Bumbling Bushcraft Comic: Another Annoying Hole

Fashion in the Bush?: What to Take as Your Cotton Option

Last week we finished up talking about cargo tape which was our ninth installment of our 10 C's arc. This week we will be talking about the last of the 10 C's of survivability; the last C that David Canterbury has come up with. Today we will be talking about cotton. What I have with me today is just a typical cotton bandanna. You can get a pack of two at Walmart for one dollar making them fifty cents a piece. My older viewers will know that I used to wear a bandanna everywhere I went, however, after some testing, researching, and viewing some very informative videos I have learned that these little things are not as useful as I perceived them to be and they actually have a lot of problems. But we'll get into that another time. Just because bandannas aren't the best, doesn't mean they are the worst. They are easy to find, purchase, and maintain. I typically will fold my bandanna diagonally, drape it around my neck, tie it off, and turn it so the triangular portion is in front of me. It keeps my neck warmer in cold weather and keeps the sun off to prevent sunburn. They come in a variety of colors so I can easily match it to my attire.

The next cotton item I have I was very fortunate to find at Walmart. I have a 3 ft by 3 ft square
section of bandanna fabric that I purchased for $2.50.  This is actually the size that Dave Canterbury recommends you carry. Now it's not an exactly perfect square, but that isn't something that I can't quickly hem up later. Now if I try to wear it the same way I wear my other bandanna, it's way too long, however I can fold it over and wear it like a scarf. It's a little bulky and uncomfortable, but I could dress it up and add a handkerchief holder to it. And there I have my 3 ft by 3 ft square section of cotton that I can wear around my neck and have on hand any time I need it in the bush. And bonus, I look like I have a fancy bushcraft neck tie.

So if the smaller option isn't your taste and the larger option isn't in your taste, I may have a good in between for you. What I have here is a flour sack towel. They are $5 for a pack of 5 at Walmart. Even if you don't take them out side they are still great to use around the house. So these towels are 28" by 29", almost a perfect square and not nearly as large as the 3 ft by 3 ft section of bandanna. When I fold it over and wrap around my neck it is immediately more comfortable and lighter. Where the bandanna fabric is not 100% cotton and there is some polyester in it, the fabric is slick. These towels are not slick at all. I don't like that it is white because I think the appeal of wearing it into the woods is lessened, but I can store it in my pack or fold it up like a handkerchief and keep it in my pocket until I need it. This is definitely my favorite option so far.

I hope you enjoyed the blog this week. Cotton has so many uses around the camp and that is what we'll be talking about next week and you know you won't want to miss it! As always feel free to comment by clicking the comment link at the end of the blog, hit the follow button in the top right corner, share this blog, and check back next week for a new one on Sunday 10pm (est). If you want to keep up with me and what I’m doing, Follow me on Facebook: @BPackBushcraft and on Twitter @BPackBushCraft. Lastly if video is more your style check out my YouTube Channel backpack bushcraft where there is a video version of this with the same title. Until next time, keep those fires burning and put another log on for me.

Trails With Ole Nick: Making the Square Tarp

Bumbling Bushcraft Comic: Needle in the Bush

The Cargo Tape King: Reviewing Gorilla Glue Products

Okay guys, this week the unthinkable has happened; I've broken my axe handle. Now I could drop down and use it the way it is, but I am not going to get any work done. The best course of action would be to replace or repair the handle using Gorilla tape, and maybe even a little Gorilla glue. I wanted to test and see if something like this happened, if I could repair it or if I would have to completely rehang it. Would this be the end of my camp, or could I get this tool to hang on just a bit longer until I could properly repair it? Now this isn't going to be like other reviews we have done in the past. This review is not just on one product, but instead on the Gorilla brand itself and how its products work together.

The products I will be using are the Gorilla Crystal Clear Tape, Gorilla Glue (the same glue I used in the fire starting video), and some black Gorilla Tape for grip. What I am going to do is use the glue to bond the handle back to itself. The bottle states that this glue will bond to wood which is what we need it to do so I am going to be careful to follow the instructions on the bottle.After having it set, I am going to bind the handle with the clear tape about to inches above and two inches below the fracture, similar to when I make sewing repairs. Lastly, I will use the black tape and a grip where my hands will hold the axe to prevent it from slipping while I am working.

To apply the glue you first wet the area that you will be applying the glue to and spread it thin. I did this for the axe handle and spread the glue with a stick. After making sure the two pieces of handle adequately fit together I used to crystal clear tape to bind it in three places across the fracture; the top, middle, and bottom. By doing this it helps clamp the two sides together so they can bond together. I also took apart my chair (which will be featured another time) and laid one piece on the ground, sandwiched the axe between it and the top piece, and used a large rock (though you could use any significantly weighted object like your pack, a large branch, etc...) to place on top of it, again to clamp the two broken pieces together. After letting this sit for two hours, I will come back to check on it.

After two hours, I notice that some of the Gorilla glue has come out of the sides of the break. This is a good thing.  What this means is that the handle had enough pressure on it for the glue to spread out inside the fracture. At this point I wrap the Gorilla crystal clear tape in one continuous wrap from two inches above the break to two inches below. Afterward, and this is an optional step, I used my mini cargo tape roll (the black tape) to create a nonslip grip for my hands. After a few good test swings on a very sturdy tree, I'm convinced that the Gorilla products have done their job.

And that does it for this week. I want to thank everyone reading this for going through this with me and I would also like to think Gorilla brand products. They did not sponsor me or ask me to do this review, but without them I don't think this repair would have been possible. Next week we will be starting on our last C: cotton, and you won't want to miss it! As always feel free to comment by clicking the comment link at the end of the blog, hit the follow button in the top right corner, share this blog, and check back next week for a new one on Sunday 10pm (est). If you want to keep up with me and what I’m doing, Follow me on Facebook: @BPackBushcraft and on Twitter @BPackBushCraft. Lastly if video is more your style check out my YouTube Channel backpack bushcraft where there is a video version of this with the same title. Until next time, keep those fires burning and put another log on for me.

Trails With Ole Nick: Fire Making on an East KY Ridge

Bumbling Bushcraft Comic: The Tenacious C

Sealing the Deal: Making Repairs With Cargo Tape

Last week we talked about the fire starting abilities of cargo tape and this week we will be moving on to the true reason that it is a part of the 10 C's. That reason is its ability to repair in the field. We are still using Gorilla brand cargo tape and that is the only brand of cargo tape that I will use.




Whether you are repairing your tarp, there is something wrong with your pack such as a broken strap, or turned it into a rope like Kirk Miller did (link here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgJ0z...), or even if your shirt got a rip, you could repair it really quickly with cargo tape. I'll show you how.

You want to start by getting a length of cargo tape that is roughly a quarter of an inch longer above and below the rip; this can be longer depending on your preference. This actually works really well with denim, but because I didn't want to rip my good pants, we will just be working with a cotton t-shirt. So all I am going to do is pull the fabric taut, fold the tear over on itself, and seal it with the cargo tape being sure to smooth out any wrinkles as this will weaken the bond. Now the tape does not stick to my skin and no wind is able to get through the fabric. Of course we can all agree that this is a temporary fix, but this can be a quick solution to the problem until you have time to sit down and repair the fabric with needle and thread.

Now let's say you got injured.What I have seen some people do is take a small section of cargo tape and tear it in half. They will start on one side of the wound and pull over to the other side and seal it down. Then taking the other half of the cargo tape start on the opposite side than what you started on with the other piece of tape and repeat the process. I have even seen some people take a larger section of tape and cover up the the smaller pieces of tape and the entire wound. On the contrary I have also seen people saying not to do this because the wound needs to breathe. I am not an expert by any means so you may want to do more research into this topic. If there is a way you prefer to do it, leave me a comment and tell me!

We have now repaired our shirt, we've repaired ourselves, and my pack currently does not need repairs. Now we are going to move on to the reason I carry cargo tape the most; repairing the tarp. So I have just cut a small hole near the corner of my tarp. I am going to do this the same way that I repaired my shirt. I am going to get a piece of cargo tape long enough to go about a quarter of an inch above and below the tear and seal it down. I am now going to go onto the back side of  the tarp and do the same thing. Now if you happen to do what I did and did not get a long enough piece of tape, no worries. Just get another section of tape and overlap where the previous piece stopped and pull it the rest of the way over the tear. This should  make it water type and we will test it out. All I have done to test is to stake the corner near the rip up so I can see the ground beneath it and poured water directly over the cargo tape. After doing this, the ground beneath the tarp was still dry as was the inside of the tarp, making this a successful repair.

That does it for this week! Next week we will be doing a cargo tape review and you won't want to miss it! As always feel free to comment by clicking the comment link at the end of the blog, hit the follow button in the top right corner, share this blog, and check back next week for a new one on Sunday 10pm (est). If you want to keep up with me and what I’m doing, Follow me on Facebook: @BPackBushcraft and on Twitter @BPackBushCraft. Lastly if video is more your style check out my YouTube Channel backpack bushcraft where there is a video version of this with the same title. Until next time, keep those fires burning and put another log on for me.

Trails with Ole Nick: Tarp Setup on an East KY Ridge

Bumbling Bushcraft Comic: All Tied Up

Burning up the Supplies: Using Cargo Tape for Fire

Last week we talked about making our own raw hide glue. This week I wanted to actually break out the cargo tape. Now, I love cargo tape. It was one of the first C's I started packing with me everywhere I went and it's one of things that I see a lot of people skip on and I never understood why because of all of the benefits you get from packing it with you. It can do so much for you. In today's blog I want to specifically demo its uses in fire making. Now cargo tape can be used for a lot of things like dressing wounds, making repairs, and I have even seen some make rope out of it. We will try some of that next week, but for now I will just demonstrate it's power in a fire kit.

Gorilla brand cargo tape; it is my favorite brand of cargo tape. I think it does an excellent job of bonding things together. I also have Gorilla glue which we will be working with as well. On the bottle it says that it bonds to wood, stone, foam. metal, ceramic, glass, and more. This could be your skin if you really needed it in that sort of situation. Now I have what I call the cargo tape match. I have taken a strip of cargo tape, found the center of it lengthwise and folded one side in half so that the adhesive bonds to itself and left the other side open so that the adhesive is exposed. Now with a lighter and five seconds of flame, the cargo tape is now ablaze. This flame will last you for a while because it will take the cargo tape some time to burn down, but you do want to be cautious holding it because bits of flaming tape will melt off of it. With one quick breath I am able to put this flame out. I have read online where people say that this is a windproof flame. If I am able to blow it out that easily, it is not a windproof flame. This is an extender for your fire. It is not a wind or bad weather match, it is just an extender. If you just can't get your fire to start, this is what you want. Now I have tried catching it with a spark and just couldn't get it to catch, so if you are going to pack this with you, it is best to assume that you are going to need to have direct flame as well.

The next thing I want to show you is the Gorilla glue. I put a dab of it on a wood sliver and much like the cargo tape, with only five seconds of direct flame I have a match. The adhesive in both the cargo tape and the gorilla glue are hydrocarbon which means they want to burn much like fuel. Now what you can do with this when starting a fire is set this burning wood into your bird's nest, place some dry kindling on top, and you are good to go.

Now if I have any one out there who is doing ultra light backpacking, send me a message at bpackbushcraft@gmail.com. What I wanted to show you was that some people prefer to take the Gorilla Tape to Go. In comparison to the cargo tape we used early, it is roughly half the size. But similar to the larger tape it catches a flame all the same.


I hope you enjoyed looking at cargo tape in just a fire kit mentality. If you are wondering how to pack your cargo tape for your fire kit, if you use the Altoids tin that I am so fond of you could wrap your cargo tape around the tin or some people I have seen will just take some and roll it up and store it in the tin. Either way gets an A. Next week we will be looking at the repair and patching side of cargo tape and you know you won't want to miss it! As always feel free to comment by clicking the comment link at the end of the blog, hit the follow button in the top right corner, share this blog, and check back next week for a new one on Sunday 10pm (est). If you want to keep up with me and what I’m doing, Follow me on Facebook: @BPackBushcraft and on Twitter @BPackBushCraft. Lastly if video is more your style check out my YouTube Channel backpack bushcraft where there is a video version of this with the same title. Until next time, keep those fires burning and put another log on for me.

Trails with Ole Nick: Pre-Trip Repairs

Music: "Georgia's Banjo Brigade" by TeknoAXE's Royalty Free Music https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7gJZ...

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