting organization that is more focused on bushcraft and woodlore skills. The primary reason for this consideration has always been the lack of an existing local group that fits in with what I feel scouts should be.  If I am going to have to start a local group for another scouting organization why not start one of my own? I know I won't have the support of the larger organization but based on my past experience (Spiral Scouts) they seriously complicate matters. 

I've often wondered what people carry around in their pockets. Those items must be considered important enough to be kept that close at hand. I'm not sure this applies to women that carry a purse since most of them I have had the displeasure of looking in tend to contain a daily/monthly/weekly survival kit. So if it's not in your purse, murse or daily carry and is actually on your person tell me what you carry. 

This is what is in mine:

• Keys – Car, house, work.
• Swiss Army Knife – Victorinox Climber Stayglow
• Pen(s) – lately a Fisher Military Pen and a Sharpie
• Wallet – Alt-Ett Original
• Reading glasses – recently added
• Phone – currently a Droid Incredible
• Bluetooth Earbud (sometimes)
• List (sometimes) – usually a folded 3×5 index card

There are several things missing from the above list that I add for my second job that I add on the days I'm working it.

• Leatherman Juice C2
• Second set of keys

The one thing that I have tried to carry over and over is a flashlight. I've not had much luck in finding a small one that works for me yet. I've tried the following lights over the last couple of years:

• eGear Pico LED Zipper Light 
  
• Princeton Tec Pulsar II
• Fenix E01
• Streamlight Key Mate

What's in your pocket?

It's been quite a while since I have posted on the site. I have not had much time to even think about camping, fishing or anything except work and Halloween.

I am currently working two part time jobs. They are about as different from each other as is possible. For part of the week I am an I/T director at a public charter school and for the other part of the week I work for Parks and Recreation as an Amusements Technician. It's the best of both worlds. After spending 18 years with IBM the I/T position allows me to keep my hands in and actually accomplish something with meaning unlike my time with Big Blue. In the P&R position I work on everything from peddle boats and scale trains to water fountains and Christmas decorations. I also have my on workshop under construction. For me this is type of employment totally works.

Halloween at Grimrot Cemetery this year was excellent, though wet. I put out our normal props; the scarecrow, the flying witch, Maggie the Flying Crank Ghost, our little Axworthy ghosts and seven new tombstone for the cemetery. I spent most of October building the new tombstones and they came out much better than the old ones were. I plan to add two more next year since I have leftover foam to use up. There were some minor issues with the drive system for the flying witch due to the rain and not getting her setup just right but it's nothing a major rebuild can't fix.  So that is on the plate to accomplish before Christmas so the drive is not occupying space in the garage.

We had our Annual Halloween Movie Night the Saturday before the big night. The crowd was smaller than usual but a great time was had by all in attendance. All'Hallows brought out about a hundred ToTs in the rain. Our house was the hit f the neighborhood as usual. The display looked great and the new tombstones brought back the beauty of Grimrot Cemetery that had been missing the previous two years. I'll get the Grimrot Cemtery website updated with new photos soon.

I'm not sure what is coming for Dad of All Trades next. I have a couple ideas but until I get to them I will probably just use it as my personal blog again. My time manufacturing Slida Sheaths took the focus away from the original intent of the blog and I'm kind lost with it now. I'll find it. I have some things that I want to talk about soon. Things like Geocaching alternatives, survival caches, winter trout fishing and camping,  squirrel hunting, and work stuff just to list a few. I hope those of you that have stuck with me this far will continue to do so in the future. 

So this the beginning of a fresh start. I've made a promise to myself that I would post at least two times a month but I will try to post every week. Even if the post is just a random picture of something I came across in my daily goings. 

As I am sure some of you have noticed things have kinda stopped here at Dad of All Trades. There are lots of reasons that have caused me to change tracks here at home. Not the least of which has been my hunt for a new job. We I now have a part time gig that is in the field that I truly want to work in but since it is only part time I have to supplement my income in other ways. The sad news is that, while I enjoy making and selling the Slida sheath it is just not a large income stream. So I need to put a hold on them for a while. I'm not scrapping it totally and may circle back around to them in the future and limited order basis. The fire steel carrier for the Light My Fire firesteels will still be available in the shop until I run out of the current batch. I will continue to offer the Fatwood tinderbox as well. 

Now that I have said all that let me bring you up to date. A number of years ago I started a company that made rain barrels, composters and other such items. I also had a number of products along the line of urban homesteading and self sufficiency. For some unknown reason folks have started to find me again and are looking for some of these items again so I have decide to go that direction again. Unfortunately this business is primarily a local thing since most of the product are large and prohibitively expensive to ship. But if you are interested here is a list of areas I that the new "Dad of All Trades" will be dealing with…

• Composting (Vermiculture and BSFL)
• Urban Chicken Coops
• Aquaponics
• Natural Beekeeping
• Gardening / Micro Farming
• Rainwater Harvesting

As you may have noticed, the primary focus of the business will be Urban Homesteading. It's a natural area for me to work in since we have lived this way for a number of years and I have lots of contact in that community. My new job also bring me in contact with a larger group of people that have interests in the same area. Over the next several weeks this website is going to start to change to reflect the changes I've told you about. Please add Woodlore / Bushcraft / Fly Fishing / Ultra-Lightweight Backpacking to the list above since I will occasionally be posting about that as well. 

In so many ways, what comes around will come around again. I'm finding that to be very interesting and true. 

Regis R Malady Jr. (1942-2010)

        One of the most amazing and special people to grace our world has left us. I had the privilege of knowing him like a father, working with him as an employee and friend, traveling with him to many places, learning an immeasurable amount from him, and loving him as a son loves his own father. Even though we haven't had frequent contact the last several years I will miss him as I would miss a part of myself. I love you Regis!

When it comes to pieces of essential kit for the discriminating Bushcrafter the axe makes the list in the number two spot, just after a good knife. Over the last several years there are some brands that have become very popular. There are two problems with the “popular” brands though, high price and often limited availability. I’ve used and owned several of them over the years. While they are nice I tend to keep going back to an axe that I don’t seem to worry about because of it’s cost.

Normally I carry a boy scout hatchet when out in the woods. I love these hatchets. They are cheap, tough and good quality but are getting hard to find. They are also heavy. So three years ago I found myself looking for a mini axe that I could carry and would reduce my base weight. After looking at all the “popular” brands and choking at their cost I came across the axe you see in the pictures above.

Its the Vaughan Supersportsman’s Sub-Zero Axe and is often sold as a sounding axe for forest service or tree surgery work. This tiny little guy weighs in at a mere 1 pound. That’s 8oz for the head and 8oz for everything else. It comes with a flame treated 10″ hickory handle and a has a 2-1/4″  cutting edge that is covered by a leather sheath. The factory edge is decent but can be made much better with less than 5 minutes on the belt sander. The handles that have come on the 3 Vaughan’s I own have been good with a nice tight, properly oriented straight grain. I’ve yet to break one but I have refinished them all. When they were received they had a clear varnish finish that got a bit slick when my hands got wet from sweat. A bit of sanding, some boiled linseed oil and a bit of beeswax took care of that problem though. I now keep one in my bushcraft kit, paddling gear and garage toolbox. I’ll probably add one to a BoB in the future.

All in all, the Vaughan is a great little axe and well worth the ~$20 investment. It cuts extremely well for it’s weight and can even be used for carving or game processing activities. I’ve found that it holds a good edge than can be honed sharp enough to shave with easily and will stay that way a through extensive use. The overall quality of the metal and temper is also good considering it is a mass production item. You would not go wrong with this purchase if for no other reason than learning just how useful a small axe can be in your kit.

Cost:
Quality:
Performance:
Availability:
Overall:
About Ratings

The beginning of the warm weather has pushed my activities to getting the garden and animals settled for the season. This has drawn most of my time away from my normal focus on bushcraft. I’ve got the Mora project sitting on the workbench under a bunch of other stuff and a list of other reviews and videos that I will be getting done over the summer. Please stand by.

Last year Mora of Sweden decided to discontinue the Mora #510 and #545 model knives from their line. Since then they have still been fairly easy to find but have finally started disappearing from all the stores. This is bad news for the Bushcraft community since these were the two knives of choice for most outdoor schools and a favorite of individuals. It was compact, comfortable, durable and perfectly suited for all types of bushcraft activities.

What’s Next?

Mora of Sweden has seen fit to put a replacement product out there but I’m not sure they hit the mark. The new knives are the #511 in Carbon and #546 (#546-G) in Stainless. This new series of 5xx knives have a prominent guard molded into the grip. This guard poses several disadvantacges when compaired to the old #510 from my perspective. While the addition of this guard makes the new #5xx series safer to handle it also makes it feel odd in my hand. When carving or slicing with it the guard can get in the way. The other disadvantage I see with the guard on the #5xx series is not actually with the knife but with the sheath. Because of the added guard the sheath is now directional. This means that it is no longer ambidextrous and left handed users will find it draws backwards when worn on their left side. There is not the option to order a left handed sheath for these knives so you will have to make your own or find one somewhere else.

This does not mean that we, as bushcrafters, must now start using our high end Fallniven F1 to split wood or other mundane but potentually knife destroying tasks. It simply means that we need to address the problems with the new #5xx series and make it better suited for our use. So, I will be putting together a video series that will take you through the process of customizing the Mora #511 and making it a bit more friendly.  Stay Tuned.

Through the years I have heard people refer to Fatwood by a lot of different names including maya wood. Some of you will recognize the name Maya as part of a product name from Light My Fire. I know a few folks that swear MayaDust is the best tinder ever sold. On the flip side of that I also know folks with the opposite opinion of it.

I tend to side with the later group for two reasons: 1) Cost: At an average price of $5 for 1oz its too expensive to justify its the purchase and 2) Ease of lighting: As Jason over at Gear Talk demonstrated, it is extremely difficult to start with the typical scout sized firesteel. If you have lighter its not a problem but then again it is also not needed.

If you are an advocate MayaDust then you may be relieved to know that you can make it yourself for next to nothing.  This video shows you how.

If you are looking for a wood rasp to do this you should take a look at the Curved Multi-Rasp from Harbor Freight Tools. At the diminutive price of $2.99 it costs less than a single package of MayaDust and will pay for itself after you use less than an once of DIY MayaDust. The rasp I use is called the Surform Pocket Plane from Stanley but I only use it because I already had it on hand.