The following post was kindly sent in this past winter by Woodlore customer Chris Rusby:

The Swazi/Ray Mears Tahr Anorak

Dear Ray Mears team, a little ditty for your day:

I recently purchased the excellent Swazi/Ray Mears Tahr Anorak and started to piece together a bare essentials bush-craft kit, after weeks of YouTube research. It all fits into a small satchel, plus, due to a forecast of 2 degrees, I took two sheep skins and a wool blanket in a water-proofed back pack.

The big day, I set off on an 18 km hike across a torrentially lashed, gale-force, foggy North Yorkshire Moors to an isolated woodland, where I was to rendezvous with a friend. Plans were flawed and this never came to pass, and after hours of EXHAUSTIVE searching for my friend in non-stop rain and wind in the dark, my self-preservation kicked in; tired, cold, drenched from the legs down and inexperienced (first time bush-crafter!) I set up a tarp/hammock camp and fire with the last of my strength. Everything then went well and I emerged bright and breezy the next morning. Sun-shine and everything!

It turns out my friend who came in a car (so I knew he would be OK) alerted Search and Rescue, but after my wife told them just HOW MUCH! Ray Mears I have been watching and that I had the Swazi coat they let me be. This all sounds irresponsible of me, and it was. I now have a deeply humbled view of nature and our fragile place on this planet. I thought this feeling, which Ray and others speak of, would slowly grow inside me as I made the transition from armchair bush-crafter, to hands-on practitioner, but it hit me in the face like a giant cosmic slap!

I guess this is kind of a confession and I do feel silly, but that coat saved my life! It was faultless in the most savior conditions! I’m humbled, inspired and cannot wait to get back into nature, I think I’ll drive next time!

On a serious note, I do understand the dangers, very, very much so.

Chris Rusby

The following post was kindly sent in by Woodlore customer Nick, who purchased the Julius Pettersson Knife Blade:

Hello Woodlore,

Having a look at the blog I noticed that there were a few pictures of completed knives and I thought I would send in a couple of mine:

Nick Murphy’s Julius Pettersson knife

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It seems as though Julius Pettersson’s reputation is spreading worldwide, with Californian customer Jonathan Aballi getting hold of one his knife blades and kindly sending in these pictures:

Hello Woodlore,

I wanted to send pictures of my finished knife. The handle is made from giraffe bone, leather and stabilized black ash burl:

The finished article

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Woodlore customer Nick Davis had a go at fitting a handle to his Julius Pettersson Knife Blade, and sent in the results:

Nick Davis' finished Julius Pettersson Knife

Hi Woodlore Team,

Just wanted to send in a photo of my finished Julius Pettersson knife in the hope that you will add it to the others already on your blog page.

 

The handle is Thoya Burr and buffalo horn inlayed with bone. The ferrule and tang are both brass for added strength.

 

Working on these wonderful blades is such a relaxing and rewarding undertaking as you are building something that will be a source of pride every time you use it… and it will last a lifetime!

 

Many thanks for all you do in sourcing quality items such as these blades!….. now I better get on with building my crooked knife!

 

All the Best,

 

Nick Davis

The following text and accompanying photographs were kindly sent in by Woodlore customer Jon Mac:

Dear Woodlore,

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Jon Mac, I am a spoon carver working in Devon. A few years ago I was given a Julius Pettersson laminated blade to assist me in my work. The blade has excellent quality and performance.

After fitting the blade into the handle which I designed and made, I sent the blade to a knifemaker, Chris Grant, to be slightly reshaped to my specifications. The Pettersson blade was tweaked to my preferences, these being, a narrower belly and finer point to facilitate an ease in carving internal radii.

The handle was designed very much with carving in mind – specific ergonomics for everyday, comfortable and accurate use.

Chris and I wanted to thank you for providing the spark that became this exciting and rewarding project. This has helped me find the working knife that I have been searching for, for many years.

Jon Mac

Jon’s Julius Pettersson Hand-forged Knife Blade before being reshaped

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Woodlore customer Rogelio of Spain contacted us recently to let us know how he got on with his Large Crooked Knife Blade:

Rogelio’s finished Large Crooked Knife (click for full size)

Hello Woodloreans,

My crooked knife blade (Christmas present) finally arrived and I couldn’t wait to put the handle on to it. I went into the woods with only my laplander saw and my mora knife, as I didnt have my axe here.

I found a piece of olive wood, which is an extremely hard wood, that I had used half a year ago to carve a spoon. I cut it into size, removed the rotten outside and started carving; all of this I did without yet having the blade with me.

As woods here in southern Spain tend to be harder, I thought the thumb support would be essential, and as I was carving it I realised that it was starting to look like a bird’s head, so I decided to fashion it in this way.

The engravings I did with a lense, something I had tried before on a walking stick, and I thought I’d finish it with some olive oil, rather than other more appropriate oils for woods, as it was the natural oil that this wood would originally contain: it was a success.

I would recommend anyone thinking about buying a crooked knife to give it a try; the handle was actually easier to make than I first thought, I mean it fits in surprisingly well. There’s also a video at YouTube called “making a crook knife” (parts 3 and 4 are about the handle) which really helped.

Anyway, I’m really happy about this tool, even though at the beginning I thought maybe 80 euros would be too much for a blade, I already gave it a try and it is a superb piece of kit.

Kind regards,

Rogelio L. Lora

The following article was kindly sent in by Woodlore customer Chris Waugh, and features the S. Djarv Hantverk Large Crooked Knife Blade, which is currently on special offer at £45.00 while stocks last:

Dear Ray and all at Woodlore,

I purchased the Large Crooked Knife Blade (Right Handed) not too long ago from you all, and I just wanted to send you my pictures of the finished knife! I used a beautiful piece of South American Cocobolo wood to make my handle:

The handle before being fitted and finished

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