Bumbling Bushcraft Comic: Another Annoying Hole

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.

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: 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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Getting to the Point: Other Uses for Canvas Needles in Survival Situations

Last week we looked at different fabric and threading materials. This week we are going to look at our canvas needle as a multi purpose tool to really see what this thing can do. You may have several ideas spring to mind, number one being a compass. To start off with I am going to show you a few things you can pack to make sure you have a compass with you at all times.

The first thing you want is a AA battery and to make sure that your battery has power, you can hold the positive end to your compass and move it around to see if your compass needle will follow it. If it does, you have a good battery. I am now going to take an iron or steel sewing needle and I am going to swipe the tip against the tip of the positive end of the battery about 40-50 times. This magnetizes the needle. The next thing I am going to need is a tea light candle. Now if you remember in the candle blog I said that I wasn't going to pack a tea light candle, however, I am going to keep one wherever I keep my needle because I will be using it as a flotation device. Now I am placing my candle in the bowl of water and placing the needle on top of it. At this point it is as simple as waiting for the magnetized end of the needle to find north.

Now there are other ways to create a compass without having to float your needle. If you use some of the thread you have with you like I recommended in the last blog, you can tie a loop around the middle of your magnetized needle. You'll have to be careful to make sure that your needle is parallel to the floor for this to work. Now it will begin spinning but when it comes to a stop the magnetized end will be pointing north. It's a little creepy.

You could think of it as a cleaning/maintenance tool. You could use it to clean under your nails. You could roll or scrape debris out of an open would to prevent an infection. With that being said you could use it to patch yourself up with stitches or field medicine, but I think, or at least I really hope, we're a long ways away from having to practice field medicine.You could use it as a toothpick or if you get cysts like I get in my earlobes, you can use it as a lance. You could use it to pick out splinters or other foreign objects from your skin as well.

Now we are getting into the realm of fishing and trapping. Some people would tell you to heat it up and turn it over into a fish hook, but I am not one of those people. You would have to get it very hot and bend it very slowly because it would snap. I do think that it would work well as a gouge hook if you had something to help it float and prevent it from sinking to the very bottom. Theoretically you could put multiple needles together and use it as a frog gig. These ideas are all fine and good, however, if you're fishing for survival I think your best bet is going to be some type of netting system. You could use this in a windless trap for small rodents so it will stab them in the head and pin them down. I wouldn't recommend using it with a mouse trap though as it would likely break.

In terms of cooking you could use your needle to test if your dough is cooked all the way through. You could use it to pin your fish to a board if you choose to cook it or descale it that way. You may even be able to use your needle to descale the fish. If your needle was thick enough and able to bear the weight, you could use it as a toggle for your water bottle when you are boiling water over your fire. Of course you should be sure to test all of your equipment at home before taking it out and trying it in the field.

Well, I am now out of ideas for what you could possibly use a needle for. If you have any more ideas feel free to comment and tell me. I would love to hear your ideas. Next week will be our first review of 2018. We are going to review my Walmart canvas needle vs. some other canvas needles. Now the ones I've purchased are supposed to be the same ones the Dave Canterbury uses but I was unable to purchase them off of his website so I purchased them off of Amazon so they would arrive a little quicker. Either way, you know you don'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.

Survival Sewing: Testing Sewing Materials for Survival

Last week we opened into our homecraft sewing kit and practiced some very basic stitches that you can pick up and learn easily. This week we are going to look at sewing for survival in terms of making repairs by using different threading materials on different types of fabric. This way we will see which thread is best for which type of fabric.

To explain the parameters of the test, I am going to be using two different types of needle, a canvas needle and a sail needle, and use various different threads on various fabrics you may need to repair in a survival situation. The thread I will be using is the upholstery thread from last week (this will act as our control thread), the inner strands of paracord, a smaller strand of unraveled bankline, and some jute twine that will act as natural cordage. The fabric I have selected is the pillow sham we used last week, (this will act as our control fabric), denim, canvas, and supple and non-supple leather. We will be sewing the fabric together using a running stitch. If we are unable to perform the running stitch then we will attempt the whip or loop stitch. We will then be testing the strength of the thread and the fabric by trying to pull it apart.

After preparing all of my materials I am going to begin with the canvas needle, the upholstery thread, and the pillow sham. The running stitch with both the canvas and sail needle was very strong on the pillow sham as I expected of the control group. The upholstery thread performed well on the denim with both needles as well. I did have one issue when using the upholstery thread with the sail needle on the canvas. The stitches did begin to pull apart, but I do believe it was my sewing rather than the thread not being strong enough. I didn't have any problems with the canvas needle however. The leather I did not believe would hold the upholstery thread when I began to sew with the canvas needle so I didn't even try with the sail needle.

 Now we will go through the fabric again, this time with the inner strand of paracord. I was able to sew the pillow sham with both the canvas needle and the sail needle, however, the inner strand of the paracord was so strong and thick that when I began to pull it apart, it actually ripped the fabric around it. The experiment was also successful for both denim and canvas with both needles. The paracord was strong and held the material well. I was able to do a whip stitch into the leather with the sail needle. The difficulty I was having was getting the needle to pierce the leather. I would have had more luck if I had an awl. As for the paracord, it was able to hold the leather together.

Similar to when I sewed the pillow sham with the paracord, the bank line was so thick and strong that it caused the fabric around it to rip. Unlike the paracord, I am able to break down the bank line into finer strands. This may be more compatible with the pillow sham, but that is an experiment for another day. I had great success with both needles, the bank line and the denim. Unfortunately when using the bank line with the canvas, it ripped with both needles. Again I believe that if I broke the bank line down into finer strands I would have more success, but for this test I would consider this a fail. The canvas needle was able to do a whip stitch with the bank line and it held the leather well.

The jute twine was so thick that I was unable to pull it through any of the fabric, including the leather, with either needle. I did attempt to unravel the jute in the beginning into finer strands, however, the finer strands by themselves are so weak that they will break if you pull on them.

After finishing the test I compiled a chart with all of the data. On the left side of the chart is my fabric material and at the top are the thread materials I used. Each box has a section for the canvas needle and the sail needle. Basically if the combination of needle, thread and fabric was a success I marked it with a check. If the combination was a failure, I marked it with an X. The winner between the two needles was definitely the canvas needle since it was able to make a hole in the leather as well as use all of the same materials as the sail needle even though it was narrower. And the upholstery thread was definitely the handiest of all of our threading material since it was able to sew and hold almost all of the fabric material well.

Next week we will be looking at our needle not just as a sewing tool, but as a  multipurpose tool. What else can this sewing needle do for us in a survival situation? 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.

Leaving You in Stitches: Simple Sewing Stitches You Should Know

This is the first blog of 2018! This year we are going to be picking up with another C from David Canterbury's 10 C's of Survivability. In the last blog we ended on candle, and this year we will be picking up with canvas needles. To start this off, I have purchased Dritz Homecraft Needles, European Quality with 7 needles included. This kit cost me about $1.75 at Walmart. Included in this kit are sail, sack, canvas, carpet, leather, and two upholstery needles. A total of 7 needles.

The sail needles can be identified by having a slight bend at the tip of the needle. The sack needle has a large eye and a blunt tip. The upholstery needles are both C-shaped, I have a large one and a small one. I can identify the canvas needle by its triangular shaped tip. With the two that are left I know that the smaller needle with the larger eye is the carpet needle and the one that is slightly bigger is the leather needle.

Let me begin by saying that if you are going to sew anything for your survival needs, I highly recommend that you use upholstery thread. It is thick, stiff, and very durable. It's thick enough that when I begin to thread it through the eye I do not need to lick it to make it straighten out. All I am going to do is feed the thread through the eye about an inch or so, fold it over onto the tail and pull. If the thread doesn't separate from the needle, I know that it has been successfully threaded. Now I am going to draw out the tail about 18" and tie an overhand not near the end of the thread I will be sewing with. Now we are ready to sew.

The first stitch we are going to talk about today is called the running stitch. To begin I am going to insert my needle through both pieces of fabric and pull it all the way through to the knot. I am then going to go back through the fabric in the opposite direction leaving a bit of a loop. I am then going to go from the underside of the fabric on top of the stitch and through the loop and pull it tight. I have now locked my thread in place. After going through the fabric I am going to lay my needle flat, judge an adequate distance (about a half inch or so) and push it through the other side of the fabric again, repeating the process. Once I have gotten all the way to the end, I am going to stretch the fabric taught  and make sure there is no slack in and then I am going to lock the thread like I did in the beginning.

The second stitch is called the whip stitch or the loop stitch. This stitch is not going to weave in and out of the fabric like I did before. This time I am going to be going in one direction in one continuous motion. First I am going to lock into the fabric, then letting the thread rest on top, I am going to go behind the fabric and pull it through. Then I am going to repeat by bringing the thread around to the same side I just went through and pulling it through again in the same direction.

The third stitch is called the blanket stitch. After locking it in you will go through the back starting off much like we did with the whip stitch. Only this time instead of the loop being in our way, we are going to incorporate it by pulling our needle through the loop and repeating the process. Again this is very similar to the whip stitch, but we are going through the loop instead of pulling it down. I like the blanket stitch because it is a very strong stitch and is good for rounding corners.

The last stitch is called the hidden or ladder stitch. This stitch is good for mending tears in your clothes. I am going to lock in below the tear on the inside of the fabric and as the name suggests this stitch is going to resemble a ladder. I am going to go through one side of the rip and leave a loop then pull through the loop. I am then going to go through the other side of the rip and repeat. I am going to go back and forth like this down the length of the rip until I get past it. At this point I am going to go through the fabric and pull until the tear cinches shut. This just leaves a fold on the outside of the fabric so no stitching shows through.

If this got a little confusing to read, I do have a corresponding video on my YouTube channel Backpack Bushcraft. If you take nothing else away from this video just remember if I can sew, anyone can sew and probably do a better job than I did. Next week we are going to look at different materials to sew or mend in a survival situation as well as different thread materials that you may have to sew with. 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) or Wednesday 12pm for our new Comic Bumbling Bushcraft. 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.