slidegear

i posted a thread about my first build (solo) on the grandshelters.com forum... click on the picture for a link to the post. this one has a 11' diameter and stands 6'6" tall. building an igloo that tall using this tool proved to be difficult as i needed to climb a ladder inside and out during the last three layers of the igloo.

used the expedition sled to try my hand at building an igloo... ...didn't realize how much of a workout it would be to build the 11' (largest) version unassisted. having a harnessed sled allowed me to work through the exhaustion. neighbor's kids couldn't wait for me to finish for them to play in the snow "fort".

took this picture off of my 11' inflatable uli stand up paddle surfboard last february in lake michigan when the ice moved in... heheheh, can you say freeze frame? click on the picture to find out more about these boards.

here's mine... i believe that it's over 65 yrs. old. got a pretty good ebay deal $62.21 delivered. lol!!! i then proceeded to cut myself while getting familiar with the quick draw and resheathing of the machette upon arrival. its got very little pitting considering its advanced years and though i plan to baby it a little, this one is definitely meant to be used. the high carbon steel construction center layer of these old knives were the secret to their construction, the "softer" outer layers were primarily there to protect this more brittle sharper layer within.

sometimes you just get real lucky. initially i had bought my 'paris expedition' sled to haul snow around for making igloos when there is little snow on the ground. i found it for half price on craigslist. not being familiar with the brand, a simple internet search revealed how popular it was for people who build their own pack sleds. to my wife's utter dismay, the challenge of building the harness piqued my curiosity as i have some experience developing sports equipment, having held patents and with others well on the way (she just loves it when i lose myself on projects). seems the design i managed to implement is pretty unique in that i only used three tools for making the harness. a hack saw to cut the aluminum pole in half, a file to round off the ends, and the knife (an ulu) along with some heat for treating the ends of the nylon webbing. the harness and sled are secured using the existing holes with the original rope intact. the moment it was decided that the poles would be enveloped within the webbing, the dang thing practically designed itself. don't think it gets any stronger or lighter, or simpler than this... well, maybe only time and testing will tell. funny you should mention children, upon realizing how well the harness performed, it occurred to me that my older brother would love to be able to take his son out on something like this.

ed bouffard's skipulk.com is a real good place to start looking for information. there, you will find his free downloadable e-book: pulkbook.pdf. it's comprised of his own ideas and those that others have shared with him. here's a good link which contains a slew of other links you may be interested in. it's nice to know that there are others who could use this type of thing... from what i understand, these pulks are great on the long flat, wide open terrain... though mild inclines are doable. i have also read that backpacks would work much better when breaking trail through the woods.

recently found a lot of information about these "human powered" pull sleds.... so i thought i'd give building one a try... just wondering if there are others out there using these contraptions.

there is a real simple cure for nails infected by fungus (yeast). it is real simple but takes quite a long time. actually just a little while longer than it takes the nail to grow from cuticle all the way to the point it is clipped. the reason is the fungus is hunkered down in the nail bed. the solution is to clean the feet once in the morning and once at night removing as much derbis around and under the nails. applying a drop of vinegar afterward at the cuticle and under the nail from the top is the secret. what this does is put the skin to an acidic state. if this is done on a daily basis the nail sould grow out healthy within 6 to 9 months (depending on how fast yours grow). vinegar is one of those wonder cleaners, handy to have whenever one encounters questionable environments such as at the health clubs. a spritz on the feet after stepping out of the public showers or used as a handy... wash. about the best way to clean fruits and vegies too before a meal. hope this helps!

for around town my current everyday carry is the blade-tech ulu... but for wilderness bfk ya gotta reach for a woodman's pal...

yeah... and how about those cavemen marring up the walls of their caverns? wankers, all of them!

my inflatable... ...surfboard! heheheh... yeah, that's what it is. it's a surfboard.

i covered so much distance in an urban environment. i wouldn't know where to start looking... i did register the unit at garmin's site for what it's worth (we'll see if this gives me any advantage in locating it.) i will let the company know about the situation and report their response. i doubt that this would have happened as easily if it were on the carabiner because there is less outward stress to the rail on the d-ring on that accessory... but it is still plastic and more susceptible to regular wear, stress, temperature, certain chemicals, etc. than a metal one would be.

okay... i learned my lesson. the belt clip broke and i lost one of my rinos. the break occurred along the rail at the bottom of the d-ring in which the radio's pivot pin rests. a crescent shaped section broke off where the pin sits when locked in. i've had the radios for a little over a month now and have always had one with me on a daily basis for about three weeks, switchihg between the carabiner and the belt clip as needed. i would say that it had about light (occasionally medium) stress on the accessories. i am currently researching more reliable options for holstering the units i have left short of customizing a metal d-clip. one worth consider is this holster designed for the kenwood p7200. if it looks like a workable fit, i may be picking a couple of these up. it's such a shame that such a flimsy component is part of this otherwise outstanding product. as it is, i wouldn't trust the belt clip for anything other than around the house.

if you're handy, you may want to adapt this instructables project to a micro sd credit card wallet. i would envisioin something with the thickness of three credit cards stacked and stores away in your wallet along with the other cards to help keep things straight... click on the pictue to link to the site.

i've got a couple pair of these permagrin 10's by crescent moon with the old style fabric bindings from some years back (2001)... i prefer it to the direction the company has gone since the original owner sold the company off. liked 'em so much after i took the first pair for a hike that i trecked back to the store and picked up another pair just in case the inevitable would happen... and it did. now it's twice more fun having the second pair to share with friends!

sorry... but you guys are mistaken.

go ahead, just hit the and

the belt clip itself seems sturdy, comprised mainly of spring steel in a "u" configuration surrounded by plastic bits etc. which grips the belt. one of the ends of this spring is fashioned to provide tension on the lock mechanism in place. it has a plastic wedge which holds that swivel's "nipple" screwed into the radio's chassis with the added pressure when combined with that provided by the main spring clamping around a belt (especially one of substantial thickness.) along those lines... this could be a prime opportunity to provide a single point of contact for anything within without compromising the integrity of the housing. tested out the latex "sock" solution i mentioned earlier but ordered a few of those aquapacs anyway (today's the last day for that 25% off deal). always good to know that there's options should the need arise. btw have an idea for making a custom case which i'll post on if it works. the small vhf pro was a tad long (7.2" body 6.8" antenna) but i can turn under the antenna portion for a proper fit (slip in a cell phone or keys too). you should be able to click on the image to take you to the product page... oops, not quite.

i seem to remember a number around 4,490 miles mdg2003 but i can't remember where orwhen i saw it. the platform is similar but of different proportions 68-eldo. it was set into a pedestal of pier-like construction. there is a post with a target marker and some evidence of some minor disturbance to the site. i didn't think of (re)moving the post but then again i didn't know what i was looking for. in retrospect i would still refrain from doing so should i encounter a similar situation to this one. btw wintertime... here's how we got there. notice the spot on their map?

heheheh... like that? hex ray vision gives you an idea of how well it's all packaged. seems they have three unused mounting pillars beneath the quad helix antenna of the gps. can you say future possibilities?

okay bear with me here, the reason for this posting is to go to extreme measures to prevent liquids from contaminating our precious units... as noted in the previous post i am considering purchasing a few aquapacs for off shore navigation but it occurred to me that one of the most convenient ways of containing or preventing liquid saturation is with a latex container (unless of course one is allergic to latex). in fact everyone should have some sort of latex glove or condom in their first aid kit... they hold ice or hot water and make great tourniquets, not to mention their intended purpose. starting to get the picture? anyway, i was thinking that slippin' one over the horned wonder should do the trick! one can even remove the clip on pivot and reattach it after the rino is bagged so that it can easily be redeployed. heck, put on a glo-worm for that killer effect. see alice about long lasting effects (sorry). would work for a variety of devices (batteries not included). once you've got it covered you can dive in with confidence... a public service message from one who cares (more or less), as9

ooops... guess i didn't have it after all! my bad, thank you for the correction patty... i'll have to see about amending the error. reading the history indicates that the original concrete post probably doesn't exist any more. the platform is still there but i seem to remember that you could access beneath it from a cutaway on the top and all around at least two of the sides (guess i might have been real close after all). saw the RM1 disk's description after looking around for a reference for so long that it made me jump to that conclusion haste. had a feeling that there was more too it than that. the location is beautiful, it is a cow pasture where the mountain drops off into the sea far off in the distance. there is a large concrete platform at that spot about two or three inches thick set about thigh high but otherwise no other signs of civilization. my other shots do not give the location any justice (i was more interested in the disk and platform) but i'll see if i can grab some frames off of the video a friend took of the flight.

bagged my first benchmark when i took a couple of friends for a fly over maui... remember seeing the disk on the side of the volcano but couldn't remember what they were called. took a few pictures and forgot about it till now! sure gonna be tough to top that one.

"...for some years now," mauritz geyser writes, "i've wanted some kind of map that would give me a indication of where i can expect dark skies."

was looking for something to enhance the water resistance of my newly acquired rino 530 hcx's and i came across a a pretty good deal that aquapac is offering... 25% seems worth a mention. sorry if this comes too late for some.