Adventures with anrkst.

Im absolutely going to create a version you can do that with. I’ll post it so it’ll be easy peasy for you to duplicate for yourself. Let me study on it…

 

For about the past 2 weeks I’ve been watching a tiny little wasp go in and out through a gap between the window screen and the frame.



In, out, In, out. Working with tireless intensity to build this.


Bzzzzz, pat pat pat with her delicate little feet, bzzzzz away again. Returning hundreds of times with a pin head sized ball of mud…


All day she works and works. At sunset she come in and rests up there, bothering no one and quietly guarding her progeny until daylight. Then it’s away to do it again ever industriously focused on her project.


I’m in and out of here quite often but she seems unconcerned by my presence. She flits around me going busily about her work. She actually landed on my shoulder a couple of times but seemed uninterested in zapping me with her hind end so I chose to be equally disinterested in removing her.
To be this close to nature, the little marvelous things most people don’t notice..It’s simply amazing.

 

Awesome!

 

Looks like a mud dauber maybe ? Does it have oong thin line between the abdomen and thorax*? They are known to go solo and be less aggressive

 

Maybe..there’s so many different types of these here. The ones we call dirt dobbers are solid black and have rounded tips on their wings. Those are pretty harmless except for wanting to stopper up any available openings including but not limited to electric outlets, conduit or ventilation pipes, the intake on your motorized equipment like lawn mowers or tillers…
This one has sharp tipped wings and yellow markings as well as a visible pain spike on her butt…that says wasp to me, but the absolute genus or classification is beyond my knowledge. ( but now I’m curious so I need to go wander around in google to increase my understanding. )

 

Wasp wormhole here you go !

 

https://youtube.com/shorts/EKyHPP1mjpo?si=rsVNviHisNOO-o7i

 

Look, we’re on a knife forum right? We are all about some sharp things. I was developing a new angle on a lighter walk about rig and found a niche place where I wanted a specific piece of kit. I wanted something light to suit the climate and topography of this area, big enough to do minor machete stuff like cutting bunched grass or smallish wood but still small enough to be a reasonable knife.
I had a Junglas a long time ago. I’ve owned a big tank of a Busse. CS Trailmaster. A few other things with varying degrees of efficiency. Time to try out a fun thing..


In the parlance of “2 is 1” I searched multiple sites to see who still had the old and now discontinued S. Africa version in 1055 listed. Buyer beware, because some are still showing those but shipping the China made in 65Mn steel.
I wound up with both kinds so I had a chance to test them side by side with some basic tasks that I might use it for.
Whittling shavings, fatwood, batoning 2”-3” rounds, cross grain chopping and batoning to reduce them for twig stoves. Cutting sisal rope and various other cordage types. Slicing multiple sheets of cardboard.
And checking and resharpening to see if they were being damaged, rolling, and how quickly the edge came back.
Imho the old 1055 is way better. Better cutting. Better edge retention. Definitely feels more like a knife to me.
The Chinese version in 65Mn ( 1065 equivalent) is thicker (.2mm) and the edges are more precise but the primary bevel is steep. Very axe wedge like. The new style has a flattened sides more slab like handle. It’s actually nice but adds to the blade heavy feel. The old style is rounder which makes it more “knife like” in handling.
I’ll definitely be using the old Lasher Tools version and the China version can go in the big box of spare things.

It’s wide, thin, and has a slight curvature to it. It feels balanced to be as big as it is.


It’s a full 12” long. I’m kinda used to using stuff up to the 18” range so it’s not outrageous to me. It’s a decent chopper but lacks the reach or mass for jungle work.


The balance isn’t bad for this wickedly pointed beastie. It rolled from forward to reversed with deceptive ease.


It came with a simple nylon sheath. Nothing spectacular but completely functional. I had already decided to use a cut down Rothco machete sheath. Some nylon web, a propane torch, and a red hot butter knife and nail for a homemade “fix it” solution.


No rivets, no bolts, Chicago screws, nothing. Just nylon and paracord. Very quiet in the brush. Easy to access. And can be put on or taken off belts or webbing with having to unbuckle anything.

Next set loading…

 

I initially had this on my left side for edge up cross draw like my machete does, but the shorter length didn’t work well. It felt like it was flopping erratically, not the smooth motion of the longer Latin style. I first moved it to the right side then
added a leg tie down point with elastic shock cord. That helped and gave me the idea to add a utility pouch to the sheath.


I used a standard 4 mag M4 pouch from Spec-Ops. It’s securely lashed and won’t move up or down.


In my various rigs I usually have a mesh bag I call a “possibles bag”. A collection of items I might want handy that I can get to without taking the pack or rig off. Here are Waxed cotton balls, Duct tape with a miniature Starflash Mirror and a tiny folding magnifying glass stashed inside, Bank line, Grey bottle is antiseptic Quik Clot, White bottle is Bug Repellent cream,
Some Hand sanitizer (also flammable), Magnesium block with attached ferro rod, Black tip bottle is a micro fishing kit,
And a lightweight pocket hone. All my field tools are correctly angled for these . I get workable edges with minimal effort.
I need cutters and choppers, not pristine scalpels.

It’s no super nice Bark River or anything but I can drag it around in a swamp and it will still cut things. That’s good enough for me.

 

I promised some friends I would give this thing a test workout annnd predictably one of them says “Waiting on the food prep dude.” Of course he is.
So I took it with me out to the country place and planned to do a “Cooking on the Grass” episode. The only problem was, I worked on my land all day and then at 4:45 pm in November Im trying to get my equipment and tools strapped down on the trailer and it’s already so dark out there I can barely see the grass!
This is what you get.

Mess Kit Gumbo.

I decided to create a simple daypack kit just for this. Just simple prepping and cooking. No heavy overnight gear.


This is my basic recipe. Don’t think of recipes as rules to be followed..more like guidelines. Change it. Bend it to your will. Make it what YOU think it should be. Cooking should be fun and interesting. Not work.


My much loved and used Avery soft side. Slightly smaller than a messenger bag and well insulated. A single 32oz Nag of ice will hold temp for a long day unopened. (Floats too..if you’re a clutz like me and prone to unplanned swimming events. )


I’ve been using my trusted Snow Peak. Because it started life as a “Solo Kit” it came with this handy little nesting cup with clear easy to see measurement stamping.


I brought a good selection of fresh ingredients. I don’t want to eat a Spartan freeze dried diet unless I have to. Most days we don’t have to…thankfully!


Well it’s no chefs knife, but it’s functional. Doesn’t have the balance like your favorite santoku but then again, you probably wouldn’t want to clear brush or chop firewood with that would you?

 

One more….



My most excellent friends, If this ain’t gourmet I don’t know what is. Spicy Hot and Delicious.
This might be a fun little thing to play around with.

Live well…Live like you mean it!

 

I really need to find me a couple Nalgene compatible graduated ss cups.

 

I have used a couple of GSI ss cups for years. They’re perfectly sized to nest on a 32oz Naglene but mine lack the graduation stamping you’re looking for. (Mine are also something like 15 or more years old so a newer version could be different.)
Dave at Pathfinder also sells a few different kinds that are specifically designed for the nesting system. I’m personally not sure if they have the measurements feature but it should be an easy thing to research and find out.

 

Thanks for that. I have many ss nesting cups. They just don't have the graduations. I'll look into the Pathfinder stuff, sometimes I need to know how much stuff I got.

 

Cooking on the Grass. “Evolutions”.
I guess about 35 years ago I built one of my first “walk-about bushcraft “ rigs for myself. I worked from a surplus all nylon H frame Alice harness with an assortment of pouches and 2 green plastic canteens with stainless steel cups nestled on the bottom. It was great. I could park the truck and be moving thru the scrub in less than a minute.
Life goes forward. Kids came. And once those sharp eyed little gunfighters started following me thru the woods and swamps I became Head Cook in the mess tent, and I made sure it was well appointed and functional.
And the world turned..and turned again. Time for another Evolution.

I put the blame for this outrageous behavior squarely on my orc clan brethren up north beyond the borders in Canadian land. ( glares directly at @Bushman5 and @SofTwoody88 )


They are nothing but encouraging when I get some hare brained idea and start asking questions about their setups.


I mostly used things I already have, just structured to be balanced and lightweight.


One noteworthy difference was opting for these mil spec covers over the oem ones. They provide better protection from mud and contamination ( a real concern in my ao) as well as lessen the amount of leaves, twigs, and debris that the pouch collects moving in the bush.


It’s very well balanced. I can access these without taking the pack off and opens up a substantial amount of space inside the main compartment.

 

Pg 2.

One of the things I wanted to address was Portion Size. I love to cook, but even my smaller mess kits can easily produce a quart/liter of food. That doesn’t sound like much, but get yourself 2 cans of Wolf brand Chili and eat them both in one sitting. ( that’s 1 qt)
That’s a real “gut buster/ I want a nap meal”. And for certain more than you want if you plan to pick up your pack and walk off some miles afterwards.
This will force me to focus more on both the prep and the finished amount.


This is gonna to be Pork w/Rice & Mushrooms. I really went low key with the fresh ingredients and the dry & frozen were measured at 1/4 cup.


This is about halfway thru. Just before the rice, boullion & water are added.


This looks choice yes? Definitely fulfills my mess kit protocol of a 2 pot interchangeable system. #1 for soup/ stew #2 for tea/coffee.


You can’t cook real food in Titainium. Or so I’ve been told. ( I think thems people be telling lies, lies, lies. Lying like a politician in church when the offering plate goes by!)


L.N.T. Don’t preach it. Live it. Be it.
Be the example. Be the one who says “Lead from the front.”

 

I'll check the bin. I might have 1

 

“Evolutions” Pt 3

I really want to lean in hard on the “Lightweight Fast Mover” concept this rig is designed to be.
To further that I ordered this on Amazon ( in case anyone wants to check it out themselves)

A dehydrated vegetable blend sort of like you get a little packet of in Top Ramen.


It’s got a good mix of things. Sure maybe not everything you want but it’s very small and light so you can still add on ingredients. I mathematically reduced the portions they gave to get a mess kit serving of approximately 2 tablespoons-1 cup of water. Simmer for 15 minutes just like rice which is easy to remember.


It’s smells nice. There’s a faint essence of sweet potato in the uncooked form, it’s rather chewy ( of course) but not tooth breaking hard or crunchy.


It’s got a long shelf life in its bulk form but I broke it down into smaller units and put them in hard vacuum. I think I can keep my open portion in a hard side plastic container the same way I do bulk rice.

I think I’ll like this stuff and I’m eager to try it out.

I’m a mover, can’t sit still, and I’d rather be outside than just about anything. ( A combination that insured I was a terrible student at school. )
In my mind it’s much worse to be sitting in the house thinking about doing something, then not doing it. Than to be sitting in the house mindlessly playing action adventure video games.
I want to go pilfering instead!

 

Good show, those are handy ingredients for home and trail. Our local grocery store has a variety. You don't sound like a video game type to me.

 

The great canteen cup cooking experiment.
Our time outside can be so limited, I decided to try a new tactic with my new lightweight cup and pack system.


This time everything I need for my meal plan is in this little mesh bag. No cooler or refrigeration required.


A series of small Nag bottles holds almost everything I need.


The meat selection was the hardest to find. In beef the choices were very limited. ( 19 dozen different varieties of chicken though.). Because I anticipate this have a low texture factor I decided to add a piece of my Greek “Paxamadia “ crushed in at the finish.


The set up was easy. Add ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes. I can tell you that there’s a bit of scorching on this one in the bottom. I could smell it even in the cooking process. I was fighting 12-15mph gusty winds that made regulation of temperature difficult. My windscreen is a fraction of an inch too short so I either need a taller windshield or I need to scrape out a shallow depression to set the stove in.


It was thick, spicy, substantial to eat. The rice and dehydrated vegetables were completely cooked and the flavor was great.
I think it could have used a bit more water at the beginning so I’ll adjust that and try more things.

Definitely pleased with the results so far from this rig arrangement though. Not just light n fast, but fun to carry and use.