kBob
Member
Camped out with my young Scout last night and today they worked on one of their requirements, knife and ax sharpening. Watching those kids go at an ax with a file gave me the willies big time. It was the knife sharpening that was interesting. The current book says things different than they have in the past. The boys did learn that the oilstone/wet stone/ dry stone thing is a religious arguement with three adults each demonstration that it depends on what you like. One of the older scouts that was supposed to be teachig for his Eagle work had a small chinese slip folder that he just could not seem to get to take an edge....so I "borrowed" it long enough to use a file on it to get rid of the rounded shape the had managed to obtain on it, push it over a dry medium stone a few times push it over a dry fine stone and hand it back to him in about two minutes and he pronounced it sharper than when new. I got to say it curled bad and the only marking was the word CHINA.
On the other hand one of the adult leaders had a Chinese Imperial knock off much like a decades oold original I have that seemed more than passable. SOme of the boys wondered how I could put down CHINESE knives when this leader's blade was so nice. A look at the various chinese knives available at the camp out failed to show up any others as nice and as the boys were Mormons I had to explain what a crap shoot was after I used the term with reguards to buying chinese knives.
One our way home "The Boy" suggested stopping at a yard sale and it was for the most part junk household items. Turned out to have some interesting knives but the seller appearently spends a lot of time looking at what folks will pay for them on line and had prices too high for me. I did come close to buying a rather heavy KoC sword that from its weight and feel I thought might be one of the live blades made in the 1800s rather than a modern ceramonial blade. If it is still there next week ( he said he plans to do it again next week)it might not be the week after I think. He had a Ka-Bar sportsmans knife in full covers the handle like a Pukka sheath I had not seen, it resembled an old Hickory butcher knife but with a high polish and teeth on the back, I think for use as a fish scaller.
The Boy dug in a box of old pocket knives and came up wiht a Wegner SAK that had been carried a good bit and not used much and was still tight and I figured if it made him happy eight bucks was good enough. I found a very nice cigar box of wood with pressed in brass hinges and clasp that just cries out to be turned into a BP revolver presentation box and as we headed for the "check out" we stumbled across a 1970's I think vintage BSA marked hatchet with ratty marked cover which we picked up for a ten spot and will be cleaning up and possibly repainting. We will be trying to recover the sheath but I fear dry rot may have taken its toll.
I will try to get a picture up at some point.
Still I think what I learned most this weekend was that I am getting too old for this sleeping on the cold cold ground thing.
-kBob
On the other hand one of the adult leaders had a Chinese Imperial knock off much like a decades oold original I have that seemed more than passable. SOme of the boys wondered how I could put down CHINESE knives when this leader's blade was so nice. A look at the various chinese knives available at the camp out failed to show up any others as nice and as the boys were Mormons I had to explain what a crap shoot was after I used the term with reguards to buying chinese knives.
One our way home "The Boy" suggested stopping at a yard sale and it was for the most part junk household items. Turned out to have some interesting knives but the seller appearently spends a lot of time looking at what folks will pay for them on line and had prices too high for me. I did come close to buying a rather heavy KoC sword that from its weight and feel I thought might be one of the live blades made in the 1800s rather than a modern ceramonial blade. If it is still there next week ( he said he plans to do it again next week)it might not be the week after I think. He had a Ka-Bar sportsmans knife in full covers the handle like a Pukka sheath I had not seen, it resembled an old Hickory butcher knife but with a high polish and teeth on the back, I think for use as a fish scaller.
The Boy dug in a box of old pocket knives and came up wiht a Wegner SAK that had been carried a good bit and not used much and was still tight and I figured if it made him happy eight bucks was good enough. I found a very nice cigar box of wood with pressed in brass hinges and clasp that just cries out to be turned into a BP revolver presentation box and as we headed for the "check out" we stumbled across a 1970's I think vintage BSA marked hatchet with ratty marked cover which we picked up for a ten spot and will be cleaning up and possibly repainting. We will be trying to recover the sheath but I fear dry rot may have taken its toll.
I will try to get a picture up at some point.
Still I think what I learned most this weekend was that I am getting too old for this sleeping on the cold cold ground thing.
-kBob
